Friday, August 14, 2026

Friday Flash(back) - Amy Shark - Soft Pop

Soft Pop is the fourth studio album from Gold Coast native, Amy Shark. In the early days, 2008 to 2012, her early solo material was released and performed under the name Amy Cushway

Her 2016 single Adore peaked at number 3 on the ARIA Singles Chart and was also listed at number 2 on the Triple J Hottest 100, 2016. Her album Love Monster (July 2018) debuted at number 1 on the ARIA Albums Chart. 

Shark has won 8 ARIA Music Awards from 29 nominations, including winning Best Pop Release three times: in 2017 for her extended play, Night Thinker, 2018 for Love Monster and 2020 for Everybody Rise. 

In addition to her musical career, Shark has served as a judge on Australian Idol since 2023. She also performed new tracks from her album centre stage at my mums local Westfield recently. Westfield Tuggerah. Now that is a tough gig!

Soft Pop was announced back in March, alongside the album's lead single. The album was written entirely by Shark, with no co-writes and no collaborations. The album was recorded in a converted church in Wales with long-time producer Dann Hume (yes from Evermore!).

Some history from this week's feature. Amy Shark's birth father separated from her mother, Robyn, when Shark was just a baby. Upon the success of Adore, Shark replied to her birth father's attempt to re-establish contact.

In 2007 Shark met Shane Billings, a New Zealand-born Gold Coast financial manager; they married on 11 May 2013. The couple worked with the local National Rugby League football club, Gold Coast Titans: Shark as a video editor and Shane managing finances. She left that job in November 2016. Shane was also Shark's talent manager until she signed with Jaddan Comerford of UNIFIED Music Group, & continued as her manager for the local market.

The couple were residents of Broadbeach Waters. They relocated to Sydney by 2021.

In September 2021 Shane founded Rage More Records as a talent management company and recording label. The label's first release is a single "I'm not Giving Up" (Sep 2021) by IndyAnna Baby, which is co-written by Shark with that artist.

Shark cancelled a proposed American tour set for September 2023 due to hospitalisation for an unspecified illness in early August. The artist described having felt discomfort before seeking medical assistance and was due to undergo surgery with a month for recovery. By late September the singer performed at El Rey Theatre, LA.

Until next Friday, when we shine the spotlight on one of Australia's favourite bands. Wait till then to find out who is up next.


Friday, August 7, 2026

Friday Flash(back) - Charli XCX - Music, Fashion, Film

Music, Fashion, Film is the eighth studio album by former Album of the Year brat, Charli XCX.

The album features production by her longtime collaborators A. G. Cook and Finn Keane, who both co-wrote the album with Charli. However, don't expect brat part II. This is a totally different direction for Charli.

Prior to its release, four singles supported Music, Fashion, Film, all of which had accompanying music videos; Rock Music was the lead single, followed by SS26, Wink Wink & Camera. 

To further promote the project, Charli is embarking on the eponymous seventh concert tour from next month, through October.

More about Charli...

Charlotte Emma Aitchison was born 2 August 1992, known professionally as Charli XCX. She began posting songs on Myspace in 2008 before entering the London rave scene. Signing a recording contract with Asylum Records in 2010, Charli XCX released a series of singles and mixtapes in the early 2010s. 

In 2012, she co-wrote and was featured on Icona Pop's I Love It, which became her first number-one song in the UK and received global success, but her debut album, True Romance (2013), failed to meet commercial expectations.

In 2014, Charli XCX was featured on Iggy Azalea's single Fancy, which became her most streamed song and one of the year's best-selling singles worldwide. The same year, she released Boom Clap, which became her first solo top-ten single in the US. Her second album, Sucker (2014), spawned the singles Break the Rules & Doing It. 

She began working alongside producers associated with the UK collective PC Music in 2015, developing a more experimental sound and image. She released the EP Vroom Vroom in 2016 and the mixtapes Number 1 Angel and Pop 2 in 2017. 

Her third album, Charli (2019), produced the hit single 1999 with Troye Sivan. Her fourth album, How I'm Feeling Now (2020), was made during the COVID-19 lockdowns and received critical acclaim.

Charli XCX's fifth studio album, Crash (2022), became her first number-one album in the UK and Australia. 

She contributed the UK top-ten single Speed Drive as part of the soundtrack for the 2023 film Barbie. 

Her sixth album, Brat (2024), became her second UK number-one album and was named the best album of 2024 by various publications, such as Billboard and Rolling Stone. The album spawned the UK top-ten hit Apple & the remix album brought her second number-one song, Guess featuring Billie Eilish. 

