Interviews

Ahead of his appearance at the Melbourne branch of The School of Life to give a talk on the history and philosophy of disco we caught up with ARIA award winning author, broadcaster and radio producer Craig Schuftan to get a crash course on all things Disco; and to find out why the much mocked…

In our 36th installment of “Stumbled Upon”, we meet Parisians Likewolf and chat about their upcoming EP Classic Ideals, learn how the band got started and find out how we can get our hands on their music… Band Name: Likewolf Website / Social Media: www.likewolf.com Facebook / Soundcloud / Twitter Genre: Rock Blues Electronica Soundtrack…

As part of our On The Rocks feature, the AU review’s Alex Houle caught up with Max Kerman, frontman of award-winning Canadian rock band, Arkells. Kerman shared with us his insightful opinion on the “death of Rock and Roll,” chatted about his musical influences and latest album, High Noon, and explained why he might never…

As part of our On The Rocks feature yesterday, the AU review’s, Alex Houle, recently caught up with Elliott Hammond, the opinionated singer of The Delta Riggs, to chat about their recent Foo Fighters tour, their latest album, Dipz Zebazios, and the current state of Rock and Roll. In this no holds barred interview, we…

the AU review caught up with Canadian bluesy garage rockers July Talk at SXSW in Austin to chat about writing songs for their second album, playing new material at SXSW and what they love about Australia’s music scene – all while holding our two balloons in the shape of an ‘A’ and ‘U’. We should frame that…

London artist PILLARS has released her second beautifully haunting single, “Woman Without Her Love.” The single sits comfortably between a dark brooding number and the lightness of a dream-pop one, something true to the singer’s aesthetic. PILLARS combines the best of ethereal electronic sounds and sultry layered vocals, as samples of her voice are mixed into different hypnotic arrangements. Woman Without Her Love comes as a strong follow up to her first release “Attacker,” which caught the eyes of BBC Introducing, Amazing Radio and various Hype Machine blogs.

the AU review’s Larry Heath caught up with Hiatus Kaiyote while at Austin’s SXSW festival. In amidst the chaos, band members Nai Palm, Paul Bender, Perrin Moss and Simon Mavin were able to take time out to chat about what it’s like playing SXSW again. “It’s almost just like there’s a bunch of industry people there to see if you can hack just trying to deal with the horrible bullshit,” Bender said. “But it’s not always bad!” Separating the boys from the men, as the old saying goes.

In our 35th installment of “Stumbled Upon”, we meet Belfast’s LORIS, and chat about being feature on BBC Introducing’s and get to listen to their latest track ‘Yeah’. Enjoy this one as much as we do: Band Name: LORIS Website / Social Media: www.lorisofficial.com Facebook / Soundcloud / Youtube / Twitter Genre: Electropop Members &…

Last month, Danish group Mew played their first US shows in six years at SXSW in anticipation of the release of their long awaited sixth full length record +- (Plus Minus). Larry Heath had the opportunity at the festival to sit down with Johan Wohlert and Jonah Bjerre of the group to talk about getting the band back together – with bassist Johan returning to the band for the first time since departing in 2006. We talk about working with American Producer Michael Beinhorn again – the pair having previously worked with him on the acclaimed And the Glass Handed Kites (2005). We talk about working with Kimbra and Russell from Bloc Party. But perhaps the most important question of all was: when will the band finally be coming to Australia?

Our most-loved songs are often from a heartbroken man. And while Goon has an undoubtedly autobiographic touch to it, Tobias Jesso Jr at least takes on the persona of any sad lover pining helplessly for what once was. Sure a whole album dedicated to heartbreak has its melodrama, but Jesso Jr brought his real-life experience…

the AU review sat down with Los Angeles based group AWOLNATION‘s frontman Aaron Bruno while at SXSW earlier this month. We talk about the madness of SXSW, “it’s kind of like how life on the road is in general… I think people come together at South by and experience a little bit of what it’s…

the AU review sits down with Paul Saulnier of Canadian outfit PS I Love You at SXSW to talk about the festival, their latest music with For Those Who Stay, working with Paper Bag Records in Toronto, potential trips to Australia, his favourite Australian bands, evolving the live show “we’ve gotten better at it, I…

In the 34th installment of ‘Stumbled Upon’, we meet the UK’s Edgarville and chat about keeping things simple, their upcoming 3 month tour around the UK and get to know a little more about the band. Read on: Band Name: Edgarville Website / Social Media: Facebook Genre: Acoustic Members & their roles: Ed – singer,…

In the 33rd installment of ‘Stumbled Upon’, we meet Melbourne quartet Big Smoke, and chat about their latest track ‘Try A Little Love’, the music that inspired them and find out how they got started… Band Name: Big Smoke Website / Social Media: Facebook / Soundcloud Genre: Rock ‘n’ Roll Members & their roles: Adrian…

the AU review sat down in the AU’s pop up venue at SXSW with Dispatch’s Chadwick Stokes, about to head to Australia to play shows in Australia for the first time with his band – as well as appearing at Bluesfest in Byron Bay and playing solo shows of his own. Chadwick’s solo record The…

