BMA Magazine 471 - 9 September 2015

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THE ILLUSIONISTS 1

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THE ILLUSIONISTS 2

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GREAT SOUTHERN BLUES FESTIVAL

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THE GREEN SHED

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INDENT PRESENTS HANDS LIKE HOUSES

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GROOVIN THE ANU

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THINK YOU’RE FUNNY, PUNK? YOUR PLACE? MY PLACE? NAH, OUR PLACE. 2016 is set to be a big year for everyone’s favourite northside suburb. Belconnen is hitting the big five-oh. Gettin’ a bit old, aren’t ya, Belco!

YEEZY FOR 2020 #471SEPTEMBER9 Fax: (02) 6257 4361 Mail: PO Box 713 Civic Square, ACT 2608 Publisher Scott Layne Allan Sko General Manager Allan Sko T: (02) 6257 4360 E: advertising@bmamag.com

Editor Jeremy Stevens T: (02) 6257 4456 E: editorial@bmamag.com

Accounts Manager Ashish Doshi T: (02) 6247 4816 E: accounts@bmamag.com

Thankfully, the Belconnen Arts Centre is getting ready to celebrate Belconnen’s 50th birthday with Our Place, a festival and celebration being put together by Fringe Festival producer Chenoeh Miller.

Bringing together artists, musicians, dancers, and all kinds of local talented people, it’ll be encompass everything creatively wonderful about the area.

There’ll be market stalls.

There’ll be facepainting. There’ll be collaborations. There’ll be a lino cut workshop and lantern and badge making. There’ll be fire drums for after dark. And there’ll be great food! Could you ask for anything more?

The Our Place launch will go down on Saturday September 19, from 4pm to 8pm, and entry is free. If there’s one thing Canberrans know how to do, it’s how to throw a party and get behind a community. It’s Belco’s turn over the next few months and into 2016 – let’s get behind it all.

Got a bit of a funny bone on ya? Always have your mates cracking up? Have you got the worst of the worst dad jokes hidden up your sleeve? Good, because the Canberra Comedy Festival needs you.

In 2015, the festival brought some good ol’ laffs to over 9000 Canberrans (that’s not a meme reference – there were actually over 9000). There were more than 60 shows across a whole week, and it was jam-packed with the best talent around. Next year, the festival will return for its fourth year, and applications are open for artists and comedians who want to put together a show.

They’re open to people from all around Australia, and people of all experience levels – doesn’t matter if it’s your first ever show, or you’ve been slogging it on the circuit for a decade.

The Canberra Comedy Festival will be bringing the funnies between Tue-Sun March 15-20, 2016, so if you have what it takes, get involved. See canberracomedyfestival.com. au for all of the details and application forms.

PULL UP A CHAIR AND GET COMFORTABLE. Everyone has a story of some kind. Remember that time you had one too many beers with Jonno and woke up on a plane to Barcelona? Haha. Yeah.

Good times.

Well if you like a bit of storytime, you’ll be pleased to know that Storytime with Jay Sullivan is back. For those of you unfamiliar with the event, a number of Canberrans take to the stage for a quick interview about who they are, before they’re given ten minutes or so of stage time to tell a notable story.

It’s coming to The Civic Pub in Braddon this month, so on Tuesday September 22, head on down at 8pm and make sure you check it all out. Don’t forget to book tickets ahead of time at trybooking.com/IZEH, and head on over to the Facebook event at facebook.com/ events/1036039396429740 to see the full line-up when it’s released.

WINNER’S CORNER! To win the new season of House of Cards on DVD, we asked who you’d rather vote for: Tony Abbott or Frank Underwood.

“I’d go Tony every time.

I love Frank’s plotting and conniving-ness, but (even though House of Cards is up for grabs) I’d take a comedy over a drama every time. Frank has never eaten an onion, told housewives to do the ironing, made a Royal a knight, or spoken about a holocaust of job losses. No, for me Tony and his jolly japes win hands down every time!”

Sub-Editor & Social Media Manager Andrew Nardi Graphic Design Chris Halloran

NEXT ISSUE 472 OUT September 23 EDITORIAL DEADLINE September 14 ADVERTISING DEADLINE Sept 17 Published by Radar Media Pty Ltd ABN 76 097 301 730 BMA Magazine is independently owned and published.

Opinions expressed in BMA Magazine are not necessarily those of the editor, publisher or staff.

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*Daft Punk not actually playing at Our Place.

DAFT PUNK IS PLAYING AT OUR PLACE, AT OUR PLACE.

Film Editor Emma Robinson

FROM THE BOSSMAN And The Secret Ingredient Is... LOVE!?!

There has been an increasing trend I have noticed when indulging in my habit of scrutinising a product’s ingredients of a farmers’ market or boutique bakery - gleefully oblivious to the increasingly long queue of frustrated people. It’s a trend that makes me arch an eyebrow of curiosity as those behind me gnash their teeth.

And that is the addition of Love as an actual real ingredient.

I have noticed this inclusion on five separate occasions. Next to the salt, the sugar, the perrioroxide emulsifiers and various other chemical numbers and letters will be listed the word Love or, for extra twee points, a little heart-shape.

What I want to know is... Have people thought this seemingly simple thing through?

Now I understand that we say things are ‘made with love’ and that boutique stores in particular will want to express to their hipster customers that they’re not about watered-down mass production, maaaan, they go the extra mile by providing the equivalent of an easter egg that they know you, the discerning possibly-bearded possibly-head-scarf-wearing ingredientsscrutinising buyer will read. And a little smile may creep across your face. “Nawwwww,” they will quip, likely to themselves in their own head.

YOU PISSED ME OFF! Care to immortalise your hatred in print? Send an email to editorial@bmamag.com and see your malicious bile circulated to thousands. [All entries contain original spellings.]

When you have all that spare change, when you have the clinky silver pockets, and you go to the Coffee Man, you go up to him and you say “Please excuse me, Coffee Man, could I have a large flat white please?”

The Coffee Man smiles the smile of a person who has just seen a sunrise for the first time and is overcome with joy. He nods and says “Yes, Man Whose Pockets Clink While He Walks, I can make you one of those. That will be $4.50.”

You look down at your feet. “I am sorry, Coffee Man, please forgive me. I have brought my silver clinky pockets here to get rid of the clinking. I have silver payment for you.” Feeling guilt, you become terrified of the sorrow and burden you have now inflicted upon the poor, kind soul of the Coffee Man. The Coffee Man says “Worry not, hand me your silver. Even those with the clinkiest pockets deserve a coffee. It is no trouble at all.”

You look back up at him – he is still smiling, radiating happiness to all – but there is no absolution for the coffee sinner. There is no relief from this crime of crimes. All know this. Only death and the abyss can save us from this weight of infinite guilt.

But maybe there’s more to this.

Have the FDA* had a review and determined Love is now a tangible and measurable ingredient that can be included in food and drink products? What constitutes a safe level of Love? If the Love has been picked and then frozen only to be warmed up later off-season and reconstituted, do the product makers have to declare this? Where exactly is this Love being grown and produced? The stupid questions are endless.

Possibly the worst thing about this whole Love-is-now-aningredient thing is that it is often listed as the last ingredient. As we all know said list runs from highest quantity at the start to lowest quantity at the end.

So these producers are flagrantly admitting to us that they’re making it with the bare minimum of love, effectively half-arsing the care component. This is surely as bad as offering a waiter a 5c tip over none at all. If you can’t be bothered to put any love in, then don’t bother. The fast food industry has made billions off that just notion.

And let’s face it, the idea of a “little bit of love added to every product” just sounds a bit, well… Unsavoury.

Right, I’m off to buy a pumpernickel fruit loaf and take 15 minutes asking where the Love is sourced from.

ALLAN SKO - allan@bmamag.com

*that is, of course, the Food and Drug Administration. Not to be confused with the Fraud and Death Administration

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WHO: HOLY HOLY WHAT: ALBUM TOUR WHEN: FRI SEP 18 WHERE: TRANSIT BAR

Everyone’s raving about Holy Holy right now, but that’s just because they’re so damn good. We recently chatted with the fellas and reviewed their debut album When The Storms Would Come to high critical acclaim. Their live show pulls into the mix drummer Ryan Strathie (Hungry Kids of Hungary, Andy Bull), bassist Graham Ritchie (Airling, Emma Louise) and producer Matt Redlich (Ball Park Music, The Trouble With Templeton) on keys. Tickets will only set you back $15 + bf through Moshtix. They’ll have support from Fractures and The Lulu Raes. Turn up at 8pm.

WHO: AC SLATER WHAT: TOUR WHEN: FRI SEP 18 WHERE: MR WOLF

Los Angeles-based AC Slater just released his Take The Night EP through OWSLA (that’s Skrillex’s label, which is also occupied by acts like What So Not, Carmada, The M Machine and formerly Porter Robinson). He’ll be passing through Sydney, Wollongong and Newcastle this month, but his first show of the tour is for the party people in Canberra. His ‘night bass’ style is sure to please all fans of the aforementioned artists too, as he opts for a fresh mix of UK garage and heavy bass house. Supported by Exposure, Pr!ntz and Skinny. Entry is $10 before 11pm.

WHO: THE STIFFYS WHAT: EP TOUR WHEN: THU SEP 24 WHERE: THE PHOENIX

With a name like The Stiffys, you just know you’re in for a good time.

Who are they? They’re an art rock band from Melbourne. Okay, but who are they, really? A ‘cock rock’ band apparently, an Australian Death From Above 1979, except they’re drunk all the time, they’re dressed as sailors and they sing about erections. I shit you not, this’ll be a good night. The Neanderthals will be shifting around the place, too (as a support act, I mean). Stick your ugly mug into The Phoenix at about 9pm and slide ‘em a cheeky fiver. They’ll show you a good time.

WHO: THE JUNGLE GIANTS WHAT: ALBUM TOUR WHEN: FRI SEP 25 WHERE: ANU BAR

Their first album Learn To Exist painted The Jungle Giants as an Aussie indie band to be reckoned with. Their follow-up album Speakerzoid is an entirely different beast however, with a mesmerising mix of inventive sounds that blow their debut out of the water. Tickets have already sold out all over the country, so you better race in quick. They’ll share the bill with Art of Sleeping (who are touring an album of their own), and Hockey Dad. Tickets are going for $44.86 + bf on Ticketek. Enter the jungle at 8pm.

WHO: HEART BEACH WHAT: TOUR WHEN: SAT SEP 26 WHERE: THE PHOENIX

If you’ve never been to a beach in Hobart (because that’s always been on your bucket list), this is as good a chance as you’re ever going to get. By playing sad, minimal Hobartian skuzz-pop, oceanpop band Heart Beach channels the feeling of the Tasmanian sun barely sizzling your skin as you lay by one of their beaches. Their music shimmers and shivers in a way that is both parts melancholic and sexy. They’ll be supported by Cracked Actor, Waterford and Thomas Hyland. Drop by The Phoenix at 9:30pm and pay $5 to stroll on in.

WHO: ROCKWIZ LIVE! SALUTES THE ARIA HALL OF FAME WHEN: WED SEP 30 WHERE: LLEWELLYN HALL

As seen on TV, RocKwiz is the music trivia show you love to love.

Now, not only are hosts Julia Zemiro and Brian Nankervis hitting the road, but they’re also saluting the ARIA Hall of Fame in an amazing, fun-filled night of performances, talks, laughs and guest artists from the ARIA Hall of Fame! The shows won’t be filmed either (so don’t think you can just stay in and catch it on the telly), but they will follow the format of the TV show – which means some good ol’ fashioned audience participation, too. Tickets are $93.59 + bf through Ticketek.

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RORY MCCARTNEY The rolling hills on the outskirts of Canberra will be the location of an exciting new festival on the October long weekend. The BEYOND FESTIVAL will bring together musicians, artists, poets, educators and storytellers at Greenhills Centre in the Cotter Valley. The musical line-up includes Katie Noonan, Lior, Archie Roach, plus many more. Leading the push will be Melbourne-based roots band BLUE KING BROWN. BMA corresponded with Nattali Rize of BKB about the band and its appearance at the upcoming festival.

but this time it led us over the oceans and to the opposite side of the planet, to Jamaica; a beautiful island filled with beautiful people and the beating heart of the music I love so much… reggae. I have been collaborating on sounds and frequencies whilst there, and am stoked to be touring with my new family and full Jamaican band, Notis. It’s different and I am grateful for any new experiences that have helped to evolve myself as an artist, an activist and a person devoted to sharing positive vibrations in order to help shift the consciousness on this planet higher.

What are you doing today? I’m on tour with my new solo project, Nattali Rize. I’ve just released a new EP, New Era Frequency, which is a collaboration with Notis, a drum and bass, progressive reggae production duo from Kingston, Jamaica.

How has the band’s sound changed since its formation? There are some classic sounds that will always remain a strong flavour of BKB’s music; sounds that have been there from the beginning, like our heavy mix of percussion and reggae, come Latin, come afrobeat, come soul, come jazz – all sorts blended into something fresh. Our sound has also evolved to be heavily inspired by newschool reggae.

How has the tour been going? The tour has been great. We recently finished a run with New Zealand band Katchafire along the West Coast of California and into Nevada and Arizona.

We’re currently in Toronto, Canada. Prior to that, we have been on the road through the mid-west of America with the mighty Michael Franti & Spearhead.

We always try and keep that balance of ‘upful’ music you can dance to but also get inspired by lyrically

How well does BKB’s music translate onto the international stage? BKB have always prided ourselves on our stage show… our ability to deliver a high-energy, punchy, danceable, but thought-provoking set. We find that wherever we go in the world, people connect with our messages of truth, unity and solidarity, as well as the rhythms we play. So we always try and keep that balance of ‘upful’ music you can dance to but also get inspired by lyrically.

Was the 2004 move from Byron Bay to Melbourne a difficult transition? Opportunities for development opened up! It’s a must for any artist or creative person to follow their instinct when it comes to surrounding yourself in the environment and amongst the right community – for your art and for you at that point in time. Such was the case for bass player Carlo and myself when we moved to Melbourne. We just saw this thriving artistic, musical community and quickly decided it was where we needed to be to further our goals.

Was recruiting new players difficult? It wasn’t very difficult to find the kind of musicianship we were after. Melbourne is kinda spoilt for talent like that. So we organised a jam and away we went. That was just over ten years ago, and as it would happen, those first three musicians we engaged – as well as the two of us – are still playing with the band today!

You have a big line-up. Do all members regularly play at live shows? We have a minimum line-up of eight, with a second percussionist. We have had 11 onstage in the past, including a horn section.

I understand the band has a second home in Jamaica? Well it’s really just myself and Carlo who have been spending a good amount of time in Jamaica. We followed our instincts once again,

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Has BKB’s strong belief in transmitting social consciousness messages been present from the outset? It was never our intention to start a band that sang about socially conscious messages or issues that affect people. It was just what happened when I put pen to paper. My lyrics were honest reflections of everything I was passionate about and still am, of what I saw and see happening in my world in these times… and that’s just how it stayed. I am still very much a student in the art of singing, but I keep it up simply because I knew I had something important to say that no one else was going to say for me, or in the way I felt it could be said.

What themes drove the 2014 LP Born Free? Born Free is largely driven by the realisation and ongoing awareness that the system has us living under a complete illusion. We are born mentally and spiritually free with the ability to live, love and grow without restriction. We are then very quickly entered into a system of multiple forms of slavery – the most prevalent in the West being mental slavery. Then there’s debt slavery, physical and emotional slavery as well. We are led to believe there is a certain way that life should be, and everything we do and learn is to fit into this predetermined way of ‘living’.

Why is BKB excited about Beyond Festival’s focus on justice and genuine community? Beyond Festival has a message that BKB can connect with – to empower and inspire people and each other in the name of social justice and unity amongst your community.

That intention in itself is an energy, and one that is already making its way into the hearts and minds of those heading to the festival.

We are there to help amplify and support those intentions and to share our perspectives, our art, and absorb some of the festival’s offerings as well. It’s been a while Canberra, can’t wait!

The inaugural Beyond Festival will be held Fri–Mon Oct 2–5 at Greenhills Centre on Cotter Road, out near the dam. Full details, including lineup, program, onsite accommodation and ticket prices are available at beyondfestival.com.au.

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LOCALITY

There’s plenty of local music on this fortnight, but you should definitely hope that you picked up your BMA early, because it’s pretty front heavy!

On Thursday September 10, you’ll be making some tough decisions.

Brass Knuckle Brass Band will return to The Phoenix after a brief hiatus, supported by Brother Be. It kicks off at 9pm with entry only $5. If you crave something a little more ethereal, Reuben Ingall (who has just launched his latest album, Microclimates) will join Danny Wild for the September edition of Playful Sound at the Ralph Wilson Theatre at the Gorman Arts Centre from 7pm, with a $5 door charge. On the same evening, Monsterpiece launch their new Habits EP at Transit Bar from 8pm, with supports Novia Scotia and Pleased to Jive You, all for free.

