The Bronx swept into Sydney’s Metro Theatre last night as part of their current Australian tour, which sees them playing in intimate venues across the country. Melbourne’s High Tension are a welcome addition to any show. Playing songs from their new album Purge, the post-hardcore band showed a deeper, heavier more metallic sound. Though they…
I am about 98.98% sure that we almost made Tom Lanyon cry. From the moment Ceres walked onto the stage for their Viv in the Front Seat tour and launched into their first song, the entire crowd was singing along to every word. The Howler was packed to the brim, there are definitive bruises forming…
The third stop on a month long tour of the US see California’s Sir Sly and New York’s Joywave fill out Warsaw in Brooklyn. Both regulars of the US touring circuit and members of the Coachella club, Warsaw seems like quite the exclusive venue to catch these guys, nobody was complaining though. They could have…
It was a big night for any music loving Melbournian on Saturday as Trophy Eyes completed their national tour for the release of their The American Dream album. The band, who have been in the middle of a genre shift over the course of the past couple of years seemed to have completed it through…
A legend across contemporary classical, electronica and experimental music, Ryuichi Sakamoto has had a long an illustrious career. Spanning a number of collaborations, it’s his sixteen year partnership with German composer Alva Noto that has stuck, garnering five albums, along with the soundtrack to the movie The Revenant. A largely improvised affair, the duo meshed sparse…
On a Thursday night at 7:45, the almost century-old venue in Kreuzberg, Berlin, starts filling up. Some laid back rock tunes play in the background as I watch an audience pour into Huxley’s that could not be any more diverse. Ten-year-old kids with their parents mingle amongst hipsters in their late 20s, and a couple…
Melbourne’s favourite gritty garage rocker’s The Pretty Littles are back and providing the goods with an epic show, an epic line-up and a bloody good album to go along with it. The Corner Hotel crowd was churning for opening night and the bloke beside me chimed in to let everyone know that “The Pretty Littles…
Fresh from a touring in the UK, Melbourne’s Olympia hit Fremantle, and the West Coast, on Thursday kicking off a run of shows around the country. Joining Olympia on the night were locals Noah Dillon and Felicity Groom. Noah Dillon kicked off the evening strongly. Backed by a the standard trio of drums, bass and…
I’ve been looking forward to Kesha‘s Rainbow Tour ever since it was announced, and from the moment the stage lit up with Kesha making one hell of an entrance through an alien spaceship, there was absolutely no doubt that this would be an insane night of weird, whacky and wonderful fun. And as if that…
I’ll be honest. Walking in to a Kesha concert, my expectations were pretty low. However, I can say that this gig was WILD (and I’ve been to Miley Cyrus). Melbourne act Ben Abraham opened the night and although his style is unlike Kesha’s, the crowd fell in love. The singer-songwriter oozed a humble charm that…
The first iteration of Lost Picnic in Melbourne was greeted by a sunny day throughout Sunday afternoon in Flemington. The festival, cultivated around the idea of a loungey picnic with friends, good music and tasty food, would have been seen as a veritable success as thousands poured through the gates to enjoy the day. The…
This weekend, I travelled about an hour outside of Los Angeles to San Bernadino, to experience the second year of the festival Cal Jam – an event programmed and run by the Foo Fighters, featuring an eclectic mix of rock bands from around the world, and celebrating the 25 years of the band’s career with…
Thursday night welcomed the poignant music work of Laykn to the Northcote Social Club, the last stop on his &Pains EP tour down the East Coast of Australia. He was joined by RnB/Hip Hop artist Charlie Threads who pumped the crowd up before Laykn hit the stage. Charlie Threads brought an interesting tone to the…
The second and final day of the Yours & Owls Festival in Wollongong promised another day of beautiful weather and even better music; with (in my opinion), an even stronger lineup than the preceding day. E^ST opened things up on the main stage, and then rising star Didirri – who has had an amazing 2018…
The Corner Hotel was fortunate enough to welcome some young talent into its band room at the end of last week; the ceiling suspending multiple fluorescent light tubes giving the atmosphere quite a futuristic twist to the traditional spotlights and strobes. It was all in place for Ruel, the 15-year-old Sydney based singer-songwriter who has…
The audience surrounded the square stage set-up in the middle of The Tivoli. It’s part of Brisbane Festival’s Tivoli In The Round programme, where fans experienced intimate performances from Australia’s best musicians. However, Gareth Liddiard found it unusual to have eyes on him from all directions, quipping to the crowd, “You’ve got to remind me…
Upon the coloured light bulbs and mood lighting, the room filled up with an agenda of groovy beats and neo-soul. Allen Stone was in town, playing at the Croxton Bandroom in Melbourne’s sacred north. It would be his only Australian show before hitting the Byron Bay Blues Festival in early 2019. Not being familiar with…
While it may just be her on stage alias, the brains, vocals and stories behind Jack River is so much more. An entrepreneur, promoter and musician, Holly Rankin brought to life her musical talents and journey as the Sydney leg of her Sugar Mountain album tour made its way to a sold out Metro Theatre….
