If you’ve ever lost a loved one to dementia, you might need the tissues for Alana Wilkinson’s latest single “Shine Through”. It’s a beautiful snapshot of moments she spent with her grandmother through the years, the lessons she learned along the way, and the ties that bound them together.
“My grandmother was a complete legend and we shared a really special connection,” Alana said. “No matter how old I got, we played piano together, baked, danced, made puppets and painted pictures.”
Alana’s preparing to release an album and tour the country to support it. Until then, I’ll have this song on repeat. It’s gorgeous.
You’d be forgiven for mistaking “2010”, the latest single from Naarm/Melbourne-based band RADIO FREE ALICE, for a long-lost recording from The Cure or New Order. It’s got such a cool retro vibe that will transport you right back to those angsty new wave bands of decades past. Rather than shying away from their influences, the band are proud to pay tribute to the acts that have made a mark on the song’s sound.
“We’ve been playing the song live for almost a year now. Musically we were influenced by early The Cure and The Smiths.,” they said. “The song focuses on the instrumentation rather than the vocals more than any other track on the EP. It’s the first and only song we have with a pretty much totally instrumental chorus.”
RADIO FREE ALICE are currently making waves in the United Kingdom and Europe. If you’re living abroad, you can catch them at one of the following shows.
I know I’m a bit late to the party, but have we all listened to Fanning Dempsey National Park’s debut single “Disconnect” yet? The brainchild of Bernard Fanning and Paul Dempsey, I thought this new act was likely to be good, but I didn’t quite prepare myself for how good. Clearly, because otherwise I absolutely would have listened sooner! I’m going to be bold and say it might just be better than anything either of them have released before.
“We agreed straight away there’s no point doing something together if it’s going to be what people think it’s going to be,” Paul explained. “It’s not the two of us with acoustic guitars singing campfire songs.”
Bernard says “Disconnect” is about “The idea of having to walk away from something that you love because it’s become unmanageable. ‘Disconnect’ always had a lot of ‘serious moonlight’ energy, right from its beginnings. The swapping lead vocal plays with the idea of connecting and disconnecting by juxtaposing the confidence/ indecision with each consecutive line. We originally wanted to use sax on everything. After we roughly finished a demo we’d say, ‘What else does it need?’ The answer was inevitably more sax.”
That fantastic saxophone comes courtesy of Ron Dziubla, one of the world’s best session musicians. If that name doesn’t mean anything to you, just take a look at some of the music he’s played on. Tracks from Chris Isaak, Ricky Martin, Christina Aguilera, George Benson, The Crystal Method, and heaps more.
This is just a taster of all the exciting stuff in store for Fanning Dempsey National Park. They’ll release an album, The Deluge, on August 2, which I can’t wait to hear after playing this single obsessively (seriously, I’ve played nothing else since I started writing this article). They’re also heading around the country playing capital city shows in intimate theatres. Tickets are on sale now and probably won’t last long once everyone hears this track!
I’m rocking out this morning to “And the Fleas,” the angsty new single from Meeanjin/Brisbane act Bad Neighbour. It’s got a rebellious punk rock feel that reminds me of American act Hot Mulligan, who they toured with earlier this year.
Bad Neighbour will celebrate the release of “And the Fleas” with a big hometown show at The Outpost tomorrow night, June 7. With support from local legends Talk Heavy and Verum, it’s sure to be a great night of music.
Naarm/Melbourne-based artist Parmy Dhillon celebrates his late father’s legacy with his joyous new single “India.” I guarantee this one will at least put a smile on your face, if it doesn’t have you up and dancing.
“The song was written as a tribute and reminder to myself after my father passed away, to always remember my culture and who I am,” Parmy explained.
“India” is Parmy’s first release of 2024, and I think it might just be his best work. I’m looking forward to hearing what else the year has in store for him.
