Brag#679

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ISSUE NO. 679 SEPTEMBER 7, 2016

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GRETA LEE JACKSON FOY VANCE SAFIA JAMIE T BASTILLE

ROBERT ENGLUND

ELIZABETH HUGHES

NORTHE AST PART Y HOUSE

Sampling and songwriting collide.

The horror icon speaks out.

The scene that gives her life.

Fighting for your right to party.

THIRT Y-THREE AND MUCH MORE


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music news welcome to the frontline: what’s goin’ on around town... with Alex Chetverikov, Joseph Earp and Emily Norton

five things WITH

GRACE BARBE

The First Record I Bought: Alanis Morissette’s Jagged 1. Little Pill. I was in high school

The First Thing I Recorded: I can’t remember the exact song 3. but I remember my first-ever rough demos

The Last Record I Bought: ‘Lamour’ by Lindigo, a 2. downloaded single. These cats are

The Last Thing I Recorded: The songs were recorded almost 4. three years ago with tracks from our

and the family did the big move to Australia from Seychelles. It was a CD format. I loved the alternative and post-grunge sounds she played with. There is quite a bit of angst on that album. I thought Alanis was raw, brave and honest.

from Reunion Island. When I heard this song at a mate’s birthday party I was immediately obsessed! I love the sound, fusion, groove and melody. The band are experimenting with afrobeat fused with the Reunion Island “Maloya” groove, which reminded me of my own afro-Kreol sound. I downloaded the track as soon as I got home.

from over ten years ago. I collaborated with Jamie Searle who I still work with. I still have those demos and believe demos capture the best magic as everything was organic and free fl owing then. Some of the demos I listen to I cringe at my vocals. My voice was not as developed and trained then.

last album Welele. About 20 tracks were recorded at that time. Now we’re doing last trackings and fi nal vocal takes. We play the new songs live and they are well received. It’s great to play them live now: it allows us to feel the songs grow and develop from a live perspective, even if we have not yet released them.

The Record That Changed My Life: Bob Marley’s Legend was the album 5. I started learning bass lines from at the

age of 17. I didn’t have a bass guitar then but a cheap acoustic six-string guitar. That went on for about a year, and then my mum bought me a bass guitar and amp combo. It was a Samick. That album formed my understanding of groove, rhythm, bass, melody and harmony. I would also sing all the backing vocals: I knew all the harmonies. Bob had a gift for melody and songwriting. The album certainly contributed the shaping of who I am as a musician and songwriter today. What: Global Rhythms Music Festival When: Sunday September 25 Where: Bicentennial Park With: The Strides, Joseph Tawadros Quartet, Emily Wurramara

MANAGING EDITOR: Chris Martin chris@thebrag.com 02 9212 4322 DEPUTY EDITOR: Joseph Earp ONLINE EDITOR: James Di Fabrizio SUB-EDITOR: Sam Caldwell STAFF WRITERS: Joseph Earp, Adam Norris, Augustus Welby NEWS: Alex Chetverikov, James Di Fabrizio, Anna Wilson ART DIRECTOR: Sarah Bryant PHOTOGRAPHERS: Katrina Clarke, Ashley Mar COVER PHOTO: Ian Laidlaw ADVERTISING: Tony Pecotic - (02) 9212 4322 tony@thebrag.com PUBLISHER: Furst Media MANAGING DIRECTOR, FURST MEDIA: Patrick Carr - patrick@furstmedia.com.au, (03) 9428 3600 / 0402 821 122 DIGITAL DIRECTOR/ADVERTISING: Kris Furst kris@furstmedia.com.au, (03) 9428 3600 GIG & CLUB GUIDE COORDINATOR: Sarah Bryant - gigguide@thebrag.com (rock); clubguide@thebrag.com (dance, hip hop & parties)

REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS: Nat Amat, Prudence Clark, Tom Clift, Anita Connors, Christie Eliezer, Emily Gibb, Tegan Jones, Lachlan Kanoniuk, Sarah Little, Emily Meller, David Molloy, Annie Murney, Adam Norris, George Nott, Daniel Prior, Tegan Reeves, Natalie Rogers, Erin Rooney, Spencer Scott, Natalie Salvo, Leonardo Silvestrini, Jade Smith, Lucy Watson, Rod Whitfield, Harry Windsor, Tyson Wray, Stephanie Yip, David James Young

SUCH GREAT HEIGHTS

Kristian Matsson, the man behind The Tallest Man On Earth moniker is heading to Sydney joined by a five piece band. You’ll be brought to silence, swept off your feet and then brought to cheers (or tears?) all while experiencing more epiphanies than you can imagine. This troubadour’s music is truly transforming and transfiguring, so do ensure that you head along. He’ll be playing at 7 pm on the same night as the previously announced Angel Olsen gig (she’s on at 9 pm), that being Monday December 5 at the Sydney Opera House.

Buried In Verona

BURIED ALIVE

Buried In Verona are calling it a day. “Most people in the heavy music scene, as much as they dread the thought, know that one day this moment will come,” said frontman Brett Anderson. “The moment most bands have to go through. The moment is the end. The last tour, last album and it feels just as bad as I always knew it would.” Buried In Verona will embark on their final Australian tour this October, joined by Capture The Crown, Foxblood and Arkive joining the band as they say farewell. They’ll hit the Factory Theatre on Saturday October 22.

SEEKING OBLIVION

Progressive metal stalwarts Ne Obliviscaris are heading our way. After a year touring across the globe, local audiences will finally have a chance to catch the band on home turf. The show comes in the wake of their first ever headline tour across the US and Canada,

PJ Harvey

Please send mail NOT ACCOUNTS direct to this NEW address 100 Albion Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010 ph - (02) 9212 4322 fax - (02) 9319 2227 EDITORIAL POLICY: The views and opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher, editors or staff of the BRAG.

Fresh from hitting the road in support of her latest single, Leah Flanagan is stepping it up a notch with her forthcoming album tour. The record, Saudades, centres around relationships in all their forms. A songwriter with Venetian, Aboriginal and Irish heritage, Flanagan draws deep from her cultural heritage to create an outlook all of her own, culminating in star-studded collaborations with the likes of John Cale, Sinead O’Connor, poet Sam Wagan-Watson and more. It all goes down on Saturday October 29 at Marrickville Bowling Club.

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6 :: BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16

PANDORA’S BOX

BOW DOWN TO HARVEY

PJ Harvey is heading our way with a ten-piece band for her first Australian tour since 2012. It comes in the wake of her acclaimed album, The Hope Six Demolition Project, which hit number one in the UK album charts. The record documents a unique artistic journey which took Harvey to Kosovo, Afghanistan and Washington, D.C. It was recorded during a month-long residency at Somerset House, during which audiences were given the opportunity to observe Harvey at work with her band and producers in a purpose built studio housed in the basement of the iconic London building. It’s happening at 7.30 pm on Sunday January 22 at the ICC Sydney Theatre.

Music streaming service Pandora has announced a killer lineup for its inaugural Warehouse Party event to be held in Sydney. One thousand lucky Pandora listeners will get the chance to attend this exclusive warehouse event, to be held at a top secret Sydney location on Saturday October 8. The lineup includes Aussie hip hop legend Seth Sentry, Kiwi pop marvel Ladyhawke, up-and-coming solo artist Nicole Millar, The Griswolds and Ecca Vandal. It all goes down in Sydney on Saturday October 8. thebrag.com

xxx

@TheBrag

MOOSE OVER

After wrapping up a successful and completely sold out tour with Luca Brasi, Moose Blood are going out on their own with a headline tour. It’s been a big year for the band: they recently released their second album, Blush, which debuted at number 10 on the UK Album Chart and has seen a huge demand for the band in all corners of the globe. The album is a follow up to their highly successful debut album I’ll Keep You In Mind, From Time To Time, which was met with acclaim from critics and fans alike. They’ll play the Oxford Art Factory on Saturday January 7 2017.

SEE THE SAUDADES

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wowing punters from show to show. They’ll play Manning Bar on Thursday December 1.

Bec Sandridge photo by Will Edgar

AWESOME INTERNS: Anna Wilson, Emily Norton, Alex Chetverikov, Angela Antenero

Tallest Man On Earth


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BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16 :: 7


live & local

free stuff

welcome to the frontline: what’s goin’ on around town... with Alexander Chetverikov, Joseph Earp and Emily Norton

five things WITH

Inspirations Willy Mason is one of my 2. favourite songwriters. His no-

nonsense, unaffected vocal style and turn of phrase has always been an inspiration to me. I was lucky enough to meet him last year while he was in Australia. He played an unadvertised show in Marrickville in a small bar with about 12 people in the room. Paul Kelly is royalty, enough said.

Your Band I’ve been playing with my 3. bassist for about five years now:

career is a dream of mine: maybe in another life.

his name is Cam Whipp. We met at a café we were both working in at the time. I actually fainted at the register on my first shift and he jumped off the coffee machine and helped me up. I knew he was a keeper after that: he’s had my back ever since! Rob Turner bangs on the drums, and younggun Monty Richmond plays guitar. I’ve never met a bloke with so much conviction and drive. Rob, Monty and I live together in Glebe, which makes rehearsals easy. We occasionally steal each other’s avocados from the fridge but apart from that it’s all smiles. I’m blessed to have such a talented bunch of lads playing with me.

Music, Right Here, Right Now 5. I think the Sydney scene is alive

The Music You Make I’d call it a blend of folk / 4. rock. It’s never really moved much

What: What Lies In The Difference out independently When: Friday September 23

away from that, although a rap

and kicking at the moment. There’s a pretty strong sense of community with other bands and venues working together to get things happening again. There’s always a strong vibe at SlyFox on a Thursday night. There are some sick bands in operation too. I’m a huge fan of Morning TV, the strong pipes and writing of Georgia Mulligan, while Eddie Boyd and blues legends Narla are killing it. The boys from Borneo always put on a show. The Middle Kids are phenomenal! Things are in safe hands.

Having racked up ten years as an independent act, Novacastrian quintet Safe Hands have kept news of their second album Tie Your Soul To Mine pretty scant, with newest single ‘The Great Affair’ recently premiering on triple j’s Short Fast Loud to a very positive reception. After keeping fans on the tease with minimal updates, they’ve finally released some more info, and their experience has certainly shown through in a dramatic turn from the ‘hardcore’ stylings of yesteryear. At its core Tie Your Soul is a rock record, borne of the same energy that saw them play the resurgent Warped Tour alongside Converge and La Dispute, and we’ve got a couple of vinyl copies of the album to give away. If you want to put two hands on Two Hands, pop over to thebrag.com/freeshit and enter the draw.

Xxx

Up I grew up in the Sutherland 1. Growing

SAFE HANDS! VINYL! GIVEAWAY!

TOM STEPHENS

Shire, listening to my parents sing and play piano. My dad composed the music that my mum walked down the aisle to, which I reckon is pretty cool. They got me started on the trumpet but I finally convinced them after a few dramatic arguments (maybe even tears) to get drum lessons. I started playing guitar after I finished school and reading a lot, growing interested in pairing words with music.

head to: thebrag.com/freeshit

xxx Clowns photo by Zen Harris

Clowns

Elizabeth Hughes

HOP ABOUT THE PLACE

As part of the Sydney Fringe Festival, the Glebe Gig Hop will present a day of free live music across six venues on Saturday September 17. The day promises intimate performances from both up-and-coming and established musicians at some of Glebe’s favourite live music venues, including Mr Falcon’s, B.E.D and The Record Crate, as well as small bars The Little Guy, Different Drummer and Staves Brewery. Featured acts include indie singer-songwriter Elizabeth Hughes, the hip hop/reggae blend of Astronomy Class and the New Orleans jazz-inspired six-piece, The Low Down Riders, with further acts to be announced soon. The Glebe Gig Hop runs from 10am-11pm on Saturday September 17. Entry is free.

CLOWNING AROUND

Don’t be fooled by their name. These Melbourne punk rockers aren’t really clowns... They’re wizards. Magical punk rock wizards. After selling out their first show, Clowns have (thankfully) announced a second. Get ready to watch them juggle their instruments onstage, balance on tightropes while rocking out, and squirt beer at you from novelty flowers attached to their lapels. Okay, so none of that will really happen but they certainly will be performing some pure punk rock magic. The band will play second show on Sunday October 16 at Blackwire Records at 3 pm, with support by Cap A Capo, Legal Aliens and Disparo.

Dope Lemon

WRITERS WANTED

Billed by many as the world’s most prestigious music competition, the International Songwriting Competition (ISC) has announced the addition of Nashville’s Dark Horse Institute as a major sponsor for its 2016 competition, with over $36,000 of free recording time up for grabs as part of the total prize package. One of music’s most well known recording studios, the Dark Horse Institute is home to Taylor Swift, Keith Urban, Matchbox 20 and Tim McGraw, among many other esteemed musicians that have recorded their albums there. With a Grand Prize of nine days of recording time among its many incentives, Dark Horse is offering a wonderful incentive to access its internationally recognised facilities. This year’s judges panel features Chris Cornell, Lorde, Tom Waits, Ziggy Marley, Rickie Lee Jones, Donovan, Femi Kuti and many more. For more information, and to register your entry for the competition before the September 9 deadline, visit songwritingcompetition.com.

CULT FAVOURITES

DOPED UP

Angus Stone will tour across Australia to showcase his newest musical project Dope Lemon. The multitalented, folk-blues singer and producer-engineer is best known for his project with his sister, Julia, but Lemon’s third single ‘Coyote’, taken from the band’s critically acclaimed debut album Honey Bones has been tremendously well received. Tickets for the national tour will go on sale from Monday September 12. The band will tour across Australia in October and November, playing at the Metro Theatre on Friday November 11.

8 :: BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16

WRITE THE UNWRITTEN

San Diego punk rockers Unwritten Law will be bringing their fiery energy to Australia. Formed in Poway, California, the band have played a major role in shaping the power pop movement in early ‘90s America. Their release of the Blue Room album in 1994 spurred their rise to recognition, but they truly showed the diversity of their sound through their release of Elva in 2002. Now they’re coming to Australia

Doctor Goddard

SPACED OUT

The phrase “the Sydney music scene is dying” has been uttered far too many times recently. Well, never fear: Space Talk, a monthly music event, is being introduced to the Captain Cook Hotel. Take that Baird. Space Talk will feature some of newest and greatest acts around. It will be a haven of groovy music exploration so put on your space suits, but don’t forget your space boots. Find the Buzz to your Neil and jump in the shuttle to prepare for lift-off because Space Talk is sure to be one hell of a ride. The first edition of Space Talk will feature the rock band Doctor Goddard, Top Lip and Benefits. The first Space Talk will take place on Saturday September 10 at 8 pm. Entry is free.

thebrag.com

Doctor Goddard photo by Yael Yaya Stempler

Currently making waves in the US, The Cult are heading over to our shores for a hotly anticipated headline show. The crew are coming our way off the back of their latest album, Hidden City, their tenth studio album and the final chapter of the band’s trilogy of releases which began with 2007’s Born Into This, followed by 2012’s Choice of Weapon. They’ll hit the Enmore Theatre on Friday November 25.

to play Elva in full, celebrating the album that made them what they are today. They’ll hit Max Watts on Saturday December 10.


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BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16 :: 9


Industrial Strength Music Industry News with Christie Eliezer

THINGS WE HEAR • Which major Australian company is the target of rumours that it is stopping CD production in the next year and will close some of its entertainment divisions? • Which festival is quietly trying to poach a rival’s booker? • Did Chris Brown’s accuser tell a friend she’d “set him up” in a text message? Legal experts claim he faces up to 14 years in jail. • Rihanna and Drake didn’t come out about their relationship until the MTV awards last month. But have they been an item since January? • Is legendary (and anonymous) Brit street artist Banksy really Robert Del Naja, AKA 3D of Massive Attack? A Glasgow journalism student claims that Banksy’s artwork seems to coincide with live dates by the band. • After Falls Lorne sold out in 45 minutes,

LABOR WILL INTRODUCE MORE LIVE MUSIC IN CITY VENUES

Labor’s City of Sydney Lord Mayoral candidate Linda Scott says she will allow more live music into City-owned indoor and outdoor venues, such as City Recital Hall and various town halls and auditoriums. It was a key recommendations from the Sydney Live Music Taskforce Action Plan. Labor will support increased City procurement of work by local artists and performers, urge the state government to roll back the lockout laws, and review planning controls to ensure businesses get the maximum allowable opening hours. Labor also “supports the creation of a street art policy, and the creation of high quality street and public art”. The City’s Live Music and Performance Action Plan says Sydney witnessed a 61 per cent decline of music and performance listings between 2004 and 2013. Scott says, “I’m for a fun City of Sydney. Along with my Labor colleagues like Tanya Plibersek and Anthony Albanese, I have made fighting the fun police and supporting live music a priority over the past four years.”

LOCKOUT REVIEW DELAYED

The findings of the Callinan Review, which has been poking around to find out how effective the Sydney lockout laws have been, is delayed until Tuesday September 13. It was due on Wednesday August 31 but, as we reported then, the Supreme Court threw a spanner in the works when it ruled, on technical grounds, that the Secretary of the Justice Deptartment had no legal authority to initiate the lockouts. Ian Callinan, the former High Court judge, received over 1,800 public submissions and input from three roundtable meetings on the city’s nighttime economy.

PARRAMATTA EXPANDING LIVE MUSIC

Following the snaring of Tropfest to Parramatta Park next year, Parramatta has teamed up with the Live Music Office for 12 months to strengthen its live music scene. It’s looking for a part-time (three days a

Byron Bay hit capacity last Tuesday. • In an attempt to appeal to younger car buyers, Holden got Flume to make the music for its latest campaign, with the track ‘Trust’, featuring The Preatures’ Isabella Manfredi. Flume himself wasn’t in attendance when Holden unveiled the campaign at a gala event in Melbourne, he was playing two sell-out shows in Washington DC that night. Flume has also launched an online store with a fresh range of apparel, music, and accessories (shop. flumemusic.com) and announced that Friday November 25 is the release date of the vinyl-only Skin Companion EP (on Future Classic) – four tracks recorded during the Skin sessions. • The reunited Guns N’ Roses sold one million tickets for their 25-date North American leg of the Not In This Lifetime tour. • Sydney indie pop trio Middle Kids head off to Iceland in November to play the Iceland Airwaves festival and record at at Sigur

Ros’ Sundlaugin Studio, as part of their win in FBi Radio’s Northern Lights Competition. • Meanwhile at the National Campus Band Competition state finals at Southern Cross University, Lismore’s Unibar, Lismore soul band Ladyslug won the QLD finals. It’s the first consecutive state final win by a SCU band. Ladyslug formed earlier this year after members met in Cuba. • Oh dear. Rapper Tyga and celeb girlfriend Kylie Jenner were out buying a new Bentley when his Ferrari was repossessed as he hadn’t kept up with payments. • Regurgitator’s upcoming tour sees them donating a few dollars per ticket from all shows to the Melbourne based Asylum Seekers Resource Centre. • When legendary Berlin nightclub Berghain was struck by lightning, what did the ravers do? Continued dancing and even stripped off en masse after “the air conditioning shut down completely”.

Overdose Awareness Day to call on the Turnbull Government to start pill testing, have more supervised injecting rooms and cease the use of sniffer dogs at festivals. This is the latest in a dialogue, which began last week with Will Tregoning, the founder of harm reduction agency Unharm, declaring to triple j’s Hack that he and his team would be testing pills at either Groovin the Moo or Spilt Milk in Canberra. It’s not known if Unharm will work with Australian Drug Law Reform Foundation president Alex Wodak and Canberra doctor David Caldicott, who will hold tests outside NSW after the state government got snarly.

Sampology

PRODUCER MIRACLE LAUNCHES HIP HO WVS LABEL

NICHE SIGNS SAMPOLOGY

Niche Agency has signed Brisbane audio-visual producer Sampology (Sam Poggioli) to its artist roster, and put him on a national tour from Friday October 21. In the past four years, Samplogy has worked around the world on his own tracks as well as for others. Six-track EP Natural Selections is out on Friday September 23 on Brisbane label Soul Has No Tempo.

Ghana-born Sydney-based producer and musician Miracle (Samuel Joe Andah) has set up a new hip hop label WVS (pronounced Waves) to tap into Australia’s multicultural hip hop scene. First signings are Brisbane’s Travy P and Moroccan-born Anfa Rose, whose April 2016 mixtape Debauched with Sydney producer Dopamine already boasts one million streams.

UK’S MUSIC GLUE APPOINTS AUSTRALIAN A&R HEAD …

week) Live Music Programming Coordinator with experience in the live music industry to work with venues, businesses and local government to deliver the Amplify and Live And Local programs. Deadline is 5pm Monday September 12. More details from Katie James at kjames@parracity.nsw. gov.au.

UK-based Music Glue has appointed Neil Robertson as Head of A&R, Australia. He was International Label Manager for Mushroom, V2 and Cooperative Music, and managed Scotland’s Belle & Sebastian for ten years. Music Glue, set up in 2007 by Australian-born Mark Meharry, is used by artists, labels, merchandisers and venues worldwide to sell music, merch, tickets and experiences to fans from one customisable website. By cutting out middlemen, indie acts in particular make more money and have more control of their careers.

PILL TESTING, SNIFFER DOGS, BECOME MAJOR ISSUE

…WHILE AUDIO NETWORK LAUNCHES AUSSIE A&R

As the summer festival season looms, the issues of pill testing and sniffer dogs raise their heads again. The Greens passed a motion through Senate on International

Den

Global music licensing company Audio Network has set up A&R activities in Australia and NZ. It has widened the duties of its Head of Branded Content, Jordan Smith, to include A&R Manager, Australia & NZ. Audio Network makes it easier for songwriters and composers to clear tracks and works with producers and writers to create new tracks. Smith’s role is to sign local composers to its 700-strong international roster and get more sync deals for local songwriters from corporate and ad agencies. Audio Network has licensed music to such brands as Samsung, Volkswagen, Nike, Qantas, BMW and Bonds. Sydney band Tenderfoot, which this year signed with Audio Network after being discovered through its Undiscovered series, had its album funded to record at London’s Abbey Road with UK talent, and released its EP Beginnings last month.

WHAT NOW FOR CMJ MARATHON?

RICE IS NICE SIGNS DEN

Rice Is Nice has signed Sydney post-punk quartet Den. Michael Grossman, Tomas ColeNunez, Steven Hicks and Michael Hassett release a single ‘Poltergeist’ with debut EP Den out on Friday November 11 and shows at Bigsound this week.

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Will CMJ Music Marathon, the 36-year-old new music showcase and industry-wide conference in New York, attended by Aussie execs and acts, happen this year? It normally stages mid-October, but so far no acts have been announced and its website hasn’t been updated since June. Word is, it hasn’t got the funds. Adam Klein, who bought it two years ago, told Billboard, “A little patience and a whole lot less wild and unsubstantiated speculation is what we need right now,” and that he’d “share more about our 2016 and 2017 program soon”.

