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Fresh from major support slots for Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, Jamie Lidell, slots at Peats Ridge Festival, The Playground Weekender and sold out Melbourne residencies; Sydney neo soulsters The Ray Mann Three are proud to announce the release of â€ÂËœOpa Opaâ€Ââ„¢. The 3rd in their series of three digital release only EPs, the band have also announced a national â€ÂËœOpa Opaâ€Ââ„¢ Australian tour to accompany the release.

Ray Mann is the former lead guitarist with Kid Confucius, now out doing his own thing and with an acclaimed self titled debut album to his credit. Released in Australia mid last year to an exceptional response, the album featured heavily across JJJ, FBI, RRR, PBS, Radio National and many more stations to boot, Brag Magazine summed it up well. Making it their â€ÂËœIndie Album Of The Weekâ€Ââ„¢, they wrote: â€ÂÅ“A sublime album full of lazy, summery sex tunes that make Prince look like a virgin…it’s like a huge serotonin shot to the ass with a mango daiquiri on the side. The instrumentation is sparse but well thought out, the songs are absolutely top notch, and Ray’s voice is beyond orgasmic…If you ever needed proof that soul wasn’t dead, you just found it…Guaranteed baby-making music”.

Big In Japan

The album has now been released in Japan through P-Vine records and short of peddling the â€ÂËœbig in Japanâ€Ââ„¢ line – things have been going exceptionally well, namely:

•the album debuted in this week at #10 in the Japanese iTunes â€ÂËœTop 100 most downloadedâ€Ââ„¢ Soul + RnB Charts
•first single â€ÂËœSmileâ€Ââ„¢ is receiving airplay on all major radio networks
•both the â€ÂËœSmileâ€Ââ„¢ and the â€ÂËœHook Me Upâ€Ââ„¢ videoâ€Ââ„¢s are running on all major cable networks, including MTV Japan
•the â€ÂËœSmileâ€Ââ„¢ clip has also been chosen as the opening theme song for the month of June for the Japanese "Billboard Top 40" countdown music program
•currently no. 21 on the r&b/soul/hip hop charts at Japanâ€Ââ„¢s Tower Records online: http://www.towerrecords.co.jp/sitemap/CSfRanking.jsp?PERIOD=WEEK_TOTAL&DISP_NO=002101003000

Back on home soil, the first 6 months of 2009 has seen The Ray Mann Three release three EPâ€Ââ„¢s exclusively through iTunes (three tracks per EP). For around $50 a clip, each EP has also been accompanied by a video clip produced by Ray. As an independent artist, the low-budget, low-fi, DIY aesthetic of all of Ray’s art, from the videos to the poster art and web aesthetic, is due as much to cost constraint as it is creative concept. When viewed as a series, the three music videos span The Ray Mann Three’s visual aesthetic, from photography, to motion graphics, to artwork. The Hook Me Up" clip was Indie Clip of the Week on Rage ABC TV and viewable at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_YuLbYO5SM

The â€ÂËœOpa Opaâ€Ââ„¢ Tour

EP #3, "Opa Opa" is released and available on iTunes from Tue June 23rd. To celebrate, The Ray Mann Three are embarking on a national tour, launching "Opa Opa" across the country throughout July with local guests. The music video for "Opa Opa" incorporates artistic elements of almost every one of Rayâ€Ââ„¢s gig posterâ€Ââ„¢s and live animation from the last 4 years and is viewable at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ns9g-oAkgsg)

The â€ÂËœOpa Opaâ€Ââ„¢ Tour is the band’s biggest to date, and their first national run since their sold-out album launch and 30-date album tour in Spring 2008. Dates are as below, local supports have now been announced: