27Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA:
Heidi's killing them swiftly - Killing Heidi <return
to top>
By KATHY McCABE.
Teenagers Ella Hooper and brother Jesse of Killing Heidi are the
latest phenomenon in Oz rock. But, as Kathy McCabe reports, they
are refreshingly unaffected by all the fuss. For a teenager, a year
is a long time. For Killing Heidi's Ella and Jesse Hooper, the past
12 months have been an eternity.
Two songs have taken them from Violet Town, their scenic home in
rural Victoria, into thousands of Australian homes and the ride
along the way has been simply phenomenal.
Industry pundits are already giving the shortest of odds that their
debut album, Reflector, will take them to the world.
Ella, 16, and Jesse, 18, are trying their hardest to play down all
the craziness and certainly appear to have their feet still firmly
planted in Violet Town.
Thanks to the "old souls" of their bandmates, bassist
Warren Jenkins and drummer Adam Pedretti, and the man who discovered
all four of them, producer Paul Kosky, the Hooper siblings remain
refreshingly starry-eyed but with a healthy dose of pragmatism.
"The learning curve has been pretty steep and hopefully we've
actually taken in what we've been trying to," Jesse said. "You
never really know, you keep telling yourself, `I hope I can remember
this'."
Ella added:"You learn a lot very quickly.
"I'm sure a lot of people actually don't learn anything, they
just see and accept but Jesse and I have pretty good filters.
"For young people entering this industry it would be so easy
to just be sucked up into the vortex. We try to look at things with
a little scepticism, sorry, we try to be analytical but definitely
not cynical. How could we ever be cynical?"
The band's success - like all apparent overnight leaps to the top
of the charts - has come only after a lot of hard work and a lot
of luck.
When aged just 13 and 15 respectively, Ella and Jesse were coaxed
into performing together for the first time at an arts festival
in country Victoria.
Their naive enjoyment of their inauspicious debut gave them sufficient
confidence to form a band.
The sound engineer at the festival helped the pair to record two
tracks for Triple J's Unearthed competition and just a month later,
their song Kettle won and scored precious airplay.
It proved a favourite with punters and industry types and the promise
of things to come crackled in the Melbourne air during their performance
at the all-Australian Pushover festival.
Producer Paul Kosky, who has worked with the likes of Crowded House,
The Clouds, Rage Against The Machine and Kate Ceberano, saw that
gig.
Kosky saw and heard their potential instantly and signed them up
to his new label Wah Wah Music. But instead of rushing out a single
and capitalising on their tender ages, he sent them back home to
Violet Town to spend the next two years writing songs.
Ella and Jesse give Kosky enormous credit for their development,
both sonically and as songwriters.
"It was a huge leap of faith handing over our life to him but
we trusted him. There were other offers but nothing as focused as
what Paul brought to us," Jesse said. "He wanted to build
a record company around an act, around us.
"If we hadn't done what we did with Paul, I would have no idea
where we would be now."
Ella added:"We might just be kicking back in Violet Town playing
the local pub once a month. And, if we'd rushed it, we would not
be anywhere near the same league we are in now.
"It was good to have this three-way team which was so motivated
and excited.
"Paul has such drive to make the album really good and we would
be whingeing about having to do the same thing 30 times.
"His experience balanced our inexperience and our freshness
and enthusiasm balanced the fact that he had been through the whole
industry inside and out and roundabout, and knows it very well."
In May last year, Killing Heidi's released the single Weir.
Triple J played it sporadically; no-one else - except the diehard
regionals and new music stations - touched it.
It entered the charts off the top 100 and quietly began an ascent
which few noticed.
To their credit, Roadshow Music, which distributes Kosky's label
(and a label formed to launch Savage Garden on an unsuspecting industry),
persevered. The word of mouth began to spread, the song began getting
into people's heads and six months after its release, Weir made
it into the top 10.
