If you’ve ever lost a loved one to dementia, you might need the tissues for Alana Wilkinson’s latest single “Shine Through”. It’s a beautiful snapshot of moments she spent with her grandmother through the years, the lessons she learned along the way, and the ties that bound them together.
“My grandmother was a complete legend and we shared a really special connection,” Alana said. “No matter how old I got, we played piano together, baked, danced, made puppets and painted pictures.”
Alana’s preparing to release an album and tour the country to support it. Until then, I’ll have this song on repeat. It’s gorgeous.
You’d be forgiven for mistaking “2010”, the latest single from Naarm/Melbourne-based band RADIO FREE ALICE, for a long-lost recording from The Cure or New Order. It’s got such a cool retro vibe that will transport you right back to those angsty new wave bands of decades past. Rather than shying away from their influences, the band are proud to pay tribute to the acts that have made a mark on the song’s sound.
“We’ve been playing the song live for almost a year now. Musically we were influenced by early The Cure and The Smiths.,” they said. “The song focuses on the instrumentation rather than the vocals more than any other track on the EP. It’s the first and only song we have with a pretty much totally instrumental chorus.”
RADIO FREE ALICE are currently making waves in the United Kingdom and Europe. If you’re living abroad, you can catch them at one of the following shows.
I know I’m a bit late to the party, but have we all listened to Fanning Dempsey National Park’s debut single “Disconnect” yet? The brainchild of Bernard Fanning and Paul Dempsey, I thought this new act was likely to be good, but I didn’t quite prepare myself for how good. Clearly, because otherwise I absolutely would have listened sooner! I’m going to be bold and say it might just be better than anything either of them have released before.
“We agreed straight away there’s no point doing something together if it’s going to be what people think it’s going to be,” Paul explained. “It’s not the two of us with acoustic guitars singing campfire songs.”
Bernard says “Disconnect” is about “The idea of having to walk away from something that you love because it’s become unmanageable. ‘Disconnect’ always had a lot of ‘serious moonlight’ energy, right from its beginnings. The swapping lead vocal plays with the idea of connecting and disconnecting by juxtaposing the confidence/ indecision with each consecutive line. We originally wanted to use sax on everything. After we roughly finished a demo we’d say, ‘What else does it need?’ The answer was inevitably more sax.”
That fantastic saxophone comes courtesy of Ron Dziubla, one of the world’s best session musicians. If that name doesn’t mean anything to you, just take a look at some of the music he’s played on. Tracks from Chris Isaak, Ricky Martin, Christina Aguilera, George Benson, The Crystal Method, and heaps more.
This is just a taster of all the exciting stuff in store for Fanning Dempsey National Park. They’ll release an album, The Deluge, on August 2, which I can’t wait to hear after playing this single obsessively (seriously, I’ve played nothing else since I started writing this article). They’re also heading around the country playing capital city shows in intimate theatres. Tickets are on sale now and probably won’t last long once everyone hears this track!
I’m rocking out this morning to “And the Fleas,” the angsty new single from Meeanjin/Brisbane act Bad Neighbour. It’s got a rebellious punk rock feel that reminds me of American act Hot Mulligan, who they toured with earlier this year.
Bad Neighbour will celebrate the release of “And the Fleas” with a big hometown show at The Outpost tomorrow night, June 7. With support from local legends Talk Heavy and Verum, it’s sure to be a great night of music.
Naarm/Melbourne-based artist Parmy Dhillon celebrates his late father’s legacy with his joyous new single “India.” I guarantee this one will at least put a smile on your face, if it doesn’t have you up and dancing.
“The song was written as a tribute and reminder to myself after my father passed away, to always remember my culture and who I am,” Parmy explained.
“India” is Parmy’s first release of 2024, and I think it might just be his best work. I’m looking forward to hearing what else the year has in store for him.
When I heard The Buoys had co-written a song with Alex Lahey, I knew it was going to be good. The band’s latest single “Check Mate” doesn’t disappoint. Take a listen to this awesome track which shows The Buoys in top form.
