Brag#690 by Furst Media

ISSUE NO. 690 NOVEMBER 23, 2016

FREE Now picked up at over 1,600 places across Sydney and surrounds. thebrag.com

MUSIC, FILM, THEATRE + MORE

INSIDE This Week

CH A IR L IF T

Caroline Polachek shares her unusual way of connecting with the audience.

LEE SCRATCH

PERRY

L A DIE S IN BL A CK

Tim Finn's musical proves a hit ahead of Sydney Festival.

T EEN AGE FA NCL UB

The Scots have built a massive legacy, and they're not done yet.

AUS T R A L I A N M A DE

Revisiting the glory days of the Aussie pop and pub rock scene.

Plus

T HE DRONE S BR I T ISH INDI A A .B. OR IGIN A L K ING GI Z Z A R D A ND T HE L I Z A R D W I Z A R D A ND MUCH MOR E

MAD PROFESSOR THE BATTLE OF GOOD AND EVIL

thebrag.com

BRAG :: 690 :: 23:11:16 :: 3

the BRAG presents

welcome to the frontline: what’s goin’ on around town... with David Burley, James Di Fabrizio and Harriet Flitcroft

JOEL SENA

Slyfox Thursday November 24

speed date WITH

TURIN BRAKES

MICK BROOME FROM SMOKING MARTHA people stand in front of us and raise their hands at different times and sometimes give us free beer. We like people who give us free beer. Keeping Busy Lately we have been 2. recording our debut album and

Best Gig Ever The best show we have played was with Seether at Eatons Hill in Brisbane. The venue is amazing, the sound is amazing, the crowd was amazing, we were most definitely amazing – probably as amazing as Bill and Ted’s band Wyld Stallyns, and we also altered the future.

sound like shit, then we spoke to some average-looking people and

they think we sound like a cross between The Pretty Reckless and Divinyls. We like to stand on a raised platform with sounds coming out from behind us while

MANAGING EDITOR: Chris Martin chris@thebrag.com 02 9212 4322 ONLINE EDITOR: James Di Fabrizio SUB-EDITOR: Joseph Earp STAFF WRITERS: Adam Norris, Augustus Welby NEWS: David Burley, Harriet Flitcroft, Ariana Norton, Anna Wilson ART DIRECTOR: Sarah Bryant PHOTOGRAPHER: Ashley Mar COVER PHOTO: Chris Baker COVER IMAGE DESIGN: Gemma Van D 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, Arca Bayburt, Prudence Clark, Chelsea Deeley, Christie Eliezer, Matthew Galea, Emily Gibb, Jennifer Hoddinett, Tegan Jones, 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, Aaron Streatfeild, Rod Whitfield, Anna Wilson, Stephanie Yip, David James Young

FURTHER FOLK

The National Folk Festival, Australia’s premier four-day celebration of all things, well, folk, has scored another bunch of artists from home and abroad. One huge addition to the lineup is Jarlath Henderson, the youngest person ever to win the BBC Young Folk Award. Another UK artist on the bill is Katey Brooks, who has featured on albums for Brian May, Bill Wyman and Nick Mason. Additionally, Mel Parsons will be playing her acclaimed album Drylands, which won her the NZCMA Country Song of the Year prize. Melisandre, Dubmarine, Kutcha Edwards, Sparrow-Folk, Zulya and The Children Of The Underground and many more are also set to play at the nation’s capital. The National Folk Festival

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Metro Theatre Sunday April 16

NIKKI HILL

Newtown Social Club Monday April 17

THE STRUMBELLAS Oxford Art Factory Monday April 17

ST PAUL AND THE BROKEN BONES

Where: Frankie’s Pizza When: Thursday December 1

will be held Thursday April 13 – Monday April 17 at Exhibition Park, Canberra.

Metro Theatre Wednesday April 19

Adele

TAKING THE BAIT

Legendary Australian rock outfit Spiderbait have announced their return, with a special throwback set due to hit Sydney in March of next year. Rather than just reciting their greatest hits, the group will focus on their seminal third album, Ivy And The Big Apples, playing the record in its entirety. The album is best remembered for spawning ‘Buy Me A Pony’, the first-ever Australian single to top triple j’s Hottest 100, and the record’s catchy, rock/pop hooks have long been lapped up by fans and critics alike. Celebrate with Spiderbait at the Enmore Theatre on Saturday March 18.

A CLASS ACT

Anatomy Class formed back in 2014, and after a couple of lineup changes and two years of live shows, they’re ready to release their debut album with a launch gig to go with it. The indie rockers have become veterans on the Sydney live music scene, with regular shows at Captain Cook Hotel, Frankie’s Pizza and Brighton Up Bar under their belt, and they’ve taken those live sounds into the studio to make an album. Working with Australian producer Wayne Connolly, who’s previously produced for Boy & Bear, The Vines and You Am I, they were able to convert their sound into Tell Me What You See, their debut record. The album will be available from Friday November 25 and the band will be launching it the next day at Oxford Art Factory, Saturday November 26.

San Cisco

A DATE WITH ADELE

Acclaimed singer and worldrenowned pop star Adele is coming to Sydney on her debut Australian tour. Excitingly, the shows will feature a 360-degree, in-the-round stadium experience, apparently designed to create a feeling of intimacy in huge venues. Having broken album sales records worldwide, with in excess of two million albums sold in Australasia, the multiple Grammy, Brit, Oscar and Golden Globe winner is currently on the cusp of completing her mammoth world tour. She’ll take over ANZ Stadium on Friday March 10.

SMOKE A DOOBIE

Legendary guitarist Santana will share the stage with The Doobie Brothers as they tear across the country for a run of Bluesfest sideshows. Santana returns to our shores with decades of iconic hits to choose from, having last visited in 2013 for an acclaimed tour with The Steve Miller Band. From Woodstock to major stadiums the world over, Santana’s Latin-infused flair and skill have seen him smash through a career spanning some 40 years. The Doobie Brothers last joined forces with Santana in 2011 for a one-off show together in the Hunter Valley. The ’70s rockers are still touring rigorously today, with several major hits to their name including ‘Listen To The Music’. They’ll hit Qudos Bank Arena on Thursday April 13.

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CORINNE BAILEY RAE

much booze as they will give us. Our ultimate rider would be the same but with more booze and some fancy sandwiches with the crusts cut off. Also, I would like some patches for my Cons as they have holes in them.

EDITORIAL POLICY: The views and opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher, editors or staff of the BRAG.

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Enmore Theatre Thursday April 13

Your Ultimate Rider Our usual rider request is 5. the same as most bands: just as

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MILES ELECTRIC BAND

ANYONE FOR CROQUET?

The Royal Croquet Club, which opens in Sydney this week, will turn Bondi Park into a festival hub of gourmet delights, with a great music lineup and that British classic, croquet. Every evening will see entertainment flowing, and the impressive music lineup includes Bag Raiders, Dope Lemon and San Cisco. The food selection features Filipino delights from Hoy Pinoy, Chinese street food from Bao Stop, Malaysian stalwarts Mamak and gelato genuises Messina. And after all that grub, sip on a Pimms, wine from Yalumba or a Henieken. Just don’t let the booze affect your stroke. And if you’re wondering if you can afford another festival this summer, good news: The Royal Croquet Club is free entry most of the time, though it’ll cost you $20 to go after 6pm on Friday and Saturday. The program will run from Thursday November 24 – Sunday December 4.

GET ON THE GOAT

Hold onto yer hats: this is a big ’un. Legendary boundary-pushers The Mountain Goats are returning to Australia for the first time in five years. Led by musician-cum-author John Darnielle, the group is well-known for its heart-wrenching and defiant tracks, with latest album Beat The Champ immersing audiences deep in the world of pro wrestling. It’s an extraordinary work from an extraordinary band, making this tour a prospect not to be missed. The Mountain Goats will blow the roof off the Factory Theatre on Sunday April 9 before their Bluesfest commitments. thebrag.com

Adele photo by Simon Emmett

AWESOME INTERNS: Anna Wilson, Ariana Norton, Harriet Flitcroft, David Burley

Sing, dance and stomp your feet till they’re sore with The Music of Queen as it returns to the Sydney Opera House in January. Featuring iconic songs like ‘I Want It All’, ‘It’s A Kind Of Magic’, ‘We Are The Champions’, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and a host of other Queen anthems, the show has delighted audiences all around the world, and, after selling out in 2014, is set to do the same again in Sydney. Just as excitingly, the production boasts a cast of both Australian and international stars, a rock band and a full symphony orchestra, with all those forces uniting to bring the music to life in a unique and spectacular way. The Music of Queen will play at the Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House on Wednesday January 18 and Thursday January 19.

Newtown Social Club Wednesday April 12

Trevor Hall photo by Marina Chavez

A NIGHT AT THE OPERA (HOUSE)

TREVOR HALL

Current Playlist Crickets and bugs, because it just finished pissing down with rain. Queensland storm season soundtrack! Bands we are digging at the moment are The Flame Fields, The Mercy Kills, The Wrath – basically bands that start with ‘the’ are in right now with us. Last night we watched The Flame Fields shred the stage with Black Rheno – so awesome!

The Strumbellas photo by Josh Goldman

taking nice trips around the east coast standing on platforms with sounds coming from behind us, while people in front try to touch us and give us free beer. We will be continuing to do these nice things in the near future, then we will release said album and do more of these nice trips.

Your Profile A bunch of really, really 1. good-looking people told us we

Newtown Social Club Monday April 10

St Paul and The Broken Bones photo by David McClister

music news

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live & local

free stuff

welcome to the frontline: what’s goin’ on around town... with Ariana Norton, David Burley and Anna Wilson

head to: thebrag.com/freeshit

five things WITH

Growing Up I grew up in a 1. household surrounded

by music – Dad had his Stones and Creedence records and Mum played piano, so we always had a piano in the house. My older brother was also listening to classic bands like Chisel and The Police. I started to learn piano but moved onto guitar when I realised it was easier to take a guitar down to the beach! I grew up listening to a lot of the classic ’70s bands and artists that my folks were into, and I was obsessed with The Beatles from the first time I heard them. Growing up listening to all these great

songs and songwriters definitely helped shape my appreciation for great melodies and songwriting. Inspirations I first really started 2. getting into music when

the big grunge explosion hit, so it was bands like Nirvana, Pearl Jam and The Smashing Pumpkins that were my early influences. Then I moved more into indie rock bands like The Lemonheads, Pavement, My Bloody Valentine, Pixies. More locally, You Am I were a huge influence. Seeing Timmy, Andy and Rusty onstage made you believe that you could also do it one day, without all the

ANT ROSEN FROM ANATOMY CLASS

big stage show set-up and flashing lights – just three mates belting out tunes and having a blast! Your Band Anatomy Class is 3. a three-piece indie rock

lineup. It’s Nick Kennedy on drums, Paul Youdell on bass and me on guitar and vox. We all met through mutual friends in the music scene – we just started jamming and it clicked! We’re all big music fans (nerds) and really gelled through our shared love of indie rock classics, live shows and generally making a racket together. We tracked the debut album Tell Me What You See at a couple studios in Sydney, and then moved over to the

iconic Alberts studios to finish off the record with Wayne Connolly, who produced and mixed the album. The Music You Make Our style is really 4. a classic mix of indie rock, with power-pop and shoegaze influences in there too. We love playing live. It’s a chance to really connect with your audience and be in your own little world for a while. Even though we’ve all played in bands for years, it’s still a great buzz every time you get onstage. For us, it’s not about being in a particular scene or fitting a particular style – it’s about writing great songs, engaging with our fans, and having fun doing it.

Music, Right Here, Right Now 5. I think the live music

scene in Sydney is pretty healthy at the moment – there’s a bunch of new venues opening up around Newtown, which is great. There’s so many great local bands we’ve played with over the last year or so – too many to mention! There’s defi nitely no shortage of great new bands to discover around town. What: Tell Me What You See out independently on Friday November 25 Where: Oxford Art Factory Gallery When: Saturday November 26

JBL CHARGE 3

JBL is celebrating the release of its new speaker, the JBL Charge 3, just in time for summer. It has superior sound quality, meaning you can listen to your jams wherever – on the beach, camping or even dancing in the rain – all thanks to a waterproof design. What’s more, you can charge your phone though the USB output, which means you’ll avoid the dreaded draining battery when you’re out having a good time. The speaker is made out of durable materials and is pretty rugged, which might prove handy if you get too drunk at that doof. We have one of these beauties, valued at $229.95, to give away to a lucky winner. Enter at thebrag.com/freeshit.

Lady Hampshire Hotel

THE LADY HAS ARRIVED

Sydney’s newest live music venue, the Lady Hampshire Hotel on Parramatta Road in Camperdown, has opened for business. ‘The Lady’ was acquired this year by publican Paddy Coughlan’s team, already familiar to Sydneysiders for delivering Chippendale’s Lord Gladstone Hotel, and its sister venue will feature good beer, tacos, burgers and live music. The venue had a secret launch last Wednesday night with The Delta Riggs, who were joined onstage by members of Sticky Fingers during their set. The Music & Booze Co. is handling music bookings at the revamped venue. The Lady Hampshire Hotel is open seven days a week, 11amlate.

Music-lovers of Sydney, prepare to get very, very excited: Classic Album Sundays is coming to town. Having taken off in London, New York, Tokyo, Oslo and all around the world, Classic Album Sundays is a chance to listen to classic vinyl records on super-high-end sound systems, with the lights turned low for a glorious cinematic listening experience. The event will happen once a month, with music to cater to all different tastes and ears, and give people a chance to gather, mingle and bond over some of the greatest albums ever made. The inaugural event will feature Prince’s 1987 LP Sign O’ The Times. The Classic Album Sundays launch is on at The World Bar on Sunday November 27.

Vanishing Shapes

Lady Hampshire Hotel photo by James Adams

CLASSIC ALBUM SUNDAYS

SUMMER SUNDOWN SOUNDS

Some of Australia’s finest musical talents will descend on the most picturesque pubs in Sydney for a series of free gigs this summer. Merivale venues Coogee Rooftop at Coogee Pavilion and The Newport will host 16 Sunday Sundown events, kicking off this weekend. All shows are free, with the stunning lineup featuring Client Liaison (Sunday December 4 at Newport), Montaigne (Sunday December 18 at Newport), Pnau (Sunday January 1 at Coogee), Jarryd James (Sunday January 1 at Newport), The Bamboos (Thursday January 26 at Newport for Australia Day), Remi (Sunday February 19 at Coogee) and many more. Find out more at merivale.com. au/sundaysundown.

STRIKING FEAR INTO HARTS Guitar prodigy Harts will play his largest-ever Sydney show as part of a nine-date national

WHERE DID THEY GO?

Newcastle’s Vanishing Shapes are keen to show off their multicultural and multiinstrumental genre-crossing folk sounds in early January when they kick off their tour of the Australian east coast in Sydney. They’ll be taking their flute, clarinet, viola, classical guitar and double bass with them as they showcase their 2015 album Urcheon, as well as their new concept EP Tiny Planets. In the past, Vanishing Shapes have supported touring acts like Afenginn, The Crooked Fiddle Band and Asta. See them vanish into thin air at The Temperance Society in Summer Hill on Thursday January 5. tour in 2017. The smooth rock’n’roller was a favourite of the late Prince, and The Purple One’s influence on the Aussie is clear. His new dates will celebrate the release of Smoke Fire Hope Desire, with its singles ‘Peculiar’ and

‘Power’, as well as the fresh live video for ‘Fear In Me’. The latter sees Harts venture into the unfamiliar world of hip hop, while his next tour features support from electropop act Yeo. Be there at the Metro Theatre on Friday March 3.

Waax

While She Sleeps

Raucous punks Waax have been announced as the headliners for Rare Finds #24 at Oxford Art Factory in December. Hailing from sunny Brisbane, the five-piece will be bringing their brand new single ‘Same Same’ to Sydney for the night and will be joined by Born Joy Dead and locals Train Robbers in support. Waax have been together since 2013, and are set to release their second EP in the coming year. The band is known for its “utterly terrifying” live shows and is sure to raise hell in Sydney next month. Rare Finds #24 is on at OAF’s Gallery Bar on Friday December 2. Entry is free if you register online, or $5 at the door.

6 :: BRAG :: 690 :: 23:11:16

SLEEP NOW IN THE FIRE

As if February couldn’t get any better for music, Britain’s While She Sleeps have announced their return to Sydney for a headlining show. On their visit to Australia in February, the Sheffield metalcore outfit will tour as special guests to Bring Me The Horizon for their rescheduled dates. Off the back of that, While She Sleeps will also play shows of their own, all ahead of the release of their third studio album You Are We in April. Catch While She Sleeps at Newtown Social Club, Thursday February 9.

thebrag.com

Waax photo by Jeff Anderson

SAME SAME BUT DIFFERENT

Patti Smith and her band perform

PLUS: ANDREW BIRD

Horses Sun April 9 * FEW TICKETS Mon April 10 * SELLING FAST Tue April 11 * JUST ANNOUNCED State Theatre

JAKE SHIMABUKURO JOAN OSBORNE THE LUMINEERS MAX JURY THE RECORD COMPANY ROY AYERS THE STRUMBELLAS TREVOR HALL TURIN BRAKES

METRO TH E ATR E SUN DAY A PR I L 16

SNARKY

BLUESFEST TOURING IN ASSOCIATION WITH PRESENT

MILES DAVIS PROPERTIES LLC

PUPPY “Jazz at its most joyful and optimistic, designed to unburden and enliven.”

“Stax Revue lifted off the night and did not disappoint.”

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ENMORE THEATRE MONDAY APRIL 10

ENMORE THU THEATRE APR

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“He’s a truly outrageous performer … it makes you breathless just to watch him.” INDEPENDENT.CO.UK

METRO THU THEATRE APR “This was one of those nights when live music becomes really live, when the bond between performer and audience pushes everyone further than expected.” TELEGRAPH.CO.UK

STATE THEATRE 13 FRIDAY APRIL 7

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MON APR

THE WED METRO APR

ENMORE WED THEATRE APR

“Giddens explores the frontiers of Americana.” THE GUARDIAN

FACTORY SAT THEATRE APR

“Brilliantly fierce and fiercely brilliant.” THE EVENING STANDARD

oxford art factory tuesday 18 april

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tickets & info from 02 6685 8310 or go to www.bluesfesttouring.com.au thebrag.com

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Industrial Strength Music Industry News with Christie Eliezer

Lifelines Ill: Garbage drummer Butch Vig will not be with the band on their Australian tour “due to ongoing sinus problems all year”. He is replaced by Eric Gardner. Expecting: Bloc Party’s Kele Okereke and his partner next month. Engaged: Ricky Martin got down on his knees to propose to his boyfriend of a year, Jwan Yosef. In Court: a US judge dismissed a case filed by producer Brandon Parrott, who accused 50 Cent of fraud because he was “duped” into signing over rights to a sample from his track ‘Bamba’ for use in the rapper’s ‘P.I.M.P.’. In Court: former Rose Tattoo drummer Paul DeMarco pleaded guilty to conspiring to supply firearms as part of a racket with former bikie boss Hassan ‘Sam’ Ibrahim, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. He ended up trying to sell a shipment to an undercover cop. DeMarco will be sentenced in March after spending two years in remand following his arrest in April 2014. In Court: the bodyguard who sued Elton John for sexually harassing him (including tweaking his nipples and groping him) has withdrawn the case. In Court: Nick Gordon, boyfriend of Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown’s daughter Bobbi, was ordered to pay US$36 million for Bobbi’s “wrongful death” after he allegedly gave her a “toxic cocktail”. Died: US soul singer Sharon Jones, frequent visitor to Australia, aged 60, after a three-year battle with pancreatic cancer that inspired the 2015 film Miss Sharon Jones!. She passed surrounded by her loved ones, including The Dap-Kings. Died: David Mancuso, New York DJ and dance culture pioneer, 72. He founded NY’s first underground dance party at The Loft, and offered his Love Saves The Day event as a place where the LGBTQI audience could party without police harassment. Died: US jazz blues pianist Mose Allison, 89. His songs were covered by rock acts The Who (‘Young Man Blues’), The Clash, Bonnie Raitt, Elvis Costello and The Yardbirds. Died: Mentor Williams, the US writer best known for ‘Drift Away’, 70, lung cancer. Died: Australian musician Solitary Son (AKA Bronson Ellery) was found in a house on the Gold Coast next to his ex-girlfriend Shelsea Schilling in what police are calling a murdersuicide. Died: US country singer Holly Dunn (‘Daddy’s Hands’), 59, ovarian cancer. Died: Milton Okun, legendary folk producer and founder of music publishing company Cherry Lane, 92. He produced tracks by Laura Nyro, Peter, Paul And Mary, Odetta, Tom Paxton and other seminal US folk acts. Died: US electronic and instrumental rock identity Michael Bell, who formed Lymbyc Systym with brother Jared, and inspired generations of musicians.

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THINGS WE HEAR • Has it been decided that The X Factor Australia won’t return next year? • Is a high-profile lead singer about to step out of his band for a year? His bandmates are trying to talk him out of it. • Will the arrival of Donald Trump lead to more visa issues for Aussie musicians wanting to tour the US and music execs wanting to work there? • Has the Allans Billy Hyde instrument chain told its ten stores to switch off heating and cooling, so as to cut down on costs? That’s what a Crikey report reckons. • Was Eagles Of Death Metal’s Jesse Hughes refused entry into Paris’ Bataclan club when Sting reopened it due to the comments he made about security? The band’s manager denies the claim, saying

SOUNDS AUSTRALIA SAFE FOR FOUR YEARS

Music export body Sounds Australia has received four extra years of Federal Government funding. The organisation is responsible for showcases and meetings at overseas trade festivals, having helped 620 acts at 48 trade events in 19 countries and generated 1,593 deals. Such federal support represents a welcome backflip, given that last month the government stated there were no plans to renew Sounds Australia’s funding after December 2016. Next month, Sounds Australia will lead a delegation to South America in order to generate touring and marketing opportunities in Chile, Argentina and Brazil, with the travelling group made up of Andrew Stone (Chugg Entertainment), Ashley Gay (Xelon Entertainment), Clara Iaccarino (Perth International Arts Festival), Jaime Gough (Native Tongue Music Publishing), Maggie Collins (Bigsound), Matthew Rogers (Unified), Monique Rothstein (Positive Feedback), Scot Morris (APRA AMCOS), Stuart Rogers (Sydney Festival) and Warren Costello (Liberation).

none of the band members tried to get in. • After a worldwide search, are Stone Temple Pilots to announce former X Factor contestant Jeff Gutt as their replacement for singer Chester Bennington? • How soon before Avenged Sevenfold announce their tour? Elsewhere, Bruno Mars’ visit won’t happen until 2018. • Police stopped Hot Dub Time Machine’s all-ages gig at the Enmore Theatre at 10pm on the weekend, allegedly due to some patrons sneaking booze and alcohol in and needing aid. • Wu-Tang Clan member RZA’s new clothing line is based on their 36 Chambers album. • The Newport, which is set to reignite its Sunday Sundown summer program with a series of free gigs, has applied to council to create a marina for patrons who arrive in boats.

available, designed to encourage venues, booking agents, musicians and artist managers to hold such gigs from February to June 2017. The grants have been designed to cover artist fees, production and promotion costs. The deadline for applications is Monday January 16. For more information, head to musicnsw.com.

