13.09.17 Music / Arts / Lifestyle / Culture
Sydney / Free / Incorporating
‘DESTINED TO BE DIVISIVE’
Issue
206
2 • THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017
THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 3
SECRET SOUNDS PRESENTS
THE 25TH ANNUAL MUSIC & ARTS FESTIVAL FFLUME LU (NO SIDESHOWS) • FLEET FOXES • RUN THE JEWELS • THE KOOKS • GLASS ANIMALS (NO SIDESHOWS)) PPEKING DUK • ANGUS & JULIA STONE • FOSTER THE PEOPLE • LIAM GALLAGHER • VINCE STAPLES JJUNGLE UNG • DUNE RATS • THE SMITH STREET BAND • DRAM • DARYL BRAITHWAITE • EVERYTHING EVERYTHING ALLDAY • THE JUNGLE GIANTS • THUNDAMENTALS • METHYL ETHEL • SLUMBERJACK • D.D DUMBO • ANNA LUNOE DZ DEATHRAYS • CONFIDENCE MAN • JULIA JACKLIN • BAD//DREEMS • COSMO’S MIDNIGHT • WINSTON SURFSHIRT LUCA BRASI • ALEX LAHEY • CAMP COPE • FLINT EASTWOOD • ECCA VANDAL • DAVE • TOTAL GIOVANNI + PLUS LOADS MORE TO BE ANNOUNCED
LORNE MARION BYRON FREMANTLE BAY 28 DEC BAY 06 JAN 29 DEC 30 DEC 31 DEC
29 DEC 30 DEC 31 DEC
31 DEC 01 JAN 02 JAN
07 JAN
FESTIVAL CAMPING • FOOD TRUCKS & GLORIOUS GOURMET FARE • POP UP BARS & BEER GARDENS INTERACTIVE ARTS • MAKERS MARKETS • YOGA & WELLBEING PLUS LOADS OF OTHER AWESOMENESS
BUY TICKETS AT FALLSFESTIVAL.COM 4 • THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017
SEPT 1ST
HEY GERONIMO + HAIKU HAND SEPT 8TH
BASEMENT
THU 14TH 8PM
BASEMENT
FRI 15TH 8PM
“DOWN WITH THE SHIP”
BASEMENT
“BLIND MAN DEATH STARE” ‘IT’LL GROWN ON YA’ ALBUM LAUNCH
LEVEL ONE
WITH SUPPORT FROM “NO! NOT THE BEES”, “FLICKER”, “FRENZY” IN THE NIGHT OF POP PUNK
WITH SUPPORT FROM “HOSTILE OBJECTS”, “STFU” ,”CAP A CAPO”
LEVEL ONE
FRI 15TH 10PM
BLACKOUT ABORIGINAL MONTHLY CLUBNIGHT
SAT 16TH 9PM
SAT 16TH 10PM
BASEMENT
SUN 17TH 5PM
MUTILATE PRESENTS ODE TO BLACK
SILVER ROOM
WITH SPLINTER CELL, VADER, GEOFF DA CHEFF, SPINDO, LILITH PATRIX AND MANY MORE MUTILATE PRESENTS ODE TO BLACK
BLACK ROOM
WITH MACK DA RIPPER, CONVICT, CATZEYEZ, NAPOLEON, MANTELLO, MUTILATE DJS AND MANY MORE
SCOTT HOSTING PRIVATE PARTY
WITH DJ’S DIGITAL MOUTH, AYCUZ, DON JUAN
COMING UP
Wed 20 Sept: Goodtimes Records presents: “Sick Ties” (Germany) and “Starving Millions” (NZ) with support from “Dark Horse”, “Two Faced”, “Speedball”; Thu 21 Sept: 8pm Basement: “E3 Project” presents experimental Jazz Show with support from “Spiral” and “God’s Broccoli”; Fri 22 Sept: 8pm Basement: The Elements Of Tech And Bass presents 5th Birthday Celebration with Thierry D, Ncrypt B2B Mark Bionic, Mr Pink B2B Struz, Rowdy One B2B Attaka, Polar B2B Highly Dubious, Neurodelic B2B Trippple, hosted by Tukka D, Jviggy, Slice; 10pm Level One: Drop Zone presents Phaze One; RISE Hardstyle, Powerstomp, Freeform, Reverse Bass, Rawstyle, Happy Hardcore with Dj’s: Team Galactic, Disseminate, Eversa, Vial8, Dark Matter, Linskiez, Kandi Flare; Sat 23 Sept: 9pm Basement: Noisy Chicken and Psyphari presents PSY vs PSY III feat: Ketech vs Yantra, Otang vs Eclipsical, Professor Smokes vs Dr Doom, Sillypsybin vs Joe Baco; 10pm Level One: Noisy Chicken and Psuphari presents PSY vs PSY III feat: Jeanni vs Kryptik, Vertical Transport vs Superbeast, Succumb vs Mechanizm, Teatroppa vs Mindcraft ; Sun 24 Sept: 5pm Basement: Friends With Benefits feat: “Bobby”, “Ghost Talk”, “Moshi”, “Oxford Poet”
ABBE MAY
+ LITTLE COYOTE SEPT 15TH
THE SEA GYPSIES + THE KAVA KINGS SEPT 22ND
WINTERBOURNE + LITTLE COYOTE SEPT 29TH
MAJOR LEAGUES + NELIPOT THE BAND
LOCAL ROCK ‘N ROLL, FOLK & INDIE POP ROCK ACTS LIVE & LOUD EVERY FRIDAY NIGHT AT SELINA’S FROM 8PM COOGEEBAYHOTEL.COM.AU
THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 5
Music / Music / Arts / Lifestyle / Culture
Fu-Tour Islands
Eat The Worm
In the wake of their wellreceived fifth studio album The Far Field, revered US synthpop trio Future Islands have announced a run of headline dates to complement their impending festival hat-trick this December.
US indie-rock outfit The Shins are back in Australia this December in support of their fifth studio full-length, Heartworms. They’ve announced some sideshows in addition to upcoming festival slots..
Future Islands
Noire
Oh Baby Sydney band NOIRE have unveiled their dreamy new video, He’s My Baby, ahead of undertaking an epic run of shows around Australia that will kick off in November.
[restaurant] DATE: Tell me something naughty about you
American Vandal
Writing On Cars With Boys
ME [loudly chewing lobster] I haven’t brought any money @ArfMeasures 6 • THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017
Can’t decide between Making A Murderer and This Is Spinal Tap? This Friday, Netflix is premiering American Vandal, a true crime mockumentary that asks, “Just who drew all those dicks on the Hanover High faculty’s cars?
The Shins
Arts / Li Music / Arts / Lifestyle / Culture
Credits
Publisher Street Press Australia Pty Ltd
Drake
Boy Meets Oz
For the first time since his huge 2015 run, Drake has announced he will be heading back to Australia for a headline tour. The Canadian heavyweight will bring his Boy Meets World tour to the country in November.
