Over the past decade, James Blake has gone from grabbing our hearts with the Wilhelm Scream, to collaborating with some of the biggest names on the planet. The London born producer, singer, and multi-instrumentalist has always kept it moving; expanding his sound, testing new waters, and through it all remaining grounded in what matters. I first met James back in 2011, just as the hype around him was beginning to grow. And I’ve been lucky to catch up with him over the years at various points. But...
Oct 08, 2021•33 min
Sufjan Stevens is one of the most prolific songwriters working today, and it feels as though his drive to write songs is as much about the creation of music, as it is the understanding of creativity itself, and finding different ways to explore it. He first heard Angelo De Augustine a few years ago, and when you hear Angelo’s voice you’ll understand why Suf signed him to his label. And why they decided to make an album together. A Beginner’s Mind is a record inspired and created by a few forces....
Sep 30, 2021•40 min
Sufjan Stevens is one of the most prolific songwriters working today, and it feels as though his drive to write songs is as much about the creation of music, as it is the understanding of creativity itself, and finding different ways to explore it. He first heard Angelo De Augustine a few years ago, and when you hear Angelo’s voice you’ll understand why Suf signed him to his label. And why they decided to make an album together. A Beginner’s Mind is a record inspired and created by a few forces....
Sep 30, 2021•40 min
It’s a special Take 5, as we mark the 30th anniversary of Nirvana releasing Nevermind. This was the record that brought grunge into the mainstream, it changed the game not just for the Seattle sound, but catapulted it into a worldwide movement. To celebrate this iconic moment, I dug up some of my most treasured conversations from the Take 5 archives, with the people at the centre of the scene. You’ll hear from Butch Vig, the producer who shaped Nevermind. From Jonathan Poneman, who signed Nirvan...
Sep 23, 2021•29 min
It’s a special Take 5, as we mark the 30th anniversary of Nirvana releasing Nevermind. This was the record that brought grunge into the mainstream, it changed the game not just for the Seattle sound, but catapulted it into a worldwide movement. To celebrate this iconic moment, I dug up some of my most treasured conversations from the Take 5 archives, with the people at the centre of the scene. You’ll hear from Butch Vig, the producer who shaped Nevermind. From Jonathan Poneman, who signed Nirvan...
Sep 23, 2021•29 min
Matthew E White is a jack of all trades. A producer hailing from Richmond, Virginia, he’s worked with everyone from Sharon Van Etten to Natalie Prass, Justin Vernon to The Mountain Goats. A few years ago he set up Spacebomb, a studio and label which also acts as a community space for artists to experiment. This all feeds off his own work, as a multi-instrumentalist, former jazz player, and songwriter for whom music has no boundaries. In short, Matt is the kinda guy you love to get stuck talking ...
Sep 10, 2021•38 min
The AIR studios in Montserrat are the stuff of legend. Back in the 80’s, Sir George Martin set up a place to record in the middle of the Caribbean. It was an escape for the likes of Paul McCartney, Elton John, Stevie Wonder, and Dire Straits. The Police captured one of their biggest albums there, and Duran Duran hung out for a spell too. This haven in the West Indies was short lived though; a hurricane then a dormant volcano that became active, changed the island forever. Now this story is being...
Sep 02, 2021•24 min
The AIR studios in Montserrat are the stuff of legend. Back in the 80’s, Sir George Martin set up a place to record in the middle of the Caribbean. It was an escape for the likes of Paul McCartney, Elton John, Stevie Wonder, and Dire Straits. The Police captured one of their biggest albums there, and Duran Duran hung out for a spell too. This haven in the West Indies was short lived though; a hurricane then a dormant volcano that became active, changed the island forever. Now this story is being...
Sep 02, 2021•24 min
Comedian Steph Tisdell is here to help. Literally. The proud Ydinji woman may be up on stage telling jokes these days, but a few years ago she was at uni, and looking ahead to a career in human rights law. That all changed one fateful day, and what led her to stand up comedy is a story you’ve gotta hear yourself. The comedy path has seen her win multiple awards, and appear on TV and radio across Australia, but social justice remains at the core of all she does. And you’ll hear why this local leg...
Aug 26, 2021•41 min
Comedian Steph Tisdell is here to help. Literally. The proud Ydinji woman may be up on stage telling jokes these days, but a few years ago she was at uni, and looking ahead to a career in human rights law. That all changed one fateful day, and what led her to stand up comedy is a story you’ve gotta hear yourself. The comedy path has seen her win multiple awards, and appear on TV and radio across Australia, but social justice remains at the core of all she does. And you’ll hear why this local leg...
