The Brag #505

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SIDESHOW. WEDNESDAY

MAR 27TH FREE 8PM

+ DEVOLA + SHANTAN WANTAN ICHIBAN + ISBJORN + HOBOPHONICS

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FOR THE FIRST TIME IN AUSTRALIA

WITH SINEAD BURGESS

THURSDAY 18 APRIL METRO THEATRE ALL AGES SHOW

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The smash hit single Learn To Love Again out now from debut album ‘Chapman Square’

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rock music news welcome to the frontline: what’s goin’ on around town... with Nathan Jolly

five things WITH

GANG OF YOUTHS Inspirations The Boss, Neutral Milk Hotel, The 2. Replacements, Television, Big Star, Wire, The

The Music You Make If Teenage Jesus And The Jerks, Mazzy 4. Star and Arto Lindsay got into a fistfight with

Magnetic Fields, Forever Changes-era Love (which is a recording our lead singer discovered in a public library somewhere in the inner city in the early 2000s and ripped to Windows Media Player, which was still a thing that people did then). Nothing inspires us. We’re jaded and cynical. We hate everything. But really: joy, pain, loss, grief, faith, hunger, ambition, hubris, self-loathing, defeat, victory and Road House.

Wilco and Iggy And The Stooges, we would be the human entrails left over from this rad hypothetical conflict. We haven’t released anything yet, but when we do, we hope it sounds like that. They can expect mad brotimes and tonnes of kicking. Road house.

Your Band We bros and hungry, so we really like 3. playing with other bros who aren’t the kind

Growing Up In 1995, our then three-year-old lead 1. singer saw Bruce Springsteen’s live mash-up music video for ‘Born To Run’ from 1982. An unrelenting and particularly unquenchable interest in popular recorded music was born – we all learned how to play our instruments

by skipping school, which, in retrospect, would explain why 3/5 of us dropped out of the only tertiary education we attempted. Our parents are all into music for the most part, which makes it easier to quit our day jobs and be swallowed up by the big, black artistic abyss.

SAN CISCO

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of self-seeking, entitled, feudalistic dickmechanics you find kicking back during most sound checks, being rude to bar staff, being douchey to the other bands and big, gigantasaurus weiners in general. We like to think we’ve played with mostly rad bands that have been super sweet and accommodating, and we like to play with bros like that. We’re all on the same page musically for the most part, because we bros and our opinions disseminate from that closeness. When you’re best friends with people before you start playing music with them, you realise you possess the same creative proclivities as each other.

PUPPY LOVE

Snarky Puppy is the latest charming romp from Pixar, who really cannot do any wrong at the moment. Little Lena wanted a puppy all her life, but due to her cramped Broadway studio apartment, she was never allowed one. Enter Snarky Puppy… Nah, they’re actually a North Texan instrumental band, who blend funk, soul, jazz and everything in between, and they’re

heading to Sydney for the first time ever. With over 25 players in regular rotation, we’re not quite sure which version of the group they’ll be bringing down under, but with members who regularly back JT, Beyoncé, Timbaland and Erykah Badu, this is going to be Grade A no matter what. Get tickets to their Saturday June 8 show at Blue Beat via the venue – $30 now, or $42 or the door.

Melodie Nelson

The Hillbilly Killers will have their work cut out for them at their April 26 gig at Rooty Hill RSL, which is a joke that kinda wrote itself. But in all seriousness, this is a gig you don’t wanna miss (unless you catch the April 24 Basement show), because it’s Bill Chambers (he made Kasey out of his DNA!), Tim Rogers and Catherine Britt doing that fine country dirt-kickin’ stuff that it’s ingrained in us to like.

DEADLINES: Editorial: Wednesday 12pm (no extensions) Artwork/ad bookings: Thursday 12pm (no extensions). Ad cancellations: Tuesday 4pm Published by Cartrage P/L ACN 104026388 All content copyrighted to Cartrage 2003

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IN THE BALL PARK

People always speak with misty-eyed reverence of being on tour in America: a van full of snacks, guitars and guys (or girls – since Stevie Nicks, girls are allowed as well), hitting the endless highway, with a different girl (or guy) in every town. Well, America, to us it all seems like a lot of hard work, with your 50 states and your vast nothingnesses. Ball Park Music have managed to crank out two albums, win major awards and land songs in the world’s biggest music poll (that Hottest 100 thing we get a day off work to listen to) and yet they are only embarking on their biggest national tour to date this June/July, and it includes… five dates. Five! Isn’t Australia wonderful?! So girt by sea, too! This tour is more a last whip-round before heading into the studio to record their third record, so it’ll be a greatest hits set, with support from Eagle And The Worm who, like Ball Park Music, understand the thrill of cramming way too many members onstage to play hooky pop, and Jeremy Neale, who knows no such joy. July 6 at the Enmore Theatre, tickets on sale now.

KILL (HILL)BILL(Y)

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What: Hang The DJ – also featuring The Griswolds, Colour Coding, and The Cadres When: Thursday March 28 Where: The Beach Road Hotel, Bondi

San Cisco

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not a lot of cash early on in Australia, and there aren’t that many venues in Sydney that can pull a crowd like they used to. The best thing about the local scene is that there are 50 different groups getting together and recording music at any given time, and they keep on coming. We played with Cold Hiker and Tim Fitz recently; they were balls-to-the-wall excellent. We also really dug Thieves when we saw them/played with them. Also, The Model School are rad. All hail The Model School.

WA world-beaters San Cisco have already received international plaudits for their self-titled debut album, which was released through the very cool American label Fat Possum. However, after three months of being overseas, eating unnaturally yellow cheese and hearing people call pizza ‘pie’ they got fed up, caught a boat back to Australia, and started planning a national tour. It’s named The Beach Tour, both after their third single from the record, ‘Beach’, and as a snub to those landlocked fl yover-state Americans who don’t have coastlines. May 31 sees them surf to The Metro, bringing along swaggering upstarts Millions, and Brooklyn sister duo Chaos Chaos.

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Music, Right Here, Right Now We’ve had it super easy in comparison 5. to other better, harder-working bands. There’s

JINJA BALL

CATCHY MELODIE

Melodie Nelson has booked a month-long residency in the front bar of Goodgod (April 3, 10, 17, 24), and here are four reasons why you should go a) Her two records, To The Dollhouse and Meditations On The Sun, are great records, but for completely different reasons; b) she named herself after a Serge Gainsbourg record; c) Each night is themed, with an Australian classics night, and a Lee Hazelwood night (!); and d) there’ll be Melodie Dogs, specially prepared by those alchemists at The Dip.

Jinja Safari say their May 30 Oxford Art Factory show is going to be ‘intimate’ but any show that has this much dancing, lighting, clanging percussion and tubthumping cannot be deemed ‘intimate’ unless I have been doing intimacy very, very badly all these months years. They’ll be playing their new track ‘Plagiarist’, as well as old tracks not called ‘Plagiarist’, and others from their debut album (called Jinja Safari, a name they clearly plagiarised from themselves), which is due out on May 17.

JUST ANNOUNCED

NEW GODS WEDNESDAY 15 MAY METRO THEATRE ON SALE NOW NEW ALBUM HUMMINGBIRD OUT NOW BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13 :: 9

rock music news

free stuff

welcome to the frontline: what’s goin’ on around town... with Nathan Jolly

FREESTUFF@THEBRAG.COM

five things WITH

SEAN FROM THE SPITFIRES

pretty distinct. Then I got taken to see Oasis at Maine Road, which was pretty exciting as a kid. From then on we had the Britpop scene, which left a pretty big impression on me – shame it ended before I was old enough to go out clubbing, which in Liverpool was around the age of 14.

I convince myself we’re ready for fame and glory. The rest of the time the set descends into energetic chaos with stage invasions from the crowd and dancefloor invasions by us.

2.

made to be danced to, you can even sing along if you’re inebriated or want to show off to your loved ones. The bass is fuzzy and carries the melody along when I’m trying not to lose my shit from singing and playing a guitar solo at the same time. The vocals are shouted with little skill but exceptional bite and the lyrics are witty and poignant, like I wish I was.

Inspirations Suede, The Clash, Reverend And The Makers, anything on the Deltasonic label, The Jam, The Libertines, The Smiths, Arctic Monkeys, Inspiral Carpets, Supergrass… if you like those sort of bands then we’re probably the band you should be seeing. We write about political issues, lots of social commentary, we’ll even write a love song if we want to impress somebody good looking. Generally something will happen to us during the week and we get compelled to write a song or two about it. We started doing online dating for a laugh and that’s thrown up all sorts of strange episodes – so much so that we’ve written an EP about it called Online Dating Fiasco.

1.

Growing Up Don’t think I ever did grow up! The first band I remember was when my older brother played me The Stone Roses album – I don’t really remember the music that well because I was pretty young but the album cover was

SUPER WILD PHWOARSES

Minimalist stuff only works when the songs are actually good, which is why Young Marble Giants, Daniel Johnston and The Neptunes are pretty much the only ones to really have nailed this genre. Add to this list Melbourne duo Amy Franz and Hayley McKee – AKA Super Wild Horses, whose debut album Fifteen smashed that sparse keys, guitars, drums thing perfectly. We are more than a little excited to hear the follow-up Crosswords, which they recorded in a butter factory with Jack Farley, who made that Twerps record sparkle, and which is released on Friday April 5 (Google the artwork, it looks like the band sounds). So, we all have just over a month to learn all the songs, choreograph dances to them, and get along to their May 10 show at Goodgod Small Club.

BORED EVERYTHING

the band is too mental to describe. Too many fires, explosions, stage invasions, lawsuits, break-ins, drummers… I mean guys, if you’re reading this, get it the fuck together! We’re a bit bipolar when it comes to performing; half the time we execute the set flawlessly and early Liz Phair production! It’s perfect. Tickets on sale from Moshtix.

Music, Right Here, Right Now We like going to Kittens and Propaganda 5. to dance our tits off and get trashed. We have a bit of a crush on Red Rattler with its excellent dance floor and great bands. We love The Water Board’s debut EP and look forward to Baby Doll Arm’s first release. Outside Sydney we dig ScotDrakula, The Government Yard, The Boys, Minute 36… too many to mention. What: The Spitfires ‘Radio Control’ Single Launch With: The Water Board and Baby Doll Arms Where: The Red Rattler Theatre, Marrickville When: Saturday March 30

Matthew E White

Music and charity pretty much make the world go round (plus science), which makes Playing For Change one of the most important movements around, raising money to create positive change through arts and music education. The project, formed by Grammy-winning producer Mark Johnson, has attracted a number of high-profi le collaborators and supporters: Maroon 5, Keith Richards, Manu Chao, and even Bono, who usually only does charity work if it is documented extensively. The charity angle aside, this band is dynamite, with some of the best soul, blues, reggae and global roots players from around the world – including Grandpa Elliott, a blues genius from New Orleans; Clarence Bekker from the Netherlands; Titi Tsira from South Africa; bassist Orbe Ortiz from Cuba and vocalist Mermans Mosengo from Congo. We have three double passes to give away to their April 1 show at the Factory Theatre – just tell us what you think is the most uplifting song of all time.

Cloud Control

Hand Games have turned one, which is an easy feat for a baby who does nothing but gum rusks and cry and maybe talk when its parents are out of the room if Rugrats is to be believed, but a hard task when you are booking parties, dealing with managers and pumping out monthly mixtapes, so come to Goodgod on April 12 and help them celebrate. There’ll be sets from Holy Balm (who’ll be talking your head off about how good SXSW was), Melbourne’s NO ZU, Nakagin playing new stuff, and Oisima, who hails from Adelaide. Oh, and there’s a thing called Pelvis’ Dance Competition which you should enter and win. All that kitchen-lino moonwalk training hasn’t been in vain.

MORE DIG IT UP

Yeah, yeah, we all know the Hoodoo Guruscurated festival Dig It Up! is great, and the lineup is already good enough for you to have already decided to go, but here are more great acts to make you already-decide even more: Tumbleweed, Kim Salmon & Leanne Cowie, The Frowning Clouds, Ray Ahn, Bruce Griffiths and Ahmed Zub. They join Blue Oyster Cult, Flamin’ Groovies, Buzzcocks, The Stems, Peter Case Band, Lime Spiders, The Crusaders, The Laurels, Super Wild Horses, Mother & Son, and Bloods. It all happens April 21 at the Enmore Theatre and Green Room, and Notes and in the general Enmore area, near that IGA you shoplift from.

VIVID!

There’s way too much happening on this year’s Vivid LIVE program for us to list and explain it all – best to go to the Opera House and ask one of the parking ushers – but the highlights of the 5th annual festival of light, music and ideas, which runs from May 24 ‘til June 2 include Empire Of The Sun doing new stuff and weird stuff; Kraftwerk performing all their albums at shows that you don’t have a hope of seeing if you are reading this for the first time now; psych beasts Megafaun and jazz collective Fight the Big Bull backing Matthew E White and Justin ‘I’m Bon Iver, you guys!’ Vernon pl\aying tribute to Alan Lomax; live previews of new albums by Cloud Control and C.W. Stoneking; soul genius Bobby Womack performing with a 13-piece band; Aussie power pop legends The Sunnyboys being all awesome and hooky; Karl Hyde from Underworld debuting his solo stuff, and loads, loads more. Tickets go on sale this Wednesday, March 27 at 9am so maybe don’t sleep in that day.

JURASSIC JAZZ

Last week Jurassic Lounge had a Bollywood theme, which was about as confused as you can get about the Jurassic era without reading a Bible and blocking your ears and saying ‘it’s just a test of faith, it’s just a test of faith.’ Despite the anachronisms, it was a hell of a night – at Jurassic Lounge they’re all hell-ofa-nights, and we can only assume April 2 will be no different. The theme is Alexander The Great, and because he was well into lounge music, they’ve booked chanteuse Iluka who belts and croons in equal measure over jazztinged soul music. You’ll enjoy it, and because it’s at the Australian Museum and they also sell alcohol, they totally expect you to climb on things (don’t climb on things!).

JAMIE HUTCHINGS

Owl Eyes is heading out on the road again, because, aside from sitting up in trees and fixing Illy songs, she seems to forever be touring. This time, however, she is doing so in support of her debut album, which has been a long time coming. Named Nightswim, it is all shimmering and synth-poppy, and you’ll see what we mean on May 11 at The Standard. Get there early for Collarbones and Mammals… and dumplings. Obviously get dumplings.

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PLAYING FOR CHANGE

JUST HAND STUFF

Owl Eyes

NIGHTSWIMMING

Playing For Change

Did you know a goldfish can only remember five seconds into the past? He swims around the bowl and every five seconds goes ‘Geez, will you look at that!’. We stole that joke from Seachange, and when we caught Bluebottle Kiss frontman Jamie Hutchings a few weeks back at Hollywood Hotel, he played this intro to a new song that was basically ‘Fast Car’ by Tracey Chapman and we thought/yelled “At

last, someone is rescuing that cool riff from that awful song” so that’s less stealing and more a rescue mission. He’ll be showcasing this song and a bunch of others from his fourth solo album, under the moniker of Jamie Hutchings And The Goldfish Memories (see why we opened with that joke?) on Thursday April 5 at The Green Room, and if you’re expecting his usual warm acoustic stuff, well you’ll be shocked by the krautrock leanings of this new material. It’s free entry, too! Hey, did you know a goldfish can only remember five seconds into the past?

THE WALKING WHAA?

The Walking Who play swirling psychedelic rock, which is a major pastime in their hometown of Wollongong, and they are planning to spend a bit of time over the next month playing it in Sydney: an FBi Radio lunchtime gig March 27; The Annandale Hotel on March 28 with The Ruminators, and The Dead Heads; rocking Old Manly Boatshed (which raises the question, where’s the new one?) on March 31; and headlining Oxford Art Factory on April 4, with The Ruminators again, Atom Bombs, The Knits, and Erik The Red.

Matthew E White photo by Sara Padgett

Hey slacker, the furthest your ambition should stretch is making sure you get to Goodgod on May 4, because three of the finest, if not the three finest, slacker-pop acts in the country that aren’t Smudge are playing together (well, in succession) under the guise of the Triple Treat tour. Sydney’s Step-Panther (whose ‘Superpowerz’ is still one of the greatest pop songs released in this country in recent years), Brisbane surf-pop duo Gung Ho, and Melbourne’s Bored Nothing, whose debut album is one of those amazing records you need to hear: it blends those Smashing Pumpkins chords, double-tracked Elliott Smith Either/Or-era vocals, Pavement’s tumbling, fumbling torrents, and all the best stuff from those non-noisy Sonic Youth records – with

Your Band Absolutely fucking crazy. I don’t mean we 3. make zany music, but everything connected to

The Music You Make It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound 4. and fury, signifying nothing. It’s got a beat that’s

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The Music Network

themusicnetwork.com

Music Industry News with Christie Eliezer

THINGS WE HEAR * NZ’s biggest pop band Titanium replaced What About Tonight on Teen Rush The Concert national shows in April. Promoter Concrete Bass Entertainment blamed WAT’s disappearance on “reasons beyond our control.” * Metal-munchers Napalm Death’s show at the V&A Museum in London was cancelled after fears the building may be damaged by their noise. They got ceramic artist Keith Harrison to design a custom built ceramic sound system which would disintegrate throughout the performance. But a safety check showed the entire building could collapse. * Plan B will give £1 from every concert ticket sold to charity. * In between go-karting (and smashing two of ‘em) at SxSW, San Cisco got in a gig or two which had global festival promoters checking them out.

SONGL LAUNCH Music and video streaming service Songl officially launched last Thursday after a year of beta testing. It was set up by Sony Music Entertainment Australia and Universal Music Australia, who formed DMD (Digital Music Distribution) to develop it. Last October, radio network Southern Cross Austereo joined the partnership. Aside from the two majors’ content, Songl allows users to stream SCA’s metro and digital stations. They can sync up to 1000 tracks on their devices and Facebook integration allows them to share their playlists. The video content includes artist interviews and behind-the-scene footage.

DAINTY, BRANSON, DROP BALL ON STONES The alliance by Australian promoter Paul Dainty and Richard Branson’s Virgin Music to promote The Rolling Stones’ upcoming 18 shows has fallen through. Instead, AEG Live will present the shows. It is believed the Stones wanted a guarantee of US$80 million, which Dainty and Branson’s company Virgin Live couldn’t come up with, according

Program as part of the prize package. * Theo Kalogeracos, who runs Little Caesars Pizzeria in Perth, included the Tama Impala Pizza in his new cookbook Theo & Co. Take 2; The Search For The Perfect Pizza Continues. Ingredients include haloumi cheese, lemons and green impala peppercorns. * Powderfinger guitarist Ian Haug is new booker (formal title: Director of Live Entertainment) for Brisbane’s Eatons Hill Hotel which has gone through a revamp including a $350,000 sound system. * In The Dark have set up a new gay bar called, er, The Gay Bar, More news at www.facebook.com/gaybarsydney. * Speaking of which, US Christian singer songwriter Michelle Shocked lived up to her name by babbling at a San Francisco show, “God hates fags and you can tweet that I said so.” Two thirds of the crowd walked out, and nine venues cancelled her show as part of a US tour which

to Billboard. The pair had paid $25 million for five Stones shows in London, Brooklyn and New Jersey last year. These grossed $38.6 million from sales of 73,702 tickets. But it’s not known what the profit was – the Stones’ production is expensive and a pay TV broadcast from one of the shows pulled far less than expected. The April/May dates are due to be announced in early April.

VALE AARON CHUGG Internationally renowned veteran tour manager Aaron Chugg, 53, passed away after suffering a stroke during a Future Music show. Chugg was looking after The Stone Roses and was to travel with them to the festival’s Malaysian show. With a reputation as a good sound mixer, Chugg worked extensively with Grant Thomas Management and toured with most of the major acts including Shannon Noll, Boom Crash Opera (“We really bonded”) and Hoodoo Gurus (“He was always cracking jokes which were often put-downs of the people around him but it was hard to take offence because he paid out on himself as much as anyone”) and managed Screaming Jets for a time. Chugg was also production

Just Announced

starts this week. Shocked said she meant that many Christians held that view. * Melbourne punkers The Smith Street Band are big supporters of animal rights, so you can imagine why they were spitting chips when they discovered two of their songs were used in a duck hunting video without permission. * Dave Grohl isn’t bringing his Sound City players to Sydney as part of a promo behind his Sound City doco after all. He reveals that for the London show, they approached PJ Harvey to sing the Nirvana songs, but she said no. * Californian pop duo MKTO visit Australia this week for the first time, on a promo tour for Sony Music behind their Top 20 single ‘Thank You’. * Melbourne’s Bareback TittySquad uploaded a video where they played the entire triple j Hottest 100 in 30 minutes, all in their undies.

THEHIFI.C

Cannabis Corpse

Fri 10 May

Fri 28 Jun

Coming Soon

SO LD

O UT

This Week

Opiuo + Spoonbill

(USA)

Zac Brown Band (USA) Wed 27 Mar

Hungry Kids of Hungary

Blue Oyster Cult (USA) Sat 20 Apr

FA ST SE LL IN G

28 Days

Otep (USA)

Example (UK)

Wed 24 Apr

Thu 25 Apr

Fri 26 Apr

Enhanced (UK)

Frightened Rabbit (UK)

Norma Jean (USA)

Sat 27 Apr

Tue 30 Apr

Fri 3 May

VALE KEVIN RITCHIE

EXTRA BLUESFEST STAGE

One time EMI Music Australia executive and founder of tour promoter Act One International Kevin Ritchie passed in Sydney after a lengthy illness. Friends remembered him for a wicked sense of humour, record producer Mark Opitz called him “a real gentleman” and Russell Thomas of Kaos Management hailed him “a pioneer of music promotion.” He managed Slim Dusty for a time.

VIDEO MILESTONES YouTube hit a new milestone last week: it now reaches a billion users every month. “If YouTube were a country, we’d be the third largest in the world after China and India,” it crowed. Also, David Guetta reached 100 million views on Vevo, which got him Vevo Certified – the first DJ to do so. Others include Adele and Justin Bieber.

EIGHT MILES HIGH Thirty Seconds To Mars debuted their new single ‘Up In The Air’ from outer space. The band were at Mission Control at Johnson Space Center in Houston talking to astronauts. “Our grandfather was in the Air Force and FAA so aviation was always a big part of our lives,” Jared Leto, whose brother Shannon is also in the band. “We used to come visit him in Houston.”

The IMC agency revealed it’s signed four new acts in recent months. Northern Beaches trio Sons Of The East are about to drop their Ash Maklad-produced debut EP in coming months. Papua New Guineaborn Brisbane-based siblings Sheppard have their catchy single ‘Let Me Down Easy’ played on Southern Cross Austereo and Nova. Sydney punk duo Corpus are signed to new indie label Ricochet Records and recorded a CD in Melbourne. Canberra’s Super Best Friends, who got triple j and community radio support for their single ‘No Logo Is A Joke’, won Artist of the Year and Live Performer of the Year at the inaugural ACT Music awards late last year.

Showcase MeMusik Unsigned Showcase is a new platform to discover unsigned Australian acts, mentor them and then launch them. Ten finalists with the highest votes will showcase on May 26 at O2Nightclub in Darlinghurst. It’s $20 to register, upload a track to YouTube and enter via www.memusik.com.au. The winner receives a custom production track and feature with Jay Monaco and Ray Ray Intl from Globe Trotta Records (value $10,000), a digital distribution deal for three singles with D/Block Mega Muzik ($1,500), a PR & Marketing package from MeMusik ($1,500), a marketing package from Digiwaxx ($450), two hours' studio time at Hood Dreams Studios in Sydney ($100) and artwork for a single cover ($150).

UNSIGNED ONLY

Bilal (USA)

Born Of Osiris (USA)

Municipal Waste (USA)

Sat 4 May

Sat 18 May

Sun 16 Jun

ENTERTAINMENT QUARTER, BUILDING 220, 122 LANG RD, MOORE PARK, SYDNEY

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SPLENDOUR SETS UP CLUB

manager for the 2000 Olympic torch rally.

MEMUSIK UNSIGNED SHOWCASE

Fri 5 Apr

Alice Springs based CAAMA Music has expanded its team under music label manager Micheal ‘Miko’ Smith as it expands into Indigenous music production and community involvements throughout Central Australia over the next three years to find “the next Gurrumul”. Among the new additions is Tim Cole, record producer for Archie Roach, Frank Yamma, Iwantja, Warren H. Williams and Shelley Morris. More: caama.com.au While The Cola Kids and James Blake look like heading to Splendour In The Grass, the festival has set up the Splendour Members Club for those who’ve attended the festival five or more times. They can verify your attendance as they introduced electronic ticketing in 2006. If you attended before that, they’ll accept ticket stubs, wristbands, credit card statement or merch. Benefits include getting tickets before they go on sale. Applications close Wed March 27.

