MRG Concerts Presents:
Illy w/ guests
Friday, March 10
The Brixx Bar & Grill
Tickets on sale Wednesday, February 1 at 10am
18+
ILLY
With a combination of playful musical innovation, undeniable hooks and whipsmart wordplay, multi-Platinum Australian artist Illy has made a habit out of defying expectation across his first four albums: his fifth record Two Degrees is the next impressive step in a career that continues to resist classification. And Two Degrees pushes any pre-conceived notions of Illy out of the way, down the stairs, out the door, sets them on fire and shoots their ashes into space.
From 2009 debut Long Story Short to 2010’s breakout The Chase, through 2012’s throwback Bring It Back and the hugely successful Cinematic in 2013, the evolution of Illy as an artist — across all spectrums of pop, hip hop, electro and indie — has been nothing short of relentless…. As Illy states on the record’s title track, his success — from hip hop opener to multi-platinum festival headliner — all happened with him moving forward “two degrees / then two degrees / then two degrees” at a time.
The accolades are easy to list off — multi-Platinum singles, a Gold record, an ARIA award, huge sold-out tours, massive festival spots and seven consecutive appearances in triple j’s Hottest 100 — but Two Degrees is all about Illy continuing the musical growth witnessed on Cinematic. Following the success of that album — which went Gold and spawned the epic single ‘Tightrope’ — Illy was champing at the bit to start working on Two Degrees at the start of 2015.
From the outset, Two Degrees is a statement of intent, with Illy laying his storied history out for all to see on ‘Forget It’ (“from first one on to encores”), and quickly moves to focus on the now and the future in the rambunctious electro pop of ‘If Looks Could Kill’ (“In one ear / Out the other it goes”), and the trappings of letting your ego get the best of you ‘Hazard to Myself’.
Lead single, the 2x Platinum ‘Papercuts’ (feat: Vera Blue), is a pop powerhouse — and has Illy once more showing off his singing chops — about overcoming the little things that constantly try to get you down, while ‘Catch 22’ is the album’s anchor song, summing up the album’s narrative ethos succinctly with its story about how the decisions you make, for good or bad, are what make us all who we are, and staying true to that is what matters most.
Still, while the album’s narrative is so succinct and striking, the other imposing aspect of Two Degrees is how the musical vision of Illy and executive producer M-Phazes has grown and expanded beyond any and all conceivable borders. It’s a heady mix that combines pop and minimalist funk, electro and hip hop, dance and soul into a genre-defying rush that’s accompanied by Illy’s wry, knowing take on life.
Written and recorded around the world with Illy working in various studios in New York, Los Angeles, the UK, Sydney and at home in Melbourne — and with M-Phazes looking on in his executive producer role — musically Two Degrees is free flowing and ever-changing, never settling in one place for too long; it’s about Illy ignoring other people’s expectations and simply doing what comes naturally.
Two Degrees also hosts some impressive guests; the dulcet tones of Sir The Baptist accompany ‘Hazard To Myself’, ‘Papercuts’ features Vera Blue, Jenna McDougall of pop-punk band Tonight Alive adds an incredible hook to ‘Oh My’, British star Anne-Marie guests on ‘Catch-22’, and ‘Extra Extra’ and ‘You Say When’ feature Mike Waters and Marko Penn respectively.
After five albums and with the creative musical melange of Two Degrees, Illy’s roots in hip hop have now spread out to all corners of the musical globe to encompass pop, soul, funk, electro, dance, and indie, and he stands as one of Australia’s most innovative and creative artists, doing it two degrees at a time.
