STACK #183 Jan 2020

FEATURE MUSIC

Tones and I The Kids Are Coming (Sony)

“The monster brass-bash of the opening, title track from Tones and I’s debut EP The Kids Are Coming initially sounds as if she’s going to tell us Grease is the word, but as soon as this astute musician’s beats slap in it’s clear there are no throwbacks here. This electrifying song is less a call-to-arms than an assurance of imminent arrival; Toni Watson doesn’t need to marshal anyone, because this tribe is already organically united in their shared beliefs. Watson displays a Sia-like confidence in the way she hurls, tweaks and growls her lyrics of damnation at the socio-political status quo, but she’s also an accomplished storyteller of the micro: Jimmy is a companion piece to heart-shredding single Johnny Run Away , while the hook-charged Dance Monkey and Never Seen The Rain have already burned to the zenith of the ARIA charts. The hype around Watson surpasses even that which circled Tash Sultana a few years ago, but it is – like that other seasoned busker quickly courted by Sony Music – totally warranted.” – ZKR

Jessica Mauboy Hilda (Sony)

“A lot of singers have come and gone since Mauboy became a star while still a teenager. Now 30, 'I’m not finished,' she defiantly declares in the show-stopping Little Things . And she’s right. Hilda (which takes its title from Mauboy’s middle name) is a sassy collection that swings between urban, pop and ballads. And with such a potent voice, Mauboy is capable of making it all work.” – Jeff Jenkins Rod Stewart You're In My Heart: Rod Stewart with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (Rhino) IN NUMBERS 2016: Year that Sir Rod Stewart was knighted 30: Number of tours Stewart has undertaken over the course of his career; his latest, Rod Stewart: The Hits! comes to Australia in October 2020 50: Number of years Stewart has been a solo performer, having released his first solo album An Old Raincoat Won’t Ever Let You Down in 1969 2: Number of times Stewart has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once in 1994 as a solo artist, and again in 2012 as a member of his band Faces

excuse to try to find something pure and amazing. I guess I was worried when I wrote this album that because I mention divorce and heartbreak, that maybe I was trying to say love’s bad, or to swear off it. But it’s not. It’s the most powerful emotion in the world. When you first fall in love and you get that feeling, there’s no drug that even compares to it, so of course it’s worth fighting for and it’s worth striving for. I think sometimes people need reminding.” ( amo – Sony) James Blunt Once Upon A Mind (Warner) IN NUMBERS 7: Number of shows James Blunt will play across Australia in November this year, for his Once Upon A Mind tour 23 million: Number of albums Blunt has sold worldwide across his career 14: Number of years the t-shirt and pants Blunt wore in his clip for hit song You’re Beautiful (2005) hung in his wardrobe before he wore them again this year in the clip for Once Upon A Mind ’s lead single, Cold 2006: The year James Blunt stopped being relevant, according to himself:

Bring Me The Horizon's frontman Oli Sykes on the theme of the band's record amo (which is named for the Portuguese word for ‘I love’): “Love’s the one thing you shouldn’t compromise on. We compromise with a lot of things in our lives. There’s no real

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