Formed in Darwin, elctronic soul duo Sietta blossom with their second album, The Invisible River (out now via Elephant Tracks). Their lush breeze of soul tinged electronic hip hop now stands alone, as real and as warm as the tropical fruit growing in the maddening heat.
Armed with bass, guitar, electronics and Caiti Baker’s show-stopping voice, Sietta are about to bring their album to life when they hit the road to celebrate the launch of The Invisible River. Acoustic or electronic, there is no other act in the country quite like this Darwin duo. We asked the duo to give us a musical guide to their home state.
Acts/Bands
“We love so much music up here. Big fans of Gurrumul, it’s not just ‘cos he’s from the NT (Elcho Island) but it’s also because he’s brought something to the world of music that no one else has.
Darwin legends Roy Mackonkey still play regularly and we’ve always been fans. There are too many bands to mention and we recommend people not writing off the NT music scene just because it feels so far away. We’re really excited about 2 Female Artists coming from the NT named Abbey Rose and Serina Pech. Remember those names ‘cos you’ll be hearing more from them soon.”
Songs About NT
“We are so lucky to have so much Indigenous Music coming from the NT, with a lot of it based on beautiful stories and their amazing connection to the land so we recommend anything from the Skinnyfish Music catalogue.
Dave Garnham is an artist we’ve enjoyed getting to know despite being a in very different genre to us, I also destroyed him on the squash courts once so lucky he’s a great muso. He’s written a great song about Darwin called “This Town”
Festivals
“Barunga Festival happens every year and we’re lucky enough to be playing this year. I’m also running the “Barunga Beats” program this year which is really exciting. Amazing vibe out there. The Darwin Festival happens every year in August. International acts make it there as well. Bass In The Grass is a big festival run at the amphitheatre which is all ages and has had a long list of Australian acts that come up for it. Wide Open Spaces happens in the Desert and it has a really unique vibe. We’ve played there a few times and just being in that area of the country is special.”
Venues
“The Happy Yess is one of the most important venues in the NT. It was started a while back now by a guy named “Kris Keogh” who’s a bit of a local legend/freak. It continues to support live original music today. The Railway club has been a regular venue for the past few years now, particularly since the guys from NOOK entertainment started bringing up acts from around the country.
There are some beautiful places to run gigs in the NT and this is proven when the Fringe Festival and the Darwin Festival are on but sadly it is a bit of a struggle to keep original live music venues happening.”
Music Communities
“Music NT do a lot to support the local scene with various events throughout the year now including “NT Song Of The Year” and iNTune which this year is actually based in Alice Springs. Due to the smaller size of the scene people can easily meet each other, jam, check each other’s shows etc. The scene is really supportive.
There are heaps of other communities too, it’s good for people heading to the NT to do their own research or hit us up and we’ll always give some tips.”
Local Heroes
“Some heroes of ours are Shellie Morris, Gurrumul, Dr Yunupingu and the other members of Yothu Yindi including my Uni lecturer Marine Boy. At the moment we’ve had Tom E Lewis’ “Beneath The Sun” on high rotation, he’s got a special legacy both in Australian Film and Music. Michael Hohnen (Double Bass Player/ Producer for Gurrumul) was my bass teacher in high school and has been a great mentor and friend over the years. He’s definitely raised the bar for NT music over the past 10 years.”
The Sietta ‘Invisible River’ Tour
Saturday 15 March Railway Club, Darwin (www.oztix.com.au)
Thursday 27 March Globe Theatre, Brisbane (tickets on door)
Friday 28 March Club Hotel, Bundaberg (free entry)
Saturday 29 March Bojangles, Gladstone (www.oztix.com.au)
Saturday 26 April Northcote Social Club, Melbourne (northcotesocialclub.com)
Wednesday 30 April Black Bear Lodge, Brisbane (www.oztix.com.au)
Thursday 1 May GoodGod, Sydney (www.moshtix.com.au)
Friday 2 May Pirie Street Social Club, Adelaide (www.moshtix.com.au)
Saturday 3 May Republic Bar, Hobart (www.moshtix.com.au)
