Forte #579

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defiler

stray sisters

issue 579 // 6 FEBRUARY 2014 // next issue: 20 FEB

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TEX MILLER

A WORD FROM THE TEAM

FORTE mag is published by FORTE PUBLISHING p/l abn 64 054 589 641 pHONE: 03 5229 7969 fAX: 03 5229 0318 po box 1388 GEELONG VICTORIA 3220

PUBLISHER...........................Anton Ballard general..............................enquiries@fortemag.com.au EDITOR/SALES MANAGER....Luke McNamara

Maaaaan! Regional Victoria is currently kicking some serious butt in terms of wonderful events and awesome happenings.

The Great Australian Beer Festival, Ballarat Beer Festival, Apollo Bay Music Festival, Motor City Music Festival, Deans Marsh Festival, Port Fairy Folk Festival, Ballarat Rockabilly Beat Festival, Torquay and Geelong Nightjar Festivals, Pako Festa and the Kyneton Music Festival are all happening soon or have come to pass in the recent while – and that is only naming a few.

It is fantastic to see that regional Victoria is still dishing it up to punters, and Forte is dedicated to offering coverage on every event listed above – so picking up a copy is well worth it at the moment!

Chris Cruz, Chris Lambie, Cyclone, Daniel Meagher,

This issue we have decided to pay tribute, to those paying tribute; for here at Forte Magazine we are not genre specific nor do we posses any industry bias. Kisstoryer is one of Australia’s hardest working, people pleasing tribute bands. They will be taking the stage at this year’s Motor City Music Festival on the Saturday night, which will be a night full of wonderful tribute acts. Please stop by and take a look at the double page spread inside and get behind this wonderful festival – we have info on the whole three days of action.

and Tony Montana

That is all for now – see you next week for a MASSIVE O-WEEK edition!!!!!!

The Forte team!

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the HIGHLIGHTS

THE LATEST ON international & national news & tours The Highlights: Where the heat is on, on the street. Coming up you have… .........................................................................

Soundwave Sidewaves When it comes to Soundwave, every man (and woman) and his dog has wanted to know what is going on with the Sidewaves. Well, they’ve started to roll in and include: Placebo at The Palais on February 27; Rob Zombie at The Palace on February 26; Alter Bridge with Living Colour at The Forum on February 26 and Stone Temple Pilots featuring Chester Bennington at The Palace on February 26.

Keep glued to soundwavefestival.com. .........................................................................

Kreator & Death Angel Two leading thrash exponents – one from Germany and one from the Bay Area – are set to descend upon Australia shortly. Representing Germany is Kreator, one of the members of the ‘Teutonic Big 4’. They’re 30-years strong and as good as ever.

Meanwhile, representing California you have Death Angel. Also together for over 30 years, this is a tour where age means nothing when it comes to metal.

Billboard – April 16. .........................................................................

Kasabian’s Big F.U. Leicester band Kasabian will release their new as yet untitled album later in the year, and they have a message to critics. Speaking to NME, frontman Tom Meighan says: “The album is a real ‘f*ck you’ to anyone who ever dares criticise or snarl at us, and say we can’t do music like this. It’s a real f*cking ‘up yours’. There are a lot of bands who try and do this kind of music but fail because they’ve got no songs.”

That should go down well.

Sampology Heads to Bollywood

Third Strike for Lykke Li

Dave Chappelle’s Oz Debut

Sam Poggioli is at it again, this time with his Beyond Bollywood AV show. As the name suggests, the tour is an Indian-inspired production. The Brisbane native took a trip to the country last year. Not only will crowds be treated to Sampology’s takes on the sights and sounds of India, they’ll also catch an earful of his new track, ‘Show Me’. Brown Alley – March 1. * Note: A mini-doco about Sampology’s time in India can be viewed online.

Swedish songbird Lykke Li is eyeing off May for the release of her third album. According to reports, the third album from the singersongwriter will complete what she sees as a trilogy, following Youth Novels and Wounded Rhymes. Before the album’s release, fans will be keen to see her acting chops, with Li making her acting debut in the Swedish crime drama, Tommy. A trailer for that is available for viewing online.

Readers may or may not be familiar with the journey of Dave Chappelle; if not, it makes for interesting reading. The comedian, screenwriter, producer and actor was born in Washington D.C., moving to New York City to pursue a career as a comedian. Although he has been in entertainment since he was 14 and has an extensive resume, he is best known (and loved) for Chappelle’s Show. The Palais – February 28.

home the gold, movie buffs are also turning their attention to The Razzies, the almighty celebration of the worst in cinema for the year. Adam Sandler is tipped to take home Worst Actor for the third year running for Grown Ups 2. Johnny Depp is also up for the award for his role in The Lone Ranger. Hit razzies.com for a full rundown.

users are able to compose a 16-note melody. Due to high demand, they are no longer taking orders for print; however, you can still have a play around and save your creation. Create your masterpiece via musicdrop.leftfieldlabs.com.

a handful of shows. Fans of the bands called for a joint tour after both bands supported Wednesday 13.

Bendigo Hotel – April 19.

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Triple Treat Tour For the fourth year running, the Triple Treat Tour will once again serve up a selection of the best upand-coming indie talent. This year crowds will be treated to Cairns-born, Brisbane-based Hannah Karydas (who performs under the moniker Eves), Adelaide seventeen-year-old Jesse Davidson and Sydney-based singer-songwriter Jordan Léser. The tour kicks off at the Workers Club on February 22.

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Darkc3ll & Witchgrinder

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Hitting the Right Note

The Razzies Are In

Music Drop from Left Field Labs is giving music lovers the chance to mix the old with the new by the way of a 3D-printed music box designed to play a tune of your creation. Through the Music Drop website,

If you’re looking for “Soul crushing beats, powerhouse industrial grooves, topped with a layer of dirty rock ‘n’ roll swagger”, then you obviously haven’t been looking hard enough. Brisbane’s Darkc3ll, who released their second album Dark Verses last year, have teamed up with Melbourne’s Witchgrinder for

With Academy Award nominations out and bets being made whether a certain Aussie actress can bring

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On the Couch with Jimmy Fallon On February 17 Jimmy Fallon takes over The Tonight Show, replacing Jay Leno on the longrunning late-night talk show. According to Variety in a report made last month, Will Smith and U2 will be his first guests. Fallon’s musical booker Jonathan Cohen made the announcement of U2 via Twitter.

Will Ferrell and Pearl Jam were the first guests when Conan O’Brien took on his short-lived stint – let’s hope history doesn’t repeat. .........................................................................

Jason Bateman’s Directorial Debut We know him for his work in Arrested Development and a number of films including Horrible Bosses, Hancock, Paul and Juno (we try to forget Teen Wolf Too), but this year we can look forward to his directorial debut. Jason Bateman will both direct and star in Bad Words, a film about a middleaged man who never passed the eighth grade who finds a loophole in The Golden Quill spelling bee, a competition aimed at school children. .........................................................................

Martha Davis Finally Checks In In 2007 Martha Davis and the Motels toured Australia as part of the Countdown Spectacular Concert series. The new wave band – best known for ‘Only the Lonely’ and ‘Suddenly Last Summer’ – was supposed to tour again last year, but circumstances changed. Well, it looks like they have cleared up their schedule and have locked in some dates next month. Thornbury Theatre – March 15 & Flying Saucer Club – March 16. .........................................................................

The Almost Admit They’re Afraid Christian rock outfit The Almost will return to our shores shortly following a three-year absence.

Formed out of Florida in 2005, the band is fronted by former Underoath stickman and backing vocalist Aaron Gillespie. Mid-2013 saw the release of Fear Inside Our Bones, their third studio album. Wrangler Studios – April 16 & Plastic – April 17. Brisbane’s Young Lions and Canberra’s Drawing North will join them throughout the tour. .........................................................................

Foxtel in 2014 If you’re a Foxtel subscriber, you have a lot to look forward to in 2014. If not, I hear some people download their series. Either way, you have: Game

of Thrones Season 4 (early April), Mad Men Season 7 (April), House of Cards Season 2 (February 15), Wentworth Season 2 (April), Orange is the New Black Season 2 (spring) and Veep Season 3 (April).

Keep an eye out for Sons of Anarchy, Justified and Ray Donovan as well. .........................................................................

Does Your Guitar Have a Wing?

Livid Instruments has spent 12 months crafting the Guitar Wing, an adjustable clamp device that offers guitarists wireless function control of software plugins, iOS apps, MIDI effects and so forth. The device is powered by a Li-ion battery that is charged via USB. Livid Instruments has launched on Kickstarter, with the closing date for pledges being February 21.

Take a look and see what you think.

Mango Groove Move Closer

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St Kilda Film Festival Strikes Gold

The Gin Club Party On

The St Kilda Film Festival received some fantastic news recently when they were recognised as an Academy Award® qualifier for the Short Film Awards, held May 22 through May 31. Festival Director Paul Harris: “We are honoured the St Kilda Film Festival is now ACADEMY AWARD® accredited, recognising and supporting the profile of our leading festival, emerging artists and the Australian film industry.” .........................................................................

It seems that The Gin Club have been digging their ten-year anniversary shows as much as their fans have, with the band performing a small number of additional dates this month.

Last year member Bridget Lewis spoke about the band’s desire to perform more shows, so it looks as though they have come good on their word. The sweet part is that you’ll get to hear some new material as well as all your favourites. Yarra Hotel – February 22.

Twenty years is a long, long wait, but South African supergroup Mango Groove are almost here. In 2014 the afropop giants celebrate 30 years in the music game, a period of time in which they have had 12 number-one hits in South Africa. More than that, they are a celebration of music and were one of the first South African groups to incorporate both white and black musicians. The Forum – February 23.

Finding Jonny Craig As the leader of outfits Dance Gavin Dance and Emarosa, Jonny Craig has been around the block a few times, and while he would probably be the first to admit that things haven’t always been easy, you can’t deny a man and his vision. Releasing his debut album in 2009 to many kind words, he kept the good times going with new EP Find What You Love and Let It Kill You. The Corner – May 17 & Wrangler Studios – May 18. .........................................................................

Phil Collins Gives Adele a Hand So, Adele is working on a new album. We’ll have to wait and see whether it will be as ridiculously massive as 21, but either way perhaps we’ll be able to blame Phil Collins. Speaking with Inside South Florida, Collins said how he wasn’t too aware of the singer (he did say he lived in a cave, which could actually be true) but found her talents too impressive to pass up. The pair is spending time writing together. .........................................................................

First Time for Caspian Instrumental post-rockers Caspian will finally deliver the goods to their patient Australian fans this March. Formed out of Beverly, Massachusetts in 2003, the band released their debut EP You Are the Conductor in 2005. By the time 2007’s The Four Trees came about the band had adopted a three-guitar attack. There is a lot to catch up on; however, their tour pays particular attention to their third album, Waking Season. Evelyn Hotel – March 21.

To Reach the Clouds James Marsh’s 2008 documentary detailing Philippe Petit’s 1974 high-wire walk between the Twin Towers is widely considered one of the finest pieces of filmmaking in recent times. Now, Robert Zemeckis (Back to the Future) has been attached to an adaption of To Reach the Clouds, a project that will in many ways mirror Marsh’s documentary.

Deadline made the report, with news that the film will be shot in 3D.

Bill Cosby Returns In 1984 a little show called The Cosby Show took on the TV game and won. Not only did it become one of the biggest hits of the nineties, it also revived NBC’s ratings. 30 years later the inimitable star of the show, Bill Cosby, is returning to TV – and NBC. According to Deadline Hollywood, the network has made a deal for a half-hour family comedy. If you want to know more, well, you know how computers work.

FRI 7 FEB 2014

REST

AURA N

TS – BARS – ENTER TA I N M

ENT

The Regular Boys SAT 8 FEB 2014

James Carrigg FRI 14 FEB 2014 Friday night drink promos 5.30 til 6.30 and 9 til 10.30 Saturday night Bulmers and Carlton Draught promos

Trojan

SAT 15 FEB 2014

Dear Ivy

GROVEDALE HOTEL 236-258 SURFCOAST HIGHWAY PHONE: (03) 5243 2814 | GROVEDALEHOTEL.COM.AU

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CALENDAR & GIG GUIDE Thursday February 6th

THE GROVEDALE HOTEL: James Carrigg

BARWON CLUB HOTEL: The Bennies, Apart From This, Japan For and Will Wagner

HOME HOUSE: Upstairs, T White (Cloudnine) vs Johhny Canik (Tramp) and Stan Gravs (Billboard)till late Downstairs The best Hip Hop and RnB DJ Mr Fat (Perth)

BEAVS BAR: Dave Anderson Live BIRD ROCK CAFE (Jan Juc): Live and Local, $13 Pizza night EUREKA: SteveMink plus Simon One, Shorty J, Pinky, Max McKay, TVB, Aybakez, Michael Cameron Paul E, Rogers. Free Entry before 11pm when using a guest list.

THE KAROVA LOUNGE (Ballarat): Chronolyth ELEPHANT & CASTLE: $20 Asahi Seafood & Chips Night THE MAX HOTEL: Parmi All Day All Night $12, InnQUIZitive Trivia from 7.30pm till 10.30pm, amazing prizes, call to book your team’s spot THE SPHINX HOTEL: Schnitzel Night from $13 BLACK HATT: Open Mic night. Acoustic, Bands, Soloists, Duos from 8pm

THE KAROVA LOUNGE (Ballarat): King Parrot

THE MAX HOTEL: Frequency WHISPERS: DJ’s including from Matt Watkins, Slice n Dice, Lucille Croft, Frazr Adam, Jungle Jim, Butters, Courtney Mills, Zoolander, Who Killed Mickey, Joel Fletcher, Yatch Club DJs, Katt Nial

Sunday February 9th BARWON CLUB HOTEL: Sunday Session on the deck from 2pm with 6 DJs later live with Good Faces For Radio front bar.

King Parrot, Havok (USA), Desekrator and Metalstorm in the band room BIRD ROCK CAFE (Jan Juc): SUNDAY SESH: Spining Vinyl from Noon, DJ RJ from 5pm

Friday February 7th

BLACK HATT: Loretta Dawes from 4pm

LAMBY’S BAR & RESTAURANT: Test Pilot Molly & DJs Mainroom and Terrace. Open from 6pm

EDGE GEELONG: Live music and DJ

ELEPHANT AND CASTLE: Thank Guinness It’s Friday BLACK HATT: Grizzly Brothers BARWON CLUB HOTEL: ODD, Sons of Stereo, Hopes Abandoned BARWON HEADS HOTEL: Kenny Miller BASEMENT LOUNGE & NIGHTCLUB: Moluck, Eddie, Yeh, Nah, Merv and More!

BIRD ROCK CAFE (Jan Juc): Locals Night, Spinning Vinyl from 4pm BEAVS BAR: 2-Tone Live CITY QUARTER BAR: Friday Unwind with live music then DJ EDGE GEELONG: Live music

CITY QUARTER: Perfect Sunday Sesh

ELEPHANT & CASTLE: Live jazz band Jazz Connection 3pm – 6pm THE CAPITAL THEATRE (Bendigo): John Waters: Looking through a Glass Onion GPAC: Hot Club Swing - Music in the Garden GEELONG RSL: Weary and Friends (Jazz) LAMBY’S BAR & RESTAURANT: Student & Industry Night (Free entry all night) w/ Live Band Unlimited & DJs in the Mainroom and Terrace OLD HEPBURN HOTEL: The Cartwheels

Monday February 10th BARWON CLUB HOTEL: $10 Parmis ELEPHANT & CASTLE: $20 Steak & Drink night

THE KAROVA LOUNGE (Ballarat): Uncle Jed

THE MAX HOTEL: 3 On The Tree

Tuesday February 11th

TORQUAY HOTEL: Mat McHugh

ELEPHANT & CASTLE: $20 Steak & Drink night

OLD HEPBURN HOTEL: Performance night

GEELONG RSL: Steak Night $13

NIGHTJAR FESTIVAL: In the city Johnstones Park, Geelong. Music, Artists Market, Food. 4-10pm

BLACK HATT: Bacata Dance Classes

THE GROVEDALE HOTEL: The Regular Boys

Saturday February 8th BARWON CLUB HOTEL: Mosaics, Francois Daze BARWON HEADS HOTELl: Resident DJ’s LAMBY’S BAR & RESTAURANT: Live Band Stella & DJs Mainroom and Terrace. Open from 9pm BEAVS BAR: Steve Pianto Live BASEMENT LOUNGE & NIGHTCLUB: Luis Hill (Ger), Kate Drover, D.M.T, Hands Down and More!!

BIRD ROCK CAFE (Jan Juc): Retro Vinyl and live music from Noon, DJ from 8pm MARTIANS CAFE ( DEANS MARSH): Cyndi Boste Supported By Josh Goddard CITY QUARTER BAR: Live entertainment and DJ EDGE GEELONG: Live music and DJ ELEPHANT & CASTLE: Live Band Regular Boys 9.30pm to Midnight

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Wednesday February 12th BEAVS BAR: Dave Anderson, Karaoke Open Mic GEELONG RSL: Pot and Parmi Night $13 BLACK HATT: Cuban Salsa Dance Classes ELEPHANT AND CASTLE: Trivia Night from 8pm. Have fun win prizes book a table

Thursday February 13th BIRD ROCK CAFÉ: (Jan Juc): Live and Local, $13 Pizza night THE MAX HOTEL: Parmi All Day All Night $12, InnQUIZitive Trivia from 7.30pm till 10.30pm, amazing prizes, call to book your team’s spot THE GATEWAY HOTEL: Man Power Ballarat Beat Rockerbilly Festival: Rockerbilly, Country Swing, Rock & Roll, Variety shows, Art, Fashion Parade, Glamour Central and heaps of other wonderful Things!!!!!!!!

ELEPHANT & CASTLE: $20 Asahi

Seafood & Chips Night

EDGE GEELONG: Live music

THE MAX HOTEL: Adventure Playground

THE KAROVA LOUNGE (Ballarat): Mother’s Cake (The Mars Volta)

LAMBY’S BAR & RESTAURANT: Live band Good Faces For Radio & DJs Main Room and Terrace, open from 9pm

WHISPERS: Ultimate Surprise Party with The Partysquad (Netherlands)

BLACK HATT: Open Mic night. Acoustic, Bands, Soloists, Duos from 8pm BEAVS BAR: Andy Forster Live Main Room.

EUREKA: Katt Niall plus Simon One, Shorty J, Pinky, Max McKay, TVB, Aybakez, Michael Cameron Paul E, Rogers. Free Entry before 11pm when using a guest list.

Friday February 14th AT THE HEADS: Live music from 5pm till 7pm (Barwon Heads) THE BARWON CLUB: iron Worzel, the Pro Tools, The Poppin Mommas, The Kremlings BAROWN HEADS HOTEL: Cam Byrce BIRD ROCK CAFE (Jan Juc): Locals Night, Spinning Vinyl from 4pm

THE MAX HOTEL : Adventure Playground NIGHTJAR FESTIVAL: In the city Johnstones Park, Geelong. Music, Artists Market, Food. 4-10pm

Saturday February 15th THE BARWON CLUB: Blackwood Jack and The Alamo BASEMENT LOUNGE & NIGHTCLUB: Marlon Hoffstadt, John Doe, Token and More!

BIRD ROCK CAFE (Jan Juc): SUNDAY SESH: Spining Vinyl from Noon, DJ RJ from 5pm

Ballarat Beat Rockerbilly Festival: Rockerbilly, Country Swing, Rock & Roll, Variety shows, Art, Fashion Parade, Glamour Central and heaps of other wonderful Things!!!!!!!!

BLACK HATT: Bergman & The Balladeers live from 9.30pm

BAROWN HEADS HOTEL: Resident DJ’s

GPAC: Luke Legs and The evening Cast: Music in the Gardens

BEAVS BAR: Steve Pianto Live

BASEMENT LOUNGE & NIGHTCLUB: Stir Fridays - Prom Night, Andee Frost and more!

