A Long Time Coming: Listener Announce Headline Australian Tour

Come for Yours And Owls, stay for the rest of Australia.

The first time my ears were exposed to the sounds of Listener was back in 2011 when I heard The Chariot's fever-hardcore-daydream, 'Long Live', with the track 'David De La Hoz'. Named after a fan of the band, as was the trend for that particular LP, that dynamic live tune has a massive 180-shift about halfway through when Listener - AKA mastermind Dan Smith - takes the vocal reigns away from Chariot frontman Josh Scogin to gift the track with his classically earnest Southern vocal twang. A singing style that makes a wonderful song like this still be so gosh darn endearing seven years on.

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Ever since that experience, I've kept close tabs on this band's output, but it was only on their latest "talk music" creation, this year's powerful 'Being Empty : Being Filled' - each of the ten songs being mini-biographies of historical inventors and creators - that I've fallen head over heels with them. Utterly moving songs like 'There's Money In The Walls', 'Add Blue', and 'A Love Letter To Detroit' are amongst some of the most emotive material Listener have created; showing mature growth as they've aged out on the road and how they've dealt with their heavy touring cycles in an honest manner.

This was also where Listener fully embraced each other's talents and strengths, writing some of their best songs in the process. With moments of instrumental dissonance, spoken-word galore, post-rock explosions, poetic minimalism and far too much heart to even quantify, "Dan & Friends" this band is no longer with 'Being Empty : Being Filled'.

To say it's an incredible record is selling it woefully short, I feel. Which is why the big news today that the Kansas City act are finally heading out to Australia for a proper headline run this September and October is making local fans cry with joy.

Listener's touring habits aren't at all decreasing it seems, what with seven national dates and two shows over in New Zealand, bringing their most accomplished LP and old fan-faves to an emotive live setting near you; bleeding their wooden hearts more so than ever before. All with Perth emo/indie-rockers Treehouses providing a fitting tour support too!

Listener are still going on and their songs are more than living on. Will you sing along?