Brat and its songs won three Grammy Awards: Best Dance Pop Recording for Von Dutch, Best Dance/Electronic Album, and Best Recording Package. The album sparked a cultural phenomenon dubbed Brat Summer, which served as an inspiration for Aidan Zamiri's film The Moment (2026) that she co-produced and starred in. 

During this period, Charli XCX also began appearing in independent cinema, securing acting roles in the 2025 films Erupcja, Sacrifice, and 100 Nights of Hero, as well as the 2026 films I Want Your Sex and Faces of Death. 

Her seventh and eighth albums Wuthering Heights and the below record, the Friday Flash(back) album, Music, Fashion, Film were released this year.

In addition to her solo work, Charli XCX has co-written songs for other artists, including Iggy Azalea's Beg for It (2014), Selena Gomez's Same Old Love (2015), Will.i.am's Boys & Girls (2016), Blondie's Tonight (2017), Shawn Mendes + Camila Cabello's SeƱorita (2019), Sigala and Rita Ora's You for Me (2021), and Katseye's Gabriela (2025). 

She was awarded the ASCAP Global Impact Award in 2024 and featured on the 2024 Gold House's most impactful Asian A100 list, making her the first woman of British Indian origin to be honoured.

Next week, we stay with the girl power, but local girl power. It's Australian Idol judge, Amy Shark. See you then.

Friday, July 31, 2026

Friday Flash(back) - Jack White - Frozen Charlotte

Frozen Charlotte, also titled Frozen Charlatan, is the seventh studio album by former White Stripes frontman, Jack White. 

Released earlier this month, the album was preceded by three singles, G.O.D. and the Broken Ribs, Derecho Demonico, & Dollar Bill.

Back in April, White released two singles, G.O.D. and the Broken Ribs & Derecho Demonico, and performed them both live on programs including Saturday Night Live.

Frozen Charlotte was first quietly announced by a listing to pre-order the album on Third Man Records website.

It was officially announced the next day, June 10, alongside the release of the third single from the album, Dollar Bill.

The album was released on July 10, 2026. This is the same day a North America tour is set to begin.

Where did Jack White begin though? John Anthony White (nĆ© Gillis; born July 9, 1975) is an American musician who was the guitarist and lead vocalist of the rock duo the White Stripes. 

He was a key artist of the 2000s indie and garage rock movements, noted for his distinctive musical techniques, eccentricity, and utilization of analog technology. After the White Stripes split up in 2011, he found success with his solo career and business ventures.

White began his career moonlighting in several underground Detroit bands as a drummer and guitarist. He met Meg White in the 1990s, and the two founded the White Stripes in 1997. He co-founded his record label and studio Third Man Records in 2001, the same year that the White Stripes earned international fame with their breakthrough album White Blood Cells. This, along with the three subsequent White Stripes albums released throughout the decade, established White as a key artist of the decade's rock revival. In the latter half of the 2000s, he founded the rock groups the Raconteurs and the Dead Weather, recorded the Bond theme "Another Way to Die" with Alicia Keys (the only duet to perform a Bond theme), and collaborated with numerous artists.

White released his debut studio album Blunderbuss (2012) to strong reviews and sales. His second studio album, Lazaretto (2014), broke the record for most first-week vinyl sales since 1991, holding that record until 2021. His following three experimental albums garnered critical and commercial success. His sixth and seventh albums, No Name (2024) & Frozen Charlotte (2026), are noted for their unique release methods and earned general acclaim. 

Other ventures by White include acting in the films Cold Mountain, Coffee and Cigarettes (both 2003), Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story (2007) and Killers of the Flower Moon (2023), joining the Library of Congress' National Recording Preservation Foundation in 2013, and opening an art exhibit in 2026.

Among several accolades, White has won twelve Grammy Awards. Rolling Stone included him on their 2010 and 2023 lists of the greatest guitarists of all time. The New York Times called White "the coolest, weirdest, and savviest rock star of our time" in 2012.

White was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the White Stripes in 2025.

Till next week, when we jump into Charli XCX's eighth studio album. It's a BIG departure from Brat!



Friday, July 24, 2026

Friday Flash(back) - the Temper Trap - Sungazer

Sungazer is the fourth studio album by the Temper Trap. With the group being our third Friday Flash(back) for season two of 2026.

Sungazer was announced back in April, alongside the album's fourth and title track. Sungazer was released earlier this month, via Mushroom Records.

The album comes after the band announced its hiatus in 2018. 

the Temper Trap formed in 2005, by Dougy Mandagi, Jonathon Aherne, and Toby Dundas. 

