be/KOauzbthRXc“Great Vocals, Riffs & Groove!” - SLASH (Guns n Roses)

"Best female-fronted act in Australia" - Sydney Morning Herald

"Riff-Maven" - Triple J

'Reminds of Mark McEntee's sterling work with Chrissy Amphlett' - THE AGE

'Full throttle power' - ROLLING STONE

'The best album I've heard in a long time' - MOUTHZOFF MAG

'One of the standout albums of the year' - THE UPSDIE NEWS

'Some call it riff-rock. I call it getting torn a new one.' - THEMUSIC.COM.AU

Swagger, alt-pop, power and rock, two guitars, a beast behind the kit, and a mighty presence at the mic. Dallas Frasca is all of those things, and more. And they’re on a highway right to the top.

The award-winning Aussie rock‘n’roll outfit is a stand-out of its class hitting the Top 30 ARIA Charts with their new album, 'Love Army', with its arsenal of heavier-than-the-earth songs, led by its namesake frontwoman, riff-maven rocker, with a knack for channelling Janis Joplin.

Dallas, raised in the small Victorian town of Wangaratta (the home of Nick Cave), leads from the front with her enigmatic guitarist Jeff Curran. Their worlds collided in 2006 with a chance meeting in a Melbourne dive bar.

An early incarnation of the group produced a huge sound as an alt-duo, with an unusual mix of dobros, stomp boxes and home-made instruments. Now a trio, with recent-arrival Josh Eales on drums, the act has steadily built a global following, and made friends in high places.

Along the way, they’ve supported Patti Smith, Aerosmith, Van Halen and Earth Wind & Fire, there’s been collaborations with the likes of Whitfield Crane, (Ugly Kid Joe), Sonny Mayo (Sevendust) and in 2010, Dallas fronted the legendary Aussie rock band Midnight Oil (with Violent Femmes’ Brian Ritchie on bass) in support of Amnesty International. In the same year, a collaborative recording was released with celebrated Australian artist Xavier Rudd, a cover of Mavis Staples’ “My Own Eyes”.

Dallas Frasca’s songs have featured in numerous surf films and animal rights campaigns, and the song “Amongst The Leaves” featured in the 2011 Australian film, “A Heartbeat Away”. The band opened Bob Irwin’s Wildlife Sanctuary in 2012 alongside Guns ‘N Roses great Slash.

It’s all built on a foundation of solid rock, and a dedication to the road. From the start, Dallas Frasca has had a grass-roots approach to heavy touring. They’ve electrified crowds across more than 700 shows, including upwards of 150 festival slots. They’ve rocked the iconic Sydney Opera House and worked the audiences at major international festivals from the Big Day Out, Falls Fest and Pyramid Rock Down Under, to International Earth Day (Canada) and Les Nuits de La Guitare de Patrimonio (France).

A deal with the French Veryshow band roster and its sister label Verycords in 2012 helped set the stage for a European invasion. In 2014, Dallas Frasca played to an audience of more than 30,000 in Le Mans, France.

The best is yet to come.

In Feb 2015, Dallas Frasca signed a multi-album deal with Sydney-based label, Social Family Records. The first release through that arrangement is “Love Army,” Dallas Frasca’s third full-length album.

“Love Army” was a truly international affair. The album came together through writing sessions dotted around the globe, split over five international tours in two years. Dallas Frasca’s army of supporters raised the finances for the initial recording project through a successful crowd-sourcing venture.

The process of recording “Love Army” turned into something of a bloody battle. The sessions endured a line-up change and a switch of producer. Ultimately, the early version of the album was canned and Dallas and Co. started again.

“We felt honoured that so many people believed and invested in us as songwriters, so we wanted to deliver an album more badass than anything we’d done before. Our first lot of studio sessions didn’t quite hit the mark we were aiming for, so we scratched the lot and started the whole thing again after we returned from Europe in mid-2014,” Dallas explains.

