About The Jury.

The Smith & Western Jury sound like the moment a freight train barrels past you—loud, fast, and impossible to forget. Born in the backrooms and beer-soaked stages of Naarm/Melbourne, Australia, the band deliver a rock-forward punch laced with an alt-country, western-tinged twang—familiar enough to feel rooted, yet twisted into something unmistakably their own. Their 2024 debut, Hotel Texas, didn’t just announce them—it warned everyone they were coming.

Hotel Texas snagged ABC Country’s Feature Album of the Week, with airplay rolling in from Saturday Night Country, Edge of Country, and Henry Wagons’ Tower of Song on Double J. Their cinematic videos for “Button That Collar” and “Hotel Texas” also landed on CMT Australia, further cementing the band’s growing legend.

In October 2025, The Smith & Western Jury took things even further, heading into the studio with producer Jordan Koop (known for his work on PONY with Orville Peck) to record their second full-length album. The result pushes harder, digs deeper, and hits even heavier than their debut—proof that the band is only gaining speed.

From festival stages at Out On The Weekend, Queenscliff, Tamworth, and Meatstock, to sharing lineups with Australian heavy-hitters like Ella Hooper and Henry Wagons, The Smith & Western Jury bring a live show that stomps, sweats, and leaves no one standing still.

The Smith & Western Jury are: 

Samantha Lombardi, Simon Torcasio, Kevin Orr & Aaron Barnett.

Photo by Dan Shaq.