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There are relatively few bands who set out to record a demo, including 9 songs & impressing with each & every one of them, but one band who has is Victorian based outfit 3 Second Memory, consisting of 3 members, who combine their talents to draw some influences from such diverse bands as Something For Kate, Blink 182 & Pollyanna, but have evolved there own sound out of those influences.

My pick track here is the outstanding "Friends Are Not For Sale", which is about the most aggressive number here, with some excellent vocals & production that's pretty good too, coupled with some great lead riffs & an excellent bottom end bass & percussion section as well.

Throughout, we're treated to some cool stuff such as the opener "All You See", which is a more introspective number, sitting comfortably alongside other excellent numbers like "Will We Ever?" & closer "Cereal". Showing some early talent here, expect big things from the band's next release.

For more information, write to 13 Parkers Rd, Parkdale, VIC 3195, Australia or brett.ferguson@3secondmemory.com

SEVEN - SUPERIORITY COMPLEX

A 5 piece coming out of the Australian town of Byron Bay, Seven have already garnered themselves a significant fanbase & some airplay on both radio & TV, as well as pursuing some marketing themselves via the Internet. This album is a great introduction to the band's music, with some very interesting effects in the electronic area & some great metal sounds as well.

The opening couple of tracks, "Admission" & "Crack It!", showcase a sound which is just a little reminiscent of the sounds of bands like Red Hot Chili Peppers, while others like the very cool "Please Continue", which closes out, has a more upfront rock feeling to it.

One of the more unusual inclusions here is the great percussive atmosphere of "Boom! Boom!", which is all too short, though it's made up for by the innovative sound of the song itself. With a growing fanbase, a good & improving sound & the world before them, it'll be an interesting aside to watch the band's next move & to see how their fans like the new sounds found here.

For more information, write to PO Box 393, Paddington, QLD 4064, Australia or management@7-seven.com or buzzoff@bit.net.au

LANDIS MCKELLAR - BATH, MICHIGAN

Currently based in Vienna & Berlin, though originally from New York, Landis McKellar is a very interesting artist who's put a heap of work into this rather fascinating album that runs through various influences, with blues music playing a fairly obvious part in the formation of this album as well as to a certain extent, country, though that's not overly obvious throughout the album.

One of the brilliant tracks here is the opener "Young Europeans", which is an interesting social sort of commentary & well thought out, not to mention the excellent performance, which is very pleasing to the ear, as is the following track "All About Love". For style, probably the closest you need to get would be a cross between Lou Reed (who Landis mentions in the liner notes) & Dana Lyons.

There are some truly amazing pieces of music here, one being "A Rose For Edith Thompson's Grave", plus "Just Friends" & "End Of The Affair". While the styles here are quite diverse, the one common thread between each of them is the use of the lap steel guitar, which Landis says is a 'love affair'. An outstanding release which deserves further investigation.

For more information, write to Box 6104, SE-102, 32 Stockholm, Sweden or mab@dav.se.se or mckellar@iiasa.ac.at

FEAR OF DOLLS - WHEN THE ORGAN PLAYED AT TWILIGHT

A very interesting 6 track tape from 4 piece US based Fear Of Dolls, which has some quite dark moments throughout the length of it's songs underpinning the already brooding atmosphere that will fascinate any fan of goth inspired music or even those who have loved some of the early recordings from The Birthday Party.

This is the band's independent release & it's quite an interesting release, with the vocal duties performed by M. Violet, the rest of the band ably backing her impressive voice up, especially on my pick here, "Fragile Toy", which is about as upvibe as the music gets.

Throughout, there are a number of interesting effects layered on, such as the crackle at the opening of the final epic number "Persephone Scratching", which is another big highlight, lashings of bass & a sort of 'spooky' percussion. While there are going to be moments here that the less adventurous music listener may find disturbing, there's more than a little to grab their attention.

For more information, write to PO Box 20151, Seattle, WA 98102, USA or fear@fearofdolls.com or fear@kcls.org

RADIO DOLLS - IF YOU WANT ME

A great pop release from this Queensland based 3 piece who obviously have a sense of what works in the pop field rather than relying on tried sounds or cover versions. Already one release behind them, the band have achieved some good airplay on both Triple M & Triple J as well as following up with press in various media.

This latest release for the band is a 3 track single with some great pop, the opening track being the title number which has a brilliantly constructed opening riff & moving on into the excellent chorus with little difficulty, making a perfect addition to any radio format.

The remaining 2 songs are "Adoring" & "Undertow", which both have a presence that's getting towards a similar style of the title track, but just lack that little bit extra that makes it such a winner. Getting set no doubt to record a good set of tracks for their debut album, Radio Dolls have all the makings of something much bigger.

For more information, write to New Pollution Management, PO Box 343, Red Hill, QLD 4059, Australia or pollution@powerup.com.au

NAVARONE - TOO MUCH PERSPECTIVE

This is a great ep from a West Australian band obviously setting out their territory, carving out some nice grooves & loud riffs to accompany the vocals. The band's sound is not really any particular style, rather a collection of vibed up rock & pop, with some moments bordering on metal heaviness, other moments moving in almost the entirely opposite direction.

One of the standouts is "Happy Drugs", which is well placed as the opening track on the ep, fronting up the other 5 tracks here with great competence. Another real pick, which is probably my favourite track here is the closing number "Ballad", which as you'd expect from the title is a slower number all together.

With all the right moves on the songs already mentioned & another highlight track "Looking Skyward", the band are definitely set to bring us some more great music in the near future I would hope & they can only build on this as a very solid foundation.

For more information, write to 308 Guildford Rd, Maylands, WA 6051, Australia or bridgeman.lockwood@bigpond.com

SWING HI - POETIC FUNK FUSION

A truly impressive release from this South Australian based 6 piece, which has all the makings of a band definitely on the rise. About the closest comparison I'd have to make here would be the more funk & jazz influenced moments of Swoop.

It's likely that the band will get some serious notice once people discover what they've achieved here, with the opener partly setting the mood for what's to come, "Blue Water In D" indicative of one of 2 different styles the band employ here, with a sort of spoken word /rap style from frontman Charles Crompton.

Second track in is the absolute standout in my mind, "I Lay Down", a beautifully performed set of vocals by one Emily Taheny, who has a very natural style & who will no doubt attract a good many fans on the strength of her voice alone. The other standout is "Mr Moon", a track which has both Charles & Emily doing vocal duties, again bringing out a melody that is the essence of the song in much the same way as it is in "I Lay Down". If you want to discover what sort of amazing music this band can produce, then take a serious listen.

For more information, write to 7 Somerset Ave, Cumberland Park, SA 5041 Australia or swinghi@adam.com.au

ASPHALT BUDDHAS - (SELF TITLED)

This is a rather bizarre collection of 'noise fusion' for want of a better term to describe the sounds on this CD, basically put together by a duo called Jeff Kaiser & Woody Aplanalp. Running along similar lines to the experimental art noise put together by Yoko Ono & John Lennon years ago, this series of tracks takes a number of instruments, electronic effects & samples, mixing them to create what is an at times disturbing listen.

The opening track "Words Of Jesus In Red" runs across 4 versions throughout & the first moments of the first version take a sampling of interesting CB radio recordings & then adds some overdubbing, sound twisting & electronic guitar as well as a mutated trumpet.

Perhaps the most interesting thing about this selection is that there's a complete lack of percussion of any kind, making it a truly experimental set. If you're intrigued by experimental noise making, then you'll be interested in checking out the musings of Asphalt Buddhas.

For more information, write to PO Box 1653, Ventura, CA 93002, USA or pfmentum@jetlink.net