Group Managing Editor Andrew Mast
National Editor – Magazines Mark Neilsen Arts & Culture Editor Maxim Boon
Gig Guide Justine Lynch gigs@themusic.com.au Contributing Editor Bryget Chrisfield
Editorial Assistant Sam Wall, Jessica Dale Contributors Anthony Carew, Ben Nicol, Brendan Crabb, Carley Hall, Chris Familton, Daniel Cribb, Chris Maric, Christopher H James, Cyclone, Daniel Cribb, Dave Drayton, Dylan Stewart, Guido Farnell, Guy Davis, James d’Apice, Liz Guiffre, Mac McNaughton, Mark Hebblewhite, Matt MacMaster, Matt O’Neill, Melissa Borg, Mitch Knox, Neil Griffiths, Mick Radojkovic, Rip Nicholson, Rod Whitfield, Ross Clelland, Sam Baran, Samantha Jonscher, Sara Tamim, Sarah Petchell, Shaun Colnan, Steve Bell, Tanya Bonnie Rae, Tim Finney, Uppy Chatterjee Photographers Angela Padovan, Cole Bennetts, Clare Hawley, Jodie Downie, Josh Groom, Hayden Nixon, Kane Hibberd, Munya Chawora, Pete Dovgan, Peter Sharp, Rohan Anderson, Simone Fisher
Lindi Champagne
Lindi Ortega
Lindi Ortega has revealed a string of headline shows along with her previously announced festival dates in November. She’ll be here with with guitarist “Champagne” James Robertson.
Advertising Dept Brad Edwards sales@themusic.com.au Art Dept Ben Nicol, Felicity Case-Mejia Admin & Accounts Ajaz Durrani, Meg Burnham, Bella Bi accounts@themusic.com.au Distro distro@themusic.com.au Subscriptions store@themusic.com.au Contact Us Suite 42, 89-97 Jones St Ultimo
Tim Rogers
Phone: (02) 9331 7077 info@themusic.com.au www.themusic.com.au
— Sydney
Roger That You Am I’s Tim Rogers is setting off on11 solo dates across Australia in support of his latest release An Actor Repairs. The tour spreads from early November through December. THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 7
Music / A Music / Arts / Lifestyle / Culture
New Year
The Good Book
Single Asian Female
The Book Of Mormon will finally be making its way north to the Sydney Lyric Theatre in February. Get in quick though, they’ve already smashed sales records, selling $5 million in tickets on day one of sales alone.
Artistic Director Eamon Flack has released a stellar program for Belvoir Theatre’s 2018 season, with Jimi Bani’s My Name Is Jimi, Michelle Law’s Single Asian Female and more lined up over the course of the year.
Foo Fighters
Foo For Thought
The Internet
In what is sure to be one of the biggest tours of 2018, rock’n’roll outfit Foo Fighters are will be smashing onto our shores following the release of their new album this week. They’ll be here from mid to late Jan with Weezer supporting.
8 Probably the approximate total hours of sleep each BIGSOUND delegate got across the entire three nights of the conference.
8 • THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017
Diana Anaid
Yas Queen! Diana Anaid has announced her full LP My Queen will drop Friday. The five-time ARIA nominee has also released tour dates kicking off the same week with an appearance at Nimbin Roots Fest.
Arts / Lif Music / Arts / Lifestyle / Culture
Frontlash City Of Sydney
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Another Big BIGSOUND
Lane-Up After teasing us with Mac DeMarco and Anderson .Paak, Laneway Festival has unveiled the full line-up for its February Australian run. The Internet, Slowdive, Moses Sumney, Miss Blanks - the list is stacked.
It was an extra day so we had even less sleep and our livers took more than their usual pounding, but once again there were too many highlights to mention here.
Tash Sultana Climbed to the top of Billboard’s Next Big Sound Chart. Glad the buzz isn’t only being felt in Australia!
Tash Sultana
Lashes
The Book Of Mormon
Is offering a new funding program to support diversity in the nighttime economy, with live music venues being able to apply. More cash for venues can only be a good thing.
Backlash
A Disturbance In The Force
Another Star Wars film has lost a director, with Colin Trevorrow out of Episode IX. We hope this doesn’t mean greater rumblings in a galaxy far, far away and the franchise’s legacy is stained.
Oceanic Rhythms
Motion Of The Ocean This Saturday, Oceanic Rhythms - Sounds Of The Pacific will celebrate the stories and music of Oceania this with performances from MC Trey, Maybelle Galuvao, Ilisavani Kava and more at Campbelltown Arts Centre.
Another Big BIGSOUND
In the words of Green Day, wake me up when September ends, as we’ll probably need that long to catch up on all the sleep missed after another massive industry festival.
Vale Connie Johnson
Initially known as just the sister of actor Samuel Johnson, she more than made her mark before passing away this week, founding the Love Your Sister cancer charity, raising funds and awareness of breast cancer.
THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 9
HO RSIN G A ROUND B Caligula’s Horse frontman Sam Vallen es one part pa shares of the conceptual story that surrounds their latest release In Contact. Rod Whitfield gets the scoop.
10 • THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017
risbane masters Caligula’s Horse are set to step into pretty rarefied territory when they release their fourth album In Contact, at least for Australian heavy, progressive and alternative acts. Only a select few bands in that scene get all the way to a fourth album, and even fewer have improved with each and every release up to that point, but the mighty C-Horse have achieved both. In Contact sees the band reaching for the metaphorical stars in a musical sense and building upon an already impressively expansive sound, while at the same time delving more deeply within themselves to create lyrics and imagery of the profoundly conceptual and introspective kind. Guitarist and co-founding member Sam Vallen, speaking from his home on the Gold Coast, has a very slight sense of trepidation that the elaborate and personal nature of the record may possibly divide opinion, especially when listeners compare it to previous album Bloom, but he is ultra-proud of what they have achieved nonetheless.
