AUSSIE CULTURE AT ITS DRUNKEN HONEST
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AUTUMN 2008
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CONTRIBUTORS
100% Aussie Lamb Erin Bell Erin Bell is a freelance journalist who has worked in a variety of media settings ranging from conservative AM radio news to behind the scenes advisory roles for Mr Sheen and the Liberal Government to keep everything tidy and fresh. When she isn’t locking herself in a room to produce 1,000 words of creative writing, she drinks Milo, bakes cookies and buys cardigans. As a former Young Liberal who is passionate about social justice issues, Erin likes to think her writing picks away at deep social tensions and the pressing issues of the day.
e m o s t Mee talent of thend the behi mag first
She’s a bit of a loose cannon and really needs to be put back in her box.
Peter Suchecki Peter Suchecki is an up and coming photographer whose style and influence comes from a love of fine art and extensive industry experience. Pete’s focus is on the shoot objective and the subject’s persona.
Kate Gauthier Kate Gauthier is the national coordinator of A Just Australia, a refugee policy lobby group. Previously, Kate worked as the policy advisor on immigration and refugee issues for Australian Democrats Senator Andrew Bartlett. Kate is a co-founder of the Refugee Assistance Project, a board member of ChilOut (Children Out of Detention), a board member of PolMin, a member of the steering group for Project Australia and has visited every onshore detention centre in Australia. Prior to working in this field, she worked in film, TV and multimedia both in Australia and New York, and worked for AAP as a video news producer. Kate has a Masters degree in International Social Development. For more information on refugee issues with tips on how to get involved, see www.ajustaustralia.com.
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Pete strives for raw detail, impact lighting and leading composition. His unconventional, no-nonsense personality creates an approach that is quick and to the point with a photo journalistic edge. This, coupled with his post production skills as a pioneer high-end retouch artist, makes for well crafted and interesting photography. For more information visit www.myspace.com/petepeter.
Publisher & Editor Lizza Gebilagin
Art Director Philip Smith
Writers Caroline Barnao-Wilson, Erin Bell, Nicholas Cornelius, James Ellis, Kate Gauthier, Emma McIntyre, Angus Paterson
Photographers Lizza Gebilagin, Morganna Magee, Emma McIntyre, Kate O’Brien, Tim Page, Peter Suchecki, Andy Vermeulen
Illustrators Dennis Juan Ma, Richard McAdam
Fashion Photography Director Hannah Chapman
Retouch Artists Bridget Hope, Marie Sinclair
Copy Editors Elissa Blake, Angus Paterson With special thanks to The Watershed Sustainability Resource Centre and the Australian Red Cross. For advertising enquiries phone (02) 8012 1895 or email ads@corkermag.com For subscriptions phone (02) 8012 1895 or email subs@corkermag.com Send any letters, CDs, review items and press releases to PO Box 1126, Surry Hills NSW 2010.
Corker is published in Australia quarterly by Corker Media Pty Ltd ACN 128 184 243, ISSN 1835 5501. The entire contents of Corker are copyright 2008 by Corker Media Pty Ltd and may not be reproduced in any manner without written permission from the publisher. Views expressed in Corker do not necessarily represent the opinions of the editor or publisher. No responsibility is accepted by Corker Media Pty Ltd for the accuracy of advertisements or information within the publication. The name Corker is a trademark of Corker Media Pty Ltd. Printed by Lighthouse Press, Unit 2/10 Northumberland Rd, Caringbah NSW 2229. If you are a retailer interested in stocking Corker, please email info@corkermag.com
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BAR REVIEW
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s a child of the 80s I was told by television that the best way to quench a hard earned thirst was with a big cold beer. And, that big cold beer was VB. But since I was old enough to legally drink, I’ve never had the desire to reach for a cold can. Honestly, I only drink the stuff when there’s nothing else and if it’s free. I’d rather drink cocktails in this warm weather. Ideally, on the beach served by gorgeous waiters – exactly what you would find on the Greek Islands. It might be a while until Australia takes on that concept, but until then Bungabar in Bondi will be suffice. It’s located only a short walk from Bondi Beach and has an impressive cocktail list, plus beer for those of you who were more susceptible to those early VB ads. The cosy surf bar fits around 70 punters and features long tables that were purposely selected by owner Yossi Zamir to encourage people to make friends with strangers. The community vibe extends all the way to the menu: you can purchase jugs of alcohol and tapas to share. We start with the Jungle Juice ($20). Zamir stresses that this cocktail is the only one in Australia that is true to its original Balinese roots. He should know – he spent two years searching for the traditional recipe. He doesn’t reveal the secret ingredients, but says that the imitators use vodka, orange juice, lemonade and grenadine. The cocktail arrives at our table in a green and orange jug, accompanied by two shot glasses. My friend and I take a sip and it goes down so smoothly we argue about whether there is any alcohol in it at all. Next up, we order tapas: garlic prawns and fiesta chicken in orange and tomato relish ($8 each). Both are delicious, but don’t go down well with the Jungle Juice, so we order a jug of Sangria ($20). After the round of Spanish cuisine and drinks, we decide to order Bungabar’s famous beef nachos ($14). Unlike your typical pub nachos, it is served with big chunks of meat and perfectly toasted chips. For desert we have a glass of the Wildberry Caprioska ($14.50). In sporadic spurts between our gluttonous eating and drinking, we try to finish off the Jungle Juice. The attempt doesn’t go well, but I refuse to leave the bar with a half finished jug of alcohol on the table. We eventually stumble out of Bungabar, reluctantly leaving the undrunk Jungle Juice behind. But as bloated and tipsy as I feel, I’m glad we lined our stomachs with tapas and nachos because we’re now on our way to our second round of drinks at a beer festival – which thankfully is serving more than just VB. 012
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Review:
Bungabar, Bondi Beach, cocktails and tapas. The only thing missing are the Greek waiters. Words by Lizza Gebilagin Photos by Andy Vermeulen Address: 77 Hall Street, Bondi NSW Phone: 02 9300 6766 Web: www.bungabar.com.au
MORE TROUBLE
Featuring remixes from Quarion, Zwicker, Trickski, Putsch 79, Brennan Green, Soultourist & more… IN STORES NOW!
“I've been playing the hell out of the Zwicker mix of "What We Have." Just gorgeous!” - Phillip Sherburne (Pitchfork Media / XLR8R) “Funky shit OHH YEESSS” - Laurent Garnier (F-Com) “Really love the "May I Quarion mix" playing it a lot in the morning hours. Nice and deep, very soulfull!” - Steve Bug (Poker Flat)
Sustainable Living in the City City living may not be synonymous with sustainability, but there are still plenty of things you can do to minimise your impact on the environment. The Watershed Sustainability Resource Centre takes you through its top ten tips.
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Worm Farming and Composting
Nearly 50% of the waste in your household bin is organic and can be composted or put into a worm farm. By recycling this organic waste you can turn it into a valuable rich fertiliser for your garden and greatly reduce the amount of material going into landfill.
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ECO CHOICES
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Save Water
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By installing AAA rated shower heads and tap aerators you can save up to 50% of the water used. Sydney Water offers a retro fit program for homeowners called Water Fix and will install these devices as well as fix any leaking taps for $22. There are many similar programs around Australia, so just ask your local water company to find out more.
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Buy Local Food
The energy used to grow and transport food vast distances is often referred to as ‘embodied energy’. By shopping seasonally and locally you can greatly reduce your carbon footprint. Try to buy food grown in Australia or visit a local growers market.
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Recycling Right
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Take Reusable Shopping Bags
Australians use more than 6 billion plastic bags each year. A plastic bag can take up to 1,000 years to biodegrade in a landfill site. By taking a reusable bag to the supermarket or using a cardboard box or backpack you can greatly reduce the number of plastic bags making their way to landfill. You can also line your kitchen bin with newspaper instead of plastic bags.
Each local council area has a guide for residents about what can be recycled. Generally things made from plastic will have a number on the bottom to indicate what type of material it is made from and your council will be able to tell you if it can be locally recycled. Remember that many councils also recycle steel tin and can as well as paper and aluminium.
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Clean Without Chemicals
By making your own natural cleaning products you can reduce the chemical load in your home. Bicarbonate soda, lemon juice, vinegar and eucalyptus oil can all be used to clean, degrease and disinfect your home while at the same time saving you money and the environment.
