Interviews

Local double bassist Steve Purcell is the mastermind behind the swinging jazz big band The Pearly Shells and a regular guest on Jumpin' The Blues. Dropping by the show after 1pm, Steve and Tom Sianidis will share what they love about PBS, and what the station means to them. Tune in this radio festival and support this community-driven radio station.

Long-time video game and tech industry marketer Amy Potter-Jarman catches up with Matt ahead of the Frosty Games showcase. Not only is she the founder of Frosty Games, an online showcase dedicated to spotlighting games made in Australia and NZ, she also freelances to help indie game makers connect with their audience. Well versed in the importance of community and the connections it helps foster, tune in to hear her chat with Matt about this as the Radio Festival celebrations continue.

As the PBS Radio Festival celebrations continue, Emma Peel of Switched On joins Crispi for a Radio City special. Emma has been sharing unearthed vinyl gems from around the world for over fifteen years on the PBS airwaves while serving as a familiar voice for many every Saturday Arvo. Listen to the beloved announcers share their passion for the PBS community and how you can join to help 'Fuel the Frequency' this Radio Festival. 

PBS has a wonderful team of staff who are busy working behind the scenes to keep the station thriving this Radio Festival. Catch up with Iso and Kayley who are PBS's Marketing and Membership whizzes to hear them once again chat with Crispi about the importance of Radio Festival and to learn how you can become involved in this dynamic community of music lovers.

Guitarist for local punk groups Alien Nosejob and IUD, as well as a PBS fill-in announcer and staff member, Isobel Buckley will be joining Michael Mulholland on Junkyard. Tune in as they share their passion for community radio and celebrate what makes this station such an important part of this city.

Stopping by PBS is Brussels-based producer Naomie Klaus. In love with performance and constantly flirting with cinema and acting, Naomie’s sound oscillates between pitched-down vocal delays, lazy punk, and something edging towards pop. Her album 'Youth Looks So Good on You' is a sonic ballad that bizarrely explores the world between reality and self-fantasy, a world where the aesthetic cult of youth becomes sovereign. Tune in as Jasmine catches up with Naomie while she’s in town.

Inventive and larger-than-life Grammy Award-winning artist MonoNeon stops by Black Wax this Monday, June 1. Known for his presence on YouTube as a bass guitarist and as one of the last musicians to work with Prince, Flea of Red Hot Chili Peppers has referred to MonoNeon as “the greatest f**king electric bass player” of this generation. Adam Rudegeair chats with MonoNeon about his incredible career to date, tune in to hear from the Memphis legend.

The Independent Music Exchange is back, returning to Northcote Town Hall across the weekend of June 6 and 7. Featuring a stellar lineup of labels from across Australia, this year’s IME introduces an education program with a series of panel discussions and talks designed to support emerging label makers navigating an evolving industry. Co-founder of IME Michael Kucyk and Alex Macfarlane from Hobbies Galore stop by The Breakfast Spread, tune in for the event lowdown.

Since their live debut in 2023, NON have been spreading their own brand of Eastern inspired psychedelic doom across venues in Naarm, each show delivering a unique experience with improvised and extended jams. Now the instrumental outfit plan to play the album's final form 'Vipassana', bringing their vision to life as they launch its physical release on June 20th at Shotkickers. Tune in from 8pm to catch the details of the gig and a mesmerising live performance from the band. 

The eleventh studio album 'Season Of Surrender' has just been released from US metcalcore group August Burns Red. Having crafted their signature brand of metalcore for over two decades, they have ferociously established themselves as one of the foremost acts in the genre. They'll be coming across to Australia this October to tour with Bloom and I Promised The World, playing at 170 Russell on October 1. Tune in to hear from drummer Matt Greiner, and why this tour is a special one for him.

'STELLA: The Musical' is a story based on the life of Australian writer Stella Miles Franklin. Having battled through poverty and sexism to become a writer, Stella endured two world wars and terrible personal bereavements, emerging as an advocate for conservation, First Nation's rights, young writers, and Australian literature. Award-winning composer Monique diMattina chats to Helen about writing the music for this musical, tune in to hear about the premier at Alexander Theatre on June 12 - 20.

Moody dark-pop artist Georgia Knight will be coming in to Studio 5 this June to perform songs from her debut album, 'Beanpole'. With trip-hop pulses and synth-washed layers, her music unfolds into an avant-garde landscape that coaxes listeners into a world of dark musical terrain and cinematic breadth. Joining Crispi after the performance for an interview, tune in to hear what the autoharpist has in store over the next few months.

The Naarm-based Australian electronic rockers Black Cab are playing alongside Lydia Lunch at The Tote on June 17. Their unique blend of driving electronica and psychedelic krautrock often draws inspiration from Europe and America in the 1970′s and ’80′s. Tune in to hear the band's James Lee and Andrew Coates chat more about the gig, plus your favourite Suicide and Alan Vega tracks in-between. 

Elusive Melbourne-based fusion ensemble Krakatau have a new album out, and it’s called 'Terra Ignota'. Marking both a return and an epochal shift for the group, the album is a deep exploration of possible sonic spaces and a portent of things to come. Members of the band bring a selection of tunes that inspired the new album to The Breakfast Spread for a round of Musical Chairs - tune in from 8am as Claire Dickson catches up with James and Dann.

The mighty PBS and Triple R Megahertz will once again take on the Rockdogs at the Reclink Community Cup on June 14 at Victoria Park. Raising funds for Reclink, a community sport and recreation charity supporting people facing life challenges, the day features a lineup of live music, including C.O.F.F.I.N (with Ambrose Kenny‑Smith), Owelu Dreamhouse, Kim Salmon’s Smoked Salmon and more. Claire catches up with Megahertz co-captain Emelyne and Rockdogs co-captain Nick ahead of the big match.

