There have been a bunch of new local bands that have appeared on my radar this year, many of them hailing from Melbourne. Dick Diver, The Twerps and Iowa in particular stand out and the latter now have a video to go with their recently released single Complete Control. Continue reading WATCH: Iowa | Complete Control
written by Chris Familton This has been a bumper year for wistful guitar music brimming with melodies and laidback vibes – perfectly suited to soundtracking either a dreary autumn day or the warming expectation of summer. Real Estate, Girls and Oh Mercy are at the more immediate end of the spectrum but not far behind are a gang of Melbourne musicians in bands like Twerps … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Twerps | Twerps
The Sydney Festival has announced its official program for 2012 with an excellent music line-up as has become the norm over the last few years… Amiina AA Bondy Andrew Weatherall & Neville Watson Animagica Assembly Asa & Fefe Beth Orton CANT Clairy Brown and the Bangin’ Rackettes Dan Deacon Ensemble & John Maus Dan Sultan & Busby Marou with Kasey Chambers Deerhoof and DJ Yamantaka … Continue reading NEWS: Sydney Festival 2012 program unveiled…
Witch Hats are one of those Australian bands that operate in the grey zone between the invisible underground and the marketing hype of the Triple J world. Possessing a post punk/90s indie guitar mood they follow the broken glass strewn path trod and beaten by their next of kin like The Scientists, Birthday Party, Jesus Lizard and more recently the drama pop of The Veils. Following … Continue reading LISTEN: to the new Witch Hats LP Pleasure Syndrome…
To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Flying Nun, here is a reprint of a piece I wrote about the label last year… written by Chris Familton A record label at the right place at the right time can be integral to a music scene, often gaining revered status further down the track as history settles into place. Sub Pop, Motown and Factory are obvious examples. … Continue reading FEATURE: Life in a Chord | Flying Nun Records
Hallelujah Picassos were one of the most original, visceral and genre mashing bands to come out of Auckland, New Zealand in the early 90s. They combined reggae, lovers rock, punk, dub, hip hop and garage rock with the end result being an overwhelming live experience. Frontman Roland Rorschach, bassist Johnnie Pain, guitarist Peter McLennan and drummer/singer Bobbylon were something of a musical history lesson for young kids growing up … Continue reading NEWS: Hallelujah Picassos release compilation…
written by Chris Familton Teeth & Tongue have evolved their sound over the last couple of years to the point where it now sounds effortlessly natural, devoid of pretense or hopeful indie aspirations. Singer/guitarist Jess Cornelius is the heart and soul of the band – aided and abetted by a guitarist, bassist and pre-recorded drums when she plays live and she left an impressive mark … Continue reading LIVE REVIEW: Jack Ladder @ The Dreamlanders @ Manning Bar, Sydney (01/10/11)
written by Chris Familton Zola Jesus is one of a number of female singers with strong rich voices that have emerged in recent years. She shares similar vocal tonalities with the likes of Florence Welch, The Knife’s Karin Dreijer Andersson and Austra’s Katie Stelmanis yet she stands out above those and others as the strongest individual of the bunch. Following on from last year’s Stridulum … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Zola Jesus | Conatus
written by Chris Familton Street Chant finally see the Australian release of their debut album which came out in the homeland of New Zealand a year ago. Not that time dates this kind of music – jangling, propulsive slacker guitar pop – and this trio have talent in spades, captured perfectly on Means by producer/engineer Bob Frisbee. This kind of post punk grunge bears a … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Street Chant | Means
written by Chris Familton Melbourne’s Fabulous Diamonds set the mood of the evening with a set composed around drone and hypnotic repetition. Featuring just drums and keyboards the duo were in no rush to get anywhere in particular with songs that slowly evolved from metronomic drum patterns into gently pulsing waves of analog synths, grinding organ, sparsely decorated with vocals from drummer Nisa Venerosa. When … Continue reading LIVE REVIEW: Moon Duo @ OAF, Sydney 30/09/11
Recorded over 6 months in 1991 in Berlin and Dublin, Achtung Baby was U2’s seventh studio album. It was produced by Daniel Lanois , Brian Eno and Steve Lillywhite and mixed and engineered by Flood. Led by “The Fly”, Achtung Baby spawned four more huge hit singles, “Mysterious Ways”, “One”, “Even Better Than The Real Thing” and “Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses”. Heralded by … Continue reading NEWS: U2 release 20th anniversary editions of Achtung Baby…
written by Chris Familton Carrie Brownstein has become something of an indie superstar in recent years with her commentaries on NPR, the TV series Portlandia that she co-wrote and stars in and of course her history in the righteous rock band Sleater Kinney. Now she has re-emerged musically in Wild Flag, a four piece that also includes Mary Timony (ex-Helium), Rebecca Cole and Sleater Kinney … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Wild Flag | Wild Flag
Doubtful Sounds 