On the street 1st Wed every month
Issue #32 01/11/06 - 05/12/06
UPCOMING GIGS // 4 FRI 3RD NOVEMBER
BERTIE BLACKMAN 4 FRI 10TH NOVEMBER
FIZARD
(JEBEDIAH)
THE NEW BLACK
4 SAT 2ND DECEMBER
4 SAT 25TH NOVEMBER
POUND 4 POUND PRESENTS THE WILD SUMMER TOUR 07 FEAT. THE STAFFORD
SOMETHING WITH NUMBERS
SAWYER BAND
+ ANGELAS DISH & FIFTY SIXX
4 SAT 19TH NOVEMBER
4 FRI 1ST DECEMBER
4 FRI 24TH NOVEMBER
BEHIND CRIMSON EYES
4 SAT 11TH NOVEMBER
THE ROB
122 York Street Launceston 6334 7231 WWW.JAMESHOTEL.COM.AU
4 WED 22ND NOVEMBER
BOB EVANS
THE VASCO ERA
4 THU 30TH NOVEMBER
+ THE WHISKY GO GO’S
+ GOOD BUDDAH
TZU
BROTHERS 4 FRI 8TH DECEMBER
DUKES OF WINDSOR +THE INCHES
4 SAT 9TH DECEMBER
BOMBA
GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR FALLS FESTIVAL AND BEAT THE RUSH.
GRAB A TICKET TO FABULOUS FRIDAY TODAY Featuring films, The Village performances of theatre, dance, music, comedy and so much more! Feature films including ‘Kenny’, ‘Dave Chappelle’s Block Party’,’I Know I’m Not Alone’ and ‘Spirited Away’
Tickets only $20 + b/f. Not valid without a full festival ticket for the 30th and 31st. On sale now from Ticketek, www.fallsfestival.com and independent outlets.
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To San Francisco And Back With
The Blues Sound Of
THE VASCO ERA
JAMES SOUTHWELL
BY DAVE WILLIAMS
The board is set, and the pieces are definitely moving for Melbourne’s The Vasco Era. Those three men of the suits and immense facial hair took off around the world and came back with their long awaited debut LP, rumoured to be so good it should have been stopped by customs. I spoke to bassist Ted O’Neil about San Francisco, and the album they took away from it. You’ve got your debut album coming out. You went to San Francisco to record that; why did you go there? Basically, because there’s a producer, Jeff Saltzman. We met up with a few different producers, and he had pretty much the same idea of what he wanted out of the album as what we wanted. We met up with him, and it seemed to click. He was on the wavelength as us. So we went over there, and he had a lot of really good gear; we spent some time in his studio there. You say that you and he had the same idea of what they wanted to get out of the album? Yeah; the same ideas; same thoughts on how it should sound. What was that? Well, we wanted to get it fairly similar to how we play live; with a little bit more clarity. We got there, and we played everything through live, then just added the vocal track at the end. And this was the first time he’d ever not used the click-track and stuff. It worked really well. What was your favourite part in putting the album together? Probably the mixing stages, just because, towards
Publisher / Editor David Williams
“
...We could see everything coming together well. It was a lot of work
”
the end, we could see the finished product; we could see everything coming together well. It was a lot of work. There’re a couple of songs; we recorded them, and they didn’t sound as good live as we thought they would. So we had to sit down and try and figure out how to make them better. Doing that, and working it out, was really satisfying as well. Once you listened to the finished product, was there anything about it that surprised you? Personally, I was surprised by the clarity of everything. Every recording that I’ve done, there’s always been one or two things where I thought, “Oh, this could have been better”. We got back, and I listened to it a week later, and I couldn’t find anything that I wanted to change. So we’re just really happy with the way it sounds.
James Southwell is Australia’s hottest new guitarist and he is on his first National Tour with his band the James Southwell band.
You’re playing another Falls Festival. What sticks out in your memory about previous experiences playing it? Just how much fun it is; how well organised it is. The responses we get at both Lorne and Tassie are unreal. We haven’t been down to Tassie for a while, so we’re looking forward to getting back there and doing it again.
James has been playing guitar and singing since he was only seven years old. He has played on stage with Australia’s greatest blues band Chain, The Kevin Borich Express, Phil Manning, Stevie Wright, Angry Anderson and a host of other well known Australian artists. James is heavily influenced by these players as well as Geoff Achison, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimmy Hendrix & Joe Walsh. James was Angry Anderson’s lead guitarist at a recent festival.
Is playing Falls different to playing other festivals? Yeah. The Lorne site is half-an-hour from where we used to live; where we grew up. So it’s good playing locally and having that many people there. It’s like catching up with friends as well, which is good.
He currently has two projects; a solo acoustic show, and a high-energy electric trio the James Southwell Band. He is committed to his chosen career and he is now a full-time, professional touring guitarist/singer/songwriter. James writes his own material as well as playing some very wellthought-out covers.
The Vasco Era play Hobart’s Republic Bar on the 17th and 18th, and Launceston’s James Hotel on the 19th, and the Falls Festival.
James has just completed his first studio album “Dark Angel” which features some of Australia’s finest and most well known musicians, including
Graphic Design Simon Hancock
shancock@sauceonline.net
Editorial Tom Wilson
twilson@sauceonline.net
Contributors: Tina Anderson, Ryan Cooke, Ryan Farrington, Carl Fidler, Jimmy McMacken, Ian Murtagh, Raena Armitage, Nicole Calabria, Felix Blackler, Damian Baumgartner. Deadlines Sauce #33 (Dec 06) Adver tising Booking: 29/11/06 Adver tising Ar twork: 30/11/06 Gig Guide: 29/08/06 Editorial: 29/08/06
Address: Po Box 5094, Launceston, Tas, 7250 Phone: 03 6331 0701 Advertising: advertising@sauceonline.net Editorial: editorial@sauceonline.net Opinions expressed in Sauce are not neccesarily those of the editor, publisher or staff.
Contents 5-15 16-17 18 19 20 21 22 24-27 28-29 30
Rock Salt Gig Guide Hard Boiled Gig Reviews CD/DVD CD/Hip Hop Hip Hop / B&M Hip Hop Games/Sk8/Ar ts Street Fashion
James Kitto Lawyer Are you in trouble? Got legal problems? Need some help? James will sort it out for you, at realistic rates. 2 Cameron St Launceston
PH: 6331 2555 PAGE 4
T he Legendary Uni Night With T assie's Best Bands
Kevin Borich, Phil Emmanuel, Mal Eastick, Harry Brus, Mark Kennedy and more. “Dark Angel” was produced by Kevin Borich and recorded at Kevin’s studio, “The Vibrating House” on the Sunshine Coast. “Dark Angel” has just been released by MGM and is available at all good music stores. The James Southwell Band will be playing at almost sixty music venues around Australia over the next three months. Special guests that will be playing with the James Southwell Band during this tour include Kevin Borich, James T from Canned Heat, Angry Anderson, Wilbur Wilde & Stevie Wright. The James Southwell Band plays Hobart’s Republic Bar on the 10th, the Lewisham Tavern on the 11th, and the Bridge Hotel in Forth on the 12th of November.
The Triumphant Return Of
SILVERCHAIR BY DAVE WILLIAMS
It’s been four years since the release of their last album, “Diorama”, and, despite their recent return to the national festival circuit, Silverchair still aren’t in a hurry. While their new album won’t be in any Christmas stockings this year – the release date has been pushed back to next year – drummer Ben Gillies thinks the wait will be worth it. The same can be said for March 11th next year. That’s right – the Chair are headlining MS Fest 2007... Give us a bit of an insight into how a day begins for you? How has today started? (Laughs) I’m actually still lying in bed, but I’ve already done an interview. I woke up, I did an interview, then I waited about thir ty seconds, then I star ted this interview... It’s not too bad. We haven’t been doing too much press. I’ll probably go to the gym afterwards. Then I’ll have some breakfast...at about midday. (Laughs) And then I think we get picked up at about three o’clock to go to the ARIAs. Apart from the band playing the Pyramid Rock Festival, what have you all been up to in the past month? Not much. It’s been pretty cruse-y in the last couple of months. Dan has been here for the last three weeks or so, just doing some finishing touches on the record. It’s been pretty cruise-y, because most of it is already done. Once we got back from LA, there wasn’t really much to do; just a few interviews here and there. We had a meeting with our manager a few weeks ago. We were going through the timeline of when we’re going to put the record out, and do film clips – and once it’s out, what’s going to happen with tours. It’s not confirmed yet; we just talked about it. But at the end of the conversation he said, “Well, 2007’s a write-off ”. So at the moment, any spare time that we’ve got now, we’re just going to lap it up. For the last couple of months, I’ve just been kicking back, really. So you’ve finished recording? Where are you at with the album? We still need to get a mix. All the par ts are there; we’re just mixing it recently. The good thing is, we’ve pushed the release back to early next year, just because the timing of it...it was just getting too close to Christmas. We were like, “Right – do we go for Christmas, and rush everything, or do we go for next year?” We all made the decision that it would be better to go with next year, because we didn’t want to make any rushed decisions, and then regret it afterwards. It’s good; it gives us a lot more time to think about what we want to do for ar twork, and get the right treatments for doing the film clip... We can have everything in line, ready to go, so when the record comes out, you just go bang-bangbang, one after the other. It’s easy, and not stressful; we enjoy it, and want to do it, rather than going, “Man, this sucks the big one, and I’m really stressed out.” How do you guys deal with stress? All friendships have their times of strain. Well we’re all really good mates. We’ve definitely been through times where we haven’t really wanted to be in the same room together; not because we disliked each other, but more because we were probably too young, and spending too much bloody time together. I guess that with age, you get over that, and you kind of accept anything that ticks you off about someone; you know how to push and pull. We’re lucky, actually – we’ve never really had many fights. “Diorama” was a bit of a departure at the time. I know a lot of people are wondering where this new album is going to be heading. I guess...what I’ve been telling people is that, to me, every record was quite different from the last. They were quite big progressions; we changed a lot, and we were trying different styles. And for me, this record...it’s definitely a progression; it’s definitely different, but it’s probably the smallest change we’ve ever had. But in saying that, I wouldn’t say it’s similar by any means; it’s still quite a big change, just not quite as drastic as some of the other ones have been. I think it’s still got flavours of “Diorama” on it, but it doesn’t have the same really huge, expensive kind of grandness. It’s still really grand, and there’s lot of stuff going on; it’s really melodic, and it’s grooving, but it’s like we’ve tried to understate it a bit more. You’ve been doing this since you were a
teenager. What does it feel like at this stage in your career? It feels great. We’re still in our mid-twenties, and we’re on album number five, so it feels fantastic. I wouldn’t do it any other way. Some bands might star t in their twenties, and around now, they might be on album number two. Jeez – I wouldn’t want to be on album number two right now, that’s for sure!
DARREN HANLON
2006 tour
“
We’ve definitely been through times where we haven’t really wanted to be in the same room together...
”
When the CD comes out next year, it’ll be almost five years between releases. Did you ever think it was going to take that length of time? Nah. Usually, in the past, we’ve done about two years. I didn’t think it was going to be five years at all. And I really hope the next record isn’t going to be five years either, because I really enjoy doing Silverchair stuff. It’s fun. You’ve launched Silverchair back onto the national stage, headlining three festivals; Pyramid, Homebake and now MS Fest. How much have the band discussed the charity nature of the MS Fest gig? Well, we had a meeting with our manager. He said that there was this festival in Tasmania that you guys have the oppor tunity to do. I guess the timing of it was just right, I think it’s going to be around the single release. It’s a good oppor tunity to go down to Tassie and play to a lot of people, and suppor t a good cause. It’ll be seven years between gigs for you down here. Yeah! That’s another thing; we thought, well, we haven’t been down to Tassie in ages, so we thought that [playing MS Fest] just does so many things with just the one show. It makes so much sense – let’s do it! The prayers of Tasmanian ‘Chair fans will be answered at Launceston’s Inveresk Showg rounds, March 11 th next year, on the stage of MS Fest 2007.
ow Out N SW’ m u b l sA la, N intop’ and ‘Manil acks a t n u ’ live tr lbows nd Mo tips a emical’, ‘E featuring 9 To Z’ r e g n Fi Ch ‘A ble new ‘ availa roplanes’ & ss Is A Brand g ‘Happine isc edition e A d lling in featur ited bonus Dead’, ‘Fa t m o li Very g ‘Punks N in includ
Sunday November 12 Republic Bar, Hobart
Monday November 13 Royal Oak, Launceston
with Dear Nora (USA)
with Dear Nora (USA)
Tickets $12 conc / $15 full on sale from the venue 03 6234 6954.
Tickets $12 only available at the door.
www.darrenhanlon.com www.candlerecords.com.au PAGE 5
The Meaning Of “Black” With
Unleashing The Revelations For Despair With
BEHIND CRIMSON EYES
BERTIE BLACKMAN BY DAVE WILLIAMS
BY TOM WILSON
Fans of Melbourne’s Behind Crimson Eyes should appreciate the new LP from the punk-metal troupe, “A Revelation For Despair”, when it comes out this month – to say it was formed out of blood, sweat and tears is putting it mildly. They gave us the story on the album and the trials of making it. I understand that the recording process was a little stressful, with one of the band members actually having his car stolen. What were some of the other pressures you had to deal with during this time? Yes, Kev’s car was stolen (and he lost his job). The whole recording/writing process was really stressful on all of us, mainly because of the crazy amount of time we spent on this record. All of us felt stress either physically, emotionally or financially. It has been a crazy experience, but hearing back the finished product, I wouldn’t change any of it. You brought in a choir to contribute to parts of the songs. What was it like working with them? And what was behind this decision? Well working with the choir wasn’t as easy as one would think. Kev had to conduct the girls for they were struggling with changing time signatures and pitch/melody. The choir was introduced to basically give a sense of awkwardness. Usually bands use a choir to make things either epic or pretty, This is the opposite – we made it dir ty and creepy to give the kind of imperfect feel.
The colour black can mean many things; from the mourning of a funeral to the power of an Armani suit. For Sydney singer-songwriter Bertie Blackman, however, black is the colour of the sky under which she finds inspiration, as I found out when we spoke, ahead of her Tasmanian tour. So you’ve just moved flats. Is it into a bigger and better flat because life’s going so well for you? Yeah, but I can’t afford it; it’s kind of out of necessity. Your new CD, “Black”; that’s a really dark – excuse the pun – title for an album. Where did it come from? It took me ages to figure out what I wanted to call the record. I think the word “black”, to me, has many different meanings. With my family, my dad, when he used to paint, talked about working “from black to light”. Which is something I’ve always remembered, and something which I do as well. I also wrote all the songs at night; I couldn’t write during the day when I was in [my old flat]. I think the word has many connotations; it’s a very mysterious word, and in certain cultures, it’s a symbol for power, sensuality... It’s also the symbol for anarchy. It’s a symbol and expression for a lot of things that perhaps can’t be described in just one word. So why couldn’t you write songs during the day at your old flat? Was it really noisy? No – I don’t really know why. It was the time of the day... I don’t know whether there was a lot of stuff going on outside, or it was too hot, or the sun was in my face... It was more like the mood late in the afternoon, when the sun goes down; everything gets really quiet. It’s a moment for me when I stopped PAGE 6
thinking about everything and just kind of relaxed a bit. When I tried to write in the middle of the day, I had been on phone calls, on the Internet, going to meetings and stuff; I found myself being preoccupied with a lot of things I didn’t really want to write about. So I suppose [nighttime] gave me a time when I was most comfortable and relaxed to let myself become absorbed in the writing.
You guys are now signed to Roadrunner Records. How did this come about? Basically they sent us an email at the star t of the year. We were in negotiations with them for about six months and now we are signed to them. We couldn’t be happier; they are the perfect label for us. We didn’t have to compromise any of our values when it came to writing this album; they said, “You write it and we will market it.” I really couldn’t see us being with any one else – they are amazing! What do you think this means for the band,
in the short and long term? It’s been great to have them on board for the debut album, because it gave us a great launching pad to be able to release an album that could sound how we wanted it to. We booked three months in the studio, allowing us to take our time and make sure this record was going to sound as good as it could. The BCE website uses the Usync technology developed by Gabriel’s Day. Considering they have told us it was primarily intended for indie bands – and not for bands backed by a major label – do you think being signed to Roadrunner will affect this? I don’t think that it will affect us. Actually there are only something like seven or eight major labels (in the true sense of the word) in the world. Roadrunner is still considered an indie label, even though they have international
“
Kev’s car was stolen (and he lost his job).
”
recognition and some massive bands. With semantics aside, Roadrunner and Behind Crimson Eyes still embrace the “indie” ethic, and a street level marketing approach which is what Usync allows us to do; interact with our fans on a personal level. You played MS Fest down here earlier this year – what plans do you have to return to Tasmania? That MS fest was my first show. Man that was a fun day. We honestly love Tasmania and love it that kids get on Myspace and tell us to come back. I What does the future hold for BCE? Where would you like to take it next? Touring, touring and more touring. It’s hard to know where we will be in a years time or whatever; I guess we are just really anxious to get the album out there. “A Revelation For Despair” comes out November 4 th .
“
I often get off stage and can’t really remember a lot. I suppose I j u s t d i s a p p e a r.
November Gigs TUESDAY 7TH
Martin Blackwell Samuel Bester Surrender Dorothy TUESDAY 14TH
”
When you’re singing and performing, can you describe how you feel? It’s weird. When I’m performing on stage, I often get off stage and can’t really remember a lot. I suppose I just disappear. It’s an emotional experience for me, when I’ve become quite lost in what’s going on, and I think that’s when you get the really natural performances; when you forget that you are in front of all these people. Because that knowledge, for me, is scary. When you’ve got all these people staring at you, it’s a really weird feeling. But I find that when I immerse myself in the music, I kind of take on this other personality; just getting lost in it all. Bertie plays Hobart’s Republic Bar on the 3rd of November, the Wrest Point Entertainment Centre on the 4th, and again at the Republic on the 5th.
Atalana Heale Simon Ditcham Stratified TUESDAY 21ST
Lana Chilcott Adam Cousens Dean Stevenson Band TUESDAY 28TH
ACOUSTIC ORIGINALS
Every Tuesday, From 9pm 21 SALAMANCA PLACE. HOBART. T: 03 63 6226 1119 W: WWW.IRISHMURPHYS.COM.AU
Crystal Campbell Rowan Smith Fink
How To Make A Guitar Talk 101 With
JAIMI FAULKNER BY DAVE WILLIAMS
What can you tell us about your album, “Last Light”? What kind of production process did it have? Well, “Last Light” was recorded between two studios; one being GM Studio, in Campbellfield, and my own home studio that we affectionately called “The Mess Studio” in Nor th Carlton. We worked quite intensely with engineer and producer Dave Manton over the twomonth period in the later par t of 2004 to capture the best takes that we possibly could. We really wanted to capture a live but intimate perfor mance for each song and we definitely achieved that. Melbourne is home to many musical talents – in what ways do you think Melbourne might be especially nur turing to music, compared to other par ts of the country? I’m not as sure about other par ts of the countr y because I’ve only visited other states fleetingly, but for me, where I grew up, in Brunswick, you walk out of your front door and are immediately struck by a melting pot of cultures, religions and people of var ying social status. I find it a really inspiring and creative environment and it’s cer tainly true of the whole of Melbour ne. You’ve been playing guitar since you were eleven. As a musician, what are some of the most impor tant lessons you’ve learned? One of my first guitar teachers once told me to treat my guitar like it was my voice; make it talk to people, leave space, take a breath. This has always stayed with me, ‘cause he was right – nobody likes to be talked at. From then on I’ve always tried to approach my playing as a call and response between my vocal and the guitar or between the
other instruments in the band – pretty much like a conversation. You’ve been quoted as saying that you “don’t listen to guitar music much anymore”. Given that it’s your instrument of choice, why are you veering away from that kind of music? Yeah, that’s an interesting one, I’ve found the more I write and perfor m the less I view my guitar as my main instrument. More so, over the last couple of years I reckon my vocal ability is on par with that of
“
On e o f m y f i r st guita r t e a c h e r s o n c e told m e t o t re a t my guita r l i ke i t wa s m y voice ; m a ke i t t a l k t o peop l e
Cradle Of Filth
Thornography
”
my guitar playing. Also from a listening point of view I’ve been getting into tunes that tell a stor y and have been less inclined to listen to songs that have a similar musical structure like blues music. What plans do you have to tour Tasmania? Have you been here before? If so, how do you think you were received? I absolutely love Tassie! I’ll be touring from Nov 16 th - 19 th . This will be the third time I’ve made it down to perfor m for you guys, but the first time I’m doing it solo. You guys have killer beer on tap, great music venues and ever yone I’ve met in the past has been lovely and to make it even more exciting. Chris Wilson and the Spider men will join me on ever y show.