Tas Wilson directed the music video, which captures the energy of a road trip with friends, mirroring the longing for connection that you hear through the song.
“Check Mate” gives us our first taste of The Buoys debut album Lustre, which will be released on July 12. You can pre-order a vinyl copy online. It was all recorded live, so I imagine it’s going to deliver everything we love about The Buoys. Before it drops, you can see The Buoys supporting Luke Hemmings at the following shows
If you thought nu metal was done, think again. Boorloo/Perth act Indigo Blaze are continuing to fly the flag for the genre with their latest track “CRITICAL HIT.” If you were all about Limp Bizkit and Korn back in the day, you’re going to eat this one up.
“Lyrically, the track comments on believing in yourself even when others don’t and being determined to push through and fight back the critics. As always, though, with Rhys’ unique style of wordcraft with some video game references thrown in. ‘Bring you back to the menu soundtrack’ – calls out to the old arcade days when you beat your opponent,” the band explained. “All in all, for us, this song is a sly and not too serious shot back at the critics who doubt what we’ve been creating when the crowd and vibe we generate at our shows say different.
I wouldn’t have called myself a nu metal fan back in the day, but this song is making me all nostalgic for this kind of music. It’s not going to work for everyone, just like the music of this genre at the time, but I’m thrilled these guys are bringing back this sound.
With gloomy weather descending on my part of the country, it seems the ideal time to introduce you to Renee Naccari’s latest single, “Perfect Storm.” It’s a gorgeous introspective pop ballad that I know will leave you spellbound.
“It was challenging, but I had so much fun writing ‘Perfect Storm’. Creating all the little metaphors that I had visualised, into written lyrics to align with the story I was aiming to convey, that being, the push and pull between two people who want nothing more than to be together but finding it hard to make it work, a storm with a ray of sunlight as the clouds part,” Renee explained.
“Perfect Storm” serves as a precursor for Renee’s debut album, slated for release later this year, and a string of live shows. Exciting times ahead!
Dust off your cowboy boots, grab your hat, and settle in for a whole lot of fun with Claudia Tripp’s latest track “Rodeo.” It’s brand new, but it already feels like a certified country-blues classic. If this song doesn’t get played at every country music festival until the end of time, there’s no justice.
“I wrote ‘Rodeo’ as a celebration of the small-town people I grew up with,” Claudia said. “I recently travelled back to my hometown of Kalgoorlie to perform at a rodeo, and when the possibility of unpredictable weather loomed, it didn’t seem to matter. It’s their weekend after a hard work week, and they’ll be dancing in the dirt come thunderstorm or heatwave. My producer Mason Vellios made this song come to life exactly how I imagined it. I hope the track becomes a weekend anthem for everybody who clocks off work and needs to let their hair down”.
Djilang/Geelong-based singer-songwriter Daisy Kilbourne has made a massive impression on me with her debut single “Mother.” Its simple melody and stripped-back production is the perfect vehicle for Daisy’s incredible lyrics which recount her experience watching her mother’s gradual unravelling after losing the love of her life. This depiction of grief is so personal, but it’s bound to resonate with anyone who’s been in the orbit of a deep loss.
“I wrote this song after the passing of my father, watching my mum lose parts of herself with him as he left,” Daisy explained. “You can’t help but wonder if they’ll ever come to be the person they were before, and you feel guilty that you can’t make their pain go away. It isn’t easy talking about these things, but if it’s something that can help people overcome their grief, then it’s worth it.”
“Since the song is so personal, we thought about adding a real personal touch to it. So at the end of the song, all the harmonies are actually sung by my siblings, Rose, Lily, and Ivory,” she added. “For something quite emotional, recording them was the funniest night of my life. It was nice to create a good memory to attach to this song, and also hear how much Ivory sounds like Dad when he sings.”
Instead of a traditional music video, Daisy has paired this release with a documentary. Directed by Nick Rae, it celebrates her father’s life and the passion for music she shared with him.
Daisy hopes to continue connecting with music lovers when she releases her forthcoming EP later this year. You can hear more of her original music at the following shows:
