Metior Magazine - Edition #7 by Metior Magazine

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Murdoch Empire Telegraph & Indian Ocean Review

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Edition #2 April 2013

Murdoch Empire Telegraph & Indian Ocean Review – Since 1975 Edition 2, April 2013 Metior acknowledges that this is and always will be Aboriginal land. Metior is a Murdoch University student publication. For latest Guild news, events and info go to www.the-guild.com.au Find us on Facebook www.facebook.com/metiormagazine Want to catch up on previous issues? Go to www.the-guild.com.au/metior Editor Olivia Gardner

Cover Photo Tanya Volchanskaya

Sub-Editor Madura McCormack

Photographers Tanya Volchanskaya Piotrek Ziolkowski Ava Mandel Caleb Davenport Maria Bergwitz Ben Wright Josh Hoffman Grace McGurk

Graphic Design Karmen Lee Our undying everlasting gratitude to... Clinton Little Ben Wright Hannah Wright Maria Bergwitz Grace McGurck Stuart Rayner Jez Garrett Murphy Krause Komics Dale Morey Aaron Rutter

Visual Artists Marie-Annick Burridge Ross Hamilton Frew

Metior’s deadlines for the next three editions of 2013 are 3rd May, 12th July, 2nd August If you’d like to contribute writing, photography, poetry, illustrations or ideas please email us at metior@the-guild.com.au Editor Olivia Gardner

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Email metior@the-guild.com.au

Phone 9360 2158

Address Murdoch University Guild of Students 90 South Street, Murdoch WA 6150

Email A.Bellotti@the-guild.com.au

This magazine is printed using vegetable based inks onto paper stock which is manufactured from pulp sourced from plantation grown timber. Both paper manufacturer and printer are certified to ISO 14001, the internationally recognised standard for Environmental Management. Disclaimer Metior is published by the students of Murdoch University, under the governance of Murdoch University Guild of Students. Content should not be regarded as the opinions of the Guild unless specifically stated. The Guild accepts no responsibility for the accuracy of any of the opinions or information contained within the magazine.

CONTENTS From The President ��2 Editorial ��2 Features Discovering the World in One Multicultural Day ��4 The Growl ��6 Poons Head Recording Studio ��8 The Beards ��14 Lights Out Arts Festival ��16 Owl Eyes ��18 Do What You Love and Never Work A Day In Your Life ��19 Art in 3D ��20 Art Reviews ��25 Anton Franc ��26 Perth Boner ��27 Battle of the Bands ��27 Cinema Reviews ��30 Arts Degree ��31 Photography Tanya Volchanskaya �� 3, 10, 11, 31 & 33 Piotrek Ziolkowski ��4 Ava Mandal �� 8 & 17 Maria Bergwitz ��13 Josh Hoffman ��28 Poetry Dale Morey ��12 Visual Art Marie-Annick Burridge ��22 Ross Hamilton Frew ��24 Food Prawn, Fennel, and Orange Salad ��32

FROM THE PRESIDENT Words by Bec Thompson I turned 24 this week. Six of those 24 years have been spent working towards my three year Arts degree (you can read more about Arts degrees on page 31). If that’s not procrastination, I don’t know what is. Semester after semester of doing sweet f-all in uni work (because those assignments due in week fourteen can wait a while, right), matched equally and oppositely only by the adrenaline-induced, nail-biting, stomach-wrenching, caffeine and sugar-fuelled inevitable ‘night of reckoning’ 12 hours before a deadline. And you know what, the stress is addictive. I’m like a dare-devil thrill seeker, base jumping from impressive internationally renowned landmarks (like the bell tower) - except my base is a curbsided desk in the living room and the plunge is in my resultant grades. Well, no more. Another year of wisdom and I’ve seen the light. A changed woman. My birthday resolution: to go forth and prosp...Er, write those week 14 assignments. Right after I’ve finished this article, because our print deadline is tomorrow.

EDITORIAL Words by Olivia Gardner Hey guys, it is with great joy that I present to you the second edition of Metior for 2013. This is my first crack at the mag as editor so I’ve got a real soft spot for this one and I’m super chuffed to see it all come together! It has been an amazing ride getting to this point and I’ve realised that sometimes being thrown in the deep end is the best way to learn, although having said that, this definitely would not have been possible without the support of Metior’s dedicated team. We have the brightest group of young contributors who are full of ideas and tireless effort. It’s really something to put quality work together while tackling middle of semester assignments; I can’t tell you how much I’ve appreciated seeing the work as it has come in. There is nothing quite like the sensation that you get while gripping at your seat at the death knock of deadline, hoping and praying for work to come in. And then you hear it, that lovely chime of the inbox, where you open your new mail and find something wonderful that makes you grin from ear to ear. This happened for me, so thank you guys, I think you’re awesome. Most of all, I definitely wouldn’t have made it across the line without the support of my amazing sub-editor Madura McCormack. I am the luckiest editor of Metior so far in, as this is the first time we’ve had a sub-editor on board, how all the other editors did it I’ll never know! She is the best, if not for her reassuring looks in the eye saying “you’ve got this Liv” then definitely for her incredible attitude and talented work. She is as much responsible for this magazine as I am. And so finally guys I introduce to you the Music Edition of 2013. This one is packed with band interviews, reviews, photography and heaps more – we looked to one of life’s greatest pleasures in hope that we can bring you one small one. Have fun!