In the final parts from the AU review’s interview with Perfect Pussy from last month, Meredith Graves and the group talk about their favourite Australian Hardcore Bands, wanting to pet Koalas and Kangaroos and much more… And watch this clip to see what the band think about Australian Spiders (spoiler alert: they’re not a big…

Scottish four piece Twin Atlantic were recently in Australia touring with Soundwave Festival and managed to stop by backstage and play a friendly game of beer pong in the AU review tournament. After the competition ended, members Sam McTrusty and Ross McNae stayed to talk about finding inspiration in Australia, what it’s like playing home grown shows and future tour plans. Check it out below!

2015 will no doubt be George Maple’s year. The Future Classic star first won fans nationally in 2014 with her debut EP Vacant Space and had everyone singing along to lead single ‘Talk Talk’. Now the singer-songwriter is making waves overseas, grabbing the attention of music heavyweights in Los Angeles, San Diego and New York City.

In the 32nd installment of ‘Stumbled Upon’, we meet Chicago’s Chicago Loud 9, and get a sneak peak at their latest release Punk Soul. Band Name:  Chicago Loud 9 Website: www.chicagoloud9.com Facebook / Bandcamp Genre: Windy City Roots, Hip Hop Rock n Roll, Funk n Soul Members & their roles: Dhan D. – Emcee Aya…

Damien Leith first came onto our radar taking out the title of Australian Idol back in 2006. It’s been almost a decade since – and this ARIA-winner sure has been busy recording a total of 7 studio albums and publishing 2 novels. This month saw Damien release his 8th studio album Songs From Ireland –…

In the 31st installment of ‘Stumbled Upon’, we meet Brisbane ‘s Steve Grady, and chat about his upcoming EP, A Year’s Gone By and his latest track, ‘Go Away & Miss Me’. Musician: Steve Grady Website / Social Media: www.stevegradymusic.com Facebook / Soundcloud / Bandcamp Genre: Singer/Songwriter Members & their roles: Steve Grady – Guitar…

Anticipating her performance at this month’s AU session taking place March 31, the AU review caught up with Rowen who is hot on the heels of a new EP. We talk about learning instruments, musical influences and the future. Further information about the performance below. How old were you when you started writing your own…

Ian Hultquist is at SXSW promoting the horror film The Diabolical, for which he composed the musical score. He is also a founding member of synth pop band Passion Pit, although in October 2014 he announced his departure from the band. In this interview, Hultquist chats about the nature of composing for film, his inspirations, and his reasons for leaving Passion Pit.

In the 30th instalment of ‘Stumbled Upon’, we meet Melbourne’s In Capital, and get an exclusive preview of their second single Fighting for the Light. Band Name: In Capital Website / Social Media: Facebook / Soundcloud / Bandcamp / Twitter Genre: Electronic, EDM Members & their roles: Nick Jenkin – Engineer, Producer, Guitar, Bass, Synth,…

In the 29th installment of ‘Stumbled Upon’, we meet Perth’s HYLA and chat about their second EP and working towards a full length album. Band Name: HYLA Website / Social Media: Facebook / Soundcloud Genre: Garage, shoegaze, dream noise pop Members & their roles: Rob -bass, Mike -guitar, Darren-drums, Alex -guitar/vocals What music or artists…

Being the new addition to Epitaph Records, post-hardcore five-piece band, Sleeping With Sirens, have really challenged themselves to be the band they want to be. With Madness due for release shortly, Kellin Quinn reflects his journey with the band and how this record has taught him many things about responsibility, and has provided him with a sense of awakening as…

Leo Sayer has a career that has spanned over four decades. He’s written for artists such as Roger Daltrey, Dolly Parton and Tina Turner, and had numerous classic hits such as the Grammy Award winning “You Make Me Feel Like Dancing”, “When I Need You” and “More Than I Can Say”. With the new tour…

the AU review chats to American violinist, dancer, performance artist, and composer Lindsey Stirling about coming back to Australia to promote her album Shatter Me, “I’ve been touring non stop since releasing it” she says. Lindsey also offers her thoughts on the life of a musician “There’s so many other things that go along with…

Luke Escombe‘s latest album Creeper Vine is a vintage-sounding homage to artists like Chuck Berry, Freddie King, and Elvis Presley while traversing the themes of modern-day life. This splice of eras is fresh and unique, emphasizing the singer-songwriter’s innate sense of fun. Touring Australia during March and April, Escombe is ready to rock n roll….

On Thursday morning Vanessa Ronan-Pearce had the pleasure of meeting the lovely, humble and talented Katie Noonan on the eve of her upcoming tour. They caught up in Sydney near the Channel 7 studios early in the morning before Katie went in to do some filming. With a successful and prolific career that has, so…