TOURING : Rockwiz

Australia's favourite music trivia show is once again hitting the road. Julia Zemiro, Brian Nankervis and the team hit the road throughout August, September and October for the national 'Some Kind Of Genius' tour.
There'll be a rotation of special guests, plenty of unforgettable songs, mind bending trivia questions and fab live music when the tour takes to the road in late August, first touching down at the Darwin Convention Centre on Friday August 24.
So get your thinking cap on - and bag a ticket when they go on sale on Thursday June 14.

August 24 : Darwin (Convention Centre)
August 30 : Newcastle (Civic Theatre)
August 31 : Sydney (Hordern Pavilion)
September 07 : Canberra (Royal Theatre)
September 14 : Adelaide (Entertainment Centre Theatre)
September 21 : Brisbane (Convention & Exhibition Centre)
October 05 : Hobart (Wrest Point Entertainment Centre)
October 12 : Melbourne (Festival Hall)
October 19 : Townsville (Entertainment Centre)
October 20 : Cairns (Convention Centre)
October 26 : Perth (Riverside Theatre)

TOURING : Martika

Get OUT of the kitchen! Yes indeed, '90s pop kids, Martika is back - and thanks to the team at Frontier Touring, she's hitting Australia later this year for her first ever tour.
Famous for classic '90s staples like 'Love... Thy Will Be Done', 'I Feel The Earth Move', 'Martika's Kitchen', 'Coloured Kisses' and the inimitable 'Toy Soldiers' (sampled on Eminem's single of the same name), Martika will visit Australia in September, performing shows in the five main centres, along with shows in Canberra, Newcastle and Cairns.
The singer has been working on new material recently, material which she hopes will get her fans onto the dancefloor, including the February-released single 'Flow With The Go'.
No doubt some of the new material will make its way into the setlist for the shows, which are all on sale on Thursday June 14.

September 27 : Sydney (Metro Theatre)
September 28 : Melbourne (Trak Lounge Bar)
September 29 : Newcastle (Panthers)
October 04 : Fremantle (Metropolis)
October 05 : Adelaide (HQ)
October 06 : Canberra (The Auditorium)
October 10 : Brisbane (The HiFi)
October 12 : Cairns (Brothers Leagues Club)

THE AUSTRALIAN CD NEW RELEASE SCHEDULE

June 08
Alt-J – An Awesome Wave
Ben L’Oncle Sound – Live Paris
Jonathan Boulet – We Keep The Beat, Found The Sound, See The Need, Start The Heart
Daryl Braithwaithe – Greatest Hits Acoustic
Patrizio Buanne – The Very Best Of
Brandi Carlile – Bear Creek
The Church – Greatest Hits Acoustic
Diesel – Greatest Hits Acoustic
Diesel – You Get There From Here
Dragon – Greatest Hits Acoustic
Donavon Frankenreiter – Start Livin
Glenn Frey – After Hours
Friends – Manifest!
Hanson – MmmBop : The Collection
The Hives – Lex Hives
Hot Chip – In Our Heads
Jackson Firebird – Cock Rockin’
Michael Jackson – I Just Can’t Stop Loving You (CD single)
Milos Karadaglic – Latino
Knaan – Country, God Or The Girl
Krafty Kuts – Let’s Ride
Cate Le Bon – CYRK
The Lil’ Band O’Gold – Plays Fats
Barry Morgan – The Touch Of You
Ian Moss – Greatest Hits Acoustic
OST – Prometheus
OST – Rock Of Ages
Joey Ramone – Ya Know?
James Reyne – Greatest Hits Acoustic
Kenny Rogers – The Hit Singles Collection
Xavier Rudd – Spirit Bird
Rumer – Boys Don’t Cry
Mark Seymour – Greatest Hits Acoustic
Glenn Shorrock – Greatest Hits Acoustic
Patti Smith – Banga
Jon Stevens – Greatest Hits Acoustic
Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs – Trouble
Lissy Trullie – Lissy Trullie
Usher – Looking For Myself
Usher – Looking For Myself (Deluxe Edition)
Various – Rage : 25th Anniversary
Various – Rockwiz Uncovered 2
Various – The Voice : The Originals
Various – Warped Tour 2012
Joe Walsh – Analog Man
Ross Wilson – Greatest Hits Acoustic
Bobby Womack – The Bravest Man In The World

June 15
Justin Bieber – Believe
Justin Bieber – Believe (Deluxe Edition)
Elliot Brood – Days Into Years
Can – The Lost Tapes
Eden’s Edge – Eden’s Edge
Amy MacDonald – Life In A Beautiful Light
Amy MacDonald – Life In A Beautiful Light (Deluxe Edition)
Maximo Park – The National Health
Dent May – Do Things
Metric – Synthetica
Motion City Soundtrack – Go
Muscles – Manhood
OST – Not Suitable For Children
Peaking Lights – Lucifer
Josh Ritter – So Runs The World Away
Paul Simon – Graceland (25th Anniversary Edition)
The Tea Party – Tangents : A Tea Party Collection
Josh Turner – Punching Bag
Various – Eurovision Song Contest 2012 (DVD)
Various – Ministry Of Sound : Running Trax Gold
Various – Music For London
Various – Music For The Mind
Various – So Fresh : The Hits Of Winter 2012

June 22
Abba – The Visitors (CD/DVD)
Fiona Apple – The Idler Wheel
Dean Brody – Dirt
The Cast Of Cheers – Family
Cheryl – A Million Lights
Kenny Chesney – Welcome To The Fishbowl
Deadmau5 – The Veldt EP
Glenn Frey – After Hours (Deluxe Edition)
Jettblack – Raining Rock
Kings Cannons – The Brightest Light
Linkin Park – Living Things
Man Without Country – Foe
Maroon 5 – Overexposed
Maroon 5 – Overexposed (Deluxe Edition)
Maroon 5 – Songs About Jane (10th Anniversary Edition)
Dean Martin – Collected Cool (CD/DVD)
OST – Brave
OST – Moonrise Kingdom
Reverend And The Makers – @reverend_makers
Frankie Rose – Interstellar
Diana Ross – Live In Central Park (DVD)
Sade – Bring Me Home (DVD)
The Smashing Pumpkins – Oceania
The Voice Winner – Winner’s Single (TBA)
White Arrows – Dry Land Is Not A Myth

June 29
Jerry Douglas – Traveler
Eight And A Half – Eight And A Half
Flo Rida – Wild Ones
Nicki Minaj – Pink Friday : Roman Reloaded (Explicit Deluxe Version)
Motorhead – Classic Album Selection
The Offspring – Days Go By
Thin Lizzy – Classic Album Selection
Various – Soundsystem : The Story Of Jamaican Music
The Voice Winner – My Journey
Bobby Womack – Across 110th Street

July 06
Lawrence Arabia – The Sparrow
Blues Traveler – Suzie Cracks The Whip
Boy In A Box – On My Mind EP
Chris Brown – Fortune
Chris Brown – Fortune (Deluxe Edition)
The Dirty Projectors – Swing Lo Magellan
Herve – Pick Me Up, Sort Me Out, Put Me Down
Sophie Koh – Oh My Garden
Serj Tankian – Harakiri
Van She – Idea Of Happiness
Various – Ministry Of Sound : Sessions 9
The Wanted – The Wanted

July 13
Elton John – Classic Album Selection
Angus Stone – Broken Brights
Various – Skitz Mix 41
Zac Brown Band – Uncaged

July 20
Various – Ministry Of Sound : Hip Hop Vol.2

July 27
Blur – Blur 21 (The Box)
Toby Martin – Love’s Shadow

August 03
The Angels – Take It To The Streets
Delilah – From The Roots Up
Eugene McGuinness – The Invitation To The Voyage
OST – Treme : Season 2

August 10
Tim Hart – Daylight Disguise
Neda – Daylight Disguise

August 17
The Darkness – Hot Cakes
The Kinks – At The BBC
Ricki-Lee – Fear And Freedom
Yeasayer – Fragrant World

August 24
Aerosmith – Music From Another Dimension

August 31
Animal Collective – Centipede HZ
Alanis Morissette – Havoc And Bright Lights
OST – Madagascar 3 : Europe’s Most Wanted

September 21
Nelly Furtado – The Spirit Indestructible
Nelly Furtado – The Spirit Indestructible (Deluxe Edition)
Michael Jackson – Bad (25th Anniversary Edition)

All release dates subject to change & list is updated weekly.

