Owen Campbell is Breathing Bullets
New Album Out On August 19 - Produced by Devon Allman
Aussie blues-rocker clips cars as he speeds down the
road
Atlanta, GA - “His grit and passion are sublime, and his
unique storytelling is a true gift,” is what producer Devon Allman says about
musician Owen Campbell. The Oz native brings his smoky vocals to the U.S. with
his new album, Breathing Bullets on August 19th on ROC
Records via MGM Distribution World Wide. This was recorded at High Low Studios
in Memphis, TN and then mixed and mastered by the Grammy Award Winning wizard
Tom Hambridge (Buddy Guy). Campbell will embark on a U.S. Tour in August with
Devon Allman and Andy McKee.
Owen calls his producer, “a real soul surfer… hungry…
and beyond expectations.”
Breathing Bullets is filled with many flavors
of music that comes from his musical background. A native of Canberra, Australia Campbell began his musical journey
at home when his dad, a musician himself, gave his young son a guitar at the
age of nine. “My father was a big influence,” he says. “But so were Bob Dylan,
Van Morrison, The Band, and The Rolling Stones. I always liked the way The Band
brought variety and diversity to their sound. So my sound has bits of country,
soul, Celtic, and rock. I love the variations.”
“There’s nothing like
songwriting,” Owen says.
“I've had a rough couple of years, I guess it's about
that, coming back to busking on the streets after touring overseas, feeling a
little entombed by it. So this is the Phoenix rising, a recreation of
oneself... Something along these lines?” – Owen Campbell – about the song
“Breathing Bullets”
The songs on Breathing
Bullets are powerful with the clutch
shifting chords in “Breathing Bullets”, hair rising melodies of “Eagleman” and
to steady meter of “Rise” show off his musical chops. Campbell talks about nine
lives, asking a medicine man for a sign in his journey and begs for love as he
begins to age. His voice echoes both of a well-weathered man and an antsy,
hungry young musician who asks questions about the world he lives within. Title
song “Breathing Bullets” is classic
Campbell, for he takes his cues from busking by tapping his feet and tinkering
with the slide to make it almost wail. He pairs this with the local Memphis
musicians that Devon Allman brought in and he sounds very comfortable in High
Low Studios.
Owen on the song “RISE”: This was written as the stark
realization one has sometimes when you sit back and realize YOU have been the
problem. Not all the people you blame, circumstances situations, etc... ME!
Important to not to make yourself wrong for this realization but to affirm
you're gonna rise to the occasion, stronger for it, with gratitude for those
that support you. And dealing with anxiety, every time I go on tour I think I'm
gonna die... It's not nice, but I deal with it!
Owen on the song “Eagle Man”: This was a crazy
experience I had leaving the Grand Canyon, In the tour van I was in this
delirious dog-tired state, and it came to me in a dream, a Gnarly old Indian
man retold the story of Eagle Man:
In a time long before your great grandfathers there
lived a people in the canyon, among them was the one they called Eagle Man. He
was a fierce and fearless young warrior. But, he was miserable. All he wanted
in the life was to become an Eagle. Every day he would rage with jealousy at the
eagles flying above the canyon. He turned his back on his people and one day,
he scaled the highest point of the canyon, adorned himself with eagle feathers,
willing the gods to recreate him like an eagle, he jumped! And fell to his
death…
I asked the old Indian man in the dream why he's
telling me this story, and he simply smiles and said; "You should be proud
of who you are and grateful for what you have." And I woke up... Might
sound crazy but it was vivid as the daylight.
Over the past few years, Owen
has released five albums that all stem from his fiery live performances. This took him from the sidewalks of busking to the stages of
international festivals and theaters in a matter of just a few years. But when
he appeared on Australia’s Got Talent show on national TV, he
soon became a very popular contestant that carried him to the finale of the
show. Even though he didn’t win the competition, his exposure served as a
springboard taking him to a higher level in his budding career. In 2014 Own
released The Pilgrim that land him some chart success in his
native Oz and New Zealand on both countries iTunes charts and Australia’s blues
music chart. This success carried him to the U.S. to begin conquering the
larger audiences.
“Campbell plays the
slide guitar like an angel on the harp with confidence, purity and a shot glass
in hand.” – Vulture Magazine
He plays anywhere from
100-200 shows a year worldwide, and he’s always up to back to his roots:
Busking. There he earned street cred and honed his chops as a slide player and
singer. But don’t let that fool you he’s the total package of singer,
songwriter and guitar picker.
Summer 2016 Tour Dates -
August 2016
5th/6th Mammoth Lakes CA *
7th Commons Beach Park, Tahoe City CA *
9th The Birk, Birkenfeld OR *
10th The Nectar Lounge, Seattle WA *
11th Munch and Music, Bend OR *
12th/13th Bronze Blues and Brews, Joseph OR *
13th Red Lion Hotel, Spokane WA *
17th Oriental Theatre, Denver CO *
21st Cedar Cultural Centre, Minneapolis MI **
23rd High Noon Saloon, Madison MI **
24th Acorn Theatre, Three Oaks MI **
25th The Ark, Ann Arbor MI **
26th The Warehouse, Carmel IN **
27th Taft Theatre, Cincinnati OH **
28th Cosmic Charlies, Lexington KY **
5th/6th Mammoth Lakes CA *
7th Commons Beach Park, Tahoe City CA *
9th The Birk, Birkenfeld OR *
10th The Nectar Lounge, Seattle WA *
11th Munch and Music, Bend OR *
12th/13th Bronze Blues and Brews, Joseph OR *
13th Red Lion Hotel, Spokane WA *
17th Oriental Theatre, Denver CO *
21st Cedar Cultural Centre, Minneapolis MI **
23rd High Noon Saloon, Madison MI **
24th Acorn Theatre, Three Oaks MI **
25th The Ark, Ann Arbor MI **
26th The Warehouse, Carmel IN **
27th Taft Theatre, Cincinnati OH **
28th Cosmic Charlies, Lexington KY **
(* Devon Allman shows, ** Andy McKee
shows)
