ISSUE NO. 571 JULY 16, 2014
FREE Now picked up at over 1,500 places across Sydney and surrounds. thebrag.com
EVERY THING SYDNEY
INSIDE BRAND NEW LOOK SAME GREAT TASTE!
This Week
ANDY BULL
Going it alone can be a tough grind.
THE 1975
Hype? What hype? These guys are the real deal.
HOWLING BELLS
The homecoming of some Sydney favourites.
RISE AGAINST
They’re back from the wilderness, and all is well.
THE PIONEERS OF DOOM
Plus
MACBETH OLIVER HUNTEMANN MUSIQ SOULCHILD
F R I 2 5 T H J U LY
+ DJ SECRTWEAPN FREE \\ 8PM :(' 5' -8/<
)5(( (175<
)9(=, *35
-9,, 74
First in NSW HSC Dance 2013
Some can’t see the pointe. We prepare you for it. Raise the bar with an HSC that allows you to perform to your strengths. Choose Bradfield Senior College. Open Day Thursday 7 August 2014 @ 4.30pm bradfieldseniorcollege.com.au t 9448 4200
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 3
SECRET SOUNDS PRESENTS
WITH SPECIAL GUEST
MAS YSA
WITH SPECIAL GUESTS
Thu 24 Jul
MONDAY 28 JULY METRO THEATRE
METRO THEATRE
METRONOMY.CO.UK
LOVE LETTERS OUT NOW
VOICES Out Now PHANTOGRAM.COM
NICHEPRODUCTIONS.COM.AU
RY X
SKY FERREIRA WITH SPECIAL GUEST
SUPPORTED BY
EVES
WITH SPECIAL GUESTS
TUE 29 JUL OXFORD ART FACTORY FRI 25 JUL // METRO THEATRE SKYFERREIRA.COM
with hauntingly beautiful single “berlin” _______________________ NIGHT TIME, MY TIME OUT NOW
ry-x.com
WITH
SPECIAL
GUESTS
WED 23 JUL GOODGOD Debut album LIMINAL out
wearetheacid.com
the HEAD and the HEART
July
4
WITH SPECIAL GUESTS
with SPECIAL GUESTS
THU 24 JULY OXFORD ART FACTORY
Sat 26 Jul Oxford Art Factory theheadandtheheart.com
SKATERSNYC.COM
TUE 29 JUL / NEWTOWN SOCIAL CLUB C I R C AWAV E S . C O M DEBUT ALBUM MANHATTAN OUT NOW
STUCK IN MY TEETH OUT NOW
FOR TICKETING INFO VISIT SECRET-SOUNDS.COM.AU
BILLIONS AUSTRALIA & DAPTONE RECORDS PRESENT
ACOUSTIC NIGHTS SIMON MELI
THU 24 JUL
AT ROCK LILY
ROCK WITH LAUGHTER CHRIS RADBURN
THU 31 JUL
AT ROCK LILY
4 – 11 – 18 – 25 –
YOGI MURRAY LAKE TARAS TELEFUNKEN
CHERRY DJ SERIES EVERY FRIDAY
FRI IN JUL
CHERRY
SOLE MIO
ONE NIGHT ONLY AT THE STAR EVENT CENTRE
80 PYRMONT ST, PYRMONT
STAR.COM.AU
WED 22 OCT
PLUS TEN-PIECE BOLLYWOOD SURF SOUL FUNK SUPERSTARS
THE BOMBAY ROYALE SAUN & STARR AND DYNAMIC DAPETTE SOUL DUO
SAT 13 SEP SYDNEY TOWN HALL ON SALE NOW www.oztix.com.au
/TheStar
@TheStarSydney
The Star practises the responsible service of alcohol. Guests must be 18 years or over to enter the Casino. Think! About your choices. Call Gambling Help 1800 858 858 www.gamblinghelp.nsw.gov.au
4 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
GIVE THE PEOPLE WHAT THEY WANT TOUR 2014
NEW SHARON JONES & THE DAP-KINGS ALBUM GIVE THE PEOPLE WHAT THEY WANT OUT NOW ON DAPTONE. NEW SAUN & STARR 45 HOT SHOT B/W GONNA MAKE TIME OUT NOW ON DAPTONE. NEW BOMBAY ROYALE ALBUM THE ISLAND OF DR ELECTRICO OUT NOW.
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 5
rock music news welcome to the frontline: the latest touring and music news...with Chris Martin and Tyson Wray
follow us:
like us:
@TheBrag
THE BRAG
editorial LOOK AT MY NEW BRAG, MA!
B
y now, dear reader, you’ll have noticed your beloved BRAG has undergone a facelift. We’ve started by rejigging the look of our cover, because times and fashions change and we want to be looking spick ‘n’ span. But more importantly, we’re in a time of great change in Sydney’s music and arts scenes, and this is our way of saying that change can be good – when it’s done for the right reasons. Over the coming weeks and months, you’ll see the BRAG continue to evolve. And not just in our print format – head to thebrag.com and our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to be kept right up to date with all that’s going on around town. Still, there are some things that are extra important to us (and hopefully you as well), and they won’t change. For one, we’ll still strive to give you the most thoughtful and in-depth coverage of music, the arts and more, wherever they’re happening around Sydney, the Central Coast and Newcastle. That means quality interviews, news and reviews – not just clickbaity lists and controversial headlines. And, as always, the BRAG is written and read in Sydney, by Sydneysiders. We intend to keep it that way.
Christopher Coleman
ART DIRECTOR: Sarah Bryant PHOTOGRAPHERS: James Ambrose, Ashwin Arumugam, Katrina Clarke, Ashley Mar
GIG & CLUB GUIDE COORDINATORS: Fergus Halliday, Nic Liney, Emily Meller - gigguide@ thebrag.com (rock); clubguide@thebrag.com (dance, hip hop & parties) AWESOME INTERNS: Amie Mulhearn, Nic Liney, Fergus Halliday REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS: Nat Amat, Ian Barr, Prudence Clarke, Keiron Costello, Marissa Demetriou, Christie Eliezer, Blake Gallagher, Chris Honnery, Lee Hutchison, Cameron James, Tegan Jones, Lachlan Kanoniuk, Emily Meller, Adam Norris, Daniel Prior, Kate Robertson, Amy Theodore, Leonardo Silvestrini, Harry Windsor, Tyson Wray, Stephanie Yip, David James Young 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: Thursday 12pm (no extensions) Artwork/ad bookings: Friday 5pm (no extensions) Ad cancellations: Tuesday 4pm Published by Furst Media P/L ACN 1112480045 All content copyrighted to Cartrage P/L / Furst Media P/L 2003-2014 DISTRIBUTION: Wanna get the BRAG? Email distribution@ furstmedia.com.au or phone 03 9428 3600 PRINTED BY SPOTPRESS: www.spotpress.com.au 24 – 26 Lilian Fowler Place, Marrickville NSW 2204
6 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
AMERICAN AUTHORS
American Authors
Brooklyn alt-rockers American Authors are headed back to Australia for another run of dates this September. Earlier this year the four-piece was in Sydney to play an intimate promo show for debut album Oh, What A Life. They’ve made a splash thanks to single ‘Best Day Of My Life’ and its appearance on Glee, which as we all know is a pretty solid barometer of what the kids are into these days – that Fleetwood Mac special had tween girls wearing flowers in their hair for months. American Authors play the Metro Theatre on Sunday September 21. Frontier Touring members can access a presale from 2pm Thursday July 17, while general public tickets go on sale 10am Tuesday July 22.
MANAGING EDITOR: Chris Martin chris@thebrag.com 02 9212 4322 ONLINE EDITOR: Tyson Wray ONLINE COORDINATOR: Emily Meller SUB-EDITOR: Emily Meller STAFF WRITERS: Krissi Weiss, Augustus Welby NEWS: Nic Liney, Tyson Wray
ADVERTISING: Georgina Pengelly - 0416 972 081 / (02) 9212 4322 georgina@thebrag.com ADVERTISING: Les White - 0405 581 125 / (02) 9212 4322 les@thebrag.com PUBLISHER: Furst Media MANAGING DIRECTOR, FURST MEDIA: Patrick Carr - patrick@furstmedia.com.au, (03) 9428 3600 / 0402 821 122 DIGITAL DIRECTOR/ADVERTISING: Kris Furst kris@furstmedia.com.au, (03) 9428 3600
xxx
Chris Martin Managing Editor, the BRAG
DIRE STRAITS, OF SORTS
ON THE ROAD AGAIN
Telstra Road To Discovery, the annual music development program that searches for the next generation of Australian musical talent, has returned for 2014. Since 2003, Telstra has been helping emerging songwriters get their foot in the door of the music industry, and helped launch the careers of artists such as Jessica Mauboy, Neda and Melody Pool. Last week the 2014 competition was officially launched in Sydney, where 2013 winners Christopher Coleman and Helen Shanahan performed alongside Andy Bull and Ella Hooper at an event attended by a mix of VIPs, music industry guests and media. This year, two aspiring musicians will win a $15,000 music development fund and a trip to the United States to perform at the Americana Music Festival as well as ongoing performance and education opportunities. To enter, head to beinvolved.com.au/ telstraroadtodiscovery.
GREAT SOUTHERN BLUES
The Great Southern Blues Festival, which takes over Narooma on the South Coast of New South Wales each year, is back this October with a suitably bluesy lineup. This year’s theme is ‘Get Your Mojo Working’, and the first round of artists will do just that. There’s American harmonica master Phil Wiggins, sharing the stage with The Backsliders’ Dom Turner, plus Sandi Thom, who you’ll remember for the ‘I Wish I Was A Punk Rocker (With Flowers In My Hair)’ earworm. Ash Grunwald is also on the bill, as are Steve Edmonds, The Black Sorrows, Ali Penny & The Money Makers and The Montgomery Brothers. The Great Southern Blues Festival will be held at Smyth Oval, Narooma from Friday October 3 – Sunday October 5.
It’s a tribute act with a difference: the Dire Straits Experience not only includes some of the finest musos around, but also features a member of the original band itself. Chris White – the man responsible for Dire Straits’ legendary sax sound – brought together his homage to the sultans of swing alongside singer/guitarist Terrence Reis. They’re a sevenpiece altogether, and are on their way direct from sold-out tours in the US and Europe. See the Dire Straits Experience at Sydney’s State Theatre on Thursday October 9.
Miami Horror
Tori Amos
THE HORROR, THE HORROR
WHAT’S THE STORY, TORI
Tori Amos is bringing her Unrepentant Geraldines album and tour to Australia. Following the release of her 14th studio record, Amos will return to our shores for the first time since 2009 to perform a run of intimate solo show – and one special set in Sydney. While at the Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane and Melbourne theatre performances Amos will only being sharing the stage with her piano, diehard fans will want to venture to see her perform at the Sydney Opera House on Tuesday November 11, where she will be accompanied by the 42-piece Sydney Symphony Orchestra. Tickets go on sale 10am Friday July 18.
Miami Horror are returning to Australian shores with a new single in tow. Having recently settled in Los Angeles and after setting up a home studio, the fivepiece has been working towards its much-anticipated sophomore record. The release of ‘Wild Motion (Set It Free)’ sees Miami Horror reach Oxford Art Factory on Friday September 19.
SYDNEY BLUES & ROOTS
The Sydney Blues & Roots Festival, held annually in Windsor, has announced its first round of artists for 2014. Headlining the festival this year are The Black Sorrows, fronted by Joe Camilleri and coming off the back of their 17th album release. That’s a lot of sorrow. Joining them are Peter D. Harper’s blues outfit, Harper & Midwest Kind, and Nashville-based Aussie Rick Price. There’ll also be a Robert Johnson tribute, Spectrum, Hey Gringo and many more. The Sydney Blues & Roots Festival 2014 takes place from Thursday October 23 – Sunday October 26 at Hollands Paddock, Windsor. thebrag.com
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 7
live & local
free stuff
welcome to the frontline: what’s goin’ on around town...with Chris Martin and Nic Liney
head to: thebrag.com/freeshit
speed date WITH
Whole Lotta Love
BENJAMIN BLEYERVEEN experience that has challenged me as a producer and a writer. The results are well worth it!
3.
Best Gig Ever To be honest, the best gigs are never the ones you expect. I have played to crowds in the thousands, and sure, they got my heart racing – however, the best gigs are always the ones that surprise you. They are small, daggy, and a little left of centre. I’ve always been a fan of the smaller gigs; the kind of gigs that are personal and where you get to engage with an audience on a first-name basis.
1.
Current Playlist Stu Larsen’s latest album 4. Vagabond is incredible. I
and a smile. Keeping Busy Over the past months I have 2. been working in the studio. I have been staying in on weekends and working late weeknights preparing my soon-to-be-released EP, Solstice. It’s a five-track EP featuring just myself, a guitar and loop pedals. It’s been an intense
remember sharing a stage with him at an event a few years back. We took a photo because we looked like brothers. It’s great to see him doing so well with his international tours, and his continuing friendship with Passenger. His next show in Sydney I will be definitely attending.
Chux
Andy Bull
What: Splendour In The Grass Buskers Stage, presented by AIM Where: North Byron Parklands, Byron Bay When: Friday July 25 – Sunday July 27 And: The Australian Institute of Music hosts its Surry Hills open day on Saturday August 16
WHOLE LOTTA LOVE
If there’s one band from the history of rock’n’roll that deserves a mammoth tribute gig, it’s Led Zeppelin. The fans seem to agree, with Whole Lotta Love one of the foremost annual events on the scene these days, let alone among tribute acts. 2014 marks the 11th edition of this popular Aussie homage to one of the hardest hitting bands in rock, and its return to the State Theatre is slated for Saturday August 23. There’s an impressive list of guest vocalists, including Jack Jones (Southern Sons), Simon Meli (The Widowbirds), Amy Findlay (Stonefield), Jimmy Cupples (The Voice) and Zkye. We’ve got a double pass to give away to Whole Lotta Love’s 2014 edition. To be in the running, head to thebrag.com/freeshit and tell us who you’d love to hear cover Zeppelin.
Julia Jacklin
DON’T GIVE UP NOW
CHUX + FIVE COFFEES
Who gives a funk? Chux, that’s who. The young MC is teaming up with Sydney funk outfit Five Coffees for a live gig at Play Bar on Tuesday July 22. Chux Montano’s rhymes are infused with jazz and soul in the vein of Common and De La Soul, so this one’s sure to be an exposition of contagious musical styles.
water bottle sitting in the green room. I got excited once because we were provided with Tim Tams instead of the usual Arnott’s assortments. On another occasion we were provided with Killer Pythons; you can be sure I stashed a few of those in my pockets. Truthfully the ultimate rider would not be fancy. I like to have some space to keep calm and collected. I like to have some room to think of what I am about to do and why I am doing it. It grounds me and connects me with the moment and the people I am with.
Glenn Musto
GOOD NEW FOOD AT GOODGOD
It’s long been a favourite dinner spot for gig-goers, and while Goodgod Small Club’s legendary eatery The Dip bid its farewells recently, the brand new Jonkanoo Carribean Canteen has arisen in its place. Where once we found hot dogs, now find the jerk: marinated for two days, smoked fresh and available in chicken, pork and squid. Jonkanoo is by Damion Brown, the JamaicanAmerican chef who specialises in the food of Jamaica, Trinidad, Cuba, Haiti and more.
Glenn Musto, a prominent songwriter on the Perth scene over the last decade, is set to release his newest single, ‘Don’t Give Up Now’, and all the proceeds are going straight to charity. As frontman for College Fall, Nordeens and Showbag, Musto has notched up an impressive resume. His efforts on ‘Don’t Give Up Now’ are in support of Love Me Love You, which helps young people facing mental illness and substance abuse issues. Musto is hosting a special fundraiser launch for the single, as part of a national tour with Swedish folk singer Lars Wallin. Catch him at the Union Hotel on Thursday July 24.
THE ANNANDALE RETURNS
Sydney’s beloved Annandale Hotel will re-open under its new owners in August, with a focus on food and drink. The once-legendary music venue will still “pay homage to its grass roots”, said owners Oscars Hotels in a statement. It will include a stage suited to local and international singer-songwriters. The focus, however, is on the breakfast, lunch and dinner menus and drinks. The courtyard and bistro have been included in the refurbishments. The Annandale Hotel will officially return on Thursday August 7. Infinity Broke
JULIA JACKLIN
Local singer-songwriter Julia Jacklin is gearing up to launch her EP at Brighton Up Bar on Thursday August 14. Originally from the Blue Mountains, Jacklin plays an introspective brand of folk on a stylish Fender – you can be sure she knows her way around it, too. Supporting her on the night will be Colin Jones and Adelaide’s Koral.
LEARN GUITAR FOR CHARITY
Paddington’s G4 Guitar school – the one with the enormous shop window on Oxford Street – is hosting an open day on Saturday July 26. All proceeds from donations and sales will go to children’s charities in the local community. That means you needn’t pay for a lesson, just chip in for a good cause. What better reason to learn a barre chord or two this month?
THAT’S BULL
Andy Bull is hitting the road in celebration of the release of his second LP. Sea Of Approval, Bull’s latest body of work, is an amalgamation of Bull’s vocals, piano and a sea of synthesizers, samples, glitches and vocal layering. He’ll be joined on the tour by Sydney indiepop trio New Navy, playing the Metro Theatre on Saturday September 13.
8 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
VOWEL MOVEMENT
INFINITY BROKE
The time is nigh to say bon voyage to Infinity Broke, who headline Goodgod Small Club this Saturday July 19 before jetting off to France. They’re not just going for the cheese and frog’s legs – the foursome is heading to Europe to support the release of debut album River Mirrors there on the Beast imprint. Infinity Broke, comprising Bluebottle Kiss’ Jamie Hutchings and Jared Harrison plus Scott Hutchings and Reuben Wills, deliver angular guitar sounds and percussion overload. In support this time are Devotional.
Melbourne guitar pop act Vowel Movement are on their way north to launch ‘Video Games’, the follow-up to debut single ‘Hotel Sorrento’. It’s their first tour, so make sure you make them feel welcome over at Spectrum on Friday July 18, won’t you? We suggest polite applause and perhaps a foot rub. Also on the bill are Miners, BRAG faves Enerate and Deep Space Supergroop. thebrag.com
Xxx
Your Profile Growing up, I was told that if I wanted to make friends I should never talk about sex, politics or religion. You know; keep it light-hearted. Luckily for me I have always done what I’ve felt right. Fight the powers that be. My music is sexual, political and theological. Don’t let that scare you though, I do it all with a wink
Your Ultimate Rider It’s always just lollies and 5. biscuits with a complimentary
ON SALE MON DAY 21 JULY
“He is, quite simply, brilliant” THE SCOTSMAN
THU 16 OCTOBER BILLBAILEY.CO.UK
“A GREAT ENTERTAINER” TIMES “SLICK, INTELLIGENT, BLISSFULLY FUNNY” + + + + + TIME OUT
LOST I N T R A N S L ATI O N
WED 15 OCTOBER TREVORNOAH.COM
MURRAY FROM FLIGHT OF THE CONCHORDS AND STAR OF THE BOAT THAT ROCKED AND YES MAN
“HE’S JUST ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT. HE’S GOT THAT PETER SELLERS MADNESS INSIDE HIM” JIM CARREY
FRI 17 OCTOBER
RHYSDARBY.COM
15, 16 & 17 OCTOBER JIMGAFFIGAN.COM
HOSTED BY H THE
DAVE THORNTON FEATURING TOP AUSTRALIAN AND INTERNATIONAL COMEDIANS FILMED FOR THE COMEDY CHANNEL
SERIES
16, 17 & 18 OCTOBER
14 – 19 OCTOBER • SYDNEY OPERA HOUSE SYDNEYOPERAHOUSE.COM/JUSTFORLAUGHS BOOK AT SOH BOX OFFICE 9250 7777 SYDNEYOPERAHOUSE.COM/JUSTFORLAUGHS OR TICKETEK.COM.AU 132 849 BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 9
Industrial Strength Music Industry News with Christie Eliezer
THINGS WE HEAR * Sia landed her first-ever number one on the ARIA Albums Chart this week, as her sixth studio set 1000 Forms Of Fear became the seventh album in a row to land at the top in its first week. Chart historian Gavin Ryan points out that itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the first chart-topper for the record label Monkey Puzzle, although it came close when Siaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s last album We Are Born came in at number two. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the third time that an Australian chart-topping album has had â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;thousandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;/â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;1000â&#x20AC;&#x2122; in its title, after Natalie Bassingthwaighte with 1000 Stars (March 2009) and Linkin Park with A Thousand Suns (September 2010). Siaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new album is the 173rd by an Australian act to hit the top, and the sixth for 2014. Sia is also the 92nd
Australian performer to get a number one ARIA album, and the 13th Australian solo female. * Coldplayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s A Sky Full Of Stars has gone platinum in Australia. * Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s now Doctor Brian Johnson of AC/DC. Last week he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Northumbria in Newcastle, England. * We bet Birds Of Tokyo would have loved to have been at the Festival Of Voices in Tasmania. The Big Sing opener saw 5,000 Hobart residents come together to sing â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Lanternsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; while holding lanterns. They were joined for the moving moment by the Spooky Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Chorale and US a capella ensemble The Exchange under the direction of singer-songwriter Stephen Taberner. * Similarly, Crosby, Stills & Nash performed their version of Iggy Azaleaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Fancyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; on Jimmy Fallonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
FORECAST: AUSSIE MUSIC BIZ TO GROW OVER NEXT FIVE YEARS Australiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s entertainment and media market will grow by 18% to be valued at $40 billion in 2018, according to PricewaterhouseCoopersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Australian Entertainment And Media Outlook 2014 - 2018 report. The three main sectors of the Australian music market â&#x20AC;&#x201C; physical distribution, digital distribution and live music â&#x20AC;&#x201C; will grow at an annual rate of 0.6%. Of this, digital will post the biggest growth courtesy companies such as Spotify and Beats Music. The digital sector is forecast to grow from $498 million in 2013 to $658 million in 2018.