BLACK HATT: Cor Ten live from 9.30pm.

CITY QUARTER BAR: Live entertainment and DJ

BEAVS BAR: 2-Tone Live GPAC: John Waters: Looking Through a Glass Onion

BIRD ROCK CAFE (Jan Juc): Retro Vinyl and live music from Noon, DJ from 8pm

EDGE GEELONG: Live music and DJ ELEPHANT & CASTLE: Live Jazz band + from 6pm Parmi Night 6 Great Parmis $20 OLD HEPBURN HOTEL: Chris Wilson GEELONG RSL: Royal Garden (Jazz)

MARTIANS CAFE ( DEANS MARSH): Red Whyte

LAMBY’S BAR & RESTAURANT: Student & Industry Night (Free entry all night) w/ Live band Snack Attack & DJs in the Mainroom and Terrace

EDGE: Live music plus DJ THE GROVEDALE HOTEL: Dear Ivy

ELEPHANT AND CASTLE: Thank Guinness It’s Friday

THE CAPITAL THEATRE (Bendigo): The Rat Pack from Vagas

THE GROVEDALE HOTEL: Trojan

HOME HOUSE: Future Music Warm Up Party Upstairs, Slice N Dice, Zac Deptro and more!

CITY QUARTER BAR: Friday Unwind from 5pm. Live with live entertainment and DJ

CITY QUARTER: Perfect Sunday Sesh

ELEPHANT & CASTLE: Live band Mad Cow 9.30pm to midnight

KAROVA LOUNGE: Them 9’s

PIPING HOT CHICKEN SHOP: Lloyd Speigel

BARWON CLUB HOTEL: Sunday Session on the deck from 2pm with 6 DJs later in the front bar with Test Pilot Molly Ballarat Beat Rockerbilly Festival: Rockerbilly, Country Swing, Rock & Roll, Variety shows, Art, Fashion Parade, Glamour Central and heaps of other wonderful Things!!!!!!!!

Ballarat Beat Rockerbilly Festival: Rockerbilly, Country Swing, Rock & Roll, Variety shows, Art, Fashion Parade, Glamour Central and heaps of other wonderful Things!!!!!!!!

ingles night Nuts and Bolts from 8pm

Sunday February 16th

LAMBY’S BAR & RESTAURANT: Live band Stella & DJs Mainroom and Terrace. Open from 9pm

THE SPHINX HOTEL: Carvery from $17.00

Monday February 17th ELEPHANT & CASTLE: $20 Steak & Drink night LORD NELSON HOTEL: /Parmi & Pot for $15 on presentation of student I.D THE SPHINX HOTEL: Meals for $11

Tuesday February 18th GEELONG RSL: Steak Night $13 ELEPHANT & CASTLE: $20 Steak & Drink night BLACK HATT: Bacata Dance Classes

Wednesday February 19th BEAVS BAR: Karaoke and Open Mic and Luke Biscan GEELONG RSL: Pot and Parmi Night $13 LIGHTHOUSE THEATRE (Warnambool): Bobby Rydell ELEPHANT AND CASTLE: Trivia Night from 8pm. Have fun win prizes book a table BLACK HATT: Cuban Salsa Dance Classes

Thursday February 20th EUREKA: DJs Simon One, Shorty J, Pinky, Max McKay, TVB Aybakez Michael Cameron Roger E and more. Free Entry before 11pm when using a guest list BARWON CLUB HOTEL: D at Sea BIRD ROCK CAFE (Jan Juc): Live and Local, $13 Pizza night THE KAROVA LOUNGE: The Savages THE CAPITAL THEATRE (Bendigo): Bobby Rydell THE MAX HOTEL: Parmi All Day All Night $12, InnQUIZitive Trivia from 7.30pm till 10.30pm, amazing prizes, call to book your team’s spot ELEPHANT & CASTLE: $20 Asahi Seafood & Chips Night

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Motor City Music Festival with Hugo T. Armstrong written by Tex Miller

2014 is a landmark year for local blues music.

More specifically, 2014 marks 20 years of the Blues Train, which has over the years become a landmark on the Bellarine Peninsula tourist trail and showcased the best in Victorian and Australian blues music. To celebrate, Motor City Music Festival is set to hit the Geelong showgrounds over the Labour Day weekend – and is sure to be a cracker. Six weeks out from the opening night, I recently sat down with the man behind it all, Hugo T. Armstrong, to have a

chat about the festival and where it will develop into the future.

As the big weekend ticks closer, the majority of people would be getting stressed about all of those last minute things, yet sitting in the Blues Train headquarters with Blues Brothers and Buddy Guy memorabilia adorning the walls, Mr Armstrong feels positive about the event and thinks that it is just the change that the Geelong music scene needs.

“I am really excited that Geelong is going to have its own dedicated music festival – it’s that straightforward. I don’t think that music festivals are a new invention, but I think that Geelong being Victoria’s second largest city, and being a great city with a fantastic music history, deserves a festival, and I hope that the people of Geelong get behind what we are trying to achieve,” Mr Armstrong said.

For those readers of Forte who are unaware, the concept of Motor City was born five years ago when forward planning for the 20th anniversary of the train was initially discussed. In realising a gap in the events calendar of Geelong, as Mr Armstrong had been a music promoter for many years, the decision was simple: “About five years ago, the initial planning for MCMF took place. We really felt that Geelong was missing something in its events calendar, and something needed to be done.

“Geelong has had some issues with employment and that will no doubt continue, but it’s a town in transition; and I’m not saying that a music festival is going to fix that, but it sure ain’t going to hurt.

We are working with local businesses and are looking at reinvigorating the local music scene,” Mr Armstrong said.

Talking about the origins of the train, Mr Armstrong never thought that The Blues Train would develop into an international identity. It is a story that is very organic. Starting out as an idea between friends, over the years the train has played host to some of the biggest blues acts in the world including locals Ash Grunwald, Collards Greens and Gravy and American Charlie Parr. If for some unknown reason you haven’t checked it out, there isn’t a better time than this season. Although the train is booked until the end of March, there are some cracking line-ups over the next twelve months. One such highlight was the Australia Day weekend just gone, which saw the legendary Chubby Rae and the Elevators

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reform for a couple of shows.

Although there have been some standouts on the train over the years, Mr Armstrong feels that the acts that have played week in, week out over the last twenty years deserve a special mention.

“I really can’t pick just one act that has been fantastic, and think that the veterans of the train really help encapsulate that special experience.

From Jimi Hocking to Chris Wilson, Sweet Felicia to Collards Greens and Gravy, it is about offering four different experiences throughout the night.

Chris Russell’s Chicken Walk debut performance on the train was exciting.

“I think that the key to the Blues Train is that it is a unique mix between a music venue and a tourism product, where the tourism product gets people to experience music that they wouldn’t usually and the music fans get to see the acts they love in a unique environment. One of the main things that I am hoping is that with MCMF we achieve a similar effect in the next couple of years. I think that there are some parallels, and hopefully by using tribute acts on the main stage on the Saturday bill we will bring in some people who will hopefully experience the blues music – and vice versa,” Mr Armstrong said.

With so many brilliant acts on the bill for the debut of Motor City Music Festival, I can understand that it may be easy to get lost in the programming. To make it easy for all you Forte readers, I’ve got Hugo T’s main picks for the three days, to ensure you don’t miss out on something special.

“Palace of the King on the Friday night is going to be great. Tim Henwood from The Androids and the Superjesus is in that band, and I’m really looking forward to them. Diehard Dolls, I’ve never seen, but Geelong’s finest – how can you go wrong? Crown of Thorns together again after all this time will be awesome. Claude Hay, Kisstroyer, the Australian blues superset with Geoff Achison, Lloyd Spiegel and Jimi Hocking will also be a highlight.

“The festival is not on the main arena and I think that’s the main message I want to get across. There are four really good undercover venues, and after people come and experience it for themselves, I hope it develops into one of the main events on the Geelong calendar over the next few years. See you there!”

When&Where: Motor City Music Festival, Geelong – March 7 through 9

Kisstroyer written by Tex Miller

Kisstroyer’s explosive stageshow is set to rock Motor City Music Festival in March.

Together as a band for the last thirteen years, the band has achieved some remarkable milestones. Having toured all around the world and played for Kiss’s own Paul Stanley, I recently got the opportunity to sit down with guitarist Andrew Kyriacou in the lead up to MCMF to chat about their illustrious career.

At the time of our chat, Kisstroyer has just finished playing at the Monsters of Rock show, which sadly was recently held for the last time. Constantly on the road between concerts, to make sure that the band could still play gigs and not get entirely burnt out, a deliberate decision was made last year to get involved with other business ventures.

“For years we played gig after gig, and having been out on the road for the best part of 13 years, we decided that each of us should get involved with another project, and I think one of the most interesting results is we enjoy playing gigs a lot more now because we have something to look forward to than performing every week.

“It’s sad to see that the Monsters of Rock enterprise has dissolved because it was a brand that we developed and invested in heavily in the early years.

The after parties became infamous, and as much as I’d like to tell you some of the tour stories, you know the old saying…,” Kyriacou laughs as I try and get some anecdotes suitable for print out of him.

2013 saw Kisstroyer tackle the massive Qingdao Beer Festival, which is one of the biggest music

festivals in China. As they are a household name in Australia, how did the band get such an elusive opportunity to play at the event? From researching the festival, I think that it can best be described as a mix between the Great Australian Beer Festival and Big Day Out. Take a moment to think about this combination and you’ll soon realise why the Qingdao festival is, to date, one of the best shows the band has ever played.

“It’s pretty surreal to look back on the experience of playing that festival, man. In Australia, our big metropolitan shows attract around 500 people, and although things do get a little crazy, nothing gets too out of hand. The capacity of the Qingdao festival was the size of Etihad Stadium filled up. Before we flew over to the gig, nobody really knew what to expect.

“In a way playing this festival was an act of fate.

One of the organisers of this festival was looking for fresh talent from Australia and saw one of the posters promoting Kisstroyer for another gig. He got in touch and things went from there. The Chinese know how to put on a party though. One of the wildest shows in our history, for sure,” Kyriacou said.

Kisstroyer started when Andrew and his brother arrived back in Australia after years of travel throughout Europe; at that point nobody knew that it would evolve to be as big as it did today. “We just saw it as a vehicle to have some fun. There were no prerequisites about where it should go or what it should be, and so we have never really been disappointed or frustrated and everybody has really enjoyed the ride.

“We always grew up listening to music and loved the harder-edged rock and roll. I’ve seen Kiss about 12 times, and every time is just as good as the last. The stage show is what gets me, and that is something we really try and capture. The atmosphere and experience is something that we want people to walk away from telling their friends and reminiscing on the night for years to come. Although we have poured stupid amounts of money into this project, it definitely has been worth it. We never in our wildest dreams ever thought that we would be going into our thirteenth year together though.”

As one of the headline tribute acts at Motor City, I can assure you the Kisstroyer set will not disappoint. If you’ve seen Kiss live before, you’ll have an inkling of what you’re in for; but for the uninitiated, it’s going to be nothing but a fantastic time, as Andrew relates. “The crowd can expect quintessential Kiss – and to say that we’re excited is a huge understatement. Fire breathing, pyrotechnics, blood spitting, smoking guitars and everything we can cram into our allocated set time is just a small part of what to expect. It will be energetic and we really can’t wait to get down there, mate!”

Playing in Kisstroyer has taken Andrew and the band to some cool places all around the world, but one of the coolest opportunities was meeting the one, the only, the legendary, Bert Newton.

“Bert was honestly one of the most amazingly kind and wonderful people that we have had the honour to meet in our time in Kisstroyer. I never realised just how tall he is. Playing on GMA (his breakfast show at the time) was a fun yet odd experience.

When&Where: Motor City Music Festival, Geelong – March 7 through 9 The audience kept telling us to turn down and we were like, ‘Ummm, compared to our other shows, this is quiet,” Andrew jests about their live TV appearance.

As expected, performing as Kisstroyer would take a hell of a lot of time – so what does a day in their life include? “On the day of a gig, we usually start getting ready at 11 a.m. – sound checking and making sure all the pyrotechnics are working correctly takes a while. The makeup and costume ritual takes around two hours, and I’m there most steps of the way … unlike some of our fancier members that show up just before sound check!”

Staff and Management of the EMC Group Geelong strongly enforce a no-drug policy. Enjoy great music & drinks whilst staying drug-free.

FORTEMAG.COM.AU

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Thy Art Is Murder written by Natalie Rogers

Being out on tour and away from friends and family can be tough – just ask Thy Art Is Murder frontman CJ McMahon: “I’m very close with Ben [Weinman, lead guitar] from The Dillinger Escape Plan.

When we play shows together, I call him my ‘tour husband’. I can’t wait to see them play and hang out at Soundwave. I saw their first-ever Australian show in Sydney at the Gaelic Club thirteen years ago, and now I’m best friends with the whole band.

“I think Ben is one of the most amazing people in the music industry and possibly the world. He’s just a nice, funny, cool guy and an amazingly crafted producer and musician. During the Soundwave shows people will see us holding hands and possibly sharing a joint – they could call us gay, but I couldn’t care less.”

Currently on tour in the UK, Thy Art Is Murder will play Belarus and three shows in Russia before unleashing their wrath on the crowds at Soundwave 2014. “We don’t have to worry about practising in the lead up to Soundwave to get into tip-top shape; we can just come back from Europe, relax a little bit and bam! Soundwave starts. Then just days later we’ll be on a plane to begin another tour of the US.” Since the release of their ARIA-nominated second LP (Hate, 2012), downtime has become a rarity, so I wondered what CJ got up to over Christmas and the New Year.

“A lot of fuck-all really!” he laughed. “I live with my fatherin-law and my soon-to-be fiancée. When I’m home I lock myself away. I love to clean, do the washing and cooking. I’m like a housewife when I’m not on tour.

“I love being at home because I’m away so much. I like to go on fishing trips in Sydney Harbour – I just like to keep it relaxed and cruisy. I didn’t make any New Year’s resolutions in terms of the band, because I’ve made them in the past and I always fail. I guess, personally, if I could get a little thinner, trim down a little bit and get some abs happening, that’d be cool,” CJ joked.

“But in terms of the band, for 2014 we’ve pretty much the same goals as before – just to be the world’s biggest metal band!

“The last few years have been a dream come true. The success of Hate and our first album, The Adversary, is mind blowing. We’re fortunate that people have backed us since those releases. But as far as becoming commercial in our sense of dress, style of music or lyrical content, that will never happen; we’ll never sell out. If we continue to be successful it’ll be because we resonate with people, and I hope that happens.

“We’re actually bigger overseas than we are in our own country! Though it’s not surprising, because other countries have 20 to100 times the population we have – there are so many more metal-heads out there. All we want to do is tour, so we’ll be back in Europe for the summer festival circuit in June/July and after that, in the last half of the year, we’ll hopefully be releasing a new album. So we’re planning to record and release an album as well as tour every continent in 2014.”

When&Where: Soundwave, Flemington Racecourse - February 28

Defiler written by Tex Miller

A couple of weeks out from their debut tour of Australia, I got the opportunity to catch up with Jake Peltz from California rockers Defiler, who are a part of the massive 2014 Soundwave line-up. To say that he is a little bit excited is quite the understatement, and I could tell down the phone line that he was nearly foaming at the mouth in sharing the stage with some of his musical heroes including Korn and Green Day. “This is our first tour of Australia and it’s a place that we have always wanted to come to ever since we started the band. The fact that it is really happening is quite a pinch yourself moment, and we can’t wait to get out and meet all of our fans. I’m so excited to finally be able to bring these tunes to you all after all this time,” Peltz said excitedly about the upcoming tour.

Since forming in 2010 Defiler has released two albums, Pangaea and Nematocera, and 2014 sees the release of a new disc as well as some exclusive Australian release tracks before their Soundwave shows in late February.

“We’re planning on releasing a new disc sometime this year, and before we come to Soundwave we’re going to be putting out a couple of new tracks. We’ve been working quite hard on these new tracks for quite a while – they are definitely something that we are really excited about. It’s also the first time we’ll be playing them live; so Australia, feel honoured you get to hear them live first!”

Peltz laughs.

Playing in bands throughout his teenage years, Jake saw Defiler as a more productive outlet for his songs due to a better work ethic from his band mates. Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, being a multi-instrumentalist

allowed Jake to play in several bands before starting Defiler. “Because I play bass, drums, guitar as well as sing, I was always playing music with some band, although no one seemed to be that committed to what we were doing.

“I had a bunch of songs written and found a guitarist to record with, and that’s how Pangaea came about. The funny thing is that we released the video for ‘Cryomancer’ before we had even played a show, so to gain a big following and reputation worldwide before anything had actually really happened was pretty cool.”

Despite still being a relatively new band on the gig circuit, Defiler holds the world record for the number of shows on a single tour of Russia. Having watched some footage on YouTube, it sounded like a pretty hectic tour. “Holy smokes,” Jake starts to reminisce, “that tour was pretty insane and definitely my favourite thus far. We have an insane amount of following in that country, to which most people would think is a little weird. We scheduled 24 shows and every single show was amazing. Some pretty crazy stuff went down on that tour, but you know the saying what happens on the road…”

For those readers of Forte who haven’t heard of Defiler, if you like your music a little heavier and love an energetic live show, be sure to catch these guys at Soundwave.

“I don’t know what the security is like, but it’d be awesome to meet some of our fans. We’ve travelled all this way; we’re gonna put on a pretty fucking epic show.”

When&Where: Soundwave, Melbourne - February 28

Billy Bragg written by Natalie Rogers

He may have met the Queen, received a personal mention in Bob Dylan’s memoir, had a street named in his honour and be highly regarded by his peers for ‘mixing pop and politics’, but Billy Bragg prefers the simple things in life. Going to the movies with his wife Juliet and spending time with his twenty-year-old son top the list, but as I found out in a recent chat with the man himself, a uniquely Australian experience continues to intrigue him.

“I’ve always dreamt of travelling on The Ghan – traversing your incredible country’s interior would be an extraordinary adventure. I always tell my manager we must do it, and hopefully one day we will!”

Maybe 2014 will be the year, as Billy and his band are returning to play a run of dates from the West to the East Coast next month – including one show as part of the WOMADelaide Festival on March 10th. Billy is certainly a welcome visitor; over the 30+ years of his career he’s made the journey south several times – and plans to continue the tradition.

“Australians have always been really good to me. Even when I’ve not been back for two or three years, the audiences have always been very receptive to what I’ve been doing and interested in coming to the gigs, hearing my songs and speaking to me about issues.”

As a prolific left-wing activist, politics is never far from his mind, and talk quickly turns to our common ground. “I feel closer to what’s going on in Australia; with the music that I make, the responses to it have always been so welcoming and warm. I think in some ways it might be the similar politics; the sort of politics that I believe in resonate more perhaps in Australia. You’ve got that labour history they no

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longer have in the US or in Canada.

“Of all the places I travel around the world, despite being so far away from home, I actually feel the most at home in Australia. There’s obviously a strong connection between our two countries, but it’s more than just language. Every time I come I fall in love with the place a little more. The last time we came down I played a collection of Woody Guthrie songs [Mermaid Avenue: The Complete Sessions 2012]. It was just incredible – we had to add shows in several cities.”

This time around Billy promised to play a little bit of everything, for fans old and new: “I put together a band to play my latest album, Tooth and Nail, the way it should be heard. I have bass, drums and a keyboard player as usual, but I’ve brought in a pedal steel guitar player and that allows me to not only play the Tooth and Nail songs in the way I intended, but also gives me a lot more depth to play older songs from my back catalogue. And it goes without saying that the Mermaid Avenue songs work beautifully with the pedal steel guitar too.

“Of course I’ll play a bit of solo stuff in the middle – I do a solo breakdown for the purists,” he laughed. “I’d like to think we have a really nice mix of new songs, and it’ll be a great show.

“WOMADelaide is a brilliant festival to be a part of and my only regret is that we won’t be in town a little longer to see some of the other artists that will be performing!”

When&Where: WOMADelaide, Adelaide Botanic Park - March 7-10

TALK OF THE

TOWN!

Keepin' it Regional!

ok sure

the night party

mother's cake

at the Kyneton Music Festival!

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TALK OF THE TOWN! Talk of the Town: Where nothing’s gonna stop us now. Coming up you have‌ .........................................................................

Gellibrand Blues & Blueberry Festival

In the Otway Ranges, around 25 clicks from Colac, you will find the town of Gellibrand. At the 2011 Census Gellibrand had a population of 282; however, as we well know a little town can do great things. On March 1 the Otways Tourist Park will host the Gellibrand River Blues and Blueberry Festival. The day kicks off with a produce market and art expo, while the afternoon is dedicated to the blues. Music for the day includes Dreamboogie, One Black Rat and Blues with That. Dreamboogie formed out of Melbourne in 2010, taking their name from American jazz/blues writer Langston Hughes’ famous poem ‘Dream Boogie’. Led by the big voice of Rebecca Davey, the band has represented the Melbourne Blues Appreciation Society at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis.

They’ll put the boogie in your dreams. Check in on their Facebook page for further information. .........................................................................

Queens of Noize II

The world is full of great part II’s: movies like The Empire Strikes Back, Rocky II, Terminator 2 and Desperado; music like Nevermind, The Bends, Paul’s Boutique, Vs., Dirt, Siamese Dreams and Evil Empire. And this month Bendigo’s Newmarket Hotel will host Queens of Noize II across February 14 and 15. This is where you will find the coolest gals in all the land. I mean it, the coolest gals. Coming at you will be Brisbane alt-rock trio The Androgyny, Melbourne’s female-fronted punk rock powerhouse Strawberry Fist Cake, Bendigo’s femalefronted rockers Rabid Zulu, Bendigo’s hard rock outfit Chase the Ace, Melbourne-based alt rock heroes The Heroines, Melbourne all-female power trio The Divine Fluxus, Melbourne power metal outfit Horizons Edge and Bendigo’s melodic-driven hard rockers Neurotik Trendz.

At the small cost of a tenner per night, this is bargain purecut rock. .........................................................................

GBOB Returns

Quick bite: The Global Battle of the Bands is the world’s biggest music competition, with 30 countries battling it out for the title of ‘Best New Band in the World’. Oh, and a cool US $100,000. Australia is one of the countries participating – and Geelong is hosting a heat on February 28 at Irish Murphys. The winner of the heat will receive four free custom-made band t-shirts from LabelState.com and ongoing merchandise, while the winner of the Victorian regional final will receive free recording time thanks to Black Pearl Studios. Hit gbob.com for more. .........................................................................

Good Times with Born Lion

Quick bite: Formed out of Sydney in mid-2012, Born Lion came together for one reason only: to create some righteous punk rock. In March last year they released their self-titled debut EP, recorded with a little help from Dave Hammer (The Snowdroppers). Singles ‘Livin’ Tough’ and ‘Adolescent Oath’ were picked up by triple j and various local radio stations. They have taken to the stage of Soundwave and recently supported The Hives. But what they’re really digging is new single ‘Good Times Jimmy’.

Music Man Megastore, Bendigo – February 14. .........................................................................

Minya Moonlight Concerts

The Minya Moonlight Concert series is off and running, already playing host to Major Tom and The Atoms, The Original Snakeskins and Alana & Alicia with Jo Jo Smith.

If you missed out, no worries – there are still a couple of fantastic shows coming up. On February 8 you have Cabaret Latte. Cabaret Latte is what happens when you take a touch of Mozart and add a twist of Andrew Lloyd-Webber. You’ll be swept up in their stylish mix of Broadway, pop and classical favourites. Where else will you hear Madonna one minute and Sondheim the next?

On March 1 you have Bruce Watson, Wendy Ealey and Moira Tyers. Watson is regarded as one of our country’s finest songmen, with his songs being covered by the likes of Eric Bogle and Joe Dolce. Together with Wendy and Moira the trio perform music rich in feeling, with touches

of humour thrown in for good measure. Situated around 15 minutes from Geelong, these are intimate concerts, with the amphitheatre seating up to 200 guests. Picnic hampers are available for the occasion; however, bookings are essential. Hampers are prepared on arrival and include antipasto, cheese, smoked salmon, fruits and bread rolls. A selection of beer and Minya wines are also made available. Follow the links through theminya.com. au for booking information. .........................................................................

Kylesa Are Coming

Last year Aussie Kylesa fans went from elation to desolation when sludge metal band Kylesa announced an Aussie tour only to bail. Unlike some, they were awesome enough to reschedule things, and in case you didn’t hear they have a date locked in at The Barwon Club, Geelong on March 31. The band got the ball rolling in 2001, lending their name from the term ‘Kilesa Mara’, a Buddhist term denoting delusory mental states. They released their debut self-titled album in 2002 and last year released album number six, Ultraviolet. Speaking about the album’s artwork, Phillip Cope said: “I thought that it fit pretty well with this album, you know, just kinda look at it as scarabs basically being dung beetles that make things out of shit. We kinda had a huge pile and we’re making an album out of it. There’s other symbolism like that on there as well.� .........................................................................

February @ Star Bar, Bendigo

Well, hasn’t Bendigo’s Star Bar become the place to be?!

It’s another big month at the venue, so let’s not dilly dally.

Or use that expression again. Chiefs gets things underway on February 7. Chiefs is a producer from Melbourne who recently released his debut EP, Reign Dance. You may have come across single ‘Stay’. February 14 brings Snakadaktal to the venue. The indie-pop dreamers released their debut album Sleep in the Water last year.

Next on the list is Cassian, who swings by on February 21. Hailing from Sydney, Cassian dropped EP 8 Voices late last year. Canada’s Ryan Hemsworth pays a visit on February 23. With a speciality in electronic music and sampling, Hemsworth has remixed works by Grimes, Frank Ocean and Cat Power. Nina Las Vegas returns for another round on February 26. Finally, Bad News Toilet will deliver the goods on February 28. .........................................................................

BallaRatCat is Back

Quick bite: After enjoying a little holiday (and why shouldn’t they?!), the comedy gold that is BallaRatCat is back for another year of laughs. They kick off the year tomorrow night, February 7, with Tommy Little. The funnyman is also the new co-host of the Nova FM breakfast show and regularly makes appearances on TV. Sarah Bennetto, James Dowdeswell and Oliver Clark also bring the funny.

It all takes place at The Lounge at The George – Lydiard Street, Ballarat. .........................................................................

Music in the Gardens To help celebrate the beauty of the Geelong Botanic Gardens, Music in the Gardens will host some very musical evenings throughout February. Coming up you have: Hot Club Swing on February 9, Luke Legs & Evening Cast on February 16 and Hipcats on February 23. Hot Club Swing will make things even hotter with their French gypsy jazz. Originally formed in 1997, the band cut their teeth performing in cafÊs and restaurants. In 2001, guitarists Ben Calderazzo and Ben Cohen, double-bassist Rob Gador and violinist Phil Smurthwaite met chanteuse Tessa Lee, who brought her French/English vocals to the table. After leaving for Perth shortly afterwards, Lee was replaced by Nadine Joy. They have since released three albums, including 2013’s Douce Ambiance. The group is mainly inspired by the virtuosic Django Reinhardt and StÊphane Grappelli. Further information can be found through friendsgbg.org.au. .........................................................................

Boom Goes Belle Roscoe

Are crowdfunding sites a good way to gauge the popularity of an artist or band? They sure can be. To help with the recording of their second album, alternative

D at Sea Has the Chills

Don’t Mess with The Smith Street Band

There is a strong chance you would have heard the name D at Sea before. His named has certainly popped up a few times in ol’ Forte, not to mention several other publications. D at Sea is the stage name of Doyle Perez, a Brisbanebased singer-songwriter hitting all the right notes (puns; terrible, terrible puns). In late 2011 he uploaded an acoustic cover of Parkway Drive’s ‘Carrion’ to YouTube. Call it perfect timing if you will, but while many uploads attract only a handful of views, Carrion has racked up over 1,000,000 of them. The next step was original music, and that came by the way of Unconscious EP. On January 21 he uploaded track ‘December’ to his official YouTube page and has since clocked up over 100,000 views. Covers or original, people are digging his sounds. The Barwon Club, Geelong – February 20.

The Smith Street Band would be doing a fine job if they could top the year they had in 2013 – a year that included shows in the US, Europe and the UK, appearances at some of Australia’s most loved festivals and the release of their 10-inch EP, Don’t Fuck With Our Dreams. Frontman Wil Wagner also took it upon himself to curate the three day music festival All Tomorrow’s Shoeys and release a solo album. Anyway, you just get that feeling that they could one-up themselves in 2014, and kicking things off with an appearance at Push Over and a run of dates with The Mezingers (who recently released a split 7-inch with The Bouncing Souls) and Grim Fandango (whose latest albums, Flicker Noise, was released last year) is a mighty fine way to start. They’re kings of folk punk. The Karova, Ballarat – March 23.

Piping Hot in February The Piping Hot Chicken Shop has some sweet, sweet shows to see out the final month of summer. Tell me more. Righteo! Lloyd Spiegel is in the house on February 14. Lloyd has been performing for two decades, more than half his life, over which time he has released eight albums. He is widely regarded as one of the country’s finest blues exponents. Jeff Lang is next up on February 21. Self-described as “disturbed folk�, Lang performs a concoction of folk, blues and rock. In 2012 he was presented with the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia’s National Folk Recording Award. International folk lovelies The Beez will swing by the venue on February 28 as part of their Australian tour. Regular visitors to our shores, The Beez serve up an irresistible mix of pop/folk originals and parodies. The Beez will be joined by Sweet Felicia.

indie/pop outfit Belle Roscoe took to PledgeMusic last year. The mission was successful. For those unfamiliar, Belle Roscoe is the combined talents of brother and sister Matty and Julia Gurry. They released their debut self-titled album in 2008, for which they earned heavy praise. In 2009/2010 Belle Roscoe became the first Australian band to be invited to close the Cannes Film Festival. The duo started creating their second effort at the end of 2011. In 2012 they teamed up with Belgium producer Luuk Cox to produce their new body of work, Boom Boom. The album was released last year, a year which also saw the duo perform to 20,000 in France.

The Loft, Warrnambool – February 13. .........................................................................

Mat McHugh is Looking for a Saviour Songman Mat McHugh has been on the road since the beginning of the year as the love continues to shine down on his debut album, Love Come Save Me. The Summer Come Save Me tour has Mat dropping in on spots around regional Victoria and New South Wales and backs up a pretty decent 2013. You see, last year McHugh toured the US and South America, combining elements of his solo acoustic set with electronic and beats-driven arrangements. This added element to his music will also lay down the foundation for his 2014 sophomore release. Mat: “To me, music is far too previous to exist in a box. I think a song is born and dies in a moment and in that, becomes a new definition.

Playing live, I never know what’s going to happen and that’s exactly the way I like it. As long as there is love though, everything will be okay.� Torquay Hotel, Torquay – February 7.

Down N’ Dirty Cleveland Blues

Rattle Snake Shaker is the new EP from Cleveland Blues – and if you don’t own it, well, I guess you have no blues in your soul. Starting out at the tender age of 30, Cleveland took to the blues like a dog to a bone. After performing with friends at parties for a while, the bluesman felt he needed more. Leaving the small town of Yeppoon in Central Queensland, Cleveland was soon making his mark on the Sunshine Coast. Artists including Fumes, Marshall & the Fro, Dallas Frasca and Jeff Curren were making their mark around this time, all having an influence on what made Cleveland’s heart beat a little faster: heavy rollin’ riffs. Finally Cleveland crossed paths with drummer Andrea ‘Bam Bam’ Norden and it was like they were two peas in a pod. The Loft, Warrnambool – tonight (February 6) & Anglesea Hotel, Anglesea – February 7. .........................................................................

The Bridge’s Big Day

Oh what joyous times await music lovers at Castlemaine’s Bridge Hotel on February 15. Hilary Blackshaw warms things up in the afternoon, playing her blues-tinged and laid-back tunes from 4 p.m. Playing both acoustic and electric guitar, with a little fiddle thrown in here and there, the songbird’s earthy tunes provide the perfect afternoon session. Not ready to call it a day? Well stay on for The Night Party. Get to You is the debut album from The Night Party, and you should really get it. The band was formed a couple of years back by Rick Sands (The Palms, Odette, Sand Brothers) and Buck Lexton (Boss Cuts, South of Nowhere, Six Feet), whose minimal instrumentation and cocktail of influences laid the foundation for soulful rock ‘n’ roll. Former Rocket Scientist and producer Paul Maybury

Spend the weekend exploring open studios and creative spaces.

15 and 16 March 2014 Presenting 60 artists and 24 eclectic art venues Special features – Nebula @ Inverleigh From the Flames – Community Exhibition @ Dereel.

FREE entry to all venues. z 3LFN XS DQ RIÂżFLDO PDS IURP UHJLRQDO YLVLWRU FHQWUHV

JDOOHULHV FDIHV RU GRZQORDG RQ www.artstrail.com.au

Enquiries: 03 5220 7212 z Trail Bus bookings: 03 5220 7135 20

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(Baptism of Uzi, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard) was at the helm for the album. .........................................................................

Cyndi Boste & Josh Goddard With over 35 years as a working musician under her belt, Cyndi Boste has three times the musical life of many artists doing the rounds today. She began her career at the age of fifteen, appearing as a special guest on the morning children’s television show, The Early Bird Show.

Fast-forward to the mid-nineties and Cyndi is performing as a member of Steve Boyd and The Preachers alongside her brother Rory. She recorded with the band for a few years before dropping her debut solo album Home Truths in 1998. Her latest release is Nowadays, an album that comes seven years after her previous release. These were not seven easy years either; however, on her return to music she realised just how much she had been missed.

Martians Café, Deans Marsh – February 8. .........................................................................

Ratimé Pop Culture Festival It’s not often we would look ahead to 2015 so early into the year, but the Ratimé Pop Culture Festival is an exception. Set to take place in October 2015, Ratimé is regional Victoria’s only pop culture festival. While there are plenty of festivals of this nature that take place in Melbourne, it’s not always easy to get there. After all, travel, accommodation etc. mounts up. Taking to Pozible last year, organisers had this to say: “Not only is this a chance for regional pop-culture fans who may not get a chance to get to the larger conventions, or simply don’t know about them, it also provides a different (but hopefully no less enjoyable) experience for this who attend the major cons in a beautiful area with plenty to do outside of our convention. We plan on having screenings, AMV competitions, cosplay (of course), video games, panels, dealers and anything else that the people demand.” Hit ratime.org.au for further information. * Note: A Scavenger Hunt is set for April. .........................................................................

A Little Look at GPAC Your February calendar at GPAC is looking pretty chockers, so let’s get to it. Written by John Cariani, Almost, Maine is a play where residents of a remote town fall in and out of love in unexpected ways. Almost, Maine kicks off February 7. The Sustainable Living Festival takes place on February 8. Based upon George Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion, My Fair Lady depicts the story of a phonetics professor who wagers he can take a cockney flower girl and turn her accent into a proper English one.

My Fair Lady kicks off February 8. The works of Gilbert and Sullivan come alive in Pirates to Pinafore, February 12 & 13. Shakespeare in the Vines – A Midsummer Night’s Dream takes place February 14 & 15. John Waters’ ode to John Lennon, Looking Through a Glass Onion, takes place February 14 & 16. The RAW Comedy heats hit GPAC on February 22. There is still plenty more, so hit up gpac.org.au and start marking your diary. .........................................................................

Shannon Noll on the Road

New Tunes from Monique Brumby

Shannon Noll has been having a blast on the 2014 edition of the Red Hot Summer Tour but will wind down with a handful of solo performances.

We’ve been on the Noll ride since he placed runner-up on the first series of Australian Idol in 2003. What the Australian public saw in him then they still see in him now: honesty. It is what has helped him achieve the incredibly impressive feat of registering ten consecutive top 10 singles.

He is a multiple ARIA winner, an APRA winner, an MTV Awards Australia winner and even a Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Winner. Noll: “I tell it straight up and down when I’m writing songs. I’m not the sort of person who’ll write something that means 15 things to 15 different people. Music’s about making you feel something, and even more importantly, making you feel that someone else out there feels the same way.” Gateway Hotel, Corio – March 1.

With new tunes ready to show off, Monique Brumby will be hitting the touring road in a week’s time. Born in Tasmania, Monique’s first foray into music was busking on the streets of Hobart. She then started picking up paid gigs before heading abroad for a year. Upon her return she relocated to Melbourne where her music journey continued. In 1996 she released her debut single, ‘Fool for You’, a track that would snare the songbird an ARIA for Best New Talent. She has released four albums and three EPs and has toured with artists including Don McLean, Paul Kelly, the late Jeff Buckley, Shawn Colvin, The Stranglers and The Bangles. Keep an eye out for her forthcoming self-titled album.

Monique plays The Bridge, Castlemaine on February 21 with a helping hand from Caroline Kennedy. * Note: Monique will also perform at the ChillOut Festival in Daylesford.

A Timely Walk in Geelong Last year Foxtel commissioned a second series of Tony Robinson’s Time Walks, following a hugely successful first outing where the much-loved actor and TV host (if you are thinking, ‘Who the hell is Tony Robinson?’ then shame. Shame on you) took in several cities around Australia. Local Foxtel subscribers – well, those with the History Channel – may want to keep an eye on the eagerly-awaited new series, as Robinson takes a stroll down Geelong. (In series one he visited Bendigo.)

Speaking about the decision to renew the series, Foxtel’s General Manager of Factual Channels, Jim Buchan said: “The first series of Tony Robinson’s Time Walks was a runaway success for The History Channel, redefining how relevant and accessible our brand commissions can be in delivering new untold histories to our audiences … Tony brings such great energy and perspective to the series and we’re delighted to have him back on board for another series.” Robinson was equally as chuffed, saying: “I’m over the moon to be making a second series of Time Walks and can’t wait to get back to Australia to discover even more of the hidden history that lies behind, above and below the places Australians walk every day.” The ten thirty-minute

series will also see Robinson visiting The Barossa Valley, Canberra, Parramatta, Townsville, Kalgoorlie, Wellington, Christchurch, Alice Springs and Uluru. .........................................................................

Riverboats Music Festival BIG REMINDER: The Riverboats Music Festival is almost here, so we’re shooting out a friendly reminder.

Taking place from February 14 through 16, the festival is set to welcome The Cat Empire, Tim Finn, Paul Dempsey, Ian Moss, Don Walker, Dan Kelly’s Dream Band, Wagons, Thelma Plum, The Basics, Mojo Juju, Tinpan Orange, Sweet Jean and Liz Stringer. Your host is Brian Nankervis.

More can be found through riverboatsmusic.com.au. .........................................................................

Melissa Ramsay Looks to the Sea Quick bite: Melissa Ramsay may have a day job, but playing music is her passion. Singing of love, lost love and the surroundings around her, Melissa has been popping up in pubs and bars around Melbourne. And as time rolls on, music is what she hopes will become her day job. She says: “After getting back onto the stage, I disheartened myself because I thought I wasn’t cut out for it, but as

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TALK OF THE TOWN! some point during the last half of this year [2013] it clicked that this is all I want to do.” Babushka, Ballarat – February 14 & Perfect Drop Wine & Food Lounge, Daylesford – February 15. Distance to the Sea is her debut.

.........................................................................

The Songs of Iain Archibald Quick bite: Iain Archibald has been playing guitar and singing since he was twelve. Now 24, music is his life. He has worked with many bands over the years (both original and covers) and has worked as a hired gun for Sony BMG. The frontman for a country rock band, Iain has performed at The Forum Theatre, Federation Square, The Gershwin Room & The Corner Hotel. With band in tow, Iain is set to perform his first gig in Bendigo, taking on The Newmarket tomorrow night, February 7. .........................................................................

Introducing Courtney Ward Quick bite: Last month Geelong’s Courthouse ARTS welcomed Courtney Ward as its curator for 2014.

