The Doctor Who theme that seems embedded in the song ‘?’ will begin to wreck the heads of even the most hardcore TARDIS fans. The wailing Michael Hutchence-like vocals lurking in opener ‘Mourning Walk’ will do the same only with more of an acid reflux. But then throwing the listener for a loop seems to be part of the agenda for this young Brisbane five-piece who mix touches of dub, kraut rock, ’80s cheesiness and caterwauling psych on Halls, their debut four-track EP.

They are nothing if not ambitious, and even though the experimentalism doesn’t always come off – closer ‘Levity Befallen’ sounds like Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark – they must get credit for giving it a red-hot shot.

‘The Stopper’, with it’s drone-y intro and flourishes of saxophone, stands out as the strongest of the four songs even though at times it seems as if it wouldn’t sound out of place in a Miami Vice bedroom scene. But hey, whatever was playing on Sonny Crockett’s bedside table seemed to work for him.

by Tim Scott