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rock music news welcome to the frontline: what’s goin’ on around town...with Nick Jarvis and Lisa Omagari.

he said she said WITH

SEJA

Growing Up I grew up in Germany and my 1. parents loved to listen to ’60s pop records like The Searchers, The Hollies, The Kinks. My dad had the complete Beatles vinyl box set. We listened to those records a lot; I learnt the words phonetically before I knew how to speak English.

Inspirations There are certain songs that 2. have really affected me, either by their lyrics or their melodies, and I’ve continued to be inspired by these songs and the artists who wrote them my whole life.

Songs like ‘Jealous Guy’ by John Lennon, ‘It’s All In My Mind’ by Teenage Fanclub, ‘Without Her’ by Harry Nilsson and ‘How To Fight Loneliness’ by Wilco are a few amongst many. Other than songs, I’m a big believer of there being songs inside every instrument, so every time you pick up something you haven’t played before, there will be ideas!

Band I’ve just formed a new band 3. Your

for my ‘All Our Wires’ release.

Since starting to release my solo albums I’ve only really had girls in my touring band, and now I have three boys. I’ll be able to tell you more about how it’s going after the first shows, but they’re all really great at stuff! Cuffy plays drums and is from a Brisbane punk band called Dick Nasty, Tass plays guitar and keys and is from a Brisbane rock band called El Motel, and Arun plays bass and is from a Brisbane band called Oh Ye Denver Birds.

The Music You Make I’ve always wanted to make 4. music that sounds like Devo and The Cars, but I think I’ve ended up making music that sounds more like a mixture between Lali Puna and Nico. I recorded my second album All Our Wires all over Brisbane and Melbourne with my brother Mirko who recorded, produced and mixed it. It has some guests on it – Robert Forster (Go Betweens) sings a song with me in German, Ben Ely (Regurgitator) plays some bass, Tim Hoey (Cut Copy) plays some guitar and

CYNDI LAUPER

Gilby Clarke

EDITOR: Nick Jarvis nick@thebrag.com 02 9212 4322 ARTS EDITOR: Lisa Omagari lisa@thebrag.com 02 9212 4322 STAFF WRITERS: Benjamin Cooper, Alasdair Duncan, Jody Macgregor NEWS: Nick Jarvis, Lisa Omagari, Chris Honnery ART DIRECTOR: Sarah Bryant GRAPHIC DESIGN: Alan Parry SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER: Tim Levy SNAP PHOTOGRAPHERS: About LST Night aka Lincoln Jubb, Capital H aka Henry Leung, Ashley Mar, Amath Magnan

To celebrate the 30th anniversary of her record-hitting debut album She’s So Unusual, Cyndi Lauper’s coming to town. And Lauper’s hella keen to perform the album in its entirety so get ready to boogie, because ‘Girls Just Want To Have Fun’, right? ‘Time After Time’ we’ve heard of She’s So Unusual’s monumental significance, but that didn’t stop Lauper from telling us just how thrilled she is to be revisiting her smash hits. “I’m so excited to perform She’s So Unusual from beginning to end, song by song and I want to see everyone!” she said via release. You can catch the diva at Enmore Theatre on Friday September 6 and Saturday September 7. Tickets via Ticketek.

BEARHUG

Aussie indie-rock outfit Bearhug have kept us hanging for more after the release of their debut album Bill Dance Shiner way back in March 2012. Stacked with singles, the album made top 30 on the US college charts so truth be told, we’re pretty psyched to check out what they’ve been working on in the interim. After kicking it in the studio with Ivan Vizintin (Jack Ladder, Pvt), Bearhug are ready to launch the shiny pop sounds of their new Over Easy EP. Want in? Bearhug play Brighton Up Bar on

ADVERTISING: Ross Eldridge - 0422 659 425 / (02) 9212 4322 ross@thebrag.com ADVERTISING: Les White - 0405 581 125 / (02) 9212 4322 les@thebrag.com PUBLISHER: Rob Furst GENERAL MANAGER, FURST MEDIA: Patrick Carr patrick@furstmedia.com.au, (03) 9428 3600, 0402 821 122 DIGITAL DIRECTOR/ADVERTISING: Kris Furst kris@furstmedia.com.au (03) 9428 3600 GIG & CLUB GUIDE CO-ORDINATOR: Katie Davern, Blake Gallagher, Naomi Russo gigguide@thebrag.com (rock) clubguide@thebrag. com (dance, hip hop & parties) AWESOME INTERNS: Natalie Amat, Katie Davern, Mina Kitsos, Blake Gallagher, Naomi Russo, Rachel Eddie, Therese Watson

Wally de Backer (Gotye) did some arrangements for me. The live show will be me with a full band of dudes and some extra special girl guests in each city.

Music, Right Here, Right Now 5.

I feel like music is such a great little pond of fi sh where all the fi sh know each other and make music together. And if they don’t know each other, or if you’re a new fi sh, you get friended and accepted into the fi shpond really easily. That’s always been my experience, anyway. Perhaps I have been lucky. I suppose an obstacle for all musicians is always to know why you do things so you can always come back to that foundation if you come upon difficult times or disappointments. My favourite Australian band at the moment is Harmony from Melbourne. Bloody great!

Where: Brighton Up Bar When: Saturday July 6 And: All Our Wires out June 21 through Rice is Nice

Thursday June 20 with support from Joseph Liddy and the Skeleton Horse, and Metal Babies. $10 entry also scores you a copy of the new EP.

YES PLEASE TURNS TWO

Indie label Yes Please is throwing two massive parties in Sydney and Melbourne to celebrate its second birthday. Y’all are invited too, so get pumped! On Thursday July 11 the FBi crew will present a lineup of YP artists to an amped-up crowd at Goodgod. Acts include twin producers Cosmo’s Midnight, Melbourne trio I’lls, beatsmiths Fishing and remixing duo Guerre. Tickets available via Moshtix.

VILLAGE PEOPLE

Village People fans at the ready, because the disco kings are headed our way to play one exclusive show at Enmore Theatre on Saturday October 12. The six-man super group, including three original members Felipe Rose, Alex Briley and David Hodo, will strut their bell-bottomed stuff alongside Ray Simpson, Jeff Olson and Eric Anzalone. Special guests comprise Glenn Leonard’s Temptations and former ladies of The Supremes. Tickets on sale from Monday June 17 via Ticketek. *Rehearsed trademark moves sold separately.

Jagwar Ma

REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS: Nat Amat, Shannon Connellan, Simon Binns, Katie Davern, Marissa Demetriou, Christie Eliezer, Chris Honnery, Kate Jinx, Lachlan Kanoniuk, Jody Macgregor, Alicia Malone, Chris Martin, Hugh Robertson, Jonno Seidler, Rach Seneviratne, Simon Topper, Rick Warner, Krissi Weiss, David Wild Please send mail NOT ACCOUNTS direct to this NEW address 100 Albion Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010 ph - (02) 9212 4322 fax - (02) 9319 2227 EDITORIAL POLICY: The views and opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher, editors or staff of The BRAG. ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE: Luke Forrester: accounts@furstmedia.com.au ph - (03) 9428 3600 fax - (03) 9428 3611 Furst Media, 3 Newton Street Richmond Victoria 3121 DEADLINES: Editorial: Wednesday 12pm (no extensions) Artwork/ad bookings: Thursday 12pm (no extensions).

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GILBY CLARKE

Cleveland native Gilby Clarke’s been around the block. He’s played with the likes of MC5, Nancy Sinatra, Heart and Rockstar Supernova. Oh and then there’s the fact that he was in Guns N’ Roses for three years. After GN’R imploded at the behest of Axl Rose, Clarke decided he’d hit out on his own and released Pawnshop Guitars, The Hangover, Rubber, 99 Live and Swag. Now? He’s headed our way for an Australian tour in July. Gilby Clarke plays Hermann’s Bar, Sydney on Saturday July 6. For more info visit hermannsbar.com.

FLEETWOOD MAC SECOND SHOW

Many a Fleetwood Mac fan’s ‘Dreams’ will come true this November when they catch the Brit-American rockers down under. And we’ve even more good news: due to ‘Landslide’ presales, the iconic band has added a second Sydney show at the Sydney Entertainment Centre on Monday November 11. ‘Big Love’ to you Fleetwood!

JAGWAR MA TOUR

Jono and Gabriel are about to blow up big time. Pitchfork fucking love them, NME gave their brand new debut record Howlin 9/10 and called their live show, “a dazzling update of the pre-Beatles rock’n’roll trend fed through two decades of demonic dance decadence.

The gauntlet is down.” Even the stuffy old Times gave their record 5/5. So we recommend that you go see on them on their imminent Australian tour before the tickets triple in price in future years. Catch them at The Standard on August 2 with Guerre in support – tickets on sale Monday June 17 at 9am.

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rock music news

free stuff

welcome to the frontline: what’s goin’ on around town...with Nick Jarvis and Natalie Amat.

head to: www.thebrag.com to enter

five things WITH

Gilby Clarke

SASHA CARLSON OF SPLASHH ideas into something more than a few chords on a guitar. Though these days he’s finding his own with that Strat of his.

The Music You Make We love a really broad range of music, 4. from Chopin to Michael Jackson to Can to Flying Lotus. We take elements of all of these things and put them into our songs. We’re releasing our first album Comfort soon, it’s a collection of songs Toto and I recorded in his bedroom, most of which were done within the first couple of months we spent hanging out. We’re still developing our live show, and have plenty of ideas of where we can take it. Right now we make sure to improvise in parts and go for the unexpected. When you see a band you want to see something put on the line. If I see a band play it safe I get bored.

Music, Right Here, Right Now If people get into music to get rich and 5. famous then they’re missing the point and

Growing Up There was always music in my 1. household. My Dad was a drummer in an NZ ’80s post-punk band called Danse Macabre, he was always blaring bands like Oasis and Echo and the Bunnymen, so I guess that had an affect on me from a young age without even realising. I used to follow our drummer Jacob’s old band The Checks when they were young and travelling the world playing shows; I wanted to do the same. We spent years smoking weed and obsessing over music together and that’s how we got our education.

Inspirations When I was a young teenager I only 2. listened to ’90s East Coast hip hop. It wasn’t

till a friend of mine played me Is This It by The Strokes that rock’n’roll crept back into my life. I never lost any love for the beats though.

Your Band We all come from different musical 3. backgrounds. Beal is a straight up English bass man, he loves his rock’n’roll and straight ahead Joy Division style playing. Jacob is the musical encyclopedia of the band, he enjoys off kilter punk but secretly is a choirboy. Toto is more of a listener, he has an amazing ability to turn my

they’ll probably be disappointed. I never really had a choice as it’s one of the only things I’ve ever done better than the next guy. We’re all ambitious and that’s why we made the move to London; we do want our music to be heard by as many people as possible. One of my favourite new artists is Kirin J. Callinan, we know each other from Sydney. He’s got a real Roland S. Howard vibe going and really knows what he’s doing when it comes to making sound from his guitar. People should watch out for him, I think he’s gonna blow up.

Come see a man who’s traded guitar riffs, hotel rooms and probably other things with Slash, Duff McKagan and Steven Adler, live and stripped back in acoustic mode, when he delves into his massive back catalogue at Hermann’s Bar on July 6. Watch out for our interview with Gilby Clarke next week, and in the meantime, try and score a double pass for yourself by telling us the name of the band Clarke created via a famous TV show.

PRIMAL SCREAM – SIGNED!

Glaswegian post-punk/indie rockers Primal Scream’s latest effort is being heralded as their finest work since seminal third album Screamadelica – and we’ve got a copy of the album plus a SIGNED A2 mounted poster to giveaway. We’ll be having a chat with Bobby Gillespie next week, but in the meantime get closer to the band by telling us the title of Primal Scream’s 1987 debut record.

Primal Scream

Where: Brighton Up Bar with Fascinator When: Thursday June 27 And: Comfort out now through Breakaway Recordings

FBI SOCIAL

If you’re in the general vicinity of the Cross next Wednesday, step away from your foodflecked monitor when lunchtime comes calling and head to FBi Social, where Big Scary will be playing a jolly free set, then come back that night for comedy from local types like Sam McCool. Thursday night sees metal, punk, chiptune and Fisher Price combine, with weirdo icons Toydeath, The Love Rights, Godswounds and Simo Soo, while Saturday power pop quartet Love Parade are back with psych-pop chanteuse Ali-E, Hightails and country-folk duo Jep and Dep.

Boris

GILBY CLARKE

STRANGE TALK

Synth-pop dudes Strange Talk are bringing their pop-tastic sounds to the Beach Road Bondi for a free Sosueme Wednesday set, with Hey Geronimo in tow. You know the drill – and it’s free!

MONTERO

If you want to see a whole bunch of folk from Sydney and Melbourne bands with truly amazing names (who you’ve probably seen about the past few years) playing in their other/new bands, head to Goodgod this Thursday night. There’ll be a single launch by Melbournian ‘super-group’ Montero (songwriter and frontman Ben Montero with Gerald Wells on synths, Geoffrey O’Connor on guitar, Guy Blackman on piano, producer Robert Bravington on bass and Cameron Potts on drums), plus Early Woman (Hannah Brooks of Young Professionals/St Helens/Spider Vomit with Ben Montero, Bobby Bravington and Caitlin Perry), Drown Under (Jack Mannix of Circle Pit, Sarah Davis of Whores, Dean Adam of Housewives, Laura Hunt of Ghastly Spats and Matt Nev of Snotty Babies), plus the Circle Pit DJs and Marcel Whyler (buzz kull). Tickets are $12 through Moshtix.

Jill Scott

BORIS ANNOUNCE SUPPORTS

Japanese three-piece Boris is hitting Aussie shores this week with a Sydney show at Manning Bar on Friday June 21. Returning to Australia after touring in 2012, the experimental rockers are ready to play their classic cult album Flood and have announced support from Dead China Doll, who will bring throbbing, heavy synth lines to the Manning traps. Tickets on sale now via manningbar.com.

FIDLAR + DUNE RATS = PSYCHED AS F***

LA skate punks FIDLAR’s Splendour Sideshows just got a cheeky boost – Brisvegas party punks (and fellow Splendour class of ’13-ers) Dune Rats have been added to the bill as their tour buddies. Any band with a bassist who can put away a six-pack of Boags while sitting on a rooftop (and YouTube the results) are bound to be a riot live. Tickets are through Moshtix now, so get on it and you could be sharing a “Bow-ag” and some mayhem with the lads at Oxford Art Factory on Wednesday July 31.

HELL CITY GLAMOURS X YOUNG HENRY’S

Are You Ready to Stumble?! The local beer barons behind Young Henry’s are presenting Hell City Glamours’ “first Sydney headline show in two fucking years” at Spectrum on June 21. What was the band up to these last few years? Well, working on album number two, 8 :: BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13

but guitarist Oscar also managed to help start up the Young Henry’s brewery and has been busy crafting some sweet hoppy goodness. So as a bonus, there’s a special brew to mark the occasion – the Red Barrel Road Beer (bourbon barrel aged red ale!) will be on tap on the night.

Death Valley is on board in support, alongside Melbournites Devilrock Four, who are also launching their newie.

DESIGNER MUTTS

Designer Mutts is the new side-project of the two remaining Royal Chant dudes.

They’re launching their fresh EP A Day At The Wauchope Races with a massive gig at Brighton Up Bar on Thursday June 27. It’s been dubbed Fuzz Fest 2013 and there’s a super lineup featuring local wunderkinder Doc Holliday Takes The Shotgun, Udays Tiger, Siamese Almeida, Milkmaids and Jugular Cuts. It all kicks off at 7.30pm and ten bucks will get you in on the action. And one for the diary – they’re also playing Crate Record Bar in Glebe on July 12.

MISS JILL SCOTT

First lady of soul Jill Scott is finally planning a visit to the land girt by sea – this November she’ll be touring our Great Southern Land for the first time ever. The Philly poet/actress/ jazz queen is bringing along her ten-piece band for the occasion and the gigs promise to be the intimate and evocative shows she’s become famous for. Catch Miss Scott and co. at the Enmore Theatre for one night only Saturday November 23. You can score tickets from 9am Tuesday June 18.

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Industrial Strength Music Industry News with Christie Eliezer

THINGS WE HEAR

dollars in Australia by launching its commercial model by the end of the year, its head of operations in Australia and NZ told B&T magazine. * The video for Empire of The Sun’s ‘Alive’ has had more than three million views. * Guitarist Adrian Belew quit Nine Inch Nails ahead of the release of their new album and tour, saying that “no one is at fault” but “it just was not working.” * Following its opening last week Bangarra Dance Theatre announced six new shows for the Sydney season of Blak, extending it to Saturday June 29. * Melbourne’s House Vs Hurricane are calling it quits after almost seven years, after their tour this month with I Killed The Prom Queen and Buried In Verona. * During the live finale of Britain’s Got Talent, as two opera singers were warbling away, a woman from the audience ran on and threw eggs at the judges. * Newcastle’s Fat As Butter has applied for a permit to allow camping for 1500 at Stockton’s Ballast Ground from October 18 to 20.

* KFC and Vodafone happily capitalised on Joel Madden’s national Voice profile this year. But they’ve distanced themselves after Madden was heaved out of The Star after he was allegedly found with 5g of cannabis in his hotel room.

According to media and marketing site Mumbrella, neither plans to work with him again. KFC said its involvement was a one-off campaign during the cricket and “it’s long done now.” Vodafone’s official statement said, “We have no current plans in place for Joel Madden appearances.” * Real Estate: After recording in Byron Bay, former Brisbane resident Andrew Stockdale is staying on. The Wolfman paid $1.6 million for a four-bedroom pile of bricks with three bathrooms and a wraparound verandah. Meanwhile, Axl Rose, who has been renting in New York, is thinking of buying his own apartment.

He already owns a 2.3-acre spread in Malibu overlooking the Pacific Ocean. * Music streaming service Pandora will take on traditional radio for advertising

NEW AUSSIE CROWDFUNDER ZOSHPIT DEDICATED TO MUSIC

created post of Head of etcetc. Distributed through Universal Music, etcetc is home to electronic acts Pnau, The Knife, Two Door Cinema Club, Duke Dumont, Duck Sauce and MSTRKRFT. After scoring a club and Top 40 hit with Dumont’s ‘Need U’, coming up are releases from Chris Malinchak, Ben Pearce, FCL, Nora en Pure, UK garage producer Youan, Australia’s Kilter and Pnau’s fifth album later this year. July marks the arrival of Favored Nations, a trans-Pacific super group comprising of Morgan Phalen (Justice, Phenomenal Handclap Band), James Curd (DFA, Exploited) and Surahn Sidhu (Empire of the Sun, The Swiss).

A new Australian crowd-funding service has launched called Zoshpit, with its headquarters in Perth and another office in Noosa. The likes of Pozible, PledgeMusic, Kickstarter and Indiegogo have served Australian acts in the past, but Zoshpit emphasises that it will focus solely on music. In addition to getting funding from fans, it also allows acts to upload tracks to sell directly. Such sales are not included in the ARIA charts but they’re planning to address this. Zoshpit plans to be a one-stopshop for acts wanting to make a record, fund a video and merchandise, or go on the road.

See zoshpit.com.au.

UK FANS DRAWN TO SEX, DRUGS, NOT MUSIC AT FESTIVALS

ADEN MULLENS TO HEAD ETCETC

Up to 55% of UK festival-goers admit they go to drink, take drugs or have sex rather than listen to music, according to a poll carried out

Stepping up from his position as A&R/ Compilations Manager for Ministry of Sound, Aden Mullens was appointed to the newly

E HIFI 1300 THO M.AU THEHIFI.C

by MSN. Only 45% said they went for the music. A quarter of them had sex at the top of their list, while 21% preferred taking drugs and a few would rather burn their tents or get into fights. George McKay, Professor of Cultural Studies at Salford University, said this was normal: many see festivals as a way to escape everyday life and hang with friends, even paying up to £423 (almost A$700) for a weekend. Up to 9% experimented with drugs for the first time.