American TV chat show. * The Rolling Stones and Iron Maiden are setting up museums to feature memorabilia, clothes, stage props and the like. The Stonesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; will be in London. When they were in Sweden last week, Mick Jagger got a 45-minute tour of the ABBA museum, which includes a stage where visitors participate in ABBA karaoke. Maiden are looking at an interactive version with props and gear. * Lana Del Rey hinted on triple j she might be touring here at the end of 2014. Also on her way is Joan Armatrading, who says Australia is one of the places on her itinerary on her final major world tour starting in the UK this year. * Byron siblings Gabriel and Cecilia Brandolini were dropped from The Voice but coach will.i.am asked them to join him in the studio while he works on his next album.
The report said that Australiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s live music sector remains active, however a fluctuating dollar and cooling festivals market means international touring is no longer a guaranteed success. Radioâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s advertising will grow by a compound annual rate of 3.4% to 2018, an increase from $1.13 billion in 2014 to $1.30 billion in 2018. Traditional broadcasters face a threat to ad revenue and listener hours from streaming music services, but broadcasters are forming alliances with businesses and switching to an integrated advertising model. Filmed entertainment will grow by a compound annual rate of 1.1%, consumer magazines will decrease at a rate of 2.1%,
E HIFI 1300 THO M.AU
THEHIFI.C
Just Announced
Coming Soon
Thu 28 Aug
Wed 23 Jul
Sat 2 Aug
Kristian Nairn aka Hodor: DJ Set
Kelis
Salsa Fusion
interactive games will be up by 7.7% from $1.75 billion to $2.29 billion, subscription TV by 4.6% from $3.38 billion to $3.89 billion, and free to air TV by 1.4% from $3.85 billion to $4.13 billion.
LEVIâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S PARTNERS WITH INDIE MUSIC AWARDS Leviâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s is a new supporting partner for the Carlton Dry Independent Music Awards 2014. As part of the deal, it will present the Best Independent Single/EP award as well as the Official 2014 Awards Afterparty. Levi Strauss Australia/NZ marketing manager Nicky Rowsell said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have always had such a strong brand association with both the music industry and its various artists on a global scale. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s great to be in a position to support the homegrown Australian music scene through being involved with this prestigious industry event.â&#x20AC;? The brand is worn by Kingswood, Calling All Cars, Peking Duk, The Rubens and Lanie Lane among others. AIR board chairman David Vodicka said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Leviâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s have shown a commitment to reconnecting with music and this partnership is a really exciting start for both parties.â&#x20AC;?
MUSIC BACK AT THE ANNANDALE Music will still play a part of the new Annandale Hotel, owners Oscars Hotels confirmed. But perhaps not to the same extent as it did in its glory days. Music will feature on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays while the hotelâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s capacity will be reduced from 400 to 350. It wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be alt-rock driven as before, but showcasing a wider range with a focus on local talent, from bluegrass to hip hop to folk. The Annandale reopens on Wednesday August 7 after a six-month refurbishment.
NEW SIGNINGS #1: MEGAN WASHINGTON AT CHUGG MUSIC Megan Washington has signed with Michael Chuggâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Sydney-based Chugg Music for management, with Andrew Stone as her personal manager. Stone used to play keyboards in her band. Washingtonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s There There album is set for release on Friday September 12, with tour dates in Australia and UK. She split from Troy Barrottâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Hub Artist Service in May. Washington recently received a â&#x20AC;&#x153;significantâ&#x20AC;? settlement from Qantas, who used audio and video of her â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;I Still Call Australia Homeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; performance at the airlineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 90th anniversary party. The footage was included on its video, YouTube channel and in-flight entertainment, allegedly without the singerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s permission. Washington had demanded $500,000 in damages.
NEW SIGNINGS #2: NEW NAVY WITH SELECT, WINDISH As Sydney trio New Navy cause waves with new single â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Heavenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; and tour with Andy Bull in September, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve signed with two booking agencies. In Australia they are with Select Music (Ball Park Music, Boy & Bear, The Preatures), and in America with Windish Agency, which also looks after Gotye and Lorde. Katie Rynne from Select Music said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are absolutely thrilled to be able to welcome New Navy to the Select Music family. Their new sound is fantastic and I know the band has a lot of support from other Select Music artists, so it just made complete sense to welcome them to the fold.â&#x20AC;?
THREE AUSSIES HEAD TO RED BULL ACADEMY
Wed 13 Aug
Fri 15 Aug
Sat 16 Aug
Hanson
UZ (Mad Decent)
UNDRGRND
Out of 6,000 applications, three Aussies were among 60 selected from 34 countries to attend the Red Bull Music Academy in Tokyo from October to November. Berlinbased chill-out and house singer and producer Summer, Melbourne producer/ DJ Lewis Cancut and Brisbaneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Estii will attend lectures and workshops, collaborate in a studio and play shows.
SXSW ADVICE PANEL Fri 22 Aug
Sat 23 Aug
Sat 6 Sep
Justice Crew
Kid Ink
DevilDriver
South By Southwest will hold a free meetand-greet and panel of SXSW veterans from its music, film and interactive sectors with advice for those attending the March 2015 event. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll also talk about bands applying to showcase (submissions now open at sxsw. com), while registrations begin on Friday August 8. The advice panel is on Wednesday August 13 at Newtown Social Club.
WANNA PLAY ICELAND? Fri 12 Sep
Sat 27 Sep
Sun 5 Oct
Sat 22 Nov
El Gran Combo
Rebel Souljahz (USA)
Dead Kennedys
Toxic Holocaust & Iron Reagan
FBi Radio is holding a national competition, Northern Lights, for a chance to be on the bill of Icelandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Airwaves Festival. The allexpenses-paid trip also allows you to record and meet industry folk. For full details visit fbiradio.com/northernlights.
METAL DOWN UNDER Metal fan and filmmaker Nick Calpakdjian spent two years travelling the country interviewing the whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s who of the Australian metal scene from its underground beginnings in the â&#x20AC;&#x2122;70s to now. The first few episodes, previewed to media, are a blast. Fans, musicians, collectors, media and promoters reveal how metal made such an impression on them (one got suspended from school for smashing a chair over an Iron Maiden pic) and the important role not just of pioneers such as Rose Tattoo, AC/DC, Buffalo and Heaven but also movies like Mad Max. They discuss how the movement was fuelled by a strong sense of community and the belief Aussie metal was as good as anything from abroad. See metaldownunder.com.
Lifelines Dating: Rita Ora and Ricky Hilfiger, the â&#x20AC;&#x153;bad boyâ&#x20AC;? rapper son of Tommy Hilfiger. They met at a Hollywood party, and heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s moved to London to hang out with her. His mixtape is called Support Your Local Drug Dealer. Engaged: two Paul McCartney fans got engaged during his show in Albany, New York. She held up a sign, â&#x20AC;&#x153;He wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t marry me til he meets you!â&#x20AC;? while the bf declared, â&#x20AC;&#x153;I have the ring and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m 64â&#x20AC;?. So Macca brought them up during his encore and the guy sang The Beatlesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; song â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;When Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m SixtyFourâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; and proposed. Married: manager Scooter Braun and Yael Cohen, South African founder of the non-profit education organisation Fuck Cancer. After the ceremony, Justin Bieber serenaded them with The Beatlesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;All You Need Is Loveâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. Ill: two performers suffered from food poisoning, both in Perth on the same night. While Alison Wonderland was throwing up during her DJ set at the Toucan Club, Lorde was doing the same over at the Challenge Stadium. Ill: Japanese art/electro pioneer Ryuichi Sakamoto has throat cancer. In Court: a US judge has dismissed a lawsuit by Insane Clown Posse against the FBI for calling the Juggalos a gang. But they will appeal. In Court: a 37-year-old Perth man was charged after he allegedly stole about $168,000 from his startup company, which was developing a music streaming application mainly for mobile phones. In Court: the killer of Dave Navarroâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s mother Connie will continue to serve life without parole after a failed appeal. The accused, John Riccardi, was dating her at the time. In Court: a French court convicted Norwegian metal muso Kristian â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Vargâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Vikernes of inciting racial hatred. He was fined â&#x201A;Ź8,000 and given a six-month suspended sentence for publishing screeds that attack Muslims and Jews. Died: Tommy Ramone, the original drummer for The Ramones, at 62, from cancer of the bile duct. He was born Erdelyi Tamas in Budapest, Hungary. Died: Grammy-winning jazz flautist and New Age pioneer Paul Horn, 84. Died: John Spinks, of â&#x20AC;&#x2122;80s UK band The Outfield, 60, from liver cancer. Died: Aussie audio executive Col Formston, one-time head of ElectroVoice Australia and owner of APAC Audio (courtesy CX News). Died: Oscar-winning composer Ken Thorne, 90. He did the incidental music for The Beatlesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Help! and The Monkeesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Head, and the Superman movies.
ENTERTAINMENT QUARTER, BUILDING 220, 122 LANG RD, MOORE PARK, SYDNEY
10 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
thebrag.com
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 11
F
ew bands have stood so clearly in defi ance of the conventions of heavy metal the way Oakland veterans Neurosis have. Across nearly three decades, the band has gone above and beyond both what the genre is able to sound like and what it presents itself as – unlike many, Neurosis have dipped as frequently into the avant-garde as they have into scorched-earth intensity. Of course, much has changed for the Californians over the years – they will often go for many moons as an inactive project before the spark arises again. It begs the question as to whether the band fi nds it more difficult to be a working band now than back in the proverbial day. “I wouldn’t know,” says Steve Von Till, one of Neurosis’ two vocalists and guitarists. “We as a band wouldn’t have a balanced perspective on it. We kind of have a privileged place right now – we decided back in 1999 that our lives were completely out of balance with the touring and recording schedules. It wasn’t that we couldn’t, it was that we felt that we shouldn’t. It wasn’t the right way to be – I’m a family man, and the industry is so full of poison and bullshit. “In order to keep our art pure and our lives balanced, we walked backwards a little bit. We have day jobs to support our families, and we have this unique art form that we’re still dedicating our lives to, but don’t have to be dependent on. Now, we have to do this for our own survival of our sanity and our souls. It’s not treating it with any less respect – it’s actually that we’re treating it with more respect. This music is really special and deep, and we feel blessed that we were able to be the ones to channel it. We feel that it requires treating it as such, and not as a commodity.”
12 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
SAVING GRACE
BY DAVID JAMES YOUNG “Three of us are fathers,” says Von Till. “My son has a band that’s on our record label, he’s in his 20s now. He’s a man. Fatherhood has been a part of Neurosis since the beginning. Every kid’s different – my daughters are aware of my music. They’ve even seen us play a few times, and it’s not their thing, but they still respect it.” As for the day jobs that keep the members of Neurosis busy during their off season? Believe it or not, Von Till actually spends time as an elementary school teacher. Don’t worry, though – he won’t be found blasting metal to his students during assembly anytime soon. “I keep it pretty low-key, man,” he laughs. “They’re pretty young – they’re fourth-graders; nine going onto ten. They don’t know anything about the music itself. They know that I go away for a few days and that I get to go to other countries – they think that’s really cool. We talk about music a lot, but to them I’m just their teacher. My teaching is similar to my work in music – I’m just trying to do something that’s going to make a mark in the world.” 2014 is an interesting year for milestone anniversaries within the Neurosis camp. Not only has a decade passed since the album The Eye Of Every Storm, it also marks 15 years since the band’s sixth LP, Times Of
Grace. Working with legendary producer and fellow genre outsider Steve Albini, the latter in particular stands as one of the band’s most beloved records in a long discography. Although a retrospective mindset feels untoward for Von Till, he still recalls the creative process on the album fondly. “I didn’t even know it was 15 this year!” he confesses. “Every record for us is a milestone, and the peak of our abilities at that time. We’ve always seen our development as spiralling in towards the centre of the pure inspiration from which it comes from, which we’ll always be searching for. Each record is us getting closer and closer to what we think Neurosis is. It’s always a peculiar thing, then, to look back. “Times Of Grace was after the Through Silver In Blood era, with a much-needed time in which we felt that we had crawled out of this several-year period of surviving in this deep, dark swamp of physical destruction following Through Silver In Blood. We were really fi ghting to survive as what we were, discovering the power and the energy of intense music and really paying for it. Times Of Grace is kind of like getting up to a peak, being able to look
“THIS MUSIC IS RE ALLY SPECIAL AND DEEP, AND WE FEEL BLESSED THAT WE WERE ABLE TO BE THE ONES TO CHANNEL IT. WE FEEL THAT IT REQUIRES TREATING IT AS SUCH, AND NOT AS A COMMODITY.”
back with some sort of sense of inner peace – taking all of the lessons we had learned and moving forward with them.” Despite the band’s constant efforts to progress, the time is still not yet right for any new material to present itself, either on tour or in the studio. Neurosis’ most recent effort came in late 2012 with the release of their tenth album, Honor Found In Decay – and, at least for the time being, it’s going to stay that way. “We’re still just beginning the process of the next album,” says Von Till. “There’s nothing to unveil yet. We’re still working our way into our slow-motion touring way. Our time works a little differently to other bands. There’s defi nitely something boiling up – there’s things coming to the surface that will need to be expressed soon, so we’ll arrange our schedules to fi nd time for it together.” August sees Neurosis fi nally arrive on Australian shores for a run of headlining performances that have sent the band’s cult fan base here into a frenzy. Though anticipation is high on the fans’ end, Von Till is entering his maiden voyage to Australia with a clear mind, curious to discover what he’ll fi nd. “I have no idea what to expect,” he says. “I’ve never been there. Scott [Kelly, fellow guitarist/vocalist] has been there with his solo stuff, so he’s seen the country and met some people. I’m just looking forward to the adventure, whatever it entails. I know that we’ll be ready to surrender to the fl ow of the music and bring it down there. Hopefully, it will be well responded to. I know that people have been saying they’ve been waiting for us to come for a really long time, but these days that could mean anything – that could mean fi ve years! We’re just really excited to fi nally get down there.”
With: Adrift For Days Where: Manning Bar When: Saturday August 9 Xxx
On the topic of Von Till being a family man, discussion turns to parenthood within the confi nes of Neurosis. As the band has gotten older, being fathers has remained one of the top priorities. It brings out a different side to the men behind the gruelling, intense music they release.
NEUROSIS
thebrag.com
F A S H I O N
)$6+,21 )$6+,21 )$6+,21 -2851$/ -2851$/ -2851$/ ISSUE 137 - JUNE 2014
MELBOURNE - SYDNEY - BRISBANE - ADELAIDE - PERTH
MELBOURNE - SYDNEY - BRISBANE - ADELAIDE - PERTH
MELBOURNE - SYDNEY - BRISBANE - ADELAIDE - PERTH
NEW NEW NEW ) ) 5 5 ( ) ( ( 5 ( ( (
& LIFESTYLE & MUSIC
ISSUE #137 ON STREETS NOW !
ISSUE 137 - JUNE 2014 ISSUE 137 - JUNE 2014
FASHION JOURNAL WEBSITE...
Clearer Skies
WWW.FASHIONJOURNAL.COM.AU
Clearer Skies Clearer Skies
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 13
Rise Against Back To Black By David James Young
T
here is orderliness within the universe of Rise Against. Heading into the release of their seventh studio record, The Black Market, the Chicago punk rockers have achieved the unprecedented feat of keeping the same lineup for three consecutive albums. Despite its members’ ages ranging within the late-30s-to-early40s spectrum, there appears to be a new lease on life for the band as it prepares to return from nearly two years in the proverbial wilderness – and you best believe Rise Against are as pumped about it as their fans. “I feel like this record as a whole captures this energy that, when we first started as a band, was really different from whatever was going on around us,” enthuses Joe Principe, the band’s bass player and one of two original members still in the fold. “I feel like it’s very present on this record – I don’t know why that is. I’m not saying that I didn’t like [2011’s] Endgame or [2008’s] Appeal To Reason, but I haven’t really felt this energy since The Sufferer & The Witness [2006]. I don’t know if it was the studio or if it was just me, but there was just this energy that was very reminiscent of when we first started as a band. I think the song maturity is just there on account of the band having been around for 15 years now.” It’s said that every action has a reaction, and that certainly feels like it’s the case when it comes to the Rise Against discography. Each album feels as though it’s actively
responding to its predecessor, whether that means taking an idea in a new direction or removing it entirely. Principe himself isn’t entirely sure that’s always the case, although he certainly appreciates how it may come across as such. “I guess from my standpoint, as a songwriter, the songwriting in general for Rise Against is kind of ongoing,” he says. “I’m constantly writing songs throughout my year – it really is my only form of selfexpression, so it’s a good representation of my mental state. I can only assume it’s the same thing for Tim [McIlrath, vocals/guitar] – I think, with each record, we grow as songwriters and our bucket of influences grows and grows the older we get. We don’t say that we’re going to try ‘this’ because we did ‘this’ in the past – it’s very organic with us. Nothing’s forced or anything like that. It’s pretty cool, because it works out really well for us when we start to write a new record.” 2014 marks not only ten years since the band’s third studio album, Siren Song Of The Counter Culture, but also a decade since Rock Against Bush, a punk-rock-oriented anti-war/ pro-peace movement that saw bands voicing their disgust at then-US President George W. Bush and encouraging people to vote against him. Rise Against were one of the many bands to lend their support to the movement, and although it was obviously unsuccessful in the polls, the noise the movement generated
was impossible to deny. When asked to reflect on that time, and whether such a thing could happen again, Principe points to defiant politics as an ever-present factor in what makes the punk genre so important. “I think you’re always going to have that element in punk rock,” he says. “Punk in its most raw state is about change, obviously. I think the grass roots of the movement will always be there. There will always be people inspiring change. We definitely try to carry that in our music; so do bands like Bad Religion and even Pennywise. “Of course, that isn’t for everybody – even in punk rock. I don’t expect everyone to be political or to constantly sing about worldly issues. I do feel, however, that it will always be there in its element. That’s awesome. That’s the nature of that movement. That’s what drew me to it at a young age – I didn’t feel comfortable anywhere else but in the punk scene. That’s why you can voice your opinion, and there’s always going to be a need to do that. It’s a great platform for that.” The gaps between Appeal To Reason and Endgame – as well as between Endgame and The Black Market – may seem normal to a lot of bands within the record-releasetour cycle, but for a group which once dropped a new record barely 12 months after the previous one, it might feel unusual. This is not lost on Principe, who admits to once worrying about being forgotten but
now insists that the band’s happiness – and sanity – come first. “We all have families and children,” he explains. “Zach [Blair, guitar] got married during our break between the last record and this one. Everyone was kind of just relaxing with family in that time, but we’ve also never taken a break this long in 15 years. We felt like we could, and
that it would be OK. I think we were nervous about doing it before, because we were worried that if we went away too long, it could hurt the band. I think we went away the right amount of time to clear our heads, but now it’s time to get back into it.” What: The Black Market out now through Interscope/Universal
Where The Heart Is By Augustus Welby like, artistically, I know exactly what I want to say and there’s no point in misinterpreting what it is I need to say.” This record also marks the first time Howling Bells have been free from record company instructions. The added independence made it much easier for Stein to adopt this lucid creative tact. “Art is not very good at being boxed in,” she says. “To have to work to a timeframe and create music on tap is very, very challenging. I really enjoyed this particular process because it just happened when it felt like it was ready to happen.” Interestingly, once the muse beckoned, the absence of bigwig commanders actually allowed things to happen very quickly. “All the songs were written in a very short period of time and the recording was only ten or 11 days. So everything about the record felt really succinct and very direct.”
E
ven though we still claim them as an Australian band, the truth is moody pop-rock quartet Howling Bells have never been based Down Under. Back in 2004 the Sydney natives ended their former life as Waikiki and rebooted in London, bearing a new name and an advanced stylistic identity. As frontwoman Juanita Stein recalls, it was essentially a do-or-die move.
the band’s fourth LP, Heartstrings, has just hit the shelves. Various media outlets have touted the record a comeback LP, thus implying 2011’s The Loudest Engine was something of a misstep. Stein doesn’t necessarily concur with this notion, but she understands where the suggestion stems from.
“I literally made a pact with myself to never return back to Australia until we had an entire record to show for it,” she says, speaking on the phone from her North London home. “We stepped through some pretty muddy spaces until we did get into the studio and recorded that first record.”
“[The Loudest Engine] was definitely a departure from the second record,” she says. “Unless you’re sticking to a very, very rigid artistic path I think you’re toying with people’s emotions. They come to expect one thing from you and then when you suddenly make a really sharp left turn it’s a little unsettling.
