See: The brilliant The Gin Palace release a mesmerising live performance video for their magnificent debut track ‘Burn Your Heart Out’.
After last year’s thrilling debut single ‘Burn Your Heart Out’, supergroup The Gin Palace have kicked off 2023 with a suitable enigmatic and studied video for what was one of my favourite tracks from the year. The power and the passion ingrained in the song is on full display in the video – Peter Fenton’s …
Track: Oceans crest a shoegaze wave with the jangle fest of ‘Pure’, with launch date and new album announced.
Originally a solo effort by Melbournian Thomas Lee, the sparkling bright blue azure sounds of Oceans are now the creation of a fully fledged five piece band, and their new single ‘Pure’ is a hazy summer breeze of delight. Waves of jangling guitars and melancholic layered vocals feature in an immersive fugue. The sound draws …
News: Sunnyboys expand their swansong farewell tour ‘The Last Dance – 2023’.
The Sunnyboys are a veritable indie institution – a blinding light that shone briefly in the eighties with a power pop brilliance that had an indelible effect on the music scene in Australia and beyond – crossing from indie darlings to a national mainstream phenomenon with their effervescent jangling sounds and pop sensibilities. Their stellar …
Track: Spring Skier know ‘How To Work A Room’ with their usual panache and style – another window opened in the glorious Advent Calendar from False Peak Records.
Summer solstice passed us by just the other day and now the days get shorter as winter comes to the antipodean headquarters of Backseat Mafia. Although, it has to be said, in the southern outpost of Hobart, winter never actually left. With all the changes and the mutability of the seasons as an analogy for …
News: Terry Hall dies at age 63
We are very sad to report that the legendary Terry Hall has died at the young age of 63. Terence Edward Hall (19 March 1959 – 19 December 2022) was an English musician and the lead singer of the Specials, and formerly of Fun Boy Three, the Colourfield, Terry, Blair & Anouchka and Vegas.[1] He released two solo albums and has also collaborated …
News: Austria’s Wuodan’s Wunde announce debut album ‘Es Glimmt Empor Aus Ewger Nacht’ (‘It Glows Upwards from Eternal Night’ through Altare Productions.
Set for release on 16 January 2023, Austrian atmospheric black metal merchants Wuodan’s Wunde today announce the release of the debut album ‘Es Glimmt Empor Aus Ewger Nacht’ (‘It Glows Upwards from Eternal Night’), via Altare Productions, a Portuguese label specialising in black metal. Wuodan’s Wunde, as a musical entity, is shrouded in enigma and …
Feature: Backseat Downunder Team’s Favourite Antipodean Albums of 2022, and Favourite Gigs
In many end of year best albums of 2022 put together by outlets such as The Guardian and NME, there has been a distinct absence of antipodean bands – an astounding omission given the depth of quality exhibited by Australian and New Zealand artists in 2022. For the past few years, to counterbalance this annual …
Track: Gena Rose Bruce knows the bittersweet taste of ‘Misery and Misfortune’ – the third exquisite single off her forthcoming album ‘Deep Is The Way’.
With surprising interventions by what could only be described as squiggly synths, the new single from the superb Gena Rose Bruce ‘Misery and Misfortune’ is a slow burning spark that oozes a languid sensuality over a solid musical base. The instrumentation provides an Arctic motorik electronic bed over which Bruce delivers her soft, expressive velvet …
Premiere: Melbourne’s Luke Seymoup is a purveyor of indelible ‘Pop Songs’ – his effervescent and anthemic new track.
We are very honoured to premiere the new single ‘Pop Songs’ from Melbourne pop punk maestro Luke Seymoup – in which he basically achieves what the song sets out to do: writing a memorable pop song fit for the radio. With arching choruses and razor sharp melodies, this is a bright effervescent ride with Seymoup’s …
News: New Zealand-based legends The Veils return after a long absence, with the pent up creativity delivering a double album and an exultant single ‘No Limit of Stars’.
New Zealand-based indie legends The Veils have returned after a seven year long absence with news of a double album ‘…And Out of the Void Came Love’ and a new single ‘No Limit of Stars’ to whet the appetite. The single is a rich, luxurious delight – delivered with a preacher-like intensity that recalls Nick …