Music

By the time I finally got to check out DZ Deathrays at SXSW, they had already played ten shows. This one – just after midnight at Bar 96 – was their eleventh and last. So it was perhaps appropriate that things should go a bit wrong, as someone “pulled the power” before the hit the…

While badgeholders jump from intimate venue to intimate venue, the general public are given their share of SXSW experiences, too, from outdoor events like the Fader Fort, to badge-free events across the city. But nothing comes bigger than the free outdoor stage – which has moved to Butler Park as Auditorium Shores next door undergoes…

A typical day at SXSW, if done correctly, is spent running around, catching as much music as is humanly possible. Sometimes this means you catch very brief performances of bands; a song here, a song there. Here’s “the best of the rest” from my SXSW experience. The bands I caught briefly but left a lasting…

Larry gets lucky with Anamanaguchi at SXSW 2014, before they played their first show at the Gaming Expo. We talk about their last album, playing SXSW, find out why they haven’t toured Australia yet and much more…

New York rockers I Am the Avalanche are celebrating the release of their third album Wolverine. Vocalist Vinnie Caruana takes his time to chat to the AU about how proud they are of the new LP, the album’s production, and the band’s experience at Soundwave. Congratulations on album number three! You kept the production internal…

A glamorous St Vincent and an apologetic Damon Albarn helped close the second night of the SXSW music festival at the NPR showcase, as elsewhere Kanye and Jay-Z delivered one of the evenings most exclusive performances. Even those with “guaranteed entry” wristbands to the event were turned away as the venue prematurely reached capacity. Unfortunately…

Having just released his self-titled debut, award-winning singer-songwriter Morgan Evans chats to the AU about sharing the stage with everyone from Taylor Swift to Bruce Springsteen, as well as cleaning up at CMC awards, recording in Nashville, and the latest album. You’ve had the opportunity to share the stage with some amazing talents over the…

It’s hard to go past a magical Monday evening at the Sydney Opera House, under the light of a full moon with one of Ireland’s most successful and prolific singer-songwriters of all days on St Patrick’s Day. Tonight would be a night where Glen Hansard would showcase early material from The Frames right through to his most recent release Rhythmn…

Though the bright green Spotify House has been part of SXSW for a few years now (this is the third year they’ve been at the event), 2014 marked my first visit to the venue’s electric lineup. From Blondie‘s Deborah Harry joining Dum Dum Girls to hosting the hottest emerging talents – there was no shortage…

Hype Machine’s Hype Hotel has been a mainstay at the SXSW Music Festival for as long as I’ve been attending the event, and this year was no exception. At the venue’s opening night, co-presented by music blog Consequence of Sound, a mixed bag of musical delights were shown off for our consumption, alongside some tacos…

the AU review talks to The Used‘s Bert McCracken about their new album Imaginary Enemy, living in Australia, Australian bands he loves, the situation with the Sydney Lock Out laws and more… Photo by Kane Hibberd

Back in 2005, then trio The Octopus Project released their second record One Ten Hundred Thousand Million to critical acclaim. It saw the Austin based group reach ears around the world, including my own, thanks in part to support from blogs like Pitchfork. Since then, the “indietronica” group have expanded to a four piece and…

After helping bring some of the world’s biggest artists to Austin during SXSW – from Coldplay to Soundgarden – alongside the hottest talents of moment – from London Grammar to ScHoolboy Q – the iTunes festival ended its inaugural five night run during the event with Australia’s biggest country star Keith Urban sharing the stage…

For the third night of SXSW music, it was pretty much business as usual after the tragic events of the prior night, though for yours truly it was difficult to get excited to line up for hours to get into any of the night’s biggest shows. Thankfully, one of my favourite bands of the moment…

the AU review talks to Jarvis Cocker and Steve Mackey from the now legendary Sheffield band Pulp to talk about the new Pulp documentary that premiered at SXSW 2014, directed by New Zealander Florian Habicht (Love Story). You can also view our interview with the director over on The Iris, HERE.

We caught up with singer-songwriter Simone Felice ahead of the March 14th release of his new album Strangers to find out a bit more about the new record, his thoughts on the state of radio, the Americana revival and more. Hi, how are you? Hi Simon, it’s nice to hear from you. Yeah, it’s great…

Just wrapping up a massive Australian tour, Richard Fortus – famed guitarist of Guns N Roses and now The Dead Daisies – takes some time to chat to the AU about how he approaches The Dead Daisies and their reputation as a supergroup; what’s in store for him both as a solo artist and as…

Ernest Ellis released his highly-anticipated new record, Cold Desire last week. We caught up with him to have a chat and find out more about the new album; how it all came about; and whether or not we’ll see him out on the road around the country in the coming months. What was the inspiration…

School night be damned, that wasn’t going to stop a bunch of punters to come along and check out some styled Aussie rock and roll tunes get cranked out. Both of the acts on the bill tonight have been critically recognised in the indigenous and mainstream music scene and both perform with an intensity and…

It’s been a rollercoaster year for Sharon Jones, the corrections officer turned soul queen. Her fifth album with the imitable Dap Kings, Give the People What They Want was shelved and touring halted so Jones could turn her attention to battling and ultimately beating cancer which threatened to bring her fairy-tale career to a halt….

Joan Wasser from Joan as Policewoman has just released her fourth album of original songs and AU review reporter John Goodridge chats about behind the scenes of making the album. Hey Joan, how’s it going? It’s going great thank you. How are you? Great! I’ve been listening to your new album “The Classic” and I…

Christchurch three-piece T54 are heading to Australia for their first ever series of concerts outside their native New Zealand. In anticipation of the tour, the AU is proud to present the exclusive premiere of the band’s new video “AC Parade”, off their debut record In Brush Park, out now. It’s dreamy, fuzz pop at its…

Before he jumps on a plane to play SXSW in Austin, Texas and some shows in Canada, we at the AU are proud to present the world premiere of Kid Mac‘s new music video for his track “Haters”, taken off his record Head Noise. The video was shot throughout 2013, documenting 100+ shows over 5…

The long awaited debut album, Arecibo from Brisbane’s rock quartet Forever the Optimist is out April 18, and they have a preview of the album to show off their massive sound. The preview video is premiering exclusively on the AU review. Forever The Optimist will tour the album in June 2014.

The co-headline gig is something we rarely see in Australia from international artists. But in America, it’s fairly common place, with tours like NINJA (Nine Inch Nails and Janes Addiction) becoming something of legend. Finally, Australia gets its turn, with NIN – returning for the first time since Soundwave in 2009 – joined by Queens…

Having just released the single “(Lady) Roll Back The Years”, we caught up with Stephen Kelly – lead vocalist and guitarist of Dublin band Raglans – to get to know them a little bit better, and look ahead to their debut album – due out later this month. Head to the end of the interview…

One year after his debut Ecstatic Yours Truly, the ordinary everyday guy from the future has returned. Future Love Hangover delivers his brand new single “Free Falling”, which we’re proud to premiere on the AU. Enjoy: Free Falling by Future Love Hangover Future Love Hangover performs at Free The Beats at 505 on Thursday the…

Much of the music being played at Soundwave was something that did not say “tepid”. It sure was hard, fast, strong, and at times, weird. Everything that happened at this festival was metaphorically going straight into the depths of the audience’s chests, whether they liked it or not. Not being too sure what to head…

the AU review presents Sydney trio Bloods performing in acoustic mode for the first time, with their single “Language” – live and exclusive for the AU sessions. The track comes off their EP Golden Fang, available now.