GARRETT TO KEYNOTE AT TILT

Peter Garrett will give the keynote address at the inaugural TILT (Tomorrow’s Ideas Leading Today) forum. Held on Friday July 5 at the Australian Institute of Music (AIM) in Surry Hills, it brings together some of Australia’s brightest minds in entertainment to discuss the future of the industry in the face of rapidly changing technology. “There are some exciting opportunities ahead for the arts industries to capitalise on future technologies and innovations,” said Garrett.

“This is a great time for artists to come together and explore those opportunities together.” Other speakers so far are Sounds Australia’s National Live Music Coordinator Ianto Ware, Rdio Australia’s CEO Colin Blake, Deezer Australia’s managing director Thomas Heymann, Google’s Senior Agency Manager Rhys Thomas, Gizmodo editor Luke Hopewell and AIM Digital Marketing lecturer Danny Yau.

ANDY BULL SIGNS US DEAL

Singer songwriter Andy Bull of ‘Keep On Running’ fame has signed a US deal with Republic. Its A&R chief Brett Alperowitz called his music “fresh and unique” and said “we look forward to introducing American audiences to Andy Bull and what is shaping up to be a terrific album.”

APPLE LAUNCHES ITUNES RADIO

Apple has launched iTunes Radio, a free ad-supported online streaming radio service in America. There is no Australian launch date so far. The 200 stations, accessed on Apple devices, include playlists based on the user’s past listening history and purchases from iTunes, with some curated by Apple and others based around acts and genres, and will come with a Buy button. iTunes Radio was held up by tough negotiations from the major labels; in fact, the deal with Sony was signed hours before the announcement. Sony wanted 50% of its cut, not the 5% Apple offered.

The parties agreed to 10% or 15% as a first step.

KESWICK JOINS CRA

Former 2RRR station manager and 2SER FM presenter Robbie Keswick has joined Commercial Radio Australia as PR Social Media Executive.

This Week

Coming Soon

2SER LAUNCHES NEW BREAKFAST SHOW

HTC & Speaker TV Presents

Mono (JPN)

Pludo

Dappled Cities

Thu 27 Jun

Sat 29 Jun

2SER’s new breakfast show marks the first time it will be hosted by a fulltime, paid presenter. Tim Higgins was previously a volunteer, hosting its Australian music show The Band Next Door and a weekly music and talks program.

Thu 20 Jun

SO LD

O UT

ART OF MUSIC GOES LIVE

HTC & Speaker TV Presents

Hardcore 2013

Hungry Kids of Hungary

Sat 13 Jul 18+ Sun 14 Jul All Ages

Sat 6 Jul

Saint Vitus (USA) & Monarch! (FRA)

Haim (USA) Wed 24 Jul

Fri 19 Jul

Since 2006, Art of Music has had ten contemporary visual artists from Australia and NZ hold an exhibition of works inspired by their favourite Australian song. On Monday June 24, the concept goes live with Tim Finn, Suze Demarchi, Josh Pyke, Dragon, Ian Moss, Iva Davies, Katie Noonan, Dave Mason (The Reels), Reg Mombassa & Pete O’Dougherty and Gondwana Children’s Choir singing the songs that inspired the artworks. Proceeds from the event, at The Studio at the Sydney Opera House, go to Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy.

VIBRATIONS SEMI-FINALS Nejo Y Dalmata (PUR) Fri 26 Jul

Airbourne

DBSTF

Sat 27 Jul

Sat 10 Aug

Blues & Grooves feat. Phil Emmanuel Fri 16 Aug

The semi-finals of Vibrations band comp are on June 19 and July 10 at Valve Bar, Tempe. 12 bands compete to win free recording with Silver Sound Studios.

MORE VENUES FALL OFF ‘VIOLENT’ LIST

& Havana D’ Primera (CUB) Sat 7 Sep

Hits & Pits 2.0 feat The Ataris (USA) + Bad Astronaut (USA) + Snuff + More

Fri 6 Sep

Sun 17 Nov

Alexander Abreu

Anberlin (USA)

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

10 :: BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13

Only 16 establishments are listed on the NSW’s Government’s list of violent venues, two down from the last list in November.

Minister of Hospitality George Souris says that the Government’s anti-violence initiatives, such as early lockouts, bans and tougher penalties are working, and

Audition Notice

Sharkbite Theatre, based in Mosman, Sydney is holding auditions for actors for an exciting new contemporary comedy/ drama to be staged in Mosman. We need male and female actors aged 50 plus, and female and male actors aged 20 to 30.

No money but the chance of fame!

WHEN: Sunday 23 June 2013 TIME: 9.30am to 12.30am VENUE: Masonic Hall, 42-44 Spit Rd (near Spit Junction Post Office) Mosman Inquiries: sharkbite@idx.com.au Facebook: Sharkbite Theatre

congratulated the 13 venues who dropped off. Sydney CBD, Kings Cross and Byron Bay now only have one venue each (The Ivy, Trademark and Cheeky Monkey, respectively).

RED CROSS’S ‘SAVE A MATE’ A FINALIST IN AWARDS

The Red Cross’s innovative Save A Mate festival and events crew (SAM Crew) is a finalist in the Excellence in Services for Young People category at the National Drug and Alcohol Awards, on June 20. Over the 20122013 festival season, the SAM Crew were at 12 major music festivals where 310 volunteers interacted with more than 40,500 festival goers who were vulnerable to binge drinking and ODs.

=

Lifelines Injured: Eric Clapton cancelled two European shows due to severe back pain.

Injured: The Dillinger Escape Plan’s guitarist Ben Weinman suffered an injury to his right hand and wrist.

Hospitalised: Mumford & Sons bass player Ted Dwane needs surgery after being diagnosed with a brain clot.

Recovering: former Journey singer Steve Perry recently had cancer treatment for a mole on his face, five months after his girlfriend died of the disease.

Ill: Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Ill: Chris Isaak’s drummer Kenney Dale Johnson is being treated for cancer.

In Court: Lamb Of God frontman Randy Blythe has been freed of charges of killing a fan by pushing him off-stage during a Czech show in 2010.

Investigated: Justin Bieber’s bodyguards, already up on three charges in Miami of roughing up people who took photos of their charge, were hit with a fourth complaint.

Arrested: US rapper 2 Chainz for possessing drugs at Los Angeles’ LAX airport. A day before he was mugged of his wallet during an incident in San Francisco during which the assailant fired a gunshot.

Died: former Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna drummer Joey Covington, 67, in a Palm Springs car crash. Covington crashed his car into a wall – his wife thinks he had a stroke or heart attack before the accident.

Died: long time Ramones collaborator Arturo Vega, 65. The Mexican artist created their iconic logo and was also their lighting tech.

Died: Motley Crue’s Nikki Sixx’s mum Deana Richards, 74, who brought him up as a single mother.

She abandoned him but he reconnected with her later.

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alt-J Going in Triangles By Joshua Kloke

G

wil Sainsbury of alt-J pauses thoughtfully to consider each question; we’ve only got twenty minutes for this interview, but nothing is going to prevent Sainsbury from giving due prudence to every topic. At first, it strikes me simply as affable English charm. Yet with every pensive pause, Sainsbury defines the constant struggle of alt-J – how to proceed carefully in an industry that demands more of the band than they’re comfortable revealing.

We’re discussing the rapid ascent that the Cambridge-via-Leeds foursome has experienced since the May 2012 release of their debut full-length, An Awesome Wave. When you consider the exposure that winning the Mercury Prize brought, coupled with appearances on American late-night TV programs and the ridiculous amount of touring they’ve done

(they’ll soon be touching down in Australia for the third time in nine months), how alt-J plans on managing and maintaining their success for the long-term is certainly a quandary worth pausing to consider.

“That’s a constant concern for us, how to manage what we’re doing in this industry,” says Sainsbury, on the phone from a San Diego tour stop. “I suppose we forget sometimes what we’re doing; we’re running a business, but you’re trying not to do it with spread sheets or whatever. To me, that’s quite strange.”

“Strange” is an accurate description for the short career of alt-J. After forming at Leeds University and arranging their demos in student dorm rooms, they spent two years middling under the radar before releasing a 7” single with Loud and Quiet in October 2011 (that’s now valued at around AUD$200) before abruptly arriving as critical darlings with An Awesome Wave. With their fearless dabbling in genres and reluctance to buy into the industry machine, they’re being called the second coming of Radiohead. “I didn’t get into a band to become a well-known face or a well-known personality,” counters Sainsbury.

Critics and bloggers alike have struggled to label and compartmentalise alt-J. Often this leads to an aura of mystery surrounding an act, where one must actually examine their sound instead of simply being told.

The members of alt-J, in direct contrast to the textured and complex music they release, are frank and

12 :: BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13

“We put out the record and didn’t expect much of a response to it. It’s still quite a strange thing to be asked about our music.” direct in interviews and public appearances.

Often appearing as well put-together as, well, your typical university student, the band has shunned the opportunity to further their rockstar mystique.

You’d be hard-pressed to find alt-J, rounded out by guitarist/vocalist Joe Newman, keyboardist Gus Unger-Hamilton and drummer Thom Green, even in a pair of fashionable skinny jeans. They’re more drab sweater and khakis, if anything. This is a band defined by their reluctance to be embraced and subsequently swallowed whole by the music media and industry.

“I personally have issues with glamour,” says Sainsbury. It’s a notion that has deep roots in the band’s initially low expectations for An Awesome Wave.

“I guess I was uncomfortable, in a very naïve way,” Sainsbury continues, “because we put out the record and didn’t expect much of a response to it. It’s still quite a strange thing to be asked about our music and to be stopped on the street by our fans, but it’s certainly important to interact with them.

“It’s important to make sure that your fans know you’re not in any way elevated above them. People have this impression of you as a person just through hearing your record and that can be very weird.”

As the band attempts to find a balance between the life they led as shy, artisticallyinclined students at Leeds University (UngerHamilton studied English Literature while the other three studied Fine Arts) and their new life as increasingly recognisable celebrities, another pertinent demand is creeping up.

And it’s one that may very well have the most distinguishable impact on their future in the music business.

It’s only been a year since the release of An Awesome Wave, but the band is already being pressured to quickly release a followup. “I wouldn’t be tempted to go in and bang out another record,” he says. The dreaded sophomore slump can make or break young bands like alt-J, and Sainsbury resists the very notion that they’ll be held hostage by standards and methods they see as antiquated.

“To put it into context, it took us four years to record An Awesome Wave, even though we were all studying at university. So to just record a quick follow-up, that’s not really how we work.”

They might have the careful and deliberate approach to recording of a band twice their age, but touring is a different matter. Their touring schedule in the last year has been relentless, with appearances at clubs, theatres and large festivals.

You might expect a young band touring the world to adopt a carefree, ‘live fast and die young’ mentality. Sainsbury notes, in his most salacious comment of the interview, that, “we drank and smoked a lot more on our past tours – we’re trying to watch out for that,” adding that, “…exercise is really essential as well.”

Exercise? This is what a man in his mid-20s has to say about touring the world? It’s all part of their nose-to-the-grindstone attitude and their belief that the work itself will provide more redemption than any glamour might.

“The response that the record has had means that it is our duty to play for our fans around the world that perhaps haven’t had the chance to see us play yet. From my point of view, that’s what it’s about. We didn’t expect this kind of response,” says Sainsbury.

“It is very hard when you go out on tour to maintain a normal life, a normal schedule and try and be a normal person. We’ve had some incredible times, though it did take us a very long time to get comfortable playing live.

We spent a lot of time before this playing and writing alone.”

So don’t expect alt-J to be playing rock stars when they’re out on tour, but just because they’re not throwing themselves into a cesspit of excess, that doesn’t mean they’re not having fun.

“It’s important to maintain a playful attitude when making music,” Sainsbury says. “All we can ask from the songs and from each other is to have an open mind.”

With: Snakadaktal and City Calm Down Where: The Hordern Pavilion When: Wednesday July 31

BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13 :: 13

Ash Grunwald Going Large By Hugh Robertson

W

hen I interviewed Ash Grunwald for The Brag at the start of this year, he was in a reflective mood. After a hectic 2012 that saw the release of his sixth studio album, plus tours and EPs from no fewer than four side projects, he finally had some free time to reflect on the tenth anniversary of his solo career. All the different side projects were part of a conscious effort by Grunwald to spread his wings and expand his horizons, but when we spoke he seemed ready to put a stop to the scattershot approach. He was ready to get back to basics.

“You keep playing, and pushing it, and proving to yourself and your audience that you can do this, that and the other thing,” he said at the time, “And then after a while you start to think about what your unique thing is that you bring to the table, and then you start to distill it a little bit back to that essence. And then you can go off again.”

But when I spoke to him again a couple of weeks ago and reminded him of his earlier intentions, Grunwald laughed. For quite a long time. Because instead of finding his essential self, Grunwald is about to release Gargantua: the loudest, heaviest, nastiest album of his career.

To be fair to Grunwald, this album was the furthest thing from his mind when he asked Andy Strachan (drums) and Scott Owen (bass)

“I have never, ever in my life done anything this quickly. I’ve never even heard of anything being done this quickly... So it’s very strange, and very fun.”

– two-thirds of The Living End and arguably the greatest rhythm section in the country – to do a little tour together. But after they played a couple of raucous, rapturously-received gigs Grunwald started to think maybe they could record a couple of tracks together.

They recorded a cover of Gnarls Barkley’s ‘Crazy’ that got some significant airplay on commercial radio – a first for Grunwald, who has never been straightforward enough for the format – and even led to the trio being invited on to Triple M to play the track live in the studio. That night Grunwald, Strachan and Owen went to see pantomime rock gods Tenacious D, and inspired by the big, dumb fun of it all headed straight to the studio. Grunwald still seems to have a bit of whiplash at the speed of it all.

“I have never, ever in my life done anything this quickly,” says Grunwald. “I’ve never even heard of anything being done this quickly. I’ve never heard of people booking a tour, and then recording an album just before the tour, and then turning it into an album tour, which is pretty much what’s happening. So it’s all very strange, and very fun.”

On paper, Gargantua doesn’t seem like much of anything. Some mates got together to bash out a couple of new tracks, a couple of covers and new recordings of old material. But what makes it compelling is how the tracks are played, the ways in which each individual’s consummate musicianship comes to the fore, and the way partnerships form between different members of the trio at different times.

“One thing Scotty mentioned was that hearing how they play on my stuff, and what they do to it, you can hear that it’s not just Scotty as an individual and Andy as an individual – you can hear them putting some Living End into the music,” Grunwald begins. “And that’s interesting, because as a frontman it’s great to have a great bass player and a great drummer, and they make it better because they’re better.

But you don’t realise how they influence the

songs. And that’s the dynamic of a three-piece – they really play a huge role in what they do.

And Andy’s just such an exciting drummer.”

Gargantua is an album with no shortage of talking points, particularly when it comes to Grunwald’s influences – the three covers on the album are from wildly different sources (Gnarls Barkley, Howlin’ Wolf, and legendary Australian blues band Chain), and Grunwald loves the guitars and the aggression of Rage Against the Machine (“I really chalk them up as one of my non-blues influences,” he says, laughing. “But it’s really that one song [‘Killing In The Name’]!”) But undoubtedly the biggest influence on the album is the slow destruction of the Australian landscape by coal-seam mining, particularly fracking.

Grunwald has seen first-hand the extraordinary damage the industry is doing to our country – he filmed the Condamine River bubbling with methane gas, and saw the land being destroyed to build highways for CSG trucks to drive on. And so when the track ‘The Last Stand’ was knocked back by the producers of the Schwarzenegger film

he wrote it for, he had some lyrics just raring to go.

“The more direct lyrics in there are from interviews with people in that area,” Grunwald explains. “I didn’t know I would write a song about it until I got up there, but I didn’t realise how bad it was up there.

“I’m really keen that the gig not turn into a rally. I’m very passionate about it, but I just want to let people know as part of the gig, and then move on, and have a party at the gig. They didn’t come for a political rally, but I do think it’s very important that people know about it. And I think the way I’m going to do it at the show is to just ask everyone to go to YouTube and type in ‘CSG’. I think that’s all that needs to be done, and they’ll find out for themselves. It’s all there.”

What: Metro Theatre / The Cambridge, Newcastle When: Friday June 21 / Saturday June 22 And: Gargantua out Thursday June 20 through Shock

Beady Eye A Second Look By Chris Martin

“With the first record, we wanted to be able to play it live, that was the whole thing,” says Archer.

“With this one, it was just about making the music we were coming up with at that time – and if it needed a horn section, that’s what we were going to do, man.”

Oasis included, BE is Archer’s fifth record alongside Liam Gallagher and former Ride guitarist Bell. He credits producer Dave Sitek (“He just lives between the speakers; he’s all about the job at hand – I don’t think he even sleeps”) with successfully directing the band’s energies on the new album. But in truth, the remaining members of Oasis were only ever going to do one thing after Noel walked out – the same thing they’d been doing for all those years beforehand.

“There was never any thought about splitting up, not at all,” says Archer. “It was sort of an unspoken thing… Music’s not done for any of us.

Suddenly you’ve got to write a whole bunch of new tunes and come up with a new name, but it’s still music, it’s coming from inside you, played with your mates. Oasis was a big part of my life – like all of us – but things can’t go on forever… This is life, and you’ve just got to move, you’ve gotta keep going, man.”

For what it’s worth, Archer remains frustrated with the mainstream media accounts of Oasis’s split; all that coverage of the Gallagher brothers’ supposed bickering. “They’re going to be asked about stuff, and those guys never hold back – they’ve always told exactly what was on their mind that day,” says Archer. “Those guys are just telling it how it is, but it’s how it’s put, how it’s framed… I know what went on [between Liam and Noel].”

“You sure it wasn’t Morning Glory?” laughs exOasis and current Beady Eye guitarist Gem Archer.

He’s witnessed the rumour mill churning so many 14 :: BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13

times before that everything gets muddied in the mix. “That’s all I’ve heard. Look, man, if it happens, it’d be monumental. But if it didn’t happen, that’s cool too. At the minute – well, 2014, if that’s what you’re about – we’re pretty busy.”

Busy, for Beady Eye, means the release of their second record, BE – and a run of live dates that will carry them right into an Australian tour in the summer, Archer reveals. The group spawned

from Oasis’s ashes – Noel Gallagher departed on acrimonious terms in 2009, leaving brother Liam to continue under the new name alongside Archer, Andy Bell and Chris Sharrock – and after the limited success of 2011’s Different Gear, Still Speeding, the band is taking itself in a new direction this time around. The opening bars of ‘Flick of the Finger’ are coloured with blasting horns – the familiar and much-loved wall of guitar sound nowhere to be seen.

What: BE is out now through Sony

Xxx photo by Xxxx

S

ome old bands will never shake off talk of their supposed reunion. Oasis is one of them. Next year will mark the 20-year anniversary of the Britpop legends’ debut album, and rumours are swelling yet again of a comeback in celebration of Definitely Maybe.

And despite all those outrageous quotes that get Liam the headlines – only last month, The Sun reported him mouthing off at Daft Punk – Archer wouldn’t have it any different. “Liam is Liam, and there should be more people like him. I think people can relate to [him], whether it’s some geezer who’s fucked off with his job and he wants to have a mega weekend, or it’s some kid who’s coming up learning the guitar who just thinks, ‘Well, that geezer is playing on his own terms.’

That’s what it should be, man.”

