Nik Hamby

Banshees Bar and Art Space (in Ipswich, QLD) has an open mic on Wednesday. I'd been a couple of times but took Rebecca and our daughter Dianne along two weeks ago.   I played six songs and was encouraged by a few people, then the next artist invited me to back him, playing drums. I did - and I got a bit carried away by the music.  Apparently a couple of people ran from the bar holding their ears and possibly screaming?!  I didn't hear any of that, I was lost in the sound of the drums. What an awesome night! I went again this week and was the last to play. I played eight songs (two new and six previously released) to a very subdued crowd of about ten. When I finished there was considerable feedback from a few patrons. One guy mentioned a particular song and asked if it was mine. He said it was worth releasing as it was a great chord progression with a great melody. When I said all the songs were mine he was surprised.  A guy who had been sitting one table away si...

The opportunities keep coming!  A couple of days ago I received a message in response to one of my song posts, asking me to submit that track - and any others I wanted to be included on an "indie country playlist rotation"  for Don Valley Country Radio in the UK.   Don Valley is a fully licensed, internet-based radio station described as being "more platter, less chatter"  . I don't actually think any of my releases are particularly country but sent "Where We Will Meet Again" and "A Dog's Sadness" along with my bio and a link to all 31 songs on Spotify.  

I went up to Banshees Bar & Art Space in Ipswich last night, to take part in their Open Mic session.  There were about 10 acts, starting from 7:00pm and running through till almost midnight.   This was my second visit.  I'd been up in early May but felt more confident in my playing last night.  I went on at about 10:00pm and performed four of my songs.  I really enjoyed playing and the larger audience was appreciative also.   Ken, the owner, liked The Magician - and all songs were well received.  I'm not sure when I'll get a chance to go up again but I'd like to attend more regularly. In other news, I've been contacted by a presenter from 88.3 FM, who has asked me to submit songs for airplay!  How good is that?!

  The delayed 2020 National Songwriting Awards screened on Saturday night in a virtual format. We had planned to dress up properly for our lounge-room viewing but were both lurgi-ed, so it was a more relaxed evening. Congratulations to Katrina Burgoyne and Cathy Dobson for both achieving great results!  I entered three songs in the 2020 competition.  "Burn" was shortlisted  and "Breathe, Miss Sunshine" achieved a Top 30 place.   That’ll do for 2020.  What now for 21? More entries? That seems the go. At the time of entering last year I’d released five songs. This year, if I discount those first five, I'll have released 26 songs - and I have about 20 other songs that I like, which need some more time and fine-tuning. I just need to pick.  All my songs have a piece of me so it’s hard to choose, but choose I will.  Thanks again for all your encouragement.

I wrote this song after my mother and mother-in-law both died within a few months of each other. Both losses were a challenge but I really felt I needed to write.  I asked friends for input about the enduring influence their mothers into their lives. I used a lot of ideas in creating this song.  Some are from my experiences and some are from my friends.  Many of us share in these sort of relationships and I feel there is a connection in this song for most people.

It’s been a week alright. A few weeks actually. Lots and lots of social media activities. The A&R group in New York now have my completed profile on their system. I was interviewed on the weekend by Trimstone - and played some live music for them also.  My songs are still on 3SER radio, receiving heaps of encouragement.  Everything is awesome! Amongst all of that I find myself turning away a bit from all the promotional stuff and thinking about the reason for it all. The Music. An inspired lyric wrapped through a stirring melody with a dynamic arrangement. Yes, it's time for another new release. This one is called As Time Goes By.  The Casey Beat premiered it on Saturday night! That's the 17 April show, if you would like to listen on demand.  The five most recent shows are available on the radio website .  This one is very close to me. A song about my life with my wife. She is a published photographer and writer. Her blog has been running for years. W...

Trimstone invited me to do another Zoom performance.  How good is that?!  Thanks guys for the opportunity to chat and share some songs.  If you missed the livestream, look for Trimstone on YouTube and you'll be able to watch it and earlier performances (including mine on 14 March).   Alternatively all today's tracks are available on my Spotify account (which currently has 29 singles).  My YouTube Artist Channel is another option if you don't do Spotify.  Both can be easily accessed via tabs on the blog's home page.  Cheers!