November 1, 2008 | New Music | 
by Monique Rothstein |
We checked in with Sydney-based songwriter Fergus Brown to get the inside story on his wonderfully quirky and catchy pop song, Nerds In Love [below]: ‘It was was a fun song write. Some songs can be tortuous, but this was an imagined, tongue-in-cheek vignette of my life spent together with a certain girl I’d seen around. That’s all it was. At least, until a friend of mine blurted to this girl that I’d written a song about her. And he gave her a copy. We’re friends now. She’s a very talented, and successful, visual artist. She was flattered. Recently, I heard that another person thinks it was written about them. I’m looking forward to that awkward conversation sometime in the future’. Fergus Brown has just been announced as the support for American singer-songwriter, Martha Wainwright on all eleven shows of her Australian tour.
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August 25, 2008 | New Music | by Monique Rothstein |
Sonic alchemy, lyrical mastery and melodies to melt even the coldest winter heart, anyone? I introduce you to my new favourite indie darlings: The All New Adventures of Us (alternatively nicknamed TANOU). With their offbeat blend of indie pop, this seven piece British outfit evoke elements of their most talented contemporaries such as Belle & Sebastian, Connor Oberst, Sigur Ros, Ben Folds, and even the fragile vocal sensibility of Elliot Smith. Read more
April 17, 2008 | New Music | by Monique Rothstein |
She & Him are actress and closet singer-songwriter, Zooey Deschanel (Almost Famous, The Good Girl, The Assassination of Jesse James), and juggernaut producer, one-man band and folk troubadour, M.Ward. Read more
April 15, 2008 | New Music | by Monique Rothstein |
Emanating from Newcastle, Australia, Firekites are the unlikely love child of Kings of Convenience and Arcade Fire, with eyes the colour of Texas geniuses, Midlake. Read more
April 11, 2008 | New Music | by Monique Rothstein |
I first set eyes on the Brisbane quartet Yves Klein Blue during a stint as a music scout for an online music initiative. Read more
March 31, 2008 | New Music | by Monique Rothstein |
Things are happening almost too quickly for Sally Seltmann, the bashful Melbourne balladeer who plays under the guise of New Buffalo and who wrote Feist’s 2007 hit single, 1,2,3,4. Read more
March 19, 2008 | New Music | by Monique Rothstein |
This New York indie-rock outfit won our hearts with the Kaiser Chiefs-esque single Nobody Move Nobody Get Hurt off their acclaimed debut album. Read more
March 14, 2008 | New Music | by Monique Rothstein |
Princess One Point Five is the brainchild of Melbourne based singer-songwriter Sarah-Jane Wentzki, in collaboration with partner Richard Andrew. With Wentzki’s gloriously fragile and emotionally charged vocals, not dissimilar to the Blaskos or New Buffalos of the Australian songstress circle, P1.5 (as she is affectionately known) creates a unique hybrid of achingly poetic underground avant-pop, gently sprinkled with the post-modern indie aesthetic. Read more
March 3, 2008 | New Music | by Monique Rothstein |
The Israel-turn-Sydneysider Lior has a wonderful ability to turn the mundane of the everyday into delicious slices of saccharine sweet folk music. We caught up with on the cusp of his much anticipated sophomore studio release, Corner of an Endless Road. Considering Autumn Flow was so well received (and multi-award winning) were you anxious or intimidated about releasing a follow-up? ‘Absolutely. At the beginning I was and it was a little bit daunting because I went from doing my first album, which was really just an artistic project and I didn’t really think anyone would care, and then you’ve got to work hard to shake off the expectations and all the stuff they talk about. So I just had fun with it and went back into the headspace where I was writing songs for myself again, not for other people and not with anyone in mind. It was hard, but I got there in the end’. Read more
February 23, 2008 | New Music | by Monique Rothstein |