GET ON BOARD Our ever-growing team loves new members so checkout our Facebook www.facebook.com/metiormagazine for updates on upcoming editions, themes, writers meetings, and submission deadlines. Or alternatively email metior@the-guild.com.au to get involved.

PHOTOGRAPHER Tanya Volchanskaya

Discovering the world in one Multicultural Day Words by Madura McCormack & Photography by Piotrek Ziolkowski It was all about capturing the sights, sounds and tastes of Murdoch’s colourful plethora of ethnicities on Multicultural Day. Flags lined the bustling walkway, stretching from the United Kingdom on one end to Singapore on the other. What better way to celebrate diversity than with good food, laughter and a dash of perfect autumn weather. If you’re anything like me and had to move here from a whole different country, there was simply nothing more comforting than hearing the colloquial expressions and unmistakeable slang of home. Multicultural Day may be a showcase of the culture of different countries for some, but for those that hail from across the ocean somewhere, it’s a bittersweet reminder that you’re so far yet so close to home. To cure this unfortunate homesickness, along came the euphonic sounds of the didgeridoo, supplied wholeheartedly by the Wadumbah Aboriginal Dance Troupe. It wouldn’t be an authentic Multicultural Day without an educational visit from the original keepers of the land. Through music and at times comical dance stylings, the performance was a fine exhibition of the Nyungar culture. While Piotrek our trustee photographer rolled around in the grass for a bit, the booths continued to peddle their deliciously cheap delicacies to the rest of the starving student population. Through the bustling crowd and commotion, there was indeed much beauty to be observed. Simply by appreciating the fact that we live in a place where unique people of different cultures and practices can roam around without the fear of discrimination. We may all have contrasting ideologies, morals and opinions but that hasn’t prevented us from pausing for a moment and taking in all that we each have to offer. And so was the essence of Multicultural day, reminding us to step out of our bubbles once in a while to stop and smell all the racially diverse rose.

THE GROWL

Words by Olivia Gardner & Photography by Caleb Davenport It has been a busy couple of years for The Growl since they stepped into the Perth music scene in 2010. Things have definitely come a long way for the Fremantle boys who have just returned from a huge American tour with the kids from Tame Impala. They’ve recently released their debut LP titled What Would Christ Do?? The album kicks off its Australian tour April 19 in Sydney and finishes up in Perth on the 27th at the Bakery.

buddies. Last year was like five months of international touring, or something like that, so we did like 40 shows in America and 40 shows in the UK and then 3 Australian national tours, so it was pretty busy, and we did another album with Pond that’s about to be released.” What’s it like going on such massive tours having come from Perth? “I don’t know, It was heaps of fun this last tour we did in America with Tame. It was mental and just weird, everyone was from Perth – the crew was from Perth. Except Julian, he’s French. It was surreal, you know, you’re playing to three thousand people every night, and you just kind of go ‘what the fuck?’ But you just do it.”

With all this going on we decided to have a chat to front man Cameron Avery to find out what’s been going down and what we can expect from the album. So where are you now Cam? “I’m back in Perth, I got back yesterday. I had a week in New York. It was good, I haven’t had a proper week off – In saying that I was still doing stuff everyday like rehearsing and doing a bit of recording – but it was awesome.”

What can we expect from the record? “Just the usual, girl, boy likes girl. But also it was just a weird, different time, and a different headspace when I was writing this record. I hadn’t listened to the whole thing the whole way through until the other day, listening to the whole thing I can take pride in it, everything on that record is very real, I didn’t filter anything for the sake of the listener.”

What were you doing there? “That’s where the tour finished and I’ve got one really good friend there so I just harassed her every day.”

Do you think you’ve matured since then? “It was a headspace that I can’t really describe but I feel like that album should have been called The Growl – I’m writing all this new stuff and its way different, but I definitely feel like I’ve grown out of the headspace when I was writing those things.”

What did you guys do? “Nothing, had breakfast, got drunk, not drunk at breakfast, two separate occasions. I did karaoke one night and caught up with a friend. I love karaoke. Went to Brooklyn Bowl, saw a couple of gigs.” What is your go to karaoke song? “Probably You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling by The Righteous Brothers, or just anything off of the Top Gun soundtrack”

Last time I saw you guys play the Bakery you were on stage bare foot, much of that now? “How long ago was that?! That would have been like two years ago. I wore a suit the other day, it was great, it was fun. I love shows – I’m a fan of shows, like when I saw Beyonce or like when I saw Jack White play, I like shows where the whole show is a theatrical thing. I like being rehearsed and having the right everything, I get a bit control freaky sometimes. At the same time I feel like it’s very much a natural performance, I can’t stress enough to anyone who’s playing in the band, you can see straight through someone when they’re bullshitting.”

So when did you guys finish the album? “Properly finished only about 3 weeks ago, it was finished ages ago like four or five months ago and I got back from the Pond tour and just didn’t like a couple of the mixes and lost a bit of contact with how it was all going, so I just took two of the songs and remixed them and gave it a bit more teeth I suppose. But I didn’t get it finished and mastered right until I was in America. The guy who masters all my stuff lives in America, in Columbus, so I caught up with him and we got the album finished, but that’s why the album release got pushed back, because I fucked up.”

Are you looking forward to the Perth gig at The Bakery? “Perth should be good, we haven’t played The Bakery for ages and I’m going to try and make it a good one, I’m going to try and maybe bring in some extra stuff for the people of my home town.”

