“Classic Melbourne bullshit, never climaxes”.
That’s the humorous and extraordinarily humble self-description you’ll find in the social media bio of the gorgeously idiosyncratic left field pop/rock septet Ciggie Witch. Largely centring on and assembling around the considerable song-writing abilities of the late Zac Denton and later, Mitch Clemens (Skydeck), his brother Lachlan and other members, the tragic passing of Denton last November led the band like his significant other The Ocean Party, to quietly call it a day earlier this month. On Monday this week casually and with little fanfare, they announced their final show where they will ironically launch the vinyl release of their last record, Mad Music. By the band’s own hand;
Ciggie Witch’s growth from Zac’s solo songwriting project to a band featuring seven songwriters across all our recordings shows how eager and willing Zac was to welcome new friends and ideas into the band. That being said, this was always Zac’s band and it won’t really be Ciggie Witch without him, but we felt we needed to give the band a proper send-off. We’ve been very lucky to have such amazing friends and fans come to our shows, and to have played with so many great bands over the years. Joining us for our final show will be Dom Roff and Dan Kelly. Hope to see you there. Ciggie Witch.
The premature end of Ciggie Witch is another stark reminder of the irreplaceable talent in Denton the Melbourne musical community and the musical world at large has lost. Over three albums and three EP’s, the deceptively effusive compositional chemistry and the absolute honesty at the centre of their wry and personal and social observations are ever present, a chemistry that further blossomed when widened to include writing contributions from each member, especially on their last album Mad Music. That set the tone for the band’s overall reason for existence, further imbued by distinct yet complimentary vocal differences between the Denton brothers and Clemens which were perfectly complemented with backing harmonies and the occasional welcome solo contribution from keyboardist Ashley Bundang. Together with fellow Ocean Party stalwart Liam Halliwell, Lachlan also oversaw a formidable rhythm section, sublimely decorated with Bundang’s glitteringly substantive melodies, Lauren Huynh’s ambidextrous contributions and the irresistible immediacy and melodic depth provided by Joe Foley’s indispensable slide guitar. Self effacing, ever democratic and criminally underrated, across those three albums and three EP’s, 2014’s Rock And Roll Juice and its accompanying 2015 EP Long Weekend, Classic Connection in 2016 and Mad Music in 2017 as well as the earlier EP’s Echidna Cottage and Stupid Hamish*, Ciggie Witch made one hell of a musical proposition.
True the the band’s ethical nature and boundless generosity all three releases are available digitally as free download here while the vinyl edition of Mad Music, available on Lost And Lonesome is available to buy here. Catch the band’s last show and Mad Music’s vinyl launch at the Northcote Social Club on April 22. The flyer is below. We’ve chosen our two of our favourite tracks from each album below and to satiate the visual memory, thrown in a couple of videos and live performances that capture the band’s gregarious and fun loving nature perfectly.
Ciggie Witch — Sadly missed, fondly remembered ♥
*The article has been edited to correct the omission of the first two EP’s.
Long Weekend
Ciggie Witch (AUS)
From the album, ‘Rock And Roll Juice’, Osborne Again.
Audio Stream
Part Two
Ciggie Witch (AUS)
From the album, ‘Rock And Roll Juice’, Osborne Again.
Audio Stream
Walking The Tracks
Ciggie Witch (AUS)
From the album, ‘Classic Connection’, Osborne Again.
Audio Stream
Official Video
Sandy Train
Ciggie Witch (AUS)
From the album, ‘Classic Connection’, Osborne Again.
Audio Stream
Latest Fashion
Ciggie Witch (AUS)
From the album, ‘Classic Connection’, Osborne Again.
Audio Stream
Shadow
Ciggie Witch (AUS)
From the album, ‘Mad Music’, Osborne Again.
Audio Stream
Official Video
The Mighty Murray
Ciggie Witch (AUS)
From the album, ‘Mad Music’, Osborne Again.
Audio Stream
Meet Me In the Middle (Live)
Ciggie Witch (AUS)
From the album, ‘Classic Connection’, Osborne Again.
Live Performance
Big D
Ciggie Witch (AUS)
From the album, ‘Classic Connection’, Osborne Again.
Live Performance