Every few months I do a stock take of what’s been generating the most conversation in the shop — not the biggest sellers (those tend to be the obvious names), but the records that make people stop, listen, and ask “Who is this?” Here are five Australian acts currently doing that.

1. Body Type

These four women from Sydney make the kind of angular, energetic rock that makes you want to drive fast and think deeply at the same time. Their guitars interlock in ways that feel effortless but are clearly meticulously crafted. The rhythm section is propulsive without being overbearing.

Their album Everything Is Dangerous is the one to start with. It’s available on vinyl through Poison City (Australian pressing) and Merge (international). The Poison City pressing is, as usual, excellent.

What I love about Body Type is that they don’t sound like anyone else. There are echoes of post-punk, riot grrrl, and art rock, but the sum is entirely their own. Put this on in the shop and people physically react — heads turn, feet start moving.

2. The Goon Sax

Brisbane’s finest export since Powderfinger, and I’ll stand by that controversial statement. The Goon Sax make indie pop that’s smart, tender, and occasionally devastating. Their songwriting has matured enormously over three albums, and their latest material shows a band that’s grown from charming beginners into genuinely sophisticated artists.

The vinyl releases on Chapter Music (early albums) and Matador (recent) are well-pressed and worth owning. If you like early Go-Betweens, Camera Obscura, or Orange Juice, The Goon Sax will be your new favourite band.

3. Party Dozen

If Body Type makes you want to drive fast, Party Dozen makes you want to tear the steering wheel off. This Sydney duo — Kirsty Tickle on saxophone and Jonathan Boulet on drums and electronics — create a noise so enormous you’d swear there were six people on stage.

Their records are intense, abrasive, and absolutely thrilling. The vinyl pressings capture the physical weight of their sound remarkably well. Turn it up. Way up.

4. Grace Cummings

Grace Cummings has a voice that stops people in their tracks. I’ve put her records on in the shop and watched tough-looking blokes go completely still, just listening. Her songwriting draws from folk, rock, and something wilder and more elemental that I can’t quite name.

Storm Queen on ATO Records is the album to start with. The vinyl pressing is excellent, and the album rewards headphone listening as much as room-filling volume. This is an artist who is going to be enormous internationally, and the early pressings will be collector’s items.

5. Civic

Melbourne’s answer to the question nobody asked: what if MC5 reformed in Collingwood? Civic play high-energy garage rock with a commitment to volume and velocity that borders on the religious. Their records are loud, fast, and unapologetically fun.

The vinyl releases on ATO Records are well-pressed and appropriately punchy. This is the kind of music that vinyl was made for — you want to hear the room, feel the bass, and let the guitars hit you in the chest.

The Common Thread

What connects these five very different acts is that they all make music with conviction. None of them are trying to sound like something else or fit a trend. They’ve found their own voices and they’re using them fearlessly.

That’s what I look for when I’m deciding what to stock, and it’s what I listen for when I’m making recommendations. Technical skill matters, but conviction matters more. You can hear it in the first thirty seconds of any of these records.

Supporting These Artists

The best thing you can do for any of these artists is buy their records, go to their shows, and tell someone about them. The Australian independent music ecosystem runs on word of mouth. A recommendation from a friend or a record shop clerk carries more weight than any playlist algorithm.

All of these records are available at good independent shops. Tell your local store owner to stock them if they don’t already. And if your local store is my shop, I’ve already got them. Come in and I’ll put one on the turntable for you.