Claude Hay and The Gentle Enemies

Claude Hay has unveiled a film clip for the single ‘Borracho’ – the first for his new side project ‘The Gentle Enemies’. Animated in the style of Mexican Bar Noir by Mike Foxall (the artist behind Frenzal Rhomb and Nancy Vandal) – the new video tells a dark and gritty tale of Claude and the boys angering the local drug lord though the misuse of tequila, and the resulting Tarantino-esque escapade that follows.

Roots-rock artist Claude Hay is known around the world as a leading exponent of live looping – technology allowing him to create the sound of a live band whilst playing solo. Claude has taken a surprising next step and joined forces with actual live breathing musicians to release the double A-side single ‘Borracho/Run’ under the moniker of ‘Claude Hay and The Gentle Enemies’.

Weighing in somewhere exactly between C. W. Stoneking and Queens of The Stone Age, Claude’s new tracks come from different sides of the spectrum. The song Borracho is classic Claude Hay and chugs along with fuzzy funk intensity as it relates a common tale of over-indulgence. Run is quite a different beast and would likely never have seen the light of day without a full band behind it. Run is a protest song aimed squarely at one of the most hated politicians in Australian history and Hay grinds the axe with one of the best rock and roll screams since Chris Cornell.

The Borracho tour has been running since March and continues to early June. Melbourne and Sydney shows coming up (dates in sidebar).

Borracho and Run are available from all good online music retailers and you can preview them on soundcloud:
Borracho: Click Here
Run: Click Here

The Borracho Tour – Dates

Thursday May 15
The Public Bar,
North Melbourne
with special guests
The Groves,
The Ivory Elephant
8:00 pm, $10

Friday May 16
O’Neill’s Pub,
Dickson, ACT (solo show)
9:00 pm, Free

Saturday May 17
The Lewisham Hotel, Lewisham, NSW
With special guests
8:30 pm, $15
Tickets: lewishamhotel.com.au

Thursday May 22 – Sunday May 25
The Blues on Broadbeach Festival, QLD
Various stages
Free Entry, Info: bluesonbroadbeach.com

Friday May 30
The Stag and Hunter Hotel, Newcastle, NSW
(solo show)
8:00pm, Free

Sunday June 1
The Towradgi Beach Hotel
Wollongong, NSW
3:30pm, Free

In amongst the band tour, Claude zipped over to The Netherlands to play solo some of their biggest festivals. Moulin Blues Festival (see video below) was a hi-lite. Apart from playing to a packed big top crowd he also got to check out the headliner Tedeschi Trucks Band. From running out of petrol to using the currency of cds to get out of a jaywalking fine to hotel window view of Eurovision to 10 Jagers for 10 Euros, being on the road is packed with many tales of highs and lows. You can continue following him on Facebook before he hops off the plane in Sydney and heads straight to Melbourne for the Gentle Enemies show at the Public Bar on Thursday May 15th.