Music

Album News Weekly: 25th November 2015

In This Issue: It’s all the electronic pop you can handle this week as the warmer weather tempts us into those summer parties. Check out the new releases from the likes of Troye Sivan, Plaitum and Icelandic DJ Airplane and Spaceship, as well as big hitters Coldplay and the jazzy couple of the year Chet…

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Nicole Millar shares her debut music video with “Wait”

Up until this point, 22-year-old singer-songwriter Nicole Millar has best been known as that lush voice that drove Peking Duk’s mega-hit “High”. Her recently released debut single “Wait” took the repute a bit further, toning down the buzzy high and delivering us something a bit more delicate to showcase the dynamic, silky vocals she possesses….

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Ur Boy Bangz releases Australia’s first Christmas song for 2015

Between beefing with Jimmy Fallon and threatening to retire from rapping to develop an app, 2015 has been a very busy year for Melbourne rapper Ur Boy Bangz. While his potential retirement from the rap game seems to still be up in the air, the man who went viral way before Drake even got his…

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D’Angelo & The Vanguard, Cold War Kids, and more added to the 27th Bluesfest Byron Bay

As if the line-up for the 27th Bluesfest Byron Bay wasn’t big enough, today the promoters have announced that joining headliners Kendrick Lamar, Brian Wilson, and Tom Jones will be none other than neo-soul icon D’Angelo, who will be in full-band mode with supergroup The Vanguard. Oh, and he’s playing on the same night as…

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Festival Review: One Day Only – Manning House (21.11.15)

For years now Sydney hip-hop collective One Day, made up of seven high school mates, have been running their One Day Sundays and watching it grow into a nation-wide success. Touted as “block parties”, the events often sell out and demand has pushed them from venue to venue as capacity stretches to the limit. It…

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Music Video of the Day: The Jezabels “Come Alive” (2015)

The Jezabels have made a strong return from their last album The Brink with the new single “Come Alive”. With the electronic influences that have made brief appearances in their earlier work coming further into the forefront on this track, the Jezabels’ new sound stays true to their previous works while adding something new. It’s…

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Single of the Day: Brendan Maclean “Tectonic” (2015)

While enjoying the spotlight on the Sydney Opera House stage as part of the highly acclaimed production Velvet, Sydney artist Brendan Maclean has simultaneously been soaking up space on the airwaves with his outstanding new single “Techtonic”. You just couldn’t have enough attention on you at once could you? You had to go and release your best track…

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Album Review: Mutemath – Vitals (2015 LP)

I confess, somewhat shamefully, that Mutemath have only ever existed for me on the peripheral of my musical consciousness. I’ve known about them, primarily, through a friend who has raved about them for years, but I’ve never managed to sit down and actively listen to anything they’ve released. Listening to their new album, Vitals, I…

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Voting Open For Captured Australia Finalists!

The seven finalists for the Captured Australia competition have been decided and voting is now open to the public. Captured is a national music video project and competition that sees seven local bands and musicians paired up with local filmmakers. The result of the pairing is, after 6 to 7 weeks of allocated production time, a music video…

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Chris Whitehall talks navigating a huge year of international touring with The Griswolds (Sydney) & returning home with a new sound!

It’s been some time since I’ve been able to properly catch up with The Griswolds. From the beginning of this year, the Sydney band’s international profile has skyrocketed considerably ever since they landed their first support slot alongside breakthrough US pop giants Walk the Moon. The release of The Griswolds’ debut album Be Impressive in…

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Tour Diary: Patrick James (Port Macquarie) Takes on 13 Aussie Cities For His Debut Album Outlier with The Paper Kites

Born and raised Port Macquarie man Patrick James is quickly moving from strength to strength as he debuts his first album, Outlier. Building his art by busking in the streets of Sydney, James is now headlining his own sold out shows, while supporting the likes of Boy & Bear, Pete Murray, Josh Pyke, Emma Louise and more. Check out this…

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Tour Diary: Netsuke (Sydney) takes on CMJ Music Marathon, MoMa, The Catskills and more!

The quirky trio behind Netsuke recently took to New York for the CMJ Music Marathon. Freya, Elias, and Danny’s style of intricate indie electronica began in Sydney and they currently call London home. To give us a taste of life on the road, the trio documented their travels through the states with some stunning images….

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C.W. Stoneking, Hiatus Kaiyote, Slum Sociable and more added to PANAMA Festival!

The 2016 PANAMA Festival has jsut gotten a lot bigger with the second and final round of artist announced! The festival already features the likes of Seun Kuti & Egypt 80, Methyl Ethel and Natalie Prass, but has backed it up solidly with some artists reppin’ some strongly diverse music for sure. 2016 PANAMA FESTIVAL…

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Festival of the Sun (FOTSUN) sells out; announces the Wabi Sabi art show

The Port Macquarie boutique music festival, Festival of the Sun (FOTSUN), has officially sold out its 2015 instalment. FOTSUN, now in its eleventh year, presents an extensive lineup of Australian artists including Illy, Jebediah, British India and Thundamentals, as well as up-and-coming local acts. For the first time, FOTSUN will also include an art show,…

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Southbound reveals new additions to 2016 festival including TruckStop, Commedia dell’ Southbound & more!