KIMBRA HITS THE US CHARTS

Brilliant news for Melbourne based songstress Kimbra super late last night is that her debut album 'Vows' has debuted at No.14 on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart.
It's a stunning debut and comes off the back of her global No.1 success as part of Gotye's international smash 'Somebody That I Used To Know' (which also remains at No.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart) and naturally, the songstress is thrilled.
"It means a lot to have my album recognised in America at this level, it’s been an amazing experience to see it all come into fruition especially after the time, energy and effort it took to complete," she said in a statement. "I'm now really excited to be touring the US and sharing these songs with people one on one, it's cathartic to have them transcend from being my experiences to now being someone else's."
'Vows' has sold closed to 100,000 copies in Australia thus far and is currently available in 'Tour Edition' mode with six bonus tracks.

BACK IN BLACK

2009 was a pretty good year for Aussie singer songwriter Bertie Blackman. It was the year she released her latest album 'Secrets And Lies', the year she hit the top 50 for the first time, she picked up industry accolades including an AIR Award for Breakthrough Independent Artist of The Year and capped it all off with an ARIA for the Best Independent Release.
And there's every chance that 2012 could be even better for the singer, with her latest tune 'Mercy Killer' recently serviced to media; immediately hitting No.6 on this week's list of the Most Added songs to Australian radio.
The quirky, uptempo, mature pop track, released recently to iTunes, is a natural progression from her sparkling singles 'Heart' and 'Thump' from the previous LP, and further cements Bertie as one of the most exciting female talents in the country right now. Produced by François Tétaz, whose previous work includes tracks with Gotye and Architecture In Helsinki, the track is all about confessing ones' sins.
"It’s something I did once: deleted a text from someone’s phone without telling them,” Bertie said in a statement. “Franc was getting lots of stories out of me, and moments like that time, where you should feel regret or remorse… well, that was the only story I could think of that was slightly evil."
'Mercy Killer' is the lead single from Ms Blackman's fourth album 'Pope Innocent X', due later in the year.

BIRTHDAY GIVEAWAY #3

Cast your mind back to earlier this month and you'll remember that we bumped into British singer Olly Murs for a quick natter while he was on Australian soil for a week of promotional activities (you can read that interview HERE). Given it was a face to face meeting with the former X Factor UK star, and how much we know you love a good giveaway here at auspOp, we couldn't resist the temptation of getting a few copies of his latest album 'In Case You Didn't Know' personally signed. And of course, because it's our birthday - and also because we're a generous lot, we decided not to keep them for ourselves, but to hand them over to you, our ace and dedicated readers!
As you'll no doubt be aware, the album contains the current single 'Heart Skips A Beat', along with subsequent British singles 'Dance With Me Tonight' and 'Oh My Goodness'. So... with thanks to us, we've got three SIGNED copies of Olly's album to give away. So here goes, readying your entry...

Shoot through an email containing your name and postal details to the address up top in the sidebar and pop the term "My Heart Skips A Beat For Olly" in the subject line to be entered into the competition.

Competition closes at 10:00pm AEST on Wednesday June 06, 2012. Only one entry per residence will be accepted. Winners drawn entirely at random. Winners' first names, suburbs/towns and states will be published on the site on Thursday June 07, 2012. Three of our biggest Olly fans will each pick up a SIGNED copy of his brand new album 'In Case You Didn't Know' with big thanks to us! And as always, we're certainly not about to tell the world about your private details. They'll find a little home with us 'til the competition is drawn and prizes are sent out. Thereafter they're deleted, so it's reason to just smile!

THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED.

SCISSOR SISTERS : Baby Come Home

We're still only just getting our heads around 'Only The Horses' being the lead single from the new Scissor Sisters album 'The Magic Hour' and here they go and drop the video for the the album opener 'Baby Come Home'.
After watching the clip, we're not quite sure how many bottles of beer are on the wall, but it's quite a number of them and they have some of the most animated labelling that we've seen in quite some time.
Yes, the Sisters get to indulge in a bit of dress-up fantasy. From sailors to witches, rowers, vikings and nuns, there's plenty to see when they open up their fridge and let the alcohol flow.

AGNES : One Last Time

Proving that the Australian public will snap up Swedish music if they actually hear it, Agnes Carlsson bulleted into the ARIA top 30 in the middle of 2009 with her international smash 'Release Me'. It topped the dance charts in both the US and UK, hit the top ten around Europe and was the Swedish songstress' breakthrough single here in Australia.
Of course, Agnes hasn't been idle since then - releasing a swag of other tracks from her much overlooked album 'Dance Love Pop', as well as recent single 'Don't Go Breaking My Heart'.
But mere minutes ago, she's uploaded the official video to her brand new single 'One Last Time' - the lead single from the singer's upcoming fourth album.
The clip is a rather simple black and white affair that features the shiniest pair of hot pants since Kylie span around back in 2000. It's clear she's lost a love and is wondering where it all went wrong. There are even tears, poor love. We just want to wrap our arms around her, give her a Milk Arrowroot and a cup of tea and tell her everything's going to be just fine 'cause her affecting piece of future-pop is rather amazing indeed. Now for her local label to give this some love.

FLORENCE & THE MACHINE : Spectrum

The breathtaking official video to Florence & The Machine's brand new single 'Spectrum' has arrived. Directed by David LaChapelle and John Byrne, the clip is elegance incarnate - opening with Florence as an almost royal-like character, perched on high on her throne with arms outstretched and donning gorgeous staggered red tresses.
Cut to the next scene for the chorus and she's in the middle of a throng of male and female ballet dancers, who swan around her with grace, elegance and poise.
Into verse two, she's on an island of shards, accompanied by two topless gentlemen in gorgeous Egyptian-themed attire. There are more set-ups, all as beautiful and opulent as the last. It's rather stunning.

NEWS WRAP

• Sony Music kicked off the week with a brand new single from San Franciscan outfit Train. '50 Ways To Say Goodbye' is the follow-up to the band's platinum-selling single 'Drive By' and the second track lifted from their top 20 album 'California 37'. The band arrives in Australia next month for a series of East Coast live shows.
• Also out at media this week are Katy Perry's aforementioned new single 'Wide Awake', the new Jennifer Lopez single 'Goin' In' (featuring Flo Rida), Garbage's 'Big Bright World' and remixes of David Guetta's latest single 'I Can Only Imagine'. A more comprehensive run-down of the tracks serviced to radio this week is available over at our FACEBOOK PAGE.
• Ivy League Records has this afternoon announced the signing of Sydney outfit Sures. The four piece surf-pop band have a handful of shows scheduled across the coming months to celebrate the impending release of their debut EP 'Stars', which is due at the end of June.

• With two new hit singles under her increasingly tiny belt and an album release confirmed for August, Ricki-Lee Coulter (pictured) was this week revealed as the new face of cosmetics brand Cover Girl Australia. "Who doesn’t know the easy, breezy, beautiful COVERGIRL line?" the singer asked in a statement. "I’m so excited to be the face of the brand in Australia and help all girls find and rock their inner COVERGIRL."
• Diminutive pop superstar Prince got a surprise from the team at Melbourne's Triple M this morning, with their Hot Breakfast team placing a prank call to the 'purple one', all courtesy of his back-up dancer Damaris Lewis. It was the superstar's only Australian interview and he apparently took it all in good fun. You can check out the results HERE.
• Sydney outfit The Rubens has announced that their (as yet untitled) debut album will be released in September. The band's latest single 'Don't Ever Want To Be Found' was released earlier this month and they'll hit the road for two special headline shows in support of it. They'll play Melbourne's Corner Hotel on Thursday July 12 and Sydney's Oxford Art Factory on Thursday July 19, along with their planned appearances at Adelaide's Spin Off Festival and at Splendour In The Grass. Tickets for the Sydney and Melbourne headline shows are on sale this Friday.

• On the British singles chart this week, the Fun. single with Janelle Monae has finally hit the No.1 position. 'We Are Young' has been in the charts for seven weeks and beat out The Wanted's new single 'Chasing The Sun' (debuting at No.2) to ascend to the top spot.
New in the No.7 spot this week is Paloma Faith's stirring new single 'Picking Up The Pieces', with J-Lo's 'Dance Again' just missing out on the top ten, premiering at No.11. Kylie's 'Timebomb' debuts at No.31 after just a couple of days on sale.
• On the UK albums chart, Emeli Sande's 'Our Version Of Events' is back in the top spot, with blues musician Joe Bonamassa premiering in the No.2 spot with 'Driving Towards The Daylight'. John Mayer's newbie 'Born & Raised' is in at No.4, with the Bee Gees' 'Number Ones' album bulleting to No.5 following the death of Bee Gee Robin. A trio of top ten debuts follow from Fun. (No.7 with 'Some Nights'), Tom Jones (No.8 with 'Spirit In The Room') and Enemy (No.9 with 'Streets In The Sky'). The Temper Trap's album premieres at No.17 - their highest UK album chart position yet.
• And don't forget, we bring you a comprehensive wrap of all the chart action here in Australia each Sunday morning with our regular Chart Watch segment, live from 9am AEST.