Lifelines Married: Spotify CEO Daniel Ek and Sofia Levander in Lake Como, Italy. Bruno Mars was the “wedding singer” and Chris Rock was on “minister” duties. Ill: Irish singer-songwriter Brian Kennedy, 49, a constant visitor to Australia, confirms he is fighting rectal cancer. Arrested: Mariah Carey’s sister, for prostitution, after quoting singer’s lyrics in online advert. In Court: John Lennon’s killer Mark Chapman denied parole for a ninth time because of the “premeditated and celebrity-seeking nature of the crime.” Arrested: the husband of Heart singer Ann Wilson, for punching two male relatives. After a show, they asked to look inside her tour bus. He agreed but told them to keep the door shut because her two dogs were inside. They forgot. Charged: an 18-year-old Perth DJ after an illegal rave in a vacant property, with “stealing” electricity from the next door property to generate his gear. Charged: a 30-year-old man following the alleged sexual assault of a teenage girl at Selena Gomez’s Melbourne show last month, as well as five more counts of sexual assaults at concerts between September 2015 and August this year. In Court: Hobart nightclub bouncer Curtis Patrick Robert Clay of The Toledo pleaded not guilty to restraining a nightclub patron in a chokehold before dumping him facefirst onto the footpath. Clay said he was forced to do it because a mob was forming around him. In Court: Lindsay Lohan lost her lawsuit against game maker TakeTwo Interactive. She said Grand Theft Auto V’s character Lacey Jonas was based on her, including her starring in Mean Girls and the Hollywood hotel she lived in. Died: N.W.A. manager Jerry Heller, 75, heart attack. He helped the growth of gangsta rap through setting up Ruthless Records with N.W.A’s Eazy-E and releasing their records. Died: legendary Mexican singer Juan Gabriel, 66, heart attack. He sold 100 million albums and had hits like ‘Amor Eterno’. Died: British songwriter and producer John Trickett, who worked with Sting, Fleetwood Mac, Norah Jones, Queen, Gary Moore and Usher.

TAKE 40 AUSTRALIA FINISHES RUN

The longest-running hits countdown radio show Take 40 Australia fi nished up last weekend after 32 years, after being dropped from radio network Southern Cross Austereo’s schedule. Launched in 1984 with Barry Bissell hosting, it had a huge following. After Bissell left in 2009, hosts over the years were Osher Günsberg (née Andrew G), Kyle & Jackie O, Angus O’Loughlin, Ash London and Emma Freedman.

BONDI PAVILION LAUNCHES PAVSONIC

Bondi Pavilion Theatre has launched Pavsonic, a series of high-profile names playing one-night-only gigs through September. Its first, last weekend, was The Pinks, made up of Peter O’Doherty, Reg Mombassa, Continental Robert Susz, Brendan Gallagher, Jonathan Zwartz, Rob Souter and Doug Nairn. Coming up are King Tide, Dave Mason of The Reels and Brendan Gallagher, as well as a Songwriter In The Round night with Bernie Hayes, Leah Flanagan, Sam Buckingam and Dan Mac of Art vs. Science.

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BANG A GONG

BY DAVID JAMES YOUNG

W

hat a time it is to be a citizen of Wollongong, the third-largest city in New South Wales. After years of mismanagement and disruptions leading to venues either cutting out live music or shutting down entirely, the city is back on track and rapidly becoming a hotspot for live music. International acts such as Morrissey and Garbage have visits planned – the former even bypassing Sydney in favour of it – while local and national artists are doing the rounds week in and week out at Rad Bar and the Uni Bar.

The momentum is culminating in perhaps the biggest lineup to hit the city in many years, the second annual Yours & Owls festival taking place across the fi rst weekend of October at Stuart Park in the city’s north. Excitement for the festival is palpable, and it’s set to draw in people from all around, not just natives to the area. How exactly did Wollongong get its groove back? “I think it’s a testament to the fact that Wollongong is being recognised as a viable stop,” says Ben Tillman, one of the three people behind the Yours & Owls moniker, a brand that has been putting on events in the city since the late 2000s. “At the end of the day, bands touring Australia want to have fun and see as much of it as they can. It’s the agents and industry side that dictates where artists go and how long they’re in the country for. It says a lot about this city that people are realising that they can viably send bands here, and that there’s a way for them to make it work. People are coming out to the shows, everyone’s bills get paid and the bands get to experience a unique part of Australia. It’s kinda cool to see that there’s something going on here: I mean, we’re not as highprofi le as Sydney or Melbourne, but it’s a place with a lot of potential and I feel like that’s starting to catch on.”

“I feel like the very best part about that is that it wasn’t something that we set out to do,” he says of the lineup. “Obviously, a lot of people have come to us and talked to us about it, but we weren’t looking at meeting any sort of minimum or requirements. I feel like that says a lot about the kind of talent that we had on offer, and how many great female artists are prevalent in Australian music right now. Every act on the bill is there on their own merit, and the fact there are so many women on the bill speaks for itself.” Sandridge agrees with Tillman’s assessment of the lineup’s talent, noting anecdotally that it is an important thing for her to be directly a part of it. “Things have really changed in a big way,” she says. “When my first band Mad Polly would enter band comps around Wollongong, we would be the only females there. The rest would be all dudes. We were more or less made to feel as if we were encroaching on their turf or something. To be playing a festival in Wollongong with so many other great women is such a great thing – I’ve become really good friends with Little May in particular. Most of my favourite artists are female and the fact that it just happened that way without being tokenised is something I can definitely support.” For those that attended the festival in 2015, Tillman is keen to address the elephant in the room – or park, as it were: there will be no repeats of last year’s sound issues or water shortages. “That was the most stressful weekend of my life,” recalls Tillman with a pained laugh. “We’re quite lucky that we’re in a position where we’re able to properly deal with these things on a financial basis – when you’re broke, you’re just scraping around trying to keep it all together. We learned a big lesson in doing our shit properly last year – the production is going to be amazing this time around.”

“I THINK IT’S A TESTAMENT TO THE FACT THAT WOLLONGONG IS BEING RECOGNISED AS A VIABLE STOP. AT THE END OF THE DAY, BANDS TOURING AUSTRALIA WANT TO HAVE FUN AND SEE AS MUCH OF IT AS THEY CAN.”

Similarly, Bec Sandridge, a musician who has recently had a huge boost in profi le thanks to her remarkably catchy indie-pop tracks, counts herself ever grateful for the start she got as a musician in Wollongong, where she attended classes at UOW and first made her foray into solo work. “I feel like Wollongong as a scene helped me build up the skills I needed to be a live performer,” she says. “I can remember playing places like the Oxford Tavern, which was this really grungy pub, and the Otis Bar, where there was no stage – we were all packed into this one little space, and all the underage kids would sneak in. Back then, I probably had maybe three original songs. I got a lot from cutting my teeth at those early shows. As silly as it sounds, it was doing shows like that where I learned really simple stuff like doing my own soundcheck and counting my band in. It was me dipping my toes in the water and seeing what might happen.” Sandridge is one of many performers heading to the festival performing along with Bleached and Chastity Belt, Aussie rappers Tkay Maidza and Sampa The Great and big name drawcards such as The Jezebels and Ladyhawke. Just as excitingly, the festival has been carefully curated to be gender-inclusive: a whopping 52 per cent of the lineup is female, which is far more than can be said about certain other festivals at present. It’s a major step forward, and according to Tillman, it was simply a matter of the cream rising to the top.

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There is a lot for music fans to get excited about in the lead-up to Yours & Owls. Not only is the lineup the talk of the town, there are also other projects at work designed to get fans singularly pumped. “We’ve got a geo-dome that’s about 18 metres high and wide,” says Tillman, excitedly detailing one of his key passion projects within the festival grounds. “You go inside and all of the interior from floor to ceilings is covered in projections. We’ve got a video artist doing a piece for about half an hour, and then we give that video to three different producers. Russell [Webster] from Shining Bird, Daniel [Stricker] from Midnight Juggernauts and Jon Watts, who’s a local guy that I’ve been friends with for a really long time, are all going to do pieces of music to accompany the projections – it’s this all immersive environment where all of your senses are being taken over by the visual. One of the best parts of the festival this year has been the ability to have more ideas building up. If we wanted to just throw some bands on in a park, we could have done exactly that. We wanted there to be more to explore in this festival – the plan is to go a little deeper.” What: Yours & Owls Festival When: Saturday October 1- Sunday October 2 Where: Stuart Park, Wollongong With: Bec Sandridge, Antwon, Ball Park Music, Chastity Belt, Bleached, The Coathangers and many, many more

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Foy Vance Music As Therapy By Adam Norris

A

h, the Irish. It’s a heartfelt cliché that no matter what they say, you can’t help but fall a little bit in love with them. While it’s doubtful that Foy Vance and I are exactly each other’s type... Well, a man can dream. Vance has also had the singular pleasure of supporting not only Ed Sheeran on a slew of stadium tours (no small feat), but also Captain Fantastic himself, Elton John. From those bewildering stadium stages, he is now sprinting across Australia for a much more intimate, no less inspiring tour. In terms of content though, well, Vance is keeping his ego entirely in check. “Well, let’s start by noting that I don’t have any hits, so I certainly don’t play them,” he laughs. “With each show, it’s all different. With Elton we picked a set that felt right but always left a little room to manoeuvre if a certain song or sound was going down well in a particular venue. Essentially you’re just trying to set out the parameters of what you do for each audience; to give them the chance to get into you or not. That’s the beauty of these gigs. I’ve been invited onto them: there’s no real pressure. I’m not paying the promoters, I’m just setting up, singing for a while, and if people want to get on board and come to the next show, that’s great. If they don’t, I’m good with that. I get to see interesting places and meet amazing people.” He is being modest – his awardwinning second album Joy Of Nothing features the likes of Bonnie Raitt and Mr Sheeran on guest vocalist duties, while his third record The Wild Swan

is likely to prove his commercial breakthrough – but the arc of his career has not always seemed the stuff of inevitable acclaim. In one of those moments of research that makes you sit up and think, “Huh. Now that’s interesting”, prior to success Vance performed workshops in a handful of English prisons. “I did it because music is something I find completely redemptive and restorative,” he explains. “It helps me sort stuff out, still. It’s a powerful tool, and I think you can get so lost in this day and age by the commercialism of it: trying to make something that sounds good on radio, trying to make something that looks good on TV. That’s not where music comes from. That’s not what music is about for me. “It’s something way more profound than that, something you can never really quite put your finger on. And I just thought it would be interesting to explore that with people who are in need of some kind of change. It was weird sometimes, because there are some people who are sitting there and you’re thinking, ‘You know, some of these people have done really awful things.’ At that stage I didn’t know if I was going to keep on touring or if I wanted to do something different, and that was one thing I thought I could get into. Go in and work with people like that.” Vance’s sentiment that music can be a restorative force is paralleled in the majority of his music. There is a hopefulness to his lyrics, regardless of timbre and mood – from the grounded titular track ‘Joy of Nothing’,

to the more raucous ‘Fire It Up’, Vance seems like a thoroughly optimistic fellow. The prospect of turning his pen to different forms however – say, stretching that lyrical prowess into a novel – is met with a sigh. “You know what, I’d love to say yes because I love writing and I love the idea. But I know writers and have a vague idea of what it takes to write a novel, and it’s such a commitment. I’d love to try it at some stage later in life if I could, but you know … I don’t even know if I’d know what to say. I guess a novel that’s just a break from reality would be interesting, but I certainly don’t have the chops now. You get away with so much in

songs because it’s not just about the lyrics. The way you sing that lyric, the inflection, you’ve got a lot of legroom. Whereas writing a book is so exposed.” I hazard that songwriting is itself quite an exposing effort, and certainly one that many performers struggle with. But Vance is incredibly at ease with sharing himself with the world and pinning down his inspirations and sending them adrift into the universe doesn’t seem to cause him much anxiety. “It usually happens in the weirdest places,” he laughs of his writing habits. “I’ve come up with so many songs on toilets, I can’t tell you.

Whenever it comes, you need to snatch it and see where it leads. I have friends who are more formulaic about their writing. They get up at nine and finish at five, they take lunch breaks. For me, I couldn’t do that. That would kill me. You know what really inspires me? We were talking a minute ago about people making music for commercial gain. What really inspires me is those people from the plains of Africa, for instance. They’re going through droughts and famines, all kinds of horrendous issues they have to deal with. But every night, the fire is lit. They’re singing and dancing, transcending themselves. That’s where music is for me. That release from yourself.” Where: The Basement When: Wednesday September 14 And: The Wild Swan out now through Gingerbread / Atlantic

“I’VE COME UP WITH SO MANY SONGS ON TOILETS, I CAN’T TELL YOU. WHENEVER IT COMES, YOU NEED TO SNATCH IT AND SEE WHERE IT LEADS.”

Jamie T Fresh Bag Of Tricks By Iain McKelvey images of lost souls, exile, deserted cities and changing times. The track ‘Solomon Eagle’ is particularly notable, full of grimey rapping and RZA-inspired production, telling the story of a real-life seventeenth century Quaker called Solomon Eccles. “That’s him on the front cover of the album as well,” he says. “He’s kind of a legendary character. He would walk around almost naked in London berating people during the Black Death, shouting that this was happening because they were living in a den of inequity.

J

amie Treays is at home, catching up on some hard-earned rest after a day spent rehearsing the songs off his fourth album, Trick. The record comes a mere two years after his ‘comeback’ LP Carry On The Grudge, an album that arrived after a five-year break that challenged Treays’ confidence but ultimately transformed him into a more confident, mature songwriter. Over the phone the musician proves humble and engaging; he’s clearly enjoying his newfound momentum.

“It’s a strange point in my career where I am thinking about the past while moving myself forward,” he adds. “I had a lot of fun writing the 14 :: BRAG :: 678 :: 31:08:16

Though the response to Carry On was positive, the record heralded a clear departure from Treays’ earlier work. Trick is a kind of celebration of Treays’ roots then, full of nods to the debut album that made him famous. It was even partially recorded in his old stomping grounds of the now-closed Miloco Studios in Hoxton Square. Of course, the studio’s demise represents a neat real-world mirror for Treays closing one chapter and embarking upon another. “It was nice to go back to Miloco Studios one last time, you know?” he says. “It’s always good to touch base with the old sound.” Aside from Miloco, Treays also embarked upon a pilgrimage to

Detroit, recording songs from Trick in a number of studios in the States. “I’ve seen Detroit explored on a few documentaries and some friends have been,” he says. “People are moving there because it’s so cheap, which is giving rise to lots of art and music. I was keen to record somewhere else and I’m glad we did. Visually it’s a really interesting place. “Whenever I go away it tends to make me more aware of where I’m from,” he continues. “In a way Detroit could have been anywhere. I’m glad we went because it gave me the opportunity to connect to the English aspect of the music.” Though it doesn’t necessarily stick to the guidelines of genre, Trick does touch on reggae and hip hop influences, traversing a range of styles while unpacking evocative

As his love of American rappers proves, despite the uniquely English resolve of Treays’ music, his lyrics are not tied to any one particular country, and he aims to be relatable on a global scale. ‘Sign Of The Times’, one of Trick’s more unashamedly emotional songs, contains the line, “Where did all the venues go? Lost them all to businessmen.” It’s a line that will resonate heavily with Sydneysiders and is an issue that proves contentious for Treays. “It’s a huge issue in London,” he states. “All the venues have been replaced with flats, which is such a shame because you feel like the city you live in is just being gutted, you know? The culture that makes the city good is just ignored and it’s becoming

”IT’S BECOMING HARDER TO GO SEE A GOOD LIVE SHOW THESE DAYS.”

“Music survives. People want to see live music,” he says. “What is sad is the loss of the communities that exist in these venues. They get pushed under the bus because someone wants to build a new fucking tower block. It sucks man. I am the eternal optimist but it makes me grumpy.” Though Treays has every right to be annoyed, annual festivals like Falls offer such beefy lineups that it’s hard to be totally despondent about the access to live music we have in this country. Treays first played Falls in 2009 and is excited to return this year. “2009 was the first time we had played outdoors and the way the sound travels is super fun,” he says. “The crowd is always down for it. Actually Australians remind me a lot of Scottish crowds – they’re always up to have a seriously good time. “As a musician you delight in going places where you get a feeling the party has already started when you turn up. Sometimes you feel like you’re the only one trying to get it started.” He laughs. “Australia feels like it’s a party that’s begun without us and we’ve been lucky enough to get pulled in for the ride.” What: Falls Festival With: Childish Gambino, Violent Soho, Catfish And The Bottlemen, Ball Park Music and many more Where: Byron Bay / Marion Bay / Lorne / Fremantle When: Wednesday December 28 – Sunday January 8 And: Trick out now through EMI thebrag.com

Jamie T photo by Joost Vandebrug

“Trick is more to do with being back on the road a bit,” he explains. “Having played a lot of live shows, this album kind of comes from wanting to have the right kind of music to do so. Carry On The Grudge was quite down-tempo. I wanted to counter that.

record really and I feel like that comes across on a lot of the tracks.”

“I’ve always been a big fan of RZA and his production,” Treays continues. “The beat kind of led me down that route. I’m nowhere near as good as RZA, mind you. I love his heavy bassline beats and I was just trying to capture a little bit of that.”

harder to go and see a good live show these days because venues aren’t considered very important to a lot of people.


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Bastille Free Samples By Erin Rooney and The XX’s ‘Angels’, and two of the singles Bastille has already released from the new record feature snippets of movie dialogue. Smith says that sampling plays a particularly big role in his process, helping to give the works a “mixtape feel”. “I love sampling music,” he says. “I think it can be really evocative. With our songs we really try and create a little world and make it as atmospheric as possible. The thing with the quotes is it’s not about them being famous, and it’s not about them being necessarily recognisable. It’s more helping to tell this weird 45-minute story.”

S

ome years ago, a teenage Dan Smith was sitting in his bedroom in south London, recording songs on his laptop. He was mostly making music for himself, barely sharing it with anyone, until finally a friend convinced him to enter a talent competition. Flash-forward countless international shows, a couple of platinum singles, a BRIT Award win and two Grammy nominations, and Bastille, the now four-piece led by Smith, has received international recognition. But despite their success, Smith says they definitely don’t live a “famous lifestyle” – and that’s the way they like it. “We all just lead absolutely normal lives in London, and we’re quite happy with that,” he says. “When we go home, it’s this weird double life of going off on tour and playing shows to a lot of people and then going home and just hanging out with our friends and going to the pub. We get back into normality, get the bus everywhere, get the tube.”

“WE ALL JUST LEAD ABSOLUTELY NORMAL LIVES IN LONDON ... IT’S THIS WEIRD DOUBLE LIFE OF GOING OFF ON TOUR AND PLAYING SHOWS TO A LOT OF PEOPLE AND THEN GOING HOME AND JUST HANGING OUT WITH OUR FRIENDS.”

For Smith, touring doesn’t simply mean playing shows: he also spends his time furiously writing. Bastille’s new record Wild World was mostly penned in backstage rooms and hotel suites on Smith’s laptop, and unlike many artists he doesn’t see the touring and writing processes as separate. Wild World represents a step in a new direction for the band: it’s a mish-mash of different styles, an experiment touching on everything from hip hop production values, brutal guitar work, “Tarantinoesque” minimal tracks and the usual orchestral, cinematic Bastille songs. But one thing Smith has really kept in mind throughout is the desire to link Wild World to the movies. “We wanted it to seem like another film in this series that we’re making,” he explains. “It’s the same directors, but a different genre.”

at Leeds University and dreamed of becoming a film journalist. It’s easy to see such an influence on his work: he famously sampled lines from Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho for his mash-up of TLC’s ‘No Scrubs’

It’s no secret that Smith is a huge film fan: he studied English literature

Nonetheless, using samples is a process that comes with its own share of headaches, and the band often had difficulty clearing the rights and getting access to the audio they needed. In one instance they were even forced to send a member of their team across the country to track down the owners of an old film company because they were so driven to source a particular samples. Unfortunately, they couldn’t get it done in time, so it wasn’t meant to be. “There was one sample in a song on the album called ‘Send Them Off’. The sample was from this old ’70s B-movie sci-fi film that has like one-and-a-half stars out of ten on IMDb, but it’s got these amazing, dramatic, braggy quotes. And it’s brilliant! It’s well ahead of its time … But because we couldn’t get the sample, in the end we had to just rewrite it and recreate it. The spirit of the film is still there, but that was a shame.” In general, the band’s sound is a lot bolder on Wild World; they

seem more brazen, more intense. Their single ‘Good Grief’ has already garnered a lot of attention, particularly for its accompanying clip, a collaboration between the band and the Spanish collective NYSU. The resulting video provoked a strong reaction for its extreme female nudity – though Smith has astutely noted that no-one has pointed out the gun violence in the video. “There’re a lot of countries in mainland Europe where nudity is not meant to be heavily sexualised,” he explains. “For artists, it’s just another part of life. It was so interesting to see it in different places. For some people the nudity either means nothing at all, or people are kind of provoked by it!” The album isn’t all big tunes and bold sounds: one song that Smith has a particularly strong connection to is ‘Two Evils’, a tune on which he pulled things right back. “I’d started thinking about Nancy Sinatra’s ‘Bang Bang’ when writing it. I wanted it to be really atmospheric and eerie; I wanted to just tell a story with just a guitar on one side and a vocal on the other.” According to Smith, the title of Wild World is very much a reference to how difficult it can be to make sense of the world; how difficult reality can be to engage with. But despite the hardships he faced writing the record, he’s looking forward to sharing it with the world. “Ultimately, people and friendships and human relationships are awesome, and that’s what makes things OK,” he says. “I guess it’s quite a weird album, and it’ll be interesting to hear what people think.” What: Wild World out Friday September 9 through EMI

Elizabeth Hughes With A Little Help From My Friends By Joseph Earp

I

t’s fair to say Sydney has taken a bit of a battering this year. The lockout laws have strangled venues and put a dampener on our city’s live music, and time and time again we’ve been put to shame by our Melburnian cousins. But though the situation is dire, something legitimately magical has emerged out of all that oppression and restriction: Sydney’s music scene, despite all odds, has begun to truly blossom. Everybody’s in a band, and most of them are good. Something is happening here, Mr. Jones, and we know exactly what it is. One of the focal points of this new movement is Elizabeth Hughes, a singer-songwriter and member of Phantastic Ferniture, a supergroup comprising four singularly talented musicians – Hughes, Tom Stephens, Julia Jacklin and Ryan Brennan. Jacklin in particular is experiencing huge successes both nationally and abroad, and Hughes posits that a large part of her own confidence stems from watching her friend and bandmate triumph. “With Julia, she’s done really well with her music,” Hughes says. “Even just with my group of friends you can see how that pushes other people. Everyone’s feeding off the same energy. “Like, you go, ‘OK, Julia wrote those songs and recorded them with not much money and she made these video clips and she had the confidence to do that. Maybe I can do that too.’ So everybody started making video clips around the same time and recording and pushing into the next gear because we all

saw that it was possible. You have to have an idea and you have to stick by it, and you have to have the conviction: especially in terms of doing things like video clips. You have to be so confident with that kind of thing, just to have an idea and believe in the idea and yourself enough to do it.”

I was really into that. There were a lot of repetitive rhythms and when I muck around on guitar I find myself writing these repetitive bass lines and I think that’s where the influence comes from. I’ve also had an interest in jazz and soul, so influence sort of comes from there as well.”

Hughes’ solo work touches on a variety of genres, though as with the music of Phantastic Ferniture, her powerful tunes are anchored by some truly impressive musicianship. “I play with Tom [Stephens] on drums and Cam [Whipp] on bass,” she says. “It’s a pretty recent thing: we’ve only done a few shows together. But they’re both really good because they learn stuff so quickly and I have a lot of confidence in them because they’re both very seasoned musicians.”

Hughes took to songwriting naturally, but she has also always embraced the theatrical aspect of musicianship. She’s not a shoegazer; she engages with the audience and her performance spaces are remarkably inclusive. “I’ve always been into performing,” she explains. “I guess because I did dancing when I was younger and I was into drama. I always really liked being up on stage and sharing the stage with other people.

