SNIPPETZ: THURSDAY June 6, 2026
This week’s Snippetz includes: Gypsy Lee, Wineshank, Joel Havea, Phil Jamieson, Fountain Lakes, Tig, Eliza Hull, John Sykes, Mollie Elizabeth, Meek, Michael Walker, James Keith, Paul Capsis and Adam Noviello, Birdland, FKJ, Barb Waters, Crooked Colours, Tiahn, Muki, Armored Saint, Accept, Xandria, CBAA launches Community Radio podcast, The Velvet Club, Graveyard, Parker, Sinner, The Arcade Lights, Daya, Moebius, Asha Ryder West, Edie, Rei Code Zero, Ella Ion, The Hard-Ons and more
GYPSY LEE RETURNS WITH FRESH VIBES ON NEW SINGLE ‘WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU COSTS A LOT IN THERAPY’
Melbourne indie-pop chameleon GYPSY LEE continues to build upon the momentum generated by the release of her track ‘SNITCHES’, with strong follow up single, ‘WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU COSTS A LOT IN THERAPY’.
In another bold move by the young artist, this new song sees GYPSY LEE demonstrate her innately personal brand of storytelling through songwriting that feels both engaging and revealing at the same time. As with the EP’s first single ‘SNITCHES’, the captivating nature of ‘WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU…’ stems from a real and personal chapter for GYPSY LEE’s life.
Written during COVID-19 lockdowns experienced in Melbourne, the artist began to wonder about the future; especially coming from the perspective of a then-high school student, this time was turbulent on various levels.
“I wrote this song with my good friend Thrones (Andrew Lowden). The song became my way of expressing just how upsetting that time was as a teenage girl. It was obviously a riff on what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, but at that time I didn’t feel like it was making me stronger, it was just a never ending compilation of failure”. GYPSY LEE
The origins of ‘WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU…’ may have started in a darker place but as GYPSY LEE’s music has shown to do, the final result has a thread of optimism and resilience strongly woven throughout.
“This song feels like the last little piece of my Teenage hood. I had a really hard time fitting in growing up and I think this song came from trying to make sense of feelings I didn’t really have the words for back then. I stick to the belief that it’s an artists job to create the music from experience but once it’s shared it doesn’t belong to you anymore. If this song finds someone who feels the same way, or makes them feel understood for even a moment, that means everything to me. This song is for you.” GYPSY LEE
This project became a way for GYPSY LEE to process and navigate this time and in turn, it has become a song that explores mental health struggles that hopefully, listeners will be able to connect to in their own way. A playfulness in the musicality allows for the listener to lose themselves in its vibrancy; yet emotional resonance remains at the core of the lyrics, expertly delivered by GYPSY LEE.
“I was keen on working with musicians that really understood the deeper meaning in the song and being able to get their take on that. Jonathan Fuda, who plays guitar for me in my band, tracked the electric guitars and blew my mind how much he got inside the song. Same with bass and drums; we were lucky enough to record with the most unbelievable musicians: Nic Durant – bassist from Melbourne rockers The Crystal Ship, and drummer extraordinaire Lewis Morphett, who are both just insanely talented. Watching the record come to life the way it did was such an amazing time and I’m so excited for everyone to finally hear this.” GYPSY LEE
Further evidenced by the song’s visualiser, directed by WILKS, the way GYPSY LEE has captured this uncertain and tough mental terrain comes through in some striking sketches she herself has created. A unique way to illustrate “a busy and troubled mind trying to make sense of the eworld”, the images feel like they are taken from a school notebook.
2026 has already gotten off to a busy start for GYPSY LEE, performing a string of live shows to audiences in Melbourne that have further affirmed her status as a talent to watch this year. Having made an impressive debut with her 2024 EP PRETTY IN THE DARK, the songwriter and vocalist has consistently challenged herself in pushing the evolution of her storytelling abilities.
And with the release of her music so far in 2026, GYPSY LEE is proving that each step she takes is bolder than the last.
UPCOMING GYPSY LEE SHOWS
Thursday 4 June The Cosmo Trentham VIC
Thursday 18 June Shotkickers Thornbury VIC SINGLE LAUNCH
What Doesn’t Kill You Costs A Lot In Therapy is released June 2nd
GYPSY LEE: Official Website | Facebook | TikTok | Instagram | YouTube | Triple J Unearthed
WINESHANK – THE WINE POURER’S TALES – ALBUM
Seventy-two years young indie artist Wineshank has released a fabulous new album titled ‘The Wine Pourer’s Tales’. It features vintage, soulful late 70s LA-style session era musicianship on finely constructed songs with gorgeous melodies. Even the late great Roger McLachlan had a play on it.
“I recently had the pleasure to record some bass for a fabulous Melbourne singer /songwriter, guitar player who goes under the name Wineshank and it was such a joy to perform on these tracks. Shades of Steely Dan and Crosby, Stills and Nash come to mind. Really intelligent writing, arrangements and thoughtful lyrics. These are not your average three chord pop songs. They have substance and evoke wonderful emotions for the listener. Be sure to check out this CD when it’s released, you won’t be disappointed.” – Roger McLachlan (bass player) 3LRB, Stars, Geoff Achison and the Souldiggers
“This album is a personal exploration of love, loss, family, friendship and hope, marking a sonic shift from my debut. I focused heavily on rich guitar tones, utilizing the Roland VG-99 and open tunings to craft unique, melodic textures,” Wineshank tells us.
“The album hosts some of Melbourne’s finest musicians including bassist the late Roger McLachlan ( LRB, Stars and Geoff Achison) and drummer Gerry Pantazis (Richard Marx, Larry Carlton, John Farnham).”
“Lyrically, the songs blend real-life experiences with abstract storytelling like “Roo Girl,” a tale of a girl protected by kangaroos in the Australian scrub. Developed over seven years, I really wanted to create surprising, engaging moments for the listener, inspired by the songwriting approach of artists like Sting and Eric Johnson.”
https://bobbyshank.bandcamp.com/album/the-wine-pourers-tales
https://youtube.com/w/vWq8eOkdH0w
https://wineshank.com/electronic-press-kit-epk
JOEL HAVEA ‘THE YEAR THAT MUSIC DIED” NEW SINGLE AND DATES ANNOUNCED
After many years living and touring in Germany and Europe, singer-songwriter and guitarist, Joel Havea, returned to his hometown of Melbourne, bringing his unique South-Sea Soul to Australian audiences. Inspired by the rhythms of his Tongan and Dutch heritage, and a family lineage of music composers, Joel’s lyrics and music are a journey in storytelling and blending of cultural influences. Joel has recently released an EP titled Mass Formation and now delivers “The Year That Music Died.”, the final single from the recording. Joel has also announced new Victorian and German dates. Check out Joel’s recent thoughts here from his newsletter.
“I’ve got a new song coming out next month called “The Year That Music Died.” It’s probably the most personal track on the Mass Formation EP and is also its final release.
I’ve been thinking about why I started writing these songs in the first place. One thing that surprised me was how uncomfortable it became to ask questions. Call me naive, but I always thought curiosity, debate and critical thinking were things we valued, especially in creative circles.
At its heart, that’s what this song is about.
The highlight while finishing this project was recording ‘The Year That Music Died” during a spontaneous session with Japanese harmonica wizard Natsuki Kurai in Yokohama last year. Ironically, after writing about such a divided time, I found myself making music with someone from a completely different culture and background. That felt strangely hopeful.
It was a welcome reminder that music still does what it’s always done best: bring people together.
On the live front, I’ve got a handful of shows coming up in regional Victoria over the next few months before heading back to Germany in September. I’m especially excited to get back on the road with the Joel Havea Trio for the first time in two years!
Much love, Joel”
UPCOMING SHOWS (TICKETS)
Jun 13 Bendigo Blues Tram, Bendigo
Jun 20 Eat It Up Festival, Prahran Market
July 9 Feather & Drum Co., Yackandandah
Aug 20 Ararat Town Hall, Ararat
Sep 03 Hot Jazz Club, Münster, Germany
Sep 04 Goslarsche Höfe, Goslar, Germany
Sep 09 Haus am Walde, Bremen, Germany
Sep 10 Kulturkirche Kaiserswerth, Düsseldorf, Germany
Sep 11 Stummsche Reithalle, Neunkirchen, Germany
Sep 12 Bad Salzunger Kultursommer, Bad Salzungen, Germany
Sep 13 Birdland, Hamburg, Germany
PHIL JAMIESON SHARES NEW SINGLE BLUE AS THE SUNLIGHT
Australian singer-songwriter Phil Jamieson continues to unveil his most expansive solo era yet with the release of new single, Blue As The Sunlight, the second offering from his forthcoming sophomore album, 10Charlie (out August 14 and available to presave here).
Arriving on the heels of the project’s first single Weekends, Blue As The Sunlight further showcases Jamieson’s evolving solo sound; a blend of vivid storytelling, atmospheric guitar work and a vocal delivery that moves between tenderness and raw intensity. The track deepens the emotional and sonic palette already introduced on 10Charlie, revealing another side of an album shaped by reflection, resilience and renewal.
“Blue is about unconditional love. Not just for others, but for yourself as well,” explains Jamieson.”In some ways, from my perspective, this is about having empathy and forgiveness. It’s about allowing yourself to be loved and also in doing so, loving others. It’s this feeling that pierces through the melody.”
“Lyrically, it’s a little obtuse in some ways, but the drama of the song comes from me trying to communicate that on my own personal journey, I’ve unlocked a way to spread love and do it in an unconditional manner. I’m not always great at it, but I try. That’s the purpose behind the track.”
10Charlie finds Jamieson at his most direct and personal, capturing moments of introspection and clarity while leaning into collaboration with a handpicked group of Australian musicians and longtime creative allies. Reuniting with producer Oscar Dawson, the record features contributions from Davey Lane, Rob Muinos, Ben Edgar and Soph Ozard, weaving together a collection that shifts between meditative space and explosive release.
Following the announcement of his massive national PJ AIR tour – spanning more than 40 shows across Australia – Jamieson will take Blue As The Sunlight and the broader 10Charlie material on the road, bringing the new era to breweries, theatres and beloved local venues nationwide. The tour celebrates the grassroots circuit that has long underpinned Australian live music culture, connecting new songs with the audiences that shaped his career. Tickets are on sale now from www.philjamieson.com.au/.
With Blue As The Sunlight, Jamieson continues to chart a deeply personal course through his solo work, one that balances introspection with widescreen emotional scope, and reinforces his place as one of Australia’s most distinctive songwriting voices.
Blue As The Sunlight is out now.
10CHARLIE will be released on Friday 14 August, and is available to presave here.
Tickets to the PJ AIR tour are on sale now from www.philjamieson.com.au/.
PHIL JAMIESON – PJ AIR Tour with special guests
Tickets from www.philjamieson.com.au/
THU 11 JUN – LEICHHARDT HOTEL, ROCKHAMPTON QLD
FRI 12 JUN – HARVEY ROAD TAVERN, GLADSTONE QLD
SAT 13 JUN – GRAND HOTEL, CHILDERS, QLD
SUN 14 JUN – METROPOLITAN HOTEL, MACKAY QLD
THU 18 JUN – MOUSE PROOF BREWERY, TOOWOOMBA QLD
FRI 19 JUN – NORTON MUSIC FACTORY, CALOUNDRA QLD
SAT 20 JUN – VINNIES DIVE, SOUTHPORT QLD
THU 25 JUN – TANSWELL’S HOTEL BEECHWORTH VIC
FRI 26 JUN – SOOKI LOUNGE, BELGRAVE VIC
SAT 27 JUN – YOUNG STREET TAVERN, FRANKSTON VIC
FRI 03 JUL – THEATRE ROYAL, CASTLEMAINE VIC
SAT 04 JUL – EUREKA HOTEL, GEELONG VIC
THU 09 JUL – THE SCENIC HOTEL, NORTON SUMMIT SA
FRI 10 JUL – ED CASTLE, ADELAIDE SA
SAT 11 JUL – PORT LINCOLN BREWING CO, PORT LINCOLN SA
WED 15 JUL – CABARITA BOWLO, CABARITA SA
THU 16 JUL – ELTHAM HOTEL, ELTHAM NSW
FRI 17 JUL – WOOPI BREWING CO, WOOLGOOLGA NSW
SAT 18 JUL – BELLINGEN BREWERY, BELLINGEN NSW
SUN 19 JUL – FINNIAN’S, PORT MAC NSW
THU 23 JUL – LA LA LA’S, WOLLONGONG NSW
FRI 24 JUL – MILTON THEATRE, MILTON NSW
SAT 25 JUL – FUN TIME PONY, CANBERRA ACT
THU 30 JUL – HAMILTON STATION HOTEL, NEWCASTLE NSW
FRI 31 JUL – FLOW BAR, OLD BAR NSW
SAT 01 AUG – THE WHALERS, MOSMAN NSW
SUN 02 AUG – AVOCA BEACH THEATRE, AVOCA BEACH NSW
FRI 07 AUG – THE DECK TRARALGON, TRARALGON VIC
SAT 08 AUG – LIVE AT THE BUNDY, BUNDALAGUAH VIC
SUN 09 AUG – SOCIAL CLUB, BALNARRING VIC
THU 13 AUG – CROWBAR, BRISBANE QLD
FRI 14 AUG – SHOTKICKERS, MELBOURNE VIC
SAT 15 AUG – HEAPS NORMAL HEALTH CLUB, SYDNEY NSW
THU 20 AUG – THE ROYAL OAK, LAUNCESTON TAS
FRI 21 AUG – FORTH PUB, FORTH TAS
SAT 22 AUG – ALTAR BAR, HOBART TAS
THU 27 AUG – MOJOS BAR, FREMANTLE WA
FRI 28 AUG – FROTH CRAFT BREWERY, BUNBURY WA
SAT 29 AUG – THE RIVER, MARGRET RIVER WA
SUN 30 AUG – INDIAN OCEAN HOTEL, SCARBOROUGH WA
SAT 05 SEP – ALICE SPRINGS BREWING CO, ALICE SPRINGS NT
THU 10 SEP – TANKS ART CENTRE, CAIRNS QLD
FRI 11 SEP – THE WAREHOUSE, TOWNSVILLE QLD
SAT 12 SEP – MAGNUMS, AIRLIE BEACH QLD
FOUNTAIN LAKES ANNOUNCE THE RELEASE OF ‘CRY WOLF’ THE SECOND SINGLE FROM UPCOMING EP ‘JUNKYARD OF LOST HEARTS’
Fountain Lakes are Jac Tonks and Emma Heeney from Melbourne/Naarm. Their sound is expansive and genre spanning; with texture, reverb and dreamlike dual vocals. In late 2025, the pair spent time in country Victoria in an old, converted church, writing their latest offering, upcoming EP Junkyard of Lost Hearts.