How was the Pond tour? “I’ve been away with Pond on and off for about two years now. It’s awesome; all those guys are my best

Cloe the dog

Poons Head Recording Studio

Words by Maria Bergwitz & Photography by Ava Mandal “The edge of the balcony used to be so rotten, if you’d step on it, you’d fall straight through,” says Rob Grant who moved into the East Fremantle share house for $7 per week in 1976. Today, it is home to Perth’s longest established record studio Poons Head, and perfectly safe to enter. As the narrow, poster-covered glass door shuts, the blinding sun disappears and a world of musical endeavour materialises. On floors hardly visible under a maze of different coloured carpets, stand towers of recording equipment, rows of vinyl and racks of instruments. The couch faces a serious speaker system. Walls and ceilings are decked out with sound bouncing preventative materials, including a larger-than-reallife painting of the queen. “I’m actually a pom,” Grant half-laughs, but denies the painting is there for any other reasons than sheer randomness. While born in England, this sound engineer spent his first ten years in Canada, and since in Perth. His ‘R’s are still not Australian. Poons Head came to life 28 years ago as the result of a house full of musicians. Its name is the story of a dog’s. Judd Fabru Dansworth went missing, returned under the name Poon due to a tag belonging to Poon’s Brothers Chinese catering company attached to his collar, and finally buried at the back of the house. “We used to joke about his head being the guardian angel, keeping developers from flattening the property and kicking us out,” Rob says, smiling at the memories of house inspections when they had to hide all evidence of a budding recording business. Since then Grant has embraced all different styles of music and recorded them regardless of his personal taste. “It’s all human expression and it’s all valid,” he says quite firmly. For him, Perth’s music scene is a place of stylistic openness. Isolated and without heritage like Nashville, or New York, or London, Grant says the scene lacks a set of prewritten rules to what is hot and what is not, in turn letting musicians develop in every experimental way they want. “By being a fashion snob and knowing how something has to be, essentially you’re closing off doors for other potentials, for people to be free, be themselves and be dickheads,” he laughs again, but with a serious undertone. He mentions a development he noticed within the music scene from when he first started in 85. “Today it’s almost more about living life from an external viewpoint,” Grant says, referring to Facebook and other social media. Uploading photos, documenting where and what was done. “Back then it wasn’t so much about ‘look at me, look at what I’m doing’. The sound was a lot more centre of attention,” Grant is deep in thought now. Cloe the dog comes over, wanting a pat. She has been the housedog for nine years now and nothing has been named after her, she is however, well aware of the house rules. “One day Sugarpuss were doing their drum tracks, she waltzed into the studio in the middle of their recording and howled,” she had let herself in. “I think she was telling them that they left the back door open, that it was noisy for the neighbours and that we don’t do that around here,” Grant says and scratches her behind the ear. Sugarpuss kept the recording.

Photo courtesy of Poons Head Recording Studio

West Coast Blues ‘n’ Roots Photography by Tanya Volchanskaya

POETRY

Words by Dale Morey & Photography by Maria Bergwitz

Idle Thoughts on Words If I were a musician my fingers would be as words formed easily upon my lips to play a song out of my heart, and sing into the sky to breathe. Tosca! you are set out from me my glass now empty but my soul is free. Oh if I were a musician and music were just like words I would piece them on a page just right to form a single chord in me.

Europe Once I scattered my dreams like leaves into the wild flurry of a youthful breeze and now the summer air is gone I cant believe Im trying to pick them up again. I fancy we are planets you and I orbiting some cold and distant sun We can never change our paths from here but only wait for them to meet again.

The Girls of Winter II The girls of winter arrive in the city with long young legs and fiery smiles The smell of rich perfume stalks the frosty air Dark mascara of their eyes cuts the drizzling rain

THE BEARDS

Words by Stuart Rayner and Olivia Gardner Currently in the midst of their global tour we decided to have a chat to Nathaniel Beard, of Adelaide band The Beards, where we asked him a few popular questions we found on the internet about beards, and also to find out a little more about the tour. “I think people without beards should wear fake beards at all times. In a perfect world, that’s how things would go, you’d just have people hiding their beardless faces behind a fake beard, because a fake beard is better than no beard in my opinion,” exclaims Nathaniel Beard. Do you think that should be legislated? “I definitely think that it should be legislated. I’ve got some pretty extreme views so I don’t know if my opinion is representative of the average bearded man.” What kind of penalties do you propose for someone caught without a beard? “I say death. But I’m pretty extreme, like I said; I’m an extremely extreme extremist.” What’s wrong with my beard? “Nothing is wrong with your beard if you’ve got a beard – if you have a beard then nothing’s wrong at all. I don’t care how good your beard is either, you could have a really really shit beard – a really shit beard is still a beard. I think all beards should be celebrated regardless of how big or patchy they are.” How does it feel having a beard? “It feels right.” Is it weird to feel a teacher’s beard? “It’s not weird to feel anyone’s beard – I encourage people, when they see a guy with a beard to just go up to it and give it a stroke – bearded people like getting their beards stroked and I think it should be an encouraged custom.” Why does Dumbledore have a beard? “Well that goes back to the answer from two questions ago, it’s because it’s the right thing to do. It’s only right that he has a beard and the question should be ‘Why doesn’t Harry Potter have a beard?’” What coloured beard does god have? “I think god has a white beard – but I’m not really sure of that – I don’t know who god is or what god is. Maybe god is just a beard, that there is nothing but a beard and that is god.” What does a beard have to do with love? “Right, that’s a really good question. Maybe I’m biased, I’m not sure, I really really like beards quite a lot and I don’t think that I would be even capable14

