Posts Tagged ‘Australia’

TROPICAL FUCK STORM – ” Braindrops “

Posted: January 14, 2020 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
Tags: , , , , , , ,
0

TFS_01.jpg

Highly anticipated second album, 1.5 years after their critically acclaimed debut LP. If the end times are coming, we’re grateful to be spending them with the carnage of Tropical Fuck Storm’s sophomore album, “Braindrops”. The band have outdone themselves this time around (no small task following their incredible debut) making something that both captures the chaos of our real world and serves cynical narratives of a future and past that never were, corrupting the corrupt into imaginative despair and colorful mayhem that always reads as poetic. The album’s title track opens with the band’s manipulated sounds and a nimble groove that eventually devolves into the unhinged with layered percussion, soulful breaks, and all the mangled narrative poetics of Gareth Liddiard at his best: “you’re like a snake with its arse up its head man, stop thinking / its enough dealing with this heat and stink / school bus, street pus, the crushed skulls of a watermelons / flowing down a drain the colour of indian ink.”

Featuring members of the now-defunct band The Drones.

Recommend If You Like: King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard, Nick Cave, The Slits, Protomartyr, The Drones, Gang of Four, IDLES.

“I’ve invented fake news as a genre of music,” Gareth Liddiard observes with a laugh. Heʼs talking about “Maria 63”, the closing track on Tropical Fuck Stormʼs sophomore LP ‘Braindrops’. The song takes aim at the once-marginalized alt-right conspiracy theories that now seem to be a driving force behind the rise of fascism in global politics. “It may be the most stupid song ever written,” Liddiard jokes. Heʼs wrong, “Maria 63” is emblematic of Tropical Fuck Stormʼs keen ability to mine the extreme edge of pop cultureʼs periphery for potent musical and conceptual spice.

Tropical Fuck Storm were formed around 2017 in the city of Melbourne, Victoria along Australiaʼs south-eastern coast. The band released their debut long-player A Laughing Death in Meatspace on Joyful Noise Recordings in 2018. Each of the bandʼs four members bring considerable experience to the group. Liddiard and Fiona Kitschin were part of the long-running and critically-acclaimed act The Drones, while Erica Dunn and Lauren Hammel have performed in a variety of well-received projects. Perhaps itʼs that wealth of rock and roll experience that allows Tropical Fuck Storm to so expertly deconstruct and distort the genreʼs norms. “Everything we do, we try to do it in a weird way. The whole album is full of weird beats, and just weird shit everywhere,” Liddiard explains. He cites Doc at the Radar Station-era Captain Beefheart as a key sonic touchstone, and Braindrops certainly shares the Captainʼs penchant for pounding abstract grooves. Tropical Fuck Storm have achieved a uniquely off-kilter sound on Braindrops Liddiard partly credits this to the groupʼs use of unconventional equipment, “We use lots of techno gear to make rock and roll because rock and roll gear is boring, and all sounds like Led Zeppelin.” Liddiardʼs own description of Tropical Fuck Stormʼs sound is nearly as interesting and evocative as the music itself. He describes the LPʼs title track as “Fela Kuti in a car crash,” and talks of creating a sonic atmosphere that “sounds like chloroform smells” for “Maria 62”.

Tropical Fuck Storm is Gareth Liddiard, Fiona Kitschin, Lauren Hammel and Erica Dunn.

http://

A recurring theme on Braindrops concerns the various ways the human brain can be manipulated and controlled for exploitative gain. The bracing “The Planet of Straw Men” is a study of human behavior inside the social media comments section, a place where otherwise reasonable people are seen gleefully engaging in psychotic chest-thumping rhetoric. Listening to Braindrops is a jarring and exhilarating experience, full of pulsating grooves, dissonant experimentation, and unsettling dystopian plot-lines.

Braindrops is an unrelenting work, from an unrelenting musical ensemble. “Tropical Fuck Storm is a full on thing,” Liddiard offers. “Everything we do, we do it to death.”

releases August 23rd, 2019

Tropical Fuck Storm play everything except the violins, happy apples, nylon string chalk guitar and soviet space organ on MARIA 62, MARIA 63, and DESERT SANDS OF VENUS which are played by JP Shilo.

