Interviews

Every Thursday in August, mysterious Melbourne group The Pro-Teens have been performing new musical works at Old Plates Record bar in Fitzroy. Featuring a mix of soul-heavy cinematic jazz and library music vibes, the Pro-Teens feature some of Melbourne's busiest and most in-demand players. Tune in as Richie explores what punters can expect to hear in the final week of this month of live music-making.

This week on Stone Love one of Richie's favourite local bands the Sugar Fed Leopards swing by for a chat, and to play some songs live in the studio. Tune in from 6pm to hear a sneak peek of what you can expect when they hit the stage at the Cactus Room this Saturday.

The Distant South, formed in 2020 by singer-songwriter Nick Howells, have been steadily carving out a reputation in the Melbourne music scene as a dynamic musical outfit offering a unique take on the alt-country genre. Their sophomore album 'Map of My Life' will be launched at The Brunswick Ballroom on August 22, alongside new country act, The Pleasures. Tune in to the show as Nick from The Distant South and Lachlan from The Pleasures join Myles ahead of the album launch.

Multi-instrumentalist, producer and songwriter Marcel Borrack has just released his new album 'Sun Dust'. Recorded by Marcel, 'Sun Dust' is inspired by his love of Indian music. "The first time I heard the sitar I was instantly hooked on Indian music. Over the years I’ve continued to listen, love, and be amazed by its seemingly unfathomable depth." Tune in to Tiger Beats Elephant Grooves as Marcel catches up with Pradip about creating the album.

After their Studio 5 Live performance, Amaru Tribe will be coming on to the Global Village for an interview with Roger. An intersection between cultures, traditional music from Latin America, urban flow and electronic sounds, their new album 'Golden Roots' is Amaru Tribe’s third full-length album and second vinyl release, created to celebrate 10 years of music, movement and connection. Tune in to hear about the creation of the new album.

Visiting the Global Village on the second half of the show today is Alec Ilyine and Poly Varghese. Belgian musician, sound engineer, and multi-instrumentalist Alec Ilyine is known for his exploration of diverse musical traditions. Poly Varghese, based in Australia and born in Kerala, is a virtuoso of the Mohan Veena (Indian slide guitar), and disciple of Grammy Winner Vishwa Mohan Bhatt, aka V. M. Bhatt. Tune in for some live music, and to hear about their inspirations and collaborations.

Double bassist and the artistic director of 'Homophonic!', Miranda Hill will be stopping by The Sound Barrier this Sunday night to join Ian Parsons on the show. She will be talking about the upcoming 'RESPECT' concert at Hawthorn Arts Centre on 29 August. Adjunct to Homophonic!, 'RESPECT' presents the music of Australian queer composers collaborating with, or telling the stories of older queer Australians. Tune in from 10pm to hear about the concert.

Brazilian composer and multi-instrumentalist based in Naarm/Melbourne, Alcides Neto will be launching his debut album 'Amú', with his seven-piece band, at The Jazzlab on August 27. Drawing inspiration from the folk traditions of his homeland, he offers a fresh perspective on Brazilian music by blending traditional rhythms with contemporary Brazilian influences. Ahead of the album launch, Alcides drops in to The Breakfast Spread to perform a couple of songs live on the show.

The Melbourne International Jazz Festival (MIJF) is back, taking place from October 16 - 25, with a packed lineup of incredible artists. The annual event brings the joy of jazz to the streets of Melbourne, and the full festival program has just been announced. Tune in to Black Wax as Hadley Agrez, CEO and Program Director of MIJF, chats with Adam about this year’s festival. 

Castlemaine songwriter, musician and advocate Eliza Hull has built a reputation for turning vulnerability into something cinematic and deeply human - writing songs that cut through with raw honesty, strength and emotional precision. Following the release of her new single 'Hotel Room', Eliza will be heading to Shotkickers on August 29 for an intimate show. Tune in to Come Together as Eliza Hull drops by to play a couple of songs live in the studio.