Friday September 11 is also massive, with Art Underground’s free monthly open mic at Beyond Q Bookshop in Curtin from 7pm, while Canberra Musicians Club raise funds at the Polish Club to resolve their plumbing issues with the Polish Poo Party, starting at 8pm.

NOZL and The King Hits will play, with more TBA. Entry is $15, but if you’re looking for a bit of free fun before the night starts, head to the Facebook page for the event for an array of poo puns made at the expense of some wonderful local acts – it’s a real marvel.

Rounding out a frantic opening week is the Merloc Launch Party at Canberra Technology Park in Watson on Saturday September 12 from 6pm. Owned and operated by Sam King, Merloc has already had a massive part to play in a tonne of local releases, so this is a great opportunity to see how some of your new favourite Canberra tunes are being made. There’ll be a DJ set from Coolio Desgracias, as well as Bentspoke Beer to properly christen what is sure to be an invaluable part of Canberra’s musical landscape.

In the second half of the fortnight, things get a little less cramped.

2XX will be presenting the Local n Live Bootleg Sessions on Monday September 14 from 8pm, with the chance to see Duck Duck Ghost, Elk Locker, Malk and Maggie Jeffs without paying a cent. Wallflower, Lavers and NONIE are also playing The Phoenix on Thursday September 17 from 9pm, with entry sitting at $10. On Saturday September 19, The Phoenix stage will be taken over by The Steptones, Young Monks and Azim Zain & His Lovely Bones from 9:30pm, which you can catch for $5.

If jazz is your scene, you’ll be happy to know that Hippo Co is celebrating 15 years of live jazz in their cosy premises with a massive shindig on Wednesday September 16 from 5pm. Because they can’t fit them all in upstairs, they’ve rung in Honkytonks as well, so that you can spend your mid-week enjoying sets from Moochers Inc, The Eighty-Eights, G-Force Quartet, Bella Groove and 5th Avenue. If you’re having a rough week, this should make the sprint towards the weekend that little bit easier.

Finally, recent expats PAINT on PAINT have just released their first track, ‘Smash’. Their live performances always seemed quite stripped back, but this track certainly isn’t. Hear it at soundcloud.com/paintonpaint.

NONI DOLL nonijdoll@gmail.com @nonidoll

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BEYOND FESTIVAL

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last year and they blew me away. They are selling us heaps of tickets this year.”

THERE SHE BLUES! RORY MCCARTNEY Well known for its annual whale watching season, the south coast town of Narooma also has an annual musical shin dig, the GREAT SOUTHERN BLUES FESTIVAL. This year’s scorecard includes Blue King Brown, Richard Clapton, The Dynamic Hepnotics, Lloyd Spiegel, Ross Wilson & The Peaceniks and many more. Held over the October long weekend, 2015 will mark the festival’s final year in its current format. BMA chatted to festival producer Neil Mumme – who founded the event in 1996 – about the festival’s history and going into the future.

The organisers claim to be raising the bar for the festival’s final year, particularly with the quality of the artists and the festival’s presentation. “We have always striven to improve what we deliver to our punters, including ‘state of the art’ production, and this year that will be even better.” Some of the show’s big drawcards in the past have included John Butler in 2000, The Fabulous Thunderbirds in 2004, Daddy Cool in 2006, and Pete Murray in 2008. Asked about what most excites him for 2015, Mumme quickly nominates the Royal Southern Brotherhood. “They are a killer band. I saw them in the USA

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We have become one big, happy family that gets together every year to listen to great music

Mumme pauses when asked about his favourite year. “That’s a tough question because each year has its memories – both good and bad. If I had to pick out a year it would be 2000. We paid John Butler $600 and no one knew who he was. The following year we hired him and he was a household name.” 2000 was also memorable for its dramas. “On the Saturday night, everyone left a nice-looking festival site. At about 2am, it was hit by a storm that wiped out half the tents and virtually destroyed the site. We had trucks and all sorts of things holding the tents down, but the show went on.” There is no need to worry about this year’s weather though. “We hope it will be 23 degrees and fine, but if not, all our stages are housed under Big Top Tents that make for an all-weather event.”

Looking back, Mumme says fondly, “It’s been a fabulous journey since 1996. We have hosted many brilliant performances and certainly put Narooma on the map. Most of all, we have become one big, happy family that gets together every year to listen to great music and take our minds off the pressures of everyday life.” As for the future? “The current format will be retired and we are working on a new one going forward. To be brutally honest, the multi-day festivals are becoming way too hard, so we will be refining what we do. Watch this space… it will be good. It will be very good.”

The Great Southern Blues Festival will take place in Narooma from Fri– Sun Oct 2–4. Details including full line-up, program and ticket prices are available at bluesfestival.tv.

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CODY ATKINSON A while ago someone on Twitter lamented the dying off of the local scene to me. You may be thinking, “Oh, so offhanded remarks on Twitter are enough for an article now? How about the time you were called the most useless music writer in Canberra on Facebook?” Well, beggars can’t be choosers, and that one might have to wait until next issue. Until then, Cody Atkinson questions Tinder, Netflix, the exchange rate of the Australian Dollar and (cue music) THE DEATH OF LIVE MUSIC IN AUSTRALIA. Live music is dying? Tell me it ain’t so?

Well, it’s not me proclaiming it dead. You can find someone saying that live music is dead at any given moment, usually after a poorly attended gig on a cold night in July. Or just to fill inches on your favourite website of choice.

How about this time?

Well it was provoked by an off-hand Facebook post by James Young – from Cherry Bar in Melbourne’s CBD – about a conversation he had with another Melbourne promoter. Google Pedestrian TV’s article, ‘Cherry Bar Owner Elaborates On Viral ‘Tinder Killing Live Music’ FB Post’.

Did Wu Tang Financial help you with those numbers?

DIVERSIFY YO’ BONDS! So how about smaller and indie bands?

Well, if a weak Australian dollar makes it less profitable for big artists to come out, then the international mid-tier and independent artists have a very hard time making ends meet over here. Losing money in a foreign country isn’t a thing that all artists can do, so naturally it serves to potentially reduce the pool of touring artists a little more. For those who do come and need to break even, ticket costs have to be increased, which may affect attendances negatively.

The gig is now the only temporal resource there is

OK, what’s remarkable about this time?

Well, it is the reason for the death of live music that is interesting.

Go on...

In the missive, Young stated that the promoter claimed that Tinder was affecting attendances at bars, and is a prominent reason for the struggles of live venues in Melbourne this year.

Tinder?

Yeah, the swipe right, swipe left thing. Young stated that instead of some punters going to bars to pick up, that subsection is instead using Tinder to meet people and going to “safer” venues like comedy clubs on first Tinder dates.

I mean that’s not the stupidest theory ever?

But how many people are paying cover charges to see bands solely to pick up? There would be a few, but would it be enough to create a downturn in the entire live music industry in any given year?

So, is Tinder killing live music attendance?

Possibly, but who knows for sure? Other venue promoters have called bullshit on the claim, as reported by The Music. But let me introduce the most powerful form of evidence of all: ANECDOTE! I actually know a few people who have gone on Tinder dates to gigs, so the whole notion is a bit of a surprise to me. From my perspective, why should a Tinder date be any different from any other first date? But honestly, gigs aren’t always the perfect situation for a first date.

You mentioned the Aussie dollar at the top… what effect would that have on touring bands?

The weakness of the AUD is the first thing Young cited for the fall in crowds at Melbourne gigs. It works a little like this: a strong dollar means a strong exchange rate, and also that it’s closer to every AUD equalling a US dollar. Contrary to that, a weak dollar

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makes an Australian tour harder to pull off. Basically, it’s 25% more expensive for a US artist to tour over here than it was 12 months ago, given the fall in the dollar. The theory goes that this hits the top end of the market the most, which creates a trickledown effect on the rest of the industry.

Young also mentioned Netflix as a potential impact on declining live music attendances?

Yeah, Netflix is to a degree, but TV has been a thing for 60 years, the internet for 20 and DVD box sets for the last 15. Netflix is merely the newest iteration in continual viewing; yet another reason to stay in. But if anything, Netflix creates a more conducive environment to go to gigs, due to its ‘on demand’ nature. The gig is now the only temporal resource there is, Netflix can be watched at any time.

Tom Morgan was skipping playing gigs back in the ‘90s to watch TV shows that wouldn’t be on again. These days, he could watch the series on Netflix or iView or torrent it or whatever.

And how’s the Canberra scene shaping up lately?

From a punter’s perspective? Pretty well, actually. It’s been a bumper 12-month period for the city. Canberra’s had a number of really great shows this year, both bigger and smaller, with local and international artists. Venues are generally opening up, not closing (bar the soon to be departed City Magpies), and some are getting new looks and owners.

There’s no doubt that the fires had an impact on the scene in 2013 and ‘14, as did other unfortunate events, but things have seemed to turn the corner again.

Well they do say that Canberra is two years behind Melbourne...

Hey, whose side are you on here?

Just saying...

I can guarantee Tinder won’t be killing live music in Canberra in two years’ time. By then, we will have moved on to some form of holographic dating service with hoverboards, telepathy and the gumption of Jimmy Stewart in the classic Alfred Hitchcock film Rear Window. Or something like that.

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problem with depression … we could just see it all floating off into the distance …”

IN BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE GUS MCCUBBING BURIED IN VERONA’s fifth release Vultures Above, Lions Below was an album put together by a band in survival mode. The band’s lead, Brett Anderson, explains that Buried in Verona came close to disbanding after being overwhelmed by negativity.

“As a band we’ve been through two-and-a-half years of turmoil – we were nearly financially ruined,” he admits. “As people, our passion and love of what we had been doing for the last seven or eight years was nearly taken from us. I’ve had a problem with alcohol, Richie had a

‘Vultures Above, Lions Below’ means that you’re fucked either way

Beyond financial and personal issues, Anderson also indicates that the band felt surrounded by detractors. “The title is a reflection of that feeling you get when you start growing as a band,” Anderson explains. “You start coming up and it feels like people are crowding around you, wanting to take a piece of you, or take advantage of what you’re doing. As someone on Facebook interpreted it, ‘Vultures Above, Lions Below’ means that you’re fucked either way…” Nevertheless, with the recruitment of some new bandmembers – Mark Harris (lead guitar), Brandon Martel (bass) and James Swanson (drums) – Buried in Verona managed to rally themselves and produce what Anderson calls their most honest record yet.

“I think when we decided to go ahead with this record and give it one more go, it actually felt kind of uplifting and positive,” he says. “Instead of feeling like we’ve gotta make this amazing album and stay in people’s faces, there was no pressure because in our minds we were already finishing up the band.”

While the record was mixed and mastered by metal heavyweights Fredrik Nordström and Henrik Udd at Studio Freman in Sweden, the album was written, produced, and recorded entirely by the band. “That was a change for us,” says Anderson, “but I think it fitted us way more than going to Sweden or Detroit. I think we just bounced around way more ideas and had more time and ideas without those big figures in the room with us.”

In one of the singles from the new album, ‘Hurricane’, the band asked their fans to anonymously submit messages detailing hardships suffered and negative thoughts felt, and then burned them throughout the filming of the song’s music video.

“We thought we’d get 50/50 heartfelt messages and just people writing ‘Buried in Verona are dickheads’, but we were blown away by people’s trust and the amount of heartfelt messages we got…”

Anderson says that this act of projecting internal pain onto physical objects is a key means of recovery for him. “I definitely believe in the idea of pinning all my negativity onto objects or songs…

I get rid of all this negativity and these memories and it helps with the healing process.” And, in good news for Buried in Verona fans, it looks like the band has more than just recuperated. “At the moment, it feels really good. We’re probably the strongest we’ve ever been.

It’s the first record we’ve put out where there’s been fuck-all hate…”

Show Buried in Verona some love at Magpies City Club on Sunday September 20.

Supported by Hand of Mercy and Polaris.

Tickets are $25.50 through Oztix.

Opens at 5pm.

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DANCE THE DROP

What’s the next big sound for dance music? EDM and Melbourne bounce no longer sound so new (but there’s still heaps of big releases coming out). Trap has matured, expanding its sound, either merging with EDM and getting super heavy, or some of it going right into breathy R&B territory. (Is that even club music anymore?)

There’s definitely still a lot of creativity happening in the sound. UK ‘deep’ and bassline house is also still going strong, but it too is taking on new influences, including more banging techno elements, and now, if you believe it – garage! Which is awesome by the way; it’s a natural progression of that UK urban sound.

It’s also interesting how retro can have a lot to do with music trends.

Rave synths, breakcore drum samples and pitched vocals are all sneaking their way into a variety of genres (a return of happy hardcore?), and a 303 acid line still puts hands in the air on a packed dancefloor. However, I reckon one area of music that producers can definitely look to for inspiration is some of the beats coming out of the more than 50 countries in Africa. These syncopated rhythms (and the specific urban dances that go with them) have so many sounds that don’t easily reach us in the West – Diplo and Major Lazer, and a select few artists notwithstanding. With a growing clubbing culture on the continent, it’s probably worth taking a close listen – if you know any artists I should check out, send me an email and let me know!

But enough genre name-dropping – here are some gigs in our fine city over the next couple of weeks.

If you’re up for some heavy bass music, head over to Digress Bar this Friday September 11 where the lads from Wake & Bass are bringing Staunch to Canberra to tour their new album. Support includes Bizzle, Key Siesmic, Logistic Sumos, Pr!ntz and Quantum Resonance. $20 entry. Also on the 11th, Mr Wolf brings indie-dance dudes Strange Talk to the city. Veneris, Thryve and Nick Riviera will support the retro-tinged group; this should be quite a show.

The following weekend, Academy hosts a double Melbourne bounce and EDM headliner show, with Press Play and Tyron Hapi (who’s only 16-years-old!) spinning big-room tunes on Friday September 18. Support by Menttis, Project M and Leuky, $10 before 11pm.

Also on the Friday, bass heavyweight AC Slater brings his mix of house, garage and rave to Mr Wolf. Support by Exposure, Pr!ntz and Skinny. $10 before 11pm. Finally, one you should definitely check out if you get the chance – the guys from Stake My Rep are hosting a special show at Digress Bar, with completely original production performances from Daheen, Jilted Hoodz, Lateral Axis & Kazuki (yours truly), and Disect & Lindsay Heffernan. It’ll be a mixed bag of genres, with glitch, psytrance and progressive sounds, a visuals show by Brotherhood of the Seven Rays, and lasers by AZTEK Productions!

Oh yeah, Psyfari was awesome fun – pick of the weekend was actually by Canberra-based drum ‘n’ bass selector Zodiac. He absolutely smashed it!

PETE O’ROURKE contact@kazuki.com.au

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and some will be that rare and that special; you’ll keep them in a set for six months!”

SLINGIN’ FOR THE STARS PETE O’ROURKE Manchester (UK) DJ/producer/record label boss STAR SLINGER (Darren Williams) will grace our shores next month, playing a special set at Transit Bar. Equally inspired by the underground and the mainstream, Star Slinger incorporates elements of Detroit house, minimal techno and hip-hop into his music, creating a vibe that is totally his own.

“I’m really influenced by the nu-skool hip-hop producers like Mike WiLL Made It and DJ Mustard,” he says. “I love how they can make a track out of like, seven sounds – it’s like hip-hop minimalism for the new age, a reminder that less is more.”

Williams is primarily a DJ in his live performances these days, bringing new music to every set to find what he calls the ‘fluke blends that work’.

“I think eight-out-of-ten times I know if tracks will work together or not, but you never really know until you get it on the big club speakers,” he says. “I’m all about taking chances, and it pays off in the long run because you got this catalogue of tracks that work well together – you also know which ones don’t! Some records you’ll never play again,

THE REALNESS I said last week that sometimes it’s best to let bygones be bygones, but sometimes that just isn’t possible. While Straight Outta Compton is killing it at the box office – boosting the album of the same name into the top ten over 20 years after its release, and pushing Dr Dre’s soundtrack Compton to number three – some of Dre’s far less positive actions have also been brought to light.

Using the film’s popularity as a staging ground, some women have brought forth allegations of abuse against Dre. He has since come out and apologised for his actions, but he hasn’t really taken ownership of them. While Dre acknowledged the hurt he caused, he hasn’t addressed any specific allegations and he also hasn’t taken responsibility for whatever did occur, choosing instead to place the blame on what basically amounts to having too much money, too much alcohol and not enough structure – in other words, not being able to handle being a grown-up. While it surely won’t come as a surprise to see another ‘misogyny and hip-hop’ article, when the devastating effects of this attitude are so easily visible and understood, it becomes pretty hard to fall back on tired arguments like ‘it’s just one line from one song’ or the whole ‘art imitating life’ spiel.

Speaking of G Funk though, Warren G came out with Regulate: The G Funk Era Part II on August 6. When I decided I wanted to write about it, I already thought I knew what I was going to say; something

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Some records will be that rare and that special; you’ll keep them in a set for six months!

