2020FAXION...

I played a gig on the weekend with my mates hip hop outfit called '2020FAXION'. It usually consists of two MC/producers and the tracks...and a party! But for one night they added bass, drums and keys to the mix and all in all...phatness. Lots of it. It was absolutely awsome and I had more fun playing bass than i can remember in a long time! Though it was a one-off thing, i hope we can do it again to a bigger audience!

The guys released a MixTape last year and were giving it away to get gigs and build the profile. Good move. Heres the link... http://tinyurl.com/yabfsrm or click the pic.

They have a myspace and facebook page so go check it out and if you like it... come to a show!

(Sean's fav tracks: The Truth, Hold the Moment, Satisfaction)

We need a medic over here...

Blueline Medic are an inspiration to me. They're from Melbourne, they chose to be independent and kept their art their own despite loads of media and label attention from aroudn the world. In other words they never sold out. The band plays indie rock that carries melancholy and angst along with riffs, light jangly guitars and hoarse vocals. Its everything i wanna hear in every other indie band i hear these days. Too bad they finished the band this year...

Pictured is a 7" called 'The Middle of the End' and was released through Hobbledehoy Records and is available as A FREE DOWNLOAD!

Its just two songs but they are great! One original and the other is a cover of an Imogen Heap song "Let Go'. Click the pic for the link.

Change Your Ways....(Hardcore ITP)

Damn, this is the business. (*meaning this is really fricking good)

Not hip hop, not reggae, dub, pop indie... no. This is the heavy.

Coming straight out of Bendigo...wait...what? Bendigo? Yeah thats what i thought.

There is an immediate comparison to Bring Me The Horizon's latest work, minus the ear bleed. Its not as complicated, not as hard to understand but just as easy to enjoy.

They have the links to get their EP for free on their myspace page...

http://www.myspace.com/changeyourwayshardcore

Go there, read the lyirics, see what the dudes are on about...like it or not, they are doing it right.

Click on the pic above to just down the EP in zip format.

Im gonna press play again.....

...for we are young and FREE!!!!

Stuff got put on teh internetz and i foundz it so you can has it too...! CLICK THE PICS!


The Beautiful Girls are releasing new album early 2010 and they are offering the first single as a free download! Its a little different from previous work that i have heard form these guys, but i really like the new direction and polish on what was already a pretty slick roots/blues/alt reggae vibe.

Urthboy contributed a cover of The Clash song 'London Calling' to TripleJ's infamous 'Like a Version' segment this year and its included on the new comp/CD of the same name. The fifth in the series this one looks kinda interesting from a glance at the tracklist. BUT... this song is frickin awsome! Not like Urthy's other stuff and yet i cant help but think he's very well suited to the song! I hearts it. The d/l link came in an email to mailing lists subscribers.

The Optimen are an aussie hip hop outfit and have plans to drop a new album in 2010 (doesnt everyone?) and this is the lead single off the disc. Its a free download and is well worth your three minutes! RIYL: The Herd, Horrowshow, Thundamentals, Illy etc etc...



So this isnt exactly new. No, actually it isnt new at all. But i only just came across it myself so its fresh to my ears. Its a band from Melbourne which serves as an outlet for one of the Cat Empire dudes. Not sure which one, doesnt matter though, this is pretty far from Cat Empire territory. See this as a second band, not a side project. It hase a blend of so many different stlyings that its a bitch to pigeon hole BUT if you at all enjoy rootsy/reggae/indie/hihop/electro/pop music then this will get its hooks into you. The version im linking you to features a guest verse from Phrase (Melbourne MC) and i have to admit, whilst i dont care much for him...he really adds to this track to make it something really special.

So there's some feel good tunes to play in the background of those good times your having with the warmer weather!! Cheers!

I found more.

I found more...mooooore!