The Break Surfing Through Space By Patrick Emery t’s an interesting parallel in a way, surf and space,” muses Jim Moginie, founding member and guitarist with Midnight Oil and now guitarist with instrumental psychedelic-surf band The Break. Their first album, Church of the Open Sky, indulged the surf-rock sounds of The Atlantics, Dick Dale and Taman Shud; on its follow-up Space Farm, The Break embark on a conceptual journey through space.

“I

a really big fan of Australian music, and would always go and see bands like The Hoodoo Gurus when they were in town,” Moginie says.

“So when we heard he was coming out, we said we’d love to play with him. Just before he came out, we learnt the songs back to front. He sings so quietly, so we had to adapt, and continually watch his hand and foot. He’s an amazing musician and a wonderful man.”

“The title of the first record is the phrase surfers use to describe the perfect wave, the perfect set of conditions, and in a way the whole thing is manifesting as the surfer’s quest,” Moginie says.

“I suppose that’s in space exploration as well. It’s about man’s desire to understand who he is, and why we are here. And there’s definitely a spiritual and physical element to space exploration – the astronauts who came back were definitely touched by what they experienced.”

Moginie laughs when I ask if The Break has any songs left over from Farm, the surfrock band from which Midnight Oil originally evolved. “Nothing’s ever ruled out for this band – and even recording is often spontaneous and live.” Having spent the latter years of Midnight Oil boxed in by commercial and popular expectations, The Break has afforded Moginie and his band mates the opportunity to explore and have fun. “We’re still digging into it, and we’ve only just scratched the surface,” Moginie says. “It’s unimaginably great! We’re just having a lot of fun.”

The Break formed in the aftermath of the breakup of Midnight Oil, when lead singer Peter Garrett decided to pursue a long promised career in politics. Moginie, drummer Rob Hirst and guitarist Martin Rotsey contemplated briefly recruiting a surrogate singer, before realising the inherent risk in such a career move.

Where: The Standard When: Saturday June 22 And: Space Farm out now through Sony

“We realised we couldn’t have called ourselves Midnight Oil without Peter,” Moginie says. “We’d have had a future of going around the traps with a new singer who was under the weight of expectation, and we feared we’d become a club act doing agitprop ‘80s rock,” he laughs.

With former Violent Femmes bass player Brian Ritchie rounding out the line-up, The Break took as its initial inspiration the surf sounds of the band members’ youth on the northern Sydney beaches of the ‘60s and ‘70s. On Space Farm, The Break return to another iconic childhood experience, the space race of the 1960s.

“Nothing’s ever ruled out for this band...

We’ve only just scratched the surface” “It was a really innocent time,” Moginie says.

“You started to be able to see the Earth from space, and people could see what was being done to the planet, so it was the beginning of the environmental movement as well,” he says.

And it isn’t just the science of the space era that interests Moginie. “You had pop culture like Barbarella, and I loved watching Lost in Space as well,” he says. “And there was also a sense we could solve all of our problems by going into space!” Moginie laughs.

The Break’s lineup now includes former Hunters & Collectors trumpet player (and sometime X auxiliary member) Jack Howard. Howard, a longtime acquaintance of Midnight Oil, had previously joined The Break on stage during its Melbourne shows; an ad hoc decision to bring Howard into the studio to record a few songs turned into a permanent recruitment.

“We’d get Jack on stage when we were in Melbourne, and he’d instantly play something great,” Moginie says. “So when we were recording the album, we flew him up, and he was perfect straight away. He’d have these great melodies, which would actually enable Martin and I to play less. And by the end of the day we couldn’t think of the songs being played in any other way.”

Howard’s presence on the record, however, isn’t as surprising as that of legendary English crooner Engelbert Humperdink, who contributes vocals to a cover of ‘10 Guitars’. “That all happened through Brian [Ritchie],” Moginie explains. “Brian’s wife is a huge fan, and they managed to get backstage when Engelbert played in Melbourne, and got to talking with him. I don’t think people always realise just how big a star Engelbert is around the world, and 10 Guitars was a huge hit in New Zealand.”

Xxx photo by JXxx Xxxx

Ritchie took the opportunity of his backstage meeting to float the possibility of a re-make of the track. “Usually backstage promises aren’t followed up – it’s where most of the bullshit goes on,” Moginie laughs. “But within a week we’d thrown down a track and sent it off to him – and it came back almost straight away with a vocal track. And we thought ‘wow, what a voice!’”

The Break road-tested the songs from the new record earlier this year while touring with Sixto Rodriguez, the enigmatic ‘60s folk-rock singer.

Moginie, Hirst and Rotsey had met Rodriguez originally when he toured Australia in the early 1980s. “We already had a relationship with him from when we shared a stage with him years ago, so when the Oils would tour in the US, we’d always invite him along to our shows when we were playing in Detroit. He’d always come along – he’s BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13 :: 15

MONO Singular Sounds By Krissi Weiss

O

ur beloved music venues are enjoying a rare wash of Japanese instrumental art rock at the moment, with Boris and now MONO gracing our shores. That strange place where shoegaze meets contemporary classical music is the sonic space MONO call home, and with over a decade on the radar and a load of releases, MONO have somehow managed to take their unique sound beyond the confines of a niche market and onto the playlists of many a rock lover. Somehow, their visually pristine and melodically challenging approach to music has enabled them to be as comfortable performing in a dive bar as they are in an art gallery.

Miles Kane Keeping it Real By Alasdair Duncan

M

iles Kane may have risen to prominence as frontman of The Rascals and one half of The Last Shadow Puppets, alongside his mate and frequent collaborator Alex Turner, but the sharply-dressed singer has since built a successful solo career.

This month sees the release of his second album. Don’t Forget Who You Are is another collection of impeccably turned-out indie rock, with mod and garage rock nipping at its heels. Kane says that he just wanted to make something fun. “I wanted to make a record for a Saturday night,” he says, “something for you to chuck on when you’re having a few drinks before you go out, to get you in the mood.

Something like (What’s The Story) Morning Glory? that will just lift you right up.”

Kane has worked with various bands before, not least The Last Shadow Puppets, so I ask if going solo makes for a lonelier time in the studio. He insists that this isn’t the case. “I’m very fortunate, because I’ve worked with some great people on this record,” he says, “and I

When picking an image for the record’s cover, Kane wanted something that would truly resonate with the title Don’t Forget Who You Are. A photograph of him standing in front of his mum’s butcher shop in Liverpool seemed like the perfect pic. “I used to work there as a kid, on the holidays,” he says with a laugh. “It used to be my nan’s, and now it’s my mum’s. I remember seeing old pictures of George Best – he’d go home to the old council estate in a fur coat. I like the contrast there, looking sharp in that setting, and I wanted something that told a similar story.”

“There was a time when touring internationally and surviving on only music was just a dream,” Goto says. “So we are very grateful to still be together and making music now. For any band or artist, I think we should appreciate the entire career, not just the peak, but also the struggle and the steady rise.”

Change and evolution, however, are the two things that sustain a band once they have obtained a level of success. “I think we’ve learned and grown as human beings with each album,” he says. “With every experiment, we learn something new about the music we’re trying to share. The main change is that our vision is clearer now, and we’ve met many wonderful people who support our journey. This has enabled us to create more, tour more, and release more.

We have learned how to follow our joy.”

With MONO creating such a unique style of music, they have faced the double-edged sword of their own creation. Yes, they do something unique and while they’re not the only ones out there doing it, they’re certainly not just another rock band.

“When we first started playing overseas, things like social media weren’t as prevalent so we found all of our fans by word of mouth,” he says. “Looking back, it’s incredible to think that our music travelled this way. In that sense, we’re very thankful that our music has been so openly received by those who feel a connection to it. It is challenging for musicians and artists who have chosen a non-conventional path, but the support we receive from our audiences makes it all worth it.

“I think music - amongst many other art forms - is a bridge that allows people to connect.

We’re all in a room sharing the energy of a song, and in that space we remember that all humans derive from the same source,” Goto says. “Narratives and concepts may contribute to a record, but I believe music has a sort of transcendence that can be felt, but not explained. Music transcends cultural definitions.”

When: Thursday June 27 Where: The Hi-Fi

Needless to say, the shoot proved to be an eventful one. “The shop is in the market in Liverpool,” Kane explains. “We went there quite early in the morning, so there weren’t too many people around, but it’s still a very busy place.”

There were lots of old women there, getting their morning shop done, and Kane’s photo shoot proved quite a hit with them. “They were fussing over me a bit, making a big deal,” he says. “It was fun. They were loving it.” Having your cheeks pinched by blue-haired grannies as they ponder the perfect cut of meat – being a rock star is a difficult business, but someone has to do it.

Miles Kane photo by Mark Cant

The songs have a very raw and immediate feel to them, and Kane says that this is an attempt to capture the energy and excitement of his live show. “We did the bass drums and rhythm guitar live, then I did all the vocals and extra guitars on top,” he explains. “When you play live, every song gets kicked up into the next gear, because you have that sense of urgency.” Jack White is known for taking a similar approach, and Kane says that he was a big influence. “I love the sound of Jack White’s records, and I went and saw him every time he played in London last year. I wanted something that sounded like one of his – something that keeps the energy and excitement up the whole time.”

have a great band that I’ll be touring with. I’ve never felt as happy in my whole life. I’m just so happy with the music I’m making. I really enjoy being on my own – not in a loner way, because I’ve worked with great people, and I really enjoy bouncing off them and hearing their ideas. I like to be free to do that if I want, or not do that if I want, you know?”

Lead guitarist Takaakira Goto is in a café enjoying a short break between rehearsals for their upcoming tour while he answers some questions for Brag. From the outside, when the audience reads about a band, it always seems like the band has enjoyed overnight success with a steady journey to greater and greater things, but that isn’t always true. Anyone’s life looks concise on paper. It has been said that a good artistic career is built from a thousand tiny achievements, and that is exactly the journey MONO has enjoyed.

Given the free-flowing and emotionally charged nature of MONO’s music, it’s difficult to imagine them tediously working on a part and struggling through the pragmatic side of music making.

“We try to allow the process to be more intuitive and instinctive, and minimise the practical elements of song writing,” he says. “I think we know in our gut if something isn’t working, so we don’t dwell on it and just move on. As for recording, we try to be as prepared as possible, mainly because we record overseas and are on a strict time constraint. We also try to sustain the energy of our live show during recording as much as possible. Usually it will be the first or second take that we’ll use for the record, so this makes the process more enjoyable and smooth.”

What: Don’t Forget Who You Are out now through Sony

Frankie & the Heartstrings The Hard Way By Chloe Papas

A

The group worked with esteemed producer and ex-Suede guitarist Bernard Butler on the record, a move that Francis is happy with.

“Bernard’s very driven to succeed, and his professionalism is incredible. For the first time ever I was shown singing techniques, so I’m very proud of my voice on the record.” The band travelled between Butler’s studio and their own in different parts of England, visiting pubs along the way. “It’s really weird you know, when you’re sitting with Bernard Butler in your local pub doing a pub quiz – it’s totally surreal.”

fter hearing the news that the UK’s biggest record store chain, HMV, was shutting down on the same day that they finished up their sophomore record, UK indie rock quintet Frankie & the Heartstrings made the only logical decision – to open up their own record store.

“We’d just spent a year and a half making this record and now there’s nowhere to sell it,” says singer and band namesake Frankie Francis. “So we were like, ‘well, why don’t we make our own record store? Yeah, that sounds like a stupid idea, let’s do that.’ So naively we’ve gone into this, full speed ahead. In a time when record stores are closing down, we’re opening one up.

Typical.”

It seems like that’s just how the Sunderland indie rockers do things – throughout the conversation, Brag learns that they have also booked their upcoming album tour during the opening week of the record store, and that they’ll be somehow running the store themselves – while travelling around the world. “We’re doing this properly, so we’ve only got ourselves to blame if it goes titsup,” Francis deadpans in his Northern English accent.

Frankie & the Heartstrings released their second album, The Days Run Away, at the end of last

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month. “I’m incredibly proud of this record,” begins Francis. “It’s been a bit of a labour of love because we had a lot of time off to make it and we’ve never had that much time off before.”

Listening to the record, it’s difficult not to notice the evident frustration projected throughout.

Francis confirms that aiming for perfection made

creating the record a difficult process. “There’s a song on it called ‘Nothing Our Way’. It’s kind of an amalgamation of the feelings of frustration at trying to do your best, but at times feeling like you’ve got nothing left. When you’ve got so much time to do something, it’s hard not to over-think it, it’s hard not to throw the kitchen sink at it,” he explains.

Frankie & the Heartstrings will be juggling touring and running their store over the next few months, and Francis tells Brag that they’re likely to head our way towards the end of the year. Above all, the band is pumped to get out on the road after a year of knuckling down. “It’s what we do best, I think we’re one of the best live bands you’ll see. We put everything into it and I think that’s the way bands should be – but a lot of bands aren’t, you know, they’re too concerned about looking down to see if they’ve got the right shoes on.”

What: The Days Run Away out now on Pop Sex Ltd/Warner

WHERE: 99 MOUNT STREET NORTH SYDNEY PHONE: 02 9922 4278 EMAIL: CONTACT@RAFFLES.EDU. AU MARKETING EMAIL (FOR ALL STUDENT ENQUIRIES): ROBERT@ RAFFLES.EDU.AU WEB: RAFFLES.EDU.AU

MID-YEAR

EDUCATON SPECIAL 2013

Intakes for 2013: Raffles have four intakes per year, for your study convenience. Each term is nine weeks. There are four terms or two semesters (of 16 weeks) per academic calendar year.

Course Start dates: Term 1/Sem 1: February 11 – April 12 Term 2/Sem 1: April 29 – June 28 Term 3/ Sem 2: July 22 – Sept 20 Term 4/ Sem 2: Oct 7 – Dec 6 Courses on offer: Vocational Courses – Bachelor Degrees – Master Degrees.

• • • • • • • •

W

hat are you doing with your life? I mean, what are you actually doing? Does it make you happy? Are you satisfied when you wake up in the morning and go to sleep at night? Or do you dream of the career and lifestyle that could have been – the creative, fulfilling, rich-in-social-capital job that you keep putting off.

• • • • • • • • •

Art and Design (Cert II and Cert IV) Fashion Design (Diplomas and BDes) Fashion Marketing (BDes) Graphic Design (BDes) Interior Design (BDes) Animation (BA/VisComm) Games Design (BA/VisComm) New Media and Digital Film (BA/VisComm) Multimedia Design (BA/VisComm) Photography (BA/VisComm) Accountancy (BAcc) [CPA Accredited] Design Management (BComm) Finance (BCFin) Hospitality (BCHosp) Management (BCMgt) Marketing (BCM) Tourism (BCTourism)

DESIGN & COMMERCE

R AFFLES COLLEGE OF DESIGN & COMMERCE

What you’ll learn: Raffles degrees are both theoretical and technical in content, so that any theory you are learning can be applied in parallel formation in a practical way: applying concepts to the real world, and being able to experiment and workshop both manually and digitally. All students are exposed to the broad theories in their chosen discipline, and will sit in classrooms along with other students from other disciplines, in order to expose the learner to a multiplicity of design or commerce fields of enquiry.

When it comes to the practical sessions, however, you will never have more than 12 or 15 students in your group, so that you can apply the theory you have learned in a more intimate setting, always with close attention by your tutor or lecturer.

Why you should enrol: In a world of fast-paced learning and with an overwhelming set of choices in the marketplace, Raffles offers a refreshing face-to-face learning environment, where industry professionals are there to guide you through your course. Each discipline is located on its own floor, so the atmosphere, while encouraging critical thinking and scholarly excellence, is also friendly and “boutique”, offering a creative and friendly hub for those students who may be deterred by the super-sized intimidating campuses of the sandstone universities and larger colleges.

What else you need to know: You are welcome at any time to make an appointment with Robert De Giovanni or Jaimi Walker at Raffles Marketing to have your own personal tour of the campus, and an informal, friendly chat with the teachers so that you can ask specific questions about your chosen discipline.

Well quit your moaning and go DO IT. Get the training you need and get cracking. There are more than enough specialised educational institutions in Sydney to get the training you need in any career, no matter how niche.

ABLE TON LIVESCHOOL The Many Moods of Touch Sensitive’s ‘Pizza Guy’ Words by Yama Indra and Adam Maggs.

Ableton Liveschool trainer Michael Di Francesco (Van She, Touch Sensitive) has many projects and, equally, many talents.

His latest Touch Sensitive track ‘Pizza Guy’ is in G Major but has an intriguing mood, so we picked his brain on the music theory behind this.

Michael: “The whole track is based on one simple idea, the arpeggiated chord repeats throughout, while the bass line moves around under it.”

MUSIC

We’ve profiled a few with mid-year intakes here – go right ahead and dig in.

On the circle of 5ths, G Major is next to C Major, which means that these two scales share all but one note, which happens to be the F# (or F if in C Major). So while ‘Pizza Guy’ is in G Major, by avoiding the F# note it’s implied that the track could possibly be in C Major. This technique is known in music theory jargon as ‘ghosting’ and gives the track a feeling of it playing in two keys at once. This ‘ghosting’ between G Major and C Major has been cleverly reinforced by the arpeggio focusing around the G, while the bass line focuses around the C. It’s this ‘ghosting’ technique that makes the mood of ‘Pizza Guy’ feel so unique.

In an ‘arpeggio’ the notes of a chord are played back one at a time rather than all at once, implying the presence of the chord. Michael’s arpeggio begins the track and is G-E-G-D-G-E-G-D repeated. With the G being played twice as often as the E or D, it’s reinforcing the home note (the root of G Major).

Want to try it at home? Pick two adjacent keys on the circle of fifths, for example E Major and A Major. Find the single note of difference between them (the D/D# in our example) and avoid using this note in your track. Make some elements of the track focus around the E, while others focus around the A to emphasise the ‘ghosting’ effect. Good luck!

The bass line in ‘Pizza Guy’ is E-D-C, E-B-C. The emphasis here is on the C note as it’s being played twice as often as any other (and held longer also), this emphasis makes the C note feel like a second home.

‘Touch Sensitive’ AKA Michael Di Francesco teaches and co-writes our Music Theory and Mixing and Mastering courses, as well as our Machine workshop.

Michael: “Technically the key is G major, but I avoided using the F# note which really affects the mood.”

WHAT: ABLETON LIVESCHOOL WEB: LIVESCHOOL.NET MORE: FACEBOOK.COM/ ABLETONLIVESCHOOL

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INTERNATIONAL FILM SCHOOL SYDNE Y WHERE: 27 ROSEBERY AVE, ROSEBERY PHONE: 02 9663 3789 EMAIL: INFO@IFSS.EDU.AU WEB: IFSS.EDU.AU Enrolment dates: July 22 2013 Courses on offer: Advanced Diploma of Screen and Media focusing on Screenwriting, Directing and Producing OR Cinematography.

What you’ll learn: The programs are designed to build skills and knowledge in the areas of screenwriting, directing and producing including skills in camera, lighting, editing and post-production, sound recording and sound design as well as cinematography skills in creating emotion and continuity of visual mood; how

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to advance a story, build and maintain rhythm, enhance the trace of the eye and how to bring the three dimensional world and space of action to the screen.

Why you should enrol: • Each student writes and directs five substantial short films and three minor documentary projects, preparing students to write and direct any kind of film or TV project.

• All production budgets and costs are fully funded by IFSS, with students in total control over how their budgets are spent.

• Students use in-house RED ONE® and RED EPIC® digital cinema cameras and other cutting-edge equipment and facilities.

• Students experience continuous one-onone mentoring and intensive script consultancies provided by quality teaching staff with extensive industry knowledge, with class sizes capped at 24 students.

