Lykke Li has one of those voices that stops you in your tracks. It’s husky, it’s sweet, it can sound like love itself, then heartbreak in the next moment. From the first moment I heard it, I was a fan. And in her five albums since, Lykke Li has evolved as an artist whose depth as a songwriter and maker has mirrored her life experiences. Her latest album is EYEYE; it follows the end of a big relationship and you can hear it in every second. Lykke recorded it in a totally different way; stripping ...
Jun 03, 2022•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast Joan Wasser is prolific. As a musician, collaborator, and instrumentalist, she’s one of those people who needs to create to feel alive. Her career began in bands like The Dambuilders, before she lobbed in on records from Antony & the Johnsons and found her own voice as Joan as Policewoman. And what a voice it is; its warm snarl captures everyone who hears it, and it’s the same when she talks. There’s something very magnetic about Joan. Which is why I will always be excited to talk music with...
May 27, 2022•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast Joan Wasser is prolific. As a musician, collaborator, and instrumentalist, she’s one of those people who needs to create to feel alive. Her career began in bands like The Dambuilders, before she lobbed in on records from Antony & the Johnsons and found her own voice as Joan as Policewoman. And what a voice it is; its warm snarl captures everyone who hears it, and it’s the same when she talks. There’s something very magnetic about Joan. Which is why I will always be excited to talk music with...
May 27, 2022•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast Yorta Yorta man Briggs is a real renaissance man. We may have met him first as an MC, but in the years since he’s shown his creativity knows no bounds. He’s an actor, a writer, a label head, an author, and one of the funniest people I know. Briggs grew up in Shepparton in regional Victoria, it’s a big part of his identity. So when the opportunity came up for triple j and Double J to head to Shepp for a weeklong Takeover, Briggs immediately sprung to mind for a Take 5. Shepp is on the lands of th...
May 20, 2022•53 min•Transcript available on Metacast Yorta Yorta man Briggs is a real renaissance man. We may have met him first as an MC, but in the years since he’s shown his creativity knows no bounds. He’s an actor, a writer, a label head, an author, and one of the funniest people I know. Briggs grew up in Shepparton in regional Victoria, it’s a big part of his identity. So when the opportunity came up for triple j and Double J to head to Shepp for a weeklong Takeover, Briggs immediately sprung to mind for a Take 5. Shepp is on the lands of th...
May 20, 2022•53 min•Transcript available on Metacast Do you remember, around 15 years ago, when Bat For Lashes first broke onto the scene? This Pakistani-British singer created haunting, dramatic music. She descended from a squash playing dynasty, and her music inhabited an otherworldly quality in the indie music scene. In 2012 she had a huge hit with “Laura”, and a few months later when she was in Australia to tour, I invited her to Take 5. It was one of those conversations that has always stayed with me; we bonded over these five songs and it le...
May 13, 2022•27 min•Transcript available on Metacast Do you remember, around 15 years ago, when Bat For Lashes first broke onto the scene? This Pakistani-British singer created haunting, dramatic music. She descended from a squash playing dynasty, and her music inhabited an otherworldly quality in the indie music scene. In 2012 she had a huge hit with “Laura”, and a few months later when she was in Australia to tour, I invited her to Take 5. It was one of those conversations that has always stayed with me; we bonded over these five songs and it le...
May 13, 2022•27 min•Transcript available on Metacast We all know songs hold a lot of power. When they pair with iconic scenes from film and television, they become etched in our memory; and sometimes elevate a piece of music to the stuff of legend. Think Green Day’s 'Good Riddance' in the final moments of Seinfeld, Underworld’s 'Born Slippy' in Trainspotting, 'Don’t Stop Believin’' by Journey, in The Sopranos… And the person that places these songs in just the right moments, is a music supervisor. Back in 2012 I asked Gary Calamar to Take 5. He’s ...
May 06, 2022•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast We all know songs hold a lot of power. When they pair with iconic scenes from film and television, they become etched in our memory; and sometimes elevate a piece of music to the stuff of legend. Think Green Day’s 'Good Riddance' in the final moments of Seinfeld, Underworld’s 'Born Slippy' in Trainspotting, 'Don’t Stop Believin’' by Journey, in The Sopranos… And the person that places these songs in just the right moments, is a music supervisor. Back in 2012 I asked Gary Calamar to Take 5. He’s ...
May 06, 2022•29 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kae Tempest is one of the most powerful voices speaking today. A poet, playwright, author, and musician, they capture their world of South East London and bring it to us. And within that, explore the big themes of the world, and how we deal with it. They’ve has just released their fourth album; it comes after a period of great change for Kae, who recently came out as trans non-binary and is speaking publicly for the first time about what they’ve really been feeling for most of their life. Commun...
