Matthew Xue's Charmingly Moody Curated Collections and This Week's Top Fresh Releases
From Melbourne
Perfect for fans of the C86 compilation, Australian and New Zealand guitar pop, atmospheric pop
Up next 'Going Back to Sleep' is available now
The artist known as DJ Moopie, real name Matthew Xue, from Melbourne, is celebrated for deeply absorbing musical journeys that can run the gamut from gelid ambient music to pulsating breakbeats plus other genres. He is also the founder of A Colourful Storm – a remarkable DIY imprint that massively punches above its weight when it comes to putting out charmingly moody experimental pop music, featuring a diverse roster including the rhythmic explorations of Valentina Magaletti, Troth, a bass-heavy duo from Hobart, and the prolific underground figure Simon Fisher Turner.
The label's 2017 release was I Won’t Have to Think About You, a collection of delightful, C86-inspired indie pop. This year saw the release of Going Back to Sleep, a spiritual follow-up to that compilation which also functions as a succinct overview to several excellent bands in the gentle pop sphere making music now. Daily Toll, a band from Sydney, their 2025 first record A Profound Non-Event being a hidden jewel from this year, present Time, a seven-minute daydream built on melodica and guitar. Chateau, comprising Al Montfort and Alex Macfarlane, explore beat-driven, psychedelic-infused easy listening on How Long on the Platform, while the band Who Cares?, channel equal parts moody vocalists Hope Sandoval and Eartheater on Wax and Wane.
On other parts of the compilation, Going Back to Sleep features tracks from San Francisco indie stalwarts the Reds, Pinks and Purples; Sydney's minimalist outfit the Lewers; and the sunny folk-pop of Netherlands-based duo the Hobknobs. This is a modest collection that’s likely to grow into deeply cherished and often cited with fans of music that is subtle and emotionally resonant.
Fresh Tracks of the Week
Flea – A Plea
A rare solo track from the RHCP bass player, and a magnificently realised one: propulsive but exploratory soul-jazz with Flea calling for peace and love. “I’m not being corny – this shit is real!”
Daniel Blumberg and Amanda Seyfried – Clothed By the Sun
Having won this year’s best original score Oscar, it's easy to picture Blumberg taking home the 2026 Oscar for Best Original Song for this breathtaking duet with Seyfried featured on the soundtrack he composed for The Testament of Ann Lee.
Jana Horn – All in Bet
Jana Horn, an artist based in Texas paints in every shade of a sigh on this richly despondent return, in which minimal hints of piano and flute shade her exhausted letdown.
Umor Rex – Lo Animal
It's not hard to picture the work of this Madrid cellist's gothic masterpiece with industrial shades featured in a Dune soundtrack, with its thundering drums, metallic shrieks, haunting choral passages and cataclysmic majesty.
Zora Jones x DJ Polo – Hoes Link Up
Imaginative Austrian producer-vocalist teams up with Bristolian UK bass producer DJ Polo to deliver pounding ghettotech: the beats are absolutely crushing yet the melody approaches dream-pop.
Jawnino and Surf Gang – Hit Again
Included on the latest mixtape, Amnesia, The UK's Jawnino rides an assortment of cloud-rap instrumentals by Surf Gang, and this is one of its peaks, Jawnino alert and locked in while he examines the world of narcotics.
Annabelle Chairlegs – Heavy Sleeper
With production by Ty Segall, this garage-rock-influenced track moves forward stubbornly on its own schedule, transitioning from a freight-train momentum to the Austin-based artist's woozy reflection about how “the moon returns the spirit to me”.