A band that sings about matters of justice, environment and politics who are actually worth listening to is ‘Blue King Brown’. They have a new single available for free d/l called ‘Moment of Truth’ and I HIGHLY RECOMMEND it for those who want a healthy dose of activism in their ears. Sign up to their email list to get free goodies.
Go get the track from the link below…
http://www.archive.org/download/MomentOfTruth_669/1.MomentOfTruth.mp3

Now, mixtapes are awesome for a number of reasons:
1) They are free
2) They build interest in local artists and DJ’s.
3) They are better than remixes!

‘Chasm & Vida Sunshyne’ dropped an album on Obese Records in October. Its dub- reggae-hip hop stuff. Very cool. But leading up to the release DJ Diaz released an official mixtape called ‘Fire in the Building’ which collects a bunch of their appearances on other peoples tracks, remixes it and features a bunch of new tripped out instro’s, breaks and beats to lay back and zone out with. The idea is that if you like it, you can go check out their new album or follow the DJ’s work..or follow up the original songs from which they have borrowed to make the mixtape.
http://www.chasmbeats.com/fire.zip

Get it….its sooooo good!

From Little Things Big Things Grow (+ rant)

I did not know about this until today. It's really quite cool and features some fantastic artists all collaborating on a song that was previously just another Paul Kelly tune. (One of the many, cos dude has like 20 albums!) Now it's a reworked track that features snippets from PM Ruddy's "Sorry" speech and some awsome lyrics and voices that capture the heart of reconciliation. I wish I knew about this sooner but apparently it blew up all over Triple J last year when it was released..ha! Im so behind. Anyone else miss this?
Its got Urthboy, Ozi Batla, Missy Higgins and Jane Tyrell on it to name a few voices. Sick eh?

You get the song via the Get Up! web site which has a page just for this campaign/project. There's also high-res artwork and a video clip available for free download (my favourite type) but its a big file! (youtube it instead) When you're done have a look around the site and see what else is going on. Worth your 5 minutes i promise.

Or...just click on the pic for the mp3 if thats too much.

RANT WARNING:

This gets me thinking, why isnt there more? As in...why arnt there more collaborations, partnerships and artists out there joining forces to speak out...or speak up about something? Dont get me wrong i am stoked that this exists, im all for the 'apology' but why does it stop there? What about assylum seekers, boat people, migrants and refugee's? What about suicide, depression and self harm? Homelessness, substance abuse, gambling and family violence? There is a never ending list of issues that could really benefit from some of this treatment and ive noticed that the mainstream media is missing the point. Power is in the hands of the people, not the other way around. Change will occur from the ground up, not top down. Live Aid, Wave Aide, Earth Hour, Make Povery History...whilst all good idea's and effective mediums in communicating to a large audience at once have resulted in very little change to our culture and society. So, a concert is still just a concert and a song is still just a song. More songs will still only amount to that...more songs. More noise. But people with voices can do a lot. I like that Paul Kelly, Urthboy and all the rest are motivated like this...i just wish more people were.
End rant.

Lest we forget 11:11am, 11/11/09

I always choke up when i think about this day and what we as a nation remember on this day. I imagine myself boarding a ship and leaving my wife, my son and my friends and family, hobbies, job, comfortable way of life...then consider the liklihood that i would never see them again. Leave them behind to grieve, imagine the pain, imagine the loss and how much that would impact everyone left behind. Its terrible right?

Then multiply that scenario a few thousand times over, and that is exactly what occured in the lives of all the men and women over the years who stepped up and defended our country and our way of life, or more to the point, the freedom to chose how we live.

People + Sacrifice = Freedom

Here's a great song by Redgum called 'I was only 19', covered by the Herd. Its fitting for today. Just click on the pic and you will go to the host site where you can watch or download it in a variety of formats.

....off this album BTW.

