Music

Interview: The Veils’ Finn Andrews (NZ) unveils his debut solo album

The Veils’ frontman Finn Andrews is in a “rickety little house” in Auckland, New Zealand. “There was a storm last night and the whole thing nearly blew over,” he says. It’s the city where he first formed The Veils as a teenager, but now he has returned home a different person after spending over a…

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Bad Friday Interview: Holiday Sidewinder (AUS) talks the importance of small festivals and her new single

Sydney singer-songwriter, musician and producer Holiday Sidewinder is officially back in Australia following a long London stint, opening the action at the tenth anniversary edition of Bad Friday Festival, which took place in Marrickville at the start of the Easter Long Weekend. We caught up with the indie-pop artist on the day to chat about…

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Track of the Day: Son of Cabe “Lynwood” (2019)

“Lynwood” is the latest track from British electro-pop artist Son of Cabe, and it’s a cracker. Packed with ambient synths and drums straight from 90s hip-hop, it blends melancholy musings on guilt and regret with beats that’ll stick in your head long after listening. Of the track, Son of Cabe says: “Lynwood’s about trying to say…

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Live Review: Jungle + Georgia – Enmore Theatre, Sydney (24.04.19)

In the country for a string of sold out shows, Jungle played their second Sydney show of the tour and brought the Enmore Theatre crowd to life with their own brand of downbeat dance music. Playing their second Sydney show of the tour (after a headlining slot at last week’s Bad Friday Festival), the seven-piece lords…

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Interview: Abbey Road Studio’s Mirek Stiles and Karim Fanous explain Spatial Audio and the power of AI

Last month, I sat down with Mirek Stiles, the head of Audio Products at Abbey Road, and Karim Fanous, Innovation Manager at Abbey Road Red, to learn more about the way the iconic British studio is embracing and helping develop the next generation of technologies, from spatial audio – which aims or the audio experience better…

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Track of the Day: Dan Howls “King Si” (2019)

Ahead of a big interstate tour, Fremantle-based bluesman Dan Howls has offered up a taster of his forthcoming album in the form of the swaggering new single, “King Si”.  Over the last few years Howls has been making steady inroads in the already bustling WA music scene, culminating in the release of his debut album…

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Barunga Festival continues celebration of First Nations music

The Barunga Festival is one of Australia’s most important cultural events celebrating the best of First Nations art, sport, cultural activities, and contemporary and traditional music from remote locations. Held over 3 days, from Friday June 7 to Sunday June 9, 80 kilometers south-east of Katherine, it brings together 4000 people from the Northern Territory…

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Live Review: Foals promise a spicy night of rock ‘n’ roll in Toronto with Preoccupations and Omni (and deliver)

Fresh off the release of the first part of their two part record Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost, UK quartet Foals are on a world tour that tonight saw them play Toronto venue Rebel supported by Canada’s Preoccupations and Atlanta outfit Omni. First up, three piece Omni were singing songs with entertaining lyrics like…

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Track of the Day: Good Pash “Richard” (2019)

Good Pash are a riotous indie-punk band based in Sydney. Formed in late 2016, they have been making a name for themselves on the Sydney scene since. Good Pash is Anna Free (guitar/vox), Madeleine Mallis (guitar/vox), Julia Goyen (bass) and Courtney Cunningham (drums), all members of well-regarded Sydney bands in their own rights.  They created the…

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Track of the Day: Owl Eyes “You And I” (2019)

After a long wait, it’s great to see that Owl Eyes is back with a new track, “You And I”. It’s a glorious funky track, think seventy’s, flares and smoke machines.  It talks of love, desire and has bold sass. It’s disco nirvana The track was written in Brussels, and is a collaboration between Owl Eyes and Belgian nu…

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Live Review: Bad Friday Festival proves how vital local festivals are to the music industry

Marrickville was turned into a grungy experimental boombox as Bad Friday Festival rolled in. The annual event held each Easter Good Friday was celebrating its 10th anniversary with a killer line-up featuring The Avalanches, DMA’s, Jungle, DZ Deathrays and more. But, importantly in a time where the political climate of live music festivals is souring,…

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Exclusive Video Premiere: Miles Recommends “You’re Never Alone” (2019)

This morning we’re excited to bring you an exclusive first look at music video for “You’re Never Alone”, the latest single from Melbourne-based Miles Recommends. Given that the band was conceived whilst guitarist/vocalist Des Atkinson was living through a military coup in Bangkok in 2014, it perhaps shouldn’t come as a surprise that, “You’re Never…

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Photo Gallery: Bad Friday Festival – Marrickville, Sydney (19.04.19)

The tenth anniversary edition of Bad Friday went off with a bang in Marrickville on Friday, with a lineup tailor made for lovers of Sydney’s local music scene, with some added international flair mixed through. Photographer Danny Hanssen was there to capture all of the highlights from the day.

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Kanye West’s Coachella Sunday Service: Tears, Water, and DMX

Coachella’s second weekend may have been rich with performances from some of the music industry’s biggest names, but no other event garnered as much wide-eyed curiosity as Kanye West’s “Sunday Service”. An extension and validation of all the Sunday Service sessions that have been drip-fed to us over the past few months, portraying an invigorated…

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Track of the Day: Kae the Goat & Droopo “Dex Up” (2019)

As part of Melbourne’s Gremlns crew, rappers Kae the Goat and Droopo are aggressively aiming for the coveted top spots in Australia’s ever-changing hip hop industry. Fuelling those ambitions is new track “Dex Up”, a collaboration between the two artists which has immediately grabbed attention across the country thanks to its pounding production and slick…

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Flying Lotus previews new album, drops first single with David Lynch