Trivium
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Jaimi Faulkner plays four shows around the state this month. Check Gig Guide for details.
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Having taken to festivals and residencies in Melbourne with guitar firmly in hand, Jaimi is about to head down to our shores for a four-day tour…
PAGE 7
Seeing The Doctor About
FRENZAL RHOMB BY DAVE WILLIAMS
Frenzal Rhomb suck. Tremendously. Arguably one of Australia’s most revered punk bands, they have come a long way in their lifespan; from playing “Punch In The Face” on ABC’s “Recovery” to having a nation of Triple J listeners waking up to the banter of its singer and guitarist. Speaking of banter, I recently hit The Doctor with a stick to make him talk about Frenzal’s upcoming tour. Unfortunately, he started channeling Doctor Who. I think I hit him too hard... You guys are touring in Tassie in November. Will you be arriving in the Tardis? Well, there’s a chance of that, seeing that you guys are in the future. And you are The Doctor... That’s true, absolutely. What instrument does K-9 play? Well K-9 is a multi-instrumentalist; he fills in all the gaps that Frenzal Rhomb can’t play live. You listen to the album, and there’s many, many layers of symphonics there; there’s electro, there’s disco beats, there’s brass instruments and choirs. K9 takes care of most of those, of course, and anything he can’t play, we actually get... I can’t think of any other particular characters in “Doctor Who” - whatever the token girl is on the show, we get her in to help out. A sonic screwdriver must come in handy for roadies on tour? Absolutely, it’s essential. When you’re working in the sound business, as a technician, the words “sonic” and “screwdriver” are never more important. Of course, a “sonic screwdriver” is also what happens when you mix vodka and orange juice into the sound guy. The album, “Forever Malcolm Young”; I think it’s a really ironic title, especially in light of you singing “Forever Young” in a busking competition with John Butler this morning. I think you must really love that track.
I love it a lot more than Youth Group love it, and I think that’s not very hard. The dudes from Youth Group, they’re actually quite good friends of ours. I think they would appreciate the irony of the title. In fact, they tell me that, as they’re beating my head into the gutter with their fists! What they actually do, which is something very funny; they fill up sacks with all the money they’ve made from “Forever Young”, and they just beat us around the head with them. That’s how they express their appreciation for the title. At least they explain themselves, I suppose. Yeah. Well they’re very learned, these guys. Before they were rock stars, they were nerds – not many people know that. Before they were indulging their most dirty groupie fantasies and orgies, they were actually bookish nerds! It’s the truth about Youth Group – I’m sorry that I’m the one to tell it to you.
“
A “sonic screwdriver” is also what happens when you mix vodka and orange juice into the sound guy.
”
I’ve heard that it’s also from personal experience with Frenzal Rhomb and Youth Group, in mass double-band orgies. Yeah. This is another thing that goes into the title. Our involvement in the orgies that do go on between ourselves and Youth Group and billions –I’ve lost count of the number – groupies; we are pretty much relegated to the roles of the cleaners, to come in and clean up their engorged members before they go and tackle another round. So we are involved in the orgies, but in a purely cleaning sense, not in a sexual way. Frenzal Rhomb arrive via Tardis at the Hobart Uni Bar on Saturday the 2nd of December, with Mindsnare and The Lawrence Arms.
e6 d i Gu r 0
be g m i G ove Thu Fri + Sat Sun Fri Sat Sun Tue Wed Thur Fri + Sat Thur Fri Sat Sun
N
299 Elizabeth St North Hobart Ph: 6234 6954
2nd Nov Muph & Plutonic Supp Heads of State $17 Cover 3rd+4th Nov Magic Dirt Supp Modular Lounge + Evening Dolls $18 Pre-sale $22 door 5th Nov Bertie Blackman Supp. Bridget Pross $10 Pre-sale $12 door 10th Nov James Southwell Band $7/5 Conc 11th Nov Fizzard Supp Unleash The Nugget $12/10 Conc 12th Nov Darren Hanlon $15/12 Conc 14th Nov Southern Forest Fundraiser: Dana Lyons USA ”Cows with Guns” + Guests $10/8 Conc 15th Nov Kobya + Band (African) $7/5 Conc 16th Nov Chris Wilson & Spiderman supp. Jamie Falkner $12/10 Conc 15+16th Nov The Vasco Era Supp Hannah $12 pre-sale $15 door 23rd Nov Something With Numbers supp. Angelas dish plus Fifty Sixx $10 Pre-sale $12 Door 24th Nov Mick Harvey (Bad Seeds) +Guests $15 Cover 25th Nov Behind Crimson Eyes $10 Pre-sale $12 Door 26th Nov Deborah Conway Supp Nellie $18/15 Conc
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PAGE 8
Just Arrived !
Getting In Sync With
GABRIEL’S DAY BY DAVE WILLIAMS
A three-piece referred to in the British press as “Coldplay with infinitely more substance”, folk rockers Gabriel’s Day clearly didn’t like the way major labels worked. So rather than bitch and complain, they started their own record label, then developed a technology to bring them closer to the fans which may just revolutionise how bands earn a living. I got the low-down from bassist/vocalist Scott Mesiti. The title of the album, “Postcards To The Independent”; was that like, “Greetings to fellow indie rockers”? What was the title referring to? Yeah, you’ve pretty much got it exactly. I don’t know how much you know about the other stuff that the band does, which is in a lot of our press releases, but we’re really trying to form a community. We’ve been labelled a thing called “alternative independence”, which is a group of Australian independent artists who are using different technologies and whatnot to go straight to their audience. One of those technologies is something we designed called Usync, and we’ve got various bands using it now; we’re using these concepts of, basically, signing to your audience rather than anybody else. So the title of the album sits in with all of that. What do you consider to be “independent”? Is it if you’re signed to a small label?
An indie label, indie distribution…there are a few bands out there which are called indie, which aren’t exactly indie because they’ve got the backing from the majors, and major distribution and that kind of thing.
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Tassie was basically first pick on the map.
tour, and you’ve been down here a few times; when you know that you’re coming down here, how does it make you feel, compared to going to other places? What stands out about it for you? We think it’s better than most places. There’s a small scene there of people who are really interested in finding new music, and I think that’s great. We had a good reaction from people last time we were there; we got some great support from local radio and media, and we’re planning to come back in November. We’re
just about to release a whole bunch of dates for that tour, and Tassie was basically first pick on the map, because we knew we wanted to go back there after the last experience. So we love coming down there. Gabriel’s Day play Irish Murphy’s Launceston on November 23rd, and Hobart’s Dr Syntax on the 24th.
”
So are you creating this sort of community because you want to create some sort of power for the community? Or is it because you’re unhappy with what the majors do? What’s the reason? We’ve been to London probably three or four times now; we’ve done tours, and we recorded both albums there. We’ve done that all off our own back. And it’s not the easiest thing in the world to try and do, financially. But in the end, the reward is amazing. And we did sit in front of A&R, and we did sit in front of publishers and all sorts of people, and every time we went into those types of buildings we didn’t think it was right for us. At the same time we were explore technologies to actually enable us to get to our audience. Which is the reason Usync came about, because there was no one real system that did what we wanted to do, so we decided to do that ourselves. You played down in Tassie in May, on the album
Getting Unplugged With
ACOUSTIC ORIGINALS BY TOM WILSON
Hobart musician and gig coordinator for Irish Murphy’s in Hobart, Samuel Bester, recently took some time to talk with SAUCE about “AO”. No, not “Adult’s Only” (though you will have to be of-age, Irish being a pub and all) – “Acoustic Originals”, a weekly night of unplugged entertainment that has already grown popular amongst musicians in the south of the state. So what are the AO nights? AO stands for Acoustic Originals, which is the format for the night. We have three acts each week; usually two soloists / duos and then a band to top the night off. Why did you decide to put this on? I could see a gap in the Hobart live scene for this style of event and I knew from my own experiences it would be well received. I also feel that it’s important to give an outlet for the incredible talent pool of songwriters we have here in Tasmania. How has the night been received thus far? Who are some of the artists who have performed? The night has been received exceptionally well; I have a lot of people telling me how great they think it is that this type of night exists. There are loads of people who want to see live original music in this format. The crowds are always receptive and appreciative. It’s a great vibe all round. The list of artists we have had perform is quite extensive, but to name a few; Waiter, Fink, Sir Veto, Cait Vertigan, Greenwood, Dean Stevenson Band, Jordan Millar, Patrick Berechree, Timbre, Samuel Bester, The Sign, Eva…and the list goes and will keep going on! If you ever want to know who’s playing, I post the gigs on my website gig guide; www.sambo. com.au
to perform acoustically (though we allow electric basses, not too many players own acoustic basses, and [we allow] electric pianos, but specify that only acoustic “sounds” i.e. piano sounds can be used). They have to play only original songs, and they have to be at a standard that’s not going to send the walk-in drinkers running for the door. How can interested artists get in contact with you? Easiest way is to e-mail me; samuel@sambo. com.au Ultimately, what do you hope to achieve with this night?
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They have to play only original songs, and they have to be at a standard that’s not going to send the walk-in drinkers running for the door.
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Real, live entertainment from talented songwriters. Filling the room each week with people who love the real thing and seeing the enjoyment in their faces, and to see the artists getting out there and showing their stuff. In the long term it has the potential to become an institution and be a springboard gig for Tasmanian talent to get noticed in the larger music industry. The AO nights are held at Irish Murphy’s in Salamanca Place, Hobart, every Tuesday night from 8.30pm.
What would you say is the overall atmosphere/mood you hope to create at these nights? We try to create a vibe where people in the room can really focus on the music; enjoy and listen but not to blast people out with too much volume. What kind of acts are eligible to play the AO nights? There are a few requirements. They must be able
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Jim Beam National Campus Band Competition 2006 Winners ...
THE EMBERS BY TOM WILSON
One of Tasmania’s most original, dynamic and versatile musical collectives, folk-rock sextet The Embers have just experienced a defining moment; one event that splits the band’s lifespan into “before” and “after”. I spoke to lead guitarist Mark Vincent after the band won the 2006 Jim Beam National Campus Band Competition in Sydney. You just won the 2006 Jim Beam National Campus Band Competition. What will this mean for the band? Probably that Centrelink will find out that we won $8000 which I didn’t declare, so I may lose my entitlements, and so I’ll have to bum a smoke off the other members. To be honest, I have no idea what it means for the band. I think it will mainly depend on the success of our recording and what Sony BMG decide to do with it, or whether we want them to do anything with it. To what extent did everything go to plan on the night? Well it was a success, in much the same way as the German Bacterioligst Wassermann’s 1906 diagnostic test for syphilis was a success. Although, I’m assuming, we had a little more fun. Though, I guess it depends how Wassermann sampled for the disease. Though I’m sure it was a lot less detrimental for us. Everything went pretty much to plan, though you have to hand it to Tassie; at the heats and finals held here, we got to play through a really kick-arse PA system with a great sound man, which were both a bit sub-standard in Sydney. However, in the band room at Sydney they had sushi as part of the rider, so it is a little difficult to weigh up which one was best. Personally I found it pretty difficult to hear Joel on the drums while we were playing, so I had a few spastic moments, but otherwise it went rather fabulously. It was great to see that our songs work and spur a similar reaction from the crowd that we get here in Tassie. The crowd went mental in Sydney so it was reassuring to know it hasn’t just been our friends being polite this whole time. What were the other bands like? Mostly humans playing music on instruments of various descriptions, in a format generally recognised as songs. Most of the bands were awesome. Actually,
my favourite for the night was a band from the ACT, I think they were called something like Kingswood Country. They were a mix between rockabilly and just straight-up rock ‘n’ roll. I danced my arse off to them. Well, at least I rhythmically staggered for a while. Who was judging, and what comments did they make about you guys? I have no idea who was judging or what they said. Actually, I didn’t even hear the announcement that we won. I was walking a friend to the bus stop. When
for some of the part. We flew to Sydney, won the NCBC, slept at a hotel and flew back to Tassie. Actually, after we checked in to the hotel, I headed off and went and caught up with an old friend who works at the ABC. We headed to a bar until it was time to meet the others at the venue. NSW beer is designed as a complete marketing product package I’m thinking. The more you drink, the bigger the headache, the bigger the headache, the more you try to drink to get rid of the headache and the more intense the headache gets, so you drink more. It
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$8,000 worth of equipment, three days in a studio with mixing, mastering and distribution of 1000 CDs through Sony BGM...and a pair of sneakers.
”
I got back, I sat down at the bar and ordered a beer. Some random guy congratulated me and I figured he just meant on a good performance, at least until the rest of the band saw me and started asking “Where the fuck were you?” Then I realised I must have missed something. What did you play for the judges? The competition sets were only twenty-minutes long, so we only played four songs. “Tear Me Down”, which is a fairly tribal song rhythmically, and about the ups and downs of dance parties. “A Little”, which is about the frustration of a new love and having to go to work instead of staying in bed, I think. “Mexico” which is about Mexico because we have a Mexican in the band, and “Rubby Dubby” which I have absolutely no idea about except for the three chords I have to play, Bm7th, Em and G, I think. Can you give us a description of the night, from leaving Tasmania to getting back? Give us a little “Embers Travel Diary”. Well, we don’t live together; some of us do, but not me, so I’ll have to speak from personal experience
We’ll be right, Mark. What did you win? Is this a trick question? We won the 2006 Jim Beam National Campus Band Competition. Oh, right, I get it; the prizes? Um, $8,000 worth of equipment, three days in a studio with mixing, mastering and distribution of 1000 CDs through Sony BGM...and a pair of sneakers. To what extent are you aware of who has won this competition in the past? Big Wally won it years ago, I think they’re the only other Tassie band to do that. Also The Simpletons, Jedediah, 78 Saab, Eskimo Joe, The Vasco Era and a bunch of others. With this much opportunity, what will you be setting out to do in the near future? With this kind of exposure I’m hoping my publicist will rethink their rejection of my latest novel. It basically describes my theory that the writers of “Neighbours” modeled their character of Mrs Mangle on Jane Austen’s character Aunt Norris, out of “Mansfield Park”, who was the satirical portrait of the typical busybody. I’ll send you a copy to read; the similarities between the two characters in uncanny and can’t be ignored any longer.
reminded me a lot of Bugs Bunny constantly running after the carrot that was tied two feet in front of him and getting nowhere. I woke up pretty early the next morning to find Stu and his lady were heading down to meet Kochie at “Sunrise”, so I decided to get up and go get a coffee. I couldn’t find a decent cafe at all; so much for Sydney. However, I didn’t venture further than the end of the block so I was kind of limiting my choices. We were running really late for the plane on the way home and they were holding it for us when the security guys decided to screen Stu for drugs. He wasn’t very happy, but I figured he got off easy since he didn’t end up with a limp. Then we took our seats on the plane, then we flew home, I ordered a set of headphones to listen to some tunes but they didn’t work, a coke from the trolley and loaned a book off Katy. Do you want me to go into detail about collecting our baggage at the terminal?
As far as The Embers goes, it’s difficult to say. We have some great gigs coming up. A couple of gigs at Irish Murphy’s in Launceston on Nov 8th and Dec 6th, A TasMusic Showcase at the James on Nov 18th, the Live at the House gig Nov 19th, with Serena Ryder, The Josh Owen Band, Bomba and Lior, Dec 16th at The Falmouth Festival with The Red Eyes, Josh Owen Band, Tyson Hodges 3, Dave Calandra and more, and The Falls Festival. Apart from that Sony BMG has first right to negotiate a recording agreement and last matching rights against any third party offers of contract for a period of up to six months. So I’m assuming that on the upside, Sony will at least hear us and have the option of signing us, and on the down-side, if we got an offer but decided not to go with them, we probably can’t do anything contract-wise with anyone else for at least six months. We’re already in the middle of recording an EP at Big Shed Studios in St. Helens and hoping to have it released by New Years. The Embers play The Falls Festival in Marion Bay . Visit www.theembersonline.com for upcoming gigs.
Proud Supporters Of MS Fest 06 - 07, Festivale, Carols In The Park, AFL @ Aurora, Celebration Tattoo, & Rock Challenge
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Perfectly Distracted By
SOMETHING WITH NUMBERS BY DAVE WILLIAMS
What? Sorry, I got distracted. One could almost call it a “Perfect Distraction”. No, it wasn’t a bikini model walking past the SAUCE office (though that’s always good), it’s the second album from alt. rock/ pop upstarts Something With Numbers. Having risen from the Central Coast punk scene to end up supporting the likes of Linkin Park and Killswitch Engage, things are definitely looking up. That’s not to say they can quit their day jobs just yet, as I found out when I spoke to guitarist Dave. So you haven’t quite made it to the full-time, don’thave-to-work-during-the-day musician stage yet? No, unfortunately not. We basically all store it to cover our rent, and that’s about it. It’d be nice to get paid, but no – not at the moment. Your new album; congratulations with that. Thank you. How long did it take to put together? We actually started writing about August last year. We initially wrote about twenty songs straight up, which were all done by the start of this year. Then the recording process took about three to four months. You must be pretty happy with the amount of attention you’ve got since the album’s come out.
Yeah, very happy – considering that this is our second full-length album. Our first album didn’t get a quarter of the attention that this one’s got. So it’s a really good feeling to know that people really like the music that you’ve created. Do you think you guys have changed much from your first album? I think we’ve matured as songwriters. I guess, throughout your life, you move on, and you mature. So we wrote “Etiquette”; we did that, and we’re really proud of it, but we kind of moved on from there. And
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It’d be nice to get paid, but no – not at the moment.
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the finished product is “Perfect Distraction”. When you came to recording it, did you have a particular sound or a particular concept that you wanted for the whole album? Being the guitarist, each song has a different guitar tone. With the last record it was the same all the way through, but with this record, I really wanted to branch out and go for different sounds that would more suit the song. So some of the heavier songs
on the record, they’re full of energy, so that kind of tone suits it well. But songs like “Zombie” and “Bang Bang Bang”, I kind of toned it down a bit, and went for a different feel with the guitars to more suit the song. So from my perspective anyway, when I went into the studio, I wanted to cater for every song rather than cater for the entire album. What was your favourite part of putting this album together? Probably working with Phil McKellar would have to be my favourite part; such a good producer. We really wanted to work with him before we started recording. We sent him off all the demos, and he pretty much rang us straight away and said, “I really want to be a part of this”. Very few things always go perfectly to plan. What changes did you have to make along the way when you were putting this together? Well, one of the songs on the record, “Goodbye Mickey Finn”; when we went into the studio, we had two different versions of it. We had a full acoustic version and a full rock version, and we couldn’t make up our mind which version we wanted to lay down. And Phil said, “Why don’t we do both?” So we sat down together and we put together how it turned out now. That was one thing that definitely changed; it took its own shape in the studio, rather than in rehearsal. Something With Numbers play Hobart’s Republic Bar on the 23rd, Sirocco’s in Burnie on the 24th, and Launceston’s James Hotel on the 25th of November.
Walking The Solo Path With
MICK HARVEY BY TOM WILSON
This month, Mick Harvey – the celebrated arranger, multi instrumentalist, producer, film soundtrack composer and cofounder of Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds – is cracking his knuckles and taking to the national tour circuit on the back of his first solo album, “One Man’s Treasure”. He spoke to us about the evolutions of his creative output, his upcoming Tassie visit, and what lies beyond it. With regard to the album’s title, what do you think is (ultimately) “One Man’s Treasure”? Clearly it’s a whole range of things. Look at the album; within and without, both musically and visually, But in the end it’s the people you are closest to, I guess. In what ways do you think your creative output has changed throughout your career? Hard for me to evaluate that. The early years were very much as a part of a band where I played my instrument and the band was the only real thing I was doing. This is an ongoing collaborative undertaking with other people. The mid-80s brought on a role as a kind of “musical director” which was not
something I sought out; it just kind of evolved into that. I now find myself as a member of a band again, but have a whole parallel career with my film music and my solo work. How the content of all this has changed or how one part compares with another is something I can only be subjective about. It’s been said [on your website] that you feel a “passionate, personal connection with each song”; with that in mind, what is the story behind the song “Demon Alcohol”?
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...A sense of humour and gloom...something of a universal subject.