The FINKS – ” Rolly Nice “

Posted: January 13, 2020 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
Tags: , , ,
0

Image may contain: 2 people, people sitting

The  Finks  play the songs of Oliver Mestitz. They are sincere but flippant, intimate but aloof, subtle but unpolished. A lovely collection of introspections and time-pausing tunes. Oliver is his own genre, and every listen reminds me just how priceless and necessary his rarity is

The Finks have released a steady stream of quietly uncompromising music via Milk! Records since 2012 – three EPs, three albums, a couple of singles and the latest tape Affectations, a collection of covers and instrumentals and found sounds. . A group pretty much based around the songs of Oliver Metsitz, this is a very fine record loaded with great tunes and incisive lyrics.

http://

They are from Melbourne and record on the excellent Milk! Records label. 

 

PARSNIP – ” Rip It Off “

Posted: January 2, 2020 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
Tags: , , , , , , ,
0

There’s an immediacy to the sheer joy, velocity and whimsy of Parsnip’s delivery. Bass player and most-of-the-time lyricist Paris Richens is the first to admit that she finds inspiration in children’s verse and the sonics of nursery rhymes, That said, Richens’ bandmates – drummer Carolyn Hawkins, guitarist Stella Rennex and keys player Rebecca Liston – are quick to remind her that nursery rhymes are almost always pretty twisted.

Second single from Parsnip’s forthcoming debut LP, “When The Tree Bears Fruit”, out August 9th in AU/NZ through Anti Fade and out worldwide August 30th through Trouble In Mind Records.

No one is being baked into a pie in a Parsnip song, but they deal in themes of loneliness, longing, the unknown and the mundane, almost as much as they dream of travel and make a romantic spectacle of the everyday. Across the album, transport and movement recur as an image, mostly alluding to a dreamy sense of possibility:

The Melbourne group Parsnip’s latest single, “Feeling Small”, which came out November 2018 on Anti Fade Records. A snappy little single, takes under five minutes to listen, but years in the making and worth keeping forever! Following their debut 7” release on Anti Fade (S/T, November 2017), Parsnip have been as busy as ever playing jam packed shows around Australia, with the likes of King Gizzard, ORB, The Aints, The Babe Rainbow, Shonen Knife, Real Estate, RVG, Terry, Amyl and the Sniffers and many more. Just listen to “Feeling Small” now and see why everyone goes nuts for the nips.

Just listen to “FEELING SMALL” now and see why everyone goes nuts for the nips. Jangly pop music from Melbourne. Released November 30th, 2018

BONNIESONGS – ” Energetic Mind “

Posted: December 29, 2019 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
Tags: , , , ,
0

Bonnie’s sweet ethereal vocals sail over the polyrhythmic backgrounds created between her mandolin, percussion and vocal loops. Her imaginative lyrics tell stories of treehouses, mice, birds, flying and video games.
Described as “dreamy experimental indie folk” and compared to artists such as Bjork and Joanna Newsom, Bonniesongs is creating a unique sound in the Sydney songwriting scene. 

A beautiful record of patient music. Layers of sound and rhythm creating atmospheres that sublimely match the lyrical content. “Ice Cream” is a near-perfect song

http://

Art-folk virtuoso Bonniesongs, aka Bonnie Stewart, and will release her debut album “Energetic Mind” on 6th September 2019, via Small Pond and Art As Catharsis.

Released September 6th, 2019

Bonnie Stewart: vocals, guitar, banjo, drums, percussion
Freya Schack– Arnott: cello
Thomas Botting: double and electric bass
Alyx Dennison and David Trumpmanis: guitar noodles, bass synth and zombie vocals

The STROPPIES – ” Whoosh “

Posted: December 28, 2019 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
Tags: , , , , , , ,
0

May be an image of text

“Whoosh is a silly word,” says Gus Lord of the Stroppies. “There is something completely nonsense about it, especially when removed from any kind of context. For me it conjures up images of something absurd and transient – two things fundamental in the experience of listening to or making good pop music.”

“Whoosh” may indeed be a silly word but it almost onomatopoeically captures the sound and essence of The Stroppies first proper debut album, one that breezes along with boundless energy, a refrained pop strut, infectious grooves and the sort of jangling guitar melodies that sound like a prime-era Flying Nun band.

