“Bulimic” by Sydney rock act Spookyland is a prime example of the reason I don’t make snap decisions about the music I listen to. When I first hit play, I was put off by the vocals. Honestly, Marcus Gordon has one of those voices grates on me.
But beyond that, there’s a lot to love about this song and as I sat with it for its epic six minutes that’s what came to the fore. It sounds incredible. And the lyrics are superb, meaty and poetic.
“Bulimic is mostly a song about social friction I think, when there’s chaos in your mind, there’s a certain impulse to hurl the whole thing into the toilet bowl to find some kind of self-esteem, but this kind of program is basically doomed. Bulimia of one’s humanity…” Marcus explained in the press release.
So take a listen. Even if you’re not sure at first, stick with it. I promise you this song will reward your patience.
Watching Rage of a Saturday morning has been one of my favourite rituals for almost as long as I can remember. I love the unique mix of brand new stuff and classics. One of the newer tracks that has caught my attention the last couple of weekends is “Tourists” from Melbourne singer-songwriter Olympia. Her voice is just sublime, and the song is ridiculously catchy.
Olympia will celebrate the release of “Tourists” with a show at Shebeen in Melbourne on November 24 and another a Darlinghurst’s Oxford Circus on December 3.
Kiwi rockers Villainy have been dominating across the ditch, selling out shows and shooting to number four on the charts with their new album Dead Sight, which features the ballsy new single “Safe Passage.” Now it’s time for Australia to see what the buzz is all about.
Villainy will join our own Jerrico and Sydonia for shows in the major capitals this November. This is the first time the quartet’s been in Australia since Bigsound in 2013, and who knows how long it’ll be before they make it to our shores again. If you like your music loud, make sure you don’t miss these shows.
13 November 2015 – The Zoo, Brisbane
14 November 2015 – Factory Theatre, Marrickville (with Majora)
20 November 2015 – Prince Bandroom, St Kilda (with Majora and Gatherer)
21 November 2015 – Jive Bar, Adelaide (with Colibrium and Baltimore Poet. Sydonia now appearing)
There’s nothing like a little 80s inspired electro-pop to wake me up in the morning. This Humpday slice comes courtesy of Adelaide duo Nakatomi and their latest single “The Knife.”
“The Knife is about the downward spiral of bad experiences or relationships, but choosing to see some beauty in the fall rather than getting consumed by it,” lead vocalist Emily Smart explained in the press release. “We worked with Badcop (Tkay Maidza) on the sound design and sought out Melbourne producer-engineer, Jimi Maroudas (Kimbra, Bertie Blackman) to produce and mix, and tracking was done at the amazing Chapel Lane Studios in Adelaide.”
She also explained a little about the very cool retro film clip.
“We had this idea to go with a sci-fi 80s vibe for this clip, so we contacted a great local film director named Aaron Schuppan and set him the challenge to create something inspired by movies such as Blade Runner,” she said. “Thankfully Aaron was just as excited about this idea as we were and proposed that our film clip take the form of a movie trailer for an amazing, lost tech-noir film from the 80s, but something with genuine emotion at its core. Aaron threw together a crazy script, and our only thought was, if he can pull this off, this is going to be epic!”
And epic it is! Now given their love for all things 80s, it’s hardly surprising that Nakatomi took their name from Nakatomi Plaza in the Die Hard flicks. However, the duo’s quick to point out that it’s also the ancestral name of the great Fujiwara clan.
Nakatomi will be hitting the road in just a couple of days to promote “The Knife.” Here are all the places you can see them do their thing.
30 October 2015 – Rocket Bar, Adelaide
20 November 2015 – Pow! @ Mynt Lounge, Werribee
22 November 2015 – The Toff in Town, Melbourne
26 November 2015 – Oxford Art Gallery Bar, Darlinghurst
Patrick James is currently keeping company with The Paper Kites, but it won’t be too long before we see him headlining his own shows around the country. It’s all in support of Outlier, Patrick’s brand new LP which features the fantastic singles “California Song” and “Bugs.”
This tour will be James’ first largescale headline tour in almost two years, so it’s a real must-see for fans. Tickets are on sale now for the following shows.