It’s now eight years on from Howling Bells’ self-titled debut and
“I have my favourite bands [too] and I get kind of bummed when they
14 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
do something drastically different. But as the artist I also understand the need and the hunger to try something different, or at least invest in something that feels a little bit different.” So what has the foursome – completed by Stein’s brother and lead guitarist Joel, drummer Glenn Moule and new recruit, bassist Gary Daines – done differently this time around? First of all, comprising ten tracks and clocking in at just over 30 minutes, Heartstrings is the pithiest of the band’s four releases. It’s still a rather varied collection, but the songs come forth with striking immediacy. “You get older and you tend to fuck around a lot less,” Stein explains. “You don’t mince words anymore, so to speak. I just feel
Accordingly, the employment of an instinctive songwriting approach has essentially resulted in a distilled showcase of Howling Bells’ various strengths. Heartstrings encompasses stadium atmospherics, punchy outlaw rock and sparse piano balladry. However, the group wasn’t adhering to a strict stylistic agenda. “I think we were conscientious of doing what we feel we’re best at, and that’s kind of atmospheric moody rock,” says Stein. “It’s taken a few years to come back to that point, but it’s not like we sit down and talk about who we are and what style or direction we need to go in. You just need to let that happen.” What ultimately distinguishes Heartstrings is an emphatic sense of purpose, which was somewhat lacking from the two preceding LPs. Following The Loudest Engine, the band members
recognised a need to refresh and put Howling Bells on hold for a couple of years. In the interim Stein gave birth to her first child, and more recently she’s joined former Kaiser Chiefs drummer Nick Hodgson and singer Anna Goodall in the London-based psych-pop band, Albert Albert. Meanwhile, Joel Stein moved over to Berlin to explore his songwriting potential, which resulted in his new band Glassmaps. “Watching other people was really refreshing for me,” Juanita says. “Obviously I’ve been playing with these particular people for about a decade now and you do become very comfortable with the way the people around you work. So it was very interesting to break out of that and get an insight into how other musicians play and create music.” Taking a step back also allowed the foursome to take stock of its primary goals and aspirations. These have inevitably altered somewhat since shifting hemispheres a decade ago, but the resolute commitment to making quality music remains. “Ten years down the road you don’t harbour that same burning ambition,” Stein says. “Now it’s about artistic survival and expression. Back then it was about needing to prove a point. For me now, it’s definitely more about consistently expressing myself, otherwise I start to feel very choked. “It’s also just about relaxing. I think that’s come from the length of time that we’ve been playing in a band, and also becoming a mother. A lot of things take a back seat and it’s incredibly freeing.” What: Heartstrings out now through Birthday Records/ Caroline Where: Oxford Art Factory When: Friday September 12
thebrag.com
xxx photo by xxx
Howling Bells
The 1975 Behind The Hype By Emily Meller
I
t’s surprising to think that the 25-year-old lead singer of a recently (and highly) successful band could be going through an existential crisis. After years of writing, recording and major label rejection, The 1975 have finally broken through – from an outsider’s perspective, it’s all coming up Matt Healy. But, in his own words, Healy admits, “I have gone a bit mental this year.” So what is going on?
“I’m just having totally conflicting views of my identity and not really knowing who I am anymore, or what I’m doing or why I’m doing it … it’s like doing promo for your journal. That’s what it feels like at the moment.” When he puts it like that, it makes sense. Most 20-somethings can relate to the feeling of having no idea what they are doing, but going through that while pouring your insecurities out onstage every night is an identity crisis on crack. Given the rapid rise to fame of The 1975, from a number one debut album in the UK last year to a jam-packed international touring schedule, perhaps it’s an approach that’s paying off for Healy. With his rock star image, good looks and spades of charisma, the undercurrent of insecurity is unexpected. “Are you calling me a rock star?” he asks. “Thanks.” He seems to mean it, even if he doesn’t quite agree with the assessment. But it must be tempting to succumb to fulfilling a persona – the sensitive musician is an image that’s worked in the past, and it sells, too. However, Healy insists that pandering to a particular archetype was never part of a grand plan for him. “I think that there are a lot of people that are a lot more mentally stable and are a lot less neurotic who are doing it for a lot less personal reasons … They’ve seen other bands and they think, ‘Oh, well I want to do that because I want that life,’ whereas I ended up in a band by accident.”
“I think there is a profound disdain for my own behaviour running throughout the record. Social responsibility for a generation of 15-year-olds is not something I want to be dealing [with].” Healy explains that a lot of The 1975’s appeal stems from innate curiosity: people love prying. Whether listening in on conversations or following someone on social media, everyone wants to know what other people are talking about. Beneath Healy’s slickly produced pop vocals are lyrics that make you feel like you’re overhearing something you shouldn’t be.
“I wasn’t necessarily, like, a hipster music kid – all the records that I loved were kind of Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey; hit R&B and ’80s pop. I went through a big phase of being a very alternative guy … Then I think that the things that were really, really true to me – like the big, classic pop songs – they just kind of came out and people seemed to like it.” They liked it enough to see The 1975 sell out 15,000-seat venues, embark on worldwide tours, open for The Rolling Stones and get routinely mobbed by adoring fans at airports. For all his purported self-doubt, Healy seems absolutely clear about one thing. “I’m a songwriter,” he says. “It’s all I really do.” What: The 1975 out now through Dirty Hit/Sony Where: Enmore Theatre When: Wednesday July 30 And: Also appearing alongside Outkast, Foster The People, Two Door Cinema Club, Lily Allen and many more at Splendour In The Grass 2014, North Byron Parklands, Friday July 25 – Sunday July 27
SECRET SOUNDS PRESENTS BY ARRANGEMENT WITH ARTIST VOICE
S AT 1 3 S E P T L L E W E L LY N H A L L , C A N B E R R A* T I C K E T E K .C O M . AU
D O S U N 1 4 S E P T S Y D N ESY P UETR A H O U S E , S Y D N E Y O LO
M O N 1 5 S E PT SY D N E Y O P E R A H O U S E , SY D N E Y S Y D N E YO P E R A H O U S E . C O M
W E D 1 7 S E P T C I V I C T H E AT R E , N E W C A S T L E T I C K E T E K .C O M . AU
W I T H S P E C I A L G U E S T S VA N C O U V E R S L E E P C L I N I C
EXCEPT
*
“A lot of it is quotes. Like in ‘Sex’ – ‘And I’m not trying to stop you, love / If we’re gonna do anything we might as well just fuck’ – that doesn’t even rhyme. That’s not a line, that’s not like a clever line – that’s just something that was said. One of the things I will say; a lot of the time it sounds like I’m talking about someone else but I’m really talking about me.” While The 1975’s self-titled album is undeniably pop, the themes range from sex to drug use to general self-destruction. Given that a huge number of the band’s fans are teens, does Healy ever find it unsettling that they relate so strongly to the lyrics? “There were 15-year-old girls salivating over Jim Morrison back in the day – not to compare myself to Jim Morrison, do not put that in the magazine that I said that – but what I meant was, that’s always going to happen. I mean, the reason Elvis got so big is that he was dangerous, he was sexy. “And throughout this entire album I’m not remotely, at any point, condoning my behaviour. If anything, I think there is a profound disdain for my own behaviour running throughout the record. Social responsibility for a generation of 15-year-olds is not something I want to be dealing [with] … I’m a 25-year-old writer/producer, not a 16-year-old in a boy band, so I probably do deal with it a bit differently.” Hailing from Manchester – where any remnants of a ‘scene’ had long dissipated by the time he started writing – Healy contends that The 1975 sound more like an American band from the ’70s or ’80s than a guitar band from the UK. A lot of labels have been applied to their music, from altrock to power pop, but none of them seem to stick. Part of the reason is the pastiche of influences; notably, the shameless love Healy fosters for R&B and pop music. thebrag.com
TICKETS ON SALE NOW NEW ALBUM OUT FRI 1 AUG
SECRET-SOUNDS.COM. AU | ANGUSANDJULIASTONE .COM
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 15
Blueline Medic Bad Habits By Rod Whitfield
Andy Bull Seeking Approval By Krissi Weiss
W
hile genre-crossing Sydney-based songwriter Andy Bull first garnered attention with a handful of collaborative singles (‘Dog’ with Lisa Mitchell one of his earlier successes), the chameleonic artist has spent the better part of his decade-long career working alone. Although there’s been an EP and a number of successful singles since his 2009 debut album, We’re Too Young, it seems like a lifetime since that release. Now, Bull is ready to air his latest album, Sea Of Approval – but still he’s transitioning into the next juncture. “It’s all beginning now – this is the moment where I go from having finished the record to talking about it,” Bull says. “I think I’m starting a bit late, though. If I take forever to answer anything it’s because I haven’t figured it all out myself yet.” When asked what part of the album journey he’s on he chuckles at the cliché, and rightly so. “The word ‘journey’ is, you know, used a lot, but making a record really is like that – it’s a series of shifts that you have to make intellectually,” he says. “Before you start the project, for instance, and where you end up, and the end of it when you play it onstage, there’s half a dozen shifts you need to make, and it’s quite challenging. “To be perfectly frank, if I were to approach this part – this shift – while I was too caught up in the making of it, I wouldn’t engage very well. I’d be too focused on the small details and I’d be too critical, which isn’t necessarily a compelling narrative to someone else. Because I work mostly alone, I’m forced to constantly analyse everything – I’m songwriter, I’m performer, I’m musician, I’m producer, I’m kinda manager, now I become, like, my hype man, and underneath all that you’re also maybe a jaded artist.” Despite this artistic isolation, Bull’s time on the road and pushing out of his comfort zone in
collaboration provided a bridge of sorts between his first album, his 2010 Phantom Pains EP and the new record. “I toured with Little Red and Lisa Mitchell and a few jangly, folky, indie bands and it was really fun, so I think that EP was reconciling all those experiences of collaborating with people who were less musicians and more performers, or something. That EP was about getting that energy in there and getting me to loosen up how I do things, and feeling like I can be a part of what was happening around me.” Actually, from an outsider’s perspective Bull has appeared to be positively immersed in the local scene for years, but that hasn’t always been the truth. “On the subject of scenes, I was talking to Kirin J Callinan who – in his words – was front and centre in the scene when I was completely oblivious to it and completely on the outer,” he says. “Growing up, I didn’t feel connected to the scene and I didn’t feel like I had a way into it, but now I see tonnes of people doing amazing stuff that matters globally coming out of the scene all around me. The whole world was so foreign it was like I didn’t even know what I was missing out on, but once I stepped in I realised it was accessible and it’s not nearly as inaccessible as I thought it would be. “People are just so busy just trying to survive for themselves that generally speaking there isn’t any cliquiness – not entirely, but for the most part, everyone wants everyone else to do well.” What: Sea Of Approval out now through Island/Universal With: New Navy Where: Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle / Metro Theatre When: Friday September 12 / Saturday September 13
A
lthough Melbourne band Blueline Medic have been around since the late ’90s, they’ve been on hiatus since early 2009 – bobbing up only for the very occasional show since then. They’re about to resurface again, joining Bodyjar on their 20th anniversary tour. Jovial founding member Donnie Dureau is thrilled to be dusting off his guitar and getting back out on the road, especially alongside such a legendary Aussie band. “We haven’t played a show in quite a while,” he laughs. “To be able to go out with the ’Jar boys and Samiam for a bit of a get-together, reunion of old times, is just great. I can’t wait!” Despite the schedule ahead, Dureau is unsure as to whether this means Blueline Medic are back together officially. In fact, strong doubts remain about whether the band will ever return in a full-time capacity, even if the desire is there. “It’s hard to say,” he admits. “I think everybody in the band would like to keep kicking away at things, and keep working on bits of music. In fact, in the last couple of rehearsals we’ve had, we’ve gone over some so-called ‘new’ songs, songs that didn’t appear on the last record, that were going to be for the next project. But our lives just went off into different directions. Once a member leaves Melbourne to pursue other things, that puts things on an indefinite hold. “Now, while I’ve been in Melbourne and we’ve been rehearsing, it’s felt like, ‘Oh yeah, there might be something blowing in the wind, we’d like to play again.’ Except, now the big tour’s come up, I’m moving to Warrnambool [in country Victoria] again. So I don’t know whether that’s going to affect us logistically again. Everyone’s got pretty demanding lifestyles. I think everybody would
like to do it, it’s just a question of being able to fit it in.” In the shorter term, fans can be happy about the fact that Blueline Medic will be playing some of their new material on the Bodyjar tour, alongside a majority of their more well-known and loved tunes. “It’ll be mainly old stuff, but I think we’re going to throw in two so-called ‘new’ songs,” says Dureau, “songs that haven’t been released. And depending on how the last rehearsal goes, we might throw another one in as well.” Overall, people turning up to the Bodyjar 20th anniversary shows can expect to see another high-energy rock act which likes to play just a little bit on the edge of chaos. “I find that our energy can sometimes get the better of us,” Dureau says. “When we’re playing live, if we get excited, sometimes our technique can kinda go out the window, and we resort to old habits. We’re used to playing really emotive and fast. A lot of us come from fast and heavy bands. “Adrian [Lombardi, guitar] used to play in Mid Youth Crisis, and I used to play in Caustic Soda, and you tend to develop a lot of habits when you’re younger. You throw yourself headlong into the song and that can sometimes mean that the song can be twice as fast as what it ought to be [laughs]. “I think if we’re feeling it, people can expect something energetic, tempered with more subtle and sensitive moments, indicative of our age and temperament,” Dureau chuckles. Where: Supporting Bodyjar at Manning Bar When: Friday August 8
Toehider Creature Comforts By Augustus Welby hat Kind Of Creature Am I? That’s the question posed by Melbourne’s Toehider on their brand new LP. The title of the group’s second album alludes to numerous topics of intrigue, including human biology and our relationship to other living beings, as well as individual choices and subcultural allegiances. However, for the band, the inquiry pertains to stylistic identity.
W
reveals Mills’ love for contagious vocal melodies.
“I guess it’s something of an analogy of ‘What kind of band is this?’,” says guitarist, vocalist and songwriter Mike Mills. “What I’ve done over the last couple of years is to try to keep the music quite diverse, ranging from songs that are quite heavy to more commercial-sounding things or acoustic-type songs. Often I’m asked what I’m doing and why aren’t I going for a more streamlined sound. I suppose the album is exploring that theme a little bit.”
Rather than taking it too far in either direction, Mills was conscious of maintaining a stable balance between intellectual dexterity and his noted melodic persuasion. Even so, he doesn’t strictly regulate the songwriting process.
16 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
“I just tend to let the song evolve and take its own path,” he explains. “Usually songs start with a melody or a song title and they just evolve from there. I’m certainly not purposely trying to make things sound tricky and I’m not trying to make them sound too simple either.” The logistics of the record’s release indicate that Mills’ songwriting method has already managed to lure in a legion of Toehider adherents. The stresses
associated with independently financing a record were greatly assuaged by a profitable crowdfunding campaign. Seeing this level of generosity is obviously reassuring for one’s self-esteem, but Mills says it also set the bar high for a quality release. “There was a bit of nerves because people had taken the time and their hard-earned cash to buy the album before they’d even heard any of it. That’s a great honour but it’s also a little bit nerve-wracking.” One of the incentives offered for donating money was a pre-release
download of the record. Thankfully, initial feedback suggests all the care and patience Toehider put into the LP was worth it. “I’ve spent the last two years working on the record and it feels really good to have it out finally,” Mills says. “The response has been really good, so it takes the pressure off a little bit.” And while there are still naysayers who deem crowdfunding an overly cocksure or beseeching move, generally the process seems like a promising way to sustain artistic exploration.
“I think it’s a really cool and fun way to engage with the people who get behind your band and your artistry,” says Mills. “It re-links the artist to the supporter. There’s no people getting in the way trying to make a buck out of it. It’s the way it should be and it’s probably the way it always should have been, when you think about it.” What: What Kind Of Creature Am I? out now through Bird’s Robe Records/MGM With: Anubis Where: The Bald Faced Stag When: Friday July 25 Xxx
Toehider’s music can loosely be classed as progressive rock. Of course, that’s a rather ambiguous term, but the new record features plenty of flashy instrumentation and non-linear song structures. While there’s no doubting the group’s technical ability, the record also
“It’s less of the heavy guitars and more concentrating on little pop melodies,” he says. “And there’s a lot of acoustic songs towards the end of it. [Lead single] ‘Whatever Makes You Feel Superior’ is a good example of all those elements combined.”
thebrag.com
Melody Pool And Marlon Williams Better Together By Adam Norris
U
pon arriving at the appointed Sydney cafe for our interview, I discover that there are in fact two identically named locations on either side of the city, and while Melody Pool and Marlon Williams are waiting patiently at one, I am sitting in a flock of businessmen waiting for them at the other. By the time I arrive, Melody is passing time online, while Marlon reads Camus’ The Myth Of Sisyphus. Hoping the title won’t prove too analogous, I realise the most likely reason for meeting in a public space is the fear of assassination. Are they frightened of me, or am I the poor schmuck who should be concerned? “I’d be worried about Marlon,” Melody warns, eyeing her partner suspiciously. He ducks for cover behind his book. “I’m innocent! I’m just reading!” Pool and Williams are an affable duo, both quick to laugh and unpretentious. Though Melody tells me afterwards how nervous she was that the interview would be a disaster – she hadn’t slept well the night before – the pair are remarkably attuned to each other’s answers, bouncing off jokes and responses in quick succession. You suspect that their stage banter must be quite incredible.
