Earache
Voices b/w Parasite

boomkat: ...Properly overdue reissue of Hydroplane's long out of print 1997 debut album, a beguiling concoction of lo-fi pop, shoegaze, early electronic blips and billowing ambience. So good!Back in 1997, Aussie jangle pop outfit The Cat's Miaow formed Hydroplane after their drummer headed to London. They filled the gap by using samples and tape loops, and developed a startling new sound that gave a new resonance to Kerrie Bolton's cool, deadpan vocals and the band's hybrid experimentation. The self-titled album works because it refuses to stay in the same spot for too long, lurching from bit-crushed breaks and dry guitar plucks on opening track 'Wurlitzer Jukebox' to mucky noise and regurgitated piano guts on 'Piano Movement with Percussion', before settling into a dream pop groove on the beatless 'Song for the Meek'.The album's best moments though are when they ignore songs altogether, like on the sci-fi tinted analog synth jam 'I Hear a New World', or 'House Warming', a ghostly spoken word track accompanied by a wavering electronic drone. The band recorded this material in their Brunswick flat using a bare-bones setup including a Jupiter 4 synth, sampler and tape equipment, and the album was released at the time only in the US on CD. Now it's available again, it feels like high time to rediscover a band that nestle comfortably between Slowdive, Stereolab and Hood.

ORANGE MILK RECORDS: ...Drose is on the forefront of the evolving experimental / outsider metal scene, and have developed a devout following from their incredible live shows. Their music contains the power and aggression of traditional metal music without the macho posturing. At times the heaviness takes on a sense of beauty or bittersweetness, aided by an alternately hushed and scathing unconventional vocal performance. Boy Man Machine is also built on a foundation of industrial machine samples which create a rigid, mechanical base that perfectly contrasts the overarching human elements.

One of the most familiar faces in the busy Melbourne music scene; Jake Robertson (who you may remember from such class acts as Ausmuteants, Hierophants, School Damage, et al) returns in full-fledged form with another unruly record from his solo alter-ego ALIEN NOSEJOB.Thirteen months on since the hardcore-punk inspired concept album, ‘Once Again The Present Becomes The Past’, Alien Nosejob turns the ship back to front and sails in a new direction, yet again. Paint It Clear mixes sounds of classic 80’s new wave and post punk whilst sprinkling in the occasional disco track on top. But don’t let these descriptions throw you off - it still carries Robertson’s classic screech of cheeky yet witty lyrics and sharp songwriting hooks.After three home-recorded records prior to this, Mikey Young has finally been phoned in to take over the production controls and breathes a whole new way of life into Alien Nosejob. Never before has ANJ been heard in such fidelity. The clarity! The definition! The dynamics! It all shines brighter than ever before resulting in a record that Robertson’s “parents could actually listen to”.There’s a little something for everyone; whether it be 80’s Cure-inspired synths in Duplicating Satan, the robust Devo-like feel of Leather Gunn, the sing-along chorus of Crusader of Coles, or the melodic, minor closer that is Bite My Tongue. There’s even The Butcher; a piano ballad inspired by the Fun Boy Three, showcasing Jake’s skills as not just a songwriter, but a damn fine singer.