In 2008, the group relocated from Melbourne to London. 

The band released their debut album Conditions in June 2009 to favourable reviews and commercial success; it peaked at No. 9 on the ARIA Albums Chart and into the top 30 on the UK Albums Chart. 

The lead single, Sweet Disposition, peaked in the top 10 on the Belgian, Irish and UK Singles Charts & reached No. 14 on the ARIA Singles Chart. At the ARIA Music Awards of 2010 in November, The Temper Trap won Best Group and Most Popular Australian Single for Sweet Disposition.

Their eponymous second album was released in 2012. The album won the band Best Rock Album, and they also won Best Group at the 2012 ARIA Awards. In October 2013, guitarist Lorenzo Sillitto left the band during the recording of the third album. He was not replaced, converting the band back into a quartet.

Next week the Friday Flash(back) is back! With Jack White. Last time he appeared here, he was a Sunday Spotlight back in 2018!



Friday, July 17, 2026

Friday Flash(back) - Foo Fighters - Your Favourite Toy

And we are back, Friday Flash(back) #2 for season two in 2026. Your Favourite Toy, the twelfth studio album by the Foo Fighters.

Released on Anzac Day eve, produced by the band itself and Oliver Roman, it is the band's first studio album to feature drummer Ilan Rubin and follows the group's 2023 album But Here We Are, as well as their first album since Sonic Highways (2014) to not be produced by Greg Kurstin, who produced the band's four previous albums.

The Foo Fighters have a second home in Australia. The group have given us hits for decades. They formed in Seattle in 1994. Initially founded as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl, the band comprises vocalist/guitarist Grohl, bassist Nate Mendel, guitarists Pat Smear and Chris Shiflett, keyboardist Rami Jaffee and drummer Ilan Rubin. 

Guitarist Franz Stahl and drummers William Goldsmith, Taylor Hawkins, and Josh Freese are former members.

Grohl created the Foo Fighters to release solo material after Nirvana disbanded in 1994, and recorded their eponymous debut album (1995) mostly alone in six days. After the songs drew label interest, he recruited Mendel and Goldsmith, both formerly of Sunny Day Real Estate, and Smear, who had played with Nirvana on tour. The band made their first public performance in February 1995, five months before the album's release.

Goldsmith quit during the recording of their second album, The Colour and the Shape (1997), with Grohl re-recording most of the drum parts, and Smear departed soon afterward; they were replaced by Hawkins and Stahl, respectively. The latter had been in Scream, the band Grohl had drummed for before joining Nirvana. Stahl was fired before the recording of the group's third album, There Is Nothing Left to Lose (1999), and the band briefly continued as a trio until Shiflett joined after the completion of There Is Nothing Left to Lose. The group released their fourth album, One by One, in 2002, followed by the two-disc In Your Honor (2005), which was split between acoustic songs and heavier material. The Foo Fighters released their sixth album, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, in 2007.

For the Foo Fighters' seventh studio album, Wasting Light (2011), produced by Butch Vig, Smear returned as a full-time member, after having appeared frequently with the band since 2005. Sonic Highways (2014) was released as the soundtrack to the television miniseries directed by Grohl. Concrete and Gold (2017) was the second Foo Fighters album to top the charts in the United States and the first to feature Jaffee, their longtime session and touring keyboardist, as a full member. 

Their tenth album, Medicine at Midnight (2021), was the last before Hawkins' death in March 2022. He was replaced by Freese from 2023 to 2025, and Rubin from 2025 onwards. The Foo Fighters have won 15 Grammy Awards, including Best Rock Album five times, making them among the most successful rock acts in Grammy history.

In 2021, the band was announced as recipients of the first "Global Icon" award at the 2021 MTV Video Music Awards. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2021, their first year of eligibility.

We will return to a local group next week. As winter comes to a close, it's time to check out The Temper Trap. They recently dropped their fourth studio record, Sungazer. The Sweet Disposition crew from Melbourne are back! See you then.



Saturday, July 11, 2026

NIMA's 2026 Nominations | Predictions

Happy NAIDOC week! 50 Years of Deadly!

Here are my picks/predictions/guesses in red + bold as below. NIMA Awards ceremony will take place at Darwin Amphitheatre on Saturday August 8th. 


