🔗 Share this article

Based in Melbourne
Perfect for fans of the C86 compilation, Australian and New Zealand guitar pop, art-pop experimentation
Newest project Going Back to Sleep out now

The artist known as DJ Moopie, real name Matthew Xue, from Melbourne, is celebrated for engrossing, wide-ranging sets that often traverse from chilled-out soundscapes to driving drum and bass and beyond. He also runs A Colourful Storm – an exceptional independent record label that massively punches above its weight when it comes to issuing charmingly moody experimental pop music, with contributors ranging from the rhythmic explorations of Valentina Magaletti, the dub-infused sounds of Hobart pair Troth, and the prolific underground figure Simon Fisher Turner.

In 2017, the label released 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 simultaneously serves as a neatly drawn guide to some of the best twee-pop groups currently working. Daily Toll, a band from Sydney, with a 2025 debut, A Profound Non-Event, that stands as an overlooked treasure of the year, contribute Time, a seven-minute melodica-and-guitar reverie. Chateau, comprising Al Montfort and Alex Macfarlane, venture into beat-driven, psychedelic-infused easy listening on How Long on the Platform, and Who Cares?, one of Melbourne's best new bands, draw equally from Hope Sandoval and Eartheater on Wax and Wane.

Elsewhere, Going Back to Sleep features tracks from the enduring San Francisco indie group the Reds, Pinks and Purples; the sparse-sounding Sydney ensemble the Lewers; and the sunny folk-pop of Netherlands-based duo the Hobknobs. This is a modest collection that’s destined to be a beloved and regularly mentioned resource with fans of all things delicate and deeply felt.

Fresh Tracks of the Week

Flea – A Plea
A rare solo track from the RHCP bass player, which is brilliantly accomplished: propulsive but exploratory soul-jazz where Flea pleads for tranquility and compassion. “This isn't cliché – it's genuine!”

Daniel Blumberg and Amanda Seyfried – Clothed By the Sun
After securing this year's Oscar for Best Original Score, it's easy to picture Blumberg taking home best original song in 2026 for this breathtaking duet with Seyfried featured on the soundtrack he composed for The Testament of Ann Lee.

Jana Horn – All in Bet
The Texan songwriter captures the full spectrum of a sigh in this opulently sad new song, where the slightest touches of piano and flute tinge her fatigued disillusionment.

Umor Rex – Lo Animal
One might readily envision this Madrid-based cellist’s dark, gothic composition touched by industrial music featured in a Dune soundtrack, due to its seismic drum work, metallic shrieks, eerie chorals and end-times grandeur.

Zora Jones x DJ Polo – Hoes Link Up
Austrian visionary Zora Jones teams up with Bristolian UK bass producer DJ Polo on a track of hard-hitting ghettotech: the beats are absolutely crushing but the melody is almost dream-pop.

Jawnino and Surf Gang – Hit Again
Featured on the fresh mixtape Amnesia, British MC Jawnino flows over an assortment of cloud-rap instrumentals from Surf Gang, and this is one of its peaks, Jawnino sharp and fully engaged as he observes the world of narcotics.

Annabelle Chairlegs – Heavy Sleeper
Helmed by Ty Segall, this garage-rock-influenced track propels itself forward at a self-determined tempo, transitioning from a freight-train momentum to the Austin-based artist's hazy daydream about how “the moon gives me back my spirit”.