Ash Moss, Mercy Arms

Sydney-band Mercy Arms play a drone-like, hard edged, melodic rock and roll, all with a subtle pyschedlic tinge. Confused? Not at all. It’s a just one hell of a live show. Their debut self-album was released independently in August of this year.

Chris Isaak / Wicked Game
I think this is one of the best songs ever recorded. The way it is produced is perfect for the song and I don’t think it could have been done better. The lead line is so subtle in parts, yet stands out the whole time and gives it a really nice feel. On top of this, Chris Isaak’s voice is just brilliant. He has a very masculine delivery but he hit the notes so perfectly and with such strength. There is also an instrumental version, which was on the David Lynch film Wild At Heart that is also great, and in a way is just as good even without Isaak’s melody on top of it. The best thing about this song, and what makes it such a masterpiece for me, is the fact that it can be played at any time and still be great. Most songs don’t have this quality.

 The Chills / Pink Frost 
This song has such an ambient creepiness to it which gives you an odd feeling towards what you are listening to. To me, it sounds so different to any other song and quite different to any of The Chills other work. I remember when I first saw it on Rage late one night and I had to write it down straight away so I would not forget it. I could never find the record anywhere so I bought it on cassette tape, which I think is funny in itself. The filmclip is also one of my favourites as it has such a feeling of ambience and a very cold looking New Zealand landscape.

Roland S. Howard / Undone 
This song has a certain aggressiveness to it that really translates through the recording until it then breaks down into a quiet, heartfelt middle section which leads into a huge outro that is emphasised by the breakdown. I really like how it then repeats itself. Most of this album is really well thought out. I think you can actually feel the pain which is being expressed in the songs.  

NEU! / Hero 
This song was recorded in the mid 70s and sounds as if it was recorded nowadays. It is the most uplifting song! There is an amazing guitar line that sounds all too ahead of its time. NEU! are so good at what they do, and make sticking on the same groove for as long as the songs needs sound amazing. That is what is great about them — that the art is about where and when they end the song. We played them as we were driving along the highway in Europe, which suited perfectly. We normally play their second album on our drive to Melbourne, but this is my favourite out of their three studio records.

 Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds / Red Right Hand 
We had the pleasure of recording our first record with the long time Bad Seeds producer who recorded and mixed this particular song. There is no denying Nick Cave does well and this is just another example of that. All the layers of different instrumentation makes this song so cool. These guys are excellent musicians and I have been told lots of interesting and funny stories about these sessions, and other tours over the years, by the one and only Tony Cohen, who was the man behind the desk for this one.  

The Stone Roses / Fools Gold 
This song sums up the whole Madchester acid house era of the late 80s-early 90s, which I find fascinating. It’s such a free song which just washes over you. I love the filmclip to this song. And I love their acid wash and Baggy T-Shirts as well. It just completely sums up that whole time at the turn of the decade.

  The Stranglers / Hanging Around
 I was going to choose Peaches, but I love the intensity of this song and the organ playing sounds as if it couldn’t actually be played that fast ever again. It’s so forceful and has a great middle solo section where the guitar and organ solo off each other without getting in the way of each other. The bass playing on all of the Stranglers records is just brilliant!

Cut Copy / Rendezvous  
This is a really early Cut Copy track off their first EP, which Dan gave to me. I love it to death and can’t wait for the day to see Cut Copy perform it live. I find it to be a really happy and uplifting song. But then, I think all of Cut Copy’s work is great!