Playing with image versus reality and reminding us that dreams are not always fulfilled, Melbourne troubadour Joshua Batten releases his new single "Hollywood Blues" across all digital and streaming platforms on August 2nd, 2019.   

“'Hollywood Blues' is a storytelling song but it’s also a rock’n’roll song,” says the guitarist, singer and songwriter. “It’s kind of an ideal song for me, with all the elements I love in a song. The lyrics are about trying to live the life that other people are living.” 

“I thought this was the beginning of a successful romance,” sings Joshua in the opening of the guitar-driven song. As melody rolls down the boulevards of the famed city, our journeyman finds himself stuck in the middle of a scene he can’t get through, questioning whether up he’s lost himself and is up against too many odds. 

“I wanted to write something bluesy,” explains Joshua. “and at the time I was obsessed with all things American, which is where lots of my favourite bands come from. I remember hearing that for every success story there were so many more stories no one ever heard about.  

“Because of everything I had seen on TV, I’d built Hollywood up in my mind, but when I first visited it was bright and cheery and a bit too plastic. So, I wrote about someone going out there to make it big and everything falling apart.”  

The song offers a personal warning to the songwriter, reminding him to remain down to earth, while still retaining his motivation and ambition. 

“These days it can be a bit hard to sort fact from fiction,” says Joshua. “All stories come from pieces of other stories, but it’s about figuring out which parts are true and which parts you can rely on.  

“I try really hard to connect with people through my songs and while not everyone’s tried to break into Hollywood, I’m sure they’ve tried to create some kind of break for themselves. It might not always work, but hopefully they walk away with strong lessons.” 

A musician in his mid-20s, Joshua uses music as his language to connect with his audience. Drawing on personal experience, the music is both an escape and perspective in a complex world. Inspired by classic rock, blues, folk and progressive rock, Joshua’s songs reveal insightful lyrics with a depth of feeling beyond his years and bone-deep musical comprehension. His style of 60’s and 70’s folk-country-blues-rock features passionate vocals, accomplished guitar playing and layered arrangements. 

"Hollywood Blues" is the first release from his debut full-length album, The City Within, due for release in early 2020. Joshua will be launching the single with a full two-hour show at the David Williamson Theatre (Melbourne Polytechnic) on Thursday, September 19. Tickets are on sale now and selling fast from TryBooking. 

Hollywood Blues is available now on all digital and streaming platforms from August 2nd, 2019. Go to https://ditto.fm/hollywood-blues to save the track on Spotify, Apple Music or Deezer. 

“HOLLYWOOD BLUES” SINGLE LAUNCH - THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 19th, 7:30PM @ DAVID WILLIAMSON THEATRE, PRAHRAN

Joshua Batten is thrilled to announce a 2-hour celebration of his original music at the David Williamson Theatre on Thursday, September 19th. The show will be the official launch for Joshua’s new single “Hollywood Blues”, the first single from his upcoming second album, The City Within. (Further details on the single and album will be released soon.) 

Playing both acoustic and electric sets with his unique blend of storytelling and powerful vocals, Joshua will be showcasing songs from The City Within, as well as reworked cuts from his debut, Searching For Answers. Both sets will see Joshua backed up by some of Melbourne’s finest musicians.  

In addition to the music on the night, both photographer Jason Rosewarne and graphic artist Renee Garling will be displaying their work in the foyer. Drinks and finger foods will also be available.  

People who pre-ordered The City Within through Joshua’s Pozible campaign last year will be able to collect their CDs on the night, several months before the album is released to the general public.  

A musician in his mid-20s, Joshua uses music as his language to connect with his audience. Drawing on personal experience, the music is both an escape and perspective in a complex world. Inspired by classic rock, blues, folk and progressive rock, Joshua’s songs reveal insightful lyrics with a depth of feeling beyond his years and bone-deep musical comprehension. His style of 60’s and 70’s folk-country-blues-rock features passionate vocals, accomplished guitar playing and layered arrangements. 

Joshua plays regular gigs around Melbourne and is becoming a welcome addition to festival bills, thanks to an ability to cut through the busy and crazy of modern life. His songs strive to “know thyself” by exploring genuine reflections of life’s best or not always proudest moments, and then humbly offering them up as common and universal experiences.  

Tickets for “An Evening With Joshua Batten” will be on sale from Monday July 8th 9AM via TryBooking. Seating availability is limited, so book early and bring your friends! This show is sure to sell out!

I'm thrilled to announce the official launch of my Pozible campaign!

What is a Pozible campaign, you may ask? Well, to help with some of the costs for my upcoming second album, I’ve set up a crowdfunding campaign where anyone can donate money to pre-order the album before it’s completed. There’s also several rewards, including handwritten lyrics, cover requests, personalised poems, workshops and private concerts. You can also donate any amount you feel comfortable with, any of which will be much appreciated. 

Click HERE to view the different options and start pledging. Also, please feel free to share the campaign with your family and friends. If I don’t reach my target in the five week period I’ve set, I won’t receive any of the money, so every little donation helps. 

Thanks again for your support and I can’t wait for you to hear what I’ve come up with this time round. Pledge away!

So excited to finally announce this - I'll be playing two massive sets at the Echuca-Moama Winter Blues Festival this July! This one attracts a huge gathering of people from all over Victoria, so I'm working hard on putting together a show that will contain original songs you've heard before, songs from my second album (which I'm working on at the moment) and some truly epic covers! I may even have some special guests joining me! If you're coming to the festival, here's where and when you can find me; 

SATURDAY JULY 28 - Shamrock Hotel @ 12PM 
SUNDAY JULY 29 - Henry's Bridge Hotel @ 11AM 

See you there!