AUSTR ALIAN INSTITUTE OF MUSIC Enrolment dates: Trimester 1 – January; Trimester 2 – May; Trimester 3 – September.

Courses on offer: Bachelor and Diploma of Music in Audio; Composition and Music Production; Contemporary Performance; Arts Management; Classical Performance; and Music Theatre.

Bachelor of Performance – Dramatic Arts.

Bachelor of Entertainment Management.

AIM High School (Year 11 and 12).

Graduate Studies including Graduate Diploma of Education.

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SYDNEY CAMPUS WHERE: SYDNEY: 1-51 FOVEAUX ST, SURRY HILLS PHONE: 02 9219 5444 WEB: AIM.EDU.AU What you’ll learn: You will gain a variety of relevant skills to help you create and build a successful career in the music and entertainment industry.

Why you should enrol: Learn from industry experts in a diverse and creative environment alongside like-minded and inspiring people including musicians, actors, producers, directors, songwriters, managers, engineers and composers.

What else you need to know: AIM will be opening in Melbourne January 2014. Visit aim.edu.au for more information.

BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13 :: 19

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BILLY BLUE COLLEGE OF DESIGN WHERE: LEVEL 8, 171 PACIFIC HIGHWAY, NORTH SYDNEY PHONE: 02 9492 3242 EMAIL: INFO@BILLYBLUE.EDU.AU WEB: BILLYBLUE.EDU.AU Enrolment dates: Applications are taken throughout the year for March, July and October intakes. Contact Billy Blue for dates.

AUSTR ALIAN INTERNATIONAL CONSERVATORIUM OF MUSIC (AICM) Enrolment dates: Applications open now for Semester 2, 2013 (commencing July) and Semester 1, 2014 (commencing March).

Courses on offer: Bachelor of Music (Performance) Associate Degree of Music (Performance) What you’ll learn: You’ll receive one-on-one tuition with an expert tutor in your chosen area, as well as study a broad range of practical and theory subjects including music history, ensemble performance and practice, harmony, musicianship, recording, production, song writing and improvisation.

Why you should enrol: AICM is dedicated to nurturing and developing excellence in each of its students. AICM encourages individualism and helps you to design a

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personalised study program that will enable you to make the most of your degree. As a boutique conservatorium, the personal attention and support you’ll receive from both staff and students alike is unmatched by any other institute.

What else you need to know: Applications for AICM’s ONE Scholarship competition are now open. One talented student will receive a full scholarship to study a BMus in 2014.

Submit your audition video NOW at aicm. edu.au. Entries close July 1.

WHERE: 114 VICTORIA ROAD, ROZELLE PHONE: 02 9555 1666 EMAIL: ADMIN@AICM.EDU.AU WEB: AICM.EDU.AU

Courses on offer: Bachelor of Applied Design (Communication Design) Bachelor of Applied Design (Digital Media Design) Bachelor of Applied Design (Branded Fashion) Bachelor of Applied Design (Commercial Interior) Bachelor of Applied Design (Residential Interior) What you’ll learn: At Billy Blue, no matter what the discipline, you learn to think, make and do, acquiring relevant skills, collaborating with a talented creative community and gaining practical experience with some of the design industry’s leaders along the way. You discover how to think creatively to generate great ideas and outcomes for the real world – brands, products, systems and environments that have the potential to shape how we live.

Why you should enrol: Over the past 25 years Billy Blue College of Design has grown into an inspirational space for design education. Originally founded by industry professionals, Billy Blue has produced some of Australia’s most creative and successful graduates. It is a creative hub where current practicing professionals come to teach and

collaborate with students and staff.

What else you need to know: Billy Blue also offers a Certificate III in Design Fundamentals course specifically designed to ensure you have a quality portfolio and a strong understanding of design fundamentals.

DESIGN & FASHION

MID -Y E A R E DUCAT ION SPECI A L

MUSIC C

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Billy Blue Studio Sessions Short Courses are a great way to expand your skills and increase your creative output.

tue

18 Jun

(9:00PM - 12:00AM)

wed

LV L 3 , 3 8 3 B O U R K E S T S U R RY H I L L S

thu

19

20 Jun

Jun

L I V E M U S I C , V I S U A L A R T, T H E AT R E , CO M E DY, B U R L E S Q U E & B O O Z E

(9:30PM - 12:30AM)

(9:00PM - 12:00AM)

THU 20 JUN FRI 21 JUN

fri

21 Jun

(4:30PM - 7:30PM)

(9:30PM - 1:30AM)

SATURDAY AFTERNOON

sat

22 Jun

COME IN WE’RE OPEN TIL 3AM!

(4:30PM - 7:30PM)

SATURDAY NIGHT

(9:30PM - 12:30AM)

SUNDAY AFTERNOON

sun

23 Jun

(4:30PM - 7:30PM)

SUNDAY NIGHT

(8:30PM - 12:00AM)

NGAIIRE ILUKA BRIAN CAMPEAU

SAT 22 JUN FRI 28 JUN

KIRIN J CALLINAN

SAT 29 JUN FRI 05 JUN

OBIE

TRICE

DJ SALAM WRECK AND MASTACRAFT

Coming Up 12th 13th 18th

‘THE BULLSHIT ASIDE’ SINGLE TOUR

IN JUL

MOJO JUJU THE JUNGLE GIANTS AC PRESENTS INSANE IN THE BRAIN

DON’T MISS...

WAVVES / UNKNOWN MORTAL ORCHESTRA /JUNGLE GIANTS / ROBERT DELONG / DARWIN DEEZ FACEBOOK.COM/ TH ESTANDARDSYDNEY TICKETS ON SALE NOW AT WEARETHESTANDARD.COM.AU

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arts frontline

free stuff head to: www.thebrag.com to enter

arts news... what's goin' on around town... with Lisa Omagari

five minutes WITH STREET ARTIST INDO Define street art and what it means to you?

I think in the realm of street art it is important to make the distinction between graffiti and street artists. Graffiti artists are spontaneous and random – it’s often thoughtless scribble, tags or random words. Whereas a street artist finds a venue, thinks about it, takes it home to find a solution and then comes back following a planning process and creates art that engages with the space or makes people think about the context in a new way.

I

t’s not only BRAG that has a penchant for street art. Y’all love it, we know you do.

The stencils, mash-ups, graffiti murals and found object installations we see around the Sydney traps amps up the creative culture of our streets and inspires us to reconsider the context of our metropolitan surrounds.

And with such art often comes a degree of anonymity. But not this time, for The Brag caught five with street artist INDO off the back of his successful Crateman installation atop Surry Hills small bar Black Penny for a yarn about the movement and what it means for the livelihood of cities.

Sydney vs Melbourne street art?

I think the Melbourne street art movement is definitely more progressive than Sydney. It’s fast becoming one of the world’s great street art capitals known for its unique expressions, bold colours and engaging imagery. My work draws on influences from Melbourne street artists, who work across varied disciplines

THE RIVER EATS

Where can we find your work?

Most recently, you could find my massive Crateman on the rooftop of Surry Hills small bar Black Penny. Crateman truly stopped traffic – when we first built him we saw so many people stopping on the street and leaning out of their cars to take photos!

I have also constructed a huge dice and speakers installation in the park opposite the beach in Narrabeen on Sydney’s Northern Beaches. I originally decided to paint the dice and speakers two years ago as a joke but it soon became part of the environment, and an iconic part of the suburb.

Exciting upcoming projects in the mix we should know about?

I have two street art installations coming up in collaboration with ING Direct next month. The first one is in the Sydney CBD on July 23 and the second will be in the Melbourne CBD on July 30. I am also entering the Secret Walls Live Art Battle at Oxford Art Factory in the next couple of months so keep an eye out!

More: facebook.com/indopendentartist

Justin Shoulder, The River Eats (2013)

HALO 4! DVD! WIN!

Video-cum-full-length-feature-film Halo 4 Forward Unto Dawn is a sci-fi, fantasy film lover’s delight. The film follows the plight of cadet Thomas Lasky and his fellow students at Corbulo Military Academy as they fight to restore peace to their fantastical world where peace has been shattered by a galaxy-spanning civil war.

Lasky and his fellow cadets fight for survival, only to find assistance from a mysterious ally – a mythic, armoured super solider, Master Chief. Halo 4 Forward Unto Dawn releases on Blu-ray and DVD June 19 and to celebrate we’ve five DVD copies to give away. To score yours, head to Free Shit at www.thebrag.com, sign up as a user and tell us what your ultimate space cadet name would be.

Les Illuminations

Handmade craft, dress-ups, live performance and a techno world of mirrors and estrangement – welcome to Justin Shoulder’s wild theatrical ceremony, The River Eats. Presenting at Carriageworks from July 3-13 as part of Performance Space’s Show Off season, Shoulder adopts the persona of Pinky, an overcaffeinated, attention-defi cient demon whose identity is undergoing a fantastic metamorphosis.

Want more? Get yourself in on some artist Q&A action after the performance on Friday July 5. Visit performancespace.com.au for more info.

TULLY ARNOT X ARTBAR BOLSHOI BALLET

WORKING CLASS HERO

John Lennon fans at the ready, because Anna Schwartz Gallery has just the thing for you.

From July 27 – September 28, a 25-channel video installation, Working Class Hero (A Portrait of John Lennon), will showcase 25 fans of the legendary Beatle, who have been filmed by video artist Candice Breitz while singing along to Lennon’s Plastic Ono Band album in full. The catch? The backing music has been removed so all that remains is an untrained acapella choir passionately belting out the songs. Breitz’s work is designed to explore fan culture in the context of society’s mainstream entertainment and presents audiences with a distinct portrait of Lennon by combining the different perspectives of adoring fans whose lives have been affected by his music. For more info visit annaschwartzgallery.com 22 :: BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13

THE LIGHT BOX

Huzzah! It’s here! After three years in various stages of production, Natalia Savvides’ The Light Box, a freewheeling epic linking the real tragedy of fractured family life to the bizarre world of talking birds and spoons in lab coats, lands at

JOANNA LAMB

From June 18 – July 13 Zetland gallery Sullivan + Strumpf have your art fix sorted. Joanna Lamb’s 15 Colour Series is a set of works inspired by the interior and exterior of domestic dwellings. Influenced by electronic media, advertising and graphic design, Lamb’s images foreground the refined simplicity of foundational structural forms. As the exhibition title suggests, only 15 colours are used throughout the series, carefully chosen for their contrast and tones to create spatial depth. Head to sullivanstrumpf.com for more.

107 Projects on July 10. Fusing surreal imagery, soundscape and actors’ performances, the James Dalton-directed production will lead us through a poetic landscape of light, shadow and music. For more details visit fatboydancing.com

THE COMEDY OF ERRORS

Bell Shakespeare and the State Theatre Company of South Australia have announced they will collaborate to bring the great Bard’s Comedy Of Errors to town. Directed by rising star Imara Savage, the Shakespearean classic will tour nationally and will present at the Sydney Opera House Studio from November 14 – December 7. Responsible for bringing one of the Bard’s most bawdy comedies to life are actors Nathan O’Keefe, Septimus Caton, Renato Musoline, Hazem Shammas and Elena Carapetis among others. So if a story about two constantly mistaken sets of twins is your thang, then this one’s for the diary. Check sydneyoperahouse.com soon for further details.

Chair with Neon Lamp

LES ILLUMINATIONS

What’s the best way to celebrate Benjamin Britten’s centenary? Look no further than Les Illuminations – an intimate Sydney Dance Company performance set to Britten’s romantic song cycle, which he dedicated to life partner and tenor Peter Pears. Presented at the Sydney Opera House Studio from August 28-31, Les Illuminations will have Britten enthusiasts satisfied with an impressive lineup of choreography from Rafael Bonachela, live music from members of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and the ethereal vocals of Katie Noonan. Should be one heck of a celebration, folks so get in there. sydneydancecompany.com for more info.

FREE FALL

Drum roll please… Free Fall is back for its fifth season in the Glass Cube at Oxford Art Factory from June 21 – July 13! Many a “what the?” will be uttered from the mouths of giggoers when a lineup of four artists showcase their endurance, movement and artistic process.

Curated by mixed-medium artist James Kerr, Free Fall will run on Friday and Saturday nights opening with the work of conceptual artist and much loved far out Chalk Horse founder, Oliver Watts who’ll question the connection between art and law by creating portraits of barristers right before our eyes. Thereafter the voyeuristic pleasure continues with Kerr’s Free Florist installation on June 28-19, audio-visual artist Katie Vassallo’s looping ‘selfie’ videos on July 5-6 and digital designer Jack Gillbanks’ spatial configuration THE CUBE on July 12-13. facebook.com/FreeFall.OAFCUBE for more.

Les Illuminations photo by Ellis Parrinder

Ballerinas are an enigma – Russian ballerinas even more so. And yes, you guessed it, you’ll soon be able to catch the leggy pirouetting goddesses on our home turf. They’re not actually appearing in the flesh, but we’re pretty psyched about the special screening of the Bolshoi Ballet’s performance of Romeo and Juliet at Riverside Theatres on Saturday June 29 and Sunday June 30. Featuring the orchestra and soloists of the State Academic Bolshoi Theatre of Russia alongside the Bolshoi Corps de Ballet we’re pretty sure this’ll be enough to add further allure to the already intoxicating enigma of these dancing beauties. riversideparamatta.com.au for more.

The Museum of Contemporary Art has announced artist Tully Arnot will guest curate the next MCA ARTBAR, Unreal on Friday June 28.

Tully will encourage ARTBAR attendees to delve into the speculative and visionary worlds of artists and eccentrics to explore new realities. Lineup highlights include Chris Petro and Tim Dwyer’s aural manifestations, Christine Sun Kim's silent opera, an audio tour with Gregory and Watts and a sculptural installation by Charles Dennington.

Add to this digital technologies, projections and DJs and you’re set for an unreal evening! For more information head to mca.com.au/series/ artbar

Justin Shoulder photo by Jordan Graham.tif

Romeo and Juliet

Artistic inspirations?

Pop art is a major influence on my work. I like the strong, bold imagery – it captures people’s attention! I am a particularly big fan of Andy Warhol’s work. I could not talk of street art and influence and not mention Banksy. Banksy introduced street art into the commercial world, built up an empire through his mysterious reputation and controversial work and is now a global icon. He has really helped to make the world recognise street art as a serious art form.

from stencils and paste-ups to murals shown on the big screen. Sydney has got a long way to go if it wants to match Melbourne, especially in regards to the laws surrounding street art.

Supanova

Another year, an othe goodness as Supa r expo full of pop culture nova, Australia’s co Comic-Con, Drag on-Con, Anime Ex mbination po and more, blasts into town!

And a no-brainer when of course, the Supa-Stars are it comes to highlig hts.

Does it get much better than Carrie “Princess Leia” Fisher from Star Wars? What about David “The Hoff” Hasselhoff? Perhaps Bradley James from Merlin or are the Weasley twins, James and Oliver, from Harry Potter more your style? And then there’s the dead sexy Karl Urban who’s still up on the big screen in Star Trek Into Darkness! Supanova’s also showing off anime voice-actors like Lauren Tom from Futurama, Superman comic book artist George Pérez and fantasy-writing legend, Raymond E. Feist who penned Magician.

For many though, it’s simply about the colour, vibe and atmosphere of everyone having fun in a space full of fellow fans in costume. Punters can also pick up cool stuff at hundreds of stalls from exhibitors, watch the wrestling, hangout at the Nintendo booth or take part in stuff like the Anime Trivia comp. There are also competitions like the Madman National Cosplay Championships and the old school cool Australian Timezone Supanova Zachariou

By Supanova Organiser Daniel Pinball Championship!

Up For A Good Yarn

By Benjamin Cooper

Boldly Going

By Alasdair Duncan

E

T

oin Macken is used to the adoration of fans. The Irish actor portrayed Sir Gwaine on long-running series Merlin, and is constantly quizzed about the program by devotees at pop culture expos and conventions. “The fans are just really nice,” Macken says. “Far from being intense, everyone’s actually really cool and really chilled. I think a lot of the interest is generated by the show, but then they stay interested in what I say because they’re able to see how much we enjoy what we do.”

Merlin debuted in 2008 on BBC One, as the project of writers Johnny Capps, Julian Jones, Jake Michie and Julian Murphy.

The alliteratively-named quartet have since collaborated on the more contemporary series Demons, yet it is their fantastical exploration of the Arthurian legend that remains an enduring favourite: its five seasons have been broadcast in multiple languages throughout 183 countries.

Fans were in uproar when it was announced the fifth season was to be the last outing, with the final episode airing in Britain on Christmas Eve last year. Luckily Macken and other key members of the cast – including Colin Morgan (Merlin) and Tom Hopper (Sir Percival) – have made time in between acting commitments to sit down and discuss the intricacies of the program at culture conventions.

Adelaide and Brisbane were treated to visits

by Hopper last November, and this June the Englishman is joined by his fellow Knights of the Roundtable in Macken and Rupert Young (Sir Leon). As a bonus to those fans who felt aggrieved by the cancellation of Young and Macken during last year’s visits, the once and future king Bradley James (Arthur Pendragon) will join his cohort.

“So far people have been really nice to me,” Macken says, referring to his participation at pop culture events in America and Britain. “I don’t think it’s a secret that I quite like talking and having a good yarn. When you’re at that kind of a gathering people want to ask lots of questions, and I’m very happy to talk about most anything and everything.”

G IV EA W AY S

Despite the show coming to an end, the family of actors associated with it are still close. “I still live with Bradley (James),” Macken says, “and I’m actually on the way to a screening of a film I made with Tom (Hopper).” The film

All Supanova 2012 photos by Ashley Mar

Karl Urban hink of a major film franchise, from The Lord Of The Rings to the Bourne films, and it’s likely that Karl Urban is involved somewhere. The quietly-spoken New Zealander actor has established himself as a major star over the last decade.

His favourite role, however, is as the gruff doctor Bones in J.J. Abrams’ revitalised Star Trek series. “I felt I had a good handle on the character, just by virtue of the fact that I’d been a big fan of the original show. Bones is irascible, and he has a dry sense of humour, but he has a heart of gold and would do anything for his mates. That’s what makes him such a great character.”

Eoin Macken in question is Cold, Macken’s directorial effort that has just concluded the final stages of post-production.

“We’re doing a small screening in London tonight with some friends and family,” Macken says. “We did one in Dublin for my friends and family over there recently, and they’ve all responded brilliantly.” Has he found his family to be his harshest critics? “Well my mum and my sister are quite cynical, and they both loved it: If you can make your mum happy, then you must be doing something right,” Macken laughs.

Macken has just returned from filming in the desert near Albuquerque, New Mexico. He’s working on a new series for NBC called The Night Shift, which sees him teaming up with Freddy Rodriguez (Planet Terror, Six Feet Under) to portray doctors who have returned from conflict in Afghanistan. He is aware that it seems a world away from Camelot.

“Everything I’ve done has been quite different,” the Irishman says. “I do a lot of writing for film, which is quite intellectually challenging.

And then I get to enjoy myself interacting with people at conventions, and talk about some of my acting work. How could it not be enjoyable when people pay you loads of attention? How could anything be better?” he laughs.

What: Eoin Macken appears at Supanova Pop Culture Expo Where: Sydney Showground, Olympic Park When: June 21-23 More: supanova.com.au for full program

Though the new Star Trek films are multimillion dollar action blockbusters, they retain a sense of fun and playfulness.