IMC EXPANDS ROSTER WITH FOUR SIGNINGS E HIFI 1300 THO M.AU

CAAMA MUSIC

The deadline for the Unsigned Only Music Competition is extended to April 16. Judging looks at vocals, performance, originality and songwriting, with a Vocal Performance category that accepts songs that are not self penned, and a Teen category which includes a scholarship to Berklee College Of Music’s 5-Week Summer Performance

Bluesfest, which kicks off in Byron Bay this Thursday, has announced a new spiegeltent type stage, the Lotus Palace. Performing here will be Russell Morris, Christine Anu, Thelma Plum, didgeridoo maestro Tjupurru, producer Airileke and burlesque artist Mae Wilde as well as Yes’s Jon Anderson, Playing For Change and Damien Dempsey. The sets by Anu, Plum, Tjupurru, Flanagan and Airileke also serve as the launch of Boomerang, a multi-arts festival that encompasses music, dance, rituals, traditional arts and other aspects that pay tribute to the heritage of the land and its traditional owners.

Lifelines Born: daughter Aria, for Mullumbimby-based troubadour Ash Grunwald and wife Dannii. Their daughter Sunny is four years old. Split: Katy Perry and John Mayer, who reunited after a brief break last August. The official line is that their careers kept them apart. Ill: Tone Loc had a seizure onstage during a show in Des Moines, Iowa. Ill: US singer-songwriter John Grant announced he is HIV positive. Recovered: despite online reports he’d had the last rites read to him, Lil Wayne has left hospital after having seizures while shooting a music video. Arrested: Gossip’s Beth Ditto for causing a disturbance after staff at Portland’s Bungalo Bar refused to serve her more booze as she was drunk. Arrested: Bauhaus’ Peter Murphy on charges he crashed into another car in California while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, and then fled. Jailed: Bobby Brown, for 55 days, for driving under the influence for the second time in a year while on a suspended license. Sued: Bow Wow has to pay nearly $80,000 for inserting shots of porn star Celine Tran (AKA Katsuni) in his video for ‘Drank In My Cup’ without her consent. Died: cult US musician Jason Molina (of Songs: Ohia and Magnolia Electric Co) from multiple organ failure due to alcoholism. In 2011 his family asked for help to pay his rehab costs. Died: Bobby/Bobbie Smith, singer with R&B group Detroit Spinners, 76, from pneumonia and influenza after being diagnosed with lung cancer last November.

M E L B O U R N E R E C I TA L C E N T R E P R E S E N T S

The provocative, brilliant electronica artist and DJ performs ONE PIG live plus DJ SET.

The life and death of a pig immortalised in sound. Eerie, arresting and morally urgent, ONE PIG is one of the most talked-about works of contemporary art of the moment.

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Rush To Relax By Benjamin Cooper ean McGrath is a difficult man to pin down. It’s not until the third attempt at an interview that the co-frontman of Brisbane’s indie-pop wunderkinds Hungry Kids Of Hungary is actually able to answer his phone. As it is, the best he can manage is to pull over on the side of one of the many expressways that snake out of the heart of his home city. “I’m really sorry about being so all over the shop,” he says. “There’s just so much going on at the moment. It’s kind of tricky to get even five minutes to have a chat. Now I’m just hoping the air-con will work in my car; you never really know in Brisbane.”

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The current madness that is enveloping McGrath and his bandmates is due to the release of their highly anticipated second album, You’re A Shadow. The record comes after the band decided to take nearly 18 months off from major touring in Australia – a choice that McGrath explains was necessary for their survival. “It was essential for us to take one and a half years off,” he says. “I’m really not sure that we’d have gone too well in the future, or even had much of a future, if we’d kept on doing things the same way. We definitely would not have been able to grow things to the place we’re at now.”

The process behind their debut was notoriously convoluted – there were 47 demos recorded over six months at Redlich’s Massive Studios. Spending the first half of 2010 working on the record paid off, though; the critical reaction was justifiably effusive, particularly

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After appearing at 2011’s Homebake festival the band decided to take a break. Co-frontman Kane Mazlin headed off for a European interlude, while McGrath took a road slightly less expected. “I took off on a tour that was doing Beatles music. It was quite funny really, because I was travelling around the country with guys like Mark Seymour [Hunters & Collectors] and Jonny Toogood [Shihad] and singing Sgt. Pepper’s and Abbey Road while Kane was living in Scandinavia. I think he spent the whole time just chilling by the side of the water, thinking deep thoughts.” When the band reunited in early 2012 they headed south to begin recording their next album. Working with producer Wayne Connolly (Neil Finn, Screamfeeder, Custard) at Alberts Studio in Neutral Bay marked the first time they’d recorded outside of Brisbane. The change of location allowed them a larger degree of creative freedom than on any recording they’d done before. “The bigness of our first album came from doing a whole lot of overdubbing,” McGrath says. “We spent a lot of time going back in the middle of recording and drilling some particular idea until we felt it was right. This time we had a great producer from the start, which meant that straight off the bat we were building density within the songs, without the need to constantly revisit them. We felt free to offer ideas up, and maybe have them shot down, but there were a lot of happy accidents that came out of the freedom we had.”

Despite all the talk of freedom, McGrath admits that the band are still suckers for detail. “We’re extremely finicky – to the point of probably being kind of annoying. But we do it on purpose, because we can’t help but obsess over tiny little things. Ultimately we are audiophiles, and massive geeks. We think a lot about the most minor things, and I reckon we all really love getting into the nitty-gritty of arrangements and arranging. Well, I know I do.” One such instance of agonised-over songwriting occurs late on the album. “The track ‘Do Or Die’ is my baby,” McGrath says proudly. “When people are listening to it they probably won’t notice that it features a backwards piano. But the point is, it does feature a backwards piano, and it sounds really awesome. Now, I don’t know exactly why I decided to do it like that, but it just had to be done that way. It was something I was kind of messing around with, and I got this idea to try it out that way. Like I said before – sometimes those happy accidents end up coming through.” Just days after the band had finished recording last May they headed to the Netherlands to play Pinkpop Festival. They had some fame in the area, owing to an Escapades distribution deal in the Benelux area (Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg) in November 2011, via influential British label Rough Trade. After years as festival favourites in Australia, they found themselves as the new guys again, alongside acts including Bruce Springsteen, The Cure and Soundgarden. For a young band with some new tunes to test, performing in front of 10,000 people turned out to be a masterstroke.

“It was probably a bit crazy of us,” McGrath says, “but it ended up exceeding all of our expectations. We were so invested in the new tracks we’d been working on that we thought it was probably worth giving them a test run in Europe. In a way I suppose we didn’t care because we knew that people wouldn’t judge us. The festival itself was massive, and the performance ended up being a lot of fun. We walked off stage with a strong feeling that it was the best show we’d played in a long time.” After returning to Australia, the band finished mixing the album with Connolly. They then gave local audiences a hint of their new material on the short and sweet Sharp Shooter tour. “That test run was really awesome, because we hadn’t had the opportunity to play smaller venues in quite a while,” says McGrath. “The trickiest part for us is not worrying too much about the future, or what we’re going to do next. We’ve all got such incredibly short attention spans, and we can’t help but come up with fresh ideas. We’re always working hard and [we] take music making seriously – which is funny, because people are always telling us we’re too chilled out. But that’s who we are: chilled out workaholics, with too much energy and too many ideas.” With: The Preatures, Them Swoops Where: Hi-Fi / Entertainment Quarter, Moore Park When: Friday April 5 And: You’re A Shadow out now through Stop Start/EMI

Hungry Kids Of Hungary photo by Ken Leanfore

Before this hiatus, the band were at the peak of their powers. Debut record Escapades announced them to the world in 2010, with the enthusiastic support of triple j adding to the success generated from 2008’s self-titled EP and 2009’s Mega Mountain EP. The latter effort was produced by fellow Brisbanite Matt Redlich (Ball Park Music, Blame Ringo), who continued his relationship with the four-piece on Escapades.

for singles ‘Wristwatch’ and ‘The Vacationer’. Naturally, the Kids’ heightened profile and increased radio exposure meant that they were never off the road for more than a few days at a time – which eventually began to take its toll. “We had a lot on our plates,” McGrath says. “Don’t get me wrong – we’re hugely grateful to have had a lot on our plates! At the same time there’s a need to get away from it all a bit, to try something different.”

“We’re extremely finicky – to the point of probably being kind of annoying. But we do it on purpose, because we can’t help but obsess over tiny little things.”

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Dragon

Age Ain’t Nothing But A Number By Hugh Robertson shows (including Heartbreak High) with no small amount of success. Then, in 2005, he was asked to join in a teachers/parents band for a school fundraiser.

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t their best, Dragon’s songs are open, honest, straightforward pop songs, completely devoid of pretence or irony, concerned singularly with making sure everyone is having a really good time. It’s why they remain a staple of Saturday night party mixes, because they make you want to fling your arms wide and bellow the chorus. It seems the main reason is because founder and sole remaining original member Todd Hunter is open, honest and straightforward – Dragon are celebrating their 40th anniversary as a band this year with a tour and a new greatest hits album, but Hunter has no interest in navel-gazing about the milestone.

“Halfway through that,” Hunter says, “It was like a bolt from hell – ‘This is what you do, you idiot. Go and play again.’ So I just rang these guys who are in the band now, and said, ‘Do you want to be in a band?’ And they said, ‘Yeah!’ There were no auditions or anything, we just came together, started playing and haven’t stopped. And we’re on our 495th show at the moment.” It’s an unconventional setup these days, since each member also has other bands, other jobs, and other things to do. But every Friday night they meet at the airport, fly to a show, and fly home again. It’s the sort of thing you can only do once you reach that status of Elder Statesman, although I can practically hear Hunter rolling his eyes when I suggest he’s earned that title.

“We’re a totally unsentimental band,” Hunter says. “There’s no nostalgia, mainly because I’m the only original guy, and the rest of them weren’t there through all that grizly stuff. So we always look forward … I would find it really difficult to do if we were just a nostalgia band.” Nostalgia is obviously a part of their appeal, but there’s got to be something more to it than that – nostalgia acts are usually only good for one or two tours, tops, and this incarnation of Dragon have played nearly 500 shows in Australian and New Zealand since forming in 2006. And the crowd’s enthusiasm isn’t waning – at Hunter’s insistence, I Google clips of their set from the Rhythm & Vines Festival, a super-charged Falls-like festival in New Zealand, and thousands of twenty-somethings are losing their minds to ‘Rain’, singing along with every word. At Golden Plains just a few weeks ago, Melbourne’s Dick Diver busted out

a cover of ‘Are You Old Enough’ that inspired a delighted singalong and a respectable number of approving boots in their air as well.

great to be able to do it. And you couldn’t do it unless everyone knew all the songs, no matter who you played to.”

“It’s weird with those songs,” Hunter says. “They’re sort of part of everybody’s background. They’re not our songs, that’s for sure – we just play the bloody things. It’s really fucking hilarious,” he adds, laughing. “But it’s

This whole latter-career revival could so easily not have happened at all. In fact, it was a bit of a fluke that kicked it all off. After Dragon broke up for the umpteenth time in 1995, Hunter spent a decade writing soundtracks for TV

Ironing Board Sam He’s Electric By Tamara Vogl

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roning Board Sam has played electric blues for the past six decades. During those years, he lived through segregation and the civil rights movement; he was in the same hotel when Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. Born Sammie Moore in 1939 in Rock Hill, South Carolina, he learned to play his father’s pump organ, then formed his own group and worked small clubs around South Florida. In 1959, he moved to Memphis, where audiences began teasing him for using an ironing board stand in lieu of regular legs to support his keyboard. He didn’t like it at first, but he was tagged Ironing Board Sam, and the name stuck. With a brilliant mind for self-promotion and a gift for gadgets, Sam’s most famous invention is his button keyboard. “I couldn’t afford any organ, so I made me an instrument that would play four octaves,” he explains. The instrument had two keyboards: the main one was fed through a wah-wah and then into an amplifier, which would then produce the sound of guitar, organ, piano or a combination of the three; the bass keyboard

When: Saturday April 13 & Sunday April 14 Where: The Studio, Sydney Opera House

Zucchero The Sweet Life By Zoë Radas

was made with 60 stationary upholstery tacks connected to electronic sensors. Sam ran a wire down his arm to his fingers, which conducted electricity to the buttons. He later devised a way to play underwater in a 1500-gallon tank, which naturally enthralled audiences. “I went on the road with it,” says Sam, “but I found out the tank was too big to get into a lot of clubs.”

with the political situation, you know,” he says. “I love the culture of the Cubans. I love the people because they are still very like in the ’60s in Italy. It’s another world, what can I say? Musically, they are probably the best musicians in the world.” This year Fornaciari was awarded the Los Angeles-Italy Excellence Award, and in 2006 was given the title ‘Commander of Italy’ along with Andrea Bocelli and the late Luciano Pavarotti. They were the first three artists to ever be acknowledged in this way. “Finally, finally in Italy they started to appreciate the music, and ... even the government, they start to honour the artists in Italy,” Fornaciari says. “Like in England, they do this for many years, for a long time. In Italy the government has never been so... nice,” he adds with a laugh, “with rock music or music in general.”

In the mid-’60s Sam tried to audition for both the Stax and Hi labels, but was told they had more than enough artists to work with, and to try Chess in Chicago. “I did one session at Chess. When I went back to find if they were interested in recording me, I was told the producer I’d worked with had been fired,” Sam says. “I was out in the cold. At that point I was totally discouraged with the record business.” If the ’60s were lean years – though Sam was, at one point in 1962, backed up by a band containing the 20-year-old Jimi Hendrix – then it was even harder once disco arrived on the scene. Live music suffered: “After it came in it was hard to find work,” Sam recalls. “I drove 1500 miles in one direction looking for a place that had live music but couldn’t find one. Then I drove 1500 miles in another direction and couldn’t find one.” By 1982, Sam was back in New Orleans but still finding it hard to find work, necessitating yet another interesting form of self-promotion. “People didn’t want to hear live music,” said Sam. “They just wanted to play records or the jukebox. I was hurting, so I decided to become the Human Jukebox. I built a giant jukebox that I fit inside with my keyboard and amplifier. I had slots built into it where people put money. The police were standing around and didn’t know what to arrest me for. In the end they took my jukebox and gave me a ticket.” After hitting a financial low, he was introduced to the Music Maker Relief Foundation, a non-profit organisation dedicated to giving back to the roots of American music. He joined in 2010, and since then has received financial help with medical care, among other things. He’ll soon be making his first trip to Australia to headline the first-ever Australian Music Maker Blues Revue. “I met a lot of Australian people in Switzerland and they always asked me if I needed help,” he says. “I liked that. They seem to be nice people.” What: The Music Maker Blues Revue feat. Ironing Board Sam, Pat Wilder, Dr. Burt, Major Handy, Albert White, Nashid Abdul Khaaliq and Ardie Dean When: Thursday March 28 Where: Blue Beat / 16-18 Cross St, Double Bay And: Also playing Byron Bay Bluesfest from March 28-April 1 @ Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm

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“Dragon has always been outside the whole mainstream thing, for some reason … We’re just in a little niche of our own. We don’t have to compete, or be the next big thing, or anything. We’re just in our own little universe. Which is kinda nice. And it’s just something that we’re going to do forever, or until forever stops.”

In 2004 “our” Tina Arena sang with Zucchero on his wildly successful album Zu & Co, and the Australian-born, Paris-based singer was in some pretty impressive company. “I did all my hits with the artists that I love, like Sting, Bono, Pavarotti, Bocelli, BB King, John Lee Hooker and many others, and there was a song that I thought was very good to do it in duet with a female voice,” Fornaciari explains. “I was in Paris and I hear Tina Arena.”

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peaking to Adelmo Fornaciari, you wouldn’t have a clue he’s anything other than someone’s sunny Nonno. But the Italian rock legend more commonly known as Zucchero (meaning ‘sugar’) has been slaying hearts all over the world with his gravelly voice and gospel-inspired music for more than 40 years. After years of sold-out tours, innovative partnerships and many accolades, he has just released an album entitled La Sesión Cubana, which he decided to record after a wildly successful one-off concert playing with 70 Cuban musicians in Havana. “The most difficult thing for an artist after many years, after many albums, is remain yourself but changing; or changing but remain yourself,” Fornaciari says. “I don’t like to repeat myself, and that’s why I decided it was the right time to do something with the Cuban influences.” Recording with Cuban musicians was something the 57-year-old had been wanting to accomplish for a long time, and he clearly feels a sincere connection with the country’s essence. “I love the people; nothing to do

Fornaciari finds it amusing that I consider his mate Pavarotti to be almost a mythical figure. “He was like my brother, because we know each other from 20 years, and he grew up in the same area where I grow up in Italy,” he says. “For example when we were together we speak in dialect, you know? And he was a very nice man, deep roots, and even if he was known everywhere, big everywhere, he keep playing cards with his friends, and of course he loved to enjoy drinking wine and eating and he was always very, very happy. So for me it was a fantastic companion. I always felt that he was very close to my soul.” Just two Italian guys playing cards, no big deal… ‘Love is All Around’ is the first single from La Sesión Cubana and is accompanied by a great video, following Fornaciari through the streets of Havana. “It’s a lot of passion; even if they are poor, and they have of course big problems there, but they are always smiling, and they are always dancing, and everybody’s playing,” Fornaciari explains simply. “It’s something that makes me thinking positive.” Where: The State Theatre When: Saturday April 13

Rufus Wainwright Home And Away By Bob Gordon

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ufus Wainwright, it turns out, is quite the homemaker – if only he could spend enough time in any of his houses. “I’ve got a couple of homes that I’ve had to leave,” he says, ticking off the various places where he regularly abandons husband Jörn Weisbrodt. “We have a beautiful house in Montauk, and a nice apartment in Toronto. And then also of course I have a beautiful daughter [Viva Katherine Wainwright Cohen, whose mother is Lorca Cohen, daughter of Leonard] in Los Angeles whom I wish I saw more of. So I’m always leaving, but I’m also always coming back,” he adds with a laugh. “I’m a bit like a boomerang. You know, I’m almost 40 and I still look fairly presentable and am in good health. So now’s really the time to get out there and do my thing. To make my mark. I’ve accepted that.” Wainwright was last in Australia in September, touring his Mark Ronson-produced 2012 album Out Of The Game. “I was very, very happy with the shows. Very, very happy with the band. Very, very happy with the tour and the places I played. I do feel the record industry, or the recording industry or videos or radio... I don’t understand any of that anymore. I don’t get how that works. And it’s always a little bit of a sting, when you get out there and you’re eclipsed by a rather large Korean guy dancing,” he laughs. “After all that you’ve done. The times are a bit odd, but people keep coming to the shows and that’s what it’s all about.”

“Strangely, for someone who sings about opera singers and writes these seven-minute-long songs with odd chords, my music really is made for a live setting and I thrive on the challenge of these live crowds and new kids who may never have heard of me. That’s what excites me most, is winning over a new audience. So a festival’s one of the only places you can do that properly. I try and make it really about a deep and satisfying, prolonged musical experience.” Following his Australian tour, Wainwright has shows lined up until his birthday in July. Thereafter the plans alter a little; there’s some catching up to do. “Well, I’m gonna take August off and then I’m writing this new opera,” he says chirpily. “And I have to spend some time in one of my beautiful homes. Poor me!” With: Paul Simon When: Tuesday April 2 Where: Sydney Entertainment Centre Also: Byron Bay Bluesfest @ Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm with Robert Plant, Chris Isaak, Wilco, Rodriguez, The Frames and heaps more, Thursday March 28 – Monday April 1.

For Wainwright, as with most musicians these days, touring is more important than ever. “I won’t kid you and say it doesn’t matter that I don’t sell a lot of records,” he says, “but as I said, it’s really not my fault. People don’t buy records anymore … [But] for me to be able to go to Australia, or go to Korea, or South America and fill a room and make people happy, that really is what it’s all about. There’s a good million musicians standing right behind me who would really kill to be in the position I’m in. I have to constantly be grateful for how things are going. Even though I’m not, you know, flying on a jet plane with Lady Gaga or anything.”

“Strangely, for someone who sings about opera singers and writes these seven-minutelong songs with odd chords, my music really is made for a live setting.” Wainwright’s work over the years has been enormously diverse, and had included all manner of collaborations, a body of acclaimed solo albums, and genre excursions. Out Of The Game was a more pop-styled release than usual, but bear in mind it was preceded by the All Days Are Nights: Songs for Lulu, a piano/voice suite founded on Shakespeare’s sonnets and written for his late mother, Canadian singer, Kate McGarrigle. This itself was preceded by Prima Donna, an opera with a French libretto.

Xxx photo by JXxx Xxxx

“They feed off each other of course,” he says of such stylistically divergent pursuits, “but I think, especially once I stepped into the opera arena – I wrote Prima Donna and now I’m in the process of writing another opera – I realised with that world it’s kind of like the [difference] between a battle and a world war! And I’m excited to be in this world war of music, but in the end because I tend to go for larger kinds of ideas, you need all your past experiences to help add up the equation and make it possible. So it all melds together in the end.” The singer will turn 40 this year. As with all milestone birthdays, some choose to be highly contemplative in the face of this number while others ignore it completely. Wainwright is most certainly in the former camp. “I’m not ignoring it, that’s for sure. I’ve decided to attempt, in a very kind of gay way, to get the last bits of youth up and working,” he says with a chuckle. “Whether it’s going to the gym or trying to eat well, getting enough sleep and so forth … That’s what I’m saying to you right now, but of course there’s an hour from now, when the pasta arrives. But I am thinking about it. My intentions are very, very pure and honest, but we’ll see what the reality is.” In the meantime, the currently 39-year-old Wainwright will take the stage at Bluesfest in April, and is champing at the bit to do so. “I’ve always loved playing festivals,” he says. BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13 :: 17

The Living End Prisoner Of Australia By Simon Topper

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onsidering The Living End’s series of sold-out shows across Australia late last year – playing not one, but each of their six studio albums in full – plus ongoing commitments to tours, festivals and a Melbourne recording studio, you’d be forgiven for not realising that frontman Chris Cheney and his family are now permanent residents of the USA. They relocated to Los Angeles over a year ago, with Cheney planning to try his hand at the role of Collaborator For Hire.

“I love being in the band, and The Living End has been the major part of my life,” he says. “But I especially enjoy the songwriting. After the past few years, it’s been more of a hobby for me. I was in New York in 2010 to write our last record and I loved it, so I thought why not come back for a couple of years and play guitar on different records and collaborate with different people?” Most recently, he’s been talking with John Feldmann, who’s best known for fronting punk/ska band Goldfinger, now a producer working with acts ranging from The Used to Kelis. “He’s working with a band called Black Veil Bride. Now, it’s not particularly the kind of music that I’m really into, but it’s a different project, so I wrote something that I thought might appeal to them, and they’ve recorded that, and it’s ended up on their album,” Cheney says. “There’s been a lot of people who are aware of The Living End, and they’re kind of fans I suppose, so it’s been a way to put myself out of the zone of what The Living End does, because I like all different styles of music.” So there have been a few interesting opportunities already – and there’d probably be even more, if Australia could just stop inviting him back so much. At the time we speak, Cheney has just arrived in L.A. after a month here, and before he’s even had a chance to catch up properly with his family, he’s on the phone to Australia again. “I was just back doing a couple of different things – TLE were recording for a Hunters & Collectors tribute they’re putting together,” he says. “Not sure if I’ve let the cat out of the bag on that one, but there you go. And I was producing a band in a studio I own in Collingwood ... We moved over here in November 2011, and then I was back for a couple of months for Big Day Out, and then back for a couple of festivals and things like that, then back for three months for Christmas and the Retrospective shows, and now I’ve got to come back again in a month for Stone Music Fest. I just like to travel on planes!”

