Xavier Rudd turns the romance all the way up to 11 with his new single “High Times.” It’s a tender acoustic guitar ballad which celebrates the beauty of long-term love.
“I’m stoked to release this song for summer,” Xavier enthused. “No matter what’s going on in our lives we can be thankful for the natural beauty that surrounds us and the freedom to take a breath in those spaces when we can find a little time. The high times.”
Mathilde Anne has a knack for creating indie pop music with real depth. Her latest effort is “Break,” a super catchy number with some of the most vulnerable lyrics you’re likely to hear and special guest vocals from Des Cortez’ Sam Knight.
“I wrote ‘Break’ in my shower at 12am after a Finneas concert. I was sitting in the shower listening to my “depressing hot girl heart-break” playlist and thinking about a conversation I’d had with my partner,” Mathilde recalls. “In that conversation we came to the conclusion that both of us (me in particular) had a lot of walls up and had kept myself somewhat reserved for fear of having my heart broken again. I wrote it as a way to come to terms with this idea I had during my sad-girl shower that I didn’t want him to not really know me or the way I love”.
Mathilde Anne has had a massive year releasing a stack of new material, scoring a Music Victoria Award nomination, and sharing stages with Cub Sport and Telenova. She’s hitting the ground running in 2024 with a couple of shows in the first week of January. Add these to your calendar, and save room for the other dates that will inevitably follow:
If The Wombats and The Kooks had a lovechild, it might sound something like The Sooks. Their new single “Never Gonna Go” is absolutely infectious. I know you’ll want to crank this song up and put it on repeat.
“This song is about a girl I saw at the beach a few months back. I was with some mates at the beach and I saw this really pretty girl. I didn’t have a guitar or anything but the song just seemed to write itself in my head,” said the band’s guitarist, Keenan Fitzsimons. “Naturally it has a really surf-rock, summer-pop kinda vibe, a contagious chorus that anyone can sing along to and a groovy riff. The first time we played the song at a show, the crowd was already singing along to the chorus by the end which is something we tried to go for. We really like the sing-alongy vibe of the chorus.”
You can guarantee you’ll be humming this one for the rest of the summer.
Your favorite summer party band COTERIE have released a new anthem for the season, “Paradise.” I know you’ll want to crank this one up loud!
This song sounds fire coming out of your speakers, but you know it’ll be even better live. Consider this your reminder that COTERIE are touring all over the country on their Lush Leopard Regional Summer Tour real soon.
I love Christmas music, but I’m a bit picky about it. Every year there are plenty of new Christmas songs released, but most of them are overly cliché and cloying. They feel like a cash grab rather than an honest contribution to the canon of Christmas music. So when I do bring you a Christmas song, you know it’s good. Wrap your ears around “Not Christmas Here,” the latest singer from Imogen Clark. Penned with acclaimed singer-songwriter Steve Poltz and recorded with an all-star cast of musicians at Peter Frampton’s Studio Phenix in Nashville, it manages to be sweet without being schmaltzy.
“I went to the US to write and record earlier this year, and while I was there, I decided this was my last visit and the next time I came back would be me moving there” Imogen recalled. “I was so excited but also overwhelmed and terrified about moving to the other end of the Earth. I thought of my Aussie Christmases, visiting my family home in Western Sydney and taking stock of what I’ve learned, achieved and overcome in the last twelve months. This song is me projecting ahead to how I’ll feel on my first Christmas living in America, without my family close by, and without all the trappings of an Australian Christmas – the sweltering heat, seafood dinners and white wine.”
“It was so much fun writing this song with Imogen,” Steve added. “She’s a great collaborator and a wonderful songsmith with great instincts. It put us in the Christmas spirit while we were smack dab in the middle of a heatwave in Nashville. Honored to be a part of the whole shebang.”
She might be based in the United States now, but Imogen won’t stay away for too long. She’ll play a string of shows as a special guest of BOWEN * YOUNG in January. If you’re stuck for Christmas gift ideas, might I suggest some tickets?
Rising country artist Josh Setterfield has impressed me time and again with his releases. His latest single “Stay” is another banger which infuses country with a hint of rock edge. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself humming this one for the rest of the day. It’s a serious earworm!
“Stay” comes from Josh’s EP Rise, which is full of those tracks that had me raving. If you’re already a fan like me, it’s a great reminder of just how much awesome material he’s released. And if you’re new to the party, consider this your introduction. Josh will play his first ever Aussie headline show in his hometown of Meeanjin/Brisbane at the Arcana Empress Theatre on January 13 as part of his Kinda World Tour. Tickets are on sale now from Eventbrite.
