Show Me Where It Hurts are a Rhodes electric piano, drums and vocals duo from Auckland, New Zealand. Both musicians have been key players on the Auckland scene for the last two decades with Josh Hetherington fronting Thorazine Shuffle and Ronny Haynes drumming with bands such as Pash and Fagan And The People. The pair have just released their debut self-titled EP (stream/buy below) which follows … Continue reading SONIC KICKS: Show Me Where It Hurts
The popularity of psych and garage rock in recent years shows no sign of abating and that’s a good thing when top shelf exponents such as NewYork five-piece The Mystery Lights rise to the top. They’ve got the 60s sound down pat with heavy-on-the-reverb, fuzzed-out guitars, droning organ, and a soulful, punk-injected push and pull rhythm section. Singer Mike Brandon has a thin, taut and … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: The Mystery Lights – The Mystery Lights
Marcus Whale (Collarbones) has made an impressive artistic statement with his debut solo album. Released digitally, with an accompanying physical book, Inland Sea explores queer and colonial Australian history through a dark and oblique gauze of minimal electronica. It veers between militant tech-heavy drums and glitchy whirs of atmospheric sounds that can draw a timeline back through artists such as Bjork and Photek. There’s an … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Marcus Whale – Inland Sea
Kevin Rowland has been bandying around the idea of an album of Irish songs for 30 years. Now he’s finally done it, in the process expanding out the remit to include non-Irish songs such as To Love Somebody (Bee Gees) and You Wear It Well (Rod Stewart) among others. They’ve applied a sparse and clean soul treatment to the songs, reinterpreting tracks made famous by … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Dexys – Let The Record Show: Dexys Do Irish And Country Soul
Undo is the first single to be taken from Dan Michaelson and The Coastguards‘ 6th Album Memory, to be released on 6th May 2016. We loved Michelson’s last album Distance, his voice in particular hitting the fathomless depths of melancholic ache and yearning. He inhabits a similar musical world to Tindersticks and Bill Callahan – that blend of folky jazz and soulful late night indie … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Dan Michaelson & The Coastguards – Undo
Tindersticks have traveled their own considered career trajectory with intermittent suspensions of activity and then a return to active duty, always with the same ear for detail in their nuanced and ornate, soulful baroque pop music.The Waiting Room is yet another excellent entry to their discography. It’s measured and draws on found sounds, field recordings, guest vocalists, jazz, post-rock, pastoral psychedelia and just the right … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Tindersticks – The Waiting Room
For total indulgence and unabated dance floor pleasure you can’t go past this compilation of French soul, pop, funk and disco tracks from 1975-1984. Selected by Charles Maurice, the album was released last year on the Favorite label. Hit the Bandcamp link below to stream and/or buy the album on 2LP, CD and digital formats. In their words: Helped by a close connoisseur friend, DJ … Continue reading French Disco Boogie Sounds (1975-1984)
Sarah Belkner has completed her transition from her previous incarnation as Miss Little. Now recording under her own name the New Zealander (based in Sydney for the last 7 years) has released the clip for the first single ‘With You’ from her forthcoming album – the recipient of an Australian Council Of The Arts New Work Grant and Pozible crowd funding. The song is a wonderfully poised … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Sarah Belkner – With You (video)
Christopher Owens (Girls) has a new solo album out at the end of September called A New Testament. It follows his 2013 LP Lysandre that followed the dissolution of the band Girls. here’s the brand new clip for the first single .Nothing More Than Everything To Me’. Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Christopher Owens | Nothing More Than Everything To Me
They are both heavyweights of soul, jazz, funk and blues-rooted American music but it was still a surprise to see Dr. John open a show on which he was billed the headliner. He kicked things off with one of his signature songs in Iko Iko, a New Orleans classic, before giving the audience a trip through his back catalogue. Looking somewhat more frail than the … Continue reading Dr. John, Aaron Neville @ State Theatre, Sydney (24/04/14)
Trixie Whitley’s musical journey to-date has taken some interesting and different directions, from the soulful dub excursions of Black Dub with Daniel Lanois and others, to forging her own solo career and its rich melting pot of soul, jazz, funk and blues. She treated the Basement audience to all of that and more, particularly with her newer songs. Playing two sets, Whitely set about showcasing … Continue reading LIVE REVIEW: Trixie Whitley @ The Basement, Sydney (19/04/14)
Many thought that it was well and truly the end of the line when Greg Dulli, John Curley, Rick McCollum and drummer Steve Earle went their separate ways in 2001. Their dark and mysterious chemistry felt like it had probably run its natural course yet they went out on the back of their three finest albums. It was therefore a surprise to many when The … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: The Afghan Whigs | Do To The Beast
Doubtful Sounds 