Album of the Week - Offical Music Videos + Apple Music Interview

Album of (NEXT) Week - FRED AGAIN – {Actual Life 3 (January 1 - September 9 2022)}

Friday Feature: Taylor Swift

Taylor Alison Swift may not have been who you have been expecting for this week's Friday Feature, however her tenth studio album, Midnights arrived last Friday afternoon.

So here we have it, the West Reading, Pennsylvania born Swift, moved to Nashville, Tennessee, at age 14 to become a country artist.

Signing a songwriting deal with Sony/ATV Music Publishing in 2004 & a recording contract with Big Machine Records in 2005. 

The 2006 self-titled debut album made her the first female country singer to write or co-write a US platinum-certified album entirely.

The came Swift's pop era with Fearless (2008) and Speak Now (2010), exploring a new genre of country pop. 

Taylor experimented with rock and electronic styles on Red (2012), which features her first Billboard Hot 100 number-one song, We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together.

Her fifth studio album, 1989 (2014), featured the chart topping Shake It Off, Blank Space & Bad Blood.

Then came,  Reputation (2017) along with the number-one song Look What You Made Me Do. Making Swift the first act to have four albums each open with a million copies sold.

Her seventh studio album, Lover (2019), followed by the autobiographical documentary Miss Americana (2020). 

Swift's input during the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the indie folk and alternative rock albums, Folklore and Evermore (2020), which incorporated fictional narratives; their lead singles Cardigan & Willow debuted atop the Hot 100. 

She began re-recording her Big Machine catalog after a public dispute over the albums' masters, re-releasing two in 2021—Fearless (Taylor's Version) and Red (Taylor's Version). The latter's All Too Well (10 Minute Version) became the longest song to top the Hot 100. 

Swift has also played supporting roles in films, and directed the music films Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions (2020) and All Too Well: The Short Film (2021). 

Having sold over 200 million records globally, Swift is one of the best-selling musicians of all time. 

Her accolades include 11 Grammy Awards, including three Album of the Year wins; 34 American Music Awards, the most for an act; 29 Billboard Music Awards, the most for a woman; and an Emmy Award. 

She has featured on rankings such as Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time, Billboard's Greatest of All Time Artists, the Time 100 and Forbes Celebrity 100. 

Honored with titles like Artist of the Decade and Woman of the Decade, Swift is an advocate for artists' rights and women's empowerment.

So like last year's Sunday Spotlight Legends series, Swift has earned a Friday Feature. Midnights is also a nice chilled weekend to set up the weekend.

So stream it, or some Swift classics below. There are a few more week's of the Friday Feature's before we head into a long, wet summer. See you next week!

Album of the Week - Offical Music Videos

Album of the Week - bbno$ – {bag or die}

Friday Feature: Red Hot Chili Peppers

Red Hot Chili Peppers formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea, drummer Chad Smith and guitarist John Frusciante. 

With over 120 million records sold worldwide, Red Hot Chili Peppers are one of the best-selling bands of all time. The group have alone released two full length albums in 2022, making them the perfect Friday Feature.

RHCP are one of the most successful bands in the history of alternative rock. Holding records for most number-one singles, most cumulative weeks at number one (85) and most top-ten songs (25) on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart.

They have won six Grammy Awards, were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012, and in 2022 received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Red Hot Chili Peppers were formed in Los Angeles by Kiedis, Flea, guitarist Hillel Slovak and drummer Jack Irons. 

Due to commitments to other bands, Slovak and Irons did not play on the band's 1984 self-titled debut album, which instead featured guitarist Jack Sherman and drummer Cliff Martinez. Slovak rejoined for their second album, Freaky Styley (1985), and Irons for their third, The Uplift Mofo Party Plan (1987). Irons left after Slovak died of a drug overdose in June 1988.

With new recruits Frusciante and Smith, the Red Hot Chili Peppers recorded Mother's Milk (1989) and their first major commercial success, Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991). Frusciante was uncomfortable with their newfound popularity and left abruptly on tour in 1992. 

After a series of temporary guitarists, he was replaced by Dave Navarro, who appeared on the group's sixth album, One Hot Minute (1995). Although successful, the album failed to match the critical or popular acclaim of Blood Sugar Sex Magik. Frusciante and Kiedis struggled with drug addiction throughout the 1990s.

In 1998, following Navarro's departure, Frusciante rejoined the band. Their seventh album, Californication (1999), became their biggest commercial success, with 16 million copies sold worldwide. 

