Year: 2025

Cedarsmoke

Track by Track: Cedarsmoke find colour in every emotion on their new album, Under The Rainbow

Brisbane/Meanjin indie-rock outfit Cedarsmoke return with their third album Under The Rainbow, out today. A concept record built around the emotional spectrum of colour, it finds the band blending folk-rooted storytelling with shimmering indie textures and electronic detail. Each track on the album represents a distinct colour and emotional state, creating a vivid sequence of…

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Ghostface is going to burn it all down in first trailer for Scream 7

“I’m gonna burn it all down!” And with that fiery threat, Scream‘s resilient serial killer, Ghostface, seems to make good on such if the explosive trailer for Scream 7 is anything to go by. When a new Ghostface killer emerges in the quiet town where Sidney Prescott (a returning Neve Campbell) has built a new…

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Pokémon Legends: Z-A feels like a great step forward for the series

It’s been 29 years since Pokémon invaded our Game Boy consoles way back in 1998. For the majority of that time, the game has retained the tried-and-true formula that has made it a worldwide phenomenon and a billion-dollar franchise. The gameplay has retained the turn-style battles with subtle variations and improvements made as each generation…

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What to Watch This Halloween: The AU Review’s Creepy Curated List of the Best Horror Movies You (Maybe) Haven’t Seen

The spooky season is once again upon us, and with that comes necessary horror viewing. Sure, you could always revisit the classics (we’re talking your Halloween, Friday the 13th, Scream – and they’re iconic for a reason, so no judgement), but half the fun of the Halloween season is unearthing something scarily unexpected.  Between endless…

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SA Music Awards celebrates its 2025 event with red carpet gala event

Honouring the tenth anniversary of Adelaide’s designation as a UNESCO city of music, Music SA hosted a gala event on Tuesday night at the Entertainment Centre to recognise the state’s musical talent. After a red carpet entrance, local all-girl rock group winners, Oscar the Wild, played a short, energetic set. Cliffy Wilson “Welcomed to Country”, before…

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Photo Gallery: M.I.A. + Anna Lunoe – Enmore Theatre, Sydney (29.10.25)

British-Sri Lankan artist, rapper, and cultural icon M.I.A. returned to Sydney at the iconic Enmore Theatre with a stunning performance of songs from her back catalogue including “bamboo banger”, “bird flu”, “bad girls” and to the delight of her fans finishing the set with her massive hit “paper planes”. Warming up the crowd brilliantly was…

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Eye Q Toaster

Breville’s futuristic Eye Q toaster took 10 years to develop (and it’s a game changer)

Breville’s latest home appliance is something the brand, best known for its superb coffee machines and category-leading microwaves, has never done before. “In fact, no other company has done this before,” says Tom Groundes-Peace, Senior Global Category Manager & Head of Research at Breville. However, this gave them a slight advantage; Breville could thoroughly test…

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Radiya Festival, Australia’s biggest LGBTQIA+ music event, announces headlining act for first ever dance party in Sydney’s The Domain

With less than 3 weeks to go, RAYDIA Festival has revealed its final line-up additions, announcing global dance music icon Cascada and international drag superstar Marina Summers joining DJs Manuel Coby, Ana Julieta, BRYANT and festival curator Dan Slater for the highly anticipated new open-air day-into-night festival set to take over The Domain, Sydney on Saturday 15th November, 2025. Joining them are Sydney…

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The Electrolux 800 is a mid-range stick vacuum better suited for small apartments

Lightweight and powerful is a reasonable pitch for a vacuum that you can pick up for $400 in Australia. As with all leading home appliance and consumer technology categories, the biggest refinement is always in value as brands constantly chase the perfect balance between performance, design and price to address all ends of the market….

