More than two years since the release of his last album, ‘Cinematic’, Illy returns with new music in the form of the single, 'Swear Jar'.
Illy is currently touring the country for ‘The Swear Jar' tour, which will feature tracks from his yet to be released album. “We’re going to be trying out some songs off the upcoming album and getting back into the groove,” Illy says.
Joining him on stage will be Melbourne artist Dylan Joel and Canberra hip hop artist Citizen Kay. After wrapping up a massive run of shows in March 2015, Illy is excited to get back on stage. “It’s been a long time away from the stage, so we’re really desperate to get back out there and put on a good show again,” he says.
There is no set date for the release of the upcoming album, but Illy is confident it will coincide with the end of the tour. “There’s no fixed date yet. As soon as there’s an actual date everyone will know. It’s going to be, probably, in the first or very early second quarter of 2016,” he says.
It may feel as though Illy has been MIA for the past couple of years, but after he released ‘Cinematic’ Illy spent a lot of time on the road. “2014 was pretty much just touring everywhere and then the touring kind of finished in March last year… although I’ve been away for a little while and kind of quiet there’s definitely been stuff happening behind the scenes,” Illy says.
In conjunction with the release of ‘Swear Jar’, Illy has created his own, virtual swear jar by partnering with beyondblue. He's inviting friends and fans to donate money each time they swear to raise money to improve the lives of individuals, families and communities affected by depression, anxiety, suicide and cyber bullying.
“Basically the song is kind of a tongue-in-cheek song and if you listen to the lyrics it can come across as kind of a dumb song because there’s a lot of F-bombs in the chorus. But it also touches on online bullying and online abuse and to draw attention to that, rather than just the swears.
Illy - Swear Jar Initiative My new song Swear Jar talks a lot of shit. But one of the serious things it touches on is online abuse. It’s an important issue, and one that affects a lot of people. So I’ve decided to do my bit. Posted by Illy on Wednesday, 2 December 2015
“We did this swear jar initiative where I’ve been donating to my own swear jar every time I’ve been swearing… at the end of the month I’ll be donating all of my money to beyondblue – because they do a lot of work with online bullying – and I’m asking people to get involved and do the same thing. From what I can tell it’s been doing well. Any money you can raise for a cause like that is good.”
‘Swear Jar’ may be a little silly on the outside, but Illy assures us it’s no indication of the tone of his upcoming album. “It’s more of a stand-alone track which is why I felt comfortable putting it out well in advanced of the album… It doesn’t sound to similar to anything else on the album, but it doesn’t stick out like crazy. In context, it works.”
Illy says the lyrics on the new album will be a bit “darker” than his previous work. “If you know an Illy album then it’s similar. It’s probably a little bit more darker subject matter, but yeah, I don’t want to give too much away.”
Illy Tour Dates
Fri 19 Feb - 170 Russell (Melbourne)Sat 20 Feb - Metro Theatre (Sydney)
Fri 26 Feb - The Triffid (Brisbane)
Sat 27 Feb - Coolangatta Hotel (Gold Coast)
Fri 4 Mar - Academy (Canberra)
Sat 12 Mar - The Gov (Adelaide)
Illy also performs as part of the touring Groovin the Moo festival series in April and May.
