Angus & Julia Stone are a brother-sister duo from Newport on the Northern Beaches of Sydney, Australia.
Their first EP, Chocolates and Cigarettes, was released in 2006 in Australia with the record label EMI and in the UK with independent label Independiente.
Angus and Julia began to collaborate on their musical endeavors in early 2006. Prior to that, both had performed as solo artists, principally at open mike nights, but with each using the other as a backing partner. In terms of composing material, they write on their own, then work together on structure and harmonies.
Both Angus and Julia have distinctive vocal styles. The Sydney Morning Herald’s Bernard Zuel described their vocals as such: "Her voice has a fractured feel like Jolie Holland; his has a smoke-on-the-beach drawl." UK journalist Johnny Sharp stated, "Most impressive, though, are the songs - simple but blindingly effective acoustic compositions, warm boy-girl harmonies and delicate, less-is-more arrangements. Resistance is surely futile."
Mitch Connelly, the band's drummer and percussionist, also acts as the band’s official photographer. His brother, who works under the name IOSHVA, maintains their website and produces their artwork. The band also directs their own videos along with their friends at Nippard Productions.
In 2006, Angus and Julia played several festivals across Australia, including The Great Escape and Splendour in the Grass. They later toured the UK to promote the release of their EP.
Whilst in the UK in the latter part of the year, they were invited into Chris Potter’s studio (The Verve/Richard Ashcroft) to record. In the meantime, Fran Healy from UK band Travis heard their debut EP and also invited them to his house to record. The resulting EP, Heart Full of Wine, was released in February 2007. Julia also provided backing vocals for the track "Battleships" on Travis's 2007 album, The Boy with No Name.
On January 26, 2007, Angus and Julia Stone performed at Sydney's Big Day Out to a large crowd. They have since released their full-length debut album, A Book Like This, in Australia.