“It’s destined to be a little bit divisive, I think,” he says, “with Bloom we had an album that was really immediate, really easy to digest and whatever else, but we went all-in with In Contact. We couldn’t be happier with it, it’s as complex a work as we’ve ever dreamt up. “So I adore it and I’m very interested to see how people respond to it. I’m hoping that people can really sink their teeth into it, and really get into it the way that I would.” While Bloom was a collection of relatively accessible standalone tracks, In Contact is a labyrinthine conceptual piece that may take listeners a little while to wrap their heads around, especially if they choose to explore into the record’s overarching theme. “It’s the density of the album,” Vallen says when asked to clarify his use of the word ‘divisive’. “When it comes to Bloom we had a record that we designed around a bunch of songs that were not connected to one another, they were all different colours, different themes. In Contact is something that’s so layered and so big, it has a lot of ideas behind it that, I wouldn’t want to say that they’re overtly complex, that’s not something that we consider our music to be, but they are a little bit more cryptic. It’s kind of the nature of a concept album,
in the case of In Contact it’s a concept album that facilitates a lot of emotional ideas and personal concepts. It might take a little bit more for people to really get into. But I’d hope that it is a little bit more rewarding for that reason.” All that being the case, and while still allowing the individual listener room to interpret the album in their own way and draw their own conclusions, it begs the question of just what the underlying concept of In Contact is, and Vallen is more than happy to give his own perspective on it as its co-creative force. “The album is basically split into four chapters,” Vallen begins, “each of those four chapters is a discussion on a different artist. The fact that they’re artists and seek inspiration is really the only thing that ties their stories altogether. Jim (frontman Jim Grey) conceptualised this as an idea he had at the very beginning of our album discussions. The first dream being a stand-in for the idea of inspiration, something that we all reach for and try to achieve. “Those four artists are all disconnected when it comes to temporality when it comes to spatiality, there’s really no connection between any of them in that context. But they’re all trying to find something that makes their art tick, or makes them feel inspired, or makes them overcome the challenges that will get in the way of that art.” Vallen chooses one of the chapters of the work that has particular interest and relevance to himself and his own journey. “The first chapter’s called To The Wind,” he explains, “and the story is about someone who’s an older artist, he’s a painter. He’s also a recovering alcoholic. The idea is that he’s given up drinking and at the same time given up the thing that he would do to throw himself into his art. I know people who have a similar relationship with their drug of choice. In this case, we found it really interesting to discuss the trope of a tortured artist through that concept.” The piece speaks of a much broader issue that Vallen and the band see with the manner in which artists are viewed by society as a whole, an issue they are very unhappy about. “We see someone’s mentality instability or their drug use or anything else as something that should be treated like a novelty. If you’re an artist, you
should be tortured!” He laughs ironically, “It’s funny because it’s such a common trope, but it’s so nasty. What it means is that if an artist doesn’t conform with that trope, maybe their art is less meaningful. “So this guy is feeling the clamouring of an audience demanding another work from him, but he also knows the only way he can create that work to his maximum capacity is by going back to the vice that ruined his life in the first place.” In Vallen’s non-musical world, he is also cramming the completion of a PhD into about a seven-month period, so he is very much looking forward to emerging from the truly immersive worlds of that undertaking and the creation of a highly complex Caligula’s Horse record, when the band head out on the road for the extensive In Contact Australian tour in late September. “My day to day life at the moment is that of a hermit, sitting in my office and getting things done,” he says. “I don’t even think about the enormity of a tour until it’s impending. But it’s going to be amazing, we’ve got I Built The Sky, who is a phenomenal guitar player and a really great band, a bunch of other really awesome bands supporting. The venues are a massive step up from last time. I can’t wait to get on the road again, it’s going to be great.” The album is another massive step forward in this band’s fascinating creative evolution and is also very likely to see a further progression in the band’s burgeoning profile. Vallen agrees that a band like Caligula’s Horse are never going to explode overnight or have huge hit singles on commercial radio, they are more likely to experience slow but steady growth over time, and he actually prefers it that way. “Probably the biggest spur from the linegraph of our rise was around the time we started working with [record label] Inside Out, who are our extended family over in Europe,” he states. “That created a lot of the possibility for what we did soon after that, touring Europe for the first time, doing larger scale tours of Australia and so on. “We’re not a band that’s likely to have some breakout hit, and I’m strangely ok with that!”
I’m hoping that people can really sink their teeth into it, and really get into it the way that I would.
What: In Contact (Inside Out/Sony) When & Where: 4 Oct, The Basement, Canberra; 5 Oct, Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle; 6 Oct, Factory Theatre
FOURTH TIME LUCKY As Aussies Caligula’s Horse prepare to unleash their fantabulous fourth album, it begs a question that maybe doesn’t get asked enough: what are the great fourth albums in rock history? Jack Black talks about bands having ‘rocket sauce’, ie. their well of creativity. Many bands have used theirs up by album number four, and have begun the ‘treading water until they disband’ phase of their career. The band he was referring too, however, when he referred to rocket sauce was Canadian prog masters Rush, who shook their bottle for more than four decades and the sauce was still coming out. Their magnificent fourth record, the highly conceptual sci-fi opus 2112 gets this scribe’s award for the best fourth album ever. Very honourable mentions go to Iron Maiden’s epic Piece Of Mind, the classic Led Zeppelin IV album, Def Leppard’s Hysteria must rate a mention, Sting’s fourth solo album Ten Summoner’s Tales is one of his best works. Then there’s Faith No More’s idiosyncratic but monumental Angel Dust, Megadeth’s scintillating Rust In Peace and Soundgarden’s superb Superunknown (R.I.P. Chris Cornell) and, one of the most extreme records ever released, Strapping Young Lad’s Alien.
Music
Solid Gold Foo Fighters are back with their ninth studio album, Concrete & Gold, as well as an Aussie tour next year. Jessica Dale caught up with guitarist, legend and all-round nice guy Pat Smear about what’s different for the band this time.
I
f there was a list of people that could get away with acting a little entitled during an interview, Pat Smear would be on it. He’s a long-running guitarist for Foo Fighters and a punk legend for his time with Germs. Oh, and there’s that band Nirvana that he played in, too, at the direct invitation of Kurt Cobain. So, Smear could act put on the full ‘rock star’ act if he wanted to; except he doesn’t. He’s probably one of the nicest people you’ll ever talk to, laughing, joking and willing to poke fun at himself.
This one, we went as far as the usual, which for us is the unusual, which is just go to a proper recording studio and make a record.
Foo Fighters newest album, Concrete & Gold, is out later this week. There are distinct differences between their newest work and their last few, with Concrete & Gold offering a broader range of sounds from the group. When asked if the band were deliberately trying to challenge themselves, Smear answers, “Yes, for every album,” laughing. “We try for every album and usually... I always think, ‘Wow, this one’s really different,’ and then about six months will go by, I’ll play it and I’ll be like, ‘Oh, yeah, yeah, it sounds like Foo Fighters.’ And you know, I finally just decided we have the same five guys playing the same instruments, it’s the same guy writing the songs, ahhhh, it’s going to sound like the same band no matter what you do, so I think you’re telling me that we succeeded this time?” 12 • THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017
So, what can the same five guys playing the same instruments do to create something different? Smear credits frontman Dave Grohl for changing things up. “His first idea for this record was he said, ‘Don’t bring the same stuff when we start rehearsing. Don’t bring your same stuff. Bring a different guitar, play guitars you don’t usually play, bring amps you don’t normally use, just bring different stuff.’ And that was the first thing we did, for a small step anyway. “And we just continued with that attitude kind of through the whole thing and then we got a producer which we haven’t worked with before and Greg [Kurstin] comes from the same place as all of us. Punk rock kid, played in weird indie bands and stuff, and then he moved onto jazz and he now makes pop records and stuff like that, so he has... you know, he started the same place as us but he went in a different direction, so we had the common ground of our past for music but he’s definitely a different element and that was helpful too. “We were on some mission when we did Wasting Light in Dave’s garage and when we did Sonic Highways in other studios, places that sometimes weren’t even studios, that we brought gear and said, ‘Let’s turn it into a studio,’ and that was a... We thought let’s do it in different places and that’s what’s going to make it different and it was kind of an experiment like, ‘Will it make a difference if we do a song in different cities?’ or things like that. Whereas this one, we went as far as the usual, which for us is the unusual, which is just go to a proper recording studio and make a record,” Smear laughs. “And I don’t really know how much of the location and the gear and all that stuff makes that much difference, I really just think it’s the people and the people you’re working with, and we worked with new people and they’re great people and they’re great people to hang out with, which I think is the most important thing, but also great at what they do, and I think that makes a change more than an attitude or a place.” Foo Fighters are heading back to Australia next January for the Concrete & Gold tour and the band certainly have a strong affinity with the country and their Aussie fans. “I can’t speak for everyone but when I first went to Australia, I was like, ‘Oh, it’s like home.’ It feels like home, the people are like the people at home. It’s kind of just a more beautiful version of where we live and it just felt really comfortable,” says Smear. “And I don’t feel like that almost anywhere else, I mean even, there’s very few places anywhere, even in the US, where I feel like, ‘Oh, this is like my home,’ and Australia was just one of those places... I don’t know if that helps or not but that’s how I always feel there.”
