It appears of late that we have a leaning for Aussie musicians. Perhaps it’s something in the water, but there have been some pretty exciting things happening in the indie music scene Down Under. Courtney Barnett has been leading an indie folk-rock charge with her label Milk! Records. Psych-rock has had a resurgence with bands like King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Tame Impala, and Methyl Ethel. And, then there’s a circle of weirdo male art-rock crooners that includes Kirin J. Callinan, Alex Cameron, and Jack Ladder. We’d like to focus on the latter (or Ladder) of these three fellows, as he was recently welcomed to the Terrible Records family and has a new album on the way, Blue Poles. You can check out the video for the album’s first release, “White Flag”, below.

Jack Ladder (aka Tim Rogers), who is beloved for his baritone voice, lyrical wit, and wry delivery, has been operating in and around the Aussie music scene since 2005. Blue Poles will be the artist’s fifth album, and his follow-up to Playmates, which was was released in the US in 2015 on Fat Possum. His two records previous to Playmates, 2008’s Love Is Gone and 2011’s HURTSVILLE, were both shortlisted for the Australian Music Prize.

Ladder is calling Blue Poles the most melodic thing he has ever done. Produced by Ladder, engineered by Tim Whitten, and mixed in Los Angeles by Noah Georgeson, the record finds Ladder re-teaming with his longtime backing band the Dreamlanders. A supergroup of sorts, the crew features Donny Benét on bass, Laurence Pike on drums, and Ben Hauptmann and Kirin J. Callinan on guitar.

As for the first track off the record, “White Flag” is an atypical love song about the nature of relationships. It’s written as a duet with Ladder singing both parts. The video was shot in Indonesia and directed by Jim Pillion, whose other credits include Alex Cameron’s “She’s Mine” and Gordi’s “Myriad” (Live at Hordern Pavilion).

Not appearing on the new record, but out now, is a song Ladder & the Dreamlanders contributed to an Amazon Original Made in Australia compilation that features Australian musicians covering other Australian musicians. For the project, Ladder covered Flash and the Pan’s “Midnight Man”. You can take a listen here.

Ahead of Blue Poles drop on May 4, Ladder is touring with Alex Cameron, sans the Dreamlanders. He’ll be opening Cameron’s show at Music Hall of Williamsburg on Monday, March 12 (tickets), and accompanying him on dates in Europe. His tour schedule is below.

Blue Poles is available for pre-order now. Pick it up here.

Jack Ladder solo supporting Alex Cameron
Tue 27th March – Lille VEGA – Copenhagen, Denmark
Wed 28th March – Debaser Strand – Stockholm, Sweden
Thu 29th March – Pustervik – Gothenburg, Sweden
Fri 30th March – Atlas – Aarhus, Denmark
Sun 1st April – Z-bau – Nurnberg, Germany
Tue 3rd April – Covo Club – Bologna, Italy
Wed 4th April – Marche Gare – Lyon, France
Thu 5th April – iBoat – Bordeaux, France
Fri 6th April – Cabaret Sauvage – Paris, France
Mon 9th April – la Cave aux Poetes – Roubaix, France
Tue 10th April – Mama Roux’s – Birmingham, United Kingdom
Wed 11th April – Thekla – Bristol, United Kingdom
Thu 12th April – KOKO, London, United Kingdom
Fri 13th April – The Magnet – Liverpool, United Kingdom
Sat 14th April – Junction 2 – Cambridge, United Kingdom

‘Blue Poles’ album Australian tour w/ The Dreamlanders
Fri 18th May – Corner Hotel, Melbourne
Sat 19th May – The Brightside, Brisbane
Fri 25th May – Factory Theatre, Sydney

Image above by Kylie Coutts