Tag: j

BRAND NEW: The Living End – “The Ending Is Just The Beginning Repeating”

This morning Aussie rockers The Living End premiered their brand new track on triple j at 7am – it’s called “The Ending is Just the Beginning Repeating”.

The band teased fans earlier this week by posting a short snippet on their website, a sample of lyrics, and a timer counting down to, well… pretty much now.

So what’s it like? Chris Cheney’s vocals sound great as per usual, and the song has a bit of an old Western vibe to it with the bell rings. The guitars sound great with the chugging verse, although I’m a bit concerned the chorus lyrics (the title) don’t have any kind of special hook to them – it just sounds a bit dry. On the other hand, in a live setting I can see the whole track going down brilliantly. It’s got an anthemic kind of feel, and I reckon it’s going to please fans of their more recent work.

Interestingly, the timer is still there after the premiere! But it’s longer. It’s counting down to 9am on the 22nd of July – the release date of their new album.

Take a listen to “The Ending is Just the Beginning Repeating” for yourself over at the band’s website right now. It’s out on iTunes too.

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Posted on by Jeremy 0

REVIEW: Various Artists – “Triple J Hottest 100 Volume 18”

2010 was a great year for music. We were lucky enough to get some amazing releases from bands like The National, Dead Letter Circus, Los Campesinos!, Birds of Tokyo, and Delphic. The Australia Day of 2011 reflected this, with what I thought was a fairly solid count-down. More importantly it also reflected a great year for Australian artists, with 51 spots taken out by some of our best talent. Australian artists even took out 4 of the top 5 places, and although I don’t quite like “Big Jet Plane”, I’m proud that Australian musicians have worked their ways into the hearts of so many voters.

What this means is that there wasn’t too much room to go wrong with the latest Hottest 100 compilation. Some Hottest 100’s have been a bit hit and miss, but the latest offering features tracks from  some amazing musicians. It includes some of the most popular artists of the year: Cee Lo Green, The Wombats, Arcade Fire, Adrian Lux, and more! And in all honesty, without name-dropping, I probably only dislike 3 or 4 tracks across the two discs. In my world, for a release with over 40 songs, that’s excellent.

This is one of the best Hottest 100 compilations I’ve listened to, and it’s a testament to triple j and their commitment to music that is not only good, but also Australian. Their support of Australian artists is shown in the poll results, and I’m proud to listen to a station with such a passion for local talent. No other station does this better than triple j (and sadly, I don’t think many other stations care).

Volume 18 is a brilliant compilation of some of the best tracks from 2010. It’s a snapshot of a musical year, and it’s worth buying: you’ll definitely get your money’s worth.

Posted on by Jeremy 0

VIDEO: Birds of Tokyo – “Heard It Through The Grapevine”

I don’t normally post covers, in fact I think this is probably the first post I’ve done for a cover. But this is just too amazing to not share.

First recorded by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, and subsequently many many other artists and bands, "Heard It Through The Grapevine" was covered by (2 members of) Birds of Tokyo a while back for triple j’s Like A Version. Ian Kenny’s voice is outstanding, as it usually is in most of his work, and it somehow suits this delicate acoustic cover as well as it suits Karnivool’s head-banging progressive rock. Adam Spark’s finger-picking weaves into Kenny’s vocal melodies creating something very special indeed.

I know it’s only a cover, but I can’t get enough of it. This is just beautiful.

Score: 8/10

Posted on by Jeremy 3