Aug 26, 2021•41 min
John Parish has crafted some of the indie music’s most acclaimed albums. The Bristol producer has been behind Aldous Harding’s last two records, he co-wrote and produced Eels “Souljacker”, and Giant Sand’s “Chore of Enchantment”, and recently he’s been working with The Goon Sax and Parquet Courts. He’s a composer and musician too, releasing his own works and soundtracking beautiful scenes on stage and screen. But John’s longest creative relationship is also his most celebrated, a lifelong musica...
Aug 20, 2021•48 min
John Parish has crafted some of the indie music’s most acclaimed albums. The Bristol producer has been behind Aldous Harding’s last two records, he co-wrote and produced Eels “Souljacker”, and Giant Sand’s “Chore of Enchantment”, and recently he’s been working with The Goon Sax and Parquet Courts. He’s a composer and musician too, releasing his own works and soundtracking beautiful scenes on stage and screen. But John’s longest creative relationship is also his most celebrated, a lifelong musica...
Aug 20, 2021•48 min
Danny Cohen is the creator of wild dreams. His music video’s have seen King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard crawl inside a giant custom built vulture, his photography has beckoned Mac DeMarco into a bathful of cigarettes, and his video for Kirin J Callinan, with a screaming Jimmy Barnes over the hills, has clocked more than sixty two million views. The Melbourne based photographer and filmmaker has also just directed his first feature length film. It’s a doco on another regular collaborator, Court...
Aug 12, 2021•38 min
Danny Cohen is the creator of wild dreams. His music video’s have seen King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard crawl inside a giant custom built vulture, his photography has beckoned Mac DeMarco into a bathful of cigarettes, and his video for Kirin J Callinan, with a screaming Jimmy Barnes over the hills, has clocked more than sixty two million views. The Melbourne based photographer and filmmaker has also just directed his first feature length film. It’s a doco on another regular collaborator, Court...
Aug 12, 2021•38 min
You might know Jack Steadman as frontman for British indie band, Bombay Bicycle Club. But for the past few years he’s stepped out as a solo artist, going under the moniker of Mr Jukes. It’s a project that’s allowed him to go beyond the indie realm and produce music that’s full of classic soul, funk, and hip-hop. And his latest album, features new young MC Barney Artist. On the day they released “The Locket”, the two of them joined me from London to Take 5. I’m a big fan of their sound, but I als...
Aug 05, 2021•35 min
You might know Jack Steadman as frontman for British indie band, Bombay Bicycle Club. But for the past few years he’s stepped out as a solo artist, going under the moniker of Mr Jukes. It’s a project that’s allowed him to go beyond the indie realm and produce music that’s full of classic soul, funk, and hip-hop. And his latest album, features new young MC Barney Artist. On the day they released “The Locket”, the two of them joined me from London to Take 5. I’m a big fan of their sound, but I als...
Aug 05, 2021•35 min
You know when someone comes along, and everyone who meets them falls under their spell? Tony Armstrong is that someone. The freshly minted sports presenter for ABC News Breakfast has been making waves for the past couple of years, commentating the footy on Triple M and the National Indigenous Radio Service, and making bad news more palatable, on The Weekly. But before all of this, Tony was in the game, playing AFL Footy with three teams and spending his childhood working towards that goal. Every...
Jul 30, 2021•40 min
You know when someone comes along, and everyone who meets them falls under their spell? Tony Armstrong is that someone. The freshly minted sports presenter for ABC News Breakfast has been making waves for the past couple of years, commentating the footy on Triple M and the National Indigenous Radio Service, and making bad news more palatable, on The Weekly. But before all of this, Tony was in the game, playing AFL Footy with three teams and spending his childhood working towards that goal. Every...
Jul 30, 2021•40 min
Stephen Page is a force of nature. As artistic director for Bangarra Dance Theatre, he’s told the stories of Indigenous Australia through movement, for more than thirty years. Bangarra began in the late 80’s, but it was Stephen’s appointment as the first Aboriginal artistic director that shaped what it has become today. And the story of Bangarra is not only one of dance, but of brothers. Stephen comes from a big family in Meanjin. A descendent of the Nunukul people and the Munaldjali clan of the...
Jul 09, 2021•41 min
Stephen Page is a force of nature. As artistic director for Bangarra Dance Theatre, he’s told the stories of Indigenous Australia through movement, for more than thirty years. Bangarra began in the late 80’s, but it was Stephen’s appointment as the first Aboriginal artistic director that shaped what it has become today. And the story of Bangarra is not only one of dance, but of brothers. Stephen comes from a big family in Meanjin. A descendent of the Nunukul people and the Munaldjali clan of the...
