STACK #252 October 2025

FEATURE MUSIC

THIS MONTH?

CARLA GENEVE Don’t Be Afraid ROCKET

PETE MURRAY Longing ROCKET

F ronted by Rod Argent’s jazzy/R&B keyboards and singer Colin Blunstone’s elegant breathy vocals, five-piece English band The Zombies moved on from their earliest hits She’s Not There and Tell Her No – both co-written by Argent – to create what became this highly influential album, praised for its depth of songwriting, musicianship, and pop craftsmanship. Released in 1968, Odessey and Oracle consisted entirely of original compositions written by Argent and bass guitarist Chris White. Because of financial restraints, the band chose to record with a mellotron, a keyboard able to simulate orchestral sounds and string instruments. The band’s fresh original material is evident from the opening track, Care of Cell 44 , about the singer’s girlfriend who’s in prison. The atmospheric Hung Up on a Dream and the hopeful This Will Be Our Year , which turned out to be ironically prophetic, are in sharp contrast to the most unusual track on the album, Butcher’s Tale , about the senseless slaughter of World War I. The final song to be recorded was Time of the Season , which was released as a single after the band had broken up. Against the odds, it became a worldwide hit. Fast forward a few years, The Zombies had reformed, and in 2019 were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. THE ZOMBIES Odessey and Oracle UNIVERSAL BIL Y’S PICK

Paul Dempsey covers Carla Geneve’s Dog Eared on his new Shotgun

Pete Murray has gone back to where it all began. He started his career as an indie artist, releasing his debut album, The Game , in 2001. Now, after a run of five Top 10 albums on a major label – including three chart-toppers – the Byron Bay-based artist has returned to the independent world with Longing , his first studio album in eight years. A welcome return.

Karaoke album. You can see why Geneve’s fellow artists dig her emotional pop. Don’t Be Afraid is the third studio album for the singer-songwriter, from Albany in WA, with the title coming from the final words of Irish poet Seamus Heaney. “Songwriting is such a beautiful vessel to encourage empathy,” Geneve believes, “by displaying complexity, self-reflection and both sides of big feelings.”

AUSSIE RELEASES

AMY SHEPPARD Born to Be Country MGM It’s been a big year for Sheppard’s Amy Sheppard. As well as her debut solo album, she revealed she’s becoming a mum, with “Stuart Little” expected to arrive in February next year. Sheppard are undeniably a pop band, but Amy is making it clear she’s now a country artist, with the album’s first single called Country Country . “It’s like home and I want to stay,” she sings, namechecking Dolly, Willie, and Hank along the way.

DOM MARIANI Apple of Life MGM

TAME IMPALA Deadbeat SONY

Dom Mariani is a much-loved veteran of Australian music, fronting The Stems, DM3, The Someloves, and Datura4.

Tame Impala are one of the greatest Aussie success stories of this millennium. Essentially, a one-man band, their most

Aside from music, he works as an architectural designer, and he certainly knows how to craft a nifty pop tune. For his second solo album, Mariani is “taking another bite from the apple of life”, explaining: “The theme is based around the gentle reminder that we only get one shot at life, to make the most of it.”

recent albums, Currents and The Slow Rush , both hit the Top 5 in the US and UK as well as topping the Australian charts. Kevin Parker says the new album “is deeply inspired by bush doof culture and the Western Australian rave scene”. This will be a big one all summer.

BUMPY Kanana INERTIA

EMMA LOUISE/FLUME Dumb INERTIA Emma Louise and Flume

WILSN Bloom MUSHROOM

Amy Dowd is a proud Noongar woman who records under the name of Bumpy, explaining that “when I was little, I was

“This is how a WILSN record is supposed to sound,” says Shannon

worked together on the 2022 single Hollow . It revealed a potent combination: Flume’s trademark electro sound and

Busch, the artist known as WILSN. “Since I was a kid,

constantly running into everything… that’s where the name Bumpy comes from.” After a string of singles and a fine EP, Bumpy is releasing her debut album, Kanana , which means “land where the sun sets”. The artist explains: “We look at Kanana and catch a glimpse of unity.”

Emma Louise’s ethereal vocals. The duo has now combined for a full album. “At first, naming the album Dumb felt irreverent and freeing,” Emma Louise notes. “But later I realised how deeply it connected to my own fear of being seen as stupid and unworthy. This album is me reclaiming that word, letting go of shame, and promising myself I’ll never abandon my voice again.”

I’ve been captivated by soul music – the emotion, the power, and the stories woven into every note – and I always strive to create music that not only reflects my own truth but also pays tribute to the stories and voices that built the foundation I’m standing on.” With her second album, this Melbourne soul queen is ready to Bloom .

Coming in NOVEMBER

PAUL KELLY Seventy (Nov 7) TEEN JESUS AND THE JEAN TEASERS Glory (Nov 7) JIMMY BARNES For the Working Class Man (40th Anniversary Edition) (Nov 14)

Radio legend Billy Pinnell presents Billy Pinnell’s Musical Moments on YouTube.

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