Aussie expat Paul Roth is tapping into his rock roots for his latest single “Murals.” With his fourth single for the year, Roth is showcasing a heavier sound influenced by Foo Fighters and Gang of Youths. I enjoy his mellower material, but it’s so great to discover this edgier side.
The track is a personal one for Paul, recounting his life-changing decision to move from Australia’s Central Coast to Hong Kong. Its title references the lights that shine across Victoria Harbour and the melting pot of people and food he discovered across the ocean.
The year might be winding down, but Paul isn’t slowing up. He’ll follow the release of “Murals” with another new track, “You” in November.
The global pandemic hasn’t brought us a lot worth celebrating, but the creativity it’s inspired is a real silver lining. Melbourne was hit harder than most Aussie cities, but local soul singer JXCKY has turned lemons into lemonade with his latest single “Lockdown Lover.”
The track explores the idea of building emotional connections during this time when physical connections are so hard to find. It sounds like a bit of a throwback to the slow-jam glory days of the ‘90s, which is no negative at all. JXCKY’s falsetto is oh so smooth.
With a few more single releases slated for 2020’s remaining months and an album to follow next year, it sounds like we’ll be hearing a lot more from JXCKY.
Ella Belfanti wowed me a few years ago with her first collection of songs, Going in Circles. I saw her promise then, but it’s being fully realised with the release of her first material with her new band TYDE. The band features Ella, her younger sister Zoe, and another promising young talent Josh Garnett. With their debut release “Skin on Skin,” you can hear this trio has really got something special.
I can hear the influence of acts like Florence + The Machine and Matt Corby in this music, but it’s not so strong that it drowns out their originality. This song is so well-written and the musical arrangement absolutely captivating. It starts so small and intimate but builds to a beautiful, emotionally powerful crescendo.
Ella conceived the track while working as a ski instructor last year.
“During my third back-to-back winter amongst a very transient social set, I was feeling pretty lonely. After a few drinks on a big night out, I sought out connection in a way that usually wouldn’t be my style,” she admitted. “’Skin On Skin’ is about how it didn’t make me feel the way I wanted it to.”
The trio finished the arrangement in person, and you get a sense of that collaboration in the finished recording. While this is Ella’s story, you really get the sense that this is a band effort. The video, shot at Brisbane’s West End and Tambourine, is also visually stunning.
“The concept was to create this surreal space between the reality of going home the morning after a one-night stand, and the emotional rollercoaster that can happen in your head. We wanted to capture the process of reflecting on the experience – specifically in this story, on feeling detached and feeling strange in your own skin.”
Ella Belfanti has matured a lot as an artist since I was introduced to her music three years ago. She’s also surrounding herself with people who complement her talent so beautifully. After discovering this music from TYDE, I can’t wait to hear more.
When I heard Pierce Brothers had released a new track called “Dentist,” I was a little wary. Dentists do wonderful work, but like most Aussies, there are people I’d rather visit. Thankfully listening to the new Pierce Brothers track is much more relaxing than any root canal.
“After ‘Kanko’, we wanted to explore a deeper sound, and bring some harmonica back into the studio, which is something our recordings have been missing,” Jack said about the single. “This song was written during the first lockdown earlier in the year. I really wanted to step up my writing so, along with a friend of mine, I started doing a writing exercise every night. This song came out of one of those exercises. The word was Dentist. What flowed out was a reflection on the vulnerability we feel when things are out of our control and we don’t know what’s going to happen. That’s what the song is ultimately about, vulnerability. The dentist part is just a word.”
The folky ditty is complemented by a very 2020 video filmed entirely in Jack Pierce’s Melbourne living room.
“In the time of COVID there is not a whole lot we’ve been able to do shoot-wise. We couldn’t get locations, or extras, or even a real crew, so we had to improvise,” Pat recalled. “Carl and I have worked together on lots of projects before, and we have been talking for a while about teaming up again. It was great just getting back into filming beautiful scenes again and it seems fitting to have the clip be representative of this place in time. We included photos of our friends and family we’re missing to reflect the fact we were, in fact, stuck at home.”
Pierce Brothers have made the most of 2020, finishing the recording of their sophomore album and making music videos just like this. Pat Pierce has also been working with Balancing Act, a charity that connects artists with people with learning disabilities. Thank goodness for Zoom! The year might be winding down, but I hear the duo will still treat us to a few more tracks next year.
Image used with permission from On the Map PR
Central Coast country singer-songwriter Chelsea Berman has floored me with her powerful new single “Your Call.” It’s such a simple, moving piano ballad about being someone’s backup plan. The hurt and longing in this track is palpable.
“Working with Rod McCormack to produce the track, the outcome is exactly what I envisioned when writing the song,” she explained.
After releasing a string of sassy songs, “Your Call” is sure to stun fans. I for one think that’s a very good thing.
Central Coast family band Little Quirks have made my heart soar with their latest single “Florence’s Town.” It’s an epic folk-pop number which reminds me a little of something Mumford & Sons or The Lumineers might have made. However, the feminine touch of sisters Abbey and Mia and their cousin Jaymi helps set this track apart.