Jul 09, 2021•41 min
Rise Against have been at the forefront of socially conscious punk for the last 20 years. On the release of their 9th album, I thought it was a perfect time to get lead singer Tim McIlrath back on the radio, to Take 5. He’s one of the most articulate musicians I know, and our conversations in the past have always been rich ones. Rise Against’s new album is about the failure of the American dream, the notion that every generation will be better than the last, is a thing of the past. Across punk, ...
Jul 01, 2021•31 min
Rise Against have been at the forefront of socially conscious punk for the last 20 years. On the release of their 9th album, I thought it was a perfect time to get lead singer Tim McIlrath back on the radio, to Take 5. He’s one of the most articulate musicians I know, and our conversations in the past have always been rich ones. Rise Against’s new album is about the failure of the American dream, the notion that every generation will be better than the last, is a thing of the past. Across punk, ...
Jul 01, 2021•31 min
Sleater-Kinney have always been shapeshifters. Within that guitar forward, angular, and soaring indie rock sound they have always experimented and tried something new. When I listen to Sleater-Kinney’s songs, I feel on edge, and I like that feeling. As with their other nine records, their newest album shifts again, and so does the band. SK have returned to their foundations of Corin Tucker and Carrie Brownstein, and it’s the two of them who joined me to Take 5. I gave them the theme off kilter s...
Jun 24, 2021•38 min
Sleater-Kinney have always been shapeshifters. Within that guitar forward, angular, and soaring indie rock sound they have always experimented and tried something new. When I listen to Sleater-Kinney’s songs, I feel on edge, and I like that feeling. As with their other nine records, their newest album shifts again, and so does the band. SK have returned to their foundations of Corin Tucker and Carrie Brownstein, and it’s the two of them who joined me to Take 5. I gave them the theme off kilter s...
Jun 24, 2021•38 min
What do Tim Burton’s films, the Men in Black franchise, and The Simpsons theme all have in common? They’ve all been scored by Danny Elfman. Danny is a Hollywood legend, and his compositions have likely soundtracked your life. That score for Good Will Hunting? That was him too, not to mention the Fifty Shades films, and Sam Raimi’s Spiderman. For me, Danny Elfman is the sound of my formative years. I swooned to the beautiful Ice Dance from Edward Scissorhands and his incredible work on Tim Burton...
Jun 17, 2021•45 min
What do Tim Burton’s films, the Men in Black franchise, and The Simpsons theme all have in common? They’ve all been scored by Danny Elfman. Danny is a Hollywood legend, and his compositions have likely soundtracked your life. That score for Good Will Hunting? That was him too, not to mention the Fifty Shades films, and Sam Raimi’s Spiderman. For me, Danny Elfman is the sound of my formative years. I swooned to the beautiful Ice Dance from Edward Scissorhands and his incredible work on Tim Burton...
Jun 17, 2021•45 min
Do you remember the first time you heard Garbage? I do. It was 1995. Their debut single Vow. That opening guitar line, the stereo panning, and then Shirley Manson’s voice coming in. They exploded, in full flight, onto the scene. Grunge was well on the way out, and in it’s wake Garbage offered a high res view of the future, sounding like nothing we’d heard before. This combination of three producers contributed to the mess of sounds, but they would be nothing without their frontwoman. For 26 year...
Jun 11, 2021•32 min
This is a story that’s not often been told. Lindy Morrison is well known as the drummer for The Go-Betweens. Over a decade, her drumming shaped the sound of one of most acclaimed acts, and her unconventional style made beautifully written poems into earworms. But before she was in a rock band, Lindy was an activist, she performed theatre, and she travelled the world. After her time with The Go-Betweens, she went on to become an advocate for Australian musicians, and every time I’ve come across L...
Jun 04, 2021•39 min
Gruff Rhys is a legend of the Welsh music scene. As frontman for the Super Furry Animals, he took his band to global success. Gruff was at the centre of the Cool Cymru scene at the dawn of the new millennium, and he’s collaborated widely with everyone from Gorillaz to Boom Bip to Sparklehorse. He’s also had a prolific solo career, and on the day he released his 7th album, Gruff joined me from Wales to Take 5. I’m not gonna lie, I love Welsh accents. And Gruff has such a beautiful spirit, this is...
May 20, 2021•27 min
Gruff Rhys is a legend of the Welsh music scene. As frontman for the Super Furry Animals, he took his band to global success. Gruff was at the centre of the Cool Cymru scene at the dawn of the new millennium, and he’s collaborated widely with everyone from Gorillaz to Boom Bip to Sparklehorse. He’s also had a prolific solo career, and on the day he released his 7th album, Gruff joined me from Wales to Take 5. I’m not gonna lie, I love Welsh accents. And Gruff has such a beautiful spirit, this is...
May 20, 2021•27 min
