North

Hailing from Darwin, alternative rockers Green Stone Garden capture the languid feeling of their city’s humid heat. Their debut, the titled North is a small collection of synth-driven pop tunes and emotional lyrics.

Single “The Island” opens with lead singer Mike Meston’s vocals teamed with a military style drum beat. The sound is rich and lush, almost psychedelic as it layers the vocal harmonies with the chugging guitar riff.

While the lyrics are in your typical love song style, “I want you, I need you, I want you so please don’t go away”, the instrumentation adds a notable maturity to the sound.

Throughout all four songs, there is an obvious theme of broody vocals and lyrics. Meston’s captivating voice is reminiscent of Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker.

Swirling around the guitar lines, the vocals are nicely showcased. On the slower paced, “Cold”, a more stripped back piece, his singing  is more prominent, accompanied by just a gentle guitar riff.

“Beautiful Disgrace” begins with a slow tapping, almost laborious, drum beat. It is a slowly drawn out piece, with its steady tempo and slow guitar riff.

With a rockier edge created with the building volume and the thrashing drum and vocal tempos, it showcases the band’s craft. The use of the flute melody adds an unusual dimension, balancing the rockier instrumentation.

The closing electronic track, “Back To The Doves” offers some diversity, differing in style to the other songs. Its difference is felt almost instantly with its bouncing synth notes and guitar riff. Meston’s vocals are notably more pop like in style, however, it’s the synth notes that add an irresistible beat to the track.

It is this infectiousness which runs through Green Stone Garden’s EP from the rockier tracks to the dance tunes.

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