“When I think of a veteran, I think of an RSL tour, and we’re not quite in that age bracket yet.” Playing high up the Stone Music Festival bill alongside names like Van Halen, Jimmy Barnes and Kings Of Chaos (featuring members of Guns N’ Roses, Def Leppard and Deep Purple) must suggest to Cheney that The Living End has stepped into the world of rock veterans. “Well, it’s not something you really think about, until someone actually says it to you. When I think of a veteran, I think of an RSL tour, and we’re not quite in that age bracket yet,” he laughs. “I suppose we have been around for a while if you look back to the first album in ’98 or whenever, and it is an odd point that you reach and people start looking back, more so than thinking of you as the next big thing.” “I remember when that first album came out,” he goes on. “There was that great hype and you think it’s going to last, and of course it never does, but I’m glad we’ve had almost two peaks in our career, with the first record, and then with White Noise. That was a huge thing for us, we went back and played stadiums and arenas which we never thought we’d do once, let alone twice. So to some people, it must seem like we’ve been around for some time now.” In terms of their Stone Music set, Cheney says that one of the best aspects of the recent Retrospective tour was the rediscovery of older songs that had dropped off the setlist over the years. “You do get to a point where there are tunes you’re more comfortable and familiar with, and obviously the ones on the radio always get the better reaction,” he says. “So you tend to stick to your comfort zone, which for a band can be a very dangerous thing to do. There’s a lot of aspects to what this band does, and we pride ourselves on the fact that we’re musicians, and we aspire to be a musician’s kind of band, and there are certain songs that may not have got a lot of radio play, but when we play them live, that’s the best moment in the set. So I haven’t thought about what the set’s going to be yet, but we just don’t want to play it safe. This band’s played it safe for a while.” What: STONE Music Festival – April 20 & 21 With: Van Halen, Jimmy Barnes, Kings Of Chaos, The Superjesus, Icehouse, Billy Joel, Noiseworks, Buckcherry and heaps more Where: ANZ Stadium When: The Living End play Saturday April 20 18 :: BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13

Public Image Ltd Rotten No More By Chris Martin

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t’s far too easy, sometimes, to think of Johnny Rotten as the poster boy of a punk generation past; the misbehaving uncle who once marched the streets of London calling for revolution in an era when that was still an attainable concept. The Sex Pistols came and went; then Johnny became John Lydon of the more experimental Public Image Ltd – and after an eight-album run that passed in a blink, he disappeared into the ether of a new world order.

Only now, Lydon is back. Back in control of his own career, after 20 years’ worth of subjection to the corporate machine (“For two decades, the record companies kept me in a serious debt situation and wouldn’t let me go, so I couldn’t practise music, I couldn’t do anything,” he explains). Back as the frontman of PiL, and returning to Australia in April with their record, This Is PiL. It’s the same Johnny Rotten, who still carries with him an insatiable demand for cultural and political change – but now, it’s tempered by a surprising desire for an ostensibly quaint and conservative past. Sort of. “My childhood memories of England have gone,” says Lydon down the phone from California, where he lives these days. “In many ways, that’s me dealing with adulthood. [But] it’s the values that people held then and the way that neighbours would watch out for each other – that seems to have definitely gone, and it’s that way around the world now. The modern world is a very cold thing indeed. It offers you masses of entertainment and quick pizza delivery but it also takes away any sense of responsibility towards your fellow human beings, and I think that is a great loss.”

answer to the problem. And that’s what I do. I explore answers.” He’s a truth-teller, then, a mouthpiece for meaningful resolution over violent revolution. And though he’s been doing it through music for 40-odd years, Lydon’s work hasn’t become any less difficult. “It’s harder because of the [better] technique that I‘ve learned over the years,” he confesses. “I find that can bog me down, so I’m constantly trying to find ways out of these entrapments of knowledge. You know, it’s far easier to be creative when you don’t have any fucking clue how to do anything!” That said, Lydon is very clear about what he wants to inspire in the PiL audience at a live show. “Volatile hatred and projectile vomiting, in that order,” he says. “You will come, you will be completely entertained, you will be moved, you will be driven to enjoy yourself by hook or by crook … This is a rave with guts and real instruments. This is a celebration of life. It’s pretty damn excellent, if not heretic.” Where: The Enmore Theatre When: Wednesday April 10 And: This is PiL out now through Cargo

“I can’t bear the idea of one more ponderous Sting album. And so I really see myself as a refreshing alternative … It’s a healthy place [PiL’s] coming from.” Which brings Lydon back to the music, or “the only thing I’m actually any good at in life,” he says. “I can’t bear the idea of one more ponderous Sting album. And so I really see myself as a refreshing alternative … It’s a healthy place [PiL’s] coming from. For want of a better term, we’re a proper folk band – without the hippie dresses and the harps.” In conversation, Lydon seems to oscillate between two main themes – the value of what he has to say, and the empty options offered by others. But that doesn’t mean he’s blind to his own weaknesses. As Johnny Rotten he was once the mouthpiece of a movement that swelled out of control and into the Top 30 without achieving anything near the revolution it so craved. The message got abandoned in the enthusiasm of common expression. “That always happens, because the more that jump onto a bandwagon, the more damage is done to the original message,” he says. “Of course that’s a problem. But it wasn’t one that I found impossible to deal with. And quite frankly, I had better things to do – so I did.”

Xxx xxxphoto photobybyJXxx xxxxx

Lydon doesn’t see this as an abandonment of his roots, but a necessary move to remain relevant. So what happened to, say, “God save the Queen, the fascist regime”? “I don’t think anybody really cares about members of the royalty any longer,” he says. “They’re not something to be jealous of, really. I think it’s occurred to most people that they’re like fish in a bowl – they’re there for us to gawp at and make fun of.” It’s a task he approaches with vigour. “Have you still got her face on the money?” he cackles. “Best place for it, the British would say. The bottom of an Australian dollar.” Back in 1976, Lydon penned a bona fide anthem for anarchism; now he claims not to view himself as an anarchist at all. “[‘Anarchy in the U.K.’] was an exploration of the idea, but the more of these alleged anarchists I observed over the years, the more uncomfortable with them I became,” he says. “I find them hypocritical in the extreme, because they function inside of a society using the roads, cell phones, Dr. Martens boots, black leather jackets, and fly around on aeroplanes to demonstrate outside buildings. None of these situations are of their own making, it’s all provided for them, and they all have wealthy parents. It all sounds like a jolly good weekend for the rotters. But it is really like throwing apples at teacher, isn’t it? It’s foolishness, and it offers no answer other than just childish destruction, and I’m not into that … I want an BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13 :: 19

Midge Ure The Pioneer By Alasdair Duncan

M

idge Ure has carved out a pretty astonishing musical career over the past four decades. He has played with the likes of Visage and Thin Lizzy, and, together with Bob Geldof, was behind the tremendously successful Band Aid charity supergroup. For all these accomplishments, Ure may be best known as the singer from the band Ultravox, and the man behind their early ’80s synth pop hit ‘Vienna’. When he tours Australia in April, he promises a setlist that combines all of these eras, and more. “I’ve got a fairly long, varied career, so I think what I’ll be doing is a fair representation of the music that I’ve made over the last few decades,� he says. “I’ll be doing some of my solo stuff, and of course, I’ll be doing Ultravox songs – I think I’d be shot if I didn’t perform certain ones! You might even get to hear a bit of ‘Fade To Grey’, which I wrote with Visage. It’s going to be a real cross-section of stuff.� Ultravox were among the pioneers of the British synth-pop explosion – Ure joined the band in 1979, following the departure of original singer John Foxx, and went on to write

PVT

HOMOSAPIEN

some of their biggest hits. Looking back on that period, when electronic elements were not yet standard in music, they had little idea they were helping to revolutionise pop. “I think back then, the main thing is that you weren’t really trying to compete with anyone else,� he says. “You had very basic technology and recording abilities – ‘Vienna’ was recorded on a four-track tape machine. The biggest thing, back then, was that you had to be very precise, and you had to know exactly what you were trying to record. These days, you have computers, and everything’s malleable – you can instantly change the arrangements, you can make sections longer or shorter on a whim. In the late ’70s, Ure recalls, recording music was a far more painstaking process. If you wanted to create a track, you needed to start from scratch, building it piece by piece, and making key decisions early on. “The best analogy would probably be that, in that era, the music was a picture you had pretty well formed in your head before you started recording,� he says, “whereas now, it’s a blank canvas. You were much more regimented in terms of what you could do – albeit, what you were doing was radically different from what was going on at the time.

“I have to say, being young and naĂŻve, you just had this innate belief that you could make music like nobody had made before.â€? “You had to be very creative with simplistic equipment, but you also needed a very clear picture in your head of what you were trying to achieve. I have to say, being young and naĂŻve, you just had this innate belief that you could make music like nobody had made before. Now, everyone has the same equipment, everyone has the same facilities, so it’s down to the individual to make something interesting from that.â€? Ure recently reformed Ultravox for a series of live shows, and though he had very few expectations going into the reunion, he found that the process reawakened his love of music. “The call went around to the original band members,â€? he says, “and though most had since built lives and careers outside of music, everyone was curious about what a reunion might entail. When we got together and started talking about it, we were all up for the idea of playing those songs one more time. I’ve played those songs many times in many different ways over the years, but the idea of doing them with the band was very appealing. We got together just to do that one tour, just to do that one thing, and it went well. Musicians are quite simple characters, and we all quite enjoyed it and wanted more, so we ended up making a new album.â€? Though he won’t be bringing the band with him to Australia this time, Ure will still be playing tracks from that record, 2012’s Brilliant.

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Thinking back on Ultravox’s peak period in the early ’80s, Ure’s one regret is that he and the band didn’t value their vast collection of gear. “The electronics that we used on the Vienna album were incredibly basic,� he says. “The moment someone brought out a new synthesiser that had patches, that had memory allowing you to store sounds, we instantly got rid of the old stuff and bought that, because it was new, cutting-edge technology. It was only later we realised we were getting rid of classic electronic gear, and by then, it was too late.� One of the few synthesisers they managed to hold on to was a treasured ARP Odyssey. “That was the synth that was responsible for that very distinctive Ultravox sound, and in fact, we still have it. A lot of the old stuff we dumped, in order to get newer, flasher, easier-to-operate equipment, but I’m very happy we held on to that.� Generations of younger musicians have covered and paid tribute to Ure’s work – in particular, snippets of ‘Fade To Grey’ frequently show up in pop and club tracks. “Music should inspire, and I always think it’s great when younger musicians want to emulate or pay tribute to some of the things we did,� he says. “It feels like a gesture of respect, and I’m always happy to hear it.� Where: The Factory Theatre When: Saturday April 20

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arts frontline

free stuff email: freestuff@thebrag.com

arts, theatre and film news... what's goin' on around town and more...

five minutes WITH

JESS SCULLY

Biophilia app), T-shirt entrepreneur Johnny Cupcakes, Danish urban designer David Sim and filmmaker Andreas Dalsgaard (with their film The Human Scale), and radical youth marketing maven Ruby Pseudo in a session alongside former agitator Jello Biafra. These are just a small slice of a lineup that will talk, demo and workshop their way into your brain a couple of months from now, so we took five to get the skinny from Jess.

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Last week she launched Vivid Ideas 2013, as part of the greater Vivid Sydney program. Among the better-known names are polymathic illustrator David Shrigley, and Lucky Peach editor Chris Ying, and Colors photo editor Mauro Bedoni; more esoteric highlights include ‘data artist’ Jonathan Harris, biomedical animation maker Drew Berry (responsible for the animations in Bjork’s

We like that you have two of our fave magazines on the lineup; print’s not dead, eh? I discovered Colors in high school and it totally blew my mind – I’d never seen anything like it; and you know, I love the publishing. [Ed: Jess previously edited Yen, Empty and fashion mag SummerWinter]. Lucky Peach is only a year old, and they’re doing super well. These guys are totally defying the trends – they’re still producing extremely high quality printed publications for a global audience, which people said wasn’t going to be done anymore. They’re doing it, and thriving. How did you get David Shrigley? David has always been a mega hero of mine. A couple of years ago there was a series of concerts in London for the Worried Noodles album. A friend of mine went, saw him standing up the back, and asked him to give him a tattoo – and he did! And I’ve been thinking about David Shrigley ever since. We tried to get him last year and it didn’t happen – so this year we finally made it happen.

Where do you find these people? A lot of it is through recommendation; Ruby Pseudo I came across through Kate Armstrong Smith [co-director of Arts Radar], who recommended her. David Sim and Andreas Dalsgaard came through the Sydney Film Festival; Jonathan Harris I discovered from a conversation I had in the queue for Nicolas Jaar’s Sydney Festival Spiegeltent show… If someone talks to me about someone else’s story and they're excited about it, I’m gonna go look that up. Where do you go, internationally, to get inspiration? I’ve just come back from TED Active in Palm Springs – I’m one of the curators of TEDXSydney [on May 4]. I met the most incredible people from all over the world and saw all these amazing talks. Last year in Berlin was really inspiring, particularly in terms of all the city stuff I’m interested in – I went to this amazing conference on wastelands. I also got to go to Documenta – the ‘art Olympics’, I call it. it happens every five years and it’s a massive survey of the arts, and it’s really political and very integrated into the city of Kassel. I love art for art’s sake, and art that’s silly and fun; but I think some art also has the opportunity to do something for people and empower them.

Why don’t you… watch this film about legendary fashion editor Diana Vreeland? One of the most significant figures in 20th-century fashion, Vreeland launched the career of Twiggy and Edie Sedgwick, advised Jackie Onassis, edited Harper’s Bazaar for 25 years before taking over Vogue for another eight. Then, deciding she wasn’t awesome or influential enough, she took over the Costume Institute at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, arguably the most important collection of fashion history in the world. Thanks to Madman, we have five DVD copies of Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has To Travel, to give away – just email freestuff@thebrag.com and tell us your postal address and the most fearless, fantastic item of clothing you own! Vivid Ideas photo by Henry Holland

very year Jess gets to handpick the most interesting, game-changing thinkers from creative industries around the world, and invite them to Sydney for the Vivid Ideas conference. The idea is to get you out of your comfort zone – or your patch, as she puts it – and into new territory; the more names on the lineup you don’t recognise, the better she’s probably doing her job.

DIANA VREELAND: THE EYE HAS TO TRAVEL

What: Vivid Ideas When: May 24 – June 10 Where: the Museum Of Contemporary Art + various partnering venues More: vividsydney.com

ART BATTLES: QUAY SERIES

Art Battles is back and dreaming big for 2013. Not satisfied with just giving up-and-coming local artists a chance to showcase their skills to in-theknow bar hoppers, the final showdown is moving to one of the busiest spots in the city, where Sydneysiders, entertainers and tourists collide. The Grand Final takes over Circular Quay the weekend of May 4 and 5 in a celebration of music and art with the winner scoring a trip to Vietnam to rep Oz at international art convention Tiger Translate. Heats will be happening every Thursday from March 28 at Name This Bar. For all the deets hit up artbattles.com.au

Test Pattern [Enhanced Version] 2011

FUTURE ARTS

PARTY FLASHMOB

Attention, party fiends: the next instalment in uberslashie Jesse Willesee’s Seven Hundred Photos series is on its way, and shaping up to be a doozy. Promising six hotel rooms, six parties and six live fashion shoots feat. clothes from HK label Suck Is Free and Estate Of Mind open to photographers professional and amateur alike, along with sets from Buzz Kull, Whipped Cream Chargers, Will And The Indians, plus DJs spinning tunes to keep you going from room to room. FLASH/MOB is taking over Beach Road Hotel on Thursday April 4 from 7pm 'til late, and entry is ten bucks with a free Rekorderlig. Check out the trailer at jessewillesee.com

DEVIATOR

Our cities are choked by the gentrified, the commercialised, and the smartphone junkies who cry, “busy, busy, busy”. It is into this doom that our heroes, Perth-born media agitators pvi collective, leap with Deviator. Armed with a bandolier of 3G

The Inventors

phones, they’re recruiting players to transform into warped children and save Sydney from itself. From June 11 to 16, keen players will head out from the National Art School to hunt hidden audio tracks in surrounding streets, and following these instructions will unlock a series of games designed to disrupt urban ennui as artistically as possible. Those brave enough to join the rebellion are encouraged to sign up at performancespace. com.au

MARK WHALEN

Wall-via-street artist Mark Whalen (AKA Kill Pixie) opens a show of new works at Chalk Horse next week, courtesy of blackartprojects. Whalen’s illustrations are characterised by bright colour, intricate detail, and a thematic amalgamation of space-age, computerised terrain with figures that might belong to ancient societies, involved in primitive rituals. Or as he says, “puzzles of fantasy and forecasted worlds – these multifaceted scenarios of discovery, roleplaying and problem solving that expose humanity at its most bizarre.” His latest series, which includes mixed-media works and pottery pieces, is called Maze Walkers, and runs April 2-20 at Chalk Horse (8 Lacey Street, Surry Hills). markwhalenart.com

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WORKOUT @ MCA

Next month at MCA, arts patrons will have the chance to limber up and get their gaze on when nine artists share the secrets of their process in Workout. Installed in a white cube at the MCA, the artists will each have one day of the week from April 22 to 28 to transform the cube with their thoughts, interventions and actions. Every night the work is removed, and a new artist enters a clean slate the next day. Getting sweaty

Searching For Utopia

and solving problems are artists David Capra, The Motel Sisters (Liam Benson and Naomi Oliver), Sarah Goffmann, Jodie Whalen, Agatha Goethe-Snape, Domenico de Clario and Brian Fuata. More info at mca.com.au

ARCHSULWYNNERS!

As we went to press, the Art Gallery Of NSW announced the winners of the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes. Del Kathryn Barton’s busy, decorative signature style was dialed back a tiny bit for her portrait of Hugo Weaving, which took out the Archibald (her second win); Imants Tillers’ text-dappled landscape on a mosaic of 64 canvases, Namatjira, was awarded the Wynne; and the Sir John Sulman Prize (for subject/genre painting or mural project) went to Victoria Reichelt’s oddly eerie After (books). The Packing Room Prize, voted by Gallery staff, went to Mathew Lynn’s near-life-size, Manet-inspired portrait of Tara Moss. Finalists for all prizes will remain on display at the AGNSW until June 2.

VIVID SYDNEY

Vivid Sydney unveiled its 2013 program last week – alongside the programs for satellite festivals Vivid LIVE (music stuff at Sydney Opera House), Vivid Ideas (the annual creative industries conference – see our profile above!) and Vivid Lights (the public art lighting design component). What does it all really MEAN? It means that on May 24 the ‘lights go on’ (Sydney Opera House sails get colourfied with a light show created by Spinifex, that will last until June 10) and the next three weeks see a flowering of creativity and pretty things across the city. Ask your boss for annual leave, get your calendar handy, and check out what’s on: vividsydney.com

Test Pattern [Enhanced Version], 2011 © Ryoji Ikeda. Photo courtesy of Park Avenue Armory New York and Forma © James Ewing

The International Symposium of Electronic Arts is happening in Sydney this year, in conjunction with Vivid Sydney. Founded in 1990 in the Netherlands, ISEA serves up the best multidisciplinary work across art, science and technology, presenting ideas the unwashed masses won’t be exposed to for years. This year’s menu includes Italian hactivists Alessandro Ludovico and Paolo Cirio (behind the Face To Facebook project), the Chip Tune Festival, and the Australian premiere of test pattern [N°5], by acclaimed Japanese composer-cum-audio-visual artist Ryoji Ikeda – who will also be performing a one-off free concert of his datamatics [ver.2.0] audiovisual work. To get ahead of the curve, see isea2013.org

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BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13 :: 23

Trevor Noah [COMEDY] The Racist By James Pearson

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with Jay Leno (where he killed it with Leno, guest Glenn Close and the audience) followed by a tour with Gabriel Iglesias. He subsequently moved to Southern California.

“Basically my show is just about funny things that have happened to people around me in the last two years,” says the 29-year-old comedian. “Most of the time I’m just telling audiences stuff that I’ve seen. Every single story is based on a true event. Depending on the story, I embellish in order to get it into comedy. But almost 100% of what I talk about is true. It’s like Hollywood – sometimes you need a bit of razzle-dazzle to make it into a blockbuster.”

For someone who’s recently cracked the US market (and whose upcoming Sydney show was upgraded from the Factory to the Enmore due to demand), Noah remains quite modest. “My show is always changing, it’s never good enough. It’s always a work in progress,” he says. “But I don’t have any bad jokes.” In fact, Noah’s act is a well-planned social study – one that quietly celebrates our similarities while laughing wildly at our differences. It’s a show that’s heavily informed by his childhood growing up in a mixed-race family in post-apartheid South Africa – a background that possibly goes some way to explaining his interest in the issue of race.

revor Noah will change the way you eat. The way you eat tacos, anyway. He’s perhaps South Africa’s finest stand-up comic... that’s what the Americans are saying, anyway. One thing’s for sure, when Noah takes the stage, you’re reminded that life is only as dull as you make it. His show, The Racist, stands as a testament to the idea that, if you pay attention, the world is actually pretty hilarious.

Whatever he does, it works: last year he made his American TV debut on The Tonight Show

“Before apartheid, race was more of a hatred issue and a racism issue,” he says. “Now South Africa deals with race as an issue. But race is something that won’t go away... everywhere in the world, it’s not going anywhere.” Noah’s background and choice of subject matter means that his own racial heritage tends to forefront media coverage. Flicking through past interviews and press releases, it’s hard to find one that doesn’t mention his being born to a white Swiss father and a black South African mother. Yet there’s nothing incredible there. More interesting is the fact that, in the era of Apartheid, his parents’ relationship was illegal, and the racial pecking order of South Africa had fermented to a point that his own maternal grandmother referred to him as ‘master’. “Race is easily one of the biggest issues in the world, no matter where you are, no matter who you are,” says Noah. “A lot of people try and act like race doesn’t matter to them or doesn’t affect them but, in one way or another, it does! It’s one of the most basic things that we base ourselves on, and a lot of things happen because of it. I guess coming from a country like South Africa it’s something I pick up on... there, race is something that’s in your face all the time. It’s something that I’ve grown up with.” These days, however, Noah is enjoying the freedom his globetrotting career allows: “Look, it doesn’t matter where I am in the world; it doesn’t matter what country I’m in. It’s not about the country; it’s not about where people are from. I’ll perform anywhere.”

[THEATRE] Comic Gold By Simon Binns

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hen I was New York last year, the theatre scene was abuzz about One Man, Two Guvnors – it was The Show To See. It closed the day I arrived, but it left a lasting impression on Broadway. When I mention this praise to the revival director Adam Penford he’s wonderfully humble, merely commenting “that’s nice to know.” One Man, Two Guvnors is an adaptation by Richard Bean (The Heretic) of Carlo Goldoni’s 18th century commedia dell’arte classic The Servant Of Two Masters. Debuting in 2011 at London’s National Theatre, it subsequently had a year-long West End season, before transferring to Broadway; it has been trailed by rave reviews, with quotes like “the funniest show on the planet” bandied about. The show’s global success is even more astounding given that it started life as a gap-filler in British National Theatre’s 2011 season. “Nick Hytner [artistic director of the National Theatre and original director of the show] looked at the season and thought ‘We don’t have a comedy,’” explains Penford. Fortunately, being artistic director at one of the world’s largest theatre companies gives you certain powers, and before long Bean had been commissioned to write an adaptation of Goldoni’s crowdpleaser. At this point, Penford was an assistant director working alongside Hytner, trying to soak up as much knowledge from the experience as he could. But as One Man, Two Guvnors took off and was transferred to the West End, he started to take more control. “My role has been changing, assistant director turned into resident director turned into associate director and now I think it’s revival director,” he says. “It’s an odd job… I’ve worked with four and a half casts.” A traditional story of mixed identities, the play’s premise is ripe with comic potential. “It’s about a guy called Francis Henshall who’s down on his luck and manages to get a job with a gangster,” Penford explains. “He later gets a second job with another gangster… and if either discovers that he’s working for two he’ll get fired so he has to keep these ‘guvnors’ apart.” What could be simpler you say? But as I’m sure you can imagine, it gets a little more complex.