The diverse, multitextured quality of Hughes’ songs – particularly the soulful ‘Video Shoot’ – seems to be a direct result of her musical influences. When asked to talk about the musicians and styles that inspire her, Hughes doesn’t namedrop Joy Division or The Velvet Underground, or whatever en vogue touchstone bands are meant to mention these days. Instead, she discusses a very different point of influence. “I reckon I definitely draw a lot from African drumming, for sure,” she says. “Although I started playing piano when I was about six, I started playing drums when I was like 16.

“Starting to do music was different, though, because you’re by yourself and more vulnerable, but you get comfortable with each step that you take and the further that you go. You do something that’s hard or different or you play a bigger venue or to a bigger crowd or to people that you admire and respect, and it’s always hard the first time, but by the time you’ve done it once it’s enough to give you the confidence to do it the next time.” Though it might be practice that makes perfect, peers certainly help, and Hughes seems energised by the scene that she fi nds herself right in the centre of. She is a part of an emerging

musical culture, but she’s a fan of it too, and to hear her talk about the music her friends and compatriots make is to hear someone talk about the very thing that gives them strength. “I guess we all now consider seeing other gigs as part of what hopefully is becoming our jobs,” she says. “When your friends have gigs or other musicians have gigs, you go along to their shows. Even if you feel a bit tired or you’ve got other stuff to do, that’s part of the whole journey. You have to

“YOU HAVE TO HAVE AN IDEA AND YOU HAVE TO STICK BY IT, AND YOU HAVE TO HAVE THE CONVICTION: ESPECIALLY IN TERMS OF DOING THINGS LIKE VIDEO CLIPS.” 16 :: BRAG :: 678 :: 31:08:16

be there for other people like they are there for you. You also get inspired by that and you just know how much it means to the musicians, especially in Sydney where people think it’s this crappy dying music scene. It means a lot to see people there. It can be the difference between a good show and a crap show if there’s even one extra person there who has come out to see you.” What: Glebe Gig Hop Where: Mr Falcon’s, B.E.D., Record Crate, Staves Brewery, Little Guy and Different Drummer With: Astronomy Class, Low Down Riders and more When: Saturday September 17 thebrag.com


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Postmodern Jukebox Put Another Dime In By Adam Norris consumption these days. It’s an intriguing dichotomy PMJ have: they maintain the character of a speakeasy, even while most people are actually enjoying their videos alone in front of a computer screen. As Bradlee explains though, this engagement culminates in their live performances, when fans get to meet other fans often for the first time.

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ost bands – though not all, it should be noted – possess something unique, whether that be some idiosyncratic flair, a gift for strange instrumentation, a voice that strips paint or something that simply raises them from the herd. When it comes to Postmodern Jukebox however, it’s not just one single element that separates them from the crowd: it’s their whole bleedin’ package. With their revolving lineup of talent and with songs plucked from every genre imaginable, Scott Bradlee’s ragtimejazz-swing ensemble has amassed hundreds of millions of YouTube views and a community of devout fans. Little wonder Bradlee sounds so amazed at their success.

“It’s the craziest thing,” he admits. “I had this idea for a project. I wanted to have a lot of singers and musicians involved in creating this kind of alternate universe. There are two things that I really love: I love working with talent, bringing out the best that you can, and then I also love just being creative and changing songs around, rearranging them into a genre of music that I enjoy.

phenomenal talent. Back then I think she had maybe three or four thousand Facebook fans, and to look now she’s well over 200,000, and that’s just as the result of doing videos and touring with us. Now she can launch her own tours with her own music, and it’s a cool thing to see. By identifying talent and giving them this platform, they’re able to go on and build careers as well.”

“A big part of PMJ is that whole idea of identifying talent that might not be known around the world. At this point, we’ve introduced a lot of new artists. You look at the recent videos – like we just released one with Morgan James, who I remember meeting and being just amazed by her voice; she’s this

One of the most impressive aspects of PMJ’s evolution – and certainly one that gets a lot of attention – is the strength of their online presence. They have 500 million views and 2 million subscribers on YouTube: a colossal number. It does however make you ponder the nature of music

“When we started playing live, when we did our first tour, I remember thinking, ‘God, are we even going to have an audience?’” he laughs. “You see numbers online and you see comments, but you don’t actually see people face to face, and it’s a completely different ballgame. I remember when the first show went up in Toronto, we had a full house, everyone was dressed up in vintage clothing, and they all knew every song that we’d done. I think it has the same feeling as something like Comic-con, or any of those big conventions. PMJ concerts have become these events that are also networking opportunities, not just professionally, but for finding friends. I think that’s a pretty wild thing. So in a way it’s transcended the whole internet. Watching it alone is one thing, and doing live shows is a way of connecting all these people together.” With an all-the-trimmings tour stretching from coast to coast, there’s no finer time to dust off your flapper dress and tails, polish your monocle and prepare to Charleston. Yet while Bradlee remains my unwitting interview prisoner, there is a further aspect of his career I find fascinating; his work on projects outside the usual musical pathways, including his remarkable additions to the soundtrack of Bioshock: Infinite. “I think that my generation was the first one to grow up with video games, which are in a lot of ways the first really

“I WANT PEOPLE TO FEEL LIKE THEY’RE IN THE ’40S, THAT THEY’RE IN HOLLYWOOD HANGING OUT WITH THE RAT PACK.”

immersive entertainment. I worked on Bioshock: Infinite, and worked on Sleep No More, the New York show that is more of a theatre piece. In that sense, I’m sure those things informed my judgements on PMJ, and the idea of crafting that universe. There’s something that makes it really special … I mean, I think all entertainment is kind of escapism, and I think that there’s something really special about going to a show and feeling like you’re being transported to another time. That’s exactly the vibe I want for a PMJ show. I want people to feel like they’re in the ’40s, that they’re in Hollywood hanging out with The Rat Pack. Going to a really cool music party, that’s what I want.” A PJM live show is almost guaranteed to find its place in your gigs of the year list, and as impressive as their video performances may be, watching them dance a storm in the dark to a battery of weird and wild covers cannot be beat. Even for Bradlee the experience is strange. “I don’t take too much time to reflect on it, but when I do I’m very awed by this whole crazy story. I go out onstage and I see all these people, and think back to five or six years ago when I was playing alone in a restaurant. It’s crazy how things change. When I do think about it, I really think of it as a great gift. For anyone that’s creative, it’s one of the best things. We all just want to find an audience.” Where: Enmore Theatre / Anita’s Theatre, Thirroul When: Thursday September 8 / Friday September 9

The Worst Gig I’ve Ever Played Musicians Share Their Stories By Joseph Earp got set up, cracking into the first couple of songs. The blokes at the bar, who were accompanied by their dogs, immediately began requesting classics from Deep Purple and INXS. We politely shook our heads and pushed on with our mellow original numbers, knowing that it wasn’t what the gents were after on this particular Sunday afternoon, but persisting anyway. “All of a sudden, two of their dogs began growling and barking at each other, moving closer to the stage. Next thing you know, one of the woofas has got his jaw round the other’s throat and a full flare dog fight has broken out on stage. The other dogs began barking and howling hysterically, along with the blokes at the bar. We quickly finished our set, packed up and high tailed out of there. Happy to have survived.”

Dilly Dally

The Gooch Palms “There’s been a few. From amps bursting into flames onstage (one time in front of Andre 3000 in Detroit) to the first time we played in Cleveland [for] five angry rednecks watching football on TV who didn’t turn around from the bar while we 18 :: BRAG :: 678 :: 31:08:16

played except to scoff and laugh at us. “But the worst show would have to be our very first show we ever played in Sydney. It was our third ever show. But the sound guy was so angry and hated us as soon as we turned up. We had backing tracks that he was in full control of making sound good through the PA and he didn’t care enough to make them sound good, so it just sounded like really loud static noise. “It’s funny to remember now and I definitely remember Leroy smashing a glass and screaming at the sound guy onstage then running around the whole venue like a chook

without a head mid-set. But I guess that was the beginning of the idea of us putting on show rather than just standing there. So maybe it wasn’t so bad in the long run.”

Tom Stephens “A couple of years back my bass player Cam and I played at a small pub in Laguna, NSW as part of a tour covering a bunch of rural towns along the east coast. We arrived at the pub and discovered that the sound guy was on holiday, so the manager had to drive to a mate’s place to get a PA and microphones for us to play through. He came back with a couple of stands that looked like he’d built them himself in the backyard. We pushed on and

Ouch My Face “We [once] played in the basement of a bizarre club in Sydney. We had to load in down a lift that surely could not have legally accommodated more than one person at a time, and it smelt like dead fish. Then, mid-gig, the ladies’ toilets, which were located just off to the side of stage, exploded - spewing forth their delights and aroma into the main room.”

Bully “Our greatest disaster show happened in the summer of 2014. We were headed to Memphis by way of Arkansas at the end of a three-day run. We spent half the drive gritting our teeth through a tornado-producing storm, arriving in Memphis to flooded, empty streets. The storm had knocked out the power to the venue so we left our gear onstage unable to soundcheck. Pools of standing water in the back of the room grew until the rain let up just before doors. “Hospitality consisted of some PBRs [Pabst Blue Ribbons] and a separate room with a fan and one chair. After someone figured out how to fix the main breaker, we played our set to a solid 12 people, most of whom drove from other towns. Hurrying to leave, we discovered Reece’s pedals had gone missing off the side of the stage. We would have liked to spend the night hanging out with our tour mates and new buddies, but their hotel was openly being used for prostitution. We decided to get a few more miles towards home that night.”

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Photo by Alan Paone / Flickr

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hough we like to imagine our sonic heroes as crowdsurfin’, guitar-shreddin’ gods, forever forming one cool pose after the next, in actuality every rock dog on the planet has had their fair share of calamaties. In that vein, we reached out to some of our favourite failure-embracin’ bands and asked them to offer up their very worst gig story.

“Things can get dark on the road sometimes. Without solitude, everyone’s demons come to the table and you begin to lose sight of the friendship that brought you all together in the first place. Once, on stage, I pulled a Cat Power and walked off mid-song just so I could cry. Left everyone hanging I guess. Ben came back stage to find me sitting down all crunched up against a wall in tears. He said, “What’s up?” I said “I can’t do it. I can’t sing the songs anymore” and he said “What do you wanna do?” I caught my breath a bit more and he seemed pretty relaxed which was helpful... I guess everyone’s been following my lead this whole time. I finally said, “Let’s just do two more” and back we went. The band didn’t break up that tour, but if we ever do, it will be in a long time from now,

and it will be at home, away from all the noise. #TheDillyLife.”


BRAG’s guide to film, theatre, comedy and art about town

arts in focus

4 Minutes 12 Seconds photo by Rupert Reid

4 minutes 12 seconds Selfi Selfies and sexting also inside:

GRETA LEE JACKSON / ROBERT ENGLUND AT OZ COMIC-CON / THIRT Y THREE / MORE thebrag.com

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arts in focus

free stuff head to: thebrag.com/freeshit

arts news...what's goin' on around town... with Alex Chetverikov, Joseph Earp, Emily Norton

five minutes WITH

SI MULLUMBY FROM DREAM DRONE the empty silence of a sky full of stars. Your Band So, we are not a band in 3. the normal way that a band would

Dream Drone Growing Up My family wasn’t so 1. musical. My dad loved to sing

and my mum played a bit of piano but it was not a common thing for either of them to do. Actually, I’m the first professional musician in the family on either side as far back as anyone can remember. The first time I realised that music could convey other states of consciousness was at a Pink Floyd concert in Fremantle when I was a teenager. I had a dream two nights before the concert and during the concert I re-entered

that dream and relived the dream in my actual life in great detail. Inspirations Well my favourite 2. musicians are the friends that I

surround myself with. My heroes are people I have come to know and work with in all different fields. A full three-dimensional experience with someone who really ‘has it’ is worth far more to me than a recording or seeing a superhero band play a concert. I’m inspired by nature, cicadas, frogs, the sound of the ocean and

be linked to music in an article like this. We are me, Si Mullumby and Jon Worsley, and we don’t play chords, melody lines or even have rhythms. We are devoid of the kind of content that a band would normally form together to create. We use extra-long didgeridoos and create a field of vibration that totally resonates the body. We are both leaders in our fields: I am continuously pushing the boundaries of what can be done with a didgeridoo. The Music You Make Well there is nothing at 4. all similar to Dream Drone. It is unique. It is a style developed by me, Si Mullumby and Jon Worsley, that gives the space for the audience to have an experience. It’s born out of some cultural lacks in our

society to give a space and place in life to non-ordinary experiences. The sound is surprisingly powerful and the kinds of experiences people have reported to date are beyond my wildest dreams. We have one album titled Dream Drone and it is only for sale at our events to people who have first experienced the sound. Music, Right Here, Right Now 5. Well Dream Drone isn’t really a

part of the music scene at all. It’s a part of another movement that isn’t about entertainment. It’s about using the sound to help you have a better life and become more aligned with yourself. It’s a very personal inward thing. What: Dream Drone And The Sound Of Hemp Journey Where: Sydney Opera House When: Saturday September 17

THE LAVAZZA ITALIAN FILM FESTIVAL

The Lavazza Italian Film Festival returns for another flavoursome feast exclusively across Palace Cinemas from Tuesday September 13 to Sunday October 9. With over 30 films from, by and about Italy, including digitally restored screenings of William Wyler’s perennial favourite Roman Holiday and Luchino Visconti’s classic Rocco And His Brothers, it’s another opportunity to fall in love with Italy and its diverse culture (not that we need many reasons). We’ve got ten double passes to give away for the festival, so you’d best pop over to thebrag. com/ freeshit and get yourself in Roman Holiday the draw.

DO THE DOG

The historical, dog-friendly Vic On The Park in Marrickville will host a new weekly membership charity event every Sunday arvo, with all proceeds from the sign-ups going directly to Maggie’s Rescue, a Marrickvillebased animal welfare charity supporting animals in need of homes. For a small sign-up fee, Doggy Badge Draw members will go in the running to win a host of special doggy treats, along with receiving their very own Vic bandanna and a unique member dogcollar tag. Get down to the Vic for a beer and contribute to a local cause – we love our own dogs, but there’s a lot more that go unloved.

HISTORY REPEATS

Nanda\Hobbs Contemporary will feature Paris-based Australian artist Anthony White’s latest body of work Crossing The Rubicon from Gimbal by James Nguyen

WHO ARE YOU?

UNKNOWN MUSEUM ARTIST

Sally Simpson explores the relationship between humans and the natural world with new exhibition Objects For An Unknown Future Museum, which will run at Stanley Street Gallery in Darlinghurst from Wednesday September 7 to Saturday October 1. Our desire to harness instinct and the natural world, and ultimately its repercussions, is examined through sculptures of ocean debris composing the organic (dried out fish bones, coral, shells and other marine matter) and the inorganic (resin, rope and other man-made objects), as well as the awkward and disharmonious nature of such a relationship. Shell Reliquary With Salmon Vertebrae by Sally Simpson

In his upcoming exhibition New Solutions, Enduring Problems, Sydney-based artist James Nguyen considers the nature of memory and its value – the who, what and why of the things we remember, and what is left behind and obscured by our collective conscience. A former student of the National Art School and Sydney College of the Arts, Nguyen has spent the last year producing collaborative documentaries in New York, putting his finger on the convoluted pulse of the United States. See the exhibition at MOP Projects in Chippendale from Wednesday September 21 – Sunday October 16.

Jane Caro

DOWN TO THE MARKET

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ST ALBANS ‘ROUND MY PEN

Spring has shown us its first blossom, and what better way to welcome it than a trip up to the picturesque village of St Albans, less than two hours north-west of Sydney, for the St Albans Writers’ Festival, running Friday September 16 to Sunday September 18. The program features an impressive lineup including Jane Caro, Les Murray, Sarah Ferguson, Richard Glover and many others. Returning for its second year, the festival is set to maintain its community focus while bringing world-class ideas and literature together in a unique setting. Informal ‘Meet the Author’ roundtables allow festival-goers to chat to the authors over a drink or by the fireside, and gourmet food options are provided by Simmone Logue. Since there’s no mobile service in the Forgotten Valley, put technology to bed for the weekend and embrace some fresh ideas among the crisp country surrounds.

Tuesday September 20 to Friday September 30. The exhibition name might sound familiar to those versed in history – Julius Caesar’s crossing of the Rubicon in 49 BC serves as the historical flashpoint for White’s exploration of global issues past and present, which considers the intersection of defining historical moments and current socio-political issues. Incorporating a range of disciplines including painting, drawing and collage, White addresses ideas sourced from historical moments of cultural collision to create large-scale images that explore issues like the growing refugee crisis in Europe. thebrag.com

Xxx photo by xxxx

Sydney Rock ‘n’ Roll & Alternative Market

The Sydney Rock ‘n’ Roll & Alternative Market is turning six and is ready to celebrate with a stellar array of musicians and DJs at Manning Bar on Sunday September 18. The likes of The Rocksteady Ratpack, Wes Pudsey and the Sonic Aces, The Dan Barnett Swing 5 and Narelle Evans and The Jetbacks will perform on the day, with a swing dancing class for beginners on offer from 10.30am11.30am, along with the usual colourful characters and charisma that the market offers. For six years the market has brought together the best of Sydney’s rock’n’roll and alt fashion and culture, including records, accessories, homewares, unique and vintage clothing, vintage hair and make-up artists, and a whole host of food, family-friendly activities and vintage vehicles on display. It’s a great opportunity to appreciate a distinctly local take on rock’n’roll all while supporting local stallholders and artists.


arts in focus FEATURE

4 Minutes 12 Seconds [THEATRE] A Moment In Time By Alex Chetverikov

other; the way class, gender and our own prejudices can blind us to the truth. The technology we now have at our fingertips really just provides new opportunities to understand and connect with each other, and on the flip side, new ways to distance and dehumanise each other. It would be my hope that people walk away from the play with a deeper understanding of those forces.” Naturalism is a key element of Baldwin’s work with Outhouse Productions, and previous interviews reflect his interest in the nuances of human behaviour and the importance of observation. Baldwin selected his four key thespians through hours of Skype interviews, and remaining sensitive to the social nuances of the original production is something that he sees as central to the play. “With the work that I do with Outhouse Productions, we tend towards stories that are firmly rooted in naturalism and about considering stories in lifelike detail. We are attracted to the surrounding culture and the role that it plays. Our actors spent significant time researching Croydon, the original area in which 4 Minutes 12 Seconds is set, in South London. Croydon is very much a multicultural working-class area, an area that has resisted gentrification countless times. How this results in the alienation of people and the gap between classes plays a part in what I hope to explore with 4 Minutes.”

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hese days, opening a dialogue on technology is in itself an act of provocation. At its best technology represents convenience, cooperation and content. But at its worst, it is capable of utterly dehumanising and alienating us, of unravelling the delicate emotional fibres that make up our relationships as human beings in the blink of an eye (or a Tweet). Craig Baldwin knows this all too well. The director behind the upcoming Australian season of James Fritz’s Olivier Awardnominated play 4 Minutes 12 Seconds has an intimate understanding of technology’s devastating impact, and the play tackles such themes head on.

“I looked through dozens of plays before I came across this one,” Baldwin explains, “and there was something so immediate about it. I think at first glance the play is this incredible thrill-ride of a story. There are so many twists and turns in the plot and it always stays one step ahead of you, so it is exhilarating to keep getting thrown in a new direction as you watch the play. I think a lot of people will respond to the excitement of that kind of story at first, but that’s just the beginning.” Capturing the fragile nature of technology and in turn the wider social implications it carries, is weighty work. Having only just flown in from the US the morning he speaks to the BRAG, a country where Baldwin spends much of his

time on productions of a greater scale as associate artistic producer at Red Bull Theater, the director seems to be a mood of fatigued eloquence while discussing the pivots upon which the play revolves. “It’s great to have that ‘gasp’ moment as a plot suddenly turns, but the construction of the play is even more interesting,” Baldwin says. “The play is built around these small fragmented vignettes that jump suddenly forward in time. They are so carefully constructed and so well observed in their naturalism that they elevate to something poetic, in a way. These minute details accumulate within the play and you start to feel a deep resonance in all these tiny moments between the characters.

“Little throw-away phrases of dialogue take on incredible implications – the way a haiku can pack so many layers of meaning into such an economy of syllables. So while the play keeps your brain working to stay with the twists and turns in the plot, it is also imperceptibly working its way into your heart, and the effect is profoundly moving.” However, for Baldwin all of the play’s other aims pale in comparison to its unafraid desire to explore human communication. “The catalyst for this play is definitely the implications of technology,” he says. “Smart phones, social media, the internet… It’s about the insidious effects that they can have on our lives. But ultimately the true story of this play lies in the way we treat each

“ULTIMATELY THE TRUE STORY OF THIS PLAY LIES IN THE WAY WE TREAT EACH OTHER; THE WAY CLASS, GENDER AND OUR OWN PREJUDICES CAN BLIND US TO THE TRUTH.”

Following on from a highly successful season directing The Aliens for the Old Fitz in 2015, Baldwin says the new production is a welcome return to the familiar, intensive confines of the venue, although he acknowledges its challenges. “I’ve spent a lot of time working on casts with 30 people for audiences of 800 people,” Baldwin says with a laugh, “so to be back at the Old Fitz is wonderful and it’s the perfect type of space for the intensity of this play. Following the success of The Aliens last year, which was quite unbelievable, I’ve put myself under a fair bit of self-imposed pressure on how to follow that up … I love coming back because Sydney is the bestkept secret in the sense that it’s got the most talented, dynamic actors in the world.” What: 4 Minutes 12 Seconds Where: The Old Fitzroy Theatre When: Tuesday September 13 Saturday October 8

five minutes WITH

B

ELEANOR RYAN FROM BLACKBIRD

lackbird is a dark, disturbing work. Can you tell us a little about the plot? 15 years ago, Ray and Una had a relationship when she was 12 and he was 40. He abandoned her and they haven’t seen each other since, but now she’s found him again. After three years in prison and subsequent hardships, Ray has a new identity. Una, 27, has thought of nothing else. Upon seeing a photo of Ray in a magazine, she tracks him down and arrives, unannounced, at his office. Guilt, rage, and raw emotions run high as they recollect the passionate relationship they had 15 years ago.

on a dark and heavy show such as this.

The play is a two-hander, and a very intense one at that. How have rehearsals been? It has actually been a great process. It’s definitely been exhausting at times, but as a team we have managed to find the fun and lightness in working together. That’s always important, but it’s especially so when you’re working

What do you think makes Blackbird as a play special? It’s a fascinating script, unlike anything I’ve read before. It’s poetic and unpretentious at the same time. It doesn’t hide and it doesn’t shy away from exploring some very challenging and confronting themes, and the characters feel very real and very

thebrag.com

The play has previously been staged in a production directed by Cate Blanchett. Did you feel beholden by past stagings? Absolutely not. The play has also recently finished performing on Broadway as well, but through lengthy discussions we developed our own interpretations of the characters and the story that I believe are distinct from either of those previous productions. Comparisons are inevitable though I’m sure!

complex. But while the core idea of the play is shocking, it’s beautifully written and uncompromising. What do you want audiences to walk out of the play thinking/ feeling? Honestly, I don’t have any idea what audiences will be feeling once the show fi nished, and that for me is the most exciting part. I think there will be many different discussions taking place after each performance and that’s the beauty of the script. I think it would be impossible to guess how people will react, but that’s really what makes the show so incredible to be a part of. What: Blackbird as part of Sydney Fringe 2016 Where: Off-Broadway Festival Hub, Annandale When: Tuesday September 6 – Saturday September 10

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arts in focus FEATURE

Greta Lee Jackson

Robert Englund [FILM] The Nightmares Lives On By David Molloy

[COMEDY] Flying the Flag By David James Young fans liked it, but it was really badly received.” “Comedy about true crime – whadaya reckon?” She laughs to herself at the prospect. “At the same time, during the day away from that, I was editing our pilot for iview. The whole experience made me look at the balance between the good and the bad in my life. I’m at a point where I’m able to get some things really, really right and then get other parts horrifically wrong. I think that plays a big part in the material in this show.” After the run of Red Flag fi nishes up, Jackson will focus her efforts on Wham Bam Thank You Ma’am, which is currently in its final stages of editing. Having amassed thousands of views for their sketches and roped-in cameos from the likes of triple j’s Matt Okine and English pop singer Ellie Goulding, the momentum of Skit Box is certain to continue via the airing of the show, which will debut exclusively on the ABC’s online streaming service, iview.

