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Scott McLennan

Scott McLennan

In 2002, Scott McLennan gave away a promising career with the Australian Federal Police in favour of roughing it as a music journalist. Both vocations offered him a chance to question a litany of undesirables and ne'er-do-wells about where they were and what they were doing last night; only one of them paid him in the currency of backstage meet-and-greets and trolley loads of CDs. 

Scott worked as a full-time entertainment writer and editor for Adelaide's street press citadel Rip It Up Publishing for a decade. In 2016 he turned to the dark side and became a senior marketing manager at Warner Music Australia, pitching creative and enticing campaigns for the likes of David Bowie, Madonna and Michael Bublé… and having most of them rejected.

Although he now has a 'sensible' full-time job that doesn't offer as many opportunities to wear Milli Vanilli T-shirts and debate how t.A.T.u. were robbed of victory at 2003's Eurovision, Scott still freelances on music projects for Warner when time allows. 

A number of Scott's additional run-ins with acclaimed artists including Robert Plant, Ozzy Osbourne and Slash can be found on Scott's personal website thelinesblur.com.au, which also includes a selection of his gig photographs from the past 20 years.

29 articles

List of articles in the library

By date | By artist | Most recently added

Eels: The Canny Everett Show

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), Fall 2003

Eels frontman Mark "E" Everett is as slippery as the fish his outfit takes its name from. After weeks of interview schedules aborted due to ...

Groove Armada: Idle Warship

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), October 2004

Unlike their UK dance contemporaries Faithless, the rumours of Groove Armada's imminent demise remain firmly denied by the duo themselves. While Tom Findlay recently commented ...

M.I.A.: Hostile takeover

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), Spring 2005

With her father formerly a Sri Lankan Tamil rebel and her debut album Arular referencing bombs, warfare and violence, hot new UK star M.I.A. is ...

The Coral: The Invisible Invasion

Profile and Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), Spring 2005

"I HATE KNOBS who hang on the very thought of Pete Doherty being on smack and thrive off it – they're dickheads," the Coral's guitarist ...

Bloc Party: Running on Bravado

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), Summer 2005

ALREADY CLUTCHING the seal of approval from Franz Ferdinand, Interpol and the Chemical Brothers, London's Bloc Party have burst onto the international music scene in ...

Bob Dylan, Daniel Lanois, U2: Daniel Lanois: The Compromise You Make For Some

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), March 2006

The "Fifth Beatle" moniker has been bandied about numerous times over the years in reference to everyone from George Martin to Pete Best, but if ...

Arctic Monkeys: It's Up To You, New Yorkies

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), August 2006

Even when you've sold millions of copies of your debut album, earned a Mercury Award nomination, had Oasis, Kanye West and Jack White sing your ...

My Chemical Romance: Saviours Of The Damned

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), November 2006

With talk of ghosts, pesky kids and freaky cartoons, My Chemical Romance's year to date could almost be a warped Scooby Doo cartoon. Although recording ...

Brandi Carlile: The NeverEnding Story

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), August 2007

AFTER YEARS of slogging it out in any Seattle venue that would offer her a free meal in exchange for a music set, American songwriter ...

Michael Jackson, Steve Lukather, Spinal Tap, Toto: Toto: Get in the Van…

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), February 2008

Steve Lukather's resumé over the last three decades not only showcases a prolific musician, it also suggests a wildly divergent talent unafraid of variety. The ...

Cyndi Lauper: Still Good Enough

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), Summer 2008

It might be hard for her to break away from the wackily tressed imagery that accompanied her 1983 global smash 'Girls Just Want to Have ...

Robyn: Body Shot

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), 2009

Robyn's fronting on mighty pop moments such as 'Konichiwa Bitches', 'U Should Know Better' and 'Criminal Intent' have projected the Swedish star as a bad-ass ...

TV On The Radio: Golden Agents

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), January 2009

Big Day Out commitments might have prevented TV On The Radio's Jaleel Bunton from attending Barack Obama's presidential inauguration last week, but he'd already played ...

Tinted Windows: Cherub Rock

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), April 2009

IN 1997, THE world of commercial music was experiencing a notable change. After five years of indie rock raking in the cash, cheery pop made ...

La Roux: Together In Electric Dreams

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), July 2009

ELLY JACKSON is lying under her duvet in the same bedroom she's occupied since birth, but recently something feels different. The David Bowie albums are ...

The Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Dasher! Dancer! Blitzin'!

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), December 2009

THEY'RE PERHAPS the least rural-looking band to emerge in the last decade, but Brooklyn art rock superstars Yeah Yeah Yeahs found solace in the Texas ...

Marina and the Diamonds: Marina & The Diamonds: Inside the Outsider

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), March 2010

AS FAR AS revelatory points in music history go, the moment Marina Diamandis points to as her breakthrough seems impossibly inane. In late 2007 the ...

Regina Spektor: A Sorta Fairytale

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), April 2010

IT'S A LITTLE-KNOWN fact, but D-grade celebrity oaf David Hasselhoff taught Regina Spektor English. After emigrating from Moscow to New York in the late 1980s, ...

Kasabian: Circus Envy

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), July 2010

KASABIAN FRONTMAN Tom Meighan laughs when talking about how his band's fame took another delirious turn a few months ago. Winning last year's Brit Award ...

The Vaccines: Kicking Against The Pricks

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), January 2011

AFTER A WHIRLWIND 2011, the Vaccines' Árni Hjörvar is retreating to his Icelandic homeland for a festive feast of smoked lamb and Christmas ham. Set ...

Elbow: Golden Years

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), March 2012

ELBOW'S 2011 Glastonbury performance at sunset in front of 100,000 punters was another spine-tingling moment in the history of the legendary English festival, but beefy ...

Santigold: New Gold Dream

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), November 2012

If Santi "Santigold" White's strong and independent voice on her two studio albums Santogold and Master Of My Make-Believe hadn't already marked out the performer ...

Icona Pop: Girls Of Summer

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), December 2012

IT'S TRUE: drinking to excess really does makes you rich and famous. The temperance movement might shake their heads in despair, but for Icona Pop's ...

Foals: The Unforgettable Fire

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), January 2013

As the promotion for Foals' third album Holy Fire ramps up, it's become apparent from press shots there's a notable new addition to the Oxford ...

Tegan and Sara

Interview by Scott McLennan, Rip It Up (Australia), May 2013

Although Canadian duo Tegan & Sara have previously notched up collaborations with artists as diverse as Against Me!, Tiësto and Kaki King, it was still ...

Future Islands: Singles Night

Interview by Scott McLennan, mX, 10 July 2014

Baltimore's synthpop trio Future Islands are so hot right now, not even Hollywood royalty can stand in their way. ...

Veruca Salt: Divide To Conquer

Report and Interview by Scott McLennan, mX, 18 September 2014

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Nina Gordon says when she last toured Australia with Veruca Salt in 1997, ...

Sarah McLachlan

Report and Interview by Scott McLennan, mX, Fall 2014

REVERED CANADIAN songwriter Sarah McLachlan has never played for the Denver Broncos or the Seattle Seahawks, yet she sustained an injury during the Super Bowl ...

Lady Antebellum: Nashville Skyline

Interview by Scott McLennan, mX, 13 March 2015

"YOU'VE GOT to ask yourself one question: 'Do I feel lucky?'" After playing golf with Dirty Harry himself, Hollywood icon Clint Eastwood, Lady Antebellum's Charles ...

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