Influenced by classics, inspired from deep Tassie roots
The Sheyana Band
Influenced by the classics and drawing inspiration from their deep Tassie roots. The Sheyana Band fuse the stylistic flavours of Australian Rhythm & Soul, Southern Country Pop, Americana inspired Roots & Blues, with English Funk, Rock & Punk.
In the groove and served with passion, The Sheyana Band continue to delight their audiences with an exciting delivery of powerhouse vocals, brilliant musicianship and heartfelt songwriting. Having national & international recognition & airplay, their captivating live shows have seen them share the stage with Australia’s finest including Deborah Conway, Hoodoo Gurus, Neil Finn, Meg Mac, Mojo Juju, Gang of Youths, Renee Geyer, Diesel, The Angels, Kevin Borich, Ian Moss, Bill Chambers and Fanny Lumsden.
Their new EP “Ricochet”, produced with Russell Pilling and promoted through Foghorn Media, has gained national airplay, charting on Australian Blues and Roots Chart, Soundslike Cafe playlist, with international airplay on blues radio in Europe, also scoring Top Ten on YESFM Sri Lanka radio with their single “Big Hearts”.
The Sheyana Band’s new EP Ricochet came together during covid lockdown in Tasmania. Making the best of a bad situation and with plenty of time to reflect, Sheyana and the band focused on songwriting, and the the music emerged from those strange, uneasy times. The songs were the lights at the end of the tunnel, at a time when we were both separated and unified. Through the music and the artwork, this EP is a tribute to the loved ones we’ve lost along the way, and the big hearts working towards a higher love and respect for one another and our planet.
Nationally The Sheyana Band won “The Chris Wilson Award” for Emerging Act of Year” with their album Big Love in 2018. The Sheyana Band received a top ten hit in Sri Lanka in 2015 with their single” Keep the Change” along with a Best Act nomination. Sheyana scored a blues award with OzSong International Songwriting Competition in 2011 for her song “Two Birds”, which also made it to the finals in “FreshAir” ABC National Songwriting Competition.
The Sheyana Band are a favourite act at major Tassie events:
Skyfields 2017-2018
Forth Valley Blues Festival 2018
Party In The Paddock 2018-2019
Fruits of the Roots 2019
Festival of King Island 2020
Red Hot Summer after party 2021
Junction Arts Festival 2021
Riverbend Blues 2023
Forth Valley Blues Festival 2024
Underpinning her personal history. Born in the UK, Sheyana’s story began when her Tasmanian Mother and Sri Lankan father met on a ship bound for England. At the age of six, Sheyana found a passion for music and a love of poetry, sparked by the sounds of famous rockers, jamming in her neighbourhood in London.
Sheyana migrated to Tasmania with her mother and grandmother and developed an ear for vocals and harmonies at the local chapel, listening to her mother’s family choir. These influences inspired Sheyana to pick up her first guitar at age eight and start writing songs in her teens in Tasmania.
In her late teens, Sheyana left Tasmania as a travelling minstrel which took her on a journey across the east coast of Australia from Tassie to Daintree and back, where she met and made music with other budding songwriters and gained a wealth of experiences along the way. After two years travelling, Sheyana returned to Tasmania and found a place of her own, amidst 50 acres of North- West Tasmanian rainforest. While living close to nature and off the grid, the singer-songwriter became a mother to four beautiful children, all home births, home-schooled and organic gardening always on the menu.
Gathering her experiences, like a fruitful harvest, this pioneering songstress became a prolific songwriter.
Juggling motherhood and working on the land, Sheyana continued songwriting and joined her first successful band “Big Dilemma” in the late ’90s. They supported Southern Sons and were the first act to record their album “Life’s like That” at Alanvale TAFE in Launceston. Sheyana’s song “Sweet Rain” from this album was selected by Wendy Matthews to be played on 7LA Radio for the opening of Alanvale TAFE.
Another track from the album – Time” by Sheyana, featured on Tasmanian Original Artists compilation CD and was chosen to be the theme song for the Targa Tasmania racing event that year.
Sheyana embarked on her solo career and success came when Sheyana’s song, Wash me in the water, was selected for the Australian Women’s Singer-Songwriters Compilation CD, Bloomers by Roadshow Warner. This success kicked off Sheyana’s career, leading to her first album, ‘Firehorse’ being recorded, in the old-style fashion on good old real to reel. However, this success was to continue.
In 2005, Sheyana teamed up with former Pale Rider’s guitarist and winner of National best Blues Act, Scott Mainwaring and created a musical partnership that led to producing the award-winning album Sweet Honesty. The single Two Birds lifted from this album won Sheyana the OzSong International Songwriting Award in 2010. In addition, Two Birds was also nominated in the finals for the ABC Songwriting FreshAir Competition.
Not only performing as a duet, Sheyana and Scott also joined forces with seasoned bassist Dan Jeffrey and the talented Beau Thomas on drums and formed The Sheyana Band. The Sheyana Band’s first EP produced an international hit – Keep the Change in 2015. While Sheyana was travelling to Sri Lanka to reunite with her father, Keep the Change hit the international charts and went to number six on the YESFM charts in Colombo Sri Lanka.
While travelling through her newly discovered second home of Sri Lanka and playing to new audiences, Sheyana’s passion for songwriting was ignited by the cultural ambience and her experiences in Sri Lanka, which led to her inspiration and completion of the award-winning album, Big Love. This album intimately reflects Sheyana’s young girl dreams of migrating out of the UK to Tasmania up until current times. Big Love sends a message to the listener…’ to live is to give, so love big.’
The Sheyana Band continues to grow and evolve with a magical chemistry that has developed with current guitarist Wayne Rand and drummer Leigh Hill joining the lineup in 2019 to produce their latest EP “Ricochet”
Sheyana has produced six studio albums – Life’s like That, Firehorse, Sweet Honesty, Keep the Change, Body of Soul, Big Love, Ricochet
Sheyana continues to receive national and international recognition and airplay on playlists throughout America, France, Norway, Brazil, London, Germany and Netherlands and continues to rate in the top 5 on Sri Lankan playlists.
In between touring, songwriting, performing gigs with The Sheyana Band and her duo Sheyana & Mahlah. Sheyana is a resident “Between Ship” solo artist on the Spirit of Tasmania and takes bookings for pubs, clubs, music venue gigs, special events, weddings, corporate events and festivals.
London born, Tassie based, Celtic/Sri Lankan singer-songwriter Sheyana and her stellar band, features Tassie’s finest with Wayne Rand on guitars/vocals, Dan Jeffrey on bass, Leigh Hill on drums/vocals, special guest Kelly Ottaway on keys with guest appearances from Mahlah Wing & Sherry Rand on vocals.