Features

Watch as Goons of Doom serenade a group of campers at Festival of the Sun

Watch as Sydney’s Goons of Doom serenade a campsite (their “competition winners”) with their sweet tunes while at the Festival of the Sun in Port Macquarie. It’s highly unlikely anyone was sober during the making of this video.

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Watch as Canada's Tim Chaisson performs "Under the Cajun Moon" at the AU Awards last month

Watch Canada’s Tim Chaisson perform “Under the Cajun Moon” on the acoustic guitar, accompanied by the banjo, at the first annual AU Awards in Sydney, Australia on 9th December 2014, in this exclusive video: Head to our YouTube channel for more exclusive live content: http://bit.ly/1wLM64S

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Best of 2014: The Lazys (Sydney) name their highlights of the year and their favourite music

The Lazys reflect on their massive 2014 by naming their highlights of the year – from their new music to their trips to Canada – and they pay tribute to their favourite music of the year…

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Timberwolf (Adelaide) names his favourite album and song of 2014 and talks about his next album!

Adelaide’s Timberwolf sat down with Larry Heath at Festival of the Sun earlier this month to talk about what’s coming next for him musically and name his favourite album and song of 2014! To find out what he chose, watch the short clip below:

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Best of 2014: Tora (Byron Bay) name their favourite records of the year and talk Falls Festival!

While backstage at Festival of the Sun earlier this month, Bryon Bay outfit Tora named their favourite music of 2014 and looked ahead to their performances at Falls Festival – which is happening as we speak!

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Watch Steve Smyth and Cloud Control's Heidi Lenffer accept their AU Awards in this Highlight Video

The AU Awards may have come an gone earlier this month, we’re excited to be ending the year by bringing you some footage from the intimate Sydney event, in case you couldn’t make it yourself! In the first highlights clip, watch Steve Smyth accept his award for NSW Voice of the Year as well as…

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7 Acts not to miss at Woodford Folk Festival 2014/15

Ahead of our return to the amazing surrounds of the Woodford Folk Festival this weekend, we’re counting down the 7 artists we reckon you can’t miss at the iconic event. But with hundreds of performances, talks and events that run through the mammoth event, this barely scratches the surface… 7. Olivia Chaney Described as a…

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Best of 2014 Countdown: Top 40 Albums – Part Four: The Top Ten!

And we have arrived at the top ten! What an incredible year for music it’s been, especially on the album front. We’re excited to have so many Australians make the top ten, including our number one! But we won’t spoil it for you… head through the top ten after the jump! And if you missed…

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Best of 2014 Countdown: Top 40 Albums – Part 2: 30-21

Yesterday we kicked off our best albums of 2014 countdown, and today we continue, starting things off with Michael Gira’s iconic group at number 30… Leonardo Silvestrini: The 30 year old band followed up their late career, post-reformation 2 disc masterpiece The Seer with another late career, post-reformation 2 disc masterpiece in To Be Kind,…

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Best of 2014 Countdown: Top 40 Albums – Part 3: 20-11

We waste no time and continue our top 40 list, looking back at what our contributors have voted as the best albums of 2014. We start off with a little known band from the UK… In case you missed it, look back at our choices for 30-21 and 40-31. Tanya Ali: I don’t know why…

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Best of 2014: Karl S Williams on his favourite moments of 2014 and the best record of the year…

the AU review’s Larry Heath sits down with Karl S Williams backstage at Festival of the Sun in Port Macquarie, NSW, to find out his highlights of 2014 and his favourite record of the year, Sharon Van Etten’s Are We There.

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Best of 2014 Countdown: Top 40 Albums – Part 1: 40-31

Now that we’ve brought our best songs of 2014 countdown to an end, it’s time to get to the albums. And what an incredible year it’s been for the album – this was definitely the harder of the two lists to put together. Both at home and across the globe, 2014 was an amazing year…

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Best of 2014 Countdown: Top 40 Songs – Part Four: The Top Ten!

Today we conclude our list of best songs of 2014, as voted by the AU’s amazing group of contributors… in case you haven’t been keeping up to date on where we’ve gotten to so far, you can check out 40-31, 30-21 and 20-11. 10. Kingswood – ICFTYDLM (I Can Feel That You Don’t Love Me)…

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Best of 2014 Countdown: Top 40 Songs – Part 3: 20-11

We continue on with our best songs of 2014, as voted by the AU’s amazing group of contributors… in case you haven’t been keeping up to date on where we’ve gotten to so far, you can check out 40-31 and 30-21. 20. Coldplay – A Sky Full of Stars 19. Courtney Barnett – Pickles in…

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Best of 2014 Countdown: Top 40 Songs – Part 1: 40-31

It’s that time of the year again when the AU team vote on their favourite songs of the year, resulting in our annual top 40 song list… taking in a mix of local and international music that we haven’t gotten enough of this year. We start things local though at number 40… 40. Thelma Plum…

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Best of 2014 Countdown: Top 40 Songs – Part 2: 30-21

Following on from yesterday’s first ten tracks, today we bring you the next ten songs that have been voted as the best of the year by the AU review contributors. So, without any wasted time… 30. Taylor Swift – Blank Space Jules LeFevre: Tongue in cheek with a devastating hook – “Blank Space” is proof…

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Best of 2014: Allday picks his favourite Aussie Hip Hop records of the year.