Just recently, the producer has worked with the singer Semma, producing not only the beats for her vocals, but also having the tracks professionally mixed and working as a management figure for her on his label. “I knew I could do something great with her, and channel into my pop side more, so we started developing a sound together. It was almost effortless because we feed off each other musically and get on really well – the songs we’ve got in the pipeline are something I’m really excited about!” Williams’ own label Jet Jam continues this philosophy, with soulful musicality the focus. “I try run a label in a carefree manner and not get too caught up in a particular sound,” he says. “I feel like I want to just get good people involved with us, and that is first and foremost what it’s about. From that, I think good things will follow.”

This current tour will see Star Slinger come to not only Australia, but also play some shows in China – a first for the DJ. “I’ve not played there,” he says, speaking about the shows abroad. “Only in Japan and Singapore in Asia before, but on this tour it’s China, Philippines, South Korea… I’m looking forward to all of them. I love seeing the difference in culture, architecture and people. It amazes me, and I always bring back amazing toys for my child,” he says.

And what about Canberra? “I’ve never been, and I ignorantly know nothing about it. I’m looking forward to learning about it from the locals and the promoters when I visit!”

Star Slinger will swing by Transit Bar on Sunday September 27. Supported

by Mighty Morphin, Turt Lush, first gulf war, Aeon Knight, Architect DJ’s, Dred, and Bottle Brush vs. D.Wils. Early tickets are $20 + bf through residentadvisor.net, standard tickets are $25. Kicks off at 6pm.

about how six or seven years after his last release, Warren G was just trying to capitalise on the recent ubiquity of ‘Regulate’ thanks, in large part, to the playlists of those ‘after-work drinks’ bars. While it’s true that the timing of the release might be good publicity (to neatly coincide with the aforementioned release of Straight Outta Compton), The G Funk Era Part II is not the tired mumblings of a legend trying to rekindle the fire. Tracks such as ‘My House’, ‘Saturday’ and ‘Keep On Hustlin’ stand out and appearances from Bun B, E-40, Too Short and – obviously – Nate Dogg are as fresh as ever, making Part II work both as a sequel and as a worthy release in its own right.

On to local produce, Coolio Desgracias’ latest release has also been going through my speakers. Having not met him, it’s hard to know what to make of him – juxtaposing a comical, almost satirical persona with an obvious musical maturity. This sense of selfdeprecation can be felt all throughout his latest release Bulk TV and Heartbreak, released on August 10. Despite its self-awareness, Bulk TV and Heartbreak also demonstrates an obvious hip-hop knowledge and passion, with tracks such as ‘Abadaba (No Lint)’, ‘Basketball’ or ‘Trials n Tribs’ sounding somewhere between a funked-out version of Shabazz Palaces and a sci-fi Madlib. Available on We Large Productions’ Bandcamp, Bulk TV and Heartbreak isn’t as serious as it sounds, and is weirder and better than both of those things.

Later this month, Devin the Dude is coming to Canberra. The Houston rapper is doing his first Australian tour, with the Canberra leg taking place at Transit Bar on Wednesday September 23. Tickets are $30 + bf through Moshtix.

BRADY MCMULLEN - realness.bma@gmail.com

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Bliss. There’s spring in the air and presumably a spring in your steeltoed step as you peel back your patched-up denim jacket to reveal a thin layer of musty flannelette. Although, you keep the jacket within reach because realistically this is Canberra and you will need it again soon enough. As you walk up the street for your usual 2pm breakfast you notice a patch of lovely yellow daisies sprouting up from the dirt. You kick the shit out of them. Upon arriving at your local shopping centre you pick up a slick new copy of BMA, your friendly neighbourhood street press. You take a seat and flip open to the prestigious Punk and Disorderly column. As you read through the first paragraph you begin to wonder what sort of wanker is behind this douchebaggery. He doesn’t know you! You hope he cuts it out before too much longer so you can get to the important bits about upcoming shows. Your hope is received and honoured. Here’s the information you seek.

On Tuesday September 8, Ainslie & Gorman will be featuring local folk-punk outfit Helena Pop as part of their ‘Out To Lunch’ program.

For this special performance, the band will be joined by a threepiece string section. The forty-minute set will kick off at the Ainslie Arts Centre from 12:30pm, for just $5 on the door.

Australian punk hallmarks The Smith Street Band are headed out on yet another tour. This time they’ll be travelling around the country in September alongside their American mates Andrew Jackson Jihad and The Sidekicks, and fellow Melbournians The Sugarcanes.

They’ll be stopping by the Magpies City Club on Friday September 11.

Tickets are set at $34.70 and are available through Oztix. Be sure to snatch up your tickets nice and early ‘cause this one’s sure to sell out!

Also on Friday September 11, you can catch Melbourne duo The Stiffys at The Phoenix. Not sure if they count as punk, but they sure do seem to give a minimal number of fucks.

If thrash is your thing, then definitely head to the Magpies City Club on Friday September 25 to check out Sydney’s Tanned Christ as they launch their new EP Antipodean Sickness. They’ll be joined by some stellar local supports including Loather, a new Canberra band featuring members of Blight Worms and Machina Genova, along with Starrats and Agency.

On Thursday October 8 you can head down to The Phoenix to catch Melbourne’s The Ocean Party as they launch their newest album Light Weight. They’ll have support from Melbourne’s Cool Sounds and locals Wives.

You take a satisfactory sigh. You now know all you needed to. Your thirst is quenched. But then you realise, he’s at it again. Why can’t he just write a normal punk column without all of this pretentious crap?

Luckily, he’s run out of column inches…

IAN McCARTHY

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METALISE Witchskull have just had a superb year representing the ACT with their own peculiar brand of heavy metal. I’ve talked them up a lot throughout the year, ever since the three-piece sent me a rough mix of their album The Vast Electric Dark, which is finally going to see the light of day on Thursday October 1 through their Bandcamp and at shows. The three-piece are kicking their launch tour off in Melbourne on Friday October 2 at the Bendigo, with a bill that is just killer: The Ruiner (featuring ex-Christbait and Dern Rutlidge members), TTTDC (featuring ex-Sons Of The Ionian Sea and Peeping Tom members) and Olmeg.

They come back up the highway for their homecoming launch on Saturday October 3 to celebrate all their hard work with a show at Transit Bar. It’s been a great year for new music – lots of competition out there, but Witchskull’s album stands right up there with the best on offer in 2015; it is just killer. Local Horror are along for the show also, so don’t miss out on the gig and buy the album the moment they release it.

Adelaide black doom terrorists Space Bong released their new album Deadwood To Worms recently and are visiting town for the second time this year, in October at the Basement in Belconnen.

Along for the ride is an Adelaide death metal band called Tombsealer, with two Canberra bands Wretch and Mammon to round out the bill. That show is Friday October 23.

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Black Sabbath exceeded all expectations when I went to catch them at Allphones Arena last year. If you missed out and were kicking yourself afterwards, good news. The band has announced a visit on their last ever tour at the same venue on Saturday April 23, 2016. Ticket info should be released as this issue goes to the street.

Speaking of British metal legends in Allphones, Iron Maiden are pretty likely to drop definitive dates for their 2016 tour in support of their excellent new album Book of Souls. Early May at this stage, so stay tuned for that too.

The Basement in Belconnen teased on its Facebook that there is some radio exposure on offer for Canberra metal bands in the near future, but you need to get in touch with them. Given all Lance and the team have done in the past 12 months, I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re starting their own media empire as well – but it’s probably best if you are in the local metal community and wanting some air time that you get in touch with the venue.

Don’t forget the venue’s upcoming Metal Fiesta 8 with Lord, Frankenbok, The Levitation Hex, Lo!, Nouveaux, Claret Ash, Ommorium, Perpetual End, C.H.U.D. and Forstora on Saturday October 31.

Earthless and Elder tickets are also evaporating quickly for their Sydney show at Newtown Social Club – so much so that a second show has been announced for Sunday October 25 at Hermann’s Bar, a bit back up the road toward the city.

JOSH NIXON doomtildeath@hotmail.com

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NIGHTFEST AND HANNAH GADSBY ELEANOR HORN Since graduating from ANU with a degree in art history and curatorship, HANNAH GADSBY has had a lustrous and varied career in art, comedy, and television. Her stand-up show ‘Happiness Is A Bedside Table’ was nominated for Best Show at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, and she has been touring her latest show ‘Donkey’ around Australian festivals this year. In addition to her comedy, you may recognise Hannah from television programs such as Adam Hills Tonight, Good News Week and Please Like Me. Art lovers may have also seen Hannah’s art lectures and documentaries, such as Hannah Gadsby’s Oz, in which she debunks the myths of Australian identity perpetuated by our national art.

Hannah has entertained people across Australia, and is going to be one of the comedians performing at this year’s NIGHTFEST, which as always, is set to bring some of the best art, comedy, and performances to Canberra over a few wonderful nights.

Before Hannah’s imminent arrival, I had a chat with her about what she’s been up to this year, and what festival-goers can expect from her set – because while she’s looking forward to returning to Canberra to perform at Nightfest, at the moment, she doesn’t have any immediate plans for more gigs around the ACT. “For a little while, I’ll be representing the tulips,” she says. “I feel like Tiny Tim!” Hannah’s stand-up is undoubtedly successful, so what is it that she thinks makes a great comedian? “Half of it’s luck, zeitgeist, hard work, and … that bit of magic,” she says. “I’d say you’ve got to be a bit of a dickhead. Pretty much that’s the consistent quality: just a bit of a dickhead.”

Fans of Hannah’s comedy will remember her most recent standup DVD Mrs. Chuckles, and will be pleased to hear she also has a comedy audio project in the works. “I mean, who’s got time to sit down and watch?” she says. “It’s cheaper to produce, and also it’s more accessible. You can listen to it in the car – although that’s dangerous because I’m very funny. Basically, it’s all my favourite stories that I like to tell on stage, so stuff from the last five years.”

What others may not know about Hannah is that she has also combined her comedy with her passion for art; she’s used her art background to present comedic documentaries and lectures. “I really love art and art history,” she says. Hannah claims that she is not serious enough to pursue a career in art. “When I started doing comedy, I found something I really liked doing was taking complicated ideas and simplifying them. Making them palatable with jokes. I thought it would be great fun to do with art. It’s a way to look outside of myself, into something I’m quite passionate about.

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“Visually, a lot of old art is hilarious. By applying a modern context to it, it’s an instant gag. People love it, but I like to add just that extra little layer; I say ‘We know this looks dumb’, but then I go ‘Why? Why did they do this?’ And then I go back to ‘And it still looks dumb’. People want to know more about art, but it’s quite inaccessible because of the language around it. I like to put an interpretation around it, and it’s a lot of fun.”

In addition to her stand-up and lectures, Hannah is also a familiar face on television, and has just completed filming for series three of Please Like Me. “All I have to do is shower. I don’t have to do anything with my hair, or feed myself, just rock up – but it’s really great. The people who work on Please Like Me are just a fabulous crew,” she says. “Bloody amazing, and that’s testament to Josh, because he’s engineered a really beautiful environment. A lot of what I do on it is based around my own stand-up. Because acting’s weird.”

As if lectures and stand-up weren’t enough, Hannah also contributed her writing skills to Please Like Me. “It’s different, and it’s the same,” she says. “You know what’s funny about something – but it’s not a direct translation. I really enjoy it, but it’s a challenge; there’s a lot more things to consider.”

Of course, if you want to read more of Hannah’s writing, you can always just wait until her upcoming book is released. “It’s sort of like a bunch of anecdotes, life stories, based around my body. I’ve had quite a few strange illnesses, and also the generic coming to terms with your body. But that’s the framework on which I’m going to hang a bunch of hilarious stories.”

That’s quite a handful of projects – and if you think it’s more than enough, Hannah still has plenty of ideas she’s ready to pursue. “I don’t like jinxing them, so I’m not going to say them out loud. Well I mean, I do, but just to mum. Don’t you be hounding her for gossip later!” I ensured her I wouldn’t. “But there’s a lot of ideas. That’s what I do.

There are quite a few fingers in pies, but I need to finish the book – I’m not allowed to have any more ideas until I finish what’s on my plate.”

Hannah is polite, charming, and obviously hilarious to talk to. As if that isn’t reason enough to like her, she actually seems to be excited at the prospect of coming to Canberra. “I like Canberra. I think it’s a bit cool.

It’s getting cool, isn’t it?”

Catch Hannah and many other fantastic artists at Nightfest @ Commonwealth Park from Wed–Sun September 23–27 at 6:30pm.

Adults $27.00, child/concession $12.00, family $60.00, VIP experience $120.00 + bf through Ticketek.

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THE CONFIDENCE MAN GUS MCCUBBING In Zoe Pepper’s upcoming production THE CONFIDENCE MAN, the notion of audience interactivity is taken to a new level.

Essentially a heist drama which begins when a large sports bag full of cash is brought into a man’s suburban home, Pepper provides her audience with a choice: to play as one of the six characters involved, or to watch the action unfold from the sideline?

“It’s a crime thriller, an action-packed crime thriller/family drama,” Pepper begins. “It’s a pretty different kind of work, in that it’s all performed by audience members, which in turn completely changes the writing process …

“But the difference is that in this world every character is the main character, so every character experiences the story in the first person, as if they are central to all the happenings in that world.”

When it’s all underway, Pepper continues, “If you’re one of the six people who want to rock up early and become one of the performers, then you get kitted up with a mask and a headset and a mobile phone, and then you’re kinda guided through the space, and you hear the audio of your character and play out those actions.”

On the other hand, if you’re someone who would prefer to watch, then “You sit around the perimeter of the stage and you have the ability to toggle between the audio of the six different characters, so you can piece together the story as you like.”

As Pepper indicates, perhaps unsurprisingly, this kind of production has brought with it an array of unique difficulties to overcome.

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“This is the first time I’ve done something like this, and probably, if you knew what you were getting yourself in for, you might never start!

“In terms of the complexity of even just editing the audio together so that all the timing works out and that the two people who are talking in the lounge room meet perfectly with the two people who are talking in the kitchen at the same time …

“It’s just a lot of threads to coordinate, but it underwent a long development period, so the story’s had quite a few incarnations to figure out what was the best fit for this form.”

Beyond achieving audio synchronicity, Pepper also faced another major hurdle – given that her ‘players’ are audience members with no script to follow, how to maintain a sense of control and direction over the production?

“It’s definitely interesting, there’s a few moments when you’re like, ‘Whoa, no one’s ever done that one before’. But for the most part, it’s proven to be pretty robust,” she says. “People can follow along, and we rely a lot on music … Ash Gibson Greig did the score, and that’s a really important element of the audio, in that you can really mould people’s behaviour with the audio that they’re hearing and the kind of music that they’re hearing – you can change the pace of the music to speed them up and make them go through the house faster.

“That’s a big element in creating a world in which people feel safe, and feel like they know how to behave and how to act in the story.”

The Confidence Man will be staged at The Street Theatre from Sun–Wed September 20–23. Tickets are $25. See thestreet.org.au for more details.

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Image credit: Skye Sobejko

Image credit:

ARTS | ACT

A R T | C O M E DY | D A N C E | L I T E R AT U R E | T H E AT R E African background, Islander background, and Indian background, so they’re exploring each other’s cultures and teaching each other why we dance this way.”

YOUTH DANCE FESTIVAL ZOE PLEASANTS YOUTH DANCE FESTIVAL is Ausdance ACT’s annual celebration of youth dance. Held over three massive nights, it features 56 dance works performed by over 1,300 dancers from 35 high schools and colleges. It is not a competition and there are no auditions. Instead, it’s about empowering students who want to participate, to make and perform their own dance work. I spoke to Jamie Winbank – Dance Fest’s Creative Director and Choreographic Mentor – who has the challenge of bringing it all together to give the students their moment on the stage.

Each year Dance Fest has a theme and this year it’s exploration.

Over the last couple of months, Winbank has been visiting each of the schools to see how the students’ dance works are progressing and to provide support. During these visits he has seen explorations of emotions, women’s rights, time, space and different dance and music styles. One dance that stands out to him comes from Melba Copland Secondary School. “They’ve decided to do a cultural exploration. Within their dance group they have people with an

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Winbank has also been emphasising to students that he really wants them to connect with their work and use it to say something. “That’s my mission with Dance Fest, to really allow the students to have a voice and for them to know that their opinions, their ideas, and their values are worthy of being heard. For me, it’s much deeper than the dance steps.” Of course, this connection is at its best when the students lead the work: “When the students choose the concept for their piece, when they choose their music, choreograph their steps themselves, and choose their costumes – when they are empowered to make their own art, that’s where the special part of Dance Fest lies,” Winbank says.

Each night, there are 19 different groups who each perform for five minutes. “It’s a one-off performance; these guys get one chance to show all the hard work that they’ve been putting in.” Winbank puts the program together: “I’ve really tried to put an artistic edge on the flow of each night, which is immensely difficult especially when I haven’t seen all the works!” This year Winbank has also choreographed a flash-mob inspired opening piece, to be performed by each night’s cast.

