I caught these guys playing at the Nuggets event at the Sydney Town Hall during the Sydney Festival earlier this year and I was damn impressed with The Murlocs’ bluesy take on garage rock. It was white hot, ramshackle RnB soaked rock n roll and they seem to have bottled some of the essence of that sound on their new single Rattle The Chain. It … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: The Murlocs | Rattle The Chain
Sydney’s Kirin J Callinan has announced that his solo LP Embracism will be released on June 28th via Siberia Records / Terrible Records in partnership with XL Recordings. The album was produced by Kim Moyes of The Presets and mixed in the home studio of Christ Taylor (CANT, Grizzly Bear) who runs the Terrible Records label. It also features a rhythm section of Jack Ladder and … Continue reading NEWS: Kirin J Callinan announces solo LP
Many thought they’d never amount to anything but Sydney’s Bed Wettin’ Bad Boys have gone and recorded one of the best albums we’ve heard so far this year. Ready For Boredom hits the mark with it’s Television/Replacements take on suburban punk that bristles with dissent while still possessing a streak of bitter melancholia amid the spiraling riffs and pseudo solos, sandpaper vocals and rock solid … Continue reading VIDEO: Bed Wettin’ Bad Boys | Any Day Now
We’re loving Caroline, the new single from Bad//Dreems, you should too. It rips, rolls and jangles and with parched vocals killing the chorus. Here is the new video to prove it… Continue reading VIDEO: Bad//Dreems | Caroline
One of the joys of visiting someone who has a record collection is flicking through the sleeves, finding gems and long forgotten memories and getting a snapshot of that person through the music they’ve collected either over their lifetime or during a specific time in their life. I’ve been collecting vinyl since I first bought Billy Idol’s Rebel Yell in 1983 and for the most … Continue reading A Song From Every Album In My Vinyl Collection
Purling Hiss have just released their new album Water On Mars via Drag City/Mistletone and we’re hooked on first listen. They’ve refined the noise and boosted all the great elements of psych, pop and garage rock to produce an album that embraces all the greatness of 90s guitar music from Nirvana to Dinosaur Jr to The Lemonheads. The band come out of the same loose … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Purling Hiss | Mercury Retrograde
by Chris Familton 26 years after departing what many felt were the most important UK band of the 80s Johnny Marr is finally releasing his debut solo album after collaborations with Bernard Sumner, The The, Modest Mouse, The Cribs and others yet The Messenger defiantly signals a return to those original tumbling notes and familiar sparkling chords. The immediate thing that stands out is the … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Johnny Marr | The Messenger
by Chris Familton Popstrangers are the latest in a long line of New Zealand bands to emerge with a psychedelic and moody take on pop-tinged post punk. Their debut album Antipodes proves the band aren’t just riding on the hype of a few singles, instead it shows they have a strong idea of the sounds and ideas they want to capture, though Joel Flyger is … Continue reading INTERVIEW: Popstrangers
Melbourne is throwing up some great soul and funk bands of late, particularly the ones with a subtle strain of garage rock running through their grooves. Saskwatch have released a new single this month which was recorded by go-to-guy Mikey Young. It is out now digitally and will be followed by a 7″ vinyl release on Northside Records. Keep an eye on their Bandcamp page … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Saskwatch | I Get Lonely
Forces are a Melbourne duo who have been refining their 80s influenced industrial synth sound, playing a bunch of shows and some sweet international supports such as Zola Jesus in the last year or two. Overland (In My Mind) comes from their debut 12″ EP on Siberia Records and it caused a cavalcade of flashbacks to my 80s youth listening to the likes of Depeche Mode, … Continue reading NEW MUSIC: Forces | Overland (In My Mind)
by Chris Familton Seemingly emerging out of nowhere, Matthew E. White’s Big Inner is quickly spreading via word-of-mouth as one of the first great albums of 2013. Those accolades are well and truly deserved for a record that balances intimacy and grand gestures so well. The ideas are simple (love and religion) yet the prolific melodies and strength of composition make it sound like a … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Matthew E. White | Big Inner
by Chris Familton Rules is the debut album from two Australian expats who met in Barcelona and spent the next two years constructing its songs. As the title suggest they set themselves some strict guidelines with which to write the instrumental music that would comprise their debut album, a record that thrives on energy, ebullient yet melancholic melodies and some brutal and primitive rhythms. Instrumental … Continue reading ALBUM REVIEW: Civil Civic | Rules
Doubtful Sounds 