Killing Heidi give mighty thanks to the nation's Year 12 school
leavers, who adopted as their anthem Ella's ode to kicking back
with mates at the local waterhole.
The band's arrival as Australia's Next Big Thing was finally announced
to the rest of the country when Ella and Jesse performed Weir acoustically
on Channel Ten's The Panel.
Mouths hit the floor as Ella let fly with powerhouse vocals which
would send Farnsey and Barnsey back to the vocal coach.
The following week, the program used an excerpt of their performance
as their "promo" without voice-over or any other embellishment.
It was that good.
"Weir did what it was destined to do. Its success came after
a long time - six months is a long time in this business,"
Ella said.
"It played around at the low end of the charts and recognition.
People were still very `Killing who?' then and they are still there.
"There are lots of people who are still asking `Killing what?'
which is good in my eyes.
"We had no idea it would become this anthem for school leavers.
When you write a song, it is the creative espousal of your idea
and people give it their own meaning.
"Sometimes it takes that time for people to discover something
and I think that is cool. To have a low rise and steady fall in
and out of charts or recognition. No-one remembers it in six months,
otherwise."
"Being picked by the school leavers is a great way to be remembered."
On the strength of Weir - and also because it happens to be a damn
fine song, their next single, Mascara, wasted no time in hitting
the precious No.1 spot.
The week it hit coincided with the band's performance at the Sydney
Big Day Out.
Like silverchair before them, Killing Heidi were placed on a "smaller"
stage to pay their dues.
Ten minutes before they were due to take the stage, the pavilion
was crowded with more than 8000 people, with thousands more trying
to get in.
By the time the band took the stage, the crowd's anticipation was
at fever pitch and as Killing Heidi launched into the first song,
the shed turned into one huge seething moshpit.
Thankfully, an enterprising punter found a water hose and gave relief
to the overheated masses and a major headache to on-site emergency
services who scrambled to deal with the alarm set off by the mercy
mission.
Killing Heidi played like a band possessed and the gig is now etched
in Aussie music folklore.
"It certainly helps when the crowds love you, you get a helluva
lot of confidence from looking out into a crowd and they are singing
every word to your songs. That's empowering," bass player Warren
Jenkins said.
Ella confesses she is still coming to terms with the persona of
frontwoman.
"I never thought I would have the confidence to get up there
and talk to the crowd like I do now," she said.
"I get so much love, well, not love, more this feeling of `You
go girl, you go'.
"Now I know I have to give more and be a performer even when
I'm not singing. You have to walk around like you own the place.
After a week's worth of shows I'm that much better and soon I'll
be the best frontwoman there ever was. I am determined to rock."
Ella was joking when she said she would be the best ever.
Like any group of friends who spend a lot of time together, the
band are always making grandiose but endearing statements.
But as much as they kid and rib, they are very protective of each
other, with Warren and drummer Adam Pedretti fulfilling the big-brother
roles to the Hooper siblings.
They all know Ella is missing out on an adolescence but they figure
as long as she is having fun, it doesn't really matter.
"The hard thing for me and Jesse is time, the time I have to
spend away from my old life and my friends - and my mum and dad,"
she said. "These guys are already ready to throw their hats
up in the air and scream `Let's party' which is awesome and I so
want to be a part of that but, I also get pangs for where my normal
childhood went. I do realise at the end of the day I am getting
the most amazing childhood that anyone could wish for and I'm very
lucky. As Adam always says this is the best job in the world."
And world domination is next.
A huge Internet presence has led to fans sending their CDs all around
the world and a London radio station is currently giving Mascara
a flogging according to a Sydney DJ who recently returned from the
UK.
An overseas deal is in the offing (but the band members say no-one
is telling them too much about it) and when their album Reflector
debuts on March 6, it will almost certainly go right to the top
of the nation's charts, which focuses attention from foreign powerbrokers.
Looking at the cartoonish artwork of Reflector's album cover, the
band start kidding themselves about the prospect of conquering the
world with their eclectic pop rock and the cute spaceship which
features in the artwork gives Jesse another idea.
