Adelaide’s best new music
We’ve rounded up Adelaide’s best new music from March including aleksiah, Juliet Oliver, Motez, Nat Luna, Oscar The Wild and more.
aleksiah – ‘Clothes Off’
Our queen! Killing it yet again! ‘Clothes Off’ – aleksiah’s first track of the year – has a fun, catchy melody with us singing along after the first listen. But in true aleksiah style, she’s able to touch on sensitive topics once you dive deeper into the meaning of her songs. In ‘Clothes’s Off’, aleksiah reflects on why she “wasn’t able to have sex” and sings about the feelings of sexual shame and negative body image.
“It’s really a diary entry of me scrambling to find some reason as to why I hate myself so much that I wouldn’t allow myself to be intimate and to try and pin the blame on some divine reason,” she says.
“Really, it’s just a learned human feeling to not like yourself very much sometimes.
“I hope people listen to this track and feel a sense of relatability and that this song can also be an easy way to explain to your partner why you can’t take your clothes off because I know so many people feel the same. It’s my way of expressing ‘it’s not you, it’s me’.”
Brave Mistakes – ‘LINES AROUND COLOUR’
When we first heard ‘LINES AROUND COLOUR’, we were taken back to times listening to 80s indie-rock band The Smiths as it has the same slow and mellow attributes while the Brave Mistakes vocalist sings: “I know you said it was just fine / but I don’t think it’s alright”.
The two-song EP titled HEAVY IDLE has a balanced mix of slow and steady yet upbeat and fun, leaving the CityMag team wanting more.
Ebop – ‘Cage’
Ebop – artist name for solo indie rock artist Ethan Brandwood, formerly of Gallery One – seems to stretch the limits of creativity through his musical abilities. Ebop plays with guitar foundations and in his debut single ‘Cage’, he touches on the relationship he shares with his mother as he feels the “link between [them] has become quite stubborn”.
“I don’t observe any change in her even when I tell her certain positive behaviours are meaningful to me,” he says.
“She is hurting me, and grazing my face without knowing it, and I am lost of the energy to fix it.
“I was just kind of drowsily throwing words at the paper with a blank expression, but that seemed to perfectly explain to myself that I am the only one who can change things now. It is only me.”
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JesseMelancholy – ‘kiss the sky’
Best New Music’s resident e-boy JesseMelancholy returns this month with his latest single, ‘kiss the sky’. The track starts at a gentle pace – almost like a lullaby – with a Rhode’s sounding electric piano. The song soon picks up speed with a funky drum beat and JesseMelancholy’s playful use of autotune. The upbeat melody of the song contrasts with sombre lyrics, which compliment JesseMelancholy’s sad boy aesthetics.
“Saw my wings fall off my body, I’m the only one that can stitch them up/Check my phone like it’s a hobby and wonder why my gut feels punched/And I dyed my hair for the seventh time/Put a little charcoal in my eye/Just dying to feel alive/Just killing to kiss the sky,” he sings.
JesseMelancholy describes ‘kiss the sky’ as blending alternative and hyperpop influences and says it “tells a story of rediscovering the world’s beauty after mental health challenges”.
“With introspective lyrics and a vibrant sonic palette in the song, the listener learns to appreciate what you have before it’s gone – sometimes you just need to kiss the sky,” he says.
Juliet Oliver – ‘Red Roses’
Juliet Oliver’s ‘Red Roses’ sees country meet disco. The song begins with an eerie guitar chord, transporting the listener to a Wild West showdown. Juliet’s voice comes in at about the 10-second mark and is accompanied by a groovy bassline and drum beat. The lyrics of ‘Red Roses’ make it clear that this is a song about unfaithful relationships.
“Who sent the pretty red roses/She’s all wrapped up in a bow with a note/And you think I wouldn’t figure you out,” sings Juliet in her melodic voice.
“You won’t know who I’ll be kissing/While you’re finding out what you’re missing/You really think I would figure you out, who’s laughing now.”
Motez – ‘Messy (Motez Edit)’
Iraqi-Australian producer Motez has transformed Lola Young’s hit single ‘Messy’ into something more akin to trance music with his remix. Motez’s reinterpretation of the song sounds totally different from the soul pop original. The vocals have been sped up and a pulsating drum beat has been added in. The chorus has also been slightly obscured as it builds up to the epic drop.
“I’ve absolutely loved playing it and seeing people’s reaction over the last couple of months,” says Motez.
Nat Luna – ‘conditions’
Nat Luna mixes Bollywood-inspired sound with samba, R&B pop and dancehall in her latest track, ‘conditions’. Behind the upbeat melody are meaningful lyrics. Nat Luna explains that the song is about discovering the value of self-care.
“‘conditions’ was inspired by a moment in my life when I realised how much I was bending over backwards for people who didn’t reciprocate,” says Luna.