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Film Review: Kiss of the Spider Woman; a magnetic Jennifer Lopez ensnares us in her web of awe in this vibrant, romantic musical

Given how effortless a performer she is, it’s quite incredible that, prior to Kiss of the Spider Woman, Jennifer Lopez hadn’t appeared in a movie musical. Thankfully, Chicago scribe and helmer of such filmic musicals as Dreamgirls and the live-action Beauty and the Beast, Bill Condon, has corrected such a travesty with his vibrant, beautifully…

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Film Review: Bugonia is bleak, satirical and deliciously bizarre

It speaks to just how truly bizarre Yorgos Lanthimos‘s filmography is if his latest, Bugonia – an English language remake of the 2003 South Korean black comedy sci-fi outing, Save the Green Planet! – is considered one of his most accessible.  Yes, there’s a certain comedic universality to the film’s premise – that of a…

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Bree Tranter

Exclusive Video Premiere: Bree Tranter “Tuesday Fresh Cuts” (Matt Corby remix) (2025)

Today, The AU Review is thrilled to premiere the video for Bree Tranter’s “Tuesday Fresh Cuts” — a dazzling reinvention of her breakthrough single, remixed by longtime collaborator and friend Matt Corby. Ten years on from its original release, “Tuesday Fresh Cuts” finds new life as a kinetic, drum & bass-driven reimagining that honours the…

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Everything announced at the Kirby Air Riders Nintendo Direct

Kirby Air Riders is shaping up to be one of the biggest racing games of the year. The long-awaited sequel races straight onto the Nintendo Switch 2 next month, so Nintendo dedicated another hour-long direct to give us MORE details on what is shaping up to be the best racing game of 2025 (and potentially…

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Crash Bandicoot

Crash Bandicoot is reportedly getting an animated Netflix series

Crash Bandicoot might have been resting his eyes in recent years, but I’m not sure we would have guessed this kind of return. According to a report from What’s On Netflix, Crash Bandicoot will be getting his own animated series on Netflix, although a release window is not yet known. WildBrain Studios, the same studio…

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Fernando director

Interview: Guillermo Diaz on the universality of love explored with his directorial debut Dear Luke, Love, Me; “It’s okay to be unique and different.”

A true When Harry Met Sally for a new generation, Dear Luke, Love, Me is a groundbreaking story of Penny and Luke, two best friends, who find love in unconventional ways. A nostalgic look back into the early-mid 2000’s, we watch these two music-loving tree-huggers grow from college Freshman to 30-something adults. We peek into…

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Hot Mulligan announce 2026 Australian tour

Post-emo heavyweights Hot Mulligan are making their way back Down Under for their The Sound A Body Makes When It’s Still Australian Tour in April 2026, playing their biggest headlining venues here yet. This tour will see them visit Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney, Adelaide and Perth, and if their 2024 tour is anything to go by,…

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Taylor Acorns

Taylor Acorn unleashed: The stories behind Poster Child

Taylor Acorn first caught my attention with her acoustic cover of Blink 182’s First Date, and she’s held it ever since. Now a few years on from that release, she’s played some of the biggest pop-punk festivals such as When We Were Young, Warped Tour and Good Things, and just last week she released her…

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5 Seconds of Summer are coming home in 2026, here’s everything you need to know

Your favourite boyband is coming home, Australia. 5 Seconds of Summer are truly thriving at the moment, having just announced their upcoming record EVERYONE’S A STAR and released three incredible singles, and they’ve now announced a massive world tour in perhaps one of the most iconic ways possible. 5SOS dropped their second single, “Boyband”, a…

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Interview: Sophie Somerville on guerilla filmmaking and exploring raw friendship with her directorial debut Fwends

In some capacity, we have all lived through the experience of drifting apart from a friend. While it is a normal part of growing up, it’s often unexpected and, honestly, heartbreaking. The friend who used to be your ride or die suddenly feels so far away, and it feels like there’s nothing you can do…

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Film Review: Good Fortune; Aziz Ansari’s directorial debut is a playful, crowd-pleasing comedy