The final result is a stirring effort, filled with intricate pop melodies and power. It’s all rock and emotion.

“Love Army” was produced by New York based producer Andy Baldwin (Bjork, St Lucia, Cat Empire), engineered by Richard Stolz at Woodstock Studios in Melbourne and mastered by Joe LaPorta at Sterling Sound in NYC (Foo Fighters, Vampire Weekend, The Killers).

Dallas admits the album project felt like it had “taken us all hostage for over a year and we were to obey to its every command until it was satisfied with us all.” It’s the band’s “most confident album to date,” she adds. “You have to follow your intuition, you just know when it’s right.”

The line-up changes and the difficult early sessions “made us more determined to finish the record and walk away from it knowing we played our best match yet. Our band motto is, ‘Nothing Beats Us’. Persistence always wins.”

Many of the tracks were first-takes and the band mates continually challenged each other. “It was about believing in ourselves. We were stripped to our bones and we built back up again,” Dallas recalls. “We wanted to be adventurous with this album. We all feel it reaches new songwriting heights for the band and that we are finally offering our fans something they have been waiting for a long time.”

At different stages through its creation, Dallas was taking inspiration from Queens of the Stone Age, Arctic Monkeys, and “a tonne of old soul music, taking notes from a myriad of songwriters. We tried different songwriting techniques in the studio and at home. It really was about lifting our game and not settling for just any decent idea.”

Prior to writing the album, Dallas spent time mentoring young female indigenous singers in the Outback. The incredible experience “gave me a profound insight into how important song is.”

The album has international origins. Some of the songs were written on the steps of Sacré-Cœur overlooking Paris, others were worked on in the basement of a grimy pub in South London. “We just made it happen.”

“Love Army” is the follow-up to 2012’s “Sound Painter.” The concept for the album was inspired by the Spanish artist Piluca, whom the band met in London in 2012. “She spent weeks making these little men out of hessian bags and recycled materials and placed 100s of them around Brixton (in south London),” Dallas says. “They each held signs with messages that would trigger a positive thought for anyone who read the sign. I was so moved at her selfless act, and how people engaged with her art. I wanted to try and continue the theme of the Love Army message, because why is it so fucking hard for people to be good to one another? I hope our music evokes positive thoughts within people as well.”

Dallas Frasca’s work has been honoured on various occasions. The group took out “Artist of the Year” at the 2010 Australian Independent Music Awards in 2010, and won for “Best Blues and Roots” for the song, “Thank You For Making Me Who I Am.”

Dallas and her gang are in the habit of giving back; they’re tireless supporters of various good causes. They’ve performed charity events for the Sea Shepherd, and they were invited by the BBC to perform as a one of 7 artists from the 7 continents for International Earth Day in Montreal, Canada in 2009. On that occasion, Dallas Frasca represented Australia.

Dallas runs a tight ship and admits she's always comfortable directing situations, and communicating ideas. “I’ve always been bossy ever since I was a kid," she laughs. “I’m lucky I play with super open people who are willing to bring these ideas to life.”

This band is only getting started. There’s a whole lot more rock to come.

For further information, please contact:

Nardia Drayton

National PR Manager | Social Family Records

M: 0403 016 069

E: nardia@socialfamilyrecords.com

QUOTES

“There is no doubt that Dallas Frasca is one of Australia’s legitimate female rock stars”. Warp Magazine

“A three piece in your face from outer space” - Whitfield Crane (Ugly Kid Joe)

“This band leaves the best after burn” - Barrington Francis (The Saints)

“Anyone who thinks rock ‘n’ roll is dead needs to go and spend some time with Dallas Frasca”. – TONE DEAF

“The best Australian female fronted act going around.” AAA Backstage

“if anyone ever tries to argue that rock’n’roll is dead just shove this album in their face.” Alternative Media Group

“There is nothing that will prepare you for the sassiness and might that is Dallas Frasca…” The 59th Sound

“Currently one of the most successful independent musicians in Australia.” Time Offs, riffs &am