The Sunday Reeds – Rock n Roll Fantasy
The Sunday Reeds, named after Melbourne’s celebrated patron of the arts Sunday Reed, are Romana Ashton and Drew Jones. Though forming in 2009 as a duo, they soon started playing live as a three-piece and are regularly joined on stage by drummer Jeremy Russell.
Their first release ‘Drowning in History’ (2009) caught the attention of UK indie label Squirrel Records leading to extensive touring across Australia, the UK and Europe, during which bridges were burned, relationships ended and nervous breakdowns became commonplace. At one point the founding duo spent three days in Paris where the most romantic city in the world became an ironic backdrop for a particularly bitter relationship break up, one that culminated in their latest EP ‘Amour Tragique’ (Tragic Love).
A collection of five songs that detail doomed romances and love lost, ‘Amour Tragique’ combines the grittiness and angst of ’90s grunge with the pop sensibilities of ’60s pop, rock ‘n’ roll, a good measure of old fashioned blues and ’80s new wave/post punk.
With contralto female vocals likened to Marianne Faithfull and Shirley Manson, and a rock ‘n’ roll swagger reminiscent of The Rolling Stones, The Kinks and Nirvana, The Sunday Reeds skillfully combine the most exciting elements of rock ‘n’ roll to create lyrically rich, infectiously melodic songs with a sound distinctly their own.
Videos for the singles taken from the EP ‘Jean-Luc’ (a song about the tumultuous relationship between Jean-Luc Godard and Anna Karina) and ‘Something About You’ (a dark pop song about love and loss) will be released later in 2014.