This hour features two awesome duets by outstanding musicians (the Hynde/lang duet is up there with the sexiest cover version you’ll ever hear), songs by two local outfits who are taking traditional folk music to new places, a brilliant new track by the great Paul Kelly, a joyous tune by English neo-soul singer-songwriter Joy Crookes, and more. Here is the playlist:

House on Fire – Patrick Watson ft. Martha Wainwright
Me & Mrs Jones – Chrissie Hynde ft. k.d. lang
Adeline – Bush Gothic
Foreign Shores – Ruth Hazleton
Blood Left – Gina Malcolm
The Body Keeps the Score – Paul Kelly
First Last Dance – Joy Crookes
50 Quid Man – David Keenan
Tucker’s Farm – The Water Runners

Above: Ruth Hazleton’s Heronbones album cover art by Mick Thompson, design by Design Edge

The torrent of fabulous new albums continues, and in this hour Katie plays tracks from some of them, along with some new singles. The artists with new albums include rising US ‘boot-gaze’ star Clover County, West Australian singer-songwriter Tanya Ransom, Canadian legend Ron Sexsmith, intriguing local ‘outside-folk’ act Palm Springs, and SnarskiCircusLindyBand – the songwriting collaboration between Rob Snarski (from The Blackeyed Susans) and Lindy Morrison (The Go-Betweens). Here is the playlist:

Myriad – Melody Pool
Filled With Belief – Daniel J Townsend & The Wild Twin
Sweeter – Clover County
Let Them Sing – Anna Weatherup
Speed Dial – Nasman Donovan
Same Time Next Year – Tanya Ransom
Easy for You to Say – Ron Sexsmith
Infinity 69 – Palm Springs
Take a Step – SnarskiCircusLindyBand ft. Amanda Brown

Above: Anna Weatherup’s ‘Let Them Sing’ single cover art by Krysten Jade

In this hour we go down the lane with Irish singer-songwriter Aaron Rowe, live in a bubble with the wonderful Dami Im, look to the stars with NSW Northern Rivers outfit Bella Frankie, have a moment of bliss with the great Tim Minchin, dance with Adelaide artist Paula Standing, and more. Here is the playlist:

The Lane – Aaron Rowe
Bubble – Dami Im
We Are Stars – Bella Frankie
Ordinary People – The Favors
Thich Nhat Hanh – Djo
Pirate of Your Soul – Olivia Lay
Moment of Bliss – Tim Minchin
Big Star – WILSN
Road to Nowhere – Ben Konarov ft. George Alexander
Everybody Dance – Paula Standing

Above: Olivia Lay’s ‘Pirate of Your Soul’ single cover design and photography by Olivia Lay

Katie plays tracks from some of the many new albums released lately, including from Gippsland duo Ally Row, Stockholm-based Australian singer-songwriter Hazlett, Swedish luminary Jens Lekman, New South Wales polymath Peter Campbell, Aunty Shellie Morris from Darwin, and young Sydney-based New Zealand artist Venice Qin. Here is the playlist:

This Time – Ally Row
Queen of the Season – Hazlett
Love Comes Back – STAV.
The First Lovesong – Jens Lekman
Baba Doo Lullaby – Coco’s Lunch ft. Sai Brothers
I’m Not Saying – Peter Campbell
Lullaby – Shellie Morris
The Beauty of the Backroads – Kaurna Cronin
Home Country – Venice Qin

Above: Shellie Morris’s Singing for Our Little Ones album cover art by Rosemary Plummer & Tex O’Neill

This hour has beautiful music about the New South Wales south coast town of Tilba, gathering and acknowledging the traditional custodians of the land, not losing sight of what is truly important in life, overcoming struggles and losses, going through a rough breakup, and more. Here is the playlist:

Simon – Jonah Kagen
Different Kind of Golden – Estelle Conley
Tilba – Nathan Cavaleri
I Belong – Nancy Bates ft. Tom West
The Love on High – Electric Guest
Feel It Change – Stella Donnelly
A Door Called No – David Byrne
Catholic Girls Are Easy – Emma Swift
Heaven on Their Minds – Andrew Lloyd Webber & Adam Lambert
Look at Me Now – Fanny Lumsden

Above: David Byrne’s Who Is the Sky? album cover art by Shira Inbar and David Byrne

