The big day is just around the corner — it’s almost time for triple j’s Hottest 100 of Australian Songs countdown.
Following the annual Hottest 100 at the start of the year, Triple J’s next big countdown is all about homegrown music.
The national youth broadcaster announced the launch of its Hottest 100 of Australian Songs in June, part of the network’s 50th birthday celebrations.
This special edition mid-year poll is “dedicated to the homegrown artists and tracks that have resonated across generations, and helped define our nation’s sound.”
You won’t find Chappell Roan or Doja Cat anywhere near this countdown – it’s all Aussies, all day.
Before the official countdown begins tomorrow (July 26th), we thought we’d give it a crack and name our top 3 Aussie hits of all time!
Check out our staff picks below. And check back on the Rolling Stone AU/NZ website tomorrow for our live coverage of the full Hottest 100 of Australian Songs countdown.
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Neil Griffiths — Editor-in-Chief
“Two Strong Hearts” by John Farnham
Picking “You’re the Voice” is too easy, but I’d be rapt with any Farnsie song!
“Innerbloom” by RÜFÜS DU SOL
Not only one of the best Australian songs, but one of the best dance songs in the last decade.
“Shooting Stars” by Bag Raiders
It may have been picked up globally as an internet meme, but Australia was blasting this song well before then. One of the classics!
Lars Brandle — Print & Industry Editor
“Cattle and Cane” by The Go-Betweens
If ever a song was a mood, this is it. Lyrically, the song takes you deep inside Australia. Lindy Morrison’s drumming is from the top shelf, and the chorus is a spell.
“Sweetness and Light” by Itch-E and Scratch-E
There are no lyrics, but that doesn’t matter. This piece of music is exactly what it says in the title. Sweetness and light. It’s a time capsule from the early-to-mid-90s, when young Australians were for the first time connected with triple j and BDO, when dance music was making it move. It’s a fine piece of electronic music.
“Better in Blak” by Thelma Plum
Thelma Plum is a national treasure and “Better in Blak” is her signature song. You couldn’t write a better song. Thelma will have to accept that she’ll be playing the song for many years to come.
Conor Lochrie — Deputy Editor
“Comfort” by Julia Jacklin
One of Julia Jacklin’s simpler songwriting moments, but that isn’t meant to diminish the song’s status at all: she writes with such sincerity and honesty in “Comfort”. The song captures so perfectly that terrible post-breakup period, when you’re just trying to make it through intact. Jacklin is one of Australia’s finest songwriters because she writes from the heart.
“We Will Always Love You” by The Avalanches
The title track on The Avalanches’ unimpeachable masterpiece, which is also their best album (sorry to the equally monumental Since I Left You). “We Will Always Love You” is lightly melancholic in the way the Australian electronic group do better than almost anyone else. It showcases, as always, their expert sampling prowess, interlacing beautiful songs by The Roches and Smokey Robinson and the Miracles to produce something truly transcendent.
“Work/Life, Gym Etc” by The Shifters
The Shifters are a seriously underrated Melbourne DIY-punk band, and “Work/Life, Gym Etc” is their best song to date. They mock the malaise of a 9-5 existence with typically dry Aussie humour, unleashing biting putdowns of Aussie ‘grindset’ people. Long live The Shifters.
Denise Barnes — Head of Organic Video & Social
“Pretty Lady” by Tash Sultana
From the very first chord, this song has me completely hooked. I can’t skip it (even if I wanted to). It’s the ultimate pick-me-up — I probably listen to it at least ten times a week.
“So Caught Up” by The Teskey Brothers
Where do I even begin? I’d insert the exhale emoji here if I could, because that’s exactly how this song makes me feel. The lyrics, the vocals, the melody… it’s perfect from start to finish. What a sexy song. And seriously fun to belt out the chorus.
“Marinade” by Dope Lemon
Smooth as can be. “Marinade” is that song for me – the one I always use to kick off a Spotify Song Radio session. It sets the tone just right. Slow Sunday mornings, long road trips, on the beach… I’ll never get tired of it.
James Di Fabrizio — Head of Creative Strategy
“Into Your Arms” by Nick Cave
When you love someone so deeply it borders on the transcendental. That’s the space this song inhabits. Nick Cave delivers a piano ballad so masterfully restrained it punches you straight in the heart. A masterpiece.
“Across the Night” by Silverchair
Daniel Johns is one of Australia’s great artistic minds, and this is him at his most ambitious. Sweeping, cinematic, euphoric. “Across the Night” feels like a breakthrough moment. Not just for Johns and Silverchair, but for the landscape of Australian music as a whole.
“Nakamarra” by Hiatus Kaiyote
This track laid the foundation for a new era of neo-soul. A lush, future-facing sound that would ripple around the world. But it all started right here, in Collingwood, with lyrics inspired by the ancient red soil of Australia.
Sarah Downs — News Writer
“The Less I Know the Better” by Tame Impala
Kevin Parker’s biggest Tame Impala track still sounds nostalgic and new. You could drop it today and it’d still be a hit.
“Are You Gonna Be My Girl” by Jet
The ultimate singalong from the Australian rock band that just never gets old.
“Pressure” by RINI
Based on repeat plays, this one from RINI had to make my list. The beat and his smooth vocals are just too good.