By the Way (2002) & Stadium Arcadium (2006) were also successful; Stadium Arcadium was their first album to reach number one on the Billboard 200 chart. 

Frusciante left again in 2009 to focus on his solo career; he was replaced by Josh Klinghoffer, who appeared on I'm with You (2011) and The Getaway (2016), before Frusciante rejoined in 2019. 

Their 12th album was the first of two for 2022, Unlimited Love, followed by their 13th album, Return of the Dream Canteen. Feel feel to stream it below along with some other classic RHCP hits below.

Until next week....

Album of the Week - Offical Music Videos

Dirt Femme - Guests

Album of the Week - TOVE LO – {Dirt Femme}

Friday Feature: King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard

How have I never featured King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard back when the Sunday Spotlight was weekly.

With a few more weeks of the Friday Feature before we hit the silly season, it's time to put the spotlight on Stu Mackenzie, Ambrose Kenny-Smith, Cook Craig, Joey Walker, Lucas Harwood + Michael Cavanagh, the gang that makes up King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard.

Forming in 2010 in Melbourne, Victoria, the band's known for exploring multiple genres, staging energetic live shows and building a prolific discography, having released twenty-one studio albums, fourteen live albums, three compilations and three EPs.

In 2017, the band fulfilled a promise to release five studio albums within the year: Flying Microtonal Banana, an experiment in microtonality, in February; the three-chapter "sci-fi heavy metal epic" Murder of the Universe in June; Sketches of Brunswick East, an improvised jazz collaboration with Mild High Club, in August; Polygondwanaland, was released into the public domain, in November; and Gumboot Soup in December.

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard was ranked No. 21 in a list of the world's hardest working musicians. This was earned due to the amount of live shows they played from January 2018 to August 2019—totalling to 113 live performances both domestically and internationally.

 The 2019 albums Fishing for Fishies & Infest the Rats' Nest saw the band tackle environmental themes and incorporate boogie rock and thrash metal into their sound, respectively.

In the 2020s, the band released two further microtonal studio albums, K.G. and L.W., and the synth-based dream pop album Butterfly 3000 as well as several live albums, a concert film, and two compilations. 

In 2022, King Gizzard released Made in Timeland, their first double album Omnium Gatherum and will release three further albums in October of the same year.

So 2022 is another massive year for the hardest working Victorian group. The Friday Feature will continue through October and November ahead of the Summer Music Lists returning in December.

ARIA 2022 Nominations | Predictions

My picks/predictions/guesses in red and bold as below. ARIA Awards ceremony is hosted at Sydney's iconic Hordern Pavilion next month on Gadigal Land, for the first live and in-person show since 2019!

Album of the Year 

Amyl and The Sniffers – Comfort To Me (Virgin Music Australia)

Baker Boy – Gela (Island Records/Universal Music Australia)

Gang Of Youths – angel in realtime. (Mosy Recordings/Sony Music)

King Stingray – King Stingray (Cooking Vinyl/The Orchard)

RÜFÜS DU SOL – Surrender (Rose Avenue Records/Warner Music)

Best Solo Artist

Baker Boy – Gela (Island Records/Universal Music Australia)

Budjerah – Conversations (Warner Music Australia)

Courtney Barnett – Things Take Time, Take Time (Milk! Records/Remote Control Records)

Daniel Johns – FutureNever (BMG/ADA)

Flume – Palaces (Future Classic)

Julia Jacklin – PRE PLEASURE (Liberation Records/Mushroom Group)

Ruel – 'Growing Up Is____' (RCA/Sony Music)

The Kid LAROI – 'Thousand Miles' (Columbia/Sony Music)

Thelma Plum – Meanjin (Warner Music Australia)

Vance Joy – In Our Own Sweet Time (Liberation Records/Mushroom Group)

Best Group

Amyl and The Sniffers – Comfort To Me (Virgin Music Australia)

Gang Of Youths – angel in realtime. (Mosy Recordings/Sony Music)

King Stingray – King Stingray (Cooking Vinyl/The Orchard)

Midnight Oil – Resist (Sony Music)

RÜFÜS DU SOL – Surrender (Rose Avenue Records/Warner Music)

Michael Gudinski Breakthrough Artist

Beddy Rays – Beddy Rays (Independent/Ditto Music)

Bella Taylor Smith – Look Me In The Eyes (EMI Music Australia)

Harvey Sutherland– Boy (Clarity Recordings/Virgin Music Australia)

King Stingray – King Stingray (Cooking Vinyl/The Orchard)