Finally, I ask Winbank why somebody who isn’t related to, or doesn’t know any of the dancers, should go to the festival. Because, he says, “It’s a snapshot of what young people can achieve. If you’re interested in young people, or ever been a young person before, it’s a great show for you to come and see, to see young people, everyday kids, who are passionate about something. And if you don’t like a piece, it’s five minutes before the next one!”

Youth Dance Festival will take place at Canberra Theatre Centre, Wed–Fri Sep 16–18 from 7:30pm. Tickets range from $26–32 + bf and are available through canberratheatrecentre.com.au.

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ARTISTPROFILE: Ian Pryor

What do you do? I am a retired medical GP. About twelve years ago, I began painting and became intrigued by the characteristics of watercolour’s translucency, subtlety and the fact that every mark you make leaves a legacy within the painting. Then I had the delight of discovering that the medium could be manipulated beyond the traditional applications, which shows in much of my work.

When, how and why did you get into it? To improve my skills and to explore more artistic possibilities, I went to the ANU Open Access art classes and was blessed to have Noel Ford as a tutor.

His own works are stunning and an inspiration and as a teacher he was thorough and surprisingly tolerant of my incapacity to follow instructions. I feel I owe him a big debt. Later, after Noel retired, Margaret Hadfield showed me other ways of approaching my art, which has also stood me in good stead. Outside art classes, I had a plethora of images and ideas that I needed to put on paper for myself and I also became absorbed in trying different approaches to the medium.

Who or what influences you as an artist? In particular, paintings come about when, mostly at quiet times, snippets of visual and conceptual ideas come into my mind. From there, they get developed as I attempt to present them in painted form. I have always been attracted to early cubism and abstract forms of art and their introduction into the Australian art scene early-to-mid last century. Today these daring feats look naïve and simple and have largely been overtaken by more modern, sophisticated and perhaps cynical movements.

Of what are you proudest so far? The things that give me most pride relate to my family and my professional life. In an art sense, I guess it is the commitment to follow the personal drivers in the way

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I paint and what I paint and the preparedness to put my work out there for others to judge, criticise and hopefully to appreciate. It is not easy to risk this, but an artist friend – when discussing the issue of showing and promoting paintings – put it to me that a work of art was not completed until it was shown to others.

What are your plans for the future? I paint most days, which in itself is fulfilling, so I want to plan my life so this continues. There are other techniques and styles to discover and try, and I would very much like to paint better and with more intensity. I want to be able to produce works that lock into the emotional and subconscious sensibilities of people as they regard my paintings.

What makes you laugh? Joyousness and happy social activity get us to laugh. Humour also makes people laugh but what is that? People often laugh when there is a frisson of uncertainty or perplexity. These are the contradictions that often gently disturb our equilibrium – like a funny joke, like unexpected social and even physical discomfort, like pleasure that is too good to keep inside.

What about the local scene would you change? Perhaps I should say of the local scene that I have found it encouraging and accepting and generally very helpful. Trying to make one’s mark is not easy, however, it is hard in most walks of life and the area of art is no exception. Perhaps it is harder without formal academic qualifications to gain the same level of acceptance for what one does but having worked in a profession much of my life I can understand that. I am a poor networker although, maybe as a rationalisation, sometimes I think an artist needs a degree of isolation in their work so that their inner self gets a better chance at expression over the bombardments of the world we inhabit.

Upcoming exhibitions? My approaching exhibition: PRYOR – again.

Tuggeranong Arts Centre, Tue–Sat September 1–26. Opening: 2.00pm Saturday 5 September. I also will submit a painting for the ASOC Spring Exhibition.

Contact Info: www.ian-pryor-artworks.com.au, ipryor1@bigpond.com, 0409440364.

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A R T | C O M E DY | D A N C E | L I T E R AT U R E | T H E AT R E

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LITERATURE IN REVIEW Six Bedrooms Tegan Bennett Daylight [Vintage; 2015]

“Awkwardness and trouble are a part of being alive,” concludes Jane.

Six Bedrooms is a haunting collection of short stories about the awkwardness and humiliation of coming of age. Daylight’s fourth book draws the curtain back from life in Sydney suburbia to reveal dark secrets and emotional insecurities – the quiet before the storm, waiting. Turbulent yet painstakingly restrained, Daylight dips into the poetic and avoids the grandiose: “She stared out at the winter morning light, streaking down the street beside the car like a lost dog.”

Despite several having been previously published, the stories are nicely tied together by their themes and voice, as well as Tasha who transitions from a teen (opener ‘Like a virgin’) to her late thirties and motherhood (closer ‘Together alone’). A keen observer, Daylight deftly sets the scene, before giving her protagonists centre-stage.

Raw and matter-of-fact, they confess rather than narrate.

‘Other animals’ (about loneliness) and ‘Chemotherapy Bay’ (about cancer) leave the reader empty and deliberately hanging.

Emotionally charged, ‘They fuck you up’ suffers from trying to cover both domestic violence and a budding intercultural relationship.

The scene in which Darcy confronts his girlfriend’s father is unconvincing; the clipped dialogue a bit too even. Incidentally, it is the only story told from the male’s perspective.

Ultimately, it’s the despairing yet defiant female characters that stay with you. In ‘Trouble’, Jane moves to London with her elder, more glamorous sister. For all her insecurities, Jane is far more knowing than she thinks. ‘J’aime Rose’ explores the repercussions of losing one’s virginity – “the desperate need to be done with this experience ... To be free of having to do it with Ben.” We catch glimpses of Tasha’s relationship with the father who abandoned them for the second family he had waiting, and the mother who is about to leave in the final pages.

It can take a couple of pages to settle into a story, to determine who is telling the story and the protagonist’s relationship with the other characters. The stories work as standalone pieces, so this generally isn’t an issue, though Six Bedrooms keeps the reader guessing until the end. Beneath the petty fights and misunderstandings, the title story – centred on a share-house around the time of Mardi Gras – is about learning to recognise the not-so-pretty truths about others and ourselves. That’s the crux of the stories.

Despite the recurring high school setting, Six Bedrooms is not so much pitched at teens but at those who have the luxury of looking back on their youth. Rather than the promise of a rosy future, the characters are infused with a weary jadedness, reflecting on the loss of innocence.

Slow-burning yet quietly confronting, it leaves you wondering …

SHU-LING CHUA

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bit PARTS FOOTY FEVER WHAT: Exhibition WHEN: Fri Aug 28–Sat Oct 3 WHERE: CCAS Gorman Arts Centre Image credit: Jon Cattapan

Is sport an art form? Whatever, it is now. That’s exactly what Footy Fever wants to address, by the way: the co-existence of art and sport.

Where these two worlds seem always at odds, Alexander Boynes has curated this exhibition of 14 artists to represent the many ways that both athletes and artists engage with Aussie Rules, Rugby League, Rugby Union, Soccer and Wheelchair Rugby. It explores “the spirit of the game” through themes of sexuality, belief, belonging, history, nostalgia, religion, war, dedication and fandom. It’s a free exhibition too, so pull your head into the game and check it out.

Image credit: Behzad Mosavat

HIDDEN TREASURES WHAT: Community Exhibition WHEN: Fri–Sun Sep 4–20 WHERE: Belconnen Arts Centre Leading up to Belconnen’s 50th birthday in 2016, Belconnen Arts Centre will host Hidden Treasures – an exhibition of over 50 artists from around the west and northwest neighbourhoods of the ACT. The exhibition will explore the treasures of these artists’ lives, as they showcase the people, relationships, places, adventures and environments they cherish, and reflect on the journeys that brought them from all corners of the globe to the quaint suburbs of north Canberra. It’s free entry, so go along and have a squiz. Belco pride!

Image credit: Claudio Iannone

LAVAZZA ITALIAN FILM FESTIVAL WHAT: Film Festival WHEN: Tue Sep 22–Sun Oct 11 WHERE: Palace Electric When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, it could be amoré, but there’s also a good chance it’s the Italian Film Festival. The latest in a line of Canberra’s cultural film festivals will open with box office hit God Willing, the laugh-out-loud comedy about atheists and believers confronting their issues with open-mindedness and changing for the better. Other festival highlights include award-winning The Dinner, the elegant Black Souls, the warm-hearted comedic gem Do You See Me? and Mia Madre, starring award-winning actress Margherita Buy. For a list of films and more information, visit italianfilmfestival.com.au.

Image credit: Aaron Walker

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF CIRCUS ARTS AUDITIONS WHAT: Circus Auditions WHEN: Sat Oct 10 WHERE: Warehouse Circus

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You ever just sit down at the dinner table, start making a circus tent out of mashed potato and declare to your loved ones, “That’s it, I’m going to clown college”? Okay, maybe it didn’t go down exactly like that, but if that sounds like you, there’s a good chance you’ve applied to study a Bachelor of Circus Arts with the National Institute of Circus Arts. If you haven’t applied, auditions are coming up! Give NICA a call and get ready to head on down to the Warehouse Circus, because it’s crunch time. The Warehouse Circus is located at 4/70 Maclaurin Crescent in Chifley, and you can find more details at nica.com.au. If you’re just curious about the program, give the nice folks there a call on 03 9214 6975.

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A R T | C O M E DY | D A N C E | L I T E R AT U R E | T H E AT R E

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the word

on albums

Age Blues is a bit like entering a 1990s time warp at that moment when the grunge bonanza all of a sudden made guitar heaviosity a lucrative proposition. The signpost band here is Kyuss, who conjured a monstrous dust bowl blues with a greasy low-end throb that many Seattle groups, outside of Soundgarden and Alice in Chains, knew nothing about.

album of the issue GOATSNAKE BLACK AGE BLUES [SOUTHERN LORD] There seems to be no limit to the number of bands spawned in the wake of Black Sabbath. Aside from practically inventing the heavy metal genre, Sabbath also inspired a number of significant subgenres including doom metal and stoner rock, whose many musical inroads have often relied on blues-saturated titanium riffs with a despairing lyrical bent to match. Top shelf bands like Sleep and Electric Wizard have taken this music to its logical conclusion, but there is still plenty of room for psychedelic heaviness from those in the know.

Into the bong-fuelled haze we can add Goatsnake, whose latest album Black Age Blues has been released after a long hiatus, with the band easily picking up where it left off. Guitarist and Southern Lord label founder Greg Anderson is also one half of Sunn O))), alongside musical visionary Stephen O’Malley. He played in Goatsnake before joining forces with O’Malley to explore earth-shuddering riffage and monolithic drones of the daunting kind. This group doesn’t quite go down the Sunn O))) path of extreme sonic mayhem but manage to rattle a few windows nonetheless.

Opening track ‘Another River to Cross’ starts out with barely a whisper, but a sudden riff explosion dispels any notion that the band has been away too long to pack a punch. In fact the music on Black

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Fast forward to now and it’s as if Goatsnake never took a 15-year break.

Neither has this lengthy time span added a sense of urgency to the music.

The knockout blow of the opening two tracks is delivered at a downbeat pace that only accentuates the deep riff penetration. With a blackened blues running roughshod over the melodies, shape and movement in the songs is determined by changes in the riffs as on ‘Elevated Man’, which also incorporates a grainy harmonica wail that adds to an already unsettled atmosphere. The lyrics don’t contribute a great deal however, with such innocuous phrases as “coffee and whiskey ‘til the cows are coming home” seemingly at odds with the doomy shroud overlaying the music. This is alright though, because the listener’s attention is drawn to the sound, particularly when the band decides to rock out.

The title track is a great chunk of noise at a slightly more insistent pace that somehow increases anticipation for the next tasty riff. But musical progression is not really the intent.

This album’s musical scope very much complements previous album Flower of Disease released in 2000. And long before then, stoner/doom artists had been pegged with having a backwards focus, particularly in terms of outright devotion to genre overlords Black Sabbath. With this music, meeting expectations shouldn’t involve any fancy adjustments. Repetition is in fact a great part of the appeal, whether taking place within the one song or across albums.

Goatsnake has not broken any new ground on Black Age Blues, but then again they don’t really need to. So long as the right influences and the right riffs are in place, satisfaction is guaranteed.

DAN BIGNA

THE JUNGLE GIANTS SPEAKERZOID [AMPLIFIRE] The Jungle Giants made their mark with bright, catchy indie-pop in the same vein as compatriots San Cisco and Ball Park Music.

Not content with that, their sophomore LP has seen the band’s sound undergo a minor revolution, adopting an alternative, creative approach. The clean-cut indie presentation of debut LP Learn To Exist has been chopped off at the knees, as The Jungle Giants have embraced a more complex format with several tracks making extensive use of samples to fill all the gaps between vocals and music.

In the unbearably catchy, sample-heavy opening pair ‘Every Kind of Way’ and ‘Devil’s Play’, expect more bizarre squeaks and squawks than you’d find at sunset in an electronic zoo. After this frantic pair, the more conventional ‘Kooky Eyes’ seems pale in comparison, although another brief return to their previous sound finds more success in the twangy guitar rhythm of ‘What Do You Think’. If you want more than the nitrous oxide hit delivered by the hyperactive opening pair, chunkier songs await further down the tracklist. Starting with a slow, grinding beat, frontman Sam Hales sings so high in ‘Not Bad’ that he must have had an accident vaulting a barbed wire fence.

A very textured song with palpable depth, its shuffling format is indie meets film noire. Closer ‘Tambourine’ takes this a step further with its longer format permitting a deeper exploration of its jazzy, jam-session qualities as it travels through a musical maze.

Underneath all the electronic effects lie attractive rhythms and melodies that reach up to ensnare the listener. Speakerzoid has retained the appeal that won The Jungle Giants their fans, while simultaneously retuning their sound to set them apart from other indie bands of their ilk.

RORY MCCARTNEY

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SUN KIL MOON UNIVERSAL THEMES [CALDO VERDE/ROUGH TRADE]

LLOYD SPIEGEL DOUBLE LIVE SET [INDEPENDENT RELEASE]

RATATAT MAGNIFIQUE [XL]

Sun Kil Moon’s Benji was, as keen-eyed BMA readers might recall, my album of 2014. A towering achievement. In our year-end issue, I noted Mark Kozelek’s recent run-ins with The War On Drugs, suspecting that these were momentary missteps, and the music was the thing. How much can change in a year.

To have accrued 25 years of musical experience is no mean feat. To have done it by age 35 is astounding. Lloyd Spiegel started his long-time love affair with the blues as a mere child, and hasn’t stopped since. Fittingly enough, this celebration of his work was captured in two shows in view of the many-mirrored eyes of the Wonderland Spiegeltent.

I should probably preface this review by saying that my expectations were high for this release. This coming from the type of Ratatat fan that has had Classics track ‘Wildcat’ as a ringtone for literally years.

Which is what makes it all the more disappointing.

Kozelek, in this current phase of his 20+ year career, is all about the rambling, stream of consciousness confessional. It was there on Benji, but through the framing device of loss narratives – so it was the songwriter blurting his thoughts about people he’d lost with great detail and artistry.

Where Benji was taut, Universal Themes is not. It is loose. As loose as Kozelek’s most on-the-nose ramblings, such as his recent put-down of a British journalist (worth googling. Not pretty). Thematically unhinged and musically dull.

The issue is that a style of delivery that puts the songwriter very much in the centre of each narrative he presents only works if there is some level of empathy with or interest in that songwriter-as-person. And it turns out that Kozelek is a bit of a dick.

So across the eight tracks herein, it’s really difficult to care. After the vast depths of empathy conjured in Benji, this follow up is too solipsistic, and too musically boring to rescue the tonal misstepping.

So, to recap, what we have is an overlong, uninvolving ramble from a first-person narrator who we now know is a bit of a prat.

Is there a twist? There is not. Benji remains an extraordinary album. Universal Themes is kinda extraordinary too, but only for how far the creator has fallen. Time for a holiday, Mark.

GLEN MARTIN

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The tracklist is littered with fast movers such as opener ‘Statesboro Blues’ and a reworking of Little Richard’s ‘Lucille’, which lets Spiegel demonstrate the nimble wizardry that flies from his fingertips.

However, plenty of the music flows at a more sedate, mid-strength pace, ideally suited to his voice, which comes with the depth of a dam and the texture of blue metal and serious song themes. A great storyteller, lyrics and the electric atmosphere of the live show merge to form shadowy pictures in mid-air. In ‘New York City’, it’s like the guitar goes out for a smoke, with big gaps between strums, letting Spiegel’s voice dominate the stage. Yes, there are brilliant covers of songs by such greats as Dylan, Waits, and John Lee Hooker, but Spiegel’s own work captures serious attention. There’s so much quality here.

Songs deserving special mentions include ‘If I Killed Ya When I Met Ya’ (which sounds like it has swallowed a taste of Prince’s ‘1999’), the rocked-up ‘Rock and a Hard Place’ and the epic escapade that is ‘Murder for Breakfast’.

Bursting with magnetic rhythms and blood pumping tunes, the double LP brings a double thrill, with plenty to whet the appetite for lovers of good songwriting as well as guitar enthusiasts.

RORY MCCARTNEY

While Magnifique is a solid album, it really doesn’t convey any further progression forward, as last heard on 2010’s LP4.

