The Rubens’ casual cool can be traced back to the three Margin brothers and their childhood friend Scott Baldwin forming the band in the small Australian town of Menangle in 2011. Named after a nickname for a fourth Margin brother, The Rubens retained their low-stakes charm well after adding bassist William Zeglis and signing to Australian indie powerhouse Ivy League to release their ARIA-nominated self-titled debut just a year after their humble genesis. The album’s platinum-selling calling card, “My Gun,” showed off the influence of The Black Keys and Arctic Monkeys, but also announced the young act as earworm specialists. The song came in at No. 10 on triple j’s Hottest 100—a countdown the band would top a few years later with the languid title track to their 2015 album Hoops. Their 2018 follow-up LO LA RU added some modern R&B and soul notes to their classic, bluesy rock (see the hand-clapping rhythm of “God Forgot”) before 2021’s 0202 and 2024’s SODA subtly added hip-hop influences to the drums and production. But none of those stylistic quirks threaten to overshadow the easygoing delivery of singer/guitarist Sam Margin, who lands every song’s calibrated balance of immediacy and nonchalance.