Growing up in Geelong, Courtney’s artistic expression flourished during her high school years at Sacred Heart College. Time abroad shaped her art further. In 2012 she completed her Floristry Institute at TAFE and has incorporated this into her art. She is currently completing a Bachelor of Arts at Deakin University with the hope of undergoing a postgraduate position in Museum Studies.

Congratulations Courtney! .........................................................................

Groovin’ the Moo Quick bite: Well, the line-up for the 2014 edition of Groovin’ the Moo is in, and although due to Forte’s cycle the line-up hadn’t been revealed at the time of writing, it’s pretty safe to say it would be a winner. The Moo also makes its debut in Adelaide this year, a pretty fair effort considering how many festivals have fallen on hard times recently. The travelling festival has become a bit of a favourite, especially around Bendigo where the event has sold out in recent times. Groovin’ the Moo hits the Bendigo Showgrounds on May 3. .........................................................................

Boy & Bear Quick bite: As you no doubt know, Boy & Bear will be hitting the road in April for an extensive tour in support of Harlequin Dream. Says singer David Hosking: “This will be the most extensive regional tour the band has done and we are very much looking forward to it. We love the idea of playing to new people in new and exciting parts of the country.” The tour follows a healthy run of shows in Europe and America. Black Swan, Bendigo – May 8; Regent Theatre, Ballarat – May 9; Costa Hall, Geelong – May 10; Lighthouse Theatre, Warrnambool – May 11.

Last Round for Port Fairy

Quick bite: The Port Fairy Folk Festival has released its final run of tickets, so you had best not waste any more time if you’re planning on booking a date with the festival.

Glen Hansard & Lisa O’Neill, Nationals, Beccy Cole, Normie Rowe & The Original Playboys, Mick Thomas’ Roving Commission, The Damian Howard Band, Ginger & Tonic, Hot Club Swing, Melody Pool, All Day Fritz, Eddy and Blues on the Boyle and Imogen Brough are all latecomers to the party. Hit portfairyfolkfestival.com for all your needs. .........................................................................

Bits & Pieces Okay good readers, here are a few more reminders and other bits and pieces for your good selves. The Karova, Ballarat hosts Havok and King Parrot February 8 while The Barwon Club, Geelong plays host to the bands on February 9. Uncle Jed hits The Karova, Ballarat on February 7 and Bendigo’s Music Man Megastore on February 8. Tank Dilemma have a show locked in at Hotel Warrnambool on February 9. Austrian outfit Mother’s Cake take on The Karova, Ballarat on February 13 and Geelong’s Courthouse ARTS on February 14. .........................................................................

Eureka Hotel There is a lot to love about Geelong’s Eureka Hotel, but for those that love a night out there are three important ones: Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Saturday night is the big granddaddy of them all, with Whispers playing host to 15 DJs in five different rooms over two levels. We’re in an age where we’re spoilt for choice, my friends. .........................................................................

Home House Friday, Saturday and Sunday at Geelong’s Home House gives you the perfect excuse to get out of your, well, house.

While I don’t doubt your ability to amuse yourselves, it’s just a little bit easier and more fun when HH is involved.

There are DJs across every level, each playing something a little different. What kind of mood are you in? .........................................................................

The City Quarter Boasting stunning views of Western and Eastern Beach, the City Quarter Bar is about as chilled out as they come.

Their Friday Unwind takes the stress out of the end of the working week by offering a complimentary bus service (conditions apply). Try one of their gourmet pizzas as you enjoy a drink. .........................................................................

Lambys Live bands and DJs are there to greet you every Friday,

Aireys Inlet Open Mic Festival It is sweet number seven for the Aireys Inlet Open Mic Festival in ’14. Now, at the time of writing the all-important line-up details had not been announced, but we’re going to run with what we know – starting with the dates.

That would be March 14 through March 16, so make a note of that. It you haven’t yet attended one of the festival’s previous six events, you should really do yourself a favour. This year the festival will serve up over 150 performances across nine stages, from full rock bands to solo acts. Some 5000 people are expected to make their way to the funky little coastal inlet across proceedings. There are a couple of really cool things about the festival. First is the Special Mystery Guest. Colin Hay, Tim Rogers, Dan Sultan and Mark Seymour have been among the guests of honour. The second cool thing about the festival is that entry to all venues is free. However, the festival runs on donations and sponsorships, so to find out how you can help hit up the website below. Last year’s event also ran three workshops: songwriting, African drumming and harmonica. Chances are you will find workshops again in 2014, although once again no information was available at the time of writing. Hit up aireysinlet.com.au for further information – and keep an eye on Forte as information comes to hand.

Saturday and Sunday at Lambys. Whether you’re just popping in for a knock-off drink or painting the town red, Lambys is one of Geelong’s favourite hangouts. Their Black Sheep Restaurant is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week. .........................................................................

The Edge, Geelong If you’re looking for a night out, The Edge has you covered Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The venue is the brainchild of a bunch of mates who wanted a place to meet, catch up and enjoy some bay views. The venue prides itself on being a safe haven for the hectic lifestyle of city dwellers.

Ballarat Beats to Rockabilly Festival The Ballarat Beat Rockabilly Festival is tuning up once again to transform Ballarat into Rock ‘n Roll party central.

Now in its second year, Ballarat Beat Rockabilly Festival will take over the streets of the Ballarat CBD from the 13th to 16th of February and celebrates all things rockabilly; the music, the fashion, the vibe, the cars and the dancing.

Ballarat Beat offers punters a unique opportunity to see standout international music acts, classic cars and hot rods, illustration artists, and market stalls celebrating all things from the rockabilly era.

Rockabilly is a celebration of the blending of the blues, country and gospel sounds of American music that were prevalent in the 1950s and which led to the emergence of Rock ‘n Roll. But Rockabilly is now much more than just a type of music, it has grown into a celebration of all things that were associated with that time and place including hot rods, fifties fashion, dancing, and the Ballarat Beat will showcase these elements and more.

A major niche tourism market, people interested in Rockabilly travel around the country and the world attending celebrations of this important time in the evolution of popular music and culture.

Ballarat Beat Rockabilly Festival will offer both visitors and residents alike a unique opportunity to see standout international music acts including The Delta Bombers (USA) and The Rhythm (USA), as well as amazing local artists such as Billy and The Headliners, and Melbourne bands the Rock’A’Dees and Firebird Trio.

If the musical entertainment isn’t enough, the promise of “The amazing Rockabilly Burlesque

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Photo by Yum Studio show” is sure to get people’s attention.

For those interested in something a bit faster still, Ballarat streets will be lined with classic cars and hot rods from the era, illustration artists from every corner of the globe and stalls containing a huge range of specialty clothing, music, magazines and paraphernalia from the 1950s.

Ballarat Regional Tourism CEO George Sossi explained that Ballarat Beat has an undeniable visual impact on the city. “The event really transforms the town back to the 1950’s, it’s a great spectacle to see so many festival patrons decked out in their vibrant clothes and Hot-rods”.

Mr Sossi went on say “Ballarat Beat will take place at a key time in our year, it is the last marquee event of what has been a busy Summer Event Season, before the release of our autumn/winter campaigns.”

Ballarat Beat will continue to promote Ballarat to our ideal target audiences, but in a whole new light.

Rockabilly and 1950s culture is incredibly cool and a huge growth market. “We hope the locals enjoy this as much as the 5,000 odd people BRT expects will visit for the weekend,” Mr Sossi explained.

Event organiser, creator and promoter of the very successful Camperdown Cruise, Arthur Matsakos, said “now that we’re taking over Lydiard St for the festival we’re sure that the event will go to the next level after a great success last year”. “We’ve also added some amazing acts to line up like The Delta Bombers (USA), The Rhythm Shakers, Alex Vargas and Gizzelle”. Matsakos, a Classic Car Restorer with over 25 years of experience, has involvement in various car and music festivals around Australia and the world. “Ballarat is the perfect place for Rockabilly fans to enjoy great music, fashion, cars, dancing and festival atmosphere, all in this amazing

streetscape that Lydiard St offers.”

Attractions over the weekend will include international and national rockabilly music acts, an art exhibition, fashion parades, Australia’s Burlesque Shows including the crowning of Miss Burlesque Australia 2013, stalls and markets, classic car/ hot rod show, Rock & Roll dance lessons, Glamour Central hair styling, specialty clothing stalls featuring fashion from the 1950s and theatre shows.

Where&When: Ballarat, 13th - 16th of February. For more information or to book tickets visit http:// ballaratbeat.com.au/ Ticket prices and details are available at http://ballaratbeat.com.au/buytickets

Geelong Music Academy: Q&A with Mark Pullin The pathway to a career in music is not always an easy one to walk; however, an exciting new development in Geelong’s education industry hopes to make things a little easier. It’s hard not to share their excitement.

Forte sat down for a chat with Geelong Music Academy Director Mark Pullin to discuss the new and exciting opotunity in Geelong.

Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions for Forte.

Please introduce yourself, your role at the GMA and your background in terms of experience.

Hi, my name is Mark Pullin and I am the Director at Geelong Music Academy. My background in music education is extensive, having taught at a number of schools around Geelong including Matthew Flinders Girls Secondary College and Belmont High School.

I worked with the Sweethearts for many years, an association that continues today, and was Director of Music at Belmont High for a number of years.

After leaving secondary teaching, I was the General Manager at Ausmusic and worked as a producer at the Music Factory in Melbourne.

I have many years

experience in the music industry as a musician, songwriter, sound engineer and producer, as well as a strong training background, having delivered across the music industry training package at Certificate II, Certificate III, Certificate IV, Diploma and Advanced Diploma levels.

I am a ProTools Certified Operator and Trainer and also a full songwriter member of APRA. Currently I am playing in a local soul band Grand Soul Audio – trying to keep my hand in the local music scene!

Can you please introduce readers to the Geelong Music Academy – how has it come about, and when did the idea come about?

The Geelong Music Academy has been established to provide aspiring musicians with the tools and pathways to forge a career in music. Let me say it is a very difficult industry to break into, but we want to help take students from the classroom to the stage, developing both their confidence and musicianship with programs designed for all skill levels.

I have been passionate about real music education for years and hoping that the Geelong

Music Academy can provide the next level of training for people serious about their music making.

The idea has been brewing for many years and a number of things fell into place, giving us the opportunity to launch programs in 2014.

Can you tell us about the structure of the academy – Forte understands you are working as an arm of Diversitat?

Geelong Music Academy is a private music education company which will be offering a range of education and training programs. We are really excited to have developed a partnership with Diversitat Training for the delivery of accredited courses such as Certificate IV in Music and Diploma of Music.

Geelong Music Academy will be teaching, training and assessing these courses, with Diversitat Training overseeing the compliance and issuing nationally recognised qualifications. The really exciting part is that these programs will be delivered at the Pulse Studios in Market St, Geelong (just behind the Village Cinemas).

Students will have access to Pulse FM, Pulse TV and the film and music studios, allowing us to develop real music, real songs and real

performances that can be broadcast all from the one location.

What was the catalyst for you in terms of the decision to set up GMA? The catalyst for me was a burning desire to get aspiring musicians to make music for real. I believe that you must continue to develop your craft, and all performance students will have private instrumental or vocal lessons with a tutor throughout the programs.

Our programs have been specifically designed to have up-and-coming musicians develop, create and share their music with the world. I want to ensure that we have a performancebased teaching method, which is an immersive experience that inspires our students to be their best. We get our students playing music as quickly as possible because we know that that is what our students want to do.

I am a strong advocate for an authentic industry experience using professional equipment and staff, and performances on real stages, at real venues in front of real live audiences. That really is the aim – for this “learning” to be real.

At the end of the day I wanted to ensure that we would teach and perform

music that students love to play and audiences love to hear. From the fundamental roots of rock and roll through classic rock, blues, soul, funk, reggae, alternative, electronic, pop and indie, we share, engage and celebrate it all.

So in terms of the actual campus, where will students be attending class and what resources will they have available?

The classes will be held at the Pulse Studios in Market St, Geelong. As I mentioned earlier, access to these facilities and the Pulse network will allow students to access community radio through Pulse FM, community TV through Pulse TV and a high level production environment with film, TV and audio studio facilities.

What are the exact services the new academy will be looking to provide students interested in music tuition?

The initial courses that we are offering for enrolment at the moment are Certificate IV in Music and Diploma of Music. This is a year-long program that will see students complete the Certificate IV in Music in the first semester and then continue to complete the Diploma of Music within the year.

Later in the year we will have short courses and one-day sessions for those interested in particular music industry topics, with small class sizes and intensive practical learning in just one, two or three days.

What are some of the unique elements the

courses will aim to provide?

Our full-time courses are aimed at the musician.

The focus will be on performance with study on the student’s chosen instrument, as well as group performance, stage techniques and performance skills.

Songwriting will form a significant component, along with musicianship and the study of contemporary music styles. We include audio recording as a key area of study, as I firmly believe that to survive as a musician in today’s market you must have the skills to be able to record and produce yourself.

Will GMA be incorporating tuition from people with experience in the field?

Our teachers, trainers and tutors have excellent industry experience.

I am always looking out for current working musicians who are passionate about sharing their knowledge and experience with the next generation of musicians – so if you are keen to train others, email me mark@ geelongmusicacademy. com.au With so many training providers around, what is your aim going to be in terms of offering a unique experience to students?

I think all you can do is offer a genuine experience for students. By making the courses have real music performance opportunities as well as developing a set of tools that students can use immediately to turn their passion into a career,

I believe we can offer a unique and exciting program.

Geelong and the Surf Coast is home to amazing musicians, sound engineers, producers and events and it is a shame that young musicians feel like that need to go to Melbourne to develop their skills. Hopefully we can provide a quality, real option for those aspiring musicians to realise their dreams.

Is there any other info you would like to provide for people currently tossing up whether or not to sign up with GMA? I would encourage anyone interested to contact us for more info by email info@ geelongmusicacademy. com.au. More details are available on our website geelongmusicacademy. com.au, and course fees can be sent to you to

consider.

We are lucky that in partnering with Diversitat Training as the Registered Training Organisation for the accredited courses, Government funding may be available for eligible students.

The full-time course, Certificate IV in Music, will commence in late Feb, with the Diploma of Music following on until the end of 2014.

We are currently taking enrolments. As they say, ‘Do yourself a favour’ and check it out.

Anything else?

I probably should have mentioned that students enrolling are expected to have a principal instrument of study. In 2014 we are accepting students in vocals, guitar, bass, drums, piano, keyboard, sax/woodwind, trumpet, trombone, violin/ strings and electronic/DJ.

What’s happening at pako festa 2014?!

• G reat Pako Street Parade 11am •B ack to back Performances on five stages from 12pm • R oving Street Performances •3 0 Cultural Groups, 60 Community Groups •S morgasbord of Multicultural Food Stalls • C armen Miranda Bar Area •D ownload the FREE Pako Festa App update released 14thFeb: www.pakofesta.com.au Introducing our “New” Family Entertainment Precinct Geelong West Town Hall: ShowTime Attractions Presents Dinosaur Adventures Exhibition and Walk-through Experience 10am-5pm - FREE Warner Bros Wizard of Oz Live Stage Show and Meet and Greet Appearances-FREE Keep checking website for performance times Courthouse Youth Arts Courthouse ARTS in association with Freeza will program live locally produced music from 12.30pm - 4.30pm. The Freeza stage will showcase the musical talents of the group’s members; guitarist Tex Miller, pianist Tommy Harold, and guitarist Jye Canon.

Where&when: Pakington Street Geelong West, Saturday 22 February 2014 For more info visit: www.pakofesta.com.au

PAKO FESTA Pako Festa, now in its thirty-second year, is Geelong’s much loved, award-winning, free, annual community arts festival - the biggest of its kind in Australia.

Managed by Diversitat and held on the last weekend of February in Pakington Street, Geelong West, “the multicultural heart of Geelong”, it incorporates an extravagant street parade featuring around ninety floats and hundreds of performers representing forty-five affiliated ethnic communities and around sixty other community groups and organisations. The

A CELEBRATION OF CULTURAL DIVERSITY

street is lined with stalls selling traditional foods and arts and crafts, and nine separate stages in the precinct offer performances of music and dance as well as interactive workshops and exhibitions. Pako Festa has become Victoria’s premier multicultural event, attended by well over 100,000 people in each of the last three years and estimated to inject close to $2.5 million dollars into the local economy just over the course of the day itself.

Pako Festa offers a unique opportunity for those 100,000-plus participants to socialise

and celebrate in an arena of ethnic diversity and harmony, as well as gaining an appreciation of the great variety of artistic and cultural expression within Geelong’s multicultural community.

The Pako Festa Street Parade starts at 11am, embodies Colour, Culture & Celebration and is one of the most important events at Pako Festa!

Encapsulating the very essence of our nation – diversity, dynamism and colorfulness, and above all else cooperation, community inter-connectedness, creativity and the

promotion of our humanity – Pako Festa sends a strong message in these troubled times in which we live: our preparedness to interact with, work with and treat each other with dignity and respect demolishes the walls of division and conflicts; bringing everyone together in a spirit of understanding, acceptance and celebration of life itself.

A very important aspect of Pako Festa lies in its provision as a vehicle for the CALD communities to affirm and honour their contribution to Pako Festa over its 32year history.

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Eagle and the Worm written by Natalie Rogers

“Do I wanna be here? ... Do I really enjoy this? ... Is this what I want to do more than anything else?” These are the questions pondered from time to time by Jarrad Brown, lead vocalist and chief songwriter of Melbourne’s Eagle and the Worm. Luckily the answer was still a resounding YES when I caught up with Jarrad to chat about his creative process, recording at the much-loved Sing Sing Studios and why feeling nervous can sometimes be a good thing.

“We’ve been working on a new album at the Sing Sing South in Melbourne since late last year. It’s a beautiful space and the people that own it are really accommodating. It’s a great place to record. We’ve been really free to develop ideas, write and jam there.

“We started out with just a few simple concepts, but I wanted it to be an extremely hands-on process. I wanted the music to come alive through the chemistry and input of other creative voices. Whether from others in the band or the engineer or from people in the production side, it’s been really fun and invigorating. And it’s resulted in an impressive body of work – we’ve recorded about twenty-three songs so far!”

Although Jarrad couldn’t divulge exactly when we’ll be able to get our hands on the finished product, he hinted that their upcoming slot at the Kyneton Music Festival will be the perfect opportunity to showcase new material and iron out any kinks in their live show before they hit the road on a national tour.

“We haven’t played many shows in the last few months because we’ve been preparing our album, so it’s a BIG opportunity for us to play a lot of our new stuff. We’re headlining as well. I think we’re closing the first night, so we couldn’t be happier. We’re pumped. We’ve never played at Kyneton before, but I’m stoked we’ll be able to do this.

“I think it’s essential to get out and play new stuff as soon as possible, not to leave them as a bunch of songs on a hard-drive, but actually bring them into the real world. It’s something we’re all looking forward to.”

Since their formation, Eagle and the Worm have continued to delight audiences around Australia, as well as garnering a strong following across the UK and Europe thanks to their energetic live performances.

“Although there’ve been a few line-up changes, the passion within the band is still the same. When I walk on stage I feel the same excitement I’ve always felt – and I know the others do too. That’s why asking those questions I mentioned earlier is so important. That’s what keeps Eagle and the Worm going.”

Expect to see a lot more of them in the coming months, as Jarrad and company plan to up the ante in 2014: “We plan to be busier this year. We spent a lot of last year working out what we wanted as a band and how we were going to do it. Now we have plans in place and things will start happening soon. We all love playing and touring together. It’s a very exciting time for us as a band.

“Whenever we release anything new there’s a lot of emotions; of course, there are always a few nerves, but in a good way. I think being nervous about what you do is healthy. It says that you care about what you’re doing, and I can tell you I’m a little nervous!” Jarrad laughed.

“But we can’t wait for the Kyneton Festival – I love performing. We’ll be wellrehearsed and we’ve been working really hard, so it’ll be rewarding to finally showcase our work.”

