Music

Night Lovell has remained an underground heavyweight in the trap scene, with dark and harrowing production, with booming bass and some emo-inspired elements. Lovell deploys quick flows over these gruesome instrumentals, with all the trace elements of typical flex rapping, but altered to fit a completely different mood. With this new album, Lovell is looking…

“Torch Song” is a melancholic and yearning track from Tales of America, the debut album from singer-songwriter J.S. Ondara. It is a track and indeed an album firmly rooted in the worlds of Americana and folk music, with Ondara citing Bob Dylan, amongst others, as an influence, but there’s something a twist to the tale. …

American post-metal band Deafheaven returned to Melbourne to play an incredibly intense and powerful show at the Corner Hotel. Photos by Rebecca Houlden.

We’re excited today to be premiere, Until The Children Grow Old, the debut EP from the Brisbane via Sunshine Coast singer-songwriter Chakra Efendi. At only nineteen years old, Efendi has already built something of a dedicated cult both at home and overseas thanks to a series of demos posted to SoundCloud. Demos, which to date,…

The bluesman appears to have become a rare and shy character in the age of synthesizers and auto tune. Still some loyal guitar heroes keep on carrying the torch for the moody genre. Among them is Texas born and raised guitarist and singer Gary Clark Jr. Even though he clearly has a passion for the…

In our 10th year of covering SXSW on the AU review, we’re thrilled to reveal the lineup for our first ever official showcase at the iconic Austin event. Partnering with our sister publication Hello Asia!, the event will feature three Australian acts and two acts from Japan and one from Korea. It’s all happening at…

Arctic Monkeys‘ Australian & New Zealand tour hit Melbourne on Tuesday night, joining the band were Mini Mansions. The AU’s Rebecca Houlden was there to capture all the action. The tour continues to Sydney for two shows on Friday and Saturday, before heading to Brisbane. For more information and to get tickets for the remaining shows…

Polish psych-pop quartet Trupa Trupa are the newest signees to legendary Seattle label, Sub Pop. With the promise of new music later in the year, the band has released an official video for their track “Dream About” to hold fans over in the meantime. Boosted by a gloomy bassline that would heighten the tension in…

Brisbane band Sweater Curse have been making many waves in the Australian music scene over the past few years, with support slots for major artists, Triple J Unearthed support and a growing list of performances. Now, with their new EP See You, the band offer up a full showcase of just why they’ve become so…

We’re a matter of days away from the release of Pond’s eighth studio album, Tasmania. Pond declares Tasmania something of a sister missive to their critically acclaimed 2017 album The Weather. The thematics of both albums are kindred in many respects. Tasmania explores place, history, hints of colonialism, and nature’s unfortunate submission towards humans – themes that…

A lot has changed for Jet frontman, Nic Cester, since the Australian rock icons first shot to international superstardom. It’s been over fifteen years since the band first released their debut album, Get Born. Two more albums followed and then a decade long hiatus. In recent years, the band have finally made a return, supporting Bruce…

New Neon Gold signing Your Smith is about to hit Australian shores for the first time, following the release of the Japanese Wallpaper remix of this track, “Bad Habit”, our Track of the Day. Minneapolis native Your Smith a.k.a. Caroline Smith relocated to Los Angeles in 2016, where inspired by the cherished songwriters of her youth, she…

The Melbourne summer peak may be on its last legs, but musical and cultural events are still in full swing around the city. A series of concerts under the name Zoo Twilights are currently underway at Melbourne Zoo, lasting from January to March. Visitors are encouraged to arrive early to see the animals then bring…

It was an empowering night of young female talent at Sydney’s Lansdowne Hotel on Saturday. Mackay-local Tia Gostelow brought along vocal-powerhouses Lola Scott and MANE to support her sold-out show, and boy was it a showcase for the books! Lola Scott’s dark-indie pop offered a dramatic and energetic start to the evening. Her performance drew…

Sweater Curse are a Brisbane band who have had a large jump in notoriety in recent times, thanks in part to their unique blend of pop and rock, and emotive, dense and beautiful songs. Ahead of the release of their debut EP See You on March 1st, the band’s lead singer and bassist Monica spoke to us…