Ratatat have taken a step back to their origins, but now lacking the spunk from previous albums. Somehow we are left with something that sounds like a band trying to sound like Ratatat.

Ratatat’s sound is unique, and on Magnifique they combine the unlikely stylings of Baroque with hip-hop, disco, ‘80s guitar solos, and cheesy ‘70s grooves. Their trademark squealing guitars duel furiously, but, particularly over the latter half of the album, the riffs meander without leaving a lasting impression. Keeping momentum while performing without vocals is a difficult task for any band, but it’s something Ratatat are well (ahem) versed in.

The high points of the album stand out substantially, holding it all together. The glistening ‘Cream on Chrome’ amps up the funk with its slick bassline, which is offset by bright, brash guitars. ‘Abrasive’ is anything but, and has a cool, laid back simplicity. Call and response guitars fill the place of a potential vocal line and provide a warm familiarity.

Magnifique serves as a good introduction for those unfamiliar with Ratatat, and is certainly worth a listen. Ultimately however, it doesn’t bring any new ideas to the table and does wear thin at certain points. I’m not sure if this means that Ratatat have had their day, but perhaps it’s time I thought about changing my ringtone?

MEGAN LEAHY

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THE VENDETTAS BYSTANDER AND DESTROYER [INDEPENDENT RELEASE]

YO LA TENGO STUFF LIKE THAT THERE [MATADOR]

GLADSTONE COLD BONES [INDEPENDENT RELEASE]

Not to be confused with an outfit of the same name (proudly billed as Ireland’s number one wedding band), The Vendettas from Melbourne prefer door-kicking rock to such nuptial waltz classics as ‘That’s Amore’. Their second album Bystander and Destroyer offers more of the snarling vocals and raging guitars that came with earlier material such as ‘Bloodshot Morning’ from debut disk, Burn. Recorded at Coloursound Studios at beautiful Altona by the bay (well, maybe not that beautiful), the selfproduced LP was inspired by such smashing outfits as AC/DC, Aerosmith and Swedish garage merchants The Hellacopters.

Yo La Tengo’s catalogue is frequently described as ‘consistent’– consistently brilliant, making it harder to find a new angle on the Hoboken three-piece after almost 30 years of magnificent service.

The band do tend to offer a curveball every few years however – from the Condo Fucks LP, to 2006’s Yo La Tengo Is Murdering The Classics, the band have a long history of issuing a palette cleanser every few years.

With a name like the Queensland port city, post-hardcore rockers Gladstone have actually risen from the pubs and bars of Melbourne. A mob with a liking for skeletal CD titles, the Cold Bones EP follows their 2013 debut Bear Bones. A sampling of ‘Metdrapedes’ from their earlier release shows that the band has moved on from raw ferocity and developed a more tuneful style that exploits its vocal prowess.

Inspired by the live shows they performed in support of Fade (their last LP), Stuff Like That There is the latest in this series of subreleases. These shows were half-and-halves – a set of hushed acoustic takes on YLT’s classics, then a set of electrified feedback and solo-squall drenched numbers. This record takes its cue from the first set.

Which may be YLT at their least interesting.

Lucas Chong sounds like an abandoned orphan in the melancholy start, creating a false sense of calm. Don’t be fooled, however; instead, turn the volume right up, as the storm breaks in a cataclysm of sound.

This song rates a seven on the Richter scale of wrath, with closing expletives to match. The surging riffage of the title track shows off the more melodic style of the band, in both music and vocals. While it sets a forecast of heavy weather for headbanging, there’s a glimpse of the more complex singing that grows in stature as the EP progresses. Although screamo delivery takes a backseat, the energy levels in ‘Cold Bones’ are kept on high by furious drumming and an electrical storm of guitars. CD highlight ‘Hyacinth Thrash’, named after one of the few survivors of the Jonestown massacre, presents a bizarre balance between the richness of full-band vocals against a blood curdling yelling, with more screams than a Hammer horror film.

The vocal mode jumps from soulful angel to raging goblin in ‘Why We Fight’, as the band keeps up its motherless child chant in the background, creating a link with the lyrics in the lead track. Gladstone’s sophomore EP shows that the voice can rival the guitar in levels of passion, with music that is simultaneously heavy, wild, and melodic.

Opener ‘Wake Up Call’ is an omnidirectional noise maker, firing riffs all around the compass. Highlight track ‘Ain’t No Time’ carries some Foo Fighters style with the best melodic lines on the record, while ‘Dead Eyes’ stands out with its alternating guitars, brash ‘n’ loud, then shy and soft. In ‘Blackened Heart’, the band drops down a few cogs from spitting and posturing, to a more measured pace. Stevie Reds’ vocals rise above a subterranean drumbeat and rolling riffage. Not just a guts ‘n’ glory band, there’s a satisfying complexity to its sound, with tracks not following predictable paths.

‘Wasted’ brings a Gyroscope vibe – in a song of surprising backflips in speed and texture – while in ‘City of the Gun’ guitars tumble over themselves in a crossed-up format that is something of a band trademark. The Vendettas recognise the value in closing the LP with a memorable piece, employing ‘Without a Sound’, which uses complex riffage, harmonies and the best vocals in the collection to lay a firm signature at the tail of the album. Whether stainless, burnished or barbed, there’s plenty of steel in every track.

RORY MCCARTNEY

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The band has offered some magnificent quiet works. And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out is an incredible mood piece, while the sweet pop moments that perforate their catalogue – like ‘Stockholm Syndrome’ – are further indicators of YLT’s ability to make songs in any style. This album is the other extreme of their magpie abilities, however.

It’s a little too nice, too formless to be anything but a curio.

Covers of Hank Williams and The Lovin’ Spoonful are fine, and the new tunes (‘Rickety’ and ‘Awhileaway’) are terrific. Less exciting is the tune most likely to attract attention, their somnambulant take on The Cure’s ‘Friday I’m In Love’. Plus the re-take of their greatest melodic white noise wig out ‘Deeper Into Movies’ adds nothing. The original is untouchable. This version is best forgotten.

It’s fine, and I begrudge YLT nothing. But this album will hopefully be best remembered for the next classic that followed it.

RORY MCCARTNEY

GLEN MARTIN

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v

singles in focus

BY CODY ATKINSON DESTROYER ‘TIMES SQUARE’

THE ROLLING STONES FROM THE VAULT: THE MARQUEE CLUB – LIVE IN 1971 [EAGLE VISION/UNIVERSAL]

OH WONDER OH WONDER [INDEPENDENT]

Shortly before relocating to France where they would record their album masterpiece Exile on Main St in the basement of Keith Richards’ luxury villa, The Stones embarked on a brief UK tour to promote the Sticky Fingers album. The tour culminated with this show at the Marquee in London before a tiny crowd with rock music royalty, including guitarists Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton, in attendance.

Downbeat and chilled-out electronic music has long been part of the zeitgeist dominating not just our national publicly funded youth broadcaster in Australia, but blogs all across the internet. Its ubiquity seems to stem partly from the fact that it appears so easy for producers, with their access to increasingly capable software, to write and release it. That, and the fact that the arrangements are often not particularly complex.

The inclusion of a high fidelity DVD of the gig provides some energised visuals which make you wonder if the band were at their best in front of smaller audiences, and both the DVD and accompanying CD capture them in great form.

This is not to say that it is bad by default – because it isn’t. Some of the most wellwritten and timeless songs are the simplest.

But those songs often have to work doubly hard to stand out and feel exceptional. It’s got to shine somehow.

The track list features four songs from Sticky Fingers including the rarely performed ‘I Got the Blues’ on which Jagger summons a raw emotive vibe that had been captured so well on the album version.

Oh Wonder, as you’ve probably guessed, can be lumped into this group of artists riding the aforementioned zeitgeist – and they ride it with both a certain amount of success, and what feels like some hesitation.

Throughout, The Stones come across as the hard rockin’ electric blues band they always were despite occasional detours over the years, and on this occasion a scorching horn section adds a taste of swing to the rock ‘n’ roll grittiness. A cover of Chuck Berry’s ‘Let it Rock’ reveals the band’s roots, but how far they had travelled in a short time is made known on a slow burning version of ‘Midnight Rambler’ from the Let it Bleed album. Keith Richards has said that he considers it the one Rolling Stones song no other band could have written and the version here is suitably torn and frayed.

Single ‘Drive’ is an early stand out. String flourishes complement the track’s chorus, and, bar the cringe-worthy references to Sia and Taylor Swift songs in its second line – references which will no doubt age horribly – it’s quite enjoyable. Most of the songs here are enjoyable, actually. But they rarely feel like much more.

If only I had been there.

This is a debut that mostly straddles the middle of the road. ‘Landslide’ hits the mark, and ‘White Blood’s closing section gives off huge Bon Iver vibes (more homage than pastiche, mind). ‘Midnight Moon’ has a strong hook, and ‘Plans’ closes out the album pleasantly enough.

DAN BIGNA

As far as debuts go, it isn’t bad by any stretch. But if it had slightly more passion, texture, or punch somewhere, it might end up on your regular playlist for more than a month or two.

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JEREMY STEVENS

‘Times Square’ comes off a little like a mid-‘70s Bowie clone at first listen – and that’s not a bad thing at all. The big, bombastic acoustic guitars strum away, while sax crimes abide throughout. A good pop song is always a good place to land, and that’s where Destroyer is at here.

BEACH HOUSE ‘SPARKS’ Beach House have been working at refining the same palette for the past five albums, and have achieved much success with just keys, guitar and percussion. ‘Sparks’ sees the expansion of Beach House well past their earlier material, with harsh synth washes intertwining with Victoria Legrand’s vocals.

REUBEN INGALL ‘EYELIDS’ From the processed piano to the avalanche of vocal layers that make themselves right at home, ‘Eyelids’ is a truly beautiful mess from one of Canberra’s more unpredictable musicians. Under a veil of fear and fragility, ‘Eyelids’ is a bit Tim Hecker, a bit Baths, but ultimately all Ingall.

NELLY ‘THE FIX’ OK everybody, who wants to hear 2003 Grammy Award Winner Nelly’s take on Marvin Gaye’s classic ‘Sexual Healing’? Anyone?

Even with expectations set to low, this still sucks to levels previously unknown. Avoid.

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the word

on films

WITH EMMA ROBINSON

It is with bated breath that I anticipate the winner of best film at the next AACTA Awards. We’ve had a slew of top-notch Aussie films in the past few months, but I think it is going to come down to Last Cab To Darwin and Holding The Man. When Australian film is on form very few others compare in terms of equal representation of marginalised groups (remember Ten Canoes?).

Aussies really know how to do justice to any member of the population that isn’t white and straight.

quote of the issue “Not everything has to be political.”

“Doesn’t it?” – Ryan Corr (Timothy Conigrave), Holding The Man

HOLDING THE MAN

SHE’S FUNNY THAT WAY

SOUTHPAW

Funny, sexy, tragic and poignant.

This film has everything.

A group of talented actors lead this bland but inoffensive story. Izzy (Imogen Poots) is a sex worker with dreams of becoming a Broadway star. Enter Arnold (Owen Wilson), a snazzy director who has penchant for ‘rescuing’ attractive, young women from the clutches of prostitution by giving them large sums of money. Problem is, Arnold has a wife, Delta (Kathryn Hahn).

These three characters plus an ensemble of others keep crossing paths in embarrassing but predictable ways.

Absurdist, slapstick comedy follows and wacky hijinks ensue, blah, blah, blah.

Violence is never the answer.

Until it is. But even then, it isn’t.

But it has to be: this is a boxing movie, damnit! “Go out there and beat his ass!”

Timothy Conigrave (Ryan Corr) is a flamboyant, politically savvy young man living in the 1970s – when homosexuality happens to be illegal. Enter John (Craig Stott), rugged football player and the love of Timothy’s life. As the spectre of AIDS stalks the gay population, both Timothy and John become infected. What follows is a turbulent time in gay history as well as a moving and unique love story spanning over fifteen years.

When the terrifying AIDS epidemic was decimating the homosexual population, marriage equality would have been an answer to many prayers.

Gay men were being kept from their lover’s deathbeds and denied their rights all on the basis of their sexuality. It’s difficult to pinpoint which part of this film is more tragic, but what resonated with me was hearing Timothy mentioned as John’s ‘friend’ at his lover’s funeral.

At a time in Australian history when the debate regarding marriage equality is largely resolved and the bulk of the population are impatiently waiting for the government to enact its wishes, this movie is all the more crucial. The events portrayed in this film happened over twenty years ago, and yet the issues are still relevant. AIDS is no longer a terrifying death sentence, but we still don’t have equal recognition of loving relationships.

A love story for everyone. Be prepared to ugly cry.

EMMA ROBINSON

There was a golden era in screwball Hollywood comedies way back in the 1930s that this film is trying to recapture.

Unfortunately, the characters aren’t nearly likeable enough to maintain one’s interest in the film. There is also a weirdly dated ‘oh my’ attitude towards call girls in this film. I could picture the director giggling as Izzy ran yet again to hide in the hotel bathroom.

Having said that, there were some moments of comic delight, particularly from the strangely honest and offputtingly brash therapist Jane (Jennifer Aniston).

Watching Jane begrudgingly accept a dinner invitation from a client of hers and then announce that she needs to go change her tampon was the best moment of the film.

This film is an okay way to pass a Sunday afternoon. Or, you could hire the hit of 1938 Bringing Up Baby for screwball comedy done right.

EMMA ROBINSON

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Champion boxer, Billy ‘The Great’ Hope (Jake Gyllenhaal) is an angry man. So angry, in fact, that when I slogged through the two hours of Southpaw, I felt as though I had stumbled upon an extended YouTube compilation featuring the all-abs-and-nosubstance tantrums and tableflipping habits of a 30-year-old man-child.

Billy’s struggles in the film are immense, but wholly selfinflicted. After being vaguely heckled by a rival boxer, Billy naturally starts a brawl in the wake of a charity event (for crying out loud). In the skirmish, Billy’s wife Maureen (Rachel McAdams) is killed, leaving him to raise their young daughter Leila. Cue self-destruction/ redemption montage!

Southpaw’s completely contradictory premise is confirmed when ten-year-old Leila – who had been in the custody of child protective services for the majority of the film – sits ever so pleasantly beside her irresponsible social worker, as they both watch her father make a triumphant return to the ring by pummeling a token Colombian boxer. It’s okay guys, she’s seen The Walking Dead – she’s got this.

Alas, despite the sporadic, unintentional hilarity of 50 Cent’s obsession with fedoras, and Forest Whitaker’s desperate attempt to channel Morgan Freeman in Million Dollar Baby, Southpaw is an unoriginal and incongruous snoozefest. *flips table* MAJELLA CARMODY

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THE GIFT

VACATION

Joel Edgerton’s directorial debut The Gift is a taut and confident thriller that displays Edgerton as an assured talent in manipulating audiences in terms of both performance and creative direction.

As an affectionate fan of the original 1980s National Lampoon Vacation movies, it was with a sense of utmost trepidation that I embarked on a journey across America to the Walley World fun park with now-adult Rusty ‘son of Clark’ Griswold and his family.

After moving to California from Chicago, Simon (Jason Bateman) and Robyn (Rebecca Hall) are thrust into a friendship with Simon’s old high school friend ‘Gordo’ (Joel Edgerton) – a friendship that quickly turns sour when Gordo develops a sinister obsession with the couple. Bateman, usually known for his comedic performances, is the standout in this film, showing a darker and more measured approach in his performance. This film has all the trademarks of the often-explored home invasion/ obsessive creep thriller (such as Fatal Attraction or Michael Haneke’s Caché).

These trademarks are smartly subverted and warped throughout the film however, drawing open the blinds of a domestic setting and letting us watch as the relationships in front of us disintegrate from within, creating a distinctly voyeuristic feel.

The Gift is a film that makes its viewers uncomfortable – but not for the reasons one would expect. This film isn’t overly violent or twisted – Edgerton shows his talent and understanding of the genre and the characters he’s dealing with by shifting from suburban drama to psycho thriller at various points throughout the film. The end result is a movie that makes the audience question itself, the way we view others, and the potential for malice in all of us.

PATRICK JOHNSON

The 2015 Vacation reboot is essentially a series of road trip-oriented skits: some funny, some not so funny, and some downright dire. Meta-jokes abound in the first act of the film, as Rusty (Ed Helms) insists on spelling out exactly why this family vacation (wink, wink) will stand on its own (wink, wink).

Yawn. Get on the road, already.

Rusty then proceeds to spend ample time educating his family on the supposedly luxurious thrills of the blue spaceship-like station wagon stand-in: the 2015 Tartan Prancer (a.k.a. the Honda of Albania). Yawn. Are we there yet?

When the family hits the road, the film hits its stride. The slapstick humour, renditions of Seal’s ‘Kiss from a Rose’ and cameo appearances are mostly amusing, especially Chris Hemsworth’s vulgarly virile Uncle Stone Crandall, who takes much glee in strutting around his estate spouting anti-feminist sentiment and faucet-based sexual innuendo.

