Pacific Avenue

Pacific Avenue are ecstatic to finally announce that their debut album ‘Flowers’ will be released to the world on Friday, May 5 via BMG; a milestone achievement for a group of musicians who have remarkably seen win after win in their rapidly spectacular lifespan.

During the early stages of production, the band didn’t necessarily have a set theme or direction in mind for the body of work they would create. If anything, the content came from embracing the sound they’d crafted over the last half-decade, instinctive classic rock that decorates a timespan of stories and collective experiences, all while accentuating the band’s opulent style.

“Being our debut album, we wanted it to make a statement with the sound we want to be known for,” says lead vocalist and songwriter Harry O’Brien. “We also wanted to show a range in influence, with some songs leaning towards typical rock and roll, and others being sweeter ballads.”

It’s no secret that Pacific Avenue’s influences are rooted in eras long gone on the calendar, but artistically ever-present throughout the modern age, finding ways to stay alive and thrive with new youthful generations. ‘Flowers’ flaunts its mystical prowess throughout its twelve-track length, riddled with familiar melodies and passages that pay homage to an array of inspirations, decorated with signature intricacies that uphold the record’s significance.

Throughout the duration of ‘Flowers’, the group’s love towards their pioneers is revealed from the tenderness of ‘Strawberry Daydream’ to the wistful time warp ‘Lay Me Down’, from the sentimental touch of ‘Wake Me Up’ to the raucous vitality of ‘Devotion’. “Stylistically, we have a real affinity for the 60s and 70s,” continues Harry. “We wanted to do our best to tip our caps towards the bands we love and sound like a classic album you could find in your parent’s vinyl collection, while still making a record that sounds relevant to today’s culture of music.”

Pacific Avenue’s music has made evident waves across Australia in recent years. With multiple releases added to full rotation on triple j and Triple M, and accumulating over 10 million streams on Spotify, Pacific Avenue have become more than just a familiar name on the airwaves and festival line ups – they’ve developed a steadily growing fan base that have followed the band from their humble beginnings as local South Coast entertainers to flourishing Australian luminaries. “Growing up playing music and listening to the albums of my favourite bands, I would never have imagined that I’d be doing the same,” comments Jack. “To be able to create our debut album with some of my best friends is such a special moment in life.”

Birthed after several songs were successfully written in the first jam session between former busking competitors Harry O’Brien and Ben Fryer, who later recruited mutual friends Jack Kay and Dom Littrich to complete the foursome, Pacific Avenue’s turning point came when they released the beloved, fan-favourite single ‘Easy Love’. From then on, it was comfortable positioning across editorial playlists on Spotify and Apple Music, being recognised as a triple j Unearthed Feature Artist, regular airplay across community and commercial radio stations; not to mention the song coming in at #108 in the triple j Hottest 200 of 2021. It was an outstanding, momentous result that exquisitely set up the band for the year ahead.

Following themes of positivity, a rarity in modern music, Pacific Avenue followed up in 2022 with ‘Give It Up For Yourself’, a Brit-Pop inspired, humbling ode to self-love that scored favourably with tastemakers such as iHeart Radio, LISTNR, NME, The Guardian, rage and MTV. “When I was writing the lyrics,” says Harry, “I wanted to keep in mind the importance of taking a step back and appreciating how far you have come, no matter how far along you are in achieving your dreams. If the younger version of yourself could see you today, I’m sure you would be proud.”

Recent single ‘Leaving For London’, which clocked in at #57 in the triple j Hottest 100 of 2022, contributed to the band’s impressive rise in popularity, and saw the group tour alongside Louis Tomlinson (UK) and Crooked Colours, adding to their already astonishing live performance resume with appearances alongside The Wombats (UK), Lime Cordiale, Ocean Alley, 5 Seconds of Summer, DMAs, Tash Sultana, Skegss, San Cisco, Ruby Fields, Thelma Plum and Missy Higgins.

Such persistent appearances to the public eye has led the band to selling out multiple venues across their last four headline tours, including Factory Theatre and Oxford Art Factory in Sydney, Uni Bar in Wollongong, Northcote Social Club in Melbourne, The West Room and Woolly Mammoth in Brisbane, and Northern Hotel in Byron Bay. From indoors to outdoors, the band have been billed on festivals such as Lost Paradise, This That, Spaced Out, Yours & Owls, Snow Tunes and Mountain Sounds.

‘Flowers’ is not only an affectionate billet-doux to the classic rock blueprint that Pacific Avenue built on throughout their unwavering career; it’s a celebration of pridefulness and self-esteem, an emblematic depiction of unity and a reminder of deep interconnections. “To me this album has defined our sound and encapsulated everything that we have been through from the beginning,” comments Dom. “Each song has a permanent marker in my memory as it takes me back to a time and place, and I hope that the listener can share this feeling.”

“If there’s anything we want people to take away from the record it’s for you to feel included,” says Harry. “That’s really the whole point of Rock and Roll and why we’re a band, so you can go to a show and be in a room full of people you don’t know, yet still feel connected to everyone because you’re all screaming the same words about falling in love, or moving to a new city, or getting caught in the rain, whatever it is. It’s nothing that hasn’t already been done before, but it’s something we’ve wanted to be a part of for a long time.”