of loving if I didn’t have a beard. I love my beard. I love beards.” What are some good foods to eat for a healthy beard? “It doesn’t really matter what you do eat but there are some foods that you should avoid if you are bearded, soup, cereal is not a good choice. Hot dogs are good. I would say that I mostly eat hot dogs and I’m pretty healthy. My doctor told me to do that and he has a beard so I trust him.” So, you guys are on tour, where about are you now? “I’m in New York City and its freezing cold right now.” But you’ve got a beard to warm you? “Yeah well my face is warm but I wish I had a beard on my hands, a hand beard would be great right now! But we’ve been here for about three weeks now, we just did South by Southwest in Texas, we played in LA after that. Now we’re in New York and tomorrow we’re heading to Toronto to play some shows for Canadian Music Week. Then we’re coming back home and doing Blues Fest, or Beard Fest as I like to call it.” How were you guys received so far by the Americans? “Really well, I think America is desperate for change, and I feel like they’ve for too long been in the grips of this shaving epidemic that has been going on for over a hundred years across the whole world, Americans seem ready to grow great beards. In Texas they’ve already started, Texas have already embraced the beard – they’re all about beards down there. New York has some beards but there’s still a lot of shaving going on. There’s a sense of change in the air, the mood is in the air that everyone is about to grow a beard and keep that beard for life. I just walked past a guy with a beard, just then, really great beard.” What about people who can’t grow beards? I used to feel an uncontrollable rage towards people who couldn’t grow a beard. Just a really deep seeded rage but as your beard grows longer, you also get wiser and I’ve learned to not hate people who don’t have beards and can’t grow beards but more I just feel a great sense of pity towards them. My idea of hell on earth is being in this world where beards exist and you can’t have one. It’s the same way I feel when I see a crippled dog – just a great sense of shame and pity.”

Photo courtesty of The Beards

LIGHTS OUT ART FESTIVAL

Words by Garrett Murphy & Photography by Ava Mandal At 6 pm on the 23rd of March the Bakery, hand in hand with the kids at Colosoul, hosted the Lights Out Arts Festival to coincide with Earth Hour. The basic premise is for everyone to turn the lights out for an hour to show the Earth just how rad we think it is. Since its birth in 2007 in Sydney, Earth Hour and has inspired countless cities and countries to follow suit. In 2008 the Pyramids and Sphinx in Egypt switched off along with Rome’s Colosseum and the Coca Cola billboard in New Yorks Times Square. 2011 saw inspired cities turning off the Eiffel Tower, The London Eye, Big Ben, The India Gate and The Athens Acropolis to promote environmental awareness. It was great to see over three hundred Earth conscious crew joining in the festivities at the Bakery to show their support for the Lights Out event – and to check out some of Perth’s local talent. The gig had it all. Hunger pains were solved by waffles, everyone got an inspiration fix from the fresh artwork of Jackson Harvey, and Fashion heads could even pick up some cool local gear that was up for grabs. Now, let’s talk about the music, Perth talent is currently off the hook. The Brow Horn Orchestra caused chaos as expected. Ben Fear’s next level lyricism tied in with The Brow’s group arranger and producer Nic Owen’s fiery energy, providing good vibes for all. Sky Eaton on the trumpet and Karri Harper Meredith kept

those signature Brow Horn songs jamming and got some feet moving. Bastian’s Happy Flight, led by Will Slade, let off of a sweet synthed out and carefree disco sound to the crowd. It was classy song writing and brilliant vocals all the way with Slade. Local group Sunny put on a great show; they also just dropped their EP “luxury,” on the 10th of March. You can find it on bandcamp.com and it’s well worth a listen if this gig was anything to go by. Be sure to check out their track Rewind. Folk group of five Bedouin Sea also played the gig with a jamming set following Sunny. Finally, the dark hour was consumed by sets from Mt. Mountain and FOAM. Mountain opened things up with a smooth half hour of that sleepy sun sound and distinguishable vocals from Stephan Bailey. Three-piece garage rock group FOAM kept it cool in the dark with their distorted live sound and mad energy with ice-cold vocals from Joel Martin. It was a unique vibe for live music as The Bakery lit up on a different note. Great work Colosoul for putting on the event and The Bakery for hosting it. Everyone involved was amazing from the musicians to the waffle chefs and everyone that attended. It was a good night for a good cause and hopefully we’ll see it come around next year with just as much, if not more support.

OWL EYES

Words by Olivia Gardner After showing up on the Melbourne music scene two years ago the impressionably young and infinitely talented pop songstress Owl Eyes has finally created her first full length album that is set for release April 19.