Thursday night saw fans of the TV series Nashville descend on Perth’s Astor Theatre for the opening night of Clare Bowen’s Australian tour. Bowen of course, best known for her role as singer-songwriter Scarlett O’Connor on the show. Earlier this year, the show wrapped up after six seasons, leaving Bowen free to complete and release…
While most of Sydney’s partygoers were heading to Listen Out, I jumped on the train to Wollongong to check out the sold out Yours & Owls two day festival; an annual event which has become among the most anticipated and celebrated in the region. Often being overseas at the same time, it was my first…
On Wednesday night American singer-songwriter Jhené Aiko took Sydney crowds at Hordern Pavilion on a final emotional and musical journey during her last Australian show of her Trip tour. Making it a real trip for everyone she had a very special guest rapper A$AP Rocky join her for part of the set. Starting off the…
Canadian singer/songwriter Dan Bejar stood alone on the Brisbane Festival’s Spiegeltent stage. Bejar has performed as Destroyer since 1995, crafting 12 exquisite albums of complex, genre-defying music. But, for his debut Brisbane show, he stood alone with his acoustic guitar. “A lot of these songs are translated from different contexts, usually very noisy and with…
I vividly remember the first time I heard Wolf Alice on the radio. I was driving back from uni flicking between the presets on my car radio. I was half way through the hour long trip, driving through a main road of Western Sydney. Flicking back onto Triple J, Linda Marigliano was spruiking this new…
Everyone knows these days, “how Australian you are” comes down to how many Ball Park Music concerts you’ve seen. After five albums and a gazillion national tours it’s only fair that this Australian icon makes its way on to our $100 dollar note . Embodying everything we love about Australia and just being an all round…
Enmore Theatre felt like it was hosting a festival set on Friday night for the Sydney show which was the closing city of Hayden James’ Just Friends tour. The all ages event in the record producer’s hometown brought overall a very young crowd who had seemingly pre-gamed and were ready to party all night long….
At Melbourne’s Forum Theatre on Friday evening, fans waded through AFL and Rugby goers to squeeze into a line to see one of the most exciting and adored rappers of 2018. Fresh off the release of her stellar album Room 25, Noname has a string of shows in Australia in addition to her spot in Listen Out…
Scottish rock gods Biffy Clyro aren’t the first band that springs to mind when you think about a seated acoustic gig. Having attended many of their shows over the years I can vouch that it’s more a case of coming out with your ears ringing and your entire body dripping in sweat. If you can…
After a balmy end to the working week, there’s almost nothing better than a quick drive to the city, a cold beer and an absolutely killer set from one of Australia’s best ever party bands. For myself, this is exactly what happened, as I ventured into Sydney’s premier live music venue, the Enmore Theatre, and…
Trophies and vines covered the stage inside the Brisbane Festival’s Spiegeltent. Those trophies glinted from the venue’s stage lights, but they never shined as bright as Tkay Maidza. The South Australian artist has been on a roll since emerging in 2013 with her debut single “Brontosaurus”, and the energetic show she put on in support…
It’s been ten years since punk rock crew DZ Deathrays started making (delicious) bite-sized punk anthems, and there was only one way for the band to celebrate the momentous occasion; a massive tour with some fellow Aussie rockers. Saturday night’s Forum show had all the tellings of a perfect night, a stage set-up mimicking a lounge…