“It turns out the guvnors are sweethearts who are separated because they’re on the run from the police.” Although the poster might lead you to believe it’s a oneOwain Arthur man tour de force, there are actually 17 cast members. “I can’t go into too much detail about why the cast is so large, because there’s a couple of surprises in there,” Penford says carefully. However, it is obviously Francis, the titular ‘One Man’, who is the lynchpin of the show – and it’s one of those fairy-tale stories of the theatre that sees Welsh actor Owain Arthur centre stage in the touring production. “The original lead part was written for [British comedian] James Corden, who was in the The History Boys; they basically cast him before Bean had written the play,” recalls Penford. “At one point we had to get a new understudy for him and we got Owain Arthur. We knew the play was going to transfer to the West End and we knew James had to leave to go to Broadway. Owain went on [stage] and we watched him – and by the end of Act 1 we knew he was capable of taking over, so we went backstage during the interval and offered him the tour. So he went back on for Act 2 a very happy chap.” What: One Man, Two Guvnors When: March 30 – May 11 Where: Sydney Theatre / 22 Hickson Road, Walsh Bay More: sydneytheatre.com.au

Xxxx

What: Trevor Noah: The Racist When: Friday April 26, 7.30pm Where: The Enmore Theatre More: sydneycomedyfest.com.au

One Man, Two Guvnors

Hyde Park On Hudson [FILM] All The President’s Women By Alicia Malone

O

ver the past few years, Bill Murray has become something of an urban legend. There have been numerous stories in the media about the 62-year-old actor turning up at house parties full of university students, singing karaoke in a small booth with strangers, or reading poetry to construction workers (Google that one). The night before this interview, the actor was spotted dancing up a storm at a local nightclub. This kind of cheekiness was exactly why director Roger Michell wanted Murray to play Franklin D Roosevelt in his movie, which centers on the President’s scandalous relationship with his sixth cousin, Daisy Suckley (Laura Linney). “I couldn’t think of any other actor who would make the story forgivable,” says Michell. “There’s something very sweet about Bill, he’s mischievous and charming like FDR. Plus he worked hard. He was aware that this was a difficult thing for him. A lot of his roles are just versions of himself; this is something else.”

while Bill would just take off in the car, and leave the set behind!” Linney adds, laughing. “Everybody would be like, ‘Wait where are you…?’ And Bill would drive for a while and then we’d come back, it was really fun.” Linney was Michell’s only choice to play Daisy. It’s a tricky role – and there’s the sexual relationship between Daisy and FDR, an uncomfortable subject because of their distant family ties. “I saw Daisy very much like a Jane Austen heroine,” says the director, “somebody who is on the shelf, sexually inert; somebody whose life is over, brought to life by this magician. I needed somebody of a certain age. If [Laura] had been 10 years younger it would have thrown the film into a totally different, Clinton-esque feel, which would have been horrible. The film will shock a lot of people, but it’s gentle and not distasteful.”

Despite taking his role seriously, Murray made sure the set was still fun – entertaining with music, doughnuts... “Every once in a

“[The Guardian] made an entire article out of the fact that we’re travelling on the shirttails of The King’s Speech,” Williams complains,

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Laura Linney and Bill Murray in Hyde Park On Hudson “when our project preceded [that film] by many years. I heard the radio play that [our film] is based on years before The King’s Speech was even a twinkle in anyone’s eye. I so love and respect [that film], but this is an utterly separate project. I feel they couldn’t be more different in their style and their scope.” But Michell admits that the popularity of The King’s Speech helped his movie; he

could use the audience’s familiarity to his advantage. “It’s like a prequel to our film. It lays the ground for the work that we’ve done. […] so we didn’t retread any of the same ground. We prefer to think of it as a pleasant development and not a cynical exercise in jumping on a royal bandwagon.” What: Hyde Park On Hudson When: In cinemas from March 28

Xxxx

“I think he felt the weight of the importance of this role,” adds Olivia Williams, who portrays FDR’s wife Eleanor. “He’s not the stand-up guy from Saturday Night Live anymore, he’s a serious actor. He was perfect for the role; he’s someone who is comfortable in his skin and charismatic, but you’re also not quite sure what’s going to happen next.”

Besides revealing Daisy’s relationship with FDR, Hyde Park On Hudson deals in passing with an historic moment when England’s King George VI and Queen Elizabeth traveled to the President’s New York country home to strengthen ties between their countries. After the Academy Award-winning The King’s Speech brought King George VI back into the spotlight, the cast and crew of Hyde Park On Hudson admit to being concerned about audiences comparing the two.

OPEN TIL 3AM

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Arts Snap

Art & Culture Reviews

At the heart of the arts Where you went last week...

Hits and misses on the silver screen and the bareboards around town.

art month: precinct night #4

PICS :: TL

Laurence Aberhart: Site of the Rhythm Club fire #2, Natchez, Mississippi, 29 September 1988

15:03:13 :: Mclemoi Gallery :: 45 Chippen St, Chippendale

■ Visual Arts

SOUTH OF NO NORTH

rumble group show

PICS :: TL

Until May 5 / MCA

15:03:13 :: Wellington St Projects :: Studio 8, 19-25 Wellington St, Chippendale

This group exhibition poses a seemingly simple question: what is it to be south of no north? Or put another way, what is ‘southern-ness’ removed from its relation to a north? Taking its name from a book of stories by American poet Charles Bukowski, the show is part of an ongoing MCA series that places the work of an Australian artist alongside their global counterparts.

chicks on speed

PICS :: TL

They are subjects that all share some quality of the South – of being Southern – that extends beyond any relation to the North; they are Southern as a state of being. The exhibition is therefore constituted, not by what makes these artists different, but by what they share, a common vision of what it is to be innately Southern, to be south of no north.

13:03:13 :: Art Space :: 43-51 Cowper Wharf Rd, Woolloomooloo

Arts Exposed What's in our diary...

NOISE: An Exhibition Of New Music April 6 – June 23 / Free Entry Daily 9-5pm Penrith Regional Gallery Penrith Regional Gallery & The Lewers Bequest invited a bunch of local and international musos to create a soundscape inspired by a work of their choice, from the PRG & TLB Collection – which includes contemporary and indigenous works, and spans Modernism, Abstract Expressionism, Hard Edge Abstraction (!!) and Minimalism, from the 1930s to the 1970s. Taking up the challenge are troublemakers Jim White (Dirty Three) and George Xylouris, Tom Ellard (Severed Heads), Jack Ladder (who chose the artwork pictured), Io Echo, Henry Salkauskas: Untitled (1961) ink on paper operatic bass baritone Eddie Muliaumaseali’I, Kirin J. Callinan and Daniel Stricker (Midnight Juggernauts), Castratii, Tim McPhee (Firekites), and Matthew Doyle. Head along to check out the nine resulting works. penrithregionalgallery.org 26 :: BRAG :: 505:: 25:03:13

Stylistically there are vast differences between McKenna and his colleagues. At first glance, even Eggleston and Aberhart can seem quite at odds as photographers – the former’s vividly colourful and emphatically uncropped images contrasted to the latter’s reflective black and white scenes of desolate, uninhabited cemeteries and urban outposts – but despite these aesthetic poles, there is cohesion to the show, a winding narrative. So what is it to be ‘south of no north’? McKenna, Eggleston and Aberhart respond in harmony. To be ‘South’ is to inhabit sparse landscapes, whether urban (Eggleston’s dive bars and sprawling suburbs) or rural (Aberhart’s windswept roads to nowhere); interior (McKenna’s bedrooms or Eggleston’s freezer) or external (Aberhart’s graveyards). To be ‘South’ is to be wild and unsullied, youthful and un-ironic – the few living subjects in the works tend to be children and animals, those who inhabit their environment more than alter it. McKenna’s series of animal portraits is particularly tender – whimsical perhaps, but a whimsy that folds comfortably into the rough-and-tumble innocence of this mythic South. This South is also a play of scale. From Eggleston’s famous tricycle image, in which the children’s toy seems to overshadow the lone suburban house and lawn that it occupies, to McKenna’s nostalgic series of ‘Big’ landmarks (the ‘Big Pineapple’, ‘Big Orange’ and so on), in the Southern wilds something that once was

Kate Britton ■ Film

RUST AND BONE In cinemas from March 28 Occasional palm trees dot the view in Jacques Audiard’s new film Rust And Bone, set in Antibes on the Côte d’Azur. There’s sand and water and exotic marine life, but the sunlight is tempered with sad resignation and a sense of struggle. Audiard’s central focus is firmly on the outskirts of the town, where people with ho-hum luck and motley pasts are attempting to get by. Accompanied by his young son Sam, Ali (Matthias Schoenearts) picks up from a bad situation in Belgium and takes refuge in his stoic sister Anna’s scruffy home in the South of France. A quiet, unsettled man with an aggressive streak, Ali finds work as a bouncer at a local nightclub where he meets Stéphanie (Marillon Cotillard) caught up in a fight outside. He drives her home, bloodied, and comments negatively on her appearance to which she answers back defiantly. It’s the start of an odd, fractured relationship. Away from the dreariness of Anna’s supermarket job and Ali’s security gig, Stéphanie works as a killer whale trainer, commanding their movements to an applauding audience at a marine park. During a routine display, complete with a bad pop soundtrack pumping out of the speakers, a gesture is misread and a sickening accident occurs, all in a heartbeat. From this moment, we see a wounded connection strengthen between Ali and Stéphanie, her pain buoyed by a tenderness he seems to preserve just for her. While she begins a new kind of life, Ali forges ahead with his dreams of becoming a boxer, this intermingled with meaningless sex and a general disregard for his son. Despite his recklessness, he treats Stéphanie in a manner that’s both delicate and frank and there’s a real matterof-fact chemistry between them. As she opens up, so does he and together they push emotional and physical boundaries, seeking common ground. Schoenearts plays Ali with an intense energy but the film belongs to Cotillard, whose Stéphanie is as strong-willed and astute as she is vulnerable. In Rust And Bone, Audiard explores class structure through a social realism lens, but for all the raw human emotions, violence and humility, this is a love story. A love story that attempts to steer clear from Hollywood melodrama and very nearly does. Kate Jinx – Picture Show, FBi Radio

See www.thebrag.com for more arts reviews

Laurence Aberhart: Site of the Rhythm Club fire #2, Natchez, Mississippi, 29 September 1988 Courtesy the artist and Darren Knight Gallery, Sydney and © the artist

In South of No North, Australian painter Noel McKenna is shown alongside two photographers, renowned American William Eggleston and New Zealand’s Laurence Aberhart. Each artist delves into their own ‘south’ in their work – McKenna and Aberhart through their Antipodean landscapes, and Eggleston through his life-long documentation of the Southern United States, particularly his birthplace and hometown, the quintessentially ‘Southern’ Memphis.

small can become gargantuan, and vice versa (as with the remote and run-down service stations and factories that populate each artist’s work at some point).

Street Level

DVD Reviews

WITH

Even good guys have issues...

GAME OF THRONES: SEASON 2

Warner Brothers By the time the fifth book (of an eventual seven) in George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire wraps up, there have been no fewer than 31 different POV characters, and over a thousand named ones. Main characters are now in regions and countries fans of the TV adaptation, Game of Thrones, haven’t even heard of. So as the series goes on it’s going to get even harder to comb the timelines and story threads into a coherent skein – even the credits get longer almost every episode, including more and more locales in their tour through the incredible 3D mechanical map. As the war for the Iron Throne scatters the Starks, Lannisters and all the rest of them to all the grimmest points of that map – and Daenerys stalks the desert with her baby dragons and awed, suspicious khalasar – Season 2 starts off as a bit of a mess. The first three or four episodes are rushed and breathless as they try to catch up with everyone. It’s a stark (ahem) contrast with the most stunning set-piece of the series so far – the penultimate episode of the season, ‘Blackwater’, features only one story, a bloody battle fought with magic green fire on the water. It’s hard to tell whether the pace settles or the viewer just becomes accustomed to it, but the plotty, chatty scheming scenes, “sexposition”, brutal action scenes and broad comedy find their own rhythm somehow, and it’s as satisfyingly nasty as ever. The special features are, as usual excellent. The commentaries are more than an afterthought, with showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, Emilia Clarke (Daenerys) Peter Dinklage (Tyrion) and even Martin himself talking fans through episodes; a 30-minute featurette on the making of ‘Blackwater’ squeezes more fun out of the best episode, and for the completist, the Blu-ray (with in-episode info pop-ups and hidden “dragon eggs”) is the ultimate. Caitlin Welsh

REKO RENNIE my associated community, and then utilised the skills I had learnt on the street with expressing my own identity.

PUNCHING THE CLOWN Via Vision

Do you remember the first piece you made that you were really proud of? My first piece of art I painted was a seascape in oils; this was when I was 10 or 11 years old. I still have this work somewhere! At the time it reminded me of our trips to the beach, as my father was a surfer. He had encouraged me to use oil paints and I really loved the ability to mix your own colours. I made several more oil paintings after this and then I found spray paint was a medium I was more suited to!

Hang on, another comedy about how soulless – and soul-destroying – Los Angeles is? Haven’t we already seen that on HBO series Entourage? And with Matt LeBlanc on Episodes? Fortunately thanks to excellent casting, characters and script, Punching The Clown is up there with the best recent parodies of LA. Henry Phillips (Henry Phillips) is a satirist-slashfolksinger who’s been in a “breakup situation” since his lady bailed nine years back. As hangdog as he is hugely likeable, Henry has one foot in the “comedy door”, one foot in the “music door” and is “humping the wall between them”. After screwing up his regular gig by singing pornographic material to a group of hardcore Christians, Henry heads to LA to crash on his brother’s couch and revive his career. He hires an oddball agent, Ellen (Ellen Ratner) who tees him up at a club called Espresso Yourself, where his limpid come-ons to the waitress manage to keep her interest piqued, but never peaked. A freak misunderstanding sees Henry’s luck soar, only for another freak misunderstanding to see it plummet. I usually despise quirky American comedies. First, they tend to bolt from the starting block, funny as hell, but up the stakes, plot-wise, until it all falls apart. Second, while the main character is often great there’s usually a dumbass sidekick, or cameo, deployed for cheap(er) laughs, that’s completely overplayed. Third, I usually don’t care about any of the characters: just as necessary in comedy as any other genre. Even if it’s in LA where everyone sucks. Punching The Clown hangs its fate by none of those nooses. It stays funny start to finish, the side characters are sketched excellently, and you actually care if people laugh at Henry’s gigs.

Welcome To Redfern

R

emember when the T2 building in Taylor Square turned neon overnight? That’s the work of Reko Rennie; this month he’s taking on the Block in Redfern, assembling a team of young artists to decorate one of the heritage terraces using stencils, paste-ups, spraypaint and more, creating a mural that celebrates the cultural history of the area. What kind of art does your Dad make, and how did his craft affect your own? My father is a painter, carver and sculptor; his name is Biggibilla. From an early age I have always been surrounded by art. His work is contemporary Aboriginal art using line work and iconography of the Kamilaroi people. I believe his practice definitely gave me an insight and respect for art as a profession. But as a young teenager, it was New York graffiti and local Melbourne writers who inspired me to pick up a spray can and paint. Later as I got older, I then came back to the iconography and patterning of

What were you thinking when you rendered the T2 building in neon patterns? I wanted the building to pop. Too often, there is a romanticised notion of Aboriginality – meaning: a real Aboriginal person should be black, wandering around the desert and painting dots – when this is not the reality for the majority of Aboriginal people who live in urban environments. There are nearly 300 different language groups representing Aboriginal Australia; of this there are diverse cultural practices and art forms. So this work is one representation of contemporary Aboriginal Art – we are not a mono-culture, we are many and diverse. What was the brief you were given for the Block mural, and how did you execute it? I was invited to come and work with a group of amazing young adults, who were selected to be a part of the Block mural. Over a period of three one-week workshops, the teenagers decided what they wanted visually to represent Redfern and the Block in their eyes. All I did was help show them the skills in painting, stencils and spray paint – and the rest is history. What: Welcome To Redfern mural Where: 36 Caroline Street, Redfern When: now More: check out City Of Sydney’s public art projects at cityartsydney.com.au

Kate Hennessy

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bread&thread Food & Fashion News

FROM BRITTEN WIN AT LMFF

Melbourne-based menswear label From Britten have received the 2013 L’Oreal Melbourne Fashion Festival National Designer Award. This is only the second time that men’s fashion has been given a nod from the glass trophy, and the announcement stunned designer brothers Alexander and Tim Britten-Finschi. . Without missing a beat, the brothers plan to channel their winnings into their debut show as part of the Australian Fashion Week in Sydney next month.

SELLING DREAMS

The NSW State Library has two major photographic exhibitions lined up for later in the year. The first, Magnum: On Set, is a collection of 116 intimate on-set images – taken by photographers from the world-famous Magnum Photos – of movie stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood. Including James Dean, Marilyn Monroe and Elizabeth Taylor, this exhibition runs from May 18 to June 23. The second exhibition is Selling Dreams: One Hundred Years of Fashion Photography, featuring 60 iconic images from London’s Victoria & Albert Museum that chart the development of fashion and fashion photography through the 20th century, and runs from August 10 to November 10. It’s part of the Library’s ongoing celebration of local and international photography in 2013, so even if these don’t make your lens cap pop, check out their website for more exhibitions.

SOMETHING FOR JESS (AND YOU!)

Greasy spoons are destined for the bin, with healthy fare being the order for chef Philip Ocampo’s new venture. Nestled at the O’Connor St corner of Chippendale’s growing Central Park development, Something for Jess is a colourful, homestyle café named in honour of Ocampo’s partner. Wholesome grub sourced from local growers (including the eponymous lady’s own mum) is presented humbly here, with the small menu of leisurely nibbles and light meals changing each week according to the ebb and flow of their organic ingredients. Lovers of sourdough deliciousness especially will be in for a treat, with a wide range of beautifully simple toppings for your toast (figs or salmon or asparagus, oh my!) while a generous coffee shrine serves a daily blend from Five Senses. Feel free to salivate between 7am-3pm weekdays, and 8am-3pm on weekends.

From Britten collection 2013

OLD GROWLER BASEMENT 218 WILLIAM STREET WOOLLOOMOOLOO TUESDAY – SATURDAY FROM 5PM-12PM / SUNDAY 5-10PM The basics: It opened on March 8, and for the last three weeks the buzz about Old Growler has just been building – and it has the credentials to back up the hype (see below). Besides their top-notch barand-kitchen team, they’re also repping a drool-worthy mix of craft boutique beers, interesting wines, beer-inspired cocktails, in a relaxed atmosphere. In touch with the times, they’re also practising a local, grassroots and sustainable approach to beer, food and wine. The flavours: Modern European with a British gastro pub feel. The team: Bar manager Gerome Delosreyes has worked, helped open, done cameos, and/or whored himself out to over 30 bars and restaurants across Sydney, including Ivy, Ms G’s, El Loco, Palmer & Co, Establishment, Cargo Bar, Sugarmill, The Winery, Low 302, The Bourbon, The Eastern, The Golden Sheaf, and the Paddington Inn. Chef Alex Watts has worked at Bistrotheque London, The Princess (Shoreditch) and Balmain’s Welcome Hotel, and he’s the owner of Camperdown café Runcible Spoon.

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SPICIER CELLAR

Here’s a sobering fact: about $8 billion worth of edible food goes to waste across the nation every year. That’s a lot of zeroes (and a lot of tasty goodness) being squandered. Got any ideas to stop the unnecessary trashing? A giant food swap meet, perhaps? A “leftovers only” restaurant? Maybe a passive-aggressive poster? The folks at Oxfam Australia have launched a new online space where creative young guns can “upload their innovative design, marketing and communication solutions to the causes of food waste”. So if you’ve got a grand idea or two, head to designforchange.org.au to get posting (and have a sticky beak at what other people have come up with).

It seems like a no-brainer, but two of Sydney’s ‘hottest’ nocturnal options are joining forces to create a one-of-a-kind nightspot. Spice Cellar is a combination lounge/club/tapas bar at 58 Elizabeth Street in the city is based on the idea that some people might like to eat delicious food, drink tasty cocktails and have a bit of a dance without going to three separate venues. And now they’ve teamed up with SPICE, the underground clubbing institution that has kept the kids dancing since 2004, so you can get a cheeky five-course tapas degustation between glow-sticks – the food’s by Daniel Brown, formerly of Bondi’s Rum Diaries, and there are 2-for-1 designer cocktails from Julien Serna (ex-Hemmesphere) every day from 5pm-7pm.

CBDELICIOUS!

Head Chocolatier Thomas Schnetzler admiring his chocolate replica of the Sydney Tower Eye

Have you ever had that dream where the entire city is made of chocolate, and you just wander around taking a chomp out of all your favourite landmarks? No? Well, our dreams are about to become a reality, as Lindt – those dastardly purveyors of the other kind of Swiss balls – have built a two metre tall model of Sydney Tower (AKA Centrepoint) just in time for Easter. Handcrafted by Lindt’s Master Chocolatier from a whopping 12.5kg of chocolate, it features over 300 edible windows as well as tiny figures standing out on Skywalk. This delicious skyscraper will be on display at the Sydney Tower Eye from March 20 – April 28. BYO glass of milk.

bar profile Their mission: “We wanted to have a thoughtful and dynamic offering without the wank normally associated with venues of a similar offering.” Eye candy: The interior design was collaborative approach between all partners along with a selected group of friends. Matt Woods did the lighting design, builder friends Huw and Andy provided much of the finishes and final touches in line with the overarching concept, and Toby Jones of Ksubi was the branding guru amongst other things. Something to start with: Free range chicken-liver pâté with Pedro Ximinez jelly, cornichons and toast ($13). The main course: Twice-cooked smoked pork belly with pickled slaw and apple sauce ($19). Care for a drink? Golden Mullet Fury ($12): Pedro Ximinez y Sauvignon Blanc. Total ‘renegade’ white wine. Flinty, struck-match nose, loads of texture from six months of skin contact, but balanced from fruit and acid of Sauvignon Blanc. Or if beer’s more your thing, Young Henry’s Real Ale ($6) – biscuity, malty, light citrus hop notes. If you’re a whisky-lover, try the Hopscotch Henry ($15): Scotch whiskey, lemon juice, maple syrup,

Young Henry’s real ale, topped with hops & Whisky infused foam. Room for dessert: Lychee and mint sorbet with berries and vodka ($19) And: Keep track of changing menus and happy hours at facebook.com/OldGrowler

Lily Cole & Giant Camera © photographer Tim Walker / Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Do you own all the River Cottage DVDs and books? Do you dream of a smallholding in some delightful English hamlet? Is your Redfern herb garden not quite scratching that gardening itch? Wild Stories is a series of workshops dedicated to the forgotten arts of foraging for wild food, and the difference between weeds that can help with sore knees and weeds that will kill you. It’s an important difference to know. Naturalist Diego Bonetto is leading a Mushroom Harvest expedition on April 7 to seek out wild ’shrooms in the Penrose State Forest, and for $75 he promises an introduction to harvesting, a breakfast of BBQ’d wild mushrooms, and some of your own to take home. www.weedyconnection. com

OK, this is pretty cute. Music streaming service MOG partnered with Cedar Creek Orchard in Picton and French ecosonics specialist Yannick Van Doorne to create a special series of apple juices, fuelled by music from MOG’s huge catalogue. The fruit in Blue Suede Juice (clear apple), Baby I Was Grown This Way (cloudy apple) and Tastes Like Teen Spirit (apple and blackcurrant) was grown in trees wired up with speakers playing pop music 24/7, testing the theory that not only does music help plants grow, but it also increases the deliciousness of their produce... You can even enter to win a juice grown to the sounds of your own special MOG Mix – get started at madebymog.com.au.

DESIGN FOR CHANGE

Lily Cole & Giant Camera, Italian Vogue, 2005

WILD STORIES

MADE BY MOG

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Album Reviews

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

ALBUM OF THE WEEK JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE The 20/20 Experience RCA/Sony

Self-indulgent? Of course it is. Spectacularly so.

Unlike his previous two solo albums, there’s very little darkness to 20/20. It’s hard to find interesting ways to sing about happiness – the newlywed Timberlake’s approach is all-out adoration, and it works. Future-funk and soul – Prince via The Love Below – thread through the fun grooves of the mid-album tracks about moon sex and bubblegum. Arena-ballad strings and luminous harmonies on ‘Mirrors’ challenge his peers to make a

LOW

COLLEEN GREEN

The Invisible Way Sub Pop/Inertia

It wouldn’t be Low’s style to release a double deluxe special edition album to celebrate 20 years in the business. Instead we get a familiar collection of intimate ballads from the Minnesotan trio and, thankfully, their tenth album is one of their finest. The unique selling point of The Invisible Way is Mimi Parker’s vocals. The drummer takes lead on around half of the 11 tracks and does a grand job. We’re more used to hearing her harmonising with guitarist and husband Alan Sparhawk on previous Low material, but alone she is revealed to have a startling voice, perfect to tackle the themes of depression heard throughout this record. ‘So Blue’ finds euphoria in mutual isolation, powerful piano lifting Parker’s repeated refrain of “So blue / with you” all the way to the heavens. It’s a perfect example of how producer Jeff Tweedy (of Wilco) keeps things in check. The song could become overwrought but he treats it with the most delicate of touches, giving Parker the space she needs to simultaneously break your heart and fill it with joy. Her voice can also be unsettling. Touching on religion on ‘Holy Ghost’, accompanied by just acoustic guitar and brushed drums, Parker sends shivers down your spine as she sings “I feel the hands / But I don’t see anyone”. On the hymn-like closer ‘To Our Knees’ she sings of love and nature and is more affecting than any Greenpeace campaign. The duets and husband/wife harmonies are still present though, with ‘Mother’ demonstrating that Sparhawk and Parker sing as well together as they ever have. Two decades in, Low might well have hit their all-time high. The Invisible Way is a beautiful country rock gem.