What’s the inspiration or driving force for you? “So many things, I usually go for some kind of thing and then it goes off on a tangent, I’ve been working on this album for quite a while now but a lot of things are behind it. Coming of age, I’ve been working at it since I was twenty and I’m twenty two now, I think a lot of it has to do with becoming a woman and becoming the person that I am and realising that this is who I am and what I’m going to be. So you know, coming to terms with that – some of it was kind of nostalgic – a throwback to youthfulness. It’s very electronic based and inspired by intelligent EDM, it’s got a few things going around but it all kind of links up to that youthfulness and coming of age thing and just where I’m at in my life right now.” How does it feel going from being young and musically talented to actually making a success of it? It’s kind of surreal, EP’s are shorter and you don’t really, well you do think about it, but I never really put a whole story to it. Then when you have to write an album, at the start I was unnecessarily really daunted by the fact that I had to write an album and I kind of freaked myself out and then over the time I kind of realised well this is what I want to do and you know, you just have to suck it up and be in the right mindset. It’s just fun and you’ve got to roll with it – it’s just a part of you.” Who are some of your favourite musicians? “I always listen to Fleetwood Mac and things like that, and I listen to beautiful female jazz singers like Ella Fitzgerald. Then I go through fazes – this album I was listening to a lot of electronic music so Mount Kimbie, I went to their show and the Justin Martin

Photo courtesy of Mushroom Promotions

What do you think of your new album Night Swim? “I’m really proud of it, I can’t wait to put it out there, I feel like it’s a big step up for me – I feel like it’s more mature and its more defined – the previous EP’s I was just experimenting and trying to find my way. I feel like this is a bit more concrete. Honestly I just can’t wait for it to be out and to get some kind of reaction.”

show. A lot of UK producers are really inspiring me because I think they’re making amazing pop music. But yeah this album I was just really inspired by electronic music and I just tried to put as many synth layers as I can on the tracks.” Did you put a lot of the electronic music together yourself? “I work with Jan Skubiszewski who I’ve worked with previously from the start of the album – he works on a lot of other things like Cat Empire records – but I met Styalz Fuego who produces a lot of electronic stuff like Aston Shuffle and he worked on a 360 album and things like that and we kind of really got along. We had a colab situation going on where I’d go in with all my ideas and then we’d throw all the ideas out and start fresh and kind of just throw things around. It was a really fun experience because I hadn’t really worked with too many people that I connected with other than Jan in the past, whereas I instantly connected with Styalz, and it was kind of like this thing where we would create things and we weren’t really sure what we were doing but it all ended up on the album and he became the main producer on the album.”

Do what you love & never work a day in your life Words by Madura McCormack Complete school and get a job that pays the bills, an idea so ingrained into the fabric of society that people find themselves working 9 – 5 office jobs only to retire at sixty realizing they’d left all their youth behind on a swivel chair. The very notion of spending a lifetime working at something you don’t love is terrifying, and according to actor Luke Hewitt, it’s all about being a realist and knowing yourself and who you are. “The idea that you can be anything you want, it’s true. But you have to know yourself, then understand if what you want is possible with who you are,” says Hewitt, an Australian actor and former Murdoch University student. Hewitt’s journey of attaining success through his passion bears some similarity to his latest role in the stage play ‘Death of a Salesman’ by Arthur Miller. He plays Uncle Ben, the adventurous and consequently millionaire younger brother to central character Willy Loman. ‘Death of a Salesman’ looks at the final days in the life of Willy Loman (played by John Stanton), a travelling salesman swallowed into the idea of chasing a fortune by doing something he wasn’t particularly good at. Now drowning in debt and abandoned by the career he sacrificed so much for=, Willy finds himself losing his grasp on reality. Switching between present and delirium, where Uncle Ben resides, Willy battles past choices, lost opportunities and the certainty that he is worth more to his family dead than alive. The character of Willy Loman, is a prime example of the consequence of what years of self-deception and ego-driven obduracy can ultimately lead to; death by pre-meditated car crash – unless the walls of failure and depression don’t get you first. While there are many Willy Lomans hopping onto the train religiously at 8:17 every weekday morning that can’t be saved from their zombie-esque lives, there’s still personal hope if you’re conscious enough to be digesting this.

After four years of bouncing around different Majors, Hewitt left Murdoch without a degree. But the projects started coming in once he began admitting to himself that he was indeed an actor. “I know what makes me happiest and I pursue that,” Hewitt says. Life stories that don’t follow the mainstream template are good boosters for those still searching for their path in life, the career that suits them most or (as with most Art students) what to do with their degree if anything. While the struggle for success and pursuit of happiness is present in everyone’s lives, perspectives gained from people like Willy Loman in ‘Death of a Salesman’ and Luke Hewitt, serve to remind us that if you do what you love, you’ll never have to work another day in your life. ‘Death of a Salesman’ by Arthur Miller runs from 4th to 19th May at Heath Ledger Theater in the State Theatre of W.A.

Photo courtesty of Black Swan State Theatre Company

Go Off on a Tangent Discussing with Luke Hewitt his career in the performing arts thus far brings a sliver of hope for those of us worried about conforming to what society expects of us. Spending four years in Murdoch, two of them in Secondary Education, one in Economics and the last in Communications and Media, Hewitt admits he stayed in Uni mostly to please his family.

ART IN 3D

Words & Photography by Ben Wright Margaret River is well known for its amazing beaches, world class wines and towering forests. While these are the main draw cards for the prosperous town in the South-West, it also has a thriving local art scene.

“The glass we make is all 3D in form so we wanted something that would match that,” said Reilly.

Case in point was the launch of a ‘3D Pop-up shop’ at The Melting Pot Glass Studio on a chilly Easter Saturday evening. There was a constant stream of people wandering in off the main street; half in the know, the other half curious to exactly what a 3D Pop-up shop is.

A sense of family is part of the Melting Pot. Gerry and Margot’s son Ned Reilly also creates glass art at the studio.

“There are plenty of places that have paintings, prints and photographs so we wanted to do something different.”

