Melbourne musician Suzie Stapleton has only just come onto our radar but it only took 30 seconds of the first song we heard to get drawn into her dark and moody sound that equally draws on gothic blues and swamp rock, mixing it all up in a contemporary rock miasma. The thing that anchors it all is her jaw dropping voice with its rich and … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Suzie Stapleton | Obladi Diablo
Bad Dreems are one of the essential bands emerging out of the growing Adelaide scene with their lo-fi, melody-rich guitar songs. 2012 was a big year that saw them release the brilliant single Chills and before dropping Tomorrow Mountain with its darker and moodier undercurrent and the infectiously melancholic Too Old. We caught up with guitarist Alex Cameron to find out some of the albums … Continue reading SONIC KICKS | BAD DREEMS
The new releases are coming thick and fast at the moment as record labels look to release albums they most held over from the end of 2012 to get maximum exposure as we kick off 2013. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds have already released one song (We No Who UR) from their new album Push The Sky Away and here’s another. Jubilee Street is … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Pissed Jeans and The Men
by Chris Familton Pinback sound like they inhabit a netherworld suspended between post rock and indie guitar pop and on their new album that combination of styles and a studio sheen have resulted in a diluted collection of songs. Pinback are a fantastic live band where volume and adrenalin give their songs a grounding and a stronger backbone and though Information Retrieved isn’t bereft of … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Pinback | Information Retrieved
This is by no means a snapshot across all forms of electronic music as I have little interest in some strands such as trance, commercial dance music or the mainstream adoption and bastardisation of the name dubstep. I say ‘the name’ as the music itself bears little resemblance to the sounds that were created under that tag through the 00s. My tastes instead drift towards … Continue reading DS Top Electronic Releases of 2012
by Chris Familton With a reputation born mainly from their sweat and swagger live shows, The Jim Jones Revue have finally captured some of that frantic magic on their third and best album The Savage Heart. Breathing new life into purist rock n roll isn’t an easy task when you consider the originators of the genre and the huge number of the bands over the … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: The Jim Jones Revue | The Savage Heart
by Chris Familton The LA quartet return with their sophomore album that finds them throwing more influences into the mix while still maintaining their highly melodic indie rock sound. Strapped feels like a step up for a band that specialized in efficient garage rock dispatches and even though they have softened their rawer edges they have compensated by dialing in more expansive textures and song … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: The Soft Pack | Strapped
New Zealand trio Popstrangers have a new album Antipodes coming out late Feb/early March (depending where you are) and they’ve done the decent thing and released the first song from it, Heaven on Soundcloud. It’s a super hooky piece of guitar pop/rock that gets gloriously woozy in the chorus and choppy in the verses. The band released some singles on Flying Nun before signing with Carpark … Continue reading LISTEN: Popstrangers | Heaven – from their new album ‘Antipodes’
by Chris Familton The key to The Datsuns’ longevity and relevance in the present is their ability to filter and process the best of the past and inject it with some enthusiasm and energy. Fifth studio album Death Rattle Boogie released 10 years to the day since their acclaimed self-titled debut – is no exception, finding them in ruthlessly efficient form. Spread around the world and … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: The Datsuns | Death Rattle Boogie
A NEW FLIGHT PATH FAT FREDDY’S DROP ARE ABOUT TO TAKE LEAVE FROM RECORDING THEIR NEW ALBUM TO PREVIEW IT AT THE SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE. KEYBOARDIST DOBIE BLAZE GIVES CHRIS FAMILTON AN INSIGHT ON THE TOURING LIFESTYLE AND THE BAND’S CREATIVE PROCESS. New albums aren’t a common occurrence in the world of Fat Freddy’s Drop. To date there has only been 2005’s debut Based On … Continue reading INTERVIEW: Fat Freddy’s Drop
Sydney independent label Popfrenzy have announced a trifecta of exciting releases in the last week. Songs have a video for their new song Alone When I’m With You from the forthcoming (early 2013) album Malabar. The song can be purchased HERE for a measly 99c. Next up is the first single on the label from Sydney band Day Ravies. Double Act follows up … Continue reading NEWS: New musical delights from the Popfrenzy label
by Chris Familton Jochen Gutsch is a prolific Sydney composer and one-man band with thirteen releases to his name since 2003. I call him a composer because his music is rooted in ambitious ideas with a multitude of elements fighting for space amid his instrumental soundscapes. There is also an overwhelming magpie eclecticism to Hinterlandt that can be both glorious and maddening as he chases … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Hinterlandt | Cartography
Doubtful Sounds 