BUD ROKESKY
Pic: Marcus Coblyn
Australian alt-country favourite Bud Rokesky returns with his first taste of new music in over a year, “Hey Now” via Rainbow Valley Records / Warner Music Australia. Listen HERE. Moving with an uneasy intimacy that mixes devotion and exhaustion, the Queensland based-artist immediately captivates listeners with the refrain “hey now baby, don’t you hate me now”.
On the track, Bud says "Hey Now is about the push and pull of love when it’s at its most fragile - those moments where you’re close in heart but far apart in every other way. I wanted it to carry the ache of trying to hold on when things feel out of your control, but still leave room for people to hear their own story in it.”
“Hey Now” follows a string of A-Side B-Side tracks in early 2024 which saw Bud add songs like “Runaway”, “She Flies”, “Oil OnTo The Fire”, “Mary Valley”, “Wasted”, “Harriet”, Six Months”, “Beer Number 5”, “Newtown” and “Oars” to his impressive catalogue and span a range of Country, Alt-Country/Folk and Alt Rock influences.
2023 saw Bud release his debut album “Outsider”, produced and recorded by Matt Corby & Alex Henriksson on the NSW North Coast at Corby’s Rainbow Valley Studios. With up to 1 million combined streams, the bluesy-Americana influenced record was hallmarked by the soulful track ‘Strike Out’, the sweet ‘Baby & I’, and the gentle ‘Love My Baby More’. The album gathered great support from CMT, community radio, Double J’s Tower of Song & national high rotation airplay across ABC Country & Australian Country Radio. Additionally, ABC Country & Saturday Night Country launched the album as their Feature Album of the Week, along with rave reviews from the likes of Country Music Capital News, stating “He is a storyteller – think Springsteen”, and Post To Wire & Rhythms Magazine comparing the “enigmatic and supremely talented” artist to Orville Peck, Marlon Williams, Townes Van Zandt & Waylon Jennings. Bud quickly followed the album with the standout single “Getting Old” which has opened a new chapter for the talented singer, songwriter.
Over the last couple of years, Bud Rokesky has secured support slots from the likes of Cedric Burnside (USA), C.W. Stoneking, Brad Cox, Deacon Blue, Meg Washington, Tim Rogers & Sons of the East, as well as Matt Corby and Tim Easton (USA). He has also become a fixture on the festival scene, having played to audiences at Bluesfest, Gympie Music Muster, Woodford Folk Festival, BIGSOUND, Nimbin Roots Festival, Groundwater, Queenscliff Music Festival, Tamworth Country Music Festival, and more. Last year he completed a headline run of shows in Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne.