Part ¡Dos! in Green Day’s trilogy of rock albums could easily be seen as nothing more than a sequel to the drunken debut by their short-lived side-project, The Foxboro Hot Tubs. This, however, would be the wrong way to look at it. While the album is most certainly soaked with the hedonism of Stop, Drop,…
They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. If that’s the case, Macy Gray’s Talking Book– a full-length cover of one of Stevie Wonder’s most famous albums of the same name- is surely the highest form of praise. In fact, rather than imitating, Macy has aimed to put her own spin on the 70s…
If dark, distinctly-Aussie rock sounds appealing, you need to know Bec and Ben. The first song crawls up on you. Twenty seconds in, there’s a change; an echoing riff, speeding up gradually until the one minute mark. Another change. This riff is shorter. Sharper. Then Bec starts to sing, and they’re not the words you…
For anybody who has ever seen Delta Goodrem in concert / in interviews / in person, it appears easy to understand why her new record is titled Child of the Universe. She’s bubbly, kind, and never stops smiling — But if you want an accurate tip-off as to what this record sounds like, you need…
It’s been just over two years since their last record, but Anberlin are back, sticking to their tried and true formula: aggressive sounds and sentimental meanings. They might have left the ‘darker’ elements out, but there’s just as much angst as ever.
Stone Parade have been around the Sydney music scene for a fairly long time and have undergone several changes in their musical style in that timeframe. The Mulgoa Sessions is a 3-track EP that suggests yet another change in musical direction for this band.
The term “supergroup” can be used to include everything from The Traveling Wilburys to +44 , with the theory being that when already-successful musicians come together, they can make music even greater than that of their earlier projects. This is rarely the case. Though both of the above acts achieved commercial and critical acclaim, it…
Mojo Juju is one of those acts that you’ll find extremely difficult to pin into a genre. You’re guaranteed one thing though, the self-titled album from this unique songstress is quite the raunchy seduction for your ears.
Former Idol winner Wes Carr has returned with Blood & Bone the debut EP from his new project Buffalo Tales. Anyone tuning in to hear a collection of pleasant radio friendly pop rock songs are going to be sorely disappointed. Blood & Bone is a completely different beast from Carr previous output, a return to…
A Year At Sea is the debut album from Sydney’s Winter People. Released on the 21st September the album is a real delight; a sophisticated synergy of the styles, with a rich modern approach rubbing shoulders with more traditional folk sensibilities. For a debut album it’s really quite ambitious, with moody atmospherics and swirling instrumentation….
Metric have always balanced the rock and synth-based pop sound impeccably, and no album showcases this better than their 2009 breakthrough Fantasies. And now that the band is enjoying more exposure and success (in part thanks to appearances on soundtracks like Scott Pilgrim vs the World and Twilight: Eclipse) the anticipation for their follow-up was…
Hearing one lone voice sing of heartbreak and sorrow often seems more intensely honest than the sound of several. Perhaps that’s why the debut solo album from Boy & Bear’s Tim Hart is so beautifully melancholy and enthralling from one minute to the next. The drummer and vocalist has decided to step out from behind…
It’s been nine years since international troubadour Carus Thompson released the career defining double live album Acoustic at the Norfolk. Plenty has changed in those nine years, there have been albums recorded, tours completed and Thompson has found himself become both a husband and a father. Nine years on, Thompson found himself back at the…
Static on the Airwaves is the tenth album from British folk punks The Levellers and marks their first release since 2008. Traditionally there has always been an element of sedition and the political to folk music, most recently the British far right tried unsuccessfully to commandeer the genre for its own purpose. The Levellers are…
If you live outside of Perth you may have had a slight excuse for having not caught on to the magnificence that is Shimmergloom, but that excuse exists no longer. Read no further (well do read further) and rush out now and buy a copy of their debut EP Unfamiliar Nights, before your ears leave…
Orbital’s 2004 album Blue Album was supposed to be the British duo’s final legacy, leaving fans to mourn the loss of one of the 90s most heralded and unique electronica acts. But after a few years apart, Phil and Paul Hartnoll regrouped for what turned out to be a successful reunion world tour. Wanting to…
Charlotte Gainsbourg is perhaps better known for her recent successful acting career, having starred in the award winning Antichrist and Lars von Trier’s latest, Melancholia. But Stage Whisper reminds us that she is also an acclaimed singer too. A stop-gap album of sorts, Gainsbourg’s fourth full length release features unreleased tracks from her 2009 IRM…
PÝR is the latest EP from Perth rockers Heytesburg, and is only the band’s second ever release. I feel the need to point that out only because they don’t really sound like a band in the early years of their career. As with their first EP, the ambitious and atmospheric From The River I Come,…
The Carolina Chocolate Drops have released Leaving Eden, the follow up to the critically acclaimed Genuine Negro Jig. It’s fairly clear from the outset that this record isn’t going to be for everyone. You’re not going to be seeing singles from this record racing up the charts. What you do get however is the chance…
Sometimes I just love my job. Last week I received a copy of Basick Records new 2012 sampler, which has combined some of the best independant progressive metal bands in the world and placed them all on one album. This album is absolute magic, its brutal and intense, its laid back and moody, it’ll bring…
As part of a larger reissue campaign, Pink Floyd have released a remastered edition of Wish You Were Here with an additional second disc containing several tracks from live performances at Wembley in 1974 and some alternative studio versions of “Have a Cigar” and “Wish You Were Here” Not much needs to be said about…
The Necks are known for their sprawling, long, simply hypnotic tones that melds itself into one soundtrack of noise which really isn’t noise. More a sporadic burst of improvisation that goes for more than forty to fifty minutes. An amazing aspect of this kind of performance is a powerful idea in the live sense. On…
Before I start this review, I would like to preface it by admitting that I am not a guru on all things metal, so the technical side of this review will sadly be restricted to the standard clichés of using adjectives such as ‘brutal’ and ‘vicious’, etc. I do, however, think that part of the…
Sunderland quintet Frankie and The Heartstrings’ debut album Hunger, is a shout back to doo-wop from decades back. It oozes poppy, milkshake-in-a-diner type melodies mixed with the type of innocent romanticisms that make holding hands seem like you’ve hit a home run. Opening track “Photograph” contains jangling, summer guitar, strolling bass, complete with a thickened…
The Impossible Girl is the debut full-length solo album from Canadian-born singer/songwriter Kim Boekbinder, produced by Sean Slade(Radiohead, Hole and The Dresden Dolls). Boekbinder began her career performing with her sister Zoe Boekbinder as the colourful circus-cabaret indie outfit Vermillion Lies. Stepping out solo appears to have allowed Kim Boekbinder to flourish, and produce an…
Suede emerged in the early nineties wearing leather jackets and lacy ladies shirts, and reeking of an attitude that led them to dominate the British pop music charts for nearly a decade. The band’s music was catchy but complex, and debut single “The Drowners” established Suede as “the best new band in Britain” on the…
You may not have heard of Kordan, but something tells me they will soon be topping ‘next big thing’ lists. After all, this is the band who were handpicked by Australia’s Cut Copy in 2008 as opening act for their North American tour on the strength of their debut EP. Emerging from Puerto Rico’s burgeoning…
While waiting for an interview at Canadian Music Week this past March, I was lucky enough to be introduced to an Ontarian duo who showed just how much is possible with two men, a guitar, a drum kit and a wall of beautiful distortion. The kids call it “rock and roll”. Brandyn James Aikins and…
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…
