Sydney band Body Type draw us in with their pop hooks, before chewing us up and spitting us out with their visceral take downs. They’ve got a knack for that sweet and sour, writing songs that are trojan horses and pack a punch. With two albums under their belt, they’re proving themselves as one of Australia’s best new bands, and I love their work. So I asked them to Take 5. From Fiona Apple to Princess Nokia, this is an eclectic mix of subversive sounds. Fiona Apple - I Want You To Love...

Stella Mozgawa is one of those artists who orbits many worlds. She’s the drummer with Warpaint, but on stage she’ll often join Kurt Vile and Cate Le Bon on tour, and while in the studio she’s working with The xx and co-producing Courtney Barnett albums. Her skills and curiosity brought her here, but so did her passion for all forms of music. And after hearing this Take 5 you’ll understand why. Stella is one of those people you want to bail up at a house party, finding out what they’ve been...

What do The Late Show, Utopia, The Castle, and Have You Been Paying Attention? all have in common? Tom Gleisner. As a part of Working Dog, he’s been behind some of the most successful and funny stories on Australian screens for 3 decades. Tom has always been a collaborator but for the first time ever he’s stepping out on his own. With a musical. You guessed it, I had to ask him to Take 5. From Tom Waits to Bette Midler, this is a beautiful glimpse into one of Australia’s funniest creator’s...

Anyone who has ever seen Danielle Walker, becomes a fan. If you’re yet to witness this award winning comedian, you’re about to become one too… Danielle has a way of telling stories that are both hilarious and full of heart. Her stand up show Nostalgia won big awards, she was the winner of the first season of Taskmaster, and is starring in her first acting role in Gold Diggers, a new comedy on ABC. A big part of Danielle’s comedy is her family, and her childhood growing up in Far North...

When Electric Fields first burst onto the scene, they grabbed everyone’s attention. This South Australian duo of Zaachariaha and Michael brought beauty, beats, and a soaring sensibility to all they did. Since 2015 they’ve crafted bangers, heartfelt ballads, lullabies for little kids, and anthems for Eurovision and World Pride. I’ve been chasing Electric Fields to Take 5 for ages, so I’m so stoked they were finally able to do it. Hearing the DNA of their musical passions is a joy, and from...

If you’re like me and you were a child of the 80’s, then Jason Donovan was your world. He burst onto our screens as the star of Neighbours, Scott and Charlene, Jason and Kylie… at the peak of the soap opera’s powers. Jason became famous in Australia and around the world, particularly the UK where he’d launch his pop career and a wild adventurous life. That life was filled with ups and downs, drug addiction, controversy, but also new beginnings. For the past 20 years, Jason has been a star of...

The Waifs are one of those bands many of us have a connection with. It felt like they came up as we came of age, the soundtracks to our own first adventures and a band with a loyal live following. Three albums into their career this steadfastly independent band broke through with ‘Up All Night’. It was helped by the juggernaut single “London Still”, which managed to capture a quintessentially Australian experience perfectly. To celebrate the 20th anniversary of that moment, the band are back...

Tim Ross is one of those fella’s you want to bail up in the kitchen at a house party. Better known to many as simply Rosso, he’s a triple j legend who we first met as co-host of Drive alongside Merrick Watts. He’d go on to launch a new commercial radio station, publish books, and fall deeper into his love of Australian architecture. What I love about Tim is that he makes me feel like design is for all of us. And the way he tells stories connects to the very stories these buildings tell. Of...

This week’s Take 5 is a dream come true. Ever since I first met Thundercat, I wanted him on this podcast. Stephen Bruner is one of those magical humans whose musical DNA you want to explore. Born into a family of legendary players, Thundercat grew up with a famous  drummer dad, who played with Diana Ross, Gladys Knight, and the Temptations. His older brother Ronald was a jazz drummer too, and a member of hardcore band Suicidal Tendencies. And his mum played as well, so it’s no surprise that...

Are you ready for some incredible stories? Take 5 always gifts us with some cracking yarns, but this week’s episode takes the cake. In fact, I’ve had more responses to Ed Le Brocq’s Take 5 than any other, in ages.

Boy & Bear have been making beautiful music for more than a decade now. The Sydney band are ARIA award winners, have  won the Australian Music Prize, and gathered a huge fanbase. Known for their warm folk guitar sounds centred around the gorgeous voice of Dave Hosking, Boy & Bear have made us swoon over four albums. But they’re taking a little side step with their fifth. This new chapter sees Boy & Bear bring a whole lot more synths into their sound, it has a breezy quality to...

I'm excited to bring you this week's Take 5. Cos Gabrielle Zevin wrote one of my favourite books of the last year. The bestselling American author is behind 10 books, but her most recent has won huge acclaim. It's sat at the New York Times bestseller list for yonks, is being turned into a film, and has captured the imaginations of everyone who reads it. "Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow" is the story of Sadie and Sam, two lifelong friends who bonded early over a love of video games. This...

Over the last two decades, Goldfrapp have delivered some of the coolest, smartest, and most exciting electro around. Out front, Alison Goldfrapp’s voice has tread the tightrope. A multi-octave phenomenon which lends itself to dark bassy tones as well as it does to floaty ethereal sounds. But can you believe, she’s never made a solo record? Until now. On the day Alison released her debut album under her own name, she joined me to Take 5. The record captures a club high, it reaches for...