Skyler Gisondo is a standout as the awkward eldest son James, but Steele Stebbins is tiresome as his profanity-spitting, plastic bag-wielding younger brother, Kevin.

While I ended up enjoying the ride back to Walley World, I’m still not convinced that it was a necessary excursion.

MAJELLA CARMODY

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43

the word on dvds

ENTOURAGE – THE MOVIE [WARNER HOME VIDEO] Look, most films aren’t exactly essential – in Maslow’s sense of the word. Some of them make us feel good, some make us laugh, and some remind us of that thing called the human condition and fragility of life.

Some films make sense of the world and the best do all of the above. Then there’s Entourage – a film that exists for no definable purpose. I’m sure Doug Ellis (director) and Mark Wahlberg (producer and on whose life the entire Entourage story is based) tell themselves that they are satirising the shallowness of Hollywood, that it’s some sort of wicked inside joke at the expense of the movie star industry. Bollocks.

It’s a bunch of rich white dudes acting out the juvenile fantasies of dumb white dudes in excess.

It’s nothing to do with gender politics – but plenty to do with entertainment.

Over eight seasons on HBO, Entourage became a guilty pleasure for many – myself included. Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier) started the series as an up-and-coming young movie star surrounded by his close friends from Queens. His shouty agent Ari Gold (Jeremy Piven) shouted and swore a bit. They all had some success, had some lows, and lived the lifestyle. But nothing really happened and it got utterly boring.

This has never been a show about tension – it’s about wish fulfilment and fantasy.

Character development isn’t a high priority and for all its pretension of satire – it spent way more time glorifying lifestyles of the rich and famous rather than mocking them. The movie’s plot is thus: Ari runs a studio and gave Chase a vanity project that has run over budget and they need money from rich cowpokes to finish the film.

That’s it. No word of a lie. It’s wafer thin. It drags and even the cameos (Gary Busey, Pharrell) look bored. Entourage used to be stupid fun. The thrill has gone.

JUSTIN HOOK

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THE JINX: THE LIFE AND DEATHS OF ROBERT DURST [WARNER HOME VIDEO] The day before the finale of this six-episode documentary series went to air in April, its subject – Robert Durst – was arrested for murder. The timing wasn’t a coincidence. Over the previous five weeks, filmmaker Andrew Jarecki slowly unravelled the life and crimes of Durst through recreations, court testimony, interviews with family, police and friends, and more importantly, cooperation from the man himself.

Robert Durst is the scion of an enormously wealthy New York real estate and property family. Fun fact: his father developed and installed the National Debt Clock that charts US gross national debt in Times Square. Robert worked in his father’s company but wasn’t exactly CEO material. In the early ‘80s his first wife Kathie disappeared. Many suspected the husband, but nothing eventuated. Then in 1990, a critical alibi in the Kathie Durst murder (Susan Berman) was found murdered. One year later, Durst was arrested for murdering and dismembering a neighbour. Before he went to trial, Durst skipped bail only to be arrested at a supermarket for stealing a sandwich, which was odd because he had $500 in his pocket and another $37,000 in the car. Somehow, Durst was acquitted of this murder.

It would be fair to say that unusual activity surrounds this man’s life.

Jarecki and Durst crossed paths after the former made a film about the latter: All Good Things starring Ryan Gosling and Kirsten Dunst.

Durst trusted the filmmaker and promised to open up, to help provide a better understanding of the events of his life. Durst comes across as charismatic, gregarious, and only occasionally evasive. But over time Jarecki kept on piling up the evidence in front of his accused until it all comes to boiling point in episode five.

Kathie Durst’s mother wonders aloud in an early episode if something good might finally come of this story after years of anguish. Let’s hope so.

JUSTIN HOOK

WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER: FIRST DAY OF CAMP [NETFLIX] Wet Hot American Summer – the movie – was released a decade and a half ago to lukewarm reviews and barely an audience. But since then a cult appreciation of the low-budget teen summer camp parody rose steadily. The easiest explanation is that as the then mostly B-list cast steadily became A-list stars, it became some sort of weird little-known nostalgia trip. And the names are impressive: Amy Poehler, Paul Rudd, Christopher Meloni, Elizabeth Banks, Ken Marino, Bradley Cooper, Michael Ian Black, Joe Lo Truglio, Janeane Garofalo, Michael Shoalwater, and H. Jon Benjamin. It was the only place you could see Archer – well his voice in Benjamin – play a can of mixed vegetables.

Over the years, its cult status grew thanks to references in interviews. Earlier this year director David Wain confirmed a prequel series would see the entire cast return along with a swath of new A-listers like Jon Hamm, John Slattery, Kristen Wiig, and Chris Pine. As the cast suggests, there’s a lot of industry love for this title, but revisiting the pot of gold is often fraught, rarely striking it big twice. Fortunately Wain and Shoalwater know how to write ridiculous – how hard could that be when 40-year-old adults play teenager camp counsellors without a single wink to the camera.

First Day of Camp sees the team assemble at Camp Firewood for the summer. Mitch (Benjamin) and Beth (Garofalo) have their hands full running a camp full of teenager staff and campers. Behind the scenes, Mitch has arranged for toxic waste to be dumped on the campsite – he falls in, dies, returns as a can of vegetables.

OK. This eventually leads to Ronald Reagan planning a nuclear missile strike. Obviously there’s a fair bit in between, but all you really need to know is this prequel is utterly stupid, pitch-perfect delivered, and very funny.

JUSTIN HOOK

@bmamag

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45

the word

Megan Washington, Simon Relf The Front Gallery & Cafe Tuesday September 1

on gigs

One quarter of band Tambourine Girls (the others are blokes too), Simon Relf, picked up his Gibson and sang indie-folk songs with more of an autumn than a first-day-of-spring mood to them. He had to compete with the chatterers, whose voices bounced off the hardwood floor. Curiously, the only time they stopped talking was when he paused between songs. There were great lyrics about Friday poets becoming Sunday philosophers, with a fair touch of the romantic poet to Relf’s delivery.

The seated crowd had packed in firmly when Megan Washington began (any closer and they would have been sitting under the keyboard). On her solo Tangents tour, Washington had the freedom to sing what she wanted. So for us, it was going to be a lucky dip show as she opened her setlist notebook. Bounding off with ‘How to Tame Lions’, the set held plenty of familiar songs, plus an unrecorded one barely out of its cradle. In this intimate setting, punters got a look at details that are usually only glimpsed from afar, including Washington’s playing style which involved lots of hand-over-hand crossovers. Tired of looking at us through her curtain of hair, she borrowed a bobby pin from the crowd to improve her view. Being sold out, some latecomers opted to sit in the frigid weather, watching through the large shopfront window, until they had pity taken on them and were waved inside. The atmosphere was perfect for a casual chat, funny tour stories (including when Washington got a bag of servo ice and “released it back into the wild”) and word games with a woman in the crowd who, mysteriously, spent a lot of the gig crying.

RORY MCCARTNEY

the word

The Snowdroppers, Food Court, PJ Michaels and Liz Transit Bar Friday September 4

on gigs

Blues rock four-piece The Snowdroppers kicked off the tour for their album Business at Transit Bar, pulling an eager, if slightly modest crowd for their charismatic show.

First on was PJ Michaels, a handsomely bearded guitarist, and Liz on backup, complimenting his resonator-fuelled blues country with smooth wailing harmonies.

Food Court, an unassuming looking line-up, exploded with an impressive set of grungy structured rock, immediately appealing, and well worth checking out on Triple J unearthed.

Finally, The Snowdroppers took possession of the stage, drawing punters to the floor with the new album’s title track. Johnny Wishbone coaxed the crowd into giving up Canberra’s pet name (consensus being La’berra) as he discarded the mic stand to unleash his full range of gestures, strides, and wild-eyed faces – from there we were all eating out of his hand. Cougar Jones’ stomp-inducing drums shook the walls, whilst Pauly K jived with his guitar like it was a love conquest, between foot-on-the-foldback solos. The keystone was cool unflappable Nick London, keeping the bass locked in tight, and surveying everything with a grin.

PHOTO BY ERICA HURRELL

46

The set list included ‘Do the Stomp’ and ‘Rosemary’ amongst new material, with a couple of cheeky mid-song segues (‘You Can Call Me Al’ by Paul Simon, for example) adding a playful element I love seeing in rock shows. The “end” of the set was followed by a 25-minute encore, leaving no one disappointed. If you get along to see them, be prepared to do back-up vocals, commiserate over lost love, celebrate hedonism, and dance like you have a snake in your shoe.

DAVID BURKE

@bmamag

the word

on gigs

The Preatures, The Creases, Low Lux ANU Bar Thursday August 27 The Preatures chose some very suitable and capable support acts for the start of the East Coast leg of their ‘Cruel’ tour. Sydney band Low Lux commenced the evening nicely with their synth-driven pop slowly warming the crowd. There were already quite a few punters in the audience for this opening act and singer Daisy Dowd expressed her gratitude and surprise at this, exclaiming that she thought they would be playing to four people. As the former violinist for Bridezilla, Daisy initially appeared to be the focal point for the five-piece act, with her intense vocals and violin solos. But the entire group had a good stage presence as they flipped between instruments, and even had some stage antics that involved throwing a hand shaker across the stage to one another. In a backstage chat with the band, guitarist Alistair revealed that he was pleased someone had noticed this move.

Brisbane’s The Creases looked like a cross between One Direction and The Strokes with their deliberate fashion style, but they fortunately had the musical ability to back it up. The young members looked a little stiff in their opening track, but appeared to loosen up after their drummer threw his drumstick at another band member.

Their set comprised of a mix of songs from their EP Gradient, along with new single ‘Point’ and two unreleased songs. The second of these songs had somewhat of an anthemic feel to it and sounded like a potential future hit for the group. Their strength lied in their sweet three-piece harmonies comparable to Weezer, along with their upbeat tempo, which started to get the crowd shaking around a bit. This hit a peak when the group did a superb cover of Bowie’s ‘Let’s Dance’. Other standout tracks were previous single ‘I Won’t Wait’ and closing track ‘Static Lines’. The boys explained how one of their first ever shows was with The Preatures, and expressed their joy at being selected to go on tour with the group.

ABOVE PHOTO BY JARROD MCGRATH

One could describe the night’s crowd as ‘tight-knit.’ Extra tickets had been allocated for the show, and as the 700-strong audience moved in to prepare for The Preatures, you were bound to run into someone you knew. Conversations ceased and applause took over as Isabella Manfredi led the group onto the stage. The band kicked it off well with ‘Somebody’s Talking’, getting the crowd energised.

This was matched on stage as Isabella manoeuvred into a cartwheel.

Unfortunately, the rest of the set lacked this energy – the band didn’t seem to perform with as much urgency as they did at this same venue late last year. There were certainly glimpses of their stellar live show in performances of hit songs ‘Is The How You Feel?’ and ‘It Gets Better’, but their presence was not as epic as on previous occasions. This may have been due to the setlist order, as they grouped their ballads mid-set and trialled some new material amongst the familiar album tracks and singles. The band may be tiring of performing some tracks from their outstanding debut album Blue Planet Eyes.

Along with trialling new material, their set also included two covers (Divinyls’ ‘Boys In Town’ and The Angels’ ‘Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again’). Most of the audience still appeared to enjoy the show though, as the group played their final song ‘Cruel’ before being cheered back for an encore, which included their first ever single, ‘Take A Card’.

JARROD MCGRATH

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47

the word

Blood, Sweat & Tears, Dylan Hekimian Canberra Theatre Centre Wednesday September 2

on gigs

Kicking off with ‘Sea of Gold’, local artist Dylan Hekimian provided a startling performance with a unique playing style. The guitar served as a percussion instrument as much as a stringed one, as his hands flew, producing taps and bangs from most parts of the instrument.

Fingers going everywhere, he was like a man with three hands.

Despite his long dreads and rootsy musical style, Hekimian stated he was no hippy, claiming an aversion to both camping and insects!

Jazz-rock powerhouse Blood, Sweat & Tears goes back to 1967, with early appearances including Woodstock. It has kept the spirit alive with a constant reinvigoration of its membership, including 30-year veteran guitarist Dave Gellis. The nine piece made an impressive line-up as it launched into a brass fanfare, as new frontman Bo Bice strutted around the stage. Bice – discovered by BS&T when he was runner-up on American Idol Season 4 – is a perfect fit for the band. With great blues-rock tones, he banged out classics such as ‘Spinning Wheel’, which were true to the original sound of the band’s hit singles way back when. Often perched at the very edge of the stage, Bice’s Idol experience showed through clearly in his stage manner. While the singing was impressive, the attempts at humour between songs were a bit ordinary. With the jazz fusion style, there were heaps of solo opportunities for individual musos to shine. The Kiwi drummer made the biggest impact. Using only hi-hat cymbals, Dylan Elise demonstrated he was both juggler and percussionist, working the sticks in many ways – including with a raised leg!

Besides the solos, there was every combo of instruments you could think of, with grumbling bass, beatnik keys, and a hot trumpet sounding just fine.

RORY MCCARTNEY

the word

Self Defense Family, Agency Lacklustre HQ Wednesday September 2

on gigs

To get to the band room at Lacklustre HQ you have to wander over the fence and to the door at the side of the house, through the kitchen and down the hall. The stage at Lacklustre is more aptly described as a suburban lounge room, with amps and mics instead of TVs and coffee tables. It’s bare-bones but brilliant, an exercise in simplicity, about how easy and great live music can be.

Canberra’s had a number of great new bands come into being over the last year or so, one of the most notable of which is Agency.

Combining driving basslines with dualing vocals and chaotic guitar squalls, Agency throw down a set of noise-dusted post-punk that more than hits the spot. Although it’s early days, Agency seem to be onto a good thing if this gig is anything to go by.

When I saw that Self Defense Family was playing at Lacklustre, I was a little surprised, if only for their popularity. I mean, what was a critically acclaimed band from New York doing playing here? About a couple of songs in I realised that this was the perfect place to see SDF play. Like most post-hardcore/rock bands, Self Defense Family are an exercise in patient aggression – a tinderbox waiting to explode. In their case, they were guided by the conductorlike control of their frontman Patrick Kindlon, who dominated proceedings from the front of the room. The banter between songs was great, but the music was even better – if there are cultural difference between NY and CBR, they were wiped away in song.

PHOTO BY MEGAN LEAHY

Live music is about intensity, raw and direct artistic expression. Not many shows in Canberra will display it better than this one.

CODY ATKINSON

48

@bmamag

ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE September 9 - Sept 16

Listings are a free community service. Email editorial@bmamag.com to have your events appear each issue.

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 9

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 10

ART EXHIBITIONS

COMEDY

Walrus’s Mentis Fractura

Naked Girls Reading

Exploring the sensation of various mental illnesses.

HONKYTONKS

Interrestial: Interactive Ceramics Exhibition

Various artists. Aug 28- Sept 13.

11am-3pm. Free.

NISHI GALLERY

World Series

Kate Stevens & Julian Laffan.

12-5pm daily.

M16 ARTSPACE

Self-Help

Ruby Green & Gwenna Green. Opens 6pm September 3 continues until September 13. Weds- Sun 11am- 5pm.

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ARTS SPACE (MANUKA)

Naked girls read out loud comedy.

7:30pm. $15.

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

LIVE MUSIC Monsterpiece 8pm.

TRANSIT BAR

Sound of Koko

From the South Coast. 7pm.

NATIONAL PRESS CLUB

Walrus’s Mentis Fractura

Exploring the sensation of various mental illnesses.

HONKYTONKS

Interrestial: Interactive Ceramics Exhibition

LIVE MUSIC Irish Jam Session

Various artists. Aug 28- Sept 13.

11am-3pm. Free.

Traditional Irish musicians in the pub from late afternoon. Free.

World Series

Evensong

NISHI GALLERY

KING O’MALLEY’S IRISH PUB

Kate Stevens & Julian Laffan.

12-5pm daily.

Choral music. 4-4:30pm. Free.

Heroes and Villains: Strutt’s Australia

ON THE TOWN

M16 ARTSPACE

William Strutt’s Collections.

Until 15 Nov.

NATIONAL LIBRARY OF AUSTRALIA

ON THE TOWN

Bare: Degrees of undress

Chicago Charles & Danger Dave

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

KING O’MALLEY’S IRISH PUB

Ruby Green & Gwenna Green. Opens 6pm September 3 continues until September 13. Weds- Sun 11am- 5pm.

9pm. Free.

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 13

14 Aug- 15 Nov. Free.

Self-Help

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

DJ Gosper and Richard Steele 3pm. Free.

OLD CANBERRA INN

Irish Jam Session

Traditional Irish musicians in the pub from late afternoon. Free.

KING O’MALLEY’S IRISH PUB

MONDAY SEPTEMBER 14

Selkie Series

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

M16 ARTSPACE

Tarot Card Reading

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ARTS SPACE (MANUKA)

LIVE MUSIC

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

Selkie Series

Spike Deane. 12-5pm daily.

Brother Ali

M16 ARTSPACE

TRANSIT BAR

Spike Deane. 12-5pm daily.

