The turn of century proved to be a fertile time for the Americana music scene. The early 2000s saw the likes of Drive By Truckers and Ryan Adams stamping their name on the scene internationally with their early, widely acclaimed albums and Lucinda Williams was starting to capitalise on the success of Car Wheels on …
WATTY THOMPSON WATTY THOMPSON CHEATIN HEARTS RECORDS It’s a rare thing for an artist to arrive on the scene as fully formed and creatively realised as Victorian Watty Thompson. Most songwriters take a few albums to figure out how to craft their music into its ideal shape. Thompson has done it on his first swing. …
Gram Parsons is something of a golden inter-connector, a conduit between the worlds of country music and rock ’n’ roll. You can add folk music to the mix to, given his late teen years as a member of the Shilohs in South Carolina. Through the International Submarine Band, the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers, …
Matt Joe Gow has a brand new album out tomorrow (Fri, March 10th) and between his just completed Aotearoa/NZ tour and the start of a new run of dates in Australia, Matt kindly took the time to answer our Six Strings Q&A. The new album, Between Tonight & Tomorrow is a superb collection of Americana …
In the ever-changing world of digital advances, the question and viability of how to preserve, enhance and share one’s music continues to be a conundrum for artists. From box-sets to anniversary concerts, documentaries to reissues, everyone is looking to find new ways to monetise their back catalogues. In recent years, the Neil Young Archives website …
THE DELINES THE SEA DRIFT LOVE POLICE RECORDS + TAPES Once considered a side project of Richmond Fontaine songwriter and frontman Willy Vlautin, on album #3 The Delines have comprehensively proven themselves as their own bittersweet and soulful microsystem, where damaged souls battle on against life’s twists and turns. Little beacons of hope amid the …
Erin Rae is currently on tour in Australia with Courtney Marie Andrews on what might be one of the very first international tours we’ve seen in the last two years. Rae has just released a beautiful new album, Lighten Up, that complements her sublime and nuanced songwriting with cosmic, lightly psychedelic and baroque folk sounds …
Melbourne-based songwriter Riley Catherall has just released his debut solo album When I Go and as far as first records go, this is one of those where the artist arrives seemingly fully formed. The evidence of that is in the way Catherall delivers such well-crafted songs with consummate ease. When I Go has a clear …
BUD ROKESKY OUTSIDER RAINBOW VALLEY RECORDS A tall, lanky, dark-haired, truck-driving, songwriting stranger. It might sound like a country music cliche but that’s a snapshot of the enigmatic and supremely talented Bud Rokesky, who was interviewed in the last issue of Rhythms. It’s been a while coming for this late bloomer but Outsider is a … Continue reading
Melbourne-based Hana Brenecki and guitarist Jessie-Lee Zubkevych are working towards the release of a new album in early 2024 but the good news is they’re already releasing music from it. First up it’s the stunning single ‘Arrowhead‘ which drifts and sways with a gentle rock ‘n’ roll sashay, draped in heavenly country-soul. Hana’s voice has … Continue reading
STEVE LANE THE GREAT IMPOSTER Last Night From Glasgow The day I put Lane’s new LP – and yes, it’s vinyl, and sort of camouflage green at that – on my turntable, on his Facebook he announced the fact, as much a surprise to him as to his followers, that The Great Imposter is #8 … Continue reading
South Queensland band Rusty Pickups have a new EP called Rattle In My Heart on the horizon and last week they released the title-track single ‘Canary’, under licence from Near Enough Records (Mt. Morning, Kyle Jenkins). It’s a gently anthemic song that showcases the desperation of lost love, and yet still builds to leave a … Continue reading
Melbourne group The Settlement are currently working towards the release of their second album, releasing a string of impressive singles along the way. Today I’m very happy to be able to premiere the video for their latest track, ‘Streets Of L.A.‘ which was released a few weeks ago. The dark and moody song was written … Continue reading
Australian rock & roots music royalty Don Walker has today released his new single ‘You’ve Got To Move‘, taken from his forthcoming fourth solo album, Lightning in a Clear Blue Sky, out Friday, 5 May and with an accompanying East Coast Australian tour commencing in May, 2023. This will be the Cold Chisel, Catfish and Tex, Don and Charlie singer/songwriter’s first studio album in … Continue reading
The Toowoomba QLD / Tokyo Japan band have today released the first taste of their forthcoming album Restorations, their first release since the band retired their previous incarnation (Suicide Swans) and a refreshed line-up reconvened as Mt. Morning. With the ever prolific Kyle Jenkins at the helm it’s clear the band are steering into a … Continue reading
I’ve been hooked on the music of Bud Rokesky since seeing him play at Dashville Skyline last October and over the last couple of months I’ve been lucky enough to listen to an advance copy of his exceptional debut album Outsider, which will be released on February 17th via Rainbow Valley Records. I’ve got a … Continue reading
MFV are a six-piece band hailing from the Wollongong area who first began as life-long friends jamming in various garages and halls south of Sydney in 2019. Some of the members also play in shoegaze band Miners (check out their self-titled 2021 album) and you can definitely hear the textural nuances and dynamics of that … Continue reading
Dan Brodie has been a mainstay of Australian alt-country and heartfelt rock ‘n’ roll for nigh on three decades now and he keeps on delivering, whether it’s dark, hot blooded rock or brooding, atmospheric country ballads. His latest single ‘(I Can Feel) Love Closing In’ falls into the latter camp. It’s draped in melancholic romanticism … Continue reading
Tex Perkins & The Fat Rubber Band are proud to reveal single number two from their forthcoming album Other World with the hypnotic and languid groove of ‘(I Wanna Be) Close To You‘. It’s a song that slinks into the room with a sultry swing and swagger, a wink and a beckoning finger. Tex describes it as “pop, rock … Continue reading
Bud Rokesky stopped me in my tracks at Dashville Skyline last year. Time paused and for a brief time all that mattered was that voice and those songs. He’s already released two stellar singles in ‘Floodlight’ and ‘Love My Baby More’ and now he’s released number three – ‘Baby And I‘, another stunning track from … Continue reading
Based on the sound of the songs already released, Lucero look to be in fine form on their new album Should’ve Learned By Now, out Feb 24th via Liberty & Lament/Thirty Tigers. Inspired by an impending hurricane, the song draws parallels between a literal storm and a troubled relationship back home, before the listener is … Continue reading
Dave Favours and band released their latest Cheap Motels After Midnight album in April and to round out a successful year the Sydney alt-country group have released the video clip for the single ‘There Goes The Neighbourhood‘, a song that takes a bleak look at the changing times, people and places of their hometown. According … Continue reading
Earlier this week we revealed our favourite Australian (and NZ) albums of 2022 and now it’s the turn of the rest of the planet, with our main list of the year. There were plenty of familiar faces and artists we love and admire who released new records this year. As always, they hit the listening … Continue reading
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