R.I.P. The Tongue

Here's a brand new & FREE mixtape from Elephant Traks artist 'The Tongue'. Unreal stuff featuring heaps of other quality hip hop artists. It flows seemlessly from one track to another and has a great vibe to it. I really like it. I really really like it!! The theme of memorial/funeral for the dude is kinda weird but works in the context of the mix. Theres a few interesting interludes (see 'Terrorist Hotline'!!) and cool instrumentals but the gold is in the lyrics that challenge and confront, irritate and interest me to new levels. I highly recommend this to anyone with an interest in skiphip or aussie music in general! I also like the tribue to De' La Soul wth the artwork image. I had that album, good times. Click on the picture to go to the site, download link at the bottom with the tracklisting.

Supplemental entry:

Unkle Ho released a mixtape of his own, the first in what will no doubt be many from this awsome instrumental/dj-producer/artist...whatever! It's really pretty good and would fit perfectly in the background of a cool cafe on a hot afternoon in a busy city somewhere with a cold brew in ya hand. Some of the music gets a little easy to ignore but then he pulls you back in with a guest vocalist or a sweet riff or sample. Either way its a great free soundtrack to wehatever you're doing right now.
Get it here:
http://soundcloud.com/urbanworld/unkle-ho-the-devils-mixtape

Hard, Hard, Soft, Soft

http://www.myspace.com/northlaneaus
Sydney metal-core band giving away a three track ep.
Can get the songs here:
http://www.triplejunearthed.com/Artists/View.aspx?artistid=30445
IMO: Pretty bloody heavy and quite good.

Techy-Metal-Core band from Sydney
New album out called Empires and Endings
Stream here: http://www.myspace.com/mazeau
Download a freebie from here: http://www.purevolume.com/lightwithoutheat80
That’s the last track on the CD, pretty epic closer too. (don’t stream it from PV, d’l quality is mmmuch better)

Sydney indie band 'Parades' are going to be buzz band in like…ten minutes.

The more people catch on to these sounds the better i say.
Stream tracks here: http://www.myspace.com/parades
Down two tracks for free here: http://www.triplejunearthed.com/artists/View.aspx?artistid=19421
*Invaders’ is off last years demo… *Dead Nationale is off their latest double AA side..(See picture) UNREAL drumming, soft and pretty vocals…what a mix!

Ice Pictures - aka Matt Blake. Sweet indie sounds, a little radiohead-ish, a little Gomez, a little Muse...a lot of goodness whichever comparison you draw from it.

Stream tracks here: http://www.myspace.com/icepictures

Or grab a bunch for free from here: http://www.triplejunearthed.com/Artists/View.aspx?artistid=23309 He's giving it away so if you want to have the lot...follow the links from his myspace page and you can grab the EP in mp3/aac format depending on your preference.

Ben Lee does free

I like Ben Lee. He's kinda funny, kinda quirky and sometimes very clever. He's also quite well known for being a widely disliked artist which is a unique reputation to have...not one i envy however. But love him or hate him, he doesnt stop because of it. And that in short is why i like him.

A while back he got my attention and some new found respect when he released his own cover album of 'Against Me! - New Wave'. This is a really bloody good album in itself, but Ben Lee took all that it was and re-made it in his own image. The result...in my opinion...is fantastic! (clicky the piccy to get the linky) Dont expect the same punk rock and power of Against Me' but rather a more stripped back lofi-indie approach which actually keeps the arrangements and melodies more or less untouched.

Curious? Yeh i was too. Go on, get it..its free.

Now back in the day, before we knew him, Ben played in a band called Noise Addict. Its widely thought that this was a good band and that his departure from the sound is a shame. He must've been listening because now 13 years later he has resurrected the moniker and reformed the band to release this new album for 'Noise Addict'. And he is putting it out for all the world to have for FREE! Get it from here

So thats free stuff for today, enjoy the tunes and share the links as you go!!!

Sean

Out there...way out there.

