Mapleton’sOrigami Army is an infectiously cheery blend of indie pop tunes that bring a smile to the face and make the listener want to sing along.
Mapletons started life as a duo with guitarist Derek Orr and keyboardist Kane Mazlin winning national songwriting awards. When Mazlin left to pursue other musical avenues, rather than abandoning Mapletons,
Orr rallied around the creative hub to create a new line up, with Anita Goldsworthy on keyboard and lead vocals, Carl Roosmale-Cocq on bass and programming duties, and Mitch Clark on drums. Continue reading CD Review: Mapletons – “Origami Army”→
Melbourne band The Solomons originally formed in late 2007, and have since added Aaron Ronaldson and Leigh Baines to original members Doug Hind and Cass Allan. They spent 2009 supporting the likes of Tim Rogers, British India, Evermore, Oh Mercy, Gun Street Girls, and The Casanovas, as well as completing their debut six song EP.
‘Waiting For Something To Happen’ is the new single taken from the band’s debut EP ‘The Solomons EP’. The EP was recorded at Hothouse Studios with Craig Harnath and Finn Keane (Franz Ferdinand, Jet), and mastered by Tony Mantz at Jack The Bear Deluxe Mastering (Nick Cave, You Am I), ‘The Solomons EP’ showcases the band’s diversity of influence, as well is its distinctive guitar driven melodic sound.
Despite the never-ending death and birth cycle of live venues, amid licensing restrictions and noise curfews, bedrooms and garages on both sides of the Brisbane river continue to deliver quality acts to the Australian music scene. Buick Six owe their beginnings to the soggy grounds of 2007’s Splendour in the Grass festival. By 2008, a debut EP had appeared which captured the force of Buick Six’s Brisbane based gigging through live recording.
Their new EP, Common Arms, is garage rock at its dirty, window shaking best. It is only their second release, but the songs on the record sound like the outpourings of a band well used to working and recording together. Guitar work throughout is excellent. The overall feel of the record is urgent, potent, bursting – an achievement to capture on a recording, and suggesting that when viewed live, Buick Six would be a sonic explosion of grinding, grungy rock. The simple bass-guitar-drums line up works in their favour, a pure outlet for their untamed energy left uncomplicated by extra musicians or fussy elements. Continue reading CD Review: Buick Six – Common Arms EP→
To celebrate the success of her debut EP ‘If You Can’t Whistle’, Gossling (aka Helen Croome) will take to the stage with headlining shows in Melbourne, and offering support to The Whitlams and Whitley in Canberra.
Gossling’s debut EP ‘If You Can’t Whistle’ has garnered plenty of attention, with the track “Days Are Over” becoming part of Triple J’s staple play list in recent times, and “He Knows My Love” being used in the Triple J ‘Unearthed’ promos. Gossling’s tracks were discovered by Triple J after she drew attention as an Unearthed artist. Gossling started 2010 supporting Lamb for their side shows during their visit for Peats Ridge Festival. Continue reading Tour: Gossling to tour in support of debut EP – ‘If You Can’t Whistle’→
Review: Lana Harris The Break was formed from three of the previously in-your-face-political pub rockers Midnight Oil (Rob Hirst, Jim Moginie and Martin Rotsey) plus the bassist (Brian Ritchie) from the grungy, always a bit teen-angst Violent Femmes. The love child spawned is nothing like its parents. Instead, it is a fun loving, apolitical coast dweller called The Break.
‘Cylinders’ is the pre release, first impression of the new creation. What is presented is a three and a half minute instrumental surf rock track. Surf rock? If you have ever seen a movie with teens at a beach shack party, circa 1960’s, you’ve heard surf rock. Remember ‘Wwwwwwwwipeout!’ Surf rock. It was repopularised for a while in the 1990’s – the opening credits to Pulp Fiction are overlaid with a revamped version of surf rock in the form of song ‘Misirlou’ and put the genre back into the population’s consciousness.
The Break’s postmillennial take on the genre has a heavier, deeper feel. Darkness washes across the laid back and loose vibes from the sixties, as though a man with sinister intentions is hiding amongst the palms that surround the beach shack party. There is a strong energy to the track, which explodes in your face like salt spray from a crashing wave. The Break thump straight into up-tempo, driving, full band participating music that ebbs and swells as the song progresses. The beach theme and vibes will continue with debut album Church of the Open Sky (released by Bombora Records) promising to be a mostly instrumental surf rock record with tracks named after famous surf breaks.
Do you want a double pass to The Mapletons – Origami Army EP launch @ The Troubadour, Brisbane on on Saturday 27th February 2010? See below for details.
Wearing the radiant glow of a Brisbane buzz-band whose current four-piece incarnation has been in existence since only August 2009, Mapletons have done very well for themselves indeed, having already tumbled their twee blend of technicolour pop-folk around the country in support of Howling Bells and Whitley in this short time.
After cornering the market on sweetly melodic, harmony-rich sounds, Mapletons
will launch their debut six-track EP Origami Army to Brisbane audiences on Saturday February 27 at The Troubadour.
