The underground’s doing just fine – to prove it here’s new music actually worth your time this week
We get sent a lot of music every week, most of it comes and goes pretty quickly. But every now and then, there’s a batch that sticks for the right reasons.
Not because there’s a big PR machine behind it, but because the songs actually hold up. This week’s radar pulls together a stack of emerging artists quietly putting in the hours, refining their sound and building something real without the noise.
It’s a mix of lo-fi shoegaze out of regional WA, self-produced albums shaped in bedrooms and home studios, and sharp-edged punk with something to say.
scumlings
Regional WA shoegaze-emo with a rough edge, debut single ‘Untapped!’ leans fully into lo-fi haze and distortion.
Modern Bodies
Jangly psych meets slick Strokes-style new wave on Down The Line, recorded deep in Mississippi.
The Vultures
Brand spanking new debut album drop from Aussies own alt-rock lifers who sharpen their chaos into something more deliberate on Chaos Reflections.
Carmon
Sydney indie-folk-pop that leans into your twenties: messy, reflective, and self-produced.
Crispy Danger
New indie rock trio outta Melbourne fusing metal roots with hooky rock on debut single ‘Outta Control.’
Omari
Bedroom-built R&B from Naarm, minimal but emotionally dialled-in.
Mark’s Paranormal Disneyland
Lo-fi, politically charged alt with a surreal edge on ‘Living A Lie.’
Nuka-Naka
Berlin indie project blending funk, psych and soft-focus pop into something quietly introspective.
Dinosaur Galaxy
A poetic indie take on the spirit of Lou Reed, more meditation than imitation.
Lauren Bull
Emerging pop voice with a soft-focus delivery, still early but hinting at something more refined to come.
okmattcollins
Gold Coast multi-hyphenate goes fully solo on Finding My Way Back, a candid, self-produced album tracing the highs and doubts of a life in music.
The Suncharms
Sheffield shoegaze outfit delivering washed-out guitars and reverb-heavy vocals on Darkening Skies, a nod to the genre’s golden era.
Joey Juste
Concept-driven project unpacking childhood trauma and lost time, balancing heavy themes with a thread of hard-won optimism.
Stephanie Milostic
Pop with polish and pipes, gearing up for a debut headline moment at Oxford Art Factory.