STREAM on Soundcloud
Cry Wolf is the second song to come from said EP. It’s a cautionary tale, with interlocked vocals and sweet spectral harmonies above a tide of electric guitar stabs and building rhythm. The phrasing is at times disquieting. Sparse, intimate, and quietly intense. Cry Wolf is out next Friday 5th June.
For this track, Fountain Lakes are joined by regular collaborator, Nick O’Mara (ex-Raised by Eagles / Amarillo) on guitars, as well as Mark Monnone (ex-Lucksmiths / Monnone Alone) on bass and Gus Franklin (Smallgoods / Monnone Alone) on drums.
Junkyard of Lost Hearts is due out in August, before Jac & Emma head to the Fish Factory Creative Center in Stöðvarfjörður, Iceland for a month-long residency to write their debut album.
TIG TRADES INTROSPECTION FOR DISTORTION ON NEW RELEASE ‘ALICE SAYS’
Fresh off being named a Top 10 Global Emerging Songwriter in the prestigious Vanda & Young Songwriting Competition, Mornington Peninsula songwriter Tig returns with ‘Alice Says’, a sharp-edged, cathartic punk-pop release produced by Oscar Dawson of Holy Holy. Out Monday 1 June via AWAL, the second single taken from a larger body of work due in the second half of the year, arrives following Tig’s announcement of a support slot alongside Kim Churchill.
Trading dreamy introspection for distortion, attitude and release, ‘Alice Says’ channels a nostalgic bite of Tig’s 90s and early-2000s influences, somewhere between Middle Kids, Killing Heidi and Angie McMahon; while retaining the emotional depth that has quickly earned her a reputation as one of Australia’s most compelling emerging songwriters.
At its core, ‘Alice Says’ is a conversation between two selves: the confident performer Tig is becoming, and the fearful inner voice that spent years trying to keep her safe. Written as an imagined dialogue with her inner critic, ‘I know you wanna be back in the driver’s seat’, the track captures the chaotic tension of wanting to live a creative life while simultaneously fearing everything it might demand. Playful, bratty, and emotionally unravelling in equal measure, the song turns an internal tug-of-war into something freeing enough to dance to.
“For a long time, I felt like there were two different radio stations turned up to the max in my mind, and I didn’t know which one to tune out,’ Tig explains. ‘One part of me desperately wanted to make music and live creatively, and the other part was constantly trying to protect me from failure and vulnerability. At a point when the internal noise was becoming too much, I wrote this song to try and drown it out. It was my way of yelling back, but also trying to understand what was driving the fearful voice.”
This emotional reconciling extended into the recording process itself. Despite being known for softer, intimate songwriting, Tig was determined to make ‘Alice Says’ feel “more punk,” pushing herself toward a messier, attitude-driven performance. To help unlock that sense of release, Oscar rigged her vocals through a gritty amp simulator while she tracked, and loaned her a rare red overdrive pedal that Tig jokes made her “feel like a proper rockstar for a day.” The pair even shifted the song’s key multiple times mid-session to heighten its urgency and emotional combustion.
Reflecting on the song’s evolution, Tig explains: “The early lyrics were a lot more scathing (with a fair few bleep-able words), but I realised through writing that the fear was a part of me I needed to get to know too, instead of destroying it.”
‘Alice Says’ sees Tig expanding the emotional world introduced through her debut EP Inside Voices by turning internal conflicts into vivid, emotionally charged narratives, tracing the messy space between fear and courage, self-protection and expression, conformity and creativity. Tig has earned praise from Women In Pop, Beat Magazine, Forte Mag, AIR, Triple J Unearthed, PBS and Triple R, while support slots alongside Pierce Brothers, Ainslie Wills, Kim Churchill, Flynn Gurry, Maddy May and Grace Woodroofe have steadily built her reputation as a compelling live performer.
In a full-circle moment, Tig will again join Kim Churchill on stage next month, performing at Melbourne’s Brunswick Ballroom on Saturday 13 June. After first watching Churchill perform as a teenager at her hometown blues festival, Tig credits the experience with reshaping her understanding of what a life in music could look like.
Don’t miss your opportunity to see Tig perform on her biggest Melbourne stage yet alongside Kim Churchill at Brunswick Ballroom this June.
‘Alice Says’ out Monday 1 June via AWAL
Streaming Links: officiallytig.com
Upcoming Shows:
Saturday 13 June
Brunswick Ballroom – supporting Kim Churchill
6:30 pm: Doors
8:30 pm: Tig
9:30 pm: Kim Churchill
Web – Instagram – Bandcamp – YouTube
ELIZA HULL SHARES THE DEEPLY VULNERABLE ‘HOTEL ROOM’; HER FIRST OFFICIAL NEW MUSIC IN 3 YEARS
Dja Dja Wurrung Country/Castlemaine-based multi-award-winning songwriter, musician, advocate and writer Eliza Hull (she/her) – who received an O.A.M. last month for her contribution to music and disability advocacy, further cementing her reputation as one of so-called Australia’s most important voices across both culture and accessibility – today shares her first official new music in 3 years: ‘Hotel Room’, her “most unguarded” single yet, an utterly vulnerable and unapologetically sensuous alt-pop self-excavation tracing Hull’s emotional journey through womanhood while “feeling completely lost… moving toward midlife [and] becoming undone – questioning everything, wanting more, wanting less, changing shape in real time”. Written during a personal breakdown while Hull was alone in a London hotel room, the song explores womanhood, identity, intimacy and emotional unravelling, landing alongside an equally intimate video directed by Keiran Watson-Bonnice (You Am I, ABC’s And Then Something Changed) exploring sensual expression, her most liberating visual work yet. ‘Hotel Room’ marks a bold and emotionally expansive new era from one of the continent’s most compelling artists, and is out now independently – stream/purchase HERE.
“Hey, what do you know / I’m having a reckoning
Cos it’s just me in this hotel room / Breaking myself til I’m numb
What am I to do / If I can’t find my way back to you?”
Eliza Hull peels everything back on ‘Hotel Room’ to capture a private moment of complete unravelling with rawness and sensuality, exploring the “messy in-between place” she – like many women – feels moving toward midlife. Recorded at London’s Knight Time Studios with producer James Knight (The Kooks, Feist, Ainslie Wills) and mixed by trusted collaborator ARIA Award-winning Pip Norman (Missy Higgins, Baker Boy), written during “a breakdown” in a London hotel room reflecting that quiet, tense space where there’s nowhere left to hide from your thoughts and it all cracks open, the track spirals through self-reckoning through brutally honest lyrics that see Hull searching passionately for connection with a grounded version of herself after “feeling completely lost”. ‘Hotel Room’ crackles with vulnerability, the sounds of London traffic providing a grounding backdrop, featuring Eliza Hull on sparse piano and Knight on sensually luxuriant sax atop a minimalist beat that allows Hull’s vocals, emotions and message to take centre stage – quietly dejected in the track’s verses, viscerally desperate in its aching chorus – pushing the artist’s acclaimed songwriting into powerful new territory.
Of the single, Eliza Hull says: “‘Hotel Room’ is probably one of the most vulnerable songs I’ve ever written, me at my most exposed and unguarded – like you’ve accidentally walked into this London hotel room and I’m still in the middle of figuring something out. I travelled to the UK, where I wrote with 12 songwriters in 14 days – which, looking back now, was completely wild, I was exhausted and had a breakdown. As a mother and at this stage of my life, I feel more driven than ever to express myself honestly: we rarely hear stories or songs about women moving toward midlife – especially women who are unraveling, becoming undone, questioning everything, wanting more, wanting less, changing shape in real time. There’s still this expectation that women should either remain desirable, composed and certain, or quietly disappear. I’m interested in the messier in-between place. The strange, tender, human parts we don’t often sing about out loud. It feels important to explore that honestly. ‘Hotel Room’ isn’t a story about waiting to be rescued by someone else – it’s about trying to reconnect with your own inner self after feeling completely lost. I’m overseas, alone in a hotel room, spiralling through this reckoning with myself. The person I’m searching for isn’t somebody else – it’s me. The version that feels centred and whole. Recording in London with producer James Knight, the whole thing came together in this intense, electric rush. We only had half a day together, I arrived with just the bare bones of the song. James works so instinctively – every idea felt immediate, alive, and emotionally charged – which perfectly matched what the song was trying to say. That idea became the heart of the music video.”
The track’s video carries significant power in representing differences of expression of body and sexuality. Directed by another trusted collaborator, Keiran Watson-Bonnice (You Am I, ABC’s And Then Something Changed), who previously directed the clip for Eliza Hull’s 2023 single ‘Running Underwater‘ which ignited important discussions around disability representation in music, the ‘Hotel Room’ clip first sees Hull in a lonely hotel room that blurs and obscures in sultry textures – eventually returning home to crawl into bed and embrace another version of herself created by a visual effects artist. Eliza Hull explains, “I feel really proud of the ‘Hotel Room’ clip, I was lucky to work with Keiran Watson-Bonnice as the director, we made the film clip for ‘Running Underwater’ together, and I needed someone that I completely trust. He has a beautiful instinct. We don’t often see that kind of expression of body and sexuality, a woman being expressed through a lens of somebody who does move differently. I’m really trying to push myself and potentially surprise people, because I’ve never done anything like that before. I loved working with a visual effects artist to create two versions of myself – I wanted the ending to feel powerful and unexpected.”
WATCH: Eliza Hull – ‘Hotel Room’
Against a backdrop of uncertainty, transformation and emotional reckoning, Eliza Hull is creating the most fearless music of her career, building on a profound connection with audiences through her unflinching honesty, magnetic presence and deeply human songwriting. Her music offers not only catharsis, but a sense of belonging – resonating with listeners who see themselves reflected in her stories. Hull has built a reputation for finding the cinematic in human vulnerability – writing songs that cut through with emotional precision by exploring identity, womanhood, disability, desire and self-worth – all delivered through a voice that feels both intimate and impossible to ignore. One of the continent’s most vital voices for disability advocacy within the music industry, she was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in May this year for her contribution to music and disability advocacy. Whether selling out Melbourne Recital Centre, performing at the Sydney Opera House, Hamer Hall, Ability Fest, SXSW Sydney, NYE on the Hill, BIGSOUND or showcasing internationally at The Great Escape Festival UK and SXSW Austin, Hull brings an intensity to the stage that leaves a lasting mark. Her work has received recognition through multiple awards and nominations, with previous wins via Music Victoria Awards and the Women in Music Awards, reaching audiences globally and at home through live performances on the BBC plus coverage via Studio 10, The Today Show, ABC News Breakfast, Double J, ABC Radio, The Guardian, Rolling Stone, The Music, Tone Deaf, The AU Review and many more including strong community radio support across her career. Her 2023 Here They Come EP, created alongside producer Pip Norman and featuring collaborations with Gordi and Odette featured lead single, ‘Running Underwater‘, marking the first time Hull publicly wrote about living with Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) which she performed live on ABC’S Q&A. Its release and music video featuring dancer roya the destroya ignited important conversations around disability representation in music.
The last few years have marked a defining creative era for Hull – touring extensively locally and internationally including a celebrated run of shows with Sarah Blasko, while also sharing stages with artists including Jen Cloher, Maple Glider, Gordi, Clare Bowditch and Katy Steele – further cementing her reputation as one of the continent’s most captivating live performers. In 2025, her haunting reimagining of Silverchair’s ‘Tomorrow’ for television series Playing Gracie Darling earned widespread national acclaim, catching the attention of songwriter Daniel Johns who proclaimed it to be “better than the original” – introducing her artistry to an even wider audience, adding to Hull’s litany of songs featured across international television including Teen Wolf, Awkward, Saving Hope and The Heights. Alongside her music career, Hull is a celebrated author and continues to lead vital national conversations around accessibility and inclusion within the music industry, championing greater opportunities and visibility for disabled artists across all levels of the sector.
Eliza Hull – ‘Hotel Room’
Out now independently
LIVE DATES
Sat 6 Jun – Hepburn Palais, Dja Dja Wurrung Country, Hepburn Springs, VIC*
*supporting Dan Sultan
CONNECT WITH ELIZA HULL https://elizahull.com/
NEW SINGLE FROM JOHN SYKES ‘BELIEVE IN YOURSELF’
Golden Robot Records is honoured to announce a powerful new single from the late rock icon John Sykes ‘Believe in Yourself’ officially out on June 12. The track is available globally now to pre-save on all major streaming platforms and serves as a poignant preview of a forthcoming posthumous EP featuring some of the last known recordings from one of rock music’s most revered guitarists and songwriters.
‘Believe in Yourself’ captures everything fans have long admired about Sykes’ artistry – soaring vocals, electrifying guitar work, and a deeply personal lyrical message delivered with passion and conviction. The single stands as both a triumphant celebration of his enduring creative spirit and a heartfelt farewell to a musician whose influence shaped generations of rock and metal artists and continues to do so.
This track follows the release of its first single, ‘My Guitar’, which was met with an overwhelmingly positive response from fans both new and old. Celebrated for its sincerity, musicianship, and unmistakable signature sound, the track reaffirmed the lasting impact of Sykes’ work and the deep connection he continues to share with audiences around the world. True Sykes fans were overjoyed that they had new music to celebrate and were unconcerned with the politics of the release.
Pre-save ‘Believe in Yourself’ HERE
Across decades of groundbreaking music, John Sykes built a legacy founded on unforgettable riffs, powerful performances, and uncompromising musicianship. His contributions to the world of rock continue to resonate globally, inspiring fans and fellow musicians alike.
Golden Robot Records is deeply honoured to help share this body of work with the fans who supported and loved him throughout his remarkable career. The upcoming EP due out in November, promises to preserve and celebrate the next creative chapter of an artist whose music remains timeless and whose legacy continues to inspire.
‘Believe in Yourself’ will be released worldwide on June 12 via Golden Robot Records and is available now for pre-save on all major streaming platforms with a physical CD release confirmed for later in the year.
ABOUT JOHN SYKES
John Sykes was a towering figure in hard rock and heavy metal, best known for his electrifying guitar work and powerful songwriting during his time with Whitesnake in the mid-1980s. Born in Reading, England, Sykes first rose to prominence with Tygers of Pan Tang before joining Thin Lizzy, where his blistering tone and melodic sensibility helped reinvigorate the band and contributed to the classic Thunder and Lightning era.