"We could buy a big spaceship and take over the universe. Killing
Heidi could just be the first band to tour the moon." A wave
of fresh talent KILLING Heidi are at the crest of a new wave of
Australian talent, covering every genre from hip-hop to techno,
from bubblegum pop to rock assault.
Others to look out for in the next 12 months include several bands
which announced their arrival with debut singles last year.
* Nokturnl. This Alice Springs rap rock act could be Australia's
answer to Rage Against The Machine. With biting but thoughtful lyrics,
Nokturnl were the quiet achievers at Big Day Out.
* Jackson Mendoza. Sisters Rebecca and Natalie made a smooth transition
from musical theatre to the pop charts with their debut single,
Venus Or Mars. They have been juggling recording their debut album
in London and Sydney with Natalie's commitment to the Baz Luhrmann
film Moulin Rouge.
* Motor Ace. Now in the UK recording a debut album with top producer
Chris Sheldon (Foo Fighters), Motor Ace's melodic rock and charismatic
performances are winning punter and industry fans alike.
* Groove Terminator. Former DJ and remixer, now sensational artist,
GT is going to give Fat Boy Slim a huge run for his money with his
debut album, Road Kill.
With everything from dance-floor anthems to Underworld-style rock,
Road Kill is a truly international album. The live shows with a
full band line-up are shaping up to be among the gigs of the year.
* Testeagles. This band try everything from hip-hop to electronica
and are building a solid fan base. Their debut album, Non Comprehendus,
debuted in the Top 10 this week.
* Others to look out for include Aleesha Rome, S2S, Amiel, Sonic
Animation and 28 Days. - SECT-Features.
(c) Nationwide News Proprietary Ltd, 2000.
27Feb2000 - AUSTRALIA:
Band make a Killing <return
to top>
By Katherine Tulich.
School's out permanently for premier Oz popsters Killing Heidi,
but they're fast learning how to cope with stardom.
KATHERINE TULICH reports.
KILLING Heidi lead singer Ella Hooper looks impossibly perky at
11am. She was up all night in Brisbane filming the video for their
third single, Live Without It, due for release in two months. Then
she boarded a plane to Sydney to attend the launch of the annual
Pacific Circle Music Convention, where she sang acoustic versions
of the band's two chart hits, Weir and Mascara. Killing Heidi are
crisscrossing the country promoting their new album and performing,
and are about to kick off a national tour in Brisbane. When you
become the hottest band in Australia, schedules go ballistic, but
Ella seems to be coping well with the pressures. Then again, she
has only just turned 17. "It's good I'm young enough to have
the energy to cope with it," she says with a grin, coloured
dreadlocks and bright-pink eye shadow framing her cherubic face.
Ella had a 17th birthday she won't forget. Not only did she take
the stage for the Big Day Out for the first time, but her band was
also celebrating its first No 1 single with Mascara. "It's
hard to believe everything that's happening to us right now,"
the exuberant teenager says, as she sits flanked by the other members
of Killing Heidi: Her older brother Jesse, bassist Warren Jenkins
and drummer Adam Pedretti. In fact, the band's appearance at Sydney's
Big Day Out caused near riots. They played on one of the smaller
stages and as thousands of fans tried to cram the room, a water
pipe burst as the crowds clamoured for positions. "They booked
us about four months before - I guess they didn't realise we would
pull such a crowd. It was a bit of a miscalculation on their part,"
Jesse says. But who could have predicted the rise and rise of the
sibling-led group from northern Victoria's small, rural Violet Town?
