Take 5

Mo’Ju is a shapeshifting artist. Over more than a decade, they’ve explored different sounds, stories and scenes… forever disrupting our expectations. Their new album is Oro, Plata, Mata. It’s a concept record based in cycles, and very much rooted in Mo’Ju’s sense of self and where they’re headed. A week out from it’s release, Mo’Ju joined me to Take 5 and explore this new era.  Take 5 sings when m...

If you know the music of Angel Olsen, you know she feels and communicates emotion deeply. Across six albums, we’ve heard her lay it all on the line. Or at least, we thought we had. Big Time is Angel’s most raw and personal record to date. And with good reason. It was recorded in a time of great love, grief, and change for Angel. At 34, she met a new partner and came out as queer to her parents. Da...

It was less than a year ago that Wet Leg released their debut album. A little more than that, when we first met them with Chaise Longue. In that time they’ve blown up; hit #1 on the album charts, won 2 Grammy’s, 2 Brits, and fans all over the world… including Harry Styles. Back in Australia supporting Harry in his stadium shows, I invited Rhian and Hester to Take 5. I wanted to hear, from the sour...

It’s a big World Pride celebration for Take 5, as the party comes to Australia for the first time and on the same weekend at Mardi Gras. Music (and dance music in particular) came from queer culture, and queer clubs are some of the most welcoming and magical spaces in the world. So it’s fitting to have a woman who has found herself in the clubs, Take 5. HAAi was born and raised in Australia, but h...

For more than twenty years, Urthboy has been part of the Australian hip-hop scene. From his early days with The Herd, to setting up the Elefant Traks record label, he’s made a name as a solo artist, with now seven albums under his belt. His latest is called Savour, it’s Urthy’s exploration of masculinity, of vulnerability, and of capturing and enjoying life while you can. And ahead of it’s release...

This Take 5 is something of a reunion. It’s been six years since Julia Jacklin first joined me and picked the music. Since then, she’s released two more brilliant albums, made a name for herself across the world, and shared her stories in every way. Julia has always had a knack for knocking us out with her incredibly personal songs. And in giving so much of her own experiences in her art, we’ve be...

Irish band Fontaine’s D.C. formed over a shared love of poetry. In the early days, the band would meet at the pub, write verse, and recite it to one another. And that’s carried through to the music they make; across three albums they’ve created a compelling mood punctuated by some brilliant lyrics. It’s why I gave them the theme of verse, and from Sinead O’Connor to A$AP Ferg, to The Pogues, this...

Every year, while our sister station counts down the Hottest 100, on Double J we relive the countdown from 20 years ago. It’s a wild trip down memory lane, and a reminder of the music that has stood the test of time, and the songs you’d completely forgotten about (sometimes, for good reason). As we readied to live in the 2002 countdown once again, I thought it’d be fun to invite some of triple j’s...

It’s the finale of Take 5 for 2022 and honestly, I couldn’t think of a more perfect guest to see us into the summer break. Jon Hopkins has been one of my favourite artists for many years. His music has soundtracked the highs and lows of my life, it’s kept me grounded when I needed it most and it’s helped my transcend when life has boxed me in. Whether crafting beats, or composing music for psyched...

Melbourne band Press Club have only played together for a handful of years, but in that time they’ve made a name for themselves; their live gigs are the stuff of legend, with frontwoman Natalie Foster throwing herself around the stage while belting out pitch perfect indie rock. Press Club have always recorded their albums with the same kinetic energy - short, sharp bursts in the studio that captur...

It’s a treat from the archives this ep, with Deftones back in Australia for the Good Things festival I thought it’d be a good chance to revisit a beautiful and eye opening chat with the legendary Chino Moreno. Back in 2016 he joined me to Take 5. Deftones have always balanced the brutal with the beautiful, and I wanted to discover the different parts of his musical heart. So I asked him to share f...

It’s fair to say that most of us have a connection to Groove Armada. Whether you’re a turbo fan, or you’ve been at a festival going off to one of their bangers, their connection to Australia is huge. Andy Cato and Tom Findlay are celebrating 25 years together, and with it a new box set of greatest hits, and their final live shows all over the world. In Australia to perform for the last time with a...

