Music
News: Michael Jackson guitarist, Orianthi, supports Mika!
Orianthi is Australia’s own guitar wunderkind. At only 24 years of age she has already experienced what most aspiring musicians only dream of; she has opened for Steve Vai, played alongside idol Carrie Underwood, traded solos with legend Carlos Santana and shared the stage with King of Pop Michael Jackson.
It is with great pleasure The Frontier Touring Company announce Orianthi to support Mika in Sydney this November. Performing this one off show in Sydney with Mika will be yet another feather in Orianthi’s already budding cap.
Adelaide girl Orianthi has grown up with music; her father was a keen musician it was no surprise that when she picked up an acoustic guitar as a child, playing it was second nature. Orianthi recalls, "When I was 11, Carlos Santana came to play Adelaide and that show really affected me. I begged my dad to get me a second hand electric guitar so I could be like Carlos, and that was it, no more acoustic. After that, I would buy all of Carlos' videos — on VHS! — which I kept rewinding to try and learn his solos. I totally wore out the tapes."
After her performance with Carrie Underwood at the 2009 Grammy Awards, the buzz for Orianthi was escalating, so much so that Michael Jackson offered her a place in his live band for his This Is It tour dates in London. Although the tour was not meant to be, just being asked was a life changing experience for the young Australian.
We are now lucky enough to see her perform at the Enmore Theatre this November in support of Mika. This modern guitar prodigy packs modern-girl power punch into shredding and she will perform tracks from her new album ‘Believe’; please welcome Orianthi.
Mika’s return to Australia will see him showcasing tracks from his highly anticipated album The Boy Who Knew Too Much. A matured Mika returns to the forefront on The Boy Who Knew Too Much. Again collaborating with Greg Wells, lead single ‘We Are Golden’ caused Perez Hilton to proclaim the track: “…epic. Huge. Massive. And, of course, happy!”, as it peaked at #10 on Australia’s ARIA chart.
As Mika returns, there’s only one thing we can expect from his performance: a sold out show.
Womadelaide 2010 The Armada, Public Opinion Afro Orchestra, Ethiopiques, Babylon Circus and Ojos de Brujo live @ Botanic Park, Adelaide, SA (5-8 March 2010)
Future Music Festival 2010 Empire of the Sun, Franz Ferdinard, Prodigy, Way Out West and more live @ Sydney, NSW (March 2010)
I’d probably say it was earlier this year, we did a show over in Perth, I think it was a festival. The show was completely sold out & at home we were able to have heaps of friends & family, don’t get me started on the size of the guest list, but the crowd was great. To be able to rock out to so many people from our home as well as the people we know & love it was just great & that’s the stand out for me.
Ideal Lineup? Well despite the impossibility of it I’d definitely say Nirvana. They are & were such an inspirational band of their time & even though they’re no longer around, I’d still love to see them as I missed out. Besides that, I’d love to see some bands from the 60’s & 70’s that are more melody based, such as The Beatles & The Rolling Stones, they really did great stuff & I feel the melody in music has really disappeared today. So to see bands like that play would be great.
Face artist you've seen at a Music Festival? One that really stands out to me still is a set I caught here in Perth by The Music. They were playing the Big Day Out in Perth & I was waiting for another band to come on, but went over to the stage they were on about 25 minutes early. The set by The Music was just amazing, the passion & technique the musicians put on was amazing & to see them up in like tracksuit jackets in summer really was cool & it was just a great set.
Tips for attending a music festival? Pretty much just sunscreen & water. As I mentioned, the place gets really hot in the afternoon & with heaps of people there, the amount of shade becomes a lot less. The water is basically just to stay cool & to survive the day & then besides that just have some booze & food if you need it & all is good.
My Festival Experience