19 February 2016 – The Foundry, Brisbane
25 February 2016 – Workers Club, Geelong
26 February 2016 – Howler, Melbourne
27 February 2016 – Anita’s Theatre, Wollongong
4 March 2016 – The Basement, Sydney
5 March 2016 – Transit Bar, Canberra
12 March 2016 – Lizotte’s, Newcastle
18 March 2016 – Pirie & Co Social Club, Adelaide
19 March 2016 – Jimmy’s Den, Perth
Sydney band The Ruckus is the latest act to put their talents towards mental health initiatives in support of Mental Health Month. Their latest single “Steady Hands” is a melodic slice of hard rock with a wonderful message of empowerment that should resonate whether you’re dealing with mental health issues or not.
The cause is close to The Ruckus’ heart, as the band has personally faced the challenges that depression and other mental health concerns can bring.
All proceeds from the sale and streaming of “Steady Hands” will benefit the HeadSpace initiative, which provides early intervention mental health services to young people in need. So if you like what you hear, please head over to iTunes and download it to support this great cause.
As I browsed through the list of ARIA nominees a couple of days ago, there wasn’t too much that got me really excited. The usual suspects were represented, and there were very few curveballs. However, when I spied Citizen Kay’s nomination for Demokracy, I broke into a wide smile. The best urban album category is incredibly competitive, but I’d love if this talented act came away with the win.
While ARIA is acknowledging his last body of work, Citizen Kay is looking forward with the release of With the People, his first long-player, which hits stores on October 16. The album features the killer new single “Wax On Wax Off.” You can hear this song and other choice cuts from the new album, as well as some old favourites, when Citizen Kay kicks off his national tour later this month.
22 October 2015 – Bar on the Hill, Newcastle
23 October 2015 – Shebeen, Melbourne
24 October 2015 – Republic Bar, Hobart
30 October 2015 – ANU Bar, Canberra
6 November 2015 – Cats, Adelaide
11 November 2015 – Sosueme @ Beach Road Hotel, Bondi (FREE)
13 November 2015 – Black Bear Lodge, Brisbane
14 November 2015 – Sol Bar, Maroochydore
26 November 2015 – Goodgod Small Club, Sydney
5 December 2015 – Jack Rabbit Slims, Perth
Melbourne rock act Society of Beggars are back with a brand new single “Terrible Rain.”
I love the way this track builds to a bold crescendo. Frontman Yianni Michalopoulous’ soulful vocals drew me in on the band’s debut single “Hyena,” but I think they’re even stronger on this track. You just see if you’re not punching your fist in the air by the end.
Society of Beggars will launch the single for hometown fans at Shebeen tonight, October 8. Tickets are available on the door and bundled with a free download of “Terrible Rain.”
Music is in Quang Dinh’s veins. Bored during some downtime from his band Naked Bodies, he decided to launch his solo project QD to “keep banging the music.” He’s come up with a real guilty pleasure with his new single “Oedipus Rex.” It’s very rough around the edges, but there’s just something about this kooky psychedelic cut that makes me smile.
Quang tells me that the song’s about a king, Oedipus, who’s addicted to online porn. It comes with one of the most original and out there videos I’ve seen in some time.
“Oedipus Rex” is the lead single from Quang’s new EP Wiseman Beggar Yellow Hobo.
An awful lot of time has passed since Short Stack first burst onto our scene and made all the girls squeal as they’re doing over 5SOS right now. So you might not realise that these Central Coast lads are only getting better. Their new single “Gravity” shows a maturity that only comes with a few more years out in the world.
“Gravity” is the first cut from Short Stack’s new album Homecoming (currently in stores), which has a fitting title considering it coincides with their return to the Australian scene after they relocated to London in late 2014. That decision saw them connecting with legendary British producer Chris Kimsey [The Rolling Stones, Peter Frampton, The Cult].
“We wrote this for about three years, and it’s the record that we’ve always wanted to make,” Shaun Diviney said in a press release. “It’s really raw, it’s really live, there’s not much production, and that means that when we play it live, it comes to life, translates.”
Given the lack of flashy production, we can expect the songs to sound amazing in the live arena. We’ll get a chance to do just that when Short Stack play shows all around the country this summer.
11 December 2015 – Brothers Leagues Club, Cairns (ALL AGES)
12 December 2015 – The Venue, Townsville (ALL AGES)
13 December 2015 – Mackay Entertainment Centre Foyer, Mackay (ALL AGES)
13 January 2016 – Prince Bandroom, Melbourne (ALL AGES)
14 January 2016 – HQ, Adelaide (ALL AGES)
16 January 2016 – Astor Theatre, Perth (ALL AGES)
30 January 2016 – The Metro Theatre, Sydney (ALL AGES)
6 February 2016 – The Tivoli, Brisbane (ALL AGES)