Gemma Ray – It’s A Shame About Gemma Ray
Gemma Ray found the best way to deal with the Christmas period was to record a covers album. Not a bad idea really.
Who The Hell Are… The Rassle?
When it comes to the mythical it-factor, New York's The Rassle by their own admission are “just rock and roll”. They understand that thousands of people have been there, done that. They're here to enjoy whatever the moment is right now, and it feels pretty damn great. Listen to The Rassle's first single, “Wild Ones” and you'll hear what they're talking about. It's a sound that's been done before. A little synthy, a little danceable. But by the time that kick drum chorus comes bellowing forward, it doesn't matter. You're bobbing your head like this is the first time you've heard indie rock before. It's fantastic.
Top 10 – Australian Music Videos
The early days of music video in Australia bore some shoddy, shoddy home-produced efforts. Essentially labours of love from minimal means designed to get the message across. The big budget video clip was not the
Louis XIV – Way Out West Interview (2008)
This August Sweden was graced by a visit from San Diego's finest, Louis XIV, a band that shocked parents groups in Alabama and who have enticed numerous girls with their classic rock'n'roll moves. But behind
Who The Hell Are… Civil Civic?
There aren't that many great instrumental duos in the history of rock and roll. I've thought about this for about 20 seconds or so and bored already. To arrive at that musical decision, and to arrive at that musical decision when your bandmate doesn't even live in the same country, is as perverse as it is stupid. Being as they are Australian, perverse stupidity is our calling, and it's why Civil Civic succeed where others have just gone "Dude, we need another member". With the title still up for grabs (or until some smart-ass avant-garde freak shoots me down), Civil Civic could turn out to be the greatest instrumental duo in the history of rock and roll. Wouldn't that be just dandy?
Contiuum Books 33 1/3 – Television, Rolling Stones, Dinosaur Jr
Behind every great album is more often than not, an even greater story waiting to be told. The pursuit for higher understanding of artists and their most influential pieces of work and how the two came to pass has long been the ultimate goal of the ardent music fan who thrives on having every recorded nuance and historical detail mapped out like a combined atlas and encyclopedia of the human body. One of the more indispensible series of music books published that actually does, more or less, what is expected above, has been Continuum's 33 1/3. With the recent addition of The Rolling Stones Some Girls, Dinosaur Jr's You're Living All Over Me and Television's Marquee Moon to their honour roll, 33 1/3 show no sign of scraping the bargain bin anytime soon.
William Fitzsimmons – The Sparrow and the Crow
William Fitzsimmons goes through the gamut of emotions on his new album - forgiveness, loss, optimism - but it still cannot save the effort from a terminal dullness.
Splendour in the Grass – 2010 – Woodford
It's Summer festival time in Europe, but over in Australia it's Winter and Webcuts was there to brave the chill and celebrate Splendour in the Grass' tenth birthday with 32,000 others at the new Woodford location in Queensland. Over the three day weekend our reviewers witnessed a phenomenal selection of old and new favourites including -- Ash, Band of Horses, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Cloud Control, The Drums, Grizzly Bear, Jonsi, LCD Soundsystem, Paul Kelly, Pixies, School of Seven Bells, Scissor Sisters, The Strokes, Tame Impala, The Vines, Yeasayer, and believe it or not, a whole lot more!!
Top Ten – B-Sides
The B-side is every music geek/fan’s favourite thing to debate over. It’s the one place where an artist is allowed to record whatever they see fit, and the one place where a fan can expect
Lightspeed Champion – Life is Sweet! Nice to Meet You
Dev Hynes brings us more songs of bittersweet romance on his sophomore release as Lightspeed Champion.
Beach House – London – 2 December 2008
Beach House Cargo, London 2nd December 2008 Roughly a year since their last headline show at the Water Rat in Kings Cross, Baltimore’s Beach House have doubled their output and returned to London on the tail end
The Kills – Alison Mosshart talks Midnight Boom (2009)
Arriving on the scene way back in 2002 with the gritty Black Rooster EP, The Kills took the garage rock aesthetic and beat it down, creating a skin and bones strut that stank of sex
The Scare – The Final Interview, Sydney (2010)
Is there anything more cliched than the rock and roll break-up? Secret meetings in dark alleys. The guitarist that suddenly pops up on other people's records. The singer who doesn't return their calls. You either see it coming a mile away, or it creeps up on you like old age. It happens to the best and it happens to the worst, and eventually it will happen to them all. Piss and moan about it all you like, but what's done is done. The latest induction to the rock and roll hall of "fuck this shit for a laugh" are Webcuts' favourite punk sons, The Scare.
1990s – Interview with Jackie McKeown (2009)
Jackie McKeown enthusiastic front man with Glasgow's 1990s talks effortlessly about their sophomore effort Kicks which is being booted about, delving into the rigours of recording under Bernard Butler, sharing vocals duties, girlfriends and carrying
M.Ward – Hold Time
As Conor Oberst once proclaimed, "M. Ward for President". As far-fetched as it sounds, Oberst may have a point.
Pama International – Pama Outernational
A fusion of dub reggae, ska and soul, the brilliance of Pama International comes to the fore with their seventh album Pama Outernational.