Shiny Joe Ryan Shares New Single & Video 'Pub Boat'

Sporting a mane of curly locks, a hilarious sense of humour and a lilting Irish brogue, Shiny Joe Ryan is a wonderous enigma. Today, the Pond multi-instrumentalist shares his anomalous-yet-nostalgic album track "Pub Boat," lifted from his long-awaited second studio album Shiny's Democracy, available Friday, July 23 via Spinning Top Records. Shiny's Democracy is available for pre-order in digital formats as well as limited edition apple red 12" vinyl HERE. "Pub Boat" is accompanied by a buoyant visual featuring a real-life pub on wheels that will bring you along for the ride, all the way to Shiny Joe's very own backyard. Coming on the heels of previous single, "Ketamine," which received high praise from critics and fans alike, "Pub Boat" shows us the range we have come to expect from Shiny Joe Ryan and his insatiable knack for a catchy chord.

Shiny Joe explains the premise behind the jaunty and propulsive track, saying "'Pub Boat' is quite literally a song about a boat I saw ferrying tourists around the canals of Amsterdam. The whole thing was decked out like a nice floating pub. The thing I love about the song though is the chug. Playing the 3/4 guitar over the 4/4 drums makes for a lovely deep groove and playing it with the band is so much fun."

Initially, Shiny Joe had big dreams to bring the idea of a real-life pub boat from the canals of Amsterdam to the waterways of Western Australia for the video, "I had borrowed the family tinny with the hope of filming thIs video on the Swan River. The idea was to drop each member of the band in the river holding onto a keg barrel as floatation and film me pulling each of them from the water. However, it was winter and the idea of making my mates jump in the river didn't seem like a good one. So instead, we adopted the techniques used by the ancient Egyptians to move the block for the pyramids. Using the keg barrels as rollers, the band were able to transport the boat with me in it down the road into the backyard where we all had a few beers."

It's been a long, seven year wait since the release of his debut solo album The Cosmic Microwave Background in 2014. His musical offerings are as unique as he is - a mix of genres encompassing country, pop and rock, all mangled and mashed into something new, strange and tender. Joe finally found the time to record this new offering between touring as a crew member for Tame Impala and performing with Pond. He wrote and recorded this second album at Tunafish Studios with his band The Sky Dolphins in Western Australia and as well as mixing it himself along with his Pond bandmates, Jay Watson and James Ireland, it was also carefully mastered by fellow WA musical alumni, Kevin Parker.

Shiny Joe explains the concept behind the prolific artwork for the single and album, "It's a recreation of a photo I saw of Australian Prime Minister Gough Whitlam being dismissed from parliament in 1975. He's standing on the steps of parliament house surrounded by reporters. I thought it was a very striking image and represented a failure of democracy in Australia. I summoned as many friends as I could, instructed them to dress as 70s as possible and told them to meet me at the clubhouse steps of the Fremantle football oval."

Shiny's Democracy is an album for anyone and everyone and a sign of a musician who wants to try everything once (or twice) with no plans of slowing down. You'll find glimpses of his contributions to his band Pond on the record but Shiny Joe definitely carves a path all of his own. Written with a perfect balance of grit, wit and expertly crafted instrumentals, this second album from Shiny Joe Ryan will place him firmly alongside the rest of the Western Australian musical mainstays and definitely marks his triumphant return from his initial solo offering back in 2014. Today, Shiny Joe Ryan is inviting you to climb aboard the Pub Boat and get your groove on!

Listen here:

Photo Credit: Duncan Wright

To post a comment, you must register and login.