“We only see each other now for the odd gig, or interviews,” Marlon says, “but that’s never the best kind of space to try and write something. Maybe on tour.” “We’ll write a little ditty in the car,” Melody suggests. “Or just get drunk some night and try it then,” Marlon grins. “I can’t think about it too much. Just every now and again a song comes along somehow, and I’ll try to get it out of the way.” One suspects, however, that talk of an album has come up in conversation between the two before. “Let’s just see how we feel about each other at the end of the tour,” Marlon says. Until then, they have a crazy fi ve weeks of performing to go, and many ditties to write along the way. Where: Newtown Social Club / Lizotte’s Newcastle / Lizotte’s Central Coast When: Saturday August 2 / Sunday August 3 / Sunday August 10
“There’s not particularly a conscious theme or plan that we’re trying to get across up there,” Marlon explains. “We’ll each do a different set, and then some together.” “And while there are certain similarities in how we sound,” Melody adds, “I think we’re different enough to make it work, to showcase our individual sound and have fun with that before performing anything together.” Given the scope of their co-headline tour, it is surprising that Pool and Williams have only met relatively recently. There was no crossing paths at festivals, no slow developing musical bond. After doing a show together and realising just how compatible they were, their tour basically grew from that one fateful encounter. Marlon suddenly seems oddly apologetic about that. “Really it was management who organised things,” he tells me, and Melody nods. “We really need to work on a better story than that,” she says, “give it some more excitement. But we just found ourselves thrown together, and it really stuck.” Not that either of them are strangers to comprehensive (one might say exhausting) tours. “I did two weeks of solid touring, with shows every day,” Melody says. “But this is easily going to be the longest tour that I’ve done. It’s pretty exciting.” Marlon, however, has her beat. “I did 30 shows in 34 days around New Zealand. That was a real eye-opener,” he laughs, shaking his head. “Finding out what it’s like to actually put your body through something like that. You soon realise that you can’t get absolutely wasted every night.” While Williams already has several records under his belt with various groups in his native NZ (including two nominations for best album from the APRA Music Awards), Pool’s crowdfunded debut came in 2013 with her evocatively titled The Hurting Scene. She sounds both whimsical and pragmatic when she reflects on the time of its release. “You listen to it all the time at first, but a few months ago I heard it for the first time in ages and I sound like such a baby. I have no regrets about how it sounds or how we made it, but my voice has just become so much stronger now. I’m proud of it, because when I started out on it the main thing I wanted was to have no filler songs on it, and I think that’s how it turned out. Hopefully,” she adds, laughing. “You have to let it go,” Marlon agrees. “Once it’s been heard a number of times, it’s not really yours anymore. It goes out there and becomes something else, and also somehow becomes something that’s easier to perform. It’s just something that happens between the recording and being onstage. I played with Justin Townes Earle for a couple of shows, and just watching how one man can hold together a set like that was amazing. I saw him play once with a bit of a band, maybe three others, and these other musicians were playing exactly what he was doing when he was alone. I’ve never seen anyone play guitar like that.” While Pool and Williams have released a handful of videos together demonstrating the extraordinary combination of their voices – their duet on ‘Heaven For You’ is gorgeous – they have yet to find the chance to sit down together and pen lyrics, and any stirrings for a potential album together are still on the backburner. thebrag.com
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 17
Friday 25 JULY
North Byron Parklands
11:00
12:00
1:00
2:00
3:00
5:00
6:00
9.15-10.30
SPLENDOUR ALL STARS JAM BAND
ELSTON
BAD EZZY
LEVINS
JOYRIDE
CAPTAIN FRANCO
6.00-7.00
7.00-8.00
8.00-9.00
9.00-10.00
10.00-11.00
11.00-12.00
TROPICANTE SOUND SISTEMA
2.00-2.45
3.15-4.15
WAVE RACER
LITTLE MAY
12.30-1.15
1.45-2.30
SABLE
YAHTZEL (DJ SET)
LDRU
INDIAN SUMMER
6.00-7.00
7.00-8.00
8.00-9.00
9.00-10.00
10.00-11.00
11.00-12.00
7.00-8.00
8.30-9.30
9.30-10.15
10.15-11.15
10.00-11.00
CENOBITE (LIVE)
8.00-9.30
9.30-11.00
11.00-12.30
THE DESERT THIEVES
SPLENDOUR ALL STARS JAM BAND WITH NICKY BOMBA
9.45-10.45
11.00-12.00
STREETPARTY ft. JEM vs JOSH GILLILAND
MIKE METRO vs BENSON vs TORREN FOOT
LUEN
7.00-8.30
8.30-10.00
10.00-11.00
6.00-7.00
CHRIS DECKKER
4.00-5.00
6.30-7.15
3.00-6.15
4.00-5.00
5.00-6.30
AKIMBO DJs
11.00-12.30
12.30-2.00
SEÑOR BOLIVAR
3.00-3.45
TROPICANTE SOUND SISTEMA
7.00-10.30
10.30-2.00
DIZZ 1
REMI
SAMPOLOGY
6.30-7.30
7.30-8.30
8.30-10.00
6.00-9.00
2.00-2.45
12.15-2.00
9.30-11.00
4.00-6.00
1.00-1.45
11.00-12.00
8.00-9.30
2.30-3.45
LUKE MORRIS
9.45-10.45
12.30-2.00 SPLENDOUR ALL STARS JAM BAND WITH NICKY BOMBA
6.30-8.00
COMEDY CLUB W/- Tom Ballard, Michael Hing + more
DALLAS JAMES
SPLENDOUR ALL STARS JAM BAND WITH NICKY BOMBA
LAMBDA DJs
TWILIGHT FILM FESTIVAL
ZIGGY ALBERTS
THE DESERT THIEVES
HARMLESS PRANKSTER (LIVE)
OH HELLO DJs
6.15-7.00
CASSIUS SELECT
11.00-12.30
FRIENDS DJs
SUDAMERICAN ROCKERS
DJ SPEX
3.15-4.00
8.00-9.00
LEO DIAZ
9.35-11.00
TBC CLUB DJs
5.00-6.30
KEYNOTE INTERVIEW:
11.00-12.00
DJ SPEX
SUDAMERICAN ROCKERS
6.00-9.15
9.15-10.00
10.00-11.45
11.45-12.30
1.00-2.00
SUNDAY SAFARI
5.30-6.30
6.30-8.00
8.00-9.00
9.00-10.30
10.30-12.00
12.00-2.00
2:00
PARQUET COURTS
3:00
BURAKA SOM SISTEMA
12.00-12.30
12.45-1.30
1.45-2.30
2.45-3.30
4.00-4.45
4.55 -5.10
12.30-1.00
1.30-2.15
MIKHAEL PASKALEV
THE WILD FEATHERS 2.45-3.30
12.00-2.00
2.00-3.30
ROLAND STEVE TINGS SUMMERS PEANUT BUTTER WOLF
KIRKIS
10.00-11.00 11.00-11.45 11.45-12.30
BUSKER STAGE
5.45-6.30 6.30-7.15
5.00-6.30
6.30-8.00
SHAKSHUKA 3.30-4.30
STRETCH
TAYA vs RHYS BYNON
1.15-2.00 2.00-2.45 2.45-3.30
3.30-4.15
DRUMMING CIRCLE WITH RENDRA & THE RHYTHM HUT
5.00-5.45
RACHEL MAY
SURECUT KIDS
4.15-5.15
5.15-6.00
6.00-6.45
6.45-7.45
2.30-5.45
5.45-6.30
YOUNG FRANCO
RETIREE
OISIMA
12.00-3.00
3.00-4.00
4.00-5.00
FILM: SILENCED 12.00-1.45
1.45-3.00
5.00-6.00
COMEDY:
JESSE HIGGS
TROPICAL ZOMBIE
1.00-1.45
2.00-2.45
3.00-3.45
10.45-12.00
8.15-9.00
9.00-10.00
BEN HOWARD
8.30-9.30
10.00-11.00
DARK (LIVE) NEBULA 8.00-9.30 MAE WILDE PRESENTS: DR SKETCHY'S ANTI-ART CLASS
8.00-9.00
INDIAN SUMMER 7.45-8.45
SHE J
MULT1VERSE (LIVE)
POB
11.00-12.30
12.30-2.00
9.35-11.00 THE DESERT THIEVES
SPLENDOUR ALL STARS JAM BAND WITH NICKY BOMBA
9.45-10.45
11.00-12.00
NICKY NIGHT SOSUEME DJs TIME 8.45-9.45
9.45-10.45
SPLENDOUR ALL STARS JAM BAND WITH NICKY BOMBA
triple j
Tipi Forest Ti
LAST FRONTIER BAR
DANGEROUS DAN / KATO / SAFARI DJs B2B
10.45-12.00
12.00-2.00
SEÑOR BOLIVAR
9.45-10.30
10.30-2.00
BANOFFEE
OSCAR KEY SUNG
ANDRAS FOX
NGUZUNGUZU
NICOLAS JAAR (DJ SET)
7.00-8.00
8.00-9.00
9.00-10.30
10.30-12.30
12.30-2.00
TWILIGHT FILM FESTIVAL
COMEDY CLUB W/- Matt Okine, Claire Hooper + more
5.00-7.30
8.00-11.00
BUNDABERG BREWED & CRAFTED BAR
Golden View ew Bar
TENT OF MIRACLES PRESENTS
PHOTO BOOTH
BUSKERS STAGE
SPLENDOUR IN THE CRAFT
SKYWHALE
DON JULIO BAR
HAWKERS’ MARKETS
SUPERFOOD HALL
AMPHITHEATRE
LOTUS PALACE
GLOBAL VILLAGE
GE
NE
MISS SAIGON BAR
RA
L ST
OR
E
NDI
D
COCKTAIL BAR
SPLE
GOLD BAR AMPHITHEATRE BAR 2
Red Bull Music Academy
THE HEALING
CIDER BAR
GET AWAY FROM HER YOU DICK
LITTLE SPLENDOUR
GENERAL STORE
LIONEL RICHIE’S HEAD
LUSH HAIR PARLOUR
PRESENTED BY
MIX UP STAGE
VERY SMALL MALL
BAR
BURGER PARK
MO’ROCKIN WINE BAR
Forum Garden Bar
HELLO BEER BAR
FORUM
red frogs
disabled patron camping
r Coat Hangar
MAIN ENTRY R disabled patron parking
guest services car park
12.15-2.00
MOTORIK VIBE COUNCIL
SUDAMERICAN ROCKERS
6.30-9.45
6.00-7.00
10.30-11.30
10.00-10.30
WILD BEASTS
DJ SPEX
JORDAN RAKEI LOUIS BAKER
A RATIONAL FEAR 3.30-4.30
BUSKER DAVE
6.30-7.15
TIM FUCHS
SUDAMERICAN ROCKERS
PANEL: HOW FAR WOULD YOU GO TO TELL THE TRUTH?
LEYOLA ANTARA ECSTATIC DANCE JOURNEY
SABLE DJ SET
MIKE WHO/SHANTAN WANTAN ICHIBAN
9.15-10.15
1:00
NINA LAS NINA LAS VEGAS DANNY BROWN VEGAS DARKSIDE
GW MCLENNAN TENT
beer garden
MAYOR OF M SSPLENDOUR
18 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
12.30-2.00
12:00
7.45-8.45
7.00-8.00
3.35-5.00
11:00
LILY ALLEN
7.15-8.15
5.30-6.30
10:00
FOSTER THE PEOPLE
FIRST AID KIT
TUMBLE
KOOII
9:00
HILLTOP HOODS
PHANTOGRAM
SURGE (LIVE)
2.00-3.00 JONATHAN TERRIFIC vs SLOCLO
SABLE
COURTNEY BARNETT
4.00-5.00
12.30-1.30 SAMMY 2 TOWELS vs SPACIE
ILLY
8:00
JIMMY DERLER
FREE LIKE ME
BENJAMIN BLEYERVEEN 12.00-12.45
6.30-7.15
5.15-5.45
2.30-3.00
11.00-12.00
10.00-11.30
5.15-6.00
3.00-3.45 3.45-4.30 4.30-5.15
D.D DUMBO
7:00
CHVRCHES
1.45-2.30
NICK MULVEY
11.00-2.30
FORUM/COMEDY
6:00
GROUPLOVE
COSMO’S MIDNIGHT
BOOMFAYA (MC/DJ)
PANEL: LOADED: HONEST CONVERSATIONS ABOUT DRUGS
5:00
GOLDEN SAM JUNGLE FEATURES SMITH
MARZ RHYTHMIC STARZ (LIVE)
FIESTA
4:00
BROODS KLP
PACES
TROPICANTE SOUND SISTEMA
12.30-2.00
4.30-5.30
7.00-10.00
KINGSWOOD
MINUS ONE (LIVE)
DJ SPEX & MC HERNAN
3.30-4.30
4.30-6.30
SKATERS
THE PUSS FACE BREAKFAST KILLAH NOT MANI CLUB vs ROSWELL 11.00-11.45 11.45-12.30 12.30-1.15
J HEASY
12.00-1.00
SUDAMERICAN ROCKERS
COMEDY CLUB W/- Josh Earl, Greg Fleet + more
1:00
THE CREASES
GYUTO MONKS CHANTING ACRO YOGA WITH CASEY CONROY 9.00-9.30 11.15-12.15 ZEN THAI YOGA WITH CIRCUS PLAY SPACE GWYN WILLIAMS & 10AM - 2PM WITH PENNI DONOVAN BYRON FIRE COLLECTIVE 9.45-10.45 LA LA HOOP SISTARZ MEL DOBRA - SACRED TIDES BYRON SLACKLINE 10.45-11.15 SAFTEY FIRST
GLOBAL VILLAGE
12.15-2.00
HAYDEN JAMES YACHT CLUB DJs DJ SET
MIKE WHO/SHANTAN WANTAN ICHIBAN
TWILIGHT FILM FESTIVAL
12:00
12.15-1.00 1.00-1.45
TIPI FOREST
SPLENDOUR ALL STARS JAM BAND WITH NICKY BOMBA
12.00-3.30
AMPHITHEATRE BAR 1
3.00-4.00
MAE WILDE PRESENTS: DR SKETCHY'S ANTI-ART CLASS
PAUL GILDING WITH LINDSAY "THE DOCTOR" MCDOUGALL
12.15-1.45
CHROME SPARKS
12.40-2.00
AFRICA HITECH
4.00-4.45
4.30-5.45
LEYOLA ANTARA ECSTATIC DANCE JOURNEY
XFAKTA
BYRON FIRE COLLECTIVE 12.00-12.15
8.00-9.00
BLACK(LIVE)MATH
LORNA CLARKSON
3.00-3.45
DRUMMING CIRCLE WITH RENDRA & THE RHYTHM HUT
JAPANESE WALLPAPER FLAMINGO
APRA SONGWRITERS SPEAK
GW McLENNAN TENT
EDD FISHER
2.00-2.45
2.00-3.00
2.15-3.00
11:00
VANCE JOY
HIATUS KAIYOTE
1.00-1.45
1.00-2.00
11.00-2.15
MIX UP STAGE
JAMIE BENNETT
12.00-12.45
2.15-3.15
SUDAMERICAN ROCKERS
AMPHITHEATRE
SILENTJAY
MOJO BLUESMEN
12.45-1.45
SAM WESTPHALEN 12.00-12.45
1:00
RÜFÜS
KIMSKI MAE WILDE PRESENTS: DR SKETCHY'S ANTI-ART CLASS
12:00
NICOLE MILLAR
NICK CUNNINGHAM
UKULELE WORKSHOP WITH NICKY BOMBA
10.00-11.00
MISS FRIBY’S CABARET 9.00-9.30
6.30-7.15
2.30-6.00
2.30-4.00
8.30-9.30
MIKE WHO/SHANTAN WANTAN ICHIBAN
10.45-12.00
8.30-9.30
6.30-8.00 LEYOLA ANTARA ECSTATIC DANCE JOURNEY
9.15 - 10.15
METRONOMY MOTEZ
TUNE-YARDS
UNCLE(LIVE)JACK
11:00
TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB
BLACK VANILLA
WARREN EARL BAND
7.00-8.30
ANGUS & JULIA STONE
BOOM DEE BRIDES 9.30-9.35
5.00-6.00
4.00-5.00
KELSEY IRIS
5.30-7.00
MISS FRIBY’S CABARET 7.30-8.00
BUSKER STAGE
4.30-5.45
ATARACTIC
4.00-5.30
6.00-6.30
10.00-11.30
5.00-6.30 DRUMMING CIRCLE WITH RENDRA & THE RHYTHM HUT
QandA WITH TONY JONES
2.35-4.00
AFRICAN DANCE WORKSHOP WITH THE KOOII DANCERS
12.00-1.00
10.00-11.30
YOUNG FRANCO PANEL: BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING 12.15-1.45
DANCING TIGER
CACAO CEREMONY
WOMEN
FORUM/COMEDY OF LETTERS
3.35-5.00
7.45-8.30
FUTURE ISLANDS
5.30-6.30
DYSPHEMIC & MISS ELIZA (LIVE)
TROPICANTE SOUND SISTEMA
11.00-2.30
TANTRUM
4.30-5.00
FIESTA
6.45-7.45
GOLD FIELDS DJs NIK KALOPER THE JUNGLE GIANTS vs NORTHEAST (THE JEZABELS) DJs vs BLEEDING DUNE RATS DJs PARTY HOUSE DJs KNEES CLUB DJs DJ SET
3.00-4.00
WEBBER
GYUTO MONKS SAND MANDALA DISSOLUTION
2.00-3.00
1.00-2.30
LUCIOUS DEED
THE CASSETTES 3.30-3.35
1.00-2.00
SEÑOR BOLIVAR
12.00-1.00
PANEL: CHANGING THE WORLD
FORUM/COMEDY
BYRON FIRE COLLECTIVE 12.00-12.15
12.00-1.00
I OH YOU DJs vs CATS DJs ft. FERRIS
6.00-6.45
10:00
CITY AND COLOUR
MISS FRIBY’S CABARET 9.00-9.30
OLIVER FRANCIS JAMES DE BONO vs BEE AMPERSAND vs HUSLA Ft. 3rd ESTATE
7.45-8.45
GOSSLING
4.15-5.00
9:00
6.15-7.15
MISS FRIBY’S CABARET 7.30-8.00
2.15-3.15
8:00
THE JEZABELS
5.00-6.00
CACAO CEREMONY 6.00-6.30
UKULELE WORKSHOP WITH NICKY BOMBA
12.45-1.45
7:00
360
TOUCH HOT DUB SENSITIVE TIME MACHINE MOTEZ
PUMPERNICKLE
3.45-4.15
11.00-12.00
2.05-3.30
AFRICAN DANCE WORKSHOP WITH THE KOOII DANCERS
8.30-9.30
CIRCUS PLAY SPACE 10AM - 2PM WITH BYRON FIRE COLLECTIVE LA LA HOOP SISTARZ BYRON SLACKLINE SAFTEY FIRST
BUSKER STAGE
ART vs SCIENCE
RY X
GYUTO MONKS CHANTING & MEDITATION
CIRCUS PLAY SPACE 10AM - 2PM WITH BYRON FIRE COLLECTIVE LA LA HOOP SISTARZ BYRON SLACKLINE SAFTEY FIRST
4.45-5.45
4.15-5.00
3.00-3.45
KAMOS
7.00-8.00
12.00-3.15
WORDLIFE
MADAM TEMPEST'S PYRO CIRCTACULAR12.30-12.40
12.00-2.00
ACRO YOGA WITH CASEY CONROY 11.15-12.15
3.15-4.15
5.30-6.30
9.00-12.00
LWKY
6:00
4.25 -4.40
DUSTIN TEBBUTT BOOM DEE BRIDES 3.30-3.35
11.00-12.00 GYUTO MONKS CHANTING 9.00-9.30 ZEN THAI YOGA WITH GWYN WILLIAMS & PENNI DONOVAN 9.45-10.45 MEL DOBRA - SACRED TIDES 10.45-11.15
THE CASSETTES 2.00-2.05
SHIFTEQ (LIVE/DJ)
5:00
VIOLENT SOHO
LDRU BASENJI SKY FERREIRA &YAHTZEL
DARREN MIDDLETON
MINUS ONE (LIVE)
4:00
THE 1975
4.00-5.00
MANCHOIR
FISHING DJs
3:00
STICKY FINGERS
12.15-1.00 1.00-1.45 1.45-2.30 2.30-3.15
BOSCO vs MADDIE J TOGETHER
12.50-1.30
MAS YSA
GW McLENNAN TENT
GLOBAL VILLAGE
2:00
2.30-3.30
ALEX
10.15-12.00
Sunday 27 JULY
MANCHOIR
MIX UP STAGE
TIPI FOREST
1:00
CIRCA WAVES
12.00 -12.30
1.15-2.00
YOUNG FRANCO
Saturday 26 JULY TORA
12.00 -12.45
FIESTA
5.00-8.00
12:00
HOODOO GURUS - be my guru
MIKE WHO/SHANTAN WANTAN ICHIBAN
6.00-9.00
FORUM/COMEDY
11:00
SASKWATCH
ACRO YOGA WITH CASEY CONROY 11.15-12.15
COMEDY CLUB W/- Bedroom Philosopher, Mel Buttle + more
AMPHITHEATRE
ÁSGEIR
AFROGALACTIC
1:00
9.15-10.30
THE STRYPES
11.00-12.00
AKIMBO
7.30-8.30
12:00
CHILDISH GAMBINO
THE HEAD AND THE HEART
ELECTRIC TIPI
11:00
OUTKAST
8.45-9.45 YACHT CLUB DJs 8.30-9.15
KELIS
DMA’S
TORFASON DJs UPTOWN DJs DEPARTMENT DJs VARCITY DJs AUDITREE DJs FREE AGENTS DJs MUTUAL FRIENDS DJs
10.45-12.00
HALFWAY CROOKS DJs
7.15-8.15
KILTER
10:00
BYRON FIRE COLLECTIVE 12.00-12.15
SHAKSHUKA
11.00-12.00
5.45-6.45
5.25 -5.40
9:00
INTERPOL
MISS FRIBY’S CABARET 9.00-9.30
7.30-8.45
7.00-7.30
10.00-11.00 BYRON FIRE COLLECTIVE 10.30-10.45
6.00-7.00
KOOII
GLOBAL VILLAGE
MULT1VERSE LUCIOUS DEED (LIVE)
8:00
LONDON GRAMMAR
MISS FRIBY’S CABARET 7.30-8.00
9.00-10.00
7:00
FRACTURES
1:00 GYUTO MONKS CHANTING 9.00-9.30 ZEN THAI YOGA WITH GWYN WILLIAMS & PENNI DONOVAN 9.45-10.45 MEL DOBRA - SACRED TIDES 10.45-11.15
6:00
SPIDERBAIT
CACAO CEREMONY 6.00-6.30
LEO DIAZ
8.00-9.00
12:00
3.45 -4.00
2.40-3.30
5:00
BALL PARK MUSIC 4.15-5.15
BURAKA YACHT CLUB THE KITE INDIAN STRING SUMMER PEKING DUK WORDLIFE SOM DJs SISTEMA TANGLE 2.15-3.00 3.00-3.45 3.45-4.30 4.30-5.15 5.15-6.00 6.00-6.45 6.45-7.30
CHARLES MURDOCH THE ACID
3.45-4.15
BLACK(LIVE)MATH
11:00
4:00
GYUTO MONKS CHANTING & MEDITATION
POB 7.00-8.00
MAE FREE LIKE ME WILDE
MISS FRIBY’S CABARET 8.45-9.15
GYUTO MONKS CHANTING
4.30-5.00 WELCOME TO COUNTRY-MAGPIE 4.00-4.30
3.00-6.00
10:00
6.00-7.00
HALFWAY CROOKS
12.00-3.00
9:00
TUMBLE (LIVE)
5.00-6.00
SEÑOR BOLIVAR
8:00
5.00-6.00 DRUMMING CIRCLE WITH RENDRA & THE RHYTHM HUT
DJ SPEX
7:00
HARMLESS PRANKSTER (LIVE)
WEBBER
FIESTA
1.40-2.25
TIPI FOREST
4.00-5.00
GLOBAL VILLAGE
12.45-1.25
12.00 -12.45 12.45-1.30 1.30-2.15
GW McLENNAN TENT
4:00
TIPI FOREST
12.00-12.30
3:00
THE PREATURES
BOOM DEE BRIDES 9.30-9.35
12:00
DZ DEATHRAYS
THE CASSETTES 2.30-2.35
11:00
2:00
DARLIA
TKAY MAIDZA
MIX UP STAGE
Thursday 24 JULY
1:00
AIRLING
MANCHOIR
AMPHITHEATRE
WELCOME TO COUNTRY
FRI 25 : SAT 26 : SUN 27
JULY 2014
MAP KEY
FREE WIFI FROM #SPOTIFYONSITE
FOOD
MARKETS
FOOD VANS
FIRST AID
WATER
TOILETS
BONFIRE
MERCHANDISE
TAXI RANK
DISABLED PATRON TOILETS
EFTPOS & DRINK TICKETS
BUS STOP
INFO
BREATHALYSER
BT
BUS TICKET SALES
CAMP GROUNDS
r
CAMP GROUND ENTRANCE EMERGENCY EXIT CAR PASS REFUND PHONE RECHARGE
BRAGâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s guide to film, theatre, comedy and art about town
arts in focus inside:
richard III + rhys nicholson also: arts news + giveaway + reviews
macbeth xxxx
shakespeare in sydney
thebrag.com
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 19
arts frontline
free stuff
arts news...what's goin' on around town...with Chris Martin
head to: thebrag.com/freeshit
five minutes WITH Alasdair Macintyre’s Helmet
A
lasdair Macintyre’s The Long Martch takes the image of the Stormtrooper from Star Wars and turns it into a commentary on art, politics and society. It sounds like a gas, so we caught up with Macintyre to talk us through it.