Sykes achieved global fame as a core architect of Whitesnake’s multi-platinum 1987 self-titled album, co-writing and recording many of its most iconic tracks. His aggressive yet melodic guitar style, fused with arena-ready hooks, became a defining sound of the era and influenced generations of rock and metal guitarists. Following his departure from Whitesnake, Sykes continued to carve his own path with Blue Murder and as a solo artist, earning a reputation as a fiercely independent and uncompromising creative force.
Prior to his passing in 2025, John recorded 4 tracks working toward a new album with Golden Robot Records which are being released posthumously as a special EP, offering fans a final glimpse into the artistry of one of rock’s most formidable talents. The release stands as both a celebration and a farewell, honouring a legacy built on passion, power, and unforgettable riffs that continue to resonate across the world of rock music.
https://goldenrobotrecords.com/pages/john-sykes?mc_cid=9afa1797a8&mc_eid=677ab1a28d
BAROQUE POP ARTIST MOLLIE ELIZABETH’S NEW TRACK “RUN RABBIT” AMASSES 3.5 MILLION STREAMS IN UNDER TWO WEEKS
OUT ON NEON GOLD RECORDS. LISTEN HERE
On May 20, up-and-coming US baroque pop artist Mollie Elizabeth released “Run Rabbit” – a track that had already racked up 4 million views on TikTok before it hit streaming platforms, then becoming the fastest streaming new song in the world on the week of release.
About “Run Rabbit”, Mollie Elizabeth says: “Run Rabbit, while a very whimsical song, is actually a darker look into what it was like growing up in an unhealthy household. There’s an indescribable feeling that comes along with the baggage of an imperfect childhood, one that begs the question, if you are excused for your immoral coping mechanisms because of your circumstance, or if it is your fault regardless.”
Less than 2 weeks later, “Run Rabbit” has already amassed over 3.5 million streams on Spotify alone, with Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne all ranking among the top five highest streaming cities worldwide, and TikTok views are now north of 27 million.
TikTok
Instagram
YouTube
Spotify
X
“Run Rabbit” is the latest in a string of singles that deepen Mollie Elizabeth’s distinctive sonic and visual universe, weaving eerie, quirky, and subtly dark textures into her signature femme, classic sound. In November 2025, she shared “The Disappearing Girl”, written with Madison Love and CJ Baran and produced by CJ Baran at VAMP Studios in Los Angeles. Mollie then followed it with “Dog Eat Dog”, a track grappling with the darker side of human nature: “‘Dog Eat Dog” is centered around the concept that all humans are, unfortunately, natural born predators. In my nature, and I think in many others, all I really want to do is cultivate peace and love, but in reality, this world is not peaceful. There are people who will take advantage of you if you do not accept that whether you like it or not, we live in a dog eat dog world” she said. More recently, she shared “The Mirror”.
21-year-old Mollie Elizabeth is quickly emerging as a standout new voice. She introduced herself with “Vegas Venetian” before releasing her striking debut EP Dirty Blonde – co-produced and co-written alongside Dean Reid and GRAMMY-nominated Casey Smith, including standout track “Doe Eyes” (music video directed by Maya Sassoon). The Pacific Northwest US artist’s whimsical, melancholic and quietly empowering songs create what she calls “tiny worlds”, shaped by growing up in the Washington woods, with old-Hollywood glamour and emotional depth.
Mollie Elizabeth adds, “To me, every melody is a tiny world that invites you in—an invitation to be both fierce and delicate, and to celebrate who you are, who you have been, and who you are becoming. My music isn’t just for listening—it’s for wandering, for imagining, and for finding a piece of yourself in a place you’d forgotten.”
“Run Rabbit”, written by Mollie Elizabeth and Josh Murty, produced by Josh Murty, is out now via Neon Gold Records / Futures Music. LISTEN HERE.
MEEK FOLLOWS UP ‘FABULOUS’ WITH NEW SINGLE / VIDEO ‘BEAUTIFUL FREEKS’ VIA BMG. WATCH SOPHIE MULLER DIRECTED VIDEO HERE
MEEK returns with her second single, “Beautiful Freeks,” released via BMG alongside an official video directed by the legendary Sophie Muller (Sade, Annie Lennox, Beyoncé, Kylie, Blur) – the creative force behind the now-iconic debut video for “Fabulous” – MEEK’s debut single.
A fever dream of glitter, gore and theatrical excess, the “Beautiful Freeks” video is set within a wildly high-camp am-dram production. With Broadway-worthy costumes, feathers, lingerie and hair rollers at every turn, MEEK transforms from outsider to leading lady in a surreal celebration of chaos, performance and self-expression.
MEEK stormed onto the scene in January with her anthemic breakout ‘Fabulous’, quickly marking her out as one of 2026’s ones to watch – and an emerging international queer icon. With a fiercely dedicated fanbase, her Freeks, behind her, MEEK’s rise has been nothing short of stratospheric. Since January, MEEK has performed on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in the US, Saturday Night Live in the UK, played a sold out UK headline show at London’s The Garage, her debut track Fabulous was A-listed at Capital UK Radio and the track has been streamed 18million times and the EP is now at 20.6million!
Written as a love letter to her devoted fanbase, the “Freeks,” and to anyone who has ever felt like an outsider, “Beautiful Freeks” is both a rallying cry and a rebellion against conformity. Blending grunge-tinged pop punk with soaring layered hooks, the track cements MEEK’s talent for turning vulnerability into empowerment.
Of the song MEEK says:
“This is my homage to all the beautiful freeks who don’t fit in and follow their own beat. Long live individuality.”
The EU summer ahead includes appearances at Capital’s Summertime Ball, London Pride and multiple international Pride festivals, before she joins Kesha as support across the US leg of her upcoming shows. MEEK will then return to Europe this autumn for her first UK headline tour, opening in Glasgow before culminating at London’s Electric Brixton.
Shows
30 May 2026 – London – Mighty Hoopla
6 June 2026 – London – Capital Summertime Ball
26 June 2026 – Reading – The Mount at Reading (with Mika) 4 July 2026 – London – London Pride
12 July 2026 – Eden Project – Supporting Mika on tour
26 July 2026 – Ludlow – Ludlow Castle (with Scissor Sisters)
30 July 2026 – Schaffhausen, Switzerland – Stars in Town (with Lewis Capaldi) 3–15 August 2026 – USA – Supporting Kesha on tour
19 August 2026 – Manchester – Manchester Village Pride
20 August 2026 – Valais, Switzerland – Open Air Gampel Festival 28 August 2026 – Oxford – The Big Feastival
27 September 2026 – Malta – Mighty Hoopla
UK Headline Tour
11 Nov 2026 – Glasgow – The Garage
12 Nov 2026 – Manchester – Academy 3
13 Nov 2026 – Leeds – Belgrave Music Hall 15 Nov 2026 – Birmingham – O2 Academy 2
17 Nov 2026 – Dublin – Academy Green Room 19 Nov 2026 – London – Electric Brixton
US Tour
3 December 2026 – San Francisco – The Independent 5 December 2026 – Los Angeles – The Roxy Theater 8 December 2026 – New York – Irving Plaza
FOLLOW MEEK
MICHAEL WALKER ‘FOOTPRINTS IN THE SAND’ SINGLE
Footprints in the sand is the single radio release of the track featured in the ABC 2025 TV series Mystery Road Origin. It has an addictive groove, driven by a propulsive rhythm recalling a highway road train. The original instrumental version has been enhanced with abstract lyrics and expressive vocals that produce tones, textures and rhythms which act as instrumental elements within the composition.
MICHAEL WALKER HIGHLIGHTS:
2025 – Michael Walker and Alex Markwell’s song ‘Footprints in the sand’ was in ABC’s 2025 TV Series ‘Mystery Road Origin’.
2026 ‘Footprints in the sand (Radio Edit) has been enhanced with lyrics, vocals and mixed by Grammy nominated UK producer Dave Pemberton.
In 2026 renowned UK producer Richard Manwaring asked Michael and his band to contribute to his song ‘Travellin’Man’. Richard Manwaring has mixed the track, and it will be released in 2026.
Michael Walker’s 2024 single ‘Don’t Stop (Loving me)’ was described by renowned Australian producer Mark Opitz AM (INXS, Cold Chisel, The Angels) as “A great song, great production, great single”, and by Richard Manwaring as “A super summer single”.
Michael’s song ‘I’ll be there for you’ was included in Redlands ‘BAY FM’s compilation album ‘BAY SONGS’ in 2020, and received significant airplay on community radio.
Michael’s song ‘Dreams – Could take you somewhere’ was a finalist in The 2016 Vanda and Young International Song Competition, and is on ABC’s national playlist.
BACKGROUND:
1978 Michael sat in with Bo Diddley on blues harp and was invited to join Bo’ Australian touring band. Michael’s bands have supported artists: Tom Waits, Jackson Browne and David Lindley at Brisbane’s Festival Hall.
In 1982 Michaels band ‘Solid Citizens’ signed internationally with MCA Music and Quincy Jones wanted to sign the band to his label Quest Records. Signed to RCA Records internationally, in 1984 Michael and Glen Muirhead recorded at the famed Manor Studios in the UK with renowned producers Mike Shipley and Mark Goldenberg.
In 1984 ‘Solid Citizens’ performed their song ‘Singing in the Shower’ live on Countdown co-hosted by Tina Turner. The song went top 20 in Queensland and entered the Bathurst radio charts at #1 (first week in) knocking off Michael Jackson’s current hit. In 1985 Michael and Glen appeared on numerous television shows.
From 1987 -1990, Michael lived in the UK as a songwriter signed to MCA Music, and worked with various writers and producers. Returning to Australia in 1990, Michael was signed to Mushroom Music.
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXQrhw4T6v3qr4oekjFJ5QcHkwiS6SIsz&si=kkJ_3SWHdksUPYKv
https://www.facebook.com/share/1FRK9vjAgB/
https://soundcloud.com/michael-walker-now-and-then
JAMES KEITH Announces New Album ‘I Call It Magic When I’m With You’. With Country-Rock Anthem ‘Cruel Game’. Single Out NOW| Album Out Friday, October 2
Australian country-rock artist James Keith leans into the realities of long-distance love on his new single ‘Cruel Game’, out Friday, May 29, a country-rock anthem about choosing devotion in the face of doubt. Arriving alongside the announcement of his forthcoming album, ‘I Call It Magic When I’m With You’ (out October 2), the track finds him reflecting on the risks of loving deeply and why some things are still worth holding onto.
Since the release of his ARIA Country Albums Chart-topping debut ‘Life Is Good Today’ in 2024, James Keith has continued to build on his grounded brand of country-rock storytelling. Following a Top 10 placing in the prestigious Toyota Star Maker competition in 2025, Keith now formally announces his forthcoming album, ‘I Call It Magic When I’m With You’.
Set for release this October, the 14-track project explores new love, distance and choosing joy through life’s challenges, building on the themes introduced across his recent run of singles.
Sparked by a comment questioning the sincerity of his relationship, his next single explores what it means to stand by love when circumstances make things harder. Honest and defiant, the ‘Cruel Game’ traces the tension between fear and faith, grounding itself in trust, patience and the belief that some connections are worth fighting for. Speaking on the track, Keith shares:
“The song acknowledges the risks that come with loving deeply, the fear of falling, and the outside voices that label devotion as foolish or cruel. But rather than retreat, ‘Cruel Game’ reframes love as something rare, powerful, and worth standing up for.”
Built on overdriven electric guitars, intricate riffs and punchy percussion, ‘Cruel Game’ leans into a bigger, rockier side of James Keith’s sound. Overdriven guitar riffs weave through the track’s quieter moments, giving space for its emotional weight to settle before a soaring guitar solo bursts through in the bridge, adding a rugged intensity to the song’s tender core.
Out Friday, May 29, ‘Cruel Game’ is the latest release from James Keith’s forthcoming album ‘I Call It Magic When I’m With You’.
Follow James Keith
Spotify | Apple Music | Amazon Music | YouTube
Beauty fades, madness sings: Paul Capsis and Adam Noviello unite for Grey Gardens-inspired HOUSE OF ROT
Australian stage luminaries Paul Capsis (The Who’s Tommy) and Adam Noviello (Hedwig and the Angry Inch) are set to join forces in HOUSE OF ROT, a brand new theatrical song cycle from Green Door Theatre Company created by acclaimed director Dino Dimitriadis (Hedwig and the Angry Inch) and award-winning musical director Victoria Falconer (My Brilliant Career).
Playing at Malthouse’s Merlyn Theatre from 18-20 June before touring to Sydney’s Hayes Theatre later this month, HOUSE OF ROT is loosely inspired by Grey Gardens, the cult documentary that introduced the world to Big and Little Edie: two eccentric recluses trapped in a house slowly falling in on itself. Through the lens of these isolated characters, the piece explores queer survival and resilience amidst a world in collapse.
Weaving original compositions with contemporary anthems from Lana Del Ray to Dinah Washington, The Velvet Underground to Lady Gaga, HOUSE OF ROT conveys the grief and fury of ageing against a backdrop of haunting screen imagery and live instrumentation.
With a strictly limited season of just four performances across three days, this unmissable cabaret event is sure to sell out.
Director Dino Dimitriadis shared their delight to be devising a unique audience experience with two of the country’s most electric performers:
“I’ve had the privilege of working with Paul a number of times across different projects, and more recently with Adam on Hedwig and the Angry Inch. What’s incredibly special about HOUSE OF ROT is that it’s built specifically around the two of them. That’s a very different kind of joy as a maker, to create something in direct conversation with the performers’ instincts, histories, humours and hearts.
“Paul has an extraordinary ability to move between total theatrical chaos and devastating emotional precision in a single moment, while Adam brings a raw vulnerability that feels incredibly alive. What connects them is that they’re both genuinely dangerous performers, artists willing to completely lay themselves bare in pursuit of something truthful. The show doesn’t exist without their bodies, their voices, their contradictions. HOUSE OF ROT has really emerged from who they are as artists, and I think audiences will feel that electricity immediately,” said Dimitriadis.
Musical Director Victoria Falconer echoed this sentiment: “To get two performers at this level of theatrical bravery, who are truly collaborative and generous with sharing themselves – body, soul, brain, voice – with such raw and exciting brilliance, is a real thrill for me. The creative synergy between Paul and Adam is beautiful to witness and the power of their combined presence on stage is a very exciting prospect. Throw into the mix the unrelenting chaos and high-level campery that Dino and I are always ready to conjure onstage; the big-hitter song repertoire, the interplay of the intimate with a sense of the epic and cinematic, HOUSE OF ROT is a show that demands to be experienced.”
