Stars – Interview with Amy Millan & Evan Cranley (Static, 2008)
It may've taken eight long years but Canadian indie pop quintet Stars made their way to Australia for the first time recently on the back of their fourth LP and one of 2007's best releases,
Peaches – I Feel Cream
The always fruity Peaches is back with fourth album I Feel Cream which finds her giving the past a slip and whipping it real good.
HTRK – London – 24 October 2011
HTRK The Garage, London October 24, 2011 HTRK have always been a difficult band to love. Once you got used to their narco-minimalism and faceless anonymity that pervaded their artwork, you realised they weren't a
Cold Cave – Cherish the Light Years
Can goth new-wavers Cold Cave come close to the lo-fi synth-brilliance of their debut Love Comes Close? Now, that's the question.
The Stills – Oceans Will Rise
The Stills channel an environmental apocalypse with Oceans Will Rise. Will anyone be left to hear it?
The Antlers – Hospice
Despite the grim subject matter the second album from the Brooklyn trio The Antlers, Hospice is hot stuff.
Adalita – Adalita
Australia's first lady of rock and founder member of Magic Dirt, Adalita Srsen, adopts a stripped back stance for her debut solo effort.
Bibio – Ambivalence Avenue
Turn left off Apathy Street, hang a right on Take It or Leave It road and there you'll find Ambivalence Avenue the new offering from Bibio.
Smith Westerns – Dye It Blonde
There are some records that forever remain at the bottom of the review pile, and boy do Smith Westerns make us regret it.
Times New Viking – Born Again Revisited
Born Again Revisited or bad idea revisited? Public opinion be damned. Is this the worst album we've heard all year?
Who The Hell Are… The Rifle Volunteer?
It's an audacious pronouncement to commit to releasing 12 singles in 12 months. The Wedding Present set the benchmark in the 90's. Ash tried the same thing recently, in a mixture of desperation and overkill in numbers too large to comprehend and tarnishing the very idea of a single. It's not just two songs on a slab of vinyl (or cd, or one of those less satisfying digital w/artwork jobs). It's a living, breathing statement. A trojan horse in disguise. A rallying cry to fall behind. A rallying cry... See, The Rifle Volunteer comprehend this. "I'll Sleep When That Damned Sun Is Dead", the first single in their year long campaign, is what we're talking about. Here is a band that means business.
Dappled Cities – Interview with Dave Rennick (Static, 2009)
Sydney art-pop quintet Dappled Cities have steadily grown in status in the last ten years with 2006’s Granddance and their most recent psyche-pop opus Zounds. Last year, we spoke to Dave Rennick, guitarist and vocalist of Dappled Cities about birthing and touring the album.
Times New Viking – Rip It Off
Matador, 2008 [rating:7/10] Times New Viking are the future. They're not my future, they're probably not your future, but they are the future. Rip It Off is their third album and first on Matador records
The Horrors – Australian Interview (Static, 2010)
We chew the fat with The Horrors on their recent Australian tour about last year's remarkable second album Primary Colours, and their thoughts on cover versions: "I think it’s a funny idea that this is a conversation you’re more likely to have now than at any other time in the history of rock ’n’ roll, considering most bands really started playing cover versions, being The Beatles or The Stones or even the Sex Pistols. It was something that was just kind of part and parcel of being in a group and part of a live repertoire."
Girls – Talking Father, Son, Holy Ghost (2011)
San Francisco's Girls self-titled debut of 2009 garnered widespread acclaim based on its fancy-free and free-love attitude that offered irresistible pop gems bathed in x-rated video clips ("Lust for Life" anyone?). Sex and pop, what more do you want out of music these days? For their sophomore album Father, Son, Holy Ghost, the Girls duo of Christopher Owen and Chet "JR" White have upped the songwriter stakes to put together an album that's impressive straight out of the blocks. Static's Chris Berkley spoke with Girl's JR over the phone in the midst of a very suspect (if you're to believe what he says) video shoot.
Yeasayer – Odd Blood
With a new sound and approach on display, Yeasayer have in their hands a contender for album of the year with Odd Blood. Yes, we know it's only March.