Experimental producer Flying Lotus is prepping his first studio album since 2014’s brilliant You’re Dead!, and from our first preview, it’s going to one hell of a bizarre ride. The prolific artist has teamed up with Twin Peaks mastermind David Lynch to, confidently, release a pretty non-music first single called “Fire is Coming”. It’s less…

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Interview: BATTS talks The Grand Tour, working with NASA and Outer Space

As you might have guessed we are big fans of BATTS here at the AU. With her debut album, The Grand Tour, released last week we sat down with the Melbourne singer-songwriter to find out a little bit more about the creation and recording of the album, how NASA got involved, and – just for good measure…

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Tour Diary: The Pinheads take us behind the scenes of their SXSW adventure

We might only be in April, but Illawara rockers The Pinheads have already had a busy year. Freshly returned to Australia from a scorching run of shows in Austin for SXSW, the band have dropped new single “Feel It Now” – another hint at what to expect from their forthcoming sophomore album, Is This Real,…

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Guest Playlist: The songs that inspired Jackson Carroll’s “Holy Hell”

Sydney singer-songwriter Jackson Carroll dropped his sublime debut single, “Holy Hell” last Friday. The single is the first taste of Carroll’s forthcoming EP, and if the rest comes anywhere close to this single then we’re in for a treat. The single was recorded at Sydney’s Noisegate Studios, with Luke Carra (Caravana Sun) and Ian Pritchett…

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Track of the Day: Waxhead “Disco Etiquette” (2019)

Byron Bay surf/psychedelic quartet Waxhead are back with “Disco Etiquette”, a track fans might recognise from their debut Self Titled. Consisting of Finny on lead guitar, Shrecky on drums, AL Dogg on Bass, and Froggy on Vocals and Guitar, this is one hard-working foursome, with two EPs, several singles, and a slew of Australian and international…

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Track of the Day: Dress Thèque “Gone Mad” (2019)

Brit-pop inspired genre benders Dress Thèque are back with their third single, “Gone Mad”. The Sydney based band is made up of Julian Wilkinson, Michael Thurbin, Daniel Nutton, John Wineberg, and cites Pink Floyd, New Order, and The Stone Roses amongst their influences. “Gone Mad” is described as “an ode to everything that’s come out…

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Exclusive Single Premiere: Blood Bank “Shadow Boxing” (2019)

Today we’re stoked to be bringing you the exclusive premiere of “Shadow Boxing”, the latest track from rising Brisbane foursome Blood Bank. High school mates Sam Pennisi (vocals/guitar), Tom Ryan (vocals/guitar/synth), Will Kilah (drums), and Peter Katsanevas (bass/vocals) have been ripping up the Brisbane post-punk scene since they formed back in 2016. Counting Joy Division, Iggy…

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Live Review: Basement Jaxx vs. The Metropolitan Orchestra bring the Baroque Bangers to the Sydney Opera House

Contemporary act-plus-orchestra shows aren’t a new phenomenon in rock, with arena-size bands churning out orchestral projects since the 80’s; an attempt at legitimising corporate rock, re-selling already existing albums and making mums proud. With dance music reaching maturity, EDM acts and DJs are beginning to jump on the bandwagon as their audiences age and new…

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Track of the Day: Holly Alison “Cigarette” (2019)

Australian singer/songwriter Holly Alison is back with latest pop fusion single “Cigarette”. Dubbed the “Amy Shark of Dance” by Hit 101.3, the NSW artist blends upbeat pop with electronic and RnB sounds, and previous tracks “Give Me Your Heart”, “Balance Beam” and “Come Here” have been racking up the streams on Spotify. “Cigarette” stays true…

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Live Review: Art of Fighting + Leo Mullins, Howler, Melbourne (11.04.19)

For what was a return to music after over a decade, Art of Fighting‘s live return on Thursday night was a low-key affair. Sporting a sold out crowd, the mid 2000’s outfit, brought Leo Mullins, along in support, with Mullins quickly garnering a crowd as excited to see them as they were the evening’s headliners. Leo Mullins…

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Interview: Georgia Mooney talks about her “Supergroup” shows in Sydney with Tim Rogers and more

Over the last two Sundays, a songwriter night has been running at Giant Dwarf Theatre in Sydney under the helm of Georgia Mooney of All Our Exes Live in Texas. With two more shows left to go, we caught up with Georgia to learn more about the show, find out how it’s gone so far and…

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Adelaide’s Spin Off Festival announces 2019 line-up.

Adelaide’s Spin Off Festival has fast become a favourite event for those of us who miss out on the chance to head to Splendour In the Grass. This year Five Four Entertainment, Secret Sounds and Triple J are once again bringing the cream of the SITG crop to the Adelaide Showgrounds for what will be…

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Interview: BROODS (NZ) on their North American tour, family bands and VANFEST.

New Zealand brother and sister duo, BROODS, have been jumping from strength to strength since releasing “Bridges” in 2014. Since then, they’ve supported the tours of international superstars such as Taylor Swift, Haim, Ellie Goulding and Sam Smith; collaborated with the likes of Lorde and Tove Lo; and have won numerous ARIA and NZMA awards. This year, their single,…

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Record Store Day: What’s on and where!

Everyone loves that vinyl sound and, since today is Record Store Day, there’s no better time to head down to your local independent record store, pick up a few bargains, and maybe even snap up some of those legendary limited editions! But there’s more than just great tunes on offer! Plenty of stores have loads…

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Track of the Day: James Parm “I Know I Know I Know” (2019)

Montreal’s James Parm released his debut record, Oh My Darling, last week. The album is a striking blend of Parm’s musical influences: 90’s garage rock, jazz and hip hop. With the single, “I Know I Know I Know”, a propellent slice of post-punk falling more towards the garage rock end of the spectrum.  Parm has…

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