Multi
award winning singer songwriter, Brendan McMahon, grew up in the
small town of Kapunda near South Australia’s Barossa Valley. He
discovered his love of music at the age of 15 after being “awed and
floored” seeing some old footage of Jimi Hendrix played on
television; amazed by the sounds that Jimi could
pull from a guitar and captivated by the iconic performer’s
showmanship. Borrowing money from his mother (and paying it
back at $2 a week) he promptly bought himself a $60 guitar and amp
rig from a mate. Spending
his late teens and early twenties as a lead singer/lead guitarist in
rock cover bands playing across Adelaide and country Victoria,
McMahon honed his skills the hard way – in front of demanding
Australian pub and club crowds. In 1998, and now bitten by both the
song writing and performance bug, McMahon released a 7-track EP
called Picture
This with
his band The Cunning Stunts. In
2015 and 2016, Brendan released the solo albums Falling
To Earth
and Marker
7-58 under
the moniker of Satellite Gods, and in doing so was fortunate enough
to collaborate and work with some renowned Australian musicians
including Peter Maslen (Boom Crash Opera), Jason Vorherr (Darryl
Braithwaite), Bob Spencer (The Angels), Simon Hosford (Vanessa
Amorosi) and Wilbur Wilde (Ol’ 55). Brendan
explains “I met these fabulous musicians through the studio I
record, Soggy Dog Recording Studio in Upwey, Victoria. Not only did
they contribute their instrumental talents to these albums, but they
also opened my eyes to new concepts and helped me understand the
importance of leaving
space in
the music.” After
supporting artists such as Boom Crash Opera, Russell Morris, Wendy
Stapleton and The Chantoozies in Australia, Brendan released On
This Fine Occasion,
his third album in 2017, which received great reviews both locally
and internationally. In
2019, McMahon, who now calls Melbourne home, released In
The Moment
– his 4th solo album. Maturity, reflection and drawing on his
personal experiences, his inspired yet refined lyrics again take
listeners on a captivating journey.
Recorded
with Steve Vertigan at Soggy Dog Recording Studios, and again drawing
upon Australian music royalty in its creation – namely Dave Leslie
(Baby Animals), Danny Spencer (Jimmy Barnes Band), Brett Kingman
(James Reyne Band), and the previously mentioned Peter Maslen and
Jason Vorherr, plus a string trio from the Melbourne Symphony
Orchestra (Sarah Curro, Gabi Halloran and Paul Zabrowarny), this
powerful album embraces the essence of story-telling
and leaves you thinking about the songs long after the last track
finishes. Having
visited over 60 unique and varied countries (McMahon and his wife
share an extensive and adventurous bucket list), Brendan’s travel
experiences, specifically his observations of history, cultures,
people, architecture and nature are at the root of his creativity and
songwriting. These themes again feature prominently throughout
In The
Moment. November
2020 saw the release of No
Rush Today.
An album that debuted at No. 2 on the iTunes country music chart on
release. McMahon feels his 5th solo offering cemented him in the
Country Rock space. The album delivered 3 top 10 AMRAP singles,
“Jack,” “Sugar Cane Man” and “Wired” to the moon along with
strong charting on many other Australian charts including a No.4
position in France with “Sugar Cane Man.” Once
again, the collaboration of Soggy Dog Studios (Steve Vertigan) and
McMahon, along with the incredible session musicians from previous
albums, has delivered an album of stories about personal journey,
travel experiences and people. The
17th of June 2022 marked the release of As
The Road Unfolds,
the most successful record to date.
It debuted as the highest selling
Australian album on the iTunes Country chart. It has also delivered
no less than 6 chart topping singles – “Jenni J,” “When I
See You Tonight,” “I Feel A Change,” “Skin & Bone,” “Gundry's Track” and “Back Roads” which went on to win the
Australian Songwriters Association award for best song lyrics in
2023. “I
strongly believe that As
The Road Unfolds
is my most cohesive and strongest offering yet,” McMahon says.
“We’ve spent a lot more time listening to and fine tuning the
tracks. I’ve also recorded a lot more of this album in my own
studio and the studio of Aussie guitar virtuoso, Simon Hosford which
added more colour to the end product”. “I’ve
found it really exciting in 2021 & 2022 to be getting strong
airplay all over the world… my songs are now being played in
Ireland, England, Scotland, Canada, USA, Belgium, France, Germany,
Netherlands, Italy and Luxemburg… it’s one of the positives of
global reach to new audiences through the internet” states McMahon.
As
The Road Unfolds
won the Australian Country Music People’s Choice Award for best
album at the 2023 Tamworth music festival. June
2024 sees the release of McMahon’s 7th studio album, Somewhere
West Of Nowhere,
which features 12 new tracks including no less than 6 No.1 singles
from the AMRAP metro chart including “I Hear Your Voice” which
won an award at the Tamworth Australian People’s Choice Awards in
January 2024 for best video. Somewhere
West Of Nowhere
has recently been nominated in the International Singer/Songwriters
Awards in Atlanta, Georgia even prior to its full release based on
the tracks that have been released as singles, “It’s extremely
exciting to be recognised internationally for my songwriting” says
McMahon… “it may mean a trip to Atlanta in October this year
(2024) for the awards ceremony if I’m shortlisted.”