D.D DUMBO GETS TRIPLE J AWARD

D.D Dumbo (Oliver Hugh Perry)’s genreleaping Utopia Defeated has won the triple j Award for Australian Album of the Year. Broadcaster Richard Kingsmill said, “[Perry] has created a sound that is incredibly striking. It’s strong in both its vision and quality, and in a huge year for Australian releases, it also stood out for its inventiveness.” After blitzing The Age Music Victoria Awards the same week, King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard took home the Double J Australian Artist of the Year and Australian Music Video of the Year for ‘People Vultures’, with directors Danny Cohen and Jason Galea picking up the gong. Additionally, Tash Sultana scored the nod for Unearthed Artist of the Year.

• Wicked Campers, the controversial rental vehicles that an increasing amount of festivals are trying to ban from their sites, are now legally prevented from displaying offensive slogans in Queensland, with Victoria and Tasmania to follow. • De La Soul arrived three hours late for their gig at the Greenwood in North Sydney last Friday, and were forced off after oneand-a-half songs, apparently due to the venue’s curfew. The crowd turned violent, and a patron allegedly assaulted a police officer. • Sydney entrepreneur Ron Creevey (X Studio, Kings Cross) has bought Noise11, drawing the corporation into his upcoming music/films site Helipad, with Noise11 founders Paul and Ros Cashmere staying on. Helipad will link fans to retailers and merchandise and allow indie labels to upload tracks.

MORE MUSIC FOR DOUBLE J

Following ABC Radio’s decision to push Radio National to a talkback format, Double J has emerged as its most popular digital platform, and as a significant contemporary music hub. In 2017, Double J will host Karen Leng’s The Beat Eclectic at 2pm on Mondays to Thursdays and Fat Planet with Stu Buchanan, an import from FBi Radio, at 8pm Wednesdays. The latter will feature new recordings from Australian and international names, as well as deep cuts from triple j’s archives. The Artist In Residence slot, in which musicians share their record collections, will run from 3pm on Sundays, with Paul Dempsey taking the role from February.

NEW DOCOS ON THE WAY

Documentaries on The Go-Betweens and The Easybeats are among 20 TV and film projects to be funded by Screen NSW. First to roll off the treadmill is Right Here: The Go-Betweens, directed by filmmaker Kriv Stenders. Stenders is in a perfect position to helm the production, given he directed a number of the band’s music videos. The Easybeats documentary will be titled Friday On My Mind.

ROADIES PUSH FOR TICKET SURCHARGE

The Australian Road Crew Association (ARCA) has kicked off a campaign calling for a five-cent surcharge on all tickets sold in this country to go towards helping past and present road crews in crisis. As recent statistics have proven, roadies are susceptible to mental illness and suicide: out of 128 of those who have passed away over the years, 27 committed suicide. Air Supply, Paul Kelly and veteran promoter Michael Chugg have all come on board. Last week, the issue of roadies was aired on ABC News, after which the ARCA website had a spike in traffic and other acts and two promoters offered to join the campaign. Ian Peel, who founded ARCA, said: “A lot of people have done really well out of the music industry and a lot of the crew that work for them haven’t. We want to try to develop an income stream in perpetuity that can go into a fund to help crew. Jump on board. Five cents a ticket – it’s nothing in the scheme of things.”

ARIA PULLS WEIGHT BEHIND SUPPORT ACT LTD

ARIA has helped music industry charity Support Act Ltd earn itself some shekels. As part of last Friday’s Aus Music T-Shirt Day, during which fans and music executives were encouraged to wear an Australian artist’s T-shirt, anyone who made a substantial donation to Support Act went in the running to win two tickets to the ARIA Awards. In addition, 100 music fans answered the call for a photo shoot to take place at the State Library Victoria, in the process setting a new world record for most people wearing Aussie music T-shirts in a single photo.

MORE NSW ACTS FOR SXSW

Six more Australian acts have been invited to showcase at South By Southwest in Austin, Texas come March. Two are from New South Wales: Mansionair and Hockey Dad. This brings the Aussie tally to a total of 20, including NSW’s Middle Kids, Alex Cameron, Vera Blue and Polarheart.

AS MARK RISTM ET CH

Brag The Detonators 125mm x 180mm The Morrisons Cruisin’ Deuces The Drey Rollan Band Rod Almighty w Andy Travers The Crimplenes w Solid Gold Hell r ecord fai r w MC Wolfman Dan w 2016

Sunday Nov 27 TH

GRANTS FOR ALL-AGES EVENTS

A partnership between the City of Sydney and the music association MusicNSW will see more all-ages gigs take place in inner Sydney. All Ages Access grants will be made

www.rocknrollmarket.com.au UNDER 18s MUST BE ACCOMPANIED BY AN ADULT

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COVER STORY

LEE SCRATCH PERRY MEETS MAD PROFESSOR

t’s impossible to summarise Lee Scratch Perry’s career without resorting to generalisations or ellipses. The Jamaican singer, songwriter and producer has delivered several significant releases across six consecutive decades, collaborating widely and influencing generations of reggae and dub musicians worldwide. In conversation, however, he’s simply unpredictable, sharing a diatribe about good and evil, truth and lies, love and sex.

“It’s good to work with him, but he is a bit funny inside,” says Perry, his sentences darting around in different directions for the entirety of our interview. “It will be a good show [in Australia], you don’t have to worry. It going to be a good show because I know the root of all the evil and I will make sure our show is good. I am going to work with him, it’s going to be very good, but in the future when you want to do something you call straight here and then I can find better than Professor.”

Perry will be back in Australia next month for shows with fellow dub practitioner Mad Professor, including a headline slot at Subsonic Music Festival. Perry’s greatest career contributions have been within the realm of dub, the genre he’s credited with co-founding in the late ’60s. And while dub has been through many permutations since then – dubstep being perhaps the most widely spread – the output of both Perry and Mad Professor coheres with the genre’s traditional character.

Perry started making music in the late 1950s and has not stopped creating since, somehow thwarting the depletive effects of ageing. He’s now 80 years old and continues to record and perform, even without much fiscal reward. And doesn’t he want you to know it.

Over the years, Perry has worked with the likes of Adrian Sherwood, Bill Laswell, The Orb, Ari Up (The Slits) and Beastie Boys, while also producing records by Bob Marley, Junior Murvin and The Clash. But his creative relationship with Mad Professor has lasted longer than with anyone else. They first teamed up over 30 years ago and have gone on to make six albums and intermittently tour together. It should be said, however, that this doesn’t mean Perry is in awe of the Professor.

“Most of the music that is out there, [people] are not paying for it,” he declares. “Most of them are ripped off, so I’m not earning any money. I’m doing it because God want me to do it – to change the time and change the people. I’m not wasting my time. I’m trying to see if some other people can hear what I hear. Some are totally deaf, some are cursed and some can be healed and some cannot be healed. So I’m out there doing it free. I don’t [know] about who collecting, because I’m not collecting a cent.” It’s almost a truism to say the world looks like an increasingly grim place at the moment. We’ve lost many of music’s all-time greats this year, coinciding with the rise of conspicuous

evil in the political sphere. Perry has long been a preacher of love and happiness, committed to spreading this message with his music. But he’s not confident that many contemporary musicians are capable of sharing a similar message.

of payback – that is God. God don’t know what is evil; God only comes to kill evil smut. He say, ‘Behold evil, I kill you slowly like I kill Aleister Crowley and Bob Marley and the rest.’ Kill them slowly because of greed.

“Some of the people tell you about love, but they don’t know nothing about love. The key is love, the whole thing is love. The only key that can be used to enter people who are righteous is love. Nothing’s going on like it used to be any more. The judgement is going on and the old world is finished. The Third World doomed, finished, dead, and actually 75 per cent in the world of the people are stone dead. And they don’t know they’re dead, because they don’t have any love. They’re looking for love but they don’t know what is love. They no give nothing. They want everything for themselves.”

“What is happening on the world today, most of the people you see walking are walking dead. And some are singing, they are singing dead. Some who are rapping, they are rapping dead. Rapping dead, talking dead, walking dead, fucking dead and sucking dead. That’s what goes on.”

Perhaps if Perry recognises that things have gotten worse, he can offer some theory of explanation.

“Some things change but you don’t have to worry. The show will be so good, because I want to talk to the people in my way that they can understand. The devil is fuck. Fucking is the devil. Sex is good for creating good children and it’s also good at creating bad children. It creates righteous people and creates evil people. So fuck is really the devil. A lot of people don’t know who to fuck and who not to fuck.

“God has a world and there be people who are greedy and badminded [who] change God’s world to make money and for vanity,” he says. “They are hungry for riches, silver and gold and money – stinking money. They will do anything to get money, so they sell their soul and have no care or respect for themselves any more. “God is a great love, a symbol of love, but the master of revenge, the master of judgement and the master

“EVERYTHING I CREATE IS TRUE. I’M ALLERGIC TO LIES AND ADDICTED TO TRUTH.” 10 :: BRAG :: 690 :: 23:11:16

Make what you will of Perry’s relationship with God and his interpretation of the world’s prevailing moral character, but he does retain faith in love and hope for the future, which he endeavours to communicate in his live shows.

“Sex overpopulate the people. Too much people caused by fuck, caused by Satan, fuck master. Too much people are here and they don’t have no inheritance, no money, no silver,

TOUGH LOVE BY AUGUSTUS WELBY

no gold. So they are tormented here. Some God has to kill with flood, some God has to kill with bad heart.” At this point, Perry’s particular world view starts to become clear: he looks out at the world and sees it populated by zombies – by people who are walking dead and talking dead, possessed by greed and who don’t know what’s good for them. He excludes himself from this group, however, and he has a go-to justification for what furnishes his sustained existence. “Truth,” he says. “No dead meat. I don’t eat dead meat. I don’t eat dead beef. I don’t eat ill. We don’t eat nothing dead. Me don’t tell lies, that’s what’s keeping me alive. “Everything I create is true. I’m allergic to lies and addicted to truth. It was hard one time [to stay true] because I was hanging out with lots of friends and most of them was evil and they don’t know they was evil. After I discovered that they all are evil liars, I dropped them in the pit.” Perhaps this should be a warning to Perry’s fans ahead of his Australian shows. Leave the evil at home, folks; prepare for truth and love. “I’ll be visiting you with the Mad, crazy, jealous Professor, but you don’t have to worry. You’ll have a super show. Lee Scratch Perry is good and Professor is evil. So you’ll have good show because good and evil create a good show. You will have fun forever. OK!”

What: Subsonic Music Festival 2016 With: Seth Troxler, Goldie, Ben UFO, Josh Wink, One Day and more Where: Riverwood Downs, Barrington Tops When: Friday December 2 – Sunday December 4 And: Also appearing at the Metro Theatre on Saturday December 3

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N I C K

C A V E

T H E

B A D

S E E D S

O N E M O R E T I M E W I T H F E E L I N G R E T U R N I N G T O C I N E M A S 1S T D E C E M B E R

“A

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ T I M E O U T d e e p l y p e r s o n a l f i l m ”

★ ★ ★ ★ T H E G U A R D I A N “ T r e m e n d o u s l y m o v i n g ” ★ ★ ★ ★

E V E N I N G S T A N D A R D “ E x t r a o r d i n a r y ”

Buy tickets now at eventcinemas.com.au or at the box office

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Australian Made A Time Capsule By Joseph Earp

ome 30 years ago, the ruling class of Australia’s pop and rock scenes gathered together for a series of concerts that would go on to define a generation. The Australian Made tour ran from late December 1986 into the New Year, making its way to each of the six state capitals and attracting flocks of fans in the process. The lineup was unbeatable: alt-rock legends The Triffids rubbed shoulders with punk pariahs The Saints, while Divinyls and INXS played overstuffed sets full of the songs that would go on to make them two of the most beloved bands in Australian pop history. Jimmy Barnes, then still a relatively fresh-faced solo act only a year out from the release of a little ditty called ‘Working Class Man’, used the festival appearance to showcase every one of his brawny, unpretentious talents, while stranger delights could be found in showings from Models and Mental As Anything. It was, in short, a frantic celebration of everything that makes Australian rock and pop great: a rare case of Aussies abandoning the usual cultural shyness that defines them and wholeheartedly embracing their own musical roots. And famed Australian director Richard Lowenstein was there to capture every minute of it, producing the landmark doco Australian Made: The Movie in the process.

“PEOPLE COULD ACTUALLY FANTASIZE ABOUT MAKING A CAREER IN MUSIC AND MAKING A LIVING OUT OF IT.” me,” says Lowenstein. “It just sort of appeared. We thought it was all lost – lost in copyright problems. But then it sort of appeared thanks to the producer John McLean. It was great to see that it was getting restored digitally.” For Lowenstein, the most striking element of the fi lm is the musical community it depicts – something the decorated director worries might just be a shining artefact of the past.

“It’s a bit of a time capsule,” Lowenstein says of the fi lm, which he began work on shortly after the release of his Michael Hutchencestarring cult classic Dogs In Space. “I can’t actually say I remember a lot of the fi lming of Australian Made. I remember the edit

a lot more than I actually remember fi lming it. We fi lmed it for two or three days, then we spent six months editing it all. And so when I saw the edit this year, I was like, ‘Oh yeah, I remember all this.’ But it’s good to see the musical community all there together

in a very vibrant way.” To celebrate the fi lm’s 30th anniversary, it has been given a digital restoration, and will be re-released for a special one night only screening at cinemas around the country. Make no mistake: that’s a rare

opportunity indeed, particularly given the fi lm has gone through extensive re-edits over the years thanks to a range of petty copyright disputes, making a full restore a real treat. “[The restoration] came out of the blue a bit for

“It was quite an interesting time,” Lowenstein says. “We may not have realised at the time how unique it was. It was just a very vibrant time – there was a lot more money fl oating around due to record companies. People could actually fantasize about making a career in music and making a living out of it. There was money coming in from record sales, which is something that doesn’t really happen so much any more. It was a sort of a renaissance of art and music and fi lmmaking.” Around the time of Australian Made’s fi lming, Lowenstein was largely supporting himself through the making of music videos, including several classics he fi lmed for bands like INXS and Cold Chisel. He speaks highly of the art form, not only because it allowed him to develop relationships with a range of infl uential bands, but also because in the early-to-mid-’80s it proved to be a viable way for a young fi lmmaker to hone their craft while simultaneously being able to support themselves. “Music videos and commercials – there was a

lot of space for all of that, good and bad,” he says. “You could actually seriously think of making a living by making music videos. Whereas [these days] I teach and I have interns coming in all the time, and they sort of sit there and go, ‘How can we survive in this world?’ And you really don’t know what to say. You can make music videos for your friends, but they’ll give you ten cents, so you’ve got to get a job as a courier at the same time. And of course that slows down your whole process. “If you look at the speed and success of these musicians and fi lmmakers in the ’80s, it was incredibly fast. I was fresh out of fi lm school in 1979 and by 1982 I was making my first feature fi lm. The debut was not what you’d expect, either – it wasn’t a low-budget experimental fi lm but a full-on period fi lm set in the 1930s [Strikebound].” Ultimately, it’s for this reason Lowenstein argues Australian Made provides a glimpse into a different cultural epoch – a chance to bear witness to an era in which Australian art and culture was supported, and bands didn’t have to be afraid of the sound of their own accent. “There was this proudness in the variations of Australian-ness of the music, without the cultural cringe,” he says. “Now it’s a global market, epitomised by Australian performers who have to kind of pretend to be Americans, without mentioning any names specifi cally. Now you have to appeal to a global market to survive.”

What: Australian Made: 30th Anniversary Edition (dir. Richard Lowenstein) Where: Event Cinemas When: Friday November 25 More: eventcinemas.com.au

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Emma Swift

“IF I EVER WRITE A HAPPY SONG, I’M NOT GOING TO WASTE IT ON ME, THAT’S FOR SURE.”

Lonely’s The Only Company By Alex Chetverikov

ashville, Tennessee: perched above the great swathe of the South, its clinking, dusky honkytonk bars and country music pedigree set a romantic scene. Steeped in the early history and traditions of the United States, it is country music’s modern spiritual home, and as most Nashville road signs would remind you, home of the Grand Ole Opry – among country music’s most established and recognised institutions since its inception in 1925. It’s hardly a wonder, then, that Emma Swift found herself hopelessly immersed in the city’s rich cultural charms and creative energies. Having formerly helmed FBi’s Americana radio show In The Pines, followed by Double J’s Revelator program, you might say this courtship had been a long time coming for the Australian musician. “I juggled it [music and radio] for a year while I was at Double J and everyone there was super lovely and accommodating with my weird and often frantic schedule, but in the end I just couldn’t do it and took off for an American tour,” she says. “I like coming home to Nashville – I like communing with the people, the dreamers, the country music ghosts. Before I moved there, I slow-danced with a stranger on the dancefloor at Robert’s Western World while the band played an old George Jones song and I just thought, ‘I can’t die without living in Tennessee.’ So I moved. That was five years ago. A couple of months back, I watched two 70-year-olds on the dancefloor of The Nashville Palace while the band played a pedal steel weeper and I just lost it. I never get tired of that memory or that sight.” Swift is the kind of artist whose songwriting is, by her own admission,

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necessarily bathed in longing and loneliness. Neil Young’s On The Beach is her favourite record, and the spirit of sadcore is very much ingrained in her creative expression. So too the lilting poetry of T.S. Eliot and the sensual honesty of Pablo Neruda. “I find it hard to discuss songwriting in an academic sense – for me they’re just feelings with notes attached,” Swift says. “If I have a process, I’m not aware of it. I like down songs and my voice is full of longing, so it makes sense that I create that kind of music. “In real life, I present as an eternal

optimist, so my internal world is full of stuff I’m reluctant to share or admit except through song: my sadness, my ongoing fear that nothing lasts, that love isn’t real, that we’re all going to die alone, that relationships are doomed… If I ever write a happy song, I’m not going to waste it on me, that’s for sure. Someone needs to make it a hit so I can get some cats and a house and write more sad songs.” Country music seems the perfect fit for this contrast; this essentially human duality of character that Swift embraces. Perhaps more than any other genre (although gospel gives

it a good run), it is simultaneously mournful, poignant and reflective, yet buoyed by an honest awareness. Swift’s new collaboration with the evergreen Robyn Hitchcock, ‘Love Is A Drag’ – which follows the release of Swift’s debut album in 2014 and last year’s ‘Follow Your Money’, also with Hitchcock – is stripped back further still. “The songs were written with Robyn on the Isle of Wight in the middle of a desolate, grey winter,” Swift says. “I had relocated there from Nashville in pursuit of a romance but I didn’t really know what I was doing in England or

how permanent the move would be. Every day I watched a sandstone cliff slowly crumble into the ocean from the window of a damp seaside flat. That’s what influenced this song – tiny fragments falling from a great height.” Who: Robyn Hitchcock & Emma Swift Where: Newtown Social Club When: Sunday December 11 And: Emma Swift is also appearing with Ryan Adams at the Enmore Theatre on Tuesday December 6

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British India All Work, Some Play By Anna Wilson that much. “It’s kind of hard to talk about [the tour] because it feels like we haven’t done much this year,” he says. “I was corrected earlier; we’ve done one tour already and a smaller one inside a year – I think by normal bands’ standards, we’ve done maybe too much, but by our standards, we’ve not done enough.” The current tour coincides with the release of the single ‘I Thought We Knew Each Other’, a razor-sharp track that’s not without some deep and purposeful origins, as is the norm with Melia’s lyrics. “I was reading an interview with Grimes, talking about her new album,” Melia explains. “She said she’s never gonna write another love song, only [songs] about friendships. I thought it was a really original stance, so I thought I should address this song to be about a friendship decaying. You get to a point in your late 20s when the friendships you made in your teens, though you try and reattach them at the spine, they become unglued.” The more pensive sentiments of ‘I Thought We Knew Each Other’, however, gave rise to interpretations of more volatile meanings outside of Meila’s intentions. “A few people have thought it was about relationships within the band,” says Melia. “I almost wish it were, because it’s a good story, it’s a good angle – but we’re getting on as well as ever.”

ritish India mean business. An unyielding enterprise in Australian rock, from day one they’ve worked, played, written and won at everything they’ve taken on.

Four of their five albums have placed in the top ten of the ARIA charts, and last year’s tour for Nothing Touches Me comprised sold-out shows nationwide. For most of 2016 they’ve

been bunkered down in the studio working on new material, but they’ve just set off around the country on a tour of more than 20 dates at both regional and capital city venues.

The Melburnians now have a myriad of awards, tours and albums under their belts, and yet vocalist and lyricist Declan Melia still feels like they haven’t accomplished all

Melia says the new single has no specifi c background story – or at least not one he’s willing to share – so he prefers to discuss the emotive drive behind British India’s writing process. “With the lyrics, it’s still the same as ever,” he says. “We write

Teenage Fanclub The Here And Now By Joseph Earp

f there were an annual award for the nicest man in music, Norman Blake would clean up every single year. The versatile singer-songwriter, onefifth of alt-rock titans Teenage Fanclub, is famously polite, proving happy to talk to both fans and the media at large with genuine gusto. “You must just be sitting down with your morning cup of coffee, hey?” he purrs happily in his soothing Scottish accent, showing an altogether rare interest in the actual human being on the other end of the line in an otherwise formal interview situation. And yet, despite his status as a beloved staple of the indie scene, Blake doesn’t really rate himself – in fact, he reckons he’s a bit of a bore. “I have no hobbies really,” he laughs. “I’m just always making and listening to music, even in my leisure time. It’s all music-based stuff for me.” In that way, Blake is one of the lucky few who have managed to turn a hobby into a way to pay the bills, and via Teenage Fanclub and his own notable solo records he has spent years making his passion and his job indiscriminate. Although there are some who might find such a confluence of interest and economics a curse – the one way to jeopardise something you value is by doing it every day – Blake has managed to ensure his music remains vital and important to him, even as he admits his relationship with his own songs is always changing. “I mean, it is difficult for me to connect with the guy who was 22 writing ‘Everything Flows’,” Blake says of that Teenage Fanclub hit. “But we’ve been playing the songs for so long now they get kind of indelibly printed on your brain. It’s muscle memory. It’s quite

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easy to perform them. And it feels as though they still mean the same thing.” He takes a moment to reflect. “In any case, I’m too scared to look back at YouTube videos and see if we do play them the same,” he chuckles. “That would be awful. That’s my Guantanamo Bay. Stick me in a room and make me watch Teenage Fanclub videos. You just can’t listen to your own music – it’s masochistic.”

“WE’VE BEEN PLAYING THE SONGS FOR SO LONG NOW THEY GET KIND OF INDELIBLY PRINTED ON YOUR BRAIN.”