There are plenty of songs about holiday cheer, but not everyone is buzzing with excitement about the festive season. If the thought of the new year ahead makes you feel melancholy, Anna Smyrk’s poignant new single “January Makes Me Sad” is for you. She recorded the track in Nashville with producers Jake Finch and Collin Pastore, known for their work with boygenius and Lucy Dacus. I can definitely hear their influence here, although it’s still got that recognisable Anna stamp.
“This is a song about the pressure that comes with the start of a new year,” Anna explained. “We have this culture of resolutions and renewal buzzing around in January and I always get sucked into it, thinking that this year I’m going to reinvent myself into a shiny new person. But inevitably the weeks go by and I’m still the same as I was last year.”
Anna should shake off the blues just in time for her first US tour in February. If you’re Stateside, here are all the dates you need:
1 February 2024 – Funk N Waffles, Syracuse
3 February 2024 – One Broadway Collaborative, Lawrence
4 February 2024 – Brick Hill House Concerts, Orleans
9 February 2024 – The Drum Roll, Rochester
10 February 2024 – Abilene, Rochester
11 February 2024 – Pittsburgh Winery, Pittsburgh
12 February 2024 – The Sharon Apollo Maennerchor Club, Sharon
13 February 2024 – The Treelawn Social, Cleveland
14 February 2024 – Grounds for Thought, Bowling Green
15 February 2024 – Natalie’s, Columbus
16 February 2024 – Hirth Happenings, Maineville
18 February 2024 – Bad Branch House Concerts, Whiteburge
21-25 February 2024 – Folk Alliance International Official Showcase, Kansas City
We’ve all had those moments where we question what might have been. Perhaps it was the case of the wrong timing or we were just too scared to make the leap, but we can’t help replaying situations in our minds and asking what could have been. AYLA explores one of her greatest “what ifs” in her fabulous new single “Should’ve Been Fine.”
“I wrote this song about being in love with my best friend, who loved me back, but we knew it wouldn’t work out,” she recalled. “’Holding off on happiness cause some stupid little things didn’t line up’ is a line in the chorus that pretty much sums it up! I was really feeling like life was too short to let anything get in the way of two people loving each other and being together”.
I’ve written about so many AYLA singles over the years, but this one might just be my favourite. I’m going to sit with this one for a bit, but I can’t wait to hear what comes next.
“London,” the latest single by Dan Keyes + The New Rides, is one of those songs that sneaks up on you. I thought it was nice on the first listen, but before long I realised I’d played it three times straight. I’m pretty sure I’ll be humming its chorus for the rest of the day.
The outfit is fronted by Dan Keyes, who was born and raised in Texas but now splits his time between Australia and Los Angeles. While this is his new outfit’s first single, Dan’s every bit as experienced as his voice suggests. He began touring at just 18 when his former band Recover, a post-hardcore act, inked a deal with legendary label Fueled by Ramen. He then went on to form the dance rock project Young Love in the mid-2000s, but felt unprepared for the fame and all that came with it. And so, he left Young Love behind and headed west, which ultimately led to the birth of Dan Keyes + The New Rides.
Dan, who collaborated with local songwriter and producer Tim Metcalfe on the track, said, “We wanted it to sound classic, familiar and new all the same time. A modern, Aussie take on Americana, if you will … The song lyrics are quite intentionally vague; it’s how you interpret it. Do I sound like I come from London? No. Does Tim, who I co-wrote the song with, sound like he is? Maybe. It’s about wanting to walk, or run to someone, in the middle of the night, for no real reason other than wanting to be with them; in that moment.”
“London” isn’t just the first song from Dan Keyes + The New Rides. It’s also the first release from the newly revived Wheatley Records. First established in 1980 by the late, great Glenn Wheatley, Wheatley Records nurtured the careers of John Farnham, Real Life, Pseudo Echo, and heaps more. I for one can’t wait to see what comes next for this independent label.
The release of “When I’m Alone,” the debut single from Meeanjin/Brisbane artist Rosa Mack shows she’s a force to be reckoned with. This is one of the strongest debuts I’ve heard in some time, a soaring, soulful number that effortlessly combines blues, soul, and jazz influences into a song that’s timeless, yet fresh. You’ll feel this one while you’re marvelling at her impressive pipes.
“’When I’m Alone’ reveals the tension of journeying from the confines of a toxic relationship into the liberating freedom of aloneness. The desire for connection is juxtaposed with desperation for solitude and inner peace, having found loneliness in partnership and empowerment through new-found independence,” Rosa explained. “’When I’m Alone’ is a reclamation of one’s self, defining and celebrating the distinction between loneliness and the joy of being alone.”
Rosa Mack and her seven-piece band have already played their last show of the year, but you’ll want to follow her on the socials to see what they do next.