Now in its third year, the Kyneton Music Festival will be host to over 40 bands across 14 venues. This little town in the Macedon Ranges, located an hourand-a-half north of Geelong, will be overrun by music lovers for three days this month as historic buildings, cafés, pubs and galleries are turned into live music venues.

Joining Eagle and the Worm will be The Last Drinks, Chris Russell’s Chicken Walk, Pony Face, Suzannah Espie, Raised by Eagles, Fraser A. Gorman, Ooga Boogas, Ben Mason, Saint Jude, Apes, The Bluebottles, Yeo, Dan Parsons, James Kenyon, The Spoils and many more.

Where&When: Kyneton Music Festival – February 28 through March 2

Soak up the last days of summer and support our local venues and musicians – go to kynetonmusicfestival.com.au for more information.

KEEP UP WITH ALL THE LATEST LOCAL MUSIC NEWS AT

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BENDIGO:

Once Upon a Time in Bendigo written by darlene taylor / photo by Mick Griffen

Once upon a time bands used to have Bendigo on their itinerary when they toured Victoria’s regional towns. A local promoter and (almost) lifelong live music fan, Mick Griffin, remembers when acts such as The Dugites, the Divinyls and Midnight Oil played here. Meanwhile, a gig by Wolfmother last year was regarded as such a special event that it received quite a bit of media coverage and a queue longer than the venue’s capacity to accommodate all of those standing in it.

The first quarter of the year is usually pretty hard going for bar owners and rural live music venues.

The festivals sap the money from the pockets of patrons and many a weekend is spent away from the hometown to enjoy the big bands playing at the likes of Falls Festival, Big Day Out, Rainbow Serpent Festival, Rock in the Vines, Soundwave and the many others.

I myself hadn’t been to The Babushka Bar this year, with regular work on weekends and even one of the aforementioned festivals. A weekend off working gave me the opportunity to support the venue in what little way I could financially – and emotionally (a recent tragedy has also shaken regular patrons).

I made my way down on Saturday the 1st of February to catch the Facebook advertised event “Man & Minx w/ Marina”.

Yule, who re-released his eminently catchy pop rock Holographic Lover CD in late 2013, says “We want to get outside of Melbourne, and we want to spread the word a bit. We want … basically [we] just want to get out of town and play around as much as possible, and at least we know that we’re going to get a good show in Bendigo. We’re going to get some nice receptive people and we’ve got someone that is pushing the agenda of the show more than anything.

I went to this gig with no prior knowledge of who Man and Minx were, what they played or where they were from – and was very pleasantly surprised. Marina Marina was supporting them on tour and I arrived as she was playing, grabbed a wine and enjoyed her set from Babushka’s beer garden.

Yule’s gigs in Bendigo have been organised by the aforementioned Griffin, and Yule thinks one of the difficulties of playing in regional towns such as Ballarat and Shepparton is that there’s no equivalent to the promoter in those places.

“We are very reliant on the Bendigo bands or the Bendigo promoters to help make the show a success,” adds Yule, “because otherwise we’ll rock up and play to an empty room.”

With hairspray to the heavens and a truckload of makeup (his “blonde Edward Scissorhands” look), Yule, whose live sound is far rockier than his recorded music, has played here on bills with a diversity of local talent including hard rockers Chase the Ace. These experiences inspired the Melburnian to co-

Man and Minx with Marina Marina Review written by Daniel Lock

A representative of SLAM (Save Live Australia’s Music) identified the lack of a regional touring circuit as one of the current challenges facing the live music industry in an interview that was cited in a previous edition of this publication. Michael Yule, a singer-songwriter based in Melbourne, is one artist who believes it’s still important to play outside of the city. His MY Band has thus far racked up four visits to Bendigo since October last year, while Yule has been here a couple more times than that to be interviewed for community radio.

“The biggest challenge is having a contact,” he says.

“The biggest challenge is knowing what you’re going to get or having any kind of assurance, and that’s the beautiful thing about what Mick is doing with Bendigo.

He’s making it so easy for bands to come up and do a show.

ballarat:

organise “Bendigo Rocks the Bendigo Hotel”, an event which happened in January at the Bendigo Hotel in Collingwood. It featured acts from both Bendigo and Melbourne.

Marina Marina is a Canadian solo folk singer/ guitarist with a soft singing voice and peaceful guitar playing style, plucking at the strings hypnotically as she sings metaphorically about her occupation, her homeland, ecology and hearts and heartaches.

After she’d finished she went and grabbed a drink

“I wanted to give something back to Bendigo,” he says, “because again from meeting Mick and playing with such, like, awesome bands, friendly people, really accommodating, I was like this is great, if we had this sort of community feel in what we were doing (in Melbourne) it’d be brilliant.”

and talked with people congratulating her on her set. I told her I’d been listening from the beer garden (the in-house system at Babushka is also linked to speakers outside, so smokers and current weather appreciators don’t miss a beat) and engaged in general chit-chat, finding out they were all originally from Canada (Man and Minx included) . Marina Marina’s occupation is an interesting story to discover, but I’ll let you read up on that on your own – just follow the link.

Man and Minx are a female duo made up of Jaime and Felicia who each swap between lead and backing vocals between songs; Felicia plays acoustic guitar and Jaime plays keyboard. Felicia keeps her vocals soft usually (she has a cute emphasis akin to Lisa Mitchell, only more subtle) but has the vocal strength to really punctuate; and key chorus notes, raising her pitch and being able to hold for as long as needed.

Jaime keeps her vocals quite strong and consistent and does the bulk of the backing harmonies. Between them the girls get a beautiful contrast between whoever is lead and whoever is backing during their songs.

They combine their instruments excellently too.

With every key stroke and guitar strum their songs pluck at your heartstrings and you get swept away with the symbolism in their lyrics.

Man and Minx left for home on Monday but they’ve said they want to come back soon, so watch this space for future events.

Man and Minx on Facebook: facebook.com/ manandminx Marina Marina Website: aboutmetoyou.com.

On a side note, wishes of a full, speedy recovery go out to Troy Wilson who’s in hospital and is struggling through the damages incurred to his body from a motorcycle accident. You’re in all our thoughts Troy.

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The event was partly organised to give Bendigo bands the chance to play in the city, an opportunity that doesn’t necessarily come easily due to, for example, a lack of contacts.

Yule says he recommends playing in Bendigo to other musicians.

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Looking for somewhere to eat or drink tonight?

Looking for talented singers, male and female, who would like to collaborate and record on a project for submission to labels.

We are coming close to completion of the 31 track demo and are looking for people who can sing (all styles) to contribute to certain tracks, please don’t hesitate to call for more information. Call Matt on 0468 632 012 Drummer Available - Geelong. 20 years + live experience to play in a working/near working band. I have pro equipment & transport.

Can play a range of styles from Rock, Blues, Jazz & Funk. Please contact Matt on 0404 543 416 or email mattgroove@gmail.com

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Drummer Wanted for original punk rock band around Ballarat.

Influences include NOFX, The Offspring, Millencolin and AC/ DC. If you enjoy jumping around and making noise - phone 0417566478 Lead Guitarist with Vocal Ability wanted for a 70’s/80’s Cover Band. Age: 30 -35++. must be reliable.

Gigs waiting. Contact Phil: 0410465634 or 0352758691 Guitarist & Keyboard Player Wanted for pop/rock originals band. Looking for experienced musicians who can also sing harmonies,

are easygoing and reliable. Contact Phil 0421 901 530 www. zeffamusic.com 30ish year old trumpet player, looking to form or play in jazz group.

Ballarat area. Contact Mel 0435360076 19yo Male singer looking for funk/ rock musicians: Want similar aged guys who like Led Zeppelin, Hendrix, Beatles, and ANYTHING funky bass! i love ANY music prior to 1950s all the way back to classical and beyond! I also play trumpet, Contact Sam 0407 347 444 Lead Guitarist, Bass Player and Vocalist are looking for an experienced drummer to complete a Geelong based Blues/ Rock outfit. Influences include : Jimi Hendrix, Cream, The Doors, Pink Floyd, John Lee Hooker, Van Morrison, Black Keys, Ash Grunwald, Stevie Ray Vaughan etc... Also have originals to develop together as well. If interested contact - Craig: 0404 054 045 or email transform_pt@ yahoo.com.au Screaming Vocalist wanted for metalcore band. Vocalist required between the ages of about 17 - 19.

Live experience not necessary. Influences include Parkway Drive and August Burns Red. Email andyw14@live.com.au

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Ok Sure

about the balance. Are you perhaps more into the production side of things?

With a love for electronic music since the age of 13, Akaysha has been performing as Ok Sure since 2009, but that is just one side of her. Locally she has performed at festivals and venues including Strawberry Fields, Kiss My Grass, Revolver and Family, while internationally she has performed at the legendary Thailand Full Moon parties. More impressive, at the age of 20 won the Pioneer Pro DJ search. It was definitely time to have a chat.

Brace yourself – here comes the genre description question that all artists absolutely love. How would you describe the style of your music?

Hello Akaysha, and thanks for taking the time to have a chat with Forte Magazine – it is long overdue.

Can you please briefly introduce yourself and what it is you do?

F / 27 / Geelong / producer…

You have gone under the name Ok Sure since 2009.

Can you tell us a bit about your history? Did taking on the name also lead to a transformation in your music?

Yeah, before Ok Sure I was releasing and deejaying under Kaysh and it was more dance focused, house/ tech etc. I guess I got a bit bored of that and started making stuff that was more experimental and adding vocals and decided to try playing my own stuff live.

I still make tech/house under Kaysh, but I have been focusing a lot more on the down-tempo sound the last few years. Usually, but not always, the stuff 115bpm and below is Ok Sure; anything above that I generally release under Kaysh. I often remix myself making more upbeat versions of the Ok Sure tracks too.

You are essentially a producer/ DJ. I know you spend a lot of time in the home studio making beats. Tell us

The Night Party written by Tex Miller

Finally, with the release of their debut LP Get To You, Melbourne blues rockers The Night Party are making a statement. It’s highly likely that you haven’t heard of The Night Party, but hopefully from reading this article and learning a bit about the dynamic duo, you’ll go to their gigs, buy the CD and soon enough they’ll be on high rotation on your iTunes.

Having dropped a couple of tracks on their website last year, Get To You has received considerable praise from both radio DJs and the Japanese market, after the boys toured there in September last year. Reminiscing fondly about the experience, drummer and vocalist for the group Rick Sands feels extremely positive about 2014 and where the direction of the band is headed.

“Before we headed to Japan, we put together a little six-track sampler for the tour and everyone just lapped it up. Everybody dreams of touring in Japan, and that’s because it’s such an excellent experience.

Even the smallest club gig will have a Pearl drum kit, Ampeg bass amp and a Marshall stack. It’s great from a logistics perspective, because you can just plug in and play – if you’re not too fussy that is.

“You finish the gig and can get a mix straight off the desk for two dollars, so we have been really confident that these set of tracks we have are really awesome and kicking for quite some time,” Sands said.

After doing a little research on the duo and listening to the album courtesy of the website, I have to

Mother’s Cake written by Cameron Brogden

Austrian prog-rockers Mother’s Cake are coming to Australia for the first time this month. They’re here for the Rock the Bay Festival in St Kilda, and they’re touring the East Coast while they’re here. It’s the band’s first time off the continent, so I have to wonder if maybe they just got Austria and Australia mixed up, but they seem particularly keen for the tour. I caught up with Jan, the band’s drummer, one evening – or, due to time difference, one morning.

“It is our first time on another continent,” Jan said.

“So far we’ve played Europe and we’ve played a few countries in Europe like Hungary, Italy, Germany, and now it’s a really big step for us to go to another continent, a completely different culture. We are really looking forward to it.”

Most bands would save Australia for later, hitting the UK or America first, so I had to ask Jan why Mother’s Cake was coming here first. “We were fucking happy that Australia happened for us. There was a really nice guy who booked us for Australia, investing hours of his time doing it and realising it.

We were really happy,” Jan said.

“I mean, probably I should have said something like ‘Australia is way cooler than America’, and we really think like that, but it’s just everything that happens, we take every chance. It wasn’t so much a decision than ‘it can happen’, and we took the chance.”

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Yeah I think so. I feel more comfortable behind the desk instead of the decks. I don’t DJ that much anymore; I’m trying to focus on playing my own stuff live.

I dunno … industrial synth trip hop down-tempo melodic cosmic witch electro? – Or whatever…

In terms of production, what programs and equipment are you working with ATM? Is there anything you are using that you are truly in love with?

Ableton is my drug of choice.

Can you tell us what releases you have out and where people can check them out?

I haven’t released much (officially) under Ok Sure. I did one EP a few years ago and maybe a dozen remixes (just finished one that should be out soon), but I’ve been a lot more selective of what I release because I released a lot under Kaysh that I don’t really like anymore.

I am thinking about releasing an album, maybe independently if I don’t find a suitable local label. In the meantime I upload everything to soundcloud.com/ kaysh. I’ve also just done vocals for a Brisbane producer called Flex Cop, and that track should be coming out this month.

When&Where: The Fitzroy Beer Garden - Feb 8, The Evelyn Hotel - Feb 9 and Killing Time Bar - Feb 28 Geelong’s live music scene has very little going for it now … much like my social life. RIP Nash :’( You now play a fair bit at the Basement, which appears to be filling a great space for artists like yourself. How have your gigs there been going?

You have been playing around Geelong and all over really for a long while. Forte is led to understand that the closure of The Nash was something that you took particularly hard. On reflection, what role did that iconic venue play in your music/social life?

Yeah good. We tried to make Fridays there more of a party vibe, playing pretty much anything and everything.

I’ve done a few lives shows down there too and they have gone pretty well. On Saturdays they have Fake Chow which is more underground house focused, which I’ve also played at a few times and hopefully will a bit more down the track. Deejaying tech house is what got me into all this, and I still enjoy getting the chance to play those sets.

Yeah, I did my first live show there and played on a regular basis either deejaying or supporting bands.

It was a lot of fun. Very sad to see that place go as

How do you find being an artist in regional Victoria?

Does Geelong still provide a worthwhile scene for artists in your position?

say one of my favourite tracks on the record is the opening number ‘Love in Vain’, of which before bringing it up with Sands I thought was a take on the classic blues standard. The sound on many of the tracks on the album is a heavy mix between an early Rolling Stones record and the later albums of the Black Keys discography.

Recorded with Paul Mayberry (who has most recently worked with King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard and Baptism of Uzi), Get To You is a fresh and innovative look at a blues-rock duo sound in a scene where playing as a two-piece is becoming more and more popular each week.

“Recording with Paul is fantastic because he has great gear and a fantastic studio. There are two of us in the band, but when we hit the studio there is a lot of overdubbing and different parts to make it sound a lot fuller. We have another record’s worth of material ready to go … I think a horn section might sound great on the next release!”

The diversity of the tracks is quite bizarre on first listen – and something that still astounds The Night Party. With the possibility of additional band members jumping on board for the upcoming tour, which sees the band launch the album in Melbourne as well as a gig at the Bridge Hotel, The Night Party are surely going to be in the running for gig of 2014.

“The album sounds a lot like a compilation record.

There is doo wop, early ’70’s Stones kinda grooves, lots of different flavours, and I just can’t understand how some people just play one style of music.

“We might add a few different parts to the live show, so see you somewhere out on the trail!”

When&Where: The Bridge, Castlemaine – February 15

“We saw the line-up, we saw how the festival looks [and] we were stoked about it from the first second,” he said when I asked him about Rock the Bay. “Those kinds of festivals, with those kinds of bands, are really rare in Austria. We have a lot of smaller festivals, but I guess Rock the Bay is the biggest festival we’ve played so far, so this is definitely a huge step forward … I mean, the biggest festival in another country. It’s definitely a cool festival, and the line-up looks really tasty. We are so looking forward to being one of those bands playing Rock the Bay.” “I guess I would describe it as fun,” Jan said of the band’s style. “For us, we never had this idea of our style in the first place. We always said ‘let’s have a jam’, ‘let’s play together and see what happens’, and then this kind of music just happened. The only thing we try to achieve with our music was that it doesn’t get boring for the person who listens to it. I’m always telling people when they ask ‘What kind of music are you playing?’ I say progressive rock, and you always see their faces and they don’t understand what you mean by saying progressive rock.

“The next thing I always say is ‘kind of crazy rock and roll, a little bit crazy music – but it’s fun.’”

So get out to one of their shows next week. The support acts in Ballarat are Dark Arts and Vinegar Hill; the support acts in Geelong are yet to be announced, and at Rock the Bay they’re playing with the likes of Dallas Frasca and Like Thieves.

When&Where: The Karova, Ballarat – February 13; Courthouse ARTS, Geelong – February 14; Rock the Bay @ The Espy – Feb 15.

Well, the lack of venues to play makes it pretty hard; it’s good for producing because there isn’t a lot to do so I work on that a lot. But for gigs I really need to focus more on major cities.

You have a gig coming up in Melbourne in the next week. Tell us about it.

Yeah, got a few shows this month. Feb 9th at the Evelyn there will be five acts including myself, Mandek Penha, Kansas City Fagots, Dr Jaffle and The Vainglories. They are all really different sounds so it’s going to be a pretty eclectic evening. I’m also deejaying Feb 8th for a festival in The Fitzroy Beer Garden and doing an Ok Sure show Feb 28th for Limited Press at Killing Time.

What does Ok Sure have planned for the next 12 months and beyond?

World domination.

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Night Time, My Time – Sky Ferreira American singer/songwriter/model/ actress Sky Ferreira has released her debut album following the success of her two EPs. There are rumours of an upcoming Australian tour too, so she’s got a lot going on. Just a warning – the cover of this album is a little rude. Available now on Capitol.

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The Brink – The Jezabels The long-awaited second album from one of Australia’s favourite upcoming bands is here. Featuring the hit single ‘The End’, which got the #83 spot in the 2013 Hottest 100. Available now on MGM.

Dizzy Heights – Neil Finn Arguably the best lyricist in the world, Neil Finn is back with his third solo album. The album is a family affair, with wife Sharon on

We’ve Come for You All is a reissue of the thrash metal band’s ninth studio album, but it’s The Greater of Two Evils that makes this worth picking up. It’s a greatest hits album, the track list of which was selected via a poll on the band’s website.

Available now on Nuclear Blast.

bass and sons Liam and Elroy on guitar and drums respectively.

Available tomorrow on Columbia. c

So Long, See You Tomorrow – Bombay Bicycle Club

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I’ll admit, when I first saw this I thought it was just the beginning of a track-listing for a Taylor Swift Greatest Hits. Then I remembered Tim McGraw was an actual country singer. It’s still a greatest hits album with a “love song” theme, and like all premature greatest hits albums, it contains two previously unreleased tracks. Available tomorrow on Big Machine.

Word of Mouth – Seth Lakeman English folk artist Seth Lakeman recorded this album in a church in Cornwall. This album combines traditional folk sounds with the massively popular nu-folk sound. Available tomorrow on Cooking Vinyl.

There aren’t many bands that sound like Bombay Bicycle Club – and they’re bringing that sound back with their fourth studio album. Available tomorrow on Island Records.

Love Story – Tim McGraw

We’ve Come for You All & The Greater of Two Evils – Anthrax

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All You Can Eat – Steel Panther Cult favourite rock act Steel Panther has announced their latest album, All You Can Eat. It’s available now for preorder from the band’s website and contains the single ‘Party Like Tomorrow is the End of the World’. Available March 28 on Open E Records.

TOO HEAVY TO HUG PAUL S TAYLOR chris cruz

Lead guitarist Greg Hetson has parted ways with Bad Religion for personal reasons. Filling in from this point on is John Dimkich from The Cult – interesting choice; let’s see how it pans out!

Local alt-rock heroes ODD have a huge one coming up at the Barwon Club this Friday night (February 7th, to be exact!) with headliners SONS OF STEREO and hardcore punks HOPES ABANDONED opening. This will be Hopes Abandoned’s first show in Forte territory in almost two years. Get there early, it’s gonna be a doozy!

both Melbourne and Hobart this June. Stay tuned for venue, lineup and date details.