Paul Capsis is one of Australia’s most versatile performers. His extensive career has included theatre, live concerts, cabaret, television, and film. Paul has worked with leading Australian theatre companies (Sydney Theatre Company, Melbourne Theatre Company, Malthouse Theatre, State Theatre Company South Australia, and Belvoir) and performed in Vienna, Valletta, Hong Kong, London, Edinburgh, and New York. In 2021, Paul starred in two original works at Sydney Festival: The Last Season for Force Majeure; and Rapture: a Song Cycle of Desire, Ecstasy, Murder and Mayhem directed by Michael Kantor and co-starring iOTA. The following year Paul performed in Victorian Opera’s 2022 production of The Who’s Tommy. Paul’s film credits include Ana Kokkinos’ Head On, which won him the 1998 Film Critics Circle Awards for Best Supporting Actor and a nomination for an AFI Award in the same category. Other film credits include Justin Kurzel’s The True History Of The Kelly Gang and Adam Elliot’s Memoir of a Snail.
Adam Noviello is an acclaimed nonbinary singer, songwriter and actor, celebrated for their electric stage presence, fierce advocacy for inclusivity and unapologetic authenticity. They earned immense praise for bringing deep emotional vulnerability and raw rock vocals to the role of the devoted yet defiant Yitzhak in Hedwig and the Angry Inch, performing opposite Seann Miley Moore. Adam also brought their signature flair to the Australian tour of Jesus Christ Superstar, where they understudied and performed the scene-stealing role of King Herod. Their extensive stage credits further include notable roles in Priscilla: Queen of the Desert, Matilda The Musical, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Who’s Tommy with the Victorian Opera, and originating the role of Corrin in the new musical workshop A Transgender Woman on the Internet, Crying at the Adelaide Cabaret Festival.
HOUSE OF ROT plays at Malthouse’s Merlyn Theatre 18-20 June 2026. Tickets are on sale now via malthousetheatre.com.au
HOUSE OF ROT is a Green Door Theatre Company production.
PERFORMANCE DATES & TIMES
7.30pm, Thursday 18 June-Saturday 20 June; 2pm, Saturday 20 June
HOUSE OF ROT CREDITS
Performers: Paul Capsis, Adam Noviello
Co-creator & Director: Dino Dimitriadis
Co-creator & Musical Director: Victoria Falconer
Costume Designer: Nicol & Ford
Lighting Designer: BROCKMAN
Dramaturg: Leila Enright
Video Systems Designer and Production Manager: Thomas Bensley
malthousetheatre.com.au
instagram.com/malthousetheatre
17-year-old triplets BIRDLAND release debut EP, alongside national tour announce
With a knack for songwriting well beyond their years, 17-year-old West Australian triplets Birdland channel the highs and lows of coming of age into their debut EP, He Was Me. Packed with perfect pop hooks, sharp lyricism and emotional honesty, the EP blends their signature infectious energy with introspective songwriting, capturing the excitement, longing and uncertainty of growing up.
Following on from recent singles ‘Maybe Lately’, ‘No Trouble’ and ‘Middle Ground’, which all garnered support from triple j, the EP’s focus track ‘Hold Me Tight’ dissects those deep connections you make when you find your community, capturing raw emotion and lyrical themes that feel at once deeply personal and universally relatable.
Birdland are excited to perform the EP live in full for the first time in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Fremantle throughout July, where you can expect to be drawn into the magnetic energy they’re fast becoming famous for.
On releasing their debut EP, He Was Me, Birdland explain “As triplets, a big part of our journey has been learning how to understand and find ourselves as individuals whilst still going through life together. These songs show those moments of self-reflection and growth, as well as simple things like people watching, where you begin to understand yourself through observing others.”
Tracks like ‘He Was Me’, ‘People Watching’ and ‘In Your Shoes’ explore themes of identity and self-discovery. They focus on questioning who you are, how you see yourself, and how your identity shifts depending on your surroundings and experiences. At the same time, songs like ‘Hold Me Tight’ centre around finding comfort in others, finding your people and those you can truly be yourself around. These connections help ground you through life and what it throws at you. The EP also dives into love as a way of shaping identity. Songs like ‘Middle Ground’ and ‘Maybe Lately’ reflect on relationships, conflict and searching for resolution, and sitting with complicated emotions. In contrast, ‘No Trouble’ explores a more intense side of love, showing how deeply it can affect your sense of self. Overall, the EP cleverly moves between internal reflection and external experiences, looking at how identity is both something you find within yourself and something that is constantly shaped by the people and relationships around you.
Further explaining the themes behind the EP’s focus track, ‘Hold Me Tight’, Birdland add “Hold Me Tight is about how lucky you are to have finally found your people. It’s a song about those specific people who don’t just show up for the easy parts, but who actually stick by you when things get messy and life goes sideways. The lyrics dive into that shift from feeling isolated in your own head to feeling grounded by the ones you can truly be yourself around. It captures the relief of knowing you aren’t alone anymore. The song is for and is about the people who stick around, the people that care, the people stay close no matter what.”
WATCH ‘HOLD ME TIGHT’ LYRIC VIDEO
Elated to play songs like ‘Hold Me Tight’, ‘Maybe Lately’, ‘No Trouble’ and ‘Middle Ground’ from their He Was Me EP, Birdland will perform live in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth and Fremantle throughout July.
BIRDLAND ‘HE WAS ME’ EP TOUR
Sun 5 July – Wyola Fremantle WA
Fri 10 July – Metro Social Sydney NSW
Sat 11 July – The Leadbeater Hotel Melbourne VIC
Sat 18 July – The Y HQ Perth WA
*All shows are all ages
Presale: Thursday 4 June
General On-Sale: Friday 5 June
With the release of their debut EP, He Was Me, Birdland are quickly cementing their reputation as one of the most exciting new Australian acts of 2026.
BIRDLAND ‘HE WAS ME’ EP IS OUT NOW
BIRDLAND
INSTAGRAM | TIKTOK | TRIPLE J UNEARTHED
FKJ ENTERS AN NEW CHAPTER WITH ‘SOULMATES’. ANNOUNCES HIS FORTHCOMING ALBUM TYBER
Accomplished French multi-instrumentalist, singer and producer FKJ returns with his new single and music video ‘Soulmates’, alongside the announcement of his forthcoming third studio album Tyber, due for release this Autumn, and an extensive headline tour across Europe, America and Canada, with additional dates to be revealed in the coming months.
“’Soulmates’ is about embracing your solitude” says FKJ. “For me, solitude really works, and I’m taking time with myself. But I really care about my soulmates, the people in my life who are important to me. It’s all about finding the balance.”
An artist whose work exists between timeless musicianship and experimentation, FKJ has built a singular musical world that blurs the worlds of jazz, soul, classical, hip-hop, funk, rock and electronic influences. As a result, his music continues to connect with a global audience drawn to both its technical intricacy and intimate atmosphere.
‘Soulmates’ arrives as the first glimpse into Tyber – a project that captures a period of personal and creative transformation following the release of his acclaimed album
V I N C E N T. Written and recorded across multiple continents, the album reflects years spent navigating movement, solitude, collaboration and renewal. Sessions took place in London, Los Angeles, Paris, Brazil and Mexico, with each location subtly shaping the sonic identity of the record.
The result is FKJ at his most expansive and uninhibited. Across Tyber, groove-driven compositions sit alongside jazz-led instrumentals, sample-heavy explorations and
more direct songwriting moments, moving seamlessly through funk, alt-pop, R&B and psychedelic textures without ever losing cohesion. The album feels both deeply
personal and globally informed, spotlighting an artist documenting his evolution in real time.
New single ‘Soulmates’ embodies that spirit. Warm, immersive and rhythmically fluid, the track highlights FKJ’s instinctive approach to composition while offering a
natural introduction to the wider world of Tyber. It is music rooted equally in technical musicianship and emotional immediacy, which is a balance that has become central to his appeal.
Accompanying the release is an official music video, directed by Balan Evans. “Working with FKJ and his team has been a lot of fun, me and Vincent developed a creative shorthand very quickly, working through ideas and adapting them on set.” Evans shares. “I had also been tackling the need for boredom in a creative life so the themes rang true to me. It was the perfect kind of collaboration with an artist and I think that shows in the final film.
The forthcoming album also features an expansive list of collaborators including Lucy Park, Baby Rose, Bas, Eryn Allen Kane and Labrinth, further reflecting the breadth of influences and perspectives woven throughout the project.
Over the course of his career, FKJ has earned widespread acclaim for redefining the boundaries of contemporary French electronic music. Often recognised as a pioneer of the New French House movement, he has developed a signature style built around live instrumentation, improvisation, looping and richly layered production. His French heritage remains a defining thread throughout his work, even as his music continues to absorb inspiration from cultures and communities around the world.
Beyond the studio, FKJ has cultivated a devoted international following, amassing over 2.5 million YouTube subscribers and becoming renowned for the immersive visual and musical experience of his live performances. His upcoming headline tour across Europe marks the beginning of a new chapter, bringing the world of Tyber to audiences through the dynamic, free-flowing performances that have become synonymous with his name.
With ‘Soulmates’, Tyber and a major international tour on the way, FKJ enters this next era with renewed clarity and a vision to push his sound forward while remaining grounded in the instinctive musicality that has defined his career from the beginning.
https://www.instagram.com/frenchkiwijuice
BARB WATERS RELEASES NEW SINGLE ‘FARMER’S WIFE’, HER FIRST NEW MUSIC IN A DECADE
Esteemed Melbourne singer-songwriter Barb Waters returns with new music under her own name for the first time in over 15 years with the first of two new singles she will release in 2026, “Farmer’s Wife”.
A duet with her daughter Jeanie Pilkington of Folk Bitch Trio, “Farmer’s Wife” was produced by Barb’s partner and Jeanie’s dad Craig Pilkington (who also played bass on the recording), making for a real family affair.
Says Barb, “‘Farmer’s Wife’ came about after I was driver for my daughter’s group Folk Bitch Trio, when they played Port Fairy several years ago. On the journey home I made a bet we should use the festival inspiration to all write a song.
“I played an early version of the tune at a Writers Block show in Melbourne, and Folk Bitch Trio performed the song with me for the vinyl launch on Cheersquad of Rosa Duet at the Brunswick Ballroom in 2024.
“Later we headed into Real World Studios in the U.K to capture a duet version of the song, with the two voices being the points of view of a mother and daughter.
“Set in the English countryside and surrounded by huge glass windows looking out onto the garden and brook draped in mist and rain, the outlook was perfect for the song’s introspective, Wintery vibes. We laid down opened-tuned acoustic and reverb-infused guitars and our voices. Chris Tabone played drums later at Audrey Studios in Melbourne.
“Produced, mixed and mastered by Craig Pilkington, and featuring our daughter Jeanie, ‘Farmer’s Wife’ is somewhat of a family affair.”
***
The first of two singles Barb will release this year, “Farmer’s Wife”, will soon be followed by “Chalet Light”, written and recorded with Van Walker. A combined single launch at the Brunswick Ballroom will be announced soon.
“Farmer’s Wife” can be streamed via https://xelon.ffm.to/farmerswife, or downloaded via Bandcamp here:
https://cheersquadrecordstapes.bandcamp.com/track/farmers-wife
Vocal / guitars – Barb Waters
Vocal / guitars, keys – Jeanie Pilkington
Bass – Craig Pilkington
Drums – Chris Tabone
Produced by Craig Pilkington
Assisted by Fraser Latima
Recorded at Real World Studios, U.K.
Barb Waters has been a feature of the music landscape for many decades. Through her work with Chris Wilson’s Crown of Thorns, The Hollowmen, and fronting her bands, Barb Waters and the Rough Diamonds, Bad Audrey and the Mothers of Pearl, Barb has significantly contributed to Australia’s roots-country-rock movement. Barb has released the albums, Til the Morning Comes and Buffalo Mountain Girl, as a singer-songwriter and guitarist, receiving favourable airplay and reviews. Barb’s album of duets, Rosa Duet made in-roads into the European radio network, garnering airplay across the UK and Benelux countries, spending weeks in the Euro-American charts, and leading to a headline show at London’s Borderline.
Barb Waters has played guitar with Australian legends Archie Roach and Chris Wilson and continues to collaborate with Melbourne artists of the highest calibre. In 2024 and celebrating 20 years, Barb Waters’ Rosa Duet was released on vinyl through Cheersquad, backed with several sold out shows in Melbourne, including the Brunswick Ballroom and Out on the Weekend.
With a music project always on the go, in recent years, Barb has reunited with the Crown of Thorns, toured with Archie Roach, played with The Killjoys, and collaborated with Kerri Simpson, Alison Ferrier and Suzannah Espie on the Bluebirds album. She also curated a series of concerts, ‘And Introducing…’ for emerging artists and The Writers Block.
Barb’s early work with Chris Wilson and current association with Cheersquad lead to her playing in the house band and featuring on vocals at two sold out shows at Northcote Social Club for Cheersquad Records Presents the Songs of Chris Wilson in 2025.
The first of two singles, “Farmer’s Wife”, a dreamy folk duet featuring daughter Jeanie Pilkington, produced by Craig Pilkington and recorded at Real World Studios in the U.K., is out now on Cheersquad. “Chalet Light”, written and recorded with Van Walker, will follow.
www.facebook.com/barb.waters.73
www.instagram.com/barb.waters/
cheersquadrecordstapes. bandcamp.com
www.facebook.com/CheersquadRecordsTapesMGMT
www.instagram.com/cheersquadrecords/
www.youtube.com/channel/UCnjniTJZiFfmw8JlsLZU7Bg
soundcloud.com/cheersquadrecordsandtapes/
CROOKED COLOURS ANNOUNCE FOURTH STUDIO ALBUM ‘DIRT ROAD GOLD’ FOR RELEASE AUGUST 21ST 2026,
WITH LATEST SINGLE ‘OXFORD’ OUT TODAY + ANNOUNCE DIRT ROAD GOLD AUSTRALIA TOUR
Prolific multi-platinum Australian artist Crooked Colours today announces his fourth studio album Dirt Road Gold, set for release Friday August 21st 2026. Alongside the announcement an upcoming multi-date Australian tour and drop of his latest single from the LP, ‘Oxford’. Once a trio now solely led by lead singer Philip Slabber, this is a deeply personal and career defining moment for Crooked Colours, his vulnerability on display as he steps through to the dawn of a new era. Pushing the boundaries of his own musical scope and in turn flawlessly delivering. Slabber effortlessly genre-hops through Dirt Road Gold, from alternative euphoric builds to upbeat melodies to electronic stabs alongside his instantly recognisable heartbreaking vocals; stacked to perfection. Available to pre-save here.
