For those who will loot, pillage and bite off someone’s arm for a freebie, this is good news. Bad news for those who can’t decode phonetics, but still good news in all!

Suited-up Melbourne natives The Basics are back with their self titled fourth album ‘/ðə’bæzɪtʃ/’ (pronounced, “the baz-itch”).

Since the guys agree with Claire Bowditch that the music is indeed, bigger than the money – they are flogging their new album for the gratuitous sum of nothing.

The follow up to 2009’s ‘Keep Your Friends Close’, this record was recorded in front of a live audience at Northcote’s Social Club earlier this year and was mixed at Abbey Road Studios in London.

The entire record will be available from FreeBasicsAlbum.com on the 20th of August.

www.FreeBasicsAlbum.com

www.thebasics.com.au

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Brilliant clip for ‘Trans Ending’ from Sydney/Newcastle outfit Seabellies, directed and produced by Tom Noakes (the brain behind The Scare’s ‘Could Be Bad’ clip).

The track is taken from their debut album ‘Limbo Lake’ which is being released in two days (20th Aug). Sounds promising.

www.seabellies.com

www.myspace.com/theseabellies

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We all love DZ, yeah? Cool, I thought so. Well in that case you’d already be aware that they’re doing some gigs to help fund their trip to New York later this year.

Those dates are included after the jump for your perusal. More important is that we have a double pass to their gig at The Zoo on Friday August 27th. Brisbane readers rejoice! All you have to do is email rsvp@whothehell.net with the subject ‘DZ PARRRTY’ sometime before next Wednesday to go into the running. Get on it.

(more…)

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Catcall – ‘Swimming Pool’ (Julian Mendelsohn remix )

Here’s a dandy remix of Swimming Pool by Catcall (aka. Catherine Kelleher) done by Julian Mendelsohn. Hit up swimmingpool.catcallmusic.com to download the track in exchange for an email address.

www.myspace.com/catcallmusic

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Castles Sunk Below The Sea – ‘Inland Sea’ (mp3)

I wrote about Castles earlier this year, when they had a few demos cobbled together and were nervously playing their first shows. Now they’re about to launch their debut EP and I hear their bass player has finally bought a tuning pedal, although that could just be a hopeful rumour. From little things, etc.

‘Inland Sea’ is a nice textbook example of post-rock, but it builds a bit too slowly to a climax that doesn’t quite hit the heights it should. Having said that, they’re a band worth seeing live, where they are able to create a real atmosphere around their music.

They launch their EP next Wednesday the 25th at the Troubadour in Brisbane, and are heading down to Melbourne not long after. See their MySpace for details.

www.myspace.com/castlessunkbelowthesea

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In 2006, Tobias Cummings released his critically acclaimed debut album, Join the Dots which was nominated for the Australian Music Prize. Cummings’ highly anticipated follow up, A Trophy was produced by the legendary Tim Whitten (Go Betweens, Powderfinger, Augie March).

A Trophy is gutwrenchingly beautiful. Cummings sings with the weight of the world on his shoulders. But rather than pushing a burdenous collective of love and longing, the tales on this album distill relentlessness and fighting spirit. On another site, one reviewer carelessly threw the Chris Martin reference at this record. Yes, the man has a penchant for pianos and an expansive vocal bravado, but he serves up more narrative veracity than any of that lethargic X&Y bullshit.

Tracks like ‘Busy Bees’ and ‘Exegesis’ offer a window of jovial relief to the overall sombre tone of the record, but do seem nothing more than a distraction to serious business. These are well crafted, but that Joshua Tree conditioning on ‘Busy Bees’ seems to lack the speculative aura of ‘You’ve Always Had That Insight’ and ‘The Judge’.

‘Sweetest Poetry’ and ‘Goldmine’ are definite standouts. However, picking apart tracks doesn’t do A Trophy much justice. Join The Dots was no doubt a solid debut, but Cummings has definitely found his home on this album. Crafting a sense of yearning that stings like lemon juice to an open wound, A Trophy is a tour-de-force that shakes with unexpected conviction. A magnificent storyteller. One of the best releases this year, surely.

‘A Trophy’ will be released through Departed Sounds/Other Tongues on the Wednesday the 1st of September.

www.myspace.com/tobiascummings

www.tobiascummings.com

‘A TROPHY’ TOUR DATES:

MELBOURNE –  Saturday 18th September, The Worker’s Club with Ancient Free Gardeners, Brendan Welch

ADELAIDE – Sunday 26th September, Ed Castle with Chris Lloyd and London Road Poets

SYDNEY –  Sunday 3rd October, Raval with Jamie Hutchings (Blue Bottle Kiss)

MELBOURNE – Friday 29th October, Bella Union (Trades Hall) with The Tiger & Me

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