Celestes are not only a group of divine girls but also the name given to a small set of orchestral bells played via a keyboard mechanism. Typically used in orchestras, the use of one in a pop song suggests a performer who knows his keys – and Scott Spark is a man who knows his keys. His second EP release, Kathleen, credits five different types of keyboard instruments, including the Celeste and a toy piano – imagine what this man’s music room must look like! The sounds generated by Spark are explored within the boundaries of indie pop, with unique touches added by his technical piano abilities and the gathering of a wide variety of instruments and performers to round out his music.
* The John Butler Trio makes a welcome return with their new single ‘One Way Road’. This is the first radio song from their new studio album called ‘April Uprising’.
* With over a million copies of two of their previous albums, ‘Sunrise Over Sea’ & ‘Grand National’ sold around the world, and sell out tours in USA/ Canada/ Europe & Japan, JBT continue to prove they are one of Australia’s greatest musical exports.
* The new album ‘April Uprising’ was recorded in John Butler‘s Studio, ‘The Compound’, in Fremantle WA. John revisited the same partnership of the highly successful ‘Sunrise Over Sea’ album with Robin Mai on engineer & mixing duties and Nicky Bomba returning on drums. The album is produced by the JBT which includes new bassist Byron Luiters.
Since Neighbours first aired on Australian television it’s almost been de rigueur for its stars to branch out and launch a singing career. It’s fair to say that the move has panned out better for some than others (Holly Valance anyone?). Sam Clarkis the latest actor to step up to the plate. Elize Strydom (LMM) caught up with him a few days into a three month promotional tour from his new single ‘Broken’ and discovered this kid ain’t no one hit wonder.
Life Music Media: Where do I find you this afternoon?
Sam Clark: 662km from the city..city..of…thhh…Sydney. Ah, I can’t even speak! I’ve been driving for too long already.
LMM: You have a relentless schedule ahead of you for the next three months. How are you going to handle it?
SC:I’ll just have to man up and deal with it! It’s all good fun. I get to play my music. I’m releasing my first single so it’s exciting. I just have to look at all the positives and the workload is something that has to happen.
There are very few musicians about today who can craft such an accurate visual portrait of their music as Tara Simmons has done with her new EP, All You Can. The cover depicts a childish collection of objects – colourful magnetic letters, a doll with a crocheted dress, plastic representations of party foods, but on closer inspection… there are dismembered doll limbs in display jars on the wall, an unconscious hamster lying inert on the worn table. The tainted innocence portrayed fits Tara’s music on All You Can all too well. Track three, ‘Rosemary’ begins as a gentle folky song before swelling to a dirge like chorus and revealing itself lyrically as the deconstruction of a discourteous woman. Track one, ‘The Fundamentalist’, has reverential overtones, with its choral back up vocals and organ chords, but I wonder if Tara is playing with her
Brisbane based Madeleine Paige is in a class of her own.
Haunting…..Sweet…..Unforgettable.
It’s refreshing to receive an EP to review that one instantly likes and that was exactly the case with this.
Madeleine Paige’s latest EP entitled “The Voice Behind The Noise” consisting of 5 beautifully crafted songs that were recorded at Massive Studios by Matt Redlich (Hungry Kids Of Hungary).
Madeleine has been praised in recent reviews for her live performances and this certainly translates well within this album.
Starting out with “Ditty”, an upbeat happy bouncy tune that will surely remove any blues that you may be feeling.
Track 2, “My Love Looks”, is a lulla-ballad styled song where you are carried away by just her voice and soft acoustic accompaniment.
“It’s over (and over again)” is one of my favourites on this EP. A haunting lament that is definitely worth having a listen to – over and over and over again.
Madeleine’s angelic voice, coupled with well written and performed songs, will mesmerise all listeners.
Two-Disc Set, Viva La Vida – Prospekt’s March Edition, Features Eight Previously Unreleased Tracks, Including A Collaboration With Jay-Z;
Prospekt’s March Also Available As EP
Chugg Entertainment today confirmed that Coldplay would return to Australia next February on their “Viva La Vida” tour, in support of their new album of the same name.
In a rare move for the Australian market, Coldplay will go on-sale with two shows in each of the East Coast cities to ensure as many tickets as possible are made available to meet the demand that was set the last time they toured.
The John Steel Singers have just released their latest indie styled fuzz pop musical offering in an EP titled “In Colour”.
This EP is a great progression for the band and in working with producer Scott Horscroft, the end result speaks volumes. Maybe it’s their conscious decision to make the rhythms more direct and simplified. Whatever it is, you will be transported into a fantasy, surreal, floating world with a sixties laid back summer love feel.
The opening track, Rainbow Kraut is a clear favourite and after a few listens I found myself humming along and somehow a little uplifted.
The John Steel Singers have an aversion to sleeping in their own beds. They like the road. The rough, smelly, road. At least it seems that way. While in the midst of a huge national tour opening up for The Grates throughout October, The John Steel Singers have announced their own national headline tour in November.
