Melbourne’s Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever crafts literate pop songs that carry an urgency, both in emotion and tempo. The band was formed in 2013 by childhood friends Fran Keaney, Tom Russo, and Joe White, who worked in separate bands within their hometown’s music scene, including the short-lived World of Sport, before deciding that they wanted to get back to writing pop songs. Though the initial sound of the band was acoustic-based, the plan was to write full, well-constructed songs that would better translate into a live setting, which led them to flesh out their triple-guitar harmonies and round out their rhythm section (bassist Joe Russo, drummer Marcel Tussie). After many late-night sessions in Keaney’s bedroom, the band eventually released their first EP, Talk Tight, catching the attention of Sub Pop Records (who subsequently released 2017’s The French Press). The quintet feeds off one another, musically, behind lyrical observations on life, love, and family relationships ("Sick Bug," "French Press”) as well as biting social commentary (“Mainland”). From scrappy lo-fi jams ("Wide Eyes," "Julie’s Place") to jangly, caffeinated pop ("Talking Straight," "Time in Common”), the band writes warm, impassioned songs, detailed without sounding overlabored. The sweeping rock anthems on their second album, Sideways to New Italy, introduced elements of Americana and twang to the tuneful melodies of their debut, Hope Downs, centered around themes of love ("She’s There") and the inexorable passage of time ("Falling Thunder").