Hailing from the sunny shores of Australia, Radio Free Alice have finally arrived for their first visit to the UK’s second city. The band consists of Noah Learmonth on vocals / guitar, Jules Paradiso on guitar, Michael Philips on bass / saxophone, and Lochie Dowd on drums. 

Speaking before their performance over bao boxes and noodles, the guys were happy with the reception they’d received: ‘It’s been amazing; it’s great coming over here and seeing such a positive response – we couldn’t have hoped for a better reaction. When we were here last year, it was a very different tour; we’d rock up to venues and we wouldn’t really know how many people would be there, but now it’s all sold out.’

The growth of Radio Free Alice has been significant since they’ve started performing outside of Australia, so much so that their largest listening base is now in the UK instead of Australia, according to their Spotify metrics. Part of their blow-up success in the UK is due to how well indie rock is received here compared to Australia, where surf rock and pop are by far the most popular genres. ‘In Australia, the radio station Triple J is kind of the law of the land in terms of commercial Australian music, and they promote a lot of surf rock and poppy stuff that we just don’t like. There are a lot of bands in Australia that are really good, but they’re only local, and I don’t think they’d identify as particularly ‘Australian’. But I think it is changing – I think people are getting a bit sick of that sound. There are a few bands that are coming through – us, Belair Lip Bombs, there’s a band called Dust too – with a different sound: a bit more post-punk, more angular, more immediate.’ 

There are a lot of bands in Australia that are really good, but they’re only local, and I don’t think they’d identify as particularly ‘Australian’

Radio Free Alice’s newest EP, ‘Empty Words’, released on August 20th. The EP’s two unreleased songs were written over the course of the band’s tour last year, and was produced by Ali Chant in Bristol. ‘We’ve been sitting on them for a while; they are songs that we are really keen to have out so that we can start releasing some newer stuff, as they’re slightly old to us these days. But it was so much dude! It was in between Bristol and Ireland, there was not much sleep between the recordings, we all got sick – it was so bumper to bumper, that section of the tour. But the songs turned out great.’ 

The band’s latest single, ‘Toyota Camry’, was recorded with Peter Katis, producer of Interpol’s self-titled album back in 2002. ‘It was unreal; he’s a great man, and also a great soup chef – he cooks a mean soup. We stayed with him at a house – well, it was a studio, and then all above was just bedrooms – we stayed there for about a week, just living in this studio. It was the first time we had had an opportunity like that.’ 

The band’s focus on image was a breath of fresh air, both in the way they presented themselves on their socials and on stage. In an issue of Ten Men Australia back in April of this year, the band were sporting a full Prada ensemble. ‘Our publicist is absolutely fantastic; she’s got ties in the fashion world, and she hooked that up for us. Having a ‘look’ is really important to us, because a show is a performance, both visually as well as aurally; I think it’s a subconscious thing, but it’s really important. It’s funny because these days I think bands care way less than they used to; the look used to be so much more heavily considered – bands could be so identifiable by their look.’ 

It’s funny because these days I think bands care way less than they used to; the look used to be so much more heavily considered

‘In discussing music industry experiences, there were plenty of similarities with the UK scene, but also some surprising differences. Australia’s big cities actually have quite thriving grassroots scenes compared to the UK, but the restrictiveness of vertical movement within the industry is still a major issue. ‘It’s a very lawless industry; we’ve had instances where it’s like the industry people are adults, and the bands are the kids, and you sometimes get treated very unprofessionally. We’ve had instances where people ghosted us – especially early days – or angry stage managers, and it’s very disrespectful.’

‘One thing I would like to see changed is that people working in A&R at record labels don’t go to enough grassroots gigs and see enough bands perform. Especially in a place like Melbourne, there’s so many incredible bands that are quite small, and they don’t get any exposure because these A&R people just don’t take much interest in gigs at that scale, which I feel like they should, because there is so much potential and talent there. There’s just not a lot of money in it now for the artist – if the consumers went back to more hard-copy purchasing – vinyls and CDs and stuff – it wouldn’t only benefit the artist by making them more money, but it would enhance the listening experience. I think a lot of people don’t realise that they’re being robbed of the full spectrum of sounds on a recording when they listen to streamed music – if we can change everyone’s perceptions, and respect listening to music a bit more, I think that would help massively.’ 

Radio Free Alice performed in the cozy basement venue of the Sunflower Lounge in the city centre, and delivered a smooth and joyous performance. Their newest single ‘Toyota Camry’ went down a treat, as well as the songs that put them on the map, ‘Paris is Gone’ and ‘Look What You’ve Done’. Tracks from the previous EP ‘Polyester’ were particular favourites, especially ‘2010’ and ‘Spain’. The atmosphere was hot, sweaty, and electric; the band cultivated an air of good vibes and good music, which was nourishing to be a part of. There’s nothing better than seeing a band live, and Radio Free Alice delivered at all levels to perform a satisfying and enjoyable set.

Radio Free Alice’s newest EP, ‘Empty Words’, will release on August 20th 2025. 

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