Speaking of the overall process, creativity and what to expect from Dirt Road Gold Slabber shares, “The inspiration for the album wasn’t one single thing, it was movement. Change. The push and pull between holding onto what’s familiar and letting it go. There were moments of isolation, but also a lot of clarity in that space. Sonically, I wanted it to feel expansive but intimate at the same time, something that could live in a club but still hit you when you’re alone driving at night. I want you to be able to hear the moments.”
An industry heavyweight both locally and abroad with nods from Billboard, NME and Dancing Astronaut, Crooked Colours continually craft a distinctive soundscape with over a decade of multifaceted experience. Known for bridging the gap between indie and electronic music, ‘Oxford’ succeeds the Rolling Stone AUNZ featured-single ‘Pink Limo’ followed by ‘Come Thru’, all calling Dirt Road Gold home. Showcasing the calibre and hinting at the dynamic of the overall album. Effortlessly navigating sonic moments of light and shade, a true stand-out in the current global dance scene, and highlighting Slabber’s unparalleled storytelling ability.
With a dedicated following as a cornerstone of the Australian music scene, the upcoming Dirt Road Gold tour kicking off in October will see Crooked Colours perform at Freo. Social in Fremantle, Metro Theatre in Sydney, Northcote Theatre in Melbourne, Lion Arts Factory in Adelaide, Brisbane’s The Triffid and Byron Bay’s The Northern.
Of-late, 2025 saw Crooked Colours take on a national tour before making his way across Europe hitting London, Paris, Berlin and more. Having notably performed at Laneway Festival, Falls Festival, Beyond The Valley, Red Rocks, Bonnaroo, Grooving The Moo, Spilt Milk and Splendour In The Grass, Slabber has continually earnt a dedicated following as an institution in the dance realm.
As one of the globe’s most reliable and energetic Australian exports, previous albums Vera (2017), Langata (2019) and triple j Feature Album Tomorrows (2022), all encompassing the brooding, sun-kissed euphoria of Crooked Colours. Collectively delivering standout tracks including ARIA Platinum accredited records ‘Flow’ and ‘Do It Like You’, alongside Gold singles ‘I Hope You Get It’, ‘I’ll Be There’, ‘Hold On’ and ‘Love Language’; quickly surpassing one billion streams worldwide across all platforms and counting.
Highlighted collaborations with Don Toliver, Masked Wolf and Ladyhawke alongside official remixes from Claptone, HOSH, Kyle Watson, SNBRN, Alison Wonderland, Hermitude and Bag Raiders all adding to the culture and escape that is Crooked Colours. Dirt Road Gold and all that it embodies, will no doubt add to the act’s long and growing list of accolades.
Crooked Colours’ Dirt Road Gold LP is set for release on Friday August 21st 2026.
Pre-save/pre-order here.
Dirt Road Gold Tour Dates:
FRI 16 OCT – FREO. SOCIAL, FREMANTLE
FRI 23 OCT – METRO THEATRE, SYDNEY
SAT 24 OCT – NORTHCOTE THEATRE, MELBOURNE
FRI 30 OCT – LION ARTS FACTORY, ADELAIDE
SAT 31 OCT – THE TRIFFID, BRISBANE
SUN 1 NOV – THE NORTHERN, BYRON BAY
Stay connected with Crooked Colours:
INSTAGRAM | TIKTOK | YOUTUBE | SOUNDCLOUD | FACEBOOK
TIAHN Unveils a Technicoloured Burst of Indie-Pop on Debut EP ‘LiFe iS wEiRd’ Out NOW
Sugary, sharp and delightfully self-aware, Meanjin/Brisbane artist TIAHN captures the beautiful chaos of surviving and figuring out your twenties on her debut EP, ‘LiFe iS wEiRd’, out Friday, May 29. A pastel-soaked blend of indie-pop, R&B and cheeky lyricism, the project tumbles through heartbreak, rage, love and self-discovery, all delivered with sass and unapologetic confidence.
Known for her wit and undeniable charm, TIAHN brings together humour, honesty and powerhouse vocals, underpinned by her training in Popular Music at the Queensland Conservatorium. Building momentum through a string of singles leading into ‘LiFe iS wEiRd’, she was named a semi-finalist in the 2025 International Unsigned Only Music Awards and shared stages with artists including The Tullamarines and Lou’Ana.
Like a diary scribbled in glitter pen, ‘LiFe iS wEiRd’ is playful, heartfelt and a little unpredictable, embracing the reality that life is rarely ever just one thing at once. Blending synth-soaked pop, fuzzy indie textures, sweeping horns, flourishes of jazz and some stripped-back tenderness, ‘LiFe iS wEiRd’ zigs and zags between fierce confidence, romantic softness and delightfully oversized drama. As shared by TIAHN,
“For my debut EP I wanted the songs to reflect the journey of how I have become the person I am. As I’m sure most can relate, my 20’s have been a wild ride and have taught me the world isn’t always fair and people aren’t always who they say they are. I found a lot of joy writing in my rage and turning into sass.”
Opening with the fierce and feisty ‘Woman (On My Own Terms)’, TIAHN wastes no time making her voice known, turning frustration into a glittering, synth-soaked feminist anthem with just enough rock grit to bite back. From there, ‘Dodgeball’ softens the edges, spinning life’s curveballs into a buoyant swirl of catchy rhythms, playful charm and road-trip-ready optimism.
‘This Is Love’ captures the dizzying calm of finally finding a love that feels certain. Stripped-back and airy, the track leans into understated production and soft textures, made even more intimate by the inclusion of her partner’s backing vocals.
In contrast, ‘More’ and ‘Liar’ lean into the EP’s most delightfully oversized moments, swelling with huge horn lines, jazzy flourishes, sweeping arrangements and bold theatrical flair. On ‘More’, TIAHN unpacks ambition, jealousy and the pressure of always wanting more in what she dubs the EP’s “anti-villain anthem”, while ‘Liar’ transforms the sting of friendship betrayal into a cathartic, pop-rock-fuelled release.
Closing things out, ‘Bitch Face’ returns to TIAHN’s unmistakable blend of relatability and cheeky self-awareness, ending the EP in glitter-dusted confidence.
A technicoloured burst of indie-pop charm, ‘LiFe iS wEiRd’ finds TIAHN exploring the strange, messy and beautiful eccentricities of life through a vibrant, pastel-pop lens. The debut EP arrives Friday, May 29, before TIAHN takes to Brisbane’s Black Bear Lodge on Thursday, June 4.
Upcoming Shows:
Wed, May 27 – The Brightside (supporting Getdown Services), Brisbane
Thursday, June 4 – Black Bear Lodge, Brisbane
Saturday, June 20 – Sunshine Coast (register for address)
Follow TIAHN https://linktr.ee/tiahndoesmusic
Spotify | Apple Music | Youtube | Triple J Unearthed
Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Bandcamp
MUKI Follows Life’s Ups & Downs In Emotion-Packed Debut EP ‘Trampoline’. EP Out Wednesday, June 3.
Melbourne/Naarm artist MUKI (pronounced mʊk-ie) has unveiled his debut EP, ‘Trampoline’, a deeply personal collection exploring the emotional highs, lows and in-between moments of identity, anxiety, heartbreak and growth. Building on his introspective blend of indie acoustic pop-rock, the EP is honest and vulnerable, showcasing MUKI’s thoughtful songwriting and understated arrangements.
Since debuting earlier this year with singles ‘Gasoline’, ‘Reflections’ and ‘Morning Music’, MUKI has steadily shaped a sound defined by soft guitars, thoughtful lyricism and a powerful and passionate vocal delivery.
Produced alongside Josh Barber, ‘Trampoline’ brings together the themes introduced across MUKI’s debut singles, reflecting on the ups and downs of life. Now joined by new track ‘My Sweet Anxiety’, a deeply personal reflection on the messiness and confusion that often comes with anxiety, the EP’s emotional themes are brought into fuller focus. Speaking on the EP, MUKI shares:
“It’s about the strange joy tied to childhood, and the way a memory can hold both innocence and pain. The title came from a notion I couldn’t shake: ‘have you ever seen anyone sad on a trampoline?”
Opening ‘Trampoline’, ‘My Sweet Anxiety’ pairs fingerpicked guitar, light percussion and a soft, breathy vocal delivery with a melancholic sense of lightness, capturing the push and pull that comes with living alongside anxiety. Gentle yet emotionally restless, the track embraces the messiness and confusion of mental health without losing sight of hope.
From there, ‘Gasoline’ settles into heartbreak and acceptance, unfolding through spacious arrangements, fingerpicked guitar and layered harmonies as MUKI reflects on the slow unravelling of a relationship and the difficult process of letting go.
On ‘Reflections’, MUKI turns inward, unpacking identity and the weight of life’s defining choices through lush instrumentation, intricate guitar work and emotionally charged vocal performances.
Closing the EP, ‘Morning Music’ gradually unfolds from laid-back acoustic textures into a cathartic, stadium-sized release, wrestling with the desire for escape while searching for peace in life’s unpredictability.
Moving through the emotional highs and lows of growing up, healing and learning to rebuild, ‘Trampoline’ is out now. MUKI will celebrate the release with a special EP launch show on June 20 at Shotkickers in Melbourne.
‘Trampoline’ EP Launch
Sat, June 20 – Shotkickers, Melbourne
w/ The Glamour and Alice Isabella
Doors: 1.30 pm
Follow MUKI
https://linktr.ee/mukuljiwnani
Spotify | Apple Music | Amazon Music
YouTube | Facebook | Instagram | TikTok
ARMORED SAINT Presents “Every Man-Any Man” Video directed by Robert Graves. New Album, Emotion Factory Reset, Out Now!
ARMORED SAINT presents their video for “Every Man-Any Man.” The track comes off the band’s critically-lauded new full-length, Emotion Factory Reset, out now on Metal Blade Records.
“‘Any man has his price’ is a more familiar phrase and that’s the theme, but we didn’t want to call it that,” recalls vocalist John Bush on the track, “It was too obvious. We said, ‘How about we call the first part of the line ‘every man-any man’ and then stop there.’ The intro guitar part almost has this Andy Summers/Police vibe. Then [Joey Vera] goes into the cool bass groove. That’s vintage Joey; he’s such a grooving bass player, and it sounds super unique; you probably won’t hear a groove like that from too many metal bands.
“Combined with [drummer] Gonzo [Sandoval], sometimes the grooves that they combine on are essential to ARMORED SAINT’s sound and have been for years. When those two guys are locked in, it’s pretty awesome, because it’s like they could be playing in the Commodores. That’s the feeling that, I think, is the beauty of ARMORED SAINT; it takes it to another place that a lot of bands can’t go to in the metal world. That’s a perfect example of it.”
Adds Vera, “I liked the idea of having the verse, music, and chorus be the same music parts, but with different vocal parts. This idea was inspired by a song by the band The Police. I also wanted to add all the kitchen sink ingredients, so there are nods to Foo Fighters, Thin Lizzy, and it all ends with a crushing ARMORED SAINT riff.”
Watch ARMORED SAINT’s “Every Man-Any Man” video directed by Robert Graves https://youtu.be/uBRQSPql7TM
Watch the band’s previously released video for “Close To The Bone” HERE and “Hit A Moonshot” HERE.
Emotion Factory Reset, ARMORED SAINT’s ninth studio album, is a resurrection of sorts, a tearing down and a rebuilding in eleven songs of diverse musicality and lyrical themes. Produced, as were the previous four albums, by bassist Joey Vera and mixed by Jay Ruston (Anthrax, Stone Sour), the record finds the quintet challenging themselves. Songs like “Close To The Bone,” “Hit A Moonshot,” and “Every Man-Any Man” have ARMORED SAINT honoring their past as one of the most respected and recognizable bands in heavy music while making forward-thinking music rooted in the present.
Emotion Factory Reset was recorded across several studios including 606 Studios, Secret Hand Studios, Skullseven Studios, Constantine Studios, and Bridge Recording, engineered by Oliver Roman, Bill Metoyer, Joey Vera, and Jason Constantine, and features cover art by DDKing.
Preview/purchase the record at metalblade.com/armoredsaint
ACCEPT Celebrate 50 Years of Heavy Metal With Newly Re-recorded Version of “Fast as a Shark”, Re-imagined by Metal’s Elite Teutonic Titans 1976-2026 Releases September 4, 2026
German heavy metal legends ACCEPT kick off their celebration of 50 historic years with a new version of their classic hit, “Fast as a Shark”, originally released on Restless and Wild in 1982. This new rendition of one of the genre’s most iconic songs features metal legends Phil Anselmo, Kirk Hammett, Mikkey Dee, and Billy Sheehan, alongside ACCEPT members Wolf Hoffmann and Mark Tornillo. This ‘metal supergroup’ performance truly sets the tone for the entire upcoming album, Teutonic Titans 1976-2026, which is to be released on September 4, 2026 via Napalm Records. The album serves as both a celebration of the band’s history and the heavy metal genre itself, in which they played a pivotal and highly influential part. 19 timeless tracks, 50 iconic guests—and they’re starting “Fast as a Shark”!
Wolf Hoffmann about “Fast as a Shark”:
“This song was so much fun! We even re-recorded the intro in a Bavarian oompah style… a friend of mine lives in Bavaria, and he was in contact with one of those traditional Bavarian woodwind outfits, and they recorded the traditional German folk song ‘Ein Heller und ein Batzen’ for us, which was fantastic. We were lucky to get Phil Anselmo on vocals, Billy Sheehan on bass, and of course Kirk Hammett on guitar, which is amazing, and Mikkey Dee on drums, so that’s a pretty nice supergroup, isn’t it?”
Kirk Hammett about “Fast as a Shark”:
“A real honor to pay back the great inspiration ACCEPT had for me!”
Watch the Video for “Fast as a Shark” https://youtu.be/R0YOm5-iaO4
German heavy metal legends ACCEPT celebrate 50 years of pure power, bringing together the scene’s A-list musicians for a landmark release. Teutonic Titans 1976–2026 stands as a definitive statement of the band’s legacy, forged in steel and driven by unmistakable riffs. Arriving September 4, 2026, via Napalm Records, the album delivers some of the most iconic songs ever written in heavy music.