The Distant Warriors

ANZAC Centenary exhibition inspired by Indigenous and Maori soldiers.

9 Sp- 19 Nov. CANBERRA GLASSWORKS

Wordsmith

Sarah Norris. 12-5pm daily.

M16 ARTSPACE

At A Loss

Various Artists. 27 Aug- 20 Sept.

PHOTOACCESS MANUKA

Juggler of Gravity

Dan Moor Sculptural installation.

5-26 Sep. TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

Footy Fever

Curated by Alexander Boynes. Aug 28- Oct 3. Tues - Fri 11am - 5pm, Sat 10am - 4pm. Free.

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ART SPACE (GORMAN HOUSE)

Pryor Again

Ian Pryor, watercolors. 5-26 Sept.

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

Hidden Treasures

50 artists, hidden treasures.

4- 20 Sept.

BELCONNEN ARTS CENTRE

Booking only 0404364820. 5-7pm.

TALKS Gordon Peake

Presented by Lakeside literary lounge.

7pm. Free.

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 11 LIVE MUSIC Robbie Mann Plays Stride Piano 7-9pm.

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

Wordsmith

Sarah Norris. 12-5pm daily.

M16 ARTSPACE

At A Loss

Various Artists. 27 Aug- 20 Sept.

Juggler of Gravity

Dan Moor Sculptural installation.

5-26 Sep.

The Wharf Revue

Curated by Alexander Boynes. Aug 28- Oct 3. Tues - Fri 11am - 5pm, Sat 10am - 4pm. Free.

KARAOKE

Whoretopsy

Pryor Again

Ian Pryor, watercolors. 5-26 Sept.

Karaoke Love

JERRABOMBERRA HOTEL

With Daemon Pyre, Tortured, Inhuman Remnants, The Hazard Circular. Doors 8pm. $25.

THE BASEMENT

The Smith Street Band

With the amazing Andrew Jackson Jihad, The Sidekicks, The Sugarcanes.

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

The Getaway Plan

Wayne Kelly Jazz Trio

8pm. Presale via Moshtix.

TRANSIT BAR

OLD CANBERRA INN

Oscar

10:30pm. Free.

KING O’MALLEY’S IRISH PUB

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 12

Get over the hump with drink specials after 5pm.

NONE

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Bunker Comedy presents Al Del Bene

TRANSIT BAR

Geek Chic Speed Dating RELOAD BAR & GAMES

7:30pm. $16.50 from www.comedyact.com.au/gigs GINNINDERRA LABOR CLUB

TRIVIA

ART EXHIBITIONS

Tranny Trivia

Hidden Treasures

Glamour & Song questions. 8pm.

Book Online.

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

50 artists, hidden treasures.

4- 20 Sept.

BELCONNEN ARTS CENTRE

TRANSIT BAR

LIVE MUSIC

Brass Knuckle Brass Band

6pm-midnight. Free.

Karaoke. 9pm. Free entry.

LIVE MUSIC

TRANSIT BAR

Hump Day

THE PLAYHOUSE

8:30pm.

7pm. Free.

ON THE TOWN

15-26 Sept. 2pm, 8pm. $45-65.

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ART SPACE (GORMAN HOUSE)

Rebecca Moore

Vinyl Sessions

THE PHOENIX BAR

TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 15 COMEDY

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

With Brother Be. 9pm. $5.

THE PHOENIX BAR

Footy Fever

ON THE TOWN

US punks.

Duck Duck Ghost, Elk Locker, Malk?, Maggie Jeffs. 8pm. Free.

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

Evensong

Iron Chic, Postblue, Agency

2XX Local n Live presents The Bootleg Session

PHOTOACCESS MANUKA

MAGPIES CITY CLUB

LIVE MUSIC

8pm. Presale via Moshtix.

6:30pm. Free.

OLD CANBERRA INN

Choral music. 4-4:30pm. Free.

ON THE TOWN

Roses in Hand

Karaoke Salan

OLD CANBERRA INN

Every Tues 8pm. Book online at www.politbar.co

Special K

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

KING O’MALLEY’S IRISH PUB

TRIVIA

10:30pm. Free.

Hollow States

With Slow Turismo. 9:30pm. $5.

THE PHOENIX BAR

SOMETHING DIFFERENT Martin Janecky

International glass artist hotshop demo. 10am.

CANBERRA GLASSWORKS

Creative writing workshop

With Jenny Bond and Chris Sheedy.

10am-4pm. $242. Bookings essential.

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

Drawing the Human

Experiment with drawing direct from a model, suitable for all ages. 1-4pm. $45. Bookings essential o NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

Twotonmurphy.com Presents The Phoenix Quiz 7.30pm.

THE PHOENIX BAR

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 16 ART EXHIBITIONS Pryor Again

Ian Pryor, watercolors. 5-26 Sept.

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

Hidden Treasures

50 artists, hidden treasures.

4- 20 Sept.

BELCONNEN ARTS CENTRE

Walrus’s Mentis Fractura

Exploring the sensation of various mental illnesses.

HONKYTONKS

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49

ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE September 16 - Sept 21 WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 16 The Distant Warriors

ANZAC Centenary exhibition inspired by Indigenous and Maori soldiers.

9 Sp- 19 Nov.

DANCE

ON THE TOWN

James Anthony

Youth Dance Festival 2015: Explorations

Vinyl Sessions

OLD CANBERRA INN

CANBERRA THEATRE CENTRE

Irish Jam Session

16-18 Sept. 7:30pm.

6pm-midnight. Free.

OLD CANBERRA INN

7pm. Free.

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Traditional Irish musicians in the pub from late afternoon. Free.

Fash N’ Treasure

With Lavers, NONIE. 9pm. $10.

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

EXHIBITION PARK IN CANBERRA (EPIC)

Dan Moor Sculptural installation.

5-26 Sep.

Hard Cover

Night at the Museum: Chance

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

KING O’MALLEY’S IRISH PUB

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AUSTRALIA

Footy Fever

ON THE TOWN

CANBERRA GLASSWORKS

At A Loss

LIVE MUSIC

Various Artists. 27 Aug- 20 Sept.

Wallflower

Juggler of Gravity

THE PHOENIX BAR

PHOTOACCESS MANUKA

Curated by Alexander Boynes. Aug 28- Oct 3. Tues - Fri 11am - 5pm, Sat 10am - 4pm. Free.

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ART SPACE (GORMAN HOUSE)

9pm. Free.

Oscar

10:30pm. Free.

KING O’MALLEY’S IRISH PUB

KING O’MALLEY’S IRISH PUB

6pm. 18+. $10.

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 19 ART EXHIBITIONS Pryor Again

DANCE

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Ian Pryor, watercolors. 5-26 Sept.

Youth Dance Festival 2015: Explorations

Tarot Card Reading

Hidden Treasures

Booking only 0404364820. 5-7pm.

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

10am - 3pm. 7 Feb, 21 Mar, 11 Apr, 9 May, 13 June, 15 Aug, 19 Sep & 7 Nov. Entry $3.

Masterclass - professional writing Chris Sheedy. 10am-4pm. $242.

Bookings essential.

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

Our Place

Gearing up for Belconnen’s 50th Birthday in 2016. 4-8pm.

BELCONNEN ARTS CENTRE

Beer Masterclass

Casual educational lunch about beer and meat. 12pm. $130pp. Bookings essential at 62469555 or info@m MARBLE & GRAIN

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

50 artists, hidden treasures.

4- 20 Sept.

CANBERRA THEATRE CENTRE

THEATRE

Walrus’s Mentis Fractura

LIVE MUSIC

Much ado about nothing

Much ado about nothing

HONKYTONKS

CANBERRA REPERTORY SOCIETY

16-18 Sept. 7:30pm.

Acoustic Soup

Special International Womens Day Edition. 7pm. $8 members. $12 non-members.

ANU FOOD CO-OP

Make Them Suffer

Presented by Canberra REP. 17 Sept-3 Oct. Bookings 62571950.

CANBERRA REPERTORY SOCIETY

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 18

BELCONNEN ARTS CENTRE

Exploring the sensation of various mental illnesses.

Heroes and Villains: Strutt’s Australia William Strutt’s Collections.

Until 15 Nov.

NATIONAL LIBRARY OF AUSTRALIA

With Traces, Caulfield, Starrats, Pariah, Absolution. Doors 7pm. $25.

COMEDY

Bare: Degrees of undress NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

Rock or Be Rocked (ROBR)

Uni Pub Comedy Club

Featuring Bob Franklin. 8pm.

Shelter Object

DANCE

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ARTS SPACE (MANUKA)

THE BASEMENT

Local rock cover band. Free.

ROSE COTTAGE

ON THE TOWN Hump Day

Get over the hump with drink specials after 5pm.

TRANSIT BAR

SOMETHING DIFFERENT BAD!SLAM!NO!BISCUIT! Poetry. 8pm. Free.

THE PHOENIX BAR

UNI PUB

Youth Dance Festival 2015: Explorations 16-18 Sept. 7:30pm.

CANBERRA THEATRE CENTRE

FILM Think The Magic of Cinema Canberra Short Film Festival.

18-20 Sept.

DENDY CINEMA

TRIVIA

LIVE MUSIC

Tranny Trivia

Irish Jam Session

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

KING O’MALLEY’S IRISH PUB

Glamour & Song questions. 8pm.

Book Online.

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 17 ART EXHIBITIONS

Traditional Irish musicians in the pub from late afternoon. Free.

Holy Holy

8pm. Presale via Moshtix.

14 Aug- 15 Nov. Free.

Lizzie Hall. 17-27 Sept. Weds- Sun 11am- 5pm. Free.

Waxing, Waning

Lucy Chetcuti. 17 Sept-4 Oct. M16 ARTSPACE

With Jilted Hoodz, Lateral Axis v Kazuki, Disect. 10pm. $15.

Dan Moor Sculptural installation.

5-26 Sep. TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

Footy Fever

Curated by Alexander Boynes. Aug 28- Oct 3. Tues - Fri 11am - 5pm, Sat 10am - 4pm. Free.

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ART SPACE (GORMAN HOUSE)

COMEDY 15-26 Sept. 2pm, 8pm. $45-65.

FILM

Lizzie Hall. 17-27 Sept. Weds- Sun 11am- 5pm. Free.

Stakemyrep.com launch w/ Daheen (live)

Waxing, Waning

DIGRESS COCKTAIL BAR

M16 ARTSPACE

8:30pm.

LIVE MUSIC

COMEDY

Andre Camilleri and The Wretched Few

The Steptones

Lucy Chetcuti. 17 Sept-4 Oct.

LOL Pol

Stand-up Comedy. 8pm. $5 (online) $10 (door).

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

Schnitz and Giggles

Improv comedy sketch night.

6:30pm. $10.

DIGRESS COCKTAIL BAR

50

Delaneys Duo JERRABOMBERRA HOTEL

Think The Magic of Cinema

Canberra Short Film Festival.

18-20 Sept.

DENDY CINEMA

LIVE MUSIC no third dividend 3pm. Free.

OLD CANBERRA INN

Canberra Blues Society Monthy Jams

Juggler of Gravity

THE PLAYHOUSE

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ARTS SPACE (MANUKA)

FILM

PHOTOACCESS MANUKA

Robbie Mann Plays Stride Piano POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 20

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Various Artists. 27 Aug- 20 Sept.

The Wharf Revue

7-9pm.

Presented by Canberra REP. 17 Sept-3 Oct. Bookings 62571950.

At A Loss

TRANSIT BAR

Shelter Object

THEATRE

Long John. 2pm. $3/$5.

HARMONIE GERMAN CLUB

Watercolour master class

With Cherry Hood. 10.00 am – 5.00 pm. $115pp. Bookings essential, 0261027070 or bookings@npg.gov.au.

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

THEATRE The Confidence Man

A gripping interactive audio-visual thriller. 20-23 Sep. THE STREET THEATRE

MONDAY SEPTEMBER 21

Think The Magic of Cinema

LIVE MUSIC

DENDY CINEMA

CIT Presents The Bootleg Sessions

Canberra Short Film Festival.

18-20 Sept.

Good Bison, Culture Industry, Bleach It Clean, Harrison Lambert. 8pm. Free.

THE PHOENIX BAR

With Young Monks, Azim Zain & His Lovely Bones. 9:30pm. $5.

THEATRE

THE POLISH WHITE EAGLE CLUB

Hayds & Suavess

Itchy Triggers

Double Launch. 8pm.

A gripping interactive audio-visual thriller. 20-23 Sep.

TRANSIT BAR

KING O’MALLEY’S IRISH PUB

Inebriator

Presented by CMC with The Undertow, Blackdog Walking. 8pm.

10pm. Free.

THE PHOENIX BAR

The Confidence Man THE STREET THEATRE

With Baltimore Gun Club, Cockbelch, MALK? Doors 8pm. $10.

THE BASEMENT

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ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE September 22 - Oct 2 TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 22 KARAOKE Karaoke Love

Karaoke. 9pm. Free entry.

TRANSIT BAR

LIVE MUSIC Wayne Kelly Jazz Trio 6:30pm. Free.

I Exalt

With Semper Fi, To The Grave, Blind Oracle, The Sign Of Four. Doors 7:30pm. $10.

THE BASEMENT

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 26 ART EXHIBITIONS Pryor Again

ON THE TOWN

Ian Pryor, watercolors. 5-26 Sept.

Hump Day

Heroes and Villains: Strutt’s Australia

Get over the hump with drink specials after 5pm.

TRANSIT BAR

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

William Strutt’s Collections.

Until 15 Nov.

NATIONAL LIBRARY OF AUSTRALIA

OLD CANBERRA INN

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

ON THE TOWN

Circus Oz

14 Aug- 15 Nov. Free.

Karaoke Salan

CANBERRA THEATRE CENTRE

Shelter Object

Every Tues 8pm. Book online at www.politbar.co POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

SOMETHING DIFFERENT Storytime with Jay Sullivan 8pm. $18/$20. Book now at trybooking.com/IZEH CIVIC PUB

THEATRE The Confidence Man

A gripping interactive audio-visual thriller. 20-23 Sep. THE STREET THEATRE

TRIVIA Lights, Camera, Trivia

Presented by ANU Film Group. 7:30pm.

THE PHOENIX BAR

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 23 ART EXHIBITIONS Pryor Again

Ian Pryor, watercolors. 5-26 Sept.

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

Walrus’s Mentis Fractura

Exploring the sensation of various mental illnesses.

HONKYTONKS

Shelter Object

Lizzie Hall. 17-27 Sept. Weds- Sun 11am- 5pm. Free.

Sep 23-26. 7:30pm. $60-80.

THEATRE The Confidence Man

Much ado about nothing

CANBERRA REPERTORY SOCIETY

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

TRIVIA

Curated by Alexander Boynes. Aug 28- Oct 3. Tues - Fri 11am - 5pm, Sat 10am - 4pm. Free.

Presented by Canberra REP. 17 Sept-3 Oct. Bookings 62571950.

Tranny Trivia

Glamour & Song questions. 8pm.

Book Online.

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 24 LIVE MUSIC

8pm. Free.

TRANSIT BAR

Ensemble MIC Night (student performers) CIT music performance ensemble showcase. 7pm. Free.

AINSLIE ARTS CENTRE

Humbug

Celtic Band. 8pm.

THE FRONT GALLERY AND CAFÉ

Booking only 0404364820. 5-7pm.

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

Waxing, Waning

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

Burlesque and cabaret. 7:30pm. $20.

M16 ARTSPACE

Glamour and Moist

Juggler of Gravity

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ART SPACE (GORMAN HOUSE)

COMEDY The Wharf Revue

15-26 Sept. 2pm, 8pm. $45-65.

THE PLAYHOUSE

LIVE MUSIC Devin The Dude

Cabaret show. 8pm. $15.

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 25 LIVE MUSIC

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ART SPACE (GORMAN HOUSE)

COMEDY

ON THE TOWN Vinyl Sessions

6pm-midnight. Free.

OLD CANBERRA INN

Footy Fever

Curated by Alexander Boynes. Aug 28- Oct 3. Tues - Fri 11am - 5pm, Sat 10am - 4pm. Free.

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ART SPACE (GORMAN HOUSE)

The Distant Warriors

ANZAC Centenary exhibition inspired by Indigenous and Maori soldiers.

9 Sp- 19 Nov. CANBERRA GLASSWORKS

Waxing, Waning

Lucy Chetcuti. 17 Sept-4 Oct. M16 ARTSPACE

CHECK YOUR HEAD

THE PHOENIX BAR

A State of Grace

The music of Tim & Jeff Buckley.

Bookings on 62752700.

CANBERRA THEATRE CENTRE

ON THE TOWN

THE PLAYHOUSE

Hump Day

15-26 Sept. 2pm, 8pm. $45-65.

Get over the hump with drink specials after 5pm.

TRANSIT BAR

With Cracked Actor, Waterford, Thomas Hyland. 9:30pm. $5.