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Turn Off Your Appliances
Appliances such as mobile phone chargers, TVs, stereos and VCRs use up to 11% energy while in standby mode. By turning these appliances off at the wall you will save power and money.
Reuse Greywater
You can collect greywater around the home for use on your garden. For example, place a bucket under the shower to collect water before it runs hot and use it to flush the loo or use waste water from your washing machine to water lawns and garden beds.
Change Your Light Bulbs
Using an energy efficient light fitting can help you save up to 80% of your power needs for lighting. A wide variety of light fittings are available including halogen replacements, LED lights and compact fluorescents.
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Travel Sustainably
On average, each car produces about seven tonnes of greenhouse gas per year. Consider riding a bike to work, catching public transport, or joining a car pool group or a car share network.
More Information For more information about sustainable living in the city contact The Watershed Sustainability Resource Centre on 02 9519 6366. The Watershed is a joint initiative between City of Sydney and Marrickville Councils. CORKER
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SPOTLIGHT ON...
Y a r c s t FoO
Footscray used to be known for its high crime rates and drug trafficking, but photographer and writer Emma McIntyre explores the streets to find out what really makes this Melbourne suburb unique.
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n Romper Stomper – the film that made Russell Crowe a household name – Hando’s band of Neo-Nazis squatted in an abandoned tyre factory in the west Melbourne suburb of Footscray. Today, parts of this once derelict warehouse have been transformed into artist studio space, adjacent to the larger Footscray Community Arts Centre. This is one example of a gradual but ongoing metamorphosis. While the heavy concentration of industrial warehouses and factories used to drive people away from Melbourne’s west, their renovation and repurposing are what now makes the area distinctive and alluring.
Crime, fireworks and drugs Separated from Melbourne by the West Gate Bridge or the shipping yards on Footscray road, the west (particularly Footscray) was for a long time stigmatised. A reputation for high crime rates, illegal fireworks, and drug trafficking kept people from considering it a place to call home. It was often compared to St Kilda before gentrification took hold. There’s an element of truth to this, but increasingly it yields to another truth: the inner west is still a relatively affordable place for students and artists to live close to the city centre.
Cultural diversity The name Footscray derives from the town of Foot in Kent, England, near the river Scray. The 1950s saw the commencement of mass immigration to the area that has continued to this day. It now enjoys a reputation as one of the most multicultural suburbs around Melbourne, courtesy of an influx of new arrivals from places as diverse as Croatia, Sudan, Ethiopia, Vietnam, and Morocco. Such a mix naturally results in a host of great restaurants. Vietnamese noodle houses sit alongside Ethiopian restaurants, and the Footscray and Little Saigon markets cater to both locals and bargain-hunting gourmets.
Abandoned factories Almost as varied as the cuisine around Footscray is the industrial architecture. Known for its miner’s cottages, shipyards, and large factories, 016
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it has only been recently regarded as a plausible and appealing place to live. Historically significant buildings such as the Footscray Ammunition Factory, and the UDC Ballroom in Yarraville have already or are in the process of being sold and transformed into residential properties. Abandoned factories like the old Uncle Toby’s silo in West Footscray give character – and texture – to the landscape.
Bingo halls and syringes Perhaps a bit too much texture can be found in the heritage-listed Barkly Theatre. Once a cinema, then a cabaret and reception hall, and lastly a bingo hall, this building is rich with history. The bingo hall was closed in the late 1980s and a severe storm left the building ravished and vulnerable to vandals after that. While plans to reinvent this space have almost come to pass, at present it has been left to rot and is littered with syringes and evidence of squatters. This building is a symbol of Footscray’s recent past, and is an indicator that the area still has several hurdles to overcome. That being said, change is impossible to prevent with the constantly growing and diversifying population in the area. It’s this blending of cultures that makes Footscray what it is. Melbourne artist Michael Brennan recently completed a mural on the Albert Street bridge in Footscray entitled “The West Welcomes Refugees”. It is an impressive compilation of personal stories recounting what has driven so many from so far to a new home in the west.
What Happens in Vegas Never Stays in Vegas
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ix buddies and I launched off for a month-long road trip in the US. Madness ensued during those four weeks, but it was our weekend in Las Vegas, Sin City, the land of fake titties and faker smiles, that my uni buddies Crazy Turd, Gonzo and I separated from the pack and suffered our strangest 24 hours. Las Vegas is like a carnival without any of the rides, decked out in the hopes and dreams of all who dare journey into its bowels. Bright lights, neon signs, and portraits the size of unit blocks are everywhere. Mexican immigrants pound the pavement, snapping together cards that pimp local strip clubs. Combining this place with the two friends I experienced it with is like giving nitro-glycerine to a desperate junkie. Crazy Turd (Crazy T for short) loves to hold up traffic at pedestrian crossings by doing up his shoelaces and earned his nickname by defecating in the most obscure places (the most interesting so far from a moving
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taxi). Gonzo is named due to his uncompromising personality under the influence of alcohol – which just so happens to be most of the time. I’m a straighty-180. I bloat up if I drink too much beer, go quiet if I suck back too much vodka, and I, generally, don’t french tickle girls on the dance floor. Whenever we hit the town – any town – I have to keep their arses out of gaol. During the first night, we split from the other guys after a chance blackjack game with Jessica Alba and her band of silverback bodyguards at the Bellagio Casino (really). Immediately afterwards Crazy T struck up a conversation with a pasty Jabba the Hut of a girl. Decked out in a black beret and studded with jewellery, it turned out she was a $60 squillion dollar casino heiress who wanted us to hang out with her at the opening of a new nightclub at the Palms Casino. Of course we agreed. We felt momentarily bad about orbiting around this mass of a woman for the fringe benefits, but Vegas has a way of soothing your scruples.
Photos courtesy of Las Vegas Tourism
THINKING OF TRAVELLING TO LAS VEGAS? AUSSIE WRITER JAMES ELLIS AND HIS MATES TAKE DEBAUCHERY TO A NEW LEVEL IN THE CITY OF SIN.
BACKPACKER POSTCARDS
their bared teeth with “In Australia cunt means ‘mate’”. We had to get the hell out of there. We eventually returned to our hotel room at the Hilton. Amazingly T was on the floor, muttering something about his arm being sore. We later found out that in his mashed state he thought that passing out on top of the 6-foot high entertainment cabinet would make for a funny Kodak moment. Of course the poor bastard rolled off and broke his wrist. I tried to tie Gonzo down and went to the can only to hear the sound of the door shutting. The horror. Gonzo had screamed off. Out into the Hilton. At 3:00 in the morning. Ten minutes later there was a knock on the door. I opened it and there was Gonzo. Drool
FACTS ABOUT LAS VEGAS
How many visitors come to Las Vegas? What is Las Vegas’s gaming revenue? What is the average gambling budget per trip? What is the average nightly room rate? How many hotel/motel rooms are in Las Vegas? How long is the average visitor’s trip (in nights)? What is the average age of a visitor? What % of visitors are international?
hung by beaded threads from his mouth, eyes glazed, completely naked. He held his hairy bollocks in one hand and his underpants in the other. Apparently he’d been marauding the floors of the Hilton looking for a party. I told him to get inside and the bastard started pissing on the expensive antique chair in the corner of the room. T woke up immediately and unanimous protest erupted. “Gonzo you fucking animal!” Finally the great Gonzo was done, and he went to bed. Hours later we were all staring at each other’s eye-line airbags, still breathing in the vintage urine. There was a lot of regret. I later had to venture with T into the outer wilderness that was the suburbs of Vegas to get his wrist set in a cast. But that’s another story.
