South African born and Australian raised, queer Eora/Sydney-based singer-songwriter Jordy Burns has made a massive impression on me with her debut single “Walls.” Yes, that’s right, debut single. I want to emphasise that, because this is one of those tracks delivered with such heart and confidence that you’d swear she has an exhaustive back catalogue if you didn’t know better.
“‘Walls’ is about heartbreak and broken trust,” Jordy admitted. “A person I was seeing convinced me that I was safe to open my heart and that they wanted what I wanted. As it turns out, as soon as I let down my guard, they all too quickly realised that they weren’t ready to move on from their last relationship. In saying that, they continued to stay with me and we made a mess of things… it was a rollercoaster, to say the least.”
Jordy will celebrate the release of “Walls” with a hometown show at Tokio Hotel on April 6.
Friday might be still too far away, but I think it’s always a good time for dancing. If you agree, you’ll want to take some time to cut loose listening to Sophian’s new track “Dance With Me.” This is an irresistible cut from a band that’s quickly establishing themselves as one of Boorloo/Perth’s hottest up-and-coming acts.
“When I started to write this song, I had just come out of deep conversations with two people I really love, about their feelings of their own self-worth and how they were struggling to see that,” explained frontman Sophian Manik of the song’s inspiration. “I wanted them to know how amazing and special they are and how they just needed a little push to know this.”
Sophian have some big things in the pipeline, with some choice local supports, slots at Nannup Music Festival and Booty Block Party, their first East Coast tour, and a big single launch party all happening over the next few weeks. Get out and support them anywhere you can.
Eora/Sydney-based singer-songwriter Jamieson is kicking off a big year with the release of his latest single “Cruel.” It’s a charming pop-rock track that explores the way that time encourages us to look back and see our flaws in technicolour.
This is somewhat of a comeback single for Jamieson, who took time away from releasing music last year. He’s coming back with a vengeance though; “Cruel” is the first of five singles Jamieson plans to release this year.
Between You & Me are one of the best pop-punk acts around, so I’m pretty psyched to hear they’ve got a whole bunch of new music coming our way. They’ve just dropped their latest single “In the Middle,” which offers a taste of what’s in store when they release their new EP SH!T YEAH on April 5.
“‘In The Middle’ is about the realisation that your relationship is over,” said vocalist JT. “The strong joy and excitement you once brought to each other’s lives had been replaced with fighting, bitterness and a complete breakdown in communication. Even despite this, you both yearn for it to work out and dream of the better times. You break up, you get back together, and the cycle continues, despite both recognising you had grown apart as people and the trust for each other was irreparable. The song encapsulates the slow breakdown of a relationship and the acceptance in moving on.”
Between You & Me seem set for global domination. They’re currently playing gigs in the United Kingdom and will head to North America in March to headline shows on the continent for the very first time. Hopefully it won’t be too long before we see them back on Aussie soil. Until then, international readers, make sure you check them out at a venue near you.
Chinese-Australian artist Laius has just dropped his latest single “i hope they cried for me,” and it’s probably the most powerful pop release you’ll hear all year. This incredibly personal song sees Laius exploring the raw emotions he still feels after being given up by his parents as a child. His heartbreaking words sit against a cinematic electronic pop soundscape that might just have you dabbing away your own tears by the end.
“Pain bears the fruit of art and this record is the truest, rawest testament to that,” Laius said.
Take a moment to properly listen to “i hope they cried for me.” It’s one of those really special songs that deserves to be more than simply background music for your day.
Most of us have struggled with the feeling that we’re not measuring up. We worry we’re not meeting the expectations family or society places on us, or we see what others achieve and wonder why we’re lagging behind. If you’ve let feelings of self-doubt creep in, “Don’t Compare Yourself,” the latest single from My Chérie, will help you change the tape on that negative self-talk and start accepting and embracing your unique identity. The Tarntanya/Adelaide based artist grew up in conservative South Africa, and found herself grappling with cultural Afrikaans pressure, her Christian faith, and her queer identity.
“In my personal life, my art has allowed me to break free of the conformity of my religion, cultural background and the confinement of being put in a box – either as a Christian or as a Queer person,” she explained.
I love the message, but also the delivery here. My Chérie’s voice is beautiful, and I love the way it sits in this gorgeous soundscape she’s created. If there is a heaven, I imagine it’s got to sound something like this.
Image used with permission from Pretty Good Thanks
Jebediah seem to be aging like a fine wine. I wasn’t always a fan of their earlier material, but their latest track “Motivation” is right up my alley. It comes from the Jebs new album OIKS, their first since 2011, which drops on April 12.
“’Motivation’ was a song that came from the initial in studio jam sessions that kick started the process of recording OIKS,” the band said. “At that stage, we didn’t really know what kind of album we were trying to make. We were simply getting together in a room and making noise and seeing what eventuated. Given that ‘Motivation’ came from these sessions, it’s a very ‘band’ sounding song, as opposed to some of the more experimental stuff that came along later during the recording process. It captures the sound of the band playing in a room together and we tried not to embellish it too much. This song is a bit of a band favourite for sure, so we are obviously excited about it being released as a single before the album appears.”
“The video clip is intended to represent the simplicity of the song and the fact that we were trying to capture the raw sound of the band playing in a room together,” they added. “The video was shot in Melbourne by Arlo Cook who has been following us around with a camera since 2015, taking footage at shows all around Australia. We can’t wait for everyone to hear OIKS soon. It was a labour of love that took us five years to complete, often during extremely turbulent times.”
Jebediah has just played Spring Loaded, but I’d be very surprised if we don’t see a few more show announcements when the album’s released. Until then, turn this new single up!
William Drummond, the bassist for British India, is now making music under a new moniker Heartbeatz. His latest single “Heavyweight” is a really cool indie-rock track which brings the pub scene of Naarm/Melbourne to life with its vivid lyrics. I’m not sure when I last heard such a well-crafted song.
“This is my ode to hospitality,” William explained. “To the unbreakable friendships made, nights that seem to drag on forever and others that disappear in the blink of an eye. To the feelings of stagnation and yearning, to hot blooded heartbreak. To all the people who fight vehemently for us even when we are bringing them down.”
“Heavyweight” comes from the first Heartbeatz album Memory::Loss, which gets released on March 22.
I’m getting so excited about the glut of great pop music coming from local female artists at the moment. “We’re Not Really Strangers,” from Naarm/Melbourne artist POLLY, is the latest to get me buzzing.
“I wrote this song to process that weird feeling when you reconnect with someone from the past that you once knew inside out, and then time passes by, and all of a sudden they’re a stranger again – but like, not really? And you both are awkward and not sure how to navigate the strangers but not really territory,” POLLY explained.
This track is so incredible, it’s hard to believe it’s only POLLY’s second release. Expect to hear big things from this awesome local talent in the coming year.
“Say Goodbye” has long been a live favourite for Concrete Gold fans, and now the Cavanbah/Byron Bay act are unleashing it on the public. This is a straight up rocker which manages to celebrate the band’s alternative rock influences while sounding fresh as a daisy.
“’Say Goodbye’ came together after I had been practicing a cover we would often play, called ‘Reptilia’ by ‘The Strokes’,” frontman Cameron Lockwood explained. “The main chorus hook of the song provides a similar rhythm and tonal characteristic used by the popular New York band. The rest of the song was then put together in a demo before finalizing the song with lyrics and structure through pre-production at Red Star Music.”
“Say Goodbye” is the second single from Concrete Gold’s debut album Burning Out, which will drop on March 23rd. They’ll launch the album at Tomcat in Meeanjin/Brisbane on March 30.