While at Festival of the Sun in Port Macquarie, we asked Allday to share with us what he reckoned were the best Aussie Hip Hop albums of 2014. Here’s what he had to say:

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New release CDs and Books deliver last minute Christmas gift ideas for fans of The Beatles

Hardly a year goes by without the release of new Beatles related material. Be they compilation albums, books, covers, gimmicks… it seems there’s always something to keep fans of the iconic British band happy. At this point though, unless McCartney or Ringo bring out some new auto-biography, filled with never before known details, is there…

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Best of 2014: Jeremy Hunter from Kingswood's 11 Favourite Australian and International Albums of the Year

There were some great releases in 2014, locally and internationally. Instead of wafting on about them and throwing in Pitchfork reviewer wanker buzzwords, I thought it would be easier to list the albums that I enjoyed in 2014: AUSTRALIAN RELEASES 1. Mink Mussel Creek – Mink Mussel Manticore 2. Dan Sultan – Blackbird 3. Blank…

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Why is the Indie Music scene in Hong Kong struggling?

If you read my review of Clockenflap festival in Hong Kong last week, you may remember I mentioned that there were quite a few bands saying that this was the first time they’d played together on a stage… in front of a crowd. Coming from Australia, you can’t help but think that this is the…

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Ten performances not to miss at Sydney Festival 2015

From the 8th of January, the city of Sydney will once again be transformed by the annual month long extravaganza known simply as Sydney Festival. The event will take over spaces around the city – some, such as the Famous Spiegeltent, are only here for the festival. But with hundreds upon hundreds of performances, it’s…

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The Five Best Performances at Clockenflap Music & Arts Festival in Hong Kong

The three day Music and Arts Festival Clockenflap just wrapped up its seventh edition in Hong Kong and we were there to bring you exclusive Australian coverage! Throughout the week you’ll read more reviews, see more photo galleries and watch more interviews from the event – but to kick things off, I’ve picked my five…

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From the Festival to the Circus: Spending 48 hours with the Canon EOS 700D

I’ve been running the AU review for over 6 years now. During that time we’ve had over a hundred photographers come through our doors around the country – probably more… and though I’ve been behind plenty of video cameras, I’ve never dabbled much in photography myself. It can’t be that hard can it? Well, the…

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Editor's Picks: The Five Best Performances of the 2014 WAM Festival in Perth

Pictured: Tired Lion The WA music scene is without question among the finest in this country. I dare say it gives Melbourne a run for its money, winning out with its vast and eclectic nature. From experimental electronic to psychedelic rock, pop grooves and indie beats, there is something to be found for everyone here….

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Get to know Perth's Tired Lion ahead of WAM Festival 2014!

The WAM Festival kicks off in Perth today with a great Opening Night party schedule to go off at The Bakery! Ahead of the antics, get to know one of the band’s set to perform, Tired Lion! We get the lowdown on what’s been happening with band from the lovely Sophie Hopes since the AU…

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Drummer Dan Presland of Ne Obliviscaris (Melbourne) Presents His 5 Favourite Albums (Right Now)!

Hailing from Melbourne, Ne Obliviscaris‘ drummer, Dan Presland, is busy getting ready for a massive tour to celebrate their brand new album Citadel, out on Friday. Plus they’re playing Soundwave in the New Year! But he kindly caught up with the AU to deliver his top 5 albums right now. Counting down from 5… 5….

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Stranded Festival Prep: Generik's Top 5 Weekend Destinations

Ahead of the anticipated Stranded Festival on South Stradbroke Island on November 14th, we’re catching up with a few of the artists who are helping us get prepped for the event. Next up, we get Generik to pass along his top 5 weekend destinations. Counting down from number five… 5. Portsea (Victoria) One of my…

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Get to know Perth's Methyl Ethel ahead of WAM Festival 2014

This Thursday night the WAM Festival kicks off in Perth for 2014, showcasing the best music of WA – as well as a few guests from Singapore! We’re going to take some time to get to know a few of the WA Music Awards nominees and performers! We kick things off with Methyl Ethel, playing…

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8 Bands at WAM Festival the Bands at WAM Festival Say You Can't Miss.

We asked the bands playing WAM Festival in Perth – which kicks off today – to share with us the bands they would recommend. Here are the eight artists: Methyl Ethel’s Picks: You’d be hard pressed to find any act that didn’t blow ya socks off during the WAM festival, I love so many bands…

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