Such a reticence to over-examine the past is the key to the Teenage Fanclub legacy. Though their sound draws on the pop of yesteryear as much as from the alt-rock assault of the ’80s, the Fanclub are ever looking forward. Their tenth album Here, released this year, mixes retro influences with something that is yet to occur in their discography – a kind of genuine warmth that feels both cutting-edge and deeply understandable. That selfsame warmth obviously comes from the sense of enjoyment the musicians themselves get from hitting the studio. “The process of making a record is great fun,” Blake says. “When you start writing a song it’s like, whatever, but when you actually start recording it you listen to all of the elements. It’s great. “I mean, the way I look at a record is being a statement of that period of time and place. If we made the record two weeks later in a different place, it would probably be totally different, you know? You’re making a statement, then you just move on. It’s either when we run out of money and that forces it to be finished, or we just kind of set a deadline.” With Here, it was very much a case of the latter – the record was laid down over three international recording

studios with two-month breaks in between, so the band was forced to hop around the globe with the clock ticking. “There was an imposed deadline there because we kind of had to make our way to Hamburg from Glasgow,” Blake says. “Because we were in Hamburg, we had to leave at a certain point. “When we were working on a song and a half a day, that meant we were

working pretty well. We just stuck to that kind of schedule. We’ve been doing this for long enough, so you know when you get to the point where it’s as good as it’s going to get.” Teenage Fanclub’s creative process is a very collaborative one, and the group’s four principal singersongwriters frequently help shape each other’s work. “We’re of a similar age, we’re of a similar background,

and probably really similar political backgrounds as well,” Blake says. “’Cause you’re hearing what other people are writing, we’re kind of influencing each other as we go along. It also helps that we’re all singing on each other’s songs and we’re all playing on each other’s songs. We’ve been doing that for years now.” At the end of the day, Teenage Fanclub are a group of individuals

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“LET’S DO IT WHILE WE’RE YOUNG AND HAVE THE ENERGY AND STILL HAVE OUR HAIR.” the music first and I listen to it and think, ‘What is the music trying to tell me? How do I articulate what the song is trying to say?’ You get it wrong as often as you get it right.” And get it right they surely do – 20 shows on a national tour would be an ambitious feat for most other bands, but not British India. Touring for them is almost an unquenchable thirst, and it’s something Melia says they feel on many levels. “I think if we’re not touring we don’t feel like we’re operating at full capacity, in both a subconscious way and a direct way,” he says. “Subconsciously, we feel like we need to get out and play shows to refresh our palette, and in a direct way, we feel lucky and honoured that we’re still able to do this. “When we’re 60 and we’re looking back on our time, we’ll regret it if we don’t do more. We’ll say to ourselves, ‘We should have sucked the marrow out of the experience, played as hard as we can, as many places as we could.’ So let’s do it while we’re young and have the energy and still have our hair.” Despite British India’s enthusiasm, however, their relative youth doesn’t prevent them from feeling the grind. “We feel lethargic, certainly,” says Melia. “It’s not the tour – it’s the drinking and late nights. If you strip away the excess, it’d be the easiest job in the world – you have to fly for hours, stand onstage and sing, but that’s an absolute pleasure. “It’s the way we punish ourselves that’s exhausting, and every band is the same – [but] short of being a massive band touring internationally, it’s not as draining

as you might think. We’ve been doing this for most of our adult lives and it feels very natural to us. I love the whole process, getting on the plane, meeting the fans, the support bands, playing.” Relentless, aren’t they? And it’s a good thing too, because without this inhuman drive and sense of ambition, British India fans wouldn’t have such a catalogue of great music to enjoy. Better yet, Melia has no plans to ease up and catch his breath after the tour ends. “We’re gonna finish the record,” he says. “The last few have been made in such a rush, so it’d be nice to get it finished and packaged, get a bit of shelf life before it hits the world.” Crucially, there won’t be any talk of pursuing other projects while British India are a going concern. “There’s really nothing else for us,” says Melia. “We’re conscious of the fact there’s life outside of BI, but this is really all we know – it’s been the better part of our lives. I think if we’re gonna do this, we’re gonna do it full-on and keep doing it. “We’re really in a good, meditative headspace with British India. We know how lucky we are and we’re embracing that.” What: Nothing Touches Me out now through Liberation Where: Metro Theatre When: Saturday November 26 And: Also appearing alongside Ball Park Music, Urthboy, Bec Sandridge and more at Ozfest 2017, Miami Tavern, Gold Coast, Saturday January 28

Chairlift Minds Over Matter By Joseph Earp

“I

don’t want to jinx it, but I have a good feeling this will go to Hillary Clinton,” says Chairlift’s Caroline Polachek on the morning of Tuesday November 8, having just returned home from the voting booth. Of course, history will prove her wrong – within 24 hours Donald J. Trump will officially become the President-elect of the United States – but one can’t fault Polachek for her optimism. After all, a kind of wide-eyed, unabashed kindness has been the key to the Chairlift sound for years now, ever since the then-three-piece released Does You Inspire You back in 2008, an album anchored by the eminently lovable, chart-topping single ‘Bruises’. Sure, things have changed in the years since – founding member Aaron Pfenning has moved on to other projects, leaving only Polachek and her friend and colleague Patrick Wimberly, and the band’s sound has veered away from its stripped-back electro beginnings and begun to more fervently embrace pop sensibilities. But the warmth that marked out early Chairlift releases is still as present as ever, as it is in Polachek’s voice as she eagerly begins to discuss the band’s upcoming tour cycle. “I’m very excited to go to Australia and Asia because it’s been three years since we’ve been there,” she says. “I can’t wait.” Indeed, Polachek is a performer who loves touring more than most, although she does admit that the rigours of playing shows can sometimes wear her down a little. “When we’re on tour and we’re playing every day and we’re travelling every day, yes it gets tiring, but it’s also lots of fun, because we’re playing quite regularly,” she says. “It’s when we fly in and out for shows that it really wears me out. Because then it’s like two days of travelling for one show. I find it’s difficult to get back into the rhythm then of being productive when I get

who truly love making music together. Though Blake is not entirely sure when or if the band will make another record, to borrow a phrase from Joe Strummer, the future is unwritten. “We don’t really sit and talk about things,” Blake says. “We just kind of do them, you know? We never have. We’ve never planned from one thing to the next … which,

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back home. So I find it’s easier to tour, hit it really hard, or not tour at all. The hardest is the in-between phase. But I can’t complain – I’m very lucky to have this job. So I’m very grateful.” As anyone who has borne witness to a Chairlift show will attest, Polachek is an accomplished, strikingly natural performer. There’s no artifice to her onstage persona, and so expertly managed is her time in front of a crowd that it often seems as though she is affording every single member of the audience equal attention. A lot of that comes from Polachek’s habit of actively seeking out individuals in the crowd to sing to, and she is a musician constantly fascinated by those who come to see her. “I watch faces throughout the show, and I’ll sometimes find people in the audience that I’m sort of interested or curious about, and I’ll check back on them over the course of the show,” she says. “Like, maybe it’s someone that looks like they’re having a really good time or a really bad time, or someone who looks really emotional, or someone who seems really bored. So I’ll find these characters and continually check back on them.” Such tricks of the trade don’t just form naturally, mind you, and Polachek has to work hard at the performative aspect of her craft. “Beyond soundchecking and getting all our gear and lighting set up, I take about an hour to get dressed,” she says. “I’ll tend to warm up as I’m getting dressed too – although on a good day, if I have time, I’ll start warming up hours before we go onstage. “But the real thing for me is just about not talking. If we’re in a city with friends that I haven’t seen for a long time, I sort of screw myself out of having a good voice that night because I’ll talk a lot. That really wears me out. So for me the big thing is just separating myself from the group and going somewhere to be quiet. That helps me the most …

“IF I’M HAVING A HARD TIME CONNECTING WITH THE AUDIENCE, I’LL SOMETIMES JUST IMAGINE THAT THEY’RE ALL BRAINS.” more so now than eight years ago when we started touring, I really put the music first. That’s my priority.” That’s not to say Polachek doesn’t have to stare down the spectre of stage fright, and combating her nerves plays an essential part in the process of performing. “I have found that I’m usually quite nervous before we go onstage and during the first song,” she says. “It can be particularly scary if I know that there are people in the crowd, particularly other artists that I know and I’m a fan of. That makes me the most nervous. But as soon as that first song is out of the way, then it’s better.” Polachek does have an additional and distinct way of making sure she can give herself fully to the audience – one that involves a mind trick so quintessentially Chairlift in its touching oddness that it’s genuinely quite surprising the idea hasn’t turned up in one of the band’s songs yet. “If I’m having a hard time connecting with the audience, I’ll sometimes just imagine that they’re all brains,” Polachek says. “That they’re all just, like, hovering brains. And then I’ll just sing for the brains.” She laughs. “It [works] on a very sensual level – I just think about the flesh of all these brains, and what I can do to make all these brains happy.” What: Moth out now through Columbia/Sony Where: Metro Theatre When: Sunday December 4

you know, perhaps we should.” He laughs. “Maybe we should be a bit more organised after all of this time.” What: Here out through PeMa/ Warner With: The Goon Sax Where: Taronga Zoo When: Friday March 10

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The Drones Death, Taxes And Tinnies By Joseph Earp compliment. Does that kind of praise get hurled Liddiard’s way often? “Not a huge amount – not as much as you’d think,” the frontman says. “But we’ve pegged stuff at the audience too. I remember Dan [Luscombe, guitar] pegging something at someone in the front row who was talking. I actually caught a bottle that someone hoiked at me once and just sent it straight back. “As a musician onstage, you’re really in a high level of concentration. You’re doing things that involve a high level of dexterity. So like, if you wanna hit someone when they’ve thrown something at you, you can fuckin’ hit them. It’s revved up physically. If somebody’s rude to you during your workday, compare that to running ten times around the block and then have someone be rude to you. If they were rude after a jog, you’d clock ’em.” 2016 has seen Liddiard and The Drones take to the stage numerous times, playing cuts from their stunning, snarky new record, Feelin Kinda Free. But such an intense on-and-off-again touring cycle has had its own side effects.

hrowing things at public figures as a way of expressing praise has a long and illustrious history that dates all the way back to Ancient Greece and Rome. After all,

ol’ mate Draco, he of the Draconian laws, was so popular he suffocated to death after being smothered in apparel thrown during a coliseum appearance.

So when Gareth Liddiard of The Drones had a beer can chucked at his head earlier this year while playing a show at the Metro Theatre, one could only assume the act was designed as a

“When you’re on tour, it normalises you,” says Liddiard. “You get this huge cathartic release. But then you get home and you’re confronted with the dishes or whatever. It’s alright for a few weeks. But then you really need to have what is essentially at the root of it a kind of tantrum. [Gigs] are huge existential tantrums. It’s not weird to have a bunch of people watching another bunch of people going through these ritualistic motions, working through these taboo emotions. It’s not very different from a corroboree or something.”

“HUMANS ARE THE ONLY ANIMALS THAT KNOW THEY’RE GONNA CARK IT … NO MATTER ALL OUR DIFFERENCES, WE’RE ALL FUCKED.”

King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard The Top Banana By David James Young

played the flute prior to learning it for Dream Balloon) and ending up on the other side of the world – instrumentally, at least.

Still, as Stu Mackenzie – the band’s primary vocalist and one of its three guitarists – attests, there’s a perfectly reasonable explanation for this very unexpected name.

“I got this baglama, which is a stringed Turkish instrument,” he says. “It’s shaped kind of like a lute, with seven strings and a long, thin neck. It has movable frets, which you can hear if you listen to Turkish folk music. There’s a lot of sounds that can be found in between the notes you’re accustomed to hearing. I came up with the arrangement of the microtones on the Flying Banana based off the baglama. It went from being something that I was just messing around with to something that I was basing an entire album around.”

elbourne-via-Torquay septet King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard have always had a thing for out-of-the-ordinary album titles. Past examples include I’m In Your Mind Fuzz, Paper Mâché Dream Balloon and even their most recent LP, April’s endlessly looping Nonagon Infi nity. With the announcement of their ninth album, however, it seemed as though the Gizz had truly outdone themselves with the mouthful that is Flying Microtonal Banana (yep, try saying that three times fast).

“My friend Zach very generously built a guitar for me,” he says. “We worked together on the design, and he masterminded the whole thing. It was inspired by the Gibson Flying V in terms of its shape, and it was yellow – so, naturally, it earned the nickname of the Flying Banana. Part way through making the guitar, I told Zach that I wanted to put microtones in the frets of the guitar. That involves adding extra frets that aren’t usually there on the board – it’s kind of like accessing secret notes of guitar, the tones in between your regular frets. It’s a concept that I had wanted to look into further for quite a while, and this album seemed like the right place to explore it. So, that’s how the Flying Banana became Flying Microtonal Banana.” We’ve already had our first taste (pardon the pun) of Banana care of its seven-and-a-half-minute lead single, the hypnotic ‘Rattlesnake’. It’s a song that, while leaning on several of the band’s favourite tropes – the pulsing double drums, the layered vocals, the flange-heavy guitar – also incorporates sounds that are quite literally unconventional, due to finding those in-between notes and implementing them into the structure of the song. According to Mackenzie, the interest stemmed from wanting to learn more instruments (he had famously never

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Flying Microtonal Banana, which is set for release in February, is the first of five – count ’em – albums that King Gizzard plan to release in 2017. Although being rapidly prolific is nothing new – the band has averaged two LPs a year for nearly its entire existence – the prospect of five full-length records in 12 months is unprecedented, even for these guys. They’re already recording – “It’s all kind of going on all at once,” Mackenzie says – and their high-concept plan is in full swing… well, almost. “At this point, we have a record that we’re recording with Mild High Club,” Mackenzie begins. “That’s going to be a pretty chill, jazzy groove record. We’ve started doing some demos for that, and that’ll probably be the loosest record. We have two records that are kind of linked – one more or less leads on from Nonagon, although it’s a little moodier and isn’t as relentless. The other one is different again – we’re getting into territory that we’ve never even thought of before.” For a moment, Mackenzie trails off – he’s legitimately forgotten where he’s up to. “We still haven’t decided on what the fifth album is gonna be,” he concludes with a laugh. “We’ve got plenty of time to come up with something.”

Fans will get their first listen to new material from Flying Microtonal Banana – and quite possibly other songs from forthcoming records – at the band’s second annual Gizzfest, which tours the country from this weekend. For the biggest shows they have ever hosted, King Gizzard will play on an extensive and diverse bill celebrating rock, sludge, riffs and garage-dwelling madness from both here and overseas. It’s a huge project – especially in the midst of making five albums – but Mackenzie is unfazed. More than anything, he is overcome with excitement at the prospect of the festival. “It’s definitely been a gradual process,” he says. “There’s a fair bit of thought that goes into it. Luckily, we were able to put together a lineup of bands that we’ve either toured with or become really good buddies with. We started out by just hitting up our friends, and gradually built it up from there. There’s a lot that’s gone into making it happen – I mean, there’s still stuff we’re finalising now. Still, it’s a really exciting thing for us. We’re really keen to hang out with this particular crew that we’ve assembled.” Joining Gizzfest will be Perth psych lords Pond – marking the first time they and King Gizz have toured together – as well as sisterly quartet Stonefield, Geelong’s premier Sabbath worshippers Orb, and American bands like White Fence and the aforementioned Mild High Club. “Everyone playing is a mate,” says Mackenzie. “That’s pretty unreal to us.” What: Gizzfest 2016 With: Pond, White Fence, The Murlocs, Mild High Club and more Where: Big Top Sydney, Luna Park When: Tuesday November 29 And: Flying Microtonal Banana out Friday February 24 through Flightless/Remote Control

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WHY BAD BRAINS DESERVE A PLACE IN THE ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME ‘Taboo’ being the key word. The Drones’ back catalogue is peppered with a myriad of blackly comic jokes, false confessions and bad trips. “We rarely laughed and she often cried”, goes a line in ‘She Had An Abortion That She Made Me Pay For’, and that kind of half-funny, mostly fucked proclamation is both Liddiard’s speciality and his release.

Death is the other unmentionable that binds The Drones’ work together – the stark reality behind most great art. “Humans are the only animals that know they’re gonna cark it,” Liddiard says. “Humans have that every day. They know it. That is the root of art. That is the pure, defining thing – no matter all our differences, we’re all fucked. We’re all gonna get it. So [art] is cathartic, but it won’t fix the problem. “I mean, you look at someone like Bob Marley and he does something different in order to get to the same place. Whether it’s a The Drones show or something like a Rollins Band show from the early ’80s, when it’s just that excoriatingly depressing, bad vibes kind of thing – that’s just the route we take to get everyone to feel like they’re together in the same room. It’s like this huge fucking communal grieving process. So it’s not pleasant, but in the end everyone feels like they’re together.” That said, Liddiard is at pains to avoid the stereotype of the artist as bleeding heart, and

Ultimately, for Liddiard, it all comes down to shared experience – to the wasted, wrecked feeling you get when you realise we’re all equally screwed. “That’s what a gig is for,” he says. “That’s why everyone is gathered in the room – to get to that point. Otherwise it’s just some shitty gig. “I mean, music is so mysterious. Scientists are trying to figure it out, and they get close, but it’s impossible. Truly great photography does the same thing. Opposed to literature, which feels sort of quantifiable – music is just…” He goes quiet for the briefest of moments. “I mean, what is it? It’s magic. Why does it make you feel that way? Why do the hairs on your arm stand up? It’s mad. It’s just something that we will never get to the bottom of.”

Light In The Darkness By Joseph Earp

here is perhaps nothing less rock’n’roll than being nominated for a major music award. After all, the idea of receiving an accolade from the very system bands often find themselves directly opposed to seems almost oxymoronic: “Here’s your prize for not caring about things like prizes!” is what a MTV statuette or honorary induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame seems to say.

What: Fairgrounds Festival 2016 With: Rodriguez, Julien Baker, Julia Jacklin, Big Scary and more Where: Berry Showgrounds When: Friday December 2 – Saturday December 3 And: Feelin Kinda Free out now through Tropical Fuck Storm/MGM

And yet if there’s any band that deserves the latter plaudit, it’s D.C.’s own Bad Brains, the ragtag collective headed by musical savant Paul ‘H.R.’ Hudson. For the first time in its three-decade plus career, the band is up for the esteemed nod, one that would come as an important stamp of approval branded across a genre-changing legacy.

“THERE’S A LOT OF SOUNDS THAT CAN BE FOUND IN BETWEEN THE NOTES YOU’RE ACCUSTOMED TO HEARING.”

Of course, even a passing glance at a record like Rock For Light, Bad Brains’ magnum opus, makes it clear that this demented collective isn’t in the business of yearning after prizes, nor is it even particularly interested in shifting units. A song titled ‘Pay To Cum’ is only going to get so far in terms of radio distribution anyway, and the deliberately subversive nature of the group’s discography gives off a kind of prickly heat not suited for those who squirm easily. But that’s exactly what makes Bad Brains the perfect choice for the Hall of Fame; exactly why the band members should take their place alongside other legends like Nirvana and Al Green. Bad Brains should be inducted into the Hall precisely because they’re the kind of band that does not give a fuck about being inducted; because it won’t affect them in the slightest if they aren’t.

Bad Brains photo courtesy Malco23/Wikimedia Commons

King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizad photo by Jamie Wdziekonski

“In normal conversation, you can’t really bring up grief, you can’t bring up bereavement,” he says. “Even global warming – you can’t really get to the bottom of it during a dinner conversation because your friends will hate you. So everyone steers clear of that shit, usually.”

he never over-quantifies his band’s music. “It’s not always high art,” he stresses. “I mean, Beethoven is better than The Beatles. But you don’t always want the best. It’s like, would you want to pop a fuckin’ bottle of Christau champagne at your mum’s funeral? It’s inappropriate. And, like, you don’t always wanna have Beethoven at 11pm on a Saturday night. You want something that’s kinda shit. But ultimately, you still have those same elements that make Beethoven great. It’s kind of a lust for life. It’s all the same, when it’s good. It’s all the same.”

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Rock’n’roll in its purest form isn’t about trimmings, or the toot and trifle that comes along with having your face splashed across the front cover of so many freshly minted copies of NME. Rock’n’roll – particularly punk rock, and particularly the brand of snarling, subversive punk rock churned out by Bad Brains – is first and foremost about the music itself, and has little to nothing to do with the term ad men use to sell shit or the scene that pale imitators cluster around. In that way, Bad Brains go about making music the way an electrician goes about laying wires or a carpenter builds doors. Simply put, the band serves an innate purpose, and though their targets might shuffle from record to record, Hudson and co. are always firing off at someone. Or perhaps some thing, or some institution – or even themselves, trying to gouge away at wounds that are internal.

To that end, their sociopolitical ire is not to be understated, particularly within the confines of the punk scene. Though anarchic rock is often thought of as being inherently left-wing and free from racism and misogyny, towards the beginning of their career Bad Brains had to combat extreme stereotyping and suspicion from within the very scene they hoped to rise to the top of. “In the early days we faced a lot of racists,” Hudson told a reporter from Spin in 2012. “Sometimes they’d throw beer bottles and do a little spitting … Once we were able to get over that initial shock of being received by the audience that way, then they understood where we were coming from. And we understood where they were coming from, and we all reached a level of communication. Then we let the music do the talking.” And it does talk, the music of Bad Brains. Sometimes it screams, and sometimes it mumbles, sometimes its advice seems nonsensical and other times it seems sage. But it never takes a breath, and it never waits to be heard – it just is, constantly, forever needed and supplied. 1986’s I Against I hasn’t become less relevant in the years since its release: it has festered, spilled into blue and grey like a bruise, and its technicolour yuckiness is as much a perfect soundtrack to the trash fire of 2016 as it was to the year in which it was released. But these are all just words. There is a reason Bad Brains write songs and not missives or manifestos – the group’s music, though at once highly intellectualised, is just as interested in socking the gut as it is expanding the mind. Hudson and his crew make exactly the kind of albums that resist articles such as this one. After all, there is a reason why the ever-verbose Henry Rollins describes ‘Pay To Cum’ quite simply as the song that changed his life. Such boiled-down, blasted-clean statements are the only accolades that ever really do the band justice. So, to borrow that language – why do Bad Brains deserve to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Not only because they do what they do without fanfare, but because what they do is good. Good the way medicine is good. Good the way change is good. And fucking hell, does 2016 need some good, and some change. You can vote for your favourite Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominee for 2017 at rockhall.com.

