DJ Moopie's Charmingly Moody Experimental Compilations along with The Week's Best New Tracks
From Melbourne
Recommended if you like classic jangle-pop compilations, Australian and New Zealand guitar pop, art-pop experimentation
Latest release Going Back to Sleep out now
Melbourne-based DJ Moopie, AKA Matthew Xue, is celebrated for captivating and eclectic DJ sets that effortlessly shift between icy, atmospheric ambience to pulsating breakbeats and much more. Additionally, he operates A Colourful Storm – a remarkable DIY imprint that consistently exceeds expectations when it comes to issuing charmingly moody experimental pop music, from artists as disparate as London-based percussionist Valentina Magaletti, dubby Hobart duo Troth, and the prolific underground figure Simon Fisher Turner.
In 2017, the label released I Won’t Have to Think About You, a collection of delightful, C86-inspired indie pop. Earlier this year, it put out Going Back to Sleep, a record that acts as a companion piece which simultaneously serves as a succinct overview to several excellent bands in the gentle pop sphere active today. Daily Toll, a band from Sydney, their 2025 first record A Profound Non-Event being a hidden jewel from this year, present Time, a sprawling, seven-minute meditation featuring melodica and guitar. The duo Chateau, featuring members 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, channel equal parts the styles of Hope Sandoval and Eartheater on Wax and Wane.
Elsewhere, Going Back to Sleep includes contributions from Bay Area indie fixtures the Reds, Pinks and Purples; minimalist Sydney group the Lewers; and sun-dappled folk-pop from Dutch duo the Hobknobs. It’s an unassuming compilation that’s almost certain to become deeply cherished and often cited among connoisseurs of all things delicate and deeply felt.
This Week’s Best New Tracks
Flea – A Plea
A rare solo track from the Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist, and a magnificently realised one: driving yet inquisitive soul-infused jazz where Flea pleads for harmony and affection. “I’m not being corny – this shit is real!”
Daniel Blumberg and Amanda Seyfried – Clothed By the Sun
Following his Oscar win for Best Original Score this year, it's easy to picture Blumberg taking home best original song in 2026 for this breathtaking duet with Seyfried featured on his soundtrack to The Testament of Ann Lee.
Jana Horn – All in Bet
The Texan songwriter captures the full spectrum of a sigh on this richly despondent return, as delicate traces of piano and flute colour her weary disappointment.
Umor Rex – Lo Animal
It's not hard to picture this Madrid-based cellist’s gothic masterpiece with industrial shades on the soundtrack to Dune, with its thundering drums, screeching metallic sounds, eerie chorals and apocalyptic grandeur.
Zora Jones x DJ Polo – Hoes Link Up
Imaginative Austrian producer-vocalist joins forces with Bristolian UK bass producer DJ Polo to deliver pounding ghettotech: the beats are absolutely crushing but the melody is almost dream-pop.
Jawnino and Surf Gang – Hit Again
Included on the latest mixtape, Amnesia, British MC Jawnino flows over varied cloud-rap beats by Surf Gang, and this is one of its peaks, Jawnino sharp and fully engaged while he examines the landscape of drug dealing.
Annabelle Chairlegs – Heavy Sleeper
With production by Ty Segall, this garagey number moves forward stubbornly on its own schedule, transitioning from a freight-train momentum to the musician from Austin's woozy reflection about how “my spirit is restored by the moon”.