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ruth is stranger than fiction... because fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; truth isn’t.” So said Mark Twain in his book Following The Equator: A Journey Around The World back in 1897, probably not expecting that his quote would still be timely and pertinent some 106 years after his death. The story behind Red Flag, the latest show by Australasian comedian and actor Greta Lee Jackson, is a strange one – and indeed one that takes place (at least in part) on a journey, albeit a trip not quite as epic as Twain’s. It’s a tale of love, loss and what happens when the former comes bizarrely crashing into the latter.

discovered, and is ultimately a form of comedic catharsis.

“I travelled across the world to make a relationship work with someone that I didn’t know,” begins Jackson (let that sink in before you keep reading), “who turned out to be a socially awkward men’s rights activist. He more or less dumped me as soon as I got there. And, if that wasn’t enough, he recorded the audio of himself breaking up with me. I don’t know why, but I demanded a copy of the recording. Something just possessed me. He gave it to me, and at that point something clicked in the back of my head. I realised that there was something that I could use and that I could do with it – that there was a story to be told about this, and the lead-up to it happening.”

Of course, not all of Jackson’s life as of late has been a tragedy – this is a comedy we’re dealing with, after all. In fact, aspects of Jackson’s professional career have been on the up and up – she performs as one-third of Skit Box, a sketch comedy group that scored big with their viral video Activewear in 2015 and are currently working on their debut show, Wham Bam Thank You Ma’am. Skit Box’s rise in popularity has certainly made Jackson a hot comedic commodity by association, although she will be the first to admit that this has not quite translated into her stand-up comedy performed on her own.

Red Flag makes its debut as a part of the Sydney Fringe Festival this month, and its writing and creation has had Jackson constantly questioning her own life decisions, in particular how they were made and where they ultimately lead her to. It’s part of the show, she’s

“I was thinking a lot about why I can be so desperate. Why do I put myself in these situations?” she wonders out loud. “There were signs that what I was doing wasn’t going to work and that it was a bad idea – all of these red flags, if you will – and I just kept on ignoring them. I kept putting them out of my mind, all out of desperation. Even now, I honestly don’t know why I did why I did, why I wanted the recording or why the break-up was recorded. I’m hoping that, by the time I finish performing this show, I’ll be closer to figuring out the answers.”

“At the exact same time that I was working on the show at the ABC, I was going on stage at night and doing a comedy show about true crime,” she explains. “It ended up being a total disaster – there were six people on average at the show, ten on a good night. It got all of these terrible reviews, too. I liked it, and a few die-hard crime

“I’M AT A POINT WHERE I’M ABLE TO GET SOME THINGS REALLY, REALLY RIGHT AND THEN GET OTHER PARTS HORRIFICALLY WRONG.” 22 :: BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16

“We’ve always just done sketches and put them up on YouTube,” says Jackson. “We got involved with the ABC’s Fresh Blood initiative – five groups were picked to do half-hour pilots, and were were one of those five, then a further two were picked for a six-episode series. We’ve made it all the way through, so what we’re doing right now is fostering our relationship with the ABC and editing the show together. The format is the same as the pilot, but we’ve got lots and lots of new stuff that we’ve written specifically for the show mixed in with some of our tried and tested stuff. It’s all very exciting, really.”

ome 32 years ago, the teens of Springwood first fell prey to a shadow stalking through their dreams. The bloodthirsty maniac with clawed hands hunted them through their nightmares, able at whim to transform into any one of their deepest fears. His name? Freddy Krueger.

Where: Factory Theatre When: Tuesday September 27 – Friday September 30

Robert Englund, the man behind that famous burnt visage, has long since hung up the bladed

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glove, but nevertheless remained endlessly busy with fi lm, television and voiceover work. Returning to our shores for Oz Comic-Con in September, he relishes the opportunity to touch base with fans young and old. “It’s great for me, because when you’re an actor, you work in a vacuum a lot,” Englund says. “Obviously I’ve experienced the success of my horror movies and earlier projects, but Comic-Cons

Thirty-Three [THEATRE] Unhappy Birthday By Joseph Earp

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s there anyone out there who enjoys their birthday? I mean, actually enjoys it? For most of us, it’s just another day – a sad, morbid marker signifying nothing but our slow procession towards the absolute cessation of our being and the undoing of our bodies. Worst still, birthday parties suck. Just ask Saskia, the hero of Matthew Booth’s new production Thirty-Three. For ole Sassy, her birthday shindig is marked not with cake and good times but with anguish and trouble, as the sudden reappearance of a figure from her past sends her life into turmoil.

old tensions rise to the surface is a tale as old as time: that murky theme of ‘past evils’ has haunted everything from Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? to the more surrealist bent of Harold Pinter’s The Birthday Party. But as far as Booth is concerned, the play is less about the tension the characters fi nd themselves mired in and more about the bonds that put them in the same room in the first place. “The play is about friendship, loyalty, family, growing up, taking responsibility, and balancing that with having a good time,” Booth says simply.

“Thirty-Three is about a woman named Saskia on the night of her 33rd birthday,” explains Booth, the play’s co-writer and director. “She’s invited a bunch of her closest friends over for a dinner party when out of the blue her younger brother Josh shows up unannounced. She hasn’t seen or heard from him in years and we don’t quite know why he’s there. Then one by one the guests arrive, and they each bring some kind of personal crisis. So they all get into the booze, and the substances, and things spiral out of control and it turns out to be quite a wild night.”

Moreover, Booth argues that the play wasn’t inspired by figures like Albee or Pinter, but by distinctly more cinematic reference points. “If I recall correctly, [the plot] for Thirty-Three was [co-writer] Alistair Powning’s idea,” Booth says. “We wanted to make something for five or six actors. Al had an idea for a ‘party piece’. We are both massive fans of [1983 comedy-drama film] The Big Chill, and I think we both fancied ourselves a couple of Lawrence Kasdans and thought we’d cook up our own all-setover-a-weekend ensemble drama. Al might disagree with that description. Hi, Al.”

Of course, a play about a group of friends getting firmly sloshed while

Thirty-Three took a matter of months to write and was first

staged to good reviews and reciepts back in 2011. However, Booth wasn’t done with ThirtyThree, and some half a decade later the play began to resurface in his consciousness. “In February this year I was itching to direct something for the Fitz, and I suddenly remembered ThirtyThree and thought, ‘Man that was a good show. It needs another life: I should dust that old script off.’” Resurrecting the work hasn’t been as easy as one might assume, particularly given that the script had been carefully written with the production’s original cast in mind, designed to fi t the eccentricities and character traits of the real life actors fi lling the roles. But rather than feeling overwhelmed by this particular obstacle, Booth openly embraced it. “I should point out that this show at the Fitz is a mostly new cast,” he says. “That’s what excited me most about doing the play again. I’ve met and witnessed some incredibly exciting and talented actors in the last fi ve years and I saw this as an opportunity to assemble my dream team.” Booth’s dream team proved exactly as skilled and prepared as he expected them to be, and the thebrag.com


arts in focus FEATURE

are a great opportunity to get a lot of feedback on my recent work.” Krueger is one of the most documented figures in cinema history, but to hear Englund talk of his origins is to hear the story as if for the first time, channelled directly from the recently departed horror auteur Wes Craven. He explains that Freddy was amalgamated from “a school bully with a German name, Frederik Krüger, who had picked on Wes” and an anecdote in which Craven and his brother had been watched in their bedroom by a homeless man on their street – a man with “soot or sores on his face and an old hat”. “He looked up and made eye contact with them in their room and they shut the curtains and hid under the blankets for a while,” says Englund, “and when they went back to the window, he was still there! Looking up at their window. Wes always remembered that.” The final piece of the puzzle came in the form of a disturbing news article chronicling the phenomenon of Cambodian refugees to America’s Midwest dying in their sleep. “They were so alienated from their beautiful, lush green jungle – they were in the flat dry prairie of America,” says Englund. “And they were unable to wake up from their nightmares and write them down as songs or poems or stories, or paint them, and so they were literally dying in their sleep.” For Craven to fuse all these elements together into one timeless character was testament to his skill, and Englund cannot speak highly enough of his former mentor. “Wes changed horror three times,” he says. “With the original Last House On The Left and The Hills Have Eyes, which are almost like David Lynch meets Bergman meets... I dunno, some incredible hardcore Italian director. Then

later on he did the Nightmare On Elm Street franchise, which is a complete American dark fairytale myth. And then he did the Scream franchise, which of course was his wiseacre valentine to the fans, a kind of deconstructed horror acknowledging all the stuff that the fans know and understand; all of the tropes and the gimmicks that the fans are wise to, and yet still pulling the rug ug out from underneath them and scaring caring them at the same time.” The eight films in which Englund terrorised rised Elm Street are merely a drop p of blood in the lake of his filmography. graphy. In the last year alone, the 69-year-old 9-year-old has been involved on three ree major international features res and a video game for Warner er Brothers, about which he is “sworn worn to secrecy, but it’s safe to say that it may be one of the biggest iggest games and one of the most popular games of all time”.

all being made with lifesize puppets, and yeah, it’s strange! And they fornicate and swear and curse. It’s funny and it’s nasty and it’s sexy, so I’m really anxious to go back and do some more work on it, see how they’re doing.” Despite the glut of work, Englund quietly carries Krueger’s gargantuan horror legacy on his shoulders, especially in the wake of Craven’s passing. He has signalled he will not be returning to the dreamscape of Elm Street, though he did have ideas for what could next befall the denizens of Springwood. “My idea was that I wanted to bring back the memory of the character Tina [Amanda Wyss] from the original, and my idea was that she had an older sister, a college-age

edges of the nightmare peek past his affable front, and Krueger’s nasty irreverence slips out when the actor is pressed on his favourite kill in the series. “My favourite kill is the young lad from Part 6 [Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare] with the hearing aid, that Freddy goes after. I love that he’s a special needs kid and Freddy is an equal opportunity killer.”

What: Oz Comic-Con 2016 With: Robert Englund, Daniel Portman, Keisha Castle-Hughes, Aaron Ashmore and many more Where: Sydney Exhibition Centre, Glebe Island When: Saturday September 10 – Sunday September 11

While e he appears excited about the recently ecently completed Midnight Man, a starring vehicle le for

him alongside Elm Street alumni Lin Shaye, haye, he’s got the most to say about bout an obscure picture in development velopment for 2018 called Abruptio. ptio. “It’s about a strange young man who works in an office situation, and he lives es with his mother, and he’s very troubled and lives in a kind of fantasy sy world,” Englund says. “But the gimmick mmick of the movie is that it’s

sister, who came back and researched the death of her sister and became another sort of card-carrying survivor girl in the pursuit of Freddy Krueger,” he says. For now, that tale is just a dream from which Englund’s waking life keeps him. But the

FEATURE

“THE FITZ’S SECOND FLOOR IS ABSOLUTELY PERFECT BECAUSE THE WHOLE THING TAKES PLACE IN SOMEONE’S LIVING ROOM. IT’S LIKE THE AUDIENCE ARE GUESTS IN THE HOUSE. YOU’RE RIGHT IN THE THICK OF IT.” show. They’ve built an incredible rapport as an ensemble. Suffice to say, rehearsals are an absolute joy.” Just as excitingly, not only is Booth’s cast perfect for the work, so is the play’s location. The work is set to be staged on the Fitz’s second floor as part of a new initiative that will see the intimate space hosting handpicked productions perfectly suited to the venue’s vibe. “The Fitz’s second floor is absolutely perfect for Thirty-Three” enthuses Booth, “because the whole thing takes place in someone’s living room. So it’s like the audience are guests in the house. You’re right in the thick of it.”

director has nothing but good things to say about his assembled cast. “I’d thebrag.com

have to say this is the best cast I’ve ever worked with,” he says. “I was a

fan of their theatre work individually before I invited them to be in the

Ultimately, Thirty-Three’s naturalism, locale and cast are all aligning for a singular purpose: to make the audience forget they’re watching a play, and to wholly immerse themselves in the plight of characters

they should feel like they’ve known all their life. Thirty-Three isn’t something removed from reality, or an accessory to our real lives: it’s our own existence thrown back at us. To that end, Booth’s goals for the play are simultaneously simple and grand. “I want audiences to be wiping the tears from their eyes and holding their aching sides thinking, ‘Holy shit, what was that?’” Booth says. “I want them to feel like they’ve been a part of these people’s lives and I want them to grab a drink in the bar and to argue and discuss and celebrate the magic of life and theatre. I’d like that.” What: Thirty-Three Where: Old Fitz Theatre When: Tuesday September 20 – Saturday October 8, Monday through Saturday

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film & theatre reviews Hits and misses on the silver screen and bareboards around town

are the only interesting factor in an otherwise repellently mundane script.

■ Film

BLOOD FATHER In cinemas now The standard method for bringing foreign language directors into the Hollywood fold is to offer them billboard actors and simplistic, cookie cutter scripts. Welcome to the suck, Jean-François Richet. The life of ex-convict and recovering alcoholic John Link (Mel Gibson) is shattered when his daughter Lydia (Erin Moriarty), missing for several years, suddenly appears in his trailer with a score of angry drug dealers on her tail. The unwilling father has to dig back into his ugly past in order to keep her safe. Blood Father is trope codifier for this tired, old-world narrative about the role of men safeguarding vulnerable women, and how blood ties are unbreakable. The film touches an unexpected nerve in that it places Gibson in the role of an alcoholic bigot. While the film’s efforts at ‘redeeming’ the character are laughably predictable, there’s some small nuance in the performance, and Link’s zingers

Mel Gibson and Diego Luna in Blood Father

The racial stereotyping is part and parcel to the film, with Link’s token broken white man pitted against a caricature of a Mexican cartel. Peter Craig, the fi lm’s writer, attempts to paper over the issue with a condescending scene in the back of a truck: when Link spits abuse at the illegal immigrants he’s hunkering down with, Lydia takes to her Mary Sue soapbox and ‘destroys racism forever’, in a scene that echoes the tonal incongruity of Suicide Squad’s ‘humorous’ reshoots. Yet, Link’s racial enmities are quickly forgotten when it’s convenient for him to have a Hispanic insider provide intel on the central villain, Jonah (Diego Luna). It’s impossible to spoil the fi lm. If you’ve seen an action fl ick before, you’ve seen Blood Father. Gibson’s fi nal lines are genuinely disgusting, and reinforce every turgid value that the fi lm as a whole treats as gospel. There’s no integrity, no heart and no soul to this pre-packaged junk. So why does it star William H. Macy and Michael Parks, the latter merely trotted out to rehash his Red State role?

Richet’s lamentable effort is a waste of three talented actors, a waste of your money and time, and a waste even of its own exhausted premise. Its only questionable value is as a disturbing reflection on Mel Gibson, the man. David Molloy

■ Theatre

■ Theatre

Playing at the Big Top Entertainment Quarter till Sunday November 6

Playing at the Capitol Theatre until Sunday November 13

KOOZA

It’s hard to know what primordial compulsion first seeded the love of Big Tops in our collective consciousness, but the moment you spy those garish turrets and whorls of hypnotic colour rising from the Entertainment Quarter, your heart starts to speed. There’s something so immersive and otherwordly about the circus – even before you step inside the tent you’re already in thrall. Particularly with a troupe like Cirque du Soleil your anticipation is particularly heightened; after all, it’s rather safe to acknowledge them as the world’s premier circus performers. The last Cirque production I saw, Totem, was a grand if confusing affair. At the time I wrote of it seeming cobbled together, which is perhaps the fate of any production that has so many disparate acts lassoed together for widespread appeal.

Arts Exposed

ALADDIN

Kooza But Kooza is different. In stepping back to more traditional circus arts – clowning, tightrope, contortion, balance – we are allowed the opportunity for a much clearer narrative arc. Sure, it may still be a simple storyline, but it’s there and it’s entertaining. Visually engrossing,

What's in our diary...

childlike in its sense of wonder, Kooza is like a waking dream. To that end, the costumes are a thing of wonder. While each performer’s acrobatic prowess keeps your eyes glued to the stage, their wardrobe is just as crucial in bringing each character to life. This culminates in a Day Of The Dead-esque revelry of darkly delightful creatures from the netherworld.

Not that you want anything to go wrong, exactly. But amazement can be frightening, and where Kooza works best are the moments when we are all as one; when no-one, not even the performers, can entirely be sure this next trick will land and we wait, heart in throat, to witness feats of imagination and dexterity we could never be capable of ourselves.

Oz Comic-Con Sydney Exhibition Centre, Saturday September 10 – Sunday September 11

24 :: BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16

Kooza

You know the story – street rat Aladdin (Ainsley Melham) falls in love with the Princess Jasmine (Arielle Jacobs) in the ancient city of Agrabah, befriends a genie (Michael James Scott) and battles against the villainous vizier Jafar (Adam Murphy) in his quest to win Jasmine’s heart. The most notable difference is the absence of animal characters: this ain’t no Lion King. Iago (Aljin Abella) is no longer a parrot but a raucous pantaloon-clad clown, while Al’s monkey companion Abu has been replaced with three human friends, Babkak (Troy Sussman), Omar (Robert Tripolino) and Kassim (Adam-Jon Fiorentino). Melham’s Aladdin has a certain New York swagger that means he and his boys would be comfortable in West Side Story. It’s all part of the writers’ efforts to place the fictional Agrabah in a location less specific, though prepare yourself for an onslaught of Middle Eastern food puns courtesy of Babkak. Casey Nicholaw’s production is all about old and new, but the new can often feel superfluous, as when Aladdin evokes his dead mother in ‘Proud Of Your Boy’ for that extra serving of feels. Then there’s the Genie, a brand new beast for good reason. Scott borrows less from Robin Williams than he does from Titus Burgess, leaning into Broadway camp to spectacular effect. The production pulls out all the stops for him in ‘A Friend Like Me’, but Scott shines throughout. That said, Agrabah does lose something when it falls still, in the rare moments the choreography dips and we’re left with lone singers. Perhaps its just more noticeable given the resplendent stagecraft on show. Ultimately, Aladdin delivers everything it says on the tin – a kick of warm nostalgia and a sugar rush from all the eye candy. Disney’s big budget staging is a marvel, and often overshadows their less successful efforts at keeping the material current. They know well that the real winners here are those reliving their very first magic carpet ride. David Molloy

thebrag.com

Aladdin photo by Deen van Meer

Oz Comic-Con is returning once more to the shores of Sydney, with the likes of Ksenia Solo (Lost Girl) and Aaron Ashmore (Smallville) making appearances. Also, don’t forget to dress your freakiest and geekiest by participating in cosplay: it’s like Halloween but way better. Visit the Anime Station for screenings and to cruise through the manga library, or run faster than the Flash to the Gaming Zone where you’ll be able to play a host of cutting edge new titles. Oh, and always wanted to solve a Rubik’s cube? They teach that there too, and, to top it all off, at Stage 4 you’ll be able to release that super-dooper cool nerd in you by sharing anything you have created to other Comic-Conians (though you must register online first). What are you waiting for, huh?

Adam Norris

Disney’s latest Broadway adaptation has made it to the Capitol Theatre, arriving replete with astounding stagecraft and a couple of its precursor’s brightest American stars, and though many of its new additions are competent rather than instantly classic, it’s a visual extravaganza that always puts entertainment first.

Kooza photo by Matt Beard Costumes by Marie-Chantale Vaillancourt

But it is of course the skill of the performers that stays with you – that and the exceptional live band, who maintain a wonderfully shifting, cinematic tone. Twin contortionists Odgerel Byambadorj and Sunderiya Jargalsaikhan are a remarkable early highlight, drawing many an appreciative gasp from the audience. Similarly, the Wheel Of Death routine, arguably the production’s centrepiece, will have many folk on edge, and the twin-tightrope shenanigans similarly inject the show with a welcome shot of danger.

Ainsley Melham and Arielle Jacobs in Aladdin


thebrag.com

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BARS BRAG

A Work In Progress 50 King St, Sydney CBD (02) 9240 3000 Mon – Fri noon-2am; Sat 5pm-2am Ash St Cellar 1 Ash St, Sydney CBD (02) 9240 3000 Mon – Fri 8.30am-11pm The Attic 275 Pitt St, Sydney CBD (02) 9284 1200 Mon – Wed 10am-midnight; Thu 10am-1.30am; Fri 10am-3am; Sat noon1.30am Assembly

488 Kent St, Sydney CBD (02) 9283 8808 Mon – Tue 5pm-midnight; Wed – Fri noon-midnight; Sat 5pm-midnight The Australian Heritage Hotel 100 Cumberland St, The Rocks (02) 9247 2229 Mon – Sun 10.30am-midnight Bar Eleven Lvl 11, 161 Sussex St, Sydney CBD (02) 9290 4712 Mon – Thu 4-9pm; Fri – Sat 4-11pm The Barber Shop 89 York St, Sydney CBD (02) 9299 9699

Mon – Wed 4pm-midnight; Thu – Fri 3pm-midnight; Sat 4pm-midnight Basement Bar Basement, 27-33 Goulburn St, Sydney CBD (02) 8970 5813 Mon – Thu 5pm-10pm; Fri – Sat 5pm-midnight The Baxter Inn Basement 152-156 Clarence St, Sydney CBD Mon – Sat 4pm-1am Beta Bar First Floor, 238 Castlereagh St, CBD (02) 8599 8970 Wed – Thu 5pm-midnight; Fri midday-midnight; Sat 5pm-midnight

Bulletin Place First Floor, 10-14 Bulletin Place, Circular Quay Mon – Wed 4pm-midnight; Thurs – Sat 4pm-1am; Sun 4-10pm Burrow Bar De Mestre Place, Sydney 0450 466 674 Mon – Sun 4pm-midnight The Captain’s Balcony 46 Erskine St, Sydney CBD (02) 9299 3526 Mon – Fri noon-midnight; Sat 5pm-midnight deVine 32 Market St, Sydney CBD (02) 9262 6906 Mon – Fri 11.30am-11.30pm; Sat

MR FALCON’S

Tell us about your bar: At Mr Falcon’s, we like to think of ourselves as more of an “adult community centre” than just a bar. Yes, we serve alcohol, but we also offer our patrons a wide variety of activities, including live music, dance classes, burlesque, poetry nights, art exhibitions and script readings. What’s on the menu? Drop in for a delicious oven-fired pizza, a cheese board with our range of local and international produce, jaffles, oven-fresh garlic bread, or other bar snacks. We’re now also serving piping hot lasagna and

eggplant parmigiana that is sourced locally. Care for a drink? We’re known for our hot mulled cider, which is served all year round. We also have a Summer version, a deliciously refreshing alcoholic slushie that is great for the hotter months! We always have a great range of local and international craft beers, and often update our cocktail list, which is full of the classics and more original concoctions. Sounds? (What’s your music like?) Our “under the bike” sessions

bar bar

OF

92 GLEBE POINT RD, GLEBE, NSW, 2037 PHONE NUMBER: 02 9029 6626 WEBSITE: FACEBOOK.COM/MRFALCONBAR/ OPENING HOURS: MON-THU 4 PM – MIDNIGHT, FRI-SAT MIDDAY - MIDNIGHT, SUN 2 PM – 10 PM

TH

EK

B R A G ’ S G U I D E T O S Y D N E Y ’ S B E S T WAT E R I N G H O L E S

5.30-11.30pm Easy Eight 152-156 Clarence St, Sydney (02) 9299 3769 Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight El Camino Cantina 18 Argyle St, The Rocks Mon – Thu noon- midnight; Fri – Sat noon-3am; Sun 11.30am-midnight Frankie’s Pizza 50 Hunter St, Sydney CBD Sun – Thu 4pm-3am; Fri noon-3am Gilt Lounge 49 Market St, Sydney CBD (02) 8262 0000 Mon – Fri 5pm-2am; Sun 5pm-midnight The Glenmore 96 Cumberland St, The Rocks (02) 9247 4794 Mon – Thu, Sun 11am-midnight; Fri – Sat 11am-1am Grain Bar 199 George St, Sydney CBD (02) 9250 3118 Sun – Fri noon-9pm Grandma’s Basement 275 Clarence St,

E E W

are on every night of the week, except for the first Sunday of the month, when “Mr Falcon’s presents Burlesque” (hosted by the infamous Memphis Mae) takes over the bar. We like to offer a strong mix of local and touring acts to our patrons, hosting everything from gypsy jazz to blues and roots, rock and pop, and a new monthly DJ residency with Chasm, Dggz, and XS.if. Every Tuesday, Live & Originals bring great musical acts to Mr Falcon’s, and we’ve just started up a new open mic on the fourth Sunday of the month. Highlights: Mr Falcon’s really is much more than a bar: it’s a place where you can check out some great live music, devour a delicious pizza, dance, take in some art, or just chill in our sunny beer garden with a cleansing ale. We’re a great venue to hold your next function, too, and have rooms/ spaces to suit any sized party. Next time you’re about, make sure you drop in to Glebe’s comfiest bar, the only venue in Glebe with live entertainment seven nights a week! The bill comes to: Every day of the week, a pizza and garlic bread, with a free schooner of tap beer, comes to $21 (before 7:30 pm)!