38,914,889 pa US$8.2 Billion pa US$652 US$120 132,605 3.6 48-years-old 13%
Source: Compiled by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, Research Department
The next thing we knew we were in the VIP section of Rain Nightclub. Streams of hot tottie bounced about, neon spotlights highlighted smooth legs and deep tans, and for a moment life was perfect. I blame the $300-a-bottle Grey Goose Vodka for what happened next. We’d only been there an hour when Crazy T went missing in a drunken stupor. This had happened once before in Sydney, and it turned out he was robbed and spent the night in the gutter of a Kings Cross alleyway. Who knew what could happen here? In Vegas? Suddenly I was confronted with a more brutal problem. Gonzo, who’d been sinking piss for the last eight hours, was now eating the heiress’ face with a car crash of a kiss. I dragged the bastard off her and told him we needed to get back to the hotel. T was missing. Moving Gonzo was exceedingly difficult. Now, in the men’s bathroom, sweat rolling of his lips and brow, he greeted the urinal patrons with “How ya goin, cunts? How are you cunt?” He responded to CORKER
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NUMBER ONE ABOVE THE LINE OR ALL NUMBERS BELOW THE LINE ONLY
POLITICS AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY
AUSTRALIAN GREENS
JOHN DUNCAN
SEAN STEVENSON
LOUISE STEVENS
18
MARY ANDERSON
ANDREW BOURNE
4
WANT WOMEN WANT (AUSTRALIA)
FAMILY FIRST PARTY
SHARON LUCY
DAVID PERCY
29
WILLIAM DAVIDSON
44
PAUL RUDOLF
32
PETER RUSSEL
11
Virtual Democracy
PAUL SMITH
21
SENATOR ON-LINE LAUNCHED IN CYBER SPACE TO CONDUCT A DARING EXPERIMENT INTO ONLINE DEMOCRACY.
NATALIE Words by Erin Bell FITZPATRICK
S DANIEL
elf-proclaimed as the nation’s only internet-based political party, Senator OnLine (www.senatoronline.org.au) is designed to JACOBS empower ordinary citizens and take participatory democracy to new heights. Using florid language to describe itself, it offers “true democracy” by creating a system where registered voters can MATTHEW visit its website and cast their vote on every bill PARTRIDGE and every piece of legislation. During the last federal election, voters and Senator On-Line (SOL) candidates freely DAVIDexchanged dialogue on the website. The party HESELTINE also asked voters explosive questions, such as “Should euthanasia be legalised?” or “Should Parliamentarians’ retirement allowances be means tested?” SOL founder Berge Der Sarkissian says the idea for Australia’s only internet based political party was born out of a need to ensure a clear majority of voters were represented and heard. He says, “[The party] developed in response to the views of the minority governing the majority, especially around sensitive issues like the Northern Territory’s Bill for euthanasia.” “The purpose of Senator On-Line is to give Australians a voice and provide an online forum where everyone can come together and democratically determine the party’s policies and political agenda.” 020
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The party’s Queensland candidate in last year’s federal election, Ben Peake, believes that “…by allowing registered voters to vote online on every piece of legislation, the House of Review can be governed by the people, not by inter-party politics or the vocal minority.” The underlying premise of the party is simple: Online democracy can transcend the traditional boundaries of government, which often stifle the majority’s view. Yet many questions and realities temper enthusiasm for the party. The ABC’s election analyst Antony Green told the Sydney Morning Herald that SOL was “utterly impractical” and this is a view shared by many sceptics.
BLOCKING THE CONNECTION An interesting view is, on the whole, the average swinging voter needs to be told what to do and how to feel. This is where the winning rhetoric of your seasoned minister comes in. Given this view, could Senator On-Line simply be giving voters the big gift of democracy, just to hit them across the head with it as they unwrap it, because the average swinging voter does not know how to feel about political issues unless they are being fed by a politician or the media? Other problems with online democracy are more visible and focus on Australians without internet
access, a point that Senator On-Line forgets to homage. Then, there is the age-old problem of technology failing you, as technology often does. No doubt Victoria’s Young Democrats were crying into their keyboards when their MySpace page was deleted and vanquished into virtual oblivion during the federal election. The other understated issue is how virtual democracy caters for the intricacies of government, when it comes to policy development, analysis, and implementation – all of which create good public policy and often at the expense of democracy.
WHEN DEMOCRACY ONLINE CAN WORK The concept of political voting online is not new, but rather pulled from Finland, Iceland and fished over to various pockets across Europe where online democracy has been trialled, with minimal impacts for governments. There is, however, strong evidence suggesting online forums can play a vital role in enabling dialogue and discussing real problems, which are often buried by governments. A healthy democracy needs informed public discussion and debate on the pressing issues of the day. Informed decisions lead to good public policy. The average spectator knows politics must be owned by the people, not
SENATOR ON-LINE
REBECCA HARRISON
ALIX TYLER
STEPHANIE CHADWICK
SAM PIERETTO
JOHN BILSON
1034
JULIE HAIGH
78
DANIEL BRETT
8005
986 6523
RICHARD DAVIES
5632
ROBERT COOKE
221
NICOLE FORSTER
ROBERT ROSS PAUL SMITH
MARIO IANNUZZI
1
ARTHUR CALWELL
SIMON WEBSTER
DAVID KNIGHT
JOHN BUTTON
STEVE BLOOM
1063
CHRIS WINTER
2256
DARREN FEIK
278
SIMON KITSON
LAURIE LAIRD
SALLY WARHAFT
452
SIZWE BANZE
ANNA BESTWICK
PHILIP BAILEY
BILL
ELIZABETH BILSON
78
PIERRE RIGAL
JUDY LADAKH
HUGO BUCKLAND
2675
PETER BROOKS
BEC EASTLAND
NIGEL ROSS
STEPHEN BAILEY
the ruling government of the day and SOL has PRINCE the potential to keep constituents educated. Senator On-Line can introduce a new level JOHN of accountability for politicians. It is a party KAMPFNER considering the voice of the people and is this not, after all, the true spirit of democracy?
2097
NICK FOULKES
The underlying premise of the party is simple: Online democracy PIERS can transcend the traditional MORGAN boundaries of government, which CHARLIE often stifle the 7986 majority’sPORTER view. So how did Australia’s only internet party fare WILL in last year’s federal election and did its daring SELF experiment into online democracy succeed? Senator On-Line received 8,048 votes and did ALIX not win a single seat in the senate. This fact is SHARKEY more incidental than earth shattering, because SOL is going to continue to be successful in its SIMON own right at a time when democracy needs a facelift and internal party politicsKELNER creeps into every orifice of society and nests there with some permanency. ALEX
7631
BILMES
2187
Australian politics cannot continue with a “steady as she goes” approach. Over the next WILL three years and with small steps, Senator PRINCE On-Line may just build up some tremendous achievements. It might even win a seat in 2010.
NICK MEE
AMANDA ROSSI
MICK BROWN
JULIAN ROTHWELL LEE HSIEN LOONG STEVEN LEE RICKY JAMES
3914
JOSEPH LUDWIG THOMAS HAMILTON
467
BILL WHITE
2543
281
JOSHUA GORDON
4503
ROBYN McLENNAN
STEPHEN WATSON
51
89
8
8048 JONATHON BROWN
JUDITH HOARE
3
LING YU
GIACOMO BETARELLI
297
LOLA BAILEY
53
AGNES STAMP
2278 PATRICK FOILLERET 108
KENNETH HARDY PAUL MANTO MISTY NEMEC
SUSIE BROWN
SHELAGH CROFTS
6450 LYDIA CAMILLERI 801
VIVIEN MATTHEWS AMY STEIN
195
45
PAM RAYNOR
157
1873
DI MORRIS
MERRYL ANDERSON
2207
MATT BEXTER
BELINDA PAPPA
7691
THEODORE PABLO
CINDY LUKER
FRANK DAVIES
3633
SADEK HUSSAIN
ALBERT CROMPER
ROSE ESTELLE
TYRONE NARWELL
JUSTIN SIMONS
MIA VELING
LEO WILLIAMS
NADIA RAGA
108
1000
SUSSAN SHARP
HANNAH MURDOCH
525
2978 ASHA ALDERMAN
RAYMOND WEAT
STEVE VAN DIKE
DEREK LAZARUS
900
GEORGE WASSEL
JOHN DOE
MARTIN DEESON
TOBY YOUNG
ANDY MILLMAN
803
JAMIE BILL
LARA STEVIE
PHILLIPA GORDON
PAUL HENDY
JO LEVIN
643
301
Senator On-Line asks voters decisive questions.
GARY READ
82
KATE DOHERTY
STEVE SPANTON
3149
BILL LASWELL
108
HEIDI DUNBAR
LOU OBERON
802
335
400
CORKER
KIM WOOD
GEORGE 021 WASSEL
This ballot paper is a piece of art. All names are fictional.
LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA
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POLITICS
WhO the Bloody Hell ARe YOu? Do you have to love cricket, Kath and Kim and beerswilling to be a fair dinkum Australian? Or can we finally relax into the multicultural community we really are? BY Kate Gauthier Photography by kate o’brien
In October 2007, just prior to the 2007 election, the Federal Government released an 18 page document outlining a John Howard-approved history curriculum for the states to teach. The document downplayed the conflict between Aboriginal peoples and European settlers, the removal of Aboriginal children from their families and the White Australia policy.
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History is an important tool in developing our idea of national identity. By studying where we have come from and what we’ve achieved, we learn who we are. But by subtly changing the way in which the facts are weighted, by emphasising certain elements over others, it is possible to change a whole generation’s view of what Australia is and who we are as a people.
It wasn’t until we could see Australia reflected in the eyes of the world (Paul Hogan’s shrimp-onthe-barbie, Croc Dundee’s outsized knife) that we began to accept that Australia did indeed have a culture of its own. It was our very own nation-wide cultural version of “Does my bum look big in this?” updated to “Does my accent sound too broad in this zany Aussie film?”
The new ’uns are also being presented with a stylised view of Australian culture and history via the new citizenship test, unveiled prior to the last election, and which is now being reviewed by the current Rudd government.
hat does it mean to be Australian? Thirty years ago this question would never have been asked because it was generally accepted that it could not be answered. The nation had a case of “cultural cringe”. There was no distinctive Australian culture to speak of.
Illustration by Richard McAdam
works if people understand what “us” actually is. Without that, they can’t see any difference from “them”. Hence the large amount of our taxdollars paying for the re-education of the little ’uns and new ’uns in what it is to be ’Strayan.
Over the past decade, Australians have become more engaged in navel-gazing about their own national identity. A brash brand of Aussie patriotism has emerged largely fostered under the watch of former Prime Minister John Howard. As a politician who engaged in “Us and Them” politics, he understood that the model only
All prospective migrants now have to pass the test in order to gain citizenship: English language skills, basic civics knowledge, Australian culture, etc. It sounds OK on the surface, doesn’t it? But it is really a step back to the White Australia policy because it tests for assimilation, not integration. Integration implies a bit more of a two-way merging of cultures where the person takes on the local culture, but there is also a broadening of cultural attitudes to accommodate new members. Assimilation is CORKER
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about a person shedding their culture to become a seamless member of the dominant culture. Integration is concerned with a person becoming a happy and successful member of the community. Assimilation is about conformity and invisibility. The new citizenship test does not reveal if a person has the skills and knowledge required to integrate, but whether or not they can display rote knowledge of a very narrow definition of Aussie culture to fake assimilation. I recently spoke with Ian Chappell, a former captain of the Australian cricket team and a current sports commentator. He recalled being asked one of the sports questions on the citizenship test and not knowing the answer. If someone who has been involved in sport their whole life can’t answer the question, then what kind of ridiculously high standard does this test have for general Australian knowledge? Another question on the test asks for the name of Australia’s most famous sportsperson. The correct answer is Don Bradman, eulogised by the ABC’s Chaser team as a “grumpy, greedy, tired ass who couldn’t even score one run last time he played.” But surely anyone under 65 or who hadn’t been a suburban hermit for the past 20 years would answer Dawn Fraser, Cathy Freeman or even Shane Warne. Clearly these are the kinds of questions that could only be devised on behalf of one ageing, backwardslooking white man, obsessed with cricket. And why place so much emphasis on sport anyway? At the risk of being hunted down by footie-mad readers, I have to agree with Noam Chomsky who said of sport: “it’s a way of building up irrational attitudes of submission to authority, and group cohesion behind leadership elements – in fact, it’s training in irrational jingoism.”
Illustration by Richard McAdam
The stress on sports in our national identity ties into the myths about who we are as individuals. But is encouraging “new Australians” to yell, “that’s my team” a way of fast-tracking integration into the community or simply training them to blindly follow-the-leader? It’s interesting to speculate at what point after arrival does a person become accepted as a fullyfledged member of the community. My experience as an ex-pat in New York for six years made me realise what my immigrant dad was complaining about all those years. Americans would feel free to bitch in front of me about “wet-backs” and other immigrants “ruining this country” to someone who was basically another immigrant.
But because I was white and English speaking, they didn’t see me as such. I was immediately given the keys to the city and considered one of them, albeit a resident with a weird accent, and a penchant for potty-mouthed truths and beer swilling. It reminded me of the time when, as a teenager, I was told by a quickly discarded north-shore friend that it was OK that I was half wog because I didn’t look like it. I often compare the behaviour of Strayan expats overseas with immigrants in Straya. In NYC, many Australians will only socialise with other Aussies, so much so that locals coined the term “gum-nut mafia”. And yet Australians have the gall to complain about people of Vietnamese background who congregate in Cabramatta. Honestly, haven’t these hypocrites ever been to Earl’s Court in London? The ground is thick with Aussies hanging out exclusively together on their European gap year. Do we expect Aussie and American workers in the oil-rich Arab states to live exactly as the locals? No. They submit to the local laws but within their own compounds they live as western as they can get away with. Why then do we have a double standard when it comes to others integrating into our culture? Nowhere is this hypocrisy inflicted with such venom as on the newest and most vulnerable members of the Australian community – refugees. In October 2007, former Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews said that Sudanese refugees were not integrating, citing instances of young men drinking in parks late at night and getting involved in fights in nightclubs. I would have thought this shows they are assimilating pretty well into our culture, these being the favourite activities of many young Aussie men. Kevin Andrews made the allegations based, he said, on community concerns. But the Victorian and Queensland crime statistics show that African-born Australian residents are not overly represented in crime, making Andrews’s allegations at best an ignorant beat-up, at worst an outright lie told to capture the redneck vote in his mortgage belt electorate of Menzies in eastern Melbourne. But the more important issue is the would-be-funny-if-it-wasn’t-sobloody-tragic fact that the former Immigration Minister was attacking people on the basis of their ethnicity. After all, what is racism if it’s not making sweeping negative statements about an ethnic group with no basis in fact?
“These kinds of questions could only be devised on behalf of one ageing, backwards-looking white man, obsessed with cricket.”
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very nature, has domestic national interests at heart. Foreign policy is essentially about what we can screw out of a country with less power than us. If a voter doesn’t see any difference between their country and another, they are hardly likely to sign up to go to war or support policies that steal another country’s natural gas resources, as Australia has recently done to the struggling nation of East Timor. Perhaps Chomsky is right, and our increasing love of sport is making us a country of unthinking loyalists who will unquestioningly defend and follow any leader of whatever team (town, race, nation) we believe we belong to. Perhaps we are becoming like America in their blind, flag-waving support for their government. You are with us or against us. You either agree with the government’s version of ’Strayan values, or you are “unAustralian”. I think that the recent change of government is going to halt the erosion of that quintessential Australian trait of balancing a love of personal freedom with a sense of fairness and compassion towards those in need. I think that in time, a Rudd government is going to have a strong influence on the Australian national identity, to draw it back from our recent lemming-like race to the precipice of racism and aspiration for personal wealth no matter what the cost to vulnerable people in our community. With a style of leadership that is truly inclusive to all Australians, Rudd will go a long way towards healing the wounds inflicted by years of Howard’s brand of hatred and divide-and-conquer. Part of that leadership will require the winding back of policies such as the whitewashing history curriculum and the citizenship test.
Another Aussie-values policy was released in October 2007. (What a busy month for dogwhistle politics. The race card was played so much in the lead up to the election the edges were getting a little frayed.) As of October last 026
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year, anyone applying for a visa to visit Australia now has to sign a values statement. Next on the cards? Why shouldn’t applicants be required to take a bulk-billed pap-smear or sign a pledge acknowledging the bravery of our diggers in Gallipoli? The “gotta laugh or gonna cry” irony of these policies is that the appalling general behaviour of our politicians and the laws and policies they write have very little to do with the traditional Aussie values of a fair go or respect. But, why do we even need a national identity and why has it become politically popular to push one? The answer is not as altruistic as you might think. Too much identification with a non-Australian identity is bad for foreign policy, which, by its
Although we can bitch and moan about the challenges we face with multiculturalism in Australia, the simple fact is that we are doing a much better job of it than almost any other country in the world. We still have a long way to go, but let us not forget to acknowledge how far we’ve come. Australian writer Arnold Zable recently said, “we are a symphony made up of many melodies.” So, to those who’ve come across the seas… we’ve boundless tunes to share.