Sugar Army is the culmination of four dudes spending their lives in the dreamy slumber of West Australia, with their only saviour from terminal boredom being music. With the lengthy titled opener, And Now You’re Old Enough, I Think That You Should Know, earning these indie rock purists high rotation on Australian radio network Triple J and community radio, the cheeky quartet have just added a slot at the Big Day Out music festival to their list of accolades. With raw bone bass lines and insanely addictive beats, this E.P needs more than just kitschy multi-coloured teddies littered across the cover, it needs their trademark disclaimer — diabetics beware. [read about Sugar Army soundalikes, Interpol]
February 12, 2008 | New Music | by Monique Rothstein |
The E.L.F is the outrageous new side project of the flannel-clad Gerling frontman, Darren Cross. A genre agnostic, Cross throws a tantrum on Stevie Nicks Hearts, the first EP created el solo in the dark underbelly of his Sydney home studio. The indie-infused aesthetic smashes itself against the wall, whilst 80’s synth-beats get thrown across the room like a bad break up. It’s like Beck made babies with Dannii Minogue, and the chubby new born is strange looking yet surprisingly adorable. [also read our interview with singer-songwriter Reed KD]
Chicago artist Jessica Joslin reassembles the skeletons of various creatures, embellishing them with found and antique fabrics and materials to create biomechanical creatures straight out of a steampunk fantasy. Read more
Oh man, the work of New York based artist Inka Essenhigh is so good it makes my eyes water. Read more
Peter Nalitch is Russia’s answer to Manu Chao. His video for the song Guitar is a Borat-like jab at low-budget, post-Soviet awkwardness — absurd English lyrics, Eurotrash earnestness, bad wipes, and cheap subtitles. But its tongue-in-cheekness is quite apparent, and the song is disarmingly catchy and romantic.
Melbourne’s Alice Euphemia has been a swinging shrine to Australian independent fashion for a decade now, hosting some of our favourites including Romance Was Born and TV amongst countless others. The success continues, with Alice Euphemia having opened a second store in 2007 in the old Craft Victoria building on Gertrude Street in Fitzroy, Melbourne. Read more
I don’t intend on tempting any grape cravings which some borderline AAs may be experiencing, but everyone deserves some red after a long day. Drop of the Day is an easy way to receive fantastic quality wine at an extremely competitive price. Sure there are places online that offer cheaper alternatives, but Drop of the Day offers quality wine that pleases your wallet and your taste buds, too. Better yet, there is a new drop available to choose from each day for around AU$9 per bottle. Hmmm, I recommend you go for the blends.
There’s some nice, doom-tinged psych rock coming out of Holtzclaw, Virginia in the form of Pontiak, a lumbering, feverish, blues-heavy trio that sounds like a hungover morning after a drunken party around a bonfire in the woods.
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If you’re into supporting WikiLeaks and Julian Assange, here are some T-shirts with leaked US Embassy cables and other classified information printed on them.
WE'RE POSTING / SOME OF THE BEST
Francoise Nielly’s Yellow series
Parisian visual artist Francoise Nielly brings technicolour to the forefront in her latest series, Yellow. Featuring thick impasto palette knife strokes and trippy neon hues, Nielly captures the vulnerable expressions of her muses to a tee. Read more
Matthew Dear’s Black City album totem
Our friends at Ghostly International are releasing Matthew Dear’s Black City album as a limited edition ‘totem’. A what? A totem – a limited edition metal bar used to access a private music chamber. Cool! Read more
Get lost in a daydream or a craving for something sweet while gazing at these cool sculptures by Brooklyn-based WiNK WiNK PONY. Made using clay, tree bark, wood, and mossy moss.
Communication prosthesis by Sascha Nordmeyer
This ‘communication prosthesis’ by designer Sascha Nordmeyer is hilarious and awesome. I want to wear one to a job interview.
It’s refreshing to see artists like Joe Kievitt who are contented to explore the beauty in simple forms and asymmetrical patterns. Read more
Illustrating the playful side of sexy, Donna Wilson uses burlesque and 60s pop art as inspiration for her original art cards. Read more
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