Joining Chris tonight for a chat and a live performance is 4-piece psych/prog/stoner rock group Junkyard Wizards. Their album 'The Sky As We Know It' came out end of last year, and follows the physical and psychological journey of a group of wizards as they encounter an ancient malevolent being. Tune in to hear about their show at Lulie Tavern on September 4.

On September 5, 'Cactus Cult V' will be returning to Cactus Room with special guests The Black Heart Death Cult, Buried Feather, Spawn with visuals by Electric Light Brigade. Ahead of the show, local doom/psychedelic rock group The Black Heart Death Cult join Chris Pearson on Pojama People to chat about the event, along with their new album 'Black Rabbit', which came out late last year.

Celebrating femme blues energy with three of Melbourne's premiere exponents, Alison Ferrier (Opelousas), Kelly Auty (PepperCreek Revival) and Louise Christianson (The Miss Lou Blues Band) will be joining Helen Jennings on Roots of Rhythm this week. Tune in to hear about their upcoming show 'Kali Blues', taking place at Graveyard Bar in North Coburg on September 4.

Geelong/Wadawurrung-based earth-folk collective, Seal Prince and the Roof Rats, are thrilled to be releasing their self-titled sophomore album. A new initiate into fatherhood, Lachie Chomley aka ‘Seal Prince,’ sings up suburban struggles of landlord relations, chicken-egg-theft-by-raven and ecological devastation. Tune in this morning to hear a stripped back live set from the band, and to find out about their show at the Geelong Folk Festival, on Sunday September 6.

Stopping by Eternal Rhythm today is Tom Eclect, chatting about ‘NEXT GEN JAZZ’, a showcase of the Freshest talent the Naarm scene has to offer. Expect raw, unfiltered performances from cutting-edge jazz collectives BANKSIA and GIRLS NIGHT IN, highlighting the immense talent rising to the surface in Naarm’s vibrant, thriving nu-Jazz scene. Tune in to hear about this event taking place at Wax Music Lounge on September 3.

Formed in Melbourne in 1992, Icecream Hands - made up of band members Charles Jenkins (guitar, vocals), Douglas Lee Robertson (bass, vocals), Derek G Smiley (drums, vocals) and Marcus Goodwin (guitar, vocals) - are about to release a new EP in August. With a show at the Kew Court House on September 4, Charles Jenkins joins Crispi on Radio City to chat about the new EP, 'Pineapples Pieces'.

Joining Ernie on Swinging Doors this week is alt-country, americana artist Leslie D. King. His new single 'Gold' is a powerful anthem about finding genuine self-acceptance in a world that constantly asks us to measure ourselves against others. Tune in to hear about the single release show taking place at Lulie Tavern on September 5, with support from western outfit Misty Harlowe.

Tonight on Junkyard, Michael Mulholland will be joined by Hugo Race and Michaelangelo Russo to chat about the new album 'I Made It All Up For You'. Released back in March with his Italian band Fatalists, the record fuses together roots, electronica, Italian soundtracks and desert rock. With Giovanni Ferrario (Scisma, PJ Harvey) on guitars and synth, Francesco Giampaoli (Brutture Moderne) on bass and Diego Sapignoli (Sacri Cuori) on percussion, tune in to hear more about the album.

For the first time ever down under, US thrash metal legends Flotsam and Jetsam will join forces with Australian thrash pioneers Mortal Sin for a devastating co-headline tour across Australia this September and October. Fronted by the unmistakable voice of A.K. Knutson, Flotsam and Jetsam continue to thrive with their strongest modern lineup yet. Kene catches up with Eric from the band, tune in to hear about their show at Max Watt's Melbourne on October 2.

The Black Wreath, central Australia’s only dedicated music hub including record label, live venue, recording studio, rehearsal room, film studio, art space and more, is at risk of having to close its doors for good. Pirate catches up with Kene on Burning Bitumen to chat about The Black Wreath in Alice Springs, along with 'Blacken Forever', where 40 bands will perform simultaneously in support of the movement to save The Black Wreath.