Apr 29, 2022•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast Kae Tempest is one of the most powerful voices speaking today. A poet, playwright, author, and musician, they capture their world of South East London and bring it to us. And within that, explore the big themes of the world, and how we deal with it. They’ve has just released their fourth album; it comes after a period of great change for Kae, who recently came out as trans non-binary and is speaking publicly for the first time about what they’ve really been feeling for most of their life. Commun...
Apr 29, 2022•36 min•Transcript available on Metacast Aldous Harding is one of the most compelling voices of our time. Across three albums she has shapeshifted in every song, her voice bends and changes almost like stepping into a different character, with each story. Aldous is a spellbinding human in person too; on stage and in other interviews I’ve read and seen. But I learned more about her from this Take 5 than I ever have before. These songs reveal a lot about Aldous, as a performer, as a songwriter, and as an artist. This is one of those conv...
Apr 01, 2022•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Aldous Harding is one of the most compelling voices of our time. Across three albums she has shapeshifted in every song, her voice bends and changes almost like stepping into a different character, with each story. Aldous is a spellbinding human in person too; on stage and in other interviews I’ve read and seen. But I learned more about her from this Take 5 than I ever have before. These songs reveal a lot about Aldous, as a performer, as a songwriter, and as an artist. This is one of those conv...
Apr 01, 2022•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast Steven Oliver has been lighting up stage and screen for years now. A proud descendent of the Kuku-Yalanji, Waanyi, Gangalidda, Woppaburra, Bundjalung and Biripi peoples, he’s popped up on ABC TV’s Black Comedy. Hosted Faboriginal on SBS. And taken the stage as a poet and a playwright. His own story has been told in song, in Bigger and Blacker; a cabaret telling of his life. After traveling across the country with the show over the past three years, Steven brings it next to the Melbourne Internat...
Mar 25, 2022•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast As this episode of the Take 5 happened, everyone is talking about Byron Baes. The first show commissioned for Netflix Australia is a glorious hate watch, full of influencer culture, questions about belonging, and some singular characters. The woman who commissioned it, is Que Minh Luu, she’s the Head of Content at Netflix Australia and her job is to find stories that are uniquely ours. Que has loved stories her whole life, and told them in shows like The Heights, Frayed, Diary of An Uber Driver,...
Mar 18, 2022•40 min•Transcript available on Metacast As this episode of the Take 5 happened, everyone is talking about Byron Baes. The first show commissioned for Netflix Australia is a glorious hate watch, full of influencer culture, questions about belonging, and some singular characters. The woman who commissioned it, is Que Minh Luu, she’s the Head of Content at Netflix Australia and her job is to find stories that are uniquely ours. Que has loved stories her whole life, and told them in shows like The Heights, Frayed, Diary of An Uber Driver,...
Mar 18, 2022•40 min•Transcript available on Metacast Remember that time between the mid to late 00’s, when indie and dance clashed, when we scoured Myspace for the most exciting new tunes and remixes, and when the internet met the dancefloor to create one big party community? Some call it indie dance or electroclash, and some refer to the era as bloghouse; a magical time that gave rise to big names like Diplo, Steve Aoki, Simian Mobile Disco, and Justice. It was post Napster, but before Spotify, and it was the wild west of music. 15 years on, blog...
Mar 11, 2022•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast Remember that time between the mid to late 00’s, when indie and dance clashed, when we scoured Myspace for the most exciting new tunes and remixes, and when the internet met the dancefloor to create one big party community? Some call it indie dance or electroclash, and some refer to the era as bloghouse; a magical time that gave rise to big names like Diplo, Steve Aoki, Simian Mobile Disco, and Justice. It was post Napster, but before Spotify, and it was the wild west of music. 15 years on, blog...
Mar 11, 2022•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast Baltimore duo Beach House have been making epic, beautiful and dreamy music for eight albums. For the latest, they upped the pretty by adding a string section. And Once Twice Melody lands in the world just when we need it most. I’ve long been a fan of Beach House, and I’ve chatted with them a few times. Every time I do, their insight into the music they make, has me glued to the conversation. And when they talk about the music they love, I’m all in. Which is why I asked them to Take 5 with their...
Mar 04, 2022•27 min•Transcript available on Metacast Baltimore duo Beach House have been making epic, beautiful and dreamy music for eight albums. For the latest, they upped the pretty by adding a string section. And Once Twice Melody lands in the world just when we need it most. I’ve long been a fan of Beach House, and I’ve chatted with them a few times. Every time I do, their insight into the music they make, has me glued to the conversation. And when they talk about the music they love, I’m all in. Which is why I asked them to Take 5 with their...
