Angus & Julia Stone

Angus & Julia Stone are an Aussie sibling singing/songwriting duo whose music spans intimate folk and lush, dreamy indie pop. Emerging in 2007 with A Book Like This, the pair found mainstream success with the release of 2010′s Down the Way, which debuted at number one on the Australian charts and took home five ARIA music awards. The Stones then elected to focus on their solo careers but reunited in 2014 for the Rick Rubin co-produced Angus & Julia Stone, which became their highest-charting effort. Full of sparkling textures, the intimate, self-produced Snow appeared in 2017. In partial contrast, 2024′s Cape Forestier featured a career-spanning palette that included more rustic acoustic fare in addition to tender, atmospheric pop. Growing up on the northern beaches of Sydney, the Stone siblings were schooled in pop music at an early age by their father, who played in a local cover band. In 2005, Julia Stone began teaching trumpet lessons while her brother Angus worked as a laborer. She convinced him to test his musical talents by performing locally, and he responded by bringing her on-stage with him as a backing musician. At first the two played separately billed shows, but each would support the other on-stage to the point where it made sense to share billing credits. The duo released an EP of early material, Chocolates & Cigarettes, before moving to London in 2006, where the siblings met Fran Healy of the band Travis. Impressed with the Stones’ material, as well as their growing buzz in both Australia and England, Healy invited them to his house to use his piano. The twosome eventually recorded their entire second EP, Heart Full of Wine, at the residence. In return, Julia Stone provided backing vocals on the Travis record The Boy with No Name. Angus & Julia Stone’s debut album, A Book Like This, was then released in 2007 by Flock Music and Nettwerk and charted in the Top Ten in the bandmates’ native Australia. An international release followed in March 2008. Two years later the group returned with Down the Way, which introduced a bigger, bolder sound. A breakthrough success for the duo, the album debuted at number one in Australia, and eventually earned them five ARIA music awards including Album of the Year. On the heels of this success, the siblings abandoned work on a follow-up, opting instead to pursue solo work. Julia released two well-received solo albums including 2010′s The Memory Machine and 2012′s By the Horns, while Angus released his similarly lauded 2012 effort Broken Brights. In 2014, the siblings finally reunited for their third studio album, the Rick Rubin-produced, eponymously titled Angus & Julia Stone. It marked their second consecutive appearance on the Billboard Americana/Folk Albums chart and again hit number one in Australia. Angus then released an LP of him jamming with friends, 2016′s Honey Bones, using the moniker Dope Lemon. Angus & Julia Stone teamed up again for their fourth studio LP, 2017′s personal and self-produced Snow. It was another ARIA hit, reaching number two on the album chart. 2021 saw them deliver the soundtrack for the popular video game Life Is Strange: True Colors, which included the single “Love Song.” Produced by the duo with longtime collaborator Ben Edgar, 2024′s Cape Forestier was a more stripped-down outing that touched on the rustic folk of their early songs as well as more atmospheric adult pop, all branded with warmth and affection. ~ Jody Macgregor & Marcy Donelson