BIEBER'S COMING!

It's another big week for fans of Canadian teen heartthrob Justin Bieber, with a brand new single called 'Die In Your Arms' making its way to digital retail and news from his label Universal Music this morning that he'll be paying us a visit in the middle of July for four days of promotional duties for his upcoming album 'Believe'.
Justin will arrive on our shores on July 15 and if his 2012 visit is anything like his last one two years ago, we can expect nothing short of pandemonium.
Even more awesome for his local fans is news that they have the chance to meet him while he's on-shore, through a special competition at www.justinbieber.com.au.
Justin's new album 'Believe' is available from Friday June 15 in standard and deluxe editions.

BRIGHT LIGHT SET TO SHINE

With a passion for music from 1988 to 1996, you already know that the debut album from London based singer songwriter Rod Thomas (otherwise known as Bright Light Bright Light) is going to be something special.
Bright Light Bright Light has already been championed by some of the most respected authorities in pop (Arjan Writes, Popjustice), but has also drawn acclaim from the usually more serious, pop-phobic press like NME. All are singing his poptastic praises, as too is auspOp reader Mark, who thought it imperative that we make mention of the impending release.
Bright Light Bright Light's debut album is called 'Make Me Believe In Love' and it's being released on Monday. Featuring eleven tracks, the LP showcases that passion for glittering pop music from the late '80s and early '90s, including the latest single 'A New Word To Say' (video below).
And being gloriously independent, the album will also be released through our local iTunes store. It available for pre-order now and you can preview it HERE.

THIS RUMER'S TRUE

It was on the local release schedule, but then disappeared and for the last number of weeks has been relegated to Warner's "coming soon" pile, but now comes confirmation that British songstress Rumer's new album 'Boys Don't Cry' will be released in Australia on Friday week.
The singer's critically acclaimed debut 'Seasons Of My Soul' hit the top 40 on its release here in Australia back in 2010, peaking at No.3 in Britain and going on to sell more than a million copies globally.
The new album has been described as "a collection of lesser-known songs from the 1970s", each of them originally performed by male vocalists.
Cover versions include material from the likes of Isaac Hayes, Bob Marley, even Neil Young's 'A Man Needs A Maid'.
'Boys Don't Cry' is to be released in Australia on Friday June 08.

BIRTHDAY GIVEAWAY #2

You may or may not be aware by now that it's our fourth birthday this week here at auspOp and as such, we're pulling out all the stops with big name interviews, a fab Australian exclusive album stream, plenty of pop information (but then again, when don't we provide that!?) and a swag of awesome giveaways.
There are already two giveaways live on the site (check the sidebar for the links), but there's more to come this week - and here's the latest one for you.
As you're no doubt aware, Sir Adam Lambert has just released his brand new album 'Trespassing'. We love it here in Australia - to the point it hit the top ten on debut this week. They love it even more over in the United States, where it debuted at No.1 on the Billboard 200 Albums Chart.
Featuring the singles 'Better Than I Know Myself' and 'Never Close Our Eyes' (the video for which you'll find in the very next story, below), the album is a power-packed, anthem-filled pop pleaser that is sure to find itself on high rotation at your place.
And with thanks to the total spunks at Sony Music, we've got three glittering new copies to give away to you as part of our birthday celebrations!

Shoot through an email containing your name and postal details to the address up top in the sidebar and in the subject line include the words "I Love Lambert Lots" and we'll pop you into the draw to win a copy! Huzzah!

Competition closes at 10:00pm AEST on Tuesday June 05, 2012. Only one entry per residence will be accepted. Winners drawn entirely at random. Winners' first names, suburbs/towns and states will be published on the site on Wednesday June 06, 2012. Three of our smashing readers will each pick up a copy of the new Adam Lambert album 'Trespassing', with thanks to the team at Sony Music. When it comes to your privacy, we take things super-seriously. We keep a chokehold on your details, never to pop that lock 'til the prizes are divvied out. Nothing shady going on 'round here. ;)

THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED.

ADAM LAMBERT : Never Close Our Eyes

He's been teasing his global Glamberts with behind the scenes vision for the last few weeks, so it's stands to reason that US singer Adam Lambert couldn't keep his devoted fans waiting for too much longer.
Yes, he's officially premiered the video for 'Never Close Our Eyes' - the second single to be lifted from his top ten album 'Trespassing'.
And it looks as though something's seriously wrong. He's imprisoned in some kind of camp, devoid of his freedom and any colour (except, of course, for some blonde specks in his hair). But you can see it in his eyes, kids. He's longing for more. He's starting to question what it's all about, why here's there and indeed what lies beyond those grey walls. He and he co-horts make a run for it, they're stopped at the gates by guards brandishing canisters of gas (could be smoke machines). What happens next? You'll just have to watch and see.
Now if only Aussie radio would bite the bullet and play his tunes, there might be many more happy Adam campers living in this world. Sadly, it seems, the masses are being controlled by the radio powers that be (spookily a little like what's happening in the clip...).

TOURING : Julia Stone

Little Julia Stone (pictured left) has decided to take the bull 'By The Horns' and head out onto the road in September to give audiences a live taster of her new album called (incidentally) 'By The Horns'.
The new dates are in addition to a special upcoming solo show Julia will give at Sydney's Cell Block Theatre on Wednesday June 13 in support of the new album, which dropped at retail on Friday.
The full tour kicks off in country Victoria on September 06, before taking in dates in the ACT, New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia. Julia will also play two dates at The Courier Mail Spiegeltent as part of the upcoming Brisbane Festival.
Tickets for all new shows are on sale on Friday June 15.

June 13 : Sydney (Cell Block Theatre)
September 06 : Castlemaine (Theatre Royal)
September 07 : Melbourne (Forum Theatre)
September 08 : Meeniyan (Town Hall)
September 12 : Canberra (The Abbey)
September 13 : Newcastle (Lizotte's)
September 15 : Sydney (Metro Theatre)
September 19 : Brisbane (Courier Mail Spiegeltent)
September 20 : Brisbane (Courier Mail Spiegeltent)
September 21 : Byron Bay (Community Centre)
September 22 : Cairns (Tanks Arts Centre)
September 28 : Perth (Astor Theatre)

auspOp AUSSIE EXCLUSIVE : JAY BRANNAN ALBUM STREAM

US singer songwriter Jay Brannan has been making quite the name for himself over the last few years. After showcasing his music on the soundtrack to the film 'Shortbus' (in which he appeared as the character Ceth) in 2006, the singer has gone on to release two independent albums that, along with regular YouTube posts, have seen his popularity grow immensely in recent years.
Jay will release his brand new album 'Rob Me Blind' here in Australia this Friday. The follow-up to 2009's 'In Living Cover', 'Rob Me Blind' is Jay's most accomplished work to date.
Produced by David Kahne, who's previously worked with the likes of Regina Spektor and Lana Del Rey, the album will thrill long-time fans and win him a whole host of new ones.
In an Australian exclusive, auspOp brings you a full album stream of 'Rob Me Blind' ahead of its release on Friday.
Jay's also inbound at the end of next month, with dates locked in in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane;

June 28 : Melbourne (The Toff In Town)
June 29 : Brisbane (Old Museum)
June 30 : Sydney (Standard Hotel)

Jay Brannan - Rob Me Blind by StopStartMusic

OZ GETS CHERYL ALBUM

Here's a little bit of exciting news for Australia's Cheryl Cole fans. Just days after revealing the official cover and tracklisting for her new album 'A Million Lights', we can reveal that Cheryl's album will receive an Australian release in just over three weeks time.
The new album sees the British singer doing away with her surname and becoming simply 'Cheryl' and features the Calvin Harris-produced lead single 'Call My Name', which despite having 'smash hit' written all over it, is still to find a home at major commercial radio.
Though it appears we'll only get the standard edition of the album (featuring 11 tracks), look for 'A Million Lights' at Australian retail on Friday June 22.

PARKLIFE DROPS DATES

Organisers of the annual Parklife Music Festival have not only announced the dates for the 2012 festivities this morning, but that the event has found a new home in Sydney.
For the past eight years, punters have been enjoying all that Parklife has to offer at Kippax Lake, but this year, it'll return to its original home of Centennial Park.
The Parklife national tour schedule kicks off in Brisbane on Saturday September 29 before hitting Sydney, Perth, Melbourne and Adelaide.
Further details including line-up and ticketing details are forthcoming.