Between them, the Melbourne-based band – currently comprising of Gus Lord, Rory Heane, Claudia Serfaty and Adam Hewitt – have been in countless bands such as Boomgates, Twerps, Tyrannamen, Primetime, Blank Statements, The Blinds, White Walls, See Saw and Possible Humans. The band formed together around a kitchen table in 2016 with a heavy focus around the essence of collaboration and a DIY ethos. This led to an acclaimed cassette release of lounge room recordings, which was then pressed onto vinyl to more acclaim. The Stroppies next step was then taking their DIY approach to home recordings into the studio to make a transitional leap to what would become their proper studio debut. “Whooshis our first concerted effort to make something with a bit more sonic depth,”says Claudia Serfaty (the bands other primary songwriter). “It was an attempt to take working processes that had been established in a home recording setting and build on them with a broader musical palette in the studio in order to push the band into new territory without compromising what made initial releases so endearing.”

Endearment is something that the Stroppies have no problem retaining on Whoosh. It’s a record that possesses all the spunk and gusto of a young band hurtling forward yet also knowing when to take their foot off the accelerator. It’s an album that simultaneously feels young and fresh but wise beyond its years. “Whoosh is the most robust sounding release we have ever recorded,” Serfaty says. Combining taut post-punk rhythms, indie jangle, seamless melody and sugary pop, it’s a record that Lord says is influenced by: “All sorts of things – life, work, relationships, old cartoons and the last 60+ years of guitar-based pop music in some form or another. This includes everything from Bill Fay to the Clean to Stephen Malkmus.”

“Whoosh” is a record that combines a natural sense of urgency with a thoughtful approach. Something that the recording process itself was emblematic of. “Budgetary restrictions meant that we had two days to lay the foundations,” Serfaty recalls. “So it was axe to the grind: burning through live takes interspersed with tea and Turkish food from the local kebab shop, which culminated in twelve half finished cuts, rough and ready.” That was the urgent part, what then followed was a focused and labour intensive approach to get the most out of the bare bones of the record as possible. “We spent hours building up, stripping down and mixing the work that had been recorded the month prior, throwing everything we could think of at the songs to see what would stick. We utilised whatever was on hand to pull sounds, including but not limited to vintage synths, rain sticks and an old door frame that we used for percussion.” This was done with Zachary Schneider, a friend of the band, budding producer and established musician who is most notable for his guitar work in bands such as Totally Mild, Free Time and Full Ugly.

http://

By the end of that period the band got so absorbed in the record that they almost lost sight of it. “I’m still a little too close to this record for it to evoke anything in particular,” Lord says. “Except for perhaps dull anxiety. Towards the end of recording I felt like I was drowning in the process and lost all clarity on what it meant or it’s value. Kind of like saying a word over and over again – it starts to lose all meaning.” Although with time comes clarity and even amidst the fog of making a record that has taken over his life, Lord knows the band has made something special. “Reflecting on the process I feel really proud of the album.”

Released March 1st, 2019

ANGIE McMAHON – ” Salt “

Posted: December 26, 2019 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
Tags: , , , , , ,
0

Image may contain: 1 person, indoor

Angie McMahon is an Australian musician who loves honest songwriting and romantic melodies, with songs that ruminate on life, love and takeaway food. Angie loves to write and perform across the full dynamic spectrum, shifting between gravelly intimacy and pounding rock.

One of the standout discoveries at this past South By Southwest, was Australian artist Angie McMahon has now released her debut LP on Dual Tone Records, a partnership she announced during the festival where she was awarded the Grulke Prize for Best Developing International Act. Considering she has only released five or six tracks for us to spin incessantly since then (and they are, by all means, each incredible) we’ve been ready for this album since first hearing McMahon’s guitar fill the vaulted ceilings of a church in Austin. 

McMahon’s gorgeous vocals range over somber folk melodies, evoking passionate emotions in anyone within earshot. Look no further than the stunning energy of “Keeping Time” for the essence of one of the finest vocalists and songwriters we’ve had the pleasure of discovering this year.

BODY TYPE – ” EP2 “

Posted: December 25, 2019 in MUSIC
Tags: , , , , , , , ,
0

No photo description available.