Tropfest Roughcut
ALASDAIR MACINTYRE
Tell us about the concepts behind The Long Martch. Many factors went into this exhibition, including the mortality rate of art students who go on to become professional artists, reflecting the 90 per cent of the CCP army who didn’t finish the actual long march, which was the original launch point of this show. In a macro sense, the works are about how a generally impassive conscience, like a brainwashed soldier, can be humanised through emotive experiences and an embracing of life and art. The Stormtroopers play an important role in the works – what makes them a suitable canvas for your commentary? They are perfect blank canvases! I have always wanted to take to a Stormtrooper with a big fat permanent marker and draw all over it. The concept of the Stormtrooper is perfect for this show – mindless
obedience, no individuality, and an icon of our age that people can relate to. In my mind also, that was what ‘stormtrooper’ originally referred to in both World Wars. Are you a Star Wars fanatic yourself? Was it a childhood obsession? I am a fan, but not a fanatic. When I was a kid, the Stormtrooper was a rare action fi gure (one of the original 12 Star Wars figures released in 1977), and after months of searching, I actually found one when my family went to the UK for a holiday, and it became a prized possession… perhaps my trooper obsession stems from that! What is it about the fi gurine in tableau that allows you to blur the line between reality and fi ction? I guess that being a Catholic, my upbringing was full of statuary of the saints and
Jesus, with also little tableaus of Bernadette in the grotto at Lourdes, Saint Francis and the birds, the crucifixion, et cetera. So these metaphysical experiences were within reach for the devoted viewer. Is the idea behind your stationary characters to make them more representative of the human experience than the stylised versions of politics and society presented in pop culture like film and television? Good question. Although these figures have no facial features, I can give them relatable emotions with a simple tilt of the head, or the raising of an arm, and that can make all the difference in conveying an emotion. What: The Long Martch Where: Sullivan+Strumpf, Zetland When: Until Saturday August 9
The popular Art & About festival will again take over Sydney’s streets from late September, with more highlights revealed on the program. There’s nothing we love more than an old-fashioned neighbourhood party, and the suburban backyard will come to the centre of Sydney when Martin Place hosts the Quarter Acre Block Party. Meanwhile, the city’s banners will pay homage to the much-loved milk bar, and entries for the Little Sydney Lives competition are now open. And remember those giant colourful snails from last year? Well, one of the city’s most visible events this time around will be a little more movement-based: Trolleys, a partdance performance, part-outdoor spectacle featuring street dancers and acrobats making the most of everyday shopping trolleys. Don’t try this at Coles. Art & About 2014 runs from Friday September 19 – Sunday October 12.
The offshoot of Sydney’s popular Tropfest event, Tropfest Roughcut, returns to Lend Lease Theatre, Darling Quarter on Saturday July 26. The interactive film industry event this year features a lineup of speakers including Wolf Creek star John Jarratt, talking in his inimitable style about a career that’s taken him from McLeod’s Daughters to Django Unchained, and comedian Dan Ilic, discussing how crowdfunding helped his ideas get off the ground. Stills photographer Jasin Boland will tell a thousand words about his pictures, while director Alex Proyas (I, Robot, The Crow) will give the keynote. The MC is ‘That Movie Guy’, Marc Fennell. It’s a great starting point before Tropfest entries open on Wednesday August 13. We’ve got a double pass to give away to this year’s edition of Tropfest Roughcut. For your chance to win it, head to thebrag. com/freeshit and tell us which actor would play you in a film about your life.
Dr Sir Leslie Colin Patterson KCB AO by Tim Storrier
Trolleys photo by Irven Lewis
Trolleys
ART & ABOUT
FEELING ROUGH
USELESS GESTURES
Photographic works and sculptures by Sarah Mosca will be the subject of a new exhibit at Galerie Pompom. Mosca’s photography brings new meaning to the ‘close-up’: her new works for Useless Gestures are the product of long walks undertaken with photographic film attached to her body – the slow exposure of the negative creating images as she moved. Her sculptures explore similar themes of the body. Useless Gestures is showing from Wednesday July 23 – Sunday August 17.
ARAB FILM FESTIVAL
WILD AT HEART
North Shore Drama is preparing to stage its next production for aspiring actors, Wild At Heart. Directed by Jacob Allan, actors enrolled in North Shore Drama’s Actors Company program for term three (Wednesday July 23 – Saturday September 6) can be part of the exciting production. Also planned is a smaller production, From Page To Stage, directed by Rebecca Johnston. It’s an exciting opportunity based on weekly rehearsals leading up to performance. For more info, head to northshoredrama.com.au.
Sam Shepard’s black comedy The God Of Hell will open at Old Fitzroy Theatre next month. Shepard wrote his piece in the lead-up to the 2004 US presidential election, and used the opportunity to air a scathing commentary on big and intrusive government. Rodney Fisher directs this production of Shepard’s dark farce, playing from Tuesday August 26 – Saturday September 13.
SIR LES WINS ARCHIBALD PACKING ROOM PRIZE
An Australian icon – of sorts – is the subject of this year’s Packing Room winner at the Archibald Prize. Tim Storrier has been awarded the Packing Room Prize for his portrait of Barry Humphries’ alter ego, Dr Sir Leslie Colin Patterson KCB AO – or the larger-than-life Sir Les, as he’s commonly known. The Packing Room Prize is selected by the Art Gallery of NSW staff and storeman Steve Peters as they receive and prepare the entries for the Archibald proper. The Archibald Prize 2014 is on view from Saturday July 19 – Sunday September 28.
CELEBRITY THEATRESPORTS It’s improv for a good cause: the Enmore Theatre will host Celebrity Theatresports next month, with a host of big names taking themselves out of their comfort zones to raise money for CanTeen. Julia Zemiro will host the event, with the lineup of would-be funnypeople including Adam Spencer, Angela Bishop, Benita Collings, Nicholas Hope and Leah Purcell. Proceeds go to CanTeen, the organisation that helps young Australians living with cancer. Celebrity Theatresports is on Saturday August 9.
OH, NOH
The God Of Hell
Noh, Japan’s oldest surviving form of theatre, will be the subject of a talk at the Art Gallery of NSW next month. Noh master Naohiko Umewaka is making his way from Japan to our shores, and will give a lecture as part of the Japan Foundation’s series, Noh To Now: Traditions And Counter-Traditions In Japanese Performance. Find out all about Noh at the Art Gallery of NSW on Wednesday August 6. thebrag.com
xxx
20 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
The program has been announced for the 13th edition of the Arab Film Festival, to open in Sydney next month before heading to Melbourne and Canberra. The festival’s 2014 instalment will cover a broad crosssection of Arab life, from the freedom fighters in When I Saw You, the opening night film, to the footballers of The United – Disney’s first-ever Arabic language film. The Arab Film Festival 2014 is on at Riverside Theatres from Thursday August 14 – Sunday August 17. For full details, head to arabfilmfestival. com.au.
THE GOD OF HELL
Rhys Nicholson
Macbeth
[COMEDY] Out Of Place By Cameron James
[THEATRE] The Scottish Play Restaged By Tegan Jones
D
ouble, double toil and trouble / Fire burn, and cauldron bubble…
It’s not just that Nicholson is gay, it’s that he’s a gay man who’s bored of all the fuss surrounding homosexuality. For many audiences, this is a new attitude to sexuality, rarely seen onstage. “There are more interesting things about me than that,” he says, echoing a philosophy on sex that he has shared both onstage and online in his video for Reach Out, ‘It Gets Boring’.
Rhys Nicholson
…or at least it will at the Sydney Theatre Company as William Shakespeare’s Macbeth makes a triumphant return with Hugo Weaving in the title role. If this weren’t enough of a drawcard, the production will be subverting theatre protocol by having the audience sit on the stage whilst the actors perform throughout the auditorium. Actor Ivan Donato, who will be playing both Seyton and one of the infamous witches, discusses this different approach to production.
“People have an idea of what being gay is, and when they come out, they try to become that,” he says. “When I was 19, I tried to be a ‘gay guy’, which in Sydney meant wearing V-neck tops and having an eating disorder. But then you start to focus more on who you are, stop emulating people.”
“I don’t want to give too much away, but the thinking behind this particular production of Macbeth is to make it quite theatrical, so therefore actually putting the performers in the auditorium and the audience on the stage. There’s certain elements of creating characters on the stage that are happening and quite a lot of stylisation. “We haven’t been in the theatre yet because we’re waiting for it to be gutted, so we’re very excited to see it,” Donato says. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and it’s going to be a very special thing by means of that, and also having Hugo playing Macbeth as well, which is going to be really exciting. Just among other actors, particularly in our industry, he’s one of those people you look up to. He’s so accomplished and world-renowned.” One of the most incredible things about Shakespeare’s work is the universality of its themes, alongside its adaptability to almost any context. Even so, the new approach by director Kip Williams comes from a wellconsidered place. “I think this is becoming more and more prevalent in theatre in general, particularly in the major companies, where they don’t necessarily set it in a certain time or place,” says Donato. “It’s more ambiguous, and what that forces the audience to do is to use their imaginations a bit more in regards to the characters, the situation and the setting. “If you set it in a particular time and place you constrain the piece, whereas if you allow it just to be itself in more of a box setting, it lives and breaths more than, for example, setting it in 1940s fascist Italy. Already that setting has its own connotations that I think takes away from the piece. A lot of the time what you’re trying to do then is fit your particular take on that production to the text as opposed to just letting it be what it is.” This minimalistic and non-contextual approach to the production isn’t as odd or modern as one might initially think. In
When Nicholson talks about sex, or relationships, it only highlights that everybody has the same experiences throughout their life. “It’s wanky to say it like this,” he laughs, “but I’m not talking about being ‘gay’, I’m trying to talk about what it is to be human… and to sell merch.”
’m in a motel that was directed by David Lynch,” Sydney comedian Rhys Nicholson whispers down the line. “It’s all flickering lights, and really old furniture, and there’s a creepy kid playing with a yo-yo out the front… It’s quite nice.”
Nicholson’s acerbic stand-up comedy focuses on his discord with almost everyone and everything around him. He’s a Newcastle boy in his early 20s who, in his trademark three-piece suit, looks and talks like a high-stakes gambler from the early 1920s. He is an open book with a dirty mouth. A typical Nicholson set will find him flipping between casually sharing his personal embarrassments with the audience and insightfully commenting on the world as he sees it.
Nicholson is in a motel in regional Queensland. If you’ve ever seen the angular, sharp-suited comic with the Bowiecirca-Low haircut before, then you’ll know that Nicholson is out of place. But then, out of place is where Nicholson is often most at home.
And it’s the world that Nicholson is interested in. After touring the show through Australia, including sell-out performances at both the Melbourne and Sydney Comedy Festivals, Nicholson is taking his latest stand-up show, Eurgh, to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
“Last night I performed in a town famous for homophobia,” Nicholson begins, and you can hear his smile through the phone. As a young gay man who stands on stages in clubs and pubs around the country, Nicholson has sharpened his razor wit on the uninformed prejudices of stupid people. He may well have been prepared for the worst.
“Edinburgh will be a month of standing on the street, trying to get people to come see my show, drinking from a flask in my jacket pocket,” he says. “But I’m proud of the show. It’s gotten the best reviews of anything I’ve ever done. And I’m excited for people to see it.”
Hugo Weaving in Macbeth fact, Donato compares it to the Elizabethan approach to Shakespeare. “They basically came on with nothing; very minimal props. So you can imagine that for Elizabethans to see these plays that talk about Italy and exotic places, it didn’t matter because they were speaking in their own language. They could talk about all of these wonderful areas and tell the story, which is very brave and something that you don’t see very often now. You don’t see an Australian production that’s set in Italy where it doesn’t matter if we speak with Australian accents. It’s a very brave thing to do.” Last time Donato appeared in Macbeth, opening night had to be cancelled due to a large portion of the cast suffering food poisoning. Despite this, he doesn’t refer to it as “The Scottish Play” and he isn’t afraid of the alleged Macbeth curse. “I don’t believe in curses, but touch wood that nothing happens with us here. I’m betting that something will happen once we get to theatre, though.” What: Macbeth Where: Sydney Theatre When: Monday July 21 – Saturday September 27
“I
“I told a guy in the front row I’d like to have sex with him,” he continues hesitantly. “And somehow, I got a round of applause.” Being out of place, it seems, is exactly what endears audiences to him. “I don’t want your readers to think that’s all I do,” he laughs. “Please don’t make the headline, ‘Rhys Nicholson fucks his audience’.”
So make sure you see Eurgh for the last time in Australia at The Comedy Store on Saturday July 19. Because in less than a month, Nicholson will be out of the country, and exactly where he belongs again: out of place. What: Eurgh Where: The Comedy Store When: Saturday July 19
Richard III [THEATRE] Playing The Villain By Adam Norris
I
Richard III photo by Clare Hawley
catch Mark Kilmurry while he is rushing through the theatre, trying to stay on top of the thousand rambling details that go into any stage production. He is happy and articulate, if somewhat exhausted – you can hear it in his voice, as though he has waded through a swamp of molasses to reach the phone in time. I feel slightly bad for the interruption when things are clearly so busy, but then, I take solace in the fact that Richard III isn’t exactly a breezy role to undertake.
There must certainly be great artistic reward in undertaking the role of the bad guy – having the chance to strut the stage and commit actions that your better self would find deeply deplorable; to embrace the excess of evil. Kilmurry believes this fascination with the villain is common to us all.
With the title character’s hunched back and murderous greed, Richard III is hardly the stuff of romantic leads. Corruption, infanticide, it has it all. Conjuring such frenzy and ambition must take a lot of dedication, and Kilmurry (as the director and playing Richard himself) is following in the footsteps of a great many others who have famously raised a toast to the sun of York.
“It’s something that’s true across the history of theatre. We love the baddie, as long as we’re not actually involved. People can happily watch violence, but are abhorred by real violence. I think there’s a sort of role-playing within that. Like going to see the gladiators centuries ago. We look at that now and think, ‘Thank God we don’t do that anymore.’ But fictional takes on violence, murder and villainy we find very interesting to watch. Richard is doing things that we wouldn’t dare, but to a certain point we still cheer him on, until things start getting a bit darker and nastier. We enjoy him going where we don’t dare to go.”
“I certainly think it’s one of Shakespeare’s greatest villains,” Kilmurry explains, “and it’s such a meaty role. I did Hamlet a few years ago, and Richard is another of those wonderful characters that stands out in a classic play.”
Productions of Shakespeare are so common, the challenge is to keep them fresh and appealing to those well-versed in the Bard. “There’s a sense of history that comes with putting these on,” says Kilmurry. “When you come to perform it you think of it
thebrag.com
as being an original piece without the baggage, as it were. You have to, in order to play it honestly.” The timing for this production is also rather impressive. The remains of the real Richard III were discovered beneath a car park in Leicester in 2012, although researchers have been quick to establish that the historical picture of the former king differs greatly from his Shakespearean counterpart. This revelation is not all that troubling to Kilmurry; rather, the play’s the thing. “This is definitely Shakespeare’s Richard III. In many modern dramas, when it’s based on somebody real there’s a huge artistic licence sometimes. With this version I don’t need to worry about that. Interesting that he was found – it’s great publicity for us, but that’s about it. If I were doing the real Richard III, I’d be playing him with only a slight stoop and worms,” Kilmurry laughs. “Dramatically, I don’t imagine that would be very interesting.” What: Richard III Where: Riverside Theatre, Parramatta When: Tuesday July 22 – Saturday July 26
Mark Kilmurry in Richard III BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 21
Film Reviews Hits and misses on the silver screen around town
David Gulpilil in Charlie’s Country
Miranda Otto and Glória Pires in Reaching For The Moon
Colin Firth in Devil’s Knot ■ Film
■ Film
DEVIL’S KNOT
CHARLIE’S COUNTRY
In cinemas Thursday July 24
In cinemas Thursday July 17
Devil’s Knot – a dramatisation of the notorious West Memphis Three trials, in which three metalhead youths were hastily and unscrupulously convicted for the allegedly occult murders of three children – doesn’t take long to establish itself as a film of bracing shoddiness. We open in Memphis, 1993, as housewife Pamela Hobbs (Reese Witherspoon) washes dishes whilst listening to Eva Cassidy’s 1997 cover of ‘Wade In The Water’; her eight-year-old son and his two friends soon to be reported missing before being discovered the next day, their dead bodies floating in a nearby ditch. In just a few minutes of screen time, we’re introduced to not only the film’s hideously chalky, daytime-soap visual sheen, but also the sacrificing of period-specific verisimilitude for a painfully obvious ‘foreboding’ music cue.
Charlie’s Country is the third collaboration between director Rolf de Heer and actor David Gulpilil following 2002’s The Tracker and 2006’s Ten Canoes. The film sees the always adventurous, poly-stylistic de Heer at his most classical, which isn’t to suggest that he’s sacrificed form in the name of content – i.e., the marginalisation of Australia’s indigenous peoples. Just as the title suggests matters of land entitlement, Charlie’s Country is ostensibly Gulpilil’s film, convincingly making the case that there are few things more cinematic than the weathered face of this most iconic and soulful of screen presences.
xxx
With the exception of the disquieting, matter-of-fact ensuing scene detailing the shocking discovery made by local police, and Witherspoon’s strong work in the film’s courtroom scenes, Devil’s Knot (based on the events as told in Mara Leveritt’s 2002 book of the same name) is the kind of true story that’s so poorly conceived, even viewers familiar with the case might start to doubt the things they knew to be facts. That’s especially true of Colin Firth’s private investigator Ron Lax, who, as written and played by Firth, seems to have been conveniently blessed with the ability to see into the case’s future as soon as he’s assigned to it. It takes a special kind of laziness and ineptitude to render this material – already the subject of the astonishing Paradise Lost documentary trilogy, and 2012’s more onesided West Of Memphis – so dramatically inert, which makes it doubly disappointing that it’s directed by the once-great Atom Egoyan, whose depictions of bereavement and grief in his career-defining ’90s films Exotica and The Sweet Hereafter were so unsentimental and wrenching. With tough competition from numerous cash-grab sequels and remakes, Devil’s Knot still manages to stand tall as one of 2014’s most inessential films. Ian Barr
Since his debut role in Nicolas Roeg’s Walkabout as a native guiding two stranded English teenagers through the Australian outback, Gulpilil has been a permanent fixture of Australian cinema, though Charlie’s Country is the first film to dramatise, in semi-autobiographical fashion, his off-screen hardships, particularly his alcoholism and incarceration (both he and de Heer collaborated on the screenplay). It opens in a small Aboriginal community in the Northern Territory, with fluid, gliding Steadicam shots tracking Gulpilil’s Charlie as he goes about his daily routine. Though white law enforcers rule the area and threaten to eventually drive Charlie out, this opening scene slyly evokes the classic Western scenario of the local sheriff navigating his sleepy small town, showing Charlie on good terms with its black and white inhabitants alike. The tone gradually evolves from spry to mournful as Charlie drifts toward homelessness in Darwin, with the most haunting section being a wordless stretch showing him camping alone in the bush just after leaving home, the ghosts of his ancestors ever-present. It’s easy to overrate Charlie’s Country based on its content, especially in light of recent comments made by our Prime Minister regarding the degree to which Australia was allegedly “unsettled” prior to colonisation. Fortunately, the film is as good as it is worthy: a plain-spoken yet impassioned plea for equality that finds universal resonance in a national crisis.
■ Film
REACHING FOR THE MOON In cinemas Thursday July 17 Sometimes the lives of famous artists are as strange, tragic and beautiful as you always imagined. Reaching For The Moon proves this to be true for the poet Elizabeth Bishop (Miranda Otto) and her lover, the architect Lota de Macedo Soares (Glória Pires). Based on Carmen L. Oliveira’s book Rare And Commonplace Flowers, the film follows the relationship between the two women, which director Bruno Barreto captures with a slow and poetic tone.
In 1951 Bishop set sail to Brazil for a two-week holiday. She stayed for 15 years. Reaching For The Moon begins with Bishop as the quintessential reserved American, uptight and stiff compared to her exuberant and welcoming Brazilian hosts. Romance quickly blooms between Bishop and Lota; both of them are sheer creative forces, but as the film moves along they increasingly struggle with alcoholism and depression respectively. Their successes and failures, and their love and jealousy, become entangled in a heady mix. The opening scene of Bishop austerely reciting a draft of her poem The Art Of Losing is more foreboding than it first seems. The nuanced performances of both Otto and Pires breathe
life into their subjects: Otto is anxious, vulnerable and stately, Pires is charismatic and filled with energy. The work of an architect lends itself to film far more readily than that of a poet. Lota’s extravagant homestead and famous Flamingo Park are depicted beautifully and work into the fabric of the action. There are, however, some overwrought scenes of Otto tapping at her typewriter and pacing with manuscripts. Overall, it is a film about loss as much as it is about love. The success of the film holds on the strength of the true story of these two extraordinary women, as well as the performances of Otto and Pires. Harriet McInerney
S Y D N E Y ’ S P R E M I U M D R A M AT I C A R T S S T U D I O
ACTING CLASSES, WORKSHOPS AND PRODUCTIONS Extend your skills and build confidence in a fun, social and engaging environment.
Ian Barr
See thebrag.com for more arts reviews
Arts Exposed What's in our diary...
Archibald Prize Art Gallery of NSW, Saturday July 19 – Sunday September 28 It’s the time of year when all eyes are on the visual arts. The 2014 instalment of the Archibald Prize continues a tradition that’s been thriving since 1921, and is now comfortably considered Australia’s most popular art prize. From 884 entries, the finalists have been narrowed down to those portraits on display for the next two months. Also on show are finalists in the Wynne Prize (landscape painting of Australian scenery or figure sculpture) and the Sulman Prize (subject painting, genre painting or mural project in oil, acrylic, watercolour or mixed media). Tickets are $12/10; for more details visit artgallery.nsw.gov.au.