“Florence’s Town is a story of people searching to find a magical, fictional place called Florence’s Town. The characters within this story are trying to prove their worth and earn their way into the love and freedom this place holds. In a world where unfortunately everything and everyone can be judged, I wanted it to be an anthem of empowerment for everyone feeling like they don’t fit into the social ‘norm’,” Abbey explained.
“I started the idea of Florence’s Town on a train somewhere after hearing the name of another passenger was Florence, which I really loved. I sang a melody quietly into my phone hoping nobody on the train would hear. After I got home I wrote the whole story of these characters, interspersed with my own experiences. I listened to all my secret train recordings and put the rest of it all together that night.”
The music video brings the narrative to life, with a nod to The Wizard of Oz. As gigs start to return, there are few opportunities to see Little Quirks doing their thing. Catch them at the following venues next month.
6 November 2020 – Warners Bay Theatre, Warners Bay (supporting Shane Nicholson)
21 November 2020 – The Entrance Leagues Club, Bateau Bay
27 November 2020 – The Chippendale Hotel, Chippendale
28 November 2020 – Radio Waves: A Drive-In Concert @ Morisset Showground, Morisset
Image used with permission from Revolutions per Minute; credit: Charlotte Toole
If LANY and Jeff Buckley were ever to collaborate, I think they might write something like “Lover, Lover,” the latest track from Sydney duo Oh My My. This track is so fantastic, with a catchy chorus juxtaposed with dark and brooding verses. There’s so much yearning and nostalgia in those vocals. This is everything I didn’t realise I needed to hear on this gloomy Monday afternoon.
“There was an ease to writing this song that felt natural, necessary and pretty magic. Once Sam [Thomlinson] spit out the line, “Lover, Lover”, everything fell into place for me lyrically,” explained the other half of the duo, Tim Quaife. “Coincidentally, I was in the midst of a pretty traumatic breakup and processing some very intense emotions. It all just spilled out and by the time we were done it felt somewhat triumphant. As if I was putting a very firm stamp on a painful part of my life. Cathartic.”
The pair recorded the track at Sam’s Sydney home studio before Leon Zervos (Troye Sivan, Pekin Duk) weaved his magic at Studio 301. The band continued the creative process, with Sam making his directorial debut for the music video.
“The idea of the video was to reflect what happens in your head when you’re going through a reasonably fresh break-up. It’s hard not to imagine your ex-partner with someone else, and although it may be a little irrational, it’s often hard not to demonise them, as somewhat of a coping mechanism,” he explained.
Oh My My don’t have any gigs on the horizon, but hopefully it won’t be too long before we see them back in front of audiences again.
Perth band of brothers COTERIE have totally won my heart with their latest single “Say Goodbye.” This song is so good, with quality songwriting and haunting vocals that hit me right in the heart. By the time those harmonies kicked in, I was gone.
“We wrote this in our lounge-room with Hauskey – who is absolutely brilliant – and honestly, it was just a song that fell out. It all happened in about half an hour,” admitted Tyler, the band’s lead singer and vocalist. “It’s about the humanity of everything in this life. Nothing is forever … Saying goodbye is inevitable in a fleeting world. We wrote this song with that in mind; everyone knows this feeling – we all ‘Say Goodbye’ at some point.”
COTERIE filmed the song’s video inside a bus which the brothers bought as a potential tour bus once they can hit the road again. They started restoring it at the start of the global pandemic, and through the video you can see how far they’ve come.
When they’re not renovating buses, COTERIE have been putting together a live show that’s set to blow the socks off their growing fanbase. Check them out at the following shows, which are hopefully the first announcements of many for this band.
7 November 2020 – By the C Festival @ City Beach Park, Perth
16 January 2021 – Torchfest Sydney @ The Factory Theatre, Marrickville
Image used with permission from Island Records Australia
“Better Days” is an exciting new collaboration from Baker Boy, his regular musical partner Dallas Woods, and recent National Live Music Awards Best Live Act winner, Sampa the Great. The track, which incorporates English, Yolngu Matha, and Bemba dialects, was written in 2019. However, its release couldn’t be timed more perfectly.
This is just the kind of positive track about unity and getting through adversity we all need to hear during the pandemic. We might not be able to stop the rain, but at least if we’re together we’ll get through it.
“The whole studio time we had was amazing,” said Baker Boy. “The first time, seeing Sampa actually perform in the recording session, I got a surprise when she started singing. She’s got an amazing voice. I’ve always listened to her rap and to hear her sing, it was a whole other level. In the first part of Sampa’s verse, she’s rapping in language too, that inspires me as well.”
If you love the track, make sure you check out the cool Airwolf remix too.
I’ve been a fan of Melbourne’s Julia Lostrom since she dropped her very cool indie-pop track “Walls” earlier this year. That track featured Melbourne producer Duan. These guys work so well that Julia’s lent her vocals to Duan’s latest release “Care.”
There’s a similar chilled jazzy vibe to these tunes, but the addition of Simba Andrews really elevates the latest release I think. I love the way their voices intertwine, driving home that message of connection and looking out for one another that is so important right now. It also sounds so fresh, I can just imagine hearing it in some ultra-cool wine or cocktail bar. Man, I miss going to bars!
Hopefully Melbourne hears some good news soon and it won’t be too long before we can see these local talents doing their thing in person.
