Watling & Bates are songwriters from Unumgar NSW, raconteurs of contemporary rural Australia and revivalists of the country’s past. Their songs move like a will-o-the-wisp between Australiana and Americana, Gothic country and dark folk, hillbilly and honkytonk.
Sat In the Car And Remembered is heading out to radio on 20 September, as the final single from the Small Town Tales album. The song tells of an impetuous trip across the Nullarbor Plain fuelled by the optimism of youth, remembered by an old couple in a parked car in a tired country town. Chasing trains and dodging wombats from Melbourne to Perth while the fanbelt screams and the rain pours down. Would we do it again? In a heartbeat!
We had the best time at The GAS Old Time Acoustic Music Weekend at the Hillbilly Goat HQ in Brooweena, Queensland in April. We started Saturday morning off with our trademark rooster crow and steeped ourselves in the culture and camaraderie of this fabulous event for the whole weekend. We congratulate the Hillbilly Goats on creating this outstanding venue, which hosts the creme de la creme of old time and quirky acoustic artists in April and September each year. Viva les Goats, viva la Gas!
Our Soundtrack Our Stories is an initiative by ARIA to get local artists streaming in homes and businesses while the live performance sector is down. We've put together a playlist of music of artists and colleagues linked to Kyogle and the Northern Rivers, so you can find us all on Spotify!
The Shelly Jones Band’s upbeat traditional country sound merges with Watling & Bates’ old time Gothic hillbilly and honkytonk style on this latest single from these two accomplished country duos.
Written by Shelly Jones, IF YOU KNEW WHAT YOU KNOW is an upbeat tune that challenges one to think about whether they would do things differently in life if they had their chance to do it all again.
With an infectious beat and a catchy tune packed with perfectly blended harmonies and great musicianship, you’ll want you to kick up your heels and start dancing, even if you don’t know how!
Produced by Lester and Shelly in their home studio, IF YOU KNEW WHAT YOU KNOW is available on all digital platforms.
Candy Moon, released on Valentine's Day 2021, is available for streaming, download, and home delivery as a CD single! Producer and guitarist Thor Phillips and drummer Marcus Schintler have bought some hillbilly swing and rockabilly jazz to this old time classic. Candy Moon was written by Kym Watling, engineered by Thor Phillips, and mastered by Paul Blakey at 12th & Vine Post.
Wonderful to see the long-awaited Kyogle Backroads episode, in which we performed for the launch of the Richmond River Independent community newspaper at the Kyogle Bowling Club!
So grateful to receive our finalist nomination certificates for the Tamworth Songwriters Association (TSA) Salute Awards. This year we were honoured with five semi-final nominations, with one of them, Wondering About My Time, reaching the finals in the Gospel category. Thank you TSA, we greatly enjoy the competition!
2020 marks 140 years since Ned Kelly’s last stand and subsequent execution on the 11th of November 1880. Producer and guitarist Thor Phillips and drummer Marcus Schintler deliver a sharp edge of Australian rock to this colonial tale, with Watling & Bates shackled to the past. Such Is Life 2020 will be released to radio and streaming services on Melbourne Cup Day, Tuesday 3rd November 2020.
Thor Phillips pits a full-house of Dobro against Christopher Ridgway‘s hand of chicken-pickin’ guitar. Watling crashes the saloon with a harmonica while Bates keeps a safe distance and thoughtfully nurses his beer. Wondering About My Time is from the Small Town Tales album, produced by Thor Phillips.
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