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It was written by a friend who had a problem with alcohol. (you know, “Like, I’ve got this friend...”) I really liked the idea of doing one of her songs and that seemed to have both a sense of humour and gloom, and is something of a universal subject. I was very happy to include it for a number of
personal reasons, none of which are particularly emotional, as might be inferred by the quote from the web site. You’ll be playing at Hobart’s Republic Bar in November; what material can people expect to hear? The recent shows in Europe had many or most of the songs from “One Man’s Treasure” and a kind of showcase of unknown Australian songs actually. That is, unknown to an Italian or Spanish audience; in fact, in some cases, unknown to an Australian audience. I did a Chris Bailey song and an unreleased Dave McComb song, also The Loved Ones “Sad Dark Eyes” which has been a recurring part of my band’s live sets through the years. The encores tend to include some Gainsbourg stuff. We’ll see though; I’m sure we’ll rehearse up a few different things for these shows. After your touring, what plans do you have for the future, both musically and otherwise? I’ll be trying to finish a follow-up to “One Man’s Treasure” and taking it easy until April next year I hope, when I’ll be playing more shows in Europe and supposedly working on a new Bad Seeds album. After that perhaps I’ll retire and ponder what that “one phrase” might be. Mick Harvey plays Hobart’s Republic Bar on the 24 th of November.
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Getting Everything All The Time From
The Story Of
BAND OF HORSES
LOVE OUTSIDE ANDROMEDA BY DAVE WILLIAMS
BY TOM WILSON
Chances are, when he was listening to Nirvana in high school, Ben Bridwell – singer/guitarist of Seattle’s Band of Horses – didn’t expect to end up signed to the same label as the grunge pioneers. He spoke to me about his previous band, the debut album, and wanting everything all the time. What have you been up to today? Well I’ve been kind of sick. We’re taking a couple of days off from the tour; I’m just resting up. What about the band, in the last month? We just did a three-week tour; down to South-bySouthwest, and back home in Seattle. Before that we played a show here in Seattle, with our new guitarist. Your new guitarist? Yeah. We have a fifth member; he’s playing guitar and keyboard. Carissa’s Weird [The previous band] – why did it break up? Ah…it was after about ten years or so of travelling and stuff. We kind of reached a plateau it seemed… the way we were going. And so many people; we had six people in the band, and that’s six people with employment issues and relationship issues…I think for a couple of people, it became too much work. It was just hard to sustain, you know? Was it a case of it just not being fun anymore? I don’t think it was so much that…I think certain people just had a harder time than others, being on the road for that much, as far as health concerns and just being comfortable. Now Band of Horses – the name of the band – where does it come from? Well we were just called Horses when we first started. But then we ran into a bit of a legal issue because a band from the sixties had just done a re-issue their record, who were also called Horses, which we didn’t know of. [You’re in] Seattle – how did the early nineties grunge explosion affect the band? Well I was across the other side of the country, in South Carolina; it affected us…Even in a small town, it affected us very much. In high school I definitely was listening to those records, so it’s quite an honour to be on Sub Pop after growing up with that kind of music. So you’re not going to do a Nirvana and get thrown out of your own launch party? (Laughs) I don’t think so. “Everything All the Time”, your debut LP, was recorded with Phil Ekk; why did you choose him? We kind of chose each other, actually. He’d been coming to a couple of our shows, and we became friends. And as we became friends, we talked about working together. And then once we secured
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a label to be able to back the project, we could actually make it a reality…and we did. So we got lucky in that we got to work with someone that we were friends with before. Do you reckon it makes a difference if you have a friendship with a producer before you go into the studio? Yeah, I imagine it would. Generally, it can be such a hard time; you’re doing a lot of work. So sometimes maybe it can be stressful to have that person as your friend. But for us, it worked to our advantage. “Everything All the Time” – I look at the title of that and I think Radiohead. Why did you choose that as the title for your debut? You’re the second person who’s brought that up with me. Is that a Radiohead title or
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We’re always complaining about something.… something?
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I think it’s a lyric, in their later stuff. Yeah; someone brought that up with me before. But “Everything All the Time” was Matt and I – the main cohorts of the band. We’re always complaining about something. I think it was more of a complaint; like, “God! Everything all the time!” But then, on paper, it’s a totally different meaning; we’re trying to get a mix of both a complaint and a compliment. You’ve played together for ten years; as musicians, how do you think you’ve evolved in all that time? Well, when I was in Carissa’s Weird, I just played drums, and I never really wrote the songs. So now, this is my first foray into this area. So we’ve definitely progressed in that way; me and Matt write together on stuff now. Before I was kind of just hanging out in the background. So we’ve definitely progressed there; Matt’s not having to be on the hot seat or anything. He gets to be a little more free and a little more fun with what he does, because the spotlight’s not on him, you know? In hindsight, looking back on the album as a finished product, is there anything you wanted to do but wasn’t possible? Well, we had a hard time with certain songs; there was certain stuff that I thought would make the record that didn’t, and a few songs that made the record that I thought wouldn’t. But everything got recorded that I wanted to get recorded; it all turned out satisfactory to me. “Everything All The Time” is out now.
Following up a debut album is always tricky. The decision of whether to progress into different musical terrain or simply remain consistent with is one that many artists struggle with, and the results can, more often than not, be disappointing. But while the depth and intricacy of their second LP, “Longing Was A Safe Place To Hide”, may have alienated some fans of their 2004 selftitled debut, Love Outside Andromeda don’t seem the slightest bit apologetic. I spoke with singer Sianna about the new sound, and the singers who have inspired her. [The album] has got a real atmospheric intensity about it. Was that something that you set out to create? Yeah, I think so. The thing that I am most pleased about is that there is a lot more breathing space in the songs, as compared to the first [album]. I think there’s a lot more...introspective sadness captured. For me, it’s not so much sadness as tension, that slowly builds from track to track, builds up to a climax, then relaxes again. How did the rest of the band feel about going in this direction? Well, they’re really happy, last time I checked! [Laughs] No, we are; we’re all really pleased with it. We are expecting....we’re expecting a lot of people to like it, and a lot of people not to like it. I guess that’s sort of what happens with a second record, regardless of what you produced. We quite deliberately tried to move in a different direction, and we’re kind of expecting [to produce different
reactions]. From looking at the forum – the chat forum on our website – a lot of people are really pleased with it. A lot of people have said that it’s not the kind of album that you understand the first time you listen to it; it’s one of those “growers”, which I think is the greatest thing anyone could say, because
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I didn’t want to have a voice that sounded trained.
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I think most of the best records are like that; you don’t get them the first time you hear them. Your voice – have you been doing any training? I’ve done a bit of training; I’ve had sporadic private lessons on-and-off. I haven’t done any for a while; I’ve been a bit lazy. But I’ve never wanted to do too much. I wanted to have a certain amount of training, but I didn’t want to have a voice that sounded trained. I’ve found that, when I listen to singers who have studied, they all have a particular kind of sound to their voice. And a lot of the singers that I most admire are not people who are trained; people who have a lot of character to their voice. [But] I know there’s plenty of people who are. I know that PJ Harvey apparently works for two hours every day on her voice, and she’s not...she’s had a lot of lo-fi moments. Also, Chan Marshall from Cat Power; she sounds like a packa-day smoker – I think she is – and she has such a beautiful grain to her voice. I remember a singing teacher telling me that, technically, her voice is quite fucked. But, technically, it doesn’t matter. The album “Longing Was A Safe Place To Hide” is out now.
Home & Hosed
Thu 23 Nov Republic Bar Hobart Fri 24 Nov Siroccos Nightclub, Burnie Sat 25 Nov James Hotel Launceston For Ticketing details www.somethingwithnumbers.net New album PERFECT DISTRACTION in stores NOW
www.belowpar.org /// www.musichead.com.au /// www.selectmusic.com.au PAGE 13
Notebooks And Heckles With
The Old-Time Rock N Roll Of
DARREN HANLON
DIRTY HARRY & THE ROCKETS
BY TOM WILSON
BY DAVE WILLIAMS
To do a job right, you need the right tools. Just ask a builder. Or, better yet, ask singersongwriter Darren Hanlon. Currently touring on the back of his new LP “Fingertips & Mountaintops”, he spoke to me about the most important tool a writer can have when ideas strike – a good notebook.
and friends and family. It just comes and pops in!
You’ve been described as “An easily distracted p i n b a l l / c r o s swo rd addict…who walks the streets with empty notebooks.” To what extent is this true? Well, I use a small spiral notebook. It comes down to the price and the quality of the notebook; I have a moleskin that’s quite expensive and looks amazing, so I don’t want to write any old crap in there. So I end up writing random thoughts into the small one that I carry around in my pocket, and then collate them into the “grandfather” of all notebooks.
How do you think it compares to other parts of the country? Each city is always different. In Tasmania, you’ve got a good mix of listeners. We always get a few drunken hecklers – it’s nice!
For me, that reminds me a bit of writer’s block. As a songwriter, do you find that to be a problem much? Ah…not really. I’m not prolific, but that’s because I’m lazy, and easily distracted by pinball and crosswords, and friends and movies and everything. I’m a procrastinator. But generally, touch wood…I’ve got to find some wood here… Hang on, I’ve got to touch it. [He touches wood] Yeah, every time I sit down to write something, something happens. I guess I don’t push it to much. I just hope it doesn’t dry up. So where are the most inspirational places for you, when it comes to writing? Generally something that’s not too inspiring; something that’s kind of boring. I like a nice room; an old-fashioned room, [like] a pub hotel room. I usually go away to write; all my stuff, for this album anyway, was written in a lot of country towns and hotel rooms. So I find just being on my own more inspiring; just getting away from your day-to-day life
You’re coming down to Tassie. Have you been down here before? Oh yeah. Heaps of times. So how do you find the place? Yeah, it’s great. We have a really nice audience down there. We’re playing Launceston on the Monday night, which is probably going to be a bit risky; unfortunately it was the only night we had free on this tour, because it’s just so jampacked. But both cities have always been really great to us.
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I’m not prolific, but that’s because I’m lazy
”
What are some of your favourite heckles? The best one, I was just thinking of today. Last time I played Brisbane, I got the banjo out, and I said something about my banjo and Queensland, and someone heckled from the front row, and said, “Ban Jo Bjelke-Petersen”. Good isn’t it? [Laughs] Inspired… I like a clever heckle. I love the dumb ones too, because they’re easy to make a comeback. “Ban Jo Bjelke-Petersen” – there’s no comeback for that. It’s just brilliant.
In the leadup to the release of their debut LP, Tassie’s rising stars of oldschool rock, Dirty Harry & The Rockets, had a word with SAUCE about their beginnings, recording their EP, and plans for the upcoming launch. Where does the band’s name come from? We always tell people that the Dirty Harry and the Rockets name came from watching a heap of Clint Eastwood movies, which is true. There’s no real reason for it, it just seemed fitting at the time and we stuck with it. We used to call ourselves “120Y” after my Datsun, but we rolled it going to a party one night so we changed our name. What makes Dirty Harry & The Rockets different from other bands? Um…I think our style of music is a bit different to a lot of things. There are stacks of emo/screamo bands around, but they tend to piss you off after a while. We always liked our rock n roll music; I think it’s in the Australian nature. But then again, we don’t try to be different, we just play rock ‘n roll ‘cause we love it. What has been the highlight for the band’s life so far? Every gig is a highlight. We have great times traveling over to Melbourne or up to Sydney and meeting great people, playing different and bigger venues. The partying after the shows is great too. I think recording our first EP in Sydney was awesome fun; making our way up the coast doing shows and the doing the EP, it’s really helped us get to the stage we are at now. We have a new CD coming soon and hopefully we can go further and do better things after that. Who knows? How did the band get together, and what keeps
it together? Me and my brothers have been jamming for ages, then kind of started a side project to other bands we were in at the time. From there we were doing old school covers of T-Rex songs and The Beatles and stuff. After that Trent joined in and we started writing our own stuff; changed the band name, got serious and played a shit load of shows. I think the family thing helps keep it together and Trent is always keen. We argue and fight all the time but it’s the nature of our band. Seems to work a treat.
“
There are stacks of emo/ screamo bands around, but they tend to piss you off after a while.
”
What are you plans for CD releases? Well… We have been pissing around with this recording for ages and everybody keeps asking when it’s coming out. We will safely say it will be done before the end of 2006. Once it’s out, we will be shooting it around to a heap of radio station, mainly community radio. We will be doing shit loads of shows as always and try to sell some copies to you fine people, and we will see how we go from there. We have a local company Resonance Records who are keen to distribute some copies for us, but it all depends whether you all like it, doesn’t it? Dirty Harry And The Rockets play the Falmouth Festival in St Helens on December 16th. Check them out online at www.harryandtherockets.com and www.myspace.com/dirtyharryandtherockets
What about a good, old-fashioned, “You guys suck!” We’ve had “show us your tits!” So I did! Darren plays Hobart’s Republic Bar on Sunday the 12th of November and Launceston’s Royal Oak on the 13th, supported by Dear Nora.
TV ROCK
graced the airwaves of Kiss90 London and the crates of Sasha and Oakenfold, but he also has more releases (and remixes) to his name than any other Australian.
TV Rock’s production skills first hit the airwaves in late 2004 and scored multiple number-one positions on the coveted ARIA Club Chart with their trademark big room electro remixes of Paris Avenue, Sander Kleinenberg and The Soulchip as well as four other top-ten positions. TV Rock was also commissioned Grant is the resident at super club Onelove and for mixes in the UK and Italy, and received airplay on has mixed the last 3 Onelove CDs alongside Radio 1’s Essential Selection. Carl Kennedy, Kaz James (Bodyrockers) and The Freemasons. Grant is also one of Nova’s national One of the most talked about releases of last year, dance programmers and hosts a show called “Flaunt It” attracted international heat, with Sander “Overdrive” alongside John Course every Saturday Kleinenberg signing the track for Europe and making it a priority for Miami 2005. Sander, Sharam Jey, Tom night. Novy and Pete Tong are just a few to be singing praise Whether you’re talking about DJing or producing, for the TV Rock dynamic duo. With a wealth of experience rocking the dance floors across the globe, TV Rock is the collaboration between two of Australia’s highest profile DJ/Producers, Grant Smillie and Ivan Gough.
Ivan Gough is not only one of Australia’s most accomplished dance music exports, he’s also TV Rock play the Live N Loud Rock Fest 06 in Dover one of its very first! Not only have Ivan’s records on Saturday the 25th of November.
November Gigs FRIDAY 3RD
Ragged Anns
(CD Launch)
THURSDAY 9TH
The Apostles
(USA)
TUESDAY 14TH
Skinless
+ M.S.I
FRIDAY 24TH
The Scandal
381
PAGE 14
Elizabeth
Street,
North
(USA)
Hobart
(CD Launch) Ph:
6236
9777
Sex, Lies And Videotape With
JIM KEAYS
BY DAVE WILLIAMS
So what steps led to the production of this new album/DVD? We just thought it was about time. It was the 40th anniversary of the band, and I thought we should do something. And we haven’t had a best-of, greatest hits package for a long time. I thought it was about time that we did one, so I approached EMI, and they said, “Yeah, we’d love to do it”. They were thinking of doing it anyway. So I got together with some people, and we worked out the track listing for the CD. I put a lot of work into the DVD; I was there right through
“ Singer of seminal Australian rock group The Masters Apprentices, Jim Keays has seen and done a lot. Case in point; this is possibly the first time SAUCE has interviewed someone who could remember seeing The Beatles live. I spoke to him about the release of The Masters Apprentices’ 40th anniversary album/DVD.
I’ve got some old footage of you under my bed; it’s been there for years. I’m cleaning out my house – do you want it?
”
the editing process, because it’s all my footage that’s used... It comes from various sources; most of it comes from TV shows at the time, which I did deals for way back in the early days and managed to get the footage off some of them. Also, we made a few film clips ourselves... And there was a guy who wanted to make a movie of us way back in the 60s, which was quite rare. He actually had a proper movie camera. He came along to a couple of live gigs, and
he came along when we were taping a show for the ABC; he took us back to where they stored all the sets and filmed us in there. I’d forgotten completely about [this footage]. Then I heard that he had died. Then, in the 90s, a guy rang me up and said, “I’ve got some old footage of you under my bed; it’s been there for years. I’m cleaning out my house – do you want it?” These days, if you’ve got some guy ringing you up saying “I’ve got some footage of you under my bed”, you could be forgiven for thinking that you’re in for a Paris Hilton-style expose... (Laughs) Yeah! Especially with all the groupies and stuff that was going around in those days! Maybe somebody filmed it! I’m sure there would have been lots of ups and downs in the Masters Apprentices experience? Yeah, of course there was. Mostly ups. You have to say, we’ve had a fabulous career; we spanned a lot of eras. We’re probably the only Australian band that went from 1965, when it was RnB and garage punk music, right though the psychedelic era, and the prog rock era... We spanned all of those. Most of the bands just came and went in one era, but somehow we managed to stay ahead of the game. The next song was always somehow ahead of its time. “Living In A Child’s Dream”, for example, was just slightly before the psychedelic phase, and it became a psychedelic hit. The Masters Apprentices’ 40th anniversary release, “Fully Qualified: The Choicest Cuts”, is out now.
Putting Your Heart On Their Sleeves, It’s
THE NEW BLACK BY TOM WILSON
mood when they spoke to us about producing the EP and their local scene.
to go overseas but it needs to be planned w e l l , e s p e c i a l l y wh e n yo u ’re s p e n d i n g upw ards of $20,000! It’s probably cheaper to get our own jet…
We’ve heard that the band s t a r t e d f ro m o n e o f yo u playing in the Salvation Army Band. How did you end up doing that? Well Scott was playing as par t
You worked on your debut EP with Lindsay Gravina and Rob Long . How did you end up working with them? We’d been looking at a few options and Lindsay was one of them. At first you don’ t know how things are gonna work out, and it’s quite daunting handing your babies over to strangers, but by the end of it we were mates. Both Rob and Lindsay loved the songs and put their all into getting the best results. They were g reat to work with it and took all our ideas onboard and worked them into what you hear!
“
We’re itching to go overseas but…it’s probably cheaper to get our own jet…
”
of a band put together by the Salvos. They would visit a ged h o m e s a n d R S L s a n d p l ay covers – Bowie, The Stones, ELO, T-Rex. I happened to be visiting a relative at one place and I loved Scott’s presence and his voice.
Having recently launched their debut EP “Your Heart, My Sleeve” to a packed house and visited Tasmania for the first time supporting The Fauves, Melbourne rockers The New Black have a lot to smile about… it’s safe to say that they were in a good
THE GO SET
Combining the folk elements of the bagpipes, accordion, and mandolin, with distorted punk guitars and a rock n roll ethos, The Go Set have created a sound and direction all its own... In November 2004, the band entered Birdland Studios in Melbourne with engineer Lindsay Gravina (Spiderbait, The Living End) and recorded their debut album “Sing a Song of Revolution”. The band hit the road immediately after the release, and toured extensively through Australia and New Zealand, developing a strong fanbase on its intense and chaotic live shows. A year after the debut album was recorded, the band returned to Birdland Studios again, this time
Your management went of f to South By Southwest on a bit of a mission to secure some over seas action. How did that go? Yeah, our mana ger went of f to suss out the festival. I suppose the purpose of the trip was to see first hand what it’s like there, and it seems like there are hundreds of bands playing throughout the day. We’re itching
To what extent do you think their input has influenced the end product? Going into the studio Scott and I had ver y fir m ideas of what we wanted the songs to sound like. We’d spent a lot of time working on the songs and we’d demoed them some months earlier, but Lindsay and Rob took all that and made the songs shine. The drums are huge and the guitars are so sweet. They’re g reat engineers and the songs sound so much better for it. You hail from Melbourne; in what ways do you think the scene there is different to other par ts of the countr y? Got to love these kinds of questions. How to walk the tripwire… In any place where you’ve got a concentration of musos you’re gonna get a lot of talent and as many critics. It’s a place to work your craft and see if you can cut it. The g reat thing is when there’s a buzz about a band ever yone tur ns up. The New Black’s debut EP “Your Hear t, My Sleeve” is out now.
with producer (and Radio Birdman frontman), Rob Younger. With a similar energy and aesthetic as its predecessor, “The Hungry Mile” also demonstrates an evolution in the band. More detailed arrangement, more creative instrumentation, and the most powerful and poignantly delivered lyrics to date. The album crosses many boundaries. It addresses issues inherent in Australian society and indeed globally the plight of the working class and work place reform, war and tragedy and the importance of family and support. It is truly an album for all people. The Go Set play Hobart’s Republic Bar on Thursday the 30th of November, the Foreshore Tavern on December 1st, Launceston’s Batman Fawkner on the 2nd and Forth’s Bridge Hotel on the 3rd.