Mar 04, 2022•27 min•Transcript available on Metacast Nancy Bates is a proud Barkindji song woman, a mentor, and a curator. She recognises the power of song in sharing stories; particularly the songlines that tell the stories of First Nations peoples in Australia. During the Adelaide Fringe in 2022, Nancy is also behind the soundtrack for a huge and beautiful performance piece called Sky Song. It’s all about light, so I thought I’d marry the two ideas in her theme, and ask her to share songs that bring stories to light. What she shared, will stay w...
Feb 25, 2022•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast Nancy Bates is a proud Barkindji song woman, a mentor, and a curator. She recognises the power of song in sharing stories; particularly the songlines that tell the stories of First Nations peoples in Australia. During the Adelaide Fringe in 2022, Nancy is also behind the soundtrack for a huge and beautiful performance piece called Sky Song. It’s all about light, so I thought I’d marry the two ideas in her theme, and ask her to share songs that bring stories to light. What she shared, will stay w...
Feb 25, 2022•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast Claudia Karvan has been a fixture on our screens for the last three decades. We watched her light up the screen on The Big Steal and The Heartbreak Kid, share-housed with her on The Secret Life of Us, and came of age as she did, on Love My Way. When Claudia wasn’t acting in some of film and television’s biggest moments, she was working behind the scenes as a writer and director, and increasingly has been producing big shows like Bump on Stan. Through all of this, I had a sneaking suspicion Claud...
Feb 18, 2022•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast Claudia Karvan has been a fixture on our screens for the last three decades. We watched her light up the screen on The Big Steal and The Heartbreak Kid, share-housed with her on The Secret Life of Us, and came of age as she did, on Love My Way. When Claudia wasn’t acting in some of film and television’s biggest moments, she was working behind the scenes as a writer and director, and increasingly has been producing big shows like Bump on Stan. Through all of this, I had a sneaking suspicion Claud...
Feb 18, 2022•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast When you think of electronic music, do you think of the wild? Even as a synthetic creation, is it music that anchors itself in nature, in the sounds of icicles breaking or the feel of flow? Kelly Lee Owens is a producer who take you to all of those places. The Welsh artist may have begun her career as a nurse, and working in a record store, but these days she makes music that transports you; that is as at home in the club as a transcendental meditation. Her second album Inner Song was big favour...
Feb 11, 2022•35 min•Transcript available on Metacast When you think of electronic music, do you think of the wild? Even as a synthetic creation, is it music that anchors itself in nature, in the sounds of icicles breaking or the feel of flow? Kelly Lee Owens is a producer who take you to all of those places. The Welsh artist may have begun her career as a nurse, and working in a record store, but these days she makes music that transports you; that is as at home in the club as a transcendental meditation. Her second album Inner Song was big favour...
Feb 11, 2022•35 min•Transcript available on Metacast Bodyjar are a band many of us grew up with; seeing them at all ages shows and festivals, hearing their music on Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, and voting them into many a Hottest 100. Eight years on from their last album, they’re back with New Rituals, and on the day of it’s release lead singer Cam Baines joined me to share his rituals across five songs. From their heroes Descendents, to the inspiration of Adalita, this is a coming of age story – not just of Cam, but all of us. Descendents – 'Coolidge'...
Feb 04, 2022•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast Bodyjar are a band many of us grew up with; seeing them at all ages shows and festivals, hearing their music on Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater, and voting them into many a Hottest 100. Eight years on from their last album, they’re back with New Rituals, and on the day of it’s release lead singer Cam Baines joined me to share his rituals across five songs. From their heroes Descendents, to the inspiration of Adalita, this is a coming of age story – not just of Cam, but all of us. Descendents – 'Coolidge'...
Feb 04, 2022•30 min•Transcript available on Metacast We’re wrapping up the Take 5 for another year and even though 2021 still kept a lot of us apart, these conversations helped me find a community again. Maybe they did for you, too. We connected a lot over Zoom, we bonded over the music that made us who we are today, and we learned a whole lot more; not just about the guests who joined us to Take 5, but also about the songs and artists they picked. Every year around this time I like to share my favourites. It’s always hard to whittle it down, but ...
Dec 10, 2021•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast When Fran Kelly announced she was leaving RN Breakfast after 17 years, everyone I know had a little cry. Maybe it was the same for you too, because this legendary journalist has been waking up with us for a long time. Fran has held those in power to account and told stories we may never have heard otherwise. But it’s not often you hear Fran’s stories. That’s why I was so stoked and honoured to have her Take 5 with me, the day after she wrapped her final show on RN Breakfast. The theme was simple...
Dec 03, 2021•44 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
