STACK #246 April 2025

FEATURE MUSIC

THIS MONTH?

AUSSIE RELEASES

MELVINS Thunderball UNIVERSAL

Together for more than four decades, the influential Melvins issue their 28th studio album, a fast follow-up

BATPISS There’s a Place in My Mind Where We All Burn Alive POISON CITY

BEDDY RAYS Do What Ya Wanna INERTIA

I t’s 1985 and singer/songwriter Tracy Chapman is busking while attending university in Cleveland, Ohio, where she’s studying anthropology. In her spare time, she’s recording demos of songs she’s written, songs that broach political awareness and urban living. While making her debut as a live performer opening for women’s music pioneer Linda Tillery, one of her songs, Talkin’ Bout a Revolution , came to the attention of a recording company producer who offered her a deal to make an album. Chapman agreed on the condition that the integrity of her songs remained intact: she insisted they be upfront, vocally and thematically. Recorded in eight weeks, her debut album, released in 1988, was introduced to the listening public by one of the greatest debut singles of all time. Fast Car , the story of a young working class woman with a no-good boyfriend trying to escape a life of poverty. Both Fast Car and the aforementioned Talkin’ Bout a Revolution , the album’s second single, were worldwide hits. The album reached number one, eventually selling more than 20 million copies. In 2023 US country music singer Luke Combs covered Fast Car for his album Gettin’ Old . Released as a single, it went to number one, making Chapman the first black woman to solely write a country chart-topper. Tracy Chapman is politically and socially active in her ongoing fight against racism. She has produced educational music videos for US elementary schools highlighting achievements in African American history. She does not discuss her personal life. TRACY CHAPMAN Tracy Chapman INERTIA BIL Y’S PICK

As the band name and album title suggests, Batpiss are fierce and uncompromising. But they are also

Brisbane band Beddy Rays – Jacko, Lewy, Brad, and Benny – took their name from a spoonerism twist on

to last year’s Tarantula Heart . It features five songs and clocks in at 34 minutes. Drummer Mike Dillard calls it “a lovely blend of beautiful noise and gut-busting grooves”.

Melbourne’s leading exponents of noise rock, with a passionate live following. Their fourth album – There’s a Place in My Mind Where We All Burn Alive – is their first studio album since 2017’s Rest in Piss . The apocalyptic Summer Is Coming is a standout, where the guitars are suitably abrasive, and we need sunscreen with an SPF of one billion. Fun fact: The album artwork was done by Kellie Lloyd, the singer from Brisbane band Screamfeeder. SARAH MARY CHADWICK Take Me Out to a Bar/ What Am I, Gatsby? MGM “I’m still a whirlwind who feels bliss and then feels cursed,” Melbourne’s Sarah Mary Chadwick sings in Not Cool Like NY/Not Cool Like LA , a plaintive piece of piano pop that’s dark but delicate. Originally from New Zealand – “I just wanna be me, Sarah Chadwick from Taumarunui,” she declares – this is Chadwick’s ninth studio album. She explains that she got sober after making the record. “I can hear it,” she says. “The desolate desire for change, the goodbyes, the fading romance, the memories.”

the name of their home suburb of Redland Bay, which is commonly

referred to as “Reddy Bay”. The band’s second album follows their self-titled 2022 debut, which hit number eight on the Aussie charts. It’s fun and punky. As the band explains, “Writing it was a way to make sense of all the craziness life throws at you, but it’s also about not taking yourself too seriously and enjoying the ride. That’s what Beddy Rays is all about.”

SIMPLE MINDS Live in the City of Diamonds UNIVERSAL

The great Scots did their first gig 47 years ago. In 1987, they released their first live album, Live in the City of Light . In 2019

they issued Live in the City of Angels . Now comes Live in the City of Diamonds , which was recorded at Amsterdam’s Ziggo Dome in April last year. STEREOPHONICS Make ’Em Laugh, Make ’Em Cry, Make ’Em Wait UNIVERSAL

THORNHILL Bodies ROCKET

Melbourne’s metal kings Thornhill celebrate their tenth anniversary with their third album, Bodies . It

follows 2022’s Heroine , which was a Top 5 hit, reaching number three, and was also nominated for ‘Best Hard Rock/Heavy Metal Album’ at the ARIA Awards. Obsession showcases the Thornhill sound – it’s heavy but also delightfully dreamy. Co-produced by Sam Bassal, the drummer in Ocean Grove, it’s edgy but atmospheric. If they are not already there, Thornhill are ready to step up to the big league.

This is the lucky 13th studio album for the most successful Welsh

rockers of all time – they’ve had eight number one albums in the UK. The band says the new record is hopeful and joyous and “devoid of any fat or filler”.

Coming in

MAY

SPACEY JANE If That Makes Sense (May 9) DOPE LEMON Golden Wolf (May 9) TYNE-JAMES ORGAN The Other Side (May 16)

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

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