(Baby I’ve Got You) On My Mind — Powderfinger
It would be impossible for this article to be published without the word Powderfinger in it somewhere.
Another of Australia’s unofficial anthems, this raucous rock track from 2003’s Vulture Street album has been known to take over sporting events.
If a piece of Brisbane city-planning becoming the name of one of Australia’s biggest albums wasn’t enough, the music video was filmed in the run-down upstairs space on Vulture Street where the band used to rehearse.
Recommending this instead of My Happiness, since that’s probably already playing as you read this article.
Streets of Your Town — The Go-Betweens
Hard to leave this off the list but, among those in the know, it’s not entirely clear whether this song is even about Brisbane at all.
Written in Sydney by Grant McLennan, who died in 2006, in the company of partner and Sydney native Amanda Brown, singer Robert Forster told the Guardian in 2018 that he thought the song was probably about her town.
Either way, the song came from one of Brisbane’s all-time best bands, so it gets a spot.
Science is Golden — The Grates
Taking over indie airwaves in the late 2000s was the Grates’ album Gravity Won’t Get You High, a pretty sophisticated debut effort for the Brisbane locals.
Science is Golden brings all that made the band a beloved mainstay, including jangly lead guitars, strident beats and Patience Hodgson’s thrillingly energetic vocals.