Former Silverchair frontman Daniel Johns has returned to our ear holes with a cover of a song by Aussie icons The Easybeats, as part of a new tribute EP from a bunch of contemporary Aussie musos.
Johns has brought his Vivid LIVE band back together for a one-off track under the name Boom Tish — a version of The Easybeats’ ‘Hello, How Are You’ for the just-announced Rebeat tribute EP.
Boom Tish’s version of the track stays pretty true to the original, but adds some modern production touches, eccentricities and gruff vocals from Johns, and even a touch of autotune. Stream the song, below.
“The Easybeats legacy is undeniable, and Harry and George in particular created a blueprint of self-sufficiency for Australian musicians that is more relevant in 2017 than ever,” says Johns.
“I remember seeing a quote from George Young where he said ‘Hello, How Are You’ was considered by many Easybeats fans an unwelcome departure from the band’s typical rock sound… I feel like I can relate to this statement.
“This is probably why the track is one of my favourite Easybeats songs and Boom Tish had a lot of fun working on it. We could assume that having four friends work on the song in my lounge room, self-producing and recording it in a day and then sending it to the label via text message was a slight departure from the recording process of 50 years ago!”
Boom Tish’s Easybeats cover is the first new release from Johns since his debut solo album Talk in 2015. He’s been teasing music from Boom Tish recently, and the group’s Easybeats cover is our first taste of their work.
The Rebeat EP will also feature songs performed by KLP, San Cisco, The Bamboos featuring Montaigne and LDRU featuring Nicole Millar, with one song being released each week beginning 10th November. The full EP will be released on 24th November.
Meanwhile, the ABC will also be broadcasting a two-part mini-series about The Easybeats called Friday On My Mind, beginning 26th November.
Formed in 1964 by singer Stevie Wright, guitarists Harry Vanda and George Young, bassist Dick Diamonde and drummer Snowy Fleet, The Easybeats released a string of huge hits before being inducted into the ARIA Hall Of Fame in 2005.
The band — and its late members Wright and Young — are also set to be honoured with an Easybeats tribute tour this December featuring members of Grinspoon, The Living End, Spiderbait, You Am I and more.
‘Rebeat’ EP Tracklist
1. Boom Tish – ‘Hello, How Are You’ (out today)
2. KLP – ‘Good Times’ (released 10 Nov)
3. The Bamboos feat. Montaigne – ‘I’ll Make You Happy’ (released 17 Nov)
4. LDRU feat. Nicole Millar – ‘Friday On My Mind’ (released 24 Nov)
5. San Cisco – ‘Friday On My Mind’ (released 24 Nov)