Ella was just 13 and Jesse 15 when they unveiled two songs they
had written at the town's arts festival. A local studio owner offered
them recording time and suggested they enter their songs in the
Triple J Unearthed competition. A week later they won. It brought
them to the attention of Melbourne-based producer Paul Kosky, who
had worked with Crowded House, Kate Ceberano and The Clouds. He
saw their potential and spent the next two years with the band,
honing their writing and performing skills. Their first single,
Weir, took a slow ride into the national Top 10, but its sweet sentiments
of youth, country life and kicking back with friends at the local
watering hole instilled itself as the nation's teen anthem. "It
was the number-one favourite school-leaving song of last year,"
Ella says. "I think they found it inspirational." As they
did the second single, Mascara, with its take on teen labels. "It's
basically a commentary on people who live by fashion's rules,"
Ella says. While the schoolroom may be her inspiration, the strain
of daily two-hour train trips to Melbourne to finish their debut
album, Reflector, forced her to make the decision to drop out last
year halfway through Year 11. "Frankly, I think my teachers
were relieved. I was never there and I never did any work. I'd rather
quit than do really badly," she says. "I was a pretty
good student until I had all these other commitments." It's
a bone of contention for her red-dreadlocked older brother. "It
wasn't fair," Jesse says. "My parents - one is a teacher
and the other used to be one - made me finish Year 12 and the next
year they let Ella drop out." But success can work like a charm.
Even the residents of Violet Town are right behind their favoured
siblings. "It's been the nicest display of warmth I've ever
seen from our town," Ella says. "When we made our first
appearance on TV, the local fruit shop put out a blackboard sign
on the street. And instead of the fruit and veg specials of the
day, they wrote, `Watch Ella and Jesse on Channel Nine tonight'."
Reflector, due for release next week, is destined to head straight
for the top of the Aussie charts, and plans are afoot for a United
States onslaught later in the year to follow the success of their
record label mates, Savage Garden. If things go according to plan,
Violet Town could be rallying around more than chalk-inscribed signs.
"I can see it now. The bus tours - here's the milkbar where
Ella and Jesse bought their milkshakes, here's the weir they swam
in," jokes drummer Adam. Don't laugh, it could happen. Reflector
is released on March 6. Killing Heidi, Arena, Fortitude Valley,
Saturday - an all-ages show from 2-6pm; over-18s, 8pm. Bookings:
3252 5690. They will also appear for in-store signings next Sunday
at HMV, Queen St Mall, Brisbane, 10am; the Record Market, Robina,
Gold Coast, 2pm. - SECT-Features.
(C) 2000 Advertiser Newspapers Limited.
Source: SUNDAY MAIL (ADELAIDE) 27/02/2000 P69
25Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA:
Office for youth reopens its doors <return
to top>
By INGA GILCHRIST.
VICTORIAN youth will have the commitment and the ear of the State
Government in the new Office of Youth Affairs, Youth Affairs Minister
Justin Madden said yesterday.
Speaking at the re-establishment of the Office of Youth Affairs,
which was abolished in 1996, Mr Madden said the office would centralise
youth affairs, which had suffered from being scattered across departments.
He said the government was consulting through regional youth committees
and would conduct a review in the next few months to find "a
more open way of communicating with those at the coal face".
The office will operate within the Department of Employment, Education
and Training and will have a staff of 15 poached from other departments.
Mr Madden said a significant amount of money had come into the Office
of Youth Affairs from other departments and he was asking the Expenditure
Review Committee for more.
The lead singer of chart-topping Violet Town band Killing Heidi,
Ella Hooper, endorsed the need for government-funded youth entertainment
in regional areas.
Performing at probably her only gig where the audience was served
tea and scones, Hooper, 17, said: "There's not a lot for youth
to do down there but it's getting better with (government programs)
Push and Freeza and organisations that give kids a chance to ...
express themselves." - SECT-News.
(C) 2000 Herald and Weekly Times Limited.
Source: HERALD SUN 25/02/2000 P14
22Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA: Band of hopefuls
<return to
top>
THE fourth annual expo, launched yesterday at Fox Studios, is seeking
entries from young, unsigned bands wanting to take advantage of
the opportunity to play to record industry types.
