Music

While at SXSW, I sat down with Asa Taccone and Matthew “Cornbread” Compto of American duo Electric Guest, who I first caught up with five years ago at SXSW, when they were releasing their debut album Mondo. Finally with a follow-up in hand, Plural, we spoke about the time it took between releases, what it feels…

Hurricane Fall is an Australian four-piece country rock band, comprising of Jesse Vee on lead vocals and guitar, Pepper Deroy on lead vocals and bass, Jimmy Hick on lead guitar and Lachlan ‘Dusty’ Coffey on skins and percussion. I spoke to Jesse, Pepper and Dusty about the band and its future.

Ahead of the release of new album Write In, we hang out with Jonny and Benji from South London group Happyness. Out at SXSW recently, the lads dealt with the heat, the chaos of running about the Texan city and developing their live show for a whole variety of new crowds. Welcome to SXSW. The sun has finally come out and…

Sometimes you get a rare moment, when an artist is really just happy to have a chat. Not just about music, but about exactly to whom it may concern, words and how science and creativity combine. This is pretty much exactly what happened when I sat down and had a chat with Alex the Astronaut….

Jack Grace is a name you may have been hearing a little more of as 2016 wound into its second half but it’s about time this musician’s profile kicked into high gear and more people become clued up to this wonderful talent. After touring with the likes of NGAIIRE and releasing his River EP in late 2016, Grace is…

Adelaide is positively brimming with A-grade grungy, garage-infused rock goodness at the moment. With the likes of Bad//Dreems, West Thebarton Brothel Party and Horror My Friend leading the charge out of the SA crop, Battlehounds are also coming off the bench and weighing into the fourth quarter with some blistering new music for people to wrap their heads around. Their new…

The 2017 Queensland Music Awards (QMAs) were announced last night in Brisbane, and Violent Soho and Amy Shark sat as the night’s biggest winners – taking home Album of the Year for Waco and Song of the Year for “Adore”, respectively. Amy also took home best Pop Song and the Regional category for “Adore”, seeing…

With the release of Horrorshow’s new album Bardo State came some of the Sydney duo’s most intensely personal material yet. Talking with Solo just ahead of the album’s release, it’s easy to gain an understanding of how much effort and enthusiasm had been poured into the record’s creative process. Having spent the last few years…

Norway’s Astrid S brings her latest single, “Breathe”, to life with an entertaining and definitely Tarantino-esque flair with this new video that has just been dropped on to the public. The single itself is the first piece of new music from the pop star this year and already, it’s a striking move from the award-winning artist,…

Hot off the heels of releasing their debut album When We Fall, Sydney quartet All Our Exes Live in Texas have returned from a successful jaunt to North America, playing a string of shows at the iconic South by Southwest (SXSW) Festival in Austin, Texas. Though the location is indeed their namesake, they were their…

It’s here. After much speculation and #fakenews, the 2017 Splendour in the Grass line up has been revealed, with Queens of the Stone Age, LCD Soundsystem, The xx, ScHoolboy Q and more set to head to Byron Bay this winter. Splendour exclusives sit with Schoolboy Q and Future Islands, while returning 2016 artists Sigur Ros are also lined up to make a special appearance. The…

After making waves with her breakthrough single “River”, Los Angeles based artist Bishop Briggs has been a buzz artist impossible to ignore. And now she’s coming to Australia to play Splendour in the Grass! We caught up with the emerging dark-pop Singer Songwriter while we were in Austin, Texas to talk about how her music…

You Beauty’s 2014 album Jersey Flegg is so Aussie it hurts. Named after a rugby player who shares a name with a NSW rugby trophy, the album is local in its lyrical and musical references, the accents of the singers and the attitude of the band. The album begins in the classic vein of artists…

The end of SXSW is the glorious culmination of a week of full on shows, barely any sleep and poor dietary choices, for the most part. While the hangover extends to all areas of your body, the time spent exploring different parts of Austin and connecting with bands from all over the world is well worth it….

