Soundscape is a weekly look at local and international releases making an impression on our musical radar. The list offers a cross-section of EPs and albums arriving at the station.

We have been busily scouring the Soundscape! Check out some of our favourite finds for this week 20 April 2020

RVG - Feral (Our Golden Friend / Fire Records)**Album of the Week

With Feral, Melbourne’s RVG have produced a worthy follow-up to their acclaimed and beloved 2017 debut A Quality of Mercy. Here, Romy Vader explores what it means to be Feral; moving through themes of isolation, alienation, relationship breakdowns and death, with equal measures of humour and seriousness. There is hope and joy too; Vader’s outwardly simple lyrics belie a deeply nuanced vision of the world. Hey lyricism is matched by sparkling and intense arrangements, with clean, efficient and warm production by Victor Van Vugt at Head Gap studios.

Roza Torenzi - Modern Bliss (Planet Euphorique)

Melbourne based producer Roza Terenzi returns to the Canadian label Planet Euphorique for her latest 9-track release. On Modern Bliss, Terenzi bumps us into the new decade with her signature capacity to hold onto cohesion while mixing and experimenting with unconventional sounds and diverse influences; think dreamy house, post-electro, galactic techno. At its heart, the release seeks contentment and jubilation in dancefloor euphoria against the chaos of the world.

Fiona Apple - Fetch The Bolt Cutters (Epic / Sony)

Fiona Apple’s fifth album was recorded and produced entirely within her own Los Angeles home, and the effect is immediately discernible - not just for the occasional dogs barking in the background. There is a boxed-in, banging-on-the walls, domestic energy here, especially pertinent for it’s release in the midst of a global pandemic for which Fiona Apple could never have anticipated, but provides an apt soundtrack for none-the-less. The subject matter is familiar diary-entry recollections, backed by her at times frantic piano style and a woozy and reliable rhythm section who keep a certain momentum to the proceedings.

DyspOra - Australien (Music In Exile)

“It’s about wanting to belong, but still feeling alienated”, says Gabriel Erjok Akon about his long awaited EP under his DyspOra moniker. Born in war torn South Sudan before settling with his family in Adelaide and becoming a community leader, social entrepenuer and record label head, it’s easy for Akon’s remarkable story to overshadow his music. A listen to the soul-jazz sound of Australien, however, reveals an original and skilled rapper, producer and lyricist with a first-hand vision of refugee life in today’s Australia.

On Diamond - Remixes (HellosQuare recordings)

On the first anniversary of their acclaimed self titled EP - a rich and intricate, improvisation driven folk-pop record - the band has returned with a remix album in collaboration with hellosQuare Recordings. Songs from the 2019 release are remixed by band members Lisa Salvo, Jules Pascoe, Maria Moles, as well as hellosQuare’s founder, experimental artist Shoeb Ahmad.

Primo! - Sogni (ANTI FADE/Upset the Rhythm)

Sogni is the second release from the Melbourne-based guitar-rock quartet. Spanning just 30 minutes, the 12 songs are short and urgent, reflecting on themes of decision-making, change, time, heartbreak, work and daily life. Primo! weave through with their signature idosyncratic delivery with post-punk sensabilities, upbeat jangle and electronic flourishes.

Shabazz Palaces - The Don of Diamond Dreams (Sub Pop / Inertia)

10 years after Shabazz Palaces welcomed the last decade with their acclaimed debut Black Up, they enter 2020 with The Don of Diamond Dreams. While much of the record is classic Shabazz - glistening synths, kick-drum heavy beats, a penchant for experimentalism - the rap duo here have embraced the sounds of trap, auto-tuned R&B, and most interestingly the sounds of ‘emo rap’ influenced by MC Ishmael Butler’s own son Lil Tracy - a leading figure in the movement.

Ulcerate - Stare into Death And Be Still (Debemur Morti Productions)

The sixth album from the New Zealand death metal band is the purest and most accessible example of their aesthetic yet, weaving melody, power and harmony into their signature atmospheric Death Metal sound. Production on the album is rounded and nuanced, allowing the incredible dexterity and musicianship of the band members to shine through, as they explore the central theme of “death reverence” - that people are often passive observers trapped “in the silent horror of observing death calmly and cleanly.”

Shepparton Airplane - Shark (Wing Sing)

Shepparton Airplane is a four-piece post-punk group hailing from Melbourne comprising members of The Peep Tempel and Graveyard Train. While holding true to their fundamentally Oz-Rock aesthetic from their first two albums, on Shark the group stretches and deepens their influences from the likes of Television, the Stooges and Sonic Youth, delving into shoegaze, noise and psych-rock territory.

LA Suffocated - Dust, Fungus and Blasphemous Thoughts (Independent)

The Sydney electronic duo Ellen Pearce and Millie Hall finally release their debut LP several years after their formation. This is a thematically dark and difficult release, examining heartbreak, and toxic relationships, dread and anxiety. Dust, Fungus and Blasphemous Thoughts seeks catharsis and retribution through the dancefloor as they reveal their remarkable capacity to warp and modulate synthetic noise into club-friendly soundscapes.