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arts in focus

free stuff head to: thebrag.com/freeshit

arts news...what's goin' on around town... with Harriet Flitcroft, Ariana Norton and David Burley

five minutes WITH

RYAN ATKINS FROM THAT BREAKFAST SHOW

an you introduce us to the three members of That Breakfast Show? The members of That Breakfast Show are me (Ryan Atkins), Stuart Owen and Brendan Atkins. Brendan has had a love

You’re about to compete in the Theatresports Cranston Cup Grand Final. Having taken part in the Impro Australia Schools Challenge previously, what’s it like taking on the big leagues? I am super excited to be a part of the Cranston Cup Grand Final and

to battle it out for the Cranston Cup, often called the ‘Holy Grail of Impro Comedy’. It’s awesome to be playing with some improvisers that have hosted the Impro Australia Schools Challenge, which I competed in while I was in high school, and taking on the big league is a great opportunity to learn from the legends and champions of improv. What makes Theatresports so attractive to different generations of comedians? The sheer amount of fun, creativity and silliness at the core of Theatresports in a way reawakens our childlike imagination, and I think this is in part why Theatresports is so attractive to different generations of comedians. Theatresports also has a positive philosophy that promotes accepting ideas, listening and connecting and safely failing in an in-themoment, spontaneous fashion that ultimately accumulates to a big old upbeat yes-fest,

and I think that is wonderfully refreshing and attractive. Who are your number one rivals in the Cranston Cup Grand Final lineup? Our number one rivals in the Grand Final would have to be The Eejits, because my high school Theatresports teacher and improv legend Ewan Campbell is a member of that team! Is a good improviser born with the natural talent, or can it be trained? One can be trained to be a great improviser! Just like riding a bike or completing Sudokus, by practising the fundamental elements of the craft you will improve those particular skills and eventually they become second nature. What: Theatresports Cranston Cup Grand Final Where: Enmore Theatre When: Sunday November 27

LADY SINGS FOR CHRISTMAS Babes In The Woods

BABES IN THE WOODS

Don’t Look Away is set to continue the time-honoured tradition of an end-ofyear pantomime with a brand spanking new production called Babes In The Woods. The play, developed specially for the Old Fitz Theatre, tells the story of a money-minded, selfish-at-best aunt and the events that unfold when her dead brother’s children turn up on her doorstep with a will that leaves all of his property to them… unless something terrible should happen to them. The ensemble cast includes Annie Byron, Sean Hawkins, Gabriel Fancourt, Alex Malone, Ildiko Susany and Samantha Young. Babes In The Woods will play from Tuesday December 13 – Wednesday December 21 and Friday January 6 – Monday January 21.

Lion

This week’s Spoken Word Women event will feature four international acts, with performances of powerful poetry and words from women in a musical and literary showcase. The big names in question are Sonya Renee Taylor, founder of The Body Is Not An Apology, and Denise Jolly, creator of the Be Beautiful Project, as well as two duos: Spare Pages (Australian singer Emily Rex and performance poet Azure Antoinette) and One Thousand Promises (a collaboration between choreographer Francesca Willow and poet Madison Mae Parker). Local Sydney

The 2017 program for Carriageworks has been revealed. Highlights on the calendar include the inaugural edition of The National: New Australian Art, a collaboration between

Carriageworks, the Art Gallery of New South Wales and the Museum of Contemporary Art exploring the latest ideas and forms in Australian art. A partnership with the City of Sydney will mark a hundred years since the Great Strike of 1917, while indigenous art will also feature on the program, with Carriageworks extending its partnership with Blacktown Arts Centre’s Solid Ground program. Bangarra Dance Company will present a triple bill, Ones Country – The Spine Of Our Stories, showcasing everything from NorthEast Arnhem Land’s red dust to the salt water of the Torres Strait Islands and urban life. 2017 will also see the return of Sydney Festival to

MARDI GRAS FILM FESTIVAL

Queer Screen’s Mardi Gras Film Festival is set to return for its 24th year, and the first ten films on the bill are here. The 2017 Mardi Gras is right around the corner and Queer Screen is planning on bringing the best LGBTQI movies from Australia and around the world to Sydney screens. Of the ten films announced so far, eight will have their Australian premieres at the festival. The ten films are The Pass, Below Her Mouth, Bad Girl, Political Animals, Out Run, Don’t Call Me Son, Suicide Kale, Liebmann, Lazy Eye and Check It. Tickets for these films are on sale now at queerscreen.org.au. The Mardi Gras Film Festival 2017 runs from Wednesday February 15 – Thursday March 2.

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The Green Room Award-nominated singing lady gang Lady Sings It Better will be performing their Christmas show Sleighing It! including classic family hits ‘Back Door Santa’ and ‘Leroy The Redneck Reindeer’ at Django Bar in December. Winners of the Sydney Fringe 2016 Best Cabaret award, the Ladies will deliver their usual sass and surprise. Mixing complex harmonies with ambitious and unexpected arrangements, they will be accompanied by Hayden Barltrop on the ivories. Get into the holiday spirit on Thursday December 8 and Friday December 9.

No End Of Blame

BY JOVE, IT’S SPORT

The Sydney-based Sport For Jove theatre company is about to enter its eighth year of showcasing theatrical talent with a schedule to make it the biggest year yet. The 2017 season is set to bring 64 actors and four directors to the stage, where they’ll be showing a combination of exciting new works and some of the most well-known theatre in history. Over the summer, Sport For Jove be putting on two Shakespearean classics, Julius Caesar and Antony And Cleopatra, from Saturday December 17 – Sunday January 29. In autumn, the company is showcasing a co-produced work inspired by the history of Urania Cottage, a home for fallen women that was founded by Charles Dickens. Sport For Jove will also be hosting a new adaptation of Cyrano De Bergerac, plus They Shoot Horses Don’t They? and No End Of Blame in 2017. Find out more at sportforjove. com.au.

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Babes In The Woods by Anna Gardiner

Bad Girl

CARRIAGEWORKS 2017 PROGRAM

If you’re a fan of the Underworld movies, or just vampires/Kate Beckinsale in general, you’re in luck. We have 15 in-season double passes to give away for Underworld: Blood Wars, in cinemas from Thursday December 1. Enter at thebrag.com/ freeshit.

No End Of Blame photo by Marnya Rothe

Moonlight Cinema is back for another year, bringing a jam-packed program with it. The diverse program features award-season favourites Passengers, Lion, La La Land and Allied, alongside hotly anticipated blockbusters including Star Wars: Rogue One, Assassin’s Creed and Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them. Elsewhere, the calendar features advanced screenings of A Monster Calls, XXX: Return Of Xander Cage, Office Christmas Party and Why Him?. Capping it off comes the specially programmed Doggie Nights screening The Secret Life Of Pets, featuring pet pampering stations, doggie treat samples and special giveaways throughout the night so your canine companion doesn’t have to miss out on the fun. Classic films get a run too, with Back To The Future and a sing-along version of Grease set to hit the big screen. Of course, it wouldn’t be Moonlight Cinema without some tasty treats to go along with the films. While remaining BYO, punters can dig into a menu featuring mac’n’cheese balls, crispy salt and pepper squid, three types of sliders and tasty Spanish churros. Moonlight Cinema will go down at Centennial Park from Thursday December 1 – Sunday April 2.

poet Hani Abdile will open the evening with a reading from her new poetry collection, I Will Rise. President of the Australian Human Rights Commission, Gillian Triggs, will be on hand to launch Abdile’s book. The event takes place at 107 Projects this Friday November 25.

Kate Beckinsale is back as the vampire death-dealer Selene in the fifth Underworld movie, Underworld: Blood Wars, which opens in theatres next week. As she tries to battle both the Lycans and vampires amid their ongoing war, she is joined by allies Thomas (played by Games Of Thrones’ Charles Dance) and David (Theo James). As survival gets harder, Selene might have to make the ultimate sacrifice.

Carriageworks, featuring the Asian-inspired and Kylie Kwong-curated Night Market, plus Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, Sydney Contemporary and Sydney Symphony events at the venue. See more at carriageworks. com.au.

MOONLIGHT CINEMA RETURNS

WORD TRAVELS FAST

UNDERWORLD: BLOOD WARS

for Theatresports since being first introduced to it in year seven at high school. Over the nine years of his improv career he has successfully flown to the Moon, sunk Blackbeard’s ship, been a whale in the Pacific Ocean and accidentally killed the Queen of England. Stuart has been performing around Sydney for years. He enjoys frolicking in the rain and thinks you’re mad if you don’t. His love for the stage and all things silly have brought him to the Cranston Cup to make absurd detail for your ears and eyeballs. I discovered Theatresports in year seven and participated in after-school classes all throughout high school.

arts in focus

Ladies In Black

FEATURE

[MUSICAL THEATRE] Tim Finn’s Passion Project By Adam Norris

fter an overwhelming response from audiences in Brisbane – where it was hailed as the best Aussie musical since Priscilla, no less – Ladies In Black is soon to arrive for Sydney Festival. It’s quite fitting, given our city is where the actual story takes place, and in light of recent events in world politics, the musical’s message of feminist values – you know, those no-brainers like equality and respect – is timely. Split Enz/ Crowded House luminary Tim Finn, the composer and lyricist, chats about the development of the production, and the surprising length of time the prospect of staging a musical has been calling to him. “I’ve honestly been thinking about it since the early ’80s, which I know sounds like a long time,” he says. “Almost at the peak of the fame of Split Enz, when we were at our most widely known and touring all the time, I’d often escape into a little fantasy land of doing a musical, though I originally thought I’d do a film musical. I even wrote a script, which is fairly poor, really. I remember as a kid I wrote a parody of My Fair Lady called My Fair Laddie, and the day before it opened for the school in the assembly hall, the lead got the mumps. I had to play the lead, and I’m sure not an actor, so that didn’t exactly whet my appetite to be in a musical, but

it did whet the appetite for writing songs. That said, I wasn’t very good at it for quite a while.”

to love it. I can see the energy that flows from that, and it’s amazing.”

When you look at the course of Finn’s career – this is the man who co-wrote ‘Four Seasons In One Day’ and ‘Weather With You’, for goodness’ sake – it’s hard to imagine him struggling to find a voice. But just as it took time to find that spark for composition, so too did it take something like Ladies In Black to evolve his writing yet again.

Similarly, it gave Finn the experience of seeing his songs take on a very different life. His songs have always been meaningful, but rather ephemeral, with no physical shape beyond the bond of audience and performer. But here, his words could grow limbs and move about the stage independently.

“Because of director Simon [Phillips] and his wife [Carolyn Burns], who wrote the book, I really went through a huge learning curve on this project, and it’s so thrilling. When you’ve been doing something for years and years, and you know what your process is and wait for the good songs to roll, this was new. A new way of looking at narrative, character.

“[The interpretation was] something I was outside of, though of course still emotionally connected to the song and the story and the characters. In rehearsal is when it first opens up, of course, and you just can’t ask for more. To see the cast engage with the song and actually make the characters – it is a really addictive and delightful thing. There’s a lot of work involved, but there is a huge pay-off.

“Plus, Simon really loves cutting up songs and inserting dialogue, and it’s a real skill. When he first started doing it, I was quite dismayed,” Finn laughs. “I thought we were losing the song. You do verse, chorus, and suddenly there’d be two minutes of dialogue, and then back to the song! And that’s extremely disruptive when you’re used to songs being three minutes of compressed work. But I got used to it, and got

“I don’t think I’ll ever forget the point when I went to the very first preview in Brisbane, when the woman sang ‘The Bastard Song’. Just about the whole audience started chuckling, and then laughing as they realised the pattern of the song. Every time a pithy line came out, they would laugh, and that was the most addictive thing that’s ever happened to me. I wanted to write more funny songs immediately.

“I’VE ONLY EVER BEEN ONE TO LOOK AHEAD AND NEVER LOOK BACK, BUT CERTAINLY WITH AGE, YOU DO FIND YOURSELF LOOKING BACK IN WONDERMENT AND AMAZEMENT, EVEN SCORN SOMETIMES.” “There was a lot of humour in Split Enz, but they weren’t funny songs. There was a lot of wit and oddness, but they weren’t straightout make-you-laugh funny. That’s a side of me that I’d never explored before.” At the time of our conversation, Crowded House are days away from their return to the Opera House, Ladies In Black is gaining momentum for its Sydney premiere, and Big Canoe, Finn’s second solo record, has turned 30. He’s also composed songs to the lyrics of late Australian poet Dorothy Porter for another Sydney Festival show, The Fiery Maze. Finn’s days are littered with quite a few milestones of late, and you can’t help but wonder just how nostalgic this has made him. “It’s a good question, and hard to answer. I’ve only ever been one to look ahead and never look back, but certainly with age, you do fi nd yourself looking back in wonderment and amazement, even scorn sometimes. You look back more. “One of my favourite writers, Milan Kundera, he says elegiacal nostalgia is the true subject matter of all poetry and music. I always thought nostalgia was a dirty word, but when you combine it with the idea of elegy, that can be some of the fruitfulness and richness of older age. Even if you’re singing for people who aren’t with you any more, or whether it’s just time and memory. And the whole thing’s just so dreamy. You look back and think, ‘God, did that really happen?’ It’s that kind of feeling that you don’t quite get when you’re young. It’s a very rich source.” What: Ladies In Black as part of Sydney Festival 2017 Where: Sydney Lyric When: Tuesday January 3 – Sunday January 22 And: The Fiery Maze plays at Magic Mirrors Spiegeltent, Saturday January 7 – Thursday January 12

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arts in focus

The Encounter [THEATRE] Art Opposing Art By Joseph Earp

n the world of contemporary theatre, Complicite stands alone. The pioneering British company is a formidable collective of singularly talented writers and performers led by co-founder Simon McBurney. Their aim is simple: to buck the preconceptions associated with the dramatic arts by embracing a range of technological flourishes and onstage magic in order to mount works that defy belief and convention, transporting audiences to a place they may never have been before.

“WE TRY TO PICK AWAY AT [REALITY] A LITTLE BIT, BECAUSE IT’S NICE FOR THE AUDIENCE TO BE A LITTLE BIT TENDERISED.”

Actor Richard Katz has been lucky enough to be involved in the Complicite machine for over 20 years now, culminating in his starring role in the company’s upcoming production, The Encounter – a one-man play heading to Australia in the New Year as part of Sydney Festival. As Katz tells it, his relationship with the troupe has resulted in some of the most creatively fulfilling work of his life, and he describes Complicite’s renegade way of working as unlike anything else he has experienced. “[Simon] likes to make things from nothing, and the company is one that thrives on the idea that you can make a story about whatever you want to make it about,” says Katz. “With Simon’s way of working there is no model; there are no rules. You have no idea what you’re doing on day one. It’s empty.” And yet, despite all the great experiences Complicite has given him, Katz doesn’t sentimentalise the troupe’s creative process, and he admits that writing in such a manner comes with its fair share of anxiety. “Lots of my actor friends, because they know I’ve had a 20-year relationship with Simon, they say, ‘Oh, can you put me in touch with him?’” says Katz. “And I’ll say, ‘You know what, I don’t think you’d like it.’

A lot of that groping about in the creative dark also involves experimenting with a range of

technological aides, gadgets that Complicite embraces in a way unlike most other contemporary theatre troupes. Just take the apparatus at play in The Encounter: the work relies heavily upon microphone technology in order to tell the story of its hero, the National Geographic photographer Loren McIntyre. Audience members will be provided with headphones upon entering the theatre, allowing Katz and McBurney to play around with sound in a way they simply couldn’t otherwise. “The whole opening of the show, we talk about how people confuse fiction and reality,” says Katz. “We’re not trying to hide the artifice of the play. We literally come out and we say ‘hi’ and have a little conversation with the audience. We alert them to the fact that there’s some technology at play and we show them the microphones. We try

to pick away at [reality] a little bit, because it’s nice for the audience to be a little bit tenderised.”

collaborators isn’t a case of blind hope – the proof, as they say, is in the pudding.

The Encounter has been ten years in gestation, with Katz revealing that McBurney has considered mounting the piece a number of times in the past. “I just don’t think he knew how the show would work, how it would look,” Katz says. “So we would do workshops and gradually he realised he wanted it to be a one-man show, and everything else would be in the mind of the audience. So gradually from 2008 onwards, we would attack it with a slew of workshops, and chip away at what it might look like.”

“Simon’s great skill is being the very poster boy for creative faith,” says Katz. “He has an incredible spirit and enthusiasm for the work, and the question he asks most in rehearsals is, ‘Is it good enough? Is what we’ve got currently good enough?’ And none of us are Shakespeare. So most of the time, when you ask that question, ‘Is it good enough?’ someone in the room can go, ‘Actually, there’s a hole there and there.’ It’s always growing.”

Ultimately, despite the slog that such a method of chipping away might involve, Katz has ultimate trust in his Complicite colleagues. After all, given the troupe’s track record, Katz’s belief in his

What: The Encounter as part of Sydney Festival 2017 Where: Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House When: Wednesday January 18 – Saturday January 28

education profile WITH

ACADEMY OF MUSIC AND PERFORMING ARTS Courses on offer: Bachelor of Music (Performance), Bachelor of Dance, Associate Degree of Music (Performance), Associate Degree of Dance, Graduate Diploma of Music (Performance), Master of Music (Performance). What makes us different: AMPA offers a unique and dedicated focus on performance and individual face-to-face learning, with AMPA’s Bachelor of Dance being the only performance-driven dance degree in New South Wales. Our degrees are structured so that an accredited Bachelor of Music or Dance can be obtained in just two years. AMPA is a very tight-knit creative community, yet we facilitate a lot of external performance opportunities, helping students gain experience and exposure outside of class hours. Studying at AMPA is a bit like joining an extended family, because there is a real spirit of belonging, peer support and collaboration.

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Who are the teachers? This year we were thrilled to welcome a new executive dean and head of music, as well as a number of new teachers with international performance reputations. All our staff have extensive and continuing experience in the industry, yet are incredibly personable, which makes them great mentors for students looking to navigate a creative, sustainable and professional trajectory in music or the performing arts. Take the next step: Our students are well equipped to take the lead in their own careers as performers, collaborators, teachers and cultural leaders. We currently have students that are already accepting professional performance opportunities in Australia and internationally, while others have gone on to become leaders in education. Our alumni have proven that there are multiple ways to forge meaningful careers in the arts.

What else you need to know: AMPA are really excited to meet the new generation of local talent. We have an exciting upcoming program of events for people that want an insight into what it’s like to study at AMPA. The best thing to do is just reach out and get involved! Enrolment dates: For those interested in applying for an undergraduate degree, AMPA will be holding a series of audition days from December to January for entry into Trimester 1 of 2017. FEE-HELP is available for all AMPA courses. Open Day: Wednesday January 25 Phone: (02) 9555 1666 Email: admissions@ampa. edu.au Website: ampa.edu.au

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The Encounter by Gianmarco Bresadola

“It’s not for everyone. When we opened Mnemonic [in 1999], we opened in a small town … and we still hadn’t written the ending. We were in a technical rehearsal, and in mid-afternoon someone said, ‘I’m not being funny. What the fuck’s the ending?’ And we had to hold the house – we went up an hour late – and we still hadn’t really rehearsed the ending because we’d only written it ten minutes before. And so that really isn’t for everyone. There were weeks and weeks of blind alleys.”

However, as far as Katz is concerned, that kind of anxiety is tempered by a deep sense of freedom – one that allowed Complicite to do something genuinely groundbreaking with The Encounter. “I don’t think Simon really knows what’s going on either when we’re writing at the beginning,” Katz laughs. “He doesn’t pre-judge it. He’s very good at knowing how to leave it, and he knows what it isn’t rather than what it is. So a lot of time you’ll show him stuff just to get it cut. Like, you’ll go, ‘How about this?’ And he’ll go, ‘No.’ ‘How about this?’ ‘No.’ And gradually the noes turn into yeses, because by working out what it isn’t, you work out what to put there instead. So it develops almost in opposition to itself, in a sense.”

arts reviews ■ Film

ARRIVAL In cinemas now From Hollywood blockbusters to quirky comedies like Attack The Block, science fiction filmmaking often boils down to a set of very familiar tropes and beats. Even films acclaimed for their subversive elements like District 9 fall into the same trap. Sci-fi can be about anything the imagination can muster, but the realities of Hollywood studios mean that potential is rarely embraced. At a certain point, action became the de facto approach when it came to telling sci-fi stories, and in particular, alien invasion stories. As a result, it’s easy to imagine a version of Arrival where the set-up – aliens arrive on Earth, a linguist (Amy Adams) and physicist (Jeremy Renner) are recruited by the military to try to communicate with them – results in a more traditional romp. Instead, Arrival ends up becoming unrelentingly intellectual.

■ Film

I, DANIEL BLAKE In cinemas now Ken Loach’s latest unvarnished meditation on Britain’s working class is his second film to pick up Cannes Film Festival’s coveted Palme d’Or, and deservedly so, for there could not be a more timely and resonant drama to emerge in the wake of 2016’s populist political disasters. Loach captures with unflinching temerity the trials faced by those most deserving of a nation’s sympathy, and just how little sympathy they are shown. Manchester carpenter Daniel Blake (Dave Johns) suffers a heart attack at work, and is warned off working for four to six weeks. Seeking support, he is rebuked by the state welfare, and develops a rapport with a young single mother, Katie (Hayley Squires), whose struggles mirror his own. Ever the realist, Loach steers clear of stylistic flourish, so the only music on offer is that which Blake owns on cassette; the only colour palette on display the muted greys and browns of the industrial North. For Loach, the most arresting colours are those drawn from character, and Blake is a magnetic centrepiece. Comedian Johns’ portrayal of this salt-ofthe-earth labourer is unutterably beautiful. Blake is skilled, a hard worker, and a standup gentleman, a pillar of the community, ignored and maligned for his unrighteous unemployment. The sense of injustice he feels is one we feel with him – anyone who’s gone more than one round with Centrelink’s phone system knows how carefully the

What's in our diary...

system is designed to deter those it is supposed to assist. Blake’s relationship with Katie is key to our understanding – we see their generosity of spirit despite their circumstances. When Katie cooks dinner for her children and offers Blake a plate at her own expense, he knows rightly to take it, as to refuse would be to rob Katie of the last vestiges of her pride. Not that her lot in life will allow her that, as we see in one heartbreaking instance at a food bank. To save the tale from being unremittingly bleak, Loach infuses it with the warmth of Blake’s relationships and the ridiculousness of their struggles with bureaucratic systems. The opening phone call is as vexing as it is hilarious, as is the sight of Blake pressing a mouse against a computer screen in an effort to fill out a form. The character of Manchester and its bluecollar folk is alive in every frame. These are the people Tory rhetoric have worst scarred. These are the folks in Australia and the US voting against establishments, even as it hurts them. These are the people suffering for too long in ceaseless and surreptitious class war. Remind yourself of our common humanity and see I, Daniel Blake as soon as possible.