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Sydney CBD (02) 9264 3004 Mon – Fri 3pm-midnight; Sat 5pm-1am The Fox Hole 68A Erskine St, Sydney CBD (02) 9279 4369 Mon 7am-3pm; Tue – Fri 7am-late The Grasshopper 1 Temperance Ln, Sydney CBD (02) 9947 9025 Mon – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri noon-1am; Sat 4pm-1am Hacienda Sydney 61 Macquarie St, Sydney CBD (02) 9256 4000 Mon – Sun noon-late Harpoon Harry 40-44 Wentworth Ave, Sydney CBD (02) 8262 8800 Mon – Sat 11.30am-3am; Sun 11am-midnight Kittyhawk 16 Phillip Ln, Sydney CBD Mon – Thu 3pm-midnight; Fri – Sat 3pm-2am The Lobo Plantation Basement Lot 1, 209 Clarence St, Sydney CBD 0415 554 908 Mon – Thu, Sat 4pm-midnight; Fri 2pm-midnight The Local Bar 161 Castlereagh St, Sydney CBD (02) 9953 0027 Mon – Wed 7.30am-10pm; Thu – Fri 7.30am-11pm The Loft (UTS) 15 Broadway, Sydney (behind 2SER) (02) 9514 1149 Mon – Fri 2-11pm Mojo Record Bar Basement 73 York St, Sydney CBD (02) 9262 4999 Mon – Wed 4pm-midnight; Thu 4pm-1am; Fri – Sat 4pm-1am The Morrison 225 George St, Sydney CBD (02) 9247 6744 Mon – Wed 7.30am-11pm; Thu 7.30am-midnight; Fri 7.30am-2am; Sat 11.30am-2am The Palisade 35 Bettington St, Millers Point 9018 0123 Mon – Fri noon-midnight; Sat – Sun 11am-midnight Mr Tipply’s 347 Kent St, Sydney CBD (02) 9299 4877 Mon – Thu 11.30am-10pm; Fri 11.30am-midnight; Sat 10pm-4am Palmer & Co. Abercrombie Ln, Sydney CBD (02) 9240 3000 Sun – Weds 5pm-3am; Thu 3pm-3am; Fri noon-3am; Sat 4pm-3am Papa Gede’s Bar Laneway at the end of 348 Kent St, Sydney CBD (02) 9299 5671 Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight Plan B Small Club 53-55 Liverpool St, Sydney CBD Wed 5pm-11pm; Thu 5pm-1am; Fri 5pm-3am; Sat 6pm-3am PS40 40 King St, Sydney CBD Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight Ramblin’ Rascal Tavern 199 Elizabeth St, Sydney CBD Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight Rockpool Bar & Grill 66 Hunter St, Sydney CBD (02) 8078 1900 Mon – Sat noon-3pm, 6-11pm The Rook Level 7, 56-58 York St, Sydney CBD (02) 9262 2505

Mon, Sat 4pm-midnight; Tue – Fri noon-midnight The SG 32 York St, Sydney CBD Tues – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat 6pm-midnight Shirt Bar 7 Sussex Ln, Sydney CBD (02) 8068 8222 Mon –Wed 8am-8pm; Thu – Fri 8am-10pm Since I Left You 338 Kent St, Sydney CBD (02) 9262 4986 Mon – Wed 5pm-10pm; Thu – Fri 4.30pm-midnight; Sat 6pm-midnight Small Bar 48 Erskine St, Sydney CBD (02) 9279 0782 Mon – Fri noon-midnight; Sat 5pm-midnight The Smoking Panda 5-7 Park St, Sydney CBD (02) 9264 4618 Mon – Sat 4pm-late Stitch Bar 61 York St, Sydney CBD (02) 9279 0380 Mon – Wed 4pm-midnight; Thu – Fri noon-2am; Sat 4pm-2am The Swinging Cat 44 King St, Sydney CBD (02) 9262 3696 Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight Tapa Vino 6 Bulletin Place, Circular Quay (02) 9247 3221 Mon – Fri noon-11.30pm Tuxedo Bar 195 Gloucester St, The Rocks Mon – Fri noon-7pm Uncle Ming’s 55 York St, Sydney CBD Mon – Fri noon-midnight; Sat 4pm-midnight York Lane 56 Clarence St, Sydney CBD (02) 9299 1676 Mon – Wed 6.30am-10pm; Thu – Fri 6am-midnight; Sat 6pm-midnight

121BC 4/50 Holt St, Surry Hills (02) 9699 1582 Tue – Sat 5pm-midnight Absinthe Salon 87 Albion St, Surry Hills (02) 9211 6632 Wed – Sat 4-10pm Arcadia Liquors 7 Cope St, Redfern (02) 8068 4470 Mon – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm Bar Cleveland Cnr Bourke & Cleveland St, Redfern (02) 9698 1908 Mon – Thu 10am-2am; Fri – Sat 10am-4am Bar H 80 Campbell St, Surry Hills (02) 9280 1980 Mon – Sat 6pm-11.30 Bellini Lounge 2 Kellett St, Potts Point (02) 9331 0058 Thu – Sun 6pm-late The Bells Hotel 1 Bourke St, Woolloomooloo (02) 9357 3765 Mon – Sun 10am-1am The Beresford 354 Bourke St, Surry Hills (02) 8313 5000 Mon – Sun noon-1am Big Poppa’s 96 Oxford St, Darlinghurst Mon – Sun 5pm-3am Black Penny 648 Bourke St, Surry Hills (02) 9319 5061 Mon – Sat 7am-midnight; Sun 7am-10pm Button Bar 65 Foveaux St, Surry Hills (02) 9211 1544 Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight

Café Lounge 277 Goulburn St, Surry Hills (02) 9016 3951 Mon – Thu 5pm-midnight; Fri – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sunday 4-10pm Casoni Italian Bar & Eatery 371-373 Bourke St, Darlinghurst Tue – Thu 5pm-11pm; Fri – Sat 5pm-midnight Central Tavern 42-50 Chalmers St, Surry Hills (02) 9212 3814 Mon – Sat 10am-2am; Sun 10am-10pm Ching-a-Lings 1/133 Oxford St, Darlinghurst (02) 9360 3333 Wed 6-11pm; Thu – Sat 6pm-1am; Sun 5-10pm The Cliff Dive 16-18 Oxford Square, Darlinghurst Fri – Sat 6pm-late The Commons 32 Burton St, Darlinghurst (02) 9358 1487 Tue – Wed 6pm-midnight; Thu – Fri noon-late; Sat – Sun 8:30am-late Darlo Bar 306 Liverpool St, Darlinghurst (02) 9331 3672 Mon – Sun 10am-midnight Darlo Country Club Level 1, 235 Victoria St, Darlinghurst (02) 9380 4279 Wed – Thu 5pm-midnight; Fri – Sat 5pm-2am Dead Ringer 413 Bourke St, Surry Hills (02) 9331 3560 Mon – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-midnight Della Hyde 34 Oxford St, Darlinghurst Thu – Sat 5pm-late Eau-De-Vie 229 Darlinghurst Rd, Darlinghurst 0422 263 226 Sun – Fri 6pm-1am; Sat 6pm-midnight The Forresters 336 Riley St, Surry Hills (02) 9212 3035 Mon – Wed noon-midnight; Thu – Sat noon-1am; Sun noon-10pm Gardel’s Bar 358 Cleveland St, Surry Hills (02) 8399 1440 Tue – Sat 6pm-midnight Gazebo 2 Elizabeth Bay Rd, Elizabeth Bay (02) 8070 2424 Tue – Sun noon-midnight Golden Age Cinema & Bar 80 Commonwealth St, Surry Hills (02) 9211 1556 Wed – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat – Sun 2:30pm-midnight Goros 84-86 Mary St, Surry Hills (02) 9212 0214 Mon – Wed 11:30am-midnight; Thu 11:30am-1am: Fri 11:30am-3am; Sat 4pm-3am Hinky Dinks 185 Darlinghurst Rd, Darlinghurst (02) 8084 6379 Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sun 2-11pm Hollywood Hotel 2 Foster St, Surry Hills (02) 9281 2765 Mon – Wed 10am-midnight; Thu – Sat 10am-3am The Horse 381 Crown St, Surry Hills 1300 976 683 Mon – Thu noon-midnight; Fri 11.30am-midnight; Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon10pm Jangling Jack’s Bar thebrag.com


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Tue – Thu 6pm-late, Fri noon-3pm & 6pm-late; Sat 6pm-late Riley St Garage 55 Riley St, Woolloomooloo (02) 9326 9055 Mon – Sat noon-midnight Roosevelt 32 Orwell St, Potts Point (02) 8696 1787 Tue – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat noon-midnight; Sun 3-10pm Rosie Campbell’s 320 Crown St, Surry Hills (02) 9356 4653 Mon – Thu 5pm-midnight; Fri – Sun 11am-midnight Shady Pines Saloon Shop 4, 256 Crown St, Darlinghurst Mon – Sun 4pm-midnight The Soda Factory 16 Wentworth Ave, Surry Hills (02) 8096 9120 Mon – Wed 5pm-midnight; Thu – Fri 5pm-3am; Sat – Sun 6pm-3am Surly’s 182 Campbell St, Surry Hills (02) 9331 3705 Mon – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm Sweethearts Rooftop 33/37 Darlinghurst Rd, Potts Point (02) 9368 7333 Mon – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri – Sun noon-midnight This Must Be The Place 239 Oxford St, Darlinghurst (02) 9331 8063 Mon – Sun 3pm-midnight The Tilbury Hotel 12-18 Nicholson St, Woolloomooloo (02) 9368 1955 Mon 9am-10pm; Tue – Fri 9am-midnight; Sat 10am-midnight; Sun 10am-10pm Tio’s Cerveceria 4-14 Foster St, Surry Hills (02) 9368 1955 Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight Tipple Bar 28 Chalmers St, Surry Hills (02) 9212 0006 Mon midday-10pm; Tue – Sat midday-midnight Vasco 421 Cleveland St, Redfern 0406 775 436 Mon – Sat 5pm-midnight The Village Inn 9-11 Glenmore Rd, Paddington (02) 9331 0911 Mon – Sun noon-late The Wild Rover 75 Campbell St, Surry Hills (02) 9280 2235 Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight The Winery 285A Crown St, Surry Hills (02) 9331 0833 Mon – Sun noon-midnight

Anchor Bar 8 Campbell Pde, Bondi (02) 8084 3145 Mon – Fri 5pm-late; Sat – Sun 12.30pm-late Bat Country 32 St Pauls St, Randwick (@ The Spot) (02) 9398 6694 Mon – Sat 7am-midnight; Sun 7am-10pm Beach Road Hotel 71 Beach Rd, Bondi Beach (02) 9130 7247 Mon – Fri 11am-1am; Sat 10am-1am; Sun 10am-10pm Bondi Hardware 39 Hall St, Bondi (02) 9365 7176 Mon – Thu 5pm-midnight; Fri noon-midnight; Sat 9am-midnight; Sun 9am-8pm The Bucket List Shop 1, Bondi Pavilion, Queen Elizabeth Drive

(02) 9365 4122 Mon – Tue 11am-5pm; Wed – Sun 11am-midnight The Corner House 281 Bondi Rd, Bondi (02) 8020 6698 Tue – Sat 5pm-midnight; Sun 1pm-10pm Fat Ruperts 249 Bondi Rd, Bondi (02) 9130 1033 Tue – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat – Sun 2pm-midnight Jam Gallery 195 Oxford St, Bondi Junction (02) 9389 2485 Tue 4pm-midnight; Wed – Sat 4pm-3am The Phoenix Hotel 1 Moncur St, Woollahra (02) 9363 2608 Tue – Wed 4-11pm; Thu – Fri 11.30am-1am; Sat 8am-11pm; Sun 8am-10pm The Robin Hood Hotel 203 Bronte Rd, Waverley (02) 9389 3477 Mon-Sat 10am-3am; Sun 10am-10pm Speakeasy 83 Curlewis St, Bondi (02) 9130 2020 Mon – Sat 5pm-11pm; Sat – Sun 4pm-10pm Spring Street Social 110 Spring St, Bondi Junction (02) 9389 2485 Tue – Sat 5pm-3am Stuffed Beaver 271 Bondi Rd, Bondi (02) 9130 3002 Mon – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm

Bar-racuda 105 Enmore Rd, Newtown (02) 9519 1121 Mon – Sat 6pm-midnight Batch Brewing Company 44 Sydenham Rd, Marrickville (02) 9550 5432 Mon – Sun 10am-8pm Bauhaus West 163 Enmore Rd, Enmore (02) 8068 9917 Wed – Thu 5-11pm; Fri 4-11pm; Sat 2-10pm; Sun midday-10pm The Bearded Tit 183 Regent St, Redfern (02) 8283 4082 Mon – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm Blacksheep 256 King St, Newtown (02) 8033 3455 Mon – Fri 4pm-11pm; Sat 2pm-11pm; Sun 2pm-10pm Bloodwood 416 King St, Newtown (02) 9557 7699 Mon – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm Calaveras 324 King St, Newtown 0451 541 712 Wed – Sat 6pm-midnight Cornerstone Bar & Food 245 Wilson St, Eveleigh (02) 8571 9004 Sun – Wed 10am-5pm; Thu – Fri 10am-late; Sat 9am-late Corridor 153A King St, Newtown 0405 671 002 Mon 5pm-midnight; Tue 4pm-midnight; Wed – Sat 3pm-midnight; Sun 3-10pm Cottage Bar & Kitchen 342 Darling St, Balmain (02) 8084 8185 Mon – Thu 5pm-midnight; Fri – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm Different Drummer

185 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 9552 3406 Mon 4.30-11pm; Tue – Wed 4.30pm-1am; Thu – Sat 4.30pm-2am; Sun 4.30am-midnight Doris & Beryl’s Bridge Club and Tea House 530 King St, Newtown Mon – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat – Sun 3.30pm-midnight Earl’s Juke Joint King St, Newtown Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sun 4-10pm Forest Lodge Hotel 117 Arundel St, Forest Lodge (02) 9660 1872 Mon – Sat 11am-midnight; Sun noon-10pm Freda’s 109 Regent St, Chippendale (02) 8971 7336 Tues – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sun 4pm-10pm The Gasoline Pony 115 Marrickville Rd, Marrickville 0401 002 333 Tue – Thu 5-11.30pm; Fri – Sat 3-11.30pm; Sun 3-9.30pm The Grifter Brewing Co. 1/391-397 Enmore Rd, Marrickville (02) 9550 5742 Thu 4-9pm; Fri – Sat noon9pm; Sun noon-7pm The Hideaway Bar 156 Enmore Rd, Enmore (02) 8021 8451 Tue– Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri – Sat 4pm-1am Hive Bar 93 Erskineville Rd, Erskineville (02) 9519 1376 Mon – Fri noon-midnight; Sat 11am-midnight; Sun 11am-10pm Kelly’s On King 285 King St, Newtown (02) 9565 2288 Mon – Fri 10am-2.30am; Sat 10am-3.30am; Sun 11am-11.30pm Kingston Public Bar & Kitchen 62-64 King St, Newtown (02) 8084 4140 Mon – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm Knox Street Bar Cnr Knox & Shepherd St, Chippendale (02) 8970 6443 Tue – Thu 4-10pm; Fri – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sun 5-10pm Kuleto’s 157 King St, Newtown (02) 9519 6369 Mon – Sat 4pm-late; Thu – Sat 4pm-3am Leadbelly 42 King St, Newtown (02) 9557 9409 Sun – Thur 4pm-midnight; Fri-Sat 4pm-1am The Little Guy 87 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 8084 0758 Mon – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat 1pm-midnight; Sun 3pm-10pm Mary’s 6 Mary St, Newtown (02) 4995 9550 Mon – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm The Midnight Special 44 Enmore Road, Newtown (02) 9516 2345 Tues – Sat 5pm-midnight; Sun 5pm-10pm Miss Peaches 201 Missenden Rd, Newtown (02) 9557 7280 Wed – Sun 5pm-midnight Mr Falcon’s 92 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 9029 6626 Mon – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri 3pm-midnight; Sat noonmidnight; Sun 4pm-10pm

game on Gaming news and reviews with Adam Guetti

SEPT 2016

What’s On Neko Nation

If you’ve been looking to partake in something outside of the abundance of gaming conventions then we might just have the perfect solution for you. Taking place at Manning Bar on Saturday October 1, Neko Nation is Australia’s leading anime party, inspired by the nightclubs of Akihabara in Japan. As a result, the event will be home to anime, gaming, Japanese DJs, as well as chiptunes Bubblegum pop and a whole lot more. Should you wish to cosplay for the party, it’s wholeheartedly encouraged, with prizes for the best outfits. There will even be ‘catboys’ and ‘catgirls’ serving various food items throughout the night. For more information on this wonderfully quirky event and to track down tickets, head to nekonation.com

Oz Comic-Con Sydney

Before you spend all your hard earned money on both PAX Australia and EB Expo tickets, make sure you give Oz Comic-Con a look as well. While not as large or high-profile as the event in San Diego, there’s still plenty on offer for fans of games, movies, television and general pop-culture. Hours can be spent at the anime station, gaming zone and cosplay shows, or alternatively you could catch a glimpse at some of the stars in this year’s huge lineup. In attendance will be Battlestar Galactica’s Katee Sackhoff, Hollywood superstar Karl Urban and the voice of Mario himself, Charles Martinet. It all takes place from Saturday September 10 – Sunday September 11 at Sydney Exhibition Centre at Glebe Island. Tickets can be found online at www. Charles Martinet ozcomiccon.com

A Helping Hand

NEWS

& Grill 175 Victoria St, Potts Point Tue – Wed 4-11pm, Thu – Sat 4-1am, Sun noon-11pm Hustle & Flow Bar 3/105 Regent St, Redfern (02) 8964 93932 Tue – Thu 6pm-midnight; Fri – Sat 5pm-midnight; Sun 2pm-midnight Li’l Darlin Darlinghurst 235 Victoria St, Darlinghurst (02) 8084 6100 Mon – Sun 4pm-midnight Li’l Darlin Surry Hills 420 Elizabeth St, Surry Hills (02) 9698 5488 Mon – Fri noon-11pm; Sat 4pm-midnight LL Wine and Dine 42 Llankelly Place Potts Point (02) 9356 8393 Mon – Thu 5pm-11pm; Fri – Sat 5pm-midnight; Sun 11am-10pm The Local Taphouse 122 Flinders St, Darlinghurst (02) 9360 0088 Mon – Sun noon-9:30pm Love, Tilly Devine 91 Crown Ln, Darlinghurst (02) 9326 9297 Mon – Sat 5pm-midnight; Sun 5-10pm Low 302 302 Crown St, Surry Hills (02) 9368 1548 Mon – Sun 6pm-2am Mr Fox 557 Crown St, Surry Hills 0410 470 250 Tue – Wed 4pm-midnight; Thu – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat 3pm-midnight; Sun 10am-10pm Moya’s Juniper Lounge 101 Regent St, Redfern 0431 113 394 Tue – Sat 4pm-11pm; Sun midday-10pm The Noble Hops 125 Redfern St, Redfern 0431 113 394 Mon – Fri 4pm -midnight; Sat 3pm-midnight; Sun 3pm-10pm The Norfolk 305 Cleveland St, Surry Hills (02) 9699 3177 Mon – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm Old Growler 218 William St, Woolloomooloo 0458 627 266 Tue – Sat 5pm-midnight The Oxford Circus 231 Oxford St, Darlinghurst 0457 353 384 Wed – Sat 7pm-3am The Owl House 97 Crown St, Darlinghurst 0401 273 080 Mon – Sat 5pm-late; Sun 5-10pm Peekaboo 120 Bourke St, Woolloomooloo 0403 747 788 Tue – Thu 4pm-10pm; Fri – Sat 4pm-midnight Play Bar 72 Campbell St, Surry Hills (02) 9280 0885 Tue – Thu 5pm-midnight; Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat 5pm-midnight Pocket Bar 13 Burton St, Darlinghurst (02) 9380 7002 Mon – Sun 4pm-midnight The Powder Keg 7 Kellett St, Potts Point (02) 8354 0980 Wed – Thu 5pm-midnight; Fri – Sat 4:30pm-midnight; Sun 4pm-midnight The Print Room 11 Glenmore Rd, Paddington (02) 9331 0911 Thu – Fri noon-midnight; Sun – Wed noon-10pm Queenie’s Upstairs 336 Riley St, Surry Hills (02) 9212 3035

In a bit of warm-yer-heart Aussie news, around 500 young cancer patients will now have the ability to access a youth-focused high-tech haven each year at Melbourne’s Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. It’s all thanks to the new You Can Centre, brought to life via a generous $1.5million donation from the Sony Foundation Australia, the charitable arm of the company.

Sony Foundation Chief Executive Officer Sophie Ryan believes the long-term aim of the Foundation’s program is to ensure that Australian adolescent and young adult patients are given the best chance in life following their diagnosis and treatment. “This age group are too often lost in the gap in healthcare. They’re too old for children’s hospitals yet too young for adult wards, and research demonstrates that age-appropriate care for this age group is urgently needed.”

Clock’s Ticking

After managing to reach an impressive number eight spot worldwide on Steam Greenlight, the locally-developed indie puzzler Clockwork has just launched its official Steam Store page. From here, fans of the game will be able to stay up to date on its latest trailers, gain release information and be the first to purchase the final product once it goes on sale. For the uninitiated, Clockwork is a timebending puzzle-platformer that tells the story of Atto, a lonely mechanical boy in the great city of Watchtower. Your goal is to discover the city’s past while taking on multiple bosses throughout more than 60 steam-punk inspired levels. Clockwork will launch in Q3 2016 for both PC and Mac, retailing at US$19.95.