Sydney-based quartet  Body Type released their critically acclaimed debut EP1 last year and generated a huge buzz after playing SXSW in 2019. The band who comprise of Sophie McComish (guitar and vox), Annabel Blackman (guitar and vox), Georgia Wilkinson-Derums (bass and vox), Cecil Coleman (drums) released their second EP, entitledEP2 this year. “Free To Air” may well be the tune that initially hooks people in. It’s slightly more reflective than their previous release the spiky jagged glory that was “Stingray” but proves that Body Type has got what it takes to make a huge dent in 2020.

“Free To Air” eddies and flows driven by spidery guitars and gorgeous vocal harmonies. It’s a song tinged with beauty and poignancy and is a perfect example of how to craft artful, dazzling, intelligent evocative indie-pop with some style.

Stingray is lifted from EP2, out now via Partisan Records & Inertia Music:

U-BAHN – ” Beta Boyz “

Posted: December 20, 2019 in CLASSIC ALBUMS, MUSIC
Tags: , , , , , , , ,
0

Image may contain: 4 people

It takes roughly 10 seconds to fall in love with Australian band U-Bahn. If you miss early Devo, then you’ll adore U-Bahn. as they come stomping into 2019 with a collage of glam-pop and new wave. Describing their music as ‘nostalgia for futures that never came to pass; suburban boredom and sexual dystopias’, this Melbourne 5-piece will thrill and baffle audiences alike with their debut LP, teeming with futurist art-punk.

Originating from singer Lachlan Kenny’s bedroom recordings, a chance meeting between him and Zoe Monk over the purchase of a vintage drum machine, followed by the recruitment of Leland Buckle, Jordan Oakley and Mitch Campleman, the band quickly honed their live show before taking their ideas to the stages of the Melbourne DIY circuit. Kenny was eager to set down their ideas on vinyl; crafting a suite of self-recorded and mixed songs that’s charm lies in their lo-fi production values. Bubblegum centrepiece “Right Swipe” is draped in reverb, analogue synths and off-beats – while their clear penchant for melody and memorable hooks shines through the bizarro aesthetics. Its addictive chorus shows the band can leave you humming despite their abstract thinking; the synths and bass swirl around Kenny’s ironic/serious lyrics, ‘baby you can’t resist the manipulation’.

The band approaches song writing like children at play; open to anything, delighted with results that seem weird or amusing. This methodology, along with their clear love for outsider art, Devo and R. Stevie Moore – the aristocratic glamour of Brain Eno combined with the icy robotics of Kraftwerk; the wild ride of genres and ideas that define U-Bahn’s style is steeped in a heritage of music’s strange and unforgettable mavericks.

Second single from U-Bahn’s S/T debut album, released through Future Folklore records.

BODY TYPE – ” EP2 “

Posted: December 19, 2019 in MUSIC
Tags: , , , ,
0

Image may contain: 4 people, people sitting, child and outdoor

Body Type’s second EP sounds a step removed from the snarling attitude that the Sydney band exhibited on its debut EP from last year. They gravitate toward more confident hooks, even amid a greater sense of atmosphere. Everything about Body Type on “EP2” sounds bigger, their soaring rock songs built around fuzzy harmonies and barreling energy. On “Stingray,” they sing about an animal that has no spine but is still eager to shock — an apt analogy from a band whose music goes from placid to incisive on the turn of a dime, like a stingray lying in wait for its prey.

“Stingray” is lifted from EP2, out now via Partisan Records & Inertia Music:

RVG – ” Dying on the Vine ” John Cale Cover

Posted: December 19, 2019 in MUSIC
Tags: , , , , ,
0

Image may contain: 4 people

Australian rockers RVG shared a cover of John Cale’s “Dying on the Vine,” which served as the b-side to their single “Alexandra.” “Dying on the Vine” is taken from Cale’s 1985 album Artificial Intelligence. RVG take Cale’s strange, synth-laden original and give it a healthy dose of surfy guitars. Frontwoman Romy Vager bares her whole heart with this vocal performance as sorrow drips out of every nook and cranny of her voice. RVG’s guitars are just as poignant as Vager’s rough rock warble—they twinkle with a bittersweet glow. 

Older Entries
Newer Entries