David Molloy

arts exposed

One More Time With Feeling Event Cinemas and locations nationwide, Thursday December 1 – Sunday December 4

Sure, it’s a film about aliens, but it’s just as much about human nature. How would we react in the face of undeniable proof that we aren’t alone in the universe? How would we overcome that extraterrestrial language barrier? Humankind’s ability to unite, divide and learn in the face of unprecedented threats places highly on Arrival’s list of concerns. Despite this cranial bent, Arrival isn’t actually all that reliant on dialogue, but rather reactions. It commits to show-not-tell in a way that invites audiences to grapple

with the same sense of the existential as the characters in the film do. Director Denis Villeneuve playfully keeps the visual design of the aliens and their ships obscured and off-screen until the last possible moment to great dramatic effect (even though some of that impact may be lost to the film’s marketing campaign). The cast here is as tight as science fiction gets. Adams gets a lot of material to play with, embodying both human brilliance and terror in equal measure. Her relationships with Renner and Forest Whitaker’s Colonel Weber make up a large part of the plot, and she sells them well. The only weak point here is Michael Stuhlbarg’s character, who pops up for an important mid-movie plot point but never feels properly developed. Like last year’s Sicario, Villeneuve delivers a visual feast. Evocative establishing shots and distinctive visual design are combined with a buzzing score to create an equal sense of wonder and dread. Sometimes it feels like it could all go wrong at any moment, but otherwise it’s as if you’re teetering on the precipice of something truly special. Fergus Halliday

■ Film

FANTASTIC BEASTS AND WHERE TO FIND THEM In cinemas now

Jacob’s wonder.

Returning to the wizarding world of Harry Potter may feel like a cynical cash-grab, but it’s clear from the offset of Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them that the creatives behind the franchise had serious things they needed to say. Though we may not need the inevitable sequels to come, this new instalment brings back the magic in broadly appealing and darkly prescient style.

Sisters Porpentina (Katherine Waterston) and Queenie (Alison Sudol) make light work of their screentime, the latter dazzling with her pitch-perfect 1930s dame; they contrast effectively with the creepy Credence (Ezra Miller), despicable Mary Lou (Samantha Morton) and militant Percival Graves (Colin Farrell), each reflecting a familiar ‘baddie’ archetype from Potterdom.

Magizoologist and social pariah Newt Scamander (Eddie Redmayne) arrives in 1930s New York with a case full of beasties, tumbling headlong into disaster as he unwittingly exacerbates the existing tensions between the wizards of America and No-Maj society (non-magic users).

While Yates astounds with dizzying action sequences and the allure of Rowling’s animal creations, he deftly conjures the larger world and its conflicts, never fearing to set foot in the dark. Writer and director both nod to their previous efforts together; remember that humans often have good reason to fear the wizarding world and, in the realm of magic, children are not safe. Every issue faced by our heroes has a counterpart in the present day; now more than ever is this tackling of social issues vital to a healthy blockbuster culture.

The big news is that this is author J.K. Rowling’s debut as a screenwriter, having sat on the sidelines of the Potter film franchise until producing the last two films for director David Yates, who returns here. This is what separates Fantastic Beasts from mere merchandise – Rowling’s sense for magic permeates every element of the film, lifting what would otherwise be a generic hero’s tale. She must also be applauded for rarely name-dropping the core series, save for the mention of one of the few beloved figures alive in this era. As for Scamander himself, Redmayne relies on his standard parlour tricks, tics and puppy eyes to carry the day, but he fits seamlessly into the oddball wizarding world and is complemented by a superb supporting cast. The real hero of the piece is Dan Fogler’s Jacob Kowalski, a bumbling wannabe baker with a suitcase full of charm and magical comic timing. In a beautiful sequence when he steps inside Scamander’s box of beasts, we share in

Neither, however, are the creators immune to their crutches: magic offers a way to close every plot hole with minimal conflict, and a few choices are surprisingly easy for so inventive a pair. There’s also plenty of hinting at the franchise to come – particularly in a cheeky endgame cameo – and the prospect of five films in Scamander’s company is perhaps not as enticing as the producers may hope. With Rowling on board, Fantastic Beasts proves a treat for fans and newcomers alike – but just how many wonders can Scamander’s suitcase hold?

David Molloy

One More Time With Feeling, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds’ cinematic companion to their latest album, Skeleton Tree, will return to the big screens across Sydney in the first weekend of December. Director Andrew Dominik (Chopper, Killing Them Softly) has delved deep into the sadness and emotion behind the writing and recording of the album, which followed the Caves’ family tragedy. Interviews and footage of the creative process are intersected with narration by Cave and footage of the band playing. Shot only in black-and-white, the film truly reflects an artist trying to find his way in the darkness. See all the Event Cinemas locations and more at onemoretimewithfeeling.film.

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Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras photo by Katrina Clarke

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Gazebo 2 Elizabeth Bay Rd, Elizabeth Bay (02) 8070 2424 Tue – Sun noon-midnight

The Norfolk 305 Cleveland St, Surry Hills (02) 9699 3177 Mon – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm

Golden Age Cinema & Bar 80 Commonwealth St, Surry Hills (02) 9211 1556 Wed – Fri 4pm-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 – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm Jangling Jack’s Bar & 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 – Wed noonmidnight; Thu – Sat noon1am; Sun noon-11pm 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 2-10pm The Noble Hops 125 Redfern St, Redfern

Old Growler 218 William St, Woolloomooloo 0458 627 266 Tue – Sat 5pm-midnight; Sun 4-10pm The Oxford Circus 231 Oxford St, Darlinghurst 0457 353 384 Wed – Sat 6pm-3am The Owl House 97 Crown St, Darlinghurst 0401 273 080 Mon – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat 6pm-midnight; Sun 6-10pm 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 5pm-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 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

Queer(ish) matters with Arca Bayburt

The Tilbury Hotel 12-18 Nicholson St, Woolloomooloo (02) 9368 1955 Mon 9am-10pm; Tue – Fri 9am-midnight; Sat 10am-midnight; Sun 10am-10pm

Should Mardi Gras Have Dumped Turnbull?

Tio’s Cerveceria 4-14 Foster St, Surry Hills (02) 9368 1955 Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras

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 4pm-midnight; Fri noon-midnight; Sat 9am-midnight; Sun 9am-10pm

ack in October, Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras board member James Brechney called for Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to be formally uninvited from the 2017 Mardi Gras Parade. Shortly afterwards, a censure motion was put forward against Brechney and ultimately passed, only fuelling Brechney’s desire to continue seeking Turnbull’s official expulsion from the parade. Brechney took to Medium to pen a response to his censure, saying: “At a recent Community Action Against Homophobia (CAAH) Marriage Equality Rally, I was asked to speak candidly about the state of Marriage Equality in Australia and my sheer disappointment in the leadership of this nation, on both sides of the aisle. Ten minutes, or so, in, I mentioned an idea that had popped into my head and stated I would take to the next Board meeting. The idea being that we should uninvite Malcolm Turnbull to the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade next year.”

The Bucket List Shop 1, Bondi Pavilion, Queen Elizabeth Drive (02) 9365 4122 Mon – Sun 11am-midnight

Brechney’s motion read: “We ask the Board to act in accordance with this position and issue a public statement as it applies to the current Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and the 2017 Mardi Gras parade and does not invite him as an official guest to the parade.”

The Corner House 281 Bondi Rd, Bondi (02) 8020 6698 Mon – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat 9am-midnight; Sun 9am-10pm

I attended the Mardi Gras AGM a couple of weeks ago and was unsurprised to find there was an incredible division of opinion on the Turnbull subject. Yet somehow, Brechney’s motion eventually passed. Prime Minister Turnbull will not be extended a formal invitation to the 2017

Fat Ruperts 249 Bondi Rd, Bondi (02) 9130 1033 Tue – Fri 4-11pm; Sat – Sun 2-11pm Jam Gallery 195 Oxford St, Bondi Junction (02) 9389 2485 Wed – Sat 7pm-3am The Phoenix Hotel 1 Moncur St, Woollahra (02) 9363 2608 Mon – Wed 4-11pm; Thu – Fri noon-11pm; Sat – Sun 8am-11pm The Robin Hood Hotel 203 Bronte Rd, Waverley (02) 9389 3477 Mon-Sat 10am-3am; Sun 10am-10pm Selina’s at Coogee Bay Hotel 253 Coogee Bay Rd, Coogee (02) 9665 0000 Selina’s Thu 8pm-midnight; Coogee Bay Hotel Mon – Thu 7am-3am,

this week… On Friday November 25, Purple Sneakers, Heaps Gay and Sounds Like A Nice Time will join forces to bring you an epic party across two stages at Proud Mary’s in Erina. The Lineup includes Indian Summer, Moonbase Commander, Purple Sneakers DJs, Shantan Wantan Ichiban, Ariane, Mezko, Matka, Nic Kelly, Heaps Gay DJs and Tilldawn. Tickets are available now. Also on Friday November 25, head over to The Shift Club on Oxford Street for Hellfire’s November party, The Dark Arts. From witches, wizards and warlocks

Mardi Gras Parade. I’m of the belief that the censuring was a harsh response to Brechney’s studentlevel political thinking and action. However, not inviting Turnbull is ultimately a symbolic and churlish gesture. I’m not suggesting Turnbull doesn’t deserve our collective ire, considering his ineffectual support of our communities, but I think the level of foresight here is outweighed by a meaningless, snarky, dick move that will achieve little beyond temporarily soothing the justified anger of many queer people. Turnbull addressed the media about his unceremonious dumping, saying, “I’ve had so many invitations from friends to go to their Mardi Gras parties that if Lucy and I do decide to go to the Mardi Gras next year we’ll have no shortage of opportunities and cheerful company to enjoy it with.” I understand the anger and exhaustion that drove some Mardi Gras figures (and supporters within the community) to seek a ban on Turnbull. After all, why should somebody in support of the flaming pile of shit that was the plebiscite be allowed to flounce around our VIP areas, actively oppressing us while eating our canapés? What I fail to understand is how supporters of this move think it will play out politically in the long run. Turnbull’s response yields no remorse – he simply and expertly sidestepped the issue by minimising it and basically saying, “That’s not the only party, sweetheart.” With our rights and future so uncertain in Australia, I suppose we’ll take what we can get.

Indian Summer

to the ‘sex magick’ of Aleister Crowley, expect a seriously sexy soirée. From 1pm on Saturday November 26, Community Action Against Homophobia has organised a rally

at Sydney Town Hall to demand equal rights in the wake of the plebiscite’s demise. The rally is asking that Parliament gives us a private member’s bill for marriage equality. The time to wait is over.

BRAG :: 690 :: 23:11:16 :: 23

Fri – Sat 7am-6am; Sun 7am-midnight

Speakeasy 83 Curlewis St, Bondi (02) 9130 2020 Mon – Sat 5-11pm; Sun 4-10pm 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 Fri – Sat 4pm-midnight The Bearded Tit 183 Regent St, Redfern (02) 8283 4082 Mon – Fri 4-11pm; Sat 2-11pm; Sun 2-10pm 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 Tue – Wed 6-10pm; Thu 5-11pm; Fri – Sat 5pm-midnight; Sun 5.3010pm

wed

thu

23 Nov

Cornerstone Bar & Food 245 Wilson St, Eveleigh (02) 8571 9004 Sun – Wed 10am-5pm; Thu – Sat 10am-midnight

24 (9:00PM - 12:00AM)

Nov

(9:00PM - 12:00AM)

fri

25 Nov (10:00PM - 1:40AM)

SATURDAY AFTERNOON

SUNDAY AFTERNOON 3:30PM  6:30PM

sat

5:45PM  8:45PM

Nov

sun

27 Nov

(8:30PM - 11:30PM)

(10:00PM - 1:15AM)

mon

tue

Nov

(8:30PM - 11:30PM)

EVERY SATURDAY

Party DJs GROUND FLOOR - AFTER BANDS

(8:30PM - 11:30PM)

Corridor 153A King St, Newtown 0405 671 002 Mon 5pm-midnight; Tue – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri – Sun 3pm-midnight Cottage Bar & Kitchen 342 Darling St, Balmain (02) 8084 8185 Mon – Wed 5pm-midnight; Thu – Sat noon-midnight Deus Sydney Bar + Kitchen 98-104 Parramatta Rd, Camperdown (02) 9519 0849 Mon-Tue 8am-3pm; WedSun 8am-11pm

Freda’s 109 Regent St, Chippendale (02) 8971 7336 Tue – 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 noon-9pm; 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 – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm Kelly’s On King 285 King St, Newtown (02) 9565 2288 Mon – Sat 10am-11pm; Sun 11pm-midnight Kingston Public Bar & Kitchen 62-64 King St, Newtown (02) 8084 4140 Mon – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri – Sun 2pm-midnight Knox Street Bar Cnr Knox & Shepherd St, Chippendale (02) 8970 6443 Tue – Thu 4-10pm; Fri – Sat 4pm-midnight Kuleto’s 157 King St, Newtown (02) 9519 6369 Tue – Sat 4pm-3am; Sun 4pm-midnight 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 – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri – Sat noon-midnight The Midnight Special 44 Enmore Road, Newtown (02) 9516 2345 Tue – Fri 5pm-noon; Sat 1pm-midnight Miss Peaches 201 Missenden Rd, Newtown (02) 9557 7280 Wed – Sun 5pm-midnight

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

Mr Falcon’s 92 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 9029 6626 Mon – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri 3pm-midnight; Sat noon-midnight; Sun 4pm-10pm

Doris & Beryl’s Bridge Club and Tea House 530 King St, Newtown Mon – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat – Sun 3.30pm-midnight

Newtown Social Club 387 King St, Newtown (02) 9550 3974 Mon – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri – Sat noon-2am; Sun noon-10pm

Earl’s Juke Joint King St, Newtown Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight

The Oxford Tavern 1 New Canterbury Rd, Petersham (02) 8019 9351 Mon – Thu noon-midnight; Fri – Sat noon-3am; Sun

Forest Lodge Hotel 117 Arundel St, Forest 24 :: BRAG :: 690 :: 23:11:16

Lodge (02) 9660 1872 Mon – Sat 11am-midnight; Sun noon-10pm

noon-10pm

Lord Raglan 12 Henderson Rd, Alexandria (02) 9699 4767 Mon – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon10pm The Record Crate 34 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 9660 1075 Mon – Thu 5pm-midnight; Sat noon-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

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

Fri – Sun 11am-2am

Firefly 24 Young St, Neutral Bay (02) 9909 0193 Mon – Wed 5-11pm; Thu 5-11.30pm; Fri noon-11.30pm; Sat noon11pm; 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

Temperance Society 122 Smith St, Summer Hill (02) 8068 5680 Mon – Thu 4pm-11pm; Fri – Sat 3pm-midnight; Sun 3-10pm

The Hold Shop 4, Sydney Rd Plaza, Manly (02) 9977 2009 Tue – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat 3pm-midnight; Sun 3-10pm

Thievery 91 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 8283 1329 Mon – Thu 6pm-11pm; Fri 6pm-midnight; Sat noon3pm & 6pm-midnight

Honey Rider 230 Military Rd, Neutral Bay (02) 9953 8880 Tue – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sun 4pm-10pm

Timbah 375 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 9571 7005 Tue – Thu 4-10pm; Fri 4-11pm; Sat 3pm-11pm; Sun 4pm-8pm Vernon’s Bar L2. One Penny Red, 2 Moonbie St. Summer Hill (02) 9797 8118 Mon 4-10pm; Tue – Thu 4-11pm; Fri – Sat 4-midnight; Sun 4-10pm

InSitu 1/18 Sydney Rd, Manly (02) 9977 0669 Tue – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat 9am-midnight; Sun 9am-10pm The Hunter 5 Myahgah Rd, Mosman 0409 100 339 Mon – Tue 5pm-midnight; Wed – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon- 10pm

Wayward Brewing Co. 1 Gehrig Ln, Annandale (02) 7903 2445 Thu – Fri 2-10pm; Sat noon-10pm; Sun noon8pm

Jah Bar Shop 9, 9-15 Central Ave, Manly (02) 9977 4449 Tue 5pm-midnight; Wed-Fri noon-midnight; Sat 8am-midnight; Sun 9am-10pm

Websters Bar 323 King St, Newtown (02) 9519 1511 Mon – Sat 10am-4am; Sun 10am-midnight

Manly Wine 8-13 South Steyne, Manly (02) 8966 9000 Mon – Sun 7am-11pm

Wilhelmina’s 332 Darling St, Balmain (02) 8068 8762 Wed – Fri 5-11pm; Sat 8-11pm; Sun 8am-10pm 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 – Fri noon-7pm; Sat 10am-7pm; Sun 11am-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;

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 noon-2am; 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 thebrag.com

bread&thread Food & Fashion News... with Ariana Norton

Poh’s Satay

A Moveable Feast

MAD ABOUT MALAYSIA

A MOVEABLE FEAST ON THE SAND

Sydney’s part pop-up dinner, part synchronised pastel picnic is returning to the sands of Bondi Beach. A Moveable Feast will take over the world-famous strip in partnership with acclaimed Australian restaurateur Luke Morgan on Saturday March 11, with live music and an eight-course Asian-inspired menu for an estimated 3,000+ pastel-clad diners. The menu includes wasabi-marinated smoked trout, drunken chicken, prawns and tataki beef with a huge variety of fruit, vegetables and sides. Book at amoveablefeastevents. com.au.

DREAMING OF A WHITE CHRISTMAS

Revel in all things Christmas till your little heart’s content as Sydney’s biggest Christmas Festival jingles its merry way into town. With a Naughty Elves bar, Australia’s largest open-air ice skating rink, fairy floss-encased ice cream (OK, how good does that sound?), tobogganing, a double-decker carousel and of course snow galore, the Sydney Santa Spectacular will take

over Rosehill Gardens from Friday December 9 – Tuesday December 27. There’ll also be a giant 15-metre Christmas tree for people to leave gifts under, which will go to Camp Quality and the children’s hospitals at Westmead and Randwick. We can hear those sleigh bells jingling already.

SONG FOR THE MUTE SALE Melvin Tanaya and Lyna Ty are the creative duo and best mates behind

Song For The Mute, the label that shows pride in its work every step of the way. From their curated fabric choice and development, through collaborative designs and

Get a taste of Malaysia as Sydney’s inaugural Malaysia Fest takes over town in December. The two-day interactive festival will tickle taste buds and immerse Sydneysiders in the melting pot that is Malaysian culture in a multi-layered sensory experience. Malaysia Fest will feature Malay, Indian and Chinese dancers and stalls from some of Sydney’s best Malaysian restaurants, as well as places to sample cooking sauces and pastes, beverages, snacks and desserts. Malaysia’s bright, vibrant and unique culture, fashion and food are sure to be a treat, and Tourism Malaysia will be on hand if and when the travel bug bites. Malaysia Fest is on at Pyrmont Bay Park from Saturday December 3 – Sunday December 4. right up to the finished products in their men’s and women’s collections, Tanaya and Ty’s Song For The Mute showcases a signature style that others can only hope to imitate. Song For The Mute is hosting a sample sale for three days only at its Glebe flagship store (1 Glebe Street), Friday November 25 – Sunday November 27. Get your hands on some goodies.

RUN AWAY WITH THE CIRCUS

Marrickville won’t know what’s hit it when the Street Food Circus comes to the Sydney Portugal Community Club this Friday November 25 – Sunday November 27. Featuring a knockout mix of international food stalls, craft beer and wine, vinyl DJs and live music, it’s set to be a colourful combination of flavours and sounds that will keep everyone buzzing. There’ll be burgers, Italian, Chinese and Vietnamese food, as well as vegan, organic and just plain sweet options too (that means ice cream, donuts and waffles, people) set to the sound of Rolling Records’ sweet vinyl tunes. And you can experience it all while Alysia Rose and her awe-inspiring circus troupe featuring trapeze artists, contortionists and acrobats perform gravity-defying feats right above your head.

Welcome Dose

A WELCOME DOSE Rosebery has a new coffee roaster and cafe by the name of Welcome Dose, and it’s a welcome addition to the Sydney coffee market, that’s for sure. The 50-seat venue has a fully operating roaster onsite: it’s a 1956 Probat UG15 model, which took 12 months to acquire, rebuild and recondition between its Dutch origins and making the journey to its latest home. Co-owners Michael Cookson and Kit Cheong promote a “bean-to-cup” philosophy. They’ll show you how at Shop 13, Saporium, 61-71 Mentmore Ave, Rosebery.

Street Food Circus

GIVE THANKS AT MISS PEACHES

The Newport

SUMMER FUN AT THE NEWPORT

Miss Peaches

xxx

The Newport is celebrating its very first summer season with an exciting program of free events and live music. It’s also welcomed new executive chef Jordan Toft and launched a shiny new publishing venture, Our Newport. The broadsheet publication will feature gorgeous photos and interviews covering everything from food to music, interiors, sport, fashion and wellness. The program includes summer films, surf films and a surfboard swap’n’sell on Tuesday nights, plus fun activities for the kids and a variety of performances over the weekend.

If you’ve ever thought you needed a pair of expandable dinner pants, now’s probably the time to look into it. Come Thursday November 24, Newtown’s famous Southern American bar, Miss Peaches, is hosting a Thanksgiving feast that will tickle, tantalise and tease your taste buds till you can take it no longer. The night will feature a full Thanksgiving menu, including turkey (of course), sausages, tater tots, glazed carrots, creole corn, candied yams and that all-important apple pie, as well as live rockabilly music and the largest American beer list in Australia. Head chef Adam Cremona will no doubt be working around the clock. Need we say more?

thebrag.com

BRAG :: 690 :: 23:11:16 :: 25

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

ALBUM OF THE WEEK ZEAHORSE

They’ve stripped back the murky tape hiss we heard on their debut and replaced it with bone-dry, face-melting baritone bliss.

Torana Dreamin Independent

When Zeahorse released their debut LP Pools in 2013, it showed them to be just as much of a jam band as they were meticulous with their songs. Even at a lean 36 minutes, there was no ‘fat’ to trim, per se, but there was a very clear divide between the small handful of carefully constructed songs they had been playing live for years and those that were drawn-out experiments to emerge from their studio sessions.

A.B. ORIGINAL Reclaim Australia Golden Era/Universal If you’re expecting the creators of an album called Reclaim Australia to hold anything back, you’re in for a wild ride. Long-time friends and musicians Briggs (Album of the Year recipient at the National Indigenous Music Awards 2015) and Trials (ARIA-winning producer for Drapht, Seth Sentry, Illy and Hilltop Hoods) have teamed up as A.B. Original to put together a blistering collection of tracks that hit like a punch to the gut. Simmering with anger and set to classic ’80s hip hop beats, Reclaim Australia is immediately reminiscent of N.W.A in its unapologetic approach to the injustices still faced by Aboriginal Australians. The album includes excerpts of speeches made about “breeding out” Aboriginal people, as well as an introduction by Archie Roach, who remembers protesting for land rights in the ’70s. Dan Sultan, Gurrumul and Thelma Plum lend their voices to three of the tracks, adding a somewhat gentler layer to an otherwise intense record. There is a deep pain and anguish that underlies Reclaim Australia’s ferocity. Briggs and Trials demand that we sit up, take notice and take action. There’s no more turning a blind eye to the damage that we as a society have inflicted, and are still inflicting, on Aboriginal people. Ariana Norton

While Torana Dreamin might be marginally shorter than their debut, there are way more songs being brought to the table this time, all ten of which absolutely deliver.

It’s an improvement on their debut in every way and does justice to the songs they’ve been playing live in the lead-up. I’ve gotten weird looks calling this my album of the year – but I can no longer hide it. Best bloody band in Sydney, hands down. Get this record immediately. Nicholas Johnson

JESS KENT

SIXX:A.M.

