Monthly Archives For August 2013

LISTEN: HDSPNS – ‘Awa’

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HDSPNS

We picked up HDSPNS on Love Thy Neighbour a while back. This is a new track ‘Awa’. I thought we’d sling it out there in anticipation of their sophomore EP VIVIDISIM, released on September 4th.

Parallels with the Foals are obvious but it’s the hard working feel of a much rougher band like the Mark of Cain, that I like. Drumming that drills into you brain carrying a payload of hooky lyrics, which are stitched up with tingling guitar notes. Let’s get them over to Oz cause they would be sick-as live but for now catch them over in NZ:

7th September – Auckland @ Number 4 Cross Street.

21st September – Christchurch @ Darkroom.

with Wellington and Tauranga shows TBA.

 

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PREMIERE: Woody Pitney – ‘You Can Stay’

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woody-pitney

Woody Pitney is a 22 year old singer from Melbourne. His debut EP garnered traction after hitting top spot on the JJJ Unearthed charts and he’s previously notched up some great support slots for Vance Joy and Big Scary. Did I mention he has a great beard? (Apparently a necessary commodity for being a successful artist nowadays…see here, here.)

The video for Pitney’s new track ‘You Can Stay’ plays out like a Smith Journal reader’s wet dream. Pitney is seen doing ‘manly’ stuff, like harpooning trout, lying in dirt and splashing his chiseled beard/good looking face with mineral water from some free-flowing stream. There’s also a great shot of Woody and his band playing instruments made out of driftwood and looking really stoked, despite the obvious splinters. Whattaguy.

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‘You Can Stay’ is taken from Pitney’s forthcoming EP Afterdust, which will be released on the 30th of September.

 

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PREMIERE: AXOLOTL – ‘My House’

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AXOLOTL_My_House

When I heard this track I felt like throwing up. IT’S THAT GOOD.

‘My House’ is the newest track from Axolotl and the latest single taken from their forthcoming debut album, set for release in early 2014. While the Melbourne five piece have previously supported acts like Bonobo and How To Dress Well, I think this track makes it very clear that these guys are prepped for some serious airtime. ‘My House’ is the closest thing I’ve heard to a near perfect pop track in a while. It’s a visceral, violet-hued pop number with the a bit of stage production chutzpah. Ella Thompson (The Bamboos) has some damn fine fixating vocals which walk the line between hesitancy and desperation here; her refrain reminds me a bit of Alisa Xayalith – or maybe a female version of M83’s Anth Gonzalez. The band have previously carved their way through some beautifully produced tracks so the standard of this doesn’t come as too much of a surprise. Last year’s Autonomy EP was an enjoyable slice of ‘dream-pop-nice’, but the backbone of ‘My House’ has way more grit (and bass). Also – HUGE chorus disclaimer on this one, but all intentions are good.

The band recently secured publicity and financial support from Arts Victoria to produce their debut LP. I get a really good feeling about this. Ready for the international music market in 3, 2, 1…

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LISTEN: Full Ugly – ‘Drove Down’

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fullugly

Full Ugly started out as a side project of Love Connection‘s Nathan Burgess and Michael Caterer, but since half of Love Connection relocated to New York it’s become more of a full-time venture. Caterer’s amongst those who up and left town, but Full Ugly retains its all-star cast, with the recent addition of Thomas Mendelovits from Milk Teddy.

‘Drove Down’ is the A-side from the band’s first official release, a 7″ due out through Bedroom Suck on 6 September. The track starts out with Burgess singing about working a dead-end job at a hotel and looking for love, and it ends, uncertain but hopeful, with a long drive down a highway at night, on the way to something new. Although it’s only a couple of minutes long, ‘Drove Down’ feels stretched out, as though to convey literally its sense of longing. It reminds me of ‘Amber’, a highlight from Dick Diver‘s Calendar Days, or Lower Plenty single ‘Nullarbor’ in its delicate unfolding of tension and laconic storytelling style.

You can preorder the ‘Drove Down’ 7″ here. Full Ugly will be playing BIGSOUND on 10 September at Brisbane’s Alhambra Lounge, and a debut album is on the way.

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LISTEN: Elizabeth Rose – ‘The Good Life’

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rose

‘The Good Life’ opens with dark sounds suited to A Clockwork Orange but quickly bounces back to dance-pop and Rose’s very high-level production. Writing of her aspiration to leave the family home and start searching the world for her own piece of the elusive ‘Good Life’, this track is as catchy as any dance party anthem but somewhat understated by Rose’s reserved indie vocals. Mastered in London with award winning engineer Matt Colton (James Blake, Coldplay… what??), ‘The Good Life’ follows her awesome debut EP in 2012, Crystallise.

Get along to one of her spectacular live shows at Bigsound or the OutsideIn Festival:

Wednesday 11 September – Bigsound, Brisbane

Thursday 12 September – Bigsound Showcase at Bakery Lane, Brisbane

Saturday 21 September – OutsideIn Festival, Sydney

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WATCH: Violent Soho – ‘Dope Calypso’

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violent

The official video filmed by director Timothy O’Keefe for Violent Soho’s ‘Dope Calypso’, which is the opening track from the band’s third studio album titled ‘Hungry Ghost’ out September 6, 2013 through I OH YOU.

Back to their roots, rocking the streets of Brisbane and getting blazed with Adalita. And is that music’s most influential under 30, Johann of IOHYOU smoking up? Great song. Great band. Get on the tour bus:

Thursday Oct 24 – Great Northern, Byron Bay NSW

Friday Oct 25 – Oxford Art Factory, Sydney NSW

Saturday Oct 26 – The Zoo, Brisbane QLD

Thursday Oct 31 – Mojo’s, Fremantle WA

Friday Nov 01 – Amplifier, Perth WA

Saturday Nov 02 – Uni Bar, Adelaide SA (Lic AA)

Monday Nov 04 (Cup Eve) – Corner Hotel, Melbourne VIC (This will be HUGE)

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PRESENTS: ‘COOL PARTY’

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cool-party-bigsound

 

Cool. That word still hurts. I gave up a long time ago at 13 where my aspirations ended at owning at least two pieces of Dada Damani clothing and saving enough pocket change to buy an Amanda Perez CD. No regrets though. Turns out all the other gawky kids who also spent recess labeling their floppy disks in the library and tinkering with the Casios at concert band practice ended up doing alright. Most of the them turned out to electronic freaks of nature (see list below for proof).

We’ve teamed up with our friends from incredible Brisband/NYC electronic label Silo Arts for a not-so-official BIGSOUND showcase & after party, aptly named ‘COOL PARTY’.

 

☯ FEATURING ☯


CHARLES MURDOCH
FRIENDSHIPS
RAINBOW CHAN
CASSIUS SELECT
THE HARPOONS
NAKAGIN
GUERRE
TINCTURE
HTML FLOWERS
MOTION PICTURE ACTRESS

+MYSTERY DJS 

 

Come and celebrate all things fun with 10 of Australia’s best electronic/pop acts + FREE entry. It also happens to fall on my birthday, so there’s a high chance you’ll find me in a corner of Alahmbra Lounge cradling a loop pedal and eating cake.

Full event details here. See you there. #COOL

 

 

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