There’s a great deal of money at stake, but Urban says that the environment on set is always relaxed and affable. “That is just part of working on a film with J.J.,” he says. “It’s a very fluid experience. He’ll come up to you in the middle of a scene and say ‘why don’t you say this instead?’ Vice versa, you feel you can do the same to him. It’s a very freeing experience, because you’re not shackled to what’s on the page. J.J.’s confident enough in his abilities and the abilities of the actors that he allows a bit of freedom. The results certainly show on screen.”

generous actor. I definitely consider him to be a mate. We’ve made two of these movies now, but I think that we haven’t yet explored the extent of the Bones-Kirk friendship onscreen to the same extent that the show did historically. It’s definitely there, you can see it, and I look forward to being able to explore it more.”

Indeed, a lot of people are very excited to see a third instalment of the new Star Trek films. With J.J. Abrams himself now splitting his time between this franchise and Disney’s new Star Wars films, there are no guarantees as to when or how it will happen, but Urban remains pretty confident that it will. “The only certainty in life is that there are no guarantees,” he laughs. That being said, the whole cast is signed on for a third film, and JJ is signed on to produce. Given the box office success of the second film, I have no doubt that a third will happen. I can’t predict the extent of J.J.’s involvement – I don’t know if he’ll be producing or directing or what, but I certainly am looking forward to seeing his Star Wars, that’s for sure.”

As for Urban’s immediate future, he is working on a futuristic TV procedural called Human, also created by Abrams. I ask if there may be a small part for him in the Star Wars universe, but he seems fairly adamant that this won’t be the cast. “I don’t think so,” he says firmly. “I don’t necessarily see the two universes crossing like that, in terms of cast members from Star Trek being in Star Wars.

Then again, that’s entirely up to J.J.. For me personally, I’m too busy for the next couple of years to work on that, anyway.”

The nascent friendship between Urban’s Bones and Chris Pine’s Captain Kirk is one of the longrunning threads of the films. Urban enjoys their sometimes prickly interactions, but says he feels that there is still a lot more of the friendship to explore. “I really enjoy working with Chris,” he says.

“He’s a smart young guy, he’s very funny and he’s a

What: Karl Urban appears at Supanova Pop Culture Expo Where: Sydney Showground, Olympic Park When: June 21-23 More: supanova.com.au for full program

SUPANOVA! DOUBLE PASSES! WIN!

Verne Troyer (Mini-Me) at Supanova 2012

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ci-fi, anime, toys, consoles, gaming, trading cards, fantasy, comic books, entertainment technology, fan clubs, you name it! They all come together at Supanova 2013 for a three-day pop culture extravaganza from June 21-23. Super-Star appearances include Baywatch babe David Hasselhoff, Irishman Eoin Macken who plays Gwaine in BBC’s Merlin, Star Wars royalty Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), Star Trek’s Karl Urban, Harry Potter’s Weasley twins Oliver and James Phelps and more.

WIN!

Want in? We’ve got five double passes to give away!

Just head to the Free Shit section at www.thebrag. com, hit enter comp and tell us what fantasy character you most closely resemble and why.

BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13 :: 23

This Is Where We Live

[THEATRE] Escape From The Underworld By Alasdair Duncan

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riffin Theatre Company’s new production, This Is Where We Live, is a modern-day reflection on the tale of Orpheus and Eurydice. A story of two teens trapped in smalltown hell, and their attempts to break out, it is an original and surprising new Australian work.

“Everyone has their own version of hell when they’re a teenager,” director Francesca Smith tells me. “For Chloe and Chris, the central characters in this story, it’s school and family.

The play taps into those universal teenage feelings – the sense that you’re not heard, and not understood. Chloe and Chris are low on the pecking order, but they find solace in eachother as outsiders, and Vivienne Walshe’s script allows you to experience those feelings as the characters do.”

The play finds Chloe at a tumultuous time in her young life. “She’s going to a new school, her mum has a new boyfriend,” Smith explains, “so she has a lot to deal with, and she covers up her real feelings with a lot of sexual bravado.”

Chloe’s deeper struggle, however, is the fact that she can’t read, and it seems there’s nobody in her life who’s willing to be there and help out.

“Her nightmare is that she has to get up and read in front of the class, and the words just fracture in her mind,” Smith continues. “Chloe’s really in trouble, but when Chris becomes her friend, he offers her something genuine, and helps her find her imagination. It’s a story of fracture and damage but also healing.”

This Is Where We Live was the winner of last year’s Griffin Award, recognising a play that displays an authentic, inventive and contemporary Australian voice. In particular, the judges singled out playwright Vivienne Walshe’s inventive use of language and voice. “The play is like a giant theatrical poem,” Smith explains. “The speech has the rhyme and rhythm of pop music – it’s unlike anything else I’ve seen before.” For a time, Smith considered having a live band to accompany the actors, before deciding that the music in the text worked better on its own. “When we were developing the work, I toyed with the idea of getting live musicians in,” she says, “but finally, I realised that the music is already there for the actors to bring out in their words.”

After Walshe’s script won the Griffin Award, she was able to spend time developing it with Smith, as part of Griffin’s commitment to nurturing young talent. “We’ve been working on the play together since its inception,” Smith explains. “We had a period of very intense creative development where we essentially formed it together, and got it to the point where it is now. She’ll come back from the States at the end of the rehearsal process, and we’ll make any necessary nips and tucks then. I’m in contact with her, and I can call her if I think anything really needs addressing, but I think it’s in beautiful shape right now.”

This Is Where We Live

Griffin has been in the press lately as one of very few theatre companies – indeed, possibly the only one in Australia – solely devoted to the performance of new local works. The Griffin Award is just one small part of this, receiving a record 162 entries this year. Smith takes this commitment to nurturing and celebrating Australian voices very seriously. “Griffin has a proud tradition of telling these kinds of stories, from local voices,” she says. “If we as

Australians don’t celebrate our own stories and pass them on to people, there’s no voice or cultural expression for us, for what we’re living.”

What: This Is Where We Live Where: Griffin Theatre Company When: June 19 – July 13 More: griffintheatre.com.au

[DANCE] Hungry For Culture By Alasdair Duncan

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Blindscape

[THEATRE] Performing The Rubik’s Cube By Holly Orkin

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ccording to its creator Skye Gellmann, Blindscape is a Rubik’s Cube – shift one part of the dramatic theatre piece and the effect is felt in all other parts.

And the puzzle’s been shifting a long time; Blindscape is constantly evolving as the skill of the performers change and new technologies and ideas are added with each season.

Blindscape is an interactive, two man show that dislocates traditional boundaries between performer and viewer. The production comes with its own iPhone app that audiences use to affect the work as they determine the primary light source through which to view it. It started, however, as a sound game designed by Dylan Sale at Gellmann’s request back in 2005. “I first started working on it with the game programmer [of the show]. I had an idea for a sound game,” says Gellman. “We had a prototype at the Independent Game Developers Festival and people really liked it. They liked it a lot! But then we had this prototype and didn’t know what to do next – it was a new form of game so we were really careful with the way we executed it. We worked on it a bit more, but then we sort of put it on a shelf.”

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Law is a professional dancer rather than circus performer, so each time the two performers come together on stage for a new season, his skills have increased and the duo can explore where the show can go.

“Everything shifts again,” says Gellmann.

Old movements are revisited, new ones are created and, with the audience directing the light via their iPhone apps, Blindscape emerges as a constantly moving puzzle.

Blak tells stories of indigenous Australia from an urban perspective, and Page says that he was thrilled by the community’s response. “It’s a totally different kind of performance,” he says, “because the audience know the dancers, they know where their families are from, so there are really close connections.” It was less a dance performance, he says, than a rock concert. “The audience was making noise all through the performances,” he continues. “There was a lot of support. When it comes to opening night, there are reviewers there … the dancers are aware of being judged. The energy on a community night is totally different. Hopefully the dancers can incorporate some of that into their future performances.”

The show is split into three parts, entitled Scar, Yearning and Keepers. Each deals with the urban experience in a different way – Scar features the men of the Bangarra Dance Theatre, Yearning features the women, and Keepers brings them all together. Dancer Daniel Riley McKinley choreographed Scar himself. “This will be Daniel’s second work for the company,” Page explains. “He’s interested in posing questions about what it is to be a man, when you know you’re a man. He’s inspired

by traditional aboriginal men’s business, and how initiation customs still happen in some rural communities – he’s exploring what those ideas mean to urban boys who were brought up without traditional language and customs.”

The final section of the show, Keepers, was jointly choreographed by Page and McKinley, and it proved to be a rich collaboration for the pair. “For that one, we talked about how we wanted to pay respect to our elders,” Page explains. “We wanted Keepers to be one big ceremony, and we talked about stories from up in Arnhem Land.” They talked, he says, about traditional processes – about how the land shapes the people, the people shape the language, the language shaped the songs that move people to dance. “It was really organic,” he says. “We had no script or anything like that – it was all based on heart and spirit.”

Page has been artistic director of Bangarra for more than 20 years now, and I ask what exactly has kept him vital and engaged in the process this whole time. “What keeps me excited is seeing the generations coming through, hungry for knowledge and hungry for culture,” he explains. “They want to learn and then express it through dance theatre. The medium of dance allows us to connect with our culture, and I love to be able to pass that on to future generations.

I’m an urban guy, but I’m able to go back to the country and learn and hear stories from elders who trust me and the company, the urban clan, with their stories. I’m really proud of that, and that drives me. The continuation of traditions through dance keeps me excited, and the ability to connect new generations to the past.

What: Bangarra Dance Theatre’s Blak Where: Sydney Opera House When: Until June 29 More: bangarra.com.au

“When we come back together, we never know exactly what it’s going to look like this time. When we were developing it for Next Wave, Thom, the sound designer, everyone, was in different states!” The apparent chaos of disparate artists, multi-layers of technology and interdisciplinary arts means Gellmann is constantly thinking of the big picture. Like a Rubik’s Cube, Blindscape pieces together colourful squares, moving one piece to shift the others in order to arrive at a fully realised performance.

What: Blindscape by Skye Gellman Where: PACT centre for emerging artists When: June 20-29 More: pact.net.au

Hunter Page-Lochard, Leonard Mickelo, Luke Currie-Richardson, Daniel Riley McKingley in Blak

Bangarra Blak photo by Greg Barrett

Though Gellman kept thinking of the work over the years and was continually interested in the way society’s personal devices effect one’s sense of self, he was always overwhelmed by the evolving possibilities surrounding it. So on the shelf it stayed until, while in Malaysia, Gellmann decided to apply for the Next Wave Theatre Festival and needed an idea. “Maybe I was just in the right headspace, but I’d wanted to get back to my roots in circus and game design,” says Gellmann. So he pulled Blindscape off the shelf to propose using its original interactive audio idea with a performed circus show.

When he applied for Next Wave, he didn’t have a clue what he was doing and how or who he would bring in to work with him on it, but everything fell into place with the right mix of long-time collaborators. He didn’t always let the people he was working with see the whole picture, however. “With Kieran Law, who performs with me, I didn’t tell him there was this game that I was basing the piece on,” says Gellmann. Law was kept in the dark for a few weeks because Gellmann was interested in what he could create without the knowledge of the production’s ‘game’ aspect.

hen I speak to choreographer Stephen Page, it’s a matter of hours until Bangarra Dance Theatre’s newest show Blak opens at the Sydney Opera House. He should rightfully be stressed out, but instead, he’s over the moon following a very successful preview performance the night before. “We had a Koori Night last night, which is basically a community night,” he explains. “We bring a whole lot of people together from around Sydney – people who wouldn’t normally get to experience something like this, or even go to a performance at the Opera House. It’s a great, fun thing to do for everybody – a great initiation for the cast before the mainstream audience on opening night.”

Blindscape photo by SarahWalker

Blak

Blindscape

Film & Theatre Reviews Hits and misses on the silver screen and the bareboards around town

Cate Blanchettt and Isabelle Huppert in The Maids

adaptation from Sydney Theatre Company spits you out of the theatre invigorated, exhausted and ready for a shower.

Legendary French playwright Jean Genet’s 1947 tale of unspeakable desire and rivalry, The Maids has been a long-time pet project of the monarchs of Sydney Theatre Company, with Cate Blanchett acting and Andrew Upton adapting. Always courageous in directing, STC favourite Benedict Andrews (The War of the Roses, Gross und Klein) offers up a sensuous, multi-angled staging of the loosely real-life tale of two maids, sisters Solange (French screen legend Isabelle Huppert) and Claire (Blanchett), who plan to murder their unsavoury mistress.

The Maids owes its success to Huppert and Blanchett, a pair whose onstage chemistry is brilliantly unsettling. The two successfully subvert the disconcerting reality of forbidden relations and general sadomasochism by acting like prepubescents raiding the makeup stash, playing dress ups and doing obscene things with orchids.

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THE MAIDS Until July 20 “I feel like I’ve just been trapped in a vagina for two hours.” After an erotically-

■ Theatre

CIRCUIT Until June 29 Has it ever occurred to you that running a marathon while standing in the same spot is slightly absurd? It’s only as absurd as paying to pick up a heavy object and put it down again … Then pick it up again … and put it down again. If you’re not training for Olympic gold then why do so many of us put ourselves through it?

Circuit, currently showing at the Old Fitzroy Theatre, is the new play from The Oligarchs and Sydney Independent Theatre Company. It is a hilarious satire of contemporary gym culture exposing our fascination with fitness and the psychological role it plays in society. How does it do this? Through a series of welldeveloped and brutally-funny characters.

Meet Darcy (Grace De Morgan), the derailed yoga teacher who runs her classes with cigarette in mouth and utters ramblings of her failed relationships and alcoholic tendencies. Occasionally she diverts attention away from self and tells her students to clean their sickeningly murky auras. Then there’s Kelly (Anika

charged mindfuck of a performance, audience members exhaled in the Sydney Theatre lobby, laughing off the sexual tension of The Maids like an awkward group of teenage friends who’ve just watched a porno together for funsies.

Dirty and disturbing, the complex new

Herbert) a young woman plagued by hallucinations of Jane Fonda and her own desperate attempts to reach cardio peak.

Janine (Aimee Timmins) is a co-dependent Zumba fanatic, who speaks at the speed of light and is forever waiting for her friends to turn up so that they can pay her class fees. Adam (Sean Corcoran) is a slight young gay man, who’s hoping that extra muscle mass might help him navigate the singles’ scene and Joel (Michael Drysdale) is a chameleon gym salesman, who’ll be anything you want him to be, as long as you sign the dotted line. On the treadmill, you’ll find Justin (Tom Mesker) who’s trying to overcome his heartbreak by controlling his heart rate.

Blanchett is predictably magnificent, delivering Genet’s difficult, often crass script with conversational ease (and the most elegant c-bomb drops you’ve ever heard).

The tiny yet terrifying Huppert is equally superb, expertly balancing moments of black comedy and total psycho for a powerfully disturbing performance. Stunning newcomer Elizabeth Debicki (The Great Gatsby) makes her STC debut as the formidable mistress, storming the stage like an Amazonian blonde tornado in heels.

A bold, tech-heavy adaptation, the bouquets on stage aren’t nearly sufficient to reward The Maids. After leaving the theatre, remember: be sure to tip your post-show waiter, your cab driver and most importantly, your maids. Hospitality’ll make you snap.

Shannon Connellan

■ Theatre

PHÈDRE Until June 29 Bell Shakespeare’s mission seems to have changed over the years. In the days when you’d see Romeo and Juliet with your classmates and snobbishly roll your eyes at the people who snickered when they kissed, Bell was sticking to works by the man himself.

These days, the company’s desire to bring epic classics a new life reaches further than the plays of the Bard of Avon, and not just because eventually you run out of good ones.

Phèdre, written in French by Jean Racine and translated by Ted Hughes, is one such play whose life in Australia has for reasons unknown never really taken off. This version, however, is one of the few professional productions ever staged is alive and kicking.

The weight of this epically dense, yet somehow stark text, rests almost entirely on the shoulders of the performers who navigate director Peter Evans’ heavy treatment of such a complex story with ease. Catherine McClements’ Phedre is richly human and despite the presence of the gods, McClements doesn’t self aggrandise the character. The humanity and realness of the queen is starkly apparent and for the most part the other performances contained the same balance of myth and person.

Evans’ vision to bring the work down to the detail and support the rawness of the material is a success, with an excellently realised staging concept (no spoilers!). The sound design, composed with great care by Kelly Ryall, helps to create – and destroy – the world. It is a joy to go to the theatre and have such a classic told in an accessibly way. Phedre is a truly tragic, blood stained and incest-riddled triumph.

Holly Orkin

Through their monologues, these characters reveal poignant truths about body image, insecurity and our need to feel loved and successful. If you’ve ever attempted to push the world down by doing a push-up or tried to run your way into a new relationship, Circuit is a far more pleasant way to boost your serotonin levels.

Amelia Saw

See www.thebrag.com for more arts reviews

Arts Exposed What's in our diary...

Foreshore Frolics

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June 18–26, Campbell’s Cove Sydney Harbour

Xu Hongfei

Don’t be surprised if you catch sight of some shiny, smiling ladies leap-frogging around the Harbour this week. Master Chinese sculptor Xu Hongfei is taking over the foreshore at Campbell’s Cove as part of Foreshore Frolics, an initiative of Sydney’s Sister City Guangzhou. On show will be a selection of the artist’s playful Chubby Women series – including a life-size tuba player, a flying cyclist and a skater. The man himself is running a master class for local sculptors on Saturday June 22, before the Frolics Freeze Frame competition on Sunday June 23, with prizes up for grabs for the best imitators of Xu’s sculptures. So limber up and take a wander around the foreshore. facebook.com/XuhongfeiArts for more.

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

ALBUM OF THE WEEK LAURA MARLING Once I Was An Eagle Virgin

Xxxx Traversing the visceral terrain of anger, pain and the understanding allowed by hindsight, Once I Was An Eagle is stunning.

Laura Marling writes songs with a gravitas that’s not often present in albums by 23-year-olds. For Once I Was An Eagle she worked again with prolific producer/ mixer Ethan Johns, who worked on her last two records (as well as Ryan Adams’ Heartbreaker), and album four captures her in an even more determined place. On the almost-title track she opines “I will not be a victim of romance/I will not be a victim of circumstance,” later musing, “When we were in love/ If we were/I was an eagle/And you were a dove.” The cadence and beats of the lyrics carry as much weight as the words themselves and when she sings “You asked me blind once/If I was a child once/and I said I’m really not sure,” it’s deft and damning all at once.

THE DEAD HEADS

SPLASHH

Local five-piece The Dead Heads have delivered an accomplished set of hazy psych-garage tunes, recorded, produced and mixed in their bedroom studio.

The Dead Heads wear their musical influences proudly, as the band lift heavily from The Beach Boys, Nirvana and Brian Jonestown Massacre.

‘Sonic Youth’, a spirited homage to the NYC art-rock pioneers, appropriates their seminal tune ‘Teenage Riot’ with an increased urgency in the vocals.

‘Zombie Dreaming’ could have been written by Anton Newcombe, with its blissed out, summer arvo vibe, slacker vocals and extended guitar jams all neatly packed into the feel good tune.

That’s not to say that The Dead Heads are derivative, since they’re clearly working towards constructing their own ‘sound’. Unlike many other local psychgarage groups with a lo-fi sound, their musicianship is exemplary, from the solid rhythm section, intricate, multilayered guitar and keyboard harmonies to Oscar Jeffery’s charmingly carefree vocals. However, there are moments where the group strays into psychrock meandering, such as on ‘Long Long Way’, which doesn’t really come together, despite being packed with innumerable ideas and disparate harmonies and sections.

Imbued with their lo-fi DIY sound, the record is a balance of ‘poppier’ tracks such as ‘Never Understand This’ and the infectious grunge anthem ‘When I’m Dead’, and longer, more unconventional tracks, namely the slow-burning singalong ‘Your Conversations Lack Any Substance (Whale Song).’

