#threechords

Two combatants are engaged in a fierce competition. Wearing nothing more than spandex in the form of unflattering underwear, they lock-up in a pretzel of twisted, human flesh. The mixture of blood, sweat, and baby oil creating an ungodly concoction of gross. They perform superhuman feats of athleticism in a one-take, live production that happens on an elevated stage, surrounded by three ropes. It’s an amazing art form, with little room for error, yet it’s constantly criticized as “fake” or something that is for children.

Pro wrestling wasn’t always a “child’s sport”. In fact, it’s origins can be traced back to Greco-Roman styles of ancient Greece. This is when scary, fully naked men would grapple with other hideous, dick-swinging, naked men for hours at a time (and a reason we pro wrasslin’ fans are thankful for the little spandex worn). In the early 1920′s, pro wrestling was a travelling carnival act. Two outlandish competitors would compete with the winner predetermined. In the 1950′s, professional wrestling dominated the airwaves as television became a staple in human entertainment consumption. It wasn’t until the steroid scandal of the late 1970′s to the early 80′s that it came out that pro wrestling wasn’t “real” and many adults scoffed at the notion that something they watched was predetermined. (hey cunts.. ever watch a movie?) It was during this time that the shows became more family oriented. My love of professional wrestling is my earliest memory and something that sticks with me to this very day. It’s live theater, bad acting, athleticism, and improv all balled into a couple hours of insanity. I speak with others about it and they tend to have the same response, “yeah, I used to watch wrestling when I was kid”. At first, I was offended by this response, but you can only be offended for so long until you realize that you’re the odd man out. 

As I got a little older, another form of artistry really struck a chord with me. Three chords to be exact.. and a “fuck you”. When I first started going to local concerts, the shows were largely dominated by one genre. A lot of the musicians with hair spiked in a variety of ways, safety pins in every part of their clothing, and piercing any part of (un)exposed flesh. They played their instruments in a reckless, but precise fashion. The songs rarely extended beyond two minutes in length. Spit flew from their mouth and covered a shared microphone as six or seven acts would rotate in a three hour span each night. There was no need for soundchecks or restarts if something didn’t sound quite right. Instead of caring about how “good” something sounded, the attention was focused on aggression and attitude. I remember punk rock shocking and scaring me. I didn’t feel like I fit in, but when I realized that’s exactly how everyone listening to the music felt, it became an identity.

Punk’s origin in the mid 70′s melded playing a few chords faster than most other forms of rock & roll and little regard for decency. It was a counter culture movement, embracing DIY mentality, social angst, and political unrest. Born out of the anger of not feeling like you belong in any aspect of life; much like a child’s thoughts on their parents “just not understanding” (RIP Fresh Prince.. who’s still alive, but still..). No true singing talent is needed to sing in the genre. Just a “fuck the world” chip on your shoulder and knowledge of a few chords. The lower level of talent needed to perform the music, paired with the angsty teens, causes this bubble where people find punk rock early in life.. but only so many jobs will take you with nineteen piercings in your bottom lip, so many find themselves leaving the lifestyle behind. I was never one to dress the part. The most I’d do is apply some black guyliner and lipstick to hang out with my “goth” friends (which was their make up to begin with), but I still wear my punk rock roots on my sleeve, quite literally, in the form of my hundreds of band t-shirts. Years have passed and most I knew from the scene have moved on, calling punk rock a phase of their life, but I still find myself chanting “Oy!” with the punkers on a near-regular basis. I’m a corporate muppet from 6 AM to 2:30 PM on weekdays.. with a hand so far up my ass, Kermit takes pity on me. But at night, I’m often found in dingy clubs, looking for my next punk rock fix.

 Three Chords makes three predictions for 2017. These predictions are what to look forward to this year. The 2017 Forecasts are all album’s rumoured to be released this year, which we are super excited about and cannot wait to hear! Read more about which three albums we believe are going to smash it out of the park below.

Melanie Dyer’s debut album. 

Australian country-pop artist, Melanie Dyer is set to release her debut album later this year. If her latest single ‘Fresh’ is anything to go by, we predict the singer-songwriter will have a killer debut album, and we just can’t wait to hear it!

Kelsea Ballerini’s sophomore album. 

Kelsea Ballerini has been working hard on her sophomore album since the release of her debut record, ‘The First Time’. ‘The First Time’ was an amazing album, with three number one singles and the last single of the album ‘Yeah Boy’ still making its way through the charts. From what we have heard, this album will be a lot more mature and cement her place in country music. People that have doubted her before, will proven wrong as Kelsea Ballerini will produce a sophomore album Three Chords predicts will be number one.

Germein Sister’s sophomore album 

Melanie Dyer

Country-pop artist Melanie Dyer is keeping it ‘Fresh’ with her latest single. Melanie’s song ‘Fresh’ is currently climbing the charts in Australia, already reaching the Top 10 on KIX FM. Following her debut EP, ‘Lifetime’, Melanie Dyer is set to release her first album later this year. After hearing a few songs from the awaited album, we are sure it will be a hit! 

Mae Valley

Mae Valley are a dynamic country duo from New Zealand, made up of Abby Christodoulou and Hannah Cosgrove . After forming on New Zealand’s X Factor, the girls released their self-titled debut EP last year. Abby and Hannah are currently working hard on their sophomore effort with plans to release something later this year. 

Rachael Fahim

A marvellous self-titled debut EP by Sydney singer-songwriter Nikita Karmen.

We review each track below.

First - This catchy song will make it hard not to sing along with such clever lyrics. Our favourite line: ‘She's wearing that trendy Tom Petty t-shirt, I’ll stop being petty about your American girl.’

Warned Me - On the more upbeat track of the EP, Nikita Karmen sings about how she wished she was warned about those ever so charming and handsome heartbreakers, aka, the bad boys. We're sort of glad that no one warned her though... only because then we may have never got this song, where she makes us aware to the fact that ‘an ugly heart can still have a pretty face.’ 

Curfew - Our favourite track, this ballad is by the far the best song of the EP. We don’t know what else to say about it because it is just so good! So we will just let the song do all the talking.

Love in a Thrift Shop - In this light uptempo song, Nikita Karmen reminds us that ‘there is nothing you can’t find if you want it.’ A quirky song, Nikita Karmen will have you singing along. One line from the song also relates to the EP as ‘something here for everyone’ on this brilliant self-titled debut EP.