What: Concrete & Gold (Sony) When & Where: 27 Jan, ANZ Stadium
130 ENMORE RD ENMORE
ENMORETHEATRE.COM.AU
BOX OFFICE 9550 3666
624 george st sydney metrotheatre.com.au box office 9550 3666
BERT KREISCHER
HOT POTATO BAND
THU 14 SEP
MARK MANSON
THE GETAWAY PLAN
FRI 15 SEP
ROMEO & JULIET
DASHBOARD CONFESSIONAL
SAT 16 SEP
ODESZA
MOTIONLESS IN WHITE
TUE 19 SEP
PHAROAHE MONCH
WED 20 SEP
WED 13 SEPTEMBER
THU 14 SEPTEMBER
FRI 15 SEPTEMBER
+ Far Away Stables
+ Crown the Empire
+ The Kite String Tangle + Running Touch T! SAT 16 & SUN 17 SEPTEMBER SOLD OU
POND
+ Body Type + Reef Prince
SAT 23 SEPTEMBER
COMING SOON CLOUD CONTROL • POLECANDY • MAC MILLER DAN SULTAN • PETER HOOK & THE LIGHT • EVERCLEAR LAW ROCKS • HANDS LIKE HOUSES • AUSTRALIAN BURLESQUE FESTIVAL
COMING SOON WOGS AT WORK • OLD CROW MEDICINE SHOW ALISON MOYET • MAYDAY PARADE • ADAM ANT
FACTORYTHEATRE .COM.AU
105 VICTORIA RD, MARRICKVILLE
SYDNEY UNDERGROUND FILM FESTIVAL
UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY, CAMPERDOWN
MANNINGBAR.COM
ARCTURUS (NOR)
14 - 17 SEP
+ BLOOD INCANTATION
FRI 15 SEP
DAMIEN DEMPSEY (IRE)
SALMON FOR BREAKFAST
WED 20 SEP
HEADSTOCK
THE ULTIMATE 60S GUITAR EXTRAVAGANZA
THU 21 SEP
AN EVENING WITH DANIELLE CORMACK
STARTLING THE FEARFUL
FRI 22 SEP
ESI PRESENTS THE MACHINE, THYRON AND VAZARD
KIM SALMON ON STORY, SONG AND SKETCH
A NIGHT OF TOOL
SAT 16 SEP
SAT 23 SEP
SAT 30 SEP
DJ LUCK & MC NEAT + ARTFUL DODGER
KID KENOBI PRESENTED BY SUN 24 BIG FISH LITTLE FISH SEP + LAUREN NEKO
COMING SOON JAMES VINCENT MCMORROW • LOUIS TILLETT AND THE ART OF DARKNESS • HAKEN • TIKI SAFARI • DECLAN O’ROURKE
SUN 1 OCT
COMING SOON BOO SEEKA • NIGHTVISIONS • HAVANA MEETS KINGSTON • HVE • THE BLACK SEEDS • MONO
SYDNEY'S PREMIER INTERNATIONAL COMEDY CLUB SINCE 1981 | EQ @ MOORE PARK THE SPRING COMEDY CARNIVAL COMEDYSTORE.COM.AU
THU 31 AUG - SAT 7 OCT
MARK NELSON (SCO)
IRREVERENCE
SAT 16 SEP, 7:15PM
CAMERON JAMES WED 20 SEP, 7:15PM
COMING SOON NIKKI BRITTON COMEDIANS AGAINST HUMANITY
THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 13
Music
Stickin’ Around Dashboard Confessional are still a mainstay of the emo genre after almost two decades. Frontman Chris Carrabba tells Neil Griffiths how the ‘King of Emo’ can still connect with his fans.
“I
think that the simple truth is that I started so very young doing this that I was too young to even have, like, goals, or pie-in-the-sky aspirations,” Carrabba says down the phone while sitting backstage pre-show in North Carolina. “I was just like, ‘I love playing music, I love playing in front of people, I want to do it every day and I’m just gonna find a way to do it every day’.” Though Dashboard’s music was brought to mainstream attention through their 2004-hit track, Vindicated (used on the Spider-Man 2 soundtrack),
I was never interested in being cool. I was interested in connecting with people.
Carrabba’s loyal fanbase has been around basically since the get-go. In most recent years, he was personally invited to perform at Taylor Swift’s best friend’s birthday party, while names such as US actress Anna Kendrick have expressed their love of his music. “That career put me in a situation where the songs became meaningful to people, and when I say regular people you’re just describing regular people, like Anna... truth be told, they are just wonderful, regular people who happen to be really famous,” he laughs. “The thing was, I was never interested in being cool. I was interested in connecting with people. I don’t think you can be ‘cool’ and connect with people. I think you 14 • THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017
have to allow yourself to lack a little cool in order to give over the importance to the listener...” While Dashboard may be what Carrabba is best known for, the 42-year-old Florida native has also fronted in groups such as Further Seems Forever (his first band) and more recently, Twin Forks. After reviving Dashboard in 2014, Carrabba insists the band is back for good; a testament to its importance both for them and the fans, given that he grew up in an era with bands that have undergone huge changes such as Blink-182 (founding member Tom Delonge left the band in 2015) and Yellowcard (split this year). Even Carrabba says he isn’t entirely sure how a solo project he started in 2000 has stood the test of time. “I don’t know, man,” Carrabba ponders. “So many of us started so, so young like I said before. So, we’re still in a vibrant, creative place. We’re not young kids, but we’re not old guys. I don’t know what keeps other bands going and I don’t know what stops other bands.” One band Carrabba feels a deep connection to are fellow Florida punkers, New Found Glory, who just celebrated 20 years together with an Australian tour last month. Carrabba makes sure to boast the fact that he was at NFG’s first ever gig in their hometown and also caught their last US show for the 20th anniversary. “I think New Found Glory and Dashboard have something in common in terms of the fact that we grew up together, we think about music the same way, we think about the importance of making music for the same reasons and feel lucky that we’re still making music,” he says. “We look at guys like Blink, who we looked up to when we were kids because they were already a massive band well before we started our bands. To think they’re still a band - and our buddy, Matt Skiba’s in the band with them, it’s like, ‘We know a guy in Blink!’ - It’s crazy. I think it boils down to the ones that didn’t make very good music aren’t around anymore, the ones who did are.” He pauses. “Wouldn’t it be a better answer if it was, like, a more mysterious answer, laden in some kind of cool mystic thing?” he laughs. “But that’s the truth. Not only did they make this great music, but they believed in it and they lived it and it was real.” Though Carrabba remains tight-lipped on details for the new album (a simple “yes” tells us it’s on the way very soon), he says the upcoming tour of Australia, the first in five years, is something he has looked forward to for some time. “I have nothing but fun memories of touring [Australia]. It’s really mirrored the... same way the things happened in the States in the early days, where it was really about word of mouth, a little bit of radio... that makes for an unforgettable experience for me when I’m with those people.”
