By Brittany Asplin

Sheeran’s second show at the new stadium; how did the new stadium measure up?

In the few months of the Optus Stadium being open, there has already been much debate over the new stadium, the controversial ‘public transport only’ route with no Ubers or any private cars asides from the expensive taxis; the overpriced food and drinks menu, and the delays of getting out of the stadium after a show or game.  With this article I hope to answer all these questions for you.

By Harry Cunningham

Personally, mainstream Australian hip-hop still hasn’t quite managed to find it’s feet. For me, breakthrough groups like Hilltop Hoods, Horror Show and Bliss N Eso have been progressive for Aussie hip-hop only in that they’ve helped launch it into the somewhat mainstream. However, when artists have to conform to a set of expectations to get commercial play time, their style can become oversaturated. 

By Harry Cunnigham

Your favourite 90’s divas TLC are back and in great shape after 15 years.  It’s been a long road for the trio of Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins, Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas and Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes who created smash hits Waterfalls, No Scrubs, Creep, and Unpretty. 

By Harry Cunningham

Toro y Moi (aka Chaz Bundick) takes you on a drive through dreamy landscapes of sound, stories of lost love and a search for connection, in his latest 80’s inspired R&B pop-electronica project: Boo Boo. Boo Boo shows how much the Singer-songwriter-producer has grown sonically and lyrically. There’s no doubt that Chaz’s 2017 release Boo Boo is a solid and well thought out project. However, it seems Chaz is still holding back from his full potential. 

By Harry Cunnungham

Young Thug is truly one of the leading contemporary creative forces in Hip-Hop’s wave/ evolution of trap-pop sub-genres. ‘Beautiful Thugger Girls’ isn’t much of a stylistic advancement in terms of his start-stop flow and roaming, stream-of-conscious lyrics – preaching about his extravagant lifestyle. But there’s a difference in tone that reinforces Young Thug’s originality.

By Rhys Prka

Hey Geronimo are an Australian five piece band from Brisbane and  their debut album is ‘Crashing Into The Sun’, an interesting endeavour that shows a lot of promise.

The band has been around for a while, dropping two EPs since 2012, but they have been quiet for a few years and it shows in the music as a few of the tracks are from different parts of their career and it can sometimes be quite jarring as they change styles.

By Conrad Charles Maclean

Deep in the wilderness outside of Perth, far from any telephone reception or loathsome routine, adults rave beneath the stars wearing animal onesies and tutus. A Bush Doof is in progress.

A Doof is a public outdoor dance party. They’re common in Europe and they can be commercially run or operated at a financial loss for the love of a good party.

By Ian Malcolm

If you take a look at the photo from this year’s Listen Out Festival that accompanies this article, you’ll notice it’s one of Australian hip hop’s fastest rising stars – Tkay Maidza. Already coined as our own Azealia Banks (although I will argue she’s already surpassed that particular artist if not in talent, definitely in attitude), Maidza was the only female artist to grace the 2014 Listen Out touring lineup

By Richard Heftie

Toronto natives BADBADNOTGOOD (BBNG) have released their third studio album, III.Although this is the jazz/hip-hop trio’s third album, in many ways this is an album of firsts for the group. Unlike their previous releases that were littered in covers of artists as varied as James Blake to Gucci Mane, this album comprises completely of the bands original compositions. This could be the reason behind another difference in the album, BBNG have decided to actually charge people money this time, whereas for their previous records they did not.

By Madura McCormack

“Murdoch is changing into something. It’s starting to glue together and we just need that one more thing that says, ‘this is us’.”

That thing, according to Rabee Brian Daya, is a collective outlet that can project the voice of Murdoch University. This outlet will soon be known as Radio Murdoch.

By Olivia Gardner

Kallan Phillips is seemingly just like you and I. He’s a fourth year History and Security and Counter Terrorism student at Murdoch University who’s just doing his thing. What you might not guess as he walks by on campus is that in his spare time he likes to set up shop in his bedroom studio writing and producing his own killer music with an EP in the works that is set to come out sometime later this year.

By Harold Callahan

It’s almost as if British four-piece Glass Animals saw the gap in 2012 buzz band Alt-J’s album cycle and thought ‘now’s our time to strike’. And strike they have, with their debut LP, Zaba, filling the gap left by the aforementioned angular outfit as they work towards their new release while also dealing with the exodus of original member, bassist/guitarist Gwil Sainsbury.

By Michelle Stanley

YOU HAVE SAID THE LIFE OF RILEY IS ALL ABOUT BEING YOUR OWN MAN AND ANSWERING TO YOURSELF – DO YOU BELIEVE THIS CAN BE A REALITY OR IS IT JUST ANOTHER DREAM ALONG THE LINES OF WORLD PEACE?

by Jake Dennis

When I spoke to Harry James Angus the trumpet player and singer of The Cat Empire he was sitting outside the Harold Holt Memorial swimming pool in Melbourne. Like most of us Harry prefers the beach but according to him “in Melbourne there’s not really that much swimming to be done on the beach.”