When asked if he had planned to follow in his father’s footsteps, Reilly responded, “when I finished High School I always wanted a job that made me lots of money and was nice and stable, so I studied Engineering.”

Intrigued, I spoke to Studio Manager Margot Edwards. “Basically, it is a space for 3D artists to put on shortform exhibitions,” she explained.

“I tried it out but it really wasn’t for me and I wanted to do something more creative. So I went back to doing what I had grown up around, making glass.”

The space can be used for a time frame of a week to a month.

Reilly acknowledged that being raised in a glass blowing studio is an opportunity that few artists get considering the high costs involved; he appreciated the childhood he was given. According to him, there are joys in art and being creative that engineering could never provide.

“It gives them (artists) a chance to show off their latest wares but with the short time frame it keeps the space fresh and dynamic,” said Edwards. I asked her about the first artist to exhibit in the space, Myles Happs. The son of well-known local potter Erl Happs, this is his first time branching out from his family’s Happs Pottery.

“I just love how with making something creative you get the chance to really blow someone’s mind, to make them sit back and go ‘wow, now that is amazing’ is something you don’t really get as an engineer.”

“That is the great thing about the space, it gives emerging artists the chance to get their work onto the main street without putting on a major exhibition and all the costs that go with it,” she said.

Myles Happs will be in the space for the month of April. Head to www.facebook.com/pages/MeltingPot-Glass-Studio/101842893191799 to find out about their upcoming shows.

Gerry Reilly putting the top on a handmade glass bauble.

But what about the 3D aspect? I asked renowned glass artist and owner of Melting Pot Glass studio Gerry Reilly about just that.

VISUAL ART

Marie-Annick Burridge

VISUAL ART

Ross Hamilton Frew

ART REVIEWS

Words by Olivia Gardner Hold Your Silence The last installation to pop up at Paper Mountain, titled Hold Your Silence, featured the work of Ross Hamilton Frew and Alan Stanners. In many ways it was a fitting title for the exhibition, as you walked up those familiar Northbridge steps and into the gallery space, you were met by a demure and silent display. The polished cement floors met with the white washed walls and in a line spanning the length of the gallery were the softly spoken geometrical works on paper of Frew. The simplest of concoctions, Frew used ink on found paper to create his artwork, manipulating unassuming lines to create almost three dimensional shapes that jump at you from the page. They were intricate and delicate with a humble accuracy that bespoke quiet and carefully considered composition. On the opposing walls were a number of Frew’s lager compositions as well as two works on canvas by Frew’s contemporary Alan Stanners. Stanners, much like Frew, considers lines carefully in his composition. While they are seemingly more fluid than Frew, they also embody the grey and black oils to create an enticing composition that was at once as curious as it was aesthetically pleasing. As a whole the exhibition was beautiful and strangely isolating. The works drew the eye and the simplistic lines formed intricate expressions while meaning lingered somewhere just from arms grasp.

Alchemy: Ingredients of a Woman One of the most impressive exhibitions I’ve seen this year, Melody Smith Art Gallery hosted a collaboration of all female artists to create Alchemy: Ingredients of a Woman curated by Rizzy. The standard of work in this exhibition was truly inspired and highlighted perfectly the talent of contemporary local female artists. The exhibition came together to explore the ingredients of a woman, from the literally sugar coated work of Rizzy, to the delicate human sized nest constructed by Natalie Williamson and composed of buttons, bones, flowers, wine bottles, sticks, skulls and more. Olga Cironis displayed a life sized glossy digital print of a woman draped in white feathers holding a human skull in front of her face on a stark black background, while immediately to its right Gemma Ben-Ary’s video installation saw the artist slowly transferring a pile of sticks, one by one using her mouth, across a barren landscape. Rose Skinner concocted a remarkable wall piece of found objects, namely children’s toys. Featuring unicorns with dolls arms for horns, trolls, dolls torsos with hands for heads, toy truck tyres and a wooden ship – all coated in pink – innocently disguising their explicit assemblage. Other artists on display included Susan Flavell, Mandy Harwood, Rizzy, Melody Smith, Sarah Taylor, and Natalie Williamson. The exhibition carefully dissected the elements of what it is to be a woman with each artist bringing a unique impression and a truly exceptional standard of work.

Anton Franc

Words by Jez and Illustration by Krause Komics I had to leave my vacuum-sealed pressure bubble of Freo to go to review this gig in Northbridge, but no one’s tried to stab me for a while so why not? Totally forgot it was Saint Patrick’s Day, making the comfortable ambiance of Bird (the gig’s location) a welcome refuge from the hoards of drunken, green wearing idiots flooding the streets like humanity’s sewer pipe had just burst. Stashed the boards with the lovely and helpful door girl and posted up in the beer garden to eat snacks from Liz and Joe’s kitchen in the back – yeah chicks, yeah peas – yeah chickpeas! The first act came on around 6.30pm, Caroline J. Dale, a girl in a white dress with a big white guitar who I’m told busks around Freo markets. She’s playing alone, filling the space on stage with her big voice and lustily sung ballads. Next on at 7.15 was a four-piece band call Stereoflower, kind of a soft rock act, not bad – though I found the lead singer’s voice a tad annoying for my tender sensibilities and I went and got another snack… Anton Franc was the headliner for the evening, coming on at about 9pm, a four piece, played with back up from a saxophone on a couple of tracks. The set was a very pleasant indie-folk sound, at once new and unknown, and yet deeply reminiscent – mixing baritone vocals with ukulele and mandolin into something greatly classic like a dimly recalled childhood memory that had people popping in from the beer garden to have a listen. On the whole, even though this isn’t the kind of music I usually go for, I thoroughly enjoyed the show and would recommend Anton Franc to anyone seeking smooth, relaxed tunes to wile away a Sunday in the city. Once the gig was over it was back onto the street to merge with the green tinged masses stumbling from pubs into the night until I became part of the madness myself, lost among the thronging crowds wandering home.