Photography by Kate O’Brien
Some rallied around the Sudanese community, and many journalists wrote opinion pieces attacking Andrews’s comments. One letter to a newspaper stated, “I am not Sudanese. I am Australian.” This echoes the sentiments of many immigrants (or even their children) who are frustrated at being constantly identified as being other than just plain Australian: the Chinese-Australian, the Greek-Australian. Have you ever heard of anyone described as an English-Australian?
But in the end we all have to learn to develop a new brand of loyalty to Australia. A type of loyalty where we don’t love this country with the ignorant adoration of a child for its mother, but as equals. Which means being aware of the triumphs, problems and issues of our history, our culture, and our mixed bag of arseholes and heroes.
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SpAnkiNg
The MonKey In Men, Love, and the Monkey Boy, playwright Caleb Lewis charts the macho profile of four confused Australian men. With each existing in the daze between ape-man and lost boy, he questions how they - and every Aussie guy - can achieve a mystic balance between the two.
By James Ellis Illustration by Dennis Juan Ma
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ome men are better than others. Combining brains with behavioural razzamatazz, they are able to bag more panties than a Bras N Things clerk, influence the wise, keep their emotional baggage in check and worm their way into everyone’s Top Friends List on Facebook thanks to an army of wannabe mates. Everyone loves them.
largely had his day. So where to now?” The titular Monkey Boy is Phillip. A student of ape behaviour, he’s both nerd and virgin, much to the concern of his smut-obsessed dad, Robbo, who has to put up with pussy bandit Rex suggesting that Phillip may be a “poof”. Phillip’s brother-in-law, Dave, makes up the triad of cock wavers bombarding his sensibilities with 24-hour pub talk, leading Phil to liken male behaviour to that of the zoo’s King Kongs.
While there may be a gamut of reasons why they’re in this position, “In their minds they’ve there’s a good chance ticked off the prescribed part of it comes down to recipe every woman throws successfully straddling across fate’s counter. the gap between ‘Seeking a man with a good muscle-head and scarfsense of humour (tick), wearing pantywaist – no ambitions (tick), good mean feat in a period listener (tick, tick), loves where ideas about what a man can and sex (I’m pretty sure, tick)…’ should be have been But they’re missing the commercialised beyond major criteria, the clue the point of parody. being the third word in Confusion abounds. quotation marks – ‘man’.” Caleb Lewis’s Men, Love, and the Monkey Boy highlights the pros and cons of both extremes of masculinity and what happens when these two polar opposites crash together. “Men are at the centre of a great identity crisis,” says Lewis. “The old archetypes – the king, the warrior, the breadwinner – no longer fit. The caveman is long extinct and the chauvinist of the 1950s has 028
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“I think we can blame the Sensitive New Age Guy (SNAG),” says Lewis. “A lot of men took [it] on board as something they might want, and that women might want as well. Then suddenly it went out of fashion and was knocked down as just another in a long line of new-fangled techniques to get women into bed.
“I think that sent confusing messages to men. So for those who couldn’t shave and hold the baby at the same time the message then seemed to be, ‘well, let’s get back to the good old days, when men were men and women were women.’ Suddenly a whole New Lad syndrome moved in that seemed to be saying, ‘well, we had a go, it didn’t work, boys will be boys’.” After all, the authentic “social pluses” that New Laddism brings are unmistakable. Provided you
adhere to the group’s stringent rules of banging everything that comes your way, seizing every opportunity to sink piss, acting dumber than you are, and assaulting the English language by virtue of a dentist-chair’s tongue, you become part of Club Beerbelly. It’s a social club, too. All it takes is the right “how y’ah goin?” to any other member of the clan before launching into praise about the bar wench’s rack and you’ve made a new buddy. Women don’t have it anywhere near as easy, and if they do manage to strike up a friendship it’s sure to be based on serious soulbaring shit – the sort of jive guys won’t dance to. “The model of female friendship is sitting across a table, face to face, sharing. Men have friendships, of course, but our intimacy is shoulder to shoulder, side by side, not face to face,” adds Lewis. Shrewdly, the shortcomings of these wannabe alpha males are well documented in the play. We won’t spoil it for you, but obviously to deny the importance, or even existence, of love has a tendency to demolish your rainbows. While many blokes may imagine the cargo in their pants is harder than their hearts, denying any sense of emotion is a highway to self-loathing, and even
more tragically, slews of clichés. “I never loved you anyway” being the prime culprit that hasn’t fooled a soul since the dawn of language. Moving on we arrive at the other breed of bloke: the confused sod, the pantywaist. In the case of Men, Love and the Monkey Boy Phillip personifies this modern ken. Yes, he’s a virgin who thinks women deserve respect, yes he’d prefer to have his nose in a book than be out rat faced over a schooner of New, but these points aren’t his problem. From film noir to Fight Club, his issue is one that has plagued men for centuries: uncertainty in the absence of a male role model. Appropriately Lewis acknowledges much of the play is autobiographical and stems from the lack of a father figure in his life. “My mum and dad split up when I was young and I missed out on a lot of the stuff, the ‘manskills’ I call them, that you learn from your dad,” he says. “I think there are more and more boys out there who are learning what it is to be a man from one another. The problem with that is that you have no older role models, no wisdom gained to be passed on. So we tend towards the obvious archetypes of masculinity: the stoic, the CORKER
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battler, the joker, the hero… men instead look to characters in movies, books and advertising to tell us how we should live.”
That brings us back to those ideal guys listed at the start of this story, the men with the golden bollocks. Mostly they’re guys who’ve graduated from the timid class onwards and upwards into a new realm, a place where they can display their smarts, tote their respect for the other gender, express their feelings, attract women, and cook a mean Eggs Benedict. They’re guys, like Phillip, who’ve passed through the school of hard knocks and realised the only way to define oneself as a man is to come up with their own damn definition – and they don’t give a rat’s arse if the women they’re attracted to or the men that call them “son” dig it or not. Lewis finally says of Phillip, “I think he needs to reach a level of disappointment so deep with his own father that he is able to turn away from him at last and seek a new kind of masculinity, a new way of being a man for himself.”
The Real Crocodile Dundee
If you want to yank Australian bull cock THEN you can’t go past Crocodile Dundee – or at least the real man that inspired Hoge’s mint on film and set the global benchmark for an “Aussie bloke”. Rod Ansell was his name, AND wrestling bulls the size of Land Rovers was his occupation. He shot to 15-minute fame the world over back in 1977 when he miraculously survived a two-month stint in a harsh and remote area of Northern Australia, cut off from the rest of the civilised world with nothing but a few bullets, a knife, and a scrotum packed with granite. A cad of a bloke that thought monogamy was for pussies (something he openly proclaimed to his wife) and anyone who couldn’t fix a broken engine with rusty parts and bush scrub was a whelp, he struggled to live up to his own legend and turned to drugs for escape. Unfortunately when you live out in the bush, have pissed off away from your family, and possess enough green leaf to fill your mattress, the first thing to suffer is your sanity. Old Rod Ansell, measured pinup of masculinity that he was, went bonkers with paranoia and went on a shooting rampage in which he killed a policeman before he was shot dead himself.
By James Ellis
They’re words that promise to grow golden love spuds. Being a bloke is all about being honest with yourself and deciding on your own code, one you think is good, one you feel is right, something you’ll fight for. And two fingers to anyone who says otherwise. Men, Love and the Monkey Boy kicks off on April 22, 2008 at Parramatta Riverside Theatre. See www.riversideparramatta.com.au for more details. 030
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Illustration by Dennis Juan Ma
While switched on guys usually have enough smarts to reject their buffoon chums and misogynist views on sex, that only leaves them with a guide of what not to do, not what to do. They spend so much time trying to work out other people and look for approval they never question themselves and their own values. It gets all the more frustrating when they try to be at their most understanding, their most interesting, only to have some footy player or DJ spear the heart of their latest crush like a dilettante pricking an olive. Cue feelings of resentment towards women and themselves. Cue hating life, thoughts of dislocation, and more James Blunt blaring through their headphones as they breakdown teary-eyed on the carpet. In their minds they’ve ticked off the prescribed recipe every woman throws across fate’s counter. “Seeking a man with a good sense of humour (tick), ambitions (tick), good listener (tick, tick), loves sex (I’m pretty sure, tick)…” But they’re missing the major criteria, the clue being the third word in quotation marks – “man”.