Coming on to the show this week, is The Jawa Pitu Band, who are launching their second album 'Kapindho' at the Northcote Social Club on September 5. They will be joined by Sekar Kidul, Melbourne's Sundanese Kacapi Suling ensemble, and performances from Reog Ponorogo (Javanese Giant Mask Dance), Pencak Silat (Sundanese martial arts), and the Sanggar Lestari Indonesian dance troupe. Tune in as members of The Jawa Pitu Band visit the Global Village to talk about the new album.

Tune in to the second half of Global Village tonight to hear all things accordion. Sofia Chapman (Vardos and Victorian Branch President of the Accordion Society of Australia) and Dave Evans (The Band Who Knew Too Much and Vice-President) will be joining Roger to play some live music, and to chat about the free Gipsy Village Accordion Pavement Festival of the Sandy Street Art Collective in Sandringham on September 5 - with Vardos, Anatreptix, ASAVO accordion ensemble and more.

Returning to the Melbourne stage for the first time since coming home from Europe, Seedy Jeezus will also be playing at Lulie Tavern on September 4 alongside Junkyard Wizards. Joining Chris Pearson on Pojama People to chat about it, tune in to hear about the latest vinyl reissue of their 2015 self-titled debut album - the third pressing of the record that started it all.

Jazz and experimental clarinetist, improviser, composer and budding empresario Olivia Jones joins Cas to discuss 'Art Seed', a new Melbourne collective centered on providing gathering spaces for creative music in our beautiful city. Olivia runs regular curated gigs featuring emerging and well-known experimental jazz and improvising musicians on the Melbourne scene. Tune in to hear about Art Seed launching a label with Sydney Road Studios, to further support the local industry.

One of Australia’s foremost blues writers and performers, Marlene Cummins knows the blues from an Aboriginal woman’s perspective. Deeply influenced by her people's story, Marlene tells this through her art, lyrics, onstage performance as both an actress and singer, and more recently, through documentary filmmaking. Tune in for a live performance from Marlene, and to hear about her 'A Kindred People' exclusive performance happening at The Counts that day. 

Joining Michael Mulholland for this episode of Junkyard is Guy Blackman from Chapter Music. He'll be chatting about the second instalment of Chapter’s acclaimed Australian post- punk compilation series 'Can’t Stop It!', originally released in 2007. Tune in to hear about this rich and dynamic time in Australian music history, a time when Australia stepped out of the shadow of overseas influence and asserted its own musical identity for the first time.

To kick the show off, Kene Lightfoot catches up with Sam Bean about his black metal project Faustian. Featuring members from extreme metal groups like Werewolves, The Berzerker, and Psycroptic, the local band play dark, riff-heavy music. Find out more about Faustian's new album, on this episode of Burning Bitumen. 

For the second half of Burning Bitumen, Kene chats with Norwegian musician Ice Dale, aka Arve Isdal. Best known for his work in black metal band Enslaved, Ice Dale will be chatting about his heavy rock project Audrey Horne, as well as his projects I and Demonaz. Tune in to hear about his new music releases. 

Sydney’s indie rock/blues artist Nathan Cavaleri is coming to town for his show 'Growing Pains - The Nathan Cavaleri Story', playing at Memo Music Hall on September 10. From child prodigy to cancer survivor, from global stages to mental health collapse, Nathan has quite the story to tell. Joining Lauren Plant on Down By The River ahead of his show that night, tune in for a live performance from Nathan. 

'Psychedelia in White', the third album from former member of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Mick Harvey and longtime collaborator Amanda Acevedo, is a natural evolution from their 2023 duet debut, 'Phantasmagoria in Blue'. Tonight on Junkyard, Mick and Amanda drop by the show to chat with Michael Mulholland about their new record, which explores themes of mysticism, mythology, love, and loss.