🔗 Share this article

Hailing from Melbourne
Perfect for fans of the C86 indie pop sound, Antipodean jangle-pop, art-pop experimentation
Up next 'Going Back to Sleep' is available now

Melbourne-based DJ Moopie, AKA Matthew Xue, is celebrated for engrossing, wide-ranging sets that often traverse from icy, atmospheric ambience to driving drum and bass and beyond. He also runs A Colourful Storm – a remarkable DIY imprint that delivers far beyond its size when it comes to releasing endearingly atmospheric avant-pop, from artists as disparate as the rhythmic explorations of Valentina Magaletti, Troth, a bass-heavy duo from Hobart, and renowned underground polymath Simon Fisher Turner.

In 2017, the label released I Won’t Have to Think About You, a collection of delightful, C86-inspired indie pop. Earlier this year, it put out Going Back to Sleep, a quasi-sequel to that record which also functions as a neatly drawn guide to some of the best twee-pop groups active today. Daily Toll, a band from Sydney, their 2025 first record A Profound Non-Event being a hidden jewel from this year, present Time, a seven-minute melodica-and-guitar reverie. The duo Chateau, featuring members Al Montfort and Alex Macfarlane, push into percussive, psychedelic lounge pop on How Long on the Platform, and Who Cares?, one of Melbourne's best new bands, channel equal parts Hope Sandoval and Eartheater on Wax and Wane.

In other tracks, Going Back to Sleep includes contributions from the enduring San Francisco indie group the Reds, Pinks and Purples; Sydney's minimalist outfit the Lewers; and bright, folk-tinged pop from the Dutch pair the Hobknobs. This is a modest collection that’s likely to grow into deeply cherished and often cited with fans of music that is subtle and emotionally resonant.

This Week’s Best New Tracks

Flea – A Plea
A rare solo track by the Red Hot Chili Peppers' bassist, which is brilliantly accomplished: propulsive but exploratory soul-jazz as Flea advocates for harmony and affection. “I’m not being corny – this shit is real!”

Daniel Blumberg and Amanda Seyfried – Clothed By the Sun
After securing this year's Oscar for Best Original Score, you can imagine Blumberg winning the Best Original Song award in 2026 for this breathtaking duet with Seyfried included in the score for the film The Testament of Ann Lee.

Jana Horn – All in Bet
Jana Horn, an artist based in Texas depicts all the nuances of melancholy on this richly despondent return, as delicate traces of piano and flute shade her exhausted letdown.

Umor Rex – Lo Animal
It's not hard to picture the work of this Madrid cellist's dark, gothic composition touched by industrial music playing over scenes in Dune, with its thundering drums, screeching metallic sounds, haunting choral passages and cataclysmic majesty.

Zora Jones x DJ Polo – Hoes Link Up
The creative Austrian producer and singer joins forces with Bristolian UK bass producer DJ Polo to deliver pounding ghettotech: the beats are absolutely crushing yet the melody approaches dream-pop.

Jawnino and Surf Gang – Hit Again
On new mixtape Amnesia, UK rapper Jawnino rolls over varied cloud-rap beats from Surf Gang, with this song standing as a peak moment, Jawnino alert and locked in as he surveys the drug trade.

Annabelle Chairlegs – Heavy Sleeper
Helmed by Ty Segall, this garagey number propels itself forward at a self-determined tempo, from runaway truck to the Austin musician’s hazy daydream about how “the moon gives me back my spirit”.