When I heard The Buoys had co-written a song with Alex Lahey, I knew it was going to be good. The band’s latest single “Check Mate” doesn’t disappoint. Take a listen to this awesome track which shows The Buoys in top form.
Tas Wilson directed the music video, which captures the energy of a road trip with friends, mirroring the longing for connection that you hear through the song.
“Check Mate” gives us our first taste of The Buoys debut album Lustre, which will be released on July 12. You can pre-order a vinyl copy online. It was all recorded live, so I imagine it’s going to deliver everything we love about The Buoys. Before it drops, you can see The Buoys supporting Luke Hemmings at the following shows
If Reckless Coast felt any nerves recording their debut EP, they don’t show. Naked & Famous is a confident rock release that declares this band from Meeanjin/Brisbane have arrived.
Many acts ease listeners into their EPs by putting familiar songs up first, but not Reckless Coast. The opening track “Runnin’” is brand new, and utterly irresistible. From the vocal intro, I was in. Inspired by a Matthew McConaughey speech, it’s got a Foo Fighters energy that makes it feel accessible from the first listen.
The track provides a natural segue to “Bad Habits,” the first single I heard from this EP. It’s a natural fit for this release, bold and dripping in swagger. “Dying Town” shows Reckless Coast at their most angsty and most poetic. “Burn Street” is another familiar single that still sounds so fresh. I’d forgotten how much I loved this nostalgic tribute to sharehouse living. “Burn Street” is an affectionate number, but a rock act can’t stay in that space for too long. So it’s only fitting that they put the finger up with this EP’s final track, “People Piss Me Off.” As we all slog through the working week, I’ll bet I’m not the only one this track resonates with!
“Naked & Famous is the perfect representation of what we are as a band,” Reckless Coast said in a statement. “It’s an authentic and unapologetic take on rock that unites both retro and indie-rock lovers. Each track has a personality of its own to create a diverse, yet sonically cohesive work. For so long now the rock genre has been diluted with worn-out clichéd approaches both sonically and visually. Naked & Famous proves that it can be done differently.”
After recently wrapping up an East Coast tour, Reckless Coast will continue celebrating the release of Naked & Famous with a show at Hunting Ground Studios in Jagera Country/Moorooka, where they recorded this EP, this Friday, June 7. Pay what you can afford tickets are on sale now from Eventbrite.
If you thought nu metal was done, think again. Boorloo/Perth act Indigo Blaze are continuing to fly the flag for the genre with their latest track “CRITICAL HIT.” If you were all about Limp Bizkit and Korn back in the day, you’re going to eat this one up.
“Lyrically, the track comments on believing in yourself even when others don’t and being determined to push through and fight back the critics. As always, though, with Rhys’ unique style of wordcraft with some video game references thrown in. ‘Bring you back to the menu soundtrack’ – calls out to the old arcade days when you beat your opponent,” the band explained. “All in all, for us, this song is a sly and not too serious shot back at the critics who doubt what we’ve been creating when the crowd and vibe we generate at our shows say different.
I wouldn’t have called myself a nu metal fan back in the day, but this song is making me all nostalgic for this kind of music. It’s not going to work for everyone, just like the music of this genre at the time, but I’m thrilled these guys are bringing back this sound.
If it wasn’t already abundantly clear, I love Avoca Beach Theatre. It’s such a charming venue committed to showcasing the country’s best artists. It doesn’t hurt that it’s also less than half an hour from my house. So even though I already had tickets for Richard Clapton on Friday night, when Jason Singh’s show was moved to the Saturday I held on to my tickets. I’m still young enough to back up, right? At least I am if they’re local!
I must admit, for a while there I wasn’t sure whether the gig would happen. There was that postponement, and I wondered whether slow ticket sales were to blame. When I checked in on the seating chart a couple of days before the gig, less than a third of the venue’s 280 seats sold. With torrential rains on the night, there were plenty of no-shows. However, rather than lacking in atmosphere, this was probably the most electric gig I’ve witnessed at the venue.
