Garth Adam

Artist Information

Biography

Storm in a Tea Cup is my fourth release since I began this solo thing in 2002. What did I do before these records? I played in lots of bands ever since I was a teenager. Looking back on these times I remember many had dubious names of which I am not wholly responsible for such as Acid Splash, Bliss Bombs, Spanish Holiday, TOFOG and Sapphire and the Sirens. They all shared many things in common; they had giant aspirations, occasionally embarrassing haircuts, awfully serious lyrics and great loads of fun. They also didn’t make it and they all weren’t exactly me. What I do know is that my songs are still in development and the newest EP is the latest chapter. The recording was a blast. It was with a bunch of friends and we used old guitars, old amps, old drums, a creaky 40 year old Hammond B3 organ, a slightly out of tune 100 year old iron frame piano and my coffee and red wine strained vocal chords. To top it off a lot of it was recorded on old 2 inch tape machines from the 70’s. I think it has made it sound warm and close.

The other three releases have been in and around indie radio in America and Australia and if you want to know exactly where they went you can scroll down further. Here are a couple of friendly quotes;
.
“This band is a good example of just how good independent artists can be... There's a lot to love here...superb tracks like "Closer," "Dance on Friday Night," "All At Sea," and "I Wish I Could Remember" all feature outstanding melodies supported by perfectly suited arrangements. Adam has a great voice...simultaneously masculine, focused, and sensitive. Recommended. (Rating: 5)” www.babysue.com

“Superb songwriting and emotive vocals combined with a rebellious streak define Ether(Garth Adam). Acoustic driven, stripped down and beguiling…The group masters a broad range of styles from languid tempos to folk rock. With songs imaginative and alluring, the listener can't help but be hooked by the excellent musicianship that weaves a thread creating a beautiful flow.” http://www.bdcdistribution.com/

“Just when I’m ready to toss every (other) new CD in the wastebasket, something like this lands in the mail bin... A warm, beguiling blend of acoustic and electric, a gentle but firm rhythm section, a touch of the ethereal. Think the Church - minus 90 percent of the effects with the gentle touch of Paul Kelly. Highly recommended…” Alpo. Graffiti Online, October 2002

Releases:
Great Ocean Road (Album)
Tracks from Great Ocean Road were placed on three compilation CD’s released in the US: “The Link” on CMJ Certain Damage Vol 125 (2 September 2002), “Heart Stops” on CMJ Certain Damage Vol 126 (30 October 2002) and “The Link” on New Music Monthly’s companion CD (September 2002). These compilation albums also included tracks from Ryan Adams, Aimee Mann, Coldplay, Queens of the Stone Age and Johnny Cash.

Great Ocean Road received extensive airplay on the American College Radio Network and charted on the “Barefoot Rock Top 50 Indie Albums” charts for a total of 11 weeks reaching a chart position of 21.

Dance on Friday Night (Album)
The track “What Do I Know” from the album Dance on Friday Night was played by the following US radio stations: WVIQ St. Croix V.I, KSCQ, Silver City NM, KJMB Blythe, CA, WXLM Greenwich, CN, WMXO, Olean, NY, KLBQ, El Dorado, AR, KIXY, San Angelo TX, WIFX, Whitesburgh, KY, WXTQ Athens, OH. In addition this track was included in a compilation rock album of Australian artists released in Brazil through Planet Records in December 2005

The track “Closer” was featured on the Australian SXSW compilation album for 2005.

Kiss the World Away (EP)
The song “Ricochet” is featured on the Sounds Like Café compilation CD released in November 2005 through Foghorn Records. Ricochet also featured on the Canadian Music Week compilation Album in March 2006 and on the IRL Publishing site for Midem 2006 in Paris. This track has also been featured on the US compilation Fresh Produce 2 through the Independent Music Coalition and myvradio Martha’s Vineyard, released June 2006.

The track “Kiss the World Away” being accepted for inclusion on Hurricane Healing, the music site dedicated to charity work for the victims of Hurricane Katrina, the song “Homeland “being included on the LA compilation CD Java with Javelyn Indie Music Volume 2, The song “Ricochet” has been played in the US on Songtiger Internet Radio, Well Rounded Radio, MVY Radio and about at least 10 other US stations. The track “Homeland” has been added to Liquid Blue Radio.

Storm in a Teacup (EP)
October 2007 sent to 50 Australian Community Radio stations through the distributor AMPRA.

Contact information:
Garth Adam
gaaath@yahoo.com www.garthadam.com

Instrumentation

Full band
Two guitars/ Bass/ Keyboards/Drums/ Vocals

or one guitar and vocal.

Discography

Great Ocean Road - Album
Dance on Friday Night - Album
Kiss the World Away - ep
Storm in a Teacup - ep
See Bio for radio airplay.
Hear tracks on www.garthadam.com as well

Official Website

http://www.garthadam.com

Audio

• Scream on the Inside
  Listen   Download
• Ricochet
  Listen   Download
• Storm in a Teacup
  Listen   Download
• Wake Me Up
  Listen   Download
• Homeland
  Listen   Download
• In Front of the Waves
  Listen   Download

Lyrics

• Scream on the Inside
• Ricochet
• Storm In A Teacup
• Wake Me Up
• Homeland
• In Front of the Waves

Video

Photo Gallery

Press

• Dance on Friday Night Review [+ Show ]
  

