Concrete Playground

No matter the weather, Melbourne's Crayon Fields are an instant clearing of the clouds. Good vibrations taking a sunbath, and if you peel away the initial innocence, probably a skinny dip to follow. The slight incongruity of their sound to their era, with nods to luminaries such as Dennis Wilson and The Zombies, makes what they do all the more compelling. It's intricate pop without the usual tell-tale traces of cloying 60's revivalism.

As lead singer, guitarist, songwriter and general wunderkind (he makes their film clips too) Geoff O'Connor steps further out of the shadows with each release, the light gets a little brighter. O'Connor's soft voice, often anchored by layers of atmospheric wash, has a habit of lulling one into a false sense of security before realising his lyrical content. You may also know his side-project Sly Hats.

Having teased audiences with a lengthy couple of years between records, Crayon Fields have just released their second full-length album All The Pleasures Of The World, recently featured as 'album of the week' at both FBI Radio and 2SER here in Sydney and at RRR in their hometown. Shuffling All The Pleasures out into the limelight is a  no-brainer; the record is, in short, wonderful.

Live, the band brings a certain kind of familiarity and goofiness to the otherwise polished sound, and lucky for all, they launch the new record this Friday at Spectrum in Sydney. They will be supported by local act Bearhug and Chapter Record labelmates The Twerps (Melb). Crayon Fields also play Newtown Festival this weekend.

Email us to win one of two double passes to the All The Pleasures Of The World album launch, Friday 6th November.