What do you do when you discover your man has been two-timing you? Well if you’re Lucy Gallant, and you discover the other woman is fellow creative Ladi Abundance, you join forces and write a song about it. Their new neo-soul single “Mr” explores their collective feelings of hurt and betrayal along with their newfound bound.
“Obviously this was an awkward and challenging situation to find ourselves in, and we chose to channel the hurt into something positive and powerful,” Lucy said.
This track is a bit of a slow burner, but just wait until you get to the chorus. When that groove sets in and Lucy and Ladi’s voices combine, it’s absolute magic.
Boorloo/Perth-based indie-pop/rock act King Ibis have got my toes tapping with their latest single “Cooling Embers.” This song is just so effortlessly cool, with killer vocals from Nadene Burchell.
She says “‘Cooling Embers’ is about feeling disillusioned with pursuing a career as an artist and the moments of uncertainty. It also is about the drive to continue finding the things that make me feel inspired and connected to the people I get the opportunity to share the experience with.”
King Ibis have been doing big things in their home city, including opening for Coldplay late last year. Now music lovers on the other side of the country get the chance to see what they’re all about with their first East Coast tour kicking off tonight. That’s right Meeanjin/Brisbane, cancel all your plans because you won’t want to miss them!
Absolute force of nature Grace Cummings has just released “Common Man,” a fantastic bluesy number about daring to be different.
“This song is about being a colourful bird and never, ever wanting to be a pigeon,” she said. “Somebody I used to know wrote a song called common man about working nine to five and coming home and having a cup of tea and going to bed and it made me want to have a fucking panic attack. I wish I could tell people it was about riding off into the distance on the back of a white horse with a Cowboy in Austin Texas, but it’s not.”
“Common Man” is the latest single from Grace’s new album Ramona, which will be released on April 5. She’s just announced a string of headlining shows in the United States. After that she’ll head to the United Kingdom and Europe to play her own dates and support King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, but hopefully she’ll be back on home soil really soon.
When life starts getting on top of me, I can always count on the right music to calm me. If the daily grind is wearing you down too, make sure you listen to “As Well As I Do,” the beautiful debut single from Eora/Sydney singer-songwriter Lorenzo Guevarra. It’s a gorgeous acoustic folk number inspired by watching two uni friends in a volatile relationship realising they were better off apart.
“The song was written on acoustic guitar and has seen little change over the years,” Lorenzo said. “At the time of writing, I was obsessed with Passenger and loved his way of fingerpicking the melodic lines of his songs before the words came in … At the time of recording I was listening heavily to Damien Rice’s My Favourite Faded Fantasy record and drew some inspiration from its production, particularly the orchestral arrangement of the tracks. The string section ideas came organically as we kept replaying what we had. The song’s melody left much space to experiment so we didn’t have to force anything.”
Debut singles are rarely this strong. Rest assured, Lorenzo is definitely one to watch.
Photo credit: Tom Southey
Naarm/Melbourne singer-songwriter Lara Villani has just dropped her fabulous new single, “Ghost of You.” It’s got more of a rock edge than her debut “STOP”, so make sure you crank it up. If you’ve ever had to pick yourself up after someone broke your trust, I know this track will resonate with you.
“This song was really fun to write and it reflects a journey of healing and self-discovery after experiencing the haunting echoes of past relationships and betrayal,” Lara said.
The single’s accompanied by a visually stunning music video directed by Mertcan Damoglu and produced by Caleb Keyte from Tier One Productions.
“In the music video I am portraying a figment of someone’s imagination,” Lara explained. “So many times when you’re in a toxic relationship you can have your blinkers on, but there’s always that little voice in your head telling you to get out. I wanted to portray this in a visual way for the song.”
With two songs out in the world, Lara assures us that she’ll step onto the stage for the very first time really soon. Keep an eye on her socials for all the details on that when they drop.
I’m buzzing over the release of Between You & Me’s latest single “In the Middle.” This pop-rock ticks all the boxes, delivering big chords, relatable will-they-won’t they relationship lyrics, and a hook that refuses to quit.
“In the Middle” is the latest single from Between You & Me’s forthcoming EP, SH!T YEAH, which drops on April 5. The lads are currently wowing crowds across North America, but they’ll be back to play headlining shows on home soil in May. Make sure you see them anywhere you can!
Listening to ‘pocket protector’, the latest single from Alexander Biggs has reminded me just how good he is. I’m not sure whether it’s just new song euphoria talking, but this beautiful understated piano ballad might just be his best yet.
The lyrics, which explore the conflict in a relationship between two people with contrasting lifestyles, are so bittersweet. And then there’s that deceptively simple piano melody which just sweeps you away as it builds to a sonic crescendo. I could not love this more.
Alexander is currently in Austin for SXSW, but hopefully it won’t be too long before he’s back home treating us all to more music of this calibre.
CMC Rocks 2024 kicks off tonight! While international acts like Lainey Wilson and Chris Young will grab the headlines, I’m music more interested in up-and-coming local talents like Josh Setterfield. He’s just released a cool new party anthem “Something That You Just Might Like” which is perfect for the occasion.
“I wrote a pretty laidback party track to get myself out of writer’s block, I played it at some shows and people went WILD for it, singing along before it had even ended,” he said. “It’s been the best response I’ve EVER had for an unreleased song and people have said it reminds them of early Florida Georgia Line vibes. Bro country revival 2024, what’s good!? Haha!”
Josh will play the tailgate stage at CMC Rocks 2024 tonight exclusively for campers before taking the event’s main stage on March 17.
Naarm/Melbourne singer-songwriter Angus Legg continues to impress with the release of his latest single “Drugs With My Friends.” Longtime readers will have heard me heaping praise on Angus’ music before … get ready to hear me do it all again. This song’s got a little more of an indie-pop vibe, but it’s anchored by the incredible lyrics that drew me in to Angus’ music. This track acts as a companion piece to “Spaceship,” which Angus released last year.
“‘Spaceship’ is about the sorrow surrounding the earliest stages of my breakup, whilst ‘Drugs With My Friends’ is representative of the genesis of my healing journey. The part where I realised I could begin to be myself again, reclaim my autonomy and freedom, simultaneously learning new things about myself,” Angus explained. “This is the exciting part of the healing journey with a chaotic counterpart, it can often be emotionally overwhelming and lonely, but mostly it’s playful and expressive.”
This is another stunner from Angus Legg. If he’s not already on your radar, he should be.
Meeanjin/Brisbane trio Fingerless have just dropped their epic new rock track “Yes Today.” This song has been a staple of the band’s live set for years, and now we finally get the chance to hear it in all its glory. Fingerless fans will notice it’s a little more mellow than the way the band play it on stage, but this take actually strikes the balance between the live version and the original home-recorded demo.
“The song is about being in emotional turmoil,” says Marc Cheeseman, the band’s lead vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter. “Going through something, but finding it really difficult to put that into words, to actually tell someone. “This line from Bram Stoker’s Dracula kept coming back to me while writing it – something about a ‘painted ship in a painted ocean’, it just fit so well and I felt that it summed up the feeling I was trying to put into the song.”
“Yes Today” is a classic psychedelic-inspired rocker that refuses to conform to modern standards. It’s been far too long since I’ve heard a rock track that runs longer than six minutes and has a killer guitar solo. I’m here for it.
