Music

I believe it was Bob Marley who said “one good thing about music, when it hits, you feel no pain”. Well, the punters at this year’s Blues and Roots were in for a pain free day, with the music on offer being of the highest quality from artists of the highest calibre. Organisers have been…

With an Australian tour looming for Splendour in the Grass, we caught up with Freddie from London’s rising up-and-comers The Vaccines. We chat about their new record What Did You Expect From The Vaccines?, the Australian tour, and what the band really thinks of UK series Skins. Freddie! Thanks for taking the time to talk…

Our Canadian Music Week coverage comes to an end in this chat with Melbourne band Wagons – just before they hit the stage at The Aussie BBQ. We talk about the new album (their fifth!), Rumble, Shake and Tumble, due to be released on Friday May 6th – about Elvis, touring Canada and more…

In conversation with Adelaide alternative rock band Mayfield – Zigg West, Sam Knight and Jett – chatting about their music, playing Canadian Music Week and their upcoming film role in The Lucky One.

While we awaited our smoothies in Toronto, I caught up with London buzz band Bombay Bicycle Club, on the first day of their North American Tour. Let the Big Day Out 2012 rumours begin?

While at Canadian Music Week, I caught up with up-and-coming Australian talent Kim Churchill to talk about guitars, touring Canada, Matisyahu and plenty more…

A few hours before they hit the stage at Lee’s Palace for Canadian Music Week, Larry Heath caught up with Electric Six‘s lead singer Dick Valentine to talk about their most recent album Zodiac, Gary Numan, the possibility of touring Australia – and just some general nonsense. The interview takes place in a room aptly…

Thanks for taking the time to chat to us Andrew! You’re in the middle of a brief single tour – You played the Old Museum last week – how did it go? IT WAS GREAT THANKS, VERY ENTHUSIASTIC AUDIENCE AND ITS A COOL VENUE – BIG CAVERNOUS HALLS AND OLD SCHOOL ARCHITECTURE – ITS GOT…

New York’s The Pains of Being Pure at Heart have returned! They’ll be releasing their sophomore album Belong on April 22nd. The first single for the album is ‘Heart in your Heartbreak’, and the catchy song has been given the music video treatment! Check it out here: The track was recorded with the production and…

I was greeted to Bassist Charles Cave from the White Lies by their tour manager, as they were loading out from a show in Stockholm. In the background, I could hear people asking for autographs, while the band shuffled into their tour bus to escape the minus 5 degree temperatures. Why they were fitting an…

Adelaide indie rockers City Riots have brought us a video tour diary from their first nine dates with British India as part of their national “March Into the Ocean” tour. So far the City Riots boys have visited towns they never knew existed, braved grasshopper plagues and blown up PA systems, while still allowing time…

We can’t get enough of this new track from Sydney’s WIM – check out the beautiful new music video for their new single “See You Hurry”. Thanks, Modular Records! Do note this video contains nudity and may not be safe for work! The video was produced by Collider production studios, under the watchful eye of…

“…you could barely wipe the smiles off our dials. Thank you Splendour for anticipating our every whim, and fulfilling them. A truly unforgettable weekend.” Groupie SPLENDOUR IN THE GRASS – the annual, ephemeral city of sounds that exists solely for sweet music and good times will transform Woodfordia, near Woodford, south east Queensland from Friday…

There’s a general conception that everything James Lavelle touches turns to gold, and this idea still stands, even this many years into his career. The Mo Wax labelhead, celebrated DJ and electronic musician’s main project has always been UNKLE, an electronic/rock act that have now cemented their status as one of modern music’s genuinely eclectic…

Carus Thompson has been at this music lark for a while now. With good reason too, he is bloody good at it. Recent proof being is his latest album Caravan, a truly wondrous collection of songs written and recorded between Australia and Europe. Reflecting his life on the road split between the two continents. Carus…

We’re really digging these guys! They’re a four piece out of Melbourne pumping out some impressive indie rock. They’ll be launching the above single at the East Brunswick Hotel on Friday, April 15th. Make sure you check ’em out! MORE ABOUT THE BAND: Drawing inspiration from bands like Jimmy Eat World, Weezer and The Cars,…

The Middle East blew everyone away – in their own subtle, quiet manner – when they released a collection of songs in 2009 known as The Recordings of the Middle East. Since then, some noteworthy festival inclusions and well placed support slots (Doves, The National) has created a lot of buzz around the band. But…

With Raval gone and the Annandale under similar threat, Sydney is once again set to witness a facelift of its live scene. Hotel Hollywood, around the corner from the Macquarie Hotel, is looking to pick up from where Raval left off, while two new venues have popped up, looking to fill a gap in the…

Ted Danson. Beastie Boys. Jack Black. Will Ferrell. Cowbell. Awesome. This is hilarious.

Ah, this is no good! “Its with great regret that Paperchase Touring announces that Timbaland has cancelled his appearances in Australia for the upcoming Supafest Tour that starts tomorrow at ANZ Stadium in Sydney. Paperchase Touring has been delivering the best urban acts in the world to Australia for many years and this cancellation is…

Sydney’s Chicks Who Love Guns have released not one but TWO music videos for their new single “God, Love & Satan”. We wonder which one you prefer? Take a peak… Don’t miss the launch for the single in Sydney – next Friday!

You’ll well know by now that we’re not defined by genre here at the AU review. So today we thought we’d throw together two very different bands in our new music video series. First up, UK electro pop darlings Metronomy are back with their scintillating third album, The English Riviera, out May 6th on renowned…

At this year’s Laneway Festival, UK promoter Eat Your Own Ears and US agency The Windish Agency teamed up to curate a stage at the national festival for the first time. At the recent SXSW Festival, the three parties joined forces again to present ‘Austin or Bust’, one of the event’s most anticipated day parties…

Acclaimed Australian acid-jazz / groove / funk band Directions In Groove (DIG) are gearing up for their first run of shows in 8 years, and will play three special intimate shows at Lizottes this week, Cronulla’s Brass Monkey next week, and will head back to the scene of some of their most memorable gigs, legendary…

MARQUES HOUSTON LIVE IN MELBOURNE For Melbourne lovers of R&B, Sunday April 24th sees one of the world’s finest, Marques Houston performing a one-off exclusive live showcase. Bursting onto the R&B scene in his pre-teens with the group Immature, Marques Houston quickly became one artist to watch. With popular hits such as “Never Lie” &…

2010 was a big year for Sydney four piece Parades, with their debut LP Foreign Tapes receiving accolades of praise amongst the independent music press. The AU Review had a chat to the band about the past, present and their future plans. How did you guys meet and start playing together? We all went to…