Take 5

Dan Kelly is one of our best songwriters. He's whimsical, charming, and with indie-pop hooks for days. Almost 10 years since his last album, he’s now back with GOLDFEELS, and a decidedly more serious outlook. But Dan still knows how to draw you into a yarn and make you smile. He also looks to some heroes for inspiration, grounding, and to follow their arrow. So dig into his 'story time' Take 5 wit...

Noel Gallagher is just like you. Putting aside the fame and fortune, the hit records and the very public family issues, at his heart he's a big music nerd. As a kid he idolised the songs on the record player and worshipped the legends who wrote them. His Take 5 theme was 'escape', and growing up in a council estate in The North, music was Noel’s escape. He’d be transported by older kids' records a...

A special little treat for you in the feed this week; a conversation with Nick Cave. After years away, he's returned to doing interviews, and Zan Rowe was lucky to get the only Australian radio interview with him. They spoke about Wild God, the legacy of the Bad Seeds, people lost, and things found. About frogs. Settle in for a beautiful conversation with one of the greatest artists and poets of o...

Emily Wurramara is one of my favourite Australian musicians.  The Warnindhilyagwa woman writes from the heart, sings with the smokiest voice around, and has a laugh that is truly infectious. This is a glorious Take 5. Settle in for some beautiful energy, lots of laughs, and real insight into the songs that tell her story of new beginnings. It’s been six years since Emily’s debut album, a lot has c...

In 2004, a rock doco came out that was pure chaos. Dig! captured 7 years in the life of The Dandy Warhols and Brian Jonestown Massacre as they tried to break it big. Made by a young first-time filmmaker called Ondi Timoner and her brother David, it's a wild story about growing up, art vs commerce, friendship and bust ups.  20 years later it's been re-cut as Dig! XX, with over 40 minutes of never-b...

Ever since I first heard them, Middle Kids have been a favourite.  Exceptional songwriting, brilliant playing, and Hannah Joy’s beautiful voice.  They’ve now got three albums under their belt, the latest of which is called Faith Crisis Pt 1. I’ve wanted to invite Middle Kids in to Take 5 for a while, and when Hannah said yes, and sent her songs back, I knew we’d be in for a treat. Strap in for a b...

You know that feeling when you’re watching a movie or TV show and the perfect song hits at the perfect moment?  Think Lost in Translation when ‘Alone in Kyoto’ by Air comes in, or the visceral scenes from The Bear soundtracked by Refused’s ‘New Noise’. You don’t just see films, you hear them. Such is the power and responsibility of the music supervisor who carefully selects the right song for the...

Dylan Alcott is a deadset legend.  A former Australian of the Year, multi-gold medallist, and disability advocate, but before all of that, he sat down to Take 5.

Sarah Blasko has a voice that never lets you go. Her debut album The Overture & the Underscore was released 20 years ago, and she’s been a constant presence ever since. Always pushing the boundaries of her art and anchoring everything she does with that transcendent voice. Two decades on from her debut, and 6 years since her last album, Sarah Blasko is back with new music. It's the perfect exc...

There's no other artist quite like DOBBY.  The proud Filipino and Murrawarri artist (real name Rhyan Clapham) is a composer, rapper, producer and drummer. He's been performing and releasing music for years, but only just released his debut album. It’s called WARRANGU; River Story, and it’s about the plight of the Murray-Darling river system. The artistry on this album is magnificent. DOBBY expertl...

Who knew cooking competitions would take over Australian television? Back in 2010, the finale for the second season of MasterChef became the most watched non-sporting event of that year. And the winner? Adam Liaw. He'd been working in Japan when he decided to enter the TV cooking comp, and he quickly became a firm favourite. After his win, everything changed. He published cookbooks, became the hos...

If you don’t know Susan Rogers by name, you’ll know her work. A female producer and sound engineer in an industry dominated by men, her drive and commitment landed her side by side with Prince as his star soared. She was his audio technician right before he started recording Purple Rain, and was his sound engineer through his commercial peak – capturing Parade, Around the World in a Day, The Black...

Vika and Linda are national treasures. We first met the Bull sisters alongside the Black Sorrows, doing backing vocals for Paul Kelly, and then bursting out on their own with their debut album. That record turns 30 this year, and to celebrate, I’m taking you to a glorious Take 5 from the archives with Vika and Linda. The year was 2019, and their theme was “sibling songs”. They picked it too, and y...