After successfully opening for Russell Morris, one of Australia’s most iconic artists, at The Worker's Club in September, Melbourne based Singer/Songwriter/Guitarist Joshua Batten is excited to announce he will be doing it again on November 5th at The Satellite Lounge in Wheeler’s Hill. 

Joshua Batten has a fire in his heart, a guitar in his hands and lyrics to be heard. Having recently released his debut album ‘Searching For Answers’ to critical acclaim, he is quickly becoming a force to be reckoned with. With a drive and passion for music since a young age, Joshua has combined self-taught skills with further education and is certainly one of the most exciting and inspiring new artists to come out of Melbourne. 

‘Searching For Answers’ contains six songs, and Joshua has ensured that each one stands up on its own with a unique sound and story. The main genre represented is Classic Blues Rock, but elements of Folk and Funk have been cunningly snuck in. The lyrics cover topics such as manipulation, betrayal, desires for human compassion and technology dependence. With a strong influence from Deep Purple, Jack White and Joe Bonamassa and hints of John Mayer, Jethro Tull and Rush, Joshua stands out with his individual sound. 

“The love of making music provides me with an escape from the stress of social and political turmoil” says Joshua. “It is extremely important for artists in the music industry today to use their microphones to tell us something. The result is that not only will people listen, but they might even want to explore the music further”. 

The album’s first single, ‘Homemade wine’ is a blues-rock anthem for people who struggle to find loyalty in friends as well as a critique of those who can’t accept the true colours of others. ‘Poetry’, an allegory for life after love and a tribute to the LA Poets Society, was released as the 2nd single from the album on Valentine’s Day. 

‘Searching For Answers’ is available digitally via BandCamp, iTunes, Spotify, Apple Music and physically through JB Hi-Fi, Sanity and BandCamp.

Tickets to Russell Morris & Band with special guest Joshua Batten available HERE 

Hey folks - you have no idea how hard it’s been to keep this a secret, but the news can be contained no longer - I am delighted to announce that on September 1st, I will be doing an acoustic set opening for Australian Rock icon Russell Morris at The Flying Saucer Club! 

I’m extremely excited and privileged to have the opportunity to open for Russell Morris and his band. I’ve had the pleasure of watching them perform on a couple of occasions, and while they do play the hits, they are also one of the most talented Blues Rock bands in Australia. If you ever want to check out some blues with more of an Australian vibe rather than American, do yourself a favour and check out Russell’s three latest albums, “Sharkmouth”, “Van Diemen’s Land” and “Red Dirt, Red Heart”. 

Unfortunately seated tickets are sold out, but there are limited general admission tix still available via The Flying Saucer Club website (See below). This is a great opportunity to play to a new audience, pick up some new fans, and see some familiar faces ahead of my headline gig at Elwood Lounge on September 8.  

Click HERE to book your tickets for The Flying Saucer Club - looking forward to seeing you there!

On May 6th 2017, I launched my debut mini-album "Searching For Answers" with a show at Revolver Bandroom. The show featured me and my Bandmates Sean Ahrbeck, Steven Reinhardt & Shane McMahon, as well as a couple of special guests. Thomas Overend, Tennille Mansell and Kieren Tucker from The Backline Project were on hand that night to record and film the show, and now I am delighted to announce that 8 songs performed that night will be made available for your viewing pleasure! 

For the next 8 weeks, a new song will be uploaded to YouTube on my channel (link below) on Tuesday night. The video will then get uploaded to Facebook on Friday night. If you have a Google/YouTube account, be sure to subscribe to the YouTube channel and click on the bell to be notified of when the videos go live.  

I'm very happy with the quality of the videos and I can't wait to share them all with you. Click HERE to go to my YouTube Channel or click HERE to go to my Facebook page. Cheers!

Thank you so much to everyone who came out to support me and the band on friday night. We had over 120 people in attendance, filling up the room and creating a great atmosphere. Here’s just one of the amazing comments I’ve been getting from my friends and fellow musicians; 

"Your compositions reminded me of music from my youth. Classic rock with a Batten edge! You have great energy, great focus but above all, great musicianship. Your arrangements are so well thought out and everything just works beautifully. Great musos in the band to support you as well.” 

For those of you that couldn’t make the massive band show, the team at The Backline Project are currently editing the show, and I will be uploading videos to my YouTube channel real soon! 

My next Melbourne gig will be an acoustic set opening for Mike Elrington at The Flying Saucer Club in Elsternwick on Saturday May 27th. Hope to see some familiar faces there! 

Also, for those of you who haven't had the opportunity to buy a CD, just click the link here to get your copy!

Joshua Batten has played music most of his life, working as a solo artist over the past five years before putting together a band to record his debut album Searching For Answers. 

"Blues singer/songwriter Mike Elrington reached out to me via Facebook and offered to produce the record with his friend Sean O'Sullivan at Highway 9 Studios," explains Batten. "As both Mike and Sean had real faith in the material, it seemed like a perfect match. The entire recording experience was new to me, so that in itself was pretty inspirational. Hearing the songs come to life in the studio was a dream come true... I am a perfectionist by nature, so I really wanted to make sure the songs sounded perfect. 

"The songs on the album don't follow a unified concept, but there is a very personal aspect to the lyrics. They reflect my unique perspective on topics such as social interaction and the changing landscape in which we communicate. Nobody Understands Me is a personal highlight for me, as it's the most autobiographical of all the songs, and I was particularly amazed with how well I was able to transfer the arrangement from a loop-heavy acoustic tune to a thumping band jam."

(Original article here)