Australian rock band You Am I is returning to America next month for the first time in four years in support of an eponymous full-length album due Sept. 6 via Redeye Distribution.
The quartet led by frontman Tim Rogers will show Stateside audiences why they've been called "one of the best live bands on the planet" (The Stranger) and count The Rolling Stones, The Who, Wilco, Oasis, Pearl Jam, The Strokes, The Black Keys, Soundgarden, Mudhoney, The Lemonheads and Sonic Youth as fans.
Just in time for the band's return, their prolific eight album catalog previously unavailable digitally in North America is now readily available on iTunes and other digital retailers.
An institution back home and a group with a rabid cult following here in America, You Am I are one of the most successful Australian bands of the '90s. Since forming in Sydney in 1992, they have released nine acclaimed albums and cemented a legacy in the Australian rock scene.
You Am I were the first Australian band to have three albums (Hi-Fi Way, Hourly Daily, No. 4 Record) successively debut at #1 on the ARIA Charts (Australia's main music sales chart), and in their impressive 20-year career have racked up a platinum record and three gold ones. Additionally, they have bagged 10 ARIA's (Australia's Grammy equivalent), garnering their first one for "Best Alternative Album" for their debut, Sound as Ever, produced by Sonic Youth axe man Lee Ranaldo. Ranaldo returned to the production chair for their sophomore LP, their first #1, as well.
Often referred to as The Replacements of Australia, You Am I's rousing rock and roll has been a huge influence on a generation of Australian musicians from Wolfmother and The Vines to The Sleepy Jackson, Jet and Silverchair (who half-named themselves after You Am I's classic song "Berlin Chair").
You Am I continues to fire on their ninth studio record. Widely touted in the Australian press as their "best album to date," the album opens with "We Hardly Knew You, a hazy, psychedelic-esque song featuring a buzzy acoustic guitar and frontman Rogers quoting the "Declaration of Independence" before it builds into a wild climax of crescendoing electric guitars, pounding drums and screams.
From there, the foursome of vocalist/guitarist Tim Rogers, guitarist Davey Lane, bassist Andy Kent, and drummer Russell Hopkinson explore the carefree sunshine pop of "The Good Ones" and "Lie And Face The Sun, the anthemic grandeur of "Shuck," the Beatles/Beach Boys beauty of "Waiting To Be Found Out," the two-minute punk burst of "Pinpricks," the '90s alt-rock of "The Ocean" and the plaintive piano ballad closer of "Let's Not Get Famous." Throughout it all, Rogers' voice is powerful and resonant, marking some of his best-ever vocal performances.
Tour dates:
Sept. 2 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo
Sept. 3 - San Francisco, CA @ Cafe du Nord
Sept. 5 - Seattle, WA @ Bumbershoot
Sept. 8 - Portland, WA @ Mississippi Studios
Sept. 10 - Chicago, IL @ Schubas
Sept. 12 - Washington, DC @ Rock and Roll Hotel (with Sloan)
Sept. 13 - Brooklyn, NY @ The Bellhouse (with Sloan)
Sept. 14 - Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall (with Sloan)
September 15 - New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom (with Sloan)
September 16 - Hoboken, NJ @ Maxwells
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