Track: BNDT (Tim Powles from The Church) unveils a scintillating piece of electronic whimsy in ‘Goodtimes 4 Free’.

Tim ‘timEbandit‘ Powles is currently one of the longest serving members of the legendary The Church, whose most recent album ‘The Hypnogogue’ stormed the world last year, making it to the top of many lists of albums of the year (including our own Backseat Downunder list). Powles is also a bit of an experienced producer in his own right and has just release a thrilling new single entitled ‘Goodtimes 4 Free’ under the moniker BNDT, essentially a solo project with a bunch of friends kicking in.

The result is a mesmerising slice of whimsical electronic pop – far from the paisley-inflected lush guitar sounds of The Church and more in common with the sounds of Gorillaz, with added ambience and a surreal edge. A series of blips and pops reminiscent of a computer game and a motorik beat support distant vocals, a fuzzy synth bass skips underneath and the lyrics are psychedelic and obtuse.

The chanting chorus augments the laconic tone, a trumpet frill at the edge lends a sparkle and the result is a warm and hazy pastoral treat that seems to evoke some indulgent antipodean sun-bleached afternoon under the gum trees by the rolling seas.

There is an autobiographical element to the lyrics, tipping a hat to Powles’s pace of birth (New Zealand) and an innocent and passionate joy of music gleaned from the radio and friends:

Born under a cloud- long white cloud- wind and rain but i was a happy child.
a little pain i dont remember then when we lost bobby ,
-i was woken by the wolfman jack
johnny reggae on th bbc- shaken free-= makes me rock so steady-
jammin with george. smokin with harry to mz cooper and th killer band-
Best in th land-( just sayin-)
let the goodtimes roll- just what i need- Goodtimes for Free- this makes me happy-

There is also a nod to the sports comedy movie ‘Cool Runnings’, a tale of the improbable Jamaican bobsleigh team entering the Olympics: we party hard, we party like Jamaica.

It is a moving and immersive delivery, languid, melancholic and dreamy on a spiky, ambulant surface:

‘Goodtimes 4 Free’ is out now and available through the link above and through all the usual download and streaming sites. BNDT made a live return late last year – look out for more excursions as Powles promises 2024 will bring a reboot.

There is a growing list of live collaborators in BNDT both aural and visual including Sydney’s most deliciously understated singers PhoenX AZ, aka Finn Thomas, and songstress Caitlin West, aka Mz Lasting. BNDT plays live joined by fellow improviser Robbie Cain (producer-synthesist with Micra) and Cain’s multi-instrumental band member Liam Roffe.