Music

Redcliffe-raised, Melbourne-based songsmith Stephen Grady has been around the indie-folk scene for about five years now, but in 2020 he’s letting it all out. There’s a great quote in his bio which sums it up best: “The best stuff may still be round the corner but I can’t get there if I keep holding back.” With…

Adelaide four-piece Openfire have recently returned with their first track of 2020. Following the release of last year’s debut Reverie, “Wonderland” marks a confident, bold new progression to their sound. The track is both lush and funky, driven by reverb-soaked guitars and thumping basslines. Frontman Luka Sandeo’s vocals soar, as he sings of pursuing dreams…

Four pens and a rotating stage!? The future of live music festivals in the COVID world may be on show this Saturday when the ground-breaking Good Day Sunshine Festival takes place in WA’s South-West, headlined by John Butler and Xavier Rudd. As we learn to live with coronavirus, new initiatives are emerging. Promoters Macro Music…

Melbourne based singer-songwriter Jess Locke has dropped another tantalising glimpse of the forthcoming album Don’t Ask Yourself Why. Following on from recent grunge-fuelled release “Fool“, sad-pop anthem “Destroy Everything” is melancholy in all the right ways, with a wonderfully ethereal edge. Of the new track, Locke says: “The song ‘Destroy Everything’ is about destruction as…

A couple of weeks ago, I found myself listening to an old favourite from my adolescence, Nine Inch Nails’ 1999 opus The Fragile. As a teenager, I played this double album to death on my Discman to the point where I can still vividly recall every subtlety that Trent Reznor meticulously laid down. Revisiting the…

After seemingly coming out of nowhere in 2018 with her absolutely fantastic debut album Thick Skin, Tia Gostelow returns in 2020 with an evolved and 80s inspired sound, and the marvellous new album Chrysalis. Where her debut album was filled with understated and downbeat melody, Chrysalis is full, for the most part, of upbeat groovers that…

It’s been seven years since her last album, but singer-songwriter Terra Grimard has returned with her third LP The Water Album, out now. The Canadian born, now Queensland-based, artist channels her love for the ocean into her latest release. Water serves as a symbol of fluidity on the album, which Grimard says was written during…

Melbourne’s will hyde (stylised lowercase) has officially released his highly anticipated debut EP with you in mind. (out now). The incredibly personal pop release is the first chapter in this 20-year-old’s solo pursuit, featuring hits “easy for u.” and “dark until september.”, all birthed through heartbreak and self-discovery. hyde’s production background from his past project SŸDE…

Zero 7 – the famed English duo who memorably helped launch the international career of Sia – are back with their first new album in 5 years, an EP entitled Shadows. The album features four new songs, all collaborations with British singer Lou Stone, including this track “Take My Hand”. A beautiful song that will…

King Stingray is an exciting new 4-piece, from Yirrkala, North-East Arnhem Land. They play what it is described as Yolŋu surf-rock, a fun, loud raucous mix of indigenous melodies with undeniable surf, indie and funk influences. The first track to be released by this outfit is “Hey Wanhaka”,  a song about finding love in the city….

Brisbane’s Liam Morton is back this week with a new single, “My Baby”. Officially released tomorrow, we’re stoked to bring you this exclusive first taste of the new track.  You might not know it from a casual listen, but “My Baby” is a lament; a lament for a broken relationship and for those missteps and…

Last week saw Azim Zain And His Lovely Bones release his new single “Punk Don’t Pay The Bills”. The single, which features Vic Austin, is taken from Azim Zain’s forthcoming debut album Be Good – set for release November 13th.  Band leader Zain, was born and raised in Kuala Lumpur, before moving to Adelaide at…

MID CITY are your Good Time Guys. Song after song, they simply make you want to jump around and dance with overwhelmingly positive vibes that nowadays come with a tinge of longing for a solid dance floor. With a surprisingly large German fanbase, the four-piece was set for a year of European tours and non-stop travel….

