melbourne
Album Review: Tanya-Lee Davies is in ‘Dreamland’: a wonderful realm of slow burning vignettes that simmer with a melodic intensity.
The music of Melbourne’s Tanya-Lee Davies has a sixties beehive velvet blush about it – a sort of Dusty Springfield/Nancy Sinatra slow waltz to something powered by Burt Bacharach or Jimmy Webb, with a touch of self-deprecating antipodean humour. Her album ‘Dreamland’ is a wonderful collection of wry, bittersweet tunes that are infused with a …
Premiere: Melbourne’s Blackbirds FC unveil the shimmering atmospheric ‘Magiclands’, title track for their new album, ahead of gig news.
We are honoured to premiere the new single from the brilliant Blackbirds FC, which is the title track for their upcoming album ‘Magiclands’, due out on 18 November 2022. The single is a gorgeous shimmering track: with celestial choruses and an aching, melancholy feel and guitars that jangle like chiming bells. The band has an …
Track: Naarm/Melbourne trio Summer Flake wonder who the ‘Stranger’ in the mirror is – an easy slow burning track with a delicate pop sensibility.
‘Stranger’ is a slow burning fuse of a song that floats in the ether with a gorgeous slide guitar motif and layers of glorious harmonies. Summer Flake have that laid back low-fi burnish that brings to mind bands like Mazzy Star or Cowboy Junkies – soft velvet vocals and shimmering guitars that create an evocative …
Track: It’s ‘Only A Dream’ for London-based Melbourne trio HighSchool – a deliciously dark hyperkinetic track with a gothic aftertaste. Plus tour news.
Melbourne born and bred but now relocated to London, the magnificent trio HighSchool are back with a fabulous new single ‘Only A Dream’ – a dark brooding slow burning fuse that ignites with a pop fervour into a jangling motorik beat that sets the pulse racing. There’s no doubting the antipodean petri dish that has …
Album Review: Melbourne power duo, Mannequin Death Squad release sizzling debut long player, Super Mental Psycho.
Mannequin Death Squad have finally released their debut album after a string of blistering singles (all of which appear on the album) being released over the past few years in the run-up to the long-awaited release of this gem of a long-player. The album was recorded over that time at a number of different studios, …
Premiere: Melbourne chanteuse Bella Deer unveils the anthemic dance track ‘Bloom’, with a force that would power the universe. Plus launch dates announced.
With a powerful voice filled with a ineluctable power that would light up an entire universe, we are very proud to premiere the new single ‘Bloom’ from Melbourne singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Bella Deer. With a pulse quickening cyclical piano thrum that drives the song forward like an out of control billy cart with no …
Premiere: The dizzying My Giddy Aunt become ‘Sunk’: a buoyant effervescent track off their forthcoming EP.
We are very pleased to premiere the new single ‘Sunk’ from crinkly topped Naarm/Melbourne trio My Giddy Aunt. This is a gloriously melodic traipse through an indie pop paradise with its jangly sounds, effervescent bounce and touch of whimsy. Vocally reminiscent of something by the legendary The The or James, there is nonetheless an antipodean …
Track: The brilliant Gena Rose Bruce collaborates with Bill Callahan in sultry new track ‘Foolishly in Love’
We here at Backseat Mafia have been long time fans of Melbourne-based chanteuse Gena Rose Bruce with her smoky, sultry voice and reverb-inflected laconic style that comes across as a melange of Mazzy Star and P.J. Harvey: a femme fatale with a steely spine cloaked in luscious velvet and a smoldering style. Her debut album …
Track: Iconic Essendon Airport make a blessed return with Anne Cessna for limited release tracks ‘Agua Por Favor’ and ‘Ten Thousand Steps’, ahead of appearance at Chapter Music celebrations.
Essendon Airport have a permanent place in the annals of the Australian indie music scene from the late seventies with their innovative electronic sonic canvases – founding members consisted of Robert Goodge on guitar and David Chesworth on Wurlitzer electric piano, along with a home-made drum machine bought from the Trading Post. Goodge went on to …
Track: Melbourne’s Delivery have dropped off that ‘Baader Meinhoff’ feeling at the door – an anarchic, cathartic rush of punky goodness ahead of album release and launch date.
Melbourne’s Delivery have dropped off a brilliant catchy riff-riven track for our consumption that combines a Trio-like Casio-infused effervescent beat with a punky attitude-filled bluster. ‘Baader Meinhoff’ swings like a barnyard door in a hurricane and is imbued with a cathartic sense of fun – compounded by the vibrant video by James Devlin and Sam …