Artist of the Year

3%

Baker Boy

Birdz and Fred Leone

BUMPY

Jem Cassar-Daley

Miss Kaninna

South Summit


Best New Talent

Drifting Clouds

INKABEE

Jet Cameron

Say True God

Voices of Resistance

Zipporah


Album of the Year

Baker Boy — DJANDJAY

Birdz & Fred Leone — GIRA

Say True God? — BLAK

Emma Donovan — Take Me to The River

Stiff Gins — Crossroads

Trials — hendle


Film Clip of the Year

3% — "Our Greats"

Baker Boy — "THICK SKIN" feat. Thelma Plum, Emma Donovan, Kee'ahn & Jada Weazel

Birdz & Fred Leone — "Wanya Nyin Yanmanj"

Drifting Clouds — "Bawuypawuy"

Kobie Dee — "Aim For The Stars"

South Summit — "Top of the Hill"


Community Clip of the Year

Bulman School & Community — "LOK LOK MAH BURARR (Lizard & Goanna)"

Mossman Gorge — "Yundu Bama Yalada"

Northern Peninsula Area (NPA) — "All The Way From The NPA"

Mossman Mob - “Still Believing”

Geraldton — "Barndi Yarraly - Geraldton TIS"

"Vaping is Vicious - Not Delicious"

Wujal Wujal — "Rainforest to the Sea"


Song of the Year

Baker Boy — "THICK SKIN" feat. Thelma Plum, Emma Donovan, Kee'ahn & Jada Weazel

Birdz & Fred Leone — "Wanya Nyin Yanmanj"

Drifting Clouds — "Wanya Nyin Yanmanj"

Jem Cassar-Daley — "Front Left Pocket"

Yung Maynie — "Always Was"

ZIPPORAH — "Some Typa Way"

Friday, July 10, 2026

Friday Flash(back) - Matt Corby - Tragic Magic

It's back! FINALLY. The Friday Flash(back) is back with Tragic Magic, the fourth studio album by Matt Corby.

The album came out mid-April following the announcement from Corby, where he said "We've been working on it for about 18 months and I'm really proud of it. It feels very reflective of where my life is at right now; how my family, my kids are the most important thing and watching them grow up has completely rewired my brain and outlook on life."

Corby supported the album with Australian tour kicking off last month.

Born in 1990, Matthew John Corby, originally achieved his commercial breakthrough with his fourth EP, Into the Flame back in 2011.

The EP peaked at No. 3 on the ARIA Singles Chart, and by April 2012, was certified 6× Platinum by ARIA. 

Matt's 2011 single Brother & 2013 single Resolution both won ARIA Music Awards for Song of the Year. 

It's so good having the Friday Flash(back) back! Next week, we are living large (still) with the Foo Fighters! Until then, a new feature record back Monday.


 

Monday, June 29, 2026

You can find this week's feature album - https://randyandy24.blogspot.com/

My music posts have moved over HERE until next Monday. Yes the block is back in one week baby! Stream this weeks record right HERE

The Friday Flash(back) will return next Friday (July 10) alongside feature album features and possibly the return of the Album of the Year race.

Come back next Monday to discover a new feature record and the season two opener of the Friday Flash(back) for 2026.

Monday, June 22, 2026

You can find this week's feature album - https://randyandy24.blogspot.com/

My music posts have moved over HERE until the new financial. Stream this weeks record right HERE

I'm back from beautiful Bali, the World Cup is in full swing, so I reckon it's time for some Olivia Rodrigo.

Music posts returning here, sooner than you think. The Friday Flash(back) is almost back for season two.



Monday, June 15, 2026

You can find this week's feature album - https://randyandy24.blogspot.com/

My music posts have moved over HERE until the new financial. Stream this weeks record right HERE

I'm still in Bali, with half of Perth cheering on the Socceroo's! I reckon South Summit's record is the perfect chill album for Bali!



Tuesday, June 9, 2026

You can find this week's feature album - https://randyandy24.blogspot.com/

My music posts have moved over HERE until the new financial. Stream this week's (short) week record right HERE

I'm off to Bali like half of Perth. So I reckon Skrillex's record is the perfect album to get me hyped for Bali!

See you soon.

Wednesday, May 27, 2026

Bali blog holidays

I'm heading off on going on holidays next month, so that means... B-A-L-I here I come!

Following the June long weekend (yes another long weekend incoming), feature album posts, can be found HERE

I will be posting fewer posts, with some exceptions from time to time. The blog will return to normal in the new financial year. Bring on that tax return!

Welcome to National Reconciliation Week too. See below some First Nations excellence!



Friday, April 10, 2026

Friday Flash(back) returns, w/ Matt Corby

Later this year... the Friday Flash(back) will return with former Australian Idol, voice of an angel, Matt Corby. I cannot wait to share another season of the Friday Flash(back) with you later this year.

Up next week a brand new feature album, ahead of a potential month off blogging in June. When hopefully I get off to Bali.

See you next week!