From the whispers I’ve heard so far, it sounds like it’s gonna be a whopper!

In case you didn’t hear, Joey Jordison has left Slipknot. Shortly after the departure a statement was released suggesting he decided to leave. Then I saw a lead for an article stating Joey didn’t decide to leave. Intriguing…

Ugh. Wasted several hours of my life watching the Grammy Awards on Foxtel the other night, and let me just say this – I want my time and brain cells back. Awful performances, terrible nominees and even worse winners, and not a rocking moment to be seen anywhere.

For shame, music industry. For shame.

So, in a world first Forte exclusive, THTH will continue to dissect the goings-on behind the scenes in the Slipknot camp in the only way we know how: speculation. This is THTH’s Holiday Joey Departs Slipknot Fanfic.

By the way, Billie Joe Armstrong, it’s called a mirror. Learn about So the next it. We sometimes instalment of Hits & Pits has already been look at ourselves in them before announced, and it leaving the house or looks to be another backstage dressing homerun. Strung room to make sure Out, Face to Face, we don’t look like a The Casualties, Ten total douche. Unless Foot Pole, Death that’s the look you

By Stereo, Big D were going for with And The Kids Table, that hairdo of yours.

Masked Intruder and If so, bravo! You Heartsounds have been announced totally pulled it off. so far, with a few Ugh. Also, your surprises still to be performance of ‘When confirmed. Saturday, Will I Be Loved’ with May 17 is when it what’s-her-name goes down at the Hicame off like a halfFi Bar in Melbourne. arsed rehearsal. See what I did there? I OFF! have a new didn’t even bother record on the way! It’s to Google search called Wasted Years, for her name. That’s and it drops on the how much I care 8th of April. Woot! for their drivel.

Yeah, so Soundwave Which is not at all. is almost upon us – Two heatwaves big whoop. I’d rather down, and probably go see Shannon a whole bunch more Noll at the Gateway to come before this Hotel that night. I’m long, dry summer is not even kidding. At over. So make sure least he isn’t rocking you got plenty of ice a fringe, neck tatts in the freezer so you and lip ring like a got rocks to pour poser ass bitch. your booze over!

Yeah, I went there.

The third annual Up The Punx! festival will be taking place in

Until next time, I am OUTTA here for another issue.

Part III The Slipkopter hovered above the evening NY skyline before landing on a Hilton Hotel rooftop.

The eight men made their way down to the street, then to the bar Monte told them to meet. The eight men walked into the dark, smokey and dingy bar. Monte was hunched on a bar stool, resting on the bar while nursing a bottle of whiskey.

‘You wanted to see us?’ Sid asked.

Monte turned around to see Slipknot standing in the bar. He rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn’t dreaming or hallucinating; he never thought the band he dug up out of the dusty ground would come to visit him at his request now, after everything.

Monte stood up from his stool, walked straight past Sid and shook everyone’s hands, then turned back to Sid, looked surprised, then shook his hand. Sid smiled on the outside, but on the inside his feeling of invisibility was overwhelming.

‘So, what is so important we all needed to come here?’ Corey asked Monte absently.

‘Well, first of all, I can’t believe you’re all here and, well, I’m so glad you all came,’ he began. ‘I’m just going to cut straight to the point – I need a job.’

The eight guys looked at

each other dumbfounded, then back at Monte.

‘You want a job?’ asked Shawn while stroking his beard.

‘Look, I know it’s a big ask, but, you know, if it weren’t for me Slipknot would still be ... well, unheard of,’ Monte said.

‘You think because you got lucky and signed us before anyone else saw us and signed us makes you special?’ Corey asked.

‘Man, you got lucky. We were always going to make it big,’ he concluded.

‘Look, I know you guys haven’t replaced Paul yet, may he rest in peace, and, well, Metallica had Bob Rock do bass for them, so I was thinking surely I could do bass for you guys,’ Monte offered.

‘And Metallica sucked balls when they had anything to do with Bob Rock,’ Joey retorted. ‘Bob Rock sucks and we don’t want anyone to think we’re like Metallica in any way, especially by having a record label employee play with us; so the answer is no,’ Joey said.

Monte looked at the other seven guys. They were all looking at the ground trying to remain invisible.

‘Guys?’ Monte asked.

Joey looked at the other seven guys, then back to Monte. ‘See, these bitches know what’s best. That’s why they’re remaining silent. They don’t need to say anything to agree with me.’

‘I think we should give him a shot,’ Sid mumbled meekly. The others looked at him; Joey stared shocked daggers at him.

‘I know the dude; he can play bass,’ Sid confirmed.

To be continued...

If you have any news about local metal bands, shows or albums, let THTH know by emailing to tooheavytohug@ hotmail.com or get in touch via Twitter at @ TooHeavyToHug

Blank Thankless Air

By BLAIR HALL

On Humanity ­­ Does anybody else find it unsettling that we are all sacks of meat and water that from time to time leak when other sacks of meat and water burst or dry up?

Does anybody else find it a little bit unsettling that all it takes is the allusion to the possibility of a new chemical reaction to take place in the brain, that something as simple as a few neurons shuffling around for a temporary span of time before it wears off and a sack of meat and water that we invested our entire lives in up to this point in time is as good as dust?

Does anybody else find it at least a teeny tiny bit unsettling that you can devote years of your existence to a sack of meat and water, but after a few months of zero contact you can no longer recall what it looks like or any of the reasons as to why you kept it around in the first instance?

Does anybody at all find it a smidgen unsettling that you can know and share intimate knowledge with a series of binary commands, but when it comes to staring down the barrel at a sack of meat and water you’re paralysed at the thought of representing your innermost self?

On Christmas “If you consult the literature, you’ll find that they’re technically an ‘ethical meat substitute’,” stated Santa to his newly appointed workshop manager, Werner Hestonreich. Turnover of staff was high in this field, in particular for management-types that have not only the pressure of year-round manufacturing demands but human resources-style handling of the elves as they navigate the futility of an endless order of work that breaks only for a few hours over Christmas Eve while the fruits of the prior year’s labour get delivered the world over.

“I had them classed as such through the lobbying

of a bogus scientific study that I paid for. This was a few decades ago now. This was back when issues of animal and human rights was becoming more of a thing on people’s minds.”

Werner was shocked at first, but upon gazing into the vacuum that is the stare of a common worker elf, say one that works in diagnostics or on the moulding floor, he began to realise that it could be worse. Way worse.

“On all of the government literature on the subject, they are stated to a part of the family of ‘bi-valves’, so they’re like an oyster basically”.

Santa’s secretary Doris knocked on the door of Santa’s office ushered in a short and fat elf. The elf seemed afraid. It handed Santa Claus a note that he did not seem to register as important and he immediately placed the folded paper on his desk and continued his spiel about his workforce.

“I don’t technically even employ them. If the idea of employment comes into it then we’ve got to start looking into benefit systems, penalty rates, health care, rights, etcetera, and I have no time or interest in implementing any of this.

Profit margins on this sort of thing are thin as it is, so according to the literature on this subject, what I am doing is classed as ‘farming’. When one dies the government just plucks one out of one of their villages and sends them to me for assignment, all at their expense of course.

Werner felt that this man who stood before him was monstrous, but also that he was a little bit of a genius too.

“Oh shit,” exclaimed Mr Claus, finally reviewing the note he received earlier from the short, fat elf.

“I should probably see to this.”

“What is it?” Werner inquired as Doris ushered him out of the room.

“One of the elves has been accused of murdering a few of the other elves.”

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arts news from around town – and beyond!

ORIENTAL ODYSSEY – Decorative Arts from the Far East

ALMOST, MAINE MY FAIR LADY

It’s love, but not quite…

Footlight Productions

Directed by Kelly Clifford for Geelong Repertory Theatre Company.

Join Give Where You Live for the Opening Night of the classic musical My Fair Lady on Friday February 7, 2014.

In memory of Mike Ellis.

Brought to you by Footlight Productions and director Chris Parker, who bought you the sold out production Les Misérables and Cats, My Fair Lady will be sure to have you dancing all night.

Tickets are $45 with all net proceeds from opening night going to Give Where You Live.

Where: GPAC. 50 Little Malop Street, Geelong.

WheN: 7-22 Feb. TIX: GPAC Box Office: 5225 1200.

INFO: www.gpac.org.au

Written by John Cariani.

On a cold, clear, moonless night in the middle of winter, all is not quite what it seems in the remote, mythical town of Almost, Maine.

As the Northern Lights hover in the starfilled sky, the residents of Almost find themselves falling in and out of love in unexpected and often hilarious ways.

Knees are bruised. Hearts are broken.

But the bruises heal and the hearts mend – ALMOST – in this delightful cross between Thornton Wilder and The X-Files! This romantic comedy’s deceptive simplicity can be peeled back to reveal so many truths about human nature.

WHERE: Woodbin Theatre, 15 Coronation Street, Geelong West.

Drawn from the permanent collection, Oriental Odyssey demonstrates the taste for all things Eastern that flourished in the Western world during the 19th and early 20th centuries through trade, tourism and international exhibitions. This special exhibition includes Indo-Persian parade armour, bronze Japanese samurai warriors, various depictions of the Buddha, golden Satsuma vases and other artifacts.

Exhibition curator, and Geelong Gallery Registrar, Veronica Filmer, said, “As diverse as it is colourful, this exhibition demonstrates the breadth of the Gallery’s collection and the collecting taste of some of its earliest benefactors.”

THE SHORT STORY – Hemingway/ Bukowski An interactive workshop comparing The Killers by Ernest Hemingway with a story based on that story by Charles Bukowski. An excerpt from the 1946 film (directed by Robert Siodomak) based on the Hemingway story will be shown also.

WHERE: Belmont Library Meeting Room, Belmont High Street, Geelong.

WHEN: Feb 8. 2-4pm.

EMAIL: lync1@ncable.net.au

WHERE: Geelong Gallery. 5 Little Malop Street, Geelong.

WHEN: Until April 14.

INFO: www.geelonggallery.org.au PHONE: 5229 3645 PICTURED: Unknown maker Japanese Samurai warrior 19th century hand-painted and gilded bronze on wooden base Collection: Geelong Gallery. Bequest of Oswald Gibson, 1932

WHEN: February 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, 20, 21 & 22 at 8pm.

February 9 & 16 at 2pm.

TIX FROM GPAC: 5225 1200. www.gpac. org.au INFO: www.geelongrep.com PHONE: 5229 1130.

Have an arts event coming?

Let us know about it!

BALLARAT BEAT ROCKABILLY FESTIVAL

WHERE: The Wintergarden. 51 McKillop Street, Geelong.

WHERE: Camp and Lydiard Streets, Ballarat.

WHEN: Until Feb 24.

INFO: www.artwintergarden.com.au

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The Ballarat Beat Rockabilly Festival takes over the streets of the Ballarat CBD and celebrates all things rockabilly, incorporating art, fashion and nostalgia.

Day events will be family friendly and offer a market, music and car show. In the evening, music and dance events will be held at various venues around Camp and Lydiard Sts.

WHEN: Feb 13-16.

INFO: www.ballaratbeat.com.au

WHERE: La Trobe University Visual Arts Centre. 121 View St, Bendigo.

WHEN: Until Feb 16.

PHONE: 5441 8742.

INFO: www.latrobe.edu.au/vac ART BY: Kim Anderson, Skin 58, (detail), 2012, ink on washi

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art@wintergarden launches the new year with a collection of Little Gems, an enticing and affordable exhibition by our regional artists. The works are small in stature but large in appeal. There are oils, pastels, works on paper, etching, scratching….the list is endless. A new permanent feature of the Gallery are regional ceramics including Limoges porcelain, crystal glazing, domestic wear and hand decorated vases and bowls

by Brian Keyte, Ana Maria Hernandez y Jensen, Deb Taylor and Dianne Kirk.

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LITTLE GEMS

“Skin is a series of large-scale, highly detailed portraits of the hands of people very close to me. I closely examine the lines, creases, patterns and scars that are unique to each individual, exploring and tracing the surface of the skin – a surface that constantly changes from the moment we are born. Stretching, shrivelling, creasing and cracking as we move through the stages of our lives, it serves as a topographical map of everything that has ever happened to us.”

Email Luke on luke@fortemag.com.au

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SKIN – Kim Anderson

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Golden Plains Arts Trail

When New Things Bloom Courthouse ARTS Curator Announced written by Amanda Sherring

written By Sue Rawkins

Golden Plains Shire is fast becoming the arts hub of Victoria. From Smythesdale and Scarsdale in the North through Dereel and Linton in the centre and down to Bannockburn and Inverleigh in the South, there is a thriving network of professional and amateur artists across every artistic discipline and medium.

On the weekend of 15 and 16 March, over 50 artists from most townships across the Shire, are throwing open their homes, studios and workshops so that the general public can experience not just the artists’ work but have the opportunity to get involved with hands-on workshops, projects and demonstrations.

The Arts Trail idea took shape as an opportunity to show the beauty, history and heritage of the Shire through the platform of art and by opening up artists’ studios to the public. It brought together a strong, independent network of artists who then formed Golden Plains Arts Inc. Since then, more projects have been created such as the Warrambeen Film Festival and recently Shine A Light, based on the recent popular A Conversation in the Key Of… series held recently at Geelong’s Courthouse ARTS – with a group of performers from Inverleigh travelling round to small Shire halls such as Inverleigh, Berringa, and Murgheboluc.

Another big win this year has been the attraction of young people to the Arts Trail through

partnership with Golden Plains Shire Youth Unit and an Arts Mentorship project. Young artists have built up relationships with prominent mentors and are continuing to work with them all summer and will be exhibiting in this and future Arts Trails.

Trialling for the first time will be the idea that each venue will become a complete visit, involving art, food, coffee, wine, music and entertainment. As Shannon Fielder, Golden Plains Shire’s Community Development Officer - Arts & Culture says, “People want more bang for their buck these days. So at Smythesdale for example, the Smythesdale Hotel will be hosting Dean Smith aka Dancing Bear who lives at Staffordshire Reef and does huge outdoor sculptures with chainsaws and is also in a band. They’ll get chainsaw demonstrations, music and great pub meals!”

will actually be printed. Then that person actually draws the other half of the portrait. These self-portraits will then become part of a travelling exhibition for 2015. Through Nebula, and this project, artists with a disability are able to inject their work into the mainstream arts community.

Elsewhere in Inverleigh – across the High Street, Matt Dempsey’s award-winning restaurant, Gladioli, will be hosting some food stalls, setting up a “market vibe”, and the Inverleigh Hotel will be providing great pub meals.

The co-owner of The Red Door Café, Mark Cuthbertson, himself a prominent artist who also works with Geelong’s Back To Back Theatre will be providing an asyet-unknown, but possibly huge and funny outdoor installation. At the moment, Shannon says, he is interested in puppets, so anything could happen!

WHEN: March 15-16.

At Inverleigh there is a different focus. Nebula, Australia’s first portable arts space created by Arts Access Victoria, with the needs of artists with a disability at the centre of its design, will be parked outside The Red Door Café and will be running a workshop called My Space.

People will have their photo taken, but only half the image

WHERE: Many venues around Golden Plains Shire.

There’s a misconception out there that those in the arts world are hard to contact; whilst constantly creating, discovering the world and undertaking every experience they can, responding to an email falls down on their list of things to do. But for Courtney Ward, while her passion for life is running high, she still has time to type a friendly response – albeit it while she was trekking the Blue Mountains in New South Wales.

after exhibiting at Courthouse ARTS early last year.

Courtney has just recently been announced as the new curator for 2014 at Courthouse ARTS, taking over from Stacey Williams’s diverse year.

“Right now, I’ve delved into the world of digital collage, simply because it’s the medium that has enabled me to accurately depict what I see in my mind.”

When you first meet Courtney Ward there’s something so captivating about the way she presents herself and her passion for the arts world that you can’t help but give her your undivided attention.

Though she is relatively new to the curating world, Courtney still has a firm grasp on the things she loves, and is clearly doing it for the right reasons.

“I love being able to showcase real people’s talent; seeing the artwork in its raw form before it’s hung. But above all, witnessing the pride an artist has on opening night,” she says.

Arts Trail maps are available free, from many outlets.

“When all the stress falls away, you see their beaming smile and know that they finally recognise what they’ve accomplished. It’s a gratifying thing to witness!”

To learn more about the Nebula project, contact Arts Access Victoria on 9699 8868 or info@ artsaccess.com.au

While Courtney may love observing an artist’s emotional exhibition journey, she has also been on the receiving end,

INFO: www.artstrail.com.au

Originally from a florist background, Courtney often injects her love of flora and fauna into her digital and illustrative artworks. “I’m constantly inspired by everyday experiences. I have a tendency to adapt and mimic a variety of elements from different artists, then practise the techniques to see what I’m most comfortable with,” Courtney says.

But Courtney wasn’t always the creative type. Presents to her family members were often an indication of this, and her love for art was only realised during her teen years. “High school helped me recognise my love for the arts. When there was a choice between science and drama I chose drama, no matter how inept my theatrical abilities were,” Courtney says.

Since realising her passions Courtney has gone on to curate some great exhibitions and some wonderful artworks. Her most satisfying experience was being a part of the PEEL Your Eyes exhibition at the old Dimmeys building in 2011.

“As a child I spent so much time sifting through bargain underwear bins there, and seeing the place completely transformed was so inspiring. The space morphed into this massive artistic labyrinth, which was so refreshing and

affirming for the Geelong arts community,” she says.

The exhibition was immensely popular in Geelong, and Courtney’s plan for Courthouse ARTS will follow a similar method.

Courtney plans to showcase a series of exhibitions throughout the year where engagement and entertainment are pertinent, and that everyone can enjoy.

“Art exhibitions don’t have to remain reserved for ‘arty folk’.

Anyone can – and should – enjoy them,” she says.

While Courtney may still be exploring the surroundings in Sydney, she’s happy to come home. The experience may have changed her, but it’s also helped reaffirm her passion for Geelong.

“I’m very proud to be from Geelong, and I’m even prouder of the artists that reside here.

Our art scene will only get stronger with the next generation of talent, and I’m looking forward to being around to witness it,” Courtney says.

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tweet of the week

the S P L IN T E R S pre s e n t s . . .

THE BEYONCÉ TRACK BY TRACK REVIEW.

YONCE/PARTITION Bey turns her sex-drive up to infinity on this crazy-sexy-cool double-feature, which tells the story of Bey and her hubby getting their freak on in the back of a limousine. Naturally, this topic is really relatable to us plebs.

JEALOUS Almost like a sequel to ‘No Angel’, but at least 40 times better than it. “I’m in this Penthouse here naked. Cooked this meal for you naked.” Oh my.

ROCKET More baby-making slow-jams. Cute chorus.

MINE ft. Drake The most haunting, experimental moment on Beyoncé, and the one track which maybe gives an otherwise unseen look into the private life of Bey and Jay-Z. Interesting lyrics and some truly deep production make this one of the undeniable highlights.

“ Pink is actually the most boring predictable snobby fucking cunt of an artist. Trapeze trapeze yell yell yell the end. She’s been making the same album for a decade and is the worst kind of elitist bitch but forgets she was originally a rapper – Don’t you remember ‘P!nk’ wearing a fur coat in a Cadillac rapping There U Go? Girlfriend forgets her manufactured roots.” @jordaniqua raises a very valid point about US singer P!NK.

XO CLEARLY the best pop moment on here, and the obvious choice for first single. A beautiful song that is captured magically on film by the controversial Dirty Uncle of Photography, Terry Richardson.

***FLAWLESS ft.

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie SHE WOKE UP LIKE THIS. Probably the overall best song here; absolute MADNESS that marries the previously leaked track ‘Bow Down Bitches’ and fuses it together with fresher beats and a sample-verse from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie that serves as Beyoncé’s most exciting and futuristic peak.