The title This is What’s Happening in Sydney may be tongue in cheek, but their talent for crafting beguiling psych-garage gems ensures we’ll pay further attention to The Dead Heads.

Larry Lai

There’s recently been a handful of groups (Peace, Sulk, Temples, etc.) channeling that point in the early 90s where indie bands, particularly in the UK, were making music that wasn’t quite Baggy, wasn’t quite Shoegaze and wasn’t quite Britpop, but a strange melange of the three.

London-based Splashh – comprising two Kiwis, an Aussie and a Brit – in some ways are also channeling the sounds of that musical intersection.

Their debut record Comfort is a shimmering collection of tracks drenched in sun-kissed fuzz and reverb that would have nicely fit on the release schedule of Creation Records back in 1993.

The chiming guitars and pounding beat of opener ‘Headspins’ burst in with a nonchalant cool. Singer Sasha Carlson’s nasally snarl makes him sound a little like Liam Gallagher before the white lines wreaked havoc with his voice.

‘All I Wanna Do’ is driven by ringing guitars and a heavy bass groove, while the chorus features nice keyboard embellishments. It sounds like driving with all the windows down on a bright, warm summer day with not a cloud in the sky.

The increase in volume and distortion in the chorus of ‘Feels Like You’ takes things into a darker, more sinister space. Freedom and adventure are the overarching themes of Comfort. With a list of song titles like ‘Vacation’, ‘So Young’, ‘Lemonade’ and ‘Need It’, and a sound that is blissful and vibrant, it’s easy to see where the quartet’s heads were at when making the album.

Natalie Amat

MAJICAL CLOUDZ

Comfort Breakaway Recordings

This is What’s Happening in Sydney Self-released

Marling’s songs are poems that she has said mostly arrive fully formed, and each song sounds complete. The songs ebb and fl ow, seamlessly blending into each other, a silken stream that doesn’t seem to break. As a result, the first fi ve songs of the album are an immersive 20 minutes and it’s near impossible to skip through any of it. ‘The Devil’s Resting Place’ and ‘Undine’ circle around the acoustic folk roots of her debut, but from above, with a huskier tone and even deeper depth of observation. It’s the genre-traversing details that set the album apart from most others heard this year – the subtle alt-country organ on ‘Where Can I Go?’ and electric guitar that echoes the tone of Abbey Road-era Beatles on ‘When Were You Happy?’.

Impersonator Matador Impersonator is the sophomore album from Montreal duo Majical Cloudz, a meditative record dealing with broad existential themes. Lead singer Devon Welsh self-consciously mines issues of love, death, religion and identity with a vulnerability that flourishes in Matthew Otto’s sparse, ambient-electronic arrangements.

Like a lucid drunk reflecting on their personal problems at 3am, Welsh expresses his neuroses and failings with disarming honesty. The record begins with the title track, a cold, stilted song marked by a scratchy looped sample and the self-deprecating statement, “I’m a liar I say I make music.” While the lyrics occasionally come across as wooden and overly melodramatic, Welsh’s expressive and unorthodox vocal phrasing is the driving force of the album.

There’s an unnerving openness to the music, and yet the record provides an intimate feeling, ensuring Impersonator is a headphones record that rewards undivided attention.

Welsh described Impersonator as an attempt to “communicate a lot with as little as possible,” in order “to make music that barely existed”. The simple lyrical content is reflective of this and helps express an unadulterated sincerity that creates a conversational dynamic with the listener. For instance, the repetition of everyday platitudes in ‘Silver Rings’ – “Stay with me my love” and “I don’t think about dying alone” – are backed by a haunting background of looped, echoing vocals culminating in an evocative and absorbing moodpiece.

Splashh have produced an exhilarating and self-assured debut that channels the past while also taking hold and sculpting it into their own technicolour soundscape.

Magical Cloudz’s Impersonator reaches deep into Welsh’s fractured psyche to craft a minimal yet touching record, immersing you in emotionally confronting aural landscapes.

Michael Hartt

Larry Lai

Metal & Dust Dew Process Exploding onto the musical radar via the internet seemed to be a thing of the past. It had become a mystical tale told about Lily Allen and Arctic Monkeys that lead to a flooding of the old world wide web by desperate artists vying for attention.

UK electronic/indie pop trio London Grammar have somehow reinvented true internet buzz, launching

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themselves through word of mouth and internet presence, but what separates them from every other band out there is that they are really quite awesome.

Their first single ‘Hey Now’ was smothering radio and melting hearts long before they had even secured a release for their debut EP Metal & Dust, and rightfully so. With a sound that combines the synth drive of Everything But The Girl (and, in fact, most of the early ‘90s’ pivotal trip hop artists) with simple yet infectious guitar refrains that put The xx to shame, all lead by the emotive and surprisingly mature vocals of Hannah Reid, London Grammar have set the bar high for their eventual debut album.

The Story So Far Big Village Records

Fast-flowing MC – and one quarter of muchloved Sydney hip hop collective Daily Meds – P Smurf has finally stepped out solo and if you thought you’d heard everything this quick-tongued MC has to offer, The Story So Far is here to prove you wrong.

Despite the (overly) dramatic premise, the album itself isn’t complicated. For the most part, A Quiet Darkness is understated and beautiful electronica, with each song acting as a signpost towards a grander destination. As it was with their previous album, their song-writing style remains linear (and occasionally one-dimensional), rarely veering towards unexpected directions. However, it’s this simplicity that steers the album narrative.

From the solitary piano keystrokes of ‘Carrion’ to the ethereal drones of ‘Smoke Signals’, the album feels like a journey. The balance between moments of love (‘The Beauty Surrounds’, ‘Tenderly’) and moments of loss (‘Peasants’, ‘Big Light’) on A Quiet Darkness culminate with the haunting title track. Cinematic and emotive, you can feel the white lines on the dark highway rushing under you as you listen.

The EP swings from raising laughs, dealing cheeky verses with whip crack speed about seemingly endless mishaps and maladies (‘2 Hernias’), to being heartfelt and socially conscious (‘Holdin’ It Down’) with little warning, but the elastic band effect keeps things fresh. Socially aware, but never a preacher, tracks such as ‘Lost Souls’ are testament to thoughtfully penned hip hop with an even classier delivery.

Don’t bother skipping ahead to the lead singles on A Quiet Darkness, just hit play and enjoy the ride.

While this debut offering is filled with the sun soaked, whimsical yet always sharp musings you’ve come to know and love from the versatile wordsmith, stylistically The Story So Far doesn’t push the envelope wildly, but does have the slick production values only producer P. Major can bring to a record. Rather, we’re given an introspective, cleverly articulated look into this Smurf’s world, which just about everyone can relate to – ‘Residential Aussie’ is a laugh out loud ode to the perils of share housing that’s sure to raise a few knowing chuckles.

Guest appearances by fellow Daily Meds members Mikoen and Billie Rose impart warm familiarity and their presence doesn’t blur the lines back into Daily Meds territory too heavily.

The Story So Far is a stellar first offering from one of Sydney’s most diverse MCs – if this is the story so far, you’ll be wanting to hear the rest of it pretty soon.

Marissa Demetriou

Rick Warner

This three song (plus one remix) EP will enjoy club remixes, earworm complaints and radio saturation – so let’s not hate them in six months for the fact we all couldn’t stop playing it.

Krissi Weiss

P SMURF

A Quiet Darkness [PIAS]

Chicago husband and wife duo Houses use their surroundings as their chief influence when writing for an album. Their 2010 debut All Night was recorded on a back-to-nature Hawaiian sabbatical which saw Dexter Tortoriello and Megan Messina catch the tail end of the chillwave boom with their mixture of dreamy pop and moody moments. In 2013, sun-soaked Hawaii is replaced with the desolation and stark beauty of the Interstate 10 in California.

Their sophomore effort A Quiet Darkness sees the band explore more melancholy realms as they put together a concept album based on a “husband and wife separated in the midst of a nuclear disaster and their attempt to reunite with one another before their inevitable deaths, each song taking place in different abandoned houses along the way”… yeah, really.

INDIE ALBUM OF THE WEEK LONDON GRAMMAR

HOUSES

OFFICE MIXTAPE And here are the albums that have helped BRAG HQ get through the week...

THE SMITHS - Strangeways, Here We Come BR00KLYN QUEENZ - Pu$$y Power Playli$t EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY - The Earth is Not a Cold Dead...

OASIS - (What's the Story) Morning Glory?

JAGWAR MA - Howlin

snap sn ap

my bondi riot

08:06:13 :: The Beach Road Hotel :: 71 Beach Rd, Bondi Beach 9130 7247

PICS :: TL

totally unicorn vs robotosaurus

07:06:13 :: The Standard :: 3/383 Bourke St, Darlinghurst 9331 3100

THUNDERCAT, HIATUS KAIYOTE, KIRKIS

Moving into ‘Daylight’, the recurring lyric, “Open your mind” was highly appropriate for the diverse sonic fusion of cosmic proportions that is Thundercat. We had to let go, and expect nothing.

Melbourne four-piece Kirkis prepared Oxford Art Factory for lift-off, powered by dual synthesisers, bass and drums. With incredible feel, their largely instrumental set will let your senses frolic in synthesiser wonderland. These guys gel together beautifully.

Thundercat clenched his teeth and exhibited the best ‘bass-face’ I have ever seen.

Breaking into a shredding solo, flowing seamlessly across the fret board, the set continued this way – back and forth between Thundercat, Hamm, and Pridgen – but never once did their virtuosity feel conceited; it launched the set into new territory, and ignited the energy of the room. Shifting between space-alien jazz scales and offmeasure time signatures, people were still dancing. When musicians find a groove within that chaos, it’s special. Of course, the two singles from the new album Apocalypse, ‘Heartbreaks + Setbacks’, and ‘Oh Sheit it’s X’, went off. Another new track, ‘Lotus and the Jondy’ was showcased, containing Thundercat’s most surreal lyrics yet: “Tripping through the forest / Straight tripping through the darkness / Straight up seeing goblins / No need to be frightened”. It was a treat.

Oxford Art Factory Sunday 9 June

Hiatus Kaiyote then teleported us to their future-soul home planet. Set for a European tour in July, this surreal fourpiece blends past yearnings for tribalism and 20th century flavours with lush 21st century arrangements. In a mix of futurism and nostalgia, they were the perfect acts to precede Stephen 'Thundercat' Bruner (Suicidal Tendencies, Erykah Badu) on his first headline Australian tour.

07:06:13 :: The Metro :: 624 George St, Sydney 9550 3666

killing joke

Fitting somewhere between space exploration, funk, soul, intimate free jazz, and relatable pop, there is nothing outside of Thundercat’s domain. The result is as emotional as it is technical. It was a night of incredible musicianship.

Harris Mackenzie-Boock

PICS :: HL

PICS :: TL

Stripped down to a trio, Thundercat’s live sound brings a fresh experience to his studio recordings. Accompanied by Thomas Pridgen (The Mars Volta, The Memorials) on drums and accomplished jazz pianist Dennis Hamm on keys, the live Thundercat sound extended beyond the eclectic, Flying Lotus-produced The Golden Age of the Apocalypse. Standing close enough to see the Thundercat logo tattooed on his right hand, my bones rattled every time he hit the low-B on his six-string MTD bass.

andrew stockdale

PICS :: ALN

up all night out all week . . .

08:06:13 :: The Metro :: 624 George St, Sydney 9550 3666 BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13 :: 27

snap sn ap

high highs

PICS :: TL

up all night out all week . . .

hailer

PICS :: TL

05:06:13 :: Oxford Art Factory :: 38-46 Oxford St, Darlinghurst 9332 3711

bleeding knees club

PICS :: TL

07:06:13 :: Brighton Up Bar :: Level 1/77 Oxford St, Darlinghurst 9572 6322

amy rose

PICS :: HL

milk carton kids

06:06:13 :: FBi Social :: Kings Cross Hotel 248 William St 9331 9900 28 :: BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13

PICS :: AM

07:06:13 :: Goodgod Small Club :: 53-55 Liverpool St Chinatown 8084 0587

04:06:13 :: Factory Theatre ::105 Victoria Rd Enmore 9550 3666 :: ABOUT LST NIGHT :: KATRINA S : TIM LEVY (HEAD HONCHO) ON OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER :: ASHLEY MAR :: PRUDENCE UPT NAN MAG TH AMA :: NG LEU RY CLARKE :: TIM HARRIS :: HEN

g g guide gig g

send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com

pick of the week The Preatures

SATURDAY JUNE 22 Goodgod Small Club, Chinatown

The Preatures + Special Guests 8:00pm $12 MONDAY 17 JUNE INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Frankie's World Famous House Band Frankie's Pizza, Sydney.

9:00pm. free.

Helmut Uhlmann, Huntley Mitchell, Chris Brookes, Massimo Presti, Paul Mcgowan Kellys On King, Newtown.

7:00pm. free.

Liverpool Idol - Feat: Karmic Dirt + November'S Oath + Kid Troy + The Band Of Mercanes + More Collingwood Hotel, Liverpool.

7:00pm. free.

TUESDAY 18 JUNE INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Chesher + Gavin Fitzgerald Coach & Horses Hotel, Randwick. 7:00pm. free.

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC Chris Gudu Band The Basement, Circular Quay. 8:00pm. $5.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Anthony Hughes & The International Love Experiment + Paper Crane + Andy Brown + Matt Lyons The Brass Monkey, Cronulla.

7:00pm. $10.

Ben Hazlewood + Fatai V Upstairs Beresford, Surry Hills. 8:00pm. $20.

Big Scary FBi Social, Kings Cross. 1:00pm. free.

Helmut Uhlmann, Huntley Mitchell, Chris Brookes, Massimo Presti, Paul

Mcgowan + Helmut Uhlmann + Huntley Mitchell + Chris Brookes + Massimo Presti + Paul Mcgowan The Cat & Fiddle, Balmain.

7:00pm. free.

Hey Geronimo + Strange Talk Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 8:00pm. free.

Jaybirds Scruffy Murphy's Hotel, Sydney. 11:00pm. free.

Lunchbreak Featuring Big Scary FBi Social, Kings Cross. 1:00pm. free.

Mark Travers The Orient, The Rocks.

9:00pm. free.

Movement, The Kite String Tangle + The Kite String Tangle Goodgod Small Club, Chinatown. 8:00pm. $8.

Toy Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst.

8:00pm. $40.

Vibrations - Feat: Kevin Lynn Blues Project + The Frauds + Drs Valve Bar, Tempe. 7:00pm. $15.

THURSDAY 20 JUNE INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Bearhug + Joseph Liddy & The Skeleton Horse Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst 8:00pm. $10.

Dappled Cities + Elizabeth Rose + Ali Barker The Hi-fi, Moore Park.

8:00pm. $25.

Insider, Hiddenace, Sugarsun, Double Crosses, Chris Raicevich + Insider + Hiddenace + Sugarsun + Double Crosses + Chris Raicevich King Street Brewhouse.

10:00pm. $15.

Kora Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst.

8:00pm. $35.

Montero + Early Woman + Drown Under + Circle Pit Djs + Buzz Kull Djs Goodgod Small Club, Chinatown. 8:00pm. $12.

Smash It Up - Feat: The Love You Rights + Godswounds + Toydeath + Simo Soo FBi Social, Kings Cross.

8:00pm. $10.

ACOUSTIC/ COUNTRY/BLUES/ FOLK

Andrew Denniston And Guests Red Lion Hotel, 7:00pm. free.

Peach Montgomery, Beck Fielding And Guests + Peach Montgomery + Beck Fielding And Guests Forest Lodge Hotel, Forest Lodge. 7:30pm. free.

FRIDAY 21 JUNE JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Yuki & John - Feat: Yuki Kumagai + John Mackie + Tony Burkys Well Co. Cafe And Wine Bar, Leichhardt. 8:00pm. free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS Black Springs + Dead Radio + Psychlops Eyepatch + Velvet Cave DJs

Bearhug Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst, Sydney.

8:00pm. $5.

Boris Manning Bar, Camperdown.

8:00pm. $51.

Ella Hooper + Maples + Serpent & The Swan Djs Goodgod Small Club, Chinatown. 8:00pm. $15.

FBi And Broken Stone Present (All Our Friends) - Feat: Big Scary + StepPanther + Palms + Bloods + Caitlin Park + Melodie Nelson + Magnetic Heads + Sister Jane + Catcall (Dj Set) Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst.

8:00pm. $15.

James Parrino, Reckless + James Parrino + Reckless Coach & Horses Hotel, Randwick. 4:30pm. free.

La Bastard + La Bastard + The Dunhill Blues + Bang!

Bang! Rock 'N' Roll The Square, Haymarket.

8:00pm. $10.

SATURDAY 22 JUNE JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Yuki & John - Feat: Yuki Kumagai + John Mackie Well Co. Cafe And Wine Bar, Leichhardt. 7:00pm. free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Breaking Orbit + Bellusira + Guests The Annandale Hotel, Annandale. 7:45pm. $14.

Ché Godfrey, Lily Martin, Jacob Sgouros, The Burning Palms, Gone Electric And The Citizens. + Ché Godfrey + Lily Martin + Jacob Sgouros + The Burning Palms + Gone Electric And The

Citizens.

Bondi Pavilion Theatre, Bondi Beach. 7:00pm. $15.

Dave Mason Cox, Elevate + Dave Mason Cox + Elevate The Orient, The Rocks.

4:30pm. free.

East Coast Rampage Tour - Feat: I Killed The Prom Queen + House Vs Hurricane + Buried In Verona + Saviour Manning Bar, Cameprdown.

7:00pm. $35.

FBi, Rice Is Nice And Popfrenzy Present (All Our Friends) - Feat: Richard In Your Mind + Day Ravies + Unity Floors + Spod + Donny Benet + Shady Lane + Alyx Dennison (Kyu) + Straight Arrows (Djs) + Adults Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst.

8:00pm. $15.

Love Parade + Ali E + High Tails + Jep And Dep FBi Social, Kings Cross.

8:00pm. $10.

The Break The Standard, Surry Hills.

8:00pm. $25.

SUNDAY 23 JUNE INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS Moho, Beatville Boys + Moho + Beatville Boys The Orient, The Rocks.

4:30pm. free.

ACOUSTIC/ COUNTRY/BLUES/ FOLK

Blues Recovery (Russell Neal, Daniel Hopkins, Andrew Denniston) - Feat: Blues Recovery: Russell Neal + Daniel Hopkins + Andrew Denniston Evening Star Hotel, Surry Hills. 2:00pm. free.

Big Scary

Jonathon Jones The Orient, The Rocks.

9:00pm. free.

Ziggy Pop Tuesdays - Feat: The Lockhearts Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst.

8:00pm. $5.

WEDNESDAY 19 JUNE ACOUSTIC/ COUNTRY/BLUES/ FOLK

Taos, James Stewart Keene, John Chesher, Gavin Fitzgerald + Taos + James Stewart Keene + John

Kora

BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13 :: 29

gig picks up all night out all week...

TUESDAY JUNE 18

Lunchbreak Featuring Big Scary FBi Social, Kings Cross. 1:00pm. free.

Ziggy Pop Tuesdays - Feat: The Lockhearts Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst.

8:00pm. $5.

Movement, The Kite String Tangle + The Kite String Tangle Goodgod Small Club, Chinatown. 8:00pm. $8.

WEDNESDAY JUNE 19 Big Scary FBi Social, Kings Cross.

1:00pm. free.

Hey Geronimo + Strange Talk Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach.

8:00pm. free.

Hey Geronimo

Toy Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst, Sydney. 8:00pm. $40.

THURSDAY JUNE 20 Bearhug + Joseph Liddy & The Skeleton Horse Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst.

8:00pm. $10.