Starting this hour with a beautiful track from the new album by powerhouse Australian singer-songwriter Lyn Bowtell, Katie goes on to spin two excellent ‘dark folk’ songs, two songs by artists who are new to her, one track each from the great new albums by Georgia Mulligan and Anne McCue, and a lovely new tune by Miss Chatelaine favourite Jack Carty. Here is the playlist:

Ride – Lyn Bowtell
Crack of Dawn – Sammy Snide
Unheaven – Georgia Mulligan
Other Side of the River – Greg Champion
The One Mistake – Elestial
* Love Is Gonna Save Us – Jack Carty
The Red Barn – Broken Creek
Fly or Fall – Anne McCue & The Cubists

Above: Jack Carty’s ‘Love Is Gonna Save Us’ single cover art by Natasha Carty

On what other radio show will you hear the ‘bogan funk’ of Melbourne band Playlunch alongside the dreamy jazz-pop of Icelandic-Chinese superstar Laufey, the acoustic folk of Western Australia’s Lloyd & The Leftovers, and a classic bluesy ‘train’ song by Sydney duo The Stomp’n Ramblers? If your answer is ‘No other radio show – only on Miss Chatelaine’, you’re correct! Here is the playlist:

Changes – Dan Cully
Our Eternal Garden – Melody Pool
Josephine (Love Is Everything) – Helen Ryder
Why Won’t You Wait – Lloyd & The Leftovers
Carousel – Laufey
Pash – Playlunch
What I Cannot See – Amaya Laucirica
Own Two Feet – Benjamino
High Horse – Maisie B.
Train – The Stomp’n Ramblers

Above: Laufey’s A Matter of Time album cover photography and artwork by Emma Summerton

Some fantastic new songs in this hour by artists from England, New Zealand, Canada, Meanjin/Brisbane, Narrm/Melbourne, Mulubinba/Newcastle and Boorloo/Perth. The styles include modern folk, electronic soul, blues and folk-pop. Here is the playlist:

What Love Is – Katie Spencer
Keep My Heart – Paco Wolfe
One in a Million – LEISURE
That’s All She Wrote – Folk Bitch Trio
Tri-Coloured House – Ruth Hazleton
Love Is the Gold – Marisa Yeaman
The Ballad of the Aussie Bluesman – Pete Hawkes
Here, Look – Carla Geneve
Ça va – Patrick Watson ft. Solann

Above: Patrick Watson’s Uh Oh album cover artwork by Arizona O’Neill

Katie welcomes one of Australia’s most in-demand and busiest artists, Ashley Naylor, to the JOY studio for a wide-ranging chat about his incredible CV (he has played guitar with The Church, Paul Kelly, The Stems, the RocKwiz Orkestra and others; is the singer-songwriter and guitarist with beloved Melbourne band Even; and has worked with Vika & Linda, Tim Finn, Stephen Cummings, The Sports, Fanny Lumsden, the Countdown Spectacular house band and more), chasing the natural high of being on stage, being constantly inspired by the artists he performs with, and his new album, Alexandria Sunset. Ash and Katie discover a deep mutual love for live music, The Beatles and Fanny Lumsden, and we learn a little of what it’s like to play huge venues with Paul Kelly on his current Australian and New Zealand tour. And there’s a whole heap more! Here is the playlist:

Indigo Sky – Amanduh
Genevieve – The Inadequates
As Good As Gold – Ashley Naylor
Alexandria Sunset (live in the studio) – Ashley Naylor
The Boy Who Could Not Sleep – The Grapes
Rita Wrote a Letter – Paul Kelly
Magic Man – Heart
A Blue Sky – Ashley Naylor

Visit Ashley Naylor’s Bandcamp page and follow him on Facebook and Instagram.
Above: Photo of Ashley Naylor by Betty Sujecki

In today’s first hour Katie plays tracks from fabulous recently released albums by Queensland duo Minor Gold, Byron Bay–based singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and surfer Ally Palmer, First Nations folk-roots legends Stiff Gins, and the amazing Tim Minchin. She also talks about her love for Robbie Williams and plays a new song by him, and mourns her dad on the first Father’s Day since he died. Here is the playlist:

When the Ink Runs Dry – The Kunins
Lighter Shade of Blue – Minor Gold
But It’s Lonely – alayna
I Don’t Want This Rage Anymore (Acoustic) – Nigel Wearne
Stars Align – Ally Palmer
Human – Robbie Williams ft. Jesse & Joy
Darlen One – Stiff Gins
Understand It – Tim Minchin
The Dying Conversation – SnarskiCircusLindyBand