When & Where: 16 Sep, Metro Theatre
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YES The Music Supports LGBTQ musicians and their right to equal dignity.
THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 15
Music
The Mane Event Tired Lion have taken their time releasing debut album, Dumb Days. What’s resulted is a record bursting with lyrical and sonic maturity. Sophie Hopes and Ethan Darnell share the process with Jessica Dale.
T
ired Lion frontwoman Sophie Hopes exaggerates the “finally” when she says “Dumb Days is our very first album that we finally, just, got out there.” Their debut, out this week, is something she describes as “a patchwork of stories and experiences throughout my life, and growing up, and things like that. Some songs were written three years ago, some quite recently.” It’s been a long time coming for a group that have gone so hard on the touring circuit the last few years, including slots with the likes of Grinspoon, Kingswood, Luca Brasi and Gyroscope.
... We’re going to put as much effort and work into this as we can. We don’t want to release anything that’s going to be, to us, subpar or a bit of a letdown.
When asked if the extensive touring was the main reason for the delay in recording their album, drummer Ethan Darnell explains that there was a number of factors behind the wait. “Probably, mostly, we just wanted to make sure that it was ready, because it’s something that, I guess, growing up when you’re listening to albums, there are so many bands releasing stuff, when you hear an album that’s really well put together and really well thoughtout... it hits you harder,” he says. “So we came from that mentality, that we’re going to put as much effort and work into this as we can. We don’t want to release anything that’s going to be, to us, subpar or a bit of a letdown.” 16 • THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017
“We put a lot of pressure on ourselves, basically,” adds Hopes. “But I also think that, yeah, our international touring, even just touring around Australia as well did have a bit effect on how long it took us to put everything together, all the pieces. Signing to Dew Process as well. It’s been like a rollercoaster of a ride, but I think it’s perfect timing for us, especially if we were to release it, like, a year earlier, I don’t think the songs would’ve been up to the same standard.” So, is it the album they always dreamed of making? “I think that, always, as an artist, you think you can always do better. I’m really happy with the record as a whole, listening to it from start to finish. I don’t think that this is, like, the next Siamese Dream or anything like that, but I’d like to hope that, in the future, we can keep writing better,” says Hopes. “It was definitely an awesome time in the studio, so I think, for me personally, recording an album where it just feels like you’re just hanging out with your friends and having a good time, I didn’t expect that.” Hopes and Darnell joke about the difference between their debut album and their previously released EPs, with Darnell sharing that maturity was probably the biggest change in the two. “I think those EPs were kind of like, we had five songs so we should put them on a CD,” he says. “All five!” adds Hopes, laughing. “Whereas this is more like, we had more than we needed, picked the songs we wanted,” continues Darnell. “So I think it was more mature, and just our sound in general, I think, has changed as we’re changing and growing. But I don’t think it’s noticeable to us. If you put on the EP and then the album, you’d be like, okay, you can hear it, but mentally it’s not something that we tried to do or anything like that.” The growth in maturity continues through to Hopes lyrics, something she worked on closely with Violent Soho’s Luke Boerdam, who sat in as producer for Dumb Days. “I think in life, you don’t realise but you’re sort of push into a position where you have to sort of wake up pushed yo to yourself and say, ‘Alright, 26 now, I need to grow the fuck up,’” shares Hopes. “And yeah, so, I’m not sure if the lyrics are more mat mature or anything like that, but I guess when we were work workshopping those with Luke he would try to take it to a point where I wanted the song to go, and I find that som sometimes super-difficult without talking it out with someone and really getting to the point of the song. And he’d sort of bring up, like, when people listen to music they sort of visualise, so he incorporated these words in there - or at least got me to think of some words - and I think that really helped with the maturity level.”
What: Dumb Days (Dew Process/Universal Music Australia) When & Where: 16 Sep, Oxford Art Factory
Music
Burn Baby Burn In the lead-up to his upcoming tour of Australia, where Glenn Hughes will perform a set of classic Deep Purple tracks, we asked him to narrow his focus down a bit and tell us his five favourite songs of the band’s to play and why. Burn This song was majestically written in the dungeon of Clearwell Castle, in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, UK. As you can imagine being in a 18th century castle, this song literally raised the roof and shook the foundations. Performing Burn live through all of the decades has given the audience and myself a huge lift. Something happens in Burn every night when it seems louder than every other song in the show; it’s like an increase in intensity and energy. I’m honoured to have co-written one of the ‘70s most epic rock songs. This is Deep Purple MK3’s signature song and is still played live and on the radio around the world to millions of people.
Gettin’ Tighter This was written by myself and the late, great Tommy Bolin at my house in Beverley Hills, in the Summer of 1975, just after Tommy joined the band. This rock groove song came about while Tommy and I were jamming, and when we played the tape back, we found this gem amidst the jamming, and developed it from there. It happens to be one of my favourite Purple songs that I still play live because not only does it give me an opportunity to go into an extended bass solo, it’s also a tip of the hat to the California Jam era when I incorporate the ‘Dance To The Rock And Roll’ section in the middle of the live version. I always dedicate this to Tommy each night, the memories come back and it’s nice to bring the love home on this song.
You Keep On Moving Written by David [Coverdale] and myself in the Summer of 1973, just after we’d both just joined Purple. It was originally written to go on Burn, but it was never recorded so it never made it on the album. We revisited it for Come Taste The Band where it ended up being the last recorded song by MK4, and also the last track on the album, so a very poignant song to play live. A soulful and melodic song to sing, with that simple but instantly recognisable bass line introduction. A beautiful piece.
This Time Around This was written with my brother Jon Lord, late one night in the autumn of 1975 in Musicland Studios, Munich whilst recording Come Taste The Band. Jon and I were alone, and when he started playing the introduction chords, I immediately started to sing the melody. It was so simple, so haunting, yet it came together so quickly. I wrote the lyrics there and then, and the whole thing was written, both music and lyrics, in about an hour. I performed this live at the Royal Albert Hall in the Spring of 2014 at the Jon Lord memorial concert, and I was overcome with love. I’m so grateful to have written this with Jon as I believe that this is a timeless piece of music, and every time I sing it live, I’m carrying the message of Eternal Love.