Southbound has continued to come through with the goods ahead of its 2016 event, with the announcement of more DJs and funky additional areas to the festival – all to ensure that you’ve got all your New Year party plans sorted. Of course, Southbound isn’t happening over the New Year’s Eve period like its Falls…

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Single of the Day: Todd Sibbin “And We’ll Say That We’re Done” (2015)

Now, I may be slightly biased (being based in Adelaide), but South Australia has been producing some brilliant songwriters over the past few years. Across all genres too, but in particular, our folk and acoustic songwriters have really been coming through with the goods. Todd Sibbin is a perfect example; as he prepares to head…

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Stumbled Upon #094 – Christina Martin (Nova Scotia, Canada)

In our 94th instalment of “Stumbled Upon”, we meet Christina Martin from Canada, and chat about her varied and eclectic influences, playing SXSW and Austin City Limits and her latest release, It’ll Be Alright. Musician: Christina Martin Website / Social Media: www.christinamartin.net/ Facebook Genre: Pop/Rock Members & their roles: Christina Martin – Vocals, Guitar, Songwriter…

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Single of the Day: Vanessa Elisha “Out of Time” (2015)

Australian R&B singer Vanessa Elisha has just dropped her her new single, “Out of Time”, produced by mastermind XXYYXX. Keeping in style with the minimal electronica seen on XXYYXX’s solo material, Elisha adds her soulful vocals with incredible range perfectly. Check it out here: Find Vanessa Elisha on Facebook at www.facebook.com/vanessaelishamusic/ ———- This content has…

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Album Review: WAAX – Holy Sick (2015 EP)

Brisbane’s WAAX have been building up a strong live reputation ever since their first two songs – “I for an Eye” and “Wisdom Teeth” – were released. The band hit the studio earlier this year, and back in October, the band released a surprise EP, titled Holy Sick, containing these two songs and two new tracks….

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Louis Baker hooks up with Shapeshifter’s Devin Abrams for “The Way (Remix)” ahead of national tour

Red Bull Music Academy alumni Louis Baker is bringing his sharp, soul-penetrating voice to Australia and New Zealand for a tour starting this week, accompanied with a shiny new remix of his single “The Way” by Shapeshifter’s Devin Abrams. Unlike most of Shapeshifter’s better known material, there are no cutting edge drums or deep bass…

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Asta talks new music, moving to Sydney, a possible fashion career, The Plot and more!

Tasmanian singer Asta has had a huge 2015 with copious amounts of touring and her single “Dynamite” ft Allday making it to number 66 on the Aria charts. We had a chat to her about her epic year and what lies ahead. Hey Asta! How are you? Did you survive the Sydney heatwave? Yeah I…

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Getting to know AU sessions performer Jordan Léser (Sydney)

Ahead of tomorrow night’s AU Sessions at Hive Bar in Erskineville, the final one for this year, we catch up with Sydney musician Jordan Léser and get to know a bit more about her style. Léser let’s us in on finding her musical identity and those that have influenced her. You can catch her performing…

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Foo Fighters have released a new EP and you can download it for free right now

Accompanied by an emotional letter written by Dave Grohl, Foo Fighters have surprised their fans with the release of a brand new EP titled Saint Cecilia. Streaming on a landing page and available on iTunes, the five-song package comes after a mysterious countdown on the band’s official website hit 00:00, giving us material which has…

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Kingswood headline third birthday celebrations for Frankie’s Pizza in Sydney

For the past few years Frankie’s Pizza has remained one of the most valuable players on the Sydney bar scene, presenting as much of a platform for local live music as a late-night haunt full of pizzas by the slice and one of the city’s best beer lists. For their third birthday they have called…

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Album Review: Foo Fighters – Saint Cecilia (2015 EP)

Earlier today, US rock group Foo Fighters released a free, out-of-the-blue EP entitled Saint Cecilia. The release is their first since their well received concept LP Sonic Highways, which co-incided with the band’s 20th anniversary and led into what became “The Broken Leg Tour”, following Dave Grohl’s infamous on-stage accident. For those who missed the memo, in…

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Album Review: Banoffee – Do I Make You Nervous? (2015 EP)

Wow, just wow. Man, Australian music is so on point at the moment, it’s hard to think there was or ever will be a time in which Australian music wasn’t a world leader. It is ridiculously stellar at the moment. It seems with every week there’s a new artist ready to take control of the…

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Tom Stephens performs ‘What Lies In The Difference’ Live and Acoustic at the AU Sessions

Deciding to exchange the rustic and countrified vibes of his sophomore folk release, for a more robust, rock sound, Tom Stephens has opted to give voice to naked city streets, blinkers and billboards. Watch the exclusive video of Stephens performing ‘What Lies in the Difference’ at the 9th AU Sessions… You can catch the 10th…

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Live Review: JOY. – Goodgod Small Club, Sydney (20.11.15)

A little while ago, with the release of single “About Us” and the subsequent ODE EP, it became clear that JOY. – the project of 18 year old Brisbane native Olivia McCarthy – was an outrageous talent. Crisp, spacious production with deeply embedded pop hooks, surrounding McCarthy’s lilting vocals – toeing the line between being…

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Charles Murdoch wraps up his video trilogy with “Privacy” featuring Oscar Key Sung

Future Classic’s soulful heavy-hitter Charles Murdoch has wrapped up his poignant three-part short film with the music video for single “Privacy” featuring Oscar Key Sung. Released last week, the film clip, which was created by German collective Jünglinge, gives closure to the emotional journey of a skinhead battling his his repressed desire for love. “Privacy”…

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David Bowie’s music video for “Blackstar” is very freaky

If Guillermo del Toro were to ever make a sequel to 2006 classic Pans Labyrinth then he should probably call David Bowie for some ideas. The legendary musician has released what is perhaps one of the creepiest music videos of all time for his single “Blackstar”, the title track from his forthcoming album, denoted with…

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