Rock music from Melbourne, Australia
pic by kirsten bresciani
L-R: Scott wilson, marty powell, josh king, jenni powell, marty wags
Raised on a balanced diet of crunchy guitars, tangy riffs and spicy hooks, Riff Raiders have simmered, sauteed and smoked their unique flavour of rock’n’roll over the past eight years, bringing their tasty live shows to fans across Australia.
The band released their first single from a new batch of tunes earlier this year, a two-and-a-half minute bona fide banger, Nothing To Lose - complete with an epic video that uses some of the original lights used to cook guests on ABC TV’s Countdown.
Rock’n’Roll re-entry
Now, Riff Raiders are back in the descent module with a brand new album in the cargo bay. Welcome to Mars features a collection of 11 genre-blurring rock tracks from the modern hard n’ heavy Broken Halo to the late 60s British feel of Sound Mirror, the swampy bluegrassy number Climbing the Walls and three-part power pop gem Feels Like Something - you’ll have a new favourite song every time you listen. The title track will be the next single which will set the scene for their return.
Riff Raiders’ trajectory has been heading to Mars since launching debut album Live Like You Mean It in 2017 and their face-melting live shows won fans all over the country. Delivering the goods live, including key support slots with D-A-D, Baby Animals, The Poor, Palace of the King & The Lazys, kept the action force full-tilt towards the Feb 2020 release of Double A-Side vinyl single Loaded Gun/Best Day Ever.
Thrusters in overdrive, the Rock’n’Roll Daydream album was just weeks away from touchdown and the band was halfway through an east coast tour when the world suffered a major malfunction causing maximum drag force…
The album received acclaim from quarantine bays worldwide and in 2021 Riff Raiders were shortlisted for the Best Punk / Rock Act in the Music Victoria Awards. In 2022 the unreleased track Walk of Shame appeared on the Rue Morgue Records compilation Murders in the Rue Morgue Vol II and after a handful of live shows, the band bunkered down in the studio module in 2023 with producer Mat Robbins.