Beth Seymour, the vocalist for punk rock group La Famiglia will be joining Ryan on Tyrano this week. Chatting about their new album 'Alphabet Mafia', tune in to hear how this new record differs from her other project Beth Seymour & The Lizzies, and what we can expect from La Famiglia for the rest of 2026.

Mikey O’Neil is a Canberra based composer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist. His credits include the horror feature 'The Furies', and the minimalist score for 'Momento', a cozy room decorator. Having reached a global audience with renditions of video game music, particularly from the 'Final Fantasy' series, his self-released works further define his sound, blending expansive textures with intimate, tender arrangements. Joining Matt on Game Jams, tune in to hear about Mikey's latest works.

Known as the 'Swiss army knife of video game composition', Chase Bethea is a multi-award-winning video game composer behind critically acclaimed soundtracks for 'I Can’t Escape: Darkness, Aground, On the Peril of Parrots', and more. His music, celebrated for its unique fusion of orchestral, electronic, and world music elements, has been performed by ensembles worldwide. Chase joins Matt on Game Jams to chat about his 'Caribbean Noir' soundtrack for Duppy Detective Tashia.

Two-piece alternative pop project Lover is made up of long time friends Will Morris and Johnny Bullen. Known for their dynamic, textured sounds that blend heartfelt songwriting with bold, layered production, the duo have made waves across Naarm since their relocation from Aotearoa/ New Zealand. Combining personal reflective themes with experimental sonic elements, Lover drop in to The Breakfast Spread for a round of Musical Chairs with Milo Eastwood. Tune in to hear about their debut album.

For lovers of noisy anthems and catchy guitar pop, Big League’s new EP 'Windanswagger' is for you. They’ll be taking their fuzzed-out guitars and blissful summertime vocals to The Last Chance Rock & Roll Bar on June 13. Ahead of the launch, Trav from the band stops by Radio City. Tune in to hear tracks from the EP and to find out how the release is going so far.

Post-punk outfit Sacred Cowboys started playing in murky Melbourne dive bars in 1982. Rapidly attracting a following, they were catapulted to national TV notoriety on 'Countdown' with the release of their iconic first single, 'Nothing Grows in Texas'. Now releasing their seventh album 'In the Manifesto', the group are coming onto Junkyard for a hard rock Studio 5 Live performance. Tune in to hear Michael Mulholland catch up with the band about their impressive career.

Centered around live improvisation, collaboration, and the studio as an instrument, Tony Soprano Band are coming into Studio 5 Live during Deeep Space. Drawing from the language of breaks, sampling, and loop-based composition, every sound on the record 'Downtempo 1' originates from live performance. Lloyd Briggs chats to band members Daniel Rock (bass), Lucky Pereira (drums), Robert Downey (sequencer, drum machine) and Winton Findlay (synthesizers) about their new record.

Rivers of Nihil are still riding high off the back of 2025’s hugely successful self-titled fifth album. Playing a show with Tasmanian export Psycroptic at Max Watt’s on August 15, the Pennsylvanian group have booked in a headline Australian tour, stopping off at Necrosonic Festival in Meanjin on August 22. Adam Biggs, vocalist and bassist for the progressive technical death metal band joins Ryan on the show, tune in to hear about the theatrics the band have planned for the tour.

It’s been seven years since Melbourne band Roller One released their third album, 'Better Than Fine'. A pandemic got in the way of life and art during those intervening years, but the good news for fans of dark alt-country and electric acid folk is that the quartet are back with their new album, 'Fate Done Nice'. Adam and Fergus swing by Radio City for an interview with Crispi about the new album, and to chat about their launch show at The Tote on June 25.

In the lead up to the 50th anniversary of Australian punk band X, the band drops in to The Tote on June 27th to play an exciting show with support from The Maggie Pills and Cat Crawl. Ahead of this show, founding member Steve Lucas chats with the Prince of Darkness about the band's history, his solo projects, and lots more. Tune in to Sunglasses After Dark on Thursday from 8pm.

Greg Kubacki is the guitarist and songwriter for Car Bomb. Formed in 2000, the New York mathcore group is heading to Australia in July for two shows in Perth alongside Karnivool and Tesseract. On the show, Ryan will chat with Greg about the band’s philosophy of less is more, and what inspires their music. Tune in to find out what else Car Bomb has in store for the rest of 2026.

Mark Sinton, Ian Freeman, Jeff Baker, Julian Chick and Matt Cotter are about to play their first show at The Gem on June 27. Performing only Beatles tunes, the band will be chatting with Crispi about their newly formed group, The Apple Scruffs. Tune in to hear how Mark is feeling ahead of their debut performance and what audiences can expect from the band on the night.

Newly formed group Fancy Weapon is made up of Mick Turner, Claire Birchall, Joel Silbersher and Guy Maddison. An unexpected collaboration, the band sees a cross-generational group of Melbourne music perennials creating a singular brand of minimalist, incandescent, guitar-heavy rock in the tradition of other singular, minimalist, incandescent guitar-heavy rock bands that have been doing it for 50 years. Phil MacDougall catches up with the band, tune in to hear about their new self-titled album.

Acclaimed South African pianist, composer, healer, and philosopher Nduduzo Makhathini is releasing his new album, 'The Myth We Choose', on June 26. Co-produced by Makhathini and his 18-year-old son Thingo Makhathini, the album explores the awareness needed to create a legacy of love and healing in the present tense, and features special guests including Shabaka Hutchings. Tune in to Stars In The Static, where Greg Sher catches up with Nduduzo about the new record.