Maybe it's something in the air. Or maybe it's all that sunshine. But Australia seems to be producing a lot of teen music talent at the minute.
A few years ago teen band silverchair roared up the charts around the world with their first album "Frogstomp". Now it almost seems like they're the old men of the Australian music scene as a new generation of young performers hits the charts.
For starters, there's 18-year old Vanessa Amorosi. Her first single "Have a Look" went Gold in seven weeks and her second "Absolutely Everybody" made Double Platinum. Now her first album has gone straight to Number One in the Australian charts and instantly achieved Gold status.
Vanessa started her career early, taking tap, Jazz and Classical ballet classes from the age of four. At the ripe old age of twelve she was giving her first public performances at shopping centre events and local council concerts.
Now she's been on a national tour with Savage Garden and "Absolutely Everybody" has just been released as her European debut single.
Aleesha Rome is also 18 and developed her music career by singing in karaoke competitions from the age of nine. Originally from Adelaide she moved to Sydney at the age of 17 and, within a year, had her debut single in the Australian charts. She's also looking forward to the release of her first European single "One of Us Has Changed".
Rick Hammond (19), Chris Arnott (18) and Stuart Tyson (19) have their mothers to thank for helping them create the band Loki. Rick and Chris got together three years ago and played at school concerts and youth centres. They soon realised that they needed a drummer to complete the band. Fortunately for them their mums knew Stuart's mum and, before they knew it, Loki was born.
Christine and Sharon Muscat didn't need their mums to introduce them. They're sisters! That fact also made it easier for them to chose a name for themselves - Sister2Sister.
Also known as S2S 19-year old Christine and 15-year old Sharon have been doing musical things almost since they could walk. Christine learned to play the drums and piano whilst Sharon chose the piano and guitar. Their Australian debut single "Sister" achieved double platinum status shortly after its release. Then their second single "What's A Girl To Do?" achieved Gold status on its first day of release.
They started this year with a tour of the UK and followed that by touring the USA with Britney Spears. Now that "Sister" is to be released as their European debut single they'll soon be touring Europe too.
Despite this hectic schedule Spot On managed to catch up with them for a quick chat.
"We're so excited about our forthcoming tour of Europe," says Christine. "We have never been there before even though our background is Maltese. We are really looking forward to experiencing European culture, especially the food."
Given their success at such a young age we asked them how old they were when they first decided they wanted a career in music.
"It was ten years ago," Sharon says. "I was five and Christine was nine."
And once they'd made their decision they didn't waste any time putting it into action. They signed their first recording deal four years ago.
So what are the best and worst things about being successful at this age?
"The best is that you get to meet loads of people," answers Sharon. "And the worst is that you don't get to hang out with your friends as much as normal teenagers do."
And what advice would they give to anyone contemplating a career in music?
"Don't listen when people put you down," says Christine. "You can do anything if you work hard enough."
Compared to S2S Killing Heidi started late in life. Ella Hooper was 13 and her brother Jesse was 15 when they first performed together. They weren't even planning a musical career at the time. Some of their friends persuaded them to perform in their town's annual Arts Festival. ("It was GREAT!" says Ella.)
In fact they enjoyed the experience so much that they decided to form Killing Heidi. They immediately wrote and recorded two songs for a competition run by a national radio station. One of the songs "Kettle" won the regional heat and they were invited to play at a big rock gig in Melbourne.
A major record producer noticed them at the gig and, before they knew it, they were signed up to a record label.
From there things just kept getting better. Their first two singles "Weir" and "Mascara" went to Number One in the Australian singles chart. In March their debut album "Reflector" sold more than 100,000 copies in its first five days of release.
In May they received the Australian Rock Industry's "Best New Talent" and "Best Independent Album" awards. They also got their first big break in the USA when they were signed up with Universal Records.
Obviously Killing Heidi are well on the way to success. But did Ella think there were any bad things about being so successful at this age?
"Yeah!" she says. "Being recognised is hard to get used to. But you have to be polite and respect your fans."
And what would she say to anyone considering a career in music?
"Keep going - if you really love it then you'll succeed. Be original - it's important to stand out. BUT BE YOURSELF!!!"
At their current success rate a European tour can't be far away. It's obviously something the band is looking forward to. To close our interview we asked Ella if there was anything else she wanted to say.
"Yeah," she smiled "I just want to say 'Hi!' to all your readers over there in Europe - can't wait to see ya!"
If you want to check out the latest tour plans for Sister2Sister or Killing Heidi you can visit their Web sites at www.s2s.com.au and www.killingheidi.com.au.