SUPERPOWER Written by Adem Ali The biggest surprise of 2013 came from The Queen Bee herself when, at the very last minute, she casually dropped an entire album with videos to accompany each song onto iTunes and blew all of our minds. Bey has – at least up until 2011’s 4 – never really been an album’s artist. 4 showed incredible potential, but on this self-titled affair the growth is leaps and bounds ahead of anything she’s done before. 14 spectacular baby-making tracks that finally give King B the kind of material somebody of her stature deserves. Beyoncé propels this star to another level, not only with its quality production, killer hooks, thought-provoking lyrics and visually stimulating videos, but also with Beyoncé’s conviction in each track.

LET’S HAVE A PEAK, SHALL WE?

Any Tina Turner fan will be able to fill you in on the history behind this fairly offensive moment in pop cultural history; nevertheless, ‘Drunk...’ also features Beyoncé pronouncing the word Surfboard as ‘Surfbort’, which plays as a moment – much like when Ike Turner used to beat the shit out of Tina on an almost daily basis – in pop cultural history that will stick in our minds forever.

GHOST/HAUNTED The ‘Ghost’ portion of this double-feature establishes Beyoncé as a modern-day Grace Jones, gravelling across her vocal not too dissimilar to the way our Jamaican Queen does on ‘Corporate Cannibal’, whilst the ‘Haunted’ side of the fence sounds like Madonna’s ‘Secret Garden’ – and looks like Madonna’s ‘Justify My Love’ video.

Timberlake, Timberland and Pharrell get together to produce the best song not on Justin’s 2013 20/20 releases. How could they get this so right and fuck up JT’s records last year so much?

DRUNK IN LOVE ft. Jay-Z

This is the track Beyoncé filmed whilst in Brunswick, and although it’s probably this record’s least desirable moment, that middle-8 is definitely something to write home about and redeems this track just in time.

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THE ARTPOP INSTRUMENTALS Almost as good as the vocal album.

BLUE ft. Blue Ivy

BLOW

Features Jay-Z rapping the lyric “I’m Ike Turner, baby know I don’t play. Now eat the cake, Anna-Mae, I said eat the cake, Anna-Mae.”

The saddest ballad in Bey’s entire discography. Simple in its production and lyrics, but undeniably powerful all the same.

“Heaven couldn’t wait for you,” she sings, “So go on, go home.”

NO ANGEL

Baby-specific album closer ‘Blue’ (featuring Bey’s REAL LIFE CHILD BLUE IVY) shows all those other baby-popping singers exactly how you do a song about your child without making the listener want to gouge their ear drums out – and without making yourself sound like the world’s biggest wanker.

Incredible.

HIT

Co-written by Australia’s own Sia (who’s just been announced as the Executive Producer for Kylie Minogue’s new album), this is a midtempo ballad full of bass and lyrics about the torture behind glamour, beauty and fame. What you don’t get to see in the video or hear on the audio is Beyoncé counting all of her dollars by the track’s end, cackling.

HEAVEN

MILEY CYRUS

Who this week records an MTV Unplugged special.

MADONNA

Who will be gueststarring on Miley’s MTV Unplugged special.

IN CONCLUSION: This is the most self-assured Beyoncé has sounded on record to date, and may as well be regarded as her real debut album, because it’s the first fully-realised project she has delivered – and the first time she has created a body of work worthy of her iconic name. A truly iconic moment in pop music history, not just by the surprise of its arrival or the anti-marketing behind it, but also for the spell-binding content within.

If you want to hear a celebrated artist who has finally come into her own, then you just cannot go past Beyoncé.

Final Grade: 10 industrial-sized tins of skin-bleach out of 10.

SHIT!

PRETTY HURTS

More baby-making music, with a few Destiny-bound cameos in the Apocalypticthemed video.

THE WANTED SPLIT Who?!

‘P!NK’

Get down from that trapeze, you basic bitch.

LORDE

Cannot get behind this girl or her very, very boring debut album – one you all seem to be frothing at the slit over.

Stray Sisters written by zach broadhurst

When you’re missing a member of your family who is on the other side of the world, there are a few ways to catch up – some pick up a phone, some jump on a plane and some form their own band and tour Australia. The Simpson sisters, Vikki and Donna, have been missing each other since The Waifs took a break a few years ago, but now they are heading back to Australia as the Stray Sisters.

“About six months ago I kind of came to the point where I was really missing Vikki,” says Donna. “She lives over in Utah in the states. She’s always sending me songs that she’s written – really great stuff – and I was thinking, ‘God, you just have to get out and do something’. Josh is off on his own journey at the moment, doing his own thing over in California, and it’s just this sort of burning desire to get out of the house,” she laughs.

“We are sisters so we miss each other personally, but what we have done for the last 20 years is playing music together, so now we have something to take out on the road and go travelling again.”

The tour will kick off in a big way, starting with their first official performance at the upcoming Port Fairy Folk Festival.

“It’s a fantastic, fantastic festival and we’ve just been going there for so many years,” says Donna. “There’s a lot of love there at that festival and a lot of real quality music.

That will be our first show, so we have really got to step up and make sure we are ready for it, because it is a worldclass festival.”

The sisters will also be joining the John Butler Trio when

they open for John at his Perth shows – somewhat of a role reversal for the sisters.

“We gave John his first opening gig years ago,” says Donna. “John used to tour with us and opening for us and then it all switched around. It will be great. They are like family; he’s such a fantastic friend and we have a lot of mutual admiration for each other.”

With their Australian tour booked in, their strong American ties would make a jump to the US for some shows quiet possible – but Donna isn’t getting too far ahead of herself.

“We will see how this tour goes,” says Donna. “We have very strong links to America – I have a son who lives over there, Vikki lives there, Josh is over there, and we’ve all toured there. If things go well maybe the Waifs will get back together and do a tour over there. At the moment the Waifs have a small tour in May that we are going to do, but we’ll see what happens.”

For now the chance to play without the added pressure of selling themselves is the perfect place to be for the Stray Sisters.

“We are just enjoying the freedom,” says Donna. “We sort of stepped away from the scene for such a long time; it’s nice to sort of ease our way back in and just play to play.

We aren’t promoting an album, there are no recordings of the Stray Sisters and we are just going there to play music, which is nice to not have to sell anything.

When&Where: Port Fairy Folk Festival - March 7-10

Sons of Stereo written by brendan dando

Geelong alt-grunge four-piece Sons of Stereo is a band who not only love playing music, but they love supporting it. With no expectations to take the world by storm, frontman Robin Ricketts and guitarist Ash Laidlaw explain how they’re just out to have a good time. “Everyone wants to follow a dream that maybe one day they can live off of, but the reality is that only a few of us actually get to do that,” says Laidlaw.

As one of the band’s founding members, Laidlaw believes being a musician has proven to be a great outlet for himself.

“Starting this little family has worked out perfectly, since not only do I get to talk nonsense to people I love hanging out with, but I’m also doing what I love the most and that’s playing music.”

Ricketts also has his own positives for taking the rockstar path: “It’s how I met my wife, Cherry. The first time she saw me I was carrying a guitar case and I guess she thought I was kinda cool looking – mission accomplished.”

Although they’ve yet to release a debut EP, Laidlaw ensures that fans may not have too much longer to wait. “We’re aiming for some time in the next couple of months,” he reveals. “We’re putting a lot of time and effort into this baby, so we don’t want to rush things.”

In order to keep the band on track, Sons of Stereo always try to make sure they sneak in at least one band practice per week. As Laidlaw explains, “a

weekly band practice is vital, since I believe people love watching a band who own what they do. Things like confidence, sounding tight and just looking like they belong up on stage is something I always keep an eye out for when at someone else’s gig. It takes away from the performance when you can tell they’re rusty.”

On the topic of being rusty, Ricketts mentions that the band may need to work on the decision making process when putting together a setlist. “When you start singing about a house burning down, then get told a family home nearby had been burnt down just two weeks prior ... that sucks,” he admits. However, according to Laidlaw that unfortunately wasn’t the only case of a poor song choice suffered by the boys.

“We recently played this charity event for cancer and for some reason it didn’t click that we had started playing a song called ‘Wasting Away’. We felt terrible – then an old guy heckled us. I guess we deserved it.”

That aside, Sons of Stereo is a band who simply loves local music. “Geelong is full of talented musicians who deserve attention. They can inspire, surprise and offer something that you cannot get from sitting on the couch,” say Ricketts. “We are trying to show people that it is the age of local bands again.”

When&Where: The Barwon Club, Geelong – February 7

Adam Rozenbachs written by tex miller

Adam Rozenbachs is one of Australia’s finest comedians today and is set to appear at Raw Comedy, which takes at GPAC on the 22nd of February. In the lead up to the event and just after the start of 2014, I got the opportunity to speak with Adam about his ambitions for this year, as well as some highlights from his career thus far.

weeks just wasn’t his cup of tea.

Talking about the new year means that resolutions come into play, and although they may not hang around for long, Adam feels he no longer needs to set any goals after last year. “There kind of isn’t a new year’s resolution mate, because I just took a year off drinking, so I’ve cracked that and I think that’s enough for my lifetime.

I’ve decided to have some fun this year, and so I’m going to get back on it. A year without alcohol at times can be really challenging, but I’m looking at it now with a new perspective which is great.”

Talking about how Adam got into comedy, it seems that very much like the music business it is a lot to do with networking. Furthermore, it is about making the most of the opportunities presented to you and being proactive about making things happen for yourself.

With five acclaimed Melbourne International Comedy Festival shows under his belt, each with their own level of acclaim, it is Adam’s 2013 stellar show Eurodad that has sparked most of my attention. The premise of the show is quite simple, which features Adam on stage talking about a recent trip to Europe with his dad – an experience that he wouldn’t recommend to anyone.

“My dad was born in Germany and immigrated to Australia when he was two. He hadn’t been outside of Australia since, and so at the end of 2012 we made the trek back to check out his family ancestry. He pretty much hated the whole trip, and I think that’s because he hadn’t gone travelling and so he was looking forward to going to Europe for the day. The fact that we were there for three

“He wasn’t impressed by any of the big monuments.

He thought Buckingham Palace was a bit shit, the Eiffel tower should have been bigger and Big Ben was like the Dimmeys clock in Swan Street, Richmond. If anything, the trip taught me how to be a more patient person, which is a positive,” Adam said about the cheerless experience.

“Comedians are always happy to chat about things and so you have to be in their face. Whether that is putting sketches up on YouTube or constantly going to Open Mic nights to test out your material, the only way that things are going to start happening is if you make them.”

It’s only a couple of weeks before Adam heads back to Geelong to host Raw Comedy – and he can’t wait. “Raw is always good because the audience’s friends are on stage and it’s a warm environment. It’s great to see what comedy is coming through, and I can’t wait to see what Geelong throws up!”

Breaking Booze is the new show at the 2014 MICF, so keeps an eye out for it on this year’s programming. It’s sure to be brilliant.

When&Where: RAW COMEDY @ GPAC – February 22

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FANTASTIC LOCAL JOB OPPORTUNITY WITH FORTE PUBLISHING! Forte Publishing is seeking an experienced media representative to join the sales team.

The role involves cross selling and bundling all Forte Publishing’s titles products. Those products include - Forte Magazine and Forte Online, E&D Magazine and The Geelong Times.

If you are seeking a unique and challenging job opportunity in the Geelong and surrounding regional area and can handle a fast paced and challenging media sales environment - this job might be for you!

• The applicant must have a minimum of 2 years proven successful media sales experience.

• Wage and bonus in accordance with experience.

• Taking applications now!

Please email application and resume or for further information in confidence to aballard@fortemag.com.au or call 03 5215 3700

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FILM REVIEWS

by anthony morris

Labor Day The year is 1987. Adele Wheeler (Kate Winslet) is a single mom living in a rural home with her 13-year-old son, Henry (Gattlin Griffith). Depressed ever since her husband left her (not because she misses him, we’re told, but because she “loves love”), she now rarely leaves the house; so it’s just bad luck that she’s shopping with Henry when a dodgy type with a bloodstained t-shirt comes up to them and tells them that their giving him a lift “needs to happen”.

The man – Frank Chambers (Josh Brolin) – is an escaped convict.

He’s also kind, polite, insightful, a great home handyman, excellent in the kitchen, not really a bad guy despite being in prison for the murder of his wife, and pretty much exactly the man both Adele and Henry need in their lives.

We all know that Hollywood trades in wish fulfilment, but this is laying it on pretty thick, and the occasional moments where Frank actually does act like an escaped convict and not some kind of earthbound angel are nowhere near enough to balance out the way this shouts out loud and clear that you don’t have to do anything at all to find your perfect life partner – he’ll just force his way into your life and make everything all better.

There are occasional hints that maybe we’re seeing this from the point of view of Henry, whose ideas about love are just being formed (there’s plenty of inadvertent hilarity early on when Henry tries to take the place of his absent father – “husband for a week” coupons are not a great idea), but there’s just enough going on here without Henry’s input to quash that reading.

12 Years a Slave The year is 1841, and Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is a free man living with his family in upstate New York. Then he’s offered two weeks touring work as a fiddle player; only at the end of the tour the (white) men he’s with get him drunk and he wakes up in chains in a Washington D.C. slave trader’s basement.

He’s shipped south to New Orleans where he’s sold by Theophilus Freeman (Paul Giamatti) to plantation owner William Ford (Benedict Cumberbatch). Ford seems decent – for a slave-owner – and Northup (now re-named Platt) has some freedom in how he goes about his tree-felling work. Too much freedom for John Tibeats (Paul Dano), whose dislike of Northup leads to a near-lynching. To keep the peace, Ford sells Northup to fellow plantation owner Epps (Michael Fassbender), who beats his slaves when they fail to meet their cotton-picking targets, lusts after young female slave Patsey (Lupita Nyong’o) – angering his sour wife (Sarah Paulson) – and runs his plantation like hell on earth. Northup falls into despair.

Much of this story plays out across Ejiofor’s face as he witnesses horrors – repeated casual murder, mothers and children separated forever, endless grief and anguish – he can’t escape, trapped in a world where he’s treated worse than a farm animal. Many of the film’s most affecting moments are extended shots of a man casting aside all hope; a scene where Northup gives into his plight and joins in singing a spiritual is shattering. Other scenes display the pressure on him to become part of the system that keeps him in chains; at one point Patsey is whipped, her back torn apart in matter-of-fact brutality that pounds home the way slavery crushes a person’s body and soul.

Director Steve McQueen refuses to either sensationalise or gloss over the details of Northup’s tale. He doesn’t need to. This film will haunt you.

No, this is just a film about two special people who fall in the greatest love of all, even though one of them is a clingy housebound shut-in and the other an escaped convict with a murder conviction. Any creepiness in the story is waved away by the power of their love; if you’re not on that wavelength, presumably you’ll get a laugh from the endless and massively over-the-top sequence in which on-the-run Chambers cooks the world’s best peach pie.

Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom Biopics that attempt to cover the whole life of their subject often end up just skimming the surface. It’s just not possible to fit an entire life into a feature-length film, even if a big chunk of that life was spent in a prison cell.

This follows the life of Mandela (Idris Elba), starting from his days as a young lawyer in South Africa. Initially more interested in the ladies than in revolution, he gradually became more involved in the anti-apartheid movement, first following the nonviolent model set out by Gandhi in India, then moving towards armed struggle when the regime cracked down. Surprisingly, this largely skims over his terrorist activities to focus on his trial where he and his fellow activists fully expected to be executed for their crimes. Instead, the state refused to create martyrs, shipping them off to prison where they hoped they would be forgotten and ignored. There they became symbols of the struggle going on outside the prison walls, and when Mandela was finally released 27 years later, it was into a new South Africa – one he’d largely helped shape.

Epic in scope but severely lacking in insight, this strains for gravitas but rarely lifts above the heights of a competent midday movie. Which isn’t all that surprising; as the closest thing to an official big screen take on Mandela’s life we’ll get (it’s based on Mandela’s 1994 autobiography), the inoffensive middle ground is exactly where this film belongs. At least there’s some minor effort to create a rounded portrait of Mandela, even if his flaws (he likes the ladies) are skimmed over, his terrorist days are summed up in a handful of explosions and the aging makeup toward the end isn’t the best.

Elba’s performance gives this what little strength it has. This is competent storytelling, but lacks the fire and passion the man himself deserved.

Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones For a franchise based around one idea – found footage of creepy hauntings – the Paranormal Activity series has proved to be surprisingly consistent when it comes to quality. That is to say, every second film (the second and fourth) are a waste of time, while the first, third and now fifth actually manage to find new ways to get scares out of the old formula.

Last Vegas While in theory it’s a good thing that Hollywood has finally realised old(er) people go to the movies, in practice this has led to the creation of Last Vegas. Which is a bad thing. Not that it starts out that way: Billy (Michael Douglas), Paddy (Robert De Niro), Archie (Morgan Freeman) and Sam (Kevin Kline) have been best friends since childhood.

Now Billy is getting married – to a woman well under half his age, who he proposed to at a funeral – and he wants his best buds to be there on his bachelor weekend in Las Vegas.

Sam, who now lives in Florida, gets the green light to fool around from his wife; Archie, who his family treat as if he’s on death’s door, has to sneak out to attend. But Paddy still has a grudge against Billy over a girl many years ago, and even when they manage to twist his arm hard enough to get him to come along, he’s not happy about it – and that’s before they end up on stage judging a wet t-shirt contest and Redfoo starts thrusting his speedo-glad gonads in his face.

This is exactly what it looks like – The Hangover with old guys – yet somehow it manages to be even less funny than you’d think. The problem isn’t that old people can’t be funny – obviously all four of the main cast here have been funny in the past, will probably be funny again in the future and even have the occasional funny moment here. It’s that the comedy here almost entirely comes from the idea that seeing old people act like idiots is hilarious.

Which is about as fundamental a misunderstanding of how comedy works as you can get.

Sure, old characters can be funny in certain situations: the wealthy dowager is never not funny when she gets a pie in the face, and seeing crusty old farts get their comeuppance is pretty much comedy gold. But here the jokes are largely about four average old guys acting like idiots, which works fine when it’s young guys (we expect them to be idiots), but here is mostly just sad. And who wants to leave a comedy thinking about the tragic inevitability of the waning of potency that comes with old age?

47 Ronin: Keanu

Reeves plays this tale of honour and revenge in feudal Japan straightfaced, but otherwise this mash-up of CGI monsters and traditional samurai drama is a bit of a mess.

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit: Generic spy

action has never felt so by-the-book as Chris Pine – the fourth Jack Ryan in five films – races to stop an evil Russian scheme to wreck the

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American economy… even more than it currently is.

The Wolf of Wall Street: Horrible people acting like utter bastards for 180 minutes: with Martin Scorsese directing in his best Goodfellas style, how could this look at stockbrokers on a rampage not be a lot of fun?

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues: Did you like the first Anchorman? Can

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you cope with a vague feeling that the joke has run its course in between laughing wildly at inspired scenes?

Then this is the comedy for you!

Saving Mr Banks: The

creator of Mary Poppins (Emma Thompson) has spent the last 20 years fending off offers from Walt Disney (Tom Hanks) to turn her novels into a film. Somehow this film makes her caving into him and letting him create a fairly forgettable

film into a triumph of the human spirit. Why yes, this is a Disney film – why do you ask?

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug:

Slightly faster pacing and some decent action do make this a bit of an improvement over the first film. Basically, if you saw the first Hobbit film you’re probably going to want to know what happens next. If you didn’t, this isn’t the place to start.

Here the initial twist is that it’s an all-Latino cast: the year is 2012, and in the Los Angeles suburb of Oxnard high school graduate Jesse (Andrew Jacobs) lives with his dad and grandmother in a block of flats above a creepy woman named Anna, who everyone thinks is a witch. When Anna’s found murdered, everyone blames one of Jesse’s classmates; Jesse goes exploring her flat with his buddy Hector (Jorge Diaz) and surprise surprise, the place is full of links to the earlier films in the series, including old VHS tapes of the childhood of previous victims Katie and Kristi (as seen in the third film). Jesse wakes up the next morning with a strange bite mark on his arm; soon he’s developing unusual abilities which seem pretty cool just so long as you don’t actually think about what they might really mean.

