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As we are now a few months deep into 2026, I wanted to take a moment to celebrate some of my new favourite Australian-based femme artists and female fronted bands. Through my work with Hot & Heavy, I've been lucky enough to be introduced to so many up-and-coming new bands that are loaded with talent, especially in genres that are typically male-dominated. I was inspired to curate this list after attending Siren Sounds , a mini-festival which featured a line-up prioritising lo

Australia’s local music scene is thriving, well, almost. Every weekend, in every state, you can find a local band playing the gig of their lives. It could be their first gig ever, their first gig back after a dry spell, or an out-of-state band that has driven hours just to play to a 100 capacity room that’s barely half-full. Every weekend (some weeks every day) there’s someone, somewhere, playing live music.  Statistically, they can’t all be good. And admittedly, there will b

It's been a big year for hot & heavy! You've probably seen our faces pop up with blog posts, social media content and attendance at gigs. I (Zara) thought it might be fun to give you all a glimpse into the crew behind the name. So, in the end of year spirit.... welcome to the hot & heavy crew wrapped. HAYES You'll know this face as the founder of hot and heavy. Her top song for 2025 was Mudrat's YOU DON’T CARE ABOUT POOR PEOPLE. Hayes has been focusing on being for the band

This year, I discovered a lot of new (old?) music, stuff I had somehow skipped from previous years (or decades), still on my shoegaze-spin-offs run. It did take a degree of effort to pull myself away from comfort playlists this year, and i got trapped for the first six months by one album you and me by oPEN HAND , which was my favourite new/old discovery. But that’s not what you’re here for. You came for the new shit. here are my top five albums of 2025. 5 - Sunset funeral