Sing. Dance. Act. Dream. Musical Theatre at the Conservatorium of Music. Start today – call 1300 363 864.
www.utas.edu.au 1161Sa
PAGE 15
GIG
GIG Guide 01/11/06 - 5/12/06 NOVEMBER WEDNESDAY 1ST 1 BURNIE Stage Door the Café Katy Pakinga 7.00pm 1 HOBART Republic Bar & Café New Age Hippies 9pm Syrup Late Night Booty Call with DJ’s Mez, Chilli & Dave Webber Trout The Que Peter Escott Anhony Rochester THURSDAY 2ND 1 BURNIE Stage Door the Café Viktor Zappner Trio 8.00pm Special guest: Kevin Findlay from Burnie 1 HOBART
Adam Turner & Gillie Trout Ragged Anns CD Launch Moe Grizzly
ENTERTAINMENT
Fizzard supp.
Lonnies
Breaks, with DJ’s MEZ,
Unleash The Nugget
MOS Annual Tour
Modal T & guests
$12/10conc.
John Course and Mark Trout
King Unique
The Apostles (USA) 1 LAUNCESTON
Carl Fidler MONDAY 6TH
G.B. Balding (Finger
1 HOBART
Muph & Plutonic supp. Heads Of State 9pm Syrup Mesh – Drum and Breaks, with DJ’s MEZ, Modal T & Chilli 1 LAUNCESTON James Hotel Uni Night Funkin Unbelievable Dj Nikko FRIDAY 3RD 1 BURNIE Stage Door the Café Gaye Clarke & the Big Band Sound 7.00pm 1 HOBART
Magic Dirt supp. Modular Lounge + The Evening Dolls 10pm Syrup 7pm – KO! – Funk with DJ’s Mez and Chilli 11pm – Boogie – 70’s & ‘80’s funk, with DJ’s
– La Casa (sexy vocal
Syrup
Kobya + Band (African
house) with Matt B &
Tackyland – 70’s, 80’s,
music) $7/5conc.
DJG & Timo
9pm
Trout
90’s dance classics,
Dancing – house,
Syrup
Sgt Green
electro & breaks with
Late Night Booty Call
Dj Nikko
Gillie, Adam Turner,
with DJ’s Mez, Chilli &
DSKO & Kir
Dave Webber
Theatre Royal
Trout
Jason Howard
Wil Anderson
Lucy
Reality
7.30pm
Social Theorist
Dj MacD
The Wizard & Oz
Trout
THURSDAY 16TH
7.30pm
The No Nos
1 BURNIE
Dr El Suavo
King’s Bar
Nathan Burley
Gypsy Rose
Royal Oak
The She-Rats
1 BURNIE
1 LAUNCESTON
Stage Door the Café Viktor Zappner Trio
Star Hotel
James Hotel
8.00pm
Jesse Pitcher
Jason Howard
Special guest:
Reality
Michael Woods from
Rob Sawyer Band
Launceston
5.00pm
8.30 - 8.45
1 HOBART
9.30 - 10.20 Surrender Dorothy
Republic Bar & Café
Dj MacD
Republic Bar & Café
10.40 - 11.30
James Southwell Band
Dj Nikko
1 HOBART
Star Hotel
Curly’s Bar
Neil Gibson
Ben Castles
Stratos Roussos (from
7.00pm
Samuel Bester
Evening Dolls
Republic Bar & Café Blue Flies
Syrup
9pm
7pm – KO! – Funk with DJ’s Mez and Chilli
10pm Syrup Tackyland – 70’s, 80’s,
Stage Door the Café
Waiter) SUNDAY 12TH 1 FORTH
Duncan & Nick C Upstairs from 11pm
Bridge Hotel
with DJ’s Gillie, Adam
Devonport
– La Casa (sexy vocal
James Southwell Band
Turner, Timo & Kir
Entertainment Centre
house) with Gillie, Matt
Wil Anderson
B & Adam Turner
90’s dance classics,
Upstairs – Dirty F’cking Dancing – house, electro & breaks with Gillie, Adam Turner,
Hammerhead
Trout
Republic Bar & Café
1 HOBART
Enola Fall
Darren Hanlon
Republic Bar & Café
1 LAUNCESTON
Bertie Blackman The Whitlams
Halo
Spiderman supp. Jamie
Astronomy Class
Faulkner
(feat. Ozi Battla & The Tongue)
9pm Republic Bar & Café Syrup
The Vasco Era supp,
Mesh – Drum and
Hannah 10pm
A Day On The Green
Modal T & guests
Syrup
Reality
Chris Isaak
Late Night Booty Call
Fizard + Alturism
with DJ’s Mez, Chilli &
Dj MacD
Dave Webber
Dj Nikko
Wil Anderson
James Hotel
Hand
7.30pm
Glenn Moorhouse THURSDAY 9TH
Star Hotel
1 LAUNCESTON
1 BURNIE
8.00pm
Tackyland – 70’s, 80’s, 90’s dance classics,
James Hotel
with Naughts & Rolly
Star Hotel
Uni Night
Upstairs – Dirty F’cking
Carl Fidler
3Sum
Dancing – house,
Dj Nikko
electro & breaks with Gillie, Adam Turner,
TUESDAY 14TH FRIDAY 17TH
Modal T and Corney
1 BURNIE
Trout
1 HOBART The Bad Luck Charms
Irish Murphy’s SATURDAY 11TH
Viktor Zappner Trio
Syrup 1 LAUNCESTON
Phil Picasso 1 BURNIE
Dj Nikko
Ben Castles
Chris Wilson &.
Glenn Moorhouse
Brand New Second
Star Hotel
9pm Republic Bar & Café
Breaks, with DJ’s MEZ,
Princess Theatre
Dj MacD
Jaimi Faulkner
Tolsa Park
Trout
Dj PD (Patty Duke)
Foreshore Tavern
FREE ENTRY
James Hotel
1 LAUNCESTON
Reality
9pm
Johno Zilber 9pm
1 HOBART
Enola Fall
$15/12conc.
Solar Thorn Wrest Point
1 HOBART
7.30pm
Timo & Kir Trout
Palm This! (Launceston)
11pm – Boogie – 70’s & ‘80’s funk, with DJ’s
1 DEVONPORT
SATURDAY 18TH 1 BURNIE
10pm
Magic Dirt supp. Modular Lounge + The
1 HOBART
Atalana Heale
Stage Door the Café
8.30 - 9.10
Gaye Clarke & the Big
Simon Ditcham
Band Sound
9.30 - 10.20
7.00pm
1 LAUNCESTON James Hotel
Special guest: Fred
Stage Door the Café
Stratified
SUNDAY 5TH
Bradshaw from Hobart
The Wizard & Oz
10.40 - 11.30
1 HOBART
1 HOBART
Town Hall
Republic Bar & Café
Halo
The Embers
Southern Forest
Elite Force (UK)
The Zak Lister Band
Republic Bar & Café
7.30pm
Bertie Blackman supp. Bridget Pross
Carl Fidler
7.30pm Wil Anderson
1 HOBART
8:30pm
1 HOBART
Reality Tasmusic Showcase
Fundraiser: Dana Lyons
Dj MacD
Halo
USA “Cows with Guns”
Republic Bar & Café
Poxy Music (live-syd) +
+ Guests
The Vasco Era supp,
Ken Cloud (dj set - Syd)
9pm
Hannah
Star Hotel
10pm
Jason Howard
Republic Bar & Café Geoff Atchinson
Lewisham Tavern
Trout
Upstairs from 11pm
9pm
James Southwell Band
Skinless (USA)
Syrup
M.S.I.,
7pm – KO! – Funk with
PAGE 16
Jaimi Faulkner 9pm
Duncan & Nick C – King Roc (UK), plus
1 LAUNCESTON
Dj Nikko
1 DEVONPORT
Irish Murphy’s
Palm This
James Hotel
Stage Door the Café
Stage Door the Café Republic Bar & Café
Upstairs from 11pm
UniNight
Stage Door the Café
WEDNESDAY 8TH Republic Bar & Café
Duncan & Nick C
Upstairs – Dirty F’cking
Picking Blues) 8:30pm
11pm – Boogie – 70’s & ‘80’s funk, with DJ’s
1 HOBART
FRIDAY 10TH
TUESDAY 7TH
Kinda Folk
DJ’s Mez and Chilli WEDNESDAY 15TH
Republic Bar & Café
with Naughts & Rolly
1 HOBART
SATURDAY 4TH
Shindig #10 A Woody
ENTERTAINMENT
James Hotel
Republic Bar & Café
1 BURNIE
LINK
10pm
Dynamix
Dj Nikko
Jason Howard
MISSING
Republic Bar & Café
Reality
Star Hotel
BY
Mesh – Drum and
Star Hotel
Dj MacD
YOU
Syrup
James Hotel
Special guests
TO
For more info and band bookings for any occasion call Missing Link Entertainment, Booking Agents, Promoters, Artist Management. 6234 7755, 237-245 Elizabeth St, Hobart
1 LAUNCESTON
10pm
Bertie Blackman +
BROUGHT
This month Missing Link Entertainment presents Live n Loud Rock Fest
November 25th in Dover! Featuring TV Rock with Seany B, Deborah Conway, Monique Brumby, The Radiators, Pete Cornelius and the Devilles, Dr Octopus and many more! Tickets $55.00 from the venue , Missing Link Entertainment and Centertainment.
1 LAUNCESTON
Jeano
GUIDE
Dj Nikko
SUNDAY 19TH
8.00pm
1 LAUNCESTON
Dj Nikko Republic Bar & Café
Special guest: Alex 1 HOBART
Jaimi Faulkner
James Hotel
Roberts Woolstore
and Matthew Ives
John Stitch
Stompin - “Home”
Reality
(Dance Performance)
9pm
Lakoda
Star Hotel
1 LAUNCESTON
Ben Castles
1 HOBART
5:30pm
Behind Crimson Eyes +
Curly’s Bar
Dj MacD
Parliament House
Bob Evans
Dj Nikko
Live at the house
with local support
Lior Republic Bar & Café
Louder Than Bombs (All
Bomba
Something With
Ages)
The Embers
Numbers supp. Angelas
Tang
Josh Owen Band
dish plus Fifty Sixx 9pm
Republic Bar & Café Kobya
Syrup
9pm
Mesh – Drum and
TZU + Good Buddha
1 HOBART
Sgt Green
The Vasco Era
(Dance Performance)
1 LAUNCESTON
DECEMBER
Roberts Woolstore
FRIDAY 1ST
(Dance Performance)
Stompin - “Home”
1 BURNIE
SATURDAY 25TH
(Dance Performance)
Sirocco’s
1 BURNIE
Star Hotel
2007
1 LAUNCESTON
Star Hotel
Earl Arts Centre
Me ‘n U
Carl Fidler
Lior
Anthea Carins at the grand
Featuring
TUESDAY 28TH
Local Dj’s
1 HOBART
1 HOBART
Gabriel’s Day
Krissy Rostan
Irish Murphy’s
7.00pm
Crystal Campbell 8.30 - 9.10 Rowan Smith
Republic Bar & Café
Uni Night
Manic Monday
Funkin Unbelievable
8:30pm
Dj Nikko
Live N Loud Rock Fest
Curly
06
10.40 - 11.30
TUESDAY 21ST
FRIDAY 24TH
TV Rock (Feat. Seany B)
1 HOBART
1 BURNIE
1 DOVER
9.30 - 10.20
The Go Set Republic Bar & Café TZU plus Good Buddha & Illzilla 10pm 1 LAUNCESTON James Hotel
Billy TK Jnr
Republic Bar & Café
I Nation
Rock Salt
This Collision
9pm
Reality
1 LAUNCESTON
Dj Nikko
Roberts Woolstore
Roberts Woolstore
Irish Murphy’s
Sirocco’s
Kizmet
Lana Chilcott
Something With
Mochesmo
8.30 - 9.10
Numbers
PLUS MANY MORE
Adam Cousens
Angela’s Dish
9.30 - 10.20
Fifty Sixx
1 HOBART
Dean Stevenson Band 10.40 - 11.30
The Stafford Brothers +
Foreshore Tavern
Del Polden on guitar
James Hotel
The Wild Summer Tour
Carl Fidler
Irish Murphy’s
1 HOBART
Stompin - “Home”
9pm
Stage Door the Café
MONDAY 20TH
Roberts Woolstore
Stompin - “Home”
Jason Howard
Tang (18+)
Dj Nikko
Nellie
Modal T & guests
Fusion Presents
UniNight
Republic Bar & Café Deborah Conway supp.
Star Hotel
Trout
The Whiskey Go Go’s
SUNDAY 26TH
Roberts Woolstore
Breaks, with DJ’s MEZ,
James Hotel
Go Set (Acoustic)
James Hotel
Pilgrim Hall
Serena Rider
1 LAUNCESTON
Serina Ryder supp, The
Howroyd from Hobart
Lewisham Tavern
Stompin - “Home”
Glenn Moorhouse Dj MacD
Stompin - “Home”
(Dance Performance)
(Dance Performance)
WEDNESDAY 29TH
Star Hotel
Stage Door the Café
Halo
MONTAGE
GIMMIE SOME MORE
Republic Bar & Café
Kendal McLaren on
afterparty
Nathan Kay
vocals, Jerome Hillier
Nick Toth
1 HOBART
9pm
on guitar & vocals Republic Bar & Café
Halo
Behind Crimson Eyes
Goldie + MC Lowqui
1 HOBART
10pm
(UK)
Batman Fawkner Inn
Dr Syntax
Syrup
Republic Bar & Café
4pm ALL-AGES
Republic Bar & Café
Gabriel’s Day
Tackyland – 70’s, 80’s,
Cake Walking Babies
Al Davall (U.S.A)
Waiter
90’s dance classics,
9pm
7.00pm WEDNESDAY 22ND
Burnie Sirocco's Bar & Nightc lub 69 Mount St Bur nie 6431 3133 Sta ge Door The Cafe 254 Mount St Upper Bur nie 64322600
Devonport
Spurs/Warehouse 18 Kings St Devonpor t 6424 7851
Kings Bar & Nitec lub 25 King St Devonpor t 6423 3488
Hobart
Curly’s Bar 112 Mur ray St Hobar t 7000 6234 5112 www.curlysbar.com.au Irish Murphys 21 Salamanca Pl Hobar t 7000 6223 1119 www.irishmurphys.com.au Republic Bar 299 Elizabeth St Nor th Hobar t 6234 6954 www.republicbar.com Syrup 1st Floor 39 Salamanca Place Hobar t 6224 8249 syrupclub@bigpond.com Trout 381 Elizabeth St North Hobart 03 6236 9777 Uni Bar - Hobar t Campus 1 Churchill Ave Sandy Bay 03 6226 2495 www.tuu.com.au
Ben Castles SATURDAY 2ND
1 HOBART
1 LAUNCESTON
The Go Set 9pm Over 18 James Hotel
with Naughts & Rolly
Singing Sadie (U.S.A)
Venue Guide
Launceston James Hotel Reality Nitec lub James Bar 122 York St Launceston 6334 7231 www.jameshotel.com.au
1 LAUNCESTON
Glenn Moorhouse
Spencer Parker (UK),
Roberts Woolstore
Pound 4 Pound
Republic Bar & Café
suppt. Adam Turner,
Stompin - “Home”
Syrup
Mick Harvey (Bad
Gillie & Kir
(Dance Performance)
The Wild Summer Tour
info@jameshotel.com.au
Late Night Booty Call
Seeds) + Guests
2007
with DJ’s Mez, Chilli &
10pm
Trout
THURSDAY 30TH
Featuring
The Early Birds
1 BURNIE
Local Dj’s
O’Keefes 124 George St Launceston 6331 4015
UTAS
Stage Door the Café
Roberts Woolstore
Lyrics Born
Viktor Zappner Trio
& ‘80’s funk, with DJ’s
Pigeon John
8.00pm
Duncan & Nick C
Nick Toth
Special guests: Greg
Beatrix Bae–Bouman,
Halo
Upstairs – Dirty F’cking
Damian Stevens
Steve Hill (Syd)
Dancing presents
9pm
The Roobs
Dave Webber Syrup Trout
7pm – KO! – Funk with
Social Theorist
DJ’s Mez and Chilli 11pm – Boogie – 70’s
1 LAUNCESTON James Hotel
Upstairs from 11pm
Reality
– Pickle (hard dance)
Bob Evans + Carl Fidler
with DSKO, Corney & guests
Harrison and Cameron 1 LAUNCESTON
Scott
James Hotel
The Stafford Brothers +
Stompin - “Home” (Dance Performance) SUNDAY 3RD 1 FORTH
1 HOBART
The Go Set 1 LAUNCESTON
Trout
Reality
Curly’s Bar
The Scandal CD Launch
Something With Number
Dean Stevenson
+ Angelas Dish + Fifty
Babylon Bicycle
Stage Door the Café
Sixx
Attic Grooves
Viktor Zappner Trio
Dj MacD
FREE ENTRY
1 BURNIE
Presents
Bridge Hotel Jason Howard
THURSDAY 23RD
Reality
Saloon 191 Charles Street Launceston www.saloon.com.au hotel@saloon.com.au 6331 7355 The Batty The Batman Fawkner Inn 35 Cameron St Launceston 6331 7222
Star Hotel Carl Fidler
To list your gig in the Gig Guide, email details to gigguide@sauceonline.net PAGE 17
The Weary Travellers Of
SAOSIN BY DAVE WILLIAMS
Chris Sorenson can’t stop yawning. Speaking to SAUCE from the massive Taste Of Chaos tour entourage, the bassist of Californian hardcore act Saosin has clearly had little time for sleep between sets on the TOC side-stage as it rumbles around the world. But despite fatigue, you’d have a hard time convincing him he didn’t have the best job in the world, as I found out. How do you find Australian audiences’ reactions compared with audiences in other countries? It’s a lot different. Like, when we were in Perth, the kids didn’t really know how to crowd-surf, and the moshing and stuff like that. But I think the big difference is that the market isn’t over-saturated with bands like us. Because bands don’t come here as often as, say, the States. The kids definitely don’t take the opportunity to see a band for granted, and they make the best of the show. We were on the side stage all through Australia, and kids were just freaking out, chanting “One more song” after our set and stuff. We didn’t really know what to expect, but it’s awesome that the kids are really excited to see us.
and wanted to walk away from it for a bit? Yeah…but I think that’s part of being able to do it; you have to doubt yourself, and then remind yourself why you’re doing it. My strongest rebuttal against myself is, “this is probably one of the easiest jobs in the world. I get to see the world; I get to play in front of people that want to hear my music and see us play live. When I hear bands complain that this is some sort of hard life…it’s your choice. If you don’t want to do this, then go; go work in a cubicle, and become a normal person.
“
[Fo r t wo we e k s] we d i d n ’t c h a n g e o u r clot h e s o r sh o we r
”
It must be a really different feel doing this tour than touring with AFI… Yeah. AFI have such a selective audience, that they’re kind of hard to win over. Especially being the opening band. There’d be a lot of blank stares and silence between songs, but as the set went through…people were freaking out by the end of the last song. It was definitely one of the roughest and hardest tours we’ve ever done, but at the same time it was one of the best tours, because that’s how you win new fans, you know?
Do you have any games in the band that last throughout a whole tour? We have a few. This tour, we’re still caught up in the moment, because we’ve never been to Australia, so we’re all tourists in a sense. But we’ve done competitions amongst ourselves; like, no shaving our faces for an entire tour, and end up with a beard. We did a tour once for two weeks, and Justin and I…we didn’t change our clothes or shower for the whole thing! Actually, Beau is on the facial hair one now. He has these gnarly chops…I don’t even know how to explain them. They’re like sideburns that go all the way to his chin, and then he shaves his chin and his neck…he’s on that one right now, and he looks so disgusting…
Have you ever thought, “Fuck this – I’ve had enough”,
Saosin’s self-titled LP is out now.