Above: Stiff Gins’ Crossroads album cover art by Gaawaa Miyay (Lucy Simpson)

This hour features Katie’s favourite new track of the week (by Perth artist Siobhan Cotchin), a song about coming out later in life and the pressures associated with that, music reminding us to slow down and listen to Country, a sweet tune about seeing your old dog(s) in heaven, a groovy funk bop, and more. Here is the playlist:

Consolation Prize – Siobhan Cotchin
Lesbian of the Year – The Beaches
Kisses Kisses Kisses – Dusken Lights & Maia Jelavic
Times Square Jesus – The Favors
Daisies – Cooee
All Your Old Dogs – Big Delicious ft. Georgia Fields
Jessie’s Comet – Billianne
Taste of Your Love – CJ Commerford & The Supertones
Wilto Wodli – StoneHutt
Somebody to You – Joy Crookes

Above: CJ Commerford & The Supertones’ ‘Taste of Your Love’ single cover art by Lennie Farchione

Katie plays stunning songs by solo artists from Narrm/Melbourne, Sydney, New Zealand and the USA, by a duo from Canada, and by bands based in Melbourne and Adelaide. She urges her listeners to put themselves first and not settle for being ‘the other girl’ (as per the song by new artist Grace Watt) and together she and her listeners ponder what is in Bruce Springsteen’s well. Here is the playlist:

The Other Girl – Grace Watt
By the Way – Ocie Elliott
Always – Jack Nolan
Bitter Place – The Stamps
Beyond Compare – The Audreys
Good Game – Clover County
Be Here Now – Mel Parsons
Something in the Well – Bruce Springsteen
All I Know – Joan & The Giants

Above: Joan & The Giants’ The Five Stages of Grief EP cover art by Emma Pace and Grace Newton-Wordsworth

Katie plays an hour full of fascinating and beautiful music by artists based in Narrm/Melbourne, Phillip Island, central Victoria, Sydney, Newcastle, Byron Bay, New Zealand and England. There are songs about unresolved love, finding your way in life, the power of being ‘seen’, maintaining a soft heart, and more. Here is the playlist:

Baby Spoon – Cavetown
Stay Tender-Hearted – Emily Lubitz
Heaven Doesn’t Need You Like I Do – Mark Howard ft. Brooke Taylor
Feel Alright – Shani Weiss
Shine Your Light – Owen Campbell
Split – Georgia Mulligan
Misdirection – You, Me, Everybody
Done Here – The Maes
As Good As Gold – Ashley Naylor
I’ll Find a Way (To Carry It All) – Folk Bitch Trio

Above: You, Me, Everybody’s ‘Misdirection’ single cover art by Andy Knopp

This hour features new music by Australian indie darlings Stella Donnelly and Melody Pool, tracks from excellent new albums by Western Australian band Lloyd & The Leftovers and Darwin singer-songwriter Tracey Bunn, a moving and beautiful new tune by jazz-pop superstar Laufey, a classic folk song by the late, great Chris Wilson, and more. Here is the playlist:

Baths – Stella Donnelly
Twice in a Day – Lloyd & The Leftovers
West Texas Hills – Aimee Volkofsky
She Danced With the Spirits – Chris Wilson
Blue – Tracey Bunn
Snow White – Laufey
Headlights – Cormac Grant
Ancient Lines – Melody Pool
Vending Machine Babe – Mildred

Above: Stella Donnelly’s ‘Baths’ single cover art by Sam Love

This hour features new songs by some legends of the Australian music scene – the ever-popular Jessica Mauboy, 90s rock singer Swanee with the great Colin Hay, acclaimed folk-rock band The Paper Kites, and First Nations elder Warren H. Williams with Kasey Chambers and Shane Nicholson – as well as other artists that may be less familiar. Here is the playlist:

Something Between You and I – Joel Andrew B
While I Got Time – Jessica Mauboy
Little Sparks – Jessie Reid
Caledonia – Swanee ft. Colin Hay
When the Lavender Blooms – The Paper Kites
Leave a Light On – Minor Gold
Snap Out of It! – Holly Hebe
Ntaria – Warren H. Williams ft. Kasey Chambers & Shane Nicholson
Heavy Foot – Mon Rovîa

