Lily Konigsberg - "Lily We Need To Talk Now" | Album Review
Konigsberg is an artist with exquisite control over the two-minute pop structure and Lily We Need To Talk Now thoroughly breezes by at a brisk 25 minutes. That’s not to say these songs are too similar though: it’s actually sublime the way she dips in and out of styles, from punk rock to the glitchy autotune to the pure pop-punk.
Tonsstartsbandht - "Petunia" | Album Review
Tonstartssbandht struck a sensible balance between laidback cool and insular uncool, mystical spirit and inviting energy. Their psychedelia and prog rock-inflected sound is experimental but never enervating. It’s a testament to their ability and connection that Petunia might be their best work together yet.
Joyer - "Perfect Gray" | Album Review
Screensaver - "Expressions of Interest" | Album Review
Mo Troper - "Dilettante" | Album Review
Everything about Troper’s style is designed to deceive and confound; it’s difficult to take what he sings about at face value but, in all honesty, that’s where the fun lies. Consider that he named his latest album Dilettante, a word which means, “A person with an amateur interest in the arts without real knowledge.”
Cheekface - "Emphatically Mo' (B-sides)" | Album Review
The four songs come from the Emphatically No writing sessions, culled when the band wanted to create a good flow for the full-length. There might not be anything as mesmerizing as ‘“Listen to Your Heart.” “No.”’ but that’s not to say there’s no charm to be found in the B-sides; charm is something that comes to Cheekface effortlessly.
P.E. - "The Reason For My Love" | Album Review
Central Heat Exchange - "Central Heat Exchange" | Album Review
April Magazine - "Sunday Music For An Overpass" | Album Review
Sunday Music For An Overpass is subtly beautiful, possessed of a quiet power. These lo-fi dream pop tracks have the potential to bypass one’s senses yet they don’t: instead they remove you from your anxieties and worries in a wave of hazy comfort. The album unfolds at a languorous pace, unrushed by external forces.
Poise - "Vestiges" | Album Review
Liars - "The Apple Drop" | Album Review
Angus Andrews has essentially helmed the last few Liars records himself, from 2017’s TFCF to this month’s latest release, The Apple Drop. He does recruit the aid of drummer Laurence Pike and multi-instrumentalist Cameron Deyell, though, and they do help enhance the expansive and cinematic sound of the album.
Delivery - "Yes We Do" | Album Review
A classically-amalgamated DIY project from Melbourne, the five-piece comes from several other bands, including Future Suck, Kosmetika, Blonde Revolver, and The Vacant Smiles. Yes We Do, was released via the always reliable Spoilsport Records, using post-punk as a mere base to build new wave synths, pop flourishes, and garage guitars.
This Is Lorelei - "EP #21" | Album Review
The Murlocs - "Bittersweet Demons" | Album Review
Melbourne’s The Murlocs return with their fifth album to provide some much-needed bluesy brightness to listener’s lives. Bittersweet Demons, again released by the excellent Flightless Records, courses on a long and winding path, each turn infectious and melodious. It’s a soulful and rowdy record, rollicking and ballsy.
Jolee Gordon - "The Good Parts" | Album Review
Shrapnel - "Alasitas" | Album Review
Sydney’s Shrapnel has come a long way since 2013. In the intervening eight years, he’s consistently nourished the project with an expanded lineup and on Alasitas, their latest album, there’s now six members throwing everything at it, including a flute, a synth, and clarinet to embellish the trusty guitars, and it gives the record a renewed lush feel.
Hard Nips - "Master Cat" | Album Review
In 2009, four Japanese women met in Brooklyn and decided that they really wanted to start a band. Master Cat is their third album and a remarkably strong one considering none of them were musicians beforehand. It does mean that the songs in Master Cat are raw and real but they carry them all with an underlying intelligence of craft and ambition.
EXEK - "Good Thing They Ripped Up The Carpet" | Album Review
Mia Joy - "Spirit Tamer" | Album Review
Sometimes a record comes along that is felt, rather than heard. Chicago multi-instrumentalist Mia Joy’s debut album, Spirit Tamer, gently wraps around you, enveloping with its whispered invitations and ethereal ambience. The intimacy feels a purposeful creation on Mia’s part, not just as a result of the tranquil sonic template.