Luude – 'Down Under (ft. Colin Hay)' (Sweat It Out/Warner Music)

Best Pop Release

Flume – 'Say Nothing' ft. MAY-A (Future Classic)

RÜFÜS DU SOL – 'On My Knees' (Rose Avenue Records/Warner Music)

The Kid LAROI – 'Thousand Miles' (Columbia/Sony Music)

Thelma Plum – Meanjin (Warner Music Australia)

Vance Joy – 'Clarity' (Liberation Records/Mushroom Group)

Best Dance / Electronic Release

Confidence Man – Tilt (I OH YOU/Mushroom)

Flume – Palaces (Future Classic)

Harvey Sutherland– Boy (Clarity Recordings/Virgin Music Australia)

Luude – 'Down Under (ft. Colin Hay)' (Sweat It Out/Warner Music)

RÜFÜS DU SOL – Surrender (Rose Avenue Records/Warner Music)

Best Hip Hop / Rap Release

Baker Boy – Gela (Island Records/Universal Music Australia)

Barkaa – Blak Matriarchy (Bad Apples Music/Island Records Australia)

Chillinit – Family Ties (420 Family / Virgin Music Australia)

Day 1 – 'MBAPPÉ (feat. KAHUKX)' (db Music / Warner Music Australia)

The Kid LAROI & Fivio Foreign – 'Tokyo to Paris' (Columbia/Sony Music)

Best Soul / R&B Release

Budjerah – Conversations (Warner Music Australia)

Emma Donovan & The Putbacks – Under These Streets (Cooking Vinyl Australia/The Orchard)

KIAN – SHINE (EMI Music Australia)

Vanessa Amorosi – City Of Angels (Scream Louder/MGM)

Best Independent Release 

Archie Roach – One Song (Bloodlines/Mushroom Group)

Ball Park Music – Weirder & Weirder (Prawn Records/Inertia Music)

Courtney Barnett – Things Take Time, Take Time (Milk! Records/Remote Control Records)

Genesis Owusu – 'GTFO' (Ourness)

Julia Jacklin – PRE PLEASURE (Liberation Records/Mushroom Group)

Best Rock Album

Amyl and The Sniffers – Comfort To Me (Virgin Music Australia)

Ball Park Music – Weirder & Weirder (Prawn Records/Inertia Music)

Gang Of Youths – angel in realtime. (Mosy Recordings/Sony Music)

King Stingray – King Stingray (Cooking Vinyl/The Orchard)

Spacey Jane – Here Comes Everybody (AWAL Recordings)

Best Adult Contemporary Album

Alex the Astronaut – How To Grow A Sunflower Underwater (Warner Music Australia)

Julia Jacklin – PRE PLEASURE (Liberation Records/Mushroom Group)

Missy Higgins – Total Control (Eleven: A Music Company / Universal Music Australia)

Vance Joy – In Our Own Sweet Time (Liberation Records/Mushroom Group)

Vika & Linda – The Wait (Bloodlines/Mushroom Group)

Best Country Album

Adam Brand – All Or Nothing (ABC Music)

Amber Lawrence – Living for the Highlights (ABC Music)

Andy Golledge – Strength of a Queen (I OH YOU/Mushroom)

Casey Barnes – Light It Up (Casey Barnes Entertainment/ Chugg Music)

Georgia State Line – In Colour (Cheatin Heart Records/Virgin Music Australia)

Best Hard Rock / Heavy Metal Album

Dune Rats – Real Rare Whale (BMG/ADA)

Northlane – Obsidian (Believe/Rocket)

Shihad – Old Gods (Warner Music NZ)

The Chats – Get Fucked (Bargain Bin Records / The Chats via Ingrooves)

Thornhill – Heroine (UNFD/The Orchard)

Best Blues & Roots Album

Charlie Collins – Undone (Island Records Australia/Universal Music Australia)

The Bamboos – Hard Up (BMG/ADA)

The Teskey Brothers with Orchestra Victoria – Live At Hamer Hall (Ivy League Records/Mushroom Group)

Thornbird – Thornbird (Thornbird/MGM)

William Crighton – Water and Dust (ABC Music)

Best Children's Album

Benny Time – Benny and Friends (Independent)

Teeny Tiny Stevies – How To Be Creative (ABC Music)

The Beanies – Let's Go! (ABC Music)

The Wiggles – ReWiggled (ABC Music)

Van-Anh Nguyen – The Princess And The Piano (Universal Music Australia)

PUBLIC VOTED AWARDS

Best Video

'Apple Crumble' – Lime Cordiale, Joe Neathway (Chugg Music)