BODY/HEAD

LOST ANIMAL

My Name Is Jess Kent EMI

Vol. 2 Prayers For The Blessed Eleven Seven

No Waves Matador/Remote Control

You Yang Dot Dash/Remote Control

Just as the title of this release suggests, Jess Kent’s debut EP is a confident introduction to the Aussie singer-songwriter’s infectious beats.

Sixx:A.M. have returned with their fifth album, Vol 2 Prayers For The Blessed, and it’s a riot of guitars, heavy drums and yell-along choruses from ex-Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx.

Since the end of Sonic Youth, Kim Gordon has gone into the abyss of noise rock and drone further than her previous band could ever have fathomed. As one half of Body/Head alongside guitarist Bill Nace, Gordon has spent the last few years going against the conventions of the electric guitar and creating music that’s dark, imposing and sprawling, resulting in an impressive debut (2013’s Coming Apart) and reputably intense live shows.

Five years on from his salient debut, Ex Tropical, Lost Animal continues to make outsider pop, fusing electronica with elements of popular music from the ’60s through the ’80s. For his new album You Yang, Jarrod Quarrell has invited multi-instrumentalist Shags Chamberlain to the table, broadening the palette of sound.

Listening to her work is refreshing; it’s difficult to decide which musical element is the most skilled or distinctive, as her writing is really all about the whole package of production and vocals. These are fun, danceable tracks that are beat-heavy, with funky vocal hooks that add a lot of colour. In each of the songs, you can hear a distinct reggae influence, giving Kent’s sound an eclectic edge.

Sixx and co. prove they can produce a softer sound on album tracks ‘Maybe It’s Time’ and their cover of the Badfinger hit ‘Without You’, which itself rose to fame after being covered by Harry Nilsson. It’s not Sixx:A.M.’s strongest, though, the cover carrying less weight than the other songs here.

While she has already captivated some listeners with her single ‘Get Down’, ‘The Sweet Spot’ steals the show on this EP, and the other tracks give us more of an idea of what she’s capable of.

That said, the energy evident across the bulk of the album is infectious, and even those who aren’t fans of the hard rock genre may find pleasure in listening – as long as the album is taken with a pinch of salt and you’re prepared for some hardcore air-guitaring.

‘Trolls’ has some beautiful soundscapes that embody both the internet age and retro gaming consoles – one can’t help but recall Super Mario. ‘Bass So Low’ is heavier than her other, more carefree tracks, while ‘Low Key’ is a smooth take on R&B.

With tinges of emo-core and prog rock on show, the listener is reminded of Coheed And Cambria at times, particularly in Sixx’s vocals. DJ Ashba and James Michael’s guitars are impressively heavy, particularly on the one-minute guitar solo that is ‘Catacombs’.

This is the kind of music for dancing at a house party into the wee hours with absolutely no shame. More please!

Prayers For The Blessed is not only good fun, it’s hard rock to the core. Crack out your leggings and start working on those head bangs.

Erin Rooney

Harriet Flitcroft

INDIE ALBUM OF THE WEEK For an EP from a group that claims it’s “not afraid to be unladylike”, this debut release by the feminist four-piece Glitoris sounds as sweet as anything. The punk rock numbers on The Disgrace mesh the raw sound of classic punk with lovely thick Aussie accents and angry girl attitudes. And hey, if their name wasn’t enough to grab your attention, the four songs on this introductory set will certainly prick up your ears.

GLITORIS The Disgrace Buttercup

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xxx

The Sydney noise rockers make a case for inclusion on the 2016 ‘best of’ lists.

In terms of technical abilities, these musicians have come on leaps and bounds since their debut – the songs are stronger, the riffs are meatier (‘Runt’ is one of their finest), singer Morgan Anthony’s melodies and guitar lines are significantly stronger, and the lyrical commentary is much more on the mark.

‘Disgrace’ offers some sweet vocal harmonies, masking the cynical undertones with a plethora of melody. Frontwoman Keven 007 sings with a commanding tone – it’s endearing, powerful and packs a whole heap of appealing attitude.

The surrounding tracks ooze lyrical genius, predominantly depicting feminist domination, while the instruments pound away at pure punk (‘Off With Their Heads’ is a rhythmic masterpiece). If The Disgrace proves one thing, it’s that punk doesn’t have to be all about sweaty, screaming boys. Glitoris are full of attitude and fresh creativity, and these songs only stir up excitement for how their sound will translate to their live shows. The Disgrace proves punk music still has something to say when it’s delivered in the right hands.

It’s the latter from which No Waves is drawn – it’s a three-part, 40-minute improvised performance from 2014. Each piece the duo creates is weighted by duelling guitar cacophony, moaning and shrieking from either end of the fretboard in a manner that is at once engrossing and entirely unsettling. Gordon’s vocals are shrouded in reverb, occasionally turning into banshee-like howls with few discernible lyrics. Admittedly, it’s a tall order for anyone not possessing a somewhat advanced interest in the noisier spectrum of music. Then again, both Gordon and Nace are at the point in their careers where they’re not pursuing this style of performance for anyone but themselves. No Waves is two artists with nothing to prove, getting everything out of their system. Get with it or get lost.

‘Do The Jerk’ beats with an R&B heart over cold electronic beats, but the face of this track is a bitter, beaten-down rocker with a curled lip peddling his experimental sleaze-soul. ‘Prisoners Island’ is driven by melancholy keys with Quarrell’s vocals pushed to the fore; we witness a fragility within the despondency that characterises most of You Yang. In other album highlights, ‘Too Late To Die Young’ might infer that Quarrell has resigned himself to the inevitable demise into old age, but the apathy is cheekily offset by calypso rhythms, while the collection closes with ‘New Year’s Day’, delicate but dissonant in its washed-out aesthetic. You Yang strikes the balance between detached cool and steadfast sincerity, filtering it all through Lost Animal’s dirty lens of sleaze, sex and sadness. Krystal Maynard

David James Young

OFFICE MIXTAPE And here are the albums that have helped BRAG HQ get through the week... THE COMET IS COMING - Channel The Spirits A TRIBE CALLED QUEST - Midnight Marauders BLUR - Modern Life Is Rubbish

THE STONE ROSES - The Stone Roses MARK RONSON - Uptown Special

Anna Wilson

thebrag.com

live reviews

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What we’ve been out to see...

VIEW FULL GALLERIES AT

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up all night out all week . . .

Enmore Theatre Tuesday November 15 On the same day a national tour has been announced for Vanilla Ice, Coolio and Color Me Badd, TLC are performing the first of three Sydney shows – the third of which will also feature Nelly, Blackstreet and 112. It’s enough to remind one of the lesson imparted by True Detective’s Rust Cohle: time is a fl at circle, and everything that was will be again. Even still, it’s worth noting that there are positive aspects to a night of nostalgia such as this – at their best, they allow for a legacy to be relived and celebrated by both those who went around with an artist the first time, and those who were either too young or not yet alive at their peak. For a show that could easily turn into an awkward imitation – as is the case with any posthumous partial reformation – the surviving members of TLC instead offer a vibrant, joyful experience that fans of all ages and generations can take delight in. Performing for a slim 70 minutes with no encore, TLC aren’t the type to mess

PHOTOGRAPHER :: ASHLEY MAR

about or dwell on a moment. Their live show is executed with military precision, with every last dance move and drum fi ll arriving on the dot. It’s an impressive sight to see, allowing for the best of both worlds as far as live R&B is concerned. An airtight live band fi lls out the group’s hits with a groove-oriented fl air, while a visually spectacular dance troupe recreates the classic ’90s pop aesthetic that has remained true to this very day. Of course, this is just the foundation – it’s the songs themselves, naturally, that elevate this show. Whether it’s the early ’90s swing and swagger of ‘Ain’t 2 Proud 2 Beg’ or the late ’90s girl power of ‘No Scrubs’ and ‘Unpretty’, there’s still a freshness and vitality to these songs that make them all the more resonant when the audience sings back every word. Although the dearly departed Lisa ‘Left Eye’ Lopes has been gone for nearly 15 years now, her presence is also felt deeply whenever one of her verses arrives and a huge cheer swells up from the crowd. As long as there are waterfalls being chased, we still need TLC in our lives. No member berries required – just sing along and feel the love. David James Young

caligula’s horse

PICS :: AM

TLC

20:11:16 :: Newtown Social Club :: 387 King St Newtown 9550 3974

PAUL KELLY & CHARLIE OWEN St. Stephen’s Uniting Church Thursday November 17

The pews fi ll up early at St. Stephen’s Uniting Church on Macquarie Street tonight. While the average passer-by would never think of this unassuming church as a concert venue – and there’s a signifi cant irony in a show taking place directly across from the State Parliament – Paul Kelly and Charlie Owen’s performance is no artifi cial scenario. This is music in one of its formative settings, as natural as gospel in the Deep South, and the fact Kelly and Owen’s new album is dedicated to songs they’ve played at funerals only makes the location even more fi tting. Indeed, Kelly opens the show with a recital of the Shakespearean sonnet from which the record Death’s Dateless Night takes its name; he’s in somewhat of an obsessive period at the moment, having released his Seven Sonnets & A Song album as recently as April. Death’s Dateless Night can be considered a companion piece, and not just because two more of Shakespeare’s sonnets arrive later in the gig. The record is ostensibly about life and death, but it thrusts at something more extraordinary: we humans are mortal, Kelly is saying, but song lives on forever.

‘Hard Times’ opens both the album and the setlist, itself a 160-year-old composition that predates Tin Pan Alley, let alone anyone in this audience. The funereal burden of a song like L.J. Hill’s ‘Pretty Bird Tree’ suits the mood too, but it’s not all about the gloom, with bluegrass classic ‘Pallet On Your Floor’ setting off on a finger-picked jig. Kelly is the master of ceremonies, but Owen brings his knack for multi-instrumentalism to the tabernacle. His slide guitar expressionism is matched only by his subtle illustrations on the keys. Also onstage is Kelly’s daughter Maddy, who provides backing vocals, occasional synth and an appropriate reminder of how great songs span generations. They span cultures, too, with songs from Ireland, the Americas and indigenous Australia all featuring in Kelly and Owen’s set. Eventually, Kelly delivers some of his own: ‘Deeper Water’, ‘Meet Me In The Middle Of The Air’ and ‘They Thought I Was Asleep’ each feel somehow grander in this cavernous space. But it’s Kelly’s mid-set tribute to Leonard Cohen that reiterates what’s really brought us here. “I had the pleasure of meeting the man who wrote this song,” Kelly says before ‘Bird On The Wire’. “Now he’s gone, but the songs aren’t.” And they’ll outlive the rest of us, too. Chris Martin

RODRIGUEZ, ARCHIE ROACH State Theatre Monday November 14

When Sixto Rodriguez stepped out from behind the curtain, the cheer that greeted him was incredible – here was a man that some folks had been waiting 40 years to finally see in the flesh. What was surprising, however, were his chaperones. Rodriguez walked very stiffly, and seemed to rely on assistants to steer him towards the stool from which he would hold court for an hour and a half. At 74, you can easily forgive him such frailty, though as one elderly beseeching fan discovered at the concert’s end, standing at the front of stage waving an LP under the singer’s face, the hesitant steps aren’t as much from physical frailty as they are from blindness. After the night kicked off with a splendid set from Archie Roach – whose wavering voice lends great poignancy to his lyrics now – I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from Rodriguez. With age comes a natural diminishing of one’s vocal prowess – but no word of a lie, so strong and vibrant is Rodriguez’s voice, I was at first convinced the guy was lip-syncing his way through earlier recordings. It’s really quite remarkable to hear an artist of this calibre and vintage whose voice remains so youthful. To hear him sing ‘Rich Folks Hoax’ was a true delight. He is also, quite literally, a man of many hats

– a small table nearby held a collection of several different options that he swapped between as the night progressed. Likewise, Rodriguez turned to multiple covers during his set – from ‘(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction’ to Jefferson Airplane’s ‘Somebody To Love’, The Doors’ ‘Light My Fire’ and to the evening’s closer, ‘I Only Have Eyes For You’, this set was a fine retrospective of the songs that have inspired Rodriguez over the years. The only caveat came, sadly, from the audience. You get enough booze into these baby boomers and all courtesy flies out the window. You could count on any interlude between songs to be a barrage of slurred song requests and standing-in-the-aisle insistences that Rodriguez acknowledge how his music saved his/her life. Little wonder that halfway through the night saw Rodriguez muse on the nature of strong emotion; of how closely aligned love, hate and fear might be. Such observations went largely over the head of his more passionate fans, but even despite their disruptions, you couldn’t stay mad. Not when they had championed his music for so very long, and when the man himself still has such a startling and powerful presence. Adam Norris

five things WITH Growing Up I didn’t get into music until high 1. school when we’d grab guitars from the music room and shred on the oval and listen to our iPods in class when we should’ve been paying attention. I guess that’s why I’m so involved with music now.

Inspirations I’ve always been inspired by 2. the local music scene and the people I’ve met in other bands and on tour. It inspires me to write better songs and play better shows. Your Band Papa Pilko and The Binrats 3. are Cyrus (vocals), Pablo (guitar,

trombone), myself (guitar, trumpet), Benito (bass), Jubby (baritone sax), Marco (tenor sax, harmonica) and Josh (drums). We all met through high school so we’ve been playing thebrag.com

TOM WILKINSON FROM PAPA PILKO AND THE BINRATS

together for ages but starting being a proper touring band around 2012. We all have pretty different musical opinions but I think that’s what makes us interesting. We met Josh earlier this year. The Music You Make Our music is hard to pin 4. down at the best of times, which

is why we describe it as ‘voodoo soul and alt-country rock’n’roll’… which is actually fairly accurate! Since we’ve been a touring band we’ve worked exclusively with Wade Keighran (producer/engineer) at Linear Recording Studio and his own personal studio. Our live shows are just good old-fashioned entertainment, heaps of fun! It’s what we love about doing what we do, and I think people can see that and in turn have a great time at the shows with us.

Music, Right Here, Right Now There is obviously a serious 5. issue going on in Sydney right

now and everyone knows it, but I think that the music scene in Sydney is doing pretty damn good considering! One thing that happened recently that completely proved this was the King Street Crawl in Newtown – I’ve never see a more thriving and inspiring event take place within our music community. It was amazing! That was a huge annual event but there are loads of other smaller events, mini-festivals and awesome live music happening nearly every weekend, so just get out there and enjoy it! See you down the front row. Where: Moonshine Bar, Hotel Steyne When: Thursday November 24

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

pick of the week

Monkeys + Special Guests The Record Crate, Glebe. 8pm. $10. Joel Sena Slyfox, Enmore. 8pm. Free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 29 King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard

Big Top Sydney

Gizzfest

King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard + Pond + White Fence + more 4:45pm. $75.50. WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 23 INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Johnsong + Diamond Duck + E For Echo Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8pm. $10. Karaoke Wednesdays Scruffy Murphy’s Hotel, Sydney. 10pm. Free. Mark Travers Orient Hotel, The Rocks. 9pm. Free. Strange Karma + Bones Atlas + The Sinking Teeth Frankie’s Pizza,

Sydney. 9pm. Free. Underfoot Records And Friends The Hideaway Bar, Enmore. 4pm. Free.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

Folkswagon Cafe Lounge Bar, Surry Hills. 7pm. Free. Jim Finn Ruby L’otel, Rozelle. 7:30pm. Free. Manouche Wednesday - feat: The Squeezebox Trio Mr Falcon’s, Glebe. 7pm. Free. The Spin Drifters The Basement, Circular Quay. 8pm. $18.30.

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Cuzn Foundry616, Ultimo. 8pm. $16.67. Salsa Wednesdays feat: DJ Miro The Argyle, The Rocks. 8:30pm. Free. Sèbastien Giniaux Django Bar @ Camelot Lounge, Marrickville. 6pm. $32.90. The Groovemeisters Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8:30pm. $10. The Gypsy Art Club Django Bar @ Camelot Lounge, Marrickville. 6:30pm. $10. Wailing Wednesdays -

feat: Live Reggae Acoustic Rosie Campbell’s, Surry Hills. 7pm. Free.

THURSDAY NOVEMBER 24 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Elysian Fields Foundry616, Ultimo. 8pm. $16.50. End Notes III Gospel Cake Wines Cellar Door, Redfern. 6pm. Free. Goodfellas - feat: Fusion Mafiosi & Aaron Blakey + The Three Wise

Anthony Charlton Australian Arms Hotel, Penrith. 7pm. Free. Balmain Blitz Band Comp Bridge Hotel, Rozelle. 7pm. $15. Black Label Frankie’s Pizza, Sydney. 9pm. Free. Bree Tranter + Alby Oxford Circus, Darlinghurst. 7pm. $11. Crowded House + Kirin J Callinan Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 6pm. $119.90. Katherine Vavahea Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8pm. Free. Letters To Lions Brass Monkey, Cronulla. 7pm. $12.25. Live Band Karaoke Unity Hall Hotel, Balmain. 9pm. Free. Matt Jones Duo Orient Hotel, The Rocks. 9pm. Free. No Refunds The Bald Faced Stag, Leichhardt. 8pm. Free. Pirra + Elki Union Hotel, Newtown. 8pm. Free. Shutupshutupshutup + The Sinking Teeth + The Great Awake The Hideaway Bar, Enmore. 8pm. Free. Stone Empire + Shatter The Crown + Eager 13 Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 8pm. $10. Swamp To Sahara + Thunder Fox + Kiyanosh Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $11.50. The Troggs Factory Theatre, Marrickville. 8pm. $49.80. Upstairs Live The Beresford Hotel, Surry Hills. 8pm. Free.

Whopping Big Naughty + Momos + Key Out Vic On The Park, Enmore. 8pm. Free. Winterbourne + The Lazy Colts Selina’s @ Coogee Bay Hotel, Coogee. 8pm. Free.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

Anthony Charlton Australian Arms Hotel, Penrith. 8:30pm. Free. Dave Anthony The Bourbon, Potts Point. 5pm. Free. Emad Younan Mr Falcon’s, Glebe. 8:30pm. Free. Folk At The Lodge - feat: John Vella + Leroy Lee + Friends Forest Lodge Hotel, Forest Lodge. 7pm. Free. Harbourview Hullabaloo - feat: Zack Martin + Ionia + Monica + Guests Harbourview Hotel, The Rocks. 7pm. Free. Jim Finn Carousel Inn Hotel, Rooty Hill. 8pm. Free. Katherine Vavahea + Madame Wu + Amber Dubs Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 7:30pm. $10. Live & Original @ The Louis - feat: Drew Blundell + Fire + Mysterious Universes Lewisham Hotel, Lewisham. 7:30pm. Free. Michael Gorham Fortune Of War, The Rocks. 7pm. Free. Moonshine Thursday - feat: Papa Pilko And The Binrats + Sweet Jelly Rolls Moonshine Cider & Rum Bar, Manly. 8pm. Free. Sabrina Soares The Temperance Society, Summer Hill. 7pm. Free. Steve Crocker Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 7:30pm. Free. The Basement Blues Society Presents - feat: John Hardakers’ Whisky Empire +

Continental Blues Party Feat. Robert Susz And Rob Woolf + The Shane Pacey Blues Trio The Basement, Circular Quay. 6:30pm. $25.

FRIDAY NOVEMBER 25 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Borneo Moonshine Bar, Hotel Steyne, Manly. 8pm. Free. Endangered Species Vineyard Hotel, Vineyard. 9pm. Free. Sean Mackenzie Trio Foundry616, Ultimo. 8:30pm. $16.50.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Allan Smithy + The Ruiins + Jack Shit Waywards, Newtown. 8pm. Free. Basement Fridays - feat: Wild Honey + Mesmeriser The Eastern, Bondi Junction. 9pm. $10. Botany Idol feat: Karaoke Competition Botany Bay Hotel, Banksmeadow. 9:30pm. Free. Crowded House + Kirin J Callinan Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 6pm. $119.90. Ezekiel Ox Vic On The Park, Enmore. 8pm. Free. Factory Fridays - feat: The Booty Affair + Resident DJs Soda Factory, Surry Hills. 5pm. Free. Fridays - feat: New Horizons Band + M7 & DJ Marty Rooty Hill RSL Club, Rooty Hill. 7pm. Free. Fridays - feat: Borneo + Space Monk Moonshine Cider & Rum Bar, Manly. 9pm. Free. Hardcore - feat: Relentless + Vices +

Born Free + Choke + Year Of The Rat The Bald Faced Stag, Leichhardt. 7pm. $22. Karaoke Figtree Hotel, Figtree. 8:30pm. Free. Lepers & Crooks The Chippo Hotel, Chippendale. 8pm. $14.90. Mansionair Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $28.70. MC Filth Wizard + Dweeb City + Remy Philipps Tokyo Sing Song, Newtown. 11pm. Free. Necrostalgia + Hawkmoth + Double Chamber + Black Rehno Studio Six, Sutherland. 8pm. $15. Oneworld Ruby L’otel, Rozelle. 8pm. Free. Pants Off Party Inc - feat: Tensions Arise + Facing Zero + Eugine + Liability + Adriaan Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 8pm. Free. Peabody + Nick Nuisance & The Delinquents + Key Out Petersham Bowling Club, Petersham. 7:30pm. $15. Prince (1958-Forever) feat: The Purple Doves The Basement, Circular Quay. 7:30pm. $29.40. Rare Finds #23 ARIA Week Party feat: Gideon Bensen + Slumberhaze + Ivey + Sparrows + The Griswolds DJs Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. Free. Richard Murphy Waterworks Hotel, Botany. 4pm. Free. Slide McBride Orient Hotel, The Rocks. 10pm. Free. The Cassettes Chatswood RSL, Chatswood. 10:30pm. Free. The Cherry Dolls + Heavy Lids + Mac The Knife Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $11.50. The Cult Enmore Theatre, Newtown. 8pm.

songwriters’ secrets WITH The First Song I Wrote 1. The first song I can

remember writing was called ‘Young Son’ when I was around 13 years of age. It was about the death of an important fi gure in Byron Bay growing up by the name of Ben King, who died surfi ng. It was a pretty heavy thing to write about so young but so was the whole experience for the community. I can hum the verses but that’s about it.