Led by guitarist Wolf Hoffmann, the longtime architect of ACCEPT’s sound, the band is joined by a staggering 50 guests across 19 reimagined versions of their biggest tracks. Teutonic Titans 1976-2026 is ACCEPT’s most ambitious and star-studded release to date, reaching far beyond the borders of their country of origin. Featuring the biggest names in heavy music paying tribute to the German icons, the record cements the band’s standing on the global stage. This is more than an album; it is a manifesto of metal! Pre-orders are now available in various exclusive formats.
Wolf Hoffmann about Teutonic Titans 1976-2026:
“There is no better way to celebrate this 50-year anniversary than to have our musical peers, friends, and inspirations come together with us to record these classic ACCEPT songs, which I am honored and proud to share with the World. I hope everyone enjoys this very special record as much as we all enjoyed making it.”
Get Your Copy Of Teutonic Titans 1976-2026 https://lnk.to/Accept-TeutonicTitans/napalmrecords
Progressing through albums from their formative years, from I’m a Rebel (1980) to Eat the Heat (1989), ACCEPT present their songs with an all-new, all-star lineup, alongside the signature voice of Mark Tornillo and Wolf Hoffmann’s unmistakable riffs. By enlisting a Who’s Who of metal, no two songs on Teutonic Titans 1976-2026 are the same. Every track features a different combination of vocals, guitars, bass, and drums, giving each classic a fresh edge.
Tobias Forge delivers a commanding performance on the track “Save Us” (I’m a Rebel, 1980), joined by Ray Luzier on drums. “Balls to the Wall” surges with the powerful range of Metal God Rob Halford, alongside the guitar work of Matthias Jabs, while the reimagined “Love Child” is elevated by Billy Corgan and David Ellefson (both songs from Balls to the Wall, 1983).
Other guest stars on ACCEPT’s extraordinary release include K. K. Downing, Sebastian Bach, Bobby Blitz, Hansi Kürsch, Chris Jericho, Ralf Scheepers, Ola Englund, and Jeff Loomis. The album also features a re-recording of “Hellhammer” (Eat the Heat, 1989), performed by ACCEPT’s current lineup: Wolf Hoffmann, bassist Martin Motnik, guitarist Philip Shouse and drummer Christopher Williams, joined by Jason McMaster on vocals. The album masterpiece was produced, mixed and mastered by legendary producer Zeuss.
XANDRIA German Symphonic Metal Icons Unveil Diverse New Single, “Colours” New Album, Eclipse, Releases August 7, 2026, via Napalm Records
German symphonic metal band XANDRIA presents the second single from their upcoming album. “Colours” is another highlight in their 30-year-spanning career. Throughout the song, a large classical choir takes center stage, while cinematic orchestral arrangements collide with modern metal riffing. Meanwhile, singer Ambre Vourvahis showcases her impressive vocal range, switching between multiple styles as effortlessly as she is convincing; a skill rare in symphonic metal as well as elsewhere. From harsh vocals all the way to operatic singing, “Colours” creates a sound that is both grand and contemporary—a powerful showcase of what modern symphonic metal can be.
After the latest album (2023) became XANDRIA’s most successful release to date, entering the Official German Album Charts at #9, the upcoming Eclipse, releasing August 7, 2026 via Napalm Records, is taking the band on their most diverse path yet. A journey full of discoveries, it has XANDRIA show their true “Colours” …
Band mastermind Marco Heubaum comments on “Colours”:
“This is the second song from our upcoming album that we are proud to share with you. Together with the first single, ‘The Shannon’s Home’, it offers another glimpse into the many different colours of the album—a journey full of discoveries, unexpected turns, and quite a few surprises. Just as diversity makes our world richer, it also shapes this album. Different voices, different perspectives, different emotions—all part of what makes life richer, stronger and more beautiful.”
Watch the official music video for “Colours”
Chart-topping German symphonic metal icons XANDRIA will release their new studio album, Eclipse, on August 7, 2026, via Napalm Records. The upcoming full-length features eleven tracks that represent the most diverse body of work in the band’s discography so far: every song has its own identity—a journey full of discoveries—yet they all belong to the same world. Classic, ‘80s-inspired metal riffs stand alongside low-tuned modern metal guitars, cinematic orchestral sounds meet Celtic folk influences, and dark electronic elements blend with intimate rock moments, even including a guitar solo that owes more to Pink Floyd than to any metal genre.
Eclipse marks XANDRIA’s most outspoken and cinematic album so far: a dark, colourful, and defiant statement for reason, empathy, and democracy in times when all three are under attack, brought to life by a band fueled with new energy, new ambitions, and a clear artistic direction, aiming higher than ever and not looking back!
Pre-order your version of Eclipse
lnk.to/Xandria-Eclipse/napalmrecords
While The Wonders Still Awaiting (2023) marked the rebirth of XANDRIA with a new line-up—an album that opened the door to a new era—Eclipse goes further. It is more focused and direct, the lyrics are more outspoken, dealing almost entirely with what is happening to our civilization right now. The contrasts are stronger, and the different musical and vocal colours feel even more naturally integrated into the songs. As XANDRIA’s sole composer, Marco Heubaum musically draws inspiration from all aspects of his surroundings: music, stories, and emotions that have shaped him since childhood. It is no secret that film scores have always been another major influence, especially composers like Hans Zimmer and John Williams.
CBAA launches Community Radio: Our National Sound podcast with DOBBY, Sarah Blasko, Mo’Ju and more!
The Community Broadcasting Association of Australia (CBAA) has launched Community Radio: Our National Sound, a new podcast featuring some of Australia’s most respected artists speaking candidly about the vital role community radio has played in their careers and in sustaining Australian music culture.
Featuring Sarah Blasko, L-FRESH The LION, Mo’Ju, DOBBY, Bad//Dreems, Body Type and Annie Hamilton, the podcast accompanies the landmark national research project Community Music Radio: Building the Music-Media Ecosystem, which maps the enormous cultural, social and economic contribution of community music radio across Australia.
Led by Led by Associate Professor Shane Homan (Monash University), Professor Susan Forde (Griffith University) and Professor Heather M Anderson (Monash University) and conducted in partnership with the CBAA, the Community Broadcasting Foundation, Creative Australia and APRA AMCOS, together, the podcast and research paint a compelling picture of community radio as a critical discovery platform, career launchpad and cultural institution, one that remains essential to the future of Australian music.
The research reveals that community music radio is an extraordinary national resource hiding in plain sight:
Community music radio generated approximately $153.1 million in value-added to the Australian music economy
Every $1 invested in community music radio returns between $1.33 and $5.55 in socio-economic value
Approximately 1.3 million Australians buy tickets, merchandise or music after hearing artists on community radio
62% of listeners say they listen to community radio to hear Australian music
More than 842,000 tracks from 10,000+ Australian artists were broadcast between October 2024 and January 2026
More than 390,960 hours of Australian music aired in 12 months
The findings also demonstrate the direct impact community radio has on Australian artists and audiences. In 2023, 27% of listeners discovered a new or emerging artist through community radio, 11% went on to buy a ticket to see that artist live and 16% financially supported artists through merchandise or music purchases.
Many stations significantly exceed the mandated 25% Australian music quota, with some implementing policies requiring at least 50% Australian music programming while prioritising diversity in artists, genres and voices.
Artists featured in the podcast describe community radio as an irreplaceable part of Australia’s music ecosystem. Award-winning artist Sarah Blasko said community radio formed the foundation of her career, “I’ve had almost no commercial airplay. So my whole career has been built on community radio and ABC stations.”
The research also highlights the unique role of Indigenous community music stations, which make up one-third of the country’s most music-intensive stations and are deeply embedded in their communities through dedicated First Nations programming and artist support.
ARIA-winning rapper and drummer DOBBY highlighted the cultural significance of community radio for First Nations artists and audiences, “From a First Nations perspective, that is another link in the chain of black resistance and black representation.”
Community radio is where Australian artists don’t just debut; it’s where they develop. L-FRESH The LION described community radio as “the lifeblood of the music industry”, pointing to its role in artist development and audience building. “Community radio teaches you as an artist about those little nuances.”
The findings point to the need to revalue community radio within Australia’s music landscape and to strengthen support for the sector to ensure that younger artists and audiences continue to engage with local music culture.
Community Radio: Our National Sound is available now!
Stream on your preferred platform: linktr.ee/amrap.org.au
THE VELVET CLUB announce national album tour for August. The debut album Are You Falling In Love? out July 10
With the release of their long-awaited debut album Are You Falling In Love? (out July 10) on the horizon, rising Naarm indie rockers The Velvet Club are today proud to announce a national tour in support of the record, taking place in August. The four-date run will see the band bring their magnetic, nostalgia-rich live performances to stages in Sydney, Brisbane, Perth, and Melbourne. Tickets are on sale now and available HERE.
“We can’t wait to tour our debut album,” says frontman AJ Tilyard. “It feels like this is what we have been building up to for the 8 years we have been a band. We have always been a live band first and have always put all of our energy and focus into our live shows.”
Over the past year or so while writing and recording the album, and around single releases, The Velvet Club opted to play a handful of secret shows, small rooms, and parties both in Melbourne and interstate. The upcoming album tour marks the band’s first official headline tour since their Space Between EP run in 2024, and will see emerging Adelaide favourites Pureé support the east coast dates, and WA indie darlings Ghost Care join in for Perth.
“This headline tour around Australia is so exciting for us, we have so much planned for these shows to bring all of these new songs to life for you. I have no doubt these will be the best shows we’ve ever put on, especially having two of our favourite Australian bands Pureé and Ghost Care on support duties at the shows!”
The tour announcement follows the recent release of fan-favourite track ‘We Don’t Talk’, which debuted on triple j Drive with Abby and Tyrone. Stream HERE, and watch the music video HERE. It’s the latest of three singles released so far from the band’s upcoming debut album, Are You Falling In Love?, due for release on July 10. Pre-save the album HERE and pre-order merch and vinyl HERE.
Are You Falling In Love? is a triumphant return to creative joy for The Velvet Club, as the product of a burnout-induced hiatus in the wake of their 2024 EP Space Between. The band’s decision to take a break from writing, recording, and touring instead found AJ in his most prolific songwriting period yet. The unravelling of a long term relationship, and the rise of anxiety and other mental health struggles during that time saw AJ turn to songwriting and nostalgia as a salve, revisiting live videos of the bands he had decorated his bedroom walls with in high school – the likes of The Strokes, The Vaccines, The Drums and The Smiths.
“The theme of the album basically encapsulates this year and a half period of my life between 2024-2026 where everything seemed to come to a head,” AJ reflects. “While writing, I started therapy, and after we began tracking for the album I started medication to help manage depression, anxiety and OCD. Finally addressing these as issues I had been ignoring definitely changed the trajectory of this album, and helped shape the overall tone and feeling of the record.”
Throughout the record’s 10 tracks, The Velvet Club navigate mental health struggles, relationship breakdowns, friendship, and solitude, fuelled by jangly guitars and hooks that move from bright to melancholic and back again. The Velvet Club’s return to the hazy immediacy and raw, unpolished charm of 2000s indie is what made the title track ‘Are You Falling In Love?’ the perfect album opener. At just over two minutes, the track captures the punchy energy of a TVC live show with its catchy, repetitive melodies – an intentional choice that AJ says “really sets the scene for the rest of the album.” Songs like ‘Blue’ and ‘We Don’t Talk’ dive into AJ’s experience with heartbreak and healing, while ‘Wasted Space’ and ‘I Need Something Too’ touch on mental health, particularly his experience with OCD and his journey in accepting its impact on his life.
From their intimate DIY release parties and secret shows, to tearing up the stage alongside the likes of Hockey Dad, DICE, The Rions, and Rum Jungle, The Velvet Club’s passion for honouring and reimagining a beloved genre has led the band to a tight-knit community of music lovers, musicians, and fans alike. As well as their influences abroad, The Velvet Club also look to their peers – the likes of sleepazoid, The Belair Lip Bombs, and Highschool – for motivation. “Aside from the personal cathartic experience of writing and creating it, my favourite thing about making music is the community you build around it,” says AJ. “All the friends we’ve made through it and the bands we’ve grown close to along the way have been by far the most rewarding part about making music.”
That sense of community is what led them to working with friend, producer, and fellow musician Luke Thomas (Fan Girl, Harris, World’s Best Neighbours) on Are You Falling In Love?. “We literally could not have made the record without Luke. He co-produced and engineered the entire thing from his own studio, Taste Police, in Brunswick. It’s also why I believe this album sounds so true to us and what we are about as a band. We made this record completely on our own with our friends.” The album was mixed by Scott Hoorscroft (DMA’s, Middle Kids, DZ Deathrays) and mastered by George Georgiadis (The Rions, The Buoys, Teenage Dads).
The Velvet Club
Are You Falling In Love? Album Tour With special guests Pureé & Ghost Care *
7th August – Marrickville Bowlo, Sydney
8th August – Black Bear Lodge, Brisbane
14th August – Rosemount Hotel, Perth *
21st August – Howler, Melbourne
Tickets HERE
Are You Falling In Love? out July 10
GRAVEYARD Announce New Album FEVER
One of the most distinctive and revered forces in rock music, Sweden’s GRAVEYARD have announced October 9th, 2026 as the release date for their highly anticipated seventh studio album, Fever. Three years after the dreamlike haze of much-lauded previous record Six, the band return with a heavier, more direct sound — while still carrying the blues-soaked soul that defined their breakthrough album Hisingen Blues.
GRAVEYARD commented:
“Alright folks. Here it is — album number 7.
Fever. Haven’t we always had it?
The itch, the burn and the restlessness.
The urge to push forward into the fog. Even with the teeth of hopelessness snapping at our asses and all the smoke and mirrors of our time telling us we got no future.
Come what may. Let’s go!
This time around, we decided to waste no time. No outside producer. No detours.
Just GRAVEYARD, straight to the point, doing what we do best.
This just might be our greatest album so far!
Hope you like it, too.”
The striking artwork for Fever was created by acclaimed Dutch artist Maarten Donders, whose powerful and expressive visual style has been showcased at the renowned cult festival Roadburn. Over the years, Donders has created artwork for more than 50 artists, ranging from Acid King to Frank Zappa.
Handling mixing duties is Pelle Gunnerfeldt, celebrated for capturing the raw intensity of bands such as The Hives and Refused, while more recently working with Viagra Boys.
