| Band Members |
Myspace
www.myspace.com/thebeautifulgirls
Members
Mat McHugh – Singer & Guitarist
Bruce Braybrooke – Drums & Percussion
Paul Bromley – Bass & Vocals
Biography
Mat McHugh has been a singer/songwriter and performer for the past 15 years. He spent the last six or seven years as one of the legion of traveling musicians, and most of through his musical vision embodied in his performing group The Beautiful Girls, which he founded and leads as its singer/ songwriter.
While at high school at Beacon Hill, Mat picked up guitar and began to write his own songs. From here it was a natural step to begin forming collaborations and units** that would give voice to these songs and he was soon playing friends parties and small gigs in the northern beaches of Sydney. From 1995 to 1997, he attended Enmore College in Sydney and studied graphic design and art. During this time he met the people that would eventually form his most successful venture, The Beautiful Girls.
In 2000, McHugh started formulating what could be considered several early versions of tracks that would become The Beautiful Girls (TBG) debut EP, Morning Sun. It was during this time that he first met drummer Bruce Braybrooke. Bruce was at the time playing for internationally successful punk band Frenzel Rhomb. Bruce joined TBG full time in 2006.
In early 2007, Paul Bromley, one of Australia’s more well know bass players, world/ reggae producers and original bass player for hugely successful platinum record selling George, joined TBG to bring a new sound and vibe to live performance and recording. He has been a constant ever since. Both these support musicians have added distinctive and essential sound to the music of Matt McHugh.
The current line up of The Beautiful Girls consists of Mat McHugh, Bruce Braybrooke, Paul Bromely, Hugh Barrett and David Briceno.
Hugh Barrett, one of Australia’s foremost jazz pianists, started working with Mat in 2008, recording and playing live on his solo project, Mat McHugh & The Blackbird. From there he was offered a full time position with TBG which saw him play on the most recent TBG release, fourth album SPOOKS and spend the last two years as a permanent fixture in the studio, on stage and on tour.
David Briceno has been working as the band sound engineer or the past 5 years and knows the band better than anyone. More recently, David has been moved onto the stage as a part of the live performance controlling and triggering live sequencing and monitors. This is an essential part of the band ability to bring all of the sounds of from the recordings to the live performance.
TBG have released five independent albums, including this years album SPOOKS, an EP and numerous singles. Mat McHugh is the founder, songwriter and lead vocalist. As well as building an audience in Australia, over 8 years of touring, they have toured through the US (10 times), Europe and the UK (five times), Japan (4 times) and Brazil (2 times). They have releases in all these territories and they enjoy considerable success internationally, especially in Japan and Brazil, where they have had extensive airplay, had their music featured on commercials and had a host of magazine articles written about them.
In 2001, Matt McHugh introduced his musical vehicle, TBG. Thereafter the production’s success snowballed. In 2003, TBG made its first forays out of Australia and it has been touring the globe since, organizing “flip’” tours – bringing international artists to Australia to tour with them and then 2004, in order to support their releases in different territories, McHugh expanded their touring to take in Japan, the U.S., and Europe. It was this year that he first took TBG to tour the U.S.
In Australia, TBG was being touted as festival favorites, playing every major festival on the Australian circuit – some of them multiple times – they are the only band to have played at the new years eve Falls Festival four times in a row and, similarly, played at Woodford festival in Queensland four consecutive times. Since it’s inception, The Beautiful Girls have become acknowledged for Mat McHugh capacity to musically shapeshift, changing from album to album. This saw the musicians line up change quite frequently, first touring as a three piece, then in 2005 changing to four piece full time and adding extra members again (to go to a six and sometime seven per piece), to support the darkest album of their careers – We’re Already Gone. In 2007, Mat reeled it back in to a three piece for the recording and release of TBG’s most commercially successful album to date, Ziggurats. The record was released in every territory that the band have toured and sold well backed by critical acclaim. At the end of this international touring schedule, a motorcycle accident saw a month of recovery time. It saw him strip the songs down, take some time sitting still, and record his first solo album, Seperatista. Released in Australia and the USA under the project name of Mat McHugh and The Blackbird, Seperatista further cemented Mat Mchugh as an exceptionally talented and prolific musician and songwriter, with a wealth of very positive media attention including a four star review in Rolling Stone. After touring his solo project it was time to return to The Beautiful Girls. Backed by two sold out tours of Brazil and a dozen appearances at some of Australia’s biggest music festivals, Mat locked himself away for close to a year to write and record the fifth album, and his most significant record to date, SPOOKS. Released in May 2010, SPOOKS debuted in Australia at No.1 on the iTunes Alternative Charts, No.3 on the AIR Independent Charts and No.18 on the ARIA Charts. The Release in the USA saw SPOOKS debut at NO.3 on the iTunes Reggae Charts and No.6 on the Billboard Reggae Charts. TBG are currently in the middle of a 36 show Australian Tour and will be taking the live show internationally in the second half of 2010 and 2011.
TBG music been a constant and has topped the charts on the national youth radio station (Triple J) in Australia multiple times including for the singles:
Triple J Hottest 100, 2003 – No.41 ‘Blackbird’ and No.62 ‘Music’
Triple J Hottest 100, 2005 No.68 ‘...And We'll Dance on the Ashes of What's Left’ & No.81 ‘Let's Take the Long Way Home’;
Triple J Hottest 100, 2007 38 ‘I Thought About You’
“I Thought About You“ made it on Radioactive Most Added list (2 most added) (June 2007) ;also added to Triple J playlist
“I Thought About You“ 1 Australian national airplay breakers (July 2007)
- “10:10’ – second single from Spooks – No1. Most added to Australian Alternative Radio – The Music Network. (April 2010)
Contact
Worldwide Management
Matty Woo
management@thebeautifulgirls.com
Bookings
Mark Lackey : The Atlas Agency : mark@theatlasagency.com
Tv, Print, Online
Stacey Piggott : (02) 9560 3382 : stacey@twofishoutofwater.com
Radio
Michelle Padovan : (02) 9560 3381 : michelle@twofishoutofwater.com
USA & Canada
Management
Silverback Artist Management
TBG@silverbackmusic.net
1013 N. Orange Dr.
Los Angeles, CA 90038
(310) 559-8990
Bookings
The Agency Group
Jeremy Holgersen
jeremyholgersen@theagencygroup.com
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