Exploring Darkness With
ZERO DEGRESS FREEDOM BY TOM WILSON
Purveyors of some of the darkest and most intricate elements of their genre – and one of the finest bands Tasmania has to offer – melodic death metal collective Zero Degrees Freedom have earned their stripes in front of almost every kind of audience the scene has to offer. I communicated with the ZDF nucleus – the singing, shredding and very bald Simon Frech – about their upcoming LP, Nosce Teipsum, and exploring the dark side of the psyche. While you’ve been a full band for several years, ZDF originally started off as a solo project for you. What were some of the challenges in opening up your songwriting to the input of those in your band? How do you think the music changed? My original intention for forming the band was more as a vehicle for performing my solo stuff, and not so much as a collaborative effort…but it very soon became really obvious that the guys had a lot of talent and vision to contribute to the songwriting process, so I just let things evolve into their current form. Having five sets of ears working on songs has meant the music has grown a lot, and if anything, writing is a lot “fussier” now as a result, because we tend to keep working on songs until everyone is happy with them. Stylistically, the change hasn’t been that drastic, because it was a mix of different influences to begin with…it’s just that the range has expanded a little. You’ve described your music as “Lyrical investigations of internal conflict and self-loathing”. And that they certainly are, given the nature of songs like “Drowned”. What do you draw upon most for inspiration in songwriting? The lyrics really just come from observations I’ve made, either of myself, others or life in general, bastardised and hidden within badly used metaphors and dodgy clichés. The themes are generally ideas taken from facets of myself as I become aware of them, then magnified. I normally write lyrics and music completely independently of each other, then fit the lyrics to the songs once they are fairly well developed musically.
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You also play bass in Nosce Teipsum – what are some of the advantages and challenges of playing in two separate projects? I was actually a bit reluctant to join Nosce at first, but a few beers and some arm twisting convinced me that I could be in two bands without stretching myself too thin, and so far, that’s proved true. The only real challenge at the moment is that both bands are working on albums, so I’ve been burning the candle at both ends quite a bit lately, but I’m enjoying it, so it’s all good.
“
...ZDF is, essentially, the cynical, brooding facet of my personality.
”
For a creator of such theatrical music, you’re a surprisingly down-to-earth kind of guy; with that in mind, to what extent do you think your music represents you, or a part of you? Like anyone, I have a darker side to myself, and ZDF is, essentially, the cynical, brooding facet of my personality. If I didn’t exorcise my various demons through music, I’d probably be a lot grumpier, I guess. You’re currently working on a full-length. What can you tell us about this? When will it be released? Well, things have been delayed a few times by various injuries I’ve sustained of late. (Broken glass in my left hand, then a broken right hand not long afterwards)…but it’s all getting there…most of the album is written and ready to record, but there are a few tracks that we are still working on a bit, because we aren’t all quite happy with some parts. We should have it recorded and ready for a late 2006/early 2007 release…though originally we were planning to have it out this time last year…so I won’t make any promises. Tentatively, the album will be called “The Storm before the Silence”.
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1 www.utas.edu.au
Modus + Dead Abigails + The Elliots JAMES HOTEL – 13/10/06 By Tom Wilson
Dirty South
SYRUP – 25/10/06 By Felix Blacker
I Killed the Prom Queen (AA Show) BATMAN FAWKNER INN – 21/10/06 By Ryan Cooke
Kid Kenobi
HALO - 20/10/06 By Felix Blackler
Let me preface this review by saying that I was biased from the very start, considering that my obligation to cover this gig was keeping me from celebrating my girlfriend’s birthday (sorry Ree). But that’s enough of that. The Amplified Showcase performance was a double bill intended to play out early in the evening, following a day of workshops with members of industries related to music and live production. Unfortunately, Murphy’s Law kicked in, and the workshop ran several hours overtime. This opened the night on a sour note for me, and I’m afraid to say that it didn’t get much better. The night opened with acoustic duo The Elliots, playing...well...acoustic duets. While they’re clearly very tight as musicians, their music didn’t hold my attention or my interest for very long. I thought that maybe the late start would mean decent numbers. Not so, unfortunately, and I think I know why. Modus and The Dead Abigails are certainly welltraveled, and while they’re both immensely talented and enjoyable bands, there needs to be something more to a show like this than “set up, play set, pack up”. I think that, to attract more punters, live shows like this need a bit of a twist to keep things new and interesting. A bit of improvised interplay between the two acts, maybe. Perhaps a bit of good old-fashioned walking through the crowd while playing. Or a midget on a pogo stick. To sum it up, it was another good performance, but I have a feeling something needs to change.
Midnight Caller TROUT – 25/10/06 By Raena Armitage
Australia’s Dirty South (Dragan) hit Syrup on Show Eve, bringing his blend of heavy house and funky breakbeat to Hobart. Once again, meandering around before Dirty South was set to start was made much easier and enjoyable thanks to some solid work by Tassie’s supporting DJs. Dirty South started strong, turning in some fantastic fresh house tracks with deep basslines hurtling over the sweetest of synths. Dirty South proved his own when out of nowhere he dropped Ramirez’s remix of “Yeah Yeah” by Bodyrox, which set the place alive. Those who came to see it were surely waiting for a live dose of Dirty South’s remix of Evermore’s “Its too late”, which he has reinvented from a seemingly wanky song into a massive club hit. Dirty South delivered to full effect, proving this Melbourne DJ’s remixing talents are going to be heard in clubs everywhere for many years to come. House music has come along way in a few years, widening its appeal with DJs like Dirty South; experimenting with many aspects to live up to his name and create a sound that is downright dirty. It was a strong set made even more enjoyable as Dirty South mixed with ease and kept a consistently strong and funky vibe in the air throughout his entire set. Whether a solid house or breaks fan, Dirty South’s unique blend is definitely a draw card for the future and a guaranteed good night out.
Something For Kate CURLY’S BAR – 12/10/06 By Nicole Calabria
It’s getting close to holiday season, and summer has come early for us here in Tasmania. Luckily for music fans, a little more than just the air was hot this month, with Something For Kate heating it up on their national tour for their album “Desert Lights”. Something For Kate made use of the newest club and venue in town, performing at Curly’s in Harrington Street.
Show Day Eve at the Trout saw the launch of Midnight Caller’s much anticipated new CD, “2000 and Six”. With frontman Patric Cross’s recent move to Melbourne, it’s a rare chance to see these guys together. Short and sweet is the order of the day here – it’s been about a year since they’ve started playing under this name, and over time they’ve developed a great knack for keeping every one of their scrappy, carefree tracks just tight enough to make you wish they’d played just a few more bars. The punters at front-of-stage were lapping it up, despite the dizzying cloud of B.O. that had set up camp for the evening around the corner of the bar. The disc itself pairs up great with their EP, “We All Work At The Shop”, from earlier this year, and if you give half a shit about Hobart music you’ll make a space for both of these in your CD collection. Support was Hobart indie darlings the Bad Luck Charms, who after a year and a bit on Hobart stages have become a damn tight outfit, and made a great entree for Midnight Caller’s noisier fare. I’m sure more than a few of us woke up the next day with sore heads and ringing ears, but it’s well worth the chance to see both these outfits in their natural habitat.
The venue has a sense of ambiance and style, and set the scene for the gig with a classy, laid-back atmosphere. The wall behind the band was peppered with a starry array of flashing lights, creating a more visual impression of the performance. The audience was well behaved and appreciative, and for good reason. Throughout the night there was a relaxed vibe as the band embraced the crowd with an eclectic mix of classics and newer music alike. Fans lapped up vintage Something For Kate with the popular “Three Dimensions” and “Anarchitect”. Lead singer Paul Dempsey’s voice was as smooth as frothed hot chocolate and went down just as sweet live as when pre-recorded. Songs such as “Down the Garden Path” and “Cigarettes and Suitcases” successfully showcased the more stripped-down and rock elements contained on the new album “Desert Lights” . I was impressed by how civilised the crowd was and while it was cosy there was enough room to breathe, without being flattened by drunk fans or overpowered by the inevitable smell of the beer burp. I emerged with all toes intact after a great night of music and entertainment fit to kick off the Tassie summer for ‘06.
There are only so many times in one’s life you will see your favorite band live for the first time ever, and last night was it for me. This was the first time Adelaide’s finest, I Killed the Prom Queen, have toured Tasmania in its long career. After the doors opening a little late, the huge allages crowd wandered in to see Launceston’s This Future…Chaos open the show with their brutal mix of metalcore/hardcore. Still one of the best bands in the state, they showed the Hobart acts how it was done. Mephistopheles was up next, and the kids didn’t know what to do; most weren’t prepared for it. These Hobart kids really are amazing to watch and everyone was blown away when ex-Psycroptic vocalist Matthew Chalk joined the band on stage for a few numbers. Stand Defiant should never have been on a bill like this but they won over the audience with their punk numbers. From the opening song “Damage” the pit was going wild; the band had to cut their set short due to a problem with the license and having to get IKTPQ onstage before everyone was kicked out. When the thumping intro to “Sharks in Your Mouth” started blasting through the PA, the crowd went wild and they knew it was on. IKTPQ came on stage and blew away all the haters and elitists with their polished take on European metalcore. New vocalist Ed Butcher had the whole audience eating out of the palm of his hand; IKTPQ is one of the best bands to watch in Australia, with guitarist Kevin spending most of the performance in the air. Only one older track (“When Goodbye Means Forever”) was thrown in, the set containing just material from new album “Music for the Recently Deceased”. This was the best gig I have ever been to and nothing will ever beat it. I give it 10 out of 10.
Kelly Joe Phelps
REPUBLIC BAR AND CAFÉ – 3/10/06 By Ian Murtagh
Springbreak 06 took a roaring turn last Saturday at Halo with the return of Tassie favourites Kid Kenobi & MC Shureshock, supported by our own homegrown breakbeat export Smithmonger. Breakbeat fans piled into a sold-out show, ready for some bassline destruction, clearly over the surprise of moving the concert from an expected banger at The Uni Bar with all the trimmings to Halo. Smithmonger kick-started the night, dropping the best supporting set these eyes have feasted on in some time. Rolling new-skool breakbeat tunes bounced off the walls as people packed the dancefloors, whilst Smithmonger seamlessly mixed in the dark and dirty to full effect. Smithmonger had the place pumping as Kid Kenobi leaped onto the decks. MC Shureshock, with his distinctive lyrical style, was a little more timid as Kid Kenobi played a heavier set; surprising the crowd before dropping a few funky favourites in. Kenobi showed his class as one of Australia’s best DJs, adding a refined touch to every song, clearly enjoying every minute. A sweaty and stinky dancefloor was jumping ‘till dawn, getting the most value for their pricey tickets. Kid Kenobi and MC Shureshock were consistently good and a welcome return to Hobart, but the night for me was made thanks to Smithmonger. A great night with both artists cementing their addition to what is proving to be the best Springbreak to date, as Halo continues to show its dedication to displaying the talents of the world’s greatest breakbeat DJs.
Hilltop Hoods
WREST POINT CASINO - 29/09/06 By Ryan Farrington
Just after an hour after the doors opened, the booming cackle of mighty Mystro resonated through the huge arenastyle venue, the crowd started cheering and it was on. An energetic Mystro jumped around the stage, bellowing lyrics from his latest EP “Music Mystro”, prepping the crowd for the eruption that was to come. I heard about this gig from a friend who reckoned this guy’s stuff was about as good as it gets. That’s a pretty mighty hunk of gauntlet to throw down.
By the end of his set, the crowd was well and truly gagging for the Hoods, as Mys left the stage with an “I’ll see you soon….”
After a little while in, you had to admit he really had something. Very folky, that’s gotten quite-neighbourly with blues.
Shortly after, DJ Reflux entered the stage and the crowd screamed and whistled as a slowed down version of the Hard Road echoed through the place.
He had nice touch on the guitar, you forget everything else going on watching him sing and play. It was nice and warm with a pint. I was surprised a few more people didn’t show up, but it was good being able to sit down and watch a show at the Republic for a change.
The curtains opened as the intro turned explosive with bass that sounded like the subs were about to crack.
He played a pretty tidy set spanning about five or six recordings he’s released and, like magic, everything he played sounded good. He just had to strum the thing and people cheered. It was really cool that the support for the evening, GB Balding, fitted the mould. There wasn’t any sense of interruption between the two acts, so it was like hearing the same style sung two different ways. We probably won’t see KJP much, as he’s based in the US, so it was rewarding to see such a gifted performer play on a good quite night where there weren’t a whole bunch of annoying talkers to wreck the music.
The boys came out and the crowd went ballistic as they went straight into “The Sentinel” from their album The Calling, which personally I thought was a bit of a downer for a first track. They didn’t play much from their earlier albums, but no one else seemed to mind as the entire crowd from front to back pumped their fists and responded to Pressure and Suffa’s urges to get rowdy. It was so rowdy that, from about 30 meters back from the stage, I (and I’m pretty tall) could just see the heads of the MC’s and the backdrop. Finishing with the Nosebleed Section and Hard Road, the boys came out after a short break with Mystro to play Obese Lowlifes and Dumb Enough. I’ve never been to an inside gig in Tasmania that has gone off as much as this.
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DVD Converge NO HEROES
The Dead Abigails The showy nature of the cover is no exaggeration; this is a showroom piece – the result of over a year’s efforts, and it’s superb. A lot can change in four years. I first saw the Abigails supporting Grinspoon in 2002, and frankly couldn’t stand them. Fast forward to the present, and a lot more has changed in the band than front-man Carl’s hairdo. They’ve become a band I’ll go out of my way to see live. So what changed? I guess I’ve realised what a lot of people, here and abroad, already knew – that in the genres they play in, they’re the best in the state. Carl has told me that this is a salute to their older material; after this, the slate will be wiped clean, and they’ll start a new chapter in the life of the band. It’s a fitting salute, to say the least. Opening with three songs filmed live in Sydney’s revered 301 Studios, they look and sound great; obviously a testament to the benefits of getting the right people for the job. If I had to suggest any improvement, it would be with the coverage of their live performance at the Annendale. While the light show is spectacularly vivid, it would have been good to get some long shots of the band before their audience, to really place them in the environment of the Annandale, as opposed to an anonymous stage. But I’ve had to try pretty hard to come up with any criticisms. It’s a case of being first time lucky for the boys’ first DVD effort. This is a solid release from a band that deserves every success, and I’m both confident and very proud to call them one of Tasmania’s finest musical acts. 9/10
Kidulthood Fifteen-year-old Trife (Aml Ameen) has a lot on his plate. Amid the violence and drugs of the West London underworld, he is at ends with his pregnant ex-girlfriend Alisa (Red Madrell), local bullies, and is being steadily drawn into the “business” of his ultra-violent uncle. After the suicide of a tormented classmate gives them the day off school, Trife and his crew see it as an opportunity to shop and get high in the lead-up to a party held at a student’s house. But the terror they wreak on shop owners and gangs is nothing compared to what will unfold when they get there… Like Larry Clark’s seminal “Kids”, this is a raw and relentless look at the destructive underbelly of today’s youth. Borrowing the narrow timeframe of that film, “Kidulthood” was originally written as an awareness piece; showing what life is really like for kids growing up in these areas. In that respect, it loses a lot of its relevance to international audiences. But in showing just what people that age can get up to, it will no doubt pack a punch with viewers outside Britain’s borders. Director Menhaj Huda gets incredible performances out of his young cast, particularly from Ameen and Madrell. And screenwriter Noel Clarke – who based much of the film off his own teenage experiences – plays a violent hoodlum with a brooding nastiness I haven’t seen since “Romper Stomper”. “Kidulthood” is a film that was almost never made, but I’m glad it was. Hopefully it will stand the test of time and, like “Kids” for the generation before it, be a truly effective means of opening the eyes of parents to what can happen when the worst instincts of urban teenagers go unchecked. 7.5/10 By Tom Wilson
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Jimmy Van M BALANCE
Converge are one of these bands that people love Thanks to Stomp we have another release added to or hate; there hasn’t ever been an in-between with the “BALANCE” series. Over the past years in the making and careful procrastination of particular them, which sucks. favourite tracks blended into a 3CD compilation, The long waited follow up to the 2004 album Jimmy Van M is proud to announce the 10th release “You Fail You” starts off where its previous work for “BALANCE”. finishes off; opening track “Heartache” rips you a new asshole (am I allow to say this?) and shows Jimmy was last seen in the land of Oz for the 25,000this band hasn’t settled down or let the haters person Millennium event in Melbourne. Since then he get to them. They don’t manage to do all of these has been touring in such events as the world-known all at once (I don’t think that would be possible), Northern Exposure Tour, Residency at Twilo, Delta but once the last few notes of “No Heroes” fade Heavy, Global Gathering, as well as the Creamfields out, my ears feel as though they have heard some Russia & Beunos Aires with a staggering crowd of material that is heavier than “Jane Doe”, and other 55,000. material that is proggier than “You Fail Me”. Starting with the “Downtempo Mix”, Jimmy takes you In doing this, Converge have made an album unlike though anonymous ups and downs of soundscapes any of their last four: rather than being focused and pads that seem to accentuate calm and on the album as a whole, it seems as though “No collective moods. It would be perfect for slowing your Heroes” focuses more on each song. pulse almost to a halt, or even meditating; featuring names such as The Egg, Depeche Mode, Autechre The result of this is that quite a few of the songs and fourteen other artists. burn themselves into your cerebellum very, very quickly (“No Heroes”, “Plagues”, “Grim Heart / Sixteen tracks, the “Midtempo Mix,” starts building Black Rose”, “Trophy Scars”, and “To The Lions” through a more progressive state, still featuring come to mind) and, while many song-oriented many pads and synths, yet with more of a backbone albums come off as incomplete and disjointed, of bass lines to make the mix more articulate. Trip“No Heroes” still works just as well as a full album hop and acoustic productions throughout feature as any of Converge’s previous works. I may have artists such as Aphex Twin, LCD Soundsystem, I: said this a few times before but this is certainly my Cube, Cocteau Twins and many more. album of 2006; fuck all the rest. 10/10 Review By Ryan Cooke “Uptempo Mix,” more prevailed as Jimmy’s more upto-date sets that he plays with a dark acidic blend with techno; a definite enjoyable mix with many great names thrown into the concoction of tunes.
Saosin
SELF TITLED Say-Oh-Sin. Say it with me now: Say-Oh-Sin, because you’re going to be hearing a lot more from these guys over in the next few months. Of course, if you’ve been on the scene at anytime in the past year or so, you have already heard a lot. The hype coming into their debut on major label, Capitol, was ridiculous to say the least. To me, it seemed undeserved. I was not getting that “next big thing” vibe from the EPs. In fact, I was bored with them. I was not buying into the bullshit hype, and was a little wary when I got this CD because I was not expecting to like this record very much, but the boys of Saosin surprised me. The song “Sleepers”, which probably my favorite track on the album, rushes right in with a pounding intro, complimented with a jittery, fast first verse that is complimented with a soaring, catchy chorus. The guitars work in tandem with Cove’s voice to make the song compelling and edgy. It continues on with the brilliantly paced “It’s so simple”, “Voices”, and “Finding Home”. Everything that Saosin does right is contained within the first five or six tracks of the album. They are catchy, dark, melodic, wellproduced, and well paced. The beginning of the CD does well to set a melancholy tone that doesn’t end until you hit the stop button. While listening, you doesn’t feel like you’re listening to any other band, you feel like you’re listening to Saosin. 7/10
Overall this is another milestone to the “BALANCE” series; very well thought-out and produced splendidly.
Squarepusher
HELLO EVERYTHING I’ve been a big fan of Squarepusher ever since I heard his fifth album “Music Is Rotted One Note”, back in ’99. I have to say I was a little disappointed at first with “Hello Everything”. It’s a really slow start, but eventually it gets there. Squarepusher is an accomplished bass player who chose electronic music as his medium. I think his father may have been a famous jazz drummer! The first track I ever heard was a funky cut up jazz track, using amazing samples, his own bass samples and the intensity was fantastic. The opening track on “Hello Everything’ sounds like cheesy ‘80’s computer game music, which is far less than I expected from the forerunner of IDM (Intelligent Dance Music). You’d have to be an IDM fan to appreciate this album, there’s not much here for anyone else. Track five is awesome though, it’s six minutes of one note through a filter, it slowly rises and falls, it’s intense and captivating if you have the patience and you’re already accustomed to this style of art. And it is art, as much as graffiti is, nerdy boys who figured out how to make they’re computers create the noises inside their own heads, completely self indulgent, but art none the less. Tracks ten and eleven are brilliant, all the intensity of his earlier tracks. What I used to love about Squrepusher is the bit that fucked with my head “Plotinus” and “The Modern Bass Guitar” have that. They push your boundaries and just as you reach out to turn the stereo off, it stops. Brilliant! 6/10 Review By Carl Fidler
8 ½ Spanking Monkeys out of 10 Review By Patrick Duke
The Drones GALA MILL
Deftones
SATURDAY NIGHT WRIST The fifth album from the pioneers of contemporary metal, “SNW” seems to be a chameleon; an album that tips its hat to all the diverse influences that have shaped the band’s sound. While the Deftones have remained enigmatically unclassifiable throughout much of their career – one of the few bands who never totally belong to any genre, even ones they pioneered – on “SNW” they ride much closer to the music that has inspired each member.