September 29 : Brisbane (Riverstage & Botanic Gardens)
September 30 : Sydney (Centennial Park)
October 01 : Perth (Wellington Square)
October 06 : Melbourne (Sidney Myer Music Bowl & Kings Domain)
October 07 : Adelaide (Botanic Park)

AUSTRALIA HAS FAITH

Another new single whisked out to local media this week is the lead single from British songstress Paloma Faith's forthcoming sophomore album 'Fall To Grace'.
After doing the rounds on the BBC's Radio 2 in her homeland, 'Picking Up The Pieces' debuted at No.7 on the UK charts just yesterday, giving the singer her first ever top ten single at home.
No doubt Sony locally will be hoping for the same kind of result.
It's a gorgeous, stirring number with plenty of sweeping strings and Paloma's big belting vocals which sing of a character who's in a relationship, but who hasn't moved on from their previous relationship. The clip (below) is a bit 'Downtown Abbey'. But with extra wax.
Paloma's album 'Fall To Grace' is released in Australia on Friday.

WILL.I.AM FTG EVA SIMONS : This Is Love

His star is currently on the rise as part of the judging panel on the UK's version of 'The Voice', but Will.I.Am hasn't forgotten his own career, plopping out this brand new single with additional vocals by gorgeous Dutch songstress Eva Simons.
'This Is Love' is the second single lifted from Will's forthcoming album '#willpower', which is due for release later in the year. It's super-catchy, upbeat and right on trend and features Will sharing the vocal duty with the powerhouse Eva. It sounds pretty similar to everything else that's on the radio right now, however, so expect it to be massive.
Given Will's in the UK for 'The Voice', he's filmed the video there - right in the shadow of Tower Bridge, but he's got to be the unluckiest performer on planet pop, 'cause he's subjected to the worst case of localised rain and snow we've ever seen. While he's cowering under the umbrella at the piano, others are walking along the embankment behind him completely unawares of the heavy showers occurring just metres away.
Eva's super hot and should be an international superstar.

APRA AWARDS WINNERS

International chart sensation Gotye was the big winner at last night's 29th Annual APRA Awards. Held at the Sydney Convention and Entertainment Centre, the awards celebrate the achievements of both songwriters and publishers and were handed out in nine categories celebrating different genres, including the big three gongs of Most Played Australian Work, Breakthrough Songwriter Of The Year and Song Of The Year.
Hosted by Missy Higgins and Jonathan Biggins (someone loves a rhyme), proceedings opened with a tribute to Bee Gee Robin Gibb, who passed away early last week; Singer songwriter Bob Evans performing the Bee Gees' classic 'I Started A Joke'.
Tina Arena and Tex Perkins performed a stirring rendition of Gotye's international megahit 'Somebody That I Used To Know', which took the award for the Most Played Australian Work, along with the coveted Song Of The Year.
Here are the winners from the night;

SONG OF THE YEAR
Gotye ftg. Kimbra - Somebody That I Used To Know

SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR
Wally De Backer (Gotye)

BREAKTHROUGH SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR
Boy & Bear

MOST PLAYED AUSTRALIAN WORK
Gotye ftg. Kimbra - Somebody That I Used To Know

DANCE WORK OF THE YEAR
The Potbelleez - From The Music

URBAN WORK OF THE YEAR
Marvin Priest - Own This Club

ROCK WORK OF THE YEAR
Birds Of Tokyo - Wild At Heart

COUNTRY WORK OF THE YEAR
Shane Nicholson - Famous Last Words

BLUES AND ROOTS WORK OF THE YEAR
Busby Marou - Biding My Time

INTERNATIONAL WORK OF THE YEAR
LMFAO - Party Rock Anthem

KYLIE BIRTHDAY GIVEAWAY

You know what? Given it's our fourth birthday and it's Kylie's 44th birthday, there's no way that we could possibly let the day go by without offering up a little Kylie Minogue giveaway goodness.
We've been holding on dearly to this copy of Kylie's fabulous 'Aphrodite : Les Folies' live DVD that the lovely folk at Warner sent us, ready to give it away at some point in time. But wait! We've added to that a copy of the 'Aphrodite : Tour Edition' album (with its three bulging discs of Kyliepop goodness) and if that wasn't enough, copies of all four physical singles from the 'Aphrodite' project ('All The Lovers', 'Get Outta My Way', 'Better Than Today' and 'Put Your Hands Up (If You Feel Love)').

What a delicious packet of Kylie pop we have - and it could be yours! Yes, we're giving away this entire package to one of our lucky readers as part of our birthday celebrations. So whatcha waiting for? You'd best shoot us an email containing your name and postal address to our address up top in the sidebar. In the subject line of your email, pop the title 'Mini Minogue pack' and we'll pop you into the draw! BAM!

Competition closes at 10:00pm AEST on Sunday June 03, 2012. Only one entry per residence will be accepted. The winner, as always, will be drawn entirely at random. Winner's first names, suburb/town and state will be published on the site on Monday June 04, 2012. One lucky Kyliephile will pick up this most perfect of 'Aphrodite' pop packages featuring the 'Aphrodite : Les Folies' live DVD, the 'Aphrodite : Tour Edition' album and all four physical singles from the 'Aphrodite' era, with thanks to Warner Music and lil' four year old us. We know that if you should be so lucky as to win this ace package, it'll no doubt give you finer feelings. And remember, your details are safe with us - never passed on, never signed up to any spam message services, nor will you ever be spammed by us!

THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED.

TOURING : C+C Music Factory

Throughout the early 1990s, Robert Clivillés, David Cole and Freedom Williams were untouchable. As the headline act C+C Music Factory, they dominated the Aussie charts with tracks like 'Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)', 'Things That Make You Go Hmmm', 'Do You Wanna Get Funky' and 'Just A Touch Of Love'.
News through this afternoon is that the original voice of the band, Freedom Williams, will tour Australia in July this year under the C+C Music Factory moniker.
He'll perform the hits the made the band famous in three intimate shows - one each in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth.
Though details of special guests for each of the shows are yet to be announced, early bird presale tickets are on sale on Wednesday from 9am, with general public tickets on sale on Monday June 04.
More details at the OFFICIAL FACEBOOK page.

July 12 : Melbourne (Red Bennies)
July 13 : Perth (Metro City)
July 14 : Sydney (Factory Theatre)

LOREEN DELIVERS EUPHORIA

Fresh from her triumph on Saturday night at the Eurovision Song Contest Grand Final in Azerbaijan (and its subsequent broadcast on SBS here in Australia), Swedish songstress Loreen has seen her winning song 'Euphoria' officially serviced to Australian media today.
Right off the back of her performance on the grand final, the single started climbing our digital sales charts, to the point where as we publish, it's sitting at No.15 on the iTunes singles chart. The team at Warner has cleverly moved quickly to capitalise on the song's success.
So resounding was Loreen's victory that the single has also moved to No.1 on the British and German iTunes charts, top ten in France and incredibly is No.1 AND No.3 on the iTunes chart at home in Sweden, where the track has already been certified five times platinum.
Looks like she may just have a global smash on her hands.
The single was given a soft release here in Australia in February, with the remixes EP HERE.

GIVEAWAY

We just KNOW how you love a good giveaway here at auspOp, so we're pulling out all the stops this week in celebration of our fourth birthday today!
Ladyhawke took our breath away with 'Black White & Blue' - the lead single from her brand spanking new album 'Anxiety', released on Friday. The track was an under-appreciated pop gem and remains among our favourite songs of 2012 thus far.
Follow-up 'Sunday Drive' too, is another future-pop gem that further cements Pip as one of the most exciting artists ever to come out of Australasia, so it stands to reason that with two super-strong singles doing the rounds thus far and the pop leanings of a creative goddess guiding the way, the new album 'Anxiety' is full to the brim with spiky pop tunes that are destined to become favourites.
So... Kicking off our swag of giveaway goodness as part of our fourth birthday celebrations is this rather fab prize from the lovely peeps at Universal Music.
Yes, they've given us five copies of Ladyhawke's brand new album 'Anxiety' to give away to you! And as always, winning is super-simple!

Shoot through an email containing your name and postal address to our address up top in the sidebar and in the subject line place the term "I'd Love Me Some Ladyhawke". Could it possibly BE simpler!? Naturally, if you simply can't wait to get your mitts on the new album, you can nab it from iTunes HERE.

Competition closes at 10:00pm AEST on Sunday June 03, 2012. Only one entry per residence will be accepted. Open to Australian entries only. Winners drawn entirely at random. Winners' first names, suburbs/towns and states will be published on the site on Monday June 04, 2012. Five fab auspOp devotees will each receive a copy of the sparkling new Ladyhawke album 'Anxiety', with thanks to the team at Universal Music. And just remember, you're the one thing, we can't get enough of... So we'll tell you something... We always keep your details safe and your details are never passed onto anyone unless previously advised.

THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED.

MOST ADDED

RADIO'S MOST ADDED
WEEK COMMENCING MONDAY MAY 28, 2012

01. CHRIS BROWN : DON'T WAKE ME UP
02. JAY SEAN FTG. PITBULL : I'M ALL YOURS
03. WILL.I.AM FTG. EVA SIMONS : THIS IS LOVE
04. SKRILLEX FTG. DAMIAN MARLEY : MAKE IT BUN DEM
05. LABRINTH : LAST TIME
06. BERTIE BLACKMAN : MERCY KILLER
07. PROFESSOR GREEN FTG. RUTH ANNE : REMEDY
08. BEN FOLDS FIVE : DO IT ANYWAY
09. CHANCE WATERS : MAYBE TOMORROW
10. HEY GERONIMO : CARBON AFFAIR

Most added tracks to Australian radio courtesy of THE MUSIC NETWORK.

TOURING : Shannon Noll

Looks like Mister Shannon Noll is recovering well after a strenuous schedule on 'Dancing With The Stars' forced him out of the show and into emergency back surgery earlier this month. Even more brilliantly for his fans, it looks as though Shannon is feeling almost fit and well enough to return to the stage, today announcing a series of live dates on the 'A Million Suns' tour.
There are heaps of dates (below) that will see the singer treading the boards between late June and early November, visiting every state and territory except Western Australia.
It's Shannon's biggest tour in four years and he'll be performing a swag of hits along with material from his latest album 'A Million Suns'. Tickets are on sale now.

June 29 : Logan (Fitzy's)
June 30 : Tweed Heads (Twin Towns)
July 06 : Revesby Heights (Ex-Serviceman's Club)
July 07 : Rooty Hill (RSL)
July 13 : Launceston (Country Club)
July 14 : Hobart (Wrest Point Entertainment Centre)
July 20 : Mount Pritchard (Mounties)
July 21 : Canberra (Southern Cross Club)
July 22 : Young (Citizen's & Serviceman's Club)
July 27 : Castle Hill (RSL)
July 28 : Wentworthville (Leagues Club)
August 03 : Dapto (Dapto Leagues)
August 04 : Campbelltown (The Cube)
August 10 : Mingara (Recreation Club)
August 11 : Penrith (Panthers)
August 17 : Ulladulla (Marlin Hotel)
August 18 : Belmont (16ft Sailing Club)
August 23 : Gympie (Gympie Muster)
August 25 : Alice Springs (Outback Quarry)
August 31 : Wagga Wagga (Civic Centre)
September 01 : Moama (Moama On Murray)
September 06 : Lincoln (Nautilus Theatre)
September 07 : Whyalla (Middleback Theatre)
September 08 : Adelaide (Governor Hindmarsh)
September 09 : Mount Gambier (Sir Robert Helpmann Theatre)
September 21 : Taren Point (Taren Point Hotel)
September 25 : Sale (BHP Esso Wellington Centre)
September 26 : Bendigo (Capital Theatre)
September 27 : Wangaratta (Performing Arts Centre)
October 05 : Dubbo (RSL)
October 06 : Bathurst (Panthers)
October 07 : Mudgee (Club Mudgee)
October 11 : Warragul (West Gippsland Arts Centre)
October 12 : Ballarat (Regent Multiplex)
October 13 : Shepparton (Eastbank Centre)
October 14 : Warrnambool (Lighthouse Theatre)
October 18 : Port Pirie (Keith Mitchell Theatre)
October 19 : Renmark (Chaffey Theatre)
October 26 : Goulburn (Soldiers Club)
October 27 : Albury (Entertainment Centre)
November 01 : Port Macquarie (Panthers)
November 02 : Yamba (Bowling Club)
November 03 : Sawtell (RSL)

TOURING : Everclear

The Australian charts from the mid to late '90s were peppered with entries from US outfit Everclear. The band enjoyed a string of successes, none bigger than their 1995 hit 'Santa Monica' from their top ten Aussie album 'Sparkle And Fade'. Subsequent singles such as 'Heartspark Dollarsign', 'Everything To Everyone' and 2000's 'Wonderful' may have been slightly less successful, but their albums continued to place in the top 40.
Today comes news, however, that the band is returning to our shores for the first time in 14 long years to play live dates for their reminiscent Aussie fans.
Led by founder Art Alexakis, Everclear will hit stages in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and the Gold Coast for the run of five shows, playing the hits that made them famous, along with more recent material including tracks from their upcoming album 'Invisible Stars', which is due for release later in the year.
Tickets for all dates are on sale this Friday.

October 10 : Gold Coast (Coolangatta Hotel)
October 11 : Brisbane (The HiFi)
October 12 : Sydney (The HiFi)
October 13 : Melbourne (The HiFi)
October 14 : Perth (Capitol Theatre)

INTERVIEW : Marina & The Diamonds

She had a number of top pop media outlets pondering what in the world was happening when she emerged from her between-album seclusion anew as the feisty Electra Heart. Some came up with far-fetched theories about American ideologies or even death. To be completely honest, we were similarly perplexed. True, Marina & The Diamonds had always referenced American culture in her work, but in our chat with the gorgeous Welsh-born songstress to promote the new album, she reveals to us that the truth to the meaning behind the character Electra Heart was far simpler.

"Oh it’s so embarrassing," the star admits. "Most of them were talking about it being about American ideologies and the death of a pop star and I was thinking, ‘WHAT!? It’s not! It’s about love!' I call my tour the 'Lonely Hearts Club', the album's called ‘Electra Heart’, I’ve got a heart drawn on my face, everything’s pink and fluffy – how can you not guess!?"

In hindsight, of course, it was all so obvious. Marina had simply created a character through whom she could say all the things to a certain someone that she could never have dared say herself. Understandably, because during our chat we discover her to be disarmingly charming, honest and sweet.

"Sometimes I think, ‘what is wrong with you, Marina?’ because I couldn’t even say these things to people until three months ago," she admits. "Basically because I had to or people wouldn’t understand what it was or why I’d created it. But yes, that was actually the reason and nowadays, the more distance that I have from the record, the more I understand why I did it. I just think that for some reason it allowed me, I suppose as it does with novelists and writers of fiction in general, to say the truth or be a little bit more honest about things that you probably wouldn’t if you were writing it 100% autobiographically. So I ended up making an album like that," she says.

'Electra Heart', however, isn't really filled with fictional tales.

"Well it isn’t, no, but I suppose that surface-wise it is," Marina tells us. "I looked like a different person and I’m appearing to be, but the people who actually love music know me as an artist and I think they realise that. It’s really just the tool you use to encourage yourself to open up about things.

"I actually think that Electra Heart character was quite a comfort at the time, because making songs like ‘Homewrecker’ and ‘Bubblegum Bitch’ obviously take you away from that failed relationship mindset. Or if you don’t feel you were particularly in control in a relationship, those songs reverse that notion. So it was really fun, actually. The first half of the album was rotten and I wrote songs like ‘Lies’ and then the second half I had more fun with.

Marina tells us, rather honestly, that the relationship that forms the basis for the album wasn't really even at a girlfriend/boyfriend level.

"I wouldn’t have even said that I was a girlfriend, which is the worst thing," she admits. "It’s weird how we build things up in our heads and we see things how we’d like to see them. He’s a good person, but I think that we were just really mismatched. I think that on the surface, we saw each other as being something that could be quite ideal.

"It’s like ‘Homewrecker’ in the lyric - that every boyfriend is 'the one'. Every person you’re with you’d like to think that it will work out, but for some reason, that particular relationship really affected me. I think because he was so wrong for me, which is weird. You’d think that as human beings, we could differentiate from something that’s clearly not working, but I guess we always like to convince ourselves that it is.

"I think one of the themes that came out of the album was that if someone doesn’t love you, it almost doesn’t become about love anymore, it’s more just about winning. It’s like I just want to make him love me so that I can feel better about things. It’s not that you actually are particularly in love with him, but the idea that you have to win him takes over everything else. It becomes a game – completely fake and fictional."

We suggest that Marina could most easily play the role of the temptress and could win over any man she desired.

"Well do you know what? I have in the past," she laughs. "And this is the first time that it didn’t happen! So maybe it’s why this relationship had such an effect on me. Maybe love is a little bit cyclical. I think a bit of karma came back around!"

Given the current album is predominantly about love, loss and heartbreak, however, we're eager to learn whether or not the next album will be more about self-empowerment and moving on.

"Well I think that’s what ‘Homewrecker’ is to me," Marina says. "That’s what my female empowerment is to me. Being a homewrecker. I don’t know whether the next album will be as explicitly about love. I doubt if I’ll ever do a record like this again in some ways."