When & Where: 20 Sep, State Theatre
Might Just Take Your Life Starting with Jon Lord’s strident Hammond stabs, this is a propulsive, marching song which breaks down into the deep groove of the verse where David Coverdale and I split lead vocals and get those unmistakable MK3 harmonies going. This song has so much swagger and movement, a massive chorus... it draws you in instantly and doesn’t let go. It is still a fan favourite and I love to play it and hear them singing along. THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 17
Theatre
Deep Dark Web Home And Away star Alec Snow tells Bryget Chrisfield about exploring the new reality in The Nether.
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ehearsals for the Australian premiere of The Nether are well and truly underway and one of the play’s cast members, Alec Snow, enthuses, “We just keep kind of going deeper and deeper into it every week, which is good, because the writing allows it.” It was, in fact, Jennifer Haley’s script was that initially attracted Snow (probably best known for his stint as Matt Page on Home & Away) to The Nether: “It’s one of those scripts that I got and read start to finish, and loved it... I obviously wanted to be a part of the project.” The Nether has already graced West End and Broadway stages and Snow reveals, “It’s almost like a mix of Westworld, Black Mirror and Alice In Wonderland... all those three thrown together and just shaken up a bit.” The
If you’re doing all these evil things, does that still mean anything? Do you take that back to the real world with you when you’re finished at Westworld
play is set in “a dystopian future”, Snow tells. “It’s a time when virtual reality has just become a massive thing and everyone uses it to escape the real world and go online, but in a more immersive kind of way.” After describing his character as “an avatar of sorts that is within the virtual reality”, Snow explains, “Within the play, it kind of swaps back and forth between the real world and this other kind of virtual realm.” On not wanting to give too much away about The Nether’s plot, Snow observes, “I think one of the real joys [of] coming to see this play will be the fact that you’re going in blind, in a way... you can almost, yeah, piece it together yourself and go on that journey without having too many expectations about what it is or what should be. “It really makes you think,” Snow continues. “It’s
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definitely one of those plays that I think, as an audience member, you’ll be playing catch-up; it just moves very fast, but in a good way. Like, at the beginning, I think you’re just like, ‘Whoa! What’s going on?’ And then you slowly start to understand more and more of how it all works.” Although Snow hasn’t really experimented with virtual reality on a personal level, he says he can appreciate the play’s extreme relevance given that VR headsets are bringing the technology into the home. “There’s a lotta laws being passed at the moment about internet regulations and security and privacy and all that kind of stuff,” he shares. “When you have this virtual reality and then you have the real world that we’re used to; I mean, it’s this constant debate within the play of what’s right, what’s wrong, what’s good, what’s bad?... Are the same kind of laws applied or do we have to completely make up new ones? You know, all those sorts of questions start coming up, I guess. “And then you start wondering, ‘If you’re doing all these evil things, does that still mean anything? Do you take that back to the real world with you when you’re finished at Westworld?” he laughs. Justin Martin (The Crown, Netflix) is on board as director and Snow describes his style as “really chilledout”. “He really allows you the freedom to discover the stuff in the [rehearsal] space. And the space is one that’s really safe and you are able to take those risks and fail and all that kind of stuff... He accommodates that and he works with you and doesn’t push you to only take his perspective on it, you know? You feel more like a creative team working out the puzzle rather than, ‘This is what I want you to do and find a way to do it,’ which is really nice, I think, ‘cause you don’t always get that.” Snow then contemplates acting for stage versus acting for screen. “Home & Away’s very fast-paced and you’re going through a lot of material very quickly,” he points out, “whereas with theatre... you’re going over that same material over and over again... There’s more time to go deeper into it, whereas [with] Home & Away it’s like an episode a day so you’re just smashing out scenes as fast as possible. “If you stuff up, sometimes you don’t have the time — on Home & Away — to go, ‘Actually, can I try this differently?’ or, ‘Can I do that?’ You know, if it seems alright and it reads ok then the director’s usually like, ‘Alright, moving on,’ and you’re left like, ‘Ah, ok, that’s that,’ and we have to keep going. But what I’ve found enjoyable the last few weeks is just playing in the rehearsal room and going, ‘Well, that didn’t work but let’s try it this way.’” We noticed a Movement Coach listed among The Nether’s creatives so wonder whether Snow has to learn a complex sequence akin to Tom Cruise suspended and weaving through a laser grid in Mission: Impossible to hack a computer. He laughs, “I wish!” and then jokes, “Well, I told Justin about that scene and he shot me down with that idea, but I would love for that to be my entrance onto the stage. Wouldn’t it be good?! You’d probably just have to be set in position right from the beginning when it’s open call; so the audience is coming in, you’re just up in the rafters waiting.”
What: The Nether When & Where: 13 Sep — 7 Oct, Seymour Centre
Music
A Crease In Time
Jessica Dale catches up with The Creases’ Joe Agius, Aimon Clark and Gabe Webster to find out why four years in was the right time to release their debut album, Tremolow.
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or a lot of bands that are just starting out, waiting four years to release a debut album isn’t too far-fetched or out of the norm. When thinking about The Creases, however, and realising that they’re just about to release their debut album, Tremolow, it does seem a little odd. Surely, after gaining success with songs like Point and Static Lines, an LP would have happened years ago? “I feel like we’re in the right position. For us as musicians, we feel comfortable with our instruments and our writing and everything like that,” explains vocalist and guitarist Joe Agius. “I feel like every month we were getting a lot better and it just got to a stage that we’re really happy with all the songs... We’ve matured enough as musicians and as a band and as friends and everything like that. We feel like it was the right time finally to record it.” Tremolow is an interesting moniker for the album, coming from a musical term that describes a wavering effect in a tone. “It was kind of like a working title for a while. It’s just like one of those names that...” Agius begins to explain.
“We didn’t get sick of after a couple of days. It just stuck,” interjects bassist Aimon Clark. Though drummer Gabe Webster is quiet throughout, he laughs along in agreement with his bandmates. “Like with every band, there’s lots of highs and lows and just a pretty crazy, emotional ride sometimes and I feel like the name kind of sums it up a little bit,” continues Agius. “Tremolo’s a musical term for changing frequency or for sound, which is an effect we use on the record a lot as well.” The group are heading out on tour throughout September and have been rehearsing solidly to ensure the album’s maiden voyage runs smoothly. “We’re just excited to play [Tremolow] finally, because we’ve been a band for four years and the whole time we’ve always played a set where everyone only knows three songs in the whole set,” says Clark. “It’s such an obvious change in the way the audience reacts when you play a song they know. So I guess we’re just super excited just to play a set where everyone knows every single song.” “We’ve just started playing the opening track, which is Answer To, and I think that’s my favourite on the album, and I really like playing it live, too,” he continues. “It’s a hard one for Joe to sing but he pulls it off. It’s very high.” “Joe’s killing it,” adds Webster, Agius laughing along good naturedly. “[It will be] a really polished kind of set. We’ve already started putting a lot of work into it,” Agius says, agreeing with Clark. “It’s just hard to choose which songs to keep and not play, with old ones and EP songs. It’s strange. We’re really excited but really nervous as well.”
