S
eptember was absolutely packed with enormous new releases, but October looks set to give that slate a run for its money. It’s a big month for Australia’s indie icons, with this Friday (October 7) treating us to new records from Bec Sandridge and Cool Sounds. Next week, too, starts with an un-traditional Monday release, when Joji Malani (the man whose musical magic made the first two Gang Of Youths albums especially special) makes his full-length debut as Pei, giving us the aptly titled ‘Pei’s Pageant’.
Later that week, we’ll be assaulted by a stack of unique sounds: Agung Mango will deliver the hip-hop goods with his show-stopping ‘MAN ON THE GO’ EP, while Press Club bring the fire with their punky ‘Endless Motion’, and Surprise Chef take us down the indie-rock rabbithole for some ‘Education & Recreation’. The following week is all about the groove, with debut records from Beckah Amani and Way Dynamic, and the soulful sophomore record from Jade Imagine.
Rounding out the month will be a jolt of emo energy from Sly Withers, coming in hot with their spellbinding ‘Gardens’ sequel ‘Overgrown’. This is just the tip of the iceberg, though – there are so many crash-hot records landing in October, we can almost hear our wallets crying (and our headphones cheering). Let’s dive in:
Bec Sandridge
‘Lost Dog’
Heading into the first batch of Bec Sandridge tracks since 2019 – when they opened the floodgates to their wonky pop wonderland with the ‘TRY + SAVE ME’ album – expectations are high. They’re met within seconds, though, as Sandridge delivers her glossiest synths, catchiest riffs and most spellbinding vocals yet.
Aptly pegged as “sickeningly beautiful” and “temporarily blinding”, the ‘Lost Dog’ EP welcomes Sandridge back to the spotlight with a kind of colourful coolness only they could pull off. Ellie Robinson
Bec Sandridge’s ‘Lost Dog’ is out October 7.
Cool Sounds
‘Like That’
After four albums of sharp yet playfully esoteric indie-pop as a sprawling collective, Cool Sounds frontman Dainis Lacey takes a considerably more central role with ‘Like That’, assisted by multi-instrumentalist Dylan Young, saxophonist Pierce Morton and Partner Look bandmate Ambrin Hasnain.
Instinctively guided by groove, the funk-leaning ‘Like That’ marries the best of earlier Cool Sounds records – the adventurous experimentalism and the gleefully immediate pop sensibilities – to tremendous effect. Alex Gallagher
Cool Sounds’ ‘Like That’ is out October 7 via Chapter Music.
Pei
‘Pei’s Pageant’
After carving out a legacy as Gang Of Youths’ musical right-hand man, Joji Malani has stepped out with a dizzying kaleidoscope of colour and spice for his first album as Pei, aptly titled ‘Pei’s Pageant’.
Self-produced alongside Middle Kids’ Tim Fitz and put together with a 12-piece band (dubbed The Pageant), the record blends rich indie rock and worldbeat with a tasteful shimmer of theatricality and even a dash of psychedelia. ER
Pei’s ‘Pei’s Pageant’ is out October 10 via Broth Records.
Agung Mango
‘MAN ON THE GO’
Following 2020’s ‘SON OF AGUNG’, an eclectic collaborative project made with producer Nikodimos, the rising Melbourne rapper goes from strength to strength with his latest EP.
Flexing natural finesse and versatility – whether on head-bopping bangers (the Genesis Owusu-assisted ‘GUAP POP’) or smoky, late-night burners (closer ‘HEADBACK’) – he’s never sounded more focused or driven. AG
Agung Mango’s ‘MAN ON THE GO’ is out October 14.
Press Club
‘Endless Motion’
Minted over three of the roughest years in recent history, ‘Endless Motion’ draws from a wealth of intense and raw human emotion, from peril over the Black Summer bushfires (album highlight ‘Untitled Wildlife’) to the notion that COVID-19 could’ve decimated their life’s work (surefire live hit ‘I Can Change’).
The extra time Press Club had to spend on it, too, has brought them to a more refined sound – their third album is dense with masterful and meticulous production, employing rich and melodically exhilarating soundscapes without losing a hint of the punky, pub-thrashing energy we already loved them for. ER
Press Club’s ‘Endless Motion’ is out October 14 via Inertia Music.
Surprise Chef
‘Education & Recreation’
Very few contemporary acts are as keenly attuned to the delicate task of cultivating a vibe quite like Surprise Chef.
The instrumental jazz-soul quintet’s third album builds on their penchant for cinematic world-building, weaving a lush but never crowded collage of guitar, drums, synth and flute that zigs and zags the second things start to feel a little too comfortable. Let ’em take you on a trip. AG
Surprise Chef’s ‘Education & Recreation’ is out October 14 via Big Crown Records.
Beckah Amani
‘April’
Nothing about the ‘April’ EP gives away that it’s Beckah Amani’s first record, with rich and bewitching soundscapes steered by masterful performances.
Between her soulful, honey-sweet vocal runs and the reverent warmth with which she plays her acoustic guitar, the Gold Coast up-and-comer proves here that she has a blindingly bright future ahead. Highlights come in the gentle beauty of ‘Standards’ and the rootsy bounce of ‘Lebeka Leka’. ER
Beckah Amani’s ‘April’ is out October 21 via We Are Golden.
Jade Imagine
‘Cold Memory’
From the swirling synth-pop of opener ‘I Guess We’ll Just Wait’ to the bracing tension and release of the album’s title track, ‘Cold Memory’ is a testament to less being more.
Joined by bandmates Tim Harvey and Madeline Lo-Booth along with Rolling Blackouts‘ Marcel Tussie on drum duties, each of Jade McInally‘s affectingly intimate, relatively sparse portraits of connection create miniature worlds within minutes, guided by a sharp ear for melodies and a keen sense of experimentation. AG
Jade Imagine’s ‘Cold Memory’ is out October 21 via Milk! Records.
Way Dynamic
‘So Familiar’
Dylan Young of Snowy Band and Cool Sounds‘ debut solo album, recorded with Good Morning‘s Liam Parsons and Stefan Blair, is in no rush at all.
Pairing Young’s breezy vocals with acoustic guitar and lilting piano, the songs on ‘So Familiar’ – which draw stylistically on ’70s folk with just a dash of Harry Nilsson – have an immediate charm to them, but reveal their brilliance when one takes the time to sink into them completely. AG
Way Dynamic’s ‘So Familiar’ is out October 21 via Spunk Records.
Sly Withers
‘Overgrown’
Sequels tend to be pretty hit-or-miss, but Sly Withers’ blockbuster follow-up to ‘Gardens’ makes its predecessor feel like a student film.
The biggest standouts come, of course, in those stage-ready belters lacquered in crunchy hooks and catchy choruses – the title track kick us off on the most explosive note, with gems like ‘Radio’, ‘Hotel Stuck’ and ‘Something’ keeping the hype abuzz – while the emotional beats (‘Tongue’, ‘Sundays’, ‘Don’t Wanna Leave’) hit the soul like a bug on the windscreen of an A380. ER
Sly Withers’ ‘Overgrown’ is out October 28 via Dew Process.