DISCOVERING PALM ISLAND
Last year, iconic Vietnam photojournalist Tim Page visited Palm Island as a Red Cross representative to host photographic workshops with the Aboriginal community. He found that the town, so often negatively portrayed in the media, is a resilient community making progress and overcoming long-standing challenges. Page provided locals with equipment, made suggestions about images and offered them tips on how to use the camera. He then gave them the creative freedom to take pictures how they wished. The resulting images convey Palm Island through the eyes of the locals. Words by Caroline Barnao-Wilson
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These images first appeared in the Humanitarian, a national publication of Australian Red Cross.
PHOTO ESSAY
- TIM PAGE
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Photo courtesy of Cut Off Your Hands
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They haven’t even released their first LP, yet Cut Off Your Hands have already charmed the New York and London music scenes, broken limbs, and got into almost as many fights as they have piss ups. So how are the new darlings of indie rock adjusting to spiralling fame?
aP
hilip Hadfield, bassist and self-professed number two drinker of Cut Off Your Hands, can pinpoint the exact moment when their destiny went from recording in home studios to strutting around the world in tight new jeans thanks to their Levi’s owned record label Levity.
It was February 2006 and the Auckland four-piece, then known as Shaky Hands, were playing the Children of the Night Festival in Melbourne. Among the fervent dancers in the crowd mimicking frontman Nick Johnston’s erratic movements were the three head honchos of Speak N Spell. Their future managers, who also look after Sydney band Dappled Cities and Canada’s The Dears, had been courting the band via email for some time, but this was the first opportunity that all three had to see them play live. “It just started happening from there,” says Hadfield. “We never expected to get signed or even to make it out of New Zealand or Australia. The excitement kept us going and it’s driven us to want to take it as far as we can.” So far, it has taken them across the world: an appearance at South By South West, a record four shows in one day at the CMJ Music Marathon
By Lizza Gebilagin in New York (Johnston was quoted beforehand saying “I hope I don’t faint”) and gigs throughout the UK. This year’s Falls Festival and Big Day Out shows were their first since the band’s Australian tour dates were cancelled last December when Johnston broke his ankle after jumping from a 15-foot balcony during a gig in the UK. COYH were also the first act to sign to Levity and they sealed a deal with London label 679 Recordings, home to The Streets. And all this on the strength of two EPs. The first EP, released under their former moniker Shaky Hands, was Cut Off Your Hands. Hadfield admits, “We self-produced it and it was pretty home-sounding.” Despite the recording quality, US promoters began to call, but they quickly discovered that touring in the States as Shaky Hands would cause some problems. A Portland, Oregon rock group of the same name threatened legal action if the New Zealanders didn’t change their name. After a few months of back and forth emails between the two bands, Johnston, Hadfield and fellow musos Ricky Ramirez (guitar) and Brent Harris (drums) decided to adopt the title of the first EP as their new identity. After signing to Levity in June 2007, COYH took off for London to work with producer and former Suede guitarist Bernard Butler. The result CORKER
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was Blue on Blue, an EP that moved away from the raw punk sound of their first EP and towards a more melodic line akin to The Kinks. Hadfield says about working with Butler, “It was pretty awesome. We all really enjoyed it.” But then adds, “It was stressful. It wasn’t easy. It got to the point where we weren’t sure about the direction of the sound of the songs, but we were all really happy with what came from the preproduction in terms of the arrangements. There was a lot of excitement.” “[Butler’s] thing was that he wanted it to sound fresh and new and from the limited amount of recording experience we had – we were used to using a lot of reverb on the vocals and on the guitars… If that was the final product for an album, I don’t know if we’d be as happy as we are.” Cut Off Your Hands are currently working on their first full-length album scheduled to be released later in the year. Speaking about the new songs that will appear on the as-yet-to-be-titled album, Hadfield says, “We definitely have sing-along pop songs that have loads of energy in them, but as with any band you struggle to decide whether you just want to record pop songs so you can make it onto radio. I feel that [with] Blue on Blue the energy is captured quite well, but maybe the recording of it wasn’t so good. I don’t know if it was rushed or we just didn’t have enough time in the studio. I can imagine the album being a development of the sound of that EP.” 038
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With such a hectic touring and recording schedule, the boys (especially Johnston and Hadfield) have been partying as hard as they have been working. Hadfield says, “Nick is always keen to party. He’ll be the one that will be sleeping on the floor because he has drunk too much the night before. We’ve gotten into a few situations. We were on tour with this English band a few weeks ago and we got into a street fight. There was me, Nick and the [other] band hanging out with the sound guy. Nick threw a can of Coke at this dude across the road. They got really pissed off and wanted to fight us but there were 10 of us and two of them. Nick is the sort of guy who will throw the can and try to start a fight, even though he’s the smallest dude ever.” “It’s usually me and Nick when we go out and Nick is usually more drunk than I am. Maybe it’s body size. I think I’ve got a better threshold for alcohol.” Are they worried that all this partying will get to the point where their band will start to suffer, a la the Libertines? “None of us are at that point where we’ve gone too far in terms of drinking or taking drugs or anything like that,” says Hadfield. “I can imagine the future if we are continuing the way we are going … we’re going to have to be careful of all that. “At this point I’m pretty happy drinking a lot. I probably want – to be honest – to be taking more drugs than I am.”
Photo courtesy of Cut Off Your Hands
“N d ic Ma run k is –P y k u hi be th su l H it an a ad ’s b I lly fie od am m ld y s . ore ize .”
MUSIC FEATURE
Concept Store: 11 William St, Paddington, N.S.W. 2021. T: +61 2 93562111 E: sales@susiemooratoff.com W: www.susiemooratoff.com
Styling: Dawn.C.Boscoe. 0414522343
Photo courtesy Shiny Entertainment
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MIDNIGHT JUGGERNAUTS: BRIDGING
THE GREAT DIVIDE
IF YOU’RE AN OLD-SCHOOL ROCK FAN WHO DOESN’T RATE DANCE MUSIC, CHANCES ARE YOU’VE BEEN FINDING IT INCREASINGLY DIFFICULT STAYING OVER ON YOUR SIDE OF THE DIVIDE, THANKS TO CROSSOVER ACTS SUCH AS MIDNIGHT JUGGERNAUTS. BY ANGUS PATERSON
T
he summer of 2008 was always set to be at least partly owned by Midnight Juggernauts. Given a brief moment last year to exhale after an extensive tour of North America and Europe, they were flung headfirst into headline slots at the Meredith and Falls festivals in Victoria, Sydney’s Field Day and then, in January, a place on the travelling circus that is the Big Day Out, Australia’s biggest and most enduring music event. In March, they say goodbye to our country and the summer with the Farewell Australia Tour. “Yep, it’s been a crazy summer,” says Vincent, leader of the Juggernauts, responsible for the psychedelic soundscapes in the opening moments of their long-playing debut Dystopia, as well as the vocals that alternate between a gruff rumble and an airy falsetto. “Hopefully we can create some sort of a Juggernauts cult. And then go around burning down people’s houses.” If you were tuned into Triple J, the street press or any other form of music media then you’d have an idea of what a massive year 2007 was for Midnight Juggernauts. In 2005 they’d been kicking around their hometown of Melbourne, playing to their mates, splitting a $5 cover charge with a bunch of other indie acts. But on the strength of a couple of hit EPs and early tunes like the rocky “Shadows” and the straight-out dance beats of “45 and Rising”, and a strong presence on the live circuit, the Juggernauts CORKER
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THE GREAT DIVIDE
were on a roll. By the time Vincent and cohorts Andy (guitar) and Daniel Stricker (drums) embarked on their national tour to launch Dystopia, they were selling out sizable venues at $40 a ticket. The Juggernauts are often perceived as being part of the rock/dance movement, but is that how they see themselves? Is it something they’re happy to embrace? When asked earlier this year about his relationship with contemporaries such as Cut Copy and The Presets, Vincent was fairly forthcoming. “It definitely feels in Australia, with all the indie/dance acts that it has become really strong recently, so there’s definitely a scene. We do feel a camaraderie with all those acts: we’ll play at each other’s shows and remix each other.” But when asked again later in the year, Vincent was a little more cagey about being associated with any movement or scene. A hit album and loads of media attention will do that to you. “I think everyone back home supports one another. I wouldn’t say we’re part of a ‘scene’. But I guess we all do stuff together, so it can seem like that,” he insists defiantly. “I guess it’s something you embrace as it pushes everyone forward, but at the same time you don’t want to be pigeonholed.” This stubborn refusal to classify themselves could be driven by the fear that if they’re tied too strongly to a particular scene, they might be dragged down with it if the fickle tide of fashion turns in another direction. Catching the wave created overseas by Cut Copy and The Presets has its ups and its downs. “I think we all do really different stuff, but as an Australian band I guess you get that. People are definitely looking towards Australia though, which is so good because a couple of years ago it was so much harder to make any inroads over here. Those guys have definitely left their mark though.”
