The INDIGO GIRLS – the world’s most popular female folk rock duo will be delivering their distinctive sound in concert halls around the country when they return for their third Australian tour in October/November 2007.

The ongoing popularity of the Indigo Girls is rare in several aspects. They are a unique 90’s success story in that they have never relied on massive radio airplay or high profile video presence to establish a huge loyal following, yet they have consistently topped a million in sales with their CD releases. In their first two decades the highly accomplished pair have received 7 Grammy Nominations and sold over 12 million albums.

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With their beautiful harmonies, practised voices and thoughtful lyrics, the Indigo Girls are a true testament to the power of folk.

After 20 years of releasing records as INDIGO GIRLS, Amy Ray and Emily Saliers have politely declined the opportunity to mellow with age. It’s just not in their constitution. Devoted environmental and social justice activists and life long music industry mavericks, the Girls have spent their entire career pushing boundaries on a variety of fronts and won’t stop now!

DESPITE OUR DIFFERENCES, their 10th studio album is one of their most diverse with elements of country, punk and pop weaved into the harmony driven folk rock that made them famous.

‘Making this record was really different for us,’ Saliers says. ‘We were all in the same room together: Amy and I at producer Mitchell Froom’s home studio with engineer, David Boucher, and the band,’ which here includes session-pro drummer Matt Chamberlain and Indigo regular Clare Kenny on bass. ‘It was like a little family experience, which is really, really different from being in a huge, cold studio where everyone’s isolated. And there was a really strong trust factor with Mitchell. He has a great musical ear, particularly for harmonies and things like that. If he heard a note that didn’t sit well with him, he’d tell us. It was a real exchange.’

‘We felt intimidated by Mitchell’s abilities,’ Ray admits. ‘To go in and just put ourselves out there and trust that he’s gonna take it and work with it—that felt like a risk, but in a good way. It’s nice to get your adrenaline up. At this age you really have to keep trying things you haven’t done.’

The result of that experimentation: perhaps the freshest-sounding album in the Indigo’s ample discography. Differences pulses with warm acoustic guitars; crisp, tasty keyboards (played by Froom and longtime band member Carol Isaacs) and, of course, the singers’ trademark intertwined vocals. Guest appearances from two Indigo Girls fans, Brandi Carlile and Pink (returning the favor the Girls did her when they performed and sang on “Dear Mr. President” from Pink’s album I’m Not Dead), ‘inject the record with this inspiring energy,’ Saliers says. There’s an understated immediacy to the music that evokes the deep-rooted chemistry of the artists’ live show, which Saliers admits was part of what she and Ray were after. ‘Amy and I had learned the songs,’ she explains, ‘and we just wanted to go in there and cut them with the rhythm section. Mitchell’s not an over producer—he wants the song to come alive.’

‘I think it’s remarkable that Amy’s life and my life coincided like this,’ Saliers says, ‘that we’ve been able to make music and stay dear friends through all these years.’ Ray echoes her bandmate: ‘I remind myself that we’ve been together for such a long time and that we’re lucky to still be together,’ she laughs.

Though she admits she’s not one for making a big fuss over a milestone like the Indigo’s 20th anniversary of record making and touring, Ray says this new chapter in the band’s career does reaffirm the principle that’s always driven the duo. ‘It’s all about living in the moment that you’re in and trying to make it better than the moment that came before,’ she explains, pointing for example to the band’s ongoing work with Honor the Earth, a Minneapolis-based non-profit dedicated to energy justice within the Native American community. ‘We just want to keep evolving—there isn’t a point where that doesn’t apply.’

The Indigo Girls Australian Tour dates are as follows:

• Melbourne on October 26 at the Hamer Hall – Arts Centre. Bookings: Ticketmaster 1300 136 166 or www.ticketmaster.com.au. $79.90.
• Canberra on Octboer 29 at the Canberra Theatre. Bookings: Canberra Theatre 6275 2700 or www.canberratheatre.org.au. $79.90.
• Adelaide on October 31 at the Thebarton Theatre. Bookings: Venue Tix 8225 8888 or www.venuetix.com.au. $79.90.
• Perth on November 2 at the Fremantle Arts Centre. Bookings: www.heatseeker.com.au or Venue Box Office. $69.90.
• Brisbane on November 5 at QPAC – Concert Hall. Bookings: QTIX 136 246 or www.qtix.com.au. $79.90.
• Sydney on November 6 at Enmore Theatre. Bookings: Enmore Theatre 9550 3666 or Ticketek 132 849, www.ticketek.com.au. $79.90.