Hills End

Hills End is a dream come to fruition for Newtown, New South Wales trio DMA's, a collection of the band's endeavors over the past three years and, sometimes, beyond. It's a record that takes each individual's own influences - folk artists like Dylan for Johnny Took, American guitar bands from the '90s, for Matt Mason and English bands passed down to Thomas O'Dellby his older brother and Liverpudlian dad like The Beatles, The Stone Roses and The La's - and throws them all in one big mixing pot. Blown Away is a crestfallen ode to one of Took's friends leaving Australia for a new life overseas, all distant, crunching beats, stoic strings and solemnly strummed guitars. Album opener Timeless, meanwhile, is a brash and blustering mix of chiming, Pixies-esque lines from Mason and an intense, barked vocal from O'Dell. In The Moment lopes like O'Dell's beloved Roses, and Too Soon's chorus boasts the rough and ready riffs of Nirvana's grunge glory days. It's that that makes DMA's music so enticing - on first listen you might think you've got them pegged with the obvious, but give them another spin with a closer ear and all kinds of varied nuances start bringing themselves to light.