Beauty Queen of the Sea - out 30 October 2006 (Black Yak/MGM) www.iota.com.au www.myspace.com/iotamyspace
‘A world-class songwriter with the vision and voracity to make a legend of his own life’ – The Brag
‘Gives the NME-sponsored guard a run for their money’ - InPress
‘As a singer, iOTA's versatility and vocal strength are never in doubt…a remarkable performance.’ – Sun Herald
iOTA, one of Australia’s most enigmatic, talented and original singer/songwriters, always wanted to be a rock star. And then the moment he became one, he freaked out. In hindsight he admits that it was a pivotal moment in a career that embraces six ARIA Award nominations, four albums, seven singles and a stunning theatrical debut as the lead role in Hedwig & the Angry Inch.
His debut album, The Hip Bone Connection, entered the world in 1999 to an adoring family. Constant gigging had built up a core audience and devoted fanclub that was just waiting for product. Things went silly, fast. The album earned iOTA the first of his six ARIA Award nominations and sold like the next big thing had been announced and its name was iOTA. "Oh that period was really weird and kind of scary," he says. "The record went kaboom and everything was just strange. Really strange. Maybe success wasn't what I thought it would be. I felt weird about being known and answering questions."
iOTA's Hip Bone Connection also got out of joint when he was rapidly pigeon-holed as Australia's Ben Harper - the current roots rock explosion had yet to happen, so this cat with a hat was all the country had at the time. Have acoustic guitar, can strum, must be from the house of Ben. "I like all my albums except my first. I don't listen to it," he says, "because it's not me and because I hate being categorised. All that Ben Harper stuff really annoyed me and I reacted against it. With my latest album I didn't want to release another acoustic-based album and be part of this hippy, bluesy, surfie-based thing, where everybody is playing acoustic guitar and playing rootsy music."
Instead he’s turned up the amps on Beauty Queen Of The Sea (produced by Tim Powles of the Church), a record that embraces the warmth and melody from his third album La Caravana, but really is the sum of all its predecessors. And that leaves him in an interesting place. "Anything is possible," he says. "This music theatre thing is really getting me yet at the same time if I can keep making music and releasing it I'll be happy. Then I just need something else to surprise me. Isn't this where I'm supposed to say I'm looking forward to a long and illustrious career in music ... " Yes it is.