Support act Brett Wood got a warm reaction for his bluesy originals. He was good. Really good. The sort of good that’s worked with Tommy Emmanuel and Stevie Ray Vaughan’s drummer good. The sort of good that leaves me impressed by his guitar prowess, even though I’ve seen masters like Prince, Carlos Santana, Brian May, and Mr Emmanuel live. He knows how to play, but he’s also an exceptional songwriter. He’s got such a magnetic presence too. I found myself hanging on to his every word as he told stories about his career and songs. He’s the sort of guy who deserves to be at the front of the stage every night, so I was a little surprised to see him slotting into Jason Singh’s band when he finished his own set.
As I mentioned, this was an intimate gig even by Avoca Beach Theatre standards. But as Jason reminded us all, he didn’t care about the people who didn’t show up; he cared about the ones that did. Right attitude. Those that did show up were some of the most enthusiastic I’ve been amongst. They came from as far as Meeanjin/Brisbane and were up and dancing in the aisles from the first couple of songs. They knew every word of every song, not just the big Taxiride singles but the solo originals from Hummanequin. They even brought him cakes with his face on them to celebrate the 25th birthday of Imaginate!
As the show unfolded, I understood why they were so dedicated. I’d seen Jason play on board P&O’s 90s cruise in January and marvelled at his enthusiasm and energy, but the show reached another level here in Darkinjung Country/Avoca Beach. Here he was amongst people who celebrated the breadth of his artistry, not just those hits. The show celebrated his full discography, Taxiride music, original solo material, and the covers close to his heart that formed his Heaven’s Greatest Hits shows a couple of years ago. I can be a harsh critic when it comes to people covering Bowie, but his section featuring some of the Thin White Duke’s biggest hits was amazing.
While it seemed like most of the crowd would be happy for Jason to sing anything, I relished hearing big hits like “Get Set” and “Everywhere You Go.” Jason’s assembled a brilliant band who help him replicate the harmonies Taxiride were famous for. It’s a good thing too, given the bad blood between Jason and his former bandmates. He alluded to the drama a few times, clearly stung by the way things turned out. However, watching him sharing the stage with his new brothers, it seems he’s embracing this new chapter in his musical story.
This show was probably one of the loosest I’ve been to. I mentioned that when I saw Ian Moss recently it felt like that traditional divide between artist and audience vanished. This show took that up a notch, literally removing the divide as Jason jumped down from the stage to dance with his fans and share the microphone with them. On spying my phone on my lap, he told me he wouldn’t continue the show until I started following him on Instagram. Of course, I had to oblige. He encouraged us all to mimic his drummer’s hip-thrusting dance moves during “Roadhouse Blues”. It was a wild night, but fabulously fun. I must admit, like so many people I considered piking when the rain started pelting down. I even might have if we weren’t meeting friends for the gig. But I’m so glad I pushed through because I’m sure it’ll be one of my most memorable concerts this year.
When I was a teenager, I was desperate to get into bars. I didn’t want to drink; I just wanted to see live music. Sadly opportunities to see bands outside local pubs and clubs were few and far between, and it’s still the case today. So I’m thrilled to see Ixara Dorizac, known as ixaras, is taking matters into her own hands. Not content with just making some incredible indie-rock music, the 16-year-old prodigy has launched her own label, Anti Dismal, to break down barriers and make live music more accessible for people of all ages.
“I, myself, have been limited from experiencing live music, and I just think that’s ridiculous. Kids need to hear and experience live things. They’re hormonal, and they need an outlet,” she said, and hell yes they do.
Anti Dismal aims to create, distribute, and promote music and manage and organise safe and engaging all-ages gigs. The label’s already partnered with DistroDirect in order to amplify its reach and impact.
“We’re thrilled to partner with DistroDirect,” Ixara said. “Together, we will continue to champion the importance of youth access to live music and provide a platform for emerging artists to thrive.”