'Electra Heart' is a diverse pop record that ropes in the talents of the some of the hottest pop producers in the business. Names like Mike Stent, Diplo, Phil Tan, Dr.Luke and Greg Kurstin (who'd worked with Marina on her previous album 'The Family Jewels') all appear in the album credits. Rather than seeking this fine talent out, however, she tells us that their involvement in the creation of the LP came about quite organically.

"In the beginning, I was working with Greg Kurstin and Liam Howe who’d done the first album. They kind of felt safe to me and I started to build the album," she says. "And then Dr.Luke had heard some of my music – I think Katy Perry had put some of my stuff on a mixtape and sent it to him. My A&R knew him and we just met for lunch one day.

"As people know, I was quite scared… Not perhaps not scared of him, but I wasn’t sure what he was about because he’s known for one particular style of music and I just wondered how that would fit in my world. I was quite convinced that it wouldn’t. And then we met for lunch and he said that I should pop over to his studio where Diplo was working on some Major Lazer stuff. So we went over and wrote ‘Lies’, which was a perfect combination of both worlds. I thought, ‘Hmmm… I shouldn’t have been so quick to judge’ and that really opened me up to the idea of co-writing with people, which was kind of unheard of on the first album – I didn’t do it very much."

The first two singles from the album - 'Radioactive' and 'Primadonna' - appeared to be a lot more commercial in their sound than any of Marina's previous offerings. The first produced by Stargate, the second by Dr.Luke, we asked the singer if it was a conscious decision to head in a more commercial direction, especially where the singles were concerned.

"First things first… any artist whether they’re from an alternative world or not, they always have that in their mind in the beginning when they’re in the studio," Marina admits. "It’s not like you’ll sit down and write a hit, but it’s always at the back of your mind. Could this be commercial? But genuinely with the album, I really didn’t have that in my head, except for the songs that I did with Luke.

"I’m going to be totally honest... You don’t go to Luke for an album track. You go to him for a single, because he’s expensive," she giggles. "And I got two brilliant singles from him, so I think with that, I did have a commercial sound in mind, but I think with the tracks from Greg Kurstin, I wouldn’t say the styling is particularly commercial, but I guess it could go on radio. ‘Power And Control’ is, but that’s because I wanted it produced in a really cold, disconnected way, which is similar to dance and electronic music."



Something about 'Electra Heart' has certainly resonated with her fans - especially in her native UK, where the album debuted atop the British charts a few weeks ago. It gifted the singer her first ever No.1 album. Given its success, we ask Marina whether or not chart positions are important to her.

"Well it’s weird because now that it’s happened...," she pauses. "It just seems like my attitude’s changed from the first album where because I wasn’t the commercial success that I had quite frankly expected, I was really bummed out and felt like everything that I’d done was a failure. In hindsight, I understand that it was an alternative pop album and I had actually done very well.

"But now when I think of success…," she pauses again. "Well it’s all relative, isn’t it? For example, No.1s are always so dependent on who else has released that week, so you don’t really know what a No.1 means, if that makes sense. It’s kind of weird. It’s obviously indicitive that you’ve created something that’s connected with people and I think that’s how I think of it. I just think that people relate to the record and that’s it."

She tells us that she was in the pub having an early lunch when news of her chart triumph came through.

"And sadly not drinking because I had a bit of a vocal problem at the time," she says. "So I wasn’t really allowed to be in social places, but I did have one day off, because you can’t really sit inside on a day like that. So yes, I was inside a pub eating a roast meal, which was perfect really."

Now that Marina's finally got that No.1 album under her belt, there's no doubt that she's hungry for more success. But she explains that said success may have afforded her the luxury to perhaps try something new next time around.

"I don’t think that you have to reinvent yourself every time, but I think it’s in my nature to want to explore different parts of me," she says. "For example, for the next album musically, now that I’ve quenched my thirst on doing the pop album that I'd always wanted to, I can feel a lot freer to go and do something completely different again, so I guess I’ll just see."

And as for when we'll next see her on Australian soil satisfying her live audiences?

"Well I guess in December. That’s when all the big British artists go for the festivals," she says. Surely not just for the festivals, however? "Well no, I’ll bring my tour too, but you’re very far away. I’ve got to kill six birds with one stone!"

Let's just hope she packs a mighty big stone.


Marina & The Diamonds' new album 'Electra Heart' is available digitally now, with the deluxe physical version available in-stores for a limited time only.
As mentioned in the article, expect Marina on-shore in Australia during summer.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO US!!

Seems that Kylie Minogue isn't the only person celebrating a birthday today... Whereas our homegrown princess of pop turns the big "four four", auspOp is today turning the big "four".
Yes, on this day four years ago, we kicked off a certain lil' pop express with a review of the Cyndi Lauper album 'Bring Ya To The Brink'. Four years and almost 8000 stories later, we're still kicking on - bringing you the very latest in pop information all with a distinctly Australian flavour.
Our information is (and always has been) sourced directly from the record and touring companies, publicists and agents, because we aim always for accuracy. No bum steers here. Our sole wish is to bring you short, sharp bursts of credible pop information.
In our fourth year, we've once again brought you some big name pop interviews - chats with Wynter Gordon, Zoë Badwi, Havana Brown, Anthony Callea, Ricki-Lee, Emily Williams and recently with Reece Mastin, Olly Murs and US superstar outfit Fun. Plus there have been the Q&As with the likes of Natalie Bassingthwaighte, Chris Sebastian, Timomatic and most recently US country megastar Carrie Underwood.
To celebrate our fourth birthday, we'll be pulling out all the stops this week with more big name interviews, kicking off later today with the gorgeous Marina & The Diamonds! There's another interview standing by later in the week too - this time with an Aussie pop god!
Not only big name interviews, mind you, but we'll be bringing you giveaways throughout the week, so keep your eyes peeled for what we've got to offer...

To our Twitter followers... Thankyou. You've been so extremely dedicated to us since we launched on the platform just over two years ago. Thanks for the retweets, the favouriting, the #FFing, the messages (both public and private). We couldn't do it without you.

To our Facebook fandom... Thanks for joining the ride! You 'Like' us! You really 'Like' us! We only launched on Facebook a year ago today, but we're thrilled that you've decided to join us and hope you enjoy our regular updates, exclusive nuggets of pop info and little teasers.

To our RSS subscribers... You're part of very elite company, you know. Thankyou especially for loving us to the point of wanting to know everything we have to offer. You're a bit special.

To our supporters... You've been so extremely generous with your time, energy and enthusiasm for auspOp since its inception four years ago. Your support and content has helped us along to the point where we're now garnering more than 55,000 unique visitors each and every month.

To our readers... You are basically the reason this site keeps going today. Your support, participation, visits, comments, questions, emails, competition entries, sharing and caring constantly floors us and we're forever grateful.

Remember, the bigger we get, the more information, the more big name interviews and better prizes we can bring to you! So keep sharing that auspOp love with your friends, colleagues and family by word of mouth, on Facebook, on Twitter... and help us grow!
Keep your eyes peeled for the Marina & The Diamonds interview going live today, plus the first in a range of awesome prizes we've got ready to go this week to celebrate our fourth birthday.
And again, thanks always for your support.

GERONIMO'S FRESH AFFAIR

We first featured Brisbane outfit Hey Geronimo on the site at the end of last year when their single at the time called 'Why Don't We Do Something' had been picked up by Triple J and was being offered up for free download. Since then the track has gone on to find further favour through high profile advertising campaigns.
Now, however, the band has turned its attention to its brand new single called 'Carbon Affair'. Like its predecessor, 'Carbon Affair' is instantly likeable and recalls some of the classic sounds of '60s British and American rock. That's not to say that it's a massively rocky affair. Apart from the huge crunking guitar solo, it's an uptempo radio friendly pop/rock track that's sunshiney bright and entirely catchy - so much so that Triple J's added it immediately to their playlist.
Hey Geronimo's debut EP is due for release on July 01.

LEXI'S UP SALLY'S STREET

Don't you just hate it when your feather and down pillow explodes? Heading out and doing the rounds at local radio this week is a new single from former jazz songstress Sally Street. The Sydney artist has been making waves on the local jazz scene since her debut single 'One Bite At The Cherry' four years ago.
But for her new single 'Lexi', she's decided to take a slightly different tack and head in a more mainstream pop direction. And the single's already been impressing many in the industry, dominating the pop category in last year's edition of the Great American Song Contest.
It's due for digital release soon.

THE EUROVISION 2012 WINNER IS...