Colleen Green is a Boston native who relocated to Oakland, apparently to write some lo-fi tunes and smoke a whole bunch of weed. (Her twitter handle is @ colleengreen420, so that last bit didn’t take much detective work.) The obvious thing would be to compare her to Best Coast, and there is a debt to the girl groups of the ’60s that serves as the common thread between them, but Green is considerably more DIY than Bethany Cosentino. Green does everything by herself: she uses a drum machine because she doesn’t know how to play drums, she sings her own backing vocals, and her voice is so far back in the mix it all sounds like a Wall of Sound behind a weed haze. The songs are fun, and there are moments that come close to capturing the ‘gives no fucks’ feel of her almost-Ramones song, ‘I Wanna Be Degraded’. But these songs here aren’t particularly distinct from one another, and despite only running for 34 minutes Sock It To Me overstays its welcome. It’s not helped by a dull, lifeless title track at the midpoint of the album that crushes the sugar rush built up through the first few songs. There are certainly lovely moments – ‘Darkest Eyes’ is sweet and mesmeric, with a lovely guitar line running through it, and the guitar tones are terrifically snarling and growly, though sadly they are the only real ‘edge’ on the album. Unfortunately, there’s only so many times you can go back to such a shallow well of ideas before it runs dry. And this gets very, very dry. Too little substance stretched out too long. Hugh Robertson

David Wild

The most satisfying thing about 20/20 is the neat, logical way it fits into the JT mythology. ‘Mirrors’ seems to use exact same drag-stomp beatboxing as ‘Cry Me A River’, contrasting its besotted glow starkly with the earlier single’s bleak, bitter recrimination; ‘Tunnel Vision’ recalls ‘LoveStoned/I Think She Knows’ in its combination of swirling, laser-focused production and willing surrender to desire. If Justified was a hoodie and FutureSex a sharp, shiny suit, then 20/20 is a vintage tux with purple silk lining and something up the sleeve. Caitlin Welsh

MKAIO

BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB

Sock It To Me Hardly Art/Inertia

A Far Off Horizon Independent

Vs Head Vs Heart MGM

A big break at the Queensland Music Awards when she was only 16 years old, a hugely successful EP (Full Hearts & Empty Rooms), overseas tours including a stint at SXSW, and a deal with ultra cool New York label Frenchkiss (Bloc Party, Les Savy Fav, Passion Pit)… it really makes you wonder whether Emma Louise is really, really lucky, or really, really special. After listening to this album, I’m putting my money on the latter.

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BRITISH INDIA Controller Liberation

Specter At The Feast Cooperative

Specter At The Feast was originally planned as a double album, and the distinction between the tone of the first and second half reinforces this, but as it stands, the tracks that made the final cut form a solid body of work. It plays like a memorial, winding through different stages of grief. The album was written following the death of bassist/vocalist Robert Levon Been’s father Michael backstage at a festival performance in 2010. The first single, ‘Let The Day Begin’, is a cover of one of Michael Been’s songs and has a decidedly un-BRMC elation to it. The first track, ‘Firewalker’, begins with a two minute instrumental and plays like the haunting score of a tragic film. ‘Returning’ and ‘Lullaby’ are similarly melancholic ballads, beautiful in their lyrics and instrumentation. “How much time have we got left / It’s killing us, but carries us on…I will follow you till we all return / Till we know our souls survived”.

The debut LP from bedroom producer Matt Kammerer, A Far Off Horizon is likened to the sounds of chillwave figureheads Toro Y Moi and M83 – but a shared genre is probably the only comparison we can draw between those artists here. Written and recorded over the space of three years during which Kammerer lost a close friend to cancer (who is paid tribute on touching closing track ‘Adagio For Jen’) and left the Mormon faith, you can’t blame the young producer for not putting enough of himself emotionally into his tunes. Clocking in at 16 tracks long, and with some tracks nudging the 6 minute mark, there is too little cohesion between the songs to justify such a lengthy debut album; had the album been culled by half, Kammerer would have had a fairly solid EP on his hands rather than an album that limps to the finish line.

The style then switches to the more familiar bluesy rock of their more recent albums, with the triptych of ‘Hate The Taste’, ‘Rival’ and ‘Teenage Disease’, before coming full circle with the transformative ‘Lose Yourself’, which plays out the album with Been’s mournful vocals and Peter Hayes’ fuzzed out guitar rising to a finish – as close to triumphant as such a grief-soaked record can get – before fading to a discordant silence.

Tracks like ‘Maui’ and ‘Brush Of The Cheek’ are where Kammerer puts his best foot forward; ambient, minimal nods to chillwave that belie their humble production origins, and there are enough of these tracks in varying stages of “chill” and “wave” to keep your head bobbing. Then there’s a disappointing excursion into uninspired, bubblegum pop with the likes of ‘Fall For You’, and the insipid ‘Tried and True’, which might be about drugs – it’s hard to tell when the cheesy vocals and dated synths are so distracting.

Not as immediately gripping as Beat The Devil’s Tattoo, Specter At The Feast is more of a slow burner. Given time to breathe, it’s a rewarding experience for those willing to see BRMC try something different.

There is enough solid material on this record to stop you from writing off MKAIO for good, and hopefully once Kammerer establishes a more unique sound, you’ll be hitting replay instead of next.

Natalie Amat

Marissa Demetriou

INDIE ALBUM OF THE WEEK EMMA LOUISE

Justin Timberlake photo by Tom Munro

Everything about The 20/20 Experience is tailored to reframe Justin Timberlake as An Entertainer, from the orchestral flourish that opens the album Experience, to the framing device of harmony-soaked soul groove ‘That Girl’ – which introduces JT & The Tennessee Kids, his orchestra – to the suiting (Tom Ford, natch) and epic average track length (seven minutes).

bigger, better love song – it’s possibly the best straight-up Top 40 love song since ‘Halo’. It’s the second-last track, with the draggy beauty of ‘Blue Ocean Floor’ ending the album on an aching, modern note (OK, one final sweep of that Hollywood violin). ‘Don’t Hold The Wall’ is a sinuous dancefloor seduction and, with its snare-prickled bass and humid ambience, Timbaland’s best production in years.

Vs Head Vs Heart is Emma Louise’s eagerly awaited debut and although a lot less acoustic compared to her 2011 EP, this record lays all of the young musician’s cards on the table. With deliciously swirling melodies and vocals akin to the breathiness of Imogen Heap (most noticeable in the swaying ‘Pontoon’) and the understated power of Florence Welch, Emma Louise takes you through ten, most intimate tracks. “Words hurt, when you wait too long / Words hurt, when she’s in your arms” are the personal reflections that open the album, on lead track ‘17 Hours’.

(Hungry Kids Of Hungary, Ball Park Music) in his Brisbane studio, these songs contrast deep beats underneath layered ethereal vocals, a mode most present in the impossibly catchy tune (and triple j obsession of 2011) ‘Jungle’. The single ‘Boy’ is a beautiful track skillfully threading a throbbing primal bass line amongst light percussive twinklings and Emma Louise’s soothing vocals.

Meticulously produced by Matt Redlich

Katie Davern

With intricate songs that invite you to lean in closer, Emma Louise has crafted a commendable debut album layered to perfection and driven by her marvellous voice.

Just a few months after the release of their third record, Avalanche, in April 2010, the fiercely independent British India found themselves tangled in the mess of the liquidation of Shock Records. Their new home on Liberator seems to have done what it says on the tin – they sound freer than ever. A real effort seems to have been made to inject some diversity into the band’s sound. The record opens familiarly enough with the anthemic ‘Plastic Souvenirs’. With its catchy “Don’t you hang up” hook and marching-band drumbeat it triumphantly marks the band’s return – after all the label bullshit they’ve been through, they’re still here. You start to notice the real change in style from track two, ‘Blinded’. A poppy harmony leads you into the track and what’s waiting is surprising: Melia’s delivery is heartfelt and emotive – soft, even. This, juxtaposed with his signature high-register wail, makes for some top listening. And it’s not just Melia’s vocals that have been loosened up either. The finger-picked minor chords that open first single from the record, ‘I Can Make You Love Me’ reek of melancholy and the closing track ‘Crystals’, with its gentle acoustic guitar and tinkling piano, wouldn’t sound out of place on a folk release. For a band that considers themselves to be a punk outfit, even in light of their chart success and seemingly infallible ability to write a pop song, not being quite so pissed off all the time seems to have paid off. Controller is a balanced fourth release from a band that will surely be scoring some serious international recognition before we know it. Amelia Parrott

OFFICE MIXTAPE And here are the albums that have helped BRAG HQ get through the week... VARIOUS - Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas OST BUILT TO SPILL - You In Reverse THE KNIFE - Silent Shout

LEADER CHEETAH - The Sunspot Letters PAT BENATAR - Crimes Of Passion

Life is Noise presents

Thursday May 9 Annandale Hotel Sydney Tickets from lifeisnoise.com, oztix.com.au and the venue

BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13 :: 31

live reviews what we've been to see...

STEP-PANTHER, WAX WITCHES GoodGod Small Club Friday March 15 Goodgod is a sea of ratty beach hair and irony-free pairings of ugly shirts and backwards caps. They’re here for Wax Witches, of course – main man Alex Wall has become the poster child for bratty garage with his other band, Bleeding Knees Club, and this new project certainly doesn’t fall far from that tree. The energy is great, and full marks to his drummer for keeping up with the furious pace. But the vocals are too soft to hear properly, so the set ends up as half an hour of indistinct noises sung over a series of similar riffs. There doesn’t seem to be enough difference from BKC to warrant it being a separate band. It doesn’t deter the hoodrats, though, who thrash around with infuriatingly mindless disregard for their surroundings, hanging off the pole holding up the PA system. When Wax Witches close with a lively cover of Black Flag’s ‘Nervous Breakdown’, it occurs to me that Henry Rollins would crush this meeting of the Douche Brigade.

party profile

These are Step-Panther’s first shows since releasing their Dreamcrusher EP, and it’s clear that this band is only getting better. Where before the shows were Ramones-like in their commitment to one single tempo for the night, now they have enough variation in their songs to demonstrate their cohesion as a unit. ‘Fight Like A Knight’ has that great swing in its step and they smash through the pairing of

‘Never Again’ and ‘No Fun’ at an astonishing speed, but there are a couple of almost-meditative grooves at various points of the set. And their opening track – possibly titled ‘Going Nowhere’ – is a new one that moves through several tempos, shifting from one to the next without any warning. Dreamcrusher showed that there has been a similar development lyrically, with singer/ songwriter/guitarist Steve Bourke beginning to develop an outsider-loner narrator in the vein of Mascis or Malkmus. Unfortunately this doesn’t come across live, as the lyrics get lost in the mix, but there’s still tremendous depth and nuance in the guitar solos – ‘Bad Mood’ in particular – that hints at this burgeoning emotional undercurrent in their new stuff. They plan to release another LP this year; if they keep maturing and developing at the pace they have over the past 12 months, I think we’re going to need to keep a slot free on our ‘Best of 2013’ lists. Hugh Robertson

PHOTOGRAPHER : ASHLEY MAR

the 2013 givva fork party

DINOSAUR JR., REDD KROSS, ROYAL HEADACHE The Hi-Fi Saturday March 16 No matter what kind of a week I’d had, the Hi-Fi wasn’t going to let me be in a shitty mood on this particular Saturday night. First up, Sydney lo-fi legends Royal Headache busted onto the stage and proved that the overdriven, just-in-the-red production on their self-titled LP isn’t a gimmick so much as a symptom of their energetic, DIY attitude. Singer Shogun charmed the crowd, bounding left and right, then taking his shirt off and regretting the disappointment of those who “were expecting breasts”.

enthralling, especially while framed by a crescent of stacked amps. It was great to see him reunited with the killer rhythm combo of Murph and Lou Barlow again: their solidity as a trio blended new tracks like ‘Don’t Pretend You Didn’t Know’ (from I Bet On Sky) and classics like ‘Feel The Pain’ seamlessly into the set. ‘Pond Song’ and ‘Just Like Heaven’ each elicited an appropriate swoon, and the chugger ‘Sludgefeast’ closed the night with bass chords feeding into a wall of fuzz with plenty of solos. At the risk of sounding obvious, it was exactly what you’d expect from a Dinosaur Jr. show (now, or in 1997): they were introspective, yes, but at the same time, they blew everyone’s faces off. Dijana Kumurdian

Though a sensible choice as a touring buddy for all their links to late ’80s/early ’90s punk, Redd Kross was a surprisingly jarring main support for Dinosaur Jr. Lead singer Jeff McDonald implored, alarmingly, “All right glitter rockers: unite!” before introducing ‘Switchblade Sister’ to a crowd who might have thrown up the horns, if it wasn’t so passé. The band played a few songs from the new record Researching The Blues, which went over the heads of those mostly interested in the greatest hits material. They occasionally enlivened the crowd with classics, but for the most part, it seems slacker-alt fans aren’t that into stadium rock (who knew?). Rock‘n’roll cheesiness aside, Redd Kross bugged me because they made Dinosaur Jr.’s stage presence come off as relatively sedate in comparison. Luckily, J. Mascis’ whole Mishka-hipstermeets-Sarumanthe-White vibe was completely

It’s called: The 2013 GIVVA FORK Party It sounds like: A ‘forking’ good party for a good cause! Who's playing? Van She live, Elizabeth Rose, Polographia and Olympic Ayres. Sell it to us: Great bands, great venue, great price, great cause! Help us celebrate spreading the good word about the GIVVA FORK campaign with a huge party. With Sydney’s finest bands provid ing the tunes at a bargain price for a fantastic cause, can you think of somewhere that you’d rather be? Hmmmmmmmmmmm? The bit we’ll remember in the AM: That you provided a month’s worth of school meals to a child in Laos and all you did was have an awesome night! Crowd specs: Plenty of friendly partygoers. They’ll all be good-looking too! Wallet damage: Just $15 Where: The Standard

RKE PHOTOGRAPHER : KATRINA CLA

When: This Saturday, March 30

With just a fraction of the main act’s lighting effects at their disposal, World’s End Press and their punkfunk proved more captivating. The Melburnians have a charismatic frontman in John Parkinson, who sounds a lot like David Byrne, and some killer tunes. It was good to see that they attracted a sizeable crowd – I suspect many of those watching, like myself, cannot wait for a full WEP album to drop sometime this year.

BLOC PARTY, WORLD’S END PRESS Hordern Pavilion Wednesday March 13

PHOTOGRAPHER : ASHLEY MAR

32 :: BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13

A disappointing Bloc Party’s saving grace was that the boisterous crowd at the Hordern Pavilion were definitely up for a midweek blow-out. If the Glenn Miller Band were playing instead, the well-oiled audience would have pogoed and moshed just the same.

Bloc Party’s set at least looked impressive. As Kele Okereke, Russell Lissack, Gordon Moakes and Matt Tong stood in darkness, four different coloured concentric circles lit one after the other, revealing the motif on the cover of latest album Four behind the band and ushering in the spiky guitars of that album’s opener ‘So He Begins To Lie’. The audience echoed the stuttering chorus to ‘Mercury’ and surged towards the stage for ‘Hunting For Witches’. It was a surprise to see such unruly enthusiasm for purveyors of ‘intelligent’ rock I had previously only watched while standing next to quiet

musos and indie kids – and, frankly, for three average (but clearly popular) songs. Okereke urged everyone to pace themselves. A super version of ‘Like Eating Glass’ reminded me that Bloc Party have never been as good as their first album Silent Alarm, and that was confirmed when ‘Song For Clay (Disappear Here)’ segued into the almighty ‘Banquet’. “Come on, you bunch of bogans, jump!” screamed Okereke to an obliging mob. Despite the deployment of some awesome laser effects later, the show never surpassed this peak, except perhaps when the kids with enough in the tank opened up a friendly moshpit for closer ‘Helicopter’. It didn’t matter much to the die-hards and those who came to party, but I’m afraid that after three underwhelming albums a tired Bloc Party seem to have lost their relevance, and the hunger they exhibited when they first arrived, all guitars blazing, nearly a decade ago. David Wild

snap sn ap

palms

PICS :: KC

up all night out all week . . .

bruce springsteen

PICS :: AM

16:03:13 :: Brighton Up Bar :: Level 1/77 Oxford St Darlinghurst 9572 6322

northern lights

PICS :: TL

18:03:13 :: All Phones Arena :: Sydney Olympic Park 8765 4321

14:03:13 :: FBi Social :: Kings Cross Hotel 248 William St 9331 9900

Who’s playing: The Griswolds, Colour Codin g, Gang Of Youths, The Cadres Three songs you’ll hear on the night: The Griswolds – ‘Hear t Of A Lion’, Gang Of Youths – ‘Strange Diseases’, The Cadres – ‘Horiz ons’. And one you definitely won’t: David Guett a – ‘Sexy Chick.’ Sell it to us: Four incredibly talented and rapidl y rising local bands will have you dancing around with your hands in the air! To sweeten the deal there’ll be $5 cans, $5 slushies, and $5 TruckStop buns for all, plus $5 house spirits for students. The bit we’ll remember in the AM: Well, with all those cheap drinks, probably not a lot… The money still in your wallet, we guess ? Crowd specs: We don’t discriminate. As The Griswolds would say, “music is better enjoyed together”. Wallet damage: Zilch, nada, nothing. Where: Beach Road Hotel, Bondi When: Thursday March 28 from 8pm

12:03:13 :: All Phones Arena :: Sydney Olympic Park 8765 4321 D HONCHO) :: KATRINA CLARKE

S : TIM LEVY (HEA OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER MAR :: HARVEY :: KATE LEWIS :: ASHLEY

:: AVERIE

birds of tokyo

PICS :: KL

guns n' roses

It’s called: HANG THE DJ Launch It sounds like: Infectious indie and near-perfect pop shaken up with a bit of grungy garage rock.

PICS :: AM

14:03:13 :: Brighton Up Bar :: Level 1/77 Oxford St Darlinghurst 9572 6322

party profile

day ravies

PICS :: TL

hang the dj launch

17:03:13 :: The Enmore :: 118 - 132 Enmore Rd Newtown 9550 3666 BRAG :: 505:: 25:03:13 :: 33

g g guide gig g

send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com

pick of the week Iggy & The Stooges

MONDAY MARCH 25 ROCK & POP

Broadway Unplugged: Bev Kennedy And The Beverages The Vanguard, Newtown $10 7pm Fall Out Boy (USA) Metro Theatre, Sydney sold out 7.30pm Rodriguez (USA), The Break Enmore Theatre sold out 7pm

JAZZ

Betty & Oswald, Ocean Leaves 505 Venue, Surry Hills $10 8.30pm

MARCH 28 – APRIL 1

Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm

24th Annual Byron Bay

Bluesfest:

$159 (day only)-$585 (whole event) 2pm 34 :: BRAG :: 505 : 25:03:13

ACOUSTIC & FOLK

Glen Hansard With The Frames (IRE), Lisa Hannigan (IRE) Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House, Circular Quay $59-$89 8.30pm

TUESDAY MARCH 26 ROCK & POP

Byron & Steve Orient Hotel, The Rocks free 10pm Candyrat Guitar Night: Owen Van Larkins, Maneli Jamal (CAN) The Basement, Circular Quay $20 (+ bf) 7.30pm Goon Squad Scruffy Murphy’s, Haymarket free 10pm Jason Mraz (USA), Zac Brown Band (USA) Sydney Entertainment Centre, Darling Harbour $79-$99 7.30pm Rodriguez (USA), The Break Enmore Theatre sold out 7pm Terry Serio’s Ministry Of Truth, Zoe Zoe Ella, DJ Stephen Ferris Deus Ex Machina Café, Camperdown free 7.30pm The Tiger And Me, Evan & The Brave, The Twoks The Vanguard, Newtown $15.80 8pm

JAZZ

Old School Funk And Groove Night 505 Venue, Surry Hills free 8.30pm

ACOUSTIC & FOLK

Glen Hansard With The Frames (IRE), Lisa Hannigan (IRE) Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House, Circular Quay $59-$89 8.30pm

WEDNESDAY MARCH 27 ROCK & POP

Daybreak Band Competition Valve Bar & Venue, Tempe 7pm Endless Boogie (USA), X Goodgod Small Club, Sydney $40 (+ bf) 8pm Fletcher, Melodie Nelson The Vanguard, Newtown $11.80 8pm Live & Local: Jordan Banning, Bryley, Dan March, Lost Trolleys Lizotte’s Restaurant, Dee Why $15 7.30pm Lonely Boys Scruffy Murphy’s, Haymarket free 11pm Lunchbreak: The Walking Who FBi Social @ Kings Cross Hotel free 1pm Manu Chao (FRA)

Enmore Theatre $69 6.30pm Mary Coughlan (IRE), Little May Brass Monkey, Cronulla $39.80 7pm Papercrane, The Belle Havens, The Conversations Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst $5 8pm Ray Beadle & Matt Andersen (CAN) The Basement, Circular Quay $30 (+ bf) 7.30pm Santana (USA), Steve Miller Band (USA) Sydney Entertainment Centre, Darling Harbour $114-$159 6.30pm Status Quo (UK), Marco Goldsmith Band Hordern Pavilion, Moore Park $119 7pm Tav Falco & The Panther Burns (USA), The Holy Soul, Wentworth Avenue Breeze Out, DJ Angie The Square, Haymarket $35 (+ bf) 8pm William Elliott Whitmore (USA), Lincoln LeFevre, Nick Van Breda Annandale Hotel $25 8pm

JAZZ

Bandaluzia Flamenco 505 Venue, Surry Hills $10$15 8.30pm Fred Wesley & The New JBs (USA) Upstairs Beresford, Surry Hills $55 (+ bf) 8pm

THURSDAY MARCH 28 ROCK & POP

24th Annual Byron Bay Bluesfest: Ben Harper & Charlie Musselwhite (USA), Chris Isaak (USA), Fred Wesley And The New JBs (USA), Frank Turner And The Sleeping Souls (UK), The Snowdroppers, Jason Mraz (USA), Tedeschi Trucks Band (USA), Rodriguez (USA), Tav Falco & The Panther Burns (USA), Seth Lakeman (UK), Counting Crows (USA), The Robert Cray Band (USA), Joan Armatrading (UK), Shawn Colvin (USA), Jake Shimabukuro (USA), Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue (USA), Shuggie Otis (USA), Wanda Jackson (USA), Go Jane Go, The Beards, Grace Potter & The Nocturnals, William Elliott Whitmore (USA), Leonardo’s Bride, Shaun Kirk, Hat Fitz & Cara Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm $159 (day only)-$585 (whole event) 4pm Alititude Scruffy Murphy’s, Haymarket free 10.30pm Demon Hunter (USA), For All Eternity, I The Breather, Caulfield, Absolution Manning Bar, University of Sydney, Camperdown $33 (+ bf) 7.30pm Easter Everywhere: East River, Yo Grito! DJs, Velvet Cave DJs Front Bar, Goodgod Small Club, Sydney free 9pm

Garage Syndicate Vol. 1: The Chitticks, Royal Chant, Hailer, New Brutalists FBi Social @ Kings Cross $10 8pm Glitter Canyon, Epics, Surprise Wasp, Australis Uber Alles Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst $12 8pm Go/No-Go, Simo Soo, Luchi, Baerfrens Union Hotel, Newtown free 8pm Greg Byrne Customs House Bat, Circular Quay free 7pm Hang The DJ: The Griswolds, Colour Coding, The Cadres, Gang Of Youths Beach Road Hotel, Bondi free 8pm James Parrino Beach Bar, Coogee Bay Hotel free 10pm Jimmy Cliff (Jamaica), DJ Tony Hughes Metro Theatre, Sydney $75.70 7pm The Lumineers (USA) Enmore Theatre $69.90 7pm Music Maker Blues Revue!: Ironing Board Sam (USA), Major Handy (USA), Pat ‘Lady Guitar’ Wilder (USA), Dr. Burt (USA), Nashid Abdul-Khaaliq, Ardie Dean, Albert White Blue Beat, Double Bay $55 (+ bf) 8pm Papa Pilko & The Binrats, Tiger & Me Moonshine, Hotel Steyne, Manly free 8pm The Project: After Thirteen, Last Man Standing, Australian Played, DJ Swindler Bull ‘n’ Bush Hotel, Baulkham Hills free 8pm PVT, Collarbones, Mere Women Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst $29.50 (+ bf) 8pm Ray Beadle & Matt Andersen (CAN) Brass Monkey, Cronulla 7pm Robert Plant (UK) Sydney Entertainment Centre, Darling Harbour $119$149.90 7.30pm Royal Southern Brotherhood (USA) The Basement, Circular Quay $44 (+ bf) 7.30pm Shauna Jensen Lizotte’s Restaurant, Dee Why $24 8pm Spurs For Jesus The Rose of Australia Hotel, Erskinville free 8.30pm Staff Picks: The Walking Who, The Ruminaters, Twincest, Bus Vipers, Spectacles Annandale Hotel $5 7.30pm Tiffany Britchford, The MisMade, Date Night At The Museum Sydney Livehouse @ Lewisham Hotel $12 8pm We Come Out At Night – Good Friday Eve Mega Party!: Hopeless, Perspectives, Reality, Clipped Wings, Hot Damn! DJs Spectrum, Darlinghurst $15$20 8pm What It’s Worth, Firelucy, Vicious Dickens, The Runes Valve Bar & Venue, Tempe 7pm

Iggy & The Stooges photo by Sophie Howarth

Robert Plant Presents Sensational Space Shifters (UK), Paul Simon (USA), Santana (USA), Iggy And The Stooges (USA), Ben Harper & Charlie Musselwhite (USA), Steve Miller Band (USA), Counting Crows (USA), Wilco (USA), Jason Mraz (USA), Manu Chao (FRA), The Lumineers (USA), Rodriguez (USA), Chris Isaak (USA), Bonnie Raitt (USA) Status Quo (UK), Zac Brown Band (USA), Roger Hodgson (USA), Dropkick Murphys (USA), Jimmy Cliff (Jamaica), Rufus Wainwright (USA), Taj Mahal Trio (USA), Saskwatch, The Music Maker Blues Revue (USA), Jon Anderson, Status Quo (UK), Beasts Of Bourbon, Ruthie Foster, Matt Andersen, Playing For Change, Michael Kiwanuka, Ben Caplan, Rhythms Q&A, Christine Anu, Grace Potter & The Nocturnals, Sweet Honey In The Rock, Mark Seymour & The Undertow, Wilson Pickers, Round Mountain Girls, Thelma Plum, Soja, Allen Toussaint (USA), Rockwiz Live, Hat Fitz & Cara, Wards Xpress, Lil Fi & The Dirty and many more!

