Jade Gibson speaks up for all of the people who’ve ever felt the pressure to be something they’re not with her latest single, “Unforgivingly Me.” It’s an unashamedly non-apologetic anthem for sticking to your guns and living your most authentic life.
Jade co-wrote the song with Aussie super songwriting duo MSquared (Michael Paynter and Michael Delorenzis), Katrina Burgoyne, and Mary Kutter. That’s a lot of voices in the mix, but they’ve come together beautifully in this fun country-crossover single.
Music lovers can see Jade, as well as other leading country acts like Lee Kernaghan, Troy Cassar-Daley, and Adam Brand, at the Gippsland Country Music Festival on April 22.
I always love discovering fantastic acts in my backyard. Stone Lions are the latest Darkinjung Country/Central Coast band to knock my socks off. Their latest single “New Year’s Ghost” is the perfect slice of pop-punk. Clocking in at a little over two minutes, it makes a massive impression in a short time.
“‘New Year’s Ghost’ is a depiction of quintessential feelings associated with New Year’s Eve parties and resolutions,” the band explained. “We felt we got caught up in the blackout parties and social stigma which led us to write an uplifting, yet haunting song about it. Encapsulating the excitement, fear, intimacy and loneliness that is New Year’s Eve.”
An autumn release is a strange decision for the song, but when it sounds this good who am I to argue? Stone Lions told fans on their socials that they’ll be back on stages really soon, so make sure you follow them for the inside scoop on any upcoming gigs.
South African-born, Meeanjin/Brisbane-based rapper S.A.B. had me from the blast of horns that open his latest single “Gonna Get Got.” Then then those rhymes started flowing, I was firmly on board. This is quality hip-hop, authentic with something to say. I also love the way S.A.B. plays with genre here, incorporating elements of soul and jazz into his sound to create something fresh.
“As it is a public service announcement to air-headed globetrotters who flaunt their cash and jewellery overseas,” said S.A.B. “I can simply forewarn and say, “If you’re not local to an area, but enter a poor community’s space only to unwittingly flaunt wealth, you’re going to stick out like a sore thumb.”
S.A.B. will launch “Gonna Get Got” for hometown fans at King Lear’s Throne on April 20. After he recently played to a packed room at the Mountain Goat Valley Crawl festival, you can expect this one’s going to be big!
Naarm/Melbourne-based singer-songwriter Jay Santelli might have started her musical journey as a pop-punk act, but she’s clearly left her teenage angst far behind her. There’s a beautiful peace about her new country single “Love Someone Else” which makes it compulsive listening.
The lyrics of “Love Someone Else” are so heartbreaking, but that inner peace that radiates through the recording helps you feel like it’s all going to be OK. There may be sadness in the moment, but everything will work out alright in the end. Jay wrote this beautiful song with Nashville artists Noah Needleman and Chelsea Thompson.
Naarm/Melbourne-based artist Monnie has worked with the likes of Thelma Plum and Sweater Curse, but she’s stepping into the spotlight with her solo debut, “Tell Me Something.” This track is a real bop, with a hooky chorus you’re going to find going around your head long after the last note.
“‘Tell Me Something’ is a song I wrote with my friend Kobe (Forest Claudette) during the last Naarm lockdown of 2021” she explained. “It is a dramatic version of how I was feeling about dating – frustrated, unmatched, lost. I feel like I am being constantly misrepresented or underestimated, especially by men. Ego and posturing is boring to me, it’s annoying!
“People have often told me that I’m intimidating when all I’ve been looking for is human connection. This song is about how the more you try to impress someone/project your own shit onto them, the less you actually get out of an interaction. Writing this song let me be silly, petty, and get out some of that frustration without hurting anybody.”
Talk about a bold debut. Something tells me we’ll be hearing a lot more from Monnie.
Image used with permission from Sony Music Australia
I’m not going to pretend to know anything about modern classical music. But I do know what sounds beautiful to me, and that’s “The Adventure Etude,” the latest solo instrumental piece from Naarm/Melbourne pianist Calvin Leung.
The release of “The Adventure Etude” comes 20 years after Calvin released his first original composition as part of the Kool Skools Recording & Songwriting Project, the same initiative that helped launch the careers of artists like Delta Goodrem and Missy Higgins. Since then he’s given more than 500 live public performance at the RACV Club, where he’s the resident pianist, and played other leading venues including Crown Towers, Arts Centre Melbourne, and the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. You might also have seen him playing with finalists on The Voice Australia.
Calvin was inspired to write “The Adventure Etude” after watching a fellow pianist busking on the streets of Queenstown during a recent holiday.