Opener “Hole in the Earth” is a crooning ballad playing out like Depeche Mode laid over vintage Sacramento rock. Elsewhere, the band take a trip into Faith No More territory with “Rats!”, the highlight of which is an eyebrow-raising nod to Sweden’s Meshuggah from guitarist Stefan Carpenter, in the form of a crushing, downtuned riff that could leave a hurricane shelter with a “condemned” sticker on its front door. And “Mein” - a duet with System Of A Down’s Serj Tankian – merges the talents of two vastly different singers over Muse-style guitar work; Tankian’s deep wailing an undercurrent to Chino’s breathless melodies. Possibly the strangest Review By Ryan Cooke track is “Pink Cellphone”; a spoken word track by Giant Drag’s Annie Hardy laid over a trip-hop beat – her smoky, almost erotic whispers detailing, oddly, the sexual habits of the British. In a weird way, it works.
The Drones have an unmistakably Australian edge to their sound and are every part their namesake. Classic dirty Australian rock. Think Nick Cave and Tex Perkins at the arse end of a long night at the Espy, a skinful of Bourbon and a few more murder ballads to go, playing to a motley crew of toothless swaggering drunks with a sweaty arm around their mate’s head and the other waving a Zippo. Don’t get me wrong though, I did like this album, but man it’s a heavy ride, one that Shane MacGowan would proudly leap off his wagon for. Gala Mill is deeply intense with a daunting blend of honesty and indifference. They’re not too picky with their playing, but it’s deliberately rough around the edges, for that rustic feel! What I liked most about this album was that it sounded instantly like a classic, it’s as comfortable as an old pair of shoes, and the scuff marks and caked on dirt only add to their appeal. The Drones have been around for ages and have released 4 albums, a best of and a host of vinyl singles, and it really shows. Gala Mill is the perfect sound track for getting trashed on boxy, having a laff and carving odd gashes into your arms before heading to the Towny for a few pints, or for getting stuck into the spring cleaning next time you get the house to yourself. Review by Carl Fidler
Trivium
The Deftones have been the soundtrack to my life for the last eight years; three of them spent waiting for this album. Now that it’s here, “SNW” has greeted me with the same mixture of aggression and heartbreaking Trivium is a polarizing band with legions of vulnerability that first wooed me on “Around The Fur” dedicated fans and a vocal group of haters. so long ago. Was it what I expected? Of course not; The Deftones don’t do predictable. And I wouldn’t have it Many say they are the modern day heirs to groups any other way. like Metallica, who have said they admire what Trivium is doing. With their third CD, Trivium 10/10 definitely pays homage to bands like Metallica and Review by Tom Wilson Megadeth.
THE CRUSADE
Unlike previous releases, which I could at least tolerate, this album doesn’t offer up much. On “The Crusade”, Trivium delves deep into thrash metal with scathing riffs and plenty of solos/ wankfest from guitarist Corey Beaulieu.
Tonite Only & Riot In Belgium MASHED III
The band also shows their love for 80s metal with a Have you heard of Fabric? Legendary for its CD series and parties, they have released the 30th couple songs in the hair/glam metal category. edition featuring Rub’n’Tug. Eric D and Thomas Don’t worry. If any of you out there were wondering AKA Rub’n’Tug met in LA and ever since have been about the same thing while listening to this album, pumping through the NYC underground scene. Hence you’re not alone. their Champagne-guzzling escapades and lock-in discos. They have certainly earned their reputation to Trivium has recently gained more fame than any be a little rambunctious and fun. metal band since the nu metal explosion of the mid-90s. “Ascendancy” has been hailed as the This CD brings the party out of them with a blend of greatest the New Wave of American Heavy Metal smooth synths, edgy bass-lines, catchy vocal hooks, has to offer, featuring technical thrashcore riffs organic punches, and less we not forget, addictive and solos, but real metal fans like me (wait for beats. It comes across on the light side of house/ the backlash) just isn’t interested in this anymore; electro with a touch of garage. Top track would be we’ve all heard it done before. “Discopolis” by Lifelike and Chris Menace; a definite bodied groove to this track. You want to hear a decent thrash album, go and listen to Metallica’s back catalogue. 4/10 5 monkeys out of 10 Review By Ryan Cooke
Review By Patrick Duke
Blindspott
END THE SILENCE Three years after their debut LP “Nil By Mouth”, New Zealand nu-metal troupe Blindspott break that silence with “1975”, a track which doesn’t really begin to impress until it reaches a soaring, Clint Boge-style chorus. Instrumentally, the downtuned guitar riffs are about as original as a three-dollar Rolex from a Balinese market, but still sound good enough to do their genre justice. Progressing through a series of eerie instrumental interludes – almost prerequisite in this genre, but nevertheless well done – “End The Silence” hits a number of peaks in the aggression level, most notably on the satisfying “For This Love”. “IV” is an interesting instrumental segue; calling to mind the sonic tangents of Refused’s “The Shape of Punk To Come” (“End The Silence” was actually produced by the same Swedish duo, Eskil Lovstrom and Pelle Henricsson). But, unfortunately, it’s just not enough. There’s something that bothers me about this kind of melody-heavy, pseudoheaviness. It’s not just Blindspott...and that’s the point – they sound like bands we’ve heard many times before. It’s a terrible thing when a band comes out and suddenly becomes the point of comparison for a swathe of other acts, who are quickly given the “imitator” tag and enjoyed only as an afterthought to the “original”. That point of comparison is The Butterfly Effect, and – whether they intend to or not – Blindspott sound on this record like imitators. And in today’s music world, that just isn’t good enough. 5.5/10
Review By Tom Wilson
The State Of The Scene According To Def Wish Cast AND THE LEGACY CONTINUES The majority of the pioneers of Australian hip-hop are still making tunes, but most are either still struggling to be heard due to staying with their original style or are cashing in by rearranging their style to cater to the commercial market. Def Wish Cast (the actual first Australian hiphop crew to release an album and film clip among many more milestones of the genre) have just released their new album “And the Legacy Continues”, and these guys are definitely keeping with their classic, b-boy style. Usually old-school hip-hop producers like to keep their stuff dirty and monotonous, but thankfully MC Sereck has decided to keep it clean and punchy, and even though he’s staying with his 808 drum machine and vinyl samples, he still manages to keep it quality. The flows keep evolving for these guys, who have said in the past that they like to keep it fresh and new for every release. My favourite track would have to be “AUS Down”, which combines some banging drums with rapid flows, perfect for the b-boys. The only real problem I see with this album is the constant reminder from each MC that they’re veterans of the scene (e.g. “back then…” etc) – so much so that it feels like the guys are a little confused as to whether they want to “take it back” or rapidly evolve. With collaborations with Dave Dog + Katch (Resin Dogs), Geoff Blunted, Mr. Sing, and Pac-D, Def Wish Cast seem to have kept to their roots and are still able to bash out a banging album fourteen years on. 8/10
By Ryan Farrington
Glue CATCH AS CATCH CAN Glue are an energetic, three-piece hip-hop group, consisting of members MC Adeem, Djdq and producer Maker. All three bear a very impressive list of achievements, and it becomes obvious just why that is as soon as tracks from their new album “Catch as Catch Can” start booming from your speakers. I wouldn’t say that what these guys are doing is at all revolutionary, but the combination of soulful samples, rusty drum loops and witty lyrics will always get my head nodding. Most of the tracks are fast-paced and breakbeat-like, with Adeem sporting a vocal presence that simply demands attention, but towards the end of the album, it all seems to mellow-out a little bit which is kind of nice.
Lily Allen seems like a fun-loving, girly girl turned very bitter, with lines like, “Riding through city on my bike all day ‘cos the filth took away my license” sung with innocent melodies.
8/10
By Ryan Farrington
Lily Allen ALRIGHT, STILL What can I say about this amazing vocalist that the rest of you haven’t already found out for yourselves? Well, I’ll just assume that you haven’t heard the entire “Alright, Still” album just yet, and that you’ve only heard Lily Allen’s huge hit “Smile” that has been all over the radio and TV over the last few months. The thing I love about this album is that the melodies (which are ridiculously catchy), the lyrics (which are very clever) and the music are so individual. There’s just so much flavour inside each track; anything from jumpy elevator-style melodies over punchy hip-hop beats to Beatlesstyle riffs matched with emotional piano, and it all fits so well. The majority of this album (lyrically) has Lily telling us of her broken relationships and plans of revenge towards her past lovers, but there are a few totally random tracks such as “Alfie”, which is a song about Lily’s frustration and ongoing feuds with her [allegedly] pot-smoking, unmotivated brother.
BY RYAN FARRINGTON
It always seems strange to me that record labels decide to put the best/feature song as track one on a CD; it just gives the rest of the CD a fair bit to live up to, but with this album it doesn’t particularly matter, as almost all of the songs are a pleasure to listen to. By Ryan Farrington
Muph & Plutonic SILENCE THE SIRENS To be honest, as much as I loved their previous album “Hunger Pains”, and the inspiration I got from the work Plutonic did on Pegz’s LP “Capricorn Cat”, “Silence the Sirens” (the new album by Muph and Plutonic) was kind of disappointing. It’s not that the album is at all bad; it’s just not something I’ve come to expect from such a talented and legendary Australian hip-hop duo. The entire album is riddled with funk, from the Commadores-style guitar riffs to the bangin’ drums we’ve come to expect from Plutonic. So this LP definitely has some very well composed beats and impressive, abstract lyrics; I just didn’t expect an album full of either “heaps good”-style crowd-pleasers or just very rushed, plain tracks. There are collaborations with Raph & BVA, Urthboy, Red Ghost, Ivens, Fatlip (of Pharcyde), DJ FX, Derm, Toroniks, Slap 618 and Pegz. I really felt “The Day Off”, on both the production side of things and the lyrical content, mainly because it feels like something new that we haven’t heard from these guys, or any other Australian hiphop acts for that matter. It seems like they left the best songs ‘til last, with my favourite tracks “Blinded” and “Pessimists like to Party Too!!” being close to the end of the CD. There’re no maybes about it; my perception of this project was definitely tainted by my love of their earlier work, and I’m not so keen on the “give the people what they want” way they’ve handled it. But I still really appreciate and enjoy what they’ve done in trying to keep it fresh. 8/10 Review by Ryan Farrington
“Hometown Anthem” is a cruisy little track with MC Adeem opening a page of his book for everyone to examine his past and how he grew into the world of MCing, linking the verses with a chant-style hook that gives me the impression they’d be great live. I really enjoyed most of this album and I honestly couldn’t pick a “best track” but for the best display of how balanced they are as a group, I’d say the title track “Catch as Catch Can” really shows us how good all three group members work together as a unit. If you like artists like Time Machine, J5 and Atmosphere, then I’d say this would be a great addition to your collection.
LYRICS BORN
True Live THE SHAPE OF IT This one really surprised me. Firstly, I think their widely marketed track “TV” was a bad representation of True Live as a group and when I heard it; it really left me with the impression that they were just another Cat Empire – a good live hip-hop group with nothing to offer lyrically. But shit, was I wrong. “The Shape of It” is an amazing album, filled with juicy drums, relevant raps and a beautifully smooth string section. RHyNO (the group’s vocalist and producer) has a hyped vocal presence that many Australian MCs attempt but rarely manage to pull of with any sense of seriousness or importance, but matched with Ludacris-style flows and well-worded lyrics based mainly on the state of the Australian music industry. This guy is impressive. “Carry Ya Self” sees True Live collaborating with Joelistics (of TZU) in a two-sided look at the inflamed egos of certain MCs who eventually fall under the title of sell-outs. With self-image being a more important factor for some acts than the actual music, it’s unusual to hear a group with integrity actually making their way up in the industry, but True Live seem to be doing just that. As well as plenty of party bangers, this album also has a lot to offer on the side of soft, emotional tracks such as “Evolution”, which focuses on RHyNO’s inner conflict between negative thoughts about his generation and simply trying to staying on top of things. I really struggled to find anything I didn’t like about this album, so if you’re a skeptic like I was, go and have a listen; I guarantee you won’t be sorry. 10/10 Review by Ryan Farrington
Are we losing underground hip-hop? Nas has proclaimed that “hip-hop is dead”, and revered MC Lyrics Born isn’t going to disagree. Is there any hope for America’s once-great underground scene? I found out from Born himself during the promo run of his first live album, “Overnight Encore”. The new album, “Overnight Encore – Lyrics Born Live”; as the name implies, it’s a live album. Why did you decide to do a live album rather than a studio? Well, the two aren’t mutually exclusive; I didn’t choose to do it instead of an album. The shows were recorded, and I always wanted to do a live album, just to keep it going until my next studio album comes out, you know what I mean? And I’ve always wanted to do one, because the artists that I always loved, always did live records. So I just felt like the time was right. It was a turning point in my career also, because I had gone exclusively with a DJ for almost ten years. Around 2004 was when I put the band together, and it was a much different feel than what we were doing with just a DJ, so I had to capture that. In Australia, we have a lot of gangsta and thug rap coming from the States on commercial channels, and we’re getting the impression that that’s the dominant form of hip-hop in the States. To what extent is that impression correct? It’s funny, because I don’t know if gangsta rap even exists anymore. It’s hard to describe right now – hip-hop in the States – but there’s definitely a harder kind of street style that does exist. I think there’s all kinds of hip-hop right now; mainstream radio, at least in this country, doesn’t really reflect that. But hip-hop is more diverse than it’s ever been. You’d be hard pressed to find five people that agree on what hip-hop is at this moment. Nas has just proclaimed that “hip-hop is dead”. It doesn’t seem like people are looking for it in the right places. I think that’s part of it. I think that clearly, underground hip-hop is dying a slow death, without a doubt. And I think it’s because there’s just no new blood. When I was a kid and I was growing up, I wanted to be like Rakim, or I wanted to be like Ice Cube. Now, kids want to be 50 Cent. It’s just a different world that we live in. So what was considered underground hip-hop, that’s certainly dying a slow death. Crunk is doing well. New York stuff…it’s been kind of in and out. But it’s funny; there’s so much out there now, and it differs so much regionally. No one style is dominating. The southern stuff is doing real well, but it still doesn’t have a hundred percent of the market share, because it’s so diverse. There’s so much stuff out there right now.
“
Underground hip-hop is dying a slow death, without a doubt.
”
Growing up with Rakim and P.E. and stuff like that, how did you style develop, in contrast to the gangster stuff that started coming out around ’95? It just develops concurrently, you know what I mean? At that time, both scenes were flourishing. Tribe Called Quest, all that stuff was really big. But on the other side you have Dr. Dre and things like that. They were all really big too. They both grew to their respective sizes, but one of them died out, or is starting to die out. At least on major labels it died out; you’ll still find a lot of that stuff on indie labels. But I think, as far as major labels are concerned – especially now – they’re only interested in really safe stuff that’s radio playable. There’s a lot of humour in your rhymes. What are you finding funny these days? (Laughs) It’s kind of a hard question to answer. I’m still who I am, you know? I just don’t think I take myself that seriously. I take my work seriously, but I’m not infallible. Life is very difficult in a lot of ways, and I think you need that humour to alleviate some of the pressure. If gangsta rap is telling the gangsters’ stories, whose stories are you telling? Who do you represent? I just tell human stories, you know what I mean? To me, it doesn’t really matter what kind of music you’re making, or what you look like, or who’s making it; to me, it’s really just if it’s good or not. Is it good, or is it bad? I really don’t look at it any other way. The thing you’ve got to understand is, all these genres and sub-genres that people put names on, over time, the names just change. I really don’t get caught up in all the little boxes and divisions that people put on the music, you know? If I told you the number of different names that my music has been named over the past years, you’d probably trip out. Everything from “East Coast”, “West Coast”, “avantgarde”, “trip-hop”, “underground”, “backpacker”, “commercial”, “alternative”… None of those terms even exist anymore, and I’m still here. I just try to make music that’s representative of who I am – and as for who I am, I don’t really think about it that much. “Overnight Encore – Lyrics Born Live” is out now. He plays Hobart’s Uni Bar on Sat Nov 25.
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The sky is the limit with
ASTRONOMY CLASS BY RYAN FARRINGTON
Good things always seem to come in threes. Think about it. The Three Musketeers... triplets... menage a trois... And now, the new trio made up of Ozi Batla, Sir Robbo and Chasm - “Astronomy Class”. Their debut album, “Exit Strategy”, is a hook-laden hip-hop record anchored in resinous dub and reggae; a sound which is set to fill Hobart’s Halo on the trio’s Tasmanian visit. Altrueism’s Ryan Farrington spoke to Chasm about the album, and the mechanics of their live performance. So tell us a bit about how you got started? Probably would have been about a year and a half ago. Basically it was just me and Robbo; we’d been friends for a while, and we’d been talking about making beats for a while. Eventually we hooked up, and just started. It was pretty informal, you know? Just hanging out, and started making some beats together. Batla was around at some stage; he heard what we were doing, and was keen to jump on it. So how do you and Sir Robbo work? Do you pass beats back and forth, or do you have your own studio? We basically just collab together at my place, in a little home studio that we’ve got here. So most of the beats just come from jamming on loops and chopping stuff up together. We do the beats together most of the time. Sometimes, one of us will have a loop, or one of us will put down some drums first, and then the other one will bring the other elements to it. But most of the stuff on the album, we just jammed on together. I was also wondering how you guys handle live shows; do you use mp3s and things like that?
Yeah. For the live show, we’ve got Ozi and The Tongue – he’s just released his first LP on Elefant Trax – and he’s on stage as well, doing all of Batla’s backups. Me and Robbo are rocking two mp3s and a space echo, a tape delay; we run the beats off one of them, and the other mp3’s triggering different samples, and effecting them with the reverb and delays and stuff. Elefant Trax has really blossomed this year, with The Herd’s success, and The Tongue – and now you guys on the frontline. You must be eager to get on the national tour. Yeah, man; I can’t wait. We’re all super-keen to get out and rock some shows in different parts of the
“
I don’t know what makes us “different”…
”
country, you know? I’ve never been down to Hobart, so I’m keen to go there and check it out. We’re all keen to get out of the studio, and do the other side of it.
other Oz hip-hop acts? I don’t know what makes us “different”… Everyone’s going to have their own take on it. There’s three of us involved, and the bass player plays bass on the whole album. I guess in that sense it’s like, we’re all bringing different elements to it, so it’s going to be different in that sense. And it’s all pretty much live off the mp3s; it’s a pretty live show, not just a CD-R burn. Astronomy Class plays Hobart’s Halo on the 18th of November, with The Tongue and DJ Diaz
What do you think makes you guys different to any
One half of the fabulous fraternity ...
Don’t Like The Track? Don’t Tell
MATT STAFFORD
SPENCER PARKER
BY PATRICK DUKE
BY DAVE WILLIAMS In the very little spare time you get what’s your favourite things you enjoy besides DJing and partying? To be honest, DJing and partying are some of our favourite things! But I guess surfing, and rugby would be right up there. [We’re] trying to stay healthy, as the weekends aren’t helping! From your last Wild Summer Tour, whilst playing at Sirocco’s in Burnie, you guys got a little pearshaped and drank the most extreme amount of shooters. Was that your most inebriated moment of the tour ? We are sort of known for our drinking capabilities! That show in Burnie was definitely one of the
“ CHRIS AND MATT STAFFORD
To their mum, they’re known as Matt and Chris. But to the house-loving dancefloors of Australia and abroad, they are known simply as “The Stafford Brothers”. Having trotted the globe earlier this year, the hard drinking, hard spinning boys are back home where they belong, and – as the DJ lucky enough to support them twice – there was no one better qualified for this interview with Matt than our own Patty Duke. You have a new “Wild Summer ‘07” album coming out - tell us about it. We mixed one of the discs. We had quite a bit of freedom with it, and were able to select and get some really great tunes. It’s a house mix featuring plenty of big tunes and some that will be. Your most recent productions such as “Perfect” by Princess Superstar and “Round & Round” By Static Revenger. What is the most exciting part of remixing? We really enjoy remixing tracks; we do a lot of remix work with our friend Don Nadi, who is also based where we live. I guess the most exciting thing is if you get a great vocal like in “Perfect”, you feel like you are making a whole new track. We also love to see the responses when we play our mixes out.