Up-and-coming bands are urged to fill in a form on the expo's Website
for a spot at one of the showcase events being held from October
19-22.
Well-known Australian bands, including Killing Heidi, are also set
to perform at the expo, getting exposure, and access to overseas
agents.
In the past, the expo has helped bands like The Whitlams secure
overseas deals. - SECT-Local.
(c) Nationwide News Proprietary Ltd, 2000.
Source: DAILY TELEGRAPH (SYDNEY) 22/02/2000 P5
21Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA:
NSW - Carr launches music expo to be held in Sydney <return
to top>
SYDNEY, Feb 21, AAP - An international music expo to be held at
Sydney's Fox Studios this year will provide local acts with a chance
to showcase their talent, New South Wales Premier Bob Carr said
today.
Launching the Pacific Circle Music Expo, Mr Carr said the music
industry convention was expected to attract more than 20,000 musicians.
The event aims to provide a forum for people within the music industry
to exchange ideas on technology and marketing.
But Mr Carr said the expo would also provide local acts with a chance
to perform before a major audience.
Speaking after a special performance by Australian chart-toppers
Killing Heidi, he said the event was a major coup for the local
industry.
"There's great creativity there ... this expo is about giving
(local acts) the international attention they deserve," he
told reporters.
"It's about promoting such talent, getting them better CD sales
and sustaining this terrific music industry we've got."
The expo, billed as the first major event to be held in Sydney after
the Olympics Games, will also include trade and public exhibitions,
masterclasses, an industry conference, a music film festival and
public concert.
It will be held during Australian Music Week from 19-22 October
on the eve of the ARIA awards.
(c) 2000 AAP Information Services Pty Ltd
All rights reserved. Available for personal use but not for sale
or redistribution for compensation of any kind without the prior
written permission of AAP.
Source: AUSTRALIAN ASSOCIATED PRESS 21/02/2000
20Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA: Musical launch
<return to
top>
CHART-topping Australian act Killing Heidi will launch the Pacific
Circle Music Expo at Fox Studios tomorrow.
The music industry convention and showcase will be held at the entertainment
complex after the Olympics in October, culminating with the ARIA
awards.
Established by promoter Michael Chugg, the Expo has led to major
international deals in recent years for several Australian bands,
including The Whitlams and Marie Wilson.
At PCM Expo 2000, the focus will be on new technologies impacting
on the music business.
It will also highlight the cream of Australia's talent, with fledgling
acts getting a rare opportunity to showcase their music in front
of major industry figures. - SECT-Local.
(c) Nationwide News Proprietary Ltd, 2000.
18Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA: Triple
J jumping ahead <return
to top>
By FIONA BYRNE.
MELBOURNE listeners have been responsible for national youth broadcaster
Triple J's record ratings growth in recent years.
And the city will have an even greater influence on the station's
line-up this year, says network manager Ed Breslin.
"We have more programming coming out of Melbourne now than
ever," Mr Breslin said.
"We are negotiating with Melbourne-based comedian Wil Anderson
to increase his commitment to Triple J breakfast from two days a
week to four ... Francis Leach is based in Melbourne and so is Super
Request host Caroline Tran. Merrick and Rosso may be relocating
to Melbourne for 2001."
Mr Breslin said the station's strong ratings success - last year
it recorded its best figure in five years with a 6.4 per cent share
- could be traced to a leap in the number of Melburnians tuning
in.
He said in 1994 the weekly average of Melbourne listeners was 303,000.
Last year that grew to 408,000. But Mr Breslin dismissed claims
the station had become too commercial.
"Any perceptions of a softening of our musical stance is due
to the fact that grunge is dead ... Rock is more influenced by hip-hop
and dance at the moment, so that tends to broaden the station's
appeal with female listeners, which in turn helps the station's
growth."
He said Triple J was still committed to giving young Australian
talent airplay, as witnessed by the phenomenal rise of Violet Town
band Killing Heidi, which the station had "discovered".