Perth Boner

Words by Aaron Rutter The Brow Horn Orchestra, one of the Perth bands I manage and book, are looking down the barrel of an excellent career in music. Known for their high energy live shows and eccentric front man, it is a no brainer that this band will make a majority of its money through ticket sales. Sure, one day Triple J might pull it’s proverbial finger out of its ass and diversify the genres of music that hit high rotation, but until that day, live music > record sales. On more than one occasion, their east coast booking agent has begged and pleaded with me to convince the band to move over east. I manage 6 musical acts, I quite often find myself making decisions, or at least being involved in decisions about the future of the act. In the Brow’s case, I have strongly advised against seeing heading east as a way of giving their success a leg up. I know that many people in my industry will disagree with me, but I wholly believe that a band like Brow can break from the west coast. You only have to look at the likes of Birds of Tokyo, The Waifs, John Butler Trio or more recently San Cisco to know that this is true. It is also true that a lot of these acts now live in varying corners of the

world, but they all broke from WA. A careful combination of clever management, gruelling touring schedules and of course raw talent allowed each of these bands the ability to reside in Perth but access national and international audiences. Why Perth? It’s easy. New Perth is more exciting than old Melbourne. Its arts scene is flourishing with new and innovative projects bursting through its historically drab concrete cracks. In Melbourne, it feels, at least to me, that the music and arts scene seems saturated, Perth bands (or any band) can too easily get lost. In Perth, the scene reeks of a culture shifting, place-conscious kind of movement that gives me, well, a Perth boner. The days of something new in Perth being “so Melbourne” have been buried, along with that absurd fucking sentence. I admit that these are sweeping statements. My point however, is that with a growing arts scene comes all of its subsidiary advantages - new venues, larger audiences, and further financial support from local and state government. So Perth bands, listen up. Stay here. Work hard. Be a part of the growing beast that is Perth.

BATTLE OF THE BANDS Words by Madura McCormack

For those of us who have been paying any attention to the events happening on campus, it’s with a heavy heart to announce that the Murdoch heats for the National Campus Band Competition have been postponed. The National Campus Band Competition has been running in Australian university and TAFE campuses for about 23 years and is arguably the largest platform for live bands to compete and establish themselves. If the gods of inspiration have suddenly dawned on you, you haven’t missed your chance. While the 4th of April scheduled heats didn’t happen, rest assured that it will either take place somewhere in Semester 2 or the like.

Jebediah, alternative rock bands that have gone on to enjoy commercial success. The four-member group Jebediah planted its seeds in the music industry here in Perth and were crowned NCBC champions in 1995, just a year after formation. Jebediah has so far released 5 studio albums and won 8 out of the 11 WAMi awards they were nominated for. While earning the top spot in the competition certainly comes with its cash prize rewards, the NCBC serves as platform for bands to be propelled from relative obscurity without having to stand atop that podium. Notable bands that have done this include Augie March and Fremantle’s own The Brow Horn Orchestra, the latter winning the WA state final in 2009.

But if you’re still feeling sketchy about the whole idea of going on stage and putting it out there or So all you music types out there, we’re giving fear the evils of capitalism, METIOR is here to con- you a few more months to fine tune your radivince you otherwise. Fun Fact; out of all the winners cal sound and generation defining lyrics till the of the competition, 9 were born from the musical heats roll around again. Who knows, you and your womb of WA. These bands include Eskimo Joe and27 band could be the next big thing in the Australian music scene.

PHOTOGRAPHER Josh Hoffman

CINEMA PHOTOGRAPHER REVIEWS Words Ruben by Clinton JamesLittle Oz the Great and Powerful The original 1939 film the Wizard of Oz is one of the beloved and highly regarded films of all time. Over seven decades after its initial release it is still watched by audiences today, so it was no small undertaking to embark upon the making of a prequel to such a revered icon of cinema. Sam Raimi, the director of the Evil Dead and Spiderman trilogies has taken on this task, and with an estimated $215 million at his disposal, has created a visually extravagant and effects laden original tale that manages not to be weighed down by CG allowing the story to carry the film. The story mirrors the original film by beginning in a black and white Kansas town where Oscar Diggs (James Franco), a fraudulent magician with a travelling circus, is sucked into a tornado landing in the widescreen technicolour Land of Oz. Oscar Diggs is mistaken for The Great Wizard of Oz by the good witch Theodora (Mila Kunis) and the con-artist in him allows her to labour under these delusions. Joined by the company of a talking monkey (Zack Braff) they face a series of encounters which force Oscar to employ his limited range of smoke and mirror tricks to save their skins, as the good witch takes him to the emerald city to claim his throne. The characters off-beat charm works for him as the citizens of Oz hail him as their saviour from the tyranny of the unseen Wicked Witch. There are many references to the original film including the flying monkeys and the secret to what lies behinds the Wizard’s curtain, but even if you’ve never seen the original, Oz the Great and Powerful stands its ground as a beautifully made and finely performed family entertainment film.

