Published in Rolling Stone magazine, March 2008 issue

Josh Ritter – The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter – Released through Sony BMG, August 21 2007

Josh Ritter’s fifth album may very well be his Graceland. The intricacies of Historical Conquests are not underplayed, nor are they exaggerated – like a young Paul Simon, the Idahoan singer-songwriter delivers a modestly poetic blend of rollicking folk guitars, piano ostinatos and Elliott Smith-if-he-were-happier vocals in this collection of fourteen smart songs.

At forty-three minutes the record is relatively short, but Ritter aims for precision – each song packs a punch of subtle energy, allowing him to paint a spectrum of musical colour that his contemporaries might struggle to achieve over several albums.

From the shy acoustic murmur of ‘The Temptation of Adam’ to the voiceless interlude ‘Edge of the World’ to the upbeat country yeehaw of ‘Real Long Distance’, Ritter shows off his ability to play across a range of genres – and the result is an album that puts him up there with the greats, a historical conquest in itself.

Published in Rolling Stone magazine, March 2008 issue

HorrorPops – Kiss Kiss Kill Kill – Released through Hellcat Records, 2008

If All Hallows-era AFI was fronted by a female, it’d sound something like this. Danish gothabilly trio HorrorPops rip out the get up and go on their third album, complete with whoa-oh gang vocals, four-chord progressions and enough teen angst to put Gerard Way to shame (on ‘Miss Fit’ – presumably the equally tormented sister of 2004′s ‘Miss Take’ – singer Patricia Day spits, “Nothing I say is adequate / according to you I’m a misfit”. Deep.)

Though the record seems monotonous at first, as it progresses so too does the band’s creativity. Day’s vocals shift from furious growls to sultry whispers, and the album climaxes at the standout ‘Horrorbeach Part 2′ – an explosively erratic instrumental that allows emotion to speak for itself without trite lyrics commanding its direction.

On a whole its sound isn’t particularly original and it’s largely uninspired, but Kiss Kiss Kill Kill offers tunes for teenage dudes to headbang to and teenage girls to dance in their undies to – and really, isn’t that all that matters?

Published in Rolling Stone magazine, March 2008 issue

The Home Song Stories – directed by Tony Ayres

The cross-cultural experience that comes with moving across oceans is never easy and often confusing, as Tony Ayres shows in his gripping and profoundly personal drama The Home Song Stories.

Based on Ayres’ own childhood, the AFI award-winning film (including best actress, best director, best screenplay, best cinematography and best music score) is the story of Rose (Joan Chen), a promiscuous Shanghaian singer who moves to 1960s Melbourne with her two children, sixteen-year-old May (Irene Chen) and ten-year-old Tom (Joel Lok), to marry navy nice-guy Bill (Steven Vidler). Upon arrival, Rose begins an affair with a young Chinese waiter, Joe (Yuwu Qi), sending the family on a whirlwind descent into a web of deceit, betrayal and a very twisted kind of love.

Narrated through the writing of a now adult Tom, the dynamics of the Chinese-Australian experience unfold with heartbreaking precision as the children become trapped between cultures and Rose within herself. It’s harrowing to watch Joan Chen disintegrate into Rose’s destructive lifestyle, and eleven-year-old Lok is a skilled master of pathos as he hammers his woeful glances into the camera lens.

With outstanding performances and shocking turns, Ayres has crafted a disturbing family portrait that also serves as testament to the ultimate ability to rise above all adversity.

Interview for Rolling Stone magazine

Youth Group decided there was only one way to prepare for their fourth album – and that was to be completely unprepared.

Ditching the studio, the band stepped into an abandoned navy mess hall. The resulting album, out in early 2008, sees the band mature in sound, lyrics and approach. Instead of recording the album over a few weeks, they took several months, to allow for experimentation.

“The last album [Casino Twilight Dogs] had everything ready to go,” says drummer Danny Allen. “This was purposefully not made the same way.”

Their surrounds were a major influence on the record, with recordings done everywhere from the mess hall to the basement of an actual naval ship, the historic MV Cape Don.

“We went down into the engine room and brought a little tape machine, and we had these metal poles, and we have these experimental tape loops in one of the songs,” says singer and guitarist Toby Martin. “We did it on a 1950s Ferrograph tape machine and then Cameron [Emerson-Elliott, guitarist] made the loop.”

That song, ‘Dying At Your Own Party’, is a subtly symphonic cacophony. Guitars wash over eclectic ship sounds, and Martin’s soft murmurs ponder where he belongs, using the ship and ocean as metaphor.

“The album’s got soul,” says Martin. “It’s just slightly darker. We’re trying to push things…trying to make our songs less melodic and more experimental.”

On the other end of the spectrum there’s ‘Two Sides’, a toe-tapping testament to the band’s experimentation with genre and mood. The track swaps Youth Group’s slowdance vibe for an explosive combination of twee guitar lilts, thumping bass, synth and an incredibly catchy chorus.

The band aspires to the career heights of 2005 touring partners Death Cab for Cutie.

“They’ve become successful under their own terms,” says Martin. “They’ve just been consistently putting out good albums and touring. It’s inspiring – you don’t have to have one massive song that breaks you.”

And while they acknowledge the fear of going down in history as “the ‘Forever Young’ band”, the lads are confident this album will dispel those labels.

“It’s understandable,” says Martin, “but I hope these songs will change that.”

Published in Rolling Stone magazine, March 2008 issue

Manchester Orchestra – I’m Like A Virgin Losing A Child – Released through Sony BMG, July 2007

Brimming with quiet poetry, Manchester Orchestra’s first full-length release is a shining effort reflecting their ambition and influences. Having supported a diverse range of artists including Brand New, Kings of Leon and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, it’s no wonder the quintet’s sound is so varied. They have the makings of emo with their introspective-but-not-quite-angsty lyrics, post-rock with their bittersweet marriage of guitars and steady drums, pop-punk with their catchy choruses, indie with their timid lulls. Andy Hull’s vocals zoom from whispered afterthoughts to frustrated wails as his bandmates weave a blanket of perfectly in-sync sound underneath.

I’m Like A Virgin Losing A Child is the kind of album that speaks to teenagers without neglecting the situations of older listeners. It sometimes feels formulaic, but never laboured; it may not be the most musically innovative record, but Manchester Orchestra certainly splash colour across a scattered canvas of life, love and loss.