- SECT-News.
(C) 2000 Herald and Weekly Times Limited.
Source: HERALD SUN 18/02/2000 P23
17Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA:
Dino - Heidi's mascara is running <return
to top>
By Dino Scatena.
It has been a nightmare of a week for those former darlings of the
Oz pop scene, Killing Heidi. First came the shocking news their
hit single Mascara had plummeted from the top of the charts all
the way down to ... number two.
Jesse Hooper was understandably devastated. "The morning it
went to number one was a bit of a mind trip," said the young
guitarist, obviously trying hard to put on a brave face for the
ever-probing press. "From there it was, `Oh my God, hold off
for another week, two weeks at number one, three weeks at number
one.' It would have been great to make it a month."
Well, welcome to the cold hard world of the music business, kid.
What, you think you can just stroll into a studio with your sister,
bang out a few tunes and suddenly your the next big thing? You think
it's that easy? Well, um, maybe it just is, hey?
Hooper says of his band's extraordinary feats of late: "Everyone
says: `Well done, well done', and obviously it's a very big achievement
and we do realise that, but I don't think it's actually settled
into our heads how much of an achievement it is."
Meanwhile, Jesse's little sister Ella has had a sip of the other
nastier side of fame.
A little quip in a Melbourne newspaper - where the 16-year-old singer
told journalist Cameron Adams she celebrated her band's first number
one with a glass of champagne - instantly became fodder for the
letters pages and talk-back radio.
Ella was none too impressed. Her granny even less so.
"The worst thing is that my nanna heard it and rang my mum
and was going, `Arrgh!"' laughed the now 17-year-old Ella.
"She didn't hear about the number one single. All she heard
was some guy on talk-back radio bagging me. You know, `Ella Hooper
from Killing Heidi had a glass of champagne in her hand at 10 in
the morning.' How bored would you have to be to worry about me having
a glass of champagne?"
Hear, hear! Killing Heidi's debut album Reflector is due for release
on March 6.
(c) Nationwide News Proprietary Ltd, 2000.
Source: DAILY TELEGRAPH (SYDNEY) 17/02/2000
15Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA: SONGSTRESS
Ella Hooper<return
to top>
SONGSTRESS Ella Hooper, 16, is half of hit-making band Killing Heidi.
The other half of the band, which hails from quaintly named Violet
Town in country Victoria, is her brother Jesse. Since being discovered
by youth radio station Triple J last year, the band has had two
No. 1 hits. Their first was Weir, which is about a swimming place
where friends gathered in their hometown. Mascara, their second
chart-topper, is about the teenage obsession with image. "I
wrote it in the thick of high school, Year 9 or 10, when everyone
was obsessed by image and style," Ella told a reporter. "Going
to school isn't really about education, it's more a fashion parade
and which group are you in, the cool group, the bad group, this
or that group. I wrote Mascara about labels and how people take
it too far: `I'm a goth, I'm sporty, I'm a jock'. Aren't you just
a person?" The talented duo write their own songs and play
their own instruments. However, Ella is not the kind of role model
everyone would approve of. She quit school in Year 10 to pursue
her music. - SECT-Our House.
(c) 2000 Queensland Newspapers Pty Ltd.
Source: COURIER MAIL (QUEENSLAND) 15/02/2000
14Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA: A killer debut<return to
top>
By Noel Mengel.
IT'S a long road from a small town to the big time but Killing Heidi
are making the jump with ease. The band's Mascara single is sitting
at No 1 and after a sneak preview of the debut album, Reflector,
we don't think there is any doubt it will debut at No 1 in the charts
next month. The band's sibling songwriters, Ella and Jesse Hooper,
hail from the Victorian hamlet of Violet Town, and it's wonderful
that a band can break out of a place like that without going through
the grinding slog of the inner-city indie circuit. That gives them
a breath-of-fresh-air perspective, too. A song like Weir is about,
well, floating in the water down at the weir, and Black Sheep seems
to be inspired by going for a walk out the front door and seeing
sheep. And no doubt the pair's former classmates will be perusing
a song called Class Celebrities with interest, since it's about
teachers' pets.
