Piching their sound somewhere between PJ Harvey and Mazzy Star might sound like a tight space for the Howling Bells to musically manoeuvre in but at least it's a good one.

Just imagine if, like so many others, they'd decided to set up musical camp somewhere between The Strokes and The Killers - then what would we have? Boots running short on black kohl and even more bland Eighties electro rip-off bands.

No, this Aussie four-piece are something different. Hailed by many as the next big thing, in their extremely short career the band have already secured a slot at the NME ShockWaves awards supporting The Editors. But it must have been when their single Low Happening was used as mood music for a quick snog on American teen drama the OC, that the band realised they had truly arrived.

Signed to Bella Union records, the Sydney hipsters self-titled debut album is out in April and was produced by Coldplay producer Ken Nelson. But don't let the Chris Martin connection put you off - at the Ocean Rooms on Tuesday there wasn't an indie power ballad in earshot or a scrawled Fair Trade message in sight.

Howling Bells are more dark and menacing than Michael Barrymore's mind, with lazy, lurching blues so sharp it could make you bleed.

Plundering the twisted landscapes of a David Lynch film for lyrical fodder, raven-haired singer Juanita Stein has a voice and a face that could shatter any indie boy's heart into a thousand pieces.

Of course it's not just Juanita who has got the looks, there's her guitarist brother Joel and the other two guys who, despite being male, have better cheekbones than Kate Moss.

But beauty aside, these tipped-for-the-top noise-makers are not merely style over substance. Howling Bells release their new single Wishing Stone on February 27 - make sure you buy it.