A rougher slog to get to his directorial “debut” as a feature filmmaker than he would have liked, Aziz Ansari – seven years after he was accused of sexual misconduct and three years after his planned first feature, Being Mortal, was shut down over the inappropriate behaviour of its lead actor, Bill Murray – finally…

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L.A. Mood

Exclusive Single Premiere: L.A. Mood “Casa Diablo” (2025)

We’re thrilled to be premiering “Casa Diablo”, the tantalising first single from Golden Age, the forthcoming second album from L.A. Mood—the solo project of Melbourne-based multi-instrumentalist and producer Dave Mudie. Written while on holiday in Mexico and recorded at Revolver Studios in Portland, Oregon, “Casa Diablo” captures that blend of sun-soaked surrealism and nocturnal mystique….

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Harvest Rock Festival showcases South Australia’s wild beauty

An essential part of a memorable festival is rain and mud. Throw in a violent electrical storm, and you have Bingo. Thus, Adelaide’s 2025 Harvest Rock Festival is memorable for this and many more reasons. A severe thunderstorm on midday Saturday meant that a shelter in place warning was issued. Rundle Street pubs were filled…

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Taylor Acorn’s Poster Child is an angsty, heartfelt and irresistibly fun journey

Pop-punk favourite Taylor Acorn has finally dropped her debut LP, Poster Child – her first release since signing to Fearless Records last month. Across 12 tracks and a short but sweet 37-minute runtime, Acorn delivers an album that is sharp, emotional, anthemic, and so damn fun. Opening track “People Pleaser” immediately sets the tone with…

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The Wilderness

Film Review: The Wilderness offsets the beauty of its location with the brutality of its subject matter

In a time when conversion therapy is once again in discussion as to whether or not such a practice will be allowed to be constitutionalized once more, a film like Spencer King‘s The Wilderness feels even more topical.  Whilst King’s film isn’t exactly detailing the same notion as conversion therapy, it’s still bringing awareness to…

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Album Review: Jehnny Beth’s new solo album You Heartbreaker, You is a ride worth joining

Fans of UK post-punk/alt-rock band, Savages, will know Jehnny Beth from her time as their dynamic front woman. Others may know the French singer/songwriter from her numerous collaborations with some of music’s biggest names, including Trentemøller, Gorillaz, and Julian Casablancas, to name but a few. Released at the end of August, Beth’s second solo album…

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Ninja Gaiden 4 revives the classic franchise with top-notch action

Ninja Gaiden, as a franchise, might have existed since the NES, but my first experience with it was on the original Xbox back in 2004. In fact, it was one of the first Xbox games I had played. That revival, while fantastic, might have been a little too taxing for a 10-year-old back then, but…

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A keyboard

The Corsair Vanguard 96 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard serves as a solid all-rounder

In this increasingly saturated market of gaming and mechanical keyboards alike, it becomes a little hard to pick which one might suit your needs best. Do you prefer clicky switches or softer linear ones? Do you need the numberpad on the side, or would you rather opt for a mini or 60% keyboard for more…

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State Opera’s Roméo and Juliette is a sumptuous ode to true love

The State Opera of South Australia have reimagined Shakespeare’s story of The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet as a beautiful ode to the power of love. Director Radula Gaitanou has taken Gounod’s distillation of Shakespeare’s play and imagined it as a love story that transcends time and space. It is a story of two young…

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Photo Gallery: King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard – Fed Square, Melbourne (24.10.25)

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard turned Fed Square into a spontaneous early-night rave, playing a surprise free DJ set that drew thousands into the city centre. Blending their usual psych-rock chaos with pulsing electronic tracks, the set felt loose, loud, and communal, a reminder of why Melbourne loves them still after all this time….

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Halo Campaign Evolved has been revealed and is coming to the PS5

Halo Campaign Evolved has officially been revealed this weekend, serving as a full remake of the original game, launching on the Xbox Series X/S, PC, and, you guessed it, PlayStation 5 in 2026. This is a complete remake built with Unreal Engine 5, and will feature the original campaign, along with new missions, new weapons,…

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