Bryan Estepa has embraced fatherhood, is approaching middle-age, and now, five albums into his solo career, he finds those life events being reflected in his songwriting and approach to the music business. On the day of his launch gig for his new album Every Little Thing, Estepa is surprisingly calm, even when having to be interviewed via video in his car as he momentarily escapes … Continue reading INTERVIEW: Bryan Estepa
ROCKIN’ THE RECITAL HALL Ben Folds talks with Chris Familton about the current collaborative project he has termed ‘chamber rock’ and his personal and professional connection to Australia. In composition and performance the piano is one of the few instruments that works effectively and consistently across the spectrum of musical genres, from blues to jazz, rock to classical. In the indie-rock world one of the … Continue reading INTERVIEW: Ben Folds
A SHOCKWAVE OF MODERN MULTICULTURALISM With a brand new album based on the Snowy Hydro-Electric Scheme, Mikelangelo talks with Chris Familton about the genesis and process of the project and how it relates to contemporary Australia. Many musicians might be loathe to admit to making concept albums but basing your album around one of the largest engineering projects of the 20th century must surely make … Continue reading INTERVIEW: Mikelangelo & The Black Sea Gentlemen
THE GRATEFUL BURDON OF THE BLUES Eric Burdon has lived a rock ’n’ roll life defined by music, first carving out a name for himself as the singer of The Animals in the ‘60s, then with War in the ‘70s and across the ensuing decades, as a solo artist. Chris Familton talks with the 74 year old about the blues and his musical legacy. The … Continue reading INTERVIEW: Eric Burdon
James Harrison is a busy musical man. When he’s not writing, recording and performing solo or with bands Charm and Old Etiquettes he’s putting together great bills for tribute shows (Bowie, The Smiths, PJ Harvey). He’s about to release his debut solo LP Tales Surround The Lighthouse Lamp and to celebrate that he’s heading up the Hume to play a show at The Vanguard on Friday, April 8th … Continue reading SONIC KICKS: J M S Harrison
Hippie Days Are Here Again Dan Kelly thought he was going to write and record and quick follow-up to his 2010 album Dan Kelly’s Dream but instead songs were scrapped and re-written, countries were explored and finally, after unexpectedly meeting an old friend in the main street of Nimbin the seed for Leisure Panic was planted, as Kelly explains to Chris Familton. That jump-off point … Continue reading INTERVIEW: Dan Kelly
Anything Can Be Psychedelic Moon Duo’s Sanae Yamada discusses their place in psychedelic music, adding a live drummer to their line-up and performing to the ashes of dead people, with Chris Familton. As the name suggests Moon Duo are a musical pairing, the collaborative project of Yamada and partner Ripley Johnson. The latter is best known for his work with San Francisco psych/drone group Wooden … Continue reading INTERVIEW: Moon Duo
FROM THEIR REHEARSAL STUDIO AND AN AUTUMN HEATWAVE MERCURY REV FOUNDING MEMBER GRASSHOPPER CALLS IN TO DISCUSS THEIR NEW ALBUM, THE LEGACY OF DESERTER’S SONGS AND MORE WITH CHRIS FAMILTON. Grasshopper and singer Jonathan Donahue have been at the core of Mercury Rev from the very beginning, enduring multiple line-up changes and a constant refinement of their expansive sound. Their new album The Light in … Continue reading MERCURY REV: The Director & The Cinematographer
Melbournians Deaf Wish have a new album Pain out via Sub Pop/Inertia on August 7th which finds them striking a rich vein of tangled careering avant-rock, genre-splicing its way through the history of post-punk, post-rock, no-wave and hardcore. It harnesses their propensity for tension, both its formation and release as well as the juxtaposition of atonality and dissonance that bands such as Liars, Sonic Youth, Hüsker … Continue reading SONIC KICKS: Deaf Wish
The Pop Group’s Mark Stewart has always been a larger than life figure and now on the eve of Citizen Zombie, their first album in 35 years, he is positively chafing at the bit as he talks with Chris Familton about the creative forces that continue to drive the group. “It’s mental. I’m pinching myself and can’t believe it. We’ve just started rehearsing for the … Continue reading INTERVIEW: The Pop Group – We Don’t Want To Be Zombified
The transformative effects of romance, intimacy and self-acceptance form the backbone of Josh Tillman’s second album under the moniker Father John Misty. From his home in New Orleans Tillman looks back with Chris Familton on the two years it took to write and record I Love You Honeybear. “I think I have some clarity in terms of what was going on that I didn’t have … Continue reading INTERVIEW: Father John Misty – Waking From The Intellectual Dream
As Radiohead prepare to start work on their ninth studio album, Philip Selway is quietly enthusiastic as he talks to CHRIS FAMILTON about the writing and recording process of his second solo album, scoring for contemporary dance and pauses to reflect on nearly thirty years as a member of the Oxford quartet. Philip Selway first emerged from behind the Radiohead drum kit in 2010 with … Continue reading INTERVIEW: Philip Selway
Doubtful Sounds 