Flyying Colours

Inspired by the thunderous guitars of shoegaze acts such as Ride alongside the melodic sweetness of dream-pop outfits like Slowdive, Melbourne, Australia’s Flyying Colors came together in 2011 to craft their own take on those sounds. The group captured the approach across their opening pair of EPs and the 2016 debut album Mindfullness while occasionally gesturing toward Madchester and space-rock touches, then resurfaced in 2021 with the lighter, more luminous follow-up Fantasy Country.

Centered on the guitars and vocals of Brodie J Brümmer and Gemma O’Connor, and supported on bass and drums by siblings Sam and Joshua Dawes, the band issued the single “Wavygravy” ahead of a self-titled EP that arrived via the Australian label Mascot in November 2013. Early the following year the release gained worldwide distribution through Shelflife in the U.S. and Club AC30 in the U.K. After further touring and recording, a second comparable EP appeared in early 2015; the ROYGBIV EP again came from Shelflife and Club AC30, while the latter simultaneously issued a compilation of both EPs titled EPX2.

Bassist Melanie Barbaro and drummer Andy Lloyd-Russell stepped in to replace the Dawes brothers, after which Club AC30 released the band’s debut full-length Mindfullness in September 2016. Over the ensuing five years the group toured extensively, with shows in China and the U.K. plus local dates supporting visiting acts such as A Place to Bury Strangers and Swervedriver. The single “Goodtimes” surfaced in 2019 and was followed in 2020 by “Big Mess.” Fantasy Country reached international markets in 2021 via Poison City and Club AC30.