Once again, if you live outside the Eastern states, you may very well wish to avert your gaze for the moment so that you can watch SBS' delayed telecast of the Eurovision Grand Final.
For the rest of the country, however, we will now reveal that Sweden has won the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest convincingly, beating out the highly fancied Russian entry of the gorgeous grannies of Buranovskiye Babushki (second) and Serbia's Željko Joksimović who placed third.
Not such good news for the "cellar dwellers", however, with Norway garnering just seven votes, Engelbert Humperdinck's British entry with just 12 votes and Hungary's Compact Disco with 19 votes.
Sweden's Loreen swept the voting with her dance/pop track 'Euphoria', which polled an amazing 372 votes, 113 ahead of Russia. The track also looks like it's found favour with Australian audiences, already heading well into the top 50 on the local iTunes charts tonight.
Will local media sit up and take note by adding the track to their playlists? Will Warner officially service the track to media this week to capitalise on its Eurovision success? They'd be mad not to...

01 : Sweden
02 : Russia
03 : Serbia
04 : Azerbaijan
05 : Albania
06 : Estonia
07 : Turkey
08 : Germany
09 : Italy
10 : Spain

AMERICANA WINNERS

Every now and again, we'll throw up something a little different when it comes to our giveaways - and this one is certainly no exception. It's a new compilation entitled 'Classic Americana' and it brings together a host of classic tracks from some of America's biggest musical names. The thing is, there's nothing really recent included at all, in fact nothing from the last 20 years or so, but the list of artists included is impressive - from Joni Mitchell to Bob Dylan, The Beach Boys to the Mamas & The Papas, Carly Simon to Don McLean, The Doobie Brothers, Fleetwood Mac, Linda Ronstadt, America, Bread and many more.
As you're no doubt aware, we've been giving this LP away for the last week or so on the site, but now the competition is closed. All over red rover. And it's time to announce our lucky peeps who've picked up a copy.

Congratulations go to... David from Richmond in Victoria, Erin from Glebe in New South Wales, Richard from Kingsville in Victoria, Trent from Forest Lodge in New South Wales and Cyndie from Mosman in New South Wales. You've each picked up a copy of the new 'Classic Americana' album, with thanks to our peeps at Warner Music Australia.

Thanks to everyone else who entered... Eyes down, however, 'cause tomorrow is auspOp's fourth birthday and we'll be rolling out the giveaways all week! Eeee!

READER'S LOOKBACK

KYLIE MINOGUE : What Kind Of Fool (Heard All That Before)

Kylie may have all but disowned her final original SAW single but seeing as 2012 is a time for reflection at camp Kylie I thought it only best to share one of my all time favourite Kylie Minogue songs.
I was only a young lad when this was released, and the original cassette of Kylie's Greatest Hits spent many a night under my pillow where I would read the booklet before going to sleep!! It was my most prized possession and hearing this song and seeing this video always brings back fond childhood memories. It's song that I can never skip when it shuffles on!

- Kallen from Perth in Western Australia

Look at that! A Kylie classic from Kallen the day before her 44th birthday (and the day before our FOURTH birthday)!
Now don't you just sit at home thinking that you can't be part of our weekly Reader's Lookback segment! We'd love for you to play a part. We want YOUR Lookback clip and we know you're just dying to share it with us (and our fab readers just like you!).
All you have to do is send us about 100 words about your favourite Lookback clip with a link to said video and we'll feature it on the site on a forthcoming Sunday! We'll publish your first name and suburb/state under the clip so not only will our readers know just how amazing you really are, but you can tell your friends all about your contribution so they'll know just how amazing you really are. Our email address is up top in the sidebar! Over to you!

THE auspOp DIARY

WEEK COMMENCING MAY 28, 2012

TICKETS ON SALE
Monday : Pitbull (Nationally)
Friday : Jonathan Boulet (Nationally)
Friday : Everclear (Nationally)
Friday : The Rubens (Sydney, Melbourne)

May 28 : MELBOURNE – Lanie Lane (Corner Hotel)
May 29 : MELBOURNE – The Temper Trap (Forum Theatre)
May 29 : PERTH – NKOTBSB (Burswood Dome)
May 30 : COFFS HARBOUR – Dead Letter Circus (Hoey Moey)
May 30 : MELBOURNE – Prince (Rod Laver Arena)
May 30 : MELBOURNE – The Temper Trap (Forum Theatre)
May 30 : SCARBOROUGH – Ash Grunwald (Indi Bar)
May 30 : SYDNEY – Boy & Bear (State Theatre)
May 30 : SYDNEY – Ricki-Lee (Upstairs Beresford)
May 30 : WAGGA WAGGA – Tonight Alive (Charles Sturt Uni)
May 30 : WOOMBYE – Lanie Lane (Woombye Pub)
May 31 : BRISBANE – Matt Corby (The Tivoli)
May 31 : BRISBANE – DefFX (The Zoo)
May 31 : BRISBANE – Lanie Lane (The HiFi)
May 31 : BRISBANE – Elizabeth Rose (Alhambra Lounge)
May 31 : BYRON BAY – Dead Letter Circus (Great Northern Hotel)
May 31 : COLAC – David Campbell (Performing Arts Centre)
May 31 : GEELONG – Sampology (The Basement)
May 31 : LISMORE – Gasoline (Tatts Hotel)
May 31 : NEWCASTLE – Boy & Bear (Bar On The Hill)
May 31 : NEWCASTLE – Tonight Alive (Level One)
May 31 : PINJARRA – Ash Grunwald (Redcliffe On The Murray)
May 31 : SYDNEY – The Temper Trap (Opera House Concert Hall)
May 31 : SYDNEY – Zola Jesus (Opera House)
May 31 : WOLLONGONG – S Club/Big Brovaz (University of Wollongong)
Jun 01 : ADELAIDE – Missy Higgins (Her Majesty’s Theatre)
Jun 01 : BRISBANE – Matt Corby (The Tivoli)
Jun 01 : BRISBANE – Gasoline (Tempo Bar)
Jun 01 : BRISBANE – Zola Jesus (Alhambra Lounge)
Jun 01 : BUNBURY – Ash Grunwald (Prince Of Wales)
Jun 01 : BYRON BAY – Funkoars (Great Northern Hotel)
Jun 01 : CAMPBELLTOWN – Jack Vidgen (Campbelltown RSL)
Jun 01 : CANBERRA – Boy & Bear (ANU Bar)
Jun 01 : CESSNOCK – Guy Sebastian (Performing Arts Centre)
Jun 01 : FREMANTLE – Reef (Metropolis)
Jun 01 : GOLD COAST – Elizabeth Rose (Elsewhere)
Jun 01 : GOLD COAST – Tonight Alive (Coolangatta Hotel)
Jun 01 : MELBOURNE – The Jezabels (Festival Hall)
Jun 01 : MELBOURNE – Sampology (Prince Of Wales Hotel)
Jun 01 : MELBOURNE – Tzu (Corner Hotel)
Jun 01 : NEWCASTLE – Deep Sea Arcade (Cambridge Hotel)
Jun 01 : SYDNEY – DefFX (Factory Theatre)
Jun 01 : SYDNEY – Lanie Lane (Metro Theatre)
Jun 01 : SYDNEY – S Club/Big Brovaz (UNSW Roundhouse)
Jun 01 : SYDNEY – Simple Plan (Hordern Pavilion)
Jun 01 : SYDNEY – The Temper Trap (Opera House Concert Hall)
Jun 01 : TOOWOOMBA – Dead Letter Circus (Spotted Cow)
Jun 01 : WARRNAMBOOL – David Campbell (Entertainment Centre)
Jun 02 : ADELAIDE – The Jezabels (Thebarton Theatre)
Jun 02 : ADELAIDE – Sampology (Rocket Bar)
Jun 02 : BALLARAT – Tzu (Karova Lounge)
Jun 02 : BRISBANE – Dead Letter Circus (The HiFi)
Jun 02 : BRISBANE – Funkoars (The Zoo)
Jun 02 : BRISBANE – Tonight Alive (Basement 243)
Jun 02 : BUNBURY – The Butterfly Effect (Prince Of Wales)
Jun 02 : CAIRNS – Elen Levon (Gilligans)
Jun 02 : CASTLE HILL – Jack Vidgen (Castle Hill RSL)
Jun 02 : GOLD COAST – Gasoline (Miami Shark Bar)
Jun 02 : KARRATHA – Ash Grunwald (Karratha Tavern)
Jun 02 : MELBOURNE – DefFX (Corner Hotel)
Jun 02 : MELBOURNE – Christina Perri (Palais Theatre)
Jun 02 : MELBOURNE – Simple Plan (Festival Hall)
Jun 02 : MELBOURNE – Zola Jesus (The Toff In Town)
Jun 02 : MOUNT GAMBIER – David Campbell (Sir Robert Helpmann Theatre)
Jun 02 : NEWCASTLE – S Club/Big Brovaz (Panthers)
Jun 02 : PERTH – Missy Higgins (Astor Theatre)
Jun 02 : SYDNEY – Buckley Ward (FBI Social)
Jun 02 : SYDNEY – Deep Sea Arcade (Standard Hotel)
Jun 02 : SYDNEY – Lanie Lane (Metro Theatre)
Jun 02 : SYDNEY – Guy Sebastian (Hordern Pavilion)
Jun 02 : SYDNEY – Washington (Art Gallery Of NSW)
Jun 02 : WOLLONGONG – Boy & Bear (Waves Nightclub)
Jun 03 : FREMANTLE – Ash Grunwald (Fly By Night)
Jun 03 : HOBART – DefFX (Republic Bar)
Jun 03 : MELBOURNE – Zola Jesus (The Toff In Town)
Jun 03 : NEWCASTLE – Simple Plan (Panthers)
Jun 03 : PERTH – The Butterfly Effect (Metro City)
Jun 03 : PERTH – Sugar Army (Concert Hall Outdoor Stage)
Jun 03 : SYDNEY – Christina Perri (Enmore Theatre)