Review: No Man’s Sky (PS4, PC)

N

o matter which side of the fence you lean on after spending some time with No Man’s Sky, you have to admit one thing: it’s incredibly ambitious – perhaps even detrimentally so to some. It’s a game that wants to promise you the world, wow you with its spectacle and lose you in its universe. There’s a story for you to interact with in attempt to tie things together, but it’s actually fairly light on details, so don’t expect a narrative tour de force. Things kick off the moment you are placed on a random planet (every single player will begin their journey in a different location) with a broken spaceship and what could be best described as a space pickaxe. Essentially, it’s a laser beam that sucks up planetary resources for you to put towards various crafting recipes. As you explore, you’ll work to build up your technology that in turn will allow you to travel greater distances and make more substantial discoveries. However, with little in the way of explanation in the early stages, things can get a little confusing for some players, leading to a trial and error style approach. Once you do eventually have things down pat, there’s a definite wonder about being able to effortlessly blast off from one planet, clear its atmosphere, find a nearby world and land on it, especially considering it all occurs without a single loading screen. No Man’s Sky’s greatest achievement is its ability to nail that feeling of escapism in a way we only ever dreamed of as children, even though the experience does possess a few problems. Combat, for example, is sadly disappointing, failing to capitalise on the space warfare dogfighting many hoped for. Instead, the mechanics lack depth, excitement and can feel incredibly finicky to initiate and navigate. Ground combat meets a similar fate, as you often struggle to line up shots upon drones. There was an incredible amount of hype and scrutiny surrounding No Man’s Sky’s prerelease, and although Hello Games arguably failed to live up to a bit of the marvel and mystery surrounding the project, that by no means classifies it as a ‘bad experience’. It’s a game that shoots for the sky, and hopefully with a little more refinement might just make it there. Adam Guetti

BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16 :: 27


out & about Queer(ish) matters with Arca Bayburt

The Plebiscite

I really hate it when someone talks about me, right in front of me. I hate it even more when 20 million people are doing it. It seems once again, the queer community is expected to speak to the sensible, virtuous heterosexual mainstream to beg for some rights at the cost of y’know, our dignity.

Meanwhile, the reliably insipid Australian media circus has produced forward-thinking, intellectually enriching articles like: “What it’s like being both Gay and Christian” - I imagine a lot of cognitive dissonance and thought-terminating clichés going on here. This article is about one person’s struggle to reconcile their Christianity with their homo hedonism. This hardly bears further discussion because attaching religion to something does not automatically imbue it with goodness and morality. It’s just an obnoxious exercise in sanctimonious moaning. It has no place in a discussion about this vote, because this vote isn’t about a Christian moral ideal, but about fundamental human rights. “Will there be a Brexit trap in the Plebiscite?” - Ah, just what we need, alarmist crap with a dash of conspiratorial spice. Delicious and utterly void of caloric value. The bulk of this article was written to try to find ways to compare the civil unrest caused by Brexit with a hypothetical plebiscite in Australia. It then astutely surmises, “The plebiscite may prove to be divisive.” Thanks mainstream media, you’re a doll. “I oppose gay marriage (and no, I’m not a bigot)” - You’re a textbook bigot. Actually this is my favourite article. This dude wrote about being against gay marriage for traditionalist reasons (and bizarrely, biology). It’s full of gems like, “A child is a tangible expression of our sexed twoness” and, “Marriage is or is intended as, a life-long union between two people who exemplify the biological duality of the human race.” I’m all for airing out ignorantly malignant opinions provided they exist within a culture of ruthless, methodical critique. Unfortunately, that’s

this week… On Wednesday September 7, Birdcage presents STRIPcage at the Sly Fox. Expect to hear your favourite strip club anthems all night: some very sultry surprises are in the works for the evening. Featuring Shantan Wantan Ichiban, NatNoiz vs

28 :: BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16

As much as it’s important for the media to facilitate civil discourse, it’s also important for us to remain critically engaged and vigilant so we can spot when what’s really happening is ultimately useless to everybody involved. What’s most insulting is that the language around this dubious vote is one that speaks to approval rather than human rights. It asks, “Do you approve of a law to permit people of the same sex to marry?” Sometimes this sort of rubbish media coverage will result in us being trapped in a Mobius strip of outrage and the following outrage-at-the-outrage forever and ever. Human rights transcend any egoistic discussion of morality and language like “approval” has little practical relevance.

Mon – Thu 6pm-11pm; Fri 6pm-midnight; Sat noon3pm & 6pm-midnight Timbah 375 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 9571 7005 Tue – Thu 4-10pm; Fri 4-11pm; Sat 3pm-11pm; Sun 4pm-8pm Wayward Brewing Co. 1 Gehrig Ln, Annandale (02) 7903 2445 Thu – Sat 2-10pm; Sun noon-8pm Websters Bar 323 King St, Newtown (02) 9519 1511 Mon – Sat 10am-4am; Sun 10am-midnight Wilhelmina’s 332 Darling St, Balmain (02) 8068 8762 Wed – Fri 5-11pm; Sat – Sun 8am-11pm The Workers Lvl 1, 292 Darling St, Balmain (02) 9555 8410 Fri – Sat 5pm-3am; Sun 2pm-midnight Young Henrys D & E, 76 Wilford St, Newtown (02) 9519 0048 Mon – Sat 10am-7pm; Sun noon-7pm Zigi’s Wine And Cheese Bar 86 Abercrombie St, Chippendale (02) 9699 4222 Tue 4pm-10pm; Wed 4pm-midnight; Thu – Sat 3pm-midnight

Crooked Tailor 250 Old Northern Road, Castle Hill (02) 9899 3167 Mon – Sun 4pm-midnight

Daniel San 55 North Steyne, Manly (02) 9977 6963 Mon – Thu 4pm-midnight; Friday – Saturday noon– 2am; Sunday noon-midnight Firefly 24 Young St, Neutral Bay (02) 9909 0193 Mon – Wed 5-11pm; Thu 5-11.30pm; Fri noon11.30pm; Sat noon-11pm; Sun noon-10pm The Foxtrot 28 Falcon St, Crows Nest Tue – Wed 5pm-midnight; Thu 5pm-1am; Fri 4pm-2am; Sat 5pm-2am; Sun 4-10pm The Hayberry Bar & Diner 97 Willoughby Road, Crows Nest (02) 8084 0816 Tue – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri & Sat noon-midnight Sun noon-10pm Hemingway’s 48 North Steyne, Manly (02) 9976 3030 Mon – Sat 8am-midnight; Sun 8am-10pm The Hold Shop 4, Sydney Rd Plaza, Manly (02) 9977 2009 Tue – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat 3pm-midnight; Sun 3-10pm Honey Rider 230 Military Rd, Neutral Bay (02) 9953 8880 Tue – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sun 4pm-10pm InSitu 1/18 Sydney Rd, Manly (02) 9977 0669 Tue – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat 9am-midnight; Sun 9am-10pm The Hunter 5 Myahgah Rd, Mosman 0409 100 339 Mon – Tue 5pm-midnight;

Your bar’s not here? Email: chris@thebrag.com

Wed – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon- 10pm Jah Bar Shop 9, 9-15 Central Ave, Manly (02) 9977 4449 Tue 5pm-midnight; Wed-Fri noon-midnight; Sat 8am-midnight; Sun 9am-midnight Manly Wine 8-13 South Steyne, Manly (02) 8966 9000 Mon – Sun 6.30am-late Miami Cuba 47 North Steyne, Manly 0487 713 350 Mon – Sun 8am-4pm Moonshine Lvl 2, Hotel Steyne, 75 The Corso, Manly (02) 9977 4977 Mon – Thu 9am-3pm; Fri – Sat 9am-2am; Sun 9am-midnight The Pickled Possum 254 Military Rd, Neutral Bay (02) 9909 2091 Thu – Sat 9pm-1am SoCal 1 Young St, Neutral Bay (02) 9904 5691 Mon – Wed 5pm-midnight; Thu 5pm-1am; Sat noon2am; Sun noon-midnight The Stoned Crow 39 Willoughby Rd, Crows Nest (02) 9439 5477 Mon – Sat noon-late; Sun 11.30am-10pm The Treehouse Hotel 60 Miller St, North Sydney (02) 8458 8980 Mon – Fri 7am-midnight; Sat 2pm-midnight

This media frenzy around the plebiscite idea feels like prodding at a dried-out turd only to find that, oh god, it’s still moist on the inside. I mean what did you expect? Every garden-variety bigot and pseudointellectual contrarian will swarm out of their echo chambers, righteously screaming a chorus of damaging crap that us queers have to weather – as always. The media (which seemed to have collectively flushed their spines down the toilet 20 years ago) will continue to suckle at the teat of sensationalism whilst stamping down the voices of the people who are directly affected so it can appeal to the lowest common denominator. However. If we were to pour litres of burning napalm over this entire freak show, one man would emerge, skinless and terminator-esque. That man would be Malcolm Turnbull. This plebiscite really is all about him and his impotent governing. This plebiscite is how he’ll please both his howling conservative base, which currently has a stranglehold over the party, while half-arsedly addressing the Australian public’s expectations. All of this, remarkably, while his government is simultaneously balls deep in ten thousand human rights violations. Australia’s moral police act is getting old. All that said, Victoria has just allowed queer couples to jointly adopt children. So we’ve got that going for us, which is nice.

Cunningpants and Mowgli May, this is a party you won’t want to miss! On Saturday September 10, head over to The Imperial Hotel for Heaps Gay’s, FLAMINGOS. DJ’s Ollie Henderson, Jack Freestone and Sveta will be bringing you unpretentious tropical party vibes playing hits

from the ’70s, ’80s and ’90’s. Here’s something to put in the diary: The Queer Screen Film Festival will be running from Tuesday September 20 to Sunday September 25 at Event Cinemas on George Street. The program is jam-packed with 12 fabulous LGBTQ films and tickets are on sale now.

thebrag.com

Photo credit Ariel G / Flickr

As such we’ve now reached a point where not only are our personal lives being dissected on national media, we are also being left out of the conversation entirely. I mean of course we can talk about it, but we have no real say over it. Politicians must first pass legislation to allow for this plebiscite dumpster fire to go ahead, though the Greens have pledged their opposition to the bill while Labor has threatened to block it.

not the case. This article and others with similar sentiments herald the coming of an unstoppable tsunami of unchallenged rhetoric.

Newtown Social Club 387 King St, Newtown (02) 9550 3974 Mon – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri – Sat noon-2am; Sun noon-10pm The Oxford Tavern 1 New Canterbury Rd, Petersham (02) 8019 9351 Mon – Thu noon-midnight; Fri – Sat noon-3am; Sun noon-10pm Lord Raglan 12 Henderson Rd, Alexandria (02) 9699 4767 Mon – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm The Record Crate 34 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 9660 1075 Mon – Thu 5pm-midnight; Sat 2pm-midnight; Sun 3-10pm The Royal 156 Norton St, Leichhardt (02) 9569 2638 Mon – Thu 10am-1am; Fri – Sat 10am-3am; Sun 10am-midnight Secret Garden Bar 134a Enmore Rd, Enmore 0403 621 585 Mon – Tue 7am-5pm; Wed – Fri 7am-11pm; Sat 7am-10pm; Sun 7am-11pm Staves Brewery 4-8 Grose Street, Glebe (02) 9280 4555 Thu 4-10pm; Fri – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sun 4-10pm Temperance Society 122 Smith St, Summer Hill (02) 8068 5680 Mon – Thu 4pm-11pm; Fri – Sat: noon-midnight; Sun: noon-10pm Thievery 91 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 8283 1329


Album Reviews What's been crossing our ears this week...

ALBUM OF THE WEEK FRANK OCEAN

glimpsed throughout Crash. A track like ‘Nikes’ is all plush leather interiors and sleek, edgeless textures, and the record has all the sheen of a Royce.

Blond(e) Apple Music

Towards the beginning of J.G. Ballard’s Crash, the book’s narrator finds himself in a horrendous car crash. But the experience isn’t a traumatic one; rather, it’s liberating. “After being bombarded endlessly by road-safety propaganda it was almost a relief to find myself in an actual accident,” he says. Frank Ocean returns with a more than worthy follow up to Channel Orange.

TAMAM SHUD Evolution Rocket

Like so many surf films, Paul Witzig’s 1969 flick Evolution barely had a plot: it was simply a group of surfers travelling around the world catching waves and indulging in the secular spiritualism of surfing. The soundtrack to Evolution was provided by Australian psychedelic prog band Tamam Shud. Finally rereleased, the record captures the zeitgeist of the era: it’s full of wandering psychedelic melodies, pseudo-mystical lyrics, indulgent tempo explorations. The tracks flick through various styles and tones – ‘Jesus Guide Me’ foretells the Christian rock opera era that would soon give the world Jesus Christ Superstar, while the waltzing ‘Rock On Top’ is Count Five conducted by Count Basie. ‘The Slow One And The Fast One’ is a seven-minute acid rock track from Hell: early on it’s a glistening folk track but blink your eyes and it’s a dirty R&B track. ‘Too Many Life’ takes you out on a cascading wave, replete with lyrics ready to unravel the secrets of the world. There’s screams at the end of the record, and then the dream is over. Tamam Shud fizzled out, just as the misty-eyed idealism of the late ’60s was snuffed out. But for a brief moment, Tamam Shud showed a glimpse of a better world. Patrick Emery

That sense of ecstatic pain – of trauma being transcendent – is peppered all throughout Frank Ocean’s long-awaited Blond(e), as too is the ever present spectre of the American automobile

DRUGDEALER

The End Of Comedy Weird World An absurd hippie child of a debut, Drugdealer’s The End Of Comedy could be about everything or absolutely nothing: in this paradox lies its possible genius. Los Angeles artist Michael Collins’ work with Drugdealer is not unlike his doped up creations under previous monikers Salvia Plath and Run DMT. Between a church-belled beginning and the manic laughter that descends into a siren and serves as the ending, The End Of Comedy weaves together a daisy chain of Beatles-esque ballads, unfinished thoughts and oddly romantic brass solos. The album is a rambling mix of ’60s pop and smooth jazz with a psychedelic twist. While clearly a concept album, it is difficult to decipher if Collins is having a laugh or trying to be profound. The songs, while amusing, lack distinctiveness, can be maddeningly repetitive and often wander into futility. Not unlike Pink Floyd’s Dark Side Of The Moon, the album is peppered with instrumental interludes, jarring noises and philosophical reveries. The worth of The End Of Comedy wholly depends on how the listener decodes it. Is it an inane mess or a work of artistic social commentary? Up to you. Evie Kennedy

But though it’s tempting to assume the work’s soulful surface and its darker suggestions are somehow distinct from each other, for Ocean, pain and beauty work in the same way. “In hell, in hell there’s heaven” he croons on ‘Solo’, his voice all suggestion and smoke. Even a song like ‘Ivy’, a coiled loop of a melody readymade for the radio, has a bitterness soaked through it, proving dark and danceable. But more than anything, it’s sincere. It is rare to encounter a record so unashamed; so open in its invitation. Ultimately, Blond(e)

THE DELTA RIGGS Active Galactic Inertia

Active Galactic contains the sort of groovy tunes you’d hear sitting at the bar in The Restaurant at The End of the Universe, smashing Pan Galactic Gargle Blasters with your semi-halfcousin Zaphod Beeblebrox. Think ’70s disco meets reggae with a surfy rock’n’roll creamy centre. Most tracks are so psychedelic that they will probably induce multiple metaphorical musical orgasms (try saying that ten times fast), so beware of playing this one while driving. You may feel like smoking a nug or two during ‘Get Right’ while ’Stay While You Run Away’ will make you want to put on a Hawaiian shirt, stroke your imaginary (or real) horseshoe moustache and go catch some gnarly waves. This album is filled with sexy, husky singing, hypnotic guitar riffs, smooth bass and bangin’ drum beats, plus a multitude of other instruments adding to its stellar quality. These guys might just be the “baddest motherfuckers in the beehive”, and, indeed, the galaxy. Once you get a taste of Active Galactic, you’ll want to get your hands on it more than Zoltan wants the Continuum Transfunctioner. Live long and prosper The Delta Riggs (so you make more albums). Emily Norton

INDIE ALBUM OF THE WEEK

CASS MCCOMBS Mangy Love Anti

thebrag.com

Like a trickster god of American song, Cass McCombs seems to appear every couple of years with a skewed take on a different vein of popular music. On Mangy Love, McCombs brings his gifts to the worlds of soul and West Coast psychedelia, scratching your dad’s Steely Dan itch while showcasing some of his best songwriting to date. Though some may fi nd its scrappy eccentricity off-putting, Mangy Love is an oddball gem from one of the most interesting singer-songwriters around. The album pivots all about the place, moving from the psychedelic stomp of ‘Rancid Girl’, a throwaway garage track that wears its crudeness on its denim sleeve, to ‘Laughter Is The Best

Medicine’ and the Prince-infl ected pop/funk of ‘Cry’. It’s a record that refuses to stay still, an album that takes aim at a dozen different targets, throwing hooks left and right. That said, the reggae and David Byrne style talk-singing of ‘Run Sister Run’ is lacking, and later tracks ‘It’ and ‘Switch’ are undercooked, but there’s a childish joy in even his less successful experiments that prevents these weaker moments from bringing things down.

has things to offer you, and Blond(e) asks nothing in return but that you listen. Joseph Earp

TWIN ATLANTIC GLA Red Bull Records

Twin Atlantic’s GLA is the first album the group has released after taking almost a year off. It’s a slightly heavier record than the ones the Glasgow lads have previously turned in, and it drifts ever so slightly from the poppier rock that they’ve presented in the past. ‘No Sleep’ is perhaps the greatest example of this: it’s got a pop punk verse structure but a chorus that’s begging to be expanded into a full-blown rock track. The same thing happens on ‘Ex El’ but in reverse order, and though the song has verses that would be at home in the discography of any stadium rock group, there are parts that feel underwhelming, and overcooked. That doesn’t mean that the album is bad, per se; it’s just a little bit confused. When Twin Atlantic let loose and start to rock out things improve. But even though their poppier style isn’t terrible to listen to, other bands are out there doing the same thing, and better. Individually, most of the songs on this album are decent, but listening to them all in a row means sudden changes can be jarring. Simply put, Twin Atlantic’s next album should be used to pick a side: pop punkpartiers or flat out rockers. Nathan Quattrucci

JEFF THE BROTHERHOOD Zone Dine Alone Records

Heavy Days was the first instalment of Jeff the Brotherhood’s spiritual trilogy, followed by We Are The Champions a couple of years after that. Five years later comes the concluding chapter, Zone. The album opens in ominous style with a thundering beat and a heavy slacker vocal, sounding like Pavement on a diet of Quaaludes. “I’m totally dead, I’m totally cool”. That said, it’s not quite in gear; the tempo rapidly drops off and we find ourselves stuck in a field staring into the sky waiting for direction. Eventually the void is filled with the meat-and-potatoes electro-spiked garage rocker ‘Punishment’, before the album strikes onwards with ‘Ox’, a lost demo from some polluted, sharp filled waterway in a shitty Pacific north west town. ‘Habit’ hangs off a simple, repeated riff, and is arguably one of the strongest melodic metaphors for narcotic obsession since The Velvet Underground’s ‘Heroin’. Finally there’s ‘Portugal’, a jolt of introspective musings about life on the road. If you’re ever going to hit the wall on tour, ‘Portugal’ is where shit’s going to get fucked up. Zone doesn’t give you all the answers to life’s questions, but it sure helps you see the light. Patrick Emery

OFFICE MIXTAPE And here are the albums that have helped BRAG HQ get through the week... THE KNIFE - Deep Cuts ROBERT MILLS - Up All Night DEATH GRIPS - Exmilitary

DAVID BOWIE - Hunky Dory COSMIC PSYCHOS - Self-titled

Mangy Love is a challenging and brilliant album from a singular artist. Tiernan Morrison BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16 :: 29


live reviews What we’ve been out to see...

Oxford Art Factory Thursday September 1

I go to a fair few gigs. I’m lucky because seeing shows is my job, but I’m also unlucky because it’s, you know, my job – spend enough time slaving away at any occupation and ‘slaving’ threatens to become the operative word. That’s both the reason and the excuse for this review. Simply put, I don’t know how to write about Kid Congo And The Pink Monkey Birds’ showing at the Oxford Art Factory. If writing about music is like dancing about architecture, then this is a sprained hop before a cathedral, and there comes a point where words simply blister and break. Kid Congo played music. That’s not an understatement: that’s what he did, and does, with the kind of natural grace that people exude when they do a complicated thing as though it required the least output of energy imaginable. He sailed through songs, powering through ‘Psychic Future’ as though waltzing through a trash fire, and the singular combination of utter collapse and considered construction defined the set from beginning to end. Indeed, it was a heap of opposites, a hymnal and yet everything that threatens the prettiness of the word ‘hymnal’, a set that saw a pin-stripe suit clad Congo thank his one-time bandmate Jeffrey Pierce with both a quiet, touching,

“Thank you, Jeffrey” and two Gun Club covers – ‘She’s Like Heroin To Me’ and ‘Sex Beat’ – that proved neither quiet nor considered. Pierce and Congo share a perfect simplicity, and to hear the latter play the songs of the former was to watch a fist ball up around another fist and to bear witness to intensity boil over into something else entirely. Though Congo’s most recent record, La Araña Es La Vida was paid ample attention – ‘Ricky Ticky Tocky’ proved a highlight, all spasm and swagger – cuts were selected from throughout his back catalogue, and cries for an encore to the encore were met with a version of the Psychedelic Furs’ ‘We Love You’ that had the room whirring with heat and with heart. I don’t know. What am I even telling you? These are only words, and Kid Congo’s set touched a place language don’t go. Gig of the year? Sure, if you want to lean into that particular crutch. Truth is, it was more than that; a gig that didn’t feel like a gig, and an experience powerful enough to make a crumpled music critic remember why he got into this messy business in the first place. But don’t take my word for it; just ask the merch seller, wide-eyed, handing out shirts after the show and half-heartedly collecting money, as though stunned. “I’ve never heard of those guys before,” she said, lump-throated. “And now I think they’re my favourite band in the world.” Joseph Earp

skull squadron

31:08:16 :: Frankie’s Pizza :: 50 Hunter St Sydney

30 :: BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16

THE WHITLAMS There’s only a spattering of people milling about when Run Marlowe’s Lewis Clarke says, “It’s funny: The Whitlams actually played at my dad’s 30th” before continuing on with the set. The young triple j unearthed band have a sound reminiscent of a movement past; in many ways they are like a modern day Silverchair.

road and you’re 19…” enigmatic lead singer Tim Freedman says as he stares out at the crowd and begins to play the melancholic chords of ‘Charlie No.1’, one of three songs in the Charlie trilogy from the album Eternal Nightcap. The song chronicles his relationship with founding member Stevie Plunder, a musician who committed suicide after a long battle with drug addiction; Freedman’s anecdote delivered some 20 years after the fact only adds to the song.

An indiscriminate crowd continues to spill in as Frank Sultana & The Sinister Kids play vintage Delta blues and roots, the harmonica ringing out and filling the air. Your parents’ friends are here, Gen X’ers and some ’90s kids you went to high school with; it’s a mix of people who wouldn’t usually hang together.