Dappled Cities + Elizabeth Rose + Ali Barker The Hi-fi, Moore Park.

8:00pm. $25.

Kora Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst.

8:00pm. $35.

Montero + Early Woman + Drown Under + Circle Pit DJs + Buzz Kull DJs Goodgod Small Club, Chinatown. 8:00pm. $12.

Smash It Up - Feat: The Love You Rights + Godswounds + Toydeath + Simo Soo FBi Social, Kings Cross. 8:00pm. $10.

FRIDAY JUNE 20 Black Springs + Dead Radio + Psychlops Eyepatch + Velvet Cave DJs Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst.

8:00pm. $5.

Boris Manning Bar, Camperdown.

8:00pm. $51.

Ella Hooper + Maples + Serpent & The Swan DJs Goodgod Small Club, Chinatown.

8:00pm. $15.

FBi And Broken Stone Present (All Our Friends) - Feat: Big Scary + Step-Panther + Palms + Bloods + Caitlin Park + Melodie Nelson + Magnetic Heads + Sister Jane + Catcall (DJ Set) Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst, Sydney. 8:00pm. $15.

30 :: BRAG :: 516 : 10:06:13

The Break

SATURDAY JUNE 20 Breaking Orbit + Bellusira + Guests The Annandale Hotel, Annandale.

7:45pm. $14.

FBi, Rice Is Nice And Popfrenzy Present (All Our Friends) - Feat: Richard In Your Mind + Day Ravies + Unity Floors + Spod + Donny Benet + Shady Lane + Alyx Dennison (Kyu) + Straight Arrows (Djs) + Adults Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst.

8:00pm. $15.

Love Parade + Ali E + High Tails + Jep And Dep FBi Social, Kings Cross. 8:00pm. $10.

The Break The Standard, Surry Hills. 8:00pm. $25.

Spod

brag beats

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

dance music news Mute X Roleo photo by Chris Frape

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

five things WITH

Yelawolf

ROLEO OF MUTE X ROLEO

YELAWOLF

Alabama rapper Yelawolf will play a headline show at the Metro Theatre on Tuesday July 9. Yelawolf signed to Eminem’s Shady Records and released his critically acclaimed debut album Radioactive in 2011, following it up with two collaborative EPs The Slumdon Bridge with Ed Sheeran and Psycho White with Travis Barker. Earlier this year, Yela released his Trunk Muzik Returns mixtape which featured the likes of A$AP Rocky, Raekwon and Killer Mike, and whet the listening public’s appetite for the release of his sophomore album Love Story, which is slated to drop later in the year. Yelawolf will also support Bliss N Eso when they perform at the Enmore Theatre in the first week of July.

ONE DAY SUNDAYS

Growing Up From about the age 1. of 14 I used to make beats

doing their own thing and killing it in their own way.

on my parents’ Windows 95 desktop – bad hip hop, trance/hardcore and industrial music that I thought was awesome. I would burn it to CDs and give it to my friends at school. I also played guitar and drums in punk rock bands, and used to spend heaps of time writing ironic pop songs for Britney Spears…basically just having fun making music with my friends, that’s what it’s always been about... Only now heaps of my friends are rappers.

3.

Inspirations Mostly I’m inspired 2. by local cats who make awesome beats, are real dudes and are successful for just being great at that.

Hermitude, Seekae and Ta-Ku are guys who I think deserve everything they get!

These guys who I really feel are just doing it for love; even if they weren’t popular at all I imagine they would still be

Your Group Mute X Roleo is MC Mute and I. He’s an awesome rapper and allround legendary guru-like character. We’re both part of an extended collective called Big Village with our other crews Reverse Polarities and Daily Meds respectively...

We’ve both been making music for a long time with almost the same people, but never really made music together till the end of last year when we just buckled down and finished off this EP together.

The Music You Make I’m a producer, and 4.

Mute is a rapper. I wouldn’t want to call it ‘Aus hip hop’ because that term is chat.

We’re both into all kinds of music, I remember Mute showing me a track off his mixtape that’s just a Fiona Apple song with him rapping over the top! He’s a really creative and open-minded

Xxxx

STIMMING AND CATTANEO

Hamburg producer Stimming, a linchpin of the Diynamic Music label, and Argentinian prog stalwart Hernan Cattaneo will make up an international headline doublebill at the next Garden Party at Ivy on Saturday September 21. Stimming has remixed electronic music deities such as Luomo, Sascha Funke and Nina Kraviz, while steadily releasing EPs that continue to garner critical and dancefloor accolades for their evocative house grooves.

Stimming released his third full-length album only a fortnight ago, a self-titled LP built

dude, and it’s been really easy working with him. Major influences for me in making hip hop beats would include Danny Breaks, Suff Daddy, Flying Lotus, Dilla, Exile, Coco Bryce, Dibia$e, DJ Premier, Dr. Dre, Madlib and the RZA... I enjoy a lot of other styles as well though.

Sydney hip hop collective One Day Crew have been taking over the Vic Hotel once a month on Sundays for an afternoon of beers, basketball, live graf painting from the likes of Numskull and Beastman, and ≠≠≠beat selections from resident DJs Joyride, Adit (Horrorshow) and Raph (Jackie Onassis) and guests like The Beatnuts (USA), Morgs (Thundamentals) and JayTee (Urthboy). Next Sunday June 30 they’ve got Newcastle DMC champ DJ Skoob – it’s free and you can bring your dog, what more do you want?

WORDLIFE

Wordlife, the duo comprised of two of Sydney’s more eminent DJs in Kato and Adam Bozzetto, will release their new Breakthrough / Small

Talk EP on July 1 through the Club Mod stable.

To back it up, Wordlife will embark on an east coast tour of the country, including a show on Saturday July 6 at Goodgod Small Club.

Wordlife entered the production fray a few years back with the release of their debut EP Birth, Punk, Rap, House, Life, which was released on Sydney’s Bang Gang 12 inches label replete with remixes from The Bumblebeez, Teki Latex and Anna Lunoe. They’ve since released further material, which has been reworked by The Finger Prince, Teki Latex and Maelstrom.

Their latest EP, The Breakthrough / Small Talk EP, purports to demonstrate “how house anthems should be [made]” and arrives with remixes from Berlin duo Kyodai – who refashion ‘Breakthrough’ into a “dark, seven-minute journey” – and Doc Daneeka, who reworks ‘Small Talk’.

Ladi6

Music, Right Here, Right Now 5.

It seems like every week there’s a new mega-talented young producer or MC popping up in Sydney, which is great...loads of talent is around, but it’s pretty hard for a lot of people to be heard. So everyone is kind of struggling, but that’s kinda nice because everyone in the Australian hip hop and beats scene is making records purely for the love...anything else is just a bonus round.

What: Play Spectrum with Deadbeat n Hazy, Sweat Collectors, Enkae, Juzlo and DJ Migz When: Friday June 28

on quaint details that followed on from his sophomore album, Liquorice, that dropped a few years back and was described by the folk at fabric nightclub as “a propulsive dive into the headspace of a producer whose hankering for slowed down electronic groove is unparalleled outside of producers like Nicolas Jaar.” The other headliner, Cattaneo, is no stranger to Aussie clubbers, having played many extended sets here over the years. Local DJs Robbie Lowe, Jeff Drake, Rodskeez and Leoch will be on support duties, with earlybird tickets available online for $35.

LADI6

New Zealand’s first lady of hip hop, Ladi6, will perform at Goodgod Small Club on July 26 courtesy of the Niche Productions crew. Getting her start with seminal all-girl crew Sheelahroc, Ladi6 dropped her debut solo album Time Is Not Much back in the spring of 2008, a release that was produced by Fat Freddy’s Drop’s DJ Mu and later released by UK label BBE. In 2010, Ladi6 unveiled her follow-up offering, The Liberation Of…, an effort that has gained rave ‘hometown’ reviews in the New Zealand media and collected the Taite Music Prize. Ladi6 will release her third studio album later this year, which means that those in attendance at her forthcoming shows will be among the first in the world to hear songs from her as-yet-to-betitled album, which was recorded between Studio A in Detroit, Michigan and Revolver Studios in Waiuku. The album’s lead-off single ‘Ikarus,’ produced by Parks, is out now and can be sought out online [legally of course] with the mere click of a mouse.

BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13 :: 31

dance music news

free stuff

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

HEAD TO THEBRAG.COM

speed date WITH

1.

What Do You Look For in a DJ? Someone who’s doing their own thing while still keeping it relevant.

Someone who’s engaging and interacts with the crowd. Someone who knows when to hit you with a surprise. Oh, and the music has to be top shelf too, of course!

FUNK D’VOID

2.

Keeping Busy I’ve been crazy busy lately! My debut EP The Pact just came out on Symbols Recordings. It’s the first time they’ve signed an Australian so the media storm has been pretty crazy, but I’m super stoked about it all. Other than that, I’ve

Scottish producer Lars Sandberg, who operates under the monikers Funk D’Void and (on a less frequent basis) Francois Dubois, will spin at Goldfish in King’s Cross on Saturday July 13. Sandberg has released many memorable mixes as Funk D’Void over the years on labels such as Cocoon (way back in ’04), Soma (in ’08, when Lars unveiled his offering for the now sadly defunct Sci-Fi Hi-Fi compilation series) and more recently Balance 022. Sandberg has remixed heavyweights Underworld, New Order and Kevin Saunderson, while releasing anthemic cuts such as ‘Diabla’, which conflated house and techno influences and was rinsed by the likes of Danny Howells and Sven Vath. More recently, Sandberg has collaborated with Sian and launched his own record label, Outpost, building on his status as one of the more respected and enduring figures in the club landscape.

Phil K

PACES been making edits and remixes in preparation for my tour in August. I’m going to be hitting six spots around Australia, and I’ll be performing live on an MPD. That means I’ve got stripped back versions of my songs and remixes, and then I use the MPD to play the drums and trigger samples. It takes heaps of practice because there are so many songs to memorize but it’s fun so I don’t mind. I’ve also been collabing with a few people like KLP and W1SP on some new tracks. Doing remixes for people, finishing off my next EP, plus all the gigs and production I already do with Surecut Kids. It’s been gnarly braaah! But I love it all so much, the job satisfaction is through the roof!

Best Gig Ever So far my most prestigious/ 3. awkward gig was when I supported Lunice. It was awesome because he’s a big inspiration to me so it was an honour to be playing that night,

but I was crazy sunburnt. Like the worst sunburn of my life. To the point where my whole face was scabby and peeling off, so I was really self-conscious and wore a beanie really low and kept my head down. Not ideal for someone on stage!

Current Playlist At the moment I’m all about 4.

Ta-Ku, Cashmere Cat, Kastle, and Lunice. These guys are all on fire right now! These kinds of producers who make moody future bass have really got my attention.

Your Ultimate Rider I’d like a nice bottle of 5. whisky, some XXXX Gold tins, a big platter of sushi, and a chocolate fudge cake for afterwards thanks.

Where: Chinese Laundry When: Friday August 23 And: The Pact EP out now on Symbols

DARKBEAT ANNIVERSARY

Clubbing institution Darkbeat are celebrating a decade of late, late nights filled with deep, progressive house by throwing a party at Goldfish in Kings Cross this Saturday June 22. They’re importing veteran selector Anthony Pappa and compatriot Phil K alongside Rollin Connection and Goldfish’s resident Matt Cahill, and we’ve got a pair of double passes to giveaway. For a chance to win, just flick to the interview with Anthony Pappa in this issue and tell us what mode of transport he takes to get to work.

REMI

Emerging Melbourne hip hop artist REMi has just dropped brand new free mixtape, FYG :: ACT 1. To coincide with the release, the Melbournian will embark on a run of national dates, which will include a performance at Oxford Art Factory on Friday July 19 in support of Onra. REMi is currently basking in the success of his single ‘Sangria,’ which dropped in April and has been heavily backed by triple j. FYG :: ACT 1 finds the 22-year-old exploring musical influences by collating an eclectic mix of famous jams from the likes of Gangstarr and Janet Jackson, and juxtaposing them with his own original tracks such as upcoming single ‘Saggin’, last year’s single ‘Ape’ and of course ‘Sangria,’ all of which were produced by in-house team Sensible J and Dutch. You can download the mixtape at his Bandcamp, while presale tickets to the REMi/ Onra Sydney show are currently available online.

MikeQ

HOUSE OF MINCE

Following his performance at Mardi Gras, New York Ballroom impresario MikeQ is returning down under and, together with compatriot Rizzla, will headline the next House of Mince bash at Goodgod Small Club this Saturday. MikeQ is touted as one of the leading figures in the US ballroom/vogue-house culture, appearing in Diplo’s ‘Blow Your Head’ tour video diary off the back of his acclaimed EP Fade to Mind. Rizzla, meanwhile, creates music that’s described as a composite of dance music from across the globe, melding hard house, vogue swing and Caribbean beats. But as Rizzla himself says, “It doesn’t matter where you’re drawing your influences from, as long as you’re being transparent enough to pay tribute or you’re personalising the sound so deeply that you’re not exoticising it.” The revelry commences from 11pm, with presale tickets available online.

SPACE DIMENSION CONTROLLER Jody Wisternoff

JODY WISTERNOFF

Veteran producer Jody Wisternoff will play a headline set at Chinese Laundry on Saturday June 29. Renowned for his output as part of the seminal duo Way Out West, who released four albums, Wisternoff has continued to develop his sound in the aftermath of WOW. A celebrated turntablist, Wisternoff showcases the music he loves on his monthly Frisky and Proton radio shows, while he has continued to release solo singles on labels like Ministry of Sound, Anjunadeep and Distinctive, topping Beatport charts with his track ‘Cold Drink, Hot Girl’. Support for Wisternoff will be provided by Spenda C, A-Tonez, Fingers and King Lee, with the beats commencing at 9pm.

32 :: BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13

Belfast producer Jack Hamill, AKA Space Dimension Controller, has released a new album, Toy Consumer, comprised of 15 ambient cuts that he made between 2008 and 2009. Since attending the Red Bull Music Academy in London, Hamill has released several albums on Belgian techno institution R&S Records (most recently Welcome To Mikrosector-50) and started up his own record label Basic Rhythm. Since the time when he was making the music compiled on Toy Consumer, Hamill’s sound has evolved to traverse 80s funk, cosmic disco and warm melodic techno. However, Toy Consumer is more confined in its sonic palette, offering a fascinating insight into the nascent producer’s world of “tapes and synths and Belfast

18-year-old problemz (sic).” You can stream the entire album via Soundcloud.

DARKBEAT

Renowned promotional crew and record label Darkbeat celebrates a decade in the game with an anniversary bash at Goldfish this Saturday June 22 that will feature three headliners: Anthony Pappa; Phil K; and Rollin Connection. Darkbeat founder Daniel Banko AKA Rollin Connection is responsible for nurturing the Darkbeat brand since day dot, and he’s recently completed his first commercial mix album, a triple CD collection that’s the first release on the recently launched Darkbeat Recordings. Phil K and Pappa are both veterans of the club realm who possess well-deserved lofty reputations for their DJ prowess, and have each contributed classic mixes to the Balance compilations series.

Anthony Pappa House Master By Alasdair Duncan

W

idely regarded as one of the finest underground nights in Australia, Darkbeat celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. Perennial prog tastemaker Anthony Pappa, who himself has spun at numerous Darkbeat parties over the years, will return to Australia to help them celebrate. “It means a lot to me, having worked with them over the years,” Pappa says, “I’m honoured to help them celebrate.

Darkbeat put on quality events and they have supported me as a DJ, helped me pioneer my sound.”

In honour of their anniversary, Darkbeat have released a three-disc compilation. Rollin Connection and Phil K took the second and third discs respectively, while Pappa got the perhaps-daunting task of going first. “It was an honour for me to be asked and to be involved in the project,” he says. “It always takes a lot of time and planning when putting a CD together and the track selection process is something that you do very carefully.”

Interestingly, though this is an anniversary compilation, Pappa’s disc doesn’t look back, with all new selections taking in the freshest sounds in house and dark disco. I put it to him that his focus these days seems to be on moving forward rather than nostalgia, and he agrees. “As a DJ who has been in the business for 26 years now, I’ve always focused my music and sound on moving forward.

“We talked about the idea of musically covering the 10 years with music from that time frame,” he continues, “but then the CD would have become more of a classics album, which was not exactly what we wanted to do. The CD is a celebration and a milestone achievement for Darkbeat reaching 10 years in a tough industry, mixed by three DJs that have been a part of this journey showcasing the sounds each DJ plays today.”

Xxx

A Melbourne native, Pappa relocated to London nearly two decades ago and remains there to this day. I ask how the city is treating him, and indeed, if it’s still a vital and exciting place to be a DJ. “It’s been an amazing place to me and for me over the years,” he says. “I’ve been living over there for 18 years now, and there are always cool underground parties and nights going on, but for me most of my work is spread out over the world - l always take a flight to go to work.”

Those with long memories may recall the time in 2000 when the influential DJ Magazine

“Most of my work is spread out over the world - l always take a fl ight to go to work.” crowned Pappa as one of their ‘Nu Breed’ of producers. It was a big deal, and I ask him how he reflects on it 12 years on, and indeed, how he remains vital and engaged as a DJ seeking out new tracks and sounds. “I think the reason I am still going strong is my ability as a DJ and my dedication to always perform and deliver to the crowd and make it work,” he says.

Though he was once a vinyl purist – and indeed, maintains a collection of tens of thousands of records – Pappas plays from CDs these days. Many DJs of his ilk swear off MP3s, considering them too far from the roots of DJing, but Pappas doesn’t like to be an old fuddy duddy about such things. “I don’t think MP3 is a step too far,” he says, “and I am definitely all for using modern technology, although for me, CD is the format that I choose, and I am pretty happy performing this way.”

Pappa makes it back to Australia whenever he can – most recently, to DJ at the Darkbeat anniversary parties. As always, the trip home feels like something of a victory lap for him. “The shows and crowds are always great for me in Australia,” he says, “and it’s always a pleasure for me to be back in the country performing.” The tour includes an upcoming show at Sydney’s Goldfish, and I ask what we can expect. “I’m really looking forward to playing in Sydney,” he says. “You can expect to hear tech house, progressive house and techno in my set, like Sam Paganini’s ‘Polyester’, the Pig & Dan remix of Whyt Noyz’s ‘SynthesiZe’ and Carlo Lio’s ‘A Dusty Heart’ - underground, proper ‘having it’ tunes.” Needless to say, if you’ve followed the Darkbeat parties over the years, you’re in for quite a night.

