The Bamboos

Australian soul group the Bamboos progressed from bare-bones deep funk revivalists to a more ambitious, mature act, stepping up the production values and scoring radio hits in their native country. On their early singles and 2006 debut album Step It Up, the band played old-fashioned, primarily instrumental funk with a strong emphasis on repeated grooves, simplicity, and low-tech recording techniques. They gradually began working with more vocalists, particularly Kylie Auldist, who has sung on all of their subsequent albums. Releases such as 2010's 4 incorporated hip-hop, psychedelic pop, and cinematic music into the group's sound, and later efforts like 2018's Night Time People contained their most radio-friendly material. The band returned to their earlier deep funk sound with 2021's Hard Up.