By the second day of Womadelaide, a certain peace and harmony had developed in the crowd. COVID precautions were understood and the mad rush to see everything had changed into a more relaxed atmosphere. Not that this stopped newcomer indigenous rappers MRLN x RKM whipping up some energy onstage. Marlon Motlop (AKA MRLN) was born…
Today is International Women’s Day and it’s exciting to see that a new initiative by Canada’s National Arts Centre is cutting through gender imbalance in the music industry. And thanks to export office Sounds Australia, six Aussie artists are on-board. The Global Network for Female-Identifying Music Producers is the new virtual and global project, offering…
The scaled-down COVID-safe Womadelaide still had plenty of the charm and community that we expect from this annual world music festival. Jamie Goldsmith presented a welcome to country and explained the meanings of the traditional greetings and names. King Rodney Park was named after a Kuarna elder. Womad opened with seasoned performer Archie Roach, who…
Birds of Tokyo are back in swing of things with 2021 already seeing the band jet across the country in an opportunistic symphony orchestra tour, Fremantle prison shows, and an upcoming gig on Rottnest Island for Cooper’s Live, Loud & Local series. Playing tracks from their latest album, Human Design, the Rottnest gig marks almost a year…
Ben Wright Smith, Melbourne-based singer and multi-instrumentalist has just dropped his album Echo Lodge. It’s a beautiful collection of songs, comprised of his two earlier EP’s, Psychotropical (2018) and Volcano God Head Explodes (2020), as well as three new tracks. With the contents of the album being recorded and gradually released over the past three years,…
Melbourne-based trio Brixton Alley may be exploring new territory, but they’re shredding up a storm. Relocating to Australia from the UK in 2020, the indie-punk band got the chance to play at some of Australia’s hottest venues, before being plunged into lockdown. Like most artists, lockdown gave the trio a chance to focus on their sound…
After taking this year off, The 45th Port Fairy Folk Festival is set for 2022, and the first round of artists has just been announced. Celebrating in the music-loving coastal village in Victoria from 11th-14th March, a mix of home-grown talent and folk stars from around the world will be on show. Audiences can expect…
Chicago native Alexander 23 has released his second EP Oh No, Not Again! tracking the “cycle” of a relationship from yearning to falling in love, breaking up to recovery. His universally honest and easily accessible lyricism has him blowing up online, with his track “IDK You Yet” capturing the hearts of TikTokers and sending him…
Genesis Owusu is an artist in control. Taking a few years to get here, his debut album Smiling With No Teeth showcases an artist well and truly ready to breakdown barriers and take the world on, fifteen tracks at a time. A lengthy debut, Smiling With No Teeth is the sign of an artist not…
Bluesfest is on for 2021, the first multi-day, multi-stage camping festival to be held in the world since the beginning of Covid-19. Running from April 1st-5th at the idyllic Byron Events Farm (formerly the Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm), the festival will be a smaller affair than we’re used to – only 3 stages – but…
With a single due every month, it was only a matter of time before Chicago’s Devon Kay & The Solutions popped up as one of our Tracks of the Week. After teaming with Less Than Jake‘s Chris DeMakes for a cover of “Big“, the six-piece needed a cracking follow up. “Frustrated People of the World,…
The cornerstones of Kid Le Chat, David Wilson and Leo Moretti met in a microbrewery in Rio De Janeiro. They bonded over a mutual love of 80’s music such as Talking Heads, Tears for Fears and New Order, and set about creating their own modern twist on synth-pop. Since then, they’ve recorded an album, released…
It’s impossible to work in the music industry and not feel the weight of the loss of Michael Gudinski this morning – the iconic founder of the Mushroom Group who passed away overnight at the age of 68. Myself, and the whole The AU Review team sends our love to the Gudinski family, all his…
Sydney indie rockers Lime Cordiale have grown hugely in popularity over the past 12 months but it’s come during a period where live shows have been limited, so headlining the first SNACK Festival at Perth’s Metro City drew a sold-out crowd. Since last July’s release of their widely acclaimed sophomore LP 14 Steps To A…
Grids and Dots, the Sydney indie outfit are about to drop their second single for 2021, “City Skies”. It’s an upbeat and lush tune, with beautiful rich guitars and sweet harmonies. “City Skies’ will be on their upcoming EP, What Happens to Friendships. We are thrilled to be premiering “City Skies” ahead of its release…