Above: Jessie Reid’s ‘Little Sparks’ single cover

In today’s first hour we spend time in a boat with Sydney-based singer-songwriter Ben Walker, try to cope with grief with Brisbane trio The Inadequates, find a safe haven with First Nations duo Stiff Gins, learn not to be too hard on ourselves with Victorian artist Hayden Calnin, try to beat the brolgas to the sweet lily seeds in the river with Darwin-based Sara Storer, realise we’re not perfect with the great Tim Minchin, and more. Here is the playlist:

Boat Time – Ben Walker
A Word – Patty Griffin
Lethe River – The Inadequates
Haven – Stiff Gins
Sunrise – Solomon Crook
Easy, Going – Laura Lucas
Won’t Shy – Hayden Calnin
Get In Before the Brolgas Do – Sara Storer
Not Perfect – Tim Minchin
Pretender – Alice Phoebe Lou

Above: Laura Lucas’s ‘Easy, Going’ single cover

Today’s second hour includes an intriguing new tune by Welsh artist Cate Le Bon, the title track by Irish force of nature CMAT, a vivid duet by the USA’s The Favors, a collaboration between rising Narrm artists Seetali and Kaiyah Mercedes, gorgeous new songs by Miss Chat favourites Little Green and Sunny Luwe, and more. Here is the playlist:

Is It Worth It (Happy Birthday)? – Cate Le Bon
Tea Tree – Little Green
EURO-COUNTRY – CMAT
Jaouad – Dressed Like Boys
Pretty When I Cry – Aleia
Poison & Wine – Seetali ft. Kaiyah Mercedes
Call It What It Is – Local Sweetheart
The Hudson – The Favors
Blue Skies – Sunny Luwe

Above: Sunny Luwe’s ‘Blue Skies’ single cover photo by Alisha Todd

The songs in today’s first hour are by artists based in Mparntwe/Alice Springs, Port Adelaide, Narrm/Melbourne, Sydney, Byron Bay, East London, Dublin and New York City. Their songs are about turning struggles into art, people who have seen you at your worst but love you anyway, the exhausting cycle of overthinking, the peace and poetry of the sea, and more. Here is the playlist:

Pot Plant – Katie Harder
Home Again – Nectar Woode
Samson – Tin Town
jane247 – DreamDork
Pure Shores – Phia
Overgrown – Carmon
Mind Loaded – Blood Orange ft. Caroline Polachek, Lorde & Mustafa
Talking With You – Aaron Rowe
See Summer Sea – The Go Twos

Above: Aaron Rowe’s ‘Talking With You’ single cover

Katie plays more songs from fabulous recently released albums, including the bluesy Nightbird by 8 Ball Aitken and Taya Chani, the cinematic Two Black Horses by Emily Lubitz, the earthy Take Me to the Water by Ally Palmer, and the very personal my body’s my true north by FELIVAND. There’s also a new song by the always-excellent Ruth Hazleton, a banger by the Triple J Unearthed 2025 competition winner, and more. Here is the playlist:

The Returning (Selkie) – Ruth Hazleton
Walking to the River – 8 Ball Aitken & Taya Chani
Virginia Slim – Clover County
Fake Paradise – Jhana Allan
Two Black Horses Tumbling Out of the Snow – Emily Lubitz
Candy from a Stranger – Jens Lekman
Take Me to the Water – Ally Palmer
Bawuypawuy – Drifting Clouds
broad daylight – FELIVAND

Above: Jens Lekman’s Songs for Other People’s Weddings album art

Katie notes the sheer number of excellent albums that have been released recently, and plays tracks from some of them: the artists include Halfway (from Meanjin/Brisbane), Folk Bitch Trio (Narrm/Melbourne), Noah Cyrus (Nashville) and The Maes (Narrm). There’s also new music from Miss Chat favourites Great Aunt, a wonderful bluegrass-style cover of an Australian classic, and more. Here is the playlist:

The Little Things – Great Aunt
Lost By Design – Halfway
Mess in Your Eyes – Ella Ion
Sounds of Then (This Is Australia) – Angus Gill ft. Mark Callaghan
Soften – Isabel Rumble
Moth Song – Folk Bitch Trio
Man in the Field – Noah Cyrus
She Explains Things to Me – David Byrne & Ghost Town Orchestra
Enough – The Maes

Above: Halfway’s The Styx album art by The Short Answer