We all need a little bit of scuzzy 90’s inspired grunge in our lives, especially because this kind of alt-rock is becoming increasingly hard to come across in a sea of constant pop (and pop rap) releases flooding social media. Your latest taste comes from Springfield, Missouri band Dream Ritual who capture all the frustration…

It was a late night for the Melbourne crowd who garnered the Northcote Social Club in large numbers on Saturday night, but it didn’t seem to put them off from turning out early for the opening acts. The evening’s first opener was Melbourne local and hip-hop/pop artist Maya Hirasedo. Her set was a stunning mixture…

Last week saw singer-songwriter Aldous Harding share her new single “The Barrel”, the first taste from the New Zealander’s forthcoming third album Designer.  Along with the new single, we were also treated to a wonderfully eccentric and frankly captivating Martin Sagadin directed music video. Featuring Harding dressed in her best puritan costume, the video provides…

Bananarama, Tiffany and Amber walk into a bar. It’s not 1989, even if it may feel that way. These artists know that girls just wanna have fun and they delivered joyous sets filled with nostalgic pop music. The Enmore Theatre could have been the setting for fluro outfits, large perms and shoulder pads, but these…

For those who haven’t heard about Chicago rapper Lucki, the 22 year old is one of the most promising underground rap talents in recent memory. First achieving notoriety in 2012 with his critically acclaimed project Alternative Trap establishing the 16 year old as a formidable rapper with a unique delivery style that has developed and…

Ahead of its official release on March 7th, we’re excited to be premiering “Thrill Me”, the new single and accompanying music video from Melbourne’s AM Reruns (f.k.a. Lip Sync Chicks). Recorded and mixed by Robert Muinos (Saskwatch, Little May), the single is the second to be lifted from the band’s debut album, which is due…

Coinciding with the announcement that the Perth artist has signed with the Dot Dash Recordings roster, Carla Geneve has released her new single “2001”.  The single takes its name from Stanley Kubrick’s iconic film 2001: A Space Odyssey and makes reference to science fiction writer Jack Vance and John Carpenter’s 1982 film The Thing. According…

Triage, the third album from Methyl Ethel isn’t coincidentally named. Celebrating three albums, and lead singer Jake Webb’s 30th birthday, the album is a memorial and the capstone on a phase in the band’s journey. Whether that implies Methyl Ethel will be taking a different direction after this, we’re not sure. But what is constant right…

Ahead of its official release tomorrow, we’re excited to be premiering “Once”, the bright and bold new single from Sydney’s Pirra, which sees the group experimenting with electro and dance elements in collaboration with emerging artist JFT a.k.a. James From Taree.  “Once” is an exciting blend of the band’s classic indie rock vibe with some…

Central Coast duo Winterbourne have just dropped their new music video “Take The Golden”, and are excited to be taking AU review readers on an exclusive look behind the scenes on the making of the clip, which you can watch below: Winterbourne wrote “Take The Golden” in Berlin with producer and songwriter Tobias Kuhn, while the…

For those who expected time travel to be possible by now, Walk Through Fire, the debut album by British singer Yola, will not be a disappointment. Together with Black Keys front man Dan Auerbach, the vocal prodigy lets her voice glister on the twelve country soul tracks, transporting listeners straight back to the peak of…

Stephen Malkmus, former Pavement frontman, has today released the first single off his forthcoming record, Groove Denied. The title, “Rushing The Acid Frat” is inspired by Malkmus’ memories of a specific student fraternity that favored the “Grateful Dead druggy tie-dye” vibe versus playing beer pong. Stephen notes he imagines the song as the soundtrack to a “Star Wars bar…

It’s been a busy few years for Julia Jacklin. On the back of her all conquering debut album, Don’t Let the Kids Win, Jacklin has spent the better part of the past two years making her way round the globe, playing her tunes in just about every country and venue you could think of or…

Though they’ve morphed their sound over the years, stripped away some of the moody atmospheres and shrunken to crisp, intimate pieces at times, Wye Oak haven’t forgotten how to world build. Teaming up to give Adult Swim Singles an irresistible reminder of some of their older material, Jenn Wasner and Andy Stack have come through…

The Oh See’s have long had a reputation for being a formidable live experience. At the Factory Theatre last night in Sydney it was a no-brainer to see why. Setting up the stage after the support Orb finished, the dual drum kits were brought right to the centre of the front of the stage. It…