Jax Tonic
Growing up surrounded by the surf culture of Sydney’s Northern Beaches, Jax Tonic may not be your typical country singer-songwriter, and that’s what sets him apart.
Drawn to country by the truth in the lyrics and “raw nature” of the guitars, Jax played regularly in cover bands in the early 2000s where country featured heavily in his shows as The Juke Boy. “That has evolved over the years to the point where I’m fully immersed in it,” he said. Jax has embraced Australian country music, loving the sound of the music, the culture around the genre and the fan base. With rocky influences, his style of country is sure to draw new audiences to the genre.
“I’m being told by people that the songs I write are country songs, and the songs I listen to more and more are country songs… country music is relevant to these times and if you are passionate about it, then that’s a bonus.”
Music called to Jax at just 16 when he attended a U2 concert with BB King playing the blues, which fed his passion for old school rock ‘n’ roll which reached all the way from Elvis, Ritchie Valens, and Buddy Holly to Johnny Cash and then to Kenny Rogers. Jax was then cast, by chance, as Doolittle in My Fair Lady in a school musical, then played in a lot of bands throughout high school and always believed music would be his career.
“Even at that age, I set up an old computer with a four-track recording system and wrote songs at 14 with deep lyrics for someone who was quite young,” he said.
After a break from the music scene while he focused on raising his young family, the passion for music has called him back and, after finding out who produced some of Adam Brand’s works, he contacted Luke Wooten in the US, who has mastered Jax’s debut single and future singles yet to be released.
The first single out to radio was On The Front Foot. Jax now wants to spread the word about his music to many more listeners and engage with them through his stories and songs. “I want people to get something out of my music and for them to relate to the songs and lyrics and, importantly, to make them feel something in their own lives; I want to touch people,” he said.
“I am getting back out there and becoming a performer again and will be releasing music and touring…life’s short and you’ve got to chase your dreams.”