The Rookies release ‘Dry Bones’ and announce new album

The Rookies have returned! The cult jazz darlings have just released ‘Dry Bones‘ on November 24th – their first new music since 2019 (…a simpler time). And if that wasn’t a treat enough, it comes with the highly anticipated announcement of their new album Feed the Fire – set to be released March 24th, 2023.

The five-piece outfit blends a nostalgic sense of the old world with the freedom and spontaneity of the new, informed by their legendary ongoing Wednesday night parties at The Rooks Return. We’ve been. The Thursday hangovers are worth it.

The Rookies had humbler beginnings. Born in Fitzroy in 2014, the band started as a quiet set of background jazz for cocktail sipping punters. What started off wholesome and pure has now metamorphosed into an uninhibited, drunken dance party reminiscent of a time almost forgotten. Their residency at The Rooks is an unforgettable, debaucherous affair –  twisting and contorting old world repertoire into something idiosyncratically their own.

‘Dry Bones’ is an open invitation to challenge oppression, stand up to injustice, and believe in a better future for planet Earth. You can feel that the band has taken their time with this one, and it pays off. It opens with almost an electric shock – the feeling of waking from an alarming dream – the feeling that things are not right with the world. The track flows through an array of moods and fears. Uncertainty turn to fierce resolve, a determination to act, and ultimately, hope that a better world is possible. Greg Sher leads the pack, with Tom Sly on trumpet, Joel Trigg on piano, Oscar Neyland on double bass, Chris Cameron on drums and featured artist Erica Tucceri on flute.

If you haven’t caught Melbourne’s funkiest jazz band, come and celebrate the return of their new music at their spiritual home on Wednesday nights at The Rooks Return. Whether it’s to come to dance, sing, drink, or just enjoy Greg’s satirical and quirky commentary, The Rookies will be there to whisk you away for the night.

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