Organisers have announced that Splendour in the Grass in 2021 has been rescheduled to 19th-21st November 2021. The great news of this rescheduling is that Gorillaz, The Strokes and Tyler, The Creator are all available for the new November dates. With international travel not expected to re-open until later this year, it was wise to…
“Don’t fix what isn’t broken” is exactly the mantra Jeremy Zucker and Chelsea Cutler seemingly live by as they offer their latest EP brent ii as a follow up to their 2019 global success together. Through the 2020 summer of the pandemic, the pair retreated to an upstate New York cabin to continue the story of brent as they evolved…
Brisbane indie pop band Sheppard have never quite been wholly accepted by Australian audiences, despite massive world tours, top 10 hits around the globe and boasting more than 740 million streams across all platforms led by huge 2014 hit “Geronimo”. Sheppard – now a core three-piece consisting of siblings George, Amy and Emma – are…
Julien Baker has always been an artist that makes you stop, notice and absorb her talents. Now onto her third album, Baker is as prolifically complete on Little Oblivions as she’s ever been since releasing debut album Sprained Ankle half a decade ago. There’s very little, if any, façade to what pours out in her…
Undoubtedly one of the most fascinating artists currently on the scene is singer/songwriter June Jones. June has just dropped her sophomore album, Leafcutter. Self-produced, it’s a collection of highly personal songs, confessional in nature, often using her rich tones to help convey the emotions of the song. Jones is a multi-faceted musician with many talents….
You Am I have just dropped the first single, “The Waterboy” off their eleventh studio album. It showcases the songwriting skill and inventiveness of frontman Tim Rogers. It was inspired by a song, “I Can See Elvis” on the classic Waterboys album, Modern Blues. There is a recurring line in “The Waterboy” – “Edinburgh, Galway,…
Pipin is the solo-project for Brisbane singer-songwriter Bec Hoole. She is known for her dreamy pop songs sprinkled with touches of throwback disco. We are thrilled to premiere her first single of 2021, “Tunnel Vision” ahead of its release on Friday. We also have an accompanying video that is as striking as it is inventive….
After being closed for eleven months, due to renovations and the pandemic, it was a triumphant re-opening last night of the Enmore Theatre, for the Sounds Of Sydney gala event. It was an incredible lineup, with profits from ticket sales being donated by the venue to Support Act, an organisation that is providing much-needed support…
We are thrilled today to have the video premiere of “Driving Song” from Sydney-side folk-trio The Fallen Robins. The band was started in 2019 by three siblings; Charlotte, Jess and Sarah. With harmonies that tug your heartstrings and authentic story-telling, their music is joyously uplifting. The track reflects upon the arc taken when on the…
Singer-songwriter Julien Baker is all set to release her forthcoming album Little Oblivions later this week. Officially released on February 26th, the album delivers a sound that is bigger, bolder and more expansive than the sparse intimacy that we’ve come to expect from Baker. Recorded pre-COVID, Little Oblivions might be a sonic shift for Baker,…
Sydney’s Highline haven’t let a little thing like a global pandemic throw off their hard earned momentum. The quartet are back with a new single, “Staying Sane”, and with the promise of more to come. It was still early days for the band pre-covid. They’d released their debut EP and played their first ever shows…
Gesticulations is a solo project for Graham Ashton, who you may recognise from The Shambolics and Way Cool Jnr. Today he releases the first album for the project, Sense of Purgency. The songs are typically very lyric-driven, and musically sparse. Whilst being sparse, it is varied and interesting. Elements of this record remind me of…
Bow Anderson is the next biggest thing to come out of Scotland – you could say she’s the New Wave. At twenty three, she’s already familiar with hard work and setbacks, after her semi-professional trampolining career crumbled from a leg injury. It was through rehab that she found her passion (and talent) in music, singing…
After a few years between drinks, Tash Sultana is back in 2021 with Terra Firma, the follow up to their much acclaimed and lauded album Flow State. Much like its 2018 predecessor, Terra Firma is an exploration into the soulful and trip driven escapades of Sultana’s mind and musical expertise. With all the groove driven sounds…
The D.O.C. is one of the most important figures in hip hop’s history. As a founding member of the G-Funk style that was popularised by Dr. Dre, NWA, Eazy-E, Outkast and Snoop Dogg, The D.O.C.’s music legacy is undeniable. From penning lyrics for the greats like Dre at 18-years-old, to writing on one of the…