(c) 2000 Queensland Newspapers Pty Ltd.
Source: COURIER MAIL (QUEENSLAND) 14/02/2000 P14
12Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA: A star
is born of karaoke <return
to top>
By Debra Aldred.
ALEESHA Rome cannot resist a good karaoke bar. It's where she first
discovered her talent to sing. "It was uncool to sing at high
school, so I did all my singing out of school in karaoke bars,"
she said. Now the 19-year-old is one of Australia's hottest pop
sensations. She is the first Australian artist whose music has been
used to promote the American series Party of Five in Australia.
And her latest single Search My Heaven is currently number 20 in
the Australian charts. Not bad for a girl from Adelaide who just
two years ago was working on a karaoke demo tape while paying the
bills as a receptionist. Rome is part of a growing breed of teenage
Australian performers who are dominating music charts of late. Killing
Heidi, the Victorian brother and sister team who are performing
in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast this weekend, are number one on
the Australian music charts this week. And Melbourne-based Sister2Sister
are also riding the success of their debut single Sister. "The
pace is pretty heavy," Rome said on a promotional stop in Brisbane
yesterday. "You can get really hammered with work and tours,
but I'm not the kind of person to just hang around at home and wait
for things to happen, I have to do something." Even if that
something is going home to Adelaide and dropping into a karaoke
bar - just for old times sake. "I change my name and enter
karaoke competitions," she said. "It really does build
up stage confidence, and the scene has changed so much from when
I started. "It used to be that people would need to get absolutely
drunk before considering getting up there and singing. "Now
places are overrun by uni students who are completely overconfident."
Rome will release her debut self-titled album on March 6. - SECT-News.
(c) 2000 Queensland Newspapers Pty Ltd.
Source: COURIER MAIL (QUEENSLAND) 12/02/2000 P10
11Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA: Death to innocence
<return to
top>
By Allison White.
FROM the moment she tells you she loves broccoli and goes crazy
for mashed potato and peas, you realise Ella Hooper - the voice
of Killing Heidi - is no ordinary teenager. It was her 17th birthday
recently, but already the brown-haired beauty and her guitarist
brother Jesse (himself only 19) are the proud owners of some very
big hits and a very big future. Their debut single Weir launched
them into radio heaven and claimed the No 2 spot on Triple J's Hottest
100. The second single, Mascara, stood up to the likes of Macy Gray
(I Try) to snatch the No 1 spot on the Australian charts. Now Killing
Heidi, from Violet Town in country Victoria, are gearing up for
a huge year of touring on the back of their first album Reflector,
due for release in March. So how does a farm girl who used to "play
little, local shin-digs in front of four or five people" ride
a tidal wave of success in a world full of people twice her age?
Hooper says it's just a part of growing up, and that's what Killing
Heidi is all about. "The name (Killing Heidi) is a symbolic
thing," she says. "It's about the loss of innocence.
"Heidi's such a sweet little character. "It's about growing
up."
Hooper says she tries to reflect this theme in her lyrics. And why
not? She is, after all, still doing the growing-up thing herself.
"Sometimes I think I don't want to be dealing with this stuff
now," she says. "But then the rest of the time I'm struggling
to be treated like other 20-year-olds and 30-year-olds." Killing
Heidi is also a name that reflects the contrast within the band.
"I'm very in your face," Hooper says.
"Jesse appears in your face, but when you get talking to him
he's pretty quiet and mellow." But quiet and mellow are not
two words that spring to mind when describing the powerful combination
of Hooper's flexible vocals and her brother's complementary guitar.
