
Album Review: New Mexico’s Tan Cologne beam in an extraterrestrial shimmering dream fugue with their new album ‘Unknown Beyond’
New Mexican duo Tan Cologne has just finished supporting the magnificent Trentemøller on their European tour, and they have now released their third studio album ‘Unknown Beyond’ via Labrador Records. ‘Unknown Beyond’ is less a collection of songs and more of an evolving dream state that takes you up into the skies and leaves you in a fugue. There has …

News: Sydney’s SXSW makes a major announcement on the 2025 program, including local icon Holly Hebe, with tickets on sale now.
The Sydney transplant of the iconic SWXW Festival continues to gather life and momentum after two successful years with the preliminary announcement of the program for 2025. With 62 new international and domestic artists (including our much beloved Holly Hebe) and a host of new speakers joining the lineup, along with the reveal of the …

Premiere: ‘Everything Is Temporary’ – but class is permanent as The Valery Trails prove their resilience with their eternal jangly pop sensibilities ahead of new album.
We are very proud to premiere the new single ‘Everything Is Temporary’ from The Valery Trails: a soaring jangly slice of power pop heaven that sets the heart beating with its euphoric delivery. It’s their first release since 2022’s ‘The Sky Is Blue’ (reviewed by me here) and absence certainly makes the heart grow fonder …

EP Review: Adelaide’s Oscar The Wild are a little ‘Blue’ as they release their epic second EP.
Kaurna/Adelaide’s Oscar The Wild deliver a vibrant, expressive brand of indie pop, threaded through with a steely spine and soaring melodies. They have just released their new EP entitled ‘Blue’ and it’s a refreshing collection of guitar driven tracks that sparkle and pop. Opening track ‘Roll with The Punches’ shines with an infectious pace and …

News: Rowena Wise and Didirri announce Australia tour following the release of their elegantly beautiful single ‘No Cure For Love’
We here at the Antipodean outpost of Backseat Mafia have admired Didirri ever since 2018 when we covered his single ‘Formaldehyde’, and we confess we are a little late to the party with his most recent release, the elegantly beautiful duet ‘No Cure For Love’ with fellow indie artist Rowena Wise. ‘No Cure For Love’ …

Track: Naarm/Melbourne’s HighSchool make a welcome return with the louche ‘149’ and news of debut album on the way.
Following up their magnificent EP ‘Accelerator’ last year (see my 9/10 review here), the mighty HighSchool return for 2025 with the vibrant single ‘149’ through [PIAS] Australia. With their trademark insouciance and laid back delivery, HighSchool continue to represent some of the best indie music coming out of Australia at the moment. ‘149’ captures an element of the …

Track: Boorloo/Perth’s EDIE releases the buoyant indie pop track ‘Girl’s Girl’.
Boorloo/Perth artist EDIE today unveils the catchy slice of indie pop that is ‘Girl’s Girl’; a blinding ray of Western Australian sunshine that has an underlying feisty message about the worst kind of betrayal – that from your own gender: Was I a competition?Was I a threat?Cos I don’t understand how it got this badIn …