'Blak Matriarchy' – Barkaa, Selina Miles (Bad Apples Music/Island Records Australia)

'Down Under (ft. Colin Hay)' – Luude, Peter Hume (Sweat It Out / Warner)

'Every Side Of You' – Vance Joy, William Bleakley (Liberation Records/Mushroom Group)

'GTFO' – Genesis Owusu, Uncle Friendly (Rhett Wade-Ferrell) (Ourness)

'Hertz' – Amyl and The Sniffers, John Angus Stewart (Virgin Music Australia)

'I Don't Wanna Leave' – RÜFÜS DU SOL, Katzki (Rose Avenue Records/Warner Music)

'Lydia Wears A Cross' – Julia Jacklin (Liberation Records/Mushroom Group)

'Say Nothing (feat. MAY-A)' – Flume (Future Classic)

'Wish You Well (feat. Bernard Fanning)' – Baker Boy, Macario De Souza (Island Records Australia/Universal Music Australia)

Best Australian Live Act 

Amy Shark – See U Somewhere Australia Tour 2022 (Wonderlick Recording Company)

Amyl and The Sniffers – Comfort To Me Tour 2022 (Virgin Music Australia)

Baker Boy – Gela Tour (Island Records Australia/Universal Music Australia)

Budjerah – The Conversations Australian Tour (Warner Music Australia)

Gang Of Youths – Angel in Realtime. (Mosy Recordings/Sony Music)

Genesis Owusu – Genesis Owusu & The Black Dog Band (Ourness)

Midnight Oil – RESIST. THE FINAL TOUR. 2022 (Sony Music)

The Kid LAROI – End Of The World Tour (Columbia/Sony Music)

The Wiggles – The OG Wiggles Reunion / Fruit Salad TV Big Show Tour (ABC Music)

Thelma Plum – The Meanjin Tour (Warner Music Australia)

Song of the Year

Clinton Kane – 'I Guess I'm In Love' (Columbia/Sony Music)

Dean Lewis – 'Hurtless' (Island Records Australia/Universal Music Australia)

Flume – 'Say Nothing (feat. MAY-A)' (Future Classic)

Joji – 'Glimpse Of Us' (88rising/Warner Records)

Jolyon Petch feat. Reigan – 'Dreams' (TMRW)

Luude – 'Down Under (ft. Colin Hay)' (Sweat It Out/Warner)

RÜFÜS DU SOL – 'On My Knees' (Rose Avenue Records/Warner Music)

The Kid LAROI – 'Thousand Miles' (Columbia/Sony Music)

Tones And I – 'Cloudy Day' (Bad Batch Records/Sony Music)

Vance Joy – 'Clarity' (Liberation Records/Mushroom Group)

Most Popular International Artist

ABBA – Voyage (Universal Music Group/Polar Music International)

Adele – 30 (Columbia/Sony Music)

Billie Eilish – Happier Than Ever (Darkroom/Interscope Records/Universal Music Group)

Drake – Certified Lover Boy (OVO/Republic/Universal Music Group)

Ed Sheeran – = (Atlantic Records/Warner Music)

Harry Styles – Harry's House (Columbia/Sony Music)

Jack Harlow – Come Home The Kids Miss You (Atlantic Records/Warner Music)

Lil Nas X – Montero (Columbia/Sony Music)

Post Malone – Twelve Carat Toothache (Mercury/Republic/Universal Music Group)

Taylor Swift – Red (Taylor's Version) (Republic/Universal Music Group)

ARTISAN AWARDS

Best Cover Art

Adnate for Baker Boy – Gela (Island Records Australia/Universal Music Australia)

Giulia Giannini McGauran for Alex the Astronaut – How To Grow A Sunflower Underwater (Warner Music Australia)

Jonathan Zawada for Flume – Palaces (Future Classic)

Kayla Flett, Gabi Coulthurst & Dimathaya Burarrwanga for King Stingray – King Stingray (Cooking Vinyl Australia/The Orchard)

Seshanka Samarajiwa, Zain Ayub & Tasman Keith for Tasman Keith – A COLOUR UNDONE (AWAL Recordings Ltd)

Mix Engineer — Best Mixed Album

Cassian for RÜFÜS DU SOL – Surrender (Rose Avenue Records/Warner Music)

Dann Hume & Eric J Dubowsky for Budjerah – Conversations (Warner Music Australia)

Eric J Dubowsky for Flume – Palaces (Future Classic)