I spent a fair amount of time digesting and immersing myself in the epic music found on Perth's instrumental/prog/post rock act Sleepmakeswaves album 'in today already walks tomorrow'. Its like...epic, massive, heavy, intricate and yet...not metal or tech. Its 6 beautiful movements that kinda flow on from one to another and they released it to the world for free via the Lost Children net label. They are responsible for some incredible post rock/metal and instrumental bands all of which have released music for free. Click on the image to go to the bands download page and prepare yourself! If you enjoy stuff like 'Explosions in the Sky' but always wished it was a but heavier, then this is a dream come true..plus they're aussies!

And for something else a bit...out there: Ghoul.

These guys come from Sydney and play a style of indie music that's really hard to describe. Electrocoustic, lo-fi experimental indie-pop? Nah thats not right... :( Its just a bit weird and really cool. I dont expect everyone will dig it...but...ITS FREE! Thats gotta make taking a chance on an 'out there' kinda band more worth it!

'A Mouthful of Gold' is their debut EP and you can get it by clicking on the image or following the links from their myspace. Stream a track and see if you dig it. I do, otherwise i wouldnt be sharing it with you! Cheers!

Phat elephants make big impressions..?

I was trying to think of something clever to put as a title to the blog post, i guess thats the best i could come up with. I really like the roster of artists associated with the Elephant Tracks label. Seriously, what a powerhouse of talent! Since i dont JUST listen to heavy music i thought id feature some of my favourtie artists in the skip-hop scene and more specifically from this stable of aussie artists!

Horrorshow have a sweet new web site up and its a .com and everything! Thats a fair committment in this day and age of myspace pages and facebook groups! So their new album was just released called 'Inside Story' and its getting some huge cred!!
TripleJJJ is giving away the single 'Thoughtcrime (doing my think)' via the free music page. Thanks triple J...again.

<- they look kinda scared. I can relate when i catch trains at night, i get scared too. Why do people with backpacks and tracksuit pants look so intimidating at night? Why arnt we scared of suits and uniforms? Thats my thoughtcrime, im judging by appearances, they must be dangerous...they're wearing back packs and trackies! Eek*

'Combat Wombat' ..the name for me..conjours up images of this robust fighting comando wombat. That is not entirely the point but i've said it anyway. The album is caleld 'Unsound System' and you can hear a track 'Qwest' (click) which did really well on triple J's Net50 back in the day! It's not new as far as products go, but its fresh music and the project has meaning behind it. The members share their views on environment, war, politics and society trough the web site and the music. Finally, someone is singing about something worth thinking about!

Hermitude recently did a cover of Bjork's song Joga (yes thats right...Bjork) and put it up for free via his myspace. Worth the listen... click here and if you dig this stuff you really ought to check out the rest of Herimtude's work! Some people cant dig the uber-aussie accents, but i dont care! Im freeking aussie, thats what we sound like. Better than fake ass american gangster talk!

Ozi Batla

And finally... i have saved my aboslute favourite skip-hop track EVER for you.. from Ozi Batla i present: 'Starship Troppers'. This is a solo track...so its pretty much just a 'Herd/Ozi Batla' track. At the moment he performs with Astronomy Class whos second album is just rocking me at the moment. Serious awsome reggae/hip hop/dub groove rap stuff...whatever, its good. This song tho...its pretty confronting and makes you think about war and the young men and women who fight these things. Phenominal.

So that wraps up my skip hop section. Hope you all enjoy the free tunes and follow links onwards to see the artists and labels pages!

Triple JJJ: Still good for something...

I dont turn the radio on very often. I rarely get excited about the stuff i hear when i do tune in, usually when driving a work car or something. I am reminded of the good ol' days when i could leave my dial tuned in to TripleJ/PBS or RRR and expect to hear something good/new and cool and then id go out and research the band and find their music in a shop!
Nowadays it's tuned into whatever frequency my ipod is broadcasting and listening to playlist x. Given that the radio is kinda getting more and more saturated with dance/pop/weird alt country folk stuff...im comforted by the fact that a station like TripleJ has kept their horizons bright with the JJJunearthed page. You will find a lot of crap bands on there...yes..that is certain.