The band and crowd delight in hits ‘Blow Up The Pokies’, ‘Thank You (For Loving Me At My Worst)’ and ‘Love This City’, yet 1997 triple j Hottest 100 winner ‘No Aphrodisiac’ is the show’s peak. Every ounce of the band’s energy spills into the song’s climax, and its indulgently sexual nature adds fuel to that particular fire.

There’s an intimacy to The Whitlams’ performance; it’s as though you’re watching your mates in a pub on Parramatta road. A Sydney-based rock band, their act is peppered with sarcasm and playful banter with the crowd, while their lyrics are an exploration of how people, time and places form our stories. Of course, this proves especially powerful given The Whitlams’ own story is one underpinned by grief.

Towards the end, the band peels offstage. It’s just Tim Freedman and the piano. He needn’t bother singing ‘Buy Now Pay Later (Charlie No.2)’; the entire crowd are singing their hearts out as if they mean every word. It’s perhaps this moment that captures The Whitlams’ legacy – they have a unique ability to unite a city, no matter how old or young, with stories set on streets we have also walked.

“Imagine you’re walking down Glebe Point

Evie Kennedy

Metro Theatre Friday September 2

PICS :: AM

KID CONGO AND THE PINK MONKEY BIRDS

PHOTOGRAPHER :: ASHLEY MAR

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snap sn ap

VIEW FULL GALLERIES AT

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up all night out all week . . .

SCABZ

The Town Hall Hotel Sunday September 4 ‘Poetry’ is a dead word. These days it only gets applied to a very certain subsect of creative endeavour; to the kind of wanky, paper-thin decorative verse that references a life of beauty and dignity that not many of us gronks actually lead. It would not usually, for example, get applied to a group like Scabz. But make no mistake: Scabz are a pack of poets, albeit the kind more likely to talk about a night on dingers than flowers in a vase. They are also some of the finest performers to emerge on the Sydney scene for a fucking age. Taking to their stage and spiritual home, The Townie they pounded out a set both polished and putrid, seguing from one spat out tune to the next. Songs rear-ended each other, and punches of melody were quickly swapped for sing-spoken ballads that felt like tunes composed by Robert Forster reeling with a meth addiction. But ultimately a tune like ‘Straight Girls’ works not only because it’s spoken in a voice utterly lacking pretension, but because it’s a bloody great song, full of the kind of simple pleasures that mark out the discography of Shonen Knife.

04:09:16 :: Various venues :: Newtown thebrag.com

pentatonix

Throughout their set, there was not a wasted moment or a single bored audience member to be found. Indeed, though the band’s aesthetic is distinctly lo-fi (check out their Sizzler-shot film clip) they are a collective of supremely skilled musicians, performers with an impeccable sense of control and composition. ‘Beach Song’, a tune that blathers around the place brilliantly, lovingly punching the listener just a little too hard right on the arm, proved as taut as cheese wire, boasting one of the most singularly shoutable choruses of recent memory. It’s not just perfect, it’s piss-stained, and every single bar of it rang true. I’ll be real with you: I don’t know what the point of music journalism is if it’s not to recommend you bands like Scabz. Go to their shows. Download their next single. Make ‘em famous so they can dine at Sizzler’s every night and develop healthy, all-encompassing cocaine addictions. And treat em right. Because they’re not only a bunch of fuckin’ poets, ay, they’re one of the best bands Sydney has. Joseph Earp

PICS :: AM

king street crawl

PICS :: AM

But Scabz are neither of those bands. The term ‘unique’ is horrendously

overused these days, but Scabz are that; a band that truly sound like no other, and an act so distinctly unafraid that they drunkenly stumble into the territory of out-and-out genius.

03:09:16 :: Enmore Theatre :: 118-132 Enmore Rd Newtown 9550 3666 BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16 :: 31


g g guide gig g send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com

pick of the week Frenzal Rhomb

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 10 Manning Bar Manni

Frenzal Rhomb 8pm. $35.20

WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 7

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 8

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Hammerhead Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8pm. Free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Bitty Booker + Vena Klymo The Gasoline Pony, Marrickville. 7pm. $7. Cold Vulture Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 7pm. $13. Miranda Carey Tokio Hotel, Sydney. 7pm. Free. Sugar Jam Open Mic Night Sugarmill, Kings Cross. 8pm. Free.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

A Boy Named Cash Lord Raglan Hotel, Alexandria. 7pm. $17.20. Manouche Wednesday - feat: Gadjo Guitars Mr Falcon's, Glebe. 7pm. Free. O'Shea + Caitlyn Shadbolt The Basement, Circular Quay. 7pm. $24.30. That Red Head Play Bar, Surry Hills. 9pm. Free.

Cath & Him Balgowlah RSL, Seaforth. 7pm. Free. End Of Fashion Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 7pm. $28. Julz Marie Tokio Hotel, Sydney. 7pm. Free. Katy Steele Plan B Small Club, Sydney. 8pm. $16.90. Live At The Sly feat: Green Mohair Suits + Cope Street Parade + Mr Bamboo Slyfox, Enmore. 8pm. Free. Live Band Karaoke Unity Hall Hotel, Balmain. 9pm. Free. Mezko Golden Age Cinema, Surry Hills. 9pm. Free. Motion City Soundtrack + With Confidence Metro Theatre, Sydney. 7:30pm. $49.90. Pat Cappocci The Temperance Society, Summer Hill. 7pm. Free. The Winter Gypsy Play Bar, Surry Hills. 8pm. Free. Thursday Night Live At Selina's feat: Food Court + Citizen Of The World Coogee Bay Hotel, Coogee. 6pm. Free. Valen - feat: The Lost Records + Papaya Tree

32 :: BRAG :: 678 :: 31:08:16

Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 8pm. $10. Vanessa Heinitz The Bourbon, Potts Point. 5pm. Free.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

A Boy Named Cash Lord Raglan Hotel, Alexandria. 7pm. $17.20. Anthony Charlton Australian Arms Hotel, Penrith. 8:30pm. Free. Low Down Riders The Gasoline Pony, Marrickville. 7pm. $7. PJ Orr Mr Falcon's, Glebe. 8:30pm. Free. Shake The Shackles The Little Guy, Glebe. 8pm. Free. Sunset Sessions The Bristol Arms Hotel, Sydney. 6pm. Free. Sydney Blues Society: Blues Challenge 2016 Django Bar @

Camelot Lounge, Marrickville. 7:30pm. $20.

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 9 INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Back To Titanic - feat: The Cope Street Parade + DJ Mickey Space + Electro Alley + Vaughan Prestwich + Dr Cat Jam Gallery, Bondi Junction. 8pm. $29.10. Bed Wettin' Bad Boys, Aloha Units, La Suffocated, Sinkhead Marrickville Golf Club, Marrickville . 8pm. $10. Better Live Penrith RSL, Penrith. 9pm. Free. Blake Tailor Penrith Panthers, Penrith. 8:30pm.

Free. Buffalo Revisited, Tamam Shud The Bald Faced Stag, Leichhardt. 8pm. $40. Cath & Him Dee Why RSL, Dee Why. 9pm. Free. Dee Donavan Rooty Hill RSL Club, Rooty Hill. 10:30am. Free. Felix Riebl Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $38. Formidable Vegetable + Mal Webb Django Bar @ Camelot Lounge, Marrickville. 9pm. $10. Formidable Vegetable Sound System Camelot Lounge, Marrickville. 6pm. $13. From The Jam Metro Theatre, Sydney. 8pm. $60.20. Funkin' Around Fitzroy Hotel, Windsor. 8pm. Free. Grooveworks Rooty Hill RSL Club, Rooty Hill. 10:30am. Free. Grooveworks Rooty Hill RSL Club, Rooty Hill. 10:30pm. Free. James Rietdijk Fitzroy Hotel, Windsor. 11pm. Free. JP Project Clovelly Hotel, Clovelly. 4:30pm. Free. Kye Brown Orient Hotel, The Rocks. 5:45pm. Free. Mosquito Coast + Stonefox + Run Marlowe Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $12. One Hit Wonders Revesby Workers Club, Revesby. 8:30pm. Free. Owen Campbell The Bunker, Coogee. 7:40pm. $20. Rebecca Johnson Band Colonial Hotel, Werrington. 8:30pm. Free. Roxfam - feat: A Girls A Gun + Cameron James Henderson + Wolfie + The Bare Minimums Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8pm. $15. Running Touch Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. Free. The Attics + Egosim + Dying Adolescence Captain Cook Hotel, Paddington. 8:30pm.

Motion City Soundtrack

The Lulu Raes

Free. The Badloves And Taxiride Rooty Hill RSL Club, Rooty Hill. 8pm. $40. The Big Bold Bravados The Gasoline Pony, Marrickville. 7pm. $7. The Lulu Raes Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $15. Urban Gypsies Duo Mr Falcon's, Glebe. 8:30pm. Free. Urban Stone Tokio Hotel, Sydney. 7pm. Free.

Retox Fridays - feat: Uncle Jed Della Hyde, Darlinghurst. 6:30pm. Free. Rose Carleo The Oriental Hotel, Springwood. 8pm. Free. Sunset Sessions The Bristol Arms Hotel, Sydney. 6pm. Free.

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Afro Moses (Tribute To Bob Marley) Camelot Lounge, Marrickville. 9pm. $25. Back To Titanic (Electro Swing Sessions V) - feat: The Cope Street Parade + Electro Alley + DJs Mikey Space + Vaughan Prestwich + Dr Cat Jam Gallery, Bondi Junction. 8pm. $29.10. John & Yuki Well Co. Cafe And Wine Bar, Leichhardt. 8pm. Free. Michael Bublé & The Legends Of Swing Show The Basement, Circular Quay. 7:30pm. $29.20. Pavsonic - feat: King Tide Bondi Pavilion Theatre, Bondi Beach. 7:30pm. $25. Ska'd 4 Life - feat: 7 Evil Exes + The Coveralls + Moof De Vah + The Brothers Nude Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 8pm. $10. Soul Tattoo Quakers Inn, Quakers Hill. 9:30pm. Free.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

A Boy Named Cash Lord Raglan Hotel, Alexandria. 7pm. $17.20. Darren Johnstone Club Liverpool, Liverpool. 5:30pm. Free. Dee Donavan + Grooveworks + Lisa Budin + Milko Foucault-Larche Rooty Hill RSL Club, Rooty Hill. 10:30am. Free. Emad Younan Sappho Books, Cafe And Bar, Sydney. 7:30pm. Free.

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 10

Barrio Latin Soul Camelot Lounge, Marrickville. 9pm. $20. Lolo Lovina The Basement, Circular Quay. 7:30pm. $29.20. The Squares The Gasoline Pony, Marrickville. 3pm. $7. Van Morrison’s Masterpieces feat: Vince Jones And The Astral Orchestra City Recital Hall, Sydney. 7:30pm. $69.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

A Boy Named Cash Lord Raglan Hotel, Alexandria. 7pm. $17.20. Cope Street Parade Mr Falcon's, Glebe. 8:30pm. Free. Cutthroat Folk Fest - feat: The Bottlers + Scarlet's Revenge + Sailors Grave + Medusa's Wake The Annandale Hotel, Annandale. 7pm. Free. Laurie Bennett Penrith RSL, Penrith. 2pm. Free. Michael Dimarco Sappho Books, Cafe And Bar, Sydney. 7pm. Free. Sydney Blues Society: Blues Challenge 2016 Camelot Lounge, Marrickville. 7:30pm. $20.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Lazy Susan With Maia Marsh + Caitlin Harnett Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8:30pm. $15. After Party Band Revesby Workers

Club, Revesby. 8:30pm. Free. Aftershock - feat: Ironwood + The Veil + Tamerlan Empire The Bald Faced Stag, Leichhardt. 8pm. Free. Aftershock Metal Club - feat: Ironwood + The Veil & Tamberlan Empire The Bald Faced Stag, Leichhardt. 8pm. Free. Blake Tailor Plough & Harrow, Camden. 8pm. Free. Bronte Maree Tokio Hotel, Sydney. 7pm. Free. Diesel Revesby Workers Club, Revesby. 8pm. $40. Dragon Penrith Panthers, Penrith. 7:30pm. $33.60. Frenzal Rhomb Manning Bar, Camperdown. 8pm. $35.20. James Reyne + Mark Seymour Wentworthville Leagues Club, Wentworthville. 8pm. $55. Jed Zarb The Oxford Hotel, Drummoyne . 10pm. Free. Leadfinger The Bunker, Coogee. 8pm. Free. Nucleust + Stormtide + Enfiled + Beast Impalor Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 8pm. $15. Satellite V The Gasoline Pony, Marrickville. 7pm. Free. Simple Plan Enmore Theatre, Newtown. 8:20pm. $70.35. Single Launch Mtl - feat: Sobie + Roma Flats The Bald Faced Stag, Leichhardt. 8pm. Free. Soul Tattoo Manly Leagues Club, Brookvale. 9pm. Free. Space Talk #1 - feat: Doctor Goddard + Top Lip Captain Cook Hotel, Paddington. 8:30pm. Free. Steve Hart And The All Stars Bayview Tavern, Gladesville. 10pm. Free. Stormtide - feat: Enfield + Nucleus + Beast Impalor Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 8pm. $10. Whispering Jack Show (A Tribute To The Music Of John Farnham) Penshurst RSL Club, Penshurst. 8pm. $15. thebrag.com


g g guide gig g

gig picks up all night out all week...

send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com

The Unity Hall Jazz Band Unity Hall Hotel, Balmain. 4pm. Free. Tony Burkys + John Well Co. Cafe And Wine Bar, Leichhardt. 8pm. Free.

Hills. 6pm. Free. Gracias A La Vida Django Bar @ Camelot Lounge, Marrickville. 7:30pm. $20. Hayden Buchanan Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 4pm. $10. Jodi Martin Camelot Lounge, Marrickville. 7:30pm. $20. Kickstar Kauri Foreshore Hotel, Glebe. 2:30pm. Free. Paula Baxter Tokio Hotel, Sydney. 5pm. Free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 11 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

After Midnight Fitzroy Hotel, Windsor. 1pm. Free. Alex The Kid - feat: The Dead Marines + Nerdlinger + Stfu + The Great Awake + Dividers + Georgia June Frankie's Pizza, Sydney. 4pm. Free. Another Roadside Attraction Choir & Friends The Gasoline Pony, Marrickville. 5pm. $7. Becky & The Pussycats Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 6:30pm. $10. From Street To Stage Soda Factory, Surry

A Boy Named Cash Lord Raglan Hotel, Alexandria. 7pm. $17.20. Gehrig Laneway Launch Festival Wayward Brewing Company, Annandale. 12pm. Free. Heath Burdell Unity Hall Hotel, Balmain. 3pm. Free. Nat James + Emad Younan Mr Falcon's, Glebe. 7pm. Free. September Sounds - feat: James Black & Luke Zanc The Botanist Kirribilli, Kirribilli . 3pm. Free.

MONDAY SEPTEMBER 12

TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 13

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Latin & Jazz Open Mic Night The World Bar, Kings Cross. 7pm. Free. Sonic Mayhem Orchestra Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8:30pm. $15.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

John Maddox Duo Mr Falcon's, Glebe. 7pm. Free. Live & Original @ The Corridor Corridor Bar, Newtown. 7pm. Free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS Frankie's World Famous House Band Frankie's Pizza, Sydney. 9pm. Free. The Monday Jam The Basement, Circular Quay. 8:30pm. $6.

Louis Stapleton Group Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8:30pm. $10.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS Live Rock & Roll Karaoke Frankie's Pizza, Sydney. 4pm. Free. Manouche Wednesday Ft. Gadjo Guitars Mr Falcon's, Glebe. 7pm. Free. Songwriters In The Round - feat: Elizabeth Hughes + Tom Stephens & Georgia Mulligan Captain Cook Hotel, Paddington. 7:30pm. Free.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

Little Sundays feat: Local Talent The Little Guy, Glebe. 6pm. Free.

End Of Fashion

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 8 End Of Fashion Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 7pm. $28. Motion City Soundtrack + With Confidence Metro Theatre, Sydney. 7:30pm. $49.90. Low Down Riders The Gasoline Pony, Marrickville. 7pm. $7.

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 9 Emad Younan Sappho Books, Cafe And Bar, Sydney. 7:30pm. Free. Felix Riebl Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $38. From The Jam Metro Theatre, Sydney. 8pm. $60.20. The Lulu Raes Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $15. Pavsonic - feat: King Tide Bondi Pavilion Theatre, Bondi Beach. 7:30pm. $25.

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 10 wed

thu

07 Sep

Aftershock Metal Club - feat: Ironwood + The Veil & Tamberlan Empire The Bald Faced Stag, Leichhardt. 8pm. Free.

08 (9:00PM - 12:00AM)

Sep

(9:00PM - 12:00AM)

Lolo Lovina The Basement, Circular Quay. 7:30pm.

Vince Jones $29.20. Simple Plan Enmore Theatre, Newtown. 8:20pm. $70.35. Space Talk #1 - feat: Doctor Goddard + Top Lip Captain Cook Hotel, Paddington. 8:30pm. Free. Van Morrison’s Masterpieces feat: Vince Jones And The Astral Orchestra City Recital Hall, Sydney. 7:30pm. $69.

fri

09 Sep (10:00PM - 1:40AM)

SATURDAY AFTERNOON

SUNDAY AFTERNOON

sat

sun

10

5:45PM  8:45PM

Sep

11 Sep

(10:00PM - 1:15AM)

mon

12 Sep

3:30PM  6:30PM

(8:30PM - 11:30PM)

tue

(8:30PM - 11:30PM)

13 Sep

(8:30PM - 11:30PM)

EVERY SATURDAY

Party DJs GROUND FLOOR - AFTER BANDS

thebrag.com

Low Down Riders

BRAG :: 678 :: 31:08:16 :: 33


brag beats

BRAG’s guide to dance, hip hop and club culture

on the pulse club, dance and hip hop in brief... with Alex Chetverikov, James Di Fabrizio and Joseph Earp

five things

Nelly

NEEL BEFORE NELLY

Is it getting hot in here? An all-star lineup of R&B bigshots will grace the stage together in one epic concert party. Bringing the jams will be Nelly, TLC, 112, Mya, Montell Jordan, Blackstreet, Blu Cantrell, Fatman Scoop, Dante Thomas, Kevin Lyttle and DJ Horizion. Not only will the night feature back-toback classics performed live alongside DJ Horizon playing the biggest urban hits of all time, ticketholders will also have access to a special pop-up nightclub, R&B karaoke, competitions and many other activities throughout the event. Catch it Friday November 18 at Qudos Bank Arena.

WITH JOESKI

Growing Up Watching my 1. mother clean the

house while she was blasting salsa music has always stayed with me. I definitely feel like that had an effect on me musically. Inspirations Led Zeppelin, Héctor Lavoe, John Coltrane, Prince… The list goes on an on.

2.

Your Crew At the moment 3. I’m rolling solo, but

The Music You Make And Play 4. I like all types of

music, but I make and play tribal, funky, dark and soulful techno and house music. I will be dropping a lot of new stuff in the near future on my label Maya Records. You will definitely hear some hip-shaking and mind bending music from me.

Right Here, Right Now 5. I like that music just

keeps evolving, just as I do. Keep it real and you will move forward. I should also mention that NYC right now is insane, and there are tons of good parties there. I do get inspiration from a lot of things, like the newer generation. They really inspire me. What: Chinese Laundry When: Saturday September 10

MEET YOU FRONTLEFT

The fourth episode of Sydneybased techno label Front Left’s party nights is titled Organism, and it promises to live up to its visceral nature in the raw confines of the Red Rattler Theatre on Friday September 9. Since the inception of the first event in April, Front Left has sought to renew and regenerate the expression of techno, with Horowitz, Not Mani and many others leading the local charge.

LOCAL RIFFIN’

Kato and Rif Raf are set to play The Burdekin Hotel on Saturday September 10, and will bring with them a veritable wealth of records and experience. With his 4,000-title strong record collection and chameleon-like selector status, Kato drifts effortlessly between genres to

Peanut Butter Wolf

provide the perfect party, while you might know Rif Raf for the spirituality he brings with his now sadly-defunct

Earthdance festival, as well as a number of Deep As Fu*k parties across Australia and the globe.

TALL TALES

The newest addition to Sydney’s summer season promises to be a distinctive breath of fresh air, with the lush surroundings of Randwick Racecourse playing host to the inaugural Tell No Tales festival on Sunday December 4. Drawing inspiration from a history of European innovation in electronic music, Ricardo Villalobos and Audion lead the first artist announcement, with the latter appearing in Australia for the first time in seven years. Joining the two stalwarts are Pan-Pot, Agents of Time and Nastia, with more announcements to follow. Get excited!

Chez Damier

What a weekend we have heading our way, with Red Bull Music Academy hosting a number of special events across its Weekender. First up is legendary label Stones Throw’s 20th anniversary show, a set that will see label founder Peanut Butter Wolf joined by electro icon Egyptian Lover and J-Rocc at Manning Bar on Friday September 9, while over at The Domain on Saturday September 10 Flight Facilities will be performing with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra. But that’s only a taster; there is a huge bevy of acts on offer, with a series of talks and a film premiere bulking up an incredible program. Take your pick!

34 :: BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16

FILL YOUR PRESCRIPTION

Deep house found a hero with Chez Damier, a man who paved a new path for house music following the explosion of Chicago and acid house in the mid to late 1980s. Founding the fabulous Prescription label and its offshoots was clearly not enough for Damier, whose music has rightly experienced a renaissance over the last decade. Book a spot on the dancefloor with the master at Harpoon Harry on Sunday September 11.

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Chez Damier photo by Ashley Mar

YOU’LL NEED WINGS

Peanut Butter Wolf photo by Stacy Lucier

it all started for me when my older sister’s ex-boyfriend got me into DJing when I was 13. He was a disco

DJ back in the ’80s and ever since then I think it’s safe to say that I’ve been into it. And no, I don’t have any other day job as I make my living with music… Thank god!


Safia Internal Control By Matthew Galea

S

afia aren’t the next big thing in music, they’re already a big thing. With their host of awards and sales milestones, the band are already one of Australia’s most exciting and profitable acts, and they’ve got an APRA award and a two times platinum-selling single to prove it. Now, with a mere week until their debut album Internal lands and a month until they embark on another national tour, the speeding bullet that is Safia just keeps picking up speed. “I’m super excited!” frontman Ben Woolner enthuses. “We’ve been kind of waiting in limbo for a while. I’ve listened to the album so many times. I think I just need it to be out now. Some of the tracks are incarnations of some of the very first few songs that we put out as Safia, so it’s just been about finding the to time to put them together and make the record one cohesive body of work. “We’re always just writing for fun. We write subconsciously, rather than specifically for a record. That said, I think when we sat down and looked at these tracks, there was some kind of narrative within them, even though they weren’t written with an album in mind. And then we went from there.” Having met in primary school, the trio that make up Safia – Woolner, Michael Bell and Harry Sayers – have spent years fantasising about releasing an album of their own material. They started off playing covers of their favourite bands, groups like Guns N’ Roses and The Beatles, until they burst into the

Australian-electro scene a few years back. The new record was recorded in their hometown, Canberra, and penned and self-produced by the three-piece before being eventually mixed by Eric J Dubowsky, the mastermind-mixer who has worked with Flume, Flight Facilities and Chet Faker. “Most of our writing is done at home,” Woolner says. “Two of the songs were done in London, but that was during a week in the studio. Predominantly it was all done at home in the same set-up as when we first started, because that’s the place where we feel the most comfortable. We tried a lot of things and spent slabs of time in a studio. It was about fi nding out how we write best when we have to work on more than one song at a time. We’re defi nitely comfortable and more relaxed and

kind of free back home, here in Canberra.” The band have made their way onto millions of playlists (literally: they have over 20 million online streams) after being highly promoted by triple j, placing in the station’s annual Hottest 100 for three consecutive years. But despite this amazing feat, they’d prefer not to be pigeonholed as just another triple j artist. “We’re sort of in that electronic kind of triple j circle, but then again we’re also not,” Woolner says. “We’re usually kind of pinned as our own thing, or as something kind of outside of the box, so we wanted this album to be a true representation of the three of us. We wanted no other hands involved and just to provide the best body of work that we could provide at that period of time.