Paul McKercher for Ball Park Music – Weirder & Weirder (Prawn Records/Inertia Music)

Pip Norman, Andrei Eremin & Dave Hammer for Baker Boy – Gela (Island Records Australia/Universal Music Australia)

Producer — Best Produced Album

Amyl and the Sniffers & Dan Luscombe for Amyl and The Sniffers – Comfort To Me (Virgin Music Australia)

Courtney Barnett & Stella Mozgawa for Courtney Barnett – Things Take Time, Take Time (Milk! Records/Remote Control Records)

Flume – Palaces (Future Classic)

Pip Norman, Rob Amoruso, Morgan Jones, Carl Dimataga, Willie Tafa & Jerome Farah for Baker Boy – Gela (Island Records Australia/Universal Music Australia)

RÜFÜS DU SOL – Surrender (Rose Avenue Records/Warner Music)

FINE ARTS AWARD

Best Classical Album

Amy Dickson, Colin Currie, Lothar Koenigs, Yvonne Kenny, David Zinman, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, Markus Stenz & Melbourne Symphony Orchestra – Ross Edwards: Frog and Star Cycle / Symphonies 2 & 3 (ABC Classic)

Lachlan Skipworth – Chamber Works, Vol. 2 (Cygnus Arioso)

Luke Howard – All Of Us (Mercury KX/Universal Music Australia)

Melbourne Symphony Orchestra & Sir Andrew Davis – The Enchanted Loom: Orchestral works By Carl Vine (ABC Classic)

Tamara-Anna Cislowska & Guests – Duet (ABC Classic)

Best Jazz Album

Barney McAll – Precious Energy (Extra Celestial Arts)

Mike Nock, Hamish Stuart, Julien Wilson & Jonathan Zwartz – Another Dance (Lionsharecords/The Planet Company)

Mildlife – Live From South Channel Island ([PIAS] Australia/Inertia Music)

Sam Anning – Oaatchapai (Earshift Music/The Planet Company)

Springtime – Springtime (Virgin Music Australia)

Best Original Soundtrack or Musical Theatre Cast Album

Australian Chamber Orchestra & Richard Tognetti – River (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (ABC Classic)

Brett Aplin – No Mercy, No Remorse (Original Score) (Independent)

In Hearts Wake – Green Is The New Black (UNFD/The Orchard)

Maria Alfonsine with Itunu Pepper – Akoni (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (MADBS Composing Palace)

Matteo Zingales – A Fire Inside (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) (ABC Music)

Album of the Week - Offical Music Videos

Album of the Week - WILLOW – {Coping Mechanism}

Sunday Spotlight (SPECIAL): Coolio

Artis Leon Ivey Jr. the late great Coolio, sadly passed on September 28, 2022.

Coolio first rose to fame as a member of the gangsta rap group WC and the Maad Circle, Coolio achieved mainstream success as a solo artist in the mid-to-late 1990s with his albums It Takes a Thief (1994), Gangsta's Paradise (1995), and My Soul (1997).

Artis Leon Ivey Jr. was best known for his 1995 Grammy Award-winning hit single Gangsta's Paradise, as well as other singles Fantastic Voyage (1994), 1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin' New) (1996), and C U When U Get There (1997).

From 1996 on, Coolio released albums independently, and provided the opening track Aw, Here It Goes! for the 1996 Nickelodeon television series Kenan & Kel. He created the web series Cookin' with Coolio and released a cookbook.

Coolio was a star of the big and small screen too. RIP Coolio. Here are some of his biggest hits as we remember a star fallen to soon.

Friday Feature: Mura Musa

Alexander Crossan or commonly referred to as Mura Masa, is a Guernsey-born electronic music producer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist.

Mura Masa's self-titled debut album was nominated for Best Dance/Electronic Album and Best Recording Package at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards, making him the first artist to be nominated as both a musician and creative director for the same album.

At 16, Crossan started to make electronic songs using Ableton Live, and uploaded them to SoundCloud the following year under the alias Mura Masa, taken from Japanese swordsmith Muramasa Sengo. He adopted the alias as he grew up with Japanese anime and Nintendo games, which led to his interest in the myth of Muramasa.

Now three albums in, Mura Musa has given us Demon Time. Stream it along with some recent favourites below. A perfect way to get into the weekend, it's Mura Musa with the return of the Friday Feature! Seeya next week!

Entergalactic - Guests

Album of the Week - Offical Music Videos/accompanying Netflix Animated Series

Album of the Week - KID CUDI – {Entergalactic}