Joanna Braithwaite, Bright Spark - Portrait of Colleen McCullough
ENROLMENTS NOW OPEN FOR TERM 3 View our program and enroll online at www.northshoredrama.com.au 1300 657 934
22 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
thebrag.com
Australian Institute of Music
OPEN DAY
10AM - 3PM australian institute of music 1-55 FOVEAUX STREET, SURRY HILLS, sydney Contemporary Performance y Classical Performance y Music Theatre y Dramatic Arts Audio engineering y Composition & Music Production y Arts & Entertainment Management young AIM y AIM high school y short courses CRICOS 00665C
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 23
Bondi’s not just all about summer. Around this time of year, Bondi Pavilion transforms into a hub of arts, comedy and theatre. It’s Bondi Feast, and with over 50 shows to choose from, we’ve picked out a few to help you plan your schedule. For the full program, head to bondifeast.com.au.
Where: The Big Theatre When: Tuesday July 22 Bondi Feast’s very own comedy showcase brings together the festival’s comedy feature artists like Cameron James, Jared Jekyll and Nikki Britton, and special guests like musical comedy duo Smart Casual. Like everything Feasty, this lol-a-thon features hot emerging peeps alongside some of the finest in the game. Handpicked by Campfire Collective, the folks who’ve curated laughs for Late Night Library, Harvest Festival, Imperial Panda and more.
Where: The Little Theatre When: Tuesday July 22 – Wednesday July 23 When River isn’t selling her aluminium foil art outside Woolworths, she writes Google poetry and attends strangers’ funerals. Sydney actor Claire Lovering writes and performs in her debut solo show; River. An awkward, hilarious and at times tragic portrait of a life lived alone. Inspired by personal musings on life and loneliness, this hour-long piece was originally performed as a ten-minute monologue and has since been commissioned exclusively for Bondi Feast. This is your chance to get to know River, one on one, in her own words.
Icarus Falling photo by Michael Cohen
Where: The Little Theatre When: Tuesday July 22 – Wednesday Kuly 23 Scott Wings says: “Icarus Falling is essentially my love letter to depression, with explosions and stuff. It’s a one-man show combining physical theatre, slam poetry and comedy. It’s great because I get to point at people and yell things randomly. Most of the time the show talks about Icarus and sometimes it talks about the sky and other times it talks about falling really fast and whether we’ve learnt to bounce or not. You’ll probably cry and laugh. Because depression is funny ha-ha but not funny ha-ha.”
Not convinced by the provocative title? Awkward Conversations is the latest work by award-winning young playwright Rob Hayes, whose grisly comedy A Butcher Of Distinction shed blood for Sydney audiences last year. He is joined again by director James Dalton (Cough, The Light Box) for this disarmingly poignant tragi-comedy about love, taboos and animal rights. It’s a solo show helmed by newcomer Heath Ivey-Law (A Butcher Of Distinction), who intimately courts fi ve different animals. Warning: contains post-coital awkwardness and oversharing, so it’s perfect for a Tinder date.
Where: The Big Theatre Date: Wednesday July 23 – Friday July 25 Where: The Big Theatre When: Thursday July 17 – Saturday July 19 It’s post World War I and times have changed. Contemplating what comes next we meet four returned servicemen: Richard, Joseph, Hans and Lionel. An eccentric artist, Lionel is coping with a rejection from famed training college, That Art School. What happens next, nobody could have predicted. The Violent Romantics blast into their Sydney premiere with sold-out hit My Struggle: The Life And Times Of An Individ (In A World Full Of Hipsters). TVR are truly bringing these hipsters home with a special remake for the Sydney audiences. The jokes are funnier, the designs are more colourful, the ciders are stronger and moustaches are longer.
24 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:05:14
“She wanted to watch The Ice Storm and I wanted to watch Godzilla and I realised in that moment we weren’t going to make it,” says Sydney stalwart theatremaker Caleb Lewis on the moment of inspiration for his new show, premiering at Bondi Feast. Destroyer is about a couple imploding, a bomb exploding and how love sometimes makes monsters of us all. “Do we have the right to tell someone else’s story? And if not, is that a good enough reason not to?” says Lewis.
thebrag.com
Awkward Conversations photo by Lucy Parakhina
Where: The Little Theatre Date: Wednesday July 16 – Saturday July 19
y l u J 6 8-2 , e r t a e h T f o l a A festiv d o O F & c i s u M , y d E com
u a . m o c . t s Bondifea
TIX $15 BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 25
Album Reviews What's been crossing our ears this week...
ALBUM OF THE WEEK SLEEPMAKESWAVES
Of Cartography, sleepmakeswaves step things up a notch again. Lovers of the previous record may find it difficult to believe, but this new album is superior in just about every facet. It is bigger, more sweeping, more epic, more interesting, and takes the captivated listener to even bolder soundscapes than ever before.
Love Of Cartography Bird’s Robe/MGM
Instrumental music is a tough gig. Connecting with people without the aid of the obvious emotive content and sing-along nature of vocals and lyrics to spell things out is difficult. The artists that ply this trade have to be ridiculously good at what they do to gain any kind of traction amongst the record-buying and gig-going public. Well, that’s exactly what we have here. This Sydney four-piece astounded all who heard them with their previous album, …And So We Destroyed Everything back in 2011. Now, with Love
These guys are simply one of the absolute elite instrumental rock acts on the planet today. They deliver rock music that is interesting and complex, ambient and simple, and catchy as hell, all at once. Rod Whitfi eld
xxx
Love XxxxOf Cartography is an instant classic. Let it find the map to your heart.
Whilst the previous record had the occasional flat spot across its epic length, there are no such moments here. Every track is compelling; every piece carries you away to a different place of musical wonder.
PATRICK JAMES
ROYAL CHANT
HELLYEAH
COOKIN’ ON 3 BURNERS
EXAMPLE
Broken Lines Create/Control
Small Town Bruises / A Day At The Wauchope Races Dirty Mab
Blood For Blood Eleven Seven/Sony
Blind Bet Independent/Rocket
Live Life Living Sony
The album art for Hellyeah’s Blood For Blood resembles a cutaway from a snuff film. It’s pretty messed up, but it’s not like this cast of oddball metal maniacs gives a shit what squeamish folk think. While most supergroups disband when the gimmick begins to wear thin, this Texan crew – featuring Mudvayne vocalist Chad Gray, Nothingface guitarist Tom Maxwell and ex-Pantera drummer Vinnie Paul – has soldiered on, for better or worse, churning out groove-inflected headstompers since ’07.
Melbourne trio Cookin’ On 3 Burners are back with their sixth studio album, Blind Bet. A refreshing collection of soul and funk tunes, this album also has a strong cinematic vibe, which diversifies their sound and adds texture throughout.
English singer-songwriter-rapper Example has come back onto the scene with a new record that starts off somewhat strong but quickly finds itself falling into a mediocre hole. Live Life Living boasts a few songs that will get you moving and singing along, but it seems more dominated by uninspiring, repetitive and medium-grade tracks.
One of the most interesting aspects of Patrick James’ new EP is not the songs themselves, but what they say about James’ influences and the future direction of his music. Don’t get me wrong – it’s a strong set of a half-dozen songs that evoke both Boy & Bear (with whom he has been touring) and Jackson Browne, with thoughtful lyrics that would be right at home in a Cameron Crowe film. This EP might well be the soundtrack to your summer road trip. But there is something uneven here. Despite moments of greatness – tracks like the recent single ‘Message’ and the gorgeous duet ‘Fight With Me’ – other songs never quite find their wings. ‘Something In The Way’ and ‘Wait’, for instance, are both lovely songs but don’t really contribute to the overall variety – perhaps their inclusion should have been held back for an album. It’s odd, given that ‘Wait’ in particular is quite compelling live, but here seems unexplored. Still, Broken Lines is certainly worth your attention, and is an intriguing indication of how James’ songwriting will develop as he moves toward his next release. Make sure you check him out live.
This double EP from Port Macquarie’s Royal Chant explicitly aligns itself with a specific era in rock history. The tunes are packed to the brim with affectionate nods to the ’90s alt-rock boom. There are tinges of R.E.M., Nirvana, Stereophonics and Pearl Jam, with a dash of ’60s/’70s folk rock thrown in for good measure. The problem is, while the band is capable of penning a reasonably memorable tune, it gets bogged down in descriptive reference. It’s possible to successfully execute songs founded in overt recapitulation, but this just comes off as a middling reprisal of those appointed influences. The two-disc set becomes tiring the longer it endures, but it’s not a woeful document. Clearly these guys are interested music fans who seize the opportunity to turn aggression into conviviality and indulge in the odd tender moment. The independent release has been individually stickered and stenciled by the band, and the recording is a showcase in garage sonics. The production’s not crash hot, but at least it sounds honest.
Blood For Blood does, however, mark a few shifts in the template. For a start, guitarist Greg Tribbett and bassist Bob ‘Zilla’ Kakaha have been given the arse, making way for ex-Bloodsimple bassist Kyle Sanders (yes, brother of Mastodon’s Troy). Everything’s now harder, faster, and darker. With the exception of token acoustic filler ‘Hush’ and radio-friendly pomp like ‘Moth’, all the countryinspired and sometimes bluesy interludes of yore have been axed in favour of straight-for-the-jugular metal assaults.
The bottom line is that this is middle-of-the-road stuff. It lacks the power to thrill, but it’s not potent enough to revolt either.
If innovators like Deafheaven and Mastodon are pushing metal forward, then Hellyeah are in the majority holding it back. Blood For Blood is straight-off-the-shelf groove metal. But if you’re after something to simply bang your head to, then, you know, whatever pops your balloon.
Augustus Welby
Jack Pilven
The band, led by guitarist Lance Ferguson of The Bamboos, has collaborated with a number of guest artists this time around. Bamboos singer Kylie Auldist showcases her soulful vocals on ‘Chew You Up’ and ‘Mind Made Up’, while the album’s first single, the groovy ‘Losin’ Streak’ (featuring Daniel Merriweather) is a standout. And let’s not forget Tex Perkins, whose vocals make the bluesy ‘Flat On My Back’ a favourite. Blind Bet includes five instrumental cuts, the best of which are the title track and ‘The Spanish Job’ – both of them would be well placed on a film soundtrack. Ross Irwin’s brilliant string and horn arrangements create this welcome cinematic feel. It’s been five years between albums for Cookin’ On 3 Burners, and Blind Bet is well worth the wait. A catchy record that will leave you groovin’ from start to finish.
Acknowledgment has to be given to the variation in sounds you’ll find pumping through your speakers, from classic hard beat dance and ’90s rave to more chilled, summer vibe sounds. And like most dance records, it has your typical ‘don’t forget your youth, let’s act like we’re crazy, irresponsible teenagers’ track (‘Kids Again’). It also has its moments in which things seem to get a bit deeper than the usual electronic fare (‘Next Year’) – but it doesn’t bring much else. As a whole, Live Life Living will probably work well for already established Example fans, but won’t gain him any new ones. If you were expecting a little more from Example this time around, you’ll find yourself switching to something else after a few tracks.
Ali Birnie Amy Theodore
Adam Norris
INDIE ALBUM OF THE WEEK Mere Women are potentially the best band in Australia you’ve never heard.
MERE WOMEN Your Town Poison City
The Sydney trio is one of the most forward-thinking and consistently engaging acts in this country, pushing ideas and conventions to the point of forthright innovation. With each release, Mere Women progress even further as songwriters and as a collective. It should only make sense, then, that their second studio album – following on from 2012’s Old Life – collates their best songs yet into the kind of cohesive flow that some bands spend their entire career attempting to find. It’s a peculiar marriage of icy, dissonant post-punk and surges of
26 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 09:07:14
jolted, off-kilter rhythms, as vocalist/ keyboardist Amy Wilson intensely and acutely details the demise of a relationship. Whether she’s yelping to be heard or leaving confessions of the innermost personal nature, her words resonate powerfully. Indeed, everything you hear on Your Town is written, performed and executed with the utmost conviction, so much so that you will most likely be compelled back to the start of the album the second it finishes. From its streets to its inhabitants, Your Town is boldly exploratory in both its sonic environment and its subject matter. Genre regardless, this is one of 2014’s essential listens.
OFFICE MIXTAPE And here are the albums that have helped BRAG HQ get through the week... MORRISSEY - World Peace Is None Of Your Business SEA WOLF - Get To The River Before It Runs Too Low THE NOTORIOUS B.I.G. - Duets: The Final Chapter
TV ON THE RADIO - Dear Science MAPEI - Don’t Wait
David James Young thebrag.com
snap sn ap
live reviews
up all night out all week . . .
What we've been out to see...
PHOTOGRAPHER :: ASHLEY MAR
insistently over the more recent ‘The Kids Will Get The Money’. Elsewhere, welcome surprises include the rarely performed ‘Soundczech’ and ‘Beautiful Sharks’.
SOMETHING FOR KATE Enmore Theatre Saturday July 12
The first half of the evening sees the Melbourne trio (with a little help from their friends) delve into a back catalogue of six albums and a pair of EPs, drawing a couple of songs from each in retrospective fashion. Even on their oldest tracks, there’s a striking immediacy; a sense of optimism in nostalgia that belies Dempsey’s persistent lamentations. Clint Hyndman drums with incredible urgency, while Stephanie Ashworth’s bass powers
After a brief intermission, Dempsey returns alone on piano for ‘Back To You’. Then the singer welcomes a special guest in Sarah Blasko, whose contribution to ‘Deep Sea Divers’ stops the audience in its tracks. From here on in it’s a greatest hits set, with Pip Branson joining in for an uplifting ‘Déjà Vu’, and the crowd responding to ‘Monsters’ with an impromptu sing-along of ‘Happy Birthday’. ‘Working Against Me’ from the band’s 1997 debut Elsewhere For 8 Minutes closes the main set, and the encores – ‘Captain (Million Miles An Hour)’ and ‘Pinstripe’ – come from that album as well. It’s a tribute from Dempsey, Ashworth and Hyndman to their devoted fan base, that’s for sure. But while history will look kindly upon Something For Kate, they’re not history just yet.
thumpers
05:06:14 :: Newtown Social Club :: 387 King St Newtown 1300 724 876
Chris Martin OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER
LORDE Hordern Pavilion Friday July 11 Good God – this girl knows how to put on a show. Following Lorde’s recent bout of ill health (and the fact I’d been given a head’s up earlier that day not to expect anything amazing from her), I arrived at the Hordern with fairly standard expectations. But after about ten minutes, I defy anyone in that tightly packed, booze-dappled crowd not to have been completely amazed at the talent and showmanship on display. The majority of the set seemed fresh, brought to vivid life on a very strippedback stage; just Lorde, and two expressionless guys on drums and synth dressed all in white. I kept expecting them to break into ‘Future Sailors’ from The Mighty Boosh.
KE PHOTOGRAPHER :: KATRINA CLAR
thebrag.com
While ‘Royals’ was clearly the favourite of the night, my money went to ‘Buzzcut Season’ and ‘Swingin’ Party’. They’re hardly remarkable on record, but live they
PICS :: AM
History will look kindly upon Something For Kate. It’s an indictment on the mainstream that for the entirety of their 20 years together, Paul Dempsey and co. have been consigned to the fringes when it’s come to radio airplay and the like. Yet as Dempsey himself says in the short retrospective film that opens tonight’s anniversary celebrations, he thought the band would last “a handful of gigs”. Two decades on, and Something For Kate sound as necessary as ever.
S :: JAMES AMBROSE :: FROM
THE PIT :: ASHLEY MAR ::
are a lesson in cultural sadness that would be right at home alongside anything by F. Scott Fitzgerald. There is something almost hypnotic in watching Lorde. Her dancing is both beautiful and surreal as she jerks across stage like a marionette with tangled strings, and her hair could almost justify a review of its own (with every toss of it over her shoulder, the crowd went batshit crazy). Her audience was clearly going to enjoy the night no matter what she did, and although some performers may have taken that as their cue to just coast through the night, Lorde threw herself into every song and engaged with the crowd after each. Towards the end and somewhat in lieu of an encore, she took a few minutes to speak to those thousands of fans as a preamble to ‘Ribs’. “Funny how some things suddenly make you feel like an adult, and that’s a cool thing. So strange and scary. Does that mean you have to be an adult all the time? ’Cause that’s a terrifying prospect for me. And it’s still something that keeps me up. But the thing is, Sydney, I’m not as scared as I used to be. Because it means I get you. Thank you.” Adam Norris
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 27
snap sn ap
tankard
PICS :: KC
up all night out all week . . .
11:07:14 :: The Hi-Fi :: 122 Lang Rd Moore Park 1300THEHIFI
PHOTOGRAPHER :: ASHLEY MAR
Metro Theatre Friday July 11 “He needs a Fisherman’s Friend,” I overheard the girl next to me say. And she was right. Dan Sultan’s voice was scratchy and a little bit worn, but it didn’t matter – he was working it, the hoarseness even adding a certain old-school Johnny Cash sexiness to the bluesy, country sound he’s famous for. Whatever it was, the crowd was pumped and hanging off every word Sultan had to offer. Prior to Sultan taking the stage, Jan Skubiszewski AKA Way Of The Eagle played a DJ set that left plenty to be desired, but Stonefield held their own, opening their energetic set with ‘Black Water Rising’. Gaining fans with their tambourine-banging, hip-shaking moves, the sisters powered through several tunes from their EPs and self-titled debut album including ‘Through The Clover’, ‘Put Your Curse On Me’ and ‘To Whom It May
Concern’. While they all killed it throughout their set, it was the sultry, soulful, olderthan-her-years voice of Amy Findlay that captured the audience’s attention, alongside several standout solos by bassist Holly Findlay that straight up rocked the room. Wooing the full house with songs from his third and latest album Blackbird, including ‘The Same Man’ and ‘Loving’s Just For Fools’, it was Dan Sultan’s old favourites like ‘Old Fitzroy’ and ‘Come Home Tonight’ that had the fans singing, howling and stomping the night away. Between the raw riffs and toe-tapping soul rock tunes, Sultan discussed the reasons for his extended time between records (“I had to make a few changes and get my shit together, basically”) and admitted that, yes, he was sick and his backstage stash of “Soothers, throat lozenges and ginger tea” were anything but rock’n’roll. But hey, he still sounded on song – so let the good times roll. Julienne Gilet
los hombres del diablo
13:07:14 :: Frankie's Pizza :: 50 Hunter St Sydney OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER
28 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
PICS :: AM
DAN SULTAN, STONEFIELD, WAY OF THE EAGLE
S :: JAMES AMBROSE :: KATRINA
CLARKE :: ASHLEY MAR ::
thebrag.com
live review What we've been out to see...
VIOLENT SOHO, THE SMITH STREET BAND, SOUNDS LIKE SUNSET Manning Bar Friday July 11 It’s a generous lineup at Manning Bar tonight, as the band of the moment is backed up by one that’s always been there or thereabouts on the Australian punk scene. Third on the bill are Sydney’s Sounds Like Sunset playing their insistent noise-pop, but then it’s those ever-present punks The Smith Street Band riffing to what is already a near-full room. Don’t tell the cool kids – they’d never want to admit such a thing – but Wil Wagner’s four-piece is the most romantic band in Aussie rock. Opener ‘Sunshine & Technology’ is a vehicle for Wagner’s thought poetry, but it’s the declaration of intent on ‘Don’t Fuck With Our Dreams’ that makes his mission clear: Smith Street are about “Driving around singing songs about / Driving ’round singing songs,” and that’s that. None of the balladry of ‘Ducks Fly Together’ or ‘I Can’t Feel My Face’ feels at all forced, so by the time Wagner dives into the crowd for ‘Young Drunk’, it’s all one big love-in.
that’s exactly what Violent Soho deliver from the top. If they’re the ‘it’ band of here and now, then the desires of Australia’s rock music audience are clear: we’re here for the audacity, not the smarts. Because there’s nothing clever about ‘Dope Calypso’, which opens tonight’s set, nor the barely disguised guitar pop of ‘Fur Eyes’. It’s why the band races through the second half of ‘Saramona Said’ and gets away with the chutzpah of ‘Jesus Stole My Girlfriend’. This is showbiz, you know, and if you’re after clever chord progressions, then find another gig. Of course, you’d only be missing out on the fun if you did. The Brisbane quartet’s nasal power grunge sets the room alight, with not only ‘Covered In Chrome’ screamed back from every corner, but much of the older material as well. There’s an ‘OK Cathedral’ finale that descends into stage invasion mania, then a demand for encore so convincing that the band returns even after the in-house music has already come on. And yet, Violent Soho never seem to hide behind any artifice, because there isn’t any in sight. You get the feeling this could catch on. Chris Martin
It takes almost unbelievable bravado to walk onstage to ‘Killing In The Name’, but
PHOTOGRAPHER :: ASHLEY MAR
thebrag.com
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 29
g g guide gig g
send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com
pick of the week
Jen Cloher
Little Bastard
Frankie’s Pizza, Sydney. 7:30pm. free. Jodi Berry Nag’s Head Hotel, Glebe. 8:15pm. free. Live Music Thursdays Bar100, The Rocks. 5pm. free. The Man In Black (The Johnny Cash Story) - feat: Tex Perkins Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 8pm. $79. The Maple Trail The Forresters, Surry Hills. 8:30pm. free.
SUNDAY JULY 20
INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS
Newtown Social Club
Little Bastard
+ Los Tones + Adam Gottlieb
5pm. $18. WEDNESDAY JULY 16 ACOUSTIC/ COUNTRY/BLUES/ FOLK
Mitch Anderson & His Organic Orchestra Coopers Hotel, Newtown. 8:45pm. free. The Man In Black (The Johnny Cash Story) - feat: Tex Perkins Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 8pm. $89.
JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC Lionel Cole Imperial Hotel, Paddington. 8pm. free. Yuki & John Bondi Pavilion Theatre, Bondi Beach. 1:30pm. free.
INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS
30 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
THURSDAY JULY 17 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC Cole Soul And Emotion feat: Lionel Cole The White Horse, Surry Hills. 8pm. free. Gazele + James Chatburn Oxford Hotel, Darlinghurst. 7pm. free. Live Latin Sessions (Dance
Classes + Live Music) feat: Malo Malo Jam Gallery, Bondi Junction. 6:30pm. $5.
ACOUSTIC/ COUNTRY/BLUES/ FOLK
Claude Hay And The Gentle Enemies
Ella Hooper
FRIDAY JULY 18 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC Jazz Hip-Hop Freestyle Sessions Foundry616, Ultimo. 11:30pm. free. One Night In Colombia Jam Gallery, Bondi Junction. 8pm. $10. Spring Street Swing Party Spring Street Social, Bondi. 8pm. free. Yuki & John Well Co. Cafe And Wine Bar, Leichhardt. 8pm. free.
ACOUSTIC/ COUNTRY/BLUES/ FOLK
Bam Bam Collingwood Hotel, Liverpool. 4:30pm. free. Corinne Rushby Barenz, Camden. 7:30pm. free. The Man In Black (The Johnny Cash Story) - feat: Tex Perkins
Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 8pm. $89.
INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS
Alex Hopkins Wenty Leagues Club, Wentworthville. 9pm. free. Andy Mammers Castle Hill RSL, Castle Hill. 9:30pm. free. Back To Back Time & Tide Hotel, Dee Why. 7:30pm. free. Blake Tailor The Oriental Hotel, Springwood. 8pm. free. Corrosion Of Conformity Factory Theatre, Marrickville. 8pm. $60. Crooked Colours Goodgod Small Club, Sydney. 9pm. $12. Dave White Experience Crows Nest Hotel, Crows Nest. 10:30pm. free. David Agius Crows Nest Hotel, Crows Nest. 7pm. free. Declan Kelly And The Rising Sun + Cyndi And The Drums + The Kava Kings + DJ King Tony The Basement, Circular Quay. 7:30pm. $20. Dream Delay Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $18.50. Erin Marshall Northies Cronulla Hotel, Cronulla. 5:30pm. free. Gary Johns & Sydney Funk Collective Revesby Workers Club, Revesby. 8:30pm. free. Geoff Rana The Grand Hotel, Rockdale. 5:30pm. free. Greg Agar Duo Kirribilli Hotel, Milsons Point. 8pm. free. Heath Burdell Duo Mona Vale Hotel, Mona Vale. 9pm. free. James Englund Mona Vale Hotel, Mona Vale. 5:30pm. free. James Fox Higgins Duo Hillside Hotel, Castle Hill. 8pm. free. Jen Cloher Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $20. Jesse Younan Tribute The Vanguard, Newtown. 7pm. $13.80. Joe Echo Orient Hotel, The Rocks. 8:30pm. free. Joe Echo Duo PJ Gallagher’s, Leichhardt. 9pm. free. Klay Vetter Northies Cronulla Hotel, Cronulla. 9pm. free. Leon Fallon Parramatta RSL, Parramatta. 5pm. free. Live Music At The Royal The Royal, Leichhardt. 9:30pm. free. Luke Dixon Duo Kings Cross Hotel, Kings Cross. 10:30pm. free.
thebrag.com
xxx
Andy Mammers Duo Maloney’s Hotel, Sydney. 9pm. free. Cath & Him St George Leagues Club, Kogarah. 7pm. free.
Crooked Colours + Back Back Forward Punch + Go Freek Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 8pm. free. Fat Bubba’s Chicken Wednesdays Soda Factory, Surry Hills. 5pm. free. Gary Johns Hillside Hotel, Castle Hill. 7:30pm. free. Gemma Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 9:30pm. free. Jess Dunbar Summer Hills Hotel, Summer Hill. 7:30pm. free. New Navy + Conics + Froyo Goodgod Small Club, Sydney. 8pm. $10.
10 O’Clock Rock Frankie’s Pizza, Sydney. 10pm. free. A Team Duo Crows Nest Hotel, Crows Nest. 9pm. free. Alex Hopkins Open Mic Night Wenty Leagues Club, Wentworthville. 9pm. free. Alkemie Night Spring Street Social, Bondi. 9:30pm. free. Being Beta + Ebolagoldfish + That’s The Last Straw + Everything I Own Is Broken Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 8pm. $10. Carl Fidler Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 8:30pm. free. Cath & Him St George Leagues Club, Kogarah. 7pm. free. Chevaux Trio Hillside Hotel, Castle Hill. 7:30pm. free. Chris Gable Revesby Workers Club, Revesby. 12pm. free. Dag + Mope City + The Hoo Haa’s + Encrypted Hard Drive Lansdowne Hotel, Chippendale. 8pm. free. Dave White Duo Maloney’s Hotel, Sydney.
9:30pm. free. Dee Donavan Revesby Workers Club, Revesby. 12pm. free. Ella Hooper + Low Lux Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $23. Flyying Colours Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $13.30. Greg Agar Scruffy Murphy’s Hotel, Sydney. 7:30pm. free. Grooveworks Revesby Workers Club, Revesby. 12pm. free. Jamie Lindsay Dee Why Hotel, Dee Why. 7pm. free. Karen Beckett Revesby Workers Club, Revesby. 12pm. free. Kav Temperley Brass Monkey, Cronulla. 7pm. $25. Little Bastard + Evan & The Brave Moonshine Cider & Rum Bar, Manly. 9pm. free. Lola & The Captain + Paul Lockwood & Hallows Hotel Hollywood, Surry Hills. 8pm. free. Mandi Jarry Northies Cronulla Hotel, Cronulla. 7:30pm. free. Matt Price Northies Cronulla Hotel, Cronulla. 7:30pm. free. The Late Night Soda Social Soda Factory, Surry Hills. 5pm. free. The White Brothers New Brighton Hotel, Manly. 10pm. free. Zombie Cats Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $8.20.
g g guide gig g
Xxx
send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com Matt Jones Trio Coogee Bay Hotel, Coogee. 10:30pm. free. Maurice Jones + Daniel Tomalaris + Furious Penguin + Jac Pearce + Atticus + The Fixators Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 9pm. $10. Oliver Goss Duo Panthers, Penrith. 8:30pm. free. Renae Stone Manly Leagues Club, Brookvale. 8pm. free. Rob Henry Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 6pm. free. Something To Talk About Quakers Inn, Quakers Hill. 8pm. free. Soul Tattoo Ramsgate RSL, Sans Souci. 8pm. free. Steve Tonge Harbord Beach Hotel, Harbord. 7pm. free. Swingshift Colonial Hotel, Werrington. 9pm. free. The Walking Who + Evan & The Brave + Timberwolf Upstairs Beresford, Surry Hills. 6pm. free. The White Album Concert - feat: Chris Cheney + Phil Jamieson + Tim Rogers + Josh Pyke Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 8pm. $89. Tim Shaw Massey Park Golf Club, Concord. 7pm. free. Tori Darke Stacks Taverna, Sydney. 5pm. free. Vowel Movement + Miners + Enerate + Deep Space Supergroup Spectrum, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $7. We Are The Brave + Twin Caverns + Froyo + Hannah Joy FBi Social, Kings Cross. 8pm. $10. Zoltan Duo Pittwater RSL, Mona Vale. 7:30pm. free.
SATURDAY JULY 19 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC
Yuki & John Penrith RSL, Penrith. 2pm. free.
ACOUSTIC/ COUNTRY/BLUES/ FOLK
Paul Hayward And Friends Town & Country Hotel, St Peters. 4pm. free. The Man In Black (The Johnny Cash Story) - feat: Tex Perkins Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 8pm. $89. Vanessa Heinitz Gladstone Hotel, Chippendale. 7pm. free.
INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS
1927 Revesby Workers Club, Revesby. 8pm. free. After Party Band Castle Hill RSL, Castle Hill. 10:30pm. free. AJ Harbourview Hotel, The Rocks. 8pm. free. Alex Hopkins Stacks Taverna, Sydney. 6pm. free. Andy Mammers Le Pub, Sydney. 8:30pm. free. Ben Finn Trio The Mean Fiddler, Rouse Hill. 9pm. free. Black Diamond Hearts Rock Lily, Pyrmont. 9:30pm. free.
thebrag.com
The Preatures
Bonez + Lepers & Crooks + Dark Hawks + Smaal Cats Spectrum, Darlinghurst. 7pm. $5. Born Free + Controlled + Mood Swing + Sundial + Upperground + Time Crisis Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 8pm. $10. Brad Johns Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 5:30pm. free. Brown Sugar Campbelltown Catholic Club, Campbelltown. 9:30pm. free. Cara Kavanagh Duo PJ Gallagher’s, Leichhardt. 9pm. free. Carl Fidler Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 4pm. free. Cath & Him Seven Hills Toongabbie RSL Club, Seven Hills. 8pm. free. Christie Lamb Duo Ettamogah Hotel, Kelly Ridge. 1pm. free. Claret Ash + Fenrir + War Of Attrition + Abyssal + Under Night’S Cover Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 7pm. $10. Corridors The Basement, Circular Quay. 7:30pm. free. Cover Me Crazy Rooty Hill RSL Club, Rooty Hill. 8pm. free. David Agius Castle Hill RSL, Castle Hill. 9pm. free. Extension Chords Spring Street Social, Bondi. 10:30pm. free. Heath Burdell Woolloomooloo Bay Hotel, Woolloomooloo. 9pm. free. Ignition Crows Nest Hotel, Crows Nest. 10:30pm. free. Infinity Broke Goodgod Small Club, Sydney. 8pm. $12. James Englund Australian Hotel And Brewery, Rouse Hill. 10pm. free. James Fox Higgins Kirribilli Hotel, Milsons Point. 8pm. free. Jamie Lindsay Duo The Mean Fiddler, Rouse Hill. 6pm. free. Joe Echo PJ Gallagher’s, Moore Park. 7:30pm. free. John Field Duo Greystanes Inn, Greystanes Inn. 8pm. free. Kav Temperley Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $30. Keith Armitage Sir Joseph Banks Hotel, Botany. 7pm. free. Let’s Fall In Love - feat: Amanda McBroom + Michele Brourman City Recital Hall, Sydney. 7:30pm. $40. Luke Dixon Duo Coogee Bay Hotel, Coogee. 12am. free. Luke Dolahenty Time & Tide Hotel, Dee Why. 7:30pm. free. Matt Jones Northies Cronulla Hotel, Cronulla. 9pm. free. Michael McGlynn
New Brighton Hotel, Manly. 10pm. free. Motion 4th Birthday - feat: Sani Deejay + Todd C + BurnHard, Dean Dixon Hotel Hollywood, Surry Hills. 8pm. free. Old School Band Bull & Bush Hotel, Baulkham Hills. 9:30pm. free. Paul Hayward And Friends Town & Country Hotel, St Peters. 4pm. free. Red Ink + London + Little Coyote Upstairs Beresford, Surry Hills. 8pm. free. Renae Stone Crows Nest Hotel, Crows Nest. 7pm. free. Riz Hallowes Harbord Beach Hotel, Harbord. 7pm. free. Rock Dogs Oatley Hotel, Oatley. 8:30pm. free. Secret Heat - feat: Yelo Magic + Edseven + Juzzlikedat Lansdowne Hotel, Chippendale. 8pm. free. The Legend Of Luke Kelly Enmore Theatre, Newtown. 7:30pm. $72.10. The Preatures + Bad//Dreems + Gunns Metro Theatre, Sydney. 7pm. $33.70. Thesis + Punchdagger + Undercast + Naive + Glass Fingers + Illusionist Record Crate, Glebe. 1pm. $5. Tim Shaw Brewhouse Marayong, Kings Park. 8pm. free. Tori Darke Duo Ettamogah Hotel, Kelly Ridge. 7pm. free. Watussi + DJ Sir Bolivar Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 8pm. free. Wet//Dreems Lansdowne Hotel, Chippendale. 11pm. free. Yeah Nah + Billy Fox FBi Social, Kings Cross. 8pm. $10. Zoltan Adria, Sydney. 4pm. free.
Elevation U2 Acoustic Orient Hotel, The Rocks. 4:30pm. free. A Gentlemen’s Agreement Presents Winter Is Metal feat: + Humality + Til Rapture + Darkness Reigns + Sounds Of Immortals + Drs Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 3pm. $10. Alex Hopkins Woolloomooloo Bay Hotel, Woolloomooloo. 3pm. free. Andy Mammers Duo Orient Hotel, The Rocks. 8:30pm. free. David Agius Duo Collingwood Hotel, Liverpool. 3pm. free. Evie Dean Pritchards Hotel, Mount Pritchard. 1pm. free. Greg Agar Duo Northies Cronulla Hotel, Cronulla. 6pm. free. High On Fire + I Exist + Gvrlls Factory Theatre, Marrickville. 8pm. $49.50.
Chill Out Sundays Scubar, Sydney. 7:30pm. free. Iluka Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 2pm. free. Intimate Sessions Paragon Hotel, Sydney. 6pm. free. Live Music Sundays Bar100, The Rocks. 1pm. free. The Man In Black (The Johnny Cash Story) - feat: Tex Perkins Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 8pm. $89.
MONDAY JULY 21 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC
Latin & Jazz Jam Open Mic Night World Bar, Kings Cross. 7pm. free. Mambo Mondays Bar100, The Rocks. 5:30pm. free. Motown Mondays - feat: Soulgroove The White Horse, Surry Hills.
wed
thu
16
17
July
July
(9:30PM - 12:30AM)
8pm. free. Reggae Monday Civic Underground, Sydney. 10pm. free.
INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS Cambo Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 8:30pm. free.
TUESDAY JULY 22 INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS
Declan Kelly + Jake Whitaker & Band + Kirakamere + Adrian Heath & Kyrie Miskin Bar 34 Bondi, Bondi Beach. 8pm. free. Jenny Broke The Window + Gasoline Bride Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $13. Steve Tonge Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 8:30pm. free.
JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC
Chux & The Five Coffees Play Bar, Surry Hills. 8pm. free. Old School Funk And Groove Venue 505, Surry Hills. 7pm. free. Swingtime Tuesdays The Basement, Circular Quay. 7pm. $9.
ELEMENTS (9:30PM - 12:30AM)
fri
18 July (4:30PM - 7:30PM)
(9:30PM - 1:30AM)
SATURDAY AFTERNOON
SUNDAY JULY 20 ACOUSTIC/ COUNTRY/BLUES/ FOLK
James Fox Higgins Trio Time & Tide Hotel, Dee Why. 1pm. free. Joe Echo Duo The Mean Fiddler, Rouse Hill. 1:30pm. free. Little Bastard + Los Tones + Adam Gottlieb Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 5pm. $18. Nicky Kurta Harbord Beach Hotel, Harbord. 6pm. free. Rob Henry Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 8pm. free. Sunday Sounds - feat: Tora Oatley Hotel, Oatley. 1pm. free. The Field Duo Bull & Bush Hotel, Baulkham Hills. 2pm. free. The White Album Concert - feat: Chris Cheney + Phil Jamieson + Tim Rogers + Josh Pyke Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 4pm. $89. Three Wise Men Observer Hotel, The Rocks. 4pm. free.
SUNDAY AFTERNOON (4:30PM - 7:30PM)
sat
19
(4:30PM - 7:30PM)
July
sun
20 July
(8:30PM - 12:00AM)
(9:30PM - 1:15PM)
mon
tue
21 July
22 July (9:00PM - 12:00AM)
(9:30PM - 12:30AM)
INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 31
gig picks
up all night out all week...
New Navy
WEDNESDAY JULY 16 Crooked Colours + Back Back Forward Punch + Go Freek Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 8pm. Free. The Man In Black (The Johnny Cash Story) - feat: Tex Perkins Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 8pm. $89. New Navy + Conics + Froyo Goodgod Small Club, Sydney. 8pm. $10.
THURSDAY JULY 17 Claude Hay And The Gentle Enemies Frankieâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Pizza, Sydney. 7:30pm. Free. Ella Hooper + Low Lux Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $23. Flyying Colours Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $13.30. Zombie Cats Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $8.20. Tex Perkins
FRIDAY JULY 18 Corrosion Of Conformity Factory Theatre, Marrickville. 8pm. $60. Crooked Colours Goodgod Small Club, Sydney. 9pm. $12. Declan Kelly And The Rising Sun + Cyndi And The Drums + The Kava Kings + DJ King Tony The Basement, Circular Quay. 7:30pm. $20. Dream Delay Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $18.50. Jen Cloher Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $20. The White Album Concert - feat: Chris Cheney + Phil Jamieson + Tim Rogers + Josh Pyke Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 8pm. $89. Vowel Movement + Miners + Enerate + Deep Space Supergroop Spectrum, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $7.
SATURDAY JULY 19 Infinity Broke Goodgod Small Club, Sydney. 8pm. $12. Kav Temperley Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $30. The Preatures + Bad//Dreems + Gunns Metro Theatre, Sydney. 7pm. $33.70. Red Ink + London + Little Coyote Upstairs Beresford, Surry Hills. 8pm. Free.
SUNDAY JULY 20 High On Fire + I Exist + Gvrlls Factory Theatre, Marrickville. 8pm. $49.50.
TUESDAY JULY 22 Jenny Broke The Window + Gasoline Bride Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $13. Jenny Broke The Window
32 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
thebrag.com
BRAGâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s guide to dance, hip hop and club culture
brag beats
inside:
also: + club guide + club snaps + weekly column
oliver huntemann
musiq
soulchild
Oliver Huntemann photo by Khazheev Eugeny
from boy to man
thebrag.com
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 33
brag beats
BRAG’s guide to dance, hip hop and club culture
dance music news club, dance and hip hop in brief... with Chris Martin and Nic Liney
GUILTY SIMPSON + KATALYST
five things WITH
SUPER FLU Growing Up We refuse to grow up, actually. 1. Growing up has this serious connotation of what is expected of you and what you should and should not do anymore. As you can see from our music, we keep on growing, but not growing up. We feel like growing up is for people who are afraid of adventures and sudden change, which is not the case with us (not trying to insult anybody here!). Inspirations Halle Saale [in Germany], our 2. friends, family, they all inspire us… Limitation is actually what works best on us. We have been asked so many times why we haven’t moved to Berlin already, but we somehow find diversity and multitude in confinement. Your Crew We are happy to be 3. surrounded by people who share our vision and love for music. We are pretty much one happy bunch, constantly giving each other new and funny nicknames! The Music You Make And Play The music will all depend on 4. you, to be honest. Come along with your best mood and biggest smile and will provide you with music for your best dance moves.
Music, Right Here, Right Now The scene seems to be thriving with the number of releases you see each week out on 5. Beatport and there is a new festival being announced every month or so. The only problem that we see is that there many people who seem to think that they can buy their way into the scene – get a ghost producer, learn to press the sync button Where: Club 77 in Traktor and there you go, you are a superstar DJ. But in the end it is all about the survival of the fittest and When: Saturday July 19 mother Music manages to sort things out.
RETURN TO THE SOURCE
It’ll be a night of Goa trance and psychedelic sounds at the Imperial Hotel this Saturday July 19 for the Return To The Source party. Flying Rhino Records’ Slinky Wizard AKA Bus will play live, alongside Raptor and Sarin. The promoters pledge a nights’ worth of musical journeying accompanied by a full colour laser show. What’s not to love?
Nick Curly
After getting together to work on the 2012 Fuzzface project by Portishead’s Geoff Barrow, Stones Throw Records pair Guilty Simpson and Katalyst are joining forces again for an upcoming release and Australian tour. Detroit MC Simpson has been a regular on his city’s scene alongside the likes of J Dilla, Eminem and Proof for years, while Sydney producer/DJ Katalyst has toured with The Roots, Jurassic 5, Ben Harper and more. Together, the pair will hit The Basement on Saturday August 9.
MANTRA COLLECTIVE WAREHOUSE BASH
Following the success of its first warehouse party in May, Mantra Collective is throwing another huge event in the heart of industrial Sydney. With Sydney lockout laws affecting all the fun-lovers around town, Mantra is offering an awesome lineup of local talent outside the lockout zone, and it’s BYO to boot. Co-founders Antoine Vice, Aboutjack, Whitecat and Space Junk will take the lead, with a whole crew of serious spinners behind them. The Mantra Collective Warehouse Party is going down on Saturday August 16.
CROOKED COLOURS
Western Australian indie/electro trio Crooked Colours arrive in town this week on their debut national tour. Fresh off the release of their maiden EP, In Your Bones, and having already played a run of festivals and support slots for RÜFÜS, Crooked Colours came up on the strength of their ‘Come Down’ single. That one drew the attention of tastemakers like triple j and was remixed by Alison Wonderland, Jesse Rose and Yolanda Be Cool. Crooked Colours play at Beach Road Hotel on Wednesday July 16 alongside Back Back Forward Punch and Go Freek, and then turn to Goodgod Small Club on Friday July 18.
S.A.S.H SLEEPOUT
Sydney dance institution S.A.S.H has announced its inaugural S.A.S.H Sleepout festival, to be held in the Hunter Valley over three days and nights in September. Germany’s Nick Curly will lead the line, bringing his Chicago influences and modern grooves to lucky New South Wales audiences. He’s joined on the lineup by Nico Stojan, Rodriguez Jr, Sammy Dee, Adultnapper and Marc Poppcke for a dance weekend to remember – or forget, depending on how you approach it. S.A.S.H Sleepout is going down in the Hunter Valley from Friday September 19 – Sunday September 21.
Candyland
S.A.S.H IS HEADING HOME
It’s a big week of news for regular Sunday dance party S.A.S.H. Apart from announcing its Sleepout festival, the crew has finished up its run at Flyover and is headed home – to the Home Nightclub terrace, in fact. The ‘Opening Fiesta’ is this Sunday July 20, and expect the beats to flow from 2pm right through until 3am Monday.