GRAVEYARD
Fever
October 9th 2026
01. Back From The Grave
02. Tongue Tied
03. A Better Cut (Note To Self)
04. Year Of The Horse
05. A Means To An End
06. Time To Tell
07. Don’t Shoot!
08. Room Tempered
09. Dead Note
GRAVEYARD ONLINE:
https://www.instagram.com/graveyardmusic
https://www.facebook.com/graveyardofficial
http://www.youtube.com/@graveyard
PARKER RELEASES NEW SINGLE “THE END OF EVERYTHING” AND ANNOUNCES SIGNING TO MDDN RECORDS – LISTEN HERE
The Gold Coast Artist’s First Release on Joel and Benji Madden’s Label Was Co-Written with Austen Healey and Produced by Grammy Award-Winner Matt Koma
Rising Australian artist Parker releases his new single, “The End of Everything,” and announces his signing to MDDN Records, the label founded by Joel and Benji Madden of Good Charlotte. Co-written with Austen Healey (Olivia Rodrigo, Chappell Roan) and produced by Grammy Award-winning songwriter and producer Matt Koma (Britney Spears, Zedd, Hilary Duff) alongside Brian Phillips, the track marks Parker’s first release with the label and the beginning of a major new chapter for the 20-year-old artist.
“The End of Everything is a new age 2000s song that makes you want to bring your own headphones into a club and start dancing in tears.” says Parker. “This song is super raw and emotive, really capturing the struggle with my relationship, and the struggle of growing out of a past version of yourself. Which is a human experience everybody has to deal with.”
Written from the perspective of someone caught between who they were and who they’re becoming, “The End of Everything” captures the disorienting feeling of watching a relationship unravel while simultaneously outgrowing an earlier version of yourself. Rather than dwelling in heartbreak alone, the track finds Parker confronting change head-on, transforming uncertainty into something deeply relatable.
After building an audience independently through a string of self-written releases and his debut EP HUNKY DORY, Parker caught the attention of the MDDN’s team, leading to his signing and an upcoming support slot on the Australian leg of Good Charlotte’s 2026 Motel Du Cap Tour.
“MDDN has been amazing, amplifying my vision while keeping it authentic and true to where I wanted the song to go,” Parker shares. “Feels like that’s rare nowadays. Eternally grateful for all the opportunities and can’t wait to see where this song goes.”
ABOUT PARKER
Parker is a Gold Coast-based singer-songwriter whose emotionally resonant music blends alternative rock, synth-pop, and surf-inspired influences with a storyteller’s eye for detail. After first picking up a ukulele at age 10, he began filling notebooks with observations, lyrics, and ideas that would become the foundation of his artistic voice. Drawing inspiration from artists including Dominic Fike, CAIN, Sticky Fingers, and Coldplay, Parker has cultivated a sound that balances raw honesty with infectious melodies and expansive production. He first garnered attention with his debut EP, HUNKY DORY, which was released through the Cardano blockchain and ultimately caught the attention of Joel Madden, leading to his signing with MDDN Records and a support slot on the Australian leg of Good Charlotte’s 2026 Motel Du Cap Tour. With a growing catalog and a distinctive perspective, Parker is quickly establishing himself as one of Australia’s most promising emerging artists, creating music that invites listeners to find their own stories within his.
Keep Up With Parker Instagram | Spotify | YouTube
SINNER Release First Single ‘Wait’ From Final Studio Album BOOM BANG GOODBYE
Positive Energy, Big Choruses and the Emotional Legacy of A German Hard Rock Legend
German hard rock legend SINNER present the energized new single “Wait” alongside a music video. This is the first single to land from the band’s forthcoming, and final, full-length studio offering, Boom Bang Goodbye. The album will arrive on July 31, 2026, via RPM. For over four decades SINNER have delivered massive hooks, powerful guitars, emotional depth and pure hard rock energy with an uplifting sound, and “Wait” is no different
On the new single “Wait”, Mat Sinner shares: “For the first song from the album, I wanted a positive good-time track that simply puts people in a good mood. The political madness we’re living through doesn’t need another depressing soundtrack. ‘Wait’ is also a very representative song for the entire album. Working with Michael Bormann again after 10 years immediately clicked — the chemistry was there right away. And just like on the whole album, there’s an unbelievably great performance from drummer Moritz Müller and my partner Alex Scholpp, plus the absolutely brilliant mix by my friend Jacob Hansen. Mat was 100% happy!”
The video for “Wait” also captures the song’s positive energy, welcoming the summer with ease, optimism and feel-good vibes.
Don’t wait – pre-order, press play, repeat.
Listen to ‘Wait’: SINNER – WAIT
Official Music Video: SINNER – WAIT (Official Video)
Album Preorder: Boom Bang Goodbye Pre-Order
With Boom Bang Goodbye, SINNER enter the final chapter of an extraordinary career. Since 1982, the band led by Mat Sinner has been one of the most consistent forces in the German hard rock and metal scene. Following 19 studio albums, international tours and most recently the successful album Brotherhood, the band is set to end on a high note.
For this final statement, Mat Sinner has once again gathered an epic lineup of longtime companions and high-profile guests. Alex Scholpp (guitar) and Moritz Müller (drums) provide the album’s powerful foundation, joined by Jim Müller of KISSIN’ DYNAMITE, Lisa Müller, and former SINNER bandmate Mathias Dieth, who performed on the influential early albums Comin’ Out Fighting and Dangerous Charm. Another renowned guitarist on board is Magnus Karlsson — closely connected to Mat Sinner through the PRIMAL FEAR camp — who also contributes vocals on Boom Bang Goodbye.
All-star appearances on Boom Bang Goodbye continue with vocal performances from Ronnie Romero (RAINBOW), Michael Bormann, Michael Sadler (SAGA), Björn Strid (SOILWORK), Erik Mårtensson (ECLIPSE), Renan Zonta and Sascha Krebs. Each guest brings their own distinctive touch to the track list, making the album an impressive gathering of international hard rock and metal greats.
Mixed and mastered by Jacob Hansen at Hansen Studios in Denmark, the album combines modern heaviness with classic SINNER DNA. Every song bears the unmistakable signature of Mat Sinner as a musician, songwriter and personality who has helped shape the European metal scene for decades.
Boom Bang Goodbye will be released on July 31, 2026. The first single, ‘Wait’, is available now on all platforms.
RPM: reigningphoenixmusic.com | Facebook | Instagram | X | TikTok | YouTube
THE ARCADE LIGHTS “THAT’S WHAT FRIENDS ARE FOR” OUT FRIDAY 12 JUNE 2026
Perth rock band The Arcade Lights return with their second single, That’s What Friends Are For, a power-ful rock ballad exploring friendship, resilience and the importance of having someone beside you when life becomes difficult. Following the release of their debut single Remember The Days, which accumulated more than 70,000 streams within its first few months, the band continues to build momentum ahead of their debut EP re-lease scheduled for late July 2026.
Driven by soaring melodies, emotional storytelling and an explosive finale, That’s What Friends Are For captures a message that resonates with audiences of all ages:
Nobody should have to face life’s challenges alone.
Lead vocalist Zen Frost explains: “When I first wrote the song, I saw it as a reminder that there’s always someone in your cor-ner when times get tough. During production, the meaning evolved and became something much bigger. It’s now one of the most personal songs we’ve released.”
The single forms part of a much larger release campaign for The Arcade Lights, who will release two EPs and a full-length album as part of an ambitious 2026 release schedule.
Combining emotionally honest songwriting with energetic live performances, The Arcade Lights continue to establish themselves as one of Western Australia’s emerging rock acts.
ABOUT THE ARCADE LIGHTS
The Arcade Lights are a Perth-based rock band writing songs for everyday people. Drawing inspiration from artists including The Killers, Foo Fighters, Kings Of Leon and The Living End, the band cre-ates music centred around friendship, resilience, hope and human connection.
Their mission is simple: Write meaningful songs. Build genuine connections. Leave people better than you found them. Bring more peace to the world.
UPCOMING RELEASES
That’s What Friends Are For
Released: Friday 12 June 2026
Debut EP
Late July 2026
Second EP
November 2026
Full Length Album
December 2026
DAYA ARIA-AWARD WINNER ANNOUNCES DARCIE HAVEN SUPPORTING NATIONALLY AHEAD OF HER DEBUT HEADLINE TOUR
ARIA Award and GRAMMY® Award-winning pop powerhouse Daya has just announced Australian singer-songwriter Darcie Haven will join her on her debut headline tour across the country in late July and August.
Daya took Australian audiences by storm in 2025 when she featured on ‘Dreamin‘ with Australian electronic music royalty Dom Dolla, dominating Australian radio charts, going top 10 in the USA, garnering over 95+ million streams, and netting her an ARIA Award for Best Dance / Electronic Release.
Daya first broke through in 2015 with her triple-platinum debut single ‘Hide Away‘, which propelled her into the global spotlight at just 16 years old. Less than a year later, she released her now gold-certified debut album ‘Sit Still, Look Pretty‘.
Quickly expanding her horizons, Daya collaborated with The Chainsmokers on the global smash ‘Don’t Let Me Down‘, which earned Diamond certification and a GRAMMY® Award for Best Dance Recording, all before the age of 20. She hasn’t slowed down since, collaborating with Dom Dolla and other world-renowned producers, including Gryffin, RL Grime, Illenium, and Anyma, while contributing music to major cultural touchpoints such as the Netflix series 13 Reasons Why.
A dynamic live performer, Daya played Palm Tree Festival last year and has graced stages from Coachella to Lollapalooza, performing everywhere from The White House to packed venues across Asia and North America.
Daya’s return to Australia promises a compelling new live show that captures both the emotional depth and sonic evolution of her sophomore album, ‘Til Every Petal Drops,’ after a nearly 10-year hiatus.
‘Til Every Petal Drops’ is available worldwide now
DAYA ‘TIL EVERY PETAL DROPS’ AUSTRALIAN TOUR 2026
Tickets available at dayaofficial.com/#TOUR
TUE 28 JUL | ROSEMOUNT HOTEL, BOORLOO/PERTH WA
THU 30 JUL | CORNER HOTEL, NAARM/MELBOURNE VIC
FRI 31 JUL | FACTORY THEATRE, EORA/SYDNEY NSW
SAT 1 AUG | THE TRIFFID, MEANJIN/BRISBANE QLD
Click to stream ‘Til Every Petal Drops’
FOLLOW DAYA
FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | TIKTOK
SPOTIFY | APPLE MUSIC | YOUTUBE | WEBSITE
MOEBIUS ‘ONE MORE TIME’
Byron Bay blues/ rock outfit Moebius will soon release their long-awaited debut album One More Time — a powerful and emotionally charged collection of songs exploring love, loss, longing, transformation, hope and resilience.
Moebius is a Byron Bay-based blues-rock band fronted by singer-songwriter Sarah Grant, blending raw emotion, atmospheric storytelling and powerful live energy.
Drawing influence from blues, indie rock and alternative roots music, the band explores themes of love, loss, resilience and human connection through deeply personal songwriting and dynamic performances.
Led by Grant — a long-time performer in the Australian live music scene — Moebius has quickly begun building momentum across NSW and QLD with a growing reputation for emotionally charged live shows and authentic musicianship.
In 2026, the band performed at Blues on Broadbeach on the Victoria Park Stage, a milestone moment for the band.
With soaring vocals, gritty guitars and songs that balance vulnerability with strength, Moebius continues carving out its place within Australia’s independent blues and alt-rock scene.
More information: moebiusxoxo.com
Follow Moebius: Instagram / Facebook: @moebiusxoxo
MELBOURNE’S ASHA RYDER WEST RETURNS WITH ETHEREAL NEW SINGLE ‘DESIRES’
Melbourne’s ASHA RYDER WEST takes another beautiful stride into 2026 with her latest single, titled ‘DESIRES’. A song about chasing your own sense of purpose and the yearning towards great things, this new slice of alt-pop from the songwriter and musician reaffirms her position as an artist to watch this year.
Expertly playing with light and dark textures, ‘Desires’ navigates themes of personal conflict and emotional release with ease. West’s brand of storytelling through song highlights her emotionally resonant style and makes for a strong addition to her growing body of work.
“This is one of those songs that came together really effortlessly. I sat down to produce and it all fell into place, the lyrics flowed with the same ease. Like most of my songs, the ‘feeling’ came first, which always guides the production and story. I was stuck between chasing and this real craving to surrender and let go.” ASHA RYDER WEST
Along with the release of ‘Desires’, the artist is excited to share its music video, directed by JYO MIYAJI. Shot in a single day across numerous Melbourne locations including the iconic Blueball Room, the Palais Theatre and St. Kilda Beach, the aim for the ‘Desires’ was to capture a cinematic and nostalgic energy.
Having worked together previously on West’s ‘She’s No Angel’ music video, the director and musician were able to understand the central vision and bring it to life in a natural way.
“For this clip, I wanted to capture something nostalgic and cinematic, inspired by old Hollywood allure and a sense of freedom and self-expression. My favourite moments were filmed in complete chaos, me singing into the wind with coloured lights flashing across my face while sitting on the back of a ute. Jyo was filming in front of me, her boyfriend Jamie driving, Isabella our assistant, holding the lights, and my boyfriend Ned running alongside the ute with a leaf blower to keep my hair moving dramatically in the wind. It was quite the sight for people driving by us. Despite the freezing rain and the madness of the shoot, it was so much fun, and I love how the video clip turned out. I hope it feels nostalgic, cinematic and dreamlike.” ASHA RYDER WEST
Since first introducing herself to the world with 2023’s Ethereality project, West has continued to evolve and explore new terrain as an artist; playing with electronic soundscapes while also delving further into the different layers of pop music that speak to her love for world building through music.
Her work has received consistent support from Australian industry including triple j and Triple J Unearthed and Rage, while her previous single ‘She’s No Angel’ landed placements on Apple Music playlists and praise from tastemakers including Happy Mag, AIR and more.
ASHA RYDER WEST: Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok | Triple J Unearthed
EDIE Leaves Innocence Behind on New EP ‘Garden of Edie’. Out Thursday, June 4
Boorloo/Perth-based artist EDIE returns with her sophomore EP, ‘Garden of Edie’. Exploring themes of self-discovery, confidence, confusion, toxic relationships and the consequences of temptation and choice, ‘Garden of Edie’ is an intoxicating electronic-pop and dance release that, much like the forbidden fruit, leaves innocence behind once bitten.