Photo by Lizza Gebilagin
But even if they’re afraid of being pigeonholed, the temptation of being associated with a movement is alluring. “I guess looking back to all the movements of the past, definitely as a kid I always dreamed of being around a certain movement or time,” Vincent says. “Like a lot of stuff out of the 70s or even being in Manchester in the 90s or something.” Whether the indie/dance movement endures or not, it’s been a boon for those who like a degree of diversity in their music. Rock fans are more open to electronic music now, and club culture is on the rise again. Instead of importing overseas brands like Cream or Gatecrasher, our own superclubs – such as Onelove and Famous – and our dance festivals have been ballooning in size and selling out quicker than anyone would have predicted (funnily enough, many of them with live acts like Midnight Juggernauts as major draw cards). “It’s funny, thinking about how club culture has come back a bit in the past couple years,” says Vincent. He points to a recent gig they played in Toronto as a perfect illustration. The gig was at a club owned by Peter Gatien who used to run his own clubbing empire in New York back in dance music’s glory days. Vincent was amused to see Gatien’s 13-year-old son was responsible for running one of the club’s backrooms. “So I guess it just all comes round again.” 042
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U.S.E (United States of Electronica)
Who will reign supreme? It’ll be the duel of the sophomore album releases, as the two acts return to the spotlight to see if they can maintain the momentum built up with their debut albums. Both tested the waters last year by putting out singles and while “The People” from The Presets didn’t exactly push the envelope beyond what we were expecting, Cut Copy delivered the sublime “Hearts on Fire” that was a hit on radio as well as in the nightclubs. With the might of the Modular label behind them, expect the hype machine to be in full effect for both.
It’s not all about the Aussie indie/dance acts, or UK Nu-Rave acts like The Klaxons. Even the Americans are getting in on the act. New York’s LCD Soundsystem delivered on the promise of their debut LP with the brilliant Sound of Silver last year, finally making it over here to play the Big Day Out in January this year, while the other US band that’s been turning heads has been U.S.E. Hailing from the rock-heavy city of Seattle, when asked how they’d somehow connected with the wave of indie/electro music that had been blossoming around the rest of the world, the band talked of a “collective musical consciousness”. But that’s not to say they’re just another synth-rock band that doesn’t bring anything new to the table: hits like “Emerald City” and “Open Your Eyes” have an unaffected, joyous sense to them that recalls 60s psychedelia, light years away from the detached aloofness of the 80s New Wave revival.
Van She
Theatre of Disco
Yet another signing to the Modular label, Van She were the ultimate example of flashy 80s style over musical substance. With barely a debut EP in the stores they were being hailed as the second coming of Cut Copy, but while tunes like “Sex City” were catchy enough, they just never got around to completing that pesky debut album that was originally slated for ’05. Their debut has again been slated for release in ’08. Will they finally deliver on the “substance” part? Whatever happens, at least they’ll be dressing snappy.
Have you heard of the pioneering Future Classic label? They’re known for their underground house signings like Deepchild, Jamie Lloyd, Jimi Polar and Stick Figures, all revered and respected around the world. But the label is pushing Theatre of Disco hard, and at first glance the indie/dance act is just a little more accessible than the rest of the oh-so-cool (and oh-so-excellent) electronica acts on their roster. But having a quick listen to their debut self-titled EP, with tracks like “On the Train” and “Larry”, it becomes pretty clear why Theatre of Disco have seen eye to eye with the Future Classic crew: while the sing-a-long pop mentality is there, they display a progressive sense of musicality that puts them so far ahead of all the generic bands of their ilk that it’s not even funny. Couple this with a dynamic stage presence that’s impossible to ignore, they’re the thinking man’s indie/electro band, and if there’s any justice in the world then they’ll be the surprise success story of 2008.
Cut Copy vs. The Presets
Words by Angus Paterson
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PHOTO ESSAY
Showgirls
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MORGANNA MAGEE “We all like to stare, but live in a society where it is unacceptable to do so. I like to think that I give my viewers the opportunity to exploit their inner voyeur.”
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MORGANNA MAGEE
How did you get involved in photography? My mother is an artist and I grew up surrounded by imagery. My mother had a locket she wore which had photos of me and my brother. I was fascinated by the precious and sentimental nature of those images. I began collecting photos and spending hours arranging collages. I think that I really loved the idea that a photographic image is a secret glimpse into someone else’s life. You can look at them, but they can’t see you. How long have you been a photographer? I have been actively taking images since I was 14. I studied photography at a tertiary level for four years after high school. The Showgirls Series was actually a part of my final year portfolio. I have worked on and off as a freelance photographer since I left uni but am now more interested in
pursuing my own social documentary work rather than shooting pictures for someone else. You’ve said, “I aim to photograph society’s outcasts with dignity and draw attention to a different way of life.” Can you explain how this desire arose? I think that when a viewer is brought face to face with a photo of a person and is allowed to study the image in a way that would be considered rude in physical proximity, that viewer can let go of preconceptions and see the subject for what it really is. I have no problem talking to anyone, and don’t scare easily so I think that I have an obligation to use those skills to try and make life a bit easier for the people I photograph. We all like to stare, but live in a society where it is unacceptable to do so. I like to think that I give my viewers the opportunity to exploit their inner voyeur. To see more of Magee’s work, visit www.flickr.com/people/59501361@N00/
Photography by Morganna Magee
The 24-year-old photographer from Melbourne talks about how she helps people exploit their inner voyeur.
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cki uche ter S e pman P a y ah Ch phy b n a r n g a o yH Phot tion b Direc t o o h
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Beau Monde Who? Sydney four piece featuring Nancy Vice aka “Missy� (vocals), Jane Arnison (guitar), Alex S (bass), and Tamara Piller (drums). Sounds like? Blondie on speed. Can you hear that? They are currently recording new tracks which will be released later this year. Famous friends? The girls have played alongside the Dardanelles, Operator Please, British India and Blue Juice. Want more? Visit their Myspace site, www.myspace.com/mybeaumonde
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Styling by Dawn C. Boscoe Hair style and colour by Tatjana Vauné, Radka Fiedlevoua and Hitomi Ohashi for Tatjana Vauné Makeup by Rhonda May; Rani for Renne Coppin International Colour Retouch by Bridget Hope and Marie Sinclair All photographs were shot on location at Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst, Australia.
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L>R Tamara, Alex, Missy and Jane. Tamara wears a white blouse from Melvin & Doyle, Paddington, 02 9361 4023; black trousers from The Private Rich, Surry Hills, 02 9211 4436; white boots from Pelle, Paddington, 02 9331 8100; crystal tie from Tessarella House, Paddington,02 9326 9984; stylist’s black vest. Alex wears a black strapless dress from The Private Rich, Surry Hills, 02 9211 4436; silver platform heels from Pelle, Paddington, 02 9331 8100; stylist’s belt. Missy wears a black kimono jumpsuit from The Private Rich, Surry Hills, 02 9211 4436; clear heels by Calvin Klein; own pink body suit. Jane wears a black silk dress from Susie Mooratoff, Paddington 02 9356 2111; earring from Tessarella House, Paddington, 02 9326 9984.
TANGLED LOVE
CLITORAL toris? Feeling lost about the cli ERIN BELL guides you to the spo t.