  “This band is a good example of just how good independent artists can be... There's a lot to love he...“This band is a good example of just how good independent artists can be... There's a lot to love here...superb tracks like "Closer," "Dance on Friday Night," "All At Sea," and "I Wish I Could Remember" all feature outstanding melodies supported by perfectly suited arrangements. Adam has a great voice...simultaneously masculine, focused, and sensitive. Another great album from Ether. Recommended. (Rating: 5)” www.babysue.com
  
  
  

• Great Ocean Road Review [+ Show ]
  

  “Ether has a flowing rock sound, a sound that invokes thoughts of the ocean, which was the intended ...“Ether has a flowing rock sound, a sound that invokes thoughts of the ocean, which was the intended effect. At times, the music busts into a kind of salsa or island guitar, further invoking dreams of faraway places, as the rhythm softly medicates your mind against stress and anxiety. It is sometimes wistful and melancholy, but strikes the right chord.”
  (Don Pflaster, Impact Press, January 2003)
  http://www.impactpress.com/articles/decjan03/musicr12103.html
  

• Impact Press - Great Ocean Road [+ Show ]
  

  “Ether has a flowing rock sound, a sound that invokes thoughts of the ocean, which was the intended ...“Ether has a flowing rock sound, a sound that invokes thoughts of the ocean, which was the intended effect. At times, the music busts into a kind of salsa or island guitar, further invoking dreams of faraway places, as the rhythm softly medicates your mind against stress and anxiety. It is sometimes wistful and melancholy, but strikes the right chord.”
  (Don Pflaster, Impact Press, January 2003)
  
  

• CMJ - Great Ocean Road Review [+ Show ]
  

  ETHER: Great Ocean Road The Great Ocean Road is a winding stretch of scenic highway that hugs Austr...ETHER: Great Ocean Road
  The Great Ocean Road is a winding stretch of scenic highway that hugs Australia's southern coast, overlooking the inviting, yet shark-infested Pacific Ocean. While Ether's sophomore effort, Great Ocean Road, isn't quite as expansive and sprawling as the thoroughfare it's named after, the album is worth exploring nonetheless. The brainchild of singer-songwriter Garth Adam, who is better known as the bassist for 30 Odd Foot Of Grunts (the band fronted by Aussie megastar Russell Crowe), Ether offers natural acoustic-based rock that's a perfect fit for Triple-A leaning stations. Of the nine tracks offered on Road, "Tear," "The Link" and "Heart Stops" are the obvious highlights. Sure, Adam's voice is a little nasal (regardless, we'll take him over Maximus any day) and the lyrics are indisputably sappy ("When my heart stops, will I have time to say goodbye?" - uh, no), but the hooks are bound to finagle their way into your brain and dwell there until you have no choice but to drive off that Great Ocean Road into the Pacific to get away from them. Despite the consequences, this album sure beats a vegemite sandwich.
  
  

• Dance on Friday Night and Great Ocean Road [+ Show ]
  

  Ether - Dance On Friday Night Ether Artist Resources Try if you like - 30 Odd Foot of Grunts,...Ether - Dance On Friday Night
  
  Ether Artist Resources
  Try if you like -
  30 Odd Foot of Grunts, Sawdoctors
  Buy Ether CDs at Insound!
  
  
  Ether was a surprise for me when I got their debut, Great Ocean Road. Their sophomore album, Dance On Friday Night, has an unfortunate cover with a couple of illustrated fish dancing (resembling a children's album) but the music within is very mature and interesting. Garth Adams voice hasn't really changed a lot but the songs seem a little more solid this time around. It's like he is getting used to being the front-man and primary songwriter. The album starts out with the mellow "Closer" that gives a good impression of what to expect on Dance On Friday Night. I am reminded a little of a more mainstream Billy Bragg on tracks like the title track. More a mix of Bragg and something like the Stars. It's rare that Garth and crew really rock out but most of Dance On Friday Night is completely listenable and enjoyable. A track like the final instrumental simply entitled "Ether" is gentle and soothing showing that Ether is more focused towards the more mature crowd. I still think that they have potential and if discovered, they could possibly have a couple hits.
  (indie 2003)
  Review date: 2004-03-04 01:08:18 by Dennis Scanland
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  Ether - Great Ocean Road
  
  This album came to me from the fine people at In Music We Trust promotions with their regular hype. Ether is made up of Garth Adam, Dave Kelly (both also in Russell Crowe’s Thirty Odd Foot of Grunts), and Douglas Sandrini. They are an Australian band that concentrates on writing melodic pop songs with many different harmonies in tow. Great Ocean Road was named after a spectacular winding highway that snakes the south eastern coast of Australia. The album starts out with the “Not The Girl” which sounds like the Gipsy Kings for a moment with a Flamenco style. It’s not a good indicator for what the rest of the album is going to sound like though. Garth Adam’s deep melodic voice is a treat to listen to as he weaves it in and out of the band’s well-composed instrument lines. The track “Long Way Home” almost has a Celtic feel to it, sort of like the Waterboys. Actually there are a couple tracks on the disc that sound like this. Ether is a mellow band but they have the pop music down pat. Look past the cheesy cover and get to know Ether. They are a group of fine musicians.
  (indie 2002)
  Review date: 2003-03-30 00:00:00 by Dennis Scanland
  
  

Setlist

Set size can vary from 20 minutes to 90 minutes.
Cross section of the songs from the four releases.
I don't do any covers and most songs are around 4 minutes long with brief but gratefully accepted applause.

Basic Requirements

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