Agnes Obel‘s time at SXSW brought with it some shows that had us reeling with emotion. The artist is no stranger to the way SXSW likes to roll, yet for many people seeing her for the first time at the festival, they were definitely treated to a one-of-a-kind experience. We were lucky enough to catch some…

Sydney’s Food Court are currently continuing their domination of North America, having had a fantastic debut at SXSW recently. While their time abroad has the band slaying in Canada at the moment, Larry caught up with Nic and Christian at the Aussie BBQ in Texas to find out how their US trip had been treating them so far. Welcome to…

Catching up with Josh Cashman, we’re landing time with the Melbourne musician just off the back of some incredible shows with one of Australia’s most exciting new exports, Tash Sultana. Cashman’s arrival in Austin, Texas for SXSW brought with it a run of shows and exposure that undoubtedly left him hungry to get back into touring back home. It’s…

For DJ and producer Throttle, North America is just getting a taste of his style and shows – for those lucky enough to see him perform at SXSW, the young gun came through blazing, leaving excited chatter in his wake. As he eyed up over a month on the road through the US, we scored some…

Sydney’s Brother Brad present a spirited music video for their tune “Get Around” this week! The single itself has only been circulating for a small amount of time but it’s been quick to generate some buzz within the Sydney circles the band has been building a formidable presence within over recent months. Bringing the party vibes from…

We discovered a lot of great music at SXSW 2017 – and had the opportunity to catch plenty of our favourite buzz acts live for the first time. But few of my personal discoveries have sat with me quite as heavily as Swedish artist Albin Lee Meldau, who sits as runner up in two of…

This November and December, Yusuf / Cat Stevens will be touring his iconic album Matthew & Son for its 50th anniversary! The British songwriter and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer will commemorate the special milestone of his debut album and its first major single over the course of this unmissable Australian tour – for crowds of all ages,…

Brissy duo Mid Ayr have kicked off their 2017 of new music with the catchy “Pocket Her Eyes”. To be featured on their new EP Elm Way (to be released this April), “Pocket Her Eyes” is songwriter Hugh Middleton‘s observation on our society’s penchant for turning sexual pursuits into contest. There’s a classic indie rock vibe around this…

Sharing more goods from their latest album Ruins, Wolf People present a new music video for their single “Not Me Sir”. Linking up with Marsha Balaeva for the project, the band’s song is given prime animation treatment as they experiment with a variety of organic forms on different surfaces. “While filming from the inside of the kaleidoscope with…

Evolution is what makes humans the race we are. While Darwin’s theory of evolution is most notably recognised by the summary of ‘survival of the fittest’, it also speaks about one’s ability to adapt and change to its environment. And here on his current EP A Boy And His Rose, Sean Heathcliff has shown that…

Canadian four-piece The Franklin Electric have been moving and shaking in the folk scene since 2012, entering and winning a Nashville songwriting competition with over 8000 other bands from around the world. Flavoured with alternative pop, their debut LP This Is How I Let You Down layers perceptive lyrics with string-based harmonies, emotive piano chords and their self-proclaimed secret weapon, the…

It was around this time last year that Jhené Aiko came to our shores to tour her debut studio album Souled Out. After a decade gaining the real world experience the unchosen path of teen stardom would have denied her, Souled Out has been cast as Aiko’s musical renaissance.  Since the album’s release in 2014, Aiko…

Ya girl Lorde is back! It’s been a little over two years since we fell in love with her breakthrough debut Pure Heroine and in the mean time, Lorde’s been busy starting her 20’s. Melodrama will be released on June 16th via Universal Music Australia and is already shaping up to be one of the most highly anticipated…

Adelaide outfit The Coconut Kids recently made their American debut at the annual South by Southwest (SXSW) conference in Austin, Texas. I sat down with Julian and Ash from the group while in Austin to talk about what took them to the iconic event, the experiences they’ve had over there and what’s coming next for…

The UK has long been associated with producing beloved singer songwriters with the ability to touch new generations of music fans right round the globe. Now more than ever, the rise of social media and music sharing platforms have connected young fan bases with recording artists in the infancy of their careers and in the…

We’re excited to reveal the winners of the AU review’s 4th Annual SXSW Awards, which celebrates the best performances and events we caught at the Austin, Texas festival – and some of the disappointments too. BEST AUSTRALIAN GROUP All Our Exes Live in Texas There was no shortage of great Australian bands at SXSW this…