What: Darkbeat 10 Year Anniversary Tour ft. Anthony Pappa and Phil K Where: Goldfish, Kings Cross When: Saturday June 22 And: Darkbeat 10th Anniversary out now on Darkbeat Recordings BRAG :: 516 :: 10:06:13 :: 33

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

club pick of the week

Horrorshow

MikeQ

SATURDAY JUNE 22

Goodgod Small Club, Sydney

H/A\M Mike Q (USA) Rizzla (USA) $20 11pm MONDAY JUNE 17 Scruffy Murphy’s, Haymarket Mother Of A Monday DJ Smokin’ Joe free 7pm The World Bar, Kings Cross Latin & Jazz Open Mic Swim Team DJs free 7pm

TUESDAY JUNE 18 Brighton Up Bar Ziggy Pop Tuesdays Guest DJs $5 Scruffy Murphy’s, Haymarket I Love Goon Resident DJs free 7pm The Establishment, Sydney Rumba Motel Salsa DJ Willie Sabor free 8pm Trademark Hotel, Kings Cross Coyote Tuesday Resident DJs free 9pm The World Bar, Kings Cross Chu $5 7.30pm

WEDNESDAY JUNE 19 Ivy, Sydney 34 :: BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13

Salsa Resident DJs free 8pm Kit & Kaboodle, Kings Cross KIT Wednesdays Resident DJs 10pm The Lewisham Hotel Garbage 90s Night Garbage DJs free 7pm Goodgod Front Bar West Wing Trivia, free 8pm Whaat Club, Potts Point Whip It Wednesdays DJs free 9pm The World Bar, Kings Cross The Wall $5 8pm

THURSDAY JUNE 20 Bridge Hotel, Rozelle Balmain Blitz $15 7pm Exchange Hotel, Darlinghurst Hot Damn Hot Damn DJs $15-$20 8pm Goodgod Front Bar Dip Hop free 8pm Goldfish Miami Nights w/ Jay-J, Husky, Liam Sampras, Tom Kelly Free 9pm Ivy Pool Club, Sydney Pool Club Thursdays Resident DJ free 5pm Kit & Kaboodle, Kings Cross Resident DJs 10pm Sapphire Lounge, Kings Cross

Rewind Resident DJs 8pm Trademark Hotel, Kings Cross Take Over Thursday Resident DJs $10 9pm Whaat Club, Potts Point Chakra Thursdays Robust, Brizz Free 9.30pm The World Bar, Kings Cross Propaganda Gillex, DJ Moody Free for students/$10 9pm

FRIDAY JUNE 21 Annandale Hotel Horrorshow sold out 8pm Brighton Up Bar Twist & Shout 60s Dance Party free 11pm Candy’s Apartment, Darlinghurst Something Wicked DJs Robust, Prolifix, Harper, Audio Trash, Harper, Oh Dear Aydos $10-$15 8pm Chinese Laundry, Sydney Bass Mafia Xilent, Spenda C, Adam Zae, Blackmale, Celsius, Matt Ferriera, Judson 10pm Goodgod Small Club, Sydney Future Classic DJs, Ben Fester $10 11pm Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour The Guestlist $15-$25 9pm Jacksons On George,

Sydney $5 @ 5 On Fridays Resident DJs free 5pm Kit & Kaboodle, Kings Cross Fridays Resident DJs 10pm Marquee, The Star, Pyrmont Mashup Fridays The Faders $20 10pm Oatley Hotel We Luv Oatley Hotel Fridays Resident DJ free 8pm Omega Lounge, City Tattersalls Club, Sydney Unwind Fridays DJ Greg Summerfield Free 5.30pm The Soda Factory, Surry Hills Factory Fridays, 5pm Soho, Potts Point SOHO Fridays w/ Kronic, Skinny, Zannon Rocco, Fingers, Pat Ward Free (before 11pm), 9pm Spice Cellar SOFT & SLOW, Damian Hesse, Aviery Jamieson, Pink Lloyd, Dreamcatcher 12am $10 Trademark Hotel, Kings Cross TGIF Resident DJs 10pm Whaat Club, Potts Point Think Fridays DJs 8pm $10-15 The World Bar, Kings Cross MUM MUM DJs $10-$15 8pm

SATURDAY JUNE 22

5 8pm

Abercrombie Hotel, Broadway Strange Fruit free 9pm The Argyle, The Rocks Argyle Saturdays, (free before 10pm), 6pm Candy’s Apartment, Potts Point Ritual Sherlock Bones, SMS, Wrecks, Durty Mindz, Branco, Dostruction, Kinked 8pm Chinese Laundry, Sydney CRNKN (USA), Peking Duk, A-Tonez, Loose Change DJs, Pharley, Sydney Be Heard DJs, Magic Bird, Fingers, C-Bu, Ra Bazaar, Ocean 9pm Goldfish, Kings Cross Darkbeat 10 Year Anniversary Tour Anthony Pappa, Phil K, Rollin Connection 9pm Goodgod Small Club, Sydney H/A\M Mike Q (USA), Rizzla (USA) $20 11pm Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour Homemade Saturdays Resident DJs $20-$25 9pm Ivy, Sydney PACHA Sydney inthemix

Awards ft. SCNDL, Ember, Danny T $35-40 8:30pm Jacksons On George, Sydney Resident DJs free 9pm Kit & Kaboodle, Kings Cross Kitty Kitty Bang Bang Resident DJs 10pm Marquee, The Star, Pyrmont Stafford Brothers $30 10pm Sapphire Lounge, Kings Cross The Suite Resident DJs 8pm The Soda Factory, Surry Hills Soda Saturdays, 5pm Spice Cellar Spice Troopers: Murat Kilic, Robbie Lowe, Steven Sullivan, Morgan, Dean Relf $20 (Free guestlist entry before 12am), 10pm The Watershed Hotel, Darling Harbour Skybar Saturdays Resident DJ $20 9.30pm Whaat Club, Potts Point After Dark DJs $10-15 8pm

SUNDAY JUNE 23

5 8pm

34 Degrees South Deep Sundays Johnny Gleeson, Mr Wilson, Jack CRNKN

Kennedy, Jaime Vale (Red Bull DJ), Tricky free 7pm Abercrombie Hotel, Broadway S.A.S.H Sundays Monkey Tennis DJs, CO OP, Matt Trousdale That Keen, Danny Monk, Robbie Cordukes, Jake Hough, James Taylor $10 2pm The Beresford Hotel, Surry Hills Beresford Sundays Resident DJs free 3pm Crane Bar, Potts Point Dust Simon Caldwell, Hannah Gibbs, James Taylor, Cameron Cooper $10 10pm Gay Bar, Darlinghurst Resident DJ free 3pm Kit & Kaboodle, Kings Cross Easy Sundays Resident DJs free 10pm Oatley Hotel Sunday Sessions DJ Tone free 7pm Sapphire Lounge, Kings Cross Sapphire Sundays Resident DJs 8pm Spice Cellar Spice After Hours w/ Steven Sullivan, Murat Kilic and guests $20 4am The World Bar, Kings Cross Soup Kitchen The Soup Kitchen DJs free 7pm

club picks up all night out all week...

Xilent

Sundays JUNE 23

Monkey Tennis Djs CO-OP Matt Trousdale That Keen Danny Monk Robbie Cordukes Jake Hough

THURSDAY JUNE 20

SATURDAY JUNE 22

Goodgod Front Bar Dip Hop free 8pm

Chinese Laundry, Sydney CRNKN (USA), Peking Duk, A-Tonez, Loose Change DJs, Pharley, Sydney Be Heard DJs, Magic Bird, Fingers, C-Bu, Ra Bazaar, Ocean 9pm

Goldfish Miami Nights w/ Jay-J, Husky, Liam Sampras, Tom Kelly Free 9pm

FRIDAY JUNE 21 Annandale Hotel Horrorshow sold out 8pm Chinese Laundry, Sydney Bass Mafia Xilent, Spenda C, Adam Zae, Blackmale, Celsius, Matt Ferriera, Judson 10pm Goodgod Small Club, Sydney Future Classic DJs, Ben Fester $10 11pm Marquee, The Star, Pyrmont Mashup Fridays The Faders $20 10pm

Supper set

James Taylor

Goldfish, Kings Cross Darkbeat 10 Year Anniversary Tour Anthony Pappa, Phil K, Rollin Connection 9pm Spice Cellar Spice Troopers: Murat Kilic, Robbie Lowe, Steven Sullivan, Morgan, Dean Relf $20 (Free guestlist entry before 12am), 10pm

SUNDAY JUNE 23 Abercrombie Hotel, Broadway S.A.S.H Sundays Monkey Tennis DJs, CO OP, Matt Trousdale That Keen, Danny Monk, Robbie Cordukes, Jake Hough, James Taylor $10 2pm

Anthony Pappa

BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13 :: 35

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PHOTOGRAPHER : TIM LEVY

royal rumble

PICS :: HL

07:06:13 :: The Goldfish :: 111 Darlinghurst Rd Potts Point 8354 6630

09:06:13 :: Goodgod Small Club :: 53-55 Liverpool St Chinatown 8084 0587

alphamama

PICS :: TL

the goldfish

PICS :: TL

up all night out all week . . .

07:06:13 :: FBi Social :: Kings Cross Hotel 244-248 William St Potts Point 9331 9900

Enmore Theatre Thursday June 6 Walking down King St towards Enmore, I overheard a young couple: “Did you see that queue at Enmore? I can’t believe all the people out tonight – I HATE Odd Future fans.” Truth be told, despite the hype, when I rocked up to the venue the ‘out of control’ crowds I’d been warned of were nowhere to be found, and in their place was a ragtag bunch of comparatively unthreatening rap enthusiasts, many in their teens, who (in homage to their idols) were decked out in Golf Wang t-shirts, bucket hats, shorts, pull-up socks and floral print shirts.

Odd Future member Taco opened the show with a quick DJ set, pumping crowd pleasers such as Kid Cudi’s ‘Pursuit Of Happiness’ and whipping the fans up into a veritable frenzy before being joined on stage by Earl Sweatshirt, Tyler, The Creator and Jasper, who tipped things off with ‘French’ off Tyler’s Bastard mixtape.

“What’s up asshole?” taunted Tyler, with a playful tone and a smirk on his face.

“This is the part where we drink Red Bull so we can be on as fuck for you guys”.

Tyler dominated audience interactions throughout the show, mixing genuine appreciation with teasing remarks. He also fleetingly addressed the controversy surrounding his lyrical content when he sarcastically asked the audience, “so how many of you are having a bad time tonight? Like a really bad time and are going to go rape or murder someone after this?” Despite his overall facetiousness and

36 :: BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13

tongue-in-cheek demeanour, the banter took a distinct turn for the worst when Tyler launched a diatribe against an activist who was trying to revoke his visa. While I’m not easily offended and seriously doubt Tyler’s (or any of his fans’) conviction in following up said threats, it was vitriolic and unnecessary in what was an otherwise extremely fun and energetic performance.

The set list was a mix of songs from both Tyler and Earl, and included their early hits as well as tracks off Tyler’s recently released album Wolf and Earl’s forthcoming album Doris (both of which show artistic and lyrical growth). Personal highlights included Tyler’s ‘Yonkers’ (the audience chanting back the first bar) and ‘Tron Cat’, and the Earl tracks ‘Whoa, Drop’ and, of course, his breakout classic, ‘Earl’.

Throughout the entire set, their energy, commanding stage presence, flawless delivery and confidence were impossible to ignore, and surpassed many MCs twice their age. They closed with ‘Sandwiches’, at which point the boys instructed the crowd to open up a death circle. By metal standards, the circle was pretty tame, and served to illustrate that most of Odd Future’s behaviour (however attentionseeking or offensive) seems somewhat staged, self-conscious and constructed.

At the end of the day, the most genuine impression to emerge from the night was that of two young MCs with commanding stage presence, innovative beats and undeniable musicality, who are surely here to stay.

Marisa Lugosi

cali swag district

PICS :: ALN

EARLWOLF

05:06:13 :: Beach Road Hotel :: 71 Beach Rd Bondi Beach 9130 7247 :: ABOUT S : TIM LEVY (HEAD HONCHO) OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER MAR :: LEY ASH :: NAN MAG TH AMA :: LEUNG

LST NIGHT :: HENRY

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Deep Impressions

up all night out all week . . .

Underground Dance And Electronica with Chris Honnery

s.a.s.h

PICS :: HL

Ricardo Villalobos

09:06:13 :: The Abercrombie Hotel :: 100 Broadway Ultimo 9211 3486

T

Deep Impressions posterboy Ricardo Villalobos has created two remixes of Philadelphia trio Crash Course In Science’s track ‘Flying Turns’ which was originally released way back in 1981. (To put things in perspective, that’s one year before the original Tron movie was released!) This isn’t the first time Villalobos has reworked an ‘ancient’ club anthem – the Chilean has previously remixed Energy 52’s anthem ‘Cafè del Mar’ and Tangerine Dream founding member Conrad Schnitzler’s esoteric piece ‘Zug’. On his latest ‘reanimation’ Villalobos has turned his attention to a track that combines corrugated synth lines, proto-techno rhythms and vocals, which has previously been re-edited by J Rocc for a release on the Stones Throw label.

The remake/remodel of ‘Flying Turns’ was prompted Einzelkind and Frost discovering the original track; inspired, the pair compiled their own re-edit (which is also included on the remix EP) and decided to recruit Villalobos to lay down his interpretations, before bundling everything together as a remix package that’s now available on their label Pressure Traxx.

PICS :: AM

garden party

his Saturday, revered local DJ Phil Smart will take to the decks of the Abercrombie for a four hour set at the weekly free event, Strange Fruit. Since launching a little over a year ago, Strange Fruit has established a reputation among the cognoscenti for delivering some of Sydney’s finest house and techno DJs, playing free of any promotional pressure or musical brief (either explicit or implicit) to deliver a certain sound (think Crosstown Rebels’ Bubble Gum ‘deep house’, etc.). Giving the likes of Smart, Simon Caldwell and Ben Korbel carte blanche to play whatever they like on a peachy sound system is an initiative that has had, and will continue to have, a positive impact on Sydney’s clubbing scene, introducing unsuspecting and discerning technophiles alike to superior variations on sounds they will hear elsewhere. And now to move from the general to the specific attraction of this weekend’s headliner: Smart has been spinning since the 80s, playing alongside some of the foremost club acts to tour Australia – think Michael Mayer, Mano Le Tough et al – and establishing himself as a favourite amongst those who know their stuff. In addition to his DJing exploits, Smart is the co-founder of record labels Think and Thunk, which were responsible for early releases by Infusion and Pocket, and has released his own original material and remixes under various guises, including Headland, Altitude, Sprocket and Earthlink.

(This writer has fond memories of raving away as an ‘underager’ to Earthlink’s ‘Blink’ many moons ago.) In recent years, Smart has been one of the driving forces behind Burning Seed, the Australian version of Nevada’s annual Burning Man Festival, that is held annually in the Matong State Forest over five days in November. Smart has a chance to take dancers on a journey by playing an extended set this Saturday, and you’d be ill-advised not to come along for the ride.

Canadian producer Colin De La Plante, AKA The Mole, has dropped the latest EP on the fabled Perlon label, ‘History of Dates’. The Mole’s breakthrough occurred back in the sun-kissed spring of ’08, when his debut album As High As the Sky appeared on Wagon Repair.

Since then, he has toured with Mathew Jonson’s avant-garde acid techno troupe Cobblestone Jazz, and released records across a host of different labels, including Prins Thomas’ Internasjonal imprint, Ostgut Ton and now of course Zip’s canonical Perlon stable. The Mole’s forthcoming EP includes a rework of the track ‘Lockdown Party’ by Terre Thaemlitz under his DJ Sprinkles moniker. Sprinkles is an intriguing character, who moved to Japan from the US over a decade ago, and is known to explore the link between music and politics, having written and lectured extensively on gender and social issues over the years. Sprinkles has enjoyed a prolific first half of 2013, releasing a mix for Japanese label Mule Musiq, Where Dancefloors Stand Still, and a compilation of his remixes produced between 2006 and 2013 entitled Queerification And Ruins. If the combination of two of the more eccentric figures in the dance milieu being showcased on Perlon records doesn’t float your boat, then you really ought to expand your palette. As the erudite Thaemlitz has said, “many times our understandings can be greatly misguided or twisted in prejudiced ways by musical mainstreams… When you bring up music on a global scale, and the spread of certain styles, we are simultaneously conjuring and concealing issues of cultural imperialism. For me, the fact that Western pop music dominates the planet signifies something brutal and grotesque: globalisation.” I’ll curtail the anti-capitalist sociological rant there, but I dare you to tell me you’re not interested in hearing Thaemlitz’s rework of the oddball Canadian after reading that. The Mole’s History of Dates EP dropped only last week, and for those with a penchant for extraneous info, it is the 94th release on Perlon.

LOOKING DEEPER SATURDAY JUNE 22 Strange Fruit ft. Phil Smart The Abercrombie

FRIDAY JULY 5 Mark E Goodgod Small Club

SATURDAY JULY 6 Mad Racket ft. Deepchild

SATURDAY JULY 20 Juan Atkins The Basement

08:06:13 :: The Ivy :: 330 George St Sydney 9254 8100 S : TIM LEVY (HEAD HONCHO) OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER LEY MAR :: LEUNG :: AMATH MAGNAN :: ASH

:: ABOUT LST NIGHT :: HENRY

Deep Impressions: electronica manifesto and occasional club brand. Contact through deep.impressions@yahoo.com BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13 :: 37

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marquee

PICS :: AM

up all night out all week . . .

monster children

PICS :: HL

08:06:13 :: Marquee :: Star City Sydney 9657 7737

06:06:13 :: Marquee :: Star City Sydney 9657 7737

NG PHOTOGRAPHER : HENRY LEU

VIVID LIVE TERMINAL PROJEKT

Customs Hall in the Overseas Passenger Terminal Saturday June 8 Presented by the Bondi-based music agency Finely Tuned in conjunction with Vivid, Terminal Projekt was billed as a two-night extravaganza of forward-thinking underground electronic music complemented by mind-altering 3D visual projections from video artist Kit Webster. Night one kicked off in the cavernous, futuristic space of Customs Hall, where revelers got to experience a broad spectrum of divergent electronic sounds and personalities.

With the unaccustomed early start of 4pm, the first few sets showcased local DJs warming up the sound-system to an empty room. Things picked up during Simon Caldwell’s set as the venerable mainstay of the Mad Racket crew played a classy-as-ever set of deep cuts. Following on from Caldwell was Sepalcure, the UK duo of Travis Stewart, also known for his frenzied production style under the moniker Machinedrum, and Praveen Sharma (Praveen). Featuring tracks from their accomplished yet somewhat under-the-radar self-titled 2011 debut, they pleased the crowd with a nuanced live set of two-step, tribal dub and melodic house touches. Heads down, jabbing away, their sound worked a treat, creating a simultaneously brooding and dance friendly vibe.

chinese laundry

PICS :: AM

The enigmatic Jimmy Edgar then unloaded a chaotic mix, indulging in explosions of glitched-out, funked-up synths. Accompanied

by Kit Webster’s backdrop of synesthetic light sculptures, Edgar’s heavily programmed and

08:06:13 :: Chinese Laundry :: 111 Sussex St Sydney 8295 9999

38 :: BRAG :: 517 :: 17:06:13

artificial hyper-erotic sound came to life in a visually spectacular fashion. Despite this, the crowd was largely unappreciative, possibly dazed by the volatile shifts intrinsic to his production style. Having seen the Detroitbased producer play last year in an inner-city warehouse to a rapturous crowd, it’s not hard to see how the venue’s hollow and vast surrounds proved to be an overwhelming barrier.

Releasing the tension, Parisian trio dOP showed why their infectiously madcap approach to electronic music has garnered such high praise. Totally at ease, the three members oozed onto stage and immediately jumped into proceedings, providing a welcome relief for the restless crowd. Unlike the previous two artists, they conveyed a distinctly ‘human’ personality. The highlight was the effortlessly sexy ‘Kisses’, where singer JAW expressed nonchalant restraint as he crooned, “Tonight is for the love” to mellow keyboards and understated percussion.

Wavering between French house and their distinctly esoteric and ‘organic’ take on electronic music, dOP offered a Gallicflavoured denouement to part one of Terminal Projekt. Whilst the previous two artists used only digital equipment, it was affirming with dOP to see how percussion, woodwind and acoustic instruments could resonate within electronic compositions. For a night hoping to demonstrate how electronic music could push the boundaries and stimulate new ideas, it was reassuring to see that the most effective avenue to achieve this was through the human voice – especially one belonging to a confirmed hedonist.

Larry Lai

:: ABOUT S : TIM LEVY (HEAD HONCHO) OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER MAR :: LEY ASH :: NAN MAG TH AMA :: LEUNG

LST NIGHT :: HENRY

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