For a film barely over 80 minutes this packs a lot in, and pretty much all of it works. The Latino stuff is sketched in just enough to give a sense of a community the likes of which we don’t normally see in mainstream US cinema, the typical shocks are done well, and unlike the last instalment, which tried to broaden out the series’ mythology but just ended up draining it of mystery, this goes in a couple of strange directions to create an ending that really pays off.

Whether the next film – already due in a few months – can build on this sidebar remains to be seen; even if it can’t, this is more than scary enough to stand on its own.

Grudge Match Everyone loves fan fiction. Well, everyone in Hollywood loves fan fiction. It’s a great way to give people exactly what they want – or more accurately, exactly what they’ve already had – without having to pay out the big money in licensing fees. So 50 Shades of Grey is basically Twilight with the numbers filed off (and the vampires left out), Mortal Instruments: City of Bones started out life as Harry Potter fan fiction, and Grudge Match? Time to have all your “what would happen if Rocky met Jake LaMotta from Raging Bull?” questions answered. Not that Sylvester Stallone and Robert De Niro are playing characters named “Rocky” and “Jake LaMotta” here.

Stallone is Henry ‘Razor’ Sharp, a working stiff who went back to his job at the shipyard after he quit boxing in the mid-’80s. He lives in a crap-shack, his only friend is his grumpy old trainer (Alan Arkin), and he’s broke. Meanwhile, De Niro is Billy ‘The Kid’ McDonnen and unlike Sharp, McDonnen held on to the money from his boxing career. Now he owns a car lot and a restaurant, where he does a LaMottastyle nightclub act involving a puppet.

Being broke, Sharp pretty much has to say yes when would-be boxing promoter Dante Slate Jr. (Kevin Hart) offers him fifteen grand to do some motion capture work for a boxing video game. Then when it turns out Slate offered McDonnen the same job and he also took it, they meet, they scuffle for real, it gets put on YouTube, it goes viral, and suddenly Slate reckons he can get serious money if he can get these two old guys to fight for real.

Yes, that was basically the same plot as the last Rocky movie. The advantage of having Stallone and De Niro playing characters they’ve done before is that they know what they’re doing, so while neither is in top form here – Stallone especially is utterly devoid of charisma, as he has been for pretty much his entire career – they keep things moving along fairly painlessly.

There are no surprises here whatsoever, but occasionally De Niro drops in a reminder of why he’s (still?) held is such high regard. For a by-the-number comedy like this, that’s something to be thankful for.

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The Jezabels

East India Youth

Label

Stolen Records

The Jezabels are back with their second full-length album. Yay! Following on their debut Prisoner, The Brink follows on with the classic sound that the band has created throughout their career thus far. Opening with the title track, the guitar drones, the drums thunder and Hayley sings ‘I never found someone’. Initially this lyric in the context of the song had me confused; after a few more listens, it makes sense.

If I’m completely honest with you, I don’t know too much about East India Youth, but after a few listens to his debut album Total Strife Forever that has just been released, when he hits the road to tour the album, I’ll definitely be looking to see if he is coming to Geelong. I don’t know whether the title is a reference or pun on the Foals record Total Life Forever, but it made me think how awesome that album is anyway. Opening with the ambient electro instrumental passage ‘Glitter Recession’, I am a little hesitant as to whether the live show will be as engaging as this record is, and wonder what tricks East India, aka Will Doyle, has up his sleeve.

The Brink

The sound of the record is fresh and inviting, and where the first album was bringing a lot more electronica sounds and influences to the mix, on The Brink these seemed to be refined a lot to polish the indie rock sound. First single, ‘Look of Love’, bops along with a synth line that makes you wanna head straight for the mosh pit. The band is back in the country playing for Laneway Festival, and no doubt will be back for a headline tour later in the year.

‘The End’ is another highlight on this record and draws comparisons to the band’s big hit ‘Mace Spray’. Although the album isn’t inviting any outlandishly new sounds to the songs, it’s drawing on what won them the Australian Music Prize for Prisoner.

Total Strife Forever

The centrepiece to this record is the track ‘Heaven, How Long’ which combines the electro sounds with the songwriting that Will has been working on for the last few years of his life. It took three years for this album to come together and it is an impressive debut. Although it takes nearly eleven minutes in to hear a vocal track, it is worth the wait.

It’s indie pop rock songwriting at its best – and just in time for the end of summer.

There are many moods and emotions created on this album, so if you’re looking for something a little ambitious and a cross musically between Bjork and Sufjan Stevens, this is your cup of tea.

Tex Miller

Tex Miller

Hunters and Collectors A Day on the Green, The Hill Winery - January 25

The first show of a national reunion tour could be a cause for concern – will they still have that spark?

Hunters and Collectors are an iconic Aussie band with a rich history, and there is an awful lot for them to live up to – and 1998 seems far away now.

British India opened the show well. I like these guys more every time I see them and I hope they gained new fans. They deserved to.

They were followed by Something for Kate and You Am I. Both gave typical crowd pleasing, high energy sets, though the vocals seemed to be mixed further back than usual. That was until Paul from Something for Kate joined You Am I on stage to do ‘Born to Run’, which was the biggest crowd pleaser of the first section of the day.

Hunters and Collectors opened by taking us back to where it all started with ‘Talking to a Stranger’ – and the crowd went wild, and rightly so. The masters of musical complexity and dynamics are back and still capable and more than willing to rock hard where it’s called for. When you look around and see 8000 people dancing, that’s a sure sign of great rock and roll.

It was a night to remember as they ran through a superb set of hits and less well known album tracks.

From the varied ages of those in the audience singing along, it seems last year’s tribute album Crucible has introduced a new generation to a classic band. If we’re all really lucky this reunion will last beyond this tour – and Aussie rock will be much richer.

Words and photos By Don Kenyon

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The Lumineers

Pearl Jam

Palace Theatre, Melb – January 23

After interviewing D.D Dumbo for the last issue of Forte, I thought that it would be quite a while before I got to see the stage show in full swing.

Yet, after heading along to the Lumineers sideshow at the Palace Theatre on the eve of the Big Day Out, I was pleasantly surprised to see him opening up the show.

Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings Give the People What They Want Daptone Records Give the People What They Want is the latest release from funk and soul queen Sharon Jones.

Opening with ‘Retreat!’, this album sounds original, fresh and, no pun intended, sounds just what the people want. Thundering along like a Bamboos record, the majority of these songs tracks are written by the rhythm section of the band, and from looking at the liner notes of the instrumentation on each track, it would have taken quite a while to piece this together.

The feel good summery tunes roll on into ‘Stranger to My Happiness’ which seems like the perfect encore song to their new stage show on this upcoming tour. I don’t know whether Sharon Jones is going to be touring in Australia soon, but if you’re looking for an energetic upbeat good time, look no further than Sharon.

Although I wasn’t really taken with The Bamboos’ latest release, Give the People What They Want is the perfect complement to your summer party. The vocal harmonies are smooth like honey, the rhythm section is tight, and if you like the big band funk sound and haven’t heard of Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings, you should check this one out.

The Lumineers are definitely just one of those bands that you have to experience live, and the warm and open arms that they greet you with make you feel like you’re a part of the band.

Oliver Perry, aka D.D Dumbo, kicked off the night with his solo looping show. ‘Tropical Oceans’, the main track off his EP, and the one that has been doing the rounds on triple j, was a highlight in his set, and it was great to see him before he hits the real big time.

The time rolled around for The Lumineers to take to the stage – and a moment that I have been eagerly awaiting for the best part of three years. I missed out seeing them last year when they came out for Bluesfest, but boy was it worth the wait. Opening with ‘Classy Girls’, the band ripped through their flawless debut album, playing all the hits including ‘Dead Sea’, ‘Flowers in Your Hair’, ‘Submarines’ and ‘Stubborn Love’. The main surprise to this is they played ‘Ho Hey’ about four or five songs in.

My favourite Lumineers track is ‘Slow It Down’, which features just Wesley Schultz on electric guitar. I still get hairs on my neck thinking that I got to experience it live.

The new record should be here hopefully sometime in 2014, otherwise 2015 – but as Mr Meldrum would say, ‘Do yourself a favour’. One of the great live acts of 2014 – and totally worth it, even just for the sing-alongs.

Tex Miller

Big Day Out 2014, Melbourne - January 24 I won’t say that all my reservations about the Big Day Out were washed away the moment the opening chords to Why Go rocketed out across a music-gorged crowd, but it went some way. The opening moment of a show is always the most intense. All that energy that has been brewing since people first purchased their tickets is unleashed – and with thousands of people releasing that energy at once, it is an incredible feeling. This song fed off it like a starved animal.

From Why Go to Do the Evolution and there was barely a moment to breathe as Eddie Vedder’s voice reached skywards as Evolution’s punk-edges teased for rain. Save You, Getaway, Got Some and Mind Your Manners followed, the band bounding from their debut Ten (1991) to their most recent, Lightning Bolt (2013). While ‘Play your old stuff’ is a motto often held, new songs played effortlessly with those that have years under their belt. You can hear the age in Vedder’s voice – desperately reaching for the zenith, on occasion barely clinging by his fingertips before he pulls himself through. But boy can he still hold a note.

Low Light was the first real chance to catch a breath; to pause momentarily and marvel at a band two-decade’s old but with still seemingly (and hopefully) plenty left in the tank. From 1998’s Yield, the song rolled beautifully across the night sky. An electric version of Setting Forth followed, certainly a warm and most welcome surprise of the night. Outside of the band taking the stage, Corduroy received the biggest reception to this point. 20 years old, the opening guitar riff sounded as perfect today as ever as it played out to fans young enough to have not been born on its release.

The manic workout of Even Flow, the warm comfort of Elderly Woman, the pull of Jeremy, the hum and buzz of Life Wasted were all to follow before the main course was finished off with Better Man. The song has long become a chance for Eddie to rest his vocals and let the crowd become part of the song. It was a massive set, with songs played countless times before performed as new.

The big screen offered those a distance back or those lost in a sea of people the chance to see what was taking place onstage. The band of brothers could perform with their eyes shut, with Boom Gaspar their watchful minder. Eddie worked the stage, sometimes looking like a mad man, other times looking as though he was studying the crowd; Matt, Stone, Mike and Jeff playing their instruments as if they were an extension of their bodies.

With only enough time to share a couple of words with the person next to you, the band kicked off the encore with Pendulum. Another track from their latest, the song played out with an eerie delicateness. It was simply gorgeous. Nothing Man, Daughter, Go and Porch rounded out a fivesong encore that displayed the band’s tenderness and fury.

Another short spell before Mudhoney’s Mark Arm joined the band for a joyous cover of Kick out the Jams, before Alive closed the book. If there was a final breath to be drawn, the opening riff to Alive sucked it out – that beautiful, soaring riff.

Wylie Caird

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Grog Watch One of the most exciting things about knowing me at this time of year is that this is the time of year when I grow a beard. Well, I guess it’s one of the most exciting things about knowing me; pretty much all there is to knowing me is “drunken knocks on the front door at 2 a.m.” and “weird ranty phone calls about chickens” – and if I’m really being honest, the chicken phone call only happened once. And instead of chickens it was about booze. But come the start of the year, I’m doing all that with a beard!

One of the big advantages of doing literally nothing between Christmas and a week or so after New Year’s Eve – not to mention not leaving the house on New Year’s now that all the drunken “revelry” has been moved to Australia Day and … hang on a second here, I’m going to go into this in more detail for a moment. Does anyone else have a bit

PULP. >>>>>> By Cameron Urquhart & Alastair McGibbon

Cameron: Anthologies are cool. Horror movies are cool.

Despite this, I’ve never really been enthused about horror movie anthologies. For me a lot of horror relies on world building. It’s the slow increase in tension; the building of fear as I lose myself further into the movie. When there is less room for this slower build I feel a lot of horror loses what makes it scary. V/H/S, however, proves me wrong.

V/H/S has five separate found footage stories surrounded by a sixth story about some burglars stealing videotapes. Each tape they watch makes them realise that perhaps everything going on in the house isn’t kosher.

Of course, an anthology is only as strong as its segments – and the majority of them work.

Unfortunately the first one, Amateur Night, leaves a lot to be desired. Thankfully it’s followed by Second Honeymoon by Ti West (The House of the Devil, Cabin Fever 2), who happens to be one of my favourite new directors. 10/31/98 brings a little levity to the proceedings, as well as really ramping things up in the special effects department, making it a terrific segment to end on.

Summation: Horror anthologies can rule, especially when relating to dead formats.

Alastair: Film noir is something really unique. It’s absolutely fantastic when it’s done well – and a hilarious stereotype when it misses the mark.

Given its dark and often foreboding tone, it seems inevitable that someone would blend horror and noir. Fatale, another recent addition to the Image line-up, blends classic noir with bone-chilling horror, creating a really highcalibre comic. It’s the best kind of horror, too – Lovecraft!

It’s no secret that Cameron and I are fans of Mr Howard Phillips Lovecraft, and I love it when his classic style starts to creep into the comic world. Written by comic stalwart Ed Brubaker (Captain America, Daredevil) and drawn by Sean Phillips (Hellblazer, Marvel Zombies),

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of a chuckle over the way that every year the police and various government types look more and more happy at the way they’ve turned NYE into a bland-o “family event” based around parents taking the kids out to look at fireworks, and then three weeks later those same police and government types look all grim and concerned at the way Australia Day has turned into a shabby public piss-up?

It’s the same principle as the cops pushing junkies out of one part of town and then acting surprised when they turn up the next suburb over. Unless you’re willing to put in some effort to tackle the actual causes of the problem, you’re just shifting it around; and it seems pretty obvious by now that at least some Australians want a boozy drunken public holiday at the start of the year, and if you won’t let them have New Year’s Eve, they’re just going to pile on to the next one that comes along. Only Australia Day is worse because now all the drunks are being “patriotic” and ugh, that shit is depressing.

Meanwhile, back on the lower half of my face, doing nothing for a couple of weeks means that at the end of those couple of weeks I now have enough facial hair going on that it actually is recognisable as facial hair and not just dirt. In the past I’d then take my time deciding what parts to shave off – remember before our current bearded age when there was a brief period when goatees were in style? Yeah, I look stupid with one of those; technically I’d shave it into a Van Dyke

(moustache, bit on the chin), which kind of looked okay, but had the unfortunate side effect of making shirtless guys think I wanted to punch on. Seriously!

And I know other guys with facial hair will back me up on this – unless you’re really careful your facial hair can make you look way more aggressive than you actually are.

Peaceful, wimpy guys don’t usually go for the short hair and goatee combo; there’d always be a time or two when some no-shirt guy would give me the stink eye for way too long at the train station thinking I knew the secret violent handshake or something.

Fortunately after a while goatees went out of style and my summer beard was just a fortnight or so’s stubble before I shaved it off and went back to my regular smooth-featured look. Remember kids: if you want to be a serious drunk, it’s important to never stand out and always conform to the style of the time. You’re much less likely to get in trouble if law enforcement thinks you’re a decent hard-working type who’s just gone a little too hard, than if you look like a shabby derelict with only a fifty per cent chance of having the fly done up.

But then suddenly beards were back in style. And not goatee-style facial hair either: full-on full-face facial hair. So, you know, once again my laziness paid off in a serious way. Doing nothing made me cool. Being a slob put me on the cutting edge. Failing to take care of basic human hygiene turned me into a hipster – “This

Guy Stopped Taking Care of Himself and You Won’t Believe What Happened Next”, as they say on the internet.

Only one problem: what if I didn’t want to be cool?

See, unlike the good old days when having facial hair made you look like you were spoiling for a fight, now it made me look like some inner-city wanker getting around in an “ironic” plaid shirt while riding a fixed gear bike. Which is, uh, also not what I am like. Was it false advertising for me to have a beard at a time when beards – while admittedly popular – had such a distinct cultural meaning? Sure, some guys out there still had neatly trimmed facial hair that wasn’t seen as a “hipster beard”, but my beard grows wild and free – what’s the point of being too lazy to shave if it means you have to still shave?

I had a hipster beard without the hipster lifestyle, which I guess was better than the alternative (what’s the point of living like a hipster if no one knows you are one?), but I wasn’t sure it was a club I wanted to join – what, with my hatred of hipsters, hippies and hip replacements.

Then again, I have no social life and hardly ever leave the house – if the only person giving me shit for my new look was myself, maybe I should just get over it. For now the beard continues; the debate rages on…

Tony “I also really hate Movember” Montana

Fatale blends suspense, cosmic horror and one hell of a mystery.

Fatale’s first volume, Death Chases Me, follows more than one narrative: in the 1950s, reporter Hank Raines Josephine [and] the ever-mysterious titular femme fatale. Before long, he is caught in a vicious conflict between a crooked cop and a secretive and deadly cult.

In the modern day, Nicholas Lash runs into the same woman – as seductive and ageless as ever, and on the run since the 1930s. Both men are inevitably drawn to Josephine and the secrets she harbours – but they’re not alone.

Before long, both men are running for their lives, decades apart, but both with the same woman: the femme fatale.

It took me a while to wrap my head around just what was going on in the story, but it all cleared up with a re-read.

Reading Fatale is much like watching a classic film noir story: once it hooks you in, you can’t look away. Brubaker and Phillips make an excellent combo, and set the stage for an excellent series. While Fatale is more aimed at a niche market, it’s still an excellent read; and if film noir is your thing, it deserves a spot on your bookshelf.

POrPe! cultu

By An th on

y M or ri s

Spicks and Specks is back! And if last night’s episode was any guide, it’s like it never left. Well, apart from all the hosts now being brand new people, but even then they managed to fill the various slots in the S&S machine without too much going too wrong.

As someone who was never that big a fan of the original series, I may have failed to pick up on the no doubt many subtle differences between the old and new versions; I’m also fully aware that the original cast members were so well-loved by the general population – and let’s not forget S&S was a massive ratings smash right up until the very end, pulling in a million viewers a week, so clearly they were doing something right – that for many people the idea of anyone taking their place was unthinkable.

Why else would the ABC have ditched one of their top-rating shows? Well, apart from the fact that it was being made in-house at the ABC during a period when it was felt that the ABC should outsource everything, so when Adam Hills decided he’d rather be a talk show host (and look how well that worked out – there’s no Adam Hills Tonight scheduled for 2014) and co-hosts Myf Warhurst and Alan Brough decided they’d had enough too, the ABC decided to retire the whole show. Problem was, S&S was the anchor for ABC’s then-dominant Wednesday night comedy line-up, and while the ABC figured they had a solid replacement in the form of Andrew Denton’s Randling, nobody else did. It was a massive ratings flop from which the ABC’s Wednesday night comedy line-up never

recovered – the ABC’s two biggest comedy hits of 2013, Upper Middle Bogan and It’s a Date, screened back-to-back on Thursdays – and suddenly the ABC realised that hey, maybe S&S could work with an all-new team after all.

Of course, it then took the ABC half a year longer than originally thought to find that all-new team, but they’ve finally put the show back on the air – and guess what? It feels an awful lot like the original version.

The chemistry isn’t quite there yet, but no one obviously hates anyone – which may be a minus: Brough occasionally came across as a man not to cross, so there’s no reason not to think that won’t fall into place soon enough. More importantly, the rest of the show is already solid. It’s a music quiz show that’s been going for close to a decade, so the writers have a pretty good idea what level to pitch things at as far as making the questions hard but not so hard the home viewers can’t play along, and the show’s basic formula (quiz questions, wacky stunt segments, musical numbers) hasn’t been tinkered with in the slightest.

What’s obvious here is just how replaceable the whole cast were in the first place: despite the attachment the audience felt for them over the years, if the ABC had been able to gradually rotate new people into the host and team captains slots, there’s no reason why the original series couldn’t have kept on running. This new version could still fail – two years off is plenty of time for audiences to move on – but it won’t be for lack of doing the exact same thing all over again.

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