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

Carley Hall, Journalist

Carley Hall

Carley Hall is a Gold Coast-based writer who loves spinning a good yarn. She’s worked in print news rooms for more than a decade and now juggles young family life with a busy career in research communication, promoting all types of science from the dire and necessary to the weird and wonderful.

When she’s not doing all of the above, she’s dancing around her living room trying to brainwash her kids into liking her taste in music or getting out to see some gigs. Carley likes the heavy stuff most, but if it’s got hooky melodies, clever lyrics or off-kilter beats nothing is off limits.

Features / Music
More Than Okay
"When we were at school and stuff we were just playing covers and [our drummers] were terrible. I mean, one of them was good but we were horrible. But it was fun."
Reviews / Album
Album Review: The Courteeners - Anna
It’s in the dying moments that Anna revives, with the avant-garde Marquee’s shift to just Fray and bending strings.
Reviews / Album
Album Review: Three Days Grace - Transit Of Venus
You’ll only damage your hearing and waste vital brain cells. And if you do indeed watch the aforementioned reality show, congratulations are in order for reading thus far.
Reviews / Live
Live Review: Birds Of Tokyo, Regular John & Gung Ho
Wild At Heart is well received but their go-to track Lanterns is the obvious closer and the anthemic chorus makes it a special moment.
Reviews / Album
Album Review: Dewolff - Dewolff IV
DeWolff offer an album that rejoices in its garish love of pysch and prog, which clearly arrives from a genuine delight in living and breathing this classic sound.
Reviews / Album
Album Review: The Lamplights - What Love Is
Lost In Translation pleases with its minor shifts and pensive mood, and The River proves they can structure an organic folk-roots song well with racing guitar plucks chased by a scatty beat.
Features / Music
The New Sound
"With a band you can sort of bounce ideas off other people, whether that’s songwriting or just day-to-day stuff, so you have that constant support in the group, that pack mentality. But sometimes with that you tend to lose your voice a little bit."
Reviews / Album
Album Review: Katie Noonan - Songbook
Taking a retrospective walk among tracks from George, Elixer, her work with The Captains, and her solo output, Noonan has employed a host of symphonic players to accompany her.
Reviews / Album
Album Review: Mama Kin - The Magician's Daughter
It basically picks up where 2010’s Beat And Holler left off; there’s still that nod to that earthy but pop-friendly sound but here Cuarana sets out on a more soulful journey, lyrically and sonically, from the get go.
Reviews / Live
Live Review: Soundwave
Another epic instalment of Soundwave is done and dusted, and the hordes of heavy music lovers disperse into the night to either rest their weary necks and limbs or to continue the mayhem elsewhere.
Reviews / Album
Album Review: TV Snow - Red
By album-end a noticeable song structure appears – gentle meanderings that swiftly ease off and come back full bore.
Reviews / Live
Live Review: Carole King & Shane Howard
With a bow and gracious thanks she leaves, and the delight of seeing a true great in the flesh is written on the faces of all.
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