Colin Hay is the kind of guy you want to have a yarn with. He’s a master songwriter from his days in Men at Work, and the long solo career that has followed. Colin captures the world in a beautiful way. He’s also a recent recipient of the Ted Albert Award for Outstanding Services to Australian music, and came back to Australia to accept it. While he was in the county, I asked him to Take 5. Because I knew he’d tell a good story or two, but I also wanted to know what were the songs of service...

It’s been a minute between albums for Cash Savage and the Last Drinks. But the Melbourne songwriter has returned with her band after five years, and with an album of intense feeling. So This Is Love is a story of heartbreak, but also a celebration of love in all it’s forms, and how it changes, and can still be with you when people are gone. This is a beautiful conversation with Cash. She shared so much, and also reminded me that, even when it hurts, love is always worth it. That feeling,...

This is an extraordinary Take 5. There’s something a bit different about capturing an artist at a particular moment in their creative life. Not talking with me to promote an album or to spruik a tour… but in the midst of creating something new. And following a curiosity that will take them to this unknown end. This is where I found Jake Webb – better known as Methyl Ethel. The Fremantle based muso has made textured, leftfield pop for years now. And across four albums has shapeshifted what he...

You know you’re going to have a good time when Frenzal Rhomb join you for a chat. The Sydney punks have been making short, fast, and very funny songs for more than 30 years. And they just released their 10th album The Cup of Pestilence. It once again captures the world around them; the micro to the macro. So when Jay and Lindsay joined me to Take 5 I asked them to pick songs from others that also captured the times. Big or small, who are the artists and the songs that mirror a moment for...

In 2017, a music book came out that had everyone talking. Meet Me in the Bathroom was an oral history capturing a definitive era in New York City indie music. At almost 600 pages long, everyone from Karen O to Julian Casablancas, James Murphy to Regina Spektor were part of it, and it instantly became a bestseller. In the last year, the book has been adapted for screen; captured in a documentary that brings to life the early days of some of our most loved bands, and how it all began. Lizzy...

Unknown Mortal Orchestra are one of my favourite bands. Ever since when I first heard Ffunny Friends, I was hooked. And also intrigued… their music is often a beautiful mystery, layered with hidden meanings and textures you unpick with every listen. I remember listening to Multi-Love, then reading about the poly relationship that had inspired it, and the songs just cracked open. It’s a bit the same with their latest record. Cos while “V” sounds like a sprawling, nostalgic, and at times...

Mo’Ju is a shapeshifting artist. Over more than a decade, they’ve explored different sounds, stories and scenes… forever disrupting our expectations. Their new album is Oro, Plata, Mata. It’s a concept record based in cycles, and very much rooted in Mo’Ju’s sense of self and where they’re headed. A week out from it’s release, Mo’Ju joined me to Take 5 and explore this new era.  Take 5 sings when my guest embraces the theme. And Mo’Ju did that, lacing in some extraordinary pieces of music...

If you know the music of Angel Olsen, you know she feels and communicates emotion deeply. Across six albums, we’ve heard her lay it all on the line. Or at least, we thought we had. Big Time is Angel’s most raw and personal record to date. And with good reason. It was recorded in a time of great love, grief, and change for Angel. At 34, she met a new partner and came out as queer to her parents. Days later, her father died. A few weeks later, her mother also passed. Three weeks after that...

It was less than a year ago that Wet Leg released their debut album. A little more than that, when we first met them with Chaise Longue. In that time they’ve blown up; hit #1 on the album charts, won 2 Grammy’s, 2 Brits, and fans all over the world… including Harry Styles. Back in Australia supporting Harry in his stadium shows, I invited Rhian and Hester to Take 5. I wanted to hear, from the sources themselves, about their wild year. From the headspin of the Grammy Awards, to discovering an...

It’s a big World Pride celebration for Take 5, as the party comes to Australia for the first time and on the same weekend at Mardi Gras. Music (and dance music in particular) came from queer culture, and queer clubs are some of the most welcoming and magical spaces in the world. So it’s fitting to have a woman who has found herself in the clubs, Take 5. HAAi was born and raised in Australia, but has made her name in music in London, where over the past decade she’s been dj-ing and refining...

For more than twenty years, Urthboy has been part of the Australian hip-hop scene. From his early days with The Herd, to setting up the Elefant Traks record label, he’s made a name as a solo artist, with now seven albums under his belt. His latest is called Savour, it’s Urthy’s exploration of masculinity, of vulnerability, and of capturing and enjoying life while you can. And ahead of it’s release, he joined me to Take 5. This is a heartfelt convo where his love of the scene is on full...

This Take 5 is something of a reunion. It’s been six years since Julia Jacklin first joined me and picked the music. Since then, she’s released two more brilliant albums, made a name for herself across the world, and shared her stories in every way. Julia has always had a knack for knocking us out with her incredibly personal songs. And in giving so much of her own experiences in her art, we’ve been witness to the many changes she’s experienced as she’s grown up. Change is a constant in all...