The musical offerings at this year’s Illuminate Festival have been nothing short of inspired. From the two night Unsound festival, to the melodic sounds of Faroese-Icelandic duo, Kiasmos, the music has been captivating. The crowd at Friday night’s Hindley St Music Hall are sure to agree. Opening act Juno Mamba is a Filipino born musician…
On the back of one of the better albums released this year, Ruby Gill played their third show in Sydney in the past six months and managed to deliver an incredibly authentic and flawless set to a packed out Trocadero Room. Not even 4 months after releasing her second album Some Kind Of Control, Ruby’s…
Lovers of alternative music look forward to Illuminate Adelaide‘s Unsound weekend as it always brings a wide selection of local and international musical artists. Held over two nights, it started at Lion Arts Centre on Friday and finished at Hindley Street Music Hall before the closing acts performed in the suitably grimy basement of Ancient…
UK group Coldplay are currently undertaking their Moon Music world tour, and last night they touched down in Toronto, Canada for the first of four shows. Tickets to the shows – their first in the city in eight years – have been a hot commodity, fetching massive prices on resale sites after more than 200,000…
On a cold Friday night in Brisbane, every square inch of the footpath leading to The Tivoli was packed with punters braving the chilly wind sweeping across the city. The headliner? Byron Bay’s beloved surf-punk trio Skegss, playing to a sold-out crowd. As part of the Open Season festival, the band were in town touring…
While most of Brisbane was settling in for State of Origin on Wednesday night, the line to The Princess Theatre saw Maroon jerseys replaced with corduroy jackets and baggy jeans. Inside, the anticipation was building for Nashville-based indie rock artist Soccer Mommy (the alias of Sophie Allison), who was bringing her signature blend of shoegaze…
The Fremantle indie rock band Spacey Jane have had huge success in their careers over the last five years; selling out shows, finding international acclaim, touring around the world, and debuting at number 2 on the ARIA charts with their third album If That Makes Sense. They are by far one of the most popular Aussie…
This year’s Beer and BBQ Festival marked ten years of the event, and was the final one in the current format. Organisers have announced that the event will continue on in some form that is still to be decided. With that in mind, there was a mixture of celebration and sadness on the final day…
With the cold wind and rain that hit Adelaide for the King’s Birthday long weekend, it was good that there was plenty of warmth and shelter to be had at the Beer and BBQ Festival. With beer and craft stalls inside and plenty of open fires outside, it was a cosy place to escape the…
With the announcement that this year will be the final Adelaide Beer and BBQ Festival in this format, there was a mixture of celebration and sadness. Despite the wintry weather outside, there were numerous undercover spaces, warmed by copious open wood fires. There were plenty of stallholders, from beer producers to scented candles and all…
After an eight year wait, the Grammy nominated indie pop band Japanese Breakfast came back to Australian shores with a taste of their Melancholy Tour for this year’s RISING festival in Melbourne. Coming off of the high of Michelle Zauner’s critically acclaimed 2021 memoir Crying at the H Mart, Japanese Breakfast released their fourth studio…
2025 has been a massive year for Irish artists in Australia. Dermot Kennedy brought Misneach Festival here in March, while Kneecap completely dominated everything they did a few months back. And now we’ve got James Vincent McMorrow reminding everyone he’s got one of the best voices as he returns to our shores with a cover-to-cover…
On a wintery Sunday night, Brisbane’s jacket-clad masses shuffled out of the bitter cold and into the welcoming warmth of a sold-out Princess Theatre. Despite the layered attire and a looming workweek, the crowd arrived ready to move. With UK five-piece Ezra Collective in town, that almost felt like a prerequisite. Wrapping up their whirlwind…
On a rainy Friday night in Brisbane’s Woolloongabba, excitement was building for the long-awaited reunion of Australian indie outfit Cloud Control — a return seven years in the making. Formed in the mid-2000s in the Blue Mountains and breaking through with their acclaimed debut Bliss Release in 2010, the band had been on hiatus since…
Australia’s loveliest band, Ball Park Music, turned it up a notch and delivered one of the most wholesome (and at times funny) sets at the Enmore Theatre as part of their Like Love album tour. With the Sydney crowd in the palm of their hands, the Brisbane locals’ set left everyone feeling loved up and…
On a brisk Brisbane evening a line formed down the block for the opening night of Open Season 2025, one of the city’s most exciting winter festivals. Despite the time reading 7:30pm on a Sunday, punters huddled in the Princess Theatre’s courtyards and bars with a buzz in the air. The occasion? The first Brisbane…
It was a sweet, bitter sweet evening at the Enmore Theatre on Saturday night, as Holy Holy said goodbye to Sydney prior them heading into a long-term hiatus. After more than a decade as a band, and with six albums released, Holy Holy has called it a day and turned in one of the best…
Lush, evocative, poignant. Writers have been trying to distill Sigur Ros’ otherworldly music into neat adjectives for years, but there’s always been something missing. There’s an indescribable quality to Jonsi’s wails, so pregnant with emotion, sorrow and joy, lifted by world-class musicians who flitter between sublime, modest dips and chaotic, violent peaks. It’s beautiful music….