“YOU ALWAYS CRAVE THE OPPOSITE TO WHAT YOU’RE DOING: AS SOON AS YOU GET BACK HOME AND CHILL OUT, YOU WANT TO GET BACK ON THE ROAD.”

“We’re influenced by anything around us,” Woolner continues. “There’s no specific thing we go into the studio wanting to be like. In fact we try to actively avoid writing a song after hearing something that pricks up our ears. I think a lot of the songs on the album were kind of inspired almost more by a visual aesthetic: inspired by movies and soundtracks.” Though Woolner and his bandmates have never pretended to be movie buffs, they certainly do draw a range of influences from the films they watch, and the new record contains a number of clear touchstones. “We wrote ‘Bye Bye’ after watching the Sherlock Homes movie with Robert Downey Jr., which had a quirky aesthetic,” Woolner explains. “Also, the soundtrack had really broken, really creepy violin playing. That was a big inspiration. And the opening song on the album, ‘Zion’, is obviously very inspired by the dance rave in The Matrix Reloaded. So the album has a lot of visual inspirations more than it has references to actual bands.”

Northeast Party House Party On By Seth Robinson Malcolm Besley doing all the mixing and mastering himself. “We were in London and we were at a point where we realised we were running out of time,” Ansell says. “We booked a few sessions at Hackney Road Studios and got a heap done. Then we went straight into the studio when we got back, and we were writing and recording at the same time.

F

or fans of Northeast Party House, the agonising wait for the band’s new record has been epic. But now the time is nigh: the group is all set to drop Dare. We’ve already been treated to a taster of the record – lead single ‘For You’ made a massive splash on triple j recently – and if you haven’t heard the tune yet, we recommend hitting the old internet (or just flicking on the radio: it’s on high rotation) because it’s the kind of anthemic, unashamedly optimistic track that modern pop and rock is lacking these days. That’s not all the boys have up their sleeves either: they’ll be hitting the road this month for a massive album tour, with so many stops lined up that there’s literally no excuse for missing them – which is nice, actually, as it’s

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been more than a year since we saw them grace an Australian stage. “The writing of Dare spanned over a pretty long time,” says Northeast Party House’s guitarist Mitch Ansell. “We pretty much kicked it off when we finished [debut album] Any Given Weekend. We didn’t really write too much together initially: we’d all go off into our bedrooms, turn the lights off and not eat for a year while we got it done.” He laughs.

in Brunswick where we had all our gear set up in this little office kind of space. It was pretty funny, but it worked. It was all business, but we got a lot done and the songs really started to develop. This time we wanted to do a smarter album, just in terms of the songwriting on it, and we wanted it to be a little more melodic. Basically we wanted songs that told a story but were really fun, and tunes that we’d like to play live.”

“I mean, we’d write our own little things then email them to each other and get feedback,” he says. “It wasn’t until January this year that we finally got the demos together and put them into a playlist. We culled a lot, then started working at a friend’s studio

Dare was composed internationally as the band travelled back and forth between Melbourne and London. The result is an album that was written largely as it was recorded, with Northeast Party House taking on all the production in house and their drummer

“Say I wanted to write this riff,” he continues, “we’d get that tone, the final peddles, amps, et cetera, and whatever we recorded was the final take. Malcolm [Besley] was there recording and mixing, and then we all individually produced bits. It was a full-band production in a lot of ways. We trusted Mal as a sound engineer. He just keeps getting better as the years go by. I think because we were still writing at the same time, it would have been too weird to have someone else come in from the outside.” The writing of Dare was a twomonth process, and though Ansell and his bandmates opened themselves up to sonic experimentation, they did have a strong goal in mind: the songs were written to be performed. It’s obvious that Ansell adores the live experience, and he speaks enthusiastically about returning to Australian stages. “We always think of the live show,” he says simply. “It’s our favourite part of this whole band thing, so we always try to curate the live show. When you have an album tour, you’re gonna play a lot of new songs, but the album actually comes out on September 9, which is the same night as our second show.

Having just returned from an international tour, Woolner sounds pretty damn keen to be back on his home turf. “We all missed our family, friends and our dogs quite a lot,” he laughs. “And also things like sleep and doing nothing. Just sitting around and playing computer games. You always crave the opposite to what you’re doing: as soon as you get back home and chill out, you want to get back on the road. So it’s always the opposite.” Meanwhile, the boys are gearing up for their biggest national tour to date, starting at their home in Canberra and kicking on for seven weeks in Australia and New Zealand. “It’s going to be our biggest production yet!” Woolner enthuses. “There’s going to be big shows and it’s going to be fun to play a whole catalogue of new music that’s out and available for people to listen to. It’s a whole new production and visual set-up; we’re going all out on this one.” What: Internal out Friday September 9 through Warner Where: Enmore Theatre When: Sunday October 2

“THIS TIME WE WANTED TO DO A SMARTER ALBUM, JUST IN TERMS OF THE SONGWRITING ON IT, AND WE WANTED IT TO BE A LITTLE MORE MELODIC.” Seeing as how a lot of the people who come to our shows won’t really have absorbed the album yet, we won’t drench them in too much new stuff, but there’ll definitely be a few new songs in there. It’s gonna be a bit of a mix.” He continues, on a roll now. “It was interesting playing overseas for the last year. They were quite calculated shows: we’ve been at these festivals where you have like 500 bands from around the world all meeting up in the same place. It’s open to the general public, but the focus is on bringing in the different labels and managers and such.” Despite the acclaim the band have won themselves overseas, there really is only one place Ansell and his mates currently want to be. “We’re psyched to get back to Australia,” he says. “There’s a different culture with music in Australia. We have a pretty passionate fan base here. Overseas, people kind of sit back and appreciate it, whereas in Melbourne say, where it all began with our mates being super young and super loose, you know what you’re gonna get. You can go nuts.” What: Dare out Friday September 9 through Stop Start / Inertia Where: Metro Theatre When: Friday September 16 With: Polish Club, Twinsy BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16 :: 35


club guide g

club picks p up all night out all week...

send your listings to : clubguide@thebrag.com

club pick of the week Mr Fingers

CLUB NIGHTS

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 11 Carriageworks

RBMA Weekender Feat: Mr Fingers 7pm. $53.70 WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 7 CLUB NIGHTS

Queerbourhood feat: Seymour Butz + Friends The Bearded Tit, Redfern. 7:30pm. Free. Sosueme - feat: Purple Sneakers DJs + Yumi Zouma + Chao X Soft Hands Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 8pm. Free. The Wall The World Bar, Kings Cross. 9pm. Free.

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 8 Femme Fetale The Argyle, The Rocks. 6pm. Free. Ham - feat: Chanel + V Kim + Tennis Boys + Hp Mini + Kimchi Princi + Scam + More 77, Darlinghurst. 8pm. Free. Rbma Weekender Sydney (Night Moves) - feat: Kilo Kish + Kucka + Marcus Whale + Kllo + Bok Bok + Cliques + Lewis Cancut Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 9pm. $17.90. Thursday Mix Up -

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 9 HIP HOP & R&B

Coda Conduct Plan B Small Club, Sydney. 8pm. $16.90. Fridays Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 8pm. Free. Rbma Weekender Sydney (Stone'S Throw 20th Anniversary) - feat: Peanut Butter Wolf + J Rocc + Mndsgn + Katalyst + Egyptian Lover + Jonti Manning Bar, Camperdown. 9pm. $61.75. Somatik Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly. 8pm. Free.

CLUB NIGHTS Argyle Fridays The Argyle, The Rocks. 6pm. Free. Brasilian Journey - feat: DJ Paulo + Mark Crissy + Soulquest + Live Samba Outfit Bateria 61 Play Bar, Surry Hills. 6pm. Free. El Loco Later - feat: DJs On Rotation Excelsior Hotel, Surry Hills. 9pm. Free. Fatback - feat: DJs Adverse +

36 :: BRAG :: 679 :: 07:09:16

Juzzlikedat + Caratgold + Amity + Makoto + Cman + Edseven + Vj Spook Plan B Small Club, Sydney. 9pm. Free. Feel Good Fridays Bar100, The Rocks. 5pm. Free. Loco Friday - feat: DJs On Rotation The Slip Inn, Sydney. 5pm. Free. Peoples Club Weekly - feat: Jamie Blanco + Magda Bytnerowicz + Andy Garvey + Dave Stuart + Locus Cadre DJs Goodbar, Paddington. 8pm. $10. Picnic - feat: Young Marco + Rimbombo Civic Underground, Sydney. 10pm. $22. Rbma Weekender Sydney (Talk To The Sea) - feat: Gigi Masin + Gaussian Curve + Tako + Jamie Tiller Bradley's Head, Mosman. 7pm. $33.30. Scubar Fridays - feat: DJs On Rotation Scubar, Sydney. 8pm. Free. Young Marco Civic Underground, Sydney. 10pm. $22

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 10 HIP HOP & R&B

Brenny B And Raye

1800-Analog - feat: Dopplereffekt + Xosar + Lucy Cliche + Dan White + Phile + Kloke + Noise In My Head Marrickville Bowling Club, Marrickville. 10pm. $38.40. 9977 - feat: Junglesnake + Jonny Pow + Taras + + Guests 77, Darlinghurst. 8pm. Free. Aly & Fila Metro Theatre, Sydney. 9:30pm. $83. Argyle Saturdays feat: Tass + Tap-Tap + Minx + Crazy Caz The Argyle, The Rocks. 6pm. Free. Bob The Drag Queen Arq Nightclub, Sydney. 8pm. $28.50. Cakes The World Bar, Kings Cross. 8pm. Free. Champain Lyf feat: Ben Fester + T-Syd + Jon Watts + Adrian E Plan B Small Club, Sydney. 11pm. $10. Danceetc - feat: Klue + Avon Stringer + Robustt + Crux + Oscar De Lima Taylor's Social, Sydney. 5pm. Free. El Loco Later - feat: DJs On Rotation Excelsior Hotel, Surry Hills. 9pm. Free. Father Bass Club Weekly - feat: Myrne + Hatch + Luude + Holly + Butcher + Lolo Bx Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 10pm. $20. Immersion X [ Insert ] - feat: Giorgio Gigli (Ita) + Wdk + Trinity + Jordan Peters + David Bangma Secret Location, Sydney. 10pm. $38.50. Kick On Saturdays feat: Guest DJs Cargo Lounge, Sydney. 6pm. Free. Kings Cross Saturdays - feat: Resident DJs Kings Cross Hotel, Kings Cross. 5pm. Free. Mantra Collective & C.U Saturday feat: Monika Ross + Venda + Cd Inc + Whitecat + Space Junk Civic Underground, Sydney. 9pm. $22. My Place Saturdays - feat: DJs On Rotation Bar100, The Rocks. 8pm. Free.

Nights Like This! feat: Santé Goodbar, Paddington. 9pm. $32.70. RBMA Weekender Sydney - feat: Flight Facilities + The Sydney Symphony Orchestra + Special Guests Royal Botanic Gardens & The Domain, Sydney. 6pm. $86. Reset By The Sea # 5 - feat: Kev Frost + Ed Wells + Jez Sands + Vouki Scruby & Aron Chiarella + Alex Ludlow + Emmet Greene & Scott Lamont + Tristan Case Sydney Harbour, Sydney. 9pm. $35. Scubar Saturdays - feat: DJs On Rotation Scubar, Sydney. 8:30pm. Free. Something Else feat: Kato + Rif Raf + B&H Smooth + Lauren Hansom + Shivers* + James Petrou Burdekin Hotel, Darlinghurst. 10pm. $11. Yours - feat: Sachi Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 8pm. Free. Zoo Project - feat: Frankie Romano + Adrian Borghi + Supermini + Jimmy Ray + Dan Baartz B2b Harrison Morris + Nick Reverse + Db Zoo Project, Potts Point. 10pm. $10.

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 11 CLUB NIGHTS Chez Damier Harpoon Harry, Sydney. 6pm. $35. Rbma Weekender Sydney (Mr. Fingers) - feat: Mr. Fingers + Lorna Clarkson + Simon Caldwell Carriageworks, Eveleigh. 7pm. $49.84. Rbma Weekender Sydney - feat: Gappy Ranks (Live) + Earthshaker Soundsystem + Heartical Hi Powa + K.B.I. Soundsystem + Inner West Reggae Disco Machine Carriageworks, Eveleigh. 12pm. $17.90. Sin Sundays The Argyle, The Rocks. 7pm. Free.

Coda Conduct

L-Fresh The Lion

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 8

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 10

RBMA Weekender Sydney Night Moves - feat: Kilo Kish + Kucka + Marcus Whale + Kllo + Bok Bok + Cliques + Lewis Cancut Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 9pm. $17.90.

Aly & Fila Metro Theatre, Sydney. 9:30pm. $83.

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 9 Coda Conduct Plan B Small Club, Sydney. 8pm. $16.90. RBMA Weekender Sydney Stone’s Throw 20th Anniversary - feat: Peanut Butter Wolf + J Rocc + Mndsgn + Katalyst + Egyptian Lover + Jonti Manning Bar, Camperdown. 9pm. $61.75. Young Marco Civic Underground, Sydney. 10pm. $22

Immersion - feat: Giorgio Gigli + Wdk + Trinity + Jordan Peters + David Bangma Secret Location, Sydney. 10pm. $38.50. L-Fresh The Lion + Omar Musa + Sukhjit Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $18. Mantra Collective & C.U Saturday - feat: Monika Ross + Venda + Cd Inc + Whitecat + Space Junk Civic Underground, Sydney. 9pm. $22. RBMA Weekender Sydney - feat: Flight Facilities + The Sydney Symphony Orchestra + Special Guests Royal Botanic Gardens & The Domain, Sydney. 6pm. $86. Marcus Whale

HIP HOP & R&B

Aden Mullens And Husky Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly. 4pm. Free. L-Fresh The Lion Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $18.

Marcus Whale photo by Jarred Beeler

xxx

CLUB NIGHTS

feat: DJs + Bands Hermann's Bar, Darlington. 4pm. Free.

Antoneli Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly. 6pm. Free. Coolhands Shakedown feat: Nick Toth + Coolhandluke + DJ Moto + Benny Hinn Play Bar, Surry Hills. 6pm. Free. L-Fresh The Lion + Omar Musa + Sukhjit Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $18. MC Filth Wizard Town Hall Hotel, Sydney. 10pm. Free. Slime Saturdays + Yemisul + Left Eye Lowepez + El Tankos + Slime The Chippendale Hotel, Chippendale. 6pm. Free.

TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 13 CLUB NIGHTS Coyote Tuesdays The World Bar, Kings Cross. 9pm. $10.

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Off The Record Dance and Electronica with Tyson Wray

Prosumer

T

he south-London producer/artist/ composer/selector/percussionist/ vibist/cook/barber Al Dobson Jr is coming our way. First things first: cut down your fucking bio, guy. That shit makes you sound like a straight-up dickhead. Otherwise, dude knows good tunes! He’s released on the likes of 22a, Izwid and Sey Music, and anyone who has Theo Parrish in their fan base gets an automatic tick of approval from me, let alone also featuring Andrew Ashong and Mo Kolours. Catch him in Sydney on Friday September 16, venue TBA.

One of the most in-demand DJs in the game, Prosumer, has locked in a Sydney return. Best known as a former resident of the legendary Panorama Bar, in recent years he relocated to Edinburgh and over the course of his career has released records on labels such as Potion, OstGut Ton, Playhouse and Running Back, and collaborated with the likes of Murat Tepeli and Tama Sumo. Catch him on Friday September 30 at Red Rattler.

RECOMMENDED THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 8 – SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 11

Red Bull Music Academy Weekender: Mr. Fingers, Bok Bok, Peanut Butter Wolf + more Various venues

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 9 Young Marco Civic Underground

Greenwood Hotel

FRIDAY NOVEMBER 11 – SUNDAY NOVEMBER 13

Return To Rio: Carl Cox, De La Soul, Eric Powell, DJ EZ + more Del Rio, Wisemans Ferry

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 12

Marcel Dettman Chinese Laundry

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 10

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 26

In other news that makes me want to set fire to the once holy institution of music journalism: NME is now touting that 3D from Massive Attack is actually the illusive street artist Banksy. First up: Banksy is god-awful and hasn’t been relevant in a decade. Second of all: shut the fuck up NME and stop writing trash to try and desperately spike your circulation numbers.

Giorgio Gigli TBA

Randomer TBA

SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 11

Jackmaster Greenwood Hotel

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 16

Thoughts: last week, the undisputed greatest club in the world, Berghain, got hit by lightning. This completely fucked the air-con and basically turned the place into a sauna, while also meaning the lights came back on fullblare showcasing how fucked everyone around each other looked. According to DJ T, who was playing at Panorama Bar, this meant everyone got naked and continued in the hedonism. That’s great, but for fuck’s sake, that also means that every single wannabe electronic music outlet that jumps at the chance to write anything about the place so they can get hit$, went loco. Hot tip kids just out of journo school: if you missed the scoop first up, you missed it. No-one wants to read the same story a billion times, and all you’re doing by pushing it late is showing everyone else that you’re not on the ball. Of course, this piece is running days after everyone else’s report on the same story, so we might be guilty too.

Detroit Techno Militia Goodbar

Machinedrum Civic Underground

Tour rumours: One of the main components behind Deep Dish, Ali Shirazinia AKA Dubfi re, is coming back our way in December. Lock it in. I’ve also got a feeling that we’ll be seeing Helena Hauff sooner rather than later. Best releases this week: Oh my god if you haven’t already scored Acronym’s Entangled In Vines (on Semantica), then put down my rubbish words and get to this record now. Otherwise I suggest spending some time with DJ Bone & Deetron’s The Storytellers (Subject Detroit), Marco Zenker’s Phony Pictures (Ilian Tape) and VHVL’s Evn (Leaving Records).

Chez Damier Harpoon Harry

Al Dobson Jr TBA

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 24 Rebekah Burdekin Hotel

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 30 Prosumer Red Rattler

SUNDAY OCTOBER 2 Bicep UTS

SATURDAY OCTOBER 22

Seven Davis Jr Civic Underground

SUNDAY OCTOBER 23

Honey Soundsystem Cruise Bar

SATURDAY OCTOBER 29

Green Velvet

TICKETS: $25 PRE, $30 DOOR | TIMES: 7.30PM DOORS, 9PM SHOW

Afro Moses: Spirit of Bob Marley @ Camelot Lounge stickytickets.com.au

sept 9

CNR 103 RAILWAY PDE & 19 MARRICKVILLE RD, MARRICKVILLE

WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 30 FRIDAY DECEMBER 2 – SUNDAY DECEMBER 4

Subsonic Music Festival: Lee Scratch Perry, Mad Professor, Josh Wink, Ben UFO + more Riverwood Downs Mountain Valley Resort

SUNDAY DECEMBER 4

Tell No Tales: Ricardo Villalobos, Pan-Pot, Audion + more Randwick Racecourse

SATURDAY DECEMBER 10

Ben UFO, Seth Troxler Greenwood Hotel

THURSDAY DECEMBER 29 – SATURDAY DECEMBER 31

Lost Paradise: Leon Vynehall, Optimo, Lunice, Heidi + more Glenworth Valley

Got any tip-offs, hate mail, praise or cat photos? Email hey@tysonwray.com or contact me via carrier pigeon. thebrag.com

BRAG :: 608 :: 15:04:15 :: 37


snap

VIEW FULL GALLERIES AT

lndry ft. kill frenzy and pantheon

PICS :: AM

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up all night out all week . . .

02:09:16 :: Chinese Laundry :: 111 Sussex St, CBD

five things WITH

on the record

DJ CRESPO

WITH

SANTÉ Inspirations I really like emotional 2. music: I’m not too genre

driven and it just needs to catch me. My biggest influence from the past was The Cure! I love their tunes. I also liked the rough, sampled sound of Daft Punk. Later on, the Detroit heroes influenced me the most. When I heard Masters At Work the first time I was blown away by their house grooves and sounds: from then on I wanted to do groove driven music.

Your Crew After I finished school 3. I wanted to study music

Growing Up Your Crowd I grew up in a musical I strongly believe in 1. 3. melting pot of a household. My the art of DJing. There’s mum, who is Puerto Rican, and my dad, who is Filipino, were always jamming to the likes of the Bee Gees, Donna Summer and Otis Redding. My sister was a straight-up hip hop head: she introduced me to OutKast, Big L and Gang Starr. I’ll never forget attending her local hip hop club meetings and watching the b-boys breakdance. I was so fascinated by the DJ and his ability to control the tempo of dance.

2.

Inspirations My musical influences are Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Flume, OutKast, Jay Z, Nero and DJ AM to name but a few. I’ll never forget getting my first cassette tape: it was ATLliens by OutKast. I damn near broke the tape from listening to it on repeat so much and it opened my mind to a new world of music.

38 :: BRAG :: 669 :: 29:06:16

nothing that can replace a good selection of songs perfectly mixed together. Making people dance is what brings me alive. I’m a creature of the night and I love rocking nightclubs – they’re my place of comfort. I’ve recently played some huge festivals, from TomorrowWorld to EDC Las Vegas. I love controlling people through music and dance: I’m the selecta.

The Music You Play The music I play is 4. an expression of how I’m

feeling at that moment. I’m not afraid to mix The Temptations into Future and then cut in some A Tribe Called Quest. Genres are meant to be bent and bridged, and DJing allows me to tell a story through music. I recently recorded a song with Grammy Award winner Fatman Scoop and

and become a producer. So I had to move to Berlin ‘cause that’s where the only production university in Germany is. I moved there and went to the test to get in but I missed it. So I decided to look for an internship and try it again six month later. Luckily I found a studio and started there as an intern fixing cables, tuning guitars, and most importantly, making coffee for everyone. After I proved myself, I got full-time employment with them and stayed for over five years.

my good friend Landis called ‘Lose Control’. It’s a big house tune. I grew up listening to Scoop, so being able to work with him was huge dream come true. Music, Right Here, Right Now 5. As with everything else

in the world right now, the music scene is oversaturated. Everything sounds the same: it’s a bit mundane for me. I respect those trying to do something out of this world and different. The boundaries need to be pushed, and musicians need to start making music for themselves, not based on what’s going to make them the most money. Money doesn’t last forever, but a timeless record does. Where: The Argyle, Sydney When: Saturday September 17

Music, Right Here, Right Now 4. You know what? I’ve Growing Up I grew up in a small 1. town in southern Germany

called Ulm: it’s between Stuttgart and Munich. My father is a jazz record collector and he’s got 5,000 or more records at home, so I got in touch with music very early. My hobby as a young kid was smashing those old shellac vinyls against the wall and watching them break. I am really glad that

my dad was and still is such a music lover. I started learning guitar but after a while it became boring always sticking to harmonic rules, so a friend of mine introduced me to dance music because he was working in a record store. After he showed me several Detroit and Daft Punk tunes it was clear that I wanted do this so I got myself a sampler and started making beats…

honestly been on the road so much that I haven’t actually had the time to listen to anything outside the promos that are sent to me! That said, there are a number of new and really exciting artists coming through at the moment like Jacky, Denis Horvat, and Rich Wakeley who I really like. What: React out now through Black Chrome Records

thebrag.com




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