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he clitoris is beautiful, warm, wet and a complete erogenous mystery to most. Women spend countless hours educating themselves on how to perform deep-throated fellatio. But how can they perfect the art of a clitoral orgasm? And trigger not one, but multiple, shuddering orgasms, which verge on a lower-body convulsion? As the centre of female sexual excitement, this fine piece of erectile tissue boasts an elaborate design of 18 different parts and 8,000 nerve endings. Mastering a clitoral orgasm is an infectious disease and one you can only hope to catch. But if you don’t know how to treat a clitoris, don’t let it keep you awake at night – even textbooks struggle to understand it. A good guide to the clitoris is The Whole Lesbian Sex Book: A Passionate Guide For Us All by Felice Newman. Whether you’re male, female, straight or a raging lesbian like me, this book is considered by many to be the blueprint of female sexual gratification. Anyway let’s face facts. Lesbians are clitoral experts; they know how to make a clit throb.
Newman asserts, “The tongue and lips offer a delicate range of sensations that fingers simply can’t match. There’s nothing quite like that wet-onwet combination of textures.” Indeed, Felice, very few human interactions can match the act of tongue-on-clit. Newman instructs, “Be a tease and start with indirect stimulation to warm her up. Lick and nibble her inner thighs, belly and outer labia.”
h “muc r u “Rub your entire face over her vulva,” she like o n with continues. “Nibble her inner labia; take one io c s i into each mouth and suck. Circle her clit s l l e a obs ing ph with the tip of your tongue. Experiment with h different pressures and speeds.” t a every tric, for rld This advice is sound and should help you hit cen the wo the ground running. Newman also insists on , n a r using hygienic oral sex protections like dental e m wo ns on h dams (thin latex) AKA glad wrap to guard against ru germs and sexually transmitted diseases. In reality, Everything Newman writes is refreshing in comparison these protections have the erotic appeal of someone clit” to the dry, banal pages of most typical sex guides, but do not buy the book for the pictures – the female caricatures Newman uses to illustrate her sexual pointers are far from oil paintings, and in fact, most of them have faces as rough as a canvas.
who folds their arms during sex as if they are waiting for a train, or better yet, a woman who lies stagnant on her back, smoking a cigarette while you eat her out. But hey, unless you’d like to catch some dirty STD, then it’s a necessary evil.
Ugly caricatures aside, in several chapters of pornographic detail, Newman provides step-by-step instructions on female clitoral stimulation by experimenting with clitoral play, toys, exploring masturbation and perfecting cunnilingus. In a chapter dedicated to oral sex and “Going Down On Your Girl”, Newman suggests having a frank, open discussion with your partner about what makes her scream and what puts her to sleep. If you’re not much of a talker, then you need to be intuitive and watch her body closely and watch how it responds when you touch it.
I hope taking 10 minutes out of your day to read about something as fascinating as the clitoris hasn’t made you a vile creature of the underworld, because much like our obsession with everything phallic centric, for a woman, the world runs on her clit and it defines her ideology.
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Reference: Newman, Felice. The Whole Lesbian Sex Book: A Passionate Guide For Us All. Cleis Press, 1999.
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ART
GETTING A BUZZ OUT OF STILL LIFE Interested in displaying a painting of a sex toy on the wall of your living room? Meet the man who has made it possible.
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raditionally rendered still life paintings need to get a little more dangerous,” says Pat Hobaugh. The 29-year-old artist from Wisconsin paints still life. Dildos to be exact. And vibrators, nipple clamps and butt plugs. Why? Because Hobaugh believes sex toys can also stimulate people outside of the bedroom.
Mind fuck Hobaugh’s still life paintings place objects of a sexual nature, such as vibrators and plastic vaginas, next to mundane everyday items like a bowl of cherries or a pot of coffee. He says the effect causes ambiguity because people don’t know what to think. The carnality of the sex toys in his works “brings life to the dead setting of still life.” He explains, “Metaphor is overdone in still life painting. I want to explore people’s anxiety about sex and the best way of doing this is to insert direct content into my works.” It’s surprising to learn that in a country where sexuality is flaunted by celebrities such as Paris Hilton and Pamela Anderson and Lotharios such as Hugh Hefner, sex is still a divisive subject. Paris Hilton’s sex tape may be one of the most downloaded videos on the internet, but a billboard of a clothed Beyonce Knowles is deemed too risqué for Texas. Hobaugh tries to tread between the two extremes and explores the thoughts and reactions of people who either are desensitised to sexual imagery or are sensitive to it.
Artistic Viagra Hobaugh’s artistic Viagra has stirred interest all over the world via the Internet. Blog sites in France (Au Moulin Rose), Russia and as far as Japan (Hugo Strikes Back) are displaying his pieces. A wide variety of people have shown an interest in Hobaugh’s work, from lawyers in the US to gay rights activists in Italy. But there is a funny side as well. He says at least one interested person “seems to think that I am a woman operating out of Holland.” 056
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Words by Nicholas Cornelius Paintings by Pat Hobaugh
Late bloomer Born and raised on a farm in West Lafayette, Indiana, Hobaugh always had an interest in the arts but only started painting when he turned 21. After his first art class at the ripe old age of 24, Hobaugh realised that this was something that he was passionate about and promptly took up Art History at Indiana University. Two years later he obtained a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Painting from the University of Iowa. He is currently pursuing a Masters of Fine Arts in Painting at University of Wisconsin. The late bloomer has one piece of advice for budding artists: if art is your bliss then never let anything keep you from it.
“Of course, I’ve used all of them.” Naughty and nice Hobaugh continues to receive international acclaim and support for his works and promises more groundbreaking work in the future. His ultimate aim is to push the boundaries of the ‘sex in art’ sub genre and then explore a new range of art based on bodily matter. As to the question of whether he has ever used sex toys himself, he says his answer depends on who’s asking. Hobaugh says, “If it’s my mother asking then ‘absolutely not’ but if it’s another artist, I say ‘of course, I’ve used all of them.’ If a friend asks, I say ‘try the blue one, it’s really nice’.” Visit www.pathobaugh.com to find out more.
Styling Lucy Edmonds Photography Matt Waugh
recycled designer footwear & accessories 90 William Street Paddington Sydney NSW 2021 T 02 9331 8100 E info@pelleshoes.com.au www.pelleshoes.com.au
Q&A
Q&A:
ANDREW STOPPS
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he media was quick to sensationalise the GenQ Street Angels as a group of gay vigilantes, but founder Andrew Stopps is only concerned about protecting the gay and lesbian community from the rising hate crimes on Oxford Street. Interview by Lizza Gebilagin
Can you explain how GenQ Street Angels works? The Street Angels provide immediate aid to victims of an assault or people who are feeling unsafe or scared. We are the frontline. We sit with the victims of a crime, give any medical aid needed and stay with them after the police have interviewed them to make sure they either get to a taxi safely or to their car. We also provide a chaperone service to people who are feeling unsafe or scared on Oxford Street. All the Angels are in touch with each other via two way radio and also with clubs along the strip. We are not engaged in wrestling offenders or making citizens arrests. How many people have volunteered to be a part of the Street Angels? Are most of the volunteers from the GLBT community? We have around 20 volunteers on board. All the volunteers are from the GLBT community, but I would like to stress that we will help anyone we see in trouble regardless of sexuality, race or gender.
“It’s only when the government stops sub-humanising us that things will change.” What has the response been like from the City of Sydney Council? Initially the local council was very nervous about us because the media was calling us vigilantes. After persistent phone calls I was able to meet with members of the council and police and once I explained what we were actually about, they welcomed us.
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Have you ever been the victim of homophobic violence? Do you mind telling us what happened? Four years ago I was attacked by five young men while I was walking a friend home. They beat me with sticks and bottles and kicked me when I was down. Thankfully I have very little memory of this event. I understand all the feelings that victims of this sort of crime go through including fear, anger, shame and the after effect of being afraid to venture out at night. Why do you think homophobic attitudes still exist in 2008? This type of attitude starts at the top. It starts with the government. While they continue to ignore the rights of same sex attracted people they are basically saying “these people are less than the rest of society”. This then gives other elements of the community tacit permission to carry out violent crimes against us. It’s only when the government stops sub-humanising us that things will change. In your opinion, why has homophobic violence increased lately? Historically minority groups tend to be singled out when the general population is feeling angry, scared and powerless. A number of factors in recent years have lead to this feeling, including the “fear of terrorism” campaign and the anger and resentment felt by the community to the increasing costs of living. People feel angry and helpless and they have no constructive way of dealing with these feelings, so they target minority groups. These are not premeditated attacks, these are thrill attacks brought on by alcohol and drugs. Andrew Stopps declined to be photographed. He has been receiving threatening phone calls since starting GenQ Street Angels.
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