I am a sucker for a nice folk-pop duo, especially an Australian one. So I was pleased to have Joe Neptune add me on myspace last week. He/they are a side project from Melbourne's Custom Kings, whose Where Do They Go? EP and 2008 album At Sea were both catchy and energetic yet impossibly relaxed. This duo is pretty much what you'd expect, a humble dose of easy folk-pop reminiscent of their main band's early work. Their album No Time To Grow Up is out now, I think, and it includes this track, which could be a Nick Drake song, if Nick Drake was the singer from Custom Kings. Joe Neptune - Drift Away
myspace
Concept albums are a tricky business, but Adelaide's Clue To Kalo emerged quite positively from the release of last year's Lily Perdida, a collection of tunes written and sung from the perspective of different people in the life of the titular protagonist. Whilst it's difficult to follow the "story" without a lyric booklet handy (my tip: just read the song titles for the gist), the music, a intricately layered and pretty mess of boy-girl vocals over programmed folk-pop makes for an engaging and rarely predictable experience. Phew, that's a lot of adjectives.Lily Perdida is out now through Popfrenzy.Clue to Kalo - It's Here The Story Straight, By The Peersmyspace
I had contemplated making this an all-Australian blog, but I like these guys too much not to mention them. They're from Portland, Oregon, and appear to be named after an Elliott Smith song. Musically they've got that oddball indie pop vibe down pat, from the Wolf Parade-esque yelps of keyboardist Austin to the cutesy vocals of bassist Nicole Perry, and have a neat guitar and keyboard driven sound.
Here are two songs from their 2008 album Hurry Up and Thrill Me.
Southern Belle - Pacific
Southern Belle - Ride in Style
myspace
This Adelaide duo released a brilliant, if succinct, debut album of lo-fi folk tunes last year, Hiding in the Shade. It's use of singing saw, ukulele and warm, cozy ambience, along with the falsetto croon of male half Zac Colligan made it a real gem. And who doesn't like a bit of acoustica with subtle nautical themes (read subtle, Josh Pyke).
This tune is one of the more immediate highlights of the album.
The Sea Thieves - The Only Piece of Mind Worth Remembering
myspace
I first got into this band through triplejunearthed.com, as their keyboard player and singer Cathy Petocz had won a competition for her solo work. The tunes from their last album Knows No Other Name cemented my adoration of them.
Cathy left the band a few months ago to go solo, but the band has endured and is about to put out a new EP, Margaret Helen King & The Sorry Tree, which judging from the first taste, I'm A Tree, retains all the vocal harmonies, melodic savvy and unabashed dorky whimsy of their old configuration, but with a more focussed power trio (in a very loose way) vibe.
Margaret Helen King - He's A Tree
myspace
photo: Sia Duff
Deja Entendu is the new band of Jack Arentz, who played in Adelaide exports Skye Harbour, and finds himself mining a more emotive and melodramatic vein of that band’s piano pop, with the addition of more electronic beats, clicks and noise.
He’s joined by the sunny vocals of Claire Raynor, and Adelaide’s Anthony Wignall (ex-Zeta, The Keepsakes). Their EP Skeletons can be downloaded free from their website.
Deja Entendu - I Think We Lost Hermyspace
I am a sucker for a nice folk-pop duo, especially an Australian one. So I was pleased to have Joe Neptune add me on myspace last week. He/they are a side project from Melbourne's Custom Kings, whose Where Do They Go? EP and 2008 album At Sea were both catchy and energetic yet impossibly relaxed. This duo is pretty much what you'd expect, a humble dose of easy folk-pop reminiscent of their main band's early work. 