Glen Hansard

g g guide gig g

send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com

JAZZ

Chasing The Moon Camelot Lounge, Marrickville $20 7pm Darryl Beaton And The D1 Cartel 505 Venue, Surry Hills $10 8.30pm The Gin Mill Social Slide Bar, Darlinghurst free 10pm

ACOUSTIC & FOLK Melanie Horsnell The Vanguard, Newtown $23.80 7pm

FRIDAY MARCH 29 ROCK & POP

24th Annual Byron Bay Bluesfest: Tedeschi Trucks Band (USA), Fred Wesley And The New JBs (USA), The Music Maker Blues Revue (USA), Manu Chao (FRA), The Break, Santana (USA), Wanda Jackson (USA), Tombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue (USA), Tav Falco & The Panther Burns (USA), The Song Of Haight Ashbury Show, Steve Miller Band (USA), Rodriguez (USA), The Robert Cray Band (USA), The Snowdroppers, The Beards, Airileke, Jimmy Cliff (Jamaica), Joan Armatrading (UK), Shuggie Otis (USA), Michael Kiwanuka (UK), Leah Flanagan, Playing For Change, Glen Hansard & The Frames (IRE), Ben Harper (USA), Shawn

Colvin (USA), Tjupurru, Skipping Girl Vineager, Taj Mahal Trio (USA), Rockwiz Live, Jake Shimabukuro, William Elliott Whitmore (USA), Leonardo’s Bride, Ruthie Foster, Wards Xpress, Seth Lakeman, Hat Fitz & Cara Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm $159 (day only)-$585 (whole event) 2pm Alex Lloyd Rock Lily, The Star, Pyrmont free 6pm Bad Friday: Kingswood, The Tsars, The Hollow Bones, The Upskirts, Teenage Hand Models Annandale Hotel $10 7pm Bad Friday Festival: Vanessa Heinitz, PurEnvy, The Reflections, All In A Year, Risen Dred, Hermatic, Infinite Black, Senile Sircus, The Mool King Device, Steel Swarm, Red Bee, Damage Inc Valve Bar & Venue, Tempe 12pm Chanpagne Jam – Open Mic Night Dundas Sports Club free 7.30pm Electric Horse, Thse Four Walls (NZ), Neotokyo, We Without The Wall @ Bald Faced Stag Hotel, Leichhardt $12 5pm Halfway Homebouy, Bears With Guns, Blake Sabben 3, Daniel Allars FBi Social @ Kings Cross Hotel $10 6pm King Colour, Cletus Kasady, Oslow, Courage For Casper The Roxbury Hotel, Glebe $12 7pm Shake The Shine – Rockabilly Rumble Moonshine, Hotel Steyne,

tue

26 Mar

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

Manly free 4pm Trav & Rosco Show Beach Bar, Coogee Bay Hotel free 7pm

SATURDAY MARCH 30 ROCK & POP

24th Annual Byron Bay Bluesfest: Robert Plant Presents Sensational Space Shifters (UK), Iggy & The Stooges (USA), The Robert Cray Band (USA), The Beards, The Songs Of Haight Ashbury Show, Mae Wilde, The Blind Boys Of Alabama (USA), Dropkick Murphys (USA), Taj Mahal Trio (USA), Saskwatch, The Music Maker Blues Revue (USA), Jon Anderson, Status Quo (UK), Beast Of Bourbon, Ruthie Foster, Matt Andersen, Wilco (USA), Playing For Change, Michael Kiwanuka, Ben Caplan, Rhythms Q&A, Christine Anu, Grace Potter & The Nocturnals, Sweet Honey In The Rock, Mark Seymour & The Undertow, Wilson Pickers, Round Mountain Girls, Thelma Plum, Soja, Allen Toussaint (USA), Rockwiz Live, Hat Fitz & Cara, Wards Xpress, Skipping Girl Vineagar, Lil Fi & The Dirty Rascals, The McMenamins, King Cannons, Genevieve Chadwick, Shaun Kirk, Brother Fox Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm $159 (day only)-$585 (whole event) 2pm Alex Lloyd, Sons Of The

East Lizotte’s Restaurant, Dee Why $48 8pm Allen Stone (USA), Alice Terry Blue Beat, Double Bay $40 (+ bf) 8pm Blind Valley, The Moderns Gallery Bar, Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst free 8pm Born Jovi Oatley Hotel free 8.30pm Bounce Scruffy Murphy’s, Haymarket free 10.30pm Classic Rock Show: Barry Leef Band Brass Monkey, Cronulla 7pm Crossing Red Lines, Flock The Bean, Vale Of Ah The Vanguard, Newtown $13.80 8pm Dawn Of Azazel (NZ), Festering Drippage, Daemon Foetal Harvest, Odiusembowel, Autolosis, Wretch Valve Bar & Venue, Tempe 7pm Emilie Autumn (USA) The Factory Theatre, Marrickville $45.10 (+ bf) 8pm all-ages Family, Baudelaire, Blonde Band, The Blurst Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst $5 8pm Hue Williams Overlander Hotel free 7pm The Jeff Duff All Stars The Basement, Circular Quay $35 (+ bf) 7.30pm Kitty, Daisy & Lewis Metro Theatre, Sydney $54.90 7pm Le Tour De Funk, The Deep Blue Sea, Funkhouse Valve Bar & Venue, Tempe 12pm Major Raiser’s 2013 GIVVA FORK Party: Van

She, Elizabeth Rose, Polographia, Olympic Ayres The Standard, Surry Hills $15 (+ bf) 8pm Ngaiire, Ribongia, Miss Little FBI Social @ Kings Cross Hotel $20 8pm Party Anthems Paragon Hotel, Circular Quay free 9pm Party Vibe Trio, Ryan Thomas Beach Bar, Coogee Bay Hotel free 7.30pm Prints, Shasheddybash, The Night Managers, Allon The Roxbury Hotel, Glebe $12 8pm Sequence: Wooshie, Lindsay Tuc, Kane Ikin, Thomas William, Gardland, Guerre, Nakagin, True North, James IV Stewart, Spoonty, Cassius Select, Tea Factory, Mannheim Rocket Old Fitzroy Hotel Theatre, Woolloomooloo $15 2pm The Spitfires, Baby Doll Arms, The Waterboard The Red Rattler, Marrickville $10 8pm Stormcellar The Baldrock Hotel, Rozelle free 8.30pm Stormy Monday South Hurstville RSL Club free 9pm

JAZZ

Nadya & The 1010 Candles Orchestra Camelot Lounge, Marrickville $25-$30 (+ bf) 7.30pm Peter Head Harbour View Hotel, The Rocks free 7pm Yuki Kumagai, John Mackie Well Co. Café / Wine Bar, Leichhardt free 7.15pm

Kitty, Daisy & Lewis

ACOUSTIC & FOLK

The Deep The Belvedere Hotel, Sydney free 9pm

SUNDAY MARCH 31 ROCK & POP

24th Annual Byron Bluefest: The Cat Empire, Manu Chao (FRA), Melbourne Ska Orchestra, JD McPherson, The Music Maker Blues Revue, Fat Freddy’s Drop, The Lumineers, Soja, Allen Stone, The Songs Of Haight Ashbury Show, Damien Dempsey, Xaviwer Rudd, Rufus Wainwright (USA), Mavis Staples, The Bamboos, Ben Caplan, Nicky Bomba’s Bustamento, Roger Hodgson, Bettye LaVette, Royal Southern Brotherhood, Playing For Change, Karise Eden, Jon Anderson, Sweet Honey In

(9:00PM - 12:00AM)

27 Mar

thu

28 Mar

(4:30PM - 7:30PM)

(9:00PM - 1:00AM)

GOOD FRIDAY fri

29 Mar

sat

(4:30PM - 7:30PM)

Mar

SATURDAY NIGHT

30

(9:00PM - 12:00AM)

mon

01 Apr

(7:00PM - 10:00PM)

(3:00PM - 6:00PM)

sun

31 Mar

(4:30PM - 7:30PM)

SUNDAY NIGHT

(8:30PM - 12:00AM)

(2:00PM - 5:30PM) (6:15PM - 9:30PM)

BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13 :: 35

g g guide g

send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com The Rock, Current Swell, Rhythms Q&A, SCU Showcase, Saskwatch, Allen Toussaint (USA), Rockwiz Live, Tony Joe White, Chris Smither, Grey Ghost, Luka Bloom, Mason Rack Band, Matt Andersen, King Cannons, Kim Churchill Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm $159 (day only)-$585 (whole event) 2pm Buddy Glass The Midnight Special, Enmore free 6pm Buzz Kull, Mob, Multiple Man, Sucks Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst $5 8pm Camperdown & Out, Kiosk, Model Citizen The Imperial Hotel, Erskinville 8pm Freshly Squeezed Annandale Hotel $10 4pm Good Stuff Scruffy Murphy’s, Haymarket free 10.30pm Helpful Kitchen Gods, Stone Cold Fox, Dirty Slutz, Om & Om Is Two Dr. Delites Gladstone Hotel, Chippendale free 5pm Iluka Moonshine, Hotel Steyne, Manly free 5pm Mary Coughlan (IRE) The Vanguard, Newtown $38.80 7pm The Road Runners Marrickville Bowling Club free 4pm The Shuffle, Nikita Brass Monkey, Cronulla $19.90 9pm Spencer Ray Beach Bar, Coogee Bay Hotel free 7.30pm Sweet Teeth, Michael Crafter, The Sufferjets,

Trombone Shorty

Fully Cooked Blackwire Records, Annandale 7pm Tedeschi Trucks Band (USA), Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue (USA) Enmore Theatre $98.20 7pm Zombify Party: Dead Life, Inslane, Steel Swarm, Cryptic Scorn Valve Bar & Venue, Tempe 2pm

JAZZ

Peter Head Band Harbour View Hotel, The Rocks free 4pm

ACOUSTIC & FOLK

Jazz On Mars Oatley Hotel free 2pm Shawn Colvin (USA), Melody Pool The Basement, Circular Quay $55 (+ bf) 7.30pm

gig picks

up all night out all week... Hordern Pavilion, Moore Park $119 7pm

TUESDAY MARCH 26 Jason Mraz (USA), Zac Brown Band (USA) Sydney Entertainment Centre, Darling Harbour $79-$99 7.30pm

Tav Falco & The Panther Burns (USA), The Holy Soul, Wentworth Avenue Breeze Out, DJ Angie The Square, Haymarket $35 (+ bf) 8pm

Rodriguez (USA), The Break Enmore Theatre sold out 7pm

Fred Wesley & The New JBs (USA) Upstairs Beresford, Surry Hills $55 (+ bf) 8pm

Terry Serio’s Ministry Of Truth, Zoe Zoe Ella, DJ Stephen Ferris Deus Ex Machina Café, Camperdown free 7.30pm

THURSDAY MARCH 28

Glen Hansard With The Frames (IRE), Lisa Hannigan (IRE) Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House, Circular Quay $59-$89 8.30pm

WEDNESDAY MARCH 27 Endless Boogie (USA), X Goodgod Small Club, Sydney $40 (+ bf) 8pm Fletcher, Melodie Nelson The Vanguard, Newtown $11.80 8pm Santana (USA), Steve Miller Band (USA) Sydney Entertainment Centre, Darling Harbour $114-$159 6.30pm Status Quo (UK), Marco Goldsmith Band

Garage Syndicate Vol. 1: The Chitticks, Royal Chant, Hailer, New Brutalists FBi Social @ Kings Cross $10 8pm Glitter Canyon, Epics, Surprise Wasp, Australis Uber Alles Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst $12 8pm Hang The DJ: The Griswolds, Colour Coding, The Cadres, Gang Of Youths Beach Road Hotel, Bondi free 8pm Jimmy Cliff (Jamaica), DJ Tony Hughes Metro Theatre, Sydney $75.70 7pm The Lumineers (USA) Enmore Theatre $69.90 7pm

Music Maker Blues Revue!: Ironing Board Sam (USA), Major Handy (USA), Pat ‘Lady Guitar’ Wilder (USA), Dr. Burt (USA), Nashid AbdulKhaaliq, Ardie Dean, Albert White Blue Beat, Double Bay $55 (+ bf) 8pm PVT, Collarbones, Mere Women Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst $29.50 (+ bf) 8pm Robert Plant (UK) Sydney Entertainment Centre, Darling Harbour $119-$149.90 7.30pm

FRIDAY MARCH 29 Alex Lloyd Rock Lily, The Star, Pyrmont free 6pm Halfway Homebouy, Bears With Guns, Blake Sabben 3, Daniel Allars FBi Social @ Kings Cross Hotel $10 6pm

SATURDAY MARCH 30 Allen Stone (USA), Alice Terry Blue Beat, Double Bay $40 (+ bf) 8pm Crossing Red Lines, Flock The Bean, Vale Of Ah

The Vanguard, Newtown $13.80 8pm Emilie Autumn (USA) The Factory Theatre, Marrickville $45.10 (+ bf) 8pm all-ages Kitty, Daisy & Lewis Metro Theatre, Sydney $54.90 7pm Major Raiser’s 2013 GIVVA FORK Party: Van She, Elizabeth Rose, Polographia, Olympic Ayres The Standard, Surry Hills $15 (+ bf) 8pm Ngaiire, Ribongia, Miss Little FBI Social @ Kings Cross Hotel $20 8pm The Spitfires, Baby Doll Arms, The Waterboard The Red Rattler, Marrickville $10 8pm

SUNDAY MARCH 31 Buzz Kull, Mob, Multiple Man, Sucks Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst $5 8pm Camperdown & Out, Kiosk, Model Citizen The Imperial Hotel, Erskinville 8pm Sweet Teeth, Michael Crafter, The Sufferjets, Fully Cooked Blackwire Records, Annandale 7pm

Wednesday 27th March

Friday 29th March

[LATE] Saturday 30th March

LUNCH BREAK [PRESENTED BY ALBERTS]

HALFWAY HOMEBUOY

HANDS UP!

THE WALKING WHO 1PM // FREE

Thursday 28th March GARAGE SYNDICATE VOL. 1:

+ BEARS WITH GUNS + BLAKE SABBEN 3 + DANIEL ALLARS

SUB CONTINENTAL DUB PRESENTS:

ANOMIE Saturday 30th March

+ ROYAL CHANT + HAILER + NEW BRUTALISTS

NGAIIRE (SINGLE LAUNCH)

level 2, kings cross hotel 36 :: BRAG :: 505 : 25:03:13

Sunday 31st March

6PM // $10

THE CHITTICKS

8PM // $10

11.30PM UNTIL DEATH// FREE

+ RIBONGIA + MISS LITTLE 8PM // $15

+ INKSWEL + ONETALK + WESTERNSYNTHETICS + MONK FLY 8PM // $10

www.fbisocial.com

brag beats

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

dance music news club, dance and hip hop in brief... with Chris Honnery

on the record WITH

JACKIE ONASSIS vibing on, and also had been working on some beats (him) and lyrics (me) which fit really well together, so the band came together really naturally. With that said, we differ in a lot of our musical tastes. Raph likes a lot more electronic stuff than I do, but in the end I think that’s a good thing cause it adds some variety to our sound. The Music You Make Raph: We make up a quarter of One 4. Day alongside Horrorshow, Spit Syndicate

MOVE D

Vaunted producer David Moufang, who goes about his business under the moniker Move D, will headline the Spice Cellar on Saturday April 13. Moufang has always been a prodigious talent, combining jazz, funk, techno and house influences in his releases on labels such as Running Back, Warp and Smallville throughout a career stretching over 15 years. With a vast catalogue of eclectic records at his disposal, Moufgang will be sure to extract the most from the sound system, and he’ll be flanked by the perfect DJ to support him: Mad Racket’s Simon Caldwell.

and the gregarious Joyride. We’re always making tunes, sharing music (legally) and attending shindigs together, and you’ll find us all over each other’s work. We also just started a monthly hootenanny on the last Sunday of every month at the Vic On The Park that you should come chill at.

Move D

Music, Right Here, Right Now Raph: It’s fucked that venues are shutting 5. down left, right and center cause a couple

Growing Up Raph: My mum was all about ’70s 1. rock, and my dad listened to everything from Rachmaninoff to Snoop Dogg. In fact, I heard hip-hop through my Dad before anyone else. Kai: When I was young, my parents used to thrash this Tracy Chapman tape. The one with ‘Fast Car’ on it. Kai: I think for the both of us, Jay-Z is 2. Inspirations

MATTHEW HERBERT

Veteran producer Matthew Herbert will return to Australia and perform at The Standard on Wednesday April 10. Herbert is an electronic music pioneer who has remixed and produced artists like Quincy Jones, Bjork, R.E.M, Serge Gainsbourg and Dizzee Rascal and performed everywhere from the Sydney Opera House to bona fide rock festivals. Herbert’s most recent project was his concept album, One Pig, a confronting concept album which was made from recordings taken during the birth, life, butchery and consumption of a single pig, reared for meat at a farm in England. Three years in the making, One Pig was the final –

xxx photo by xx

Karl Hyde

a long-time favourite. He gets a bad rap in the media sometimes, but really he’s a crazytalented, creative songwriter and someone who inspires both of us (check out the ‘Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe’ remix). Your Band Kai: I knew Raph from high school, but 3. we only got it popping musically in uni, when we re-met in this modern American history tute (…think Jackie Onassis). We both had this common love of Jay-Z, which we were and dare I say least accessible – part in the artist’s One trilogy, which began with the singer/ songwriter album One One, and continued with One Club, which was composed entirely from field recordings made at the renowned RobertJohnson techno club in Frankfurt. $50 presale tickets are available online.

SINDEN + BRENMAR

The in-demand Sinden and Brooklyn producer Brenmar, on his first Australian tour, will headline Chinese Laundry on Saturday April 6 as part of a Grizzly label showcase. Launched in 2008 as a way to showcase “grey area sounds,” Grizzly helped provide

of old people like to get to bed straight after Better Homes And Gardens on a Friday night, but with that said, initiatives such as triple j Unearthed and Pozible are making it easier for underground artists to get their music out there. Kai: There’s still some mad local acts that are really pushing the envelope though. Sticky Fingers are a really talented band who’ve just put out their latest LP, which is crazy. Jimblah is a rapper from Adelaide who has a hectic take on hip hop, and makes tracks which are really innovative, and has a style which you don’t see too much of in Australia at the moment. With: Supporting Spit Syndicate Where: Oxford Art Factory When: Saturday March 30

what Sinden describes as “a forum to support music that sits between genres and brings a sense of unexpectedness.” Which is an apt way to describe the work of Brenmar, who marries the sheen of R&B with the grittiness of Chicago footwork and UK bass, and has reworked the likes of Rihanna and Justin Timberlake, collaborated with Nina Sky and Mykki Blanco as well as churning out solo singles like ‘Children Of The Night’ over the course of his career. Sinden meanwhile broke through with Switch and Herve (as ‘The Count’), but since moving to LA he’s repositioned himself as a ‘Svengali’ producer, pulling the strings for artists like Kid Sister and Azari & III.

LUKE HESS + XDB

Shrug and 4our join forces for an Easter Thursday bash at Goodgod Small Club that will offer an international headline double bill of Germany’s XDB and Detroit producer Luke Hess. Hess dropped his sophomore album, Keep On, last year on Omar-S’s FXHE label, following on from ’09’s Light In The Dark, which was released on dub techno monolith Echocord. Further back in the Hess’ discography lurk further ties to Omar-S, with 2007’s EP 01 released on FXHE. Not to be forgotten, XDB is the force behind the Metrolux Music label. Magda Bytnerowicz, Dave Stuart and Trinity (live) will all be throwing down in support.

VIVID LIVE

In addition to the already-announced Kraftwerk album shows, Vivid LIVE is bringing the dance and electronic sounds in a big way. After performing alongside the likes of Brian Eno and Jon Hopkins at the close of the inaugural ’09 festival, singer, producer, artist, photographer and poet Karl Hyde of Underworld will renew his affiliation with Vivid when he performs at the Sydney Opera House on Monday May 27, performing his forthcoming album Edgeland in full alongside a selection of Underworld rarities and classics. There’s also a concert by Japanese electronic innovator Ryoji Ikeda, a Joy Division re-imagining from electronic composer Scanner and a 45-piece orchestra, Terminal Projekt nights featuring dOP, Jimmy Edgar, Sepalcure, Tensnake and more; and the return of the Future Classic night (May 25, lineup to be announced). Vivid LIVE runs May 24 to June 2; full lineup at sydneyoperahouse.com/ vividLIVE – tickets on sale March 27!

Kraftwerk

BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13 :: 37

dance music news

free stuff

club, dance and hip hop in brief... with Chris Honnery

FREESTUFF@THEBRAG.COM

five things WITH

LEE M KELSALL Your Crew So I produce house music... I try not 3. to pigeonhole myself into a certain type of house. But I produce deep, ’90s etc. Around 18 months ago I quit my teaching job in the UK and took music on full time. It was such a scary risk but it’s paid off – I’ve played all around the world. The Music You Make I like to mix old with new... It’s not 4. unusual for me to play some unreleased stuff mixed into an old 1992 Nervous Records classic. I’m signed to some cool labels such as Jamie Jones and Lee Foss’ Hot Waves, Nervous Records in New York (who also manage me as an artist) and most recently Kenny Dope’s (of Masters At Work) label. My latest track ‘Define:Rhythm’ was released this week on Beatport

5. Growing Up I wasn’t a big musical person or from 1. a musical background when growing up in the UK. I remember my first ever musical purchase was Whigfield – Saturday Night, on cassette. My favourite musician at the moment is 2. Inspirations

BALANCE X JOZIF

Australian imprint Balance, renowned for its double-disc compilation series, launches a new series in April, representing a fresh focus on “the next generation of DJ/producers that are flying the flag for quality electronic music.” English DJ Jozif is launching the “Presents” series, with Balance Presents Jozif, a carefully curated selection that showcases his dual styles of down-tempo producer and dancefloor-driven DJ. The mix, featuring luminous cuts from Charles Webster, Ian Pooley and Steffi, along with two originals by the man himself, is out now. Or if you prefer your music live and sweaty: Jozif is playing S.A.S.H at the Abercrombie Hotel on Sunday April 21.