“Moonchild” is the debut single from singer-songwriter, and self described “Prosecco drinking pop rock witch from the future” Apollo Blue.  Recorded in Melbourne in 2019, the single, with its nod to the genre classics, is an ode to self-empowerment. As debut singles go, I doubt you’d find many with as much assuredness, swagger, or theatricality. …

Nothing But Thieves are the English five-piece keeping the early 2010s rock sound alive and adaptive. In a cohort including We The Kings, All Time Low, Mayday Parade, Fall Out Boy, The All-American Rejects, and My Chemical Romance, heavy-weights Nothing But Thieves stand out to exemplify their ability to reinvent the genre with every release. Their…

Songwriter and musician Liam McGorry has been on the Melbourne music scene in various guises for the past decade. But, he’s now taken the solo plunge with the moniker Ex-Olympian and debut album Afterlife, creating a sunshine-filled indie soul record. McGorry will be known to many from his work with Saskwatch, Dorsal Fins and Eagle and…

Hacky Sack is the latest COVID-born project on the scene, created by Huck Hastings and Sachin Burns, who met through their mutual love of well-crafted pop songs while working evening shifts at a Bondi Beach bookshop cafe. These Sydneysiders came together from their respective music pursuits – Hastings’ eponymous solo work and Burns from Run…

The Terrifying Lows, the solo-project for Melbournian Tyler Millott are about to release their second track for 2020, “Running Slow”, following on from “Everywhere You Go (There You Are)”. It has an assured upbeat feel about it, building from the drum beats which open the track. The rest of the instruments gradually enter the fold. Millott…

Ball Park Music are undoubtably one of the biggest indie pop-rock bands in the Australian music scene. With their sixth studio album on the way and over a decade of packing out shows, the Brisbane five-piece have shown no signs of becoming irrelevant. In fact, their upcoming 13-show residency at The Triffid has just a handful…

There’s a strange level of satisfaction reviewing a new album for such a universally loved band like Ball Park Music. It’s like listening to the news that your best friends are getting married, that you’re going to become a parent for the first time or that the coronavirus has been eradicated. It’s pure, unadulterated excitement,…

The fifth annual National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) took place last night, via a livestream that was accompanied by a gala event at Brisbane’s The Triffid. The event recognises the achievements of the Australian music industry, with awards handed out across twenty categories. Sampa The Great, won the evening’s most prestigious award for Best Live…

The Festival of Jewish Arts and Music (FOJAM) have prepared a special event to wrap up their Homeward Bound series. Ladies Who Sing Leonard will feature 16 of the world’s best female vocalists paying tribute to the legendary Leonard Cohen. The event will take place on November 7, coinciding with the fourth anniversary of the…

Brisbane indie pop rock act The Jensens have just released a rollicking new single “Paper Walls”. The boisterous tune is the first taste of the groups forthcoming album Hammer and Blush, scheduled for release on May 21, 2021. The new single is accompanied by a vivid music video, created in collaboration with visual artist Unclechronicbone. …

Gold Coast rockers Parker Sounds are about to drop their latest single, “Tightrope” from their forthcoming debut album. With a sound which draws inspiration from influences such as The Killers, Jack Johnson and Pearl Jam “Tightrope” features some sweet vocals and harmonies, allowing the lyrics to resonate. Despite this being a song of angst, “Tightrope”…

Perth’s indie girl band Dulcie are back with a brand new single, “Dust” – a three minute burst of sunshine and positivity to help get you up and going. Formed in 2018, Dulcie are Ashleigh Carr-White, Timieka Denton, Saskia Brittain and Madison Hanley. With three vocalists, a truly wonderful pop sensibility and hooks aplenty, the…

Today’s track of the day comes from Perth-based folk artist Jack Davies, with his latest song “Loving You’s Like A Mouldy Cup Of Tea”.  https://soundcloud.com/jackdaviesfolk/loving-yous-like-a-mouldy-cup-of-tea-radio-edit/s-KEjterUghNL On the track, Davies and his band The Bush Chooks provide a delicate blend of acoustic guitar, banjo accordion and fiddle, allowing Davies’ poignant and old-soul storytelling to shine. The…

The Wicked Messenger are bringing toe-tapping Americana folk back into business with their latest release, “You Don’t Love Me Anymore”, a wholesome and light-hearted track infused with a nod to blues. Partners Jimi Beavis and Janey Mac have teamed up with Brisbane producer Jamie Trevaskis to create a song we’d liken to a familiar hug…

Singer-songwriter Mitch King is about to drop his latest single, “Two Ears” and we are excited to have the exclusive single premiere of it today, ahead of its release tomorrow. It’s a beautifully restrained song, with acoustic guitars that cradle his honey-sweet vocals. He gently and evocatively delivers the importance of listening to the other…

Keeping travel dreams alive and setting goals has never felt more important. We can all agree that 2020 has been an unfortunate year so far, and almost every facet of daily life has been wrought by this ongoing global pandemic, the start of which now feels like forever ago. The arts has been one of…

New York singer-songwriter Charlie DeCarlo will release his new single “Walkway” on Thursday. The single is the latest and last to be taken from his forthcoming debut album Paper Birds – set for release in December. Ahead of its official release we’re excited to bring you this exclusive early taste of the brilliant new single…