Matthew Xue's Charmingly Moody Experimental Compilations along with The Week's Top Fresh Releases
Based in Melbourne
Ideal listening for those who enjoy 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 renowned for captivating and eclectic DJ sets that often traverse from chilled-out soundscapes to driving drum and bass and much more. He also runs A Colourful Storm – an exceptional independent record label that delivers far beyond its size when it comes to issuing quirky and introspective pop experiments, featuring a diverse roster including the rhythmic explorations of Valentina Magaletti, Troth, a bass-heavy duo from Hobart, and renowned underground polymath Simon Fisher Turner.
The label's 2017 release was I Won’t Have to Think About You, an assortment of charming guitar-pop reminiscent of the C86 era. More recently, it has issued 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, whose 2025 debut A Profound Non-Event is an overlooked treasure of the year, offer Time, a seven-minute melodica-and-guitar reverie. Chateau, the duo of Al Montfort (Terry, Total Control) and Alex Macfarlane (the Stevens, Twerps), push into beat-driven, psychedelic-infused easy listening on How Long on the Platform, and Who Cares?, draw equally from the styles of Hope Sandoval and Eartheater on Wax and Wane.
In other tracks, Going Back to Sleep features tracks from Bay Area indie fixtures the Reds, Pinks and Purples; minimalist Sydney group the Lewers; and bright, folk-tinged pop from the Dutch pair the Hobknobs. This is a modest collection that’s almost certain to become a beloved and regularly mentioned resource with fans of art that is gentle and profoundly emotional.
This Week’s Best New Tracks
Flea – A Plea
A rare solo track by the Red Hot Chili Peppers' bassist, which is brilliantly accomplished: propulsive but exploratory soul-jazz with Flea calling for harmony and affection. “No cheesiness here – this is the truth!”
Daniel Blumberg and Amanda Seyfried – Clothed By the Sun
After securing this year's Oscar for Best Original Score, you can imagine Blumberg winning the 2026 Oscar for Best Original Song for this stunning Seyfried duet 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 woodwind shade her exhausted letdown.
Umor Rex – Lo Animal
You could easily imagine the work of this Madrid cellist's gothic masterpiece with industrial shades playing over scenes in Dune, due to its seismic drum work, piercing industrial noises, haunting choral passages and cataclysmic majesty.
Zora Jones x DJ Polo – Hoes Link Up
Imaginative Austrian producer-vocalist collaborates with UK bass producer DJ Polo from Bristol 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, The UK's Jawnino flows over an assortment of cloud-rap instrumentals by Surf Gang, and this track is a highlight, Jawnino focused and in the zone as he observes the landscape of drug dealing.
Annabelle Chairlegs – Heavy Sleeper
Produced by Ty Segall, this song with a garage vibe 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”.