Horse Drawn Cadillac

Mixing an ever evolving batch of homegrown originals with a few rare hidden gems from deep within the vault of musical treasures, Horse Drawn Cadillac makes you feel like you are on a wayward journey to New Orleans via Chicago - a bump and roll ride with some high octane

horses.

A 9 piece band powered by a duo of soulful and gritty singers - Tegan Portener ( Casuarina Light Phenomenon), and Pearl Noire (several !) and driven by players with a Cadillac full of festival experience, both prior and including HDC :

Nello - harmonica (Southerly Change /Benji and the Saltwater Sound System/ Big Erle/Ecobeat),

”Bootsie” - Sax and flute ( Galapagos Duck/ Dr. Gumbo.. winner of Sydney Blues Society Wind Instrumentalist of the Year last 2 years)

Wil Van Eckert - Drums (Low Down Riders, CK and the 45’s),

Duﬀ Riley- percussion (Ramstone)

Jonno Dallimore : Guitar (Cass Eager, Benji)

Romie Olivares- Panucci: Guitar ( JJ Spence Band)

Drewe Peard : Bass ( Big Erle/ Swampin’Beats)

Marcello Dardanelli : Keyboards

Originally it was Trev's idea with his washboard and cravings for the Southern USA..... he felt there were musical stories to be told.....

We were standing on the corner of then & now, contemplating the musical shape of this world we were born into - it seemed like time was running out..

What to do with what we had left - which was a considerable amount - So we gathered the band for a wayward post apocalyptic journey..and we started out in Chicago……

The Sound: HDC now has over 25 originals registered with APRA.

The band can do full original sets for Blues or Country Festivals, or Indie

oriented Festivals, or fly a Roots banner on a Saturday night at a Folk Fest.

We like to sprinkle in some “obscure covers” , and for pub or private events,

might even do some CCR or War or Dusty…or some Wang Dang Doodle!

CONTACT:

Horsedrawncadillac@gmail.com
0411723941

Watch us LIVE

Hear Our Music

MAPLESS -

10 Originals recorded in one day "Alive" in the studio with Syd Green ( Kasey Chambers, 19-Twenty) at the helm. A "loosely defined concept album" that seeks to capture what HDC does best, live music with a palette of sounds from Chicago to New Orleans ( there is a booklet with both CD’s that chronicles the post apocalyptic road journey in search of………).

WAYWARD E>MOTIONS -

Our new release - engineered by Syd Green (19-Twenty/ Kasey Chambers) and recorded at his studio - is a “concept” album- if you want it to be. It explores the wayward emotions we experience on any significant journey, be it a trip down the Mississippi in a steam powered raft, or the inner journey of unrequited love.

As the main lyricist for the band, Nello has always been attracted to the idea of concept albums, leaving threads for the listener to link the songs in their own personal way. It is also a way of stitching the work together with the songs, the album art, and a written story to make an album, rather than singles for digital compilations. It is an album of a suite of emotions, and as such the soundscapes are varied, from moody ballads, a little bit of soul, some southern sass, a little rockin’ blues, a little rockin’ chair blues as the Cadillac rolls into Splitsville and arrives at Mrs. Hippy’s house. C’mon in was all she said !

Live at El Horses 2022-2023-

“A Horse can lead you to….” HDC felt compelled to record a live album at our favourite South Coast venue! Also, some of our fave albums are Live, and we believe music is energy, so ”live music is better", and so why

not a raw bootleg album to kick oﬀ our recording life? No overdubbing, what you hear

is what you get, in the spirit of an era when live albums were “mandatory and in

demand!”…..Maybe you were there? If not, we want to bring you there!!

MEDIA

Hmm… well there isn’t much chance to get Rhythms magazine album reviews or great interviews …. but what we do know is where we like to be is festivals and clubs dedicated to original music, and so we thought it would be good to publish what they have had to say.

Here is a screenshot from a post at Agnes Water Blues Festival this year:

Leah Jett from AWBF:

We have played 3 Kiama Jazz and Blues Fest, including the only gig in the park for the opening of the new stage last year.

Becky Guggisburg, Director:

Horse Drawn Cadillac are a firm favourite at the Kiama Jazz & Blues Festival and always bring the party. With powerhouse vocals, a punchy brass section and harmonica that cuts straight through the groove, their Chicago blues sound is big, bold and impossible to ignore. A large, dynamic lineup and infectious stage presence make them perfect for prime-time or late-night festival sets. Professional, entertaining and musically tight — they always deliver.

“Horse Drawn Cadillac bring Chicago blues to life — huge vocals, blazing brass, killer harmonica and the kind of energy that turns a festival crowd into a party.”

As a result of Kiama Festival 2024, Jacob Woods, Director of Milton Jazz and Blues Festival, contacted us to take a prime Saturday night gig at their inaugural festival in 2025.

We have sold out our last 4 gigs at Sydney’s Premier club, Lazybones Lounge.

Craig, Director :

“We love you guys, one of our signature acts.”