PICNIC EASTER WEEKEND

Picnic is upping the ante over Easter, bookending the long weekend with two parties. The first is an Easter Thursday bash at The Abercrombie featuring Parisian tastemaker DJ Ivan Smagghe. Then on Easter Monday, Picnic will celebrate its birthday with a fiesta at Santa Barbara, which will be headlined by one half of the Pachanga Boys, Kompakt kingpin Superpitcher, a man responsible for some

Ed Sheeran, I just think this guy is a musical genius. He grew up close to where I was born, about 20 minutes away. In terms of my music/genre, Solomun (owner of Diynamic) is who inspired me. This guy has been around for years, then last year had an amazing summer in Ibiza and is now one of the top DJ/ producers in the world. What I like is he still has time to reply to my emails.

Music, Right Here, Right Now The music scene in Sydney for house is brilliant. There is so much to choose from – almost too much, and I’ve seen this happen in the UK before where everyone jumps on the bandwagon and saturates the market. That’s why I always like to reinvent my sound. What: Musik Matters presents Matt Cahill, Lee M Kelsall, Tom Kelly, Johnny Gleeson Where: Goldfish, Kings Cross When: Saturday March 30

of the finer singles in the esteemed Colognebased record label’s lustrous back catalogue. When not working with Rebodello or Michael Mayer as Supermayer, Superpitcher has forged himself a deserved reputation as a formidable DJ in his own right. Doors open at 2pm, with presales to both events available on the interwebs.

Davide Squillace

CIRCOLOCO EASTER

Circoloco are one of the most sought-after party-starting collectives in the world, with residencies at various respected dance music hubs around the world – which makes the fact that four of Circoloco’s finest are heading to Sydney this Easter Weekend pretty damn exciting. There’s Italian house native Davide Squillace, and the three members of the Apollonia collective. To win a double pass to their Greenwood Hotel Easter throwdown this Sunday March 31, simply email freestuff@thebrag.com and name the three guys from Apollonia. Don’t Google, it’s cheating (okay, go on, Google).

Jimpster

MARQUEE BIRTHDAY

Marquee’s first birthday occurs this weekend, and the celebrations kick off on Friday March 29 with DJs Tenzin, Helena, Georgia, K Note, Zero Cool, Hook N Sling all representing to mark the occasion, along with the one and only Timmy Trumpet. The following night, model, television personality and DJ – I’m not sure in what order – Brooke Evers, who is the partner of Matt Stafford of The Stafford Brothers, will join the celebrations and perform a birthday set. Revellers will also have the chance to win a range of special Easter-themed prizes on the night, with a stash of prize filled ‘eggs’ to be hunted throughout the club, with the ‘golden’ egg containing a grand prize: a trip to the Gold Coast for two.

Kobra Kai

SONIDO FT JIMPSTER

The Sonido crew returns to the Civic Underground on Saturday April 13 with a bash headlined by veteran British artist Jamie Odell, AKA Jimpster, who for the last 20 years has been overseeing Freerange Records. Odell is one of the most established names in UK deep house circles with a discography that stretches over two decades, and includes long-player albums such as Amour, singles such as ‘Jinadu,’ which was reworked by Dixon and Manuel Tur, and remixes for the likes of Josh Wink, Solomun and Kollektiv Turmstrasse. More recently Odell set up the Delusions Of Grandeur imprint, which has helped to establish artists such as 6th Borough Project, Tornado Wallace and Session Victim. Odell’s forthcoming tour narrowly precedes the release of his first LP in seven years, Porchlight & Rockingchairs, which is due out in May and offers 12 tracks that Odell poetically describes as channelling “lo-slung, emotive, deep shit with enough groove to get into, but also just the right amount of warmth and soul to keep spirits lifted in those tiring, often solitary hours”. Settle down, Prufrock.

PACHA IN APRIL

KOBRA KAI

Sydney’s live drum ‘n’ bass, hip hop and dubstep proponents Kobra Kai will release their second album next month, Insession, which they will follow up with a national tour. Since being triple j’s state-by-state Unearthed winners back in the acid-fuelled spring of ’07, Kobra Kai have filled dance floors for festivals like the Big Day Out and Stereosonic, and have opened for international artists such as Roni Size, High Contrast and Skrillex. The band have apparently experimented with different styles and elements of music on their forthcoming LP, with the album’s first single ‘Firestorm’ and B-side ‘Let You Down’ receiving heavy support on FBi Radio. Kobra Kai play the Manning Bar at Sydney University on Friday May 31, with Insession due out April 12 through Foreigndub Records.

38 :: BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13

Pacha has announced another month’s worth of music to go with the weekly dose of “burlesque and circus vibes” and production aplenty across ten bars, four levels and three stages of The Ivy every Saturday night. On Saturday April 6, homegrown producer Walden will throw down, fresh from playing Ultra Music Festival in Miami. On Saturday April 13, Aussie duo Denzal Park are on headline duties, ahead of Italian outfit Nari and Milan the following week. Capping off the month, Stockholm-based duo rock Dada Life headline on Saturday April 27. Dada Life have established themselves at the forefront of the pop realm courtesy of remixes for Madonna, Martin Solveig and Lady Gaga. Throw in a host of locals and there’s plenty to stimulate the senses every Saturday.

END OF THE LINE ADDITIONS Subsonic have announced a lengthy DJ lineup for their Easter Monday bash at the Abercrombie featuring Germany’s Nico Stojan. The support will be headed by Greece’s Stratos, who oversees three record labels and has collaborated with the likes of Minilogue, Kosmas Epsilon and D-Nox & Beckers through the ages. German expat Jonathan Lukermann, a regular DJ at the consistently good Strange Fruit parties, will also be spinning, alongside the likes of Jay Smalls, Jordan Deck, and Subsonic main men MSG and Marcotix. The party will be spread across two rooms of the Abercrombie (both inside and outside), kicking off at noon and running deep into the next morning, as Subsonic has made a habit of doing to conclude every long weekend.

Fred Wesley

Luke Hess

Trombone Don By David Wild

“N

ow that I listen back to those records after all these years, I realise we created a new music.” As James Brown’s bandleader, musical director and trombonist, Fred Wesley is quite rightly proud of his role in the formation of funk – one of the most enduring forms of pop music ever created. But when he joined The JB’s in 1968 to become the world’s most famous sideman, he was unaware that he was changing the musical landscape. “At the time I didn’t realise. I was just trying to do what James Brown said. Sometimes I thought he was crazy,” says the affable Wesley from his home in South Carolina. His was a crucial role in a collaborative but not always pleasant relationship with the Godfather of Soul, a man Wesley describes as “downright scary”. “He would come up with an idea and I would put it in musical terms,” Wesley explains. “I would talk to the band and he would talk to the band. It was a collaborative effort but he would always take the lead on it ... James Brown was not a person with whom you would make friends. We’d talk about work and new songs. We wouldn’t talk about football. It was always strictly business with him. I think he liked me but I didn’t necessarily like him; I respected him and I think he respected me.”

ready to go. I’ve been on trombone ever since.” Laughing as he remembers how he must have disturbed his neighbours, Wesley recalls sitting in his yard in Mobile, Alabama, mastering the new instrument: “It was in the summertime and I was right under a tree. And I sat out there and I played and played and practised and practised until I had it down.” His big break came when a club owner in his hometown introduced him to Ike and Tina Turner’s band, which he joined. “I had a great time, ha ha!” (He frequently follows sentences with a deep chuckle that would put Santa to shame.) “I learned how to play funk from a trumpet player, Mack Johnson. He didn’t actually teach me, but I listened to him and tried to play like him. What he was playing was funky trumpet. I ended up playing funky trombone.” After that, he joined The JB’s and contributed to stone-cold classics such as ‘Say It Loud (I’m Black and I’m Proud)’, which was the first Brown recording to feature Wesley, and ‘Hot Pants Pt 1’ (which he co-wrote). In the late ’70s, Wesley had a stint with George Clinton and ParliamentFunkadelic, before branching out into jazz and joining the Count Basie Orchestra in 1978 – giving him possibly one of the best CVs in the business. He continues to tour under the banner of Fred Wesley and The New JBs, but his music also lives on thanks to its use in hip hop recordings. While it’s not Wesley’s favourite style, he’s found a silver lining: “I listen to some hip hop but I don’t particularly like it a whole lot. I used to say, ‘Why they got to sample our music?’ but then I got sent a royalty cheque and I said ‘Whoa! OK!’ Ha ha ha!” Where: Upstairs Beresford When: Wednesday March 27

Fred Wesley by Heinrich Buttler

From an early age Wesley played the trumpet – until his father, a bandleader, made him an offer he couldn’t refuse. “My father came to me one day and said he needed a trombone player in his big band. He told me if I had learned how to play the trombone by the end of the summer then I could be in his band. By the end of that summer I was

Express Yourself By Rick Warner

H

ailing from the birthplace of techno, Detroit, Luke Hess pursues his deep melodic sounds with one foot firmly in the future and another ankle deep in the analogue history lessons left by Motor City techno royalty like Carl Craig, Robert Hood and Daniel Bell. Having already put out records on Omar S’s FXHE Records and Craig’s famed Planet E, his sophomore album Keep On has drawn high praises from the electronic music media. BRAG caught up with Hess, as he gets set for his debut tour Down Under. Coming from Detroit, do you feel pressure to keep your music close to that quintessential ‘Detroit’ sound? I feel no pressure to write music a certain way. I don’t believe in changing my sound to fit a mould. I’m naturally influenced by my surroundings and I’m thankful to have experienced Detroit techno in its rawest form as it was being created and performed in the mid-’90s in warehouses in Detroit. Though these experiences may shape my sound because of the inspiration they have had on my musical taste, I will always create music from my heart and not pay attention to what current or past trends are. Detroit gets painted by the media as a city in decay, but it has also been the birthplace of some of the most enduring music of the last century. How do you see your city? I think one reason why there is such a strong musical history and artistic community in Detroit is because of what the people in the city have endured through the years. I think that if someone goes through severe hardship and perseveres, their character will be much stronger and more beautiful. This is what I believe has happened to the music that comes out of Detroit. It speaks to the soul more than any other music because many people here have endured a lot of pain and suffering and their music reflects how their character has grown throughout these battles. Does your mathematics and engineering background help when making your music? My engineering education is more related to circuit design and signal processing than studio engineering – however, some of the concepts overlap in both of these professions. It’s exciting to be able to build a synthesiser from the ground up and use custom analogue instruments to add character to my music. Also, for example,

it helps to know how a piece of mastering equipment is built to understand its limitations and to know how its characteristics will shape the final outcome of a song. However, music theory and engineering can only take music so far. It’s up to an artist to use these tools to their advantage, but without raw passion and soul a song won’t have feeling and it won’t come alive. You still work as an electrical engineer now. How do you balance your time? If I spent 40 hours extra a week on music instead of spending those hours in a cubicle doing engineering related work I believe my musical career would take shape more rapidly and I may see more opportunities arise. I’ve had to turn away many gigs in the last few years … It’s nice to have a balance between work and play. Music right now is a release in my life, a chance for me to express myself, it doesn’t feel like a job. I don’t have to keep up a heavy tour schedule or write music to keep food on the table. However, I’m willing to take the leap to a full-time music career, but I also don’t want to be a starving artist that sacrifices the quality of their content for hype. So, I’m waiting for the right time to make that transition – if it makes sense to do full-time music, I believe it will be obvious to me when the time is right. What can people expect from your upcoming tour this month? I’ll be performing live – so people can expect a mix of released and unreleased material. The music is meant to make people move – so make sure you’re all well rested and stretched out and be prepared get down! With: XDB (Germany), Trinity (live) and more When: Thursday March 28 Where: Goodgod Small Club

!

A N OT I C E F O R A L L

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WEDNESDAY MARCH 27 5PM. Our content deadline for news and events to make it into the MONDAY APRIL 1 issue is WEDNESDAY MARCH 27 by midday (no exceptions). Thanks, Dee & The Brag.

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DA N I E L B O U D T :: SEXYNINJAMONKEY L E Y M A R : : K AT E M O F FAT M A R C I N K RYC Z E K : : A S H LT E R S . . . R O C K O N ! N S TA N T O N : : C H R I S WA : : J O S H UA S O U T H : : J O H

BRAG :: 502 :: 04:03:13 :: 39

Davide Squillace Person Of Interest By Rick Warner Jeff Mills to Napoli for the first time. But after a sojourn to London as a young man, the confines of the southern Italian city of under a million people just seemed too much. “After London I moved back to Napoli to study sound engineering and I was like, ‘I need to get the fuck out of here!’ It was between Berlin, Amsterdam and Barcelona,” Squillace explains. “Berlin? Everyone’s in Berlin. Why am I going there? Amsterdam, I love the city. It has beautiful architecture and people, but it’s just too cold. So I went to Barcelona and I really loved it. I’m not here that much now but when I come back I’m really happy.” It’s in his Barcelona office that I catch him for this interview. He’s happy, surrounded by props from a recent video shoot. He grabs a cube-shaped art piece and thrusts it into the Skype camera enthusiastically, explaining the stop-go film technique used on the shoot. “It’s very inspiring,” he says of his new label, This And That Lab. “There is a bunch of people at the office and we’re brainstorming every day.” Created to merge his love of music with his passion for art and media exploration, This And That has Squillace thinking big already. “We’ve teamed up with a contemporary art gallery from Napoli and every cover is going to be done by a different artist,” he says proudly.

A

All evidence suggests otherwise. Squillace grew up in Naples, coming up in the electronic music scene alongside Marco Carola and Rino Cerrone. “I’ve been really lucky to grow up in Napoli. It’s not too complicated a city and it’s not very cosmopolitan. It’s a tough city,” he explains. At age 15, he and his friends were already putting on parties, bringing heavy hitters like Richie Hawtin and

It’s lucky that he’s playing in the open air of the Greenwood Hotel in Sydney, though, because his music isn’t for the dank, dingy sweatboxes. He wants something much nicer. “When you hear that underground dance music needs to be in a dark place – it’s bullshit. I can’t stand it anymore. I want a fancy nice place. I want to see people. I want a place where I can talk to them.” What: Circoloco Easter Sunday With: Apollonia, Dyed Soundorum, Dan Ghenacia, Shonky When: Sunday March 31, from noon Where: Greenwood Hotel / 36 Blue St, North Sydney

Future Stuff By Lauren Murada

O

n a cold night in 2005, Van She played their first gig. It was at Bang Gang, the legendary Sydney party at Club 77 – a night that had a big part in the band’s development, according to lead singer and guitarist Nick Routledge. “That’s actually where we met each other,” he says. “Mikie [Di Francesco, synth] I already knew, but it’s where I met Matt [Van Schie, bass] and Tomic [Archer, drums]. It was a pretty amazing time. Ajax was the first person to really advance our music. He played one of our songs on FBi – that’s how we got our first gig, which led on to Modular signing us.” In the past few weeks, following the death of original Bang Gang member Ajax (born Adrian Thomas), there has been a lot of reminiscing about the party DJ and Sweat It Out label owner. Routledge had spent the past year working with Ajax on a new album. “I have eight tracks sitting on my hard drive that we were going to release, but because he was such a perfectionist, we would finish a track, we were like ‘Oh, it’s great’, be heaps excited about it, but then the next day, he would call and be like ‘I like it but, we have to start again’,’’ he says. “We were talking with Angus and Connie from Sneaky [Sound System], Kim from The Presets and Beni, and hanging out quite a lot and talking about starting a label, future stuff – he was really excited about it,’’ he says. Whether we will have a chance to hear this new music is unknown, but the legacy of Ajax and the impact Bang Gang had on the Sydney dance music community will live on. A perfect example of this is this Sunday’s Harbourfest, where you can see a number of artists who came up through the mid-to-late ’00s electro scene, like Midnight Juggernauts DJs, Yolanda Be Cool and DCUP. The Van She boys will also be DJing – a lot of people don’t realise that a Van She DJ set comprises of mostly of their own music. “A lot of our DJ set is music that we have produced and written that hasn’t come out on anything,’’ Routledge says. “There’s a

new project that’s going to come out in the next couple of months that might get a spin.” Since the Sydney boys started the band eight years ago, they’ve released two albums on Modular, V and Idea of Happiness, and made hundreds of remixes for the likes of The Klaxons, Feist, Groove Armada and Sneaky Sound System. These days they all have side projects, with Di Francesco’s Touch Sensitive and Van Schie doing Du Tonc; Archer rarely drums with the band anymore due to work commitments. Routledge just finished work on his solo project Nicky Night Time, and is currently in talks with record labels about releasing it. This makes live shows in Sydney few and far between, but the boys are finally playing live together this Saturday night at Major Raiser’s Givva Fork Party. The not-for-profit organisation that runs unique, innovative campaigns to fund school feeding programmes in vulnerable areas of the globe. At the time of our interview, though, Routledge is headed for a writing vacation; he and Van Schie are aiming to get into the studio soon. “Well, we’re always in the studio, but I guess later we’ll record it while we’re in there and just get someone to mix it.” He’s tight-lipped on what the new material might sound like, though, saying only that “you can never tell what will happen”. What: Major Raiser’s Givva Fork Party With: Elizabeth Rose, Polographia, Olympic Ayres Where: The Standard When: Saturday March 30 Also: Playing Harbourfest 2013, with The Aston Shuffle, Tonite Only, Midnight Juggernauts DJs and heaps more Where: King St Wharf, Darling Harbour When: Sunday March 31

Ivan Smagghe Done To Death By Alasdair Duncan

If there’s a thread that runs through Smagghe’s musical career, from his legendary Death Disco mix through to the tracks he produced with Black Strobe, it’s a tendency to gravitate towards slightly twisted sounds. ‘Dark’ is the word I use, although Smagghe is not quite sure. “I’ll take anything people say about me, so if that’s what you think, then it’s valid, but I don’t think I’m necessarily drawn to dark things,” he says. “I don’t like dumb, happy-happy music, but I’d say that I’m more attracted to things that are strange. I like the weirder side of dance music. I absolutely don’t mind playing disco music, as long as it has a stranger side to it, but I really don’t like this word ‘dark’.”

I

van Smagghe got his start selling records at the legendary Rough Trade store in Paris, but he never considered the fact that he might one day have a flourishing career as a DJ. “I have always been very passionate about buying records, ever since I was a kid,” he says. “When I started DJing, though, it wasn’t because of any

40 :: BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13

plan or design, and I never really intended for it to be a way to make money, it just happened by accident.” This was the early ’90s, and at the time, playing records was just for fun. “I loved doing it, but I never thought I wanted to be a DJ,” he says. “I mean, no one really wanted to be a DJ in those days, but it just happened.”

He ponders the question of darkness in his music for a bit longer, and eventually hits on a description that he likes – “I guess maybe the best way to put it is that the music I like isn’t ‘straight’,” he says. The aforementioned Death Disco mix, released in 2004 but still just as essential today, is a good example of this. It’s crammed with weird and wonderful hybrids of disco and house from the likes of Sweet Exorcist and Ralphie Rosario – it’s music that evokes the glamour of the nightlife, but with a decidedly sinister edge. “I love disco and I love pop,” Smagghe says. “My only rule is that I like to do things people don’t expect, things that are a bit strange.”

Smagghe lost a great deal of his vinyl collection in a fire several years ago; many DJs would consider this a calamity, but he took it in stride. “I still have some vinyl, but I’m not a fetishist about it,” he says. “I mean, there are people who fall in love with an artist or label and need to have every one of their releases on vinyl, but I’m not like that.” For him, ultimately, it’s about the quality of the tunes, rather than the format. “There are two types of music,” he says, “good and bad. End of debate. The rest of the things, like the format – that’s all just technicality. I’m not interested in that at all.” As for the music he’s enjoying currently, Smagghe is reluctant to say. “I could name one, but then later, I’ll think, oh shit, there’s also this one and this one,” he laughs. “There’s that, but there’s also the fact that I might really like one particular track by one particular artist, but then the next thing they put out might be something I really dislike. Likewise, I might hear a track I really like by an artist I really don’t like. So I never really like to say what I’m enjoying or what I’m not – I just like to listen to a lot of music.” What: Picnic Touring presents Ivan Smagghe When: Thursday March 28 Where: The Abercrombie Hotel

Van She photo by Ben Sullivan

s resident of Ibiza’s infamously raucous DC-10 party, Italian producer Davide Squillace has got cred. The casual clubber (or festival attendee) who thinks Guetta is a genius probably won’t have heard of this guy, but that seems to be just fine with Davide. He doesn’t think he’s that famous either. “I have three more interviews after you. What is it with you guys?!” he laughs, referring to his morning schedule of interviews from Australia. “I’m not even that interesting.”

Despite the advertising campaigns and art show curation that keeps him busy at the office, it’s still music that takes him across the globe. He’ll soon be in Miami to play a few dates at the big electronic music love-in that is the Winter Music Conference, before bringing his deep, melodic house sounds back to Australia’s shores as part of the Circoloco Easter tour. After a successful 2010 debut tour alongside Jamie Jones, Australia is a destination he is looking forward to revisiting, despite the long haul travel to get here. “First thing is like ‘Wow, you fly all the way to Australia and it’s shit. It’s a long way.’ But trust me, it’s pretty amazing,” he gushes. “It has this kind of California vibe with a more European mentality. I would love to live in Australia if it were an hour away.”

Van She

Album Out Now!

