The 7 Local Records You Should Be Listening To This Week

We listen to a lot of music here at Tone Deaf HQ, and we’re the first to admit we’re perhaps a little biased towards sounds of the Australian variety. We do make the best music in the world, after all.

In honouring our favourite Aussies, we’ve once again compiled a list of the most outstanding local releases you should be listening to right now – whether they’re smaller indies acts or big-name essentials, these are the newest Australian records you should be adding to your ‘must-listen’ list. Let’s get started.

Flight Facilities – Down To Earth (Future Classic)

Why such a big deal was made of the fact that the first full-length from this electronic duo, who soundtracked every chill out session that went down in 2010 with their sultry signature tune, ‘Crave You’, featured a cameo from “Australia’s national treasure”, Kylie Minogue, is anyone’s guess. Not only does she appear merely briefly for a reprise of the aforementioned tune that had already been rendered in spectacular, coquettish form by Giselle Rosselli, but it distracted from the fact that Flight Fac have managed to unveil an album of surprisingly nuanced and tuneful electronic pop.

Not to mention, the list of other collaborators featured on the album is not only more interesting, but creatively promising, with superb appearances from Reggie Watts, Emma Louise, Micky Green, Christine Hoberg, Owl Eyes, and Bishop Nehru, just to name a few. Of course, all of this still begs that all-important question: is it a banger? The quick answer is ‘No’. But the longer and more important answer is that you won’t, at any point, find yourself starved for a mindless, dance floor ready bass drop or dimwitted hook. Think of it as Flight Fac’s Random Access Memories, if they’d already released their Human After All.

CW Stoneking – Gon’ Boogaloo (Caroline)

Part of what makes the latest long-play from this singular Melburnian songwriter so intriguing is the fact that he does actually manage to make the songs sound as if they were recorded next door to the studio where Muddy Waters and Blind Willie Johnson were laying down the tracks that would go on to form the cornerstone of American blues. That said, what makes the album such a weird (but enjoyable) ride is there’s always something there to remind you that you’re listening to something forged in the 21st century.

The tracks are muddy, but free of crackles and pops. Sounds distort, but never clip. And Stoneking’s voice, which is part Robert Jonhson, part snake oil salesman from a ’50s Western film, is just a little too well-mixed to truly belie the fact that what you’re listening to was recorded a two-hour, at the most, Jetstar ride away from where you’re sitting. But aural aspects aside, Stoneking ought to be commended on the sheer quality of the songcraft displayed on Gon’ Boogaloo. It has all the requisite simplicity and smoky seediness of those classic Johnson and Muddy Waters tunes. Believe it.

The Ocean Party – Soft Focus (Spunk Records)

We’ve said it once and we’ll say it again: local legends The Ocean Party are making some of the sweetest guitar pop around.

The band’s new album Soft Focus is an instant bundle of good vibes, and definitely demands a place in your record collection next to your Twerps or Courtney Barnett 12″s.

Take their latest single ‘Head Down’, which our writer likened to “Kylie Minogue decided she wanted to be in a Dick Diver cover band.” With layered guitars and breezy Sunday afternoon melodies, these guys are on the top-tier of quality local faves who are still yet to let us down.

Get around it.

La Bastard – Ooh La La Bastard (Beast Records)

Melbourne surf-garage outfit La Bastard have been just wound up their 18-date tour of Europe, and now they’ve just dropped their latest album, Ooh La La Bastard.

It’s a limited edition, 10-track LP featuring choice tracks from the band’s four Australian releases, which they sold at their European shows to help familiarise crowds with their sound.

If you haven’t been introduced to this beloved Aussie band, Ooh La La Bastard is the perfect start. If you can imagine Nancy Sinatra vocals, backdrop of 50s-flavoured rock’nroll and reverb-drenched fuzz, you’re getting close to what you can expect to hear. (DM)

Tkay Maidza – Switch Tape (Dew Process)

It’s been a minute since we all stomped our feet like a brontosaurus (and damned if we all didn’t), so it was about time this clearly talented Adelaide native showed that she’s poised to be more than just an inventive dance floor hook. No chips on any shoulders here, Maidza has effectively stomped over any buzz-induced jitters to deliver a lean, mean, though unfortunately short, five-track collection (two of the five tracks are remixes of infectious opener ‘U-Huh’) that presents the rhyme-slinger as a fully-formed artist with a consistent, entertaining aesthetic both sonic and visual.

Do we wish there was more to bounce to around here? Absolutely. Is what we’ve been given enough to keep us hooked until she finally makes good on the BIGSOUND notoriety and unleashes the full-length effort? You betcha. The speed with which she dispatches her one-two-punchline combos will often go right over your head and have you headed for her RapGenius page and her singing efforts, though electronically aided, are admirable and enjoyable, but it’s her Madonna-like ability to find the perfect collaborators that really bear the promise of even better things to come.

Montgomery – New Clear War (I Oh You)

Our ears pricked up when fresh-faced Queensland singer Montgomery inked a deal with I Oh You following the hype surrounding her then only two songs on SoundCloud, and now her first label release proves why she’s getting so much buzz.

Montgomery makes glossy electronica with Lorde-level moody atmospheres, sweet, sugary vocals reminiscent of Broods, and sharp, punchy synths that’ll make her next six-track EP your perfect new injection of woozy electronic pop.

Start with the blissful lead single ‘War Cry’ and let the Gold Coast singer whisk you away to her dreamy, celestial wonderland. (DM)

Hand Of Mercy- Resolve (UNFD)

Yes, two minutes into the latest dispatch from these Sydney-based arbiters of a sound that places itself like a mighty obelisk at the point where metalcore, industrial, and grindcore converge, you will find yourself incredulous as to whether these blast beats are really the result of a skilled and poised drummer or merely some ProTools-enabled studio trickery. More than anything, it’s a testament to the skill of this five-piece, who’ve managed to pull together one of the most intriguing heavy releases to come out of Australia in the last six months.

Don’t think of it as more of the same, but more of what you want. If you’re looking for staggering sonic evolution and aesthetic progression, you’re in the wrong genre. Like the man Kerry King once said, it’s best to appreciate “how a band sounds” and how good they are at sounding that way. Judging Resolve the band’s first outing with new vocalist Nick Bellringer — by this criteria, what you’ve got is a band that’s far more interested in following their own true north than making half-assed attempts at sounding adventurous (not naming any names). If you ask us, their priorities are well in order.