Following her 2024 EP ‘unsaid’ and sharp-edged singles ‘Bleed’ and ‘Girl’s Girl’, EDIE has continued to evolve her sound beyond its indie-pop and alt-rock foundations. Looking to shapeshift and expand her artistic world, EDIE united with producer Calvin Bennett to create ‘Garden of Edie’, stepping confidently into a darker, bolder and undeniably club-ready version of herself. Speaking on the EP, she shares:
“This EP is about figuring out who I am in my 20s. Exploring a range of feelings from happiness to sadness to confusion. It’s cathartic and raw, and I hope it can resonate with someone out there!”
Opening the EP, ‘Fall Of Man’ unfolds through sparse synths and pulsing electronic drums, capturing the frustration and hopelessness that comes with trying to help someone unwilling to change.
From there, ‘Burning’ actually leans closer to EDIE’s indie-pop and alt-rock roots through acoustic guitar, acoustic drums and reverb-soaked electric guitar lines, as she reflects on the painful realisation that a relationship has become toxic.
Returning to the EP’s darker electronic-pop and dance foundations, ‘Chemical’ channels emotional overwhelm through oscillating synths, manipulated, trance-gate vocals and pulsating bass, capturing the experience of obsessive thoughts replaying on a loop.
Closing the release is its title track. ‘Garden of Edie’ leans fully into temptation and self-liberation, pairing brooding synth textures and driving dance production with sharp lyricism to deliver a dark, hypnotic and after-hours finish.
Acting as a soundtrack to the passage from innocence to self-awareness, ‘Garden of Edie’ explores human flaws and the consequences of temptation and choice. Step into the garden, then catch her launching it at The Bird in Perth on Saturday, June 6.
‘Garden of Edie’ EP Launch
Sat, June 6 – The Bird, Perth/Boorloo | Tickets
w/ Dani Enli, Demi Doyle & Nathaara
Follow EDIE
Spotify | Apple Music | Youtube
Prog Metal Meets Game Scores: Rei Code Zero Drop “Chronicles” This July
Wormholedeath is pleased to announce the signing of Italian instrumental prog metal project Rei Code Zero. The band’s debut album, Chronicles, will be released on July 17, 2026.
Rei Code Zero is the project of Lorenzo Visintin, who wrote the album in 2023, though the concept traces back to 2017 — the year he concluded a four-year run in a tribute band dedicated to the music of the Final Fantasy series. The name was chosen to evoke both a video game title and a computing concept.
Chronicles is an instrumental work rooted in progressive metal, power metal, and the vocabulary of Japanese video game and film scoring. Dream Theater, Children of Bodom, and composer Nobuo Uematsu are among the reference points. The record doesn’t aim to be nostalgic — it’s less a tribute to classic gaming than an attempt to imagine what a contemporary game soundtrack might sound like if it were also a metal record.
The album was recorded with guitarist Stefano Zamburlini, who handled all guitar parts, and saxophonist Manuel Trabucco. Despite the project’s studio origins, Rei Code Zero is built with live performance in mind.
The first preview from the album, “About Those Who Fight,” is now available as a single & music video, offering an early look at the project’s direction and atmosphere.
Stream “About Those Who Fight”:
Rei Code Zero – Online
www.instagram.com/reicodezero/
www.facebook.com/ReiCodeZero
www.tiktok.com/@rei.code.zero
www.youtube.com/@ReiCodeZero-s2c
YouTube: youtu.be/utJvExOpo6w
Stream: orcd.co/atwfsingle
Rei Code Zero – Online
www.instagram.com/reicodezero/
www.facebook.com/ReiCodeZero
www.tiktok.com/@rei.code.zero
www.youtube.com/@ReiCodeZero-s2c
ELLA ION ANNOUNCES EP ‘LIMINAL ARCHIVE’ + MELBOURNE LAUNCH SHOW SUNDAY 28TH JUNE AT THE TRAMWAY
Kaurna Land/Adelaide based artist Ella Ion announces the Liminal Archive EP, a collection of her work from the last year, set to be released on a limited edition cassette on June 19th. To celebrate she will be returning to the city where she created the EP, Melbourne, for a special launch show on Sunday 28th June at The Tramway, tickets are on sale now here.
Ahead of the EP release Ella is set to share new music in the form of delicate new single ‘My Love’ which will be released on Wednesday 17th June. A small gift to the world, recorded and produced alone in the Adelaide Hills on a borrowed tape machine, it inhabits a winter sensibility, a yearning for love and a running head-first into heartbreak. Aching strings and restrained acoustic guitar allow her voice to soar, imbuing an openness and honesty to the track, something that also shines across the EP.
Of the release Ella says “Though recording these songs separately over time and releasing them as singles and double singles was an incredibly joyful experience, it was not my initial intention; they were always supposed to exist together. I now have the opportunity to do that by bringing them together onto cassette, with the addition of a new song, “My Love” recorded at home in May of 2026. I love collections. I love physicals. I love this little world that was created in the studio over the past year in the liminal space between albums and touring. “
This EP release is a real closing of a chapter for Ella, one that took her to stages across the world. Having just wrapped the creation of her sophomore album and fresh from a standout run of performances in the United States, including multiple showcases at SXSW, this EP provides a real moment of reflection before the whirlwind of the next era begins in earnest. Ella’s time in Texas saw her bring her emotionally resonant, folk-inspired sound to international audiences, earning praise from Rolling Stone, who noted, “Indie artist Ella Ion enchants the crowd with catchy folk-inspired music.” Her balance of raw vulnerability with melodic precision has become a defining feature of her work. Ella’s ability to trace the contours of old wounds with poetic lyricism is an exercise in cutting the listener straight to the bone.
2025 marked a period of major growth for Ella after taking home two South Australian Music Awards fuelled by the tracks that will make up the Liminal Archive EP. All tracks received widespread airplay across triple j, Triple R, PBS, 4ZZZ, Radio Adelaide, Edge Radio and beyond, as well as being added to over a dozen Spotify editorial playlists each and featured in Frankie Magazine, The Music and Rolling Stone among others.
The past year has been a transformative one for Ella, breaking out of her Adelaide hometown to play headline shows, The Great Escape and Green Man Festival, alongside tours across the UK and Europe supporting artists such as Jake Bugg, Big Sleep and Folk Bitch Trio, as well as a Melbourne performance with Suki Waterhouse during Rising Festival, showcased at BIGSOUND in the middle of her debut Australian tour, played Port Fairy Folk Festival and supported acts such as Folk Bitch Trio, Gordi and Kacy & Clayton.
You can pre-order the Liminal Archive cassette here and buy tickets to the Melbourne show here.
Emerging from Kaurna Land (Adelaide, Australia), fragmented-folk musician Ella Ion crafts music that cuts deep to the core. Drawing on influences of indie-rock, folk and country, her eloquent lyricism and masterful musical control delivers a cacophony of raw emotion, anchored by grit and heart. Ion has already amassed a loyal following across Australia, having played at a plethora of prolific venues, events and shows. However, the reach of her sonic capabilities stretches beyond country borders, with listeners streaming her music across the UK, US, Europe and more.
From picking up a guitar at 10 years old to performing in beloved local bands as a teenager, Ion broke into the wider music scene in 2023 with her debut LP ‘Waiting’. A 10-track exploration of the tension between longing, stagnancy and growth, ‘Waiting’ saw Ion earn praise for her seamless ability to balance deft introspection with an outward curiosity. Like her songwriting, Ion’s live performances similarly demonstrate the musician’s masterful range. From intimate encounters of tender folk to electrifying post-rock arrangements, Ion flaunts her ability to transform a room of anyone and everyone into a fan with her magnetic stage presence, considered songwriting and angelic vocal range.
Ella Ion is holding nothing back as she barrels forward in a direction of raw sonic and personal exploration. With a renewed creative direction and personal clarity, she’s carving out her own path in real time.
Tickets for her show at The Tramway on Sunday 28th June are HERE.
THE HARD-ONS RELEASE KOREAN LANGUAGE MINI-ALBUM AHEAD OF KOREAN VISIT LATER IN THE YEAR
NEW MINI-ALBUM FINDS BAND REVISTING EARLY HITS WITH KOREAN-BORN BASSPLAYER RAY AHN SINGING IN HIS MOTHER TONGUE
THE BAND, TOGETHER WITH DIRECTOR OF HARD-ONS: THE MOST AUSTRALIAN BAND EVER! DOCUMENTARY MAKER JONATHAN SEQUEIRA, ARE HEADING TO KOREA IN SEPTEMBER FOR SHOWS AND FILM SCREENINGS AS GUESTS OF THE AUSTRALIAN-KOREA FOUNDATION
THE HARD-ONS pay tribute to founding member Ray’s racial heritage by releasing a Korean language 12” EP.
Korean-born bass player Ray handles the lead vocal duties to four re-recorded Hard-Ons classics, digging deep to reacquaint himself with his mother tongue. 100% guaranteed to be free from Google Translate intervention!
This absolutely unique and unusual recording is sure to intrigue and delight Hard-Ons fans and armchair linguists alike. – Stephen Ahn, the Bass player’s brother
KOREAN LANGUAGE MINI-ALBUM includes the tracks:
Where Did She come From?
Raining
Just Being With You
Suck and swallow
OR:
그녀는 어디에서 왔을까?
비가 내리고 있어
너와 함께 있는 것만으로도
빨고 삼키고
It features Murray on drums, Blackie on guitar and Ray playing bass and singing lead vocals.
The A side incorporates all the songs, while the B side features artwork by Ray etched into the vinyl. It will be available in 4 variants – the colours of the Korean flag – blue, red, white and black.
It will be released June 26 on Cheersquad Records & Tapes and is available to preorder now from: https://cheersquadrecordstapes.bandcamp.com/album/korean-language-mini-album
The mini-album is released in anticipation of the band, together with Jonathan Sequeira, director of the two Hard-Ons films Hard-Ons: the Most Australian Band Ever! and Harder and Harder, travelling to Korea in September for film screenings and live shows. The trip will be happening thanks to the Australia-Korea Foundation 2025-26 grant received by Sequeira and Living Eyes Pty Ltd. The AKF is a federal body looking after Korea-Australia relations including culture, trade and art.
The announcement about the new EP comes just as the Hard-Ons have kicked off a European tour with Portland punk icon and old friend Jerry A of Poison Idea on vocals. The Hard-Ons/Jerry A released a single last year “Won’t Shut Up”/”Dead End Turnaround” and are soon to announce an album together.
The Most Australian Band Ever! – The Secret Origin of the Hard-Ons is out NOW and available in a range of limited edition coloured vinyl editions, black vinyl, limited edition cassette, compact disc and digitally.
The Most Australian Band Ever! is has also been physically released on Blu-ray, and in both regular and deluxe boxset Blu-ray editions. Both are only available from the film’s official online store:
THE MOST AUSTRALIAN BAND EVER STANDARD BOX SET
THE MOST AUSTRALIAN BAND EVER DELUXE BOX SET
***
The Most Australian Band Ever: Hard-Ons movie FACEBOOK
www.instagram.com/livingeyesfilms
THE HARD-ONS
It’s been a long and punk-rocky road for our heroes, who formed the band while still in high school in the multicultural South-West Sydney suburb Punchbowl. Reflecting that multiculturalism, the core band (despite members come and gone) comprised three kids of East Asian, South Asian and Eastern European parentage – not your typical punk rockers of that or any other era. Weened on high energy rock’n’roll (Kiss!) and then the early punk and post-punk eras (with a focus on local Australian sounds, in particular the ’76/’77 punk of The Saints, Radio Birdman, Victims, Psycho-Surgeons and News), the new group appeared on a Sydney scene that took itself fairly seriously. With one foot in the Ramones/Radio Birdman-influenced garage-punk scene and the other in the spikey-haired punk-inspired scene of the early ‘80s, The Hard-Ons found a common denominator of noise and energy and appealed to a young crowd who was open to anything. With their youthful and unforgiving band name, transgressive and hilarious graphics and diverse ethnicity, they also found plenty of resistance.
Following the release of their first EP in 1985, The Hard-Ons quickly began to build a large following. Not content to repeat themselves, new elements entered their sound, including thrash metal and psychedelia, which were previously unheard in Australian punk. Their unruly and un-stylised look, which soon came to involve shorts, thongs and bare torsos, became something of the look de rigueur in punk circles as the decade wore on. The Hard-Ons had become trendsetters and were welcomed with open arms in international punk circles.
In their original incarnation, The Hard-Ons shared bills with the likes of the Ramones and Nirvana and appeared on numerous Big Days Out. They scored a never-bettered 17 consecutive number 1’s on the Australian independent charts. Despite a break-up, the formation of another band (Ray & Blackie’s other ongoing band Nunchukka Superfly – that band’s original line-up recently launched the long-lost album Nunchukka Superfly ’95 in August!) and, in Blackie’s case, a solo career, The Hard-Ons regrouped in the new millenium and found a whole new audience – kids who knew of their influence on subsequent groups like the Meanies and Frenzal Rhomb. New recordings ensued, and in 2018, by which time fans of another new generation of bands, including Clowns and Private Function were onboard, they undertook their 19th European tour, when they played the massive metal festival Hellfest, alongside Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and Joan Jett. In 2021, the core pair of Ray and Blackie and “new” drummer Murray found themselves a new front person in the form of longtime fanboy, Tim Rogers of You Am I, and the proud parents of their first Top 5 album I’m Sorry Sir, That Riff’s Been Taken.
The subject of not one but two feature documentaries, Hard-Ons: the Most Australian Band Ever! and its sequal, 2025’s Harder and Harder, The Hard-Ons are busier than ever (and that doesn’t including Blacke and Ray’s other band Nunchukka Superfly or Blackie’s solo albums, two of which have already appeared this year.) 2026 has already seen them touring Australia with Redd Kross and backing iconic 1977 London punk TV Smith on his latest Australian tour. They are currently touring Europe with Jerry A from Poison Idea as lead vocalist.
Over the years, The Hard-Ons have won the vocal support of artists like Dave Grohl, AC/DC’s Malcolm Young and Jello Biafra amongst countless others. They’ve influenced not only subsequent generations of punk bands but a wide-ranging groundswell of Australian alternative artists – from You Am I to Spiderbait to Silverchair to Regurgitator to Magic Dirt to the Dirty Three to The Chats – each of whom have been inspired by The Hard-Ons’ energy, free spirit and uncompromising dedication.
THE HARD-ONS ONLINE:
Instagram | Facebook | Bandcamp | Linktree
cheersquadrecordstapes. bandcamp.com
www.facebook.com/CheersquadRecordsTapesMGMT
www.instagram.com/cheersquadrecords/
www.youtube.com/channel/UCnjniTJZiFfmw8JlsLZU7Bg
soundcloud.com/cheersquadrecordsandtapes/