Australian dance royalty Bag Raiders have been stalwarts in the electronic music community for more than a decade. After releasing a slew of cult underground cuts (‘Fun Punch’ and ‘Turbo Love’), Jack Glass and Chris Stracey signed to dance-powerhouse Modular Records and released their debut self-titled album in 2010. With that, the game changed forever. The record debuted at #7 on the official ARIA album chart, snagging nominations for ‘Best Dance Release’ (ARIA), ‘Album of the Year’ (Triple J Award) and ‘Dance Work of the Year’ (APRA). The LP featured the smash hit singles ‘Way Back Home’, ‘Sunlight’, ‘Snake Charmer’ and of course festival anthem ‘Shooting Stars’ – one of the biggest Australian dance tracks of all-time. ‘Shooting Stars’ has now amassed over 4 billion online streams, achieving 32 Platinum and 7 Gold plaques worldwide and delivering a cultural impact beyond anyone’s wildest expectations. Since its release the song has taken on a life of its own, breaking-the-internet a gazillion times through a series of iconic ‘Shooting Stars memes’.
Following the success of the debut record, the band relocated to Los Angeles and released a stack of highly-praised EP’s ‘Waterfalls’, ‘Checkmate’ and ‘Friend Inside’, plus club-warmer ‘Nairobi’ and ‘Beat Me to the Punch’ ft. Mayer Hawthorne. In 2019 Bag Raiders released their second LP ‘Horizons featuring singles ‘How Long’ ft. Panama and ‘Lightning’ and a sold-out tour across North America and Australia.
Spending the next few years locked away in the studio, in 2022 Bag Raiders launched their record label Broken Head Records and a return to their dancefloor roots. ‘UR Heart’ was the first taste of the new era serving us a spoonful of dancefloor-centred emotion and churning melodic arpeggios melded with the pitched up vocal sample refrain of “I’ve been loving you”. ‘Never Forget’ came next. Almost 2-step in its stuttering beat, the shimmering production plays a support role to the cut-up vocal which is presented on a pedestal of sentiment in this more inward-reflecting piece. If ‘UR Heart’ was the come up, ‘Never Forget’ is the drive home after losing your love and/or friends on the dancefloor. The pensive, fast-paced 'Letting Go' completed the hat-trick of releases in 2022.
Bag Raiders are coming in hot for 2023 with a stack of releases kicking off with ‘Love Me Back’ in July. We’re talking straight up club heaters, no frills but maximum thrills. Fast and pumping, HI-NRG, rough and ready, with all upcoming releases reflecting what Bag Raiders are playing in the clubs at the moment. ‘Love Me Back’ features a stolen Meg Mac vocal taken from a recent session, pitched up into a rave vocal Bag Raider style!
Two more releases are expected in 2023 with a brand-new dance-heavy live show / lighting spectacle to be debuted on tour across North America in October 2023, with Australia getting the good stuff in 2024. Watch this space.