“I was incredibly moved after seeing this amazing pianist busk on the streets on New Year’s Eve, and that really inspired me to write, record and finally release my own music,” he explained. “I also decided to name my first release ‘The Adventure Etude’ after the name of my accommodation The Adventure Hostel, where I made some incredible new friends who also encouraged me to release my own music”.
After hearing this piece, I’m sure you’ll agree Calvin deserves to be staying somewhere better than hostels. You can support him at his upcoming shows.
15 April 2023 – The RACV Club, Naarm/Melbourne
6 May 2023 – The Rubber Chicken, Naarm/Melbourne
13 May 2023- The RACV Club, Naarm/Melbourne
27 May 2023- The RACV Club, Naarm/Melbourne
17 June 2023 – The RACV Club, Naarm/Melbourne
Image used with permission from Calvin Leung Music
“Who’s to Say,” the latest single by local singer-songwriter Jack Hudson, is brand new but it already sounds like a classic. With thoughtful, soul-searching lyrics, powerful vocals, and a stellar performance from his band, made up of Benjamin Graham (drums), Chris Pearson (bass), Daniel Khoury (keys), and Piper Rodrigues (backing vocals), this track is everything you want it to be.
“This project is about sharing my experiences, thoughts and beliefs as a young man, through songs I birthed on my acoustic guitar,” Jack said of his current music. “The thrill of the project has been taking my raw tracks to the studio to collaborate in real-time with some of my best friends and favourite players. It felt like the right time and place to make music with the people I have in my circle. Whilst it is early days for this project, I am excited as I know a lot more music is to be written and released. After the events of 2020 and 2021, I just can’t wait to get out on the road and share this project with the world”.
Hopefully that means Jack will announce some shows really soon.
Bundjalung Country/Gold Coast rapper Juwan has blown me away with his new single “Vent.” It’s a powerful single with introspective lyrics that reflect on Juwan’s upbringing and his place in the world.
“’Vent’ reminds me of when I was 13 writing lyrics in class while the teacher thought I was doing work,” Juwan said. “It’s 100% myself and my thoughts being channelled from my soul onto a page, and then onto a soft yet hard beat by my brother, SOLLYY. Unapologetically straight from the heart.”
Juwan has already dropped a couple of singles and two mixtapes, but this powerful song might just be the thing to catch the attention of the mainstream.
Image used with permission from Sony Music Australia
Magic was always going to happen when two of the greatest female voices in Australia’s heavy music scene collaborated. “Imposter,” the latest single from RedHook (fronted by Emmy Mack) and Yours Truly (fronted by Mikaila Delgado) is an epic break-up anthem. If you’ve been wronged my sisters, you’re going to want to turn the volume up on this one.
“There’s no head-fuck quite like discovering that the person you love most, and who you think you know better than anyone else, has been lying to you and manipulating you the entire time,” Emmy confirmed of the song’s inspiration. “At first, it feels like death, you grieve for the person you loved as if they’ve died, and yet somehow they still exist. It’s almost as if some kind of evil, alien life force has taken up residence inside their body and is walking around wearing their skin. Eventually, it causes you to question your own sanity; you question whether that person who meant so much to you ever really existed at all.
“This song was already so special to me and one of my absolute favourites off the record. We approached Mikaila to be involved because we love Yours Truly so much and thought her voice would sound amazing on the track. But what I didn’t realise was that she’d actually been going through an eerily similar situation to mine in her own personal life. We trauma-bonded a lot during the process of putting ‘Imposter’ together and the extra vocal parts and lyrics that Mikaila added still give me goosebumps every time! She took this song to a whole new dimension and I’m so grateful to her for it. This is our joint break-up anthem and we hope it empowers other people who’ve been through similar nightmarish bullshit to stay strong.”
The clip is the perfect accompaniment. If you love cult sci fi flicks like Species and Jennifer’s Body, you’re going to be all about this.
There are plenty of opportunities to see RedHook in the coming months, with the band joining Smashing Pumpkins’ The World is a Vampire Tour, headlining their own shows to support the recent release of their EP, Postcard From a Living Hell, and playing a couple of extra festivals. Get onto it fans!
The Australian Idol finale is becoming a distant memory, but Jessica Mauboy’s song “Right Here, Right Now” is still on regular repeat at my place. I was introduced to the song through Jessica’s performance on the show, and honestly it was one of the night’s real highlights. So given that Saturday evening, I figured it was about time I gave it some love here on Sounds of Oz.
“The only thing we can control in life is our present, and it’s a song that’s about finding peace and joy through accepting where you are now and leaning into it,” Jessica explained.
This is one of my favourite Jessica Mauboy tracks. Her voice is always strong, but hearing it soaring over those horns and keys is extra special. I also love those optimistic lyrics that remind us to embrace the now, warts and all.
Jessica will be back on our screens soon as part of The Voice Australia judging panel.
Image used with permission from Warner Music Australia
