Marlon Williams and The Yarra Benders @ Howler, Melbourne, 20.11.2017
Here in Australia we love to claim New Zealanders, especially musicians, as our own. It’s pretty safe to say that we’d kill to brag about Marlon Williams being an Aussie. I mean, he was based in Melbourne for a while. Let’s face it, he’s a prodigy. A rare vocal genius and still only 26 years […]
The Melvins + Red Kross @ Crowbar, Brisbane, 10.11.2017
Here’s a true story. The Melvins play Crowbar Friday night. Supporting them are Red Kross. Equally notorious, these Californians pave their contemporaries’ way with languid metal and throttling punk. A thundering performance comes littered with time-honoured rock gestures, power pop hooks and plenty of lose-your-shit moments. As the Melvins take the stage I’m reminded of […]
NO ZU @ QAGOMA, 01.09.2017
NO ZU are a group which is difficult to pin down. Reaching into a rich history of dance music obscurity with magpie mentality they combine the deep cuts of disco-funk, no-wave, and worldbeat with their own inventive ideas. The result is something you can’t quite put your finger on but is instantly danceable. Live they […]
Models @ QAGOMA, 25.08.2017
Suddenly the Models return. Back together for the sheer hell of it, they bring a party atmosphere to their QGOMA surrounds. Before the stage sizeable gathering nudge, jostle and clamour to find a position as four figures take the stage. For those unfamiliar, this is a group which lived on the edge in a decade […]
Habits @ QAGOMA, 07.08.2017
Habits traverse an area few of their more visible Australian contemporaries dare venture. The pair’s 2016 debut Ugly Cry makes nods to the sounds of Melbourne’s electronic underground, acid house, industrial, synth pop, club music and future R&B. Wherever the two find their inspiration, they make it exciting, without losing a grip on creating music […]
Death Grips @ Max Watt’s, Brisbane, 04.08.2017
Death Grips have spent the last six years delivering a unique style of music that infuses elements of punk and noise rock into a hip-hop framework. Back when they released their first mix-tape Exmilitary and their debut studio album The Money Store, they quickly attracted much acclaim for their innovative blend of genres which would […]
Real Estate + RVG + Parsnip @ Croxton Bandroom, 20.06.2017
In the words of Aubrey Graham, “I’ll admit it, I’ll admit it”; I’ve not listened to a Real Estate album fully since their 2011 album Days, which, if I remember correctly, sat sandwiched between other similarly inoffensive indie rock albums in my iTunes library. Every few years the band would crop up again, another album, […]
The Undertones @ Triffid, 07.07.2016
Playing your biggest hit/best known song more than once during a show is never a good thing. When The Undertones nonchalantly play ‘Teenage Kicks’ as their tenth song, it’s perfect. It’s a true punk rock moment. Guitarist Damian O’Neill dedicates it to someone in the crowd before being reprimanded by singer Paul McLoone for the […]
Radio Birdman, Died Pretty @ The Tivoli, 23.06.2017
My first Radio Birdman experience was at the Golden Plains Festival in Meredith, Victoria back in 2015. I didn’t know much about them at the time. My friend Warren used to bang about them all the time. It seemed that their main guy, Deniz Tek, was some sort of modern day renaissance man, who could […]
Beth Orton @ Triffid, 18.06.2017
When do you fall out of love with a musician? At what point do you decide to quietly (or otherwise) withdraw your patronage and stop taking an active interest in what do they do? I’ve always considered myself to be fairly reasonable in that I’m generally happy to overlook a disappointing follow-up to a dazzling […]
