Album Review: Angus & Julia Stone (self-titled)

Angus & Julia Stone are a brother and sister duo (if you didn't already know), who were born and raised in good old Sydney. Fun fact, their parents played as a folk duo before they were born so it's obvious who was influential in their musical career. They have so far released three studio albums their third being their self-titled album that has already peaked at number one. When composing material each sibling writes their own stuff and then they continue by both working on the structure, the harmonies and the overall polishing of the song.

This self-titled album is the first of four years and was completely spontaneous and unplanned. The pair had been working singularly until Rick Rubin heard the pair play at a friend's party. He then went on to contact the brother-sister duo and voilà an album was born (and a pretty good one at that). If I'm going to be honest I was never really a true fan of Angus & Julia stone, their work had never really interested me. The stuff I had listened to of theirs previously was pretty but to me, it had no real substance. This album though, is definitely an improvement and really showcases the true potential the siblings have.

The album is made of 16 songs, of which Julia and Angus alternate taking the lead in. Although I must say that I enjoyed the first half of the album more than the back end of it, my favourites being A Heartbreak, My Word For It and Heart Beats Slow. Their sound remains pretty similar to how it has always been. Vocals are generally ambient, except for the songs Death Defying Acts and Main Street, which is quite comparable to something off of a Lana Del Rey album, perhaps it's a combination of the droning tone of Julia's vocals or the atmosphere of the song in general. The pair seem to have almost emerged from their folky roots and have created a new sound referencing a more pop rock vibe. Vocals are reverb-drenched in most, if not all, of the tracks and bass line is noticeably punchy. All in all a fairly good easy-listening album for a duo who had disappeared from us for a good while there.

I give Angus & Julia Stone's self-titled a 3.5 out of 5 stars.

*You can purchase this album from iTunes, and you can check out Angus & Julia Stone's website at: http://www.angusandjuliastone.com/ 

Album Review: Caress Your Soul

Yes, I know I am undeniably late to hop on this bandwagon (get it?! BANDwagon hahaha), a whole 11 months late in fact but I have only recently discovered this master piece of an album from the Sydney based 5-piece band, 'Sticky Fingers. This album (which is their first, may I add) has been on replay for about two weeks now and is still just as amazing as when I first heard it.  This easy-listening album was released in March back in 2013, and their single, 'Caress Your Soul' placed at number 61 in Triple J's Hottest 100 of that very year, which is a fair effort for a debut album.*

Each song melts into the next, beginning with 'How to Fly', in which psychedelic influences are evident and a reggae rhythm keeps it moving. 'Caress Your Soul' contains 11 well-executed songs which, on average, last about 3 minutes. My favourites from this album include 'Australia Street', 'These Girls' and  of course 'Caress Your Soul'.

Australia Street:
This was the first tune that caught my attention and even the first listen had me dancing along to it's addictive beat. The intro, although kinda cheesy leads into a really rad song with a sway-worthy chorus. This song flows really well and the transition from verse to chorus is very smooth and natural. All in all a fantastic song. 

These Girls:
This song is much more relaxed and 'chilled' (I feel much too lame to use that word), again their are very psychedelic influences and a stripped back rock vibe. The vocals are on point and the repetitiveness of the song proves to be hard to forget. 

Caress Your Soul:
I had actually heard this song a while back on Triple J without realising it. Like all the other tracks, it moves really well and I absolutely love the piano in the intro as it sets the song up perfectly and proves to be a great foundation for the rest of the track. 

I give 'Caress Your Soul' a well-deserved 4 out of 5 stars and I look forward to what's to come next from Sticky Fingers. 

*You can purchase this album from iTunes, and you can check out Sticky Finger's website at: http://www.stickyfingerstheband.com