Award-winning Aussie Ash Grunwald brings Hot Mama Vibes back to Canada
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B.C. and Alberta tour dates
February 2 – The GLC, Whistler
February 4 – The Media Club, Vancouver
February 5 – The Last Drop, Revelstoke
February 6 – Snowshoe Sam’s, Kelowna
February 7 – Wild Bill’s, Banff
February 9 – Rockwater Grill and Bar, Golden
February 10 – The Royal, Nelson
February 11 – Minstrel Café, Kelowna
Australian surfer, snowboarder and award-winning blues rocker Ash Grunwald is heading back to Canada this winter for round two of his Hot Mama Vibes tour – and this time, audiences will notice an evolution in his sound, thanks to two new side projects.
When not touring his solo work, Ash has been performing with Tiger vs. Shark, a collaboration with London-based Aussie producer and multi-instrumentalist Fingers Malone. The music is influenced by London Dub Step — a dark style of electronica that, like the blues, grew up in the underclass. He’s also got a trippy, psychedelic blues rock project called KRASH that features Kram, the guitarist from the chart-topping Aussie alternative rock band, Spiderbait. The beats, the electronica, and the dub step elements from those projects are all starting to creep into Ash’s solo show, adding even more layers to his already-huge and complex solo sound.
Ash debuted Hot Mama Vibes last winter with a tour of B.C. and Alberta’s big ski and boarding towns. The album is a collaboration with leading members of Australia’s hip-hip community, including Countbounce from the Austrailian Music Prize-nominated ensemble TZU. It builds on Ash’s swampy blend of blues, electronica, hip hop, rock and soul, with rich references to 70s rock and updated elements like junk percussion, distorted vocals and Euro-sounding keys.
Ash’s forays into trending pop sounds — combined with his omnipresence in the Australian surfing community — have gotten him credited with single-handedly revitalizing Australia’s blues and roots scene.
He’s opened for James Brown and Bo Diddly, toured with Jack Johnston and played the Montreaux Jazz Festival. He’s also earned four ARIA nominations (Australia’s Juno) three Victoria Blues Awards, and two Tazmania Blues Awards. His 2007 release, Give Signs, won the Best Independent Blues and Roots Album Prize from the Australian Independent Record Label’s Association. And he won the prestigious 2010 Australasian Performing Rights Association Award for Blues and Roots Song of the Year.
Ash was named 2003 Blues Performer of the Year by the Melbourne Blues Appreciation Society, earning him the opportunity to compete in the 2004 International Blues Challenge in Memphis. There, he made it to the finals and was given the opportunity to perform on FOX Television’s “Good Morning Memphis.” His entire trip was also documented by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Most recently, Ash’s song “Walking” was chosen for the soundtrack to the movie Limitless, featuring Robert DiNiro. “Breakout” was also featured in promo for the film Moneyball.