Melbourne’s Rising Stars and Global Music Highlights
Melbourne has long been a hub for innovative and boundary-pushing music, and in the last 18 months, local post-punk and shoegaze band Sleepazoid has made significant strides. From supporting high-profile acts like FCUKERS and Faye Webster to playing a sold-out headline show at Melbourne’s Northcote Social Club, the band has quickly established itself as a force to be reckoned with. Their upcoming performance at the UK’s The Great Escape festival in May is just another testament to their rapid rise. If they were a child, one might call them precocious.
Their second EP, New Age, showcases the band’s growth and versatility. Lead singer Nette France delivers standout performances, but her commanding vocals are complemented by the layered soundscapes created by drummer Luca Soprano, bassist Josef Pabis, and guitarists George Inglis and Jim Duong. The EP is a dynamic collection that never allows the listener to settle into one mood.
The opening track, 3am, sets a hazy tone, while the title track is jittering and raucous. Fig Tree stands out as the most emotionally resonant moment, with France asking, “When you feel love, does it ever go away or does it just change?” It’s a question many of us can relate to, and one that lingers long after the song ends.
Devaura’s Emotional Journey
Devaura, a New Zealand-born, Sydney-based artist, continues her three-part series with the release of If You Don’t Laugh, You’ll Cry. This six-track EP builds on her previous work, Learning in Public, with greater self-awareness and emotional precision. The project blends alternative R&B, indie sensibilities, and subtle electronic textures, creating a unique soundscape where laughter becomes a coping mechanism.
Her vocal delivery is fluid, moving seamlessly between conversational phrasing and melodic control. She often addresses the listener directly before transitioning into composed passages, adding a sense of immediacy and rawness. Tracks like Why So Sensitive? and Dancehead explore themes of identity, emotional fatigue, and self-preservation, with production that frames her voice with restraint. Subtle percussion, purposeful basslines, and atmospheric elements create breathing room, allowing small details and tonal shifts to resonate deeply.
A Jazz Collaboration That Defies Expectations
Christopher Young, a maverick on Melbourne’s jazz scene, has always had something meaningful to say through his music. His collaboration with Dom Cheviet, a fellow reeds player from France, resulted in The Breath, an album that highlights their shared vision and musical synergy. The project was recorded in a Paris studio with drummer Nicolas Lelievre, who added rhythmic beds and soundscapes over which Young and Cheviet free-improvised.
The result is a moody and texturally rich experience. On Morning Jungle, Cheviet’s kalimba provides a dancing backdrop alongside Lelievre’s drums and percussion, while Young and Cheviet interweave with emotional intensity. On Black is the Colour, both players use flute against Lelievre’s deep groove, showcasing their ability to balance texture and emotion.
What makes this collaboration remarkable is the unerring instinct for space and contrast. The dialogue between the musicians feels organic, with seamless transitions between foreground and background. Young’s mighty bass clarinet often rumbles beneath Cheviet’s flights, or suddenly arches up with its own dramatic cries, creating a dynamic interplay that captivates the listener.
Station Model Violence: A Post-Punk Debut
Station Model Violence, a Melbourne underground supergroup formed by Total Control vocalist DX and guitarist Buz Clatworthy, delivers a powerful debut album titled Station Model Violence. Produced by Mikey Young of Eddy Current Suppression Ring, the 10-track LP is a vivid reflection of a society on the brink of collapse, with a fresh vitality that prevents it from descending into despair.
Inspired by Iggy Pop and ’70s krautrock, the album channels the spirit of classic post-punk, with droning guitars, hypnotic drums, and ominous baritone vocals. Yet, the band infuses these elements with a brightness that keeps the music from becoming too bleak. At the heart of the album is the spellbinding eight-minute track Heat, which serves as a focal point for the rest of the record.
Tracks like Cliffs, Drip Away, and Leisure explore modern anxieties about surveillance, war, and AI, while the ironically titled Immolation adds a layer of delicious irony. The album is a compelling mix of urgency and hope, leaving listeners with a message: don’t let the chaos destroy you—there’s still life to live.