Alex Flatner
SYDNEY’S NEW SKI LODGE
34 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
I WANT CANDY
California duo Candyland will turn up the bass when they hit our shores for a tour this August. After winning back-to-back Beatport remix contests for Skrillex and Bingo Players tracks in 2012, the pair released its debut album Bring The Rain on Spinnin’ Records in January 2013. Known for their blend of trap, dubstep and house, Candyland have toured with Krewella and appeared at festivals such as Electric Daisy Carnival and Veld Fest. Catch them at Marquee on Saturday August 23.
thebrag.com
xxxx
Jägermeister – the fuel of many a late night out on the dancefloor – has launched its new Jägermeister Spice, and to celebrate, The Spice Cellar is transforming into a ski lodgeinspired pop-up bar for eight weeks. It’s the perfect setting for the cooler months, with a bumper lineup of headliners set to warm up the decks at Spice. They include Brit expat John Devecchis, Circle Music’s Alex Flatner, Aussie party-starter Aram and a special Untzz 12-Inch Label Night. The Jägermeister Spice Presents program runs at The Spice Cellar weekly from Saturday July 19 – Saturday September 6, with Devecchis kicking things off this week.
Musiq Soulchild Changing Lanes By Augustus Welby
I
n the early years of the 21st century, radio playlists were dominated by nu-metal, poppunk, Eminem and R&B. By now the former two movements are basically considered amusing follies, but plenty of work from the latter two has stood the test of time. However, in many cases, the era-defining appeal of material from that period has placed restrictions on substantial stylistic progress (does anyone remember Eminem’s Recovery?). Over the last 14 years, Musiq Soulchild has released six albums of Grammy-nominated and commercially successful contemporary R&B. Along the way, he’s realised the pitfalls of not changing up his signature sound. “You’re trying to live up to something that’s gone,” he says. “I can’t be the same person that I used to be. That moment has come and gone. It’s just scientifically impossible. But we stress ourselves out, lose our hair trying to live up to something that just isn’t real.” After a few years spent finding his voice on the Philadelphia club scene, Soulchild garnered wide recognition for the soulful vocals and feel-good R&B of his 2000 debut LP, Aijuswanaseing. Even though he’s successfully stayed within the realms of neo-soul and R&B on subsequent releases, he explains that his allegiance to the genre is largely an outcome of external impositions. “There is this concept that I initially came out as an R&B artist. No – I was an artist who was able to be immediately successful with R&B music. It could have been anything. It’s just that R&B music was more lucrative than any other genre of music for me at the time. “I think that just sticking to one genre of music is like asking an actor to play the same role in every movie that they’re in. For some people, for whatever reason, it makes sense for a musician to just make one thing.”
Last year Soulchild released 9ine, an active attempt to break free from the shackles imposed by listener expectations. The record is a collaboration with fellow R&B mainstay Syleena Johnson – but what’s unique about it is that it’s composed entirely of reggae songs.
glory”; rather, he “always wanted the work to speak for itself”. But he does admit, “Through the years I’ve basically conceded to a lot of what the label wanted me to do or whatever radio wanted from me. I may have put my own personal creative passions aside to serve that.”
“It was something that presented itself to me,” he explains, “and I just went along with it and something amazing came out of it. [Syleena’s] an amazing artist and a good friend of mine and we got a chance to be creative for the sake of being creative. If it made a whole lot of money [that would be] fine, but that’s not why we did it.”
At the end of the day Soulchild maintains a dedicated listenership, which is largely responsible for keeping him alive in the often-fickle pop music industry. So while he might have felt stylistically confined at times, he understands the significance of the fans.
At a glance, the release of a reggae album from two artists hitherto entrenched in the world of R&B seems like a rather radical move. But, once again, this impression stems from a supposition that all artists will stay inside their clearly labelled container. “That was a representation of the other interests that I have,” Soulchild says. “I’m not going to stop making R&B music, it’s just that I have so many other musical interests. If I could successfully put out a hip hop album, I would. If I could successfully put out a jazz album, I would. But I always get that push back – ‘Oh no, you’re an R&B artist, nobody wants to hear you making jazz music.’ That doesn’t make sense to me, but I do know that’s the reality, because there’s just that criteria of, ‘If you started in one lane, stay there.’” In a commercial sense, 9ine isn’t one of the big triumphs of Soulchild’s trans-decade career. Of course, when you’re plying in the pop sphere there’s never any guarantee that expressing exactly what you want will generate satisfactory commercial returns. This means that in order to meet industry demand, one’s true ambitions are often compromised. In this regard, Soulchild stresses he’s “never really pursued fame and
“If I made it about me I would be a very bitter artist. But I’m not – in fact I’m very grateful that, despite whatever the projects may have been, people were able to enjoy what I put out. I was able to commercially thrive in this game. In no way am I upset or feel in any kind of negative, mad way about it.” This October, Soulchild will join Maxwell, D’Angelo, Common and many more at the inaugural Soulfest. In the meantime he’s hard at work on a follow-up to his 2011 solo LP, MusiqInTheMagiq. And this time around, his chief objectives surpass what’s likely to be commercially viable. “I have to consider you guys, according to what I know you’re going to need, regardless of what the trends are,” he says. “Regardless of what the trends are, you’re going to want good music. Good music is not contingent on what’s going on at the moment. Good music depends on the time, effort and the quality of the product. I definitely want to make sure that you guys are getting the best that I can give you.” What: Soulfest With: Maxwell, D’Angelo, Common, Aloe Blacc, Mos Def and more Where: Victoria Park, Broadway When: Saturday October 18
Oliver Huntemann The Big H By Augustus Welby normally first only focus on gaining your DJ and production skills,” he says. “Thinking of running a label or agency is maybe just an idea in this stage, but after more than 25 years in the business I feel the need to build my own environment and make my ideas come true.”
Oliver Huntemann photo by Khazheev Eugeny
Right now, Huntemann is putting the finishing touches on a couple of projects due for release later in the year. The fourth single in the Elements series (a collaboration with Dubfire), ‘Agua’, will come out in August, and there’s also a new live record, PLAY! 05 – Live In Vienna ready to go. Huntemann has deposited a constant stream of 12-inch singles, collaborations and remixes for over two decades now, but he doesn’t find the workload daunting. “[I] never punish myself into the studio. Usually it flows, and if I have kind of a writer’s block I take a rest and start over with a clear mind. The point is, I’m never absolutely satisfied with my work, which is the motor to continue on my search for the perfect beat.”
O
liver Huntemann is a legitimate electronic music guru. Based in Hamburg, the techno DJ and producer has been a mainstay of the German electronic underground since the late ’80s. Huntemann first established himself in DJing and remixing, and since the mid-’90s he’s also run a variety of record labels and accumulated a stack of reputed original productions and live albums. thebrag.com
“Working on several things doesn’t mean I’m not focused,” he says. “It’s all about music and I can bring it all together in the way I like. When I’m in the studio I’m focused on productions, in the office I’m focused on the business part and when I play a DJ set I’m as concentrated, extremely. I like it how it is. Doing just one thing would be too boring to me.”
Keeping one’s head afloat in the music industry is a trying task, even for the most accomplished figures. Huntemann remains a loyal member of the underground community and, accordingly, his associated responsibilities stem from commitment to his craft rather than a quest for glory.
While Huntemann has lived through innumerable passing trends and movements, he admits that recent improvements in home recording technology and easily utilised online release platforms have made it somewhat harder to uncover quality electronic musicians.
“When you start your career you
“Back in the days we had A&Rs
who filtered music and thought twice about what they put on vinyl or CD and where they invested their time and money. This is missing nowadays since everybody is able to start his own label if the demos can’t be sold to an established one. Also, labels are swamped with demos since a lot of young producers simply send their demos to all label contacts they find, without thinking about if the sound fits or not.” But never mind: “If you are a good act with identity, passion and patience and not simply doing it for the fame or because you think it’s kind of hot to be a DJ, you’ll find your way. It’s like always – the medal’s got two sides.” Identity, passion and patience are at the root of Huntemann’s own multi-decade relevance. And these traits assure that 21st century oversaturation hasn’t caused him serious injury. “I [have been] part of the underground electronic music scene from the very beginning,” he says. “Maybe my experience, all these ups and downs over the years, made me different and confident. “I always try to evolve and I’m open for changes,” he adds. “Times are changing; if one door closes another one opens.” Where: The ArtHouse When: Saturday July 19
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 35
club guide g send your listings to : clubguide@thebrag.com
club pick of the week Jason Lema
Ultimo. 7pm. $10. Loco Friday - feat: Various Live Bands And DJs The Slip Inn, Sydney. 5pm. free. Pure Trance Australian Tour - feat: Solarstone + Giuseppe Ottaviani + Sneijder Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 10pm. $25. Soft & Slow 18.07 - feat: Steven Sullivan + Pink Lloyd & Guests The Spice Cellar, Sydney. 7pm. $15. The Tongue (DJ Set) Lansdowne Hotel, Chippendale. 11pm. free. Voodoo Sydney Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 8pm. $25.
SATURDAY JULY 19
SATURDAY JULY 19
HIP HOP & R&B
Reign - feat: Chingy The Establishment, Sydney. 8:30pm. $30.
CLUB NIGHTS
Marquee
Belvedere Winter Ball Jason Lema + K-Note & Zerocool + I Am Sam + Johnny Gleeson + L.A.M
Belvedere Winter Ball - feat: Jason Lema + K-Note & Zerocool + I Am Sam + Johnny Gleeson + L.A.M Marquee, Pyrmont. 10pm. $28.60. Cakes - feat: 4 Rooms Of Live Music + DJs And International Guests World Bar, Kings Cross. 8pm. $10. Decade Of Viper Australian Tour - feat: Matrix & Futurebound + Brookes Brothers + The Prototypes + Rockwell Chinese Laundry, Sydney. 9pm. $25.
DJ Mounties, Mount Pritchard. 8pm. free. El Loco Later - feat: DJs On Rotation Excelsior Hotel, Surry Hills. 10pm. free. El’ Circo - feat: Resident Circus Act Performers Slide Lounge, Darlinghurst. 7pm. $109. FBi Hands Up! - feat: DJ Clockwerk + Special Friends With Benefits FBi Social, Kings Cross. 11:30pm. free. Masif Saturdays Space, Sydney. 10pm. $25. My Place Saturdays Bar100, The Rocks. 8pm. free. Oliver Huntemann The ArtHouse Hotel, Sydney. 9pm. $33.80. Pacha - feat: Kronic + Glover + Nukewood + Baby Gee + Chris Arnott + Fingers + Eko + Samrai + Just1 + A-Game + Sushi + Jace Disgrace + Stu Turner + Deckhead + Prog/Gram + Trent Ruckus + Pat Ward Ivy Bar/Lounge, Sydney. 9pm. $32. Return To The Source - feat: Slinky Wizard & Bus Imperial Hotel, Erskineville. 9pm. $35. Sienna Saturdays The Establishment, Sydney. 9pm. free. Soda Saturdays - feat: Resident DJs Playing Disco And Funk Soda Factory, Surry Hills. 5pm. free. Super Flu Club 77, Darlinghurst. 9pm. $27.50. Spice 19.07 - feat: John Devecchis + Garry Todd + Michelle Owen + Marc Jarvin The Spice Cellar, Sydney.
CLUB NIGHTS
DJ Tom Kelly Goldfish, Kings Cross. 9pm. free. The Wall - feat: Various Local And International Acts World Bar, Kings Cross. 9pm. $5. Whip It Wednesdays - feat: Various DJs Whaat Club, Kings Cross. 9pm. free.
THURSDAY JULY 17 HIP HOP & R&B
Joyride Lo-Fi, Darlinghurst. 6pm. free. MC Battle & Rap - feat: MC Thorn + Skae + Carnage Bull & Bush Hotel, Baulkham Hills. 8pm. free.
Goldfish And Friends - feat: Regular Rotating Residents Goldfish, Kings Cross. 10pm. free. Hot Damn Spectrum, Darlinghurst. 9pm. $10. Kicks World Bar, Kings Cross. 9pm. free. Lights Out Ivy Bar/Lounge, Sydney. 8pm. free. Loopy - feat: Drty Csh + Daschwood + Generous Greed + Guest DJs The Backroom, Potts Point. 10pm. $12. Pool Club Thursdays - feat: Resident DJs Ivy Bar/Lounge, Sydney. 5pm. free. Red Bull Music Academy feat: Peanut Butter Wolf + Kirkis + Mako Goodgod Small Club, Sydney. 8pm. free. The World Bar Thursdays World Bar, Kings Cross. 9pm. free. Thursday Spice - feat: EK Collective & Guests The Spice Cellar, Sydney. 7pm. free.
CLUB NIGHTS
$5 Everything Scubar, Sydney. 5pm. free. Edgar’s Girls (The Poe Burlesque Theatre) The Vanguard, Newtown. 7pm. $23.80. Fear Of Dawn Goldfish, Kings Cross. 8pm. free.
36 :: BRAG :: 571 : 16:07:14
FRIDAY JULY 18 HIP HOP & R&B
Hustler Fridays - feat: MC Shaba Hustle & Flow, Redfern. 7pm.
SUNDAY JULY 20 CLUB NIGHTS
La Fiesta - feat: Samantha Fox + Agee Ortiz + Av El Cubano + Willie Sabor The Establishment, Sydney. 8pm. free. S.A.S.H Heads Home Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 2pm. $10. Sunday Sessions - feat: Cadell + Tom Kelly + Ocky Goldfish, Kings Cross. 4pm. free. Sunday Sessions - feat: Kristiano Oatley Hotel, Oatley. 6pm. free. Sunday Spice 20.07 - feat: James Petrou + Ghostly DJs + Fat Tony + Onn The Spice Cellar, Sydney. 9pm. $10. Sundays In The City The Slip Inn, Sydney. 12pm. free.
MONDAY JULY 21 CLUB NIGHTS
Crab Racing Scubar, Sydney. 7pm. free.
TUESDAY JULY 22 CLUB NIGHTS
Chu World Bar, Kings Cross. 9pm. free.
send your listings to : clubguide@thebrag.com
10pm. $28.60. WEDNESDAY JULY 16
10pm. $25.
Soft & Slow 18.07 - feat: Steven Sullivan + Pink Lloyd The Spice Cellar, Sydney. 7pm. $15. free. Jazz Hip-Hop Freestyle Sessions Foundry616, Ultimo. 11:30pm. $5. Sammy Hinks Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 8pm. free.
SATURDAY JULY 19 Decade Of Viper Australian Tour feat: Matrix & Futurebound + Brookes Brothers + The Prototypes + Rockwell Chinese Laundry, Sydney. 9pm. $25.
CLUB NIGHTS
Argyle Fridays - feat: Resident DJs The Argyle, The Rocks. 6pm. free. El Loco Later - feat: DJs On Rotation Excelsior Hotel, Surry Hills. 10pm. free. Factory Fridays - feat: Resident DJs Soda Factory, Surry Hills. 5pm. free. Feel Good Fridays Bar100, The Rocks. 5pm. free. Fridays @ Oatley Hotel feat: DJ Tone Oatley Hotel, Oatley. 8pm. free. Frisky Fridays Scubar, Sydney. 5pm. free. Girl Unit + Spenda C + Nemo + Empress Yoy + Deckhead + Daniel Farley + Big Deal Gillespie Chinese Laundry, Sydney. 9pm. free. I Am Sam + Jason Lema Marquee, Pyrmont. 10pm. $18.40. Join The Amish + Inebrious Bastard + Disintegrator + Hacked To Chunks + Jackals Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel,
Oliver Huntemann The Arthouse Hotel, Sydney. 9pm. $33.80. Spice 19.07 - feat: John Devecchis + Garry Todd + Michelle Owen + Marc Jarvin The Spice Cellar, Sydney. 10pm. $25. Peanut Butter Wolf
THURSDAY JULY 17
Reign - feat: Chingy The Establishment, Sydney. 8:30pm. $30.
Red Bull Music Academy - feat: Peanut Butter Wolf + Kirkis + Mako Goodgod Small Club, Sydney. 8pm. Free.
SUNDAY JULY 20
FRIDAY JULY 18
S.A.S.H Heads Home Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 2pm. $10.
Girl Unit + Spenda C + Nemo + Empress Yoy + Deckhead + Daniel Farley + Big Deal Gillespie Chinese Laundry, Sydney. 9pm. Free.
Chingy
I Am Sam + Jason Lema Marquee, Pyrmont. 10pm. $18.40. Pure Trance Australian Tour - feat: Solarstone + Giuseppe Ottaviani + Sneijder Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 10pm. $25.
thebrag.com
Off The Record Dance and Electronica with Tyson Wray
Giraffage
A
stral People have announced the return of OutsideIn Festival. While details for their third incarnation are scarce thus far, it’s been revealed that they’ll be kicking off a month later than usual (Saturday November 29) and at a brand new venue. They’ll be posting clues for a few of the headline artists on their Facebook this week – and judging by the first round you can lock in a performance from San Francisco’s Giraffage. This weekend Soul Of Sydney will be throwing a bash to celebrate the musical legacy and birthday of Larry Levan. Sydney’s own disco debonair Stephen Allkins will be playing an extended set jam-packed full of the Paradise Garage legend’s seminal productions. It’ll be an afternoon of funk, roller boogie and disco vibes all kicking off from 1pm this Sunday July 20 at a secret location fi ve minutes from the CBD. Keep an eye on facebook.com/soulofsydney for more details. Remember last week when I said that Huerco S’ Australian dates had been scrapped? I was right! …sort of. Turns out his original July dates clashed with commitments in London, so the tour was pushed back a few weeks. The Kansas City purveyor of dusty house and techno has locked in a double headline show with Italian stalwart Madteo Omar-S
at Goodgod Small Club on Friday August 1. Should be mighty special. In release news, having already put out one of the fi nest albums of the year thus far (Music For The Uninvited), Leon Vynehall keeps on killing it. He’s just dropped the monstrous double ‘Butterfl ies’/‘This Is The Place’ on Clone Royal Oak. Delroy Edwards is giving away his chopped and screwed mixtapes Slowed Down Funk Vol. 1 & 2 for free at sloweddownfunk.net, while one of Detroit’s fi nest Omar-S has announced the forthcoming Annoying Mumbling Alkaholik on his own FXHE imprint. In the rumour mill this week, it looks like Alfi e Granger-Howell and Nick Harriman AKA Dusky will return to Sydney in November. German techno luminary Dino Sabatini has locked in an Australian tour in late August with a Sydney date yet to be confirmed, while there are whispers that Todd Terje and Motor City Drum Ensemble will be back over the summer. In some not-so-great news, a stalwart of Sydney’s nightlife and one of the main driving forces behind the Picnic party throwers, Andy Webb, had a huge amount of his records and gear stolen in Newtown. Webb’s red Eurolite hardcase trolley is unmistakable, plastered with Adult Disco and Future Classic stickers. Other stolen gear includes Sennheiser HD 25s, Shure M44-7 and three spare styli, an Audio Technica AT618 record weight and a mountain of records, including cuts from Moodymann, Pepe Bradock, Tornado Wallace, DJ Nature, Nicholas and more. If you have any further information to pass on then please contact Andy on facebook.com/ awebb.
RECOMMENDED SATURDAY JULY 19 Super Flu Club 77
SATURDAY AUGUST 2 Phil Smart The Imperial
Tuff Sherm (AKA Dro Carey) Marrickville Bowling Club
SATURDAY AUGUST 23
xxx
Seekae Metro Theatre
Got any tip-offs, hate mail, praise or cat photos? Email hey@ tysonwray.com or contact me via carrier pigeon. thebrag.com
BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14 :: 37
snap
ember + minx
PICS :: AA
up all night out all week . . .
12:07:14 :: Marquee :: The Star Sydney Pyrmont 9657 7737
It’s called: Dejavu It sounds like: A mix of electro, big room, bounce, house, tech house and garage. Acts: This week SCNDL and Him_Self_Her are headlining. Three songs you’ll hear on the night: It’s probably easier to tell you what we don’t cover (yet), which is hip hop and R&B. And one you definitely won’t: Anything from Pitbull, One Direction or Justice Crew. Sell it to us: You could definitely say we like to test the limits with the different styles of music genres that we play at our events. At the moment we consist of two rooms with a third in constructio n, throughout the venue. Rave in the club or vibe with varying genres spread in the garden – we have it all! Wallet damage: We’ve got specials runnin g all Bigger acts incur a small door fee, but unforg night in our outdoor milk bar! ettable memories. Where: The Grand Hotel, 234 Keira St Wollo ngong
s.a.s.h sundays
PICS :: AM
party profile
dejavu
13:07:14 :: Flyover Bar :: 275 Kent St Sydney 9262 1988
11:07:14 :: Oxford Art Factory :: 38-46 Oxford St Darlinghurst 9332 3711 38 :: BRAG :: 571 :: 16:07:14
my digital enemy
PICS :: AM
kilter
PICS :: AM
When: Saturday July 19
12:07:14 :: The Goldfish :: 111 Darlinghurst Rd Potts Point 8354 6630 OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER
EY MAR ::
S :: ASHWIN ARUMUGAM :: ASHL
thebrag.com
UTS, 15 BROADWAY ULTIMO
GET YOUR TICKETS NOW! www.winterfestival2014.eventbrite.com. au Prices Pre sale $40 On the door sale $50 No pass-outs | 9.30pm lockout | Cloak room available
CONVERSE CHUCK TAYLOR ALL STAR RUBBER CONVERSE.COM.AU