“This track marks the moment where I flip the script, own what I want, and make my own rules in love.”
This message comes through in Nat Luna’s heartfelt lyrics.
“Control is what you feen/You take it all from me/With no apologies/So I’ll take the lead/It puts you on your knees/Makes you wanna please me/Watch me do it,” she sings.
Nat Luna says that as an artist with a physical disability, she uses her “bold” and “empowering” music to challenge stereotypes and “redefine the narrative”.
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Oscar The Wild – ‘Big Think’
From the very first second of ‘Big Think’ by Oscar The Wild, the song screams grunge/’90s alternative. The band explains that it marks a “darker, grunge-driven turn”, adding that they are “swapping their signature indie rock sparkle for hypnotic, heavy rhythms that mirror the track’s existential lyricism”. The instrumentally heavy song includes equally heavy lyrics.
“You take a photo of a memory, it’s all the same/Or write it down and in your life, nothing has changed/I see reflections of my past throughout the day/And when night comes, my mind keeps me in chains,” sings lead vocalist Ruby Gazzola.
“You hold me down, your earthly weight makes me feel safe/The present is so clear even in all this rain/But meditation, medication’s all in vain/I’m screaming out but not exactly in pain.”
Oscar the Wild will be performing at Jive Bar alongside the Genevieves and the Fuss on April 19, which will be followed by a show in Melbourne on April 26 at Catfish with Fvneral and Local the Neighbour.
Strict Face – ‘Bellyache’
CityMag imagines that ‘Bellyache’ by Strict Face is the kind of song best heard at somewhere like Ancient World, late at night, lights dimmed down, and the smoke machine on. The five-and-a-half-minute song is the second single off the producer’s debut LP, Severe Forward, which will be released on April 3. As he explains, the track has “slinky drum programming throughout the otherwise laser-sharp [song]”.
Sunsick Daisy – ‘It’ll Be Alright’
‘It’ll Be Alright’ by Sunsick Daisy is an ode to friendship – the good, supportive, always-there-for-you- type of friendship. Through catchy melodies and an Aussie-indie sound – similar to the likes of Ball Park Music and Spacey Jane – the band take us on a journey, highlighting the importance of having a great support system around you. This is shown through the lyrics: “One stare and you see right through me / And you were ready to go / But I’m too scared and / You’re not scared at all”.
Vocalist Sarah Grainger says this is one of the bands most “uplifting tracks yet” with a “reassuring message that no matter what life throws at you, it’ll be alright”.
“[The song’s] about those people in your life who make you feel safe and secure in your lowest moments of self-doubt,” Sarah says.
Teresa – ‘Let’s Commit Arson’
This song is chaotic in the best way possible as Teresa sings: “It’s such a happy day to commit arson / Just cause we wanna is a valid reason / Block out the voices in my head that’s saying / I’m crazy and I’m over it”. It starts with a captivating, danceable beat as Teresa counts down for the surf-rock guitars to start. At the one-minute 50 mark, the song slows down for a quick moment during the bridge before abruptly picking back up again to close out the pop anthem.
The Audreys – ‘I Remember Everything’
‘I Remember Everything’ is the opening song on The Audrey’s fifth studio album, Ruin & Repair, released this month. This was CityMag’s top pick off the album, as it blends and upbeat banjo and percussion as they sing: “Oh brother help me for the world / Has lost its wonder / The waves are coming in too big / They pull me under / But I remember everything / Every single word that you said”. In November, they released the single ‘Secondhand Boots’ – track three on the album – which was their first release in 10 years for the ARIA award-winning band.
The Tullamarines – ‘Running on Empty’
Tired? Bank account looking dry? Situationship wearing you down? That’s the general malaise hanging over us these days, and is neatly captured by The Tullamarines in their new single ‘Running on Empty’ – a singalong earworm that we’d call feel-good if you ignore the lyrics. According to frontman Ben Waltho, the song was inspired by an anxiety attack he had on tour.
“On the flight home, I wrote some pretty horrible stuff in my notes app, and then left it for a bit to try and talk to everyone and get some help. When I had a bit more free space to think, I started to write little songs from those notes, which sparked ‘Running On Empty.’,” he says.
War Room – ‘Bossa 2’
War Room’s debut album came out on 28 February, literally one day after we published our February Best New Music list. So, we’re pretending this is a March release because, quite simply, the record is too good to ignore. We’ll recommend checking the art rock LP out in full, but if you want a taste, you’d do worse than sampling ‘Bossa 2’. On this song, the band flexes its technical muscle as vocalist Louis Campbell croons over a big band style instrumental, sounding more earnest than ever before. There are so many flavours on Please Don’t Fight In Here and we have engorged ourselves on them this month.