If you talk about country in Australia today, one name comes immediately to mind. Troy Cassar-Daley. The proud Gumbaynggirr and Bundjalung man is one of our most celebrated artists; he holds the record for Golden Guitar Awards and has been making music and telling stories for more than 30 years. Many of those stories are of Australian life, from people in towns big and small, and so I asked him to...

One of the most exciting bands of the last five years, is IDLES. The Bristol group grabbed our attention early, and have held it; prolific in their output, profound in their outlook. Joe Talbot is their lead singer, and it’s his life experiences that fuel their songs. Loss, mistakes, gratitude, redemption and joy fill their four records, and their latest is all about forks in the road. In Australi...

She's one of Australia's best songwriters

He’s the guy that famously brought Nirvana to Australia on their one and only visit, he toured bands like Beastie Boys and Sonic Youth, and put on the Summersault Festival in 1995.

Join Zan as she travels to Los Angeles, Nashville, and Melbourne, and sits down with extraordinary people to hear about the songs that made them who they are today. Guy Pearce, Keith Urban, Missy Higgins, Tony Armstrong and Tori Amos join Zan as Take 5 premieres on ABC TV and can be heard exclusively on the ABC Listen App.

I still remember the first time I heard Santigold. It was like a bolt from the blue, an upload to Myspace that sounded like nothing else around. The trilling high vocal, that deep bassy ownership of song. She came onto the scene demanding to be noticed, and I stood to attention with my ears wide open. Her debut album would be a big hit, and I’d soon learn her backstory; in punk bands, working at l...

One of the most beautiful voices performing today, is that of Marlon Williams. The New Zealand singer has been a rising star over the past few years, not only with his music but increasingly on screen with roles in A Star is Born, The Beautiful Lie, and True History of the Kelly Gang. It’s been around four years since his last solo record, but he’s just returned with My Boy. And it’s quite the fli...

If you’ve ever worked in hospitality, you’ve seen things. The long hours, the patrons, those blurry lines between work and play, and, if you’re Jess Ho, the complex world of what is good and bad taste. Jess has game in hospo. They may have started off as a waiter, but would become one of the most iconic gatekeepers at Melbourne’s coolest restaurant, would go on to be a venue owner themselves, a fo...

Alexisonfire have been releasing brilliant albums for more than twenty years, but it’s been a good thirteen since their last. That changed recently when they returned with Otherness, a brilliant capture of a band renewed, and still holding the raw power and soaring beauty they always did. Dallas Green is one of three lead singers in the band, and one of the friendliest fella’s you’ll meet. He also...

Hilltop Hoods are legends. For more than twenty years they’ve dominated the local scene, with multiple Hottest 100 entries, ARIA’s and the record for the most #1 albums in Australian music. When they play a show, it’s an arena, and they’ve brought that energy to every one of their performances; on stage and on record. Those are the accolades you hear about… but when I invited them to Take 5 I want...

It’s not overstating it to say that Spiderbait are one of Australia’s most loved bands. For more than 30 years, this power trio have ripped it up on stages and albums alike, and held a tight bond of friendship the whole way through. Their latest venture is a compilation album celebrating their bassist and singer Janet English. It’s called Sounds in the Key Of J, and off the back of it’s release I...

Casey Donovan, is one of Australia’s greatest voices. We first met her as a 16 year old on Australian Idol. Her audition grabbed us immediately, and she would go on to win the second series. Since then, she’s been a star on musical theatre stages, written a memoir, made podcasts, and become our official Queen of New Years – belting out the biggest songs on ABC TV’s big broadcast. But what are the...

Where do you start with Phil Jamieson? If you grew up in Australia, he’s been part of the musical fabric for decades. His band Grinspoon were the first band to ever be Unearthed by triple j, they dominated festival line-ups and made more than a few appearances in the Hottest 100. His music with Grinners has soundtracked our lives, and whether on stage or having a chat, Phil has often been the most...