The Last Song I Released We’re about to release our next single titled ‘Hold Me’ – it’s from our first EP. The

28 :: BRAG :: 690 :: 23:11:16

song is a tale of left and right and the infl uence our parents have on us with our core beliefs. There’s also an alien in there named Zook looking down thinking, “These cretins are insane! They’re killing each and every being they have!” Secrets Listen to more Devo. 3. Songwriting The Song That Makes Me Proud 4. Gang Gajang – ‘Sounds Of Then (This Is Australia)’. The Song That Changed My Life I remember hearing ‘Fortunate Son’ by

THE PROPH FROM BORNEO

Creedence Clearwater Revival for the first time off the tape collection from the Forrest Gump soundtrack that my mum used to put on in the living room. I must have been fi ve or six; I didn’t know what he was singing about at the time or why it made my eyes water and body tingle but I knew this was the coolest and most alive I’d ever felt – maybe the most anyone’s ever felt, at least on Brandon Street. Where: Moonshine Bar, Hotel Steyne When: Friday November 25

thebrag.com

g g guide gig g send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com $91.65. The Monkey Wrench + Grinding Eyes + The Holy Soul Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $28.24. The Smith Street Band + The Nation Blue + Grim Rhythm + Forevr Factory Theatre, Marrickville. 8pm. $35. The Western Distributors Coogee Diggers, Coogee. 8pm. Free.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

Adrian Joseph Duo The Bourbon, Potts Point. 6:30pm. Free. AJ Dyce Campbelltown Catholic Club, Campbelltown. 6pm. Free. Anthony Charlton + The Ants Penrith Gaels, Kingswood. 8pm. Free. Benj Axwell Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 9:30pm. Free. Blake Wiggins Fortune Of War, The Rocks. 8pm. Free. Blaming Vegas Panania Diggers, Panania. 8pm. Free. Dave Anthony Buckley’s Bar, Circular Quay. 6pm. Free. Glenn Esmond Lord Raglan Hotel, Alexandria. 7pm. Free. Green Mohair Suits Camelot Lounge, Marrickville. 7:30pm. $17.90. Lj Chatswood RSL, Chatswood. 5pm. Free. Mark Crotti Hunters Hill Hotel, Hunters Hill. 4:30pm. Free. Marshall Okell Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8:30pm. $15. Michael Gorham Clovelly Hotel, Clovelly. 4:30pm. Free. Stephen Kiely The Push Bar, The Rocks. 7pm. Free. Ted Nash Trio Selina’s @ Coogee

Bay Hotel, Coogee. 11:50pm. Free. The Settlement Leadbelly, Newtown. 6pm. Free. Travis Loughhead Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 7:30pm. Free. Vanessa Heinitz 99 On York, Sydney. 5:30pm. Free.

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 26 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Samba Encontro De Syd - feat: DJ Paulo + Mark Crissy + Samba Battle & Bateria 61 + Samba Ninjas + Sasamba + Western Sydney Samba Play Bar, Surry Hills. 6pm. Free.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

Continental Blues Party + Bonnie Kay And The Bonafides Leadbelly, Newtown. 4pm. Free. Dave Anthony Crossways Hotel, 8pm. Free. Glenn Esmond Duo Selina’s @ Coogee Bay Hotel, Coogee. 11:55pm. Free. Jim Finn + Band Of Mercane Town Hall Hotel, Newtown. 10pm. Free. Lj The Belvedere Hotel, Sydney. 7:30pm. Free. Loaded Dog Folk Club - feat: Danny Spooner + The Fossickers Annandale Neighbourhood Centre, Annandale. 8pm. $20. Mark Crotti Buckley’s Bar, Circular Quay. 7:30pm. Free. Michael Gorham Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 8pm. Free. Songsonstage feat: Russell Neal + Guests Kauri Foreshore Hotel, Glebe. 8pm. Free.

Songsonstage feat: Ross Daley + Guests Orange Grove Hotel, Lilyfield. 7pm. Free. The Sweet Little Army The Temperance Society, Summer Hill. 7pm. Free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Acoustic Grooves Duo Kings Cross Hotel, Kings Cross. 7:30pm. Free. Anatomy Class + Spiderling + Key Out Oxford Art Factory Gallery, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $13.60. Andy Clockwise Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $15. Angelena Locke Panania Diggers, Panania. 8pm. Free. Blow Cronulla Leagues Club (Sharkies), Woolooware. 8:30pm. Free. British India Metro Theatre, Sydney. 8pm. $39.90. Bura Bura + Suss Cunts Vic On The Park, Enmore. 8pm. Free. Crossfire Hurricane Coogee Diggers, Coogee. 8pm. Free. Crowded House + Kirin J Callinan Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 6pm. $119.90. Dave Anthony Rocks Brewing Co, Alexandria. 2pm. Free. Freda’s Ark 5th Birthday Celebration! - feat: Freda’s House Band + Josh Beagley + Michael Di Francesco + Harry Keys + Andrew Elston + Marcus King + Marco Vella + DJ Salami Freda’s, Chippendale. 6pm. Free. Geoff Davies The Push Bar, The Rocks. 7:30pm. Free. Geoff Yule Smith The Bar Sir Stamford Hotel, Sydney. 6pm. Free. Glenn Esmond

Fortune Of War, The Rocks. 3pm. Free. Hardcore - feat: Miles Away + Cursed Earth + Rebirth + Reactions + Nerve Damage + Level + Homesick The Bald Faced Stag, Leichhardt. 5pm. $28. Jconnexion Carousel Inn Hotel, Rooty Hill. 8pm. Free. Jimmy Bear Orient Hotel, The Rocks. 5:45pm. Free. Matt Toms Clovelly Hotel, Clovelly. 5pm. Free. Melancholy Flowers Cabramatta Leagues Club, Cabramatta. 9pm. Free. Never Ending 80s Bridge Hotel, Rozelle. 8pm. $28.20. Replica Orient Hotel, The Rocks. 10pm. $5. Rick Fensom Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 4:30pm. Free. Running In The Shadows Fleetwood Mac Tribute Kareela Golf Club, Kareela. 8pm. Free. The Ruminaters The Chippo Hotel, Chippendale. 8pm. $13.10. Vanessa Heinitz Duo Twin Willows Hotel, Bass Hill. 7:30pm. Free. Zac Coombes Peachtree Hotel, Penrith. 7pm. Free.

SUNDAY NOVEMBER 27 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Judy Bailey’s Jazz Connection Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 6pm. Free. Much Ado... Celebrating Shakespeare - feat: Sydney Symphony Fellowship Sydney Conservatorium Of Music, Sydney. 3pm. $15. Sundays Roots & Reggae - feat: King Tide

Moonshine Cider & Rum Bar, Manly. 4pm. Free. Sunshine Sunday Sound System feat: DJs Bossman + Prince Vince + Guests Rosie Campbell’s, Surry Hills. 4pm. Free. Swing Social - feat: The Regent St Big Band The Bald Faced Stag, Leichhardt. 3pm. $12. The Squares Moya’s Juniper Lounge, Redfern. 6pm. Free. The Unity Hall Jazz Band Unity Hall Hotel, Balmain. 4pm. Free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Angelena Locke The Mill Hotel, Milperra. 12pm. Free. Bad Luck Kitty + Voodoo Rhythm Shakers Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 1pm. $10. Band Of Skulls Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $54.90. Crowded House + Kirin J Callinan Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 6pm. $119.90. Jared Baca Macarthur Tavern, Campbelltown. 2pm. Free. John Slaven Waterworks Hotel, Botany. 4pm. Free. Last Thursday The Merton Hotel, Rozelle. 6pm. Free. Lj Panania Hotel, Panania. 1pm. Free. Midlife Crisis Vineyard Hotel, Vineyard. 11am. Free. Richard Murphy Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 3:30pm. Free. The Rubens Clovelly Hotel, Clovelly. 5pm. Free. The Sydney Rock ‘N’ Roll & Alternative Christmas Market feat: The Detonators + The Morrisons + Cruisin’ Deuces + The Drey Rollan Band Manning Bar, Camperdown.

10:30am. $6. U2 Elevation Orient Hotel, The Rocks. 3:30pm. Free. UK Anthems Orient Hotel, The Rocks. 8:30pm. Free. William Singe Metro Theatre, Sydney. 7:30pm. $45.20.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

Acoustic Sessions Buena Vista Hotel, Mosman. 2pm. Free. Benj Axwell Crown Hotel, Surry Hills. 6pm. Free. Dave Anthony Hunters Hill Hotel, Hunters Hill. 12:30pm. Free. Dave Anthony Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 6:30pm. Free. Dave Tice Trio B.e.d., Glebe. 6pm. Free. Glenn Esmond Fortune Of War, The Rocks. 6pm. Free. Hayley Jensen + Kirsty Lee Akers The Basement, Circular Quay. 7:30pm. $24.30. Heath Burdell Unity Hall Hotel, Balmain. 3pm. Free. Jj Hausia The Push Bar, The Rocks. 4pm. Free. Jp Project Wentworth Hotel, Homebush West. 1pm. Free. Live Music Sundays - feat: Sydney Blues Society Botany View Hotel, Newtown. 6pm. Free. Michael Dimarco Bellevue Hotel, Paddington. 2pm. Free. Michael Gorham The Rivo Hotel, Riverstone. 4pm. Free. Songs On Stage Open Mic Mr Falcon’s, Glebe. 7pm. Free. Songsonstage - feat: Andrew Denniston + Zer0fret + Monica + Victoria Young + Hector Matias Donoso + Pauline Sparkle + Russell Neal Mr Falcon’s, Glebe. 6pm. Free.

COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

Ted Nash The Bourbon, Potts Point. 12:30pm. Free. Vanessa Heinitz Rocks Brewing Co, Alexandria. 2pm. Free.

MONDAY NOVEMBER 28 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Latin & Jazz Open Mic Night The World Bar, Kings Cross. 7pm. Free. The Greasy Chicken Orchestra Foundry616, Ultimo. 8pm. $11.50.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

John Maddox Duo Mr Falcon’s, Glebe. 7pm. Free. Songsonstage feat: Russell Neal + Guests Kelly’s On King, Newtown. 7:30pm. Free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Frankie’s World Famous House Band Frankie’s Pizza, Sydney. 9pm. Free. Live Solo Sessions feat: Pete Raven Scruffy Murphy’s Hotel, Sydney. 8pm. Free. National Live Music Awards The Basement, Circular Quay. 7:30pm. $43.70. Steve Twitchin Orient Hotel, The Rocks. 8:30pm. Free. The Monday Jam The Basement, Circular Quay. 8:30pm. $6.

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 29 ACOUSTIC,

Jeremy Loops Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $40. Live & Original @ Mr Falcon’s - feat: Beck Fielding + Tommy Alexander + Coast + Ocean Mr Falcon’s, Glebe. 7:30pm. Free. Songsonstage feat: Russell Neal + Tim Walker + The Nightcaps + Chris Brookes + Pauline Sparkle Gladstone Hotel, Dulwich Hill. 7:30pm. Free. Songsonstage feat: Stuart Jammin + Guests Kelly’s On King, Newtown. 8pm. Free. Tim Walker The Lord Gladstone Hotel, Chippendale. 8pm. Free.

Dbl Drum Dbl Bass Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8:30pm. $10. Steve Barry Quartet Foundry616, Ultimo. 8pm. $13.50. The Consouls Play Bar, Surry Hills. 8pm. Free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Bucket Lounge Presents – Live & Originals Mr Falcon’s, Glebe. 7pm. Free. Gizzfest 2016 - feat: King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard + Pond + White Fence + Stonefield + Mild High Club + The Murlocs + Jaala Big Top Sydney, Milsons Point. 4:45pm. $75.50. Karaoke Party Rooty Hill RSL Club, Rooty Hill. 7:30pm. Free. Natasha Duarte Orient Hotel, The Rocks. 8:30pm. Free.

songwriters’ secrets WITH The First Song I Wrote I’m a latecomer to 1. songwriting, and wrote my first

song (‘That Ain’t Love’) in my mid-20s. It wasn’t about anyone in particular, but came to mean more to me as I grew older and had to live through some of the dysfunctional things in that song. We recorded it on our EP, and we still play it live on occasions.

The Last Song I Released Our last release was 2. ‘Wild Eleanor’ (you can fi nd it on

YouTube, Spotify, et cetera), which Jimmy [Daley, mandolin] wrote about a night in a shearing shed in rural New South Wales. Classic story of boy meets girl, boy loses girl. He didn’t remember her name afterwards, but he settled on

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JAMES MORRISON FROM THE MORRISONS

Eleanor for the song. If you were said girl, get in contact. We had our fi ve minutes of fame with this when we played it on The Bachelor (ugh), and it won an award at the Australian Songwriters Awards. Songwriting Secrets Jimmy and I share the 3. songwriting in our band, and his

approach differs from mine. The only common tip would be keep writing, and write a lot. Something will stick eventually. The Song That Makes Me Proud Jimmy wrote a song called ‘Council Chambers’ for my wedding day, which will always be special. It’s on our EP, although some of our other songs explain

why we don’t play it any more. The Song That Changed My Life 5. I heard Paul Kelly’s ‘To Her Door’ a hundred times when I was a kid (and hated it), but as an adult I paid more attention to the songwriting. Paul says more in the opening four lines than most songwriters can in four minutes.

What: Sydney Rock ‘N’ Roll & Alternative Market With: The Detonators, Cruisin’ Deuces, The Drey Rollan Band Where: Manning Bar When: Sunday November 27

BRAG :: 690 :: 23:11:16 :: 29

g g picks gig p up all night out all week...

WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 23 The Spin Drifters The Basement, Circular Quay. 8pm. $18.30.

THURSDAY NOVEMBER 24 Bree Tranter + Alby Oxford Circus, Darlinghurst. 7pm. $11. Crowded House + Kirin J Callinan Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 6pm. $119.90. Joel Sena Slyfox, Enmore. 8pm. Free. Katherine Vavahea + Madame Wu + Amber Dubs Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 7:30pm. $10. Letters To Lions

Brass Monkey, Cronulla. 7pm. $12.25.

Letters To Lions

Moonshine Thursday Feat: Papa Pilko And The Binrats + Sweet Jelly Rolls Moonshine Cider & Rum Bar, Manly. 8pm. Free.

The Settlement Leadbelly, Newtown. 6pm. Free.

The Troggs Factory Theatre, Marrickville. 8pm. $49.80.

The Smith Street Band + The Nation Blue + Grim Rhythm + Forevr Factory Theatre, Marrickville. 8pm. $35.

Band Of Skulls

Allan Smithy + The Ruiins + Jack Shit Waywards, Newtown. 8pm. Free. Ezekiel Ox Vic On The Park, Enmore. 8pm. Free.

Lepers & Crooks The Chippo Hotel, Chippendale. 8pm. $14.90. Mansionair Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $28.70.

Necrostalgia + Hawkmoth + Double Chamber + Black Rehno Studio Six, Sutherland. 8pm. $15. Rare Finds #23 Aria Week Party - Feat: Gideon Bensen + Slumberhaze + Ivey + Sparrows + The Griswolds DJs Oxford Art Factory,

British India Metro Theatre, Sydney. 8pm. $39.90.

SUNDAY NOVEMBER 27 Band Of Skulls Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $54.90. Hayley Jensen + Kirsty Lee Akers The Basement, Circular Quay. 7:30pm. $24.30. The Rubens Clovelly Hotel, Clovelly. 5pm. Free.

Anatomy Class + Spiderling + Key Out Oxford Art Factory Gallery, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $13.60.

The Sydney Rock ‘N’ Roll & Alternative Christmas Market - Feat: The Detonators + The Morrisons + Cruisin’ Deuces + The Drey Rollan Band Manning Bar, Camperdown. 10:30am. $6.

Joel Sena

William Singe Metro Theatre, Sydney. 7:30pm. $45.20.

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 29 Jeremy Loops Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $40.

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The Smith Street Band photo by Kane Hibberd

Green Mohair Suits Camelot Lounge, Marrickville. 7:30pm. $17.90.

Blow Cronulla Leagues Club (Sharkies), Woolooware. 8:30pm. Free.

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 26

Andy Clockwise Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $15.

The Smith Street Band

30 :: BRAG :: 690 :: 23:11:16

The Cult Enmore Theatre, Newtown. 8pm. $91.65. The Monkey Wrench + Grinding Eyes + The Holy Soul Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $28.24.

Swamp To Sahara + Thunder Fox + Kiyanosh Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $11.50.

FRIDAY NOVEMBER 25

Darlinghurst. 8pm. Free.

brag beats

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

on the pulse club, dance and hip hop in brief... with David Burley, Ariana Norton and Chris Martin

five things WITH

POLOGRAPHIA

second EP, Scenes. Between touring with Rudimental and remixing tracks for acts like Gorgon City, Disclosure and The Preatures, GRMM has found the time to put out a new six-track release. In celebration of the EP announcement, GRMM dropped the track ‘Give Me Up’ (feat. River), which shows off his tidy production and thirst for dancey beats. With features announced from Moza, Father Dude and Johnny Gr4ves on the EP, it’s sure to be an exciting release for Australian electronic fans. The EP is set to land on Friday December 9 and GRMM will be putting on a special show at Knox Street Bar to celebrate it on the same day.

Optimo

SCRATCH THAT ITCH

Growing Up Moktar’s dad is a 1. music composer and classical conductor. He’s grown up in a very musical family and music had always been a big thing at home. Going through high school, Moktar listened to a lot of usual heartbreakers like The Smiths, The Doors and David Bowie and eventually found funk with Parliament and Funkadelic. Dan’s dad was a big music fan and had drums, guitars, records, tapes, big speakers, everything! He used to keep Dan up at night blasting Pink Floyd, and his mum used to play Enya… a lot. Growing up, he started to discover music for himself – it was a lot of ’60/’70s rock from his dad’s collection but then turned to electronic/ experimental music and hip hop. Inspirations Just some of 2. many for Moktar, but

favourite musicians would be David Bowie, Tame Impala and Gorillaz. If you’re talking rap, The Pharcyde was a huge game-changer. Favourites tend to be

a phase of who does Dan like most at the moment, but some of his all-time favourites are Neon Indian, Change, Tame Impala, Boards Of Canada and A Tribe Called Quest. Your Crew We’ve got loads 3. of mates that have

a huge discography of amazing music that we all share with each other. It’s like a never-ending cycle of music-sharing between us all. We both work nine-to-five jobs to make ends meet unfortunately, but our plans are to change that one day in the future! Dan also works as a graphic designer and has been doing so for over ten years. It’s good for him to have a visual outlet as well as a musical one, keeping things interesting. The Music You Make And Play 4. We’re kind of known

for always playing unreleased music in our live set, but with this new EP coming along that’ll change and people might actually know the songs. You can expect featured artists like Looks Fade and

SALT, PEPA AND ICE

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What: Friends out now through Sweat It Out With: Pluural, Colourwaves Where: Newtown Social Club When: Saturday November 26

MC. Holy smokes. Throwbacks don’t throw back much further than that. It’s all happening at Qudos Bank Arena on Friday June 9.

NEVER GONNA GIVE GRMM UP It’s been a busy year for Aussie producer GRMM and he’s ending it on a high with the release of his

You wouldn’t know it for all the attention Sydney’s NYE celebrations receive, but way up north in Scotland, they throw some pretty big New Year’s bashes as well. Scotch tastemakers Optimo are heading our way to prove it. Twitch and Jonnie Wilks have been a power duo since way back in 1997, and they’ve helped shape the sound of a generation, including through their influential club nights in Glasgow. They’ve now been confirmed for an NYE set at Lost Paradise in the Glenworth Valley (the festival runs Thursday December 29 – Saturday December 31), as well as a headline slot at Idealism: The Motorik Summer Festival at Manning Bar on Saturday January 7. Prime time.

Tigerlily

Music, Right Here, Right 5. Now

We think the music scene at the moment is growing real fast! There’s a lot of talented people out there making some inspirational music and it’s great to see more and more artists doing their thing. Though nowadays you need to work twice as fast to keep up! The best thing about our local music scene is the great friends you make along the way. It’s like one big family and we’re all out to help out each other no matter what.

AN OPTIMAL OPPORTUNITY

The Island

FALCONA ON THE ISLAND

The annual Island Live daytime special/public holiday event is back, and this year it’s joining forces with Falcona. The lineup is being kept under wraps until the day, so we’ll have to wait and see who’ll be playing this year, but with the impressive list of artists that Falcona has under its belt, you can bet it’ll be good. That list includes Alison Wonderland, Hayden James, Paces and Miami Horror – so you didn’t hear it from us, but we’re putting our bets on at least one of them being included. The Island Live x Falcona Takeover is on The Island, Sydney Harbour on Tuesday December 27.

MORE BEATS WITH YOUR EATS MTV Beats & Eats is set to live up to its name this weekend, with two more Australian acts added to a delish music lineup for the Wollongong festival. Headliner Steve Aoki, the Gold Coast’s Paces and Maala will now be joined on the day by Aussie powerhouse Tigerlily and up-and-comer Throttle. Tigerlily has earned a following both locally and internationally, having been picked as a support act for the mighty Tiësto, while Throttle made his name via ‘Waiting’, a collaboration with the Netherlands’ Oliver Heldens. MTV Beats & Eats 2016 goes down at Stuart Park, Wollongong this Saturday November 26.

Sliink

SUMMER WITH SLIINK

Jersey club star Sliink is making a return visit to Australia and New Zealand this summer, and his Sydney show will land just in time for this Christmas holidays. Sliink was one of the key figures in the spread of the Jersey club gospel from its humble beginnings to international hotspots like London, Paris and Milan, but he’s never forgotten his roots. He’s recently been hit up by Skrillex to release on Owsla Records, and Sliink marked the occasion by getting an Owsla tattoo on his arm for his ‘Run Ricky Run X Higher’ music video. Check him out at Chinese Laundry on Friday December 23. BRAG :: 690 :: 23:11:16 :: 31

xxx

The ultimate ’90s lineup is coming together for a huge Australian tour in 2017. After selling out arenas across America, the I Love The ’90s Tour is making its way Down Under, bringing some iconic artists with it. We’re talking Vanilla Ice. We’re talking Salt-N-Pepa. We’re talking Color Me Badd, Tone Loc, Coolio and Young

Winston Surfshirt joining us onstage, but whenever we can’t get them to join us we normally make a remixed version of the track to make it more interesting. In the future we also plan to have some live visuals to help take things to another level too.