PAGE 22
Chris stage-dived with a tea towel on his head and was carried around by the crowd”…
”
highlights of the tour, especially when Chris stagedived with a tea towel on his head and was carried around by the crowd. Who would have to be your favourite DJs to tour with ? Well Andy Murphy from Melbourne was with us on a Bali tour which was unreal, and very loose! To be honest, the people you get to meet and the resident DJs in each town are always the best to hang with as they have the place sorted and know all the best spots and how much you can get away with. What’s your best advice for bedroom DJs/ producers trying to get their name into the dance music industry? Practice and have a good time. We are all about having a good time. I get very tired of hearing people say, “I am over this” or “over that”; if you are over it, then stop, and do something you love.
Ahead of his DJ set at Syrup in Hobart, UK DJ Spencer Parker spoke to me about when a set goes right...and when it goes very, very wrong. To what extent was it a dream come true for your debut production, “Open Your Eyes”, to do so well? Well, I was definitely surprised by its success, yes. It was my first foray into production and although I was very proud of it, I never dreamed it would have the impact it did and gain support from names like Pete Tong, Tiefschwarz, X Press 2 etc. What were the trends in dance music over the European summer? I can only really comment on the house scene, but within that, the minimal sound is still very popular all over Europe, along with the many different strains of electro. But I think this year definitely saw the return of quality techno with tracks like Audion’s “Mouth to Mouth” and Gabriel Ananda’s “Doppelwhipper” being two of the biggest tracks of this year’s Ibiza season. What makes a great gig for you? A few simple, but very important elements I guess. A good sound system, good DJ booth set up and, most importantly, an open-minded crowd that is interested to hear good new music...and wants to party hard, of course! Traveling the world, playing the music you love must be great, but there must be some downsides – what are they? It’s not always quite as glamorous as it sounds, I had one bout of food poisoning followed by four different flights in a row, each with a six hour stopover, in order to get back to play in Ibiza once – not fun! Other situations that spring to mind include a six hour high-speed car journey through the middle of freezing Russia in a very old, rattling car to make a flight to Switzerland. And of course, I’ve missed too many family birthdays/weddings/ anniversaries to count. But I’ve folded the jumpers in Marks and Spencer’s and stacked the shelves in Sainsbury’s, so I’m always fully aware and happy to be doing what I do!
So what do you enjoy most about Tassie? (The weather? Just Kidding) We have been to Tassie twice now, this will be our third trip and I can honestly say I have loved it both times. I am really looking forward to catching up with the people that we have got to know from the last two times, so it would have to be the people.
What’s the most stupid thing you’ve ever seen/ heard a DJ do? Too many to mention! I’ve always found that a massive amount of drink/drugs before or while playing is probably not the smartest idea. It’s just like driving…and I’ve heard a few people crash!
The Stafford Brothers play Curly’s Bar in Hobart on the 1st of December and Launceston’s James Hotel on the 2nd.
What’s the stupidest thing you’ve ever done? Probably the one and only time I asked my drunk sister to watch the DJ booth while I went to use
the bathroom. I came back after two minutes to find a silent room and a crowd of people staring at my sister who was on the verge of tears. Turned out she was showing off to her friends and had “pretended
“
Turn this sh*t off and put some hip hop on…
”
to scratch” while I was out the room, hit the needle with her hand and knocked it off! You can choose your friends… What could we do for you, on the night you play down here, to make you feel at home? Just gimme a bottle of vodka when I finish my set and I’ll be your friend for life. Oh yeah, and no “pretend scratching” if I take a quick toilet break! If there’s something you cringe at, or that you wouldn’t want when you play here, what would that be? I’m a pretty laid back individual but drunk girls asking me to “turn this shit off and put some hip hop on” never goes down particularly well with me. Spencer Parker plays Syrup on November 25th. Check him out online at www.myspace.com/ spencerparker and www.icametoparty.com
Thespian...DJ...
The Electro-house royalty of
GOLDIE
KING ROC
BY PATRICK DUKE
BY DAVE WILLIAMS
Electro-house DJ/producer King Roc isn’t going to lie; being a globe-trotting electronic artist isn’t all about coke and hookers. As I found out, manning the decks of the global dance music league takes determination, hard work...and a hell of a lot of PSP batteries...
techno than house these days. I just call it electro tech as it sits between electro house and out-and-out techno. All I know is I keep hearing so much good new music I just cant believe it. It seems to me that dance music is just getting better all the time. What’s been the highlight of your career, so far? Well, coming to Australia is definitely up there, but
“
I Remixing New Order’s “True Faith” was quite a buzz
”
in terms of tunes, remixing New Order’s “True Faith” was quite a buzz. When I was asked to do it I wasn’t told which track it would be, and the CD with the parts didn’t have it written on either. I only clocked it was one of their best tracks when I heard the vocals. Then I was like… “Oh shit…don’t want to mess this one up.” I was happy with the way it turned out.
To what extent do you think the recent rise in the popularity of electro is linked to advances in digital audio hardware and software? That’s an interesting one... ...It definitely has opened up a lot of opportunities for people to have a go a writing who would not normally have been able to afford it. It used to be the case where you would need between £5,000 and £10,000 to get a studio going. Now you just need a decent computer and a few bits of software. I think it is a good thing overall as it doesn’t limit peoples creativity to the size of their bank balance. What’s happening in the electro-house scene in the UK? Going up, going down, or just around? It’s definitely evolving…or that might just be my taste changing. But, to me, the new sound is more
What’s been the lowlight? There is no major lowlight, but sitting in airports for what seems like half the time that I am away DJing for isn’t the most rock-n-roll thing in the world. When you tell people you DJ, I think they have this impression of a completely glamorous lifestyle. And it can be that, but there is also a fair bit of time on your own, just traveling. As a result I am a walking electronic gadget shop, with my DVD player, PSP games player and my iPod. Anything to pass the time. What aspect of your career is turning you on the most at the moment, and why? I am just happy to be out there DJing and feel lucky that I get to spend all week in the studio writing tunes. It really is a great job and I still feel I have so far to go with it, so the road is long and good. I am about to start writing an album and I have been waiting to do this for a while, so I am looking forward to getting my teeth into that. King Roc plays Hobart’s Syrup on Friday the 3rd of November.
Training Up To Join The
ELITE FORCE
BY PATRICK DUKE
what’s required to have the desired effect. What’s your most memorable moment whilst gigging around the globe?
He may already be hailed as one of the most influential and charismatic forces of the hardcore/jungle scene, but Goldie has got a lot more up his sleeve where that came from. An accomplished veteran of film – having worked with everyone from Guy “Lock, Stock...” Ritchie to James Bond – it’s clear to us at SAUCE that we’ll never be totally sure where he’s going to pop up next. But we’re pretty certain he’s hitting Halo this month, so we asked Patty Duke to investigate. So tell us about “Sine Tempus”; explain what that we should be keeping our eyes and ears peeled for. It’s the soundtrack to a film I’ve been writing for the last six years. I can’t tell you when it will be out quite yet. So your gonna have to keep your eyes and ears peeled.
music has always been a very natural experience, whoever I’ve worked with.
Do you have any other tracks or albums in the
“
I’ve been working on [my album] since I broke my leg
”
making that you’re excited to tell us about? Like I said before, I’ve just made a Rufige Kru album which will be out in March, and that’s taken up most of my time for the last six months.
Now you’re definitely known for more than just DJing – have you any other prospects ahead of you that you’re looking forward to? Well the film is a major project I just want to get straight. It’s taken a long time to get it to a point where I’m happy that the story is told right. It’s just a lot of tweaking needed. Also I have a album out in March under my Rufige Kru guise which I’m really buzzing about. I’ve been working on it since I broke my leg in March this year and it’s now finished.
Now for the Digital or Analog question? Hardware or Software? What’s your preference and why? I’m not really bothered. It’s just about getting the best sound out whatever kit you use.
Have you got any big shows ahead of you that we should know about? Well, I’m coming to Australia and New Zealand in November/December, then onto Japan. [They’re] three countries where I always know people will be up for having a good time and respect good music. Then in the New Year I have lots of touring coming to promote the Rufige kru album.
What’s your favourite and worst gig that you remember? That’s a hard one. In the last year I would say... Favourite gig – Metalheadz @ Herbal, London – May 2006 – It was DJ Bailey’s birthday and the place was going mental and I mean metal. Very special night and won’t be forgotten. Worst – Norwich, UK – All I’m gonna say is this – “absolute silence”.
Whilst producing tracks, what’s your favourite technique? I just love it all. Getting on the keyboard and making riffs though is something I do love to do. Making
Goldie plays Hobart’s November 29th.
PAGE 24
“ Film/video game music maestro and frontman for electro punk act Lunatic Calm, he he has just released his long-awaited artist album “Modern: Primitive”. And so, on the no man’s land of SAUCE’s pages, the battle lines were drawn, and Patrick Duke went DJ-to-DJ with the Elite Force...
I get an awful lot of people sending stuff through that they say is either a rough or 99% finished. Why on earth would you send someone a work in progress?
How long has your latest release been in-themaking? The album? Well it was longer in the planning than in the execution. I guess it took about three months of concerted studio time, and about six months of thinking about what I wanted to achieve.
There have been many, many highlights. In a lot of ways the most special moments are the ones when you visit a country that’s just starting to get to grips with club culture for the first time – you feel like you’re doing something edgy and subversive, and so do they!
And what is your favourite feature of the album? I think its greatest strength is how it works as a whole, which I’m particularly pleased about as that was the main aim behind it.
What’s the worst moment whilst gigging? Apart from the countless disasters that dog any DJ’s career, playing at Glastonbury in 2004 whilst the England Football team were playing and being watched by just about every one of the 100,000 other people on the site at the time. Gutted.
Is there any piece of gear you love using the most in producing your tracks? Not really, no. It’s just about getting what you want out of the equipment.
Your best advice for bedroom producers, DJs, painters, writers and actors out there trying to become successful in their passion? Be true to yourself. Know one can tell you anything if you have been true to yourself.
Halo
on
Wednesday
When producing, what’s your favourite technique? Strange question really. I don’t think it’s that beneficial to think in those terms when you’re creating something. You just use what you need when you need it. Are you into hardware or software ? What’s most important? I use both and can’t see a time when that wouldn’t be the case. Both are completely integrated with one another, and nowadays with software developers putting out hardware to accompany their designs (Legacy, NI Kore etc..) and hardware developers are integrating software into their design (like the Virus TI), it has become a redundant “debate”. Analog Vs. Digital? Which do you prefer and why? That’s a bit like asking whether you prefer the colour blue to the taste of potatoes! Again, the lines have really become blurred on subjects like this, and there’s no clear-cut answer. You just use
”
What’s your advice on how to use the Internet to promote your music? Be organised, work hard and be ready. If you’re mailing out links to tracks that you’ve finished, be sure they’re finished and you will stand 100% behind them…and don’t send them with any sense of apology. I get an awful lot of people sending stuff through that they say is either a rough or 99% finished. Why on earth would you send someone a work in progress? It’s like going to a restaurant and being given a bunch of raw ingredients. Besides producing and Djing, what’s your most preferred activity? Gardening, skiing, running & walking my dogs. Anything that avoids crowds, really. Indeed! Elite Force plays Hobart’s Halo on Friday the 17th of November. “Modern:Primitive” is out now.
Truly Conscious Dance Music With
MALENTE BY DAVE WILLIAMS
The music of Germany’s Malente is as upbeat and positive as the pastel hues of his website suggest. But there’s more to this DJ/producer than just happy, party vibes; he wants us to question ourselves as much as he wants us to dance, as I found out… Whe n yo u we re p re p ari n g to make yo u r n ew CD, di d yo u h ave a n ove ral l co n ce pt th at was g o i n g t o s h ap e eve r y th i n g ? Ye ah , k i n d o f. I w a nted to make a dif feren t al bu m , w i t h a di f fe ren t appro ach . S o I w a i t e d u n t i l I h ad a go o d idea, an d th e i d e a th i s ti m e w a s no t o n ly to do a M alen te d an c e a l bu m , bu t a ls o to h ave a dif feren t ap pr o a ch t o da n c e mu s ic in gen eral. The re i s n o re a l “ fe el” beh in d dan ce mu s ic; i t d o e s n’ t te l l a ny t hin g. I th o u g h t, “ Wh y n o t us e t h e ch a n n e l , an d s ay s o meth in g with d an c e mu s i c ? ” A t t he s ame time as aimin g at t h e da n c e f l o o r, g ive peo ple s o meth in g to t hi n k ab o u t. So i t b ecame a bit mo re o f a p ol it i c a l a l bu m , bu t n o t really h eavy, like a si nge r- s o n g w r i te r s ty le. S o wa s t h e ove ra l l c o n c e p t t o m a ke a p oli ti c a l a l bu m ? Are yo u a s k i n g m e wh y I did th at? Yes. Be ca u s e I h ave a po litical o pin io n , an d I t hi n k p e o pl e s h o u ld h ave a po in t-o f -view. [ They s h o u l d] h ave a s tan dpo in t, an d s tan d up fo r wh a t t h ey w an t to do. They s h o u l d k n ow wh at th ey w an t. S o me p e op l e d o n’ t eve n c are, an d do n’ t even th in k, “ Wh a t do I w a n t ? ” Bu t I th in k it is impo r tan t for pe o p l e t o ge t a n idea o f what is go o d fo r t he m . So th ey h ave to th in k abo u t wh at is of fe re d i n s o c i e t y, o r in po litics ; “ Wh at can I d o ? ” “ Wh a t do I w a n t to do ?” What a re th e th i n gs th at yo u wan te d to s ay ?
I didn’ t w a nt to say m essa ges with conte nt already. I w a nte d people to think. So my mes s a ge s a re like, “Wha t a re you doing n ow?” Like the tra ck , “For The Revo lution”, fo r exa m ple. There’s a guy I’ m te lling a s to r y from tha t point- of- view; he ’s not rea lly s atis f ied, but he tends to drink bee r whe n h e’s not sa tisfie d. I w a n t e d t o s h ow t h e p e o p l e h ow t h e i r s i t u a t i o n i s , o r h o w my s i t u a t i o n i s
“
Some people don’t really want control.
”
s o m e t i m e s. . . [ Pa u s e ] I l o s t my t ra i n o f th o u g ht. . . Yo u ’ re saying; ta ke som e a ction. Ta ke som e co n trol. Is that r ight? S o me pe ople don’ t rea lly w a nt control. But t h ey s h o u l d t h i n k o f wha t s i t u a t i o n t h ey a re in , and wha t’s ha ppening a round the m . I th in k tha t it would m a ke it ea sie r, so they h ave a position to ta lk. Yo u r s i g n a t u re s o u n d – wh e t h e r yo u ’ re de al i ng with politica l things, or just electro – i s a n upbeat, pa r ty kind of sound. Have yo u thought a bout doing m ore da rk, dir ty stu f f ? N o, I haven’ t rea lly thought about it, beca use ever y body e lse does. Why should I? Ma le nte, fo r me, is a ver y positive thing. I love life, a nd I love the positive side of life. A ls o, when I DJ, I don’ t like to play too da rk and too scar y; I like the positive, par ty life. Th at’s wha t Ma lente sta nds for to m e. M ay be if I produce som ething else with an o th er project na m e, I m ight do som e thing mo re da rk . But it’s not my style.
Be a revolutionary in rock.Train for your rebellion. Conservatorium of Music. Start today – call 1300 363 864.
“ How C a n You Still Sta nd To Sta nd Still” i s o n e of the m ost dif ficult-to-pronounce al bu m titles of a ll tim e, a nd it’s out now.
www.utas.edu.au
Sat 11th Nov Poxy Music live(Syd) + Ken Cloud dj set(Syd)
Friday 17th Nov Elite Force (UK)
Cost $10 @ the door
Tix $25 inc gst + b/f from Ruffcut or Centertainment. Doorsales $35 (if available)
Friday 24th Nov Steve Hill (Syd) Cost $18 presale + BF, more on the door. Tickets available from Centretainment and Ruffcut Records
Saturday 25th Nov GIMME SOME MORE! Afterparty feat. Nick Toth(Syd) Free Entry with GIMME SOME MORE! afterparty ticket.
Saturday 18th Nov Astronomy Class (feat. Ozi Battla & The Tounge)(Syd) $12 door sales
W Wednesday 29th Nov Goldie + MC Lowqui G (Metalheadz UK) M Tickets i Presale $20 + bf Doorsales $30 Tickets i available from Ruffcut u Records
Halo - Purdys Mart (Off Collins St)
PAGE 25
TOURING ARTISTS
PENDULUM
NICK TOTH
PIGEON JOHN
Pendulum: formed mid 2002 by three musicians from Western Australia with similar visions and musical backgrounds. Their mission was to pull together their production resources, ideas and influences from various styles of music to create a new sound that they felt was missing from dance music.
Nick purchased his first set of 1200s at the age of sixteen, inspired by DMC World Champion Cash Money and the rising hip-hop phenomenon in Europe.
Pigeon John hails from sunny Southern California – Inglewood to be exact. It’s easy to assume his signature blend of wit, charisma and undeniable stage presence is a fortunate gift (and it is), but let’s be real. Everyone starts somewhere. Pigeon John cut his teeth in the early 90s at the legendary Good Life Café, spitting rhymes on the same stage with then fledgling, now established artists like Freestyle Fellowship, Kurupt, The Pharcyde and Jurassic 5.
Intelligent dance floor music: that could tear a dance floor apart at the seams yet still have a deep longlasting impact on enthusiasts. 2005 saw Pendulum release their debut artist LP “Hold Your Colour” on Breakbeat Kaos, a project that the UK’s mainstream magazines are already calling “the one to watch” (Mixmag 2004) Prior to this their next release on BreakBeat Kaos, “BBK004”, a remix of the Digital Nation classic “Submarines”; was tipped as the anthem of the 2004 Winter Music Conference in Miami. In the brief two years that the Pendulum collaboration has been formed; the group have turned the drum&bass world on its head, whilst opening the eyes and ears of thousands to their Australian beats. Pendulum play Lonnies Niteclub on the 7th of December, and Hobart’s Halo on the 8th.
After DJing and working with a hip-hop crew in his native Austria, Nick packed up his turntables and relocated to the sunny shores of Australia a decade ago, where he has been heavily involved with the local hip-hop community and club culture as a DJ (MetaBass, Littlehorse, MC Trey), producer, promoter (StepForward!, Boogie Down, Make It Clap!), radio host (2SER, FBi, ABC, etc) and music workshop tutor. Further to this, his quality and popularity has seen him play to massive festival crowds at Big Day Out, Good Vibrations, Vibes On A Summer Day, Field Day, Apollo, Happy Valley, Glenworth Valley, Pyramid Rock and Gatecrasher. Nick Toth plays with Pigeon John and Lyrics Born at the Hobart Uni Bar on the 25th of November, and the afterparty at Halo later that night.
In 2002, Pigeon John released his solo debut “Pigeon John… Is Clueless”, selling over 11,000 copies with no distribution. He followed up with “Pigeon John… Is Dating Your Sister” and “Pigeon John… Sings The Blues”. The albums garnered significant praise landing him features in Spin’s “Next Big Things” issue, URB’s “Next 100” and Mic Check in The Source. PJ’s infectious tunes have been used by XBOX for the games “Project Gotham” and “NBA Inside Drive 2002,” as well as the major motion picture “Get Over It.” Pigeon John plays “Gimmie Some More” with Lyrics Born and Nick Toth at the Hobart Uni Bar on the 25th of November
POXY MUSIC
Poxymusic is a collaboration which began in late 2001, between the Sydney-based DJ Ken Cloud and veteran producer Pocket AKA Sameer Sengupta, an experienced DJ in and outside of Australia for the past ten years. Ken has also been a part of production outfit “Dillon Street Rangers” on Sydney’s own Thunk Recordings, while also being a core member of the towns “Mad Racket” events. Sameer has been writing and producing music under several guises for a decade; firstly with seminal Sydney dance music label, Volition Records. His next stop was with Thunk, where he’s released several EPs under his native “Pocket” name, while also releasing under several others including “Geographic” and “August”. If you looked up the word “poxy” in the Australian Concise Oxford Dictionary, you’d find the colloquial definition as “...of poor quality, worthless”. Thankfully, this was not where the inspiration for the name Poxymusic came from. Instead it’s an abbreviated amalgamation of Sengupta’s production alias, Pocket and his studio partner Ken Cloud’s name. Poxymusic plays Hobart’s Halo on Saturday 11th November.