UP POPS PERRY

Thought the 'Teenage Dream' project was well and truly over? Think again... Katy Perry is releasing a staggering eighth single from her latest album (which has been repackaged as 'The Complete Confection'), but 'Wide Awake' is all tied in with a new 3D movie project that's due in just over a month's time.
The track has been officially serviced to Australian media this morning and it follows on from the single 'Part Of Me', which ironically is also the title of the 3D film.
The part-documentary, part-concert is due to hit theatres in early July.

CHART WATCH

The ARIA albums chart is hit with five top ten debuts; Adam Lambert, The Temper Trap, The McClymonts, Slash and Tenacious D. But who debuted where? Over on the singles chart, meanwhile, 'The Voice' rules again, with eight premieres across the top 100. Let's kick things off with a bit of top 100 singles love (as always) in this week's Chart Watch.

SINGLES
Despite an onslaught of 'The Voice' entries again for the second week in a row, the top three ARIA positions remain unchanged this week, with Flo Rida edging all comers once again with his single 'Whistle'. He's been there for four weeks now, but strangely remains on gold accreditation whereas Maroon 5's 'Payphone' gets certified platinum.
'The Voice' action begins at No.7 this week, with Brittany Cairns' stunning version of Jes Hudak's 'Different Worlds' plops in at No.7, but not far behind her are Darren Percival's 'Wherever I Lay My Hat (That's My Home)' (No.12) and Sarah De Bono's 'Listen' (No.13). Karise Eden's version of Rebecca Ferguson's 'Nothing's Real But Love' sees Rebecca's original version bullet from No.52 to No.14 - it also picks up a gold accreditation.
Gym Class Heroes ftg. Ryan Tedder's 'The Fighter' spends its second week in the charts at No.15, up 23 places on last week's debut, while Jes Hudak's 'Different Worlds' re-enters the charts at a new peak of No.21 following it's covering on 'The Voice'.
'The Voice' love continues at No.22 with a premiere for Diana Rouvas' version of Beyonce's 'Love On Top', Ricki-Lee's 'Do It Like That' drops 11 spaces to No.24 but picks up a gold accreditation and Lakyn Heperi's (some would say lacklustre) performance of 'Forever Young' sees the track debut at No.26.
Skrillex' 'Make It Bun Dem' is in a hurry - up 32 places to No.27, so too Coldplay and Rihanna's 'Princess Of China' which bullets 53 places from its No.86 debut last week.
Ben Hazlewood's cover of Ed Sheeran's 'Lego House' is in at No.35, Jennifer Lopez hits the top 40 with 'Dance Again' (No.40), while Rita Ora debuts right behind her with 'How We Do (Party)' and Christian songstress Kerrie Roberts comes in at No.45 with 'Rescue Me (How The Story Ends)'.
Squidging themselves back into the top 50 this week are Knife Party ('100% No Modern Talking' at No.49) and Conor Maynard ('Can't Say No' at No.50).
Outside the top 50, Karmin's ace 'Brokenhearted' debuts at No.58, 'The Voice' contestant Adam Martin premieres at No.66 with his version of The Black Keys' 'Lonely Boy', British boyband 'The Wanted' are on the scene with 'Chasing The Sun' (No.68) and The Offspring bump into the hundred for the first time with 'Cruising California (Bumpin' In My Trunk)' at No.70.
Beyonce's 'Love On Top' is back after being covered on 'The Voice' (No.71), but the originals of previous covers on the show don't fare so well, with David Guetta & Usher's 'Without You' suffering quite the slump (No.37 to No.73) and Adele's 'Turning Tables' sliding 36 places to No.80.
Jewel's 'Hands' re-enters at No.87 and Laura Bunting's version of Gotye's 'Somebody That I Used To Know' is in at No.97.
The biggest slide of the week has to come from Justin Bieber, however, whose Mothers Day dedication 'Turn To You' goes from a premiere of No.25 last week to being completely out of the top 100 this week. Adele's 'Rolling In The Deep' and 'Someone Like You' both finally leave the top 100 after 69 and 61 weeks respectively and there are 19 'The Voice' contestant tracks in the top 100 this week.

ALBUMS
A quintet of top ten debuts this week has shuffled the upper echelons of the ARIA albums charts around quite a bit. Premiering in the No.1 position are homegrown superstars The Temper Trap and their self-titled sophomore record, gifting the band their first ever No.1. The challenge was on, however, from Slash with Myles Kennedy and The Conspirators, who debut right behind them in the No.2 spot.
Adele's dropped just the one spot, pushing Keith Urban's 'The Story So Far' out of No.1 and down to No.4 in its second week.
New at No.6 is Tenacious D's 'Rize Of The Fenix', with The McClymonts' 'Two World Collide' debuting right behind them at No.7.
Rounding out the top ten debuts this week is Adam Lambert, whose new album 'Trespassing' gives the star his second top ten album in Australia (a debut at No.10).
Just outside the top ten, those crazy 'Glee' kids are graduating with their latest album coming in at No.12, while in the wake of the death of Bee Gees legend Robin Gibb, 'The Ultimate Bee Gees' races up from No.64 to No.13. Prince and Seal's respective best-ofs drop nine and 11 places respectively, while 360's 'Falling & Flying' picks up speed at No.17.
Coldplay's 'Mylo Xyloto' has a 14 place sales spike on the back of their tour announcement (up from No.35 to No.21), while a performance of 'Nothing's Real But Love' on 'The Voice' sees Rebecca Ferguson's album 'Heaven' jump back 24 places to No.24.
Florence & The Machine's tour sees Flo's album 'Between Two Lungs' back into the top 50 (No.27), The Medics debut at No.29 with 'Foundations', Marina & The Diamonds is in at No.32 with 'Electra Heart' and The Gossip premiere at No.35 with 'A Joyful Noise'.
With a national tour providing plenty of excitement for fans, NKOTBSB's album belatedly debuts at No.38, with City And Colour's 'Little Hell' swooping up 39 places to snuggle up right behind the mega boyband at No.39.
Quite the slump for Lionel Richie's 'Tuskegee' this week, however, which drops from No.12 to No.42. Not good news either for Celtic Thunder, whose album 'Heartland' drops from No.21 to No.49. 'The Very Best Of Backstreet Boys' debuts at No.47.
Outside the top 50, the passing of disco legend Donna Summer sees sales of her best-of 'Journey' debut at No.54, Santana's 'Shape Shifter' debuting right behind her. Not good news for Michael Crawford's 'The Story Of My Life', which plummets after Mothers Day - down from No.7 to No.59.
Better news for Emeli Sande, whose album 'Our Version Of Events' re-enters the countdown at No.60.
Cold Chisel's 'No Plans' is down from No.30 to No.63, Best Coast's album 'The Only Place' is in at No.65, The Bee Gees' 'The Number Ones' re-enters at No.67, but John Butler's 'Tin Shed Tales' drops from a No.28 debut last week to No.68 this week.
A couple of premieres - Far East Movement's 'Dirty Bass' (No.70) and Stonefield's 'Bad Reality' (No.71) precede a big drop from Ash Grunwald's 'Trouble's Door' (No.29 to No.72) and another premiere - this time from New Kids On The Block's 'Greatest Hits' (No.75).
Spare a thought for Damien Leith, however, with his album 'Now & Then' in complete freefall. It was No.14 last week. This week it's down to No.85.
And Keane's album 'Strangeland' premiered at No.49 last week. This week it's gone from the top 100 entirely.

For a full run down of the ARIA top 50s, head over to www.ariacharts.com.au each and every Sunday from 6:30pm AEST.