THEATRE

Rock or Be Rocked (ROBR)

Presented by Canberra REP. 17 Sept-3 Oct. Bookings 62571950.

THE PHOENIX BAR

70s to current rock music. 9pm. $5 at door.

P J O’REILLY’S (TUGGERANONG)

Much ado about nothing

CANBERRA REPERTORY SOCIETY

Third Party

TRIVIA

JERRABOMBERRA HOTEL

Tranny Trivia

8:30pm.

THEATRE Much ado about nothing

Presented by Canberra REP. 17 Sept-3 Oct. Bookings 62571950.

CANBERRA REPERTORY SOCIETY

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 27 LIVE MUSIC Star Slinger (UK)

8pm. Presale via Resident Advisor.

TRANSIT BAR

TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 29

Karaoke Love

JERRABOMBERRA HOTEL

ART EXHIBITIONS

The Wharf Revue

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

8:30pm.

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 30

Your monthly dose of beats, rhymes and life. Jedbrii, Scotts, Macho Duck.

8pm. $5.

KARAOKE

Sax in the City

THE PHOENIX BAR

Footy Fever

Robbie Mann Plays Stride Piano 7-9pm.

Presented by Impact Records. 7:30pm.

LIVE MUSIC

Heart Beach

Mace and the Motor

Nerd Trivia with Joel and Ali

Dan Moor Sculptural installation.

5-26 Sep.

THE PHOENIX BAR

With The Neanderthals. 9pm. $5.

Shaken and Stirred

Curated by Alexander Boynes. Aug 28- Oct 3. Tues - Fri 11am - 5pm, Sat 10am - 4pm. Free.

M16 ARTSPACE

LIVE MUSIC

CANBERRA GLASSWORKS

Footy Fever

Lucy Chetcuti. 17 Sept-4 Oct.

The Stiffys

Tarot Card Reading

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ARTS SPACE (MANUKA)

Juggler of Gravity

THE STREET THEATRE

The Distant Warriors

Dan Moor Sculptural installation.

5-26 Sep.

Lizzie Hall. 17-27 Sept. Weds- Sun 11am- 5pm. Free.

Waxing, Waning

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Lucy Chetcuti. 17 Sept-4 Oct.

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

A gripping interactive audio-visual thriller. 20-23 Sep.

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ARTS SPACE (MANUKA)

ANZAC Centenary exhibition inspired by Indigenous and Maori soldiers.

9 Sp- 19 Nov.

Bare: Degrees of undress

TRIVIA

Glamour & Song questions. 8pm.

Book Online.

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

THURSDAY OCTOBER 1 LIVE MUSIC Italian Souvenir

With the Lanyon Trio.

TUGGERANONG ARTS CENTRE

Foreign Kings

With The Charge, Lillye. 9pm. $5.

THE PHOENIX BAR

SOMETHING DIFFERENT Tarot Card Reading

Booking only 0404364820. 5-7pm.

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

FRIDAY OCTOBER 2

Karaoke. 9pm. Free entry.

TRANSIT BAR

ON THE TOWN Karaoke Salan

Every Tues 8pm. Book online at www.politbar.co

COMEDY Uni Pub Comedy Club

Featuring Michael Connell. 8pm.

UNI PUB

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

8pm. Presale via Moshtix.

TRANSIT BAR

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ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE October 2 - October 30 FRIDAY OCTOBER 2 LIVE MUSIC Soul Of Fire- She fought for peace

Special performance in German. 4pm.

THE STREET THEATRE

SATURDAY OCTOBER 3 ART EXHIBITIONS Waxing, Waning

Lucy Chetcuti. 17 Sept-4 Oct. M16 ARTSPACE

Footy Fever

Curated by Alexander Boynes. Aug 28- Oct 3. Tues - Fri 11am - 5pm, Sat 10am - 4pm. Free.

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ART SPACE (GORMAN HOUSE)

Heroes and Villains: Strutt’s Australia

William Strutt’s Collections.

Until 15 Nov.

NATIONAL LIBRARY OF AUSTRALIA

Bare: Degrees of undress 14 Aug- 15 Nov. Free.

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

LIVE MUSIC

WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 7 ART EXHIBITIONS Kon Kudo

Canberra based photographer and circus performer.

HONKYTONKS

The Distant Warriors

ANZAC Centenary exhibition inspired by Indigenous and Maori soldiers.

9 Sp- 19 Nov. CANBERRA GLASSWORKS

THURSDAY OCTOBER 8 LIVE MUSIC

SATURDAY OCTOBER 10 ART EXHIBITIONS Kon Kudo

Canberra based photographer and circus performer.

HONKYTONKS

Heroes and Villains: Strutt’s Australia

Bare: Degrees of undress

The Seven Ups

14 Aug- 15 Nov. Free.

THEATRE Much ado about nothing

Presented by Canberra REP. 17 Sept-3 Oct. Bookings 62571950.

CANBERRA REPERTORY SOCIETY

SUNDAY OCTOBER 4

Dead Letter Circus

With 10 Years (USA), Guards of May. 8pm. tickets $35.00 +bf GA from oztix.com.au.

UC REFECTORY

SATURDAY OCTOBER 17

William Strutt’s Collections.

Until 15 Nov.

NATIONAL LIBRARY OF AUSTRALIA

NATIONAL LIBRARY OF AUSTRALIA

SMITH’S ALTERNATIVE

LIVE MUSIC

THE PHOENIX BAR

THE STREET THEATRE

Mayfair Tour.

THURSDAY OCTOBER 15

Heroes and Villains: Strutt’s Australia

Special performance in German. 4pm.

Winters End

CANBERRA GLASSWORKS

ART EXHIBITIONS

With Wives, Cool Sounds. 9pm. $5.

William Strutt’s Collections.

Until 15 Nov.

THE PHOENIX BAR

ANZAC Centenary exhibition inspired by Indigenous and Maori soldiers.

9 Sp- 19 Nov.

The Ocean Party

Soul Of Fire- She fought for peace

9:30pm. $5.

The Distant Warriors

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

LIVE MUSIC Parkway Drive

Kon Kudo

Canberra based photographer and circus performer.

HONKYTONKS

SUNDAY OCTOBER 18

ANU BAR AND REFECTORY

SATURDAY OCTOBER 24

William Strutt’s Collections.

Until 15 Nov. 14 Aug- 15 Nov. Free.

TUESDAY OCTOBER 27

Canberra Blues Society Monthy Jams

Karaoke Love

ON THE TOWN

HARMONIE GERMAN CLUB

DJ Raven

70’s, 80’s, 90’s, Dance Classics and Top 40. From 9pm. Free.

Groove Kings. 2pm. $3/$5.

TUESDAY OCTOBER 20

CMC, Tammy Paks, MC KREWD. 8pm. $15 presale.

TUESDAY OCTOBER 13

Karaoke. 9pm. Free entry.

ON THE TOWN Karaoke Salan

Every Tues 8pm. Book online at www.politbar.co POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

KARAOKE Karaoke Love

Karaoke. 9pm. Free entry.

WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 21

TRANSIT BAR

ON THE TOWN

Kon Kudo

Karaoke Salan

Karaoke Salan

Every Tues 8pm. Book online at www.politbar.co POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 14

Canberra based photographer and circus performer.

HONKYTONKS

The Distant Warriors

ANZAC Centenary exhibition inspired by Indigenous and Maori soldiers.

9 Sp- 19 Nov. CANBERRA GLASSWORKS

Karaoke. 9pm. Free entry.

TRANSIT BAR

ON THE TOWN Karaoke Salan

Every Tues 8pm. Book online at www.politbar.co POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

WEDNESDAY OCTOBER 28 ART EXHIBITIONS The Distant Warriors

ANZAC Centenary exhibition inspired by Indigenous and Maori soldiers.

9 Sp- 19 Nov. CANBERRA GLASSWORKS

THURSDAY OCTOBER 29 LIVE MUSIC A Night of Blues (Blues Bands)

Canberra’s finest blues musicians come together for a night of blues. 7:30pm. $10/$5 concession.

AINSLIE ARTS CENTRE

FRIDAY OCTOBER 30

ART EXHIBITIONS

ON THE TOWN

Kon Kudo

Retro Invasion

Canberra based photographer and circus performer.

HONKYTONKS

52

THE POLISH WHITE EAGLE CLUB

UC REFECTORY

ON THE TOWN

THE PHOENIX BAR

New single out soon.

KARAOKE

ART EXHIBITIONS

7:30pm.

Last Leaves & Waterford

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Thy Art is Murder, Memphis May Fire and The Word Alive. 6:30pm. Tickets $54.00 +bf GA from oztix.com

THE POLISH WHITE EAGLE CLUB

Tris and Travis’ Trivia: All At Sea

LIVE MUSIC

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

THE STREET THEATRE

TRIVIA

UC REFECTORY

Hands Like Houses

With Lower than Atlantis (UK), Far Away Stables (AUS). 18+

TRANSIT BAR

POLIT BAR & LOUNGE

Neel Kolhatkar

Live (Comedy Night GA Seated). 7pm.

Tickets $29 + BF from oztix.com.au

Bare: Degrees of undress

Sizzle and Moist

Every Tues 8pm. Book online at www.politbar.co

COMEDY

NATIONAL LIBRARY OF AUSTRALIA

Soul Of Fire- She fought for peace

TRANSIT BAR

FRIDAY OCTOBER 23

LIVE MUSIC

Karaoke Love

Karaoke. 9pm. Free entry.

CIT MUSIC INDUSTRY CENTRE

Heroes and Villains: Strutt’s Australia

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

Karaoke Love

Local comedians perform their best short sets. $10/$5 concession. 7:30pm.

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

LIVE MUSIC

KARAOKE

Short, Fast & Funny Comedy Night

ART EXHIBITIONS

14 Aug- 15 Nov. Free.

KARAOKE

TUESDAY OCTOBER 6

COMEDY

Bare: Degrees of undress

VIKINGS CHISHOLM

Special performance in German. 4pm.

THURSDAY OCTOBER 22

Retro Music. 7pm. Adult and family tickets available.

THE RUC (TURNER)

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ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE October 31 - November 7 SATURDAY OCTOBER 31

SUNDAY NOVEMBER 1

LIVE MUSIC

ART EXHIBITIONS

LIVE MUSIC

Jazzgroove Mothership Orchestra

Heroes and Villains: Strutt’s Australia

The Waifs

THE STREET THEATRE

William Strutt’s Collections.

Until 15 Nov.

NATIONAL LIBRARY OF AUSTRALIA

Bare: Degrees of undress 14 Aug- 15 Nov. Free.

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

Beautiful You tour. With Mia Dyson.

Tickets from canberratheatrecentre.com.au.

NATIONAL THEATRE (BRAIDWOOD)

WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 4

SOMETHING DIFFERENT

ART EXHIBITIONS

Canberra Zombie Walk 2015

The Distant Warriors

3:30pm. Free. Gold Coin Donation.

LAKE BURLEY GRIFFIN

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 7 ART EXHIBITIONS

Featuring James Muller. 7:30pm.

Heroes and Villains: Strutt’s Australia

THURSDAY NOVEMBER 5

NATIONAL LIBRARY OF AUSTRALIA

LIVE MUSIC School Stars

Bare: Degrees of undress 14 Aug- 15 Nov. Free.

Band competition for school-aged musicians. 6pm. Free.

CIT MUSIC INDUSTRY CENTRE

William Strutt’s Collections.

Until 15 Nov.

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

COMEDY Matt Okine

ANZAC Centenary exhibition inspired by Indigenous and Maori soldiers.

9 Sp- 19 Nov.

The Other Guy. 8pm.

THE STREET THEATRE

CANBERRA GLASSWORKS

SOMETHING DIFFERENT Fash N’ Treasure

10am - 3pm. 7 Feb, 21 Mar, 11 Apr, 9 May, 13 June, 15 Aug, 19 Sep & 7 Nov. Entry $3.

EXHIBITION PARK IN CANBERRA (EPIC)

OUT

MON??

A STATE OF GRACE JULIA ZEMIRO PARKWAY DRIVE HANDS LIKE HOUSES CONRAD SEWELL ...AND MORE!

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SIDE A: BMA BAND PROFILE

FIRST CONTACT Aaron Peacey 0410381306 band.afternoon.shift@ gmail.com.au Adam Hole 0421023226 Afternoon Shift 0402055314

Kayo Marbilus facebook.com/kayomarbilus1

Amphibian Sound PA Clare 0410308288

Kurt’s Metalworx (PA) 0417025792

Annie & The Armadillos Annie (02) 61611078/ 0422076313

Propeller Where did your band name come from? The name centres on the idea of motion. Growing up in a small town, there was a sensation that we were going around in circles in our daily lives, yet that motion propelled us forward.

Group members? Pat (guitar), Jak (drums) and James (bass).

Describe your sound: Equal parts tender and tense, attempting to explore ideas about obsession, human emotion and anatomy.

Who are your influences, musical or otherwise? Between the three of us, we’re exposed to so much art in various forms that it’s hard to generalise… broadly though, if it’s fun, intelligent or genuinely passionate, it’ll probably resonate strongly with us.

What’s the most memorable experience you’ve had whilst performing? We played a sold-out show on a Monday night earlier this year with Dangers from California. That was unreal.

Of what are you proudest so far? We began as a two-piece band from Goulburn, so we’re really proud of the fact that we’ve managed to increase the scale of what we do from that starting point. We’re also very proud to be forever edging closer towards properly realising the creative vision stuck inside our heads.

What are your plans for the future? We’ve just reissued our 2013 EP Rough Patch on 7” with the help of our friends at Buttercup Records, as well as a digital single ‘Idols’, which showcases our more recent approach to songwriting. We’ll be releasing more music towards the end of the year and touring off the back of that. Beyond that, who knows?

What makes you laugh? In-jokes that make no sense and our own continual failure as human beings.

What pisses you off? In-jokes that make no sense and our own continual failure as human beings.

What about the local scene would you change? Our drummer is from Sydney and is always whinging about the distance and the cold.

What are your upcoming gigs? Thursday September 17 @ Magpies City Club with Eat Your Heart Out, Saturday October 3 @ St Joseph’s Hall, Goulburn with Hands Like Houses, Saturday October 10 @ ANU Art School Ball.

Contact info: propelleraus.bandcamp.com, facebook.com/ propelleraus, @propellerpropeller

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Johnny Roadkill Paulie 0408287672 paulie_mcmillan@live.com.au

Aria Stone sax/flute/lute/ harmonica, singer-songwriter Aria 0411803343 Australian Songwriters Association Keiran (02) 62310433 Back to the Eighties Ty Emerson 0418 544 014 Backbeat Drivers Steve 0422733974 backbeatdrivers.com Birds Love Fighting Gangbusters/DIY shows-bookings@ birdslovefighting.com Black Label Photography Kingsley 0438351007 blacklabelphotography.net Bridge Between, The Cam 0431550005 Chris Harland Blues Band, The Chris 0418 490 649 chrisharlandbluesband @gmail.com Cole Bennetts Photography 0415982662 Danny V Danny 0413502428 Dawn Theory Nathan 0402845132 Danny 0413502428 Dorothy Jane Band, The Dorothy Jane 0411065189 dorothy-jane@dorothyjane.com Drumassault Dan 0406 375 997 Feldons, The 0407 213 701 Fire on the Hill Aaron 0410381306 Lachlan 0400038388 Fourth Degree Vic 0408477020 Gareth Dailey DJ/Electronica Gareth 0414215885 Groovalicious Corporate/ weddings/private functions 0448995158 Guy The Sound Guy Live & Studio Sound Engineer 0400585369 guy@guythesoundguy.com

Los Chavos Latin/ska/reggae Rafa 0406647296 Andy 0401572150 Merloc - Recording Studio, Watson. Sam King: 0430484363. sam@ merlocrecords.com Missing Zero Hadrian 0424721907 hadrian.brand@live.com.au Morning After, The Covers band Anthony 0402500843 Mornings Jordan 0439907853 Obsessions 0450 960 750 obsessions@grapevine.com.au Painted Hearts, The Peter (02) 62486027 Polka Pigs Ian (02) 62315974 Rafe Morris 0416322763 Redletter Ben 0421414472 Redsun Rehearsal Studio Ralph 0404178996/ (02) 61621527 Rug, The Jol 0417273041 Sewer Sideshow Huck 0419630721 Simone & The Soothsayers Singing teacher Simone 62304828 Sorgonian Twins, The Mark 0428650549 Soundcity Rehearsal Studio Andrew 0401588884 STonKA Jamie 0422764482 stonka2615@gmail.com Strange Hour Events Dan 0411112075 Super Best Friends Greg greg@gunfever.com.au System Addict Jamie 0418398556

Haunted Attics band@hauntedatticsmusic.com

Tegan Northwood (Singing Teacher) 0410 769 144

In The Flesh Scott 0410475703

Top Shelf Colin 0408631514

Itchy Triggers Alex 0414838480

Undersided, The Baz 0408468041

Jenn Pacor Singer-songwriter avail. for originals/covers 0405618630

Zoopagoo zoopagoo@gmail.com

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