DJ MK
MUPH AND PLUTONIC
As an MC, Muph has proved himself a consummate all-rounder. Often labeled as Australia’s most honest MC, Muph’s reflective and conscious songwriting continue to delve into uplifting and inspiring topics, often featuring an honest and humbled approach to all areas of life. He has recently been working on numerous guest feature projects with Hilltop Hoods, Mystro and Hermitude and his twelve-year career has seen him collaborate with Australia’s most respected beat craftsmen. One of the most revered producers in Australian hip-hop and dubbed “The One-Man Band” by media, Plutonic Lab needs no introduction to music lovers. He has produced for numerous artists who include international and Australian acts and has had tracks on over thirty albums/singles/compilations on a variety of labels. Muph & Plutonic play Hobart’s Republic Bar on November 2nd, and the Falls Festival.
HOST OF ABC TV’S THE GLASS HOUSE A BRAND NEW HOUR OF STAND UP
WIL ANDERSON WIL COMMUNICATION ‘Wound up tighter than a spring and barely pausing for breath, Wil Anderson is manic, likeable, passionate’ The Age
ON TOUR IN TASMANIA! Devonport Entertainment Centre Wed 8 November, 7.30pm Bookings 6420 2900
DJ MK is one of the UK’s leading hip hop DJs. He has been a favourite on the club scene for the last ten years, displaying his turntable dexterity up and down the UK and throughout Europe, Australia and the United States. What sets MK apart from many of his peers is his ability to rock a crowd wherever he plays, be it London’s Ministry Of Sound, an Underground UK hip hop jam, Pacha in Ibiza or an Arctic Monkeys after-party. MK was the first UK DJ to release regular, well-packaged hip hop mixtapes at a time when no other DJ was doing so. These mix tapes earned him his props and a slot on the Capital rap show with Tim Westwood from ‘93 to ‘95. His mixtapes are now sold all over the world. The man has done it all from providing cuts on various tracks for the likes of Roots Manuva, Dido, Jehst, Skitz and Lewis Parker to promoting London’s premier hip hop jams (The Hop and Live & Direct).
Burnie Town Hall Thu 9 November, 7.30pm Bookings 6430 5850 Launceston, Princess Theatre Fri 10 November, 7.30pm Bookings 6323 3666 Hobart, Theatre Royal Sat 11 November, 7.30pm Bookings 6233 2299
MK held down one of the most popular shows on London based Hip Hop station Itch FM for four years before being headhunted by Kiss 100 FM. He joined the station in May 2004, initially hosting their Thursday night Hip Hop show alongside DJ Skully.
www.wilanderson.com.au
MK plays Curly’s Bar in Hobart on the 2nd of November.
PAGE 27
TEKKEN: DARK RESSURECTION PSP BY CHRIS RATTRAY
and everything looks fantastic on the PSP’s hi-def screen – even better than “Tekken 5” on my 32” LCD TV!
The best thing and worst thing about this gig is the regular supply of games that get sent to me for review. Nothing brings this conundrum into sharper focus than “Tekken: Dark Resurrection”. It’s great because there’s always something new to play, and it’s awful because I have to stop playing in order to pump out a review! If you enjoy a good beating as I do, especially ones you don’t have to pay an exorbitant hourly rate for, then you’ll get a kick (probably to the temple with a stilettoed heel) out of this latest incarnation of Namco’s venerable 3D fighting franchise. The PSP version is ostensibly a port of last year’s “Tekken 5”, but adds some extra characters and modes. Again, it’s time for The King of Iron Fist Tournament and a roster of thirty-two characters – including oddities such as a kangaroo, a panda, and a military cyborg – are determined to fight it out for various reasons too far-fetched and silly to go into here. They are joined by two new additions to the franchise; Lili (a “rich girl from Monaco”) and Sergei Dragunov (a “human weapon”). I didn’t play much of the latter, preferring instead to spend my time exploring Lili, who obviously has a great personality. She dances about her opponents in a fetching white skirt; her blonde hair slinking about as she delivers sadistic blows to the face and knees to the groin. The environments and arenas have been given a facelift
If you don’t have “Tekken 5”, but do own a PSP, this is one of, if not the best game available for Sony’s portable system yet. “Dark Resurrection” shows off the PSP’s capabilities with sumptuous graphics, a meaty soundtrack, suitably bone-crunching sound effects, and multi-layered gameplay. A novice can pick it up and button-mash their way to victory, but mastering every character will reward you with epic matches against similarly skilled opponents. If you don’t have any immediate human opponents, try showing your friends this game. “Tekken: Dark Resurrection” could very well be the reason they buy a PSP, assuring mutual furtive beat-offs for many months to come. 4.5 mutant undead cybernetic alien Japanese swordsmen out of 5.
BY JIMMY MCMACKEN
his ever-growing list of sponsors. After a two year drought, Hobart finally had a skate comp. This was a huge day with plenty of Hobart bands playing to keep the non-skaters interested, and plenty of skating for everyone else. The competition was tight all day and it was only the most consistent who made it past the heats and into the finals. The finals was a five-minute heat, with six of Tassie’s best going head-to-head in a jam format that had to be seen to be believed. In the end it was Laif Johanason 3rd (with tech tricks and rail skills);Tom Field took 2nd (fast and furious all day – always the bridesmaid, never the bride). But to the victor go the spoils, and this day belonged to Anthony “Strawbs” Broadberry. This was an awesome day, and a big shout-out must go to everyone involved. The day wouldn’t have happend without Damo, Azza and Dragon Inc., The Hobart City council, Jimmy Skate and Street for supplying the prizes, and Ruffcut Records and Disconnect Records for supplying the music. Big props to everyone involved (sorry if I forgot you) and let’s hope this is the first of many.
First up, there’s a new mini ramp that has been built in Burnie. This was the site for some demos, breakdancing and painting a few weeks ago, and from all reports a great time was had by all and the ramp is sick. In further Burnie news, the old bitumen skatepark there has been torn down, but don’t fret; a bigger, better one is set to replace it. In not so positive news, the rumour is that the Devonport bowl is set to be filled in. This is a Tassie landmark (I learned to skate there for god’s sake) and it will be a great tragedy if this happens. Devonport skaters unite! Another rumour of a legendary Tassie spot disappearing has also been circulating. Is it true that the set of stairs in Hobart’s CBD – that has been the training ground for many a Hobart ripper and is affectionately known as “Penguin” is gone forever? The infamous Cascade banks in Hobart are skateable again after about five years underwater. This place is rough and tough and has been a part of Tassie skating for at least twenty years, so check it out. George Simmonds keeps getting more and more national coverage and has scored himself a full-page checkout in the latest Slam magazine, and has also grabbed another sponsor in Picture Wheels to add to
PAGE 28
TEN WONDERFUL YEARS By Nicole Calabria
Seems like everyone rides a skateboard these days, but even God? The Ignite Christian Conference held at the D.E.C earlier last month had a youth night where bands including GRRR played, and the skaters from Jimmy’s did some demos on their mobile ramp. This was definitely a first of its kind and proved that, while the police might not like skateboarding, God does. So thats the skate wrap for this month. Happy skatebording.
HOBART FRINGE LOGO COMPETITION The Hobart Fringe Festival needs a new logo to be used in branding the 2007 festival. We are still keen to retain the Witch’s Hat which has featured in previous logos, but we want to see a complete overhaul of past designs. SEND TO: hobart_fringe@yahoo.com.au by Tuesday, November 7 There is much glory for the successful designer and a pissy six pack.
Prior games rewarded extended play with unlockable characters, levels and modes. “Dark Resurrection” is no different, except all characters are ready for play immediately and extended gaming is rewarded with gold. This can be used to customise each character, creating a sense of ownership. For example, I’ve already dressed Lili in a natty black and red outfit. It doesn’t affect her fighting style, but it looks cool! The game also keeps extensive records on your style of play. Known as “ghosts”, they can be exchanged between PSPs or downloaded, ensuring no end to your opponents. Other levels, aside from the standard one-on-one action, include a Gold Rush mode where you earn gold for every successful attack, and the Dojo mode, where you take on CPU-generated ghost opponents of increasing skill to further increase your own ranking on a global scale.
SK8 WRAP
Daylight savings – the joy...every working skaters saviour. Later nights, warmer days, means more skateboarding!
THEATRE REVIEW: IS THEATRE’S
2007 TASMANIAN CIRCUS FESTIVAL February 10, 11 & 12 Join us in paradise for the 15th national celebration of our contemporary circus culture… Where: Lone Star, Golconda (48km North East of Launceston) Dates: Saturday 10th February Sunday 11th February Monday 12th February Time: 10am – 10pm daily. Circus workshops from 10am, shows from 1pm
Ten Wonderful Years was the most recent offering from Is Theatre, a cabaret styled performance dedicated to the decade-long reign of John Howard as Prime Minister of Australia. The backspace was magically transformed into a dining area and stage, accompanied by the gentle flow of music and dimly lit with soft shafts of purple, green and white light. There was a distinct air of elegance and mystery in the beautiful setting. The smell of freshly cooked curry wafted across the room, and I found myself drawn dumbly towards it, like a stupefied moth captivated by the flame. I’m not one to turn down free curry of any type, and while I wasn’t too keen on the free beer offered, it seemed that the rest of the audience was enjoying a little more than their share of the brew. From the first live song - a worthy offering from Rosny student Alex Duncan – most of the audience seemed hooked, with cheers and uproarious laughter accompanying the performance. However, once the acts themselves began I found myself slow to join the party. Sitting back to digest more than the hearty meal, we were presented with a series of mismatched and mostly unrelated skits that I found at times a little hard to swallow. I failed to see the significance of the opening monologue by a French Maid character, or how she had anything to do with John Howard. I found it easier to embrace the following magic show, as well as the amusing appearance of an angry life-size bunny ranting at the audience, berating anyone who didn’t vote for our current Prime Minister. While well acted, however, at times the ‘bunny’ danced a little too close to the line of what was offensive and what was funny, luckily managing to stay in the realm of humour for the most part. There were some good-oldentertaining performances including a woman twirling hoola-hoops as they were thrown at her from every direction and the Q&A session with a girl pretending to be “God”. (Though I admit I still don’t know what it had to do with John Howard). The second half is where I really began to lose the plot. The vibe transformed into what would be expected from a sermon, with a power point presentation encouraging the audience to donate to the soldier’s fund. I started to doubt this was all an act. If I wanted to be preached at while I ate I would just go to church on Sundays and sneak in a packet of nuts to nibble, (curry might stink out the congregation). However, just as I began to have my doubts they managed to pull it back to a more light-hearted piece, ending the slideshow with a fantastically tongue-in-cheek segment. Don’t get me wrong, I really wanted to enjoy this show, and in many ways I did, but I found myself at times struggling to join in with the laughter, while at other times I’m sure I laughed the loudest. The best part of the night were the Post-modern skits involving interpretive dancers in garish John Howard masks, providing delightfully surreal performances. Is Theatre never fails to impress me with their post-modern and interpretive creativity, and I am always left wanting more. Cabaret should take you on a ride that is dazzling and witty, and as I waited patiently for this level of entertainment to arrive, I feared for a moment that I may have been stood up, with nothing but lemonade and a full stomach to comfort me. I wondered if I should have taken the beer after all. However, I realised that you don’t really need all of the answers, as long as there is excellent entertainment, and in the end they definitely did come to the party.
Born in 1989 and still growing in strength and beauty. The Tasmanian Circus Festival is now internationally recognised as being one of the most inspiring and beautiful performing art events in Australia. Small enough to be friendly and intimate. Big enough to be the grandest gathering of contemporary circus artists from around the globe! The Circus Festival is 3 days and nights of fantastic shows, circus workshops and fun. Come for three hours or three days and experience the quality and diversity of contemporary circus. Held in this remote bushland setting, the Circus Festival offers a quality international event with a very grass roots Tasmanian feel. Be there for the best in local and international acts with shows running all day and well into the night on our many outdoor stages and intimate tent venues. The festival brings together people from all parts of this country and the world to showcase breathtaking feats of physical daring and innovative circus comedy. Highlights this year include internationally acclaimed, Strange Fruit, Joel Salom, and from Canada les Walkyries. For the first time we present the European based comedy circus band, The Von Trolley Quintet and back by popular demand we are pleased to have the incredible acrobatic duo PopEyed on the programme. There will be some familiar festival favourites with new acts never before seen. We have acts from as far away as Norway and Canada, and from as close as our local town, Nabowla. We will include amazing new talent from graduates of the National Institute of Circus Art and the many youth circus companies from around Australia. Flying Trapeze Australia will be there to let you too try your skills on the big flying rig, along with a host of other workshops including hula hoop, juggling and acrobalance to invite you to dream of running away with the circus. This year one of our newest venues is the glorious Bedouin Club, which will host a number of shows throughout the festival, and then our late night festival club after the day is done (available to weekend ticket holders). The festival can be enjoyed for a day or for the whole experience, you can camp for the three days of the festival in the lush surrounds of Lone Star. For weekend passes there is an early bird discount available with booking forms available online at www.circusfest.com Tickets Now On Sale: Tickets available at TSO box office on 1800 0011 90 or www.tso.com.au Tickets available at the gate on the day if not sold out and though our web site booking form. Cost: Day Pass Adult: $35 Youth: $15 (13-17yrs with ID) Child: $10 (under 3 free) Group Saver: $85 (2 adults and up to 3 youth in one vehicle) Weekend Pass Adult: $115, - Youth: $55, - Child: $35 - Group: $280 Advance discount tickets available now by mail order. Info & form on our web site.
The Government Throws Some Stones At
Stompin’ All The Way
WIL ANDERSON [“The Glass House”] DAVE HUGHES“is Ifgoing to go down, I’d
HOME
BY TOM WILSON
Times are definitely changing for Corrinne Grant, Dave Hughes and Wil Anderson – hosts of ABC’s “The Glass House”. The anti-bias laws are in, and are announcing their presence to the left-wing show with no degree of subtlety – flaring a straight-to-camera tirade from Anderson himself. Ahead of his Tasmanian stand-up dates, I spoke to Wil about sticking it up the big guys... “The Glass House” screened last night; the government seems to be leaning on ABC a fair bit because of you guys. Yeah, totally. With all these new anti-bias laws, we’re copping it more than anyone. Which I think is a bit weird. Certainly we do knock the government all the time, don’t get me wrong. But the thing that I would say in our defence is that satirists, traditionally, knock those who are in power. And I guarantee you; if it was the other way round, it would be the Labour Party who’d be complaining. I always say this to people who vote Liberal and go, “I like your show, but you knock the Libs too much.” And I say, “Look, there’s one way to guarantee that it would be the other way round. Next election – vote #1 Kim Beazley”. Because I guarantee you; Beazley’s in charge? We’ll be making jokes about him. It’s one of those things. If Mark Latham had won the last election, do you think we would have talked about anything but “Mad Mark Latham” for the past two years? (Laughs) Christ, there’s so much material! Exactly! We would have just gone, “What did Mad Mark do this week?” And there’s another hour... Have they spoken to you personally about it?
BY DAVE WILLIAMS such as our house and belongings. Stompin approached the school of architecture to design and construct a set. This amazing set that they have created for us consists of any five rooms that you would find in a house. The audience will get led through each room, where dancers will give an intimate performance based on each room. Every room has different meanings and characteristics and that is portrayed through the movement of the dancers.
rather go down finger-inthe-air, guns-blazing.
”
They do talk to us personally. And – because the ABC sit in on the edit of our show – even last night’s episode of the show...not everything we said about the new bias laws went to air. The ABC cut a fair bit out. They quite often do that, because they get a lot of shit from the government from things we say. And maybe in the conservative atmosphere we have at the moment, maybe it will be the end of our show. Maybe they’ll decide we’re too much trouble... But I’m not a middle-of-theroad kind of guy – that’s just not my style, you know? I’d be hosting some gentle quiz show and making a lot more money, but I’ve never been interested in that, and if we’re going to go down, I’d rather go down fingerin-the-air, guns-blazing. Do you think that, as a society, we’re always going to hate people who are in power? Totally. But it’s good. The role of the journalist is to keep the bastards honest. And the same with comedians and satirists – their job is to attack those in power. And that doesn’t mean necessarily just politics. If I’m going to have a crack at a celebrity, it’s going to be a big, rich, powerful celebrity. I don’t like the humour of people who make aboriginal jokes or blah, blah, blah – that’s the humour of oppression, you know? I like the humour of sticking it up the big guys – whatever those big guys might be to you. Wil plays four shows in Tasmania this month. Check ad for details.
A woolstore is not a place you’d typically call “Home”, but an ensemble of dancers is about to call it exactly that, and “typical” isn’t a word you’d use to describe them. With their dynamic new production beginning this month in Launceston, we went behind the scenes with Bodhi from Stompin’. How did you become a dancer at Stompin’? I first became aware of Stompin’ when I went to see SYNC; one of their shows that was preformed in the water. I got the opportunity to participate in a workshop when they came to my town. I then later auditioned for their next show “Age of Consent”. What have you learned in your time with Stompin’? Not only skills with movement, but skills in other areas such as people skills and communication. I am also a member of the Stompin’ board and that gives me a more behind-the-scenes look at what Stompin’ does and helps me be more involved. How hard is it physically? It gets physically harder as we get closer to the performance, but Luke (the artistic director and choreographer) is really aware of the strains on dancers’ bodies, so we are pretty well looked after. What is the concept behind “HOME”? “HOME” is a dance that touches on the subject of what we perceive as home. Not only our relationships with people that we surround ourselves with, but also what we physically surround ourselves with,
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It gets physically harder as we get closer to the performance...
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How many dancers are involved in the production? It varies every year, but this year we have about 25 to 30 dancers with ages ranging from 14 to 26 How long will preparations for the production take? Preparations for this show started after our last big show in Tassie which was “Citizen”, so it’s been nearly a year in the making. How often do you rehearse? At the moment we practice from two to four times a week, but it increases as we get closer to opening night. What’s your favorite part of being in Stompin’? The friendships and bonds you make with the other dancers and crew, and performing in such different locations. For anyone interested in becoming a dancer with Stompin’, what do you advise? Stompin’ is always looking for new people. In between shows Stompin’ runs workshops. stompin. net has information on dates for upcoming shows and auditions “Home” kicks off at Roberts Woolstore in Launceston on November 24th and runs until December 2nd. See ad for more details.
@arahklejc ?na]pera Ejpahhecaj_a
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At the School of Visual and Performing Arts, Launceston we are increasingly aware that there is a growing demand for creative skills that combine performance based skills with areas of audio technology, visual technolgoy, communication, presentation and creative problem solving. We have therefore structured our Bachelor of Contemporary Art (Contemporary Music) course to provide our graduates with these necessary industry skills. For more information please visit www.acadarts.utas.edu.au or phone 6324 4423 AT&M26833
U N I V E R S I T Y O F TAS M AN I A O_dkkh kb Reoq]h ]j` Lanbkniejc =npo( H]qj_aopkj
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Name:
Name:
Age:
Age:
Georgie
Matt
24
22
Fave Band:
Fave Band:
Trivium
The Beatles
Who/what should Madonna adopt next? An entire 3rd world
Who/what should Madonna adopt next? Music sense
Name: Jess Age: 21 Fave Band: Evermore
Who/what should Madonna adopt next? Britney Spears’ baby
If you were a cut of meat, what would you be and why? Chicken breast, coz everyone loves ... chicken!
Name: Dan Age: 20 Fave Band: Oasis Who/what should Madonna adopt next? Prince If you were a cut of meat, what would you be and why? A tough one.
Pulp mill, yes or no? No
community
If you were a cut of meat, what would you be and why?
Big juicy steak, coz it’s
If you were a cut of meat, what would you be and why? Prime rib. the name says it all.
juicy.
Plup mill, yes or no? Yes
Iraq - stay or leave? No
Pulp mill, yes or no? No
Iraq - stay or leave?
Have a hot and blue revolution. Jazz at the Conservatorium of Music. Start today – call 1300 363 864.
Should never have been there
www.utas.edu.au
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australia.gov.au/skillsforthefuture or call 13 38 73 Authorised by the Australian Government, Capital Hill, Canberra. PAGE 30
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