BUT theres a bunch of mad-nutt bands who have tracks up there for free and i figure this makes it a place to re-visit from time to time and get updates.

Atlanta Takes State

Metal, in your face...mad stuff from sydney. Check their myspace for info and whats happening with them.
The song you wanna hear is 'Who Ate The Disco Biscuits' and if you dig that, then you definitely need to dig up the rest. Look for a new EP thats on its way from these guys. This track is off a demo but if you can look past it...you're in for a treat!!

Dream On, Dreamer

These guys are from Melbourne and as far as i have listened, freeeking rule. I dig it. The track to get on is Vultures and if you like what you hear, go on itunes and buy the other tracks which make up this EP and turn it up loud so the nanna's in the car next to you will know 'we likez ze metal muzik'.
Good for fans of the synthy-core-sing/scream stuff thats becoming so popular at the moment.



Awsome... !!

Love...this!

'Lovecats'
(<- meaning these dudes)
Song: 'Dont Play The Part'

I kinda feel funny about liking this cos generally speaking it is sooo not my thing. But there's this hooky, in your face attitude and tongue-in-cheek vibe behind it all that i cant ignore. These two dudes are in a band called 'Amity Affliction' who are a pretty tight band in their own right. Heavy and hard hitting in all the right places.

Put your email in here and they will send you the song! Totally worth it! But dont expect to hear riffage or screaming or anything! It's all about electro-pop and rap...but not gangster! Welcome to 'crunk'.

Pretty much...amazing.

Who's amazing? "This City Sunrise"

Who are they? A three piece band from NZ who relocated to Melbourne last year. Given the fact that NZ is kind of..smaller and the OZ is kinda ..bigger, it makes sense to come over and have a crack at the scene. What with all our sick talent and full to overflowing heavy music scene! BUT i dont know if its going to be worth it. Good bands get overlooked all the time and often it's those brilliant souls who we love to listen to that others have no clue about.

So i want to help, im tellin yall to check this business out! Im a fan. Yup i am blown away by the pure originality and style coupled with brutality and severity of the sound.

They have a myspace of course.. but go check out the blog and read up on their plans and stuff. Maybe you could help them find a new name for the band? It has to start with a 'G'. (yeh im serious!) BUT the real draw card here is that they are giving away their tunes. Get the pictured EP 'Sings In Union' and turn it up loud. Then if you are into it, you can go back for more and get the earlier self titled EP form last year. You wont be dissapointed.

*ahem*...............................and introducing...................Farewell Forever

a) Mates of mine.

b) New band made up of ex-members of: The Red Shore/ArmageddonSky/Silent Betrayal

c) Free track up over at purevolume (feat Jamie/Red Shore)
d) 3track EP on its way.

e) epic, brutal and will tear your face off.

f) you're a gimp

Ive been following the progress of these guys closely and im heaps excited by what they are doing. It's as heavy as a four letter word...but yeh it still has appeal to draw listeners in i think. Good luck boyz.

If you truely love something, set it FREE

More?

More free music...

iexplodelike...

They are a crazy synthy/progressive screamo band from sunny* Melbourne who have started to put themselves out there...for free! I like it. But i also really like 'House Vs Hurricane' and 'Dream on, Dreamer' and other bands in the scene doing the synthy-beats mashup with hardcore. Its fun. Whilst this is just a demo, it stands up against some other bands releases at the moment. They have a blog and myspaz.
(*sunny bit was a joke)

"Secrets in Scale"

They are a rad alternative rock band that will do your ears a favour. They have a 6 track EP and yup..they're giving it away for here. Click HERE and go have your self a good time! I really rate this stuff, i hope you do to. Write to them, tell them you're into it, add them to your mysapce etc..spread the word!

