One of the nation’s most prominent pairs, Sally Coleman and Erica Mallett, have an artillery of talent that’s scoring goals all around. On top of singing, dancing and acting (check out their epic video for “Click Clack (Front N Back)” if you have any doubts), they’ve been announced as triple j‘s Breakfast hosts for 2020 — notably as the slot’s first female duo.
Their latest sonic project as Coda Conduct, the vibrant ‘Other People’s Problems’ EP, sees them link up with fellow local faves Kinder and Nyxen, and serve up five punchy new numbers, just in time for summer. To celebrate, we picked Coda Conduct’s brilliant brains on their favourite records to date.
BOTH: Kanye West — ‘My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy’ (2010)
Say what you want about this Kanye, but this album is a fucking masterpiece. I know a lot of Kanye fans will try to say ‘College Dropout’ was Kanye at his best, but this album kicked that age of hip hop into a whole new dimension. He had a real vision and tried gutsy things and, as a result, it’s full of classics songs and iconic moments from start to finish.
ERICA: Home Brew — ‘Home Brew’ (2012)
The way the album is divided into two sections (Light/Dark) changed my idea of how an album could be made. One moment, it’s hugely vulnerable and sad, and talking about addiction and you want to cry with empathy. Then suddenly, there’s a party song about the welfare system and a nostalgic bop about getting drunk with your mates in the park. Home Brew has disbanded now, but I still come back to this album when I’m tryna write, or need to be reminded why I love music so much.
SALLY: Savage Garden — ‘Affirmation’ (1999)
It’s because of Savage Garden that we’ll forever be the second-best musical duo in Australia. No further comment.
BOTH: Hilltop Hoods — ‘The Calling’ (2003)
I think we collectively know all the lyrics on this album. Listening back now, it probably influenced us more than we realised — dumb but clever punchlines, boisterous energy, and this really infectious sense of fun that Pressure and Suffa seem to have when they deliver a particularly cheeky line or intricate multi. And, of course, the nostalgia factor is 100.
BOTH: Tierra Whack — ‘Whack World’ (2018)
Okay, where do we even start? Let’s start with the album-length video clip. Every song is 1-min long. Every video piece is memorable and eye-catching. Every track flows easily into the next, but feels totally unique. Lyrics like “I hope your ass breaks out in a rash.” What is there not to love? Tierra Whack is a visionary and we can’t get enough of her.
Listen to ‘Other People’s Problems’ here:
Header image by Cole Bennetts.