The secret warehouse events from Surveillance Party have proven a celebration of great local music and dance, and Surveillance Party #4 is set to top the lot. Leading the next lineup for Easter 2017 are the ARIA Award-winning duo Itch-E & Scratch-E, who will be bringing their unique sounds to a Sydney warehouse where they belong. Although the actual venue will remain a secret until closer to the date, we know that it will be happening in the Sydney metropolitan area. The event is BYO and a strict ‘no douchebags’ rule will be in place. The lineup also features Xan Müller, Clulow Forester, Dotmicro, Cunningpants, Animatic and Wonky. Surveillance Party #4 will be taking place on Saturday April 15 with limited tickets available, so sign up at surveillanceparty.com to get involved.

club guide g

A.B. Original

send your listings to : clubguide@thebrag.com

Fearless By Joseph Earp

.B. Original, the hip hop twopiece made up of Aussie musical mainstays Briggs and Trials, are an important band. That’s the heart of it. They matter the way a group like A Tribe Called Quest matter, and for the same reason – they craft songs that people actively require, songs with the ability to impact real change. An album like Reclaim Australia, the duo’s debut, isn’t some dalliance, or an exercise in climbing the charts – it is an unashamed ‘fuck you’ to the haters, and a rallying cry designed for all who need to hear it. “It’s a different kind of story with A.B. Original than anything I’ve done before,” says Briggs. “There’s a bigger meaning behind everything.” “We’re talking about important shit,” agrees Trials. “The things we’re discussing defi nitely deserve attention. It’s easy to write a song talking about something political or whatever, but it’s hard to write a good one, where people just listen to it as a standalone song. Specifi cally with [lead single] ‘January 26’ we wanted to write about really important issues but we wanted to make a banger of a song too. Some people might just have it on in the background and head-nod and they might not realise what we’re talking about is heavy shit.” In many ways, Briggs and Trials appear as polar opposites – particularly when it comes to their creative habits. “I wrote the songs on the spot, and they didn’t change,” Briggs says of the creative process behind Reclaim Australia. “Whatever I recorded that first day in the studio ending up [being] the songs … There was defi nitely a thought process behind it, but the writing was about capturing the moment.” By contrast, Trials laboured endlessly over the work, taking up his job as engineer and producer

with near-manic gusto. “I just completely freak out, over and over again, over one bar of a song,” he laughs. “When other people hear it, they don’t hear the panic and the incessant rage of me hitting my keyboard sometimes. They just hear a bit of music. “I’m defi nitely somewhat of a perfectionist. Even with this record, I did all the tidying up of the vocals and the tracking. I don’t like things getting too far out of my hands. I’m not quite sure what it is. It’s not like I’m completely confi dent about being awesome at what I do. Sometimes having the last say over something just feels good to me.” But despite their chalk and cheese approach to making music, the duo are united by a deep respect for each other, as well as a driving desire to make the best work they possibly can. “The main goal that was the backbone of it all was just creating an album that was for a young me,” says Briggs. “It was the album that I wished was around when I was a young kid. It was about being 100 per cent fearless about it, and saying things that haven’t been said and going out there and just being ourselves and putting ourselves out.” A lot of that selfsame fearlessness required the pair to stow their anxieties, and work in a way unfettered by surface-level concerns. “Without sounding like a dick, I really put any kind of selfdoubt away,” says Briggs. “This wasn’t the time for that. I feel like that’s a little bit selfi sh in itself. It was like, ‘Don’t make the album for you … make it for the kids.’ And that’s what I intended to do. To doubt myself [would] be a luxury. You don’t have the luxury to doubt yourself, ’cause you’ve gotta make this record.” As far as both artists are concerned, the album is set to be released at the best possible time. Trials argues that he and

Briggs could never have worked on something so grand in scale early on in their career, and that it’s their sonic maturity one can thank for Reclaim Australia’s unabashed nature. “That’s the whole thing about this record,” he says. “If me and Briggs tried to write this record back when we first started making music, we wouldn’t have done it right, you know? We felt the same way, and we both grew up in the same communities, but we weren’t ready to make a record like this, I don’t think. So creatively and personally we can now do it confi dently.” Of course, the record is also proving timely given the political and ethical murkiness we now find ourselves mired in. If there were ever a time for a song like the anti-racism anthem ‘Call Em Out’ to drop, it would be towards the end of 2016, a year that has seen the rise of the alt-right, Donald Trump, Pauline Hanson and the thousand other squirming horrors this shitshow of an 11 months has flung at us. “A lot of people have always said that it’s going to get a lot worse before it gets better,” Briggs says. “And if we’re not there, we’re on our way to there.” But that, he says, explains the record and its bold, powerful stance. “This isn’t just an album of songs. This has never been said like this in Australia. This is very much a, ‘Fuck you. This is our album. Deal with it.’” What: Laneway Festival 2017 With: Nao, Tame Impala, Nick Murphy, Jess Kent, Clams Casino and many more Where: Sydney College of the Arts When: Saturday February 4 And: Reclaim Australia out Friday November 25 through Golden Era/ Universal

WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 23 HIP HOP & R&B

Mýa + Blackstreet + 112 Enmore Theatre, Newtown. 8pm. $94.45.

CLUB NIGHTS Birdcage X Shades Inner City Legal Centre Fundraiser feat: Cunningpants + Mowgli May + James Smithers + Surprise Guests Slyfox, Enmore. 9pm. Free. Sbw Side Bar, Sydney. 8pm. Free. Sosueme - feat: Linda Marigliano + Moonbase Commander Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 8pm. Free. Wet Wednesdays Scary Canary, Sydney. 9:30pm. Free.

THURSDAY NOVEMBER 24 CLUB NIGHTS Get Some Goodbar, Paddington. 6pm. Free. House Keeping Side Bar, Sydney. 8pm. Free. Voodoo Rhythm Shakers Scruffy Murphy’s Hotel, Sydney. 8pm. Free.

Yo/ Da Fu/ Nk - feat: Resident Funk DJ’s The World Bar, Kings Cross. 9pm. Free.

HIP HOP & R&B

Argyle Thursdays - feat: Mike Champion + Moto + Nino Brown + Tubz + A-Game The Argyle, The Rocks. 7pm. Free. Crate Digger Thursdays - feat: Open Decks Play Bar, Surry Hills. 5pm. Free. DJ Yella + Lil Eazy-E Soda Factory, Surry Hills. 5pm. Free. Hip Hop Files Oxford Art Factory Gallery, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $9.50. Koi Child + Godriguez + Body Type Hudson Ballroom, Sydney. 8pm. $16.90. Mýa + 112 + Blackstreet Penrith Panthers, Penrith. 8pm. $90.

FRIDAY NOVEMBER 25 HIP HOP & R&B

Black Milk + Godriguez + DJ Diola + DJ Benny Hinn Play Bar, Surry Hills. 4pm. Free. Fatback Hudson Ballroom, Sydney. 9pm. Free.

“THIS ISN’T JUST AN ALBUM OF SONGS. THIS HAS NEVER BEEN SAID LIKE THIS IN AUSTRALIA.” 32 :: BRAG :: 690 :: 23:11:16

Role Modelz Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 8pm. Free. The Head Nod Factor Live - feat: Black Milk + Hau Latukefu + Godriguez + DJs Benny Hinn + Diola Play Bar, Surry Hills. 4pm. Free.

CLUB NIGHTS

Argyle Black Party feat: Andy Murphy + Tenzin + Phil Hudson + Recess + Yoji + A-Game The Argyle, The Rocks. 8pm. Free. Boombox Cartel + Quix Chinese Laundry, Sydney. 9pm. $22.90. Cause - feat: Dave Stuart + Eduardo Perlo + Marlie + Jac Frier + Alex Ludlow + Philip Kanis Oxford Hotel, Darlinghurst. 9pm. $16.50. Freshly Squeezed Fridays End Of Year Party - feat: Ribongia + Cult Shotta + Jannah Beth + Steady Bills + Meare + P.Smurf & Rivals Hudson Ballroom, Sydney. 11pm. $11. Friday Frothers Side Bar, Sydney. 8pm. Free. Friday Night Dance Off - feat: Modern History + DJ Lou Lou Scruffy Murphy’s Hotel, Sydney. 6pm. Free. Friday Night Techno - feat: Oscar Mulero Jam Gallery, Bondi Junction. 9pm. Free. Lady Grey’s Sunday Best - feat: Cleric + Refl ec Zoo Project, Potts Point. 10pm. $21.49. Old Skool Fridays - feat: DJs On Rotation St Johns Park Bowling Club, St Johns Park. 8pm. Free. Peoples Club Weekly - feat: Max Graef + Steven Sullivan + Aaron Andrew + U-Khan + David Bangma Goodbar, Paddington. 8pm. $20. Prescription - A Night Of Soca, Reggae & Dancehall - feat: DJ Fasmwa + Deejay Koolbreeze Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst. 11pm. $11.50. Sam Wall Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly. 8pm. Free. Schlepp Geist + Jimmi Walker + Zarate_fix + Jaffa Slyfox, Enmore. 10pm. $15. Still Life 007 - feat: Nick Forrest + Raffi Lovechild + Many More Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 10pm. Free. TGIFreda’s - feat: Hubert Clarke Jr + Freda + Jackson + DJ Earl Grey Freda’s, Chippendale. 6pm. Free.

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

send your listings to : clubguide@thebrag.com

club pick of the week Boris Brejcha

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 26 Western Sydney Parklands

Earthcore In The Park 2016 Boris Brejcha + John 00 Fleming + Sean Tyas + Ann Clue + more

12pm. $149. SATURDAY NOVEMBER 26 HIP HOP & R&B

On The Corner Mr Falcon’s, Glebe. 8:30pm. Free.

CLUB NIGHTS A Jazzy Sport Label Showcase feat: Grooveman Spot + Sauce 81 + 77 Karat Gold + Mike Who + Tom Studdy + Glen Cassidy + Special Guest Junya Cake Wines Cellar Door, Redfern. 1:30pm. $21.89. Argyle Saturdays - feat: Tass + TapTap + Minx + Crazy Caz The Argyle, The Rocks. 6pm. Free. Beyonce Vs Rihanna Round 2 feat: DJs Levins + Captain Franco + Sezzo Snot + Baby Mama + Flexmami And Kritty Hudson Ballroom, Sydney. 9pm. thebrag.com

$22.70. Clique Sydney Cruise Bar, Sydney. 8:30pm. $20. Comfort Club #10 feat: B&H Smooth + Señor Face + Bilsn + Jozef Conor + Sam Walsh Tokyo Sing Song, Newtown. 9pm. Free. Countdown To Fomo - feat: Slumberjack + Feki + Robustt + Bucknite + Interns DJs + Nocturnal Dolphin + Gambit + Baby Ruth + Keefy + Boutique + Sanchoe + Oszlo + Goldclass + E-Cats + Akunu Mona Vale Hotel, Mona Vale. 2pm. $25. Days Like This! Presents: Jackmaster + Patrick Topping Greenwood Hotel, North Sydney. 2pm. $58.75. Earthcore Afterparty - feat: Boris Brejcha + Ann Clue Jam Gallery, Bondi Junction. 9pm. $30. Earthcore In The

Park 2016 - feat: Ambivalent + Ann Clue + Bliss + Boris Brejcha + Bryan Kearney + Chris Liberator + Cinnamon Chasers + Groove Delight + John 00 Fleming + Morten Granau + Ø [Phase] + Oscar Mulero + Sean Tyas + Slam + Tin Man + Vini Vici + Vitalic + Csmnt61 + Francis Xavier + Likewise + Mclean & Mai + Snillum + Symphonik + Vivi Western Sydney Parklands, Abbotsbury. 12pm. $149. Flamingos - feat: Heaps Gay DJs Imperial Hotel, Erskineville. 9pm. Free. Frat Saturdays Side Bar, Sydney. 8pm. Free. Glitchsys Bass Rave - feat: Dysphemic + Exsetra + Drachemann + Vertical Transport + Loz Nons Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 10pm. $15.

Hot Dub Time Machine Enmore Theatre, Newtown. 7:15pm. $52.95. Julian Jeweil + Christian Smith + Ed Wells + DJ Neil Smith + Steve Mx + Nick Reverse + Anya + Db Zoo Project, Potts Point. 10pm. $15. Just A Gent Carmens, Miranda. 9pm. Free. Loose Ends 10th Birthday - feat: DJ Matt Vaughan + Stephen Allkins + Annabelle Gaspar + Stereogamous + L’Oasis + Lorna Clarkson + Lillian Starr + Joseph Chetty + Gang Of She Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 10pm. $23.10. Mantra Collective Warehouse 010 + Kinky Groove + Mantra Collective + Tyson Bruun + Lachie Simpson + Lawrence Daffurn Secret Location, Sydney. 9pm. $38.50. Moonshine Saturdays - feat: DJs Moonshine Cider & Rum Bar, Manly. 8pm. Free. Precious Cargo feat: Special Guest DJs Cargo Lounge, Sydney. 8pm. Free. Resident DJs Scruffy Murphy’s Hotel, Sydney. 6pm. Free. Russ Yallop + Dom Dolla Chinese Laundry, Sydney. 9pm. $22.90. Sangria Latin Saturdays St Johns Park Bowling Club, St Johns Park. 9pm. Free. Selecta Saturdays feat: Cool Jerk DJs + Special Guests Rosie Campbell’s, Surry Hills. 8:45pm. Free. Soda Saturdays feat: Resident DJs Soda Factory, Surry Hills. 6pm. Free. Something Else feat: Jewel Kid + B_A + Dave Stuart + Aaron Robins + Shivers* + Elijah Scadden + Spacie B2B Lmk + Nort + Von Lach + Stick Life Burdekin Hotel, Darlinghurst. 10pm. $11. Spice X C.U - feat: Yokoo + Robbie Lowe Civic Underground, Sydney. 9pm. $16.50. Stuart B And Oh? Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly. 6pm. Free. Sunnery James, Ryan Marciano Marquee, Pyrmont. 8pm. $26.60. Synoid - feat: Lady Lilith + Ritza + Metlad + Rompa + Defl ik + No-Syt + Many More Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 10pm. $20. Tyron Hapi + Who Killed Mickey Chinese Laundry, Sydney. 6:30pm.

$27.70. Yours - feat: Commanduer Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 8pm. Free.

SUNDAY NOVEMBER 27 HIP HOP & R&B

Rooftop Sundays Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 8pm. Free. Sunday Sundown - feat: Tuka + Bad Ezzy Coogee Pavilion, Coogee. 12pm. Free.

CLUB NIGHTS All Irish Sundays feat: DJ Podgee Scruffy Murphy’s Hotel, Sydney. 12pm. Free. DJ Shane + Craig Atkins Vic On The Park, Enmore. 8pm. Free. Higher Ground feat: Discodromo + Move D + Wonky Cruise Bar, Sydney. 2pm. $44. Marco Polo - feat: Running Touch + Amastro Ivy Bar/Lounge, Sydney. 1pm. $22.90. Randomer + Kate Doherty + Monako + Aidan Psaltis + Qu-Zen Portugal Madeira Club, Marrickville. 4pm. $27. S.A.S.H By Day feat: Peak & Swift Greenwood Hotel, North Sydney. 2pm. $15. S.A.S.H By Night - feat: Matthias Tanzmann Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 9pm. $15. Shady Sunday feat: Retro DJs Imperial Hotel, Erskineville. 4pm. Free. Sin Sundays The Argyle, The Rocks. 7pm. Free. Stuey B And Alex Mac Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly. 4pm. Free. Sunday Sounds feat: DJ Adverse The Deck, Sydney. 4pm. Free.

MONDAY NOVEMBER 28

WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 23

Sam Walsh Tokyo Sing Song, Newtown. 9pm. Free.

Birdcage X Shades Inner City Legal Centre Fundraiser - Feat: Cunningpants + Mowgli May + James Smithers + Surprise Guests Slyfox, Enmore. 9pm. Free. Mýa + Blackstreet + 112 Enmore Theatre, Newtown. 8pm. $94.45.

Countdown To Fomo Feat: Slumberjack + Feki + Robustt + Bucknite + Interns DJs + Nocturnal Dolphin + Gambit + Baby Ruth + Keefy + Boutique + Sanchoe + Oszlo + Goldclass + E-Cats + Akunu Mona Vale Hotel, Mona Vale. 2pm. $25.

Sosueme - Feat: Linda Marigliano + Moonbase Commander Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 8pm. Free.

Days Like This! Presents: Jackmaster + Patrick Topping Greenwood Hotel, North Sydney. 2pm. $58.75.

THURSDAY NOVEMBER 24

Earthcore Afterparty - Feat: Boris Brejcha + Ann Clue Jam Gallery, Bondi Junction. 9pm. $30.

DJ Yella + Lil Eazy-E Soda Factory, Surry Hills. 5pm. Free. Koi Child + Godriguez + Body Type Hudson Ballroom, Sydney. 8pm. $16.90.

FRIDAY NOVEMBER 25 Boombox Cartel + Quix Chinese Laundry, Sydney. 9pm. $22.90. Cause - Feat: Dave Stuart + Eduardo Perlo + Marlie + Jac Frier + Alex Ludlow + Philip Kanis Oxford Hotel, Darlinghurst. 9pm. $16.50.

Loose Ends 10th Birthday - Feat: DJ Matt Vaughan + Stephen Allkins + Annabelle Gaspar + Stereogamous + L’oasis + Lorna Clarkson + Lillian Starr + Joseph Chetty + Gang Of She Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 10pm. $23.10. Mantra Collective Warehouse 010 + Kinky Groove + Mantra Collective + Tyson Bruun + Lachie Simpson + Lawrence Daffurn Secret Location, Sydney. 9pm. $38.50. Russ Yallop + Dom Dolla Chinese Laundry, Sydney. 9pm. $22.90.

Freshly Squeezed Fridays End Of Year Party - Feat: Ribongia + Cult Shotta + Jannah Beth + Steady Bills + Meare + P.Smurf & Rivals Hudson Ballroom, Sydney. 11pm. $11.

Something Else - Feat: Jewel Kid + B_A + Dave Stuart + Aaron Robins + Shivers* + Elijah Scadden + Spacie B2B Lmk + Nort + Von Lach + Stick Life Burdekin Hotel, Darlinghurst. 10pm. $11.

Lady Grey’s Sunday Best - Feat: Cleric + Reflec Zoo Project, Potts Point. 10pm. $21.49.

Spice X C.U - Feat: Yokoo + Robbie Lowe Civic Underground, Sydney. 9pm. $16.50.

Prescription - A Night Of Soca, Reggae & Dancehall - Feat: DJ Fasmwa + Deejay Koolbreeze Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst. 11pm. $11.50.

SUNDAY NOVEMBER 27

Schlepp Geist + Jimmi Walker + Zarate_Fix + Jaffa Slyfox, Enmore. 10pm. $15.

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 26 Comfort Club #10 - Feat: B&H Smooth + Señor Face + Bilsn + Jozef Conor +

Sunday Sundown - Feat: Tuka + Bad Ezzy Coogee Pavilion, Coogee. 12pm. Free. Randomer + Kate Doherty + Monako + Aidan Psaltis + Qu-Zen Portugal Madeira Club, Marrickville. 4pm. $27. S.A.S.H By Day - Feat: Peak & Swift Greenwood Hotel, North Sydney. 2pm. $15. Mýa

CLUB NIGHTS I Love Mondays Side Bar, Sydney. 9pm. Free.

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 29 CLUB NIGHTS Coyote Tuesdays The World Bar, Kings Cross. 8pm. Free. Propaganda Tuesday Scary Canary, Sydney. 9:30pm. Free. Side Bar Tuesdays Side Bar, Sydney. 9pm. Free.

BRAG :: 690 :: 23:11:16 :: 33

Off The Record

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up all night out all week . . .

Dance and Electronica with Alex Chetverikov

Throbbing Gristle

Conversely, there is a certain attraction in romanticising some pioneers as essential outsiders; as underground, cult or resistance figures. Some, as in the case of Throbbing Gristle for example, embody and encourage revolting against the norm. Many others occupy this space necessarily – blues, jazz, disco, and by extension house music and countless other genres were born against institutionalised oppression, of a desire for collective and individual liberation and expression. Perhaps as we integrate the shared histories of these marginalised groups, so too will their heroes be held in similar regard in pop culture. That can of worms aside… let’s take a look at a few crucial musicians who deserve a little more love.

THEO PARRISH Not exactly an unknown name among the heads, and a true craftsman of a groove, Theo’s been around for decades, sculpting jazzinspired house and techno soundscapes, funky soul and disco edits (with his lauded Ugly Edits series), and mixes redolent of the rich musical histories of Chicago, Detroit and beyond. He is as much an inspired record collector, DJ and radio host, with an impeccable ear and music taste. Where to start: Theo Parrish – ‘I Can Take It’, 3 Chairs – ‘I Wonder Why (Edit)’, Theo Parrish & Marcellus Pittman – ‘Questions Comments’, Jill Scott – ‘Slowly Surely (Theo Parrish Remix)’, NTS Radio mixes with Charlie Bones

industrial, Throbbing Gristle’s influence on the course of music is undeniable, with the inspirational, inimitable Genesis P-Orridge and Peter Christopherson leading from the fore. Birthed in the mid-1970s, they thrived off the unravelling of convention and causing utter discomfort. Tape recordings, spoken-word, sound effects, drone, gurgles and the odd foray into something resembling a dance beat were just a few elements of their unpredictable compositions. Challenging as they were, this was never just about causing a racket: their deliberate, unflinching references to the grotesque, including the thenrecent Moors murders, underlined their revolutionary social commentary. Where to start: ‘Hot On The Heels Of Love’, 20 Jazz Funk Greats (unless you’re brash and overconfident, in which case, The Second Annual Report)

YELLOW MAGIC ORCHESTRA We swing wildly over to the other side of the spectrum now, to the electropop of Japanese group YMO. They exploded into fame in the late 1970s and, quite amusingly, landed a spot on the beloved Soul Train in 1980, sending the crowd wild with their performance of ‘Computer Game’.

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e’re all familiar with certain artisans in popular culture – our cultural discourse is very much dominated by these figures. David Bowie and Prince are but two examples of those who’ve recently gone out as legends. These were innovators: iconic, radical symbols who subverted norms of sex, gender, appearance and creative expression, and are rightly held in high esteem. Their music and essence colours our rites of passage and punctuates moments in time.

19:11:16 :: Parramatta Park :: Parramatta

While they may sound a little kitschy to modern ears, with a joyous, bubbly approach that contrasted sharply with their European synth counterparts, their influence on electronic music, R&B and hip hop, and popular music overall is absolute. Having largely abandoned their more traditional instruments for the Moog, Korg and the burgeoning wave of accessible equipment becoming available at the time (including the Roland TR-808), YMO extended the boundaries of what was possible with technology at the time. They paved a way for aspiring musicians the world over to embrace modern instruments, and this impact can very much be felt in today’s context.

THROBBING GRISTLE

Where to start:

Performance artists, musicians, provocateurs – progenitors of noise and

‘Mad Pierrot’, ‘Firecracker’, ‘Solid State Survivor’

BEST RELEASES THIS WEEK:

Tlim Shug’s Split EP with DJ Playstation – the A-side is slammin’ lo-fi house; the B-side a repress of a groovy 1992 breakbeat. And, for something completely different, Jamma-Dee with his modern-boogie collection Vol. 1 (and 2).

RECOMMENDED

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 26

Samba Encontro – Brasilian Journey Edition Especial Play Bar Grooveman Spot, Sauce 81, 77 Karat

Motorik x Earthcore: Vitalic, Slam, Oscar Mulero, Boris Brejcha and more Western Sydney Parklands

FRIDAY DECEMBER 2

Majestic Casual

Max Watt’s

SATURDAY DECEMBER 3 Josh Wink

SATURDAY DECEMBER 10

Salmonella Dub Factory Theatre

SUNDAY DECEMBER 11

Honey Dijon, Claire Morgan Cruise Bar

FRIDAY DECEMBER 30

Leon Vynehall Civic Hotel

SATURDAY JANUARY 7 Optimo, djHMC, Abstraxion Manning Bar

rnb fridays live

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Oscar Mulero Jam Gallery

Gold Cake Wines Cellar Door

FRIDAY NOVEMBER 25

18:11:16 :: Qudos Bank Arena :: Sydney Olympic Park 34 :: BRAG :: 690 :: 23:11:16

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TAKE THE LEAD

TRIMESTER 1, 2017

AUDITION NOW ampa.edu.au/applynow e: admissions@ampa.edu.au p: 02 9555 1666