To complete the powerful sound the brother and sister enlisted drummer,
Adam Pedretti, and bassist, Warren Jenkins. And the "hot inside
information" is that the video for their latest single, Live
Without It, features footage from Brisbane, shot during a recent
visit. Killing Heidi, Queensland University O-Ball, tonight, Bribie
Island tomorrow; Sunday, The Edge, Broadbeach Tavern. - SECT-Pulse.
(c) 2000 Queensland Newspapers Pty Ltd.
Source: COURIER MAIL (QUEENSLAND) 11/02/2000
11Feb2000
- TPA: Gig report 11.02.00
<return to
top>
Killing Heidi @ Qld Univ O ball 5000 tx sold out in
a week sensational Brisbane gig for "the Heidi."
10Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA:
DINO - THE TRUTH, THE WHOLE TRUTH & NOTHING BUT GOSSIP
<return to
top>
By DINO SCATENA.
Heidi ho, set to go
While their single Mascara sticks to the number one spot like glue,
Killing Heidi have been keeping a low profile, readying themselves
for the start of a national tour this month followed by the release
of their debut album early in March. This week the young superstars
will be in Brisbane to film a clip for their next single, Live Without
It, which isn't due for release until April.
(c) Nationwide News Proprietary Ltd, 2000.
Source: DAILY TELEGRAPH (SYDNEY) 10/02/2000
09Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA: Radio snubs
Oz pop <return
to top>
By CAMERON ADAMS.
AUSTRALIAN artists are still struggling to get radio play in their
own country.
A list of the 100 most played songs on Australian radio from mid-1998
to mid-1999 included just 28 local artists, with acts such as Bachelor
Girl and Natalie Imbruglia scoring multiple placings.
Other local acts favored by Australian radio included Savage Garden,
Powderfinger, Human Nature, John Farnham, silverchair and Tina Arena,
with newer acts such as Josh Abrahams, The Living End, Marie Wilson,
Ben Lee and Automatic also getting a spin.
Most major Australian radio stations are required to play at least
25 per cent local music. However, international acts such as Shania
Twain and Cher dominated the list.
The results showed the dominance of female artists, who are favored
by commercial radio stations such as TTFM and Fox FM, as well as
the impact of teen music by bands such as Five, Backstreet Boys,
Boyzone, All Saints and Spice Girls.
However, the next poll will reflect the recent dominance of Australian
acts such as Melbourne's Killing Heidi, Vanessa Amorosi, Taxiride
and Madison Avenue, who all scored major radio air play in the last
six months of last year.
Music director at Fox FM Irene Kanaris said 1999 was a great year
for Australian music.
"It was the easiest year for us to support local music and
reach our 25 per cent Australian music quota.
"It used to be all indie and alternative sounds, but even bands
like Regurgitator, the Whitlams and Spiderbait, who used to be far
more alternative, have taken more of a commercial mainstream approach."
- SECT-News.
(C) 2000 Herald and Weekly Times Limited.
Source: HERALD SUN 09/02/2000 P26
03Feb2000
- AUSTRALIA:
The word ... at the Big Day Out <return
to top>
Killing Frenzy
VIOLET Town's Killing Heidi caused a silverchair-style
Big Day Out crush when the relatively small cattle shed they had
been booked to play in became a gridlock of fans trying to see the
band responsible for the Australian No. 1 single Mascara. Fans hung
from the rafters and clambered over one another to get in, with
many saying the band could have played one of the main stages. Singer
Ella Hooper celebrated her 17th birthday on the day while her brother
Jesse was soon surrounded by fans when he emerged from backstage.
The band launch their debut album, Reflector, at the Prince of Wales
in St Kilda on Thursday, March 9. Tickets are on sale now through
Ticketek.
(C) 2000 Herald and Weekly Times Limited.
Source: HERALD SUN 03/02/2000 P70
03Feb2000
- TPA: Gig report 03.02.00
<return to
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Killing Heidi @ Metro 2nd of 2 sold out Reflector
launch showcases. The crowd went nuts. Something wonderful is about
to happen.
