Claire Anne Taylor Giving It Away Cheatin’ Hearts Records There’s so much new music that comes down the information superhighway, a veritable landslide of songs and singer-songwriters opening up their hearts and baring their souls. To be honest, most of it is bland and derivative and you have to wade through an avalanche of mediocre … Continue reading
NSW songwriter, singer and guitarist CJ Stranger has worked as a musician in musical theatre and played live with William Crighton and others but it’s his particular brand of cosmic Americana at the junction of psych rock, folk and country where he most impresses. CJ shares that rarefied air with the likes of The War … Continue reading
Patrick Wilson is something of a go-to figure on the Melbourne scene, often found behind the drums for acts such as Georgia State Line, Ben Mastwyk and Dan Brodie. On his debut album It’ll Be Alright it turns out he’s something of a consummate artist in his own right. It’s an album that swings from … Continue reading
As per usual, this is the time of year I crunch the numbers, analyse the statistics and cast my eyes and ears over the year’s albums, to get an overview of my favourite releases. Below you’ll find the Australian (and two NZ) albums that resonated with me the most over the last 12 months. This … Continue reading
It doesn’t seem that long ago that Sydney’s Caitlin Harnett released her first band album with The Pony Boys, but in fact three years have passed. In the meantime, through a pandemic, Harnett’s career has gone from strength to strength, becoming an in demand live act across the country and scoring some impressive international supports … Continue reading
The acoustic guitar has been a mainstay of popular music through a myriad of genres over the last 150+ years. Through folk, country, blues, jazz and classical music it’s persisted and provided the soundtrack for generations of players, from the back porch to concert halls, juke joints to folk clubs. One particular strand that … Continue reading
‘Last Night In Redfern Park’ sets the scene perfectly as the opening track tumbles out of the speakers. With the urgency of life in the inner city and both the bruises and exultant times that comes with that lifestyle, Keyes sets a lofty standard out of the gate and not unexpectedly he more than matches … Continue reading
The Melbourne songwriter Dan Brodie is something of an enigma on the Australian music scene, having forged his way in the pub rock scene, straddling both rock in the traditional sense and countrified twang and rockabilly. His last few releases though have explored a more noir aesthetic, adding to the mystery of Cowboy Dan. On … Continue reading
The acoustic guitar has been a mainstay of popular music through a myriad of genres over the last 150+ years. Through folk, country, blues, jazz and classical music it’s persisted and provided the soundtrack for generations of players, from the back porch to concert halls, juke joints to folk clubs. One particular strand that … Continue reading
Queensland songwriter JB Paterson released his third album Springtime Is Coming (Holiday Maker Records) at the tail end of 2022 but this one is such a great record I felt compelled to post a belated review of the 13-track folk suite which traces the seasonal shift from winter to spring. The album was written, performed … Continue reading
On Australian Dream, Concrete Sea take a swing at navigating and chronicling the suburban experience of living on this great continent in the 21st century and they do so impressively, via a baroque rock feel with a vivid poetic quality. Channeling the evocative storytelling of some of our masters – Paul Kelly, David McComb, Steve … Continue reading
Ryan Martin John’s Goodness Gracious Graceless (Independent) emerged blinking into the world in April and right from the opening track ‘Bourbon St’ it caught my ear and drew me in via the lush and spacious palette of sounds with shimmering guitars and John’s exquisite soulful folk voice. His falsetto and pure, wavering tone constantly thrills … Continue reading
Babitha’s debut album Brighter Side of Blue (Spunk), released earlier this year, is a superb album that weaves an intoxicating spell. Songwriter/singer/guitarist Imogen Grist stretches the form of folk music, taking it deeper into a full band, folk-rock cul-de-sac that feels decidedly metropolitan – a pastoral trip through suburban streets. Seemingly arriving fully formed, Babitha weaves … Continue reading
Last month I took a look at Gillian Welch’s seminal 2001 album Time (The Revelator), a record steeped in folk authenticity and traditional form. That same year a band from Chicago took their suburban country rock and alt-country and blew it apart into a thousand musical fragments before reconstructing their songs into glorious and inventive … Continue reading
The Stuart Highway runs from Darwin, in the Northern Territory, via Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, to Port Augusta in South Australia and its northern starting point is the home of songwriter David Garnham, who has penned this concept album of sorts. The songs take in the geography, lifestyle and characters that populate and travel … Continue reading
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