Fresh Finds: Class Of 2025 – Aussie Acts To Add To Your Playlist

Shaun Colnan, Journalist

Shaun Colnan

Shaun's been writing with The Music since 2015 and in that time has written on everything from high art to hip hop, from spectacular jazz in grand arenas to burgeoning bands in back rooms at pubs. He's mapped the rise of such acts as Winston Surfshirt and Noname, reviewed musicals, theatre shows and a tonne of music including the reunions of Wu-Tang Clan and TLC.

His one claim to fame is a short-lived time as singer in a band that Julia Jacklin opened for before she was famous. He's interviewed the Tibetan Prime Minister and a radio comedian he can't remember the name of. Outside of reviewing for The Music, he is a full-time English teacher, part-time poet and avid music and literature aficionado/desperado.

Reviews / Live
Live Review: Bonobo, Kllo, Planete
"Bonobo let the music speak for him, moving with mechanical brilliance through a now long and illustrious catalogue."
Reviews / Live
Live Review: Father John Misty, Angie McMahon
"A sweet Sunday dream to carry them off into the cold night."
Reviews / Live
Live Review: Richie Hawtin, Mad Racket DJs
"The milieu proved exceptionally enticing with the Sydney Harbour Bridge to the right and Richard to the left."
Reviews / Live
Live Review: Michael Kiwanuka, Ainslie Wills
"When he sang, every shyness and ailment melted away with that profoundly rich voice."
Reviews / Live
Live Review: Gregory Porter, Karen Lee Andrews
"Fans were lucky enough to see Porter traverse his musical catalogue..."
Reviews / Live
Live Review: Roy Ayers, Stephen Ferris
"A heaving Basement audience found a nice surprise, hearing the once-smooth voice transformed into a husky and raspy cry that was stronger than expected."
Reviews / Live
Live Review: Snarky Puppy, The Sticks
"We play weird shit... So it's nice to see so many of you here to listen to our weird shit."
Reviews / Live
Live Review: Winston Surfshirt, The Goods, Bustlip
"Oh-so-smooth R&B-tinged tunes."
Reviews / Live
Live Review: El Guincho, Donny Benet
"The night seemed to take on the aesthetic of a bad acid trip..."
Reviews / Live
Live Review: The Comet Is Coming
"The result was a spine-tingling melee of melodies stretched and contorted to the point of being unrecognisable."
Reviews / Live
Live Review: Mdou Moctar
"Revellers were, for a generous 75 minutes, able to lose themselves irrevocably, timelessly in the dance."
Reviews / Live
Live Review: Weyes Blood
"It is this paradox that makes Weyes Blood so palatable."