Paper Arms

Based in Adelaide, these post-punk/hc boys have it. Its a hard edge, rough vocals and attitude WITHOUT the pretentious, flair and drama. I know Josh who used to play in God So Loved The World & back in the day...pop punk icons 'STR'. They had a 4 song CD which sold out and is now up for free download.

One writer for bombshellzine had this to say about them: "nothing this well-rehearsed and excellent has come out in years.... nobody is as good as this right now. Myspace them immediately for your own good."

OK, there you go... thats the last of it for now. Have fun with it and share alike, tell your mates if you think they'd be into some of this stuff! Add the bands on myspace, head out to a show and buy a shirt! Do what keeps this scene alive.

Hip Hop Core

Deez Nutz...

There i said it. A band name that i usually outright refuse to say. One of the worst ive heard.


The back story is JJ' was the drummer of infamous chuggahcore band 'I Killed The Prom Queen'. He was a good bloke from what little time ive spent with him in the 'Antiskeptic' days. Anyway this is his thing..gangstar hardcore. He's up front delivering the vocals instead of behind the drums. It sounds like a terrible idea to mix genre's like that, but when you review some of the older bands in the ilk... you'll find that this really isnt a new thing but more of a modernized sound from wayyy back. It works too. I dont know how sincere the effort is to marry hiphop with hardcore but thats what im getting out of it. They have some albums out (see pictured) with the latest "Stay True' well worth a look in. BUT what's really cool is that they are giving away a new single...not featured on the album! Its called 'Free Music' and you can get it here


Its beefy and has a good groove and when you d/l the track you get art and lyrics along with it. *click* ... totally worth the 3 minutes it takes.


And then to add to the mix...he's in a REAL hip hop thing (minus guitars) called Grips & Tonic in which he partners up with this kiwi dude Louie Knuxx. I aint into it. You might be though so here's the linkage... and you can grab two free tracks for your trouble.



What IS cool though is that he appears as a guest vocalist alongside Michael Crafter ... (who used to the be singer in IKTPQ) on the new Confessions track 'Thats Not The Goose' which you can stream on their mysapce. I dig this song alot. It sounds immediately familiar and fresh at the same time. If you're up for it, Bluntmagazine is giving it away as a free download along with a swag of other bands on their new MixTape#1 which you can get here and i strongly recommend you do. Loads of good bands, heaps of shite ones and yeh generally a worthy download if not for the Confessions track alone. The new album is out on the 9th Oct and should deliver the goods.


(resist records rarely dissapoint)



Ahh well thats a heap of tunes for nothing. Keep your money. Spread the word.

New Day, New Core

IM Back. Whatever.

Nothing says 'indie' like hardcore. Its the ugly, confronting heavy music that gets messy. It sometimes lacks the polish and finesse of its more accessible and older brother...metal. It lacks the appeal and fun of its other sibling ...punk rock. But with what it lacks, it make makes up for in spades with passion, energy and brutality. NO radio would take a risk with a sound like this, no major label would gamble on a scene with such confronting trends, links to ethical movements, violent energy, outspoken views on society and culture! Hardcore punk, metal core and ..just plain old 'hard core' music has long been a big part of the melbourne music scene and now more than ever it is seeing a*boom!*

I like that there's room for you no matter what life-views you hold to: christian, straight edge, vegan, party boy, dont care what i am*, gangstar ... you can get into this.

Lately im noticing the scene which produced such brutal bands is now brimming with cross overs, genre mash ups and a new breed of kids with something to say. Keyboards are becoming more and more familiar, beats and samples are making their way in, break downs are replaced with blast beats, dance beats are replacing double time, singing is backing the screaming, rap is even getting a look in and colour is back in the wardrobe!

It's just full of variation and new idea's and i really like it! I dont like all the music that is coming as a result but the adventurous bands behind it have my respect at least!
Im going to start sharing some of the music ive found and the links to where you can find it too. All free.
As it comes.

i just stepped up to ping.fm, lets see if this is the way to save time updating stupid social networking sites...lol