We’re officially halfway through the “biggest rock festival in America” – Florida’s Welcome to Rockville – and Dan Slater is there. He brings us all his experiences on ground from the last two days of the event in Daytona Beach, Florida. You can look back at his day one and day two coverage here. A…
Following (very) hot on the heels of its hectic opening day, the second twenty four hours at Welcome to Rockville promised to be a belter. Dan Slater is on ground in Daytona Beach, Florida to bring us the latest from the Green Day-headlined Friday night with this review. Coming on earlier than their status deserves,…
Darwin’s Mindil Beach, nestled on the shore of Larrakia country, is known for it’s iconic tropical sunsets and night-time beach markets. It’s also home to the equally iconic BASSINTHEGRASS musical festival that has been a feature in Darwins music scene since 2003. This year was no exception, with the Hilltops Hoods proudly proclaiming that this…
Thursday marked the first of four days of what they call “America’s largest rock festival”, Welcome to Rockville. The event is held in Daytona Beach, Florida. Now in its 13th year, this year Linkin Park, Green Day and Korn are amongst the headliners. Dan Slater is on ground to bring The AU Review day-by-day coverage. …
Still riding the high from their third studio album TOY, which reached number 1 on the ARIA albums chart, Aussie favourites Dear Seattle are thriving right now. Friday night saw them pack out Melbourne’s Croxton Bandroom for the second show of their TOY album tour, with supporting sets from local indie-rock artist Lucky, pop-punk duo…
It’s hard to believe that The Offspring have been making punk rock classics for around forty years and are still going strong. Starting the Australian leg of their Supercharged tour at Adelaide’s Entertainment Centre, they had the sold-out crowd bopping and singing like it was their first time. The opening band, Canadian rockers Simple Plan…
“Lisa, I don’t think you’ve ever sung this as beautiful as just now. It’s like you need to be here. You are a miracle and I love you with all my heart,” says Hans Zimmer as he looks up to Lisa Gerrard, the Australian singer who famously vocalised his score for Ridley Scott’s 2000 classic,…
Aussie post-hardcore/metalcore legends Behind Crimson Eyes are just a few days away from wrapping up their final tour. But before one last hurrah in hometown Melbourne this weekend, they bid a fond farewell to the River City, tearing up The Brightside with a little help from friends Nervous Light, The Last Martyr, and Patient Sixty-Seven….
Canadian rock duo, Death From Above 1979 released their debut album, You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine, in 2004 but subsequently broke up in 2006. However, the pair reunited in 2011 and are currently touring the album in Australia. We caught their show at Adelaide’s Governor Hindmarsh Hotel. The Aussie warmup band DZ Deathrays need…
By any measure, Bluesfest 2025 was a resounding success. Last year, there was an announcement that this could be the final year of the North Byron Bay event. However, the community rallied to support it, with over 110,00 people attending this year over four days. By the last day, it was announced that tickets were…
Saturday’s Bluesfest hosted a glorious sunny day for the sold out crowd. Thanks to the overwhelming support of this year’s event, it was announced that Bluesfest will continue into 2026, with specially discounted pre-early bird tickets available for sale at the festival. The overall mood is one of celebration of community, with a couple of…
One thing that you can’t control is the weather. With recent heavy rains in northern NSW, many were worried that this year would be another muddy Bluesfest. However, the weather has been glorious for the last week, including the Easter long weekend. With gravel being laid to ensure no muddy patches, festival goers this year…
