Dashville founder and patriarch Matt 'Magpie' Johnston adds another feather to his hat with the impending release of the debut album from his own band, Magpie Diaries.
Best-known for hosting music festivals on his parents' rural property in the Hunter Valley, Matt now offers up single 'When Love Comes' as the first taste of the album due later in the year.
Alluding to an era well before their birth, Magpie Diaries have a soundborn from the ‘70s. Bathed in inspirations provided by acts such as The Band, Neil Young, Grateful Dead and Van Morrison. It's dreamy Americana country mixed with a rockier alternative.
While the influences are evident, the approach is very much unique. It's the simplistic, candid story telling approach that cuts to the core of Magpie’s enduring spirit.
In the winter of 2012, after the sudden tragic passing of a close friend, Johnston began the Magpie Diaries project as a way of coming to terms with the loss. The emotional journey led him to revisit past musical escapades and written memoirs, where he pieced memories together in order to play a special solo show at his favourite pub in the world, The Junkyard (in Maitland NSW).
Fast forward to July 2018, together with his wife Jessica on drums and vocals, national treasure Lyle Dennis on lead guitar, Chris Dale on bass and special guest Cassie Bofinger on tenor saxophone, the band known as Magpie Diaries are excited about the prospects of touring the east coast of Australia throughout July and August in support of this first official release.
Magpie Diaries Tour 2018
13-14 Jul - Bello Winter Music Festival (Bellingen)Sat 14 Jul - The Northern (Byron Bay)
Sun 15 Jul - Bello Winter Music Festival (Bellingen)
Thu 19 Jul - Howler (Melbourne)
Fri 20 Jul - The Union Hotel (Melbourne)
Sat 21 Jul - Bridge Hotel (Castlemaine)
Sun 29 Jul - Grand Junction Hotel (Maitland)
Sat 4 Aug - Hardy’s Bay Club (Central Coast)
Sun 5 Aug - Staves Brewery (Sydney)
Fri 10 Aug - Customs House (Newcastle)