A Good Day to Die Hard There is no irony in the titles of the $1.3 billion and counting Die Hard films – this action franchise isn’t going to go down easy. In the history of Die Hard films, Bruce Willis’s character John McClane has had to contend with German master thieves, South American drug lords, German terrorists and American cyber-terrorists. The fifth instalment of Bruce’s bread and butter is set in the contemporary post-post 9-11 political environment where it has become bad box office juju to have Middle Eastern terrorists as the bad guys, so this time the filmmakers have revived a cold war classic, the baddies are Russian. The basic set-up this time is that McClane has to fly to Moscow to help his estranged CIA agent son Jack, (Jai Courtney). Jack has become imprisoned in the middle of an operation to extricate a government whistle blower named Komarov who has information to bring down Victor Chagarin, a corrupt, high ranking Putinesque Russian official. After an explosive planted by Chargrin fails to kill Jack and Komarov during their trial, the pair escapes and just happen across the path of Jack’s dad. What follows is an extended series of admittedly quite brilliantly orchestrated and spectacular chases using varying vehicles and aircraft. Next, enters the super-hot leather clad Irina, Komarov’s daughter. But (spoiler alert) true to form, like any super-hot leather clad Russian she is duplicitous and not to be trusted, as she is secretly in league with the sadistic cigarette smoking baddies… Or is she? I could go into a lot more detail about the ridiculously convoluted plot which even involves a conspiracy about the true reason for the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster – there are various double and triple crossings, a showdown at the freezing Chernobyl site in the Ukraine (where it was apparently so hot that one sweaty Russian henchman had to go shirtless) – but this would be worse than having to watch the film again. Ok that was a little harsh. For a dumb shiny action film this isn’t so bad, it’s just that it has been done so many times before, and so much better. There’s only so many times the world needs to hear Bruce Willis utter his catch-phrase “Yippee Ki-yay Mother Fucker!” Of course a sixth instalment is already in the works so maybe just one more time, with feeling.

ARTS DEGREE Words by Hannah Wright & Photography by Tanya Volchanskaya ‘Oh, so what are you going to do with that degree…?’

Generation Y is more overwhelmed with choices than ever before;

Ever get sick of people asking you what the results or outcome of your tertiary education will be?

Should we take a gap year?

If you are student of the arts, you had best become accustomed to it.

Should we go on exchange?

‘You study English Literature?’ I am often asked. ‘Why?’

Should we actually love what we do?

Should we study part-time and work part-time? Should we live at home while we study? Are we traveling enough, partying enough, studying enough, learning enough, doing enough?

Trying not to outwardly reveal my offence at these comments I will often do my best to sell my degree.

Despite the array of incredible opportunities we have living in Australia; we don’t seem particularly content.

‘Well, I guess because I love it’, I will gush enthusiastically. Then, when they do not look any more convinced, I will try again, ‘…I am also considering becoming a teacher.’

Perhaps instead of fearing the opinions of other people on whether or not we are taking the ‘right’ path, we should just be glad we are moving forward at all.

They will walk away feeling comfortable that I have given a satisfactory answer to a very common question.

Don’t try and sell your degree to others. You are studying for your own personal reasons, whether that is passion, love or money.

‘What are you going to do with your life?’ Do? What am I going to do with my life? I might as well be asked who am I, or what is my purpose.

Trying to convince others of your choices is nothing but futile and a waste of time.

Why do we feel the need to justify our choices in study paths? Or, for that matter, our choices at all?

The next time someone asks me why I am studying an English Literature degree, I will simply reply,

Are we, as a society, really so obsessed with destinations that the importance of the journey had become obsolete?

‘Why Not’?

What happened to education for education’s sake? Art for art’s sake? The pursuit of pleasure purely to make ourselves feel good? How about ‘I couldn’t think of something better?’ How about ‘I study English Literature because I love it, it makes me happy, it makes me feel alive’? How about ‘Maybe if you chose to study something you love instead of something that gave you a destination you would feel more at peace with yourself and perhaps less alone’. I am all for a structured life path if you know what you want to do. There are those lucky few born knowing that they were destined to save lives, fight fires, chase the bad guys. But what about the rest of us? I have no idea ‘what I want to do’. I don’t know where I will be in ten years time or even two. Sometime I find it hard enough to choose what to have for lunch.

Prawn, fennel & orange salad Recipe by By Grace McGurk

Serves 2 as a main or 4 as an entrĂŠe Dressing 3 tsp balsamic vinegar Â˝ garlic clove, crushed 1 tsp lemon juice 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil Sea salt and pepper, to taste

1 long red chilli, deseeded 2 garlic cloves 1 tbsp olive oil 300g uncooked prawns, peeled and deveined Sea salt and pepper, to taste 1 head of fennel 2 oranges 50g mixed salad leaves (e.g. spinach, rocket)

1. Finely dice the chilli and garlic and toss through the prawns. Season to taste. 2. Pour olive oil into a frypan on a high heat and when oil is extremely hot, carefully add in prawn mix. 3. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until just cooked. Set aside. 4. In a small jar combine all dressing ingredients and shake well. 5. To assemble salad, very finely slice fennel using a mandolin. Toss salad dressing, fennel and salad leaves and place evenly onto serving plates. 6. Segment oranges and arrange onto salad. Finally distribute prawns onto plates and serve. For a more filling salad try adding asparagus, pecorino and Roma tomatoes.

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Photography by Tanya Volchanskaya