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Hailing from Melbourne
Recommended if you like the C86 compilation, AU/NZ jangle-pop, Mess Esque
Latest release 'Going Back to Sleep' is available now

The artist known as DJ Moopie, real name Matthew Xue, from Melbourne, is renowned for engrossing, wide-ranging sets that can run the gamut from gelid ambient music to driving drum and bass and beyond. Additionally, he operates A Colourful Storm – an exceptional independent record label that consistently exceeds expectations when it comes to putting out endearingly atmospheric avant-pop, from artists as disparate as the rhythmic explorations of Valentina Magaletti, Troth, a bass-heavy duo from Hobart, and esteemed multi-disciplinary artist Simon Fisher Turner.

The label's 2017 release was I Won’t Have to Think About You, a compilation of winsome, C86-ish indie pop. Earlier this year, it put out Going Back to Sleep, a spiritual follow-up to that compilation which doubles as a carefully curated roadmap to several excellent bands in the gentle pop sphere currently working. Sydney band Daily Toll, whose 2025 debut A Profound Non-Event is one of the year’s underrated gems, contribute Time, a sprawling, seven-minute meditation featuring melodica and guitar. The duo Chateau, the duo of Al Montfort (Terry, Total Control) and Alex Macfarlane (the Stevens, Twerps), venture 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.

On other parts of the compilation, Going Back to Sleep includes contributions from Bay Area indie fixtures the Reds, Pinks and Purples; Sydney's minimalist outfit the Lewers; and bright, folk-tinged pop from the Dutch pair the Hobknobs. It stands as a humble compilation that’s almost certain to become 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 from the RHCP bass player, and it is superbly executed: driving yet inquisitive soul-infused jazz where Flea pleads for harmony and affection. “No cheesiness here – this is the truth!”

Daniel Blumberg and Amanda Seyfried – Clothed By the Sun
Following his Oscar win for Best Original Score this year, it's easy to picture Blumberg taking home the Best Original Song award in 2026 thanks to this remarkable collaboration with Amanda Seyfried included in the soundtrack he composed for The Testament of Ann Lee.

Jana Horn – All in Bet
The Texan songwriter paints in every shade of a sigh on this richly despondent return, in which minimal hints of piano and woodwind shade her exhausted letdown.

Umor Rex – Lo Animal
You could easily imagine the work of this Madrid cellist's industrial-tinged gothic opus featured in a Dune soundtrack, thanks to its pounding percussion, metallic shrieks, spooky vocal harmonies and end-times grandeur.

Zora Jones x DJ Polo – Hoes Link Up
Austrian visionary Zora Jones joins forces with Bristolian UK bass producer DJ Polo to deliver pounding ghettotech: the drums could knock you flat but the melody is almost dream-pop.

Jawnino and Surf Gang – Hit Again
On new mixtape Amnesia, British MC Jawnino rolls over an assortment of cloud-rap instrumentals by Surf Gang, with this song standing as a peak moment, Jawnino alert and locked in as he surveys the landscape of drug dealing.

Annabelle Chairlegs – Heavy Sleeper
Produced by Ty Segall, this garagey number moves forward stubbornly on its own schedule, transitioning from a freight-train momentum to the musician from Austin's woozy reflection about how “the moon returns the spirit to me”.