The Dead Daisies

The Dead Daisies

The Dead Daisies are a Sydney, Australia rock group active since 2012. Their music is classified as hard rock, classic rock and heavy metal, and the band operates under The Dead Daisies Pty. Ltd.

Formation and core idea

The band begins as a collaboration between singer-songwriter Jon Stevens and guitarist David Lowy. Lowy returns to music after a break of a couple of years, and the two are brought together by David Edwards, who has worked with INXS. According to the band’s account, they write twelve songs in six hours after getting together with a pair of guitars, and The Dead Daisies are formed from that session.

From the start, the group works as a rotating musical collective rather than a fixed line-up. Its sound draws on late 1970s and early 1980s hard rock, with comparisons to bands such as Bad Company, Foreigner and The Faces, and it emphasises strong choruses, melodies and hooks.

Recording and early releases

To record their debut material, Stevens and Lowy work with American producer, engineer and multi-instrumentalist John Fields. The debut album is recorded at Wishbone Studios in Los Angeles. The band’s self-titled first album is released in the US and Canada through Caroline/Universal in 2013, and later appears in the UK the same year.

The first single, Lock ’N’ Load, is co-written with Slash and features him on the track. It receives radio play in the US and UK, including national airplay on SiriusXM, shows hosted by Alice Cooper and Nikki Sixx, and stations such as Team Rock, Kerrang Radio and BBC Radio 2. It is also named Rolling Stone’s Daily Download.

Touring and live activity

In early 2013, The Dead Daisies are invited to open for ZZ Top in Australia. They then tour with Aerosmith on the band’s first Australasian tour in 23 years. Later in 2013 they join the Rockstar Energy Drink Uproar Festival in the US and Canada alongside Alice in Chains and Jane’s Addiction.

The band tours the UK as special guests of Black Star Riders, including a sold-out first headline show at the Underworld in Camden. They also perform in Israel, including two shows in Tel Aviv and a sold-out headline show at The Barby. In 2014 they return to Australia to support their debut album, then tour the US with Bad Company and Lynyrd Skynyrd, playing their first arena shows there. They later open for KISS and Def Leppard.

Line-up and members

The Dead Daisies use a changing line-up over time. Members listed in connection with the group include Jon Stevens, David Lowy, Richard Fortus, Frank Ferrer, Marco Mendoza, Dizzy Reed, Charley Drayton, Brian Tichy, John Corabi, Doug Aldrich, Deen Castronovo, Michael Devin, Alan Mansfield, Clayton Doley and Alex Carapetis. Touring and recording configurations also include Darryl Jones and John Tempesta. Fortus is noted for Guns N’ Roses and Thin Lizzy, Ferrer for Guns N’ Roses and the Psychedelic Furs, Mendoza for Thin Lizzy and Whitesnake, Reed for Guns N’ Roses, Drayton for The X-pensive Winos and The Cult, and Tichy as a veteran rock drummer.

Other releases and media

The band releases the single Washington in the US and Australia, and It’s Gonna Take Time in the UK. Live videos are filmed during a London show at O2 Shepherd’s Bush. They also issue the EP Face I Love, with a video built from fan images gathered through a Facebook app.

The Dead Daisies receive coverage in Classic Rock and Metal Hammer, and their recordings continue to gain radio play in the US, Australia and Japan.