National Tour 2013 WITH SPECIAL GUESTS JACKIE ONASSIS SAT 30 MARCH * OXFORD ART FACTORY * SYDNEY FRI 10 MAY * LEAGUES CLUB * WOY WOY SAT 11 MAY * WAVES NIGHTCLUB * WOLLONGONG FOR TICKETS AND MORE INFORMATION VISIT WWW.SPITSYNDICATE.COM WWW.TWITTER.COM/SPITSYNDICATE * WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/SPITSYNDICATE

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club guide send your listings to : clubguide@thebrag.com

club pick of the week

THURSDAY MARCH 28

Pachanga Boys

Abercrombie Hotel, Broadway

Ivan Smagghe (FRA), Pachanga Boys (GER), Kali $40 10pm MONDAY MARCH 25 Scruffy Murphy’s, Haymarket Mother Of A Monday DJ Smokin’ Joe free 7pm The World Bar, Kings Cross Latin Jazz Swim Team DJs free 7pm

TUESDAY MARCH 26 Establishment, Sydney Rumba Motel Salsa DJ Willie Sabor free 8pm Scruffy Murphy’s, Haymarket I Love Goon Resident DJs free 7pm Trademark Hotel, Kings Cross Coyote Tuesday Resident DJs 9pm The World Bar, Kings Cross Chu Andy & Mike, Dollar Bear, Rees Hellmers, Ali, Nacho Vossler free 8pm

WEDNESDAY MARCH 27 Beach Road Hotel, Bondi DJ Lord (USA), Devola, Shantan Wantan Ichiban, Isbjorn, Hobophonics free 8pm The Factory Theatre, Marrickville 42 :: BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13

Demigodz (USA), Apathy (USA), Celph Titled (USA), Army Of The Pharaohs (USA) $40 (+ bf) 8pm Kit & Kaboodle, Kings Cross KIT Wednesdays Resident DJs 11pm The Lewisham Hotel Garbage 90s Nights Resident DJs free 7pm The Ranch Hotel, Epping Hump Wednesdays Resident DJs 8pm The Standard, Surry Hills XXYYXX (USA), Polographia, Cosmo’s Midnight $25 (+ bf) 8pm Whaat Club, Potts Point Whip It Wednesdays Vertigo DJs free 9pm The World Bar, Kings Cross The Wall Black Sun Empire (NL), Kilter, Bass Riot, E-Cats, NayNoiz, Cut Throats, Deckhead, T-Bo, Clockerk, Floth & Prescription Only, Joey Kaz $5 8pm

THURSDAY MARCH 28 Abercrombie Hotel, Broadway Ivan Smagghe (FRA), Pachanga Boys (GER), Kali $40 10pm Candys Apartment, Kings Cross Something Wicked SCNDL, Robust, Audio Trash, Prolifix, Harper, Oh Dear $10-$15 8pm Chinese Laundry, Sydney Bass Mafia Cyantific (UK),

The Prototypes (UK), Linken, Mark Bionic, Empress Yoy, Amy Lee, Big Deal Gillespie $15-$25 10pm Cohibar, Darling Harbour Gimme Five Shamus, DJ Mike Silver free 5pm The Cool Room, Australian Brewery, Rouse Hill Easter Bunny Party Starfuckers DJs, Oakes & Lennox, Troy T, DJ Big Bill 7pm Goodgod Small Club, Sydney Luke Hess (USA), XDB (GER), Trinity, Dave Stuart, Magda Bytnerowicz $25 11pm Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour Genesis Arty (RUS), Mat Zo (UK), Nick Arbor, Thomas Knight, I Am Sam, Danny Lang, Krish Titan, Antony Cantosis, Dejan, VLN, Nathan Cryptic, Pablo, Raissa, Daniel Kael, Rodman, Simon Palajda $40 10pm Ivy, Sydney Zen DJ W.w (Indonesia) $25 8pm Jacksons On George, Sydney Last Rights Resident DJs free 5pm Kit & Kaboodle, Kings Cross Hobo Stairwell Gallery Resident DJs 7pm One22, Sydney Strange Signals Silent Servant (USA), James Walsh, Asger Jorn, Methodix $20-$30 10pm Q Bar, Darlinghurst We Come Out At Night –

Good Friday Eve Mega Party! Hot Damn! DJs $15-$20 8pm Sapphire Lounge, Kings Cross Loud Resident DJs 8pm The Spice Cellar, Sydney Spice – Good Friday Eve Matt Weir, Gabby, Morgan, Money D 10pm Soho, Kings Cross Project X Resident DJs 9pm The Standard, Surry Hills She Rex, Citizen Kay, Deadbeat & Hazy, Kidd Sham $10 (+ bf) 8pm Trademark Hotel, Kings Cross Swag Resident DJs $10 9pm UNSW Roundhouse, Kensington Toga Party DJs $5-$15 5pm The Watershed Hotel, Darling Harbour Bring On The Weekend! Easter Thursday Special Candidate, DJ Matt Roberts free 5pm Whaat Club, Potts Point Chakra Camo, Brizz, Disco Busy free 9.30pm The World Bar, Kings Cross Propaganda Gillex, DJ Moody (UK), Becci Hearts, Dan Bombings free (student)-$5 9pm

FRIDAY MARCH 29 Beach Road Hotel, Bondi DJ Greg Perano free 8pm Marquee, The Star, Pyrmont Marquee One Year Anniversary Timmy Trumpet, Helena, Hook N Sling, Tenzin, Georgia, K-Note, Zero Cool $30 (+ bf) 10pm Oatley Hotel We Luv Oatley Hotel Fridays Mashed DJ Kristiano free 8pm

SATURDAY MARCH 30

SUNDAY JUNE 24

Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Falcona Saturdays Midnight Juggernaut DJs, Bernie Dingo, Hansom free 8pm Candys Apartment, Kings Cross Easter Saturday Nightmare, Sherlock Bones, 2Dope4Wordz, Matty Bixx, Intheory vs Bystanders, Acid Mouth, Matty Whellis, Jake Culmone $20 8pm Chinese Laundry, Sydney Far Too Loud (UK), Reset! (ITA), Lancelot, Daniel Farley, Sam Scratch, Alley Oop & Cassette, Fingers, DJ Rubz, Whitecat, Morgan, Georgia $15-$25 9pm Club 77, Darlinghurst Starfuckers Easter Beaster Starfuckers DJs 10pm Cohibar, Darling Harbour Yellow Sox DJ Anders Hitchcock free 8pm Establishment, Sydney Sienna Saturdays Resident DJs 8pm FBi Social @ Kings Cross Hotel Hands Up! Staggman, Clockwerk free 11.30pm Gladstone Hotel, Chippendale Afterlife Drum & Bass: Heaven & Hell Iron Gate Sound, Boot, Royalston, Liunken, Pearse Hawkins, SFL, Thavy Ear, Tekstep, Misree, Singleminded, Open Eye, Capture free 9pm Goldfish, Kings Cross Diego Infanzon (URU), Matt Cahill, Johnny Gleeson, Lee M Kelsall, Tom Kelly $20 9pm Goodgod Small Club, Sydney Beyond Thunderdome Prosumer (GER), Slowblow, Softwar $15 11pm Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour Homemade Saturdays Resident DJs $20-$25 9pm

Ivy, Sydney Pacha John Course, Ben Morris, Devola, Baby Gee, Kato, Fingers, Pat Ward, Chris Fraser, Trent Rackus, Pablo Calamari, Levins, Magic Happens, Shantan Wantan Ichiban, Kid Crookes, E-Cats, Polina, Program, Lola Siren $40 6.30pm Ivy Pool Club, Sydney She Beach Club Summer Series Grandmaster Flash (USA) $49 12pm Jacksons On George, Sydney Resident DJs free 9pm Kit & Kaboodle, Kings Cross Harbourfest Pre Party The Backhanderz, DJ Izm, Steve Frank, Discokid, Alex Preston 10pm Marquee, The Star, Pyrmont Brooke Evers, Johnny Gleeson $30 9pm Old Fitzroy Hotel Theatre, Woolloomooloo Sequence Wooshie, Lindsay Tuc, Kane Ikin, Thomas William, Gardland, Guerre, Nakagin, True North, James IV Stewart, Spoonty, Cassius Select, Tea Factory, Mannheim Rocket $15 2pm Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst Spit Syndicate, Jackie Onassis $18 (+ bf) 8pm Phoenix Bar, Darlinghurst Up Dayclub Resident DJs 5am Selina’s, Coogee Bay Hotel Playboy Bunny Easter Party Mike Rukus, Joey Kaz, Will Reckless $10 9pm The Spice Cellar, Sydney Spice – The Spice Troopers Nic Scali, Mike Whitcombe, Morgam, YokoO, Gabby 10pm The Standard, Surry Hills Major Raiser’s 2013 GIVVA FORK Party Van She, Elizabeth Rose, Polographia, Olympic Ayres $15 (+ bf) 8pm Trademark Hotel, Kings Cross Trademark Saturdays Present Coco di Gio Jeans 1st Birthday Party Billy B, Mista Kat, Cadell, Steve Frank, Troy T 9pm Vic On The Park Hotel, Marrickville DJ Conrad Greenleaf free 11.59pm The Watershed Hotel, Darling Harbour Skybar Saturdays Resident DJs $20 9pm Whaat Club, Potts Point After Dark Camo, Zim City, Goodbois $10-$15 8pm The World Bar, Kings Cross Cakes Emoh Instead, NatNoiz, E-Cats, Deckhead, Mike Hyper, Hannah Gibbs, Thomas Lisse, Frazer Adnam, Jack Bailey, Dingo, Brothers Grimm, Fiktion, DMSM $15$20 8pm

SUNDAY MARCH 31 Abercrombie Hotel, Broadway S.A.S.H Easter Special Inxec (UK), Wbeeza (UK), Ian Pooley, Mike Callander, Katie Drover, Radiator, Simon Caldwell, Joe Blackett, Matt Weir, Kerry Wallace $10-$20 2pm Bar 100, Circular Quay Beatz Launch Binary Finary, Vicky Devine, Nick Arbor, Thomas Knight, Jojo, Cadell, Ben Morris, Johnny Gleeson, Eddie Coulter, Dante Rivera, Alex Aleminda, Carlos Tryjillo, No-C Andee $35 (+ bf) 5pm Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Omar Varts, Richie Ryan free 3pm The Beresford Hotel, Surry Hills Beresford Sundays Resident DJs free 3pm Candys Apartment, Kings Cross

Easter Sunday Robust, Sherlock Bones, Fresh To Death, Stalker, Wrecks, What Is vs Theobeats, Dostruction, Hey Shep, Frxon $10-$20 8pm Cargo Bar / Bungalow 8 / theloft, Sydney Harbourfest 2013 Tonite Only, The Aston Shuffle DJs, Juggernaut DJs, Yolanda Be Cool, Van She DJs, Nina Las Vegas, DCup, Helena (UK), Sosueme DJs, Dr Don Don, Ember, Purple Sneakers DJs, Danny Clayton, Oreo DJs, The Faders, Doctor Werewolf, Marc Jarvin, Slow Blow, Fishing, Tigerlily, Slicker Cities, Devola, The Backhanderz, Pat Ward, Murray Lake, Alley Oop, Somatik, Fingers, Turbo $45 (+ bf) 2pm Civic Hotel, Sydney Yoshi, The Labrats, Cyber, Fl!p, Notley, Dave Stroud, Hard Kitty, Aken, DJ Ikki $20 (+ bf) 9pm FBi Social @ Kings Cross Hotel Sub Continental Dub Anomie, Inkswel, Westernsynthetics, Monk Fly $10 9pm Goodgod Small Club, Sydney Love Kings X Hoops Easter Sunday Nina Las Vegas, Bad Ezzy, Levins, Radge, Chux, Joyride $10-$15 8pm The Greenwood Hotel, North Sydney Circoloco Sydney Easter Sunday David Squillace (ITA), Apollonia (FRA), Dyed Soundorom (FRA), Dan Ghenacia (FRA), Shonky (FRA), Brohn, Gabby, LeBrond vs Shaun Bro, Cassette, Alan Thomas, Sam Francisco, T-Boy, Bad Apple DJs, Morgan, Sam Arellano, Aaron, Ricky Cooper, Start:Cue, EK Collective, Sam Roberts, Carlos Zarate, Robbie Cordukes & Jake Hough, James Cripps, Cam Berry, Sammy & James $65 (+ bf) 12pm Ivy, Sydney Courtyard Etnik (GER), Haezer (S. Africa), What So Not, The Only, Starfuckers, Tom Piper, Ember, Spenda C, Bes, Blow Out DJs, Bocue, Eratik, Fear Of Dawn, Fiktion, Friends With Benefits, Front 2 Back, Genie, L.A.M., Jack Pipes, Jagged Beatz, Kade Drury, Mark HAder, Wekk, Mattbann, Matt Scott, NatNoiz, New Age Bullshit, Sampy, Singha, Snillum, Some Herd Trouble, Tektro, Tom & Jerry, Trtl, Zlato $55 1pm Ivy Pool Club, Sydney Marco Polo Closing Party – Mexican Theme Louisahhh!!! (USA), His Majesty Andre (ITA), Lancelot, Smokin Joe Mekhael, Oakes & Lennox, Digit & Jumes, Paxx, Nooner, Will Reckless, Chris Coast, DTour, Here’s Trouble, Fingers, Troy T, Skoob, Recess $25 1pm Jacksons On George, Sydney Resurrection Resident DJs free 9pm Kit & Kaboodle, Kings Cross Easter Sunday Resident DJs 10pm Marquee, The Star, Pyrmont White Katherine Ellis (UK), Jonny M (UK), Alex Taylor, Dan Murphy, Kitty Glitter, Jason Barry, Adam Love, Stephen Craddock $35-$55 10pm Oatley Hotel Sunday Sessions DJ Tone free 7pm Q Bar, Darlinghurst Girlthing Easter Sunday Spesh Kyro & Bomber, Nugget, Cunningpants, Kristy Lee, Twincest, Sinead Di Nhorma $20 10pm Rock Lily, The Star, Pyrmont Check Your Head Justice

Deep Impressions

g g guide gig g

Underground Dance And Electronica with Chris Honnery

send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com Crew, Suite Az, DJ D-Flat, Dj Troy-T free 7pm Soho, Kings Cross Easter Long Weekend His Majesty Andre (ITA), Swick, Matt Ferreira, Oakes & Lennox, Jack’d Up, Sushi, Fingers, Pat Ward, Deckhead, J Squad 8pm The Spice Cellar, Sydney Spice Tim Richards (NZ), Pharley, Hannah Gibbs, Sash DJs, Katie Drover 10pm

Tatler, Darlinghurst Dust Simon Caldwell, Ken Cloud, Matt Aubusson, Dave Choe, Lummy, Gary Broadband, James Taylor, Hannah Gibbs $10-$15 9pm Vic On The Park Hotel, Marrickville One Day Sundays Joyride, Adit, Raph, The Beatnuts DJs (USA) free 1pm The Watershed Hotel, Darling Harbour

DJ Matt Roberts free 2pm The World Bar, Kings Cross Soup Kitchen – SoupA-Palooza! Danny T, Go Freek, Miss Adventure, Coltek, U-Khan, Into Deep DJs, Rcnt & Matt J, Ethan Hawke, Manjazz, Intervene, Delia vs Acetone, Step Brothers, Gee_Q, Badmouth, Yeah Nah, Rizzla, Soup Kitchen DJs free 7pm

Rodriguez Jr

club picks up all night out all week...

WEDNESDAY MARCH 27

Goldfish, Kings Cross Diego Infanzon (URU), Matt Cahill, Johnny Gleeson, Lee M Kelsall, Tom Kelly $20 9pm

Beach Road Hotel, Bondi DJ Lord (USA), Devola, Shantan Wantan Ichiban, Isbjorn, Hobophonics free 8pm

Goodgod Small Club, Sydney Beyond Thunderdome Prosumer (GER), Slowblow, Softwar $15 11pm

The Factory Theatre, Marrickville Demigodz (USA), Apathy (USA), Celph Titled (USA), Army Of The Pharaohs (USA) $40 (+ bf) 8pm

Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst Spit Syndicate, Jackie Onassis $18 (+ bf) 8pm

The Standard, Surry Hills XXYYXX (USA), Polographia, Cosmo’s Midnight $25 (+ bf) 8pm

THURSDAY MARCH 28 Chinese Laundry, Sydney Bass Mafia Cyantific (UK), The Prototypes (UK), Linken, Mark Bionic, Empress Yoy, Amy Lee, Big Deal Gillespie $15-$25 10pm Goodgod Small Club, Sydney Luke Hess (USA), XDB (GER), Trinity, Dave Stuart, Magda Bytnerowicz $25 11pm The World Bar, Kings Cross Propaganda Gillex, DJ Moody (UK), Becci Hearts, Dan Bombings free (student)-$5 9pm

FRIDAY MARCH 29 Marquee, The Star, Pyrmont Marquee One Year Anniversary Timmy Trumpet, Helena, Hook N Sling, Tenzin, Georgia, K-Note, Zero Cool $30 (+ bf) 10pm

SATURDAY MARCH 30 Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Falcona Saturdays Midnight Juggernaut DJs, Bernie Dingo, Hansom free 8pm Chinese Laundry, Sydney Far Too Loud (UK), Reset! (ITA), Lancelot, Daniel Farley, Sam Scratch, Alley Oop & Cassette, Fingers, DJ Rubz, Whitecat, Morgan, Georgia $15-$25 9pm DJ Lord

SUNDAY MARCH 31 Abercrombie Hotel, Broadway S.A.S.H Easter Special Inxec (UK), Wbeeza (UK), Ian Pooley, Mike Callander, Katie Drover, Radiator, Simon Caldwell, Joe Blackett, Matt Weir, Kerry Wallace $10-$20 2pm Cargo Bar / Bungalow 8 / theloft, Sydney Harbourfest 2013 Tonite Only, The Aston Shuffle DJs, Juggernaut DJs, Yolanda Be Cool, Van She DJs, Nina Las Vegas, DCup, Helena (UK), Sosueme DJs, Dr Don Don, Ember, Purple Sneakers DJs, Danny Clayton, Oreo DJs, The Faders, Doctor Werewolf, Marc Jarvin, Slow Blow, Fishing, Tigerlily, Slicker Cities, Devola, The Backhanderz, Pat Ward, Murray Lake, Alley Oop, Somatik, Fingers, Turbo $45 (+ bf) 2pm Goodgod Small Club, Sydney Love Kings X Hoops Easter Sunday Nina Las Vegas, Bad Ezzy, Levins, Radge, Chux, Joyride $10-$15 8pm The Greenwood Hotel, North Sydney Circoloco Sydney Easter Sunday David Squillace (ITA), Apollonia (FRA), Dyed Soundorom (FRA), Dan Ghenacia (FRA), Shonky (FRA), Brohn, Gabby, LeBrond vs Shaun Bro, Cassette, Alan Thomas, Sam Francisco, T-Boy, Bad Apple DJs, Morgan, Sam Arellano, Aaron, Ricky Cooper, Start:Cue, EK Collective, Sam Roberts, Carlos Zarate, Robbie Cordukes & Jake Hough, James Cripps, Cam Berry, Sammy & James $65 (+ bf) 12pm The Spice Cellar, Sydney Spice Tim Richards (NZ), Pharley, Hannah Gibbs, Sash DJs, Katie Drover 10pm

M

obilee Records’ Olivier Mateu, AKA Rodriguez Jr, will make his Australian debut and headline a double-decker romp for Subsonic that will stretch across two levels of The Burdekin on Saturday April 27. A fellow with a reputation for putting on a rollicking live show, Mateu broke through courtesy of his output with Gilles Escoffier as The Youngsters, a techno duo who were championed by the likes of Laurent ‘the man with the red face’ Garnier and featured by Sasha on his inaugural Involver compilation. After releasing two Youngsters albums on Garnier’s F Communications imprint, Mateu went solo and released EPs on labels like Mothership before settling with Anja Schneider’s Mobilee label. He released his debut solo LP Bittersweet on Mobilee in 2011, which showcased the melodic flourishes and production prowess that separated The Youngsters from the also-rans and featured guest appearances from vocalist Cari Golden and And.Id, who played trumpet on ‘Los Matadores.’ Mateu’s forthcoming tour coincides with the release of his new mix Back To Back Vol 7, a double CD compilation that follows on from previous installments from the likes of PanPot and Marcin Czubala, and is described by Mateu as “some kind of huge jam session”. The first disc offers an unmixed selection of Mobilee cuts from 2012, including Rodriguez Jr’s own ‘Ocean Drive’, while the second disc comprises nine Rodriguez Jr tracks produced in collaboration with heavyweights Anja Schneider, Pan-Pot, Sebo K and Ray Okpara. When he plays The Burdekin, Mateu will be flanked by a lengthy local support cast of DJs and VJs who will be doing a proper LED-based visuals show. Keep your eyes peeled online for tickets – and thanks for reading another Deep Impressions exclusive. (Can you find any information about this event anywhere else at the moment? Didn’t think so. Cop that, internet!)

LOOKING DEEPER THURSDAY MARCH 28

Ivan Smagghe + Pachanga Boys The Abercrombie Luke Hess + XDB Goodgod Small Club

SATURDAY MARCH 30 Prosumer Goodgod Small Club

MONDAY APRIL 1 Superpitcher Santa Barbara

Nico Stojan The Abercrombie

xxx

Nico Stojan

Virginia

Panorama Bar resident Virginia will release her debut EP Loch & Hill on Ostgut Ton in early April. Virginia is a seasoned DJ and producer who has a scattered collaborative production history dating back to ’04. However it’s only in recent times that Virginia has made it onto many listeners’ radars following her vocal contributions on two tracks on Steffi’s 2011 album Yours & Mine: ‘You Own My Mind’ and ‘Yours’. Loch & Hill comprises four vintage-leaning house tracks that evoke the Panorama Bar sensibility, including ‘Neurosis,’ described in the presser as a “playful, uplifting night-time jacker” and ‘Shifter,’ which channels Detroit influences with a rumbling bassline. File under ‘worth investigating’. Continuing the Ostgut Ton motif, renowned German DJ Prosumer headlines Goodgod Small Club this Saturday March 30. Drawing the Prosumer pseudonym from Alvin Toffler’s book The Third Wave (you’re across that, right?), Prosumer has established a reputation as one of the most knowledgeable DJs on the scene, earning himself a regular spot at Panorama Bar. As a producer, Prosumer has released for revered labels such as Running Back, Playhouse and Ostgut Ton, collaborated with Tamo Sumo, and put out his debut album Serenity – a joint work with producer Murat Tepeli – back in ’08. Prosumer’s Panorama Bar 03 compilation was released a few years back to widespread critical acclaim (not least in these hallowed pages), collating gems from Morgan Geist, Jeff Mills, Uwe Schmidt, Theo Parrish and showcasing the discerning club eclecticism that dancers can expect from him this Saturday. UK producer Wbeeza, which those reading this column out loud to packed pub venues, lecture theatres or random strangers on the bus ought to know is pronounced ‘double-you-beeza,’ has just released a new EP on Third Ear Recordings. Entitled Mo Bella, it is ‘Dubya’s’ first outing since last year’s Peckham Fly EP, which followed on from the release of his long-player Void in 2011. The South Londoner is known for his engaging Detroit-influenced tracks, and has carved his own niche in the Third Ear discography, which boasts releases from luminaries like Delano Smith, Mike Huckaby, and Kyle Hall. Now to tie it in to this action-packed weekend: Wbeeza will be playing at S.A.S.H this Sunday along with German house proponent Ian Pooley, continuing the venue’s impressive Easter bookings. It all kicks off on Thursday night – I’ll see you by the front left speaker for Ivan Smagghe’s set.

Deep Impressions: electronica manifesto and occasional club brand. Contact through deep.impressions@yahoo.com BRAG ::505 :: 25:03:13 :: 43

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party profile

sosueme ft. dj lord – the raising hell tour

It’s called: SOSUEME ft. DJ Lord – The Raisin g Hell Tour It sounds like: Hip-hoppity of the good ol’ days! Who’s playing: DJ Lord (Public Enemy), Devol a, Shantan Wantan Ichiban, Isbjorn, Hobophonics.

Three songs you’ll hear on the night: Public Enemy – ‘Harder Than You Think,’ Run DMC – ‘Walk This Way’, Naughty By Nature – ‘Hip Hop Hooray’. And one you definitely won’t: The Cheers theme song Sell it to us: DMC Champion and all-round legend DJ Lord from Public Enemy is hitting SOSUEME. Need we say more? The bit we’ll remember in the AM: DJ Lord signed your boobs in permanent marker. Crowd specs: Partygoers, wannabe street thugs and their boos. Wallet damage: Free entry, free popcorn, free hugs forever! Where: Beach Road Hotel, Bondi When: Wednesday March 27

RIE

:: KATRINA CLARKE :: AVE S : TIM LEVY (HEAD HONCHO) OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER MAR :: DANIEL MUNNS LEY HARVEY :: KATE LEWIS :: ASH

44 :: BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13

BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13 :: 45

snap up all night out all week . . .

diego infanzon

It’s called: Goldfish, The Mile High Club & Paul Strange Presents Diego Infanzon It sounds like: Sexy and tribal, deep, upliftin g house. Influenced by DJ PP and Stefano Noferini. Lots of percussion! Who’s playing: Matt Cahill, Johnny Gleeson, Lee M Kelsall, and Tom Kelly Three songs you’ll hear on the night: Diego Infanzon – ‘Schucupac’; Stefano Noferini – ‘You Can Do It’; Pagano – ‘Breaking Bad’ And one you definitely won’t: House Of Pain – ‘Jump Around’ Sell it to us: Hailing from Urugay and signe d to Stefano Noferini’s label Deeperfect, Diego Infanzon is one of Urugu ay’s most talented young DJs and producers. Diego is making his Goldfish debut , which is also his only Australian performance – making it a Goldfish exclusive! Wallet damage: Just $20 on the door. Where: Goldfish – 111 Darlinghurst Rd, Kings Cross When: Easter Saturday, March 30

maribou state

PICS :: AM

party profile

goldfish, the mile high club & paul strange presents:

julio bashmore

PICS :: KC

16:03:13 :: Chinese Laundry :: 111 Sussex St Sydney 8295 9999

dj lord

PICS :: AH

16:03:13 :: Oxford Art Factory :: 38-46 Oxford St, Darlinghurst 9332 3711

stickybuds

PICS :: AM

sofrito superdisco tropical 15:03:13 :: Chinese Laundry :: 111 Sussex St Sydney 8295 9999 46 :: BRAG :: 505 :: 25:03:13

PICS :: AM

16:03:13 :: Newtown Hotel :: 147 King St Newtown 9557 6399

15:03:13 :: Goodgod Small Club :: 53-55 Liverpool St Chinatown 8084 0587 D HONCHO) :: KATRINA CLARKE

S : TIM LEVY (HEA OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER MAR :: HARVEY :: KATE LEWIS :: ASHLEY

:: AVERIE

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