Annie & The Armadillos

Australian band based in Canberra, ACT, fronted by Annette Sloane. Annie and the Armadillos play groove based music – a mixture of rhythm and blues, funk, bop, soul and jazz. The group began in the mid 1990s as a trio doing cover versions of ballads and torch songs. They became popular at local restaurants and had a regular gig at the former Gypsy Bar in Civic. Vocalist Annette Sloane quickly realised that, as much as she liked the quieter repertoire, she wanted to sing to something with driving rhythms, something that people could dance to. So she approached bass player John Coates. Regarded by his peers as the ‘Groove Master’ of Canberra, John has been around the local scene since the early 1980s, playing in bands from rock to reggae, jazz and blues.