Little Quirks - "Neverland"

A family fun day on a Sunday in a local pub is not necessarily the place to discover new musical talent. But, in amongst the petting zoo and the jumping castle, a handful of young performers played. One group was a group calling themselves Little Quirks, an all female group with 13 year old lead singer/guitarist Abbey, a 16-year old mandolinist/vocalist Jaymi, and a 10 year old drummer Mia.

Hailing from the New South Wales Central Coast region, they are currently doing busking sets at market days around the place. The vocal harmonies these ladies produce are astonishing. The talent within is pretty obvious. Currently their set consists of covers of recent indie folk tunes by the likes of Angus and Julia Stone and Of Monsters and Men, as well as classics by Fleetwood Mac (their cover of "Dreams" is particularly cool) in a style that compliments the song choices well.

At their appearances they are selling their debut EP, home recorded and printed, entitled "Neverland". A professional sounding recording, containing the core of their main set. Containing six songs, it's a great sampler of what the girls are about, with some bass overdubs from Dad to fill out the sound. The package is nicely presented with each copy having the side seams machine stitched together. It's a nice touch. All told, it's certainly worth laying down the asking price of a fiver next time you happen to bump into them around the place.

With this much talent, I hope they go far. It'd be great to hear them work up their own material as they experience life a bit more, if they haven't already. Certainly a band to watch.

Here's a couple of tracks for your perusal, via their soundcloud page. Enjoy.

Jaket - Denim EP

Jaket.

Is it a typo? Or something more sinister? Either way, the Grammar police have been onto it.

This is Andrew Crowe's "Jaket". The bad spelling at least ensures his Soundcloud page is the top result in a Google search.

Andrew is a pop musician based on the NSW Central Coast. A recent graduate of the Sydney chapter of the Australian Institute of Music, this is his debut EP, entitled "Denim". This one was crowd-funded through a successful Kickstarter campaign.

From the outset, it's a striking piece. The CD (remember those?) features a beautiful (faux-) denim-clad digipak cover with hand-drawn cartoonish graphics. It appears simple enough, but what's within is another thing entirely...

Musically, there is a lot to take in. A single listen doesn't do this justice. It takes a few listens to dig through the dense layers of heavily synthesized sounds in order to get to the songs. But, in this reviewers opinion, that's a good thing. It leaves the listener plenty of scope to discover something new with each repeated playing.

Starting off, "Good Man" kicks off with 808-thin drums and gurgling synths, before working its way to a chorus featuring Destx. One thing is for sure, Andrew has selected an amazing supporting cast of female vocalists. Destx has a timbre to her voice that reminds me somewhat of Stevie Nicks. The song itself has a very simple structure, ensuring the song doesn't outstay its welcome. But if he ever gets a band happening to play these songs live, the song has plenty of room for growth and expansion.

Track 2, "Cool Kids" has some strange, pitch-altered vocals to kick things off, adding a retro-futurist vibe to the proceedings. Guest vocalist Elaska's voice floats elegantly above the subtle arrangement. Her involvement is sadly limited by the arrangement, which allows the synths to dominate however.

Track 3, "Super Love" sees Andrew give his own voice a treatment that suggests he's been listening to a lot of Kraftwerk's "Autobahn". A cool idea, but I feel it strips the tune of a compelling melody it so desperately lacks. Guest vocalist Lucy Lowe makes a blink-and-you'll-miss-it appearance.

Track 4, "You See The Sky" has achieved some notoriety on the ABC's digital radio station Triple J Unearthed, picking up more than a few plays and heaps of good reviews. And why shouldn't it? It's a fun summer jam. And Claryssa Tolentino's crystal clear voice sparkles against some twinkly percussive effects throughout.

The jewel in the crown of this record, however is the two-part "Darkness To Sun". Part 1 sees Andrew indulging himself in his beloved synths, creating a piece that wouldn't be out of place on side two of David Bowie's "Heroes" (in fact, it would probably brighten up an otherwise bleak set of songs). Part 2 strips back the synths and lets the music breathe in an arrangement that emphasises space. It gives the vocal line room to shine. It's another worthy summer jam and a great way to end this compelling release.

Andrew has a bright future in music ahead of him. Definitely one to watch, it'll be interesting to see where his music takes him. Bring on the next batch of tunes, Andrew!

Take a listen to the record below and leave a comment telling us what you think. Available on iTunes, Google Play and Bandcamp.

Enjoy!!!

Magic Bones

Thanks to the guys at the Aussie Playlist, here's a bit of brand new tuneage from Melbourne.

The Magic Bones' latest release is a double A-side that has two blistering tunes, with a combined time of under 4 minutes. "Once You Forget" is a stomping rocker with some very forthright lady vocals. While "On The Spot" is a driving and tuneful number that hits all the right spots for me. It reminds me of Ocean Colour Scene at their most "rock", which is no bad thing!

This is a release that is screaming out for a 7-inch release. Currently it's available for $2 on their Bandcamp page. The band are also getting spins on Triple J Unearthed radio too.

Check them out. The Magic Bones are ones to watch. Recommended.