Adam Hills has lived an extraordinary life. From getting his start in stand up comedy to beaming out to millions on The Last Leg and Spicks and Specks. He's been awarded an MBE and even been immortalised on an Australian postage stamp. When he’s not on stage and screen, Adam is out on the field playing disability rugby, or smashing a tennis ball. He has a boundless energy and passion for living li...

Back in 1989, Neneh Cherry released her debut album. Raw Like Sushi was a smash in the UK and here in Australia. This young Swede based in London caught all of our attention, and through the 90’s she’d release two more albums before taking a breather from music. But her creative life began way earlier. With an artist mother and jazz legend Don Cherry as her stepfather, Neneh’s childhood was a life...

Can you remember when Ill Communication first came out? If you came of age in the 90’s like me, it was a huge album. Bursting outta the gates with 'Sure Shot', with hits like 'Get it Together' and 'Sabotage'... it’s one of Beastie Boys most varied and loved albums, and in 2024 it turns 30 years old. The sound of this album is as fresh as it was in 1994, and to mark this big anniversary I dug into...

Brooklyn band Grizzly Bear helped shaped the sound of modern indie music. Across their five albums they layered intricate and nuanced guitar music with choirboy vocals and a whole lotta heart. They broke through in 2006 with their second album, Yellow House, but it was 2009’s Veckatimist which took Grizzly Bear to a whole new plane and became one of the most loved albums of the decade. To mark its...

Kasey Chambers is a living legend. Five number one albums, fourteen ARIA Awards, she is the youngest woman to be inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame. Kasey grew up with music. As a kid she’d travel across the Nullabor with her dad, at the end of each day the family would always gather around the campfire to sing songs. She would go on to play with the family band, but it was her 1999 debut album T...

Angie McMahon is one of those artists that stops you in your tracks. She caught my attention back in 2017 with 'Slow Mover' and immediately I was asking, who is this? A debut album followed, then a few years later the follow up. And her second album has taken Angie into another realm, selling big iconic rooms like the Sydney Opera House and Melbourne’s Forum several times over. I’ve wanted to Take...

It’s a special Take 5 this week, as we mark 10 years of Double J! To mark our birthday, I thought it’d be fun to invite one of our biggest listeners on to Take 5. And he just happens to know about the power of radio to connect, and create a place for people no matter where we are. Ryan “Fitzy” Fitzgerald is in radio himself, for almost 20 years he’s been with Nova, most of it in the primo Breakfas...

You know that question about who you’d invite to your dream dinner party? Beth Ditto is always at the top of my list. This sassy icon from the deep south grabbed my attention more than 20 years ago fronting the Gossip, and has held it ever since. From punk beginnings, to big hit bangers, gracing catwalks and the small screen, and carving out a space for those without that huge, powerful voice, she...

Bri Lee is an author, journalist, and activist. You’ve probably seen her pop up on telly, in panels, and online, because in just over 5 years Bri has carved out an acclaimed career, publishing the bestselling Eggshell Skull and another two books of non-fiction. Her work has interrogated how the legal system deals with sexual crimes, the realm of eating disorders, and the class structures within ed...

Dave McCormack has one of those voices. As lead singer of Custard, his husky tones and the band’s playful indie rock beamed out of Brisbane in the 90s. They were a happy haven from the angsty guitar scene of the time. In 1999, after 5 albums and tonnes of shows as one of Australia’s favourite live acts, Custard called it a day. Dave McCormack would go on to play in other bands, he began composing...

Adrianne Lenker feels things deeply. You hear it in every one of her songs, whether solo, or with her band Big Thief. Lucky for us, she shares it all, and over the past few years has become one of the most promising and prolific songwriters around; making 6 albums on her own and 5 with her band.   Her latest is “Bright Future” and it’s another stunning record of genius songwriting, and the inspira...

Well I hope you’re up for a laugh, cos this Take 5 is a special one. As comedy festival season kicks it around Australia, I’ve dug into the Take 5 archives and pulled out some of my favourite chats with comedians. Unsurprisingly, they’re great storytellers. And as we know from almost 20 years of Taking 5, everyone has a connection to music. There’s another throughline to these tales too, they all...