What: Tremolow (Liberation) When & Where: 16 Sep, The Lair
BIGSOUND Picks
Ziggy Ramo
BIGSOUND has wrapped for another year and we’ve walked away with a whole list of acts for you to keep your eye on over the next year.
Ziggy Ramo From: Perth Our BIGSOUND review: “From canvassing his own struggles with mental illness and identity to delivering hard, emotional truths about the historically abysmal treatment of Indigenous people alongside significant crowd work and possessing a level of physical animation unparalleled anywhere else at this festival, Ramo is a one-of-a-kind performer.
POW! Negro From: Perth Our BIGSOUND review: “An eclectic funk soul party is delivered via WAborn rockers POW! Negro... Punters are unsure whether to sway in time with the soulful sax and dreamy guitar or get their mosh on to the band’s punkier elements, the latter led by bursts of unwavering aggression from vocalist Nelson Mondlane. If you’re looking for a band to get you in the mood to party, look no further than POW! Negro.”
Maddy Jane From: Bruny Island Our BIGSOUND review: “Within the first two songs, the crowd has almost doubled, and it’s easy to see the room is filled with fans of the promising songwriter... While Jane herself certainly impresses, her band does too, moving effortlessly from one song to the next. It’s not surprising to hear why people have their eye on Maddy Jane.”
THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 19
BIGSOUND Picks
Music
Stella Donnelly
BIGSOUND has wrapped for another year and we’ve walked away with a whole list of acts for you to keep your eye on over the next year.
Stella Donnelly From: Perth Our BIGSOUND review: “Flanked by nought but her trusty six-string, her voice commands instant attention as her personal and clever lyricism brings a hush over the crowd... Donnelly is also wholly capable of striking sincerely emotive chords too, with the devastating Boys Will Be Boys bringing her audience to an awestruck standstill. Across the board, this muso is firmly on the path to greatness.”
Polaris From: Sydney Our BIGSOUND review: “Polaris carry themselves on stage with such professionalism that you’d swear these guys have been around for far longer than they have. All five members are animated, energetic and an absolute fucking blast to watch. Polaris are set to do some very big things.”
Billy Davis & The Good Lords From: Melbourne Our BIGSOUND review: “From their first song, the rap-splashed, hugely danceable Ball & Chain, they have their whole floor grooving along to the vibe. Plenty of acts can get an audience moving, but few manage to make a room dance the way this band does tonight... Easily one of the most fun, memorable acts across the entirety of this gargantuan bill.”
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While the sound on the album is that of pounding, bass driven punk and stoner rock that sounds like it was a lot of fun to write, record and play live, there are some very strong and semipolitical themes running through the record’s lyrics and imagery. The album speaks of a society divided, with people unable to communicate their thoughts or discuss issues in a coherent and mature manner, and Grainger is more than happy to give his perspective on the record’s message. “The main theme is a commentary on the burning of the social fabric,” he explains, “there’s this communication breakdown that’s happening, that’s due in large part to social media. I don’t use Facebook, so it shocks me when I learn that people do, and I’ll be talking to a friend and they’ll say ‘I was having this fight on Facebook with so and so and they said such and such thing, and I’m like ‘is that real? Do people really do that?’ There’s something happening there, and it’s coming out into the real world now, it’s like the comment section has come alive.” The duo is off on tour across the length and breadth of North America very shortly, a jaunt that takes them virtually all the way through to the end of the year. However, the band is no stranger to Australia, having been here four times previously, and Grainger is extremely confident that they will be making a return visit to Australian shores at some stage next year. “Yeah, we’ll be down there,” he says without hesitation, “we miss it too much. We’d like to hit Australia more, but you guys are literally half a world away, but we’ll be back there on this run.”
Anti-Social Media
Rod Whitfield has a chat to Sebastien Grainger, one half of Canadian punk rock duo Death From Above about how social media is effecting society and how that was translated within their latest album Outrage! Is Now.
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wo-piece bands have come to the fore in recent times. Australia had produced the likes of King Of The North and Jackson Firebird, and North America has its own versions of the twopiece format, one of which is stoner/punk duo Death From Above. The pairing of bassist and backing vocalist Jesse F Keeler and drummer/lead vocalist Sebastien Grainger are set to release its third album Outrage! Is Now, and according to Grainger, while having just two people in the band can certainly streamline the recording process to some extent, it has its own challenges as well. “It can, but you have to fully embrace it,” he states, “and you have to go in being aware of the limitations. You have to draw lines and stay within them, and on this record, we were very aware of that. These are the parameters of the band, these are the things we want to do, if we’re searching for something specific that is outside of those lines, then we’ll be very cautious of how we do that. We weren’t just throwing everything at this, we wanted to make sure that all of the parts were defined clearly before we recorded them.”
What: Outrage! Is Now (Last Gang/eOne )
Eat / Drink Eat/Drink
Yeast Your Eyes On This
P U T
I N
Hometown Honey If it were possible, I’m sure the average Melbournian would happily drive an ecofriendly go-kart made of Yakult bottles to work every day. But how concerned are we with the sustainability of our food? Many restaurants around Melbourne are beginning to adopt sustainable attitudes. One such example is the CBD’s Rooftop Honey beekeepers. An ethically sound concept.
Can’t Make Heads Or Tails of It Bad news for the family dog, there’ll be no more food scraps thanks to the growing interest in the Nose to Tail eating philosophy. This practice involves eating every part of the animal. Yes, every part. While most of us can enjoy the best parts of something like a pig, would we still take the bacon if it also meant a healthy serving of trotters, organs, and even genitals?
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Spring Step
Much like the creation of sausage, the bacteria laden process of brewing kombucha is something that’s best left unseen. But unlike the sausage, the probiotic drink is actually quite good for you. Kombucha brings tremendous benefits to the body’s immune system and helps to improve cardiovascular health, and despite looking like someone melted down a bunch of Butter-Menthols the drink is truly taking off in the health food community.
Y O U R
The warmer months are on the way at long last, and the food trends this spring are very much about getting your summer bod in tip top shape. Words by Donald Finlayson.
A Healthier Hangover Environmentally friendly and with fewer chemicals than most commercial brands, organic wine is just another reason to fall off the wagon this Christmas. Produced using sustainable farming techniques, grown without artificial pesticides and priced similarly to the regular stuff, organic wine makes a great gift for the vegan alcoholic in all of our lives. Make sure to buy from Australian vineyards to really do your bit for the country while you’re making a fool of yourself at the office party. Bottoms up!
THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 21
Indie Indie
Luke Million
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uke Million has had a big year, touring with Client Liaison and partying at Splendour In The Grass. Now, the electronic artist is dropping his latest EP Come Together inspired by old-school nostalgic sounds. “I draw inspiration from jamming, and then working these nostalgic sounds into the present time,” illustrates Luke Godson, the mind behind the madness. “The EP overall is quite varied,” Godson explains about the thematic nature of the release, “whether that be the anything-goes nature of Alive, or the dark, hypnotising journey of Return To Transylvania. “I like to immerse myself in a vision, and then create a sound palette from my synths and drum machine to bring it to life,” Godson enlightens. He then outlines how “capturing the moment of inspiration” is the “most honest and human” element of recording. He makes no secret of his love for vintage machines, recording the EP “with a studio full of analogue gear” despite the possibility of malfunctions, which happened. “I sent my Prophet-5 [synthesiser] off to get repaired and continued tracking other synths until I got it back.” Now, ahead of his Aussie national tour, Godson hints at some sneaky guest vocalists, as well as visual elements to tingle all the senses: “I have recently put together a new live show with all new gear and an awesome lighting experience. I tend to stay relatively true to the original tracks, but I also give them that extra bit live and throw in a few surprises.”
What: Come Together (etcetc) When & Where: 15 Sep, Oxford Art Factory
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Shag Rock
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ree beer,” jokes bassist Nicholas Cavdarski of indie-pop act Shag Rock about the drink being the reason behind his personal pursuit of music. As well as “going to new places, meeting new people and living life to the fullest” of course. The surf-rock outfit has just released Loosen Up, the last single off debut album Barefoot, and are taking it on tour around the country. “We just banged it out in the band room until it was really tight” describes Cavdarski about the band’s technical process of wiring and recording. Loosen Up was recorded by legendary Powderfinger guitarist Ian Haug at his studio in Samford under his label Airlock Records -which the band signed to back in 2014- where Cavdarski says the single was
Big Music College
created more on a whim rather than being meticulously nutted out beforehand “we just jumped into the fog on this track. “We really wanted to write more songs that crowds could really move to, and create some sick energy in the room” stating that in the age of computers and effects, Shag Rock likes to balance on the edge “between sounding too perfect like a computer, but still being really tight.” Ultimately, Shag Rock are one of those bands that just love to do what they do, “the prospect that we get to play these songs to audiences all around the country is a huge part of our sound thematically.” Catch them doing just that as they tour the country.
What: Loosen Up When & Where: 14 Sep, Oxford Art Factory; 15 Sep, Smith’s Alternative
committing to an expensive three-year music degree. What makes you different to other educational institutions? We are a small campus with exceptional facilities and can offer students incredible performance opportunities. Our course can be completed over six or 12 months at a fraction of the cost of a degree.
Education Focus Answered by: Richard Berkman - Managing Director What kind of courses do you offer? Certificate IV in Music Industry (Performance) in collaboration with the College of Sound and Music Production (COSAMP, RTO#41549). This course helps aspiring musicians develop practical skills and knowledge needed to work as a performing artist. What kind of people would these courses suit? Anyone who wants to develop their musicianship and have more opportunities to perform. Perfect for school leavers who are passionate about music but unsure about
Do you offer job opportunities, internships, or other ways to help students get ahead? We offer exceptional performance opportunities and industry connections, increasing the chances of our students being discovered. Job opportunities may exist for some students through our retail store and music school. When and where is your next Info Day/Open Day? 18 Sep, 85 Alexander Street, 6pm - 7pm. Website link for more info: bigmusic.com.au/college
Music
Baby Food
As UK act Superfood get ready to release their second LP, Bambino, co-founding member Dom Ganderton tells Rod Whitfield about the rather left-of-centre journey that lead to the album.
“E
arly on in the recording, things were really all up in the air for us,” Superfood’s Dom Ganderton recalls, “but we just thought ‘fuck it, we’ve got laptops, let’s just do this’. So we started recording it in our bedrooms, in our flats and rehearsal rooms, and then we went into an actual studio and started recording some drums. We’ve basically been recording it in any place we can over the last couple of years: hotel rooms, parked cars, anything. “We went into a park one night at three o’clock in the morning and did some vocals. We just said ‘what can we do?’ We took our laptops and some mics out into the middle of the park that was over the road, and we were just belting it out in the middle of this park. It was quite surreal, but quite funny.” Despite the highly irregular manner in which the album was written and recorded — in fact, probably because of it — Ganderton and writing partner Ryan Malcolm are stoked with the way it’s turned out. “It was a really different process,” he states, “usually you go into a studio for about four weeks, basically live there and you finish it, but we just went completely the opposite. We just made the songs in dribs and drabs and
really having time to reflect on them, and I think what we got from it is a really interesting result.” So did the stuff they did in the park make it through to the final mix? “Yeah it did! The chorus vocals on Raindance is us in the park. Oh, I meant to mention there’s a fax machine solo on the record too.” He laughs, while being deadly serious at the same time. Ultimately, Ganderton feels their sound has very broad appeal, and invites listeners from Australia to check the record out and find out for themselves. “It’s all about the rhythm and it’s all about good songwriting, so I think there’s something there for everyone, I think there’s something there that’s going to capture everyone’s attention. I think Aussies will love it.” So much so that the band, while they are busy playing with the likes of Wolf Alice in the UK and Europe for the rest of this year, are looking very strongly at getting over here for a tour in the not too distant future. “Since we started we’ve wanted to get out to Australia,” he says, “we’re looking at hopefully early in the new year, January, there’s a few festivals and stuff that we’re trying to get out to. Fingers crossed.”
What: Bambino (Dirty Hit/Sony)
SHAMED SHIT
SLINGER SPEAKS OUT Last week the world held its breath – and its nose – as it followed the inglorious saga of the “Shirehampton shit slinger.” If you missed out on this thrilling human drama, it focused on an unfortunate British woman who became a viral megahit when she got trapped in a crawl space while trying to retrieve a poo she’d attempted to throw out of a window. A tale as old as time, we’re sure you’ll agree. Now the woman at the centre of this viral bonanza has come forward to give her response – while still remaining anonymous. “It’s not something I’m proud of, but people are laughing, and if I’m making people happy then I’m not going to complain.” Good on ya Shit Slinger! You’re a good sort.
THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 23
Opinion
To Tolerate Or Not To Tolerate, That Is The Question
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anguage is a funny ol’ thing. Grammar pedants might well take joy in correcting other people’s linguistic cock-ups, but in truth, words and their meaning are extremely playable and easily bent to the will of the wielder. Take the word “fizzle” for example. Once upon a time, this verb described the act of producing a silent fart, until American college slang morphed its meaning into the more wholesome definition we know today. “Big deal,” I hear you cry, but the ebb and flow of language is far from democratic. Once appropriated, words leave a vacuum that often remains unfilled; the lexicon of flatulence has been plundered, and now our stealthy stink bombs remain nameless. Another word is undergoing a similar metamorphosis at present, but what we stand to lose is far more important than just a handy shorthand for quiet bum burps. The creep of far-right sentiment into the political mainstream has normalised the rhetoric of discrimination. And what’s more, it’s also given those who might have previously kept their ugly stances behind closed doors a free pass to toot their gay-hating, immigration-loathing, multi-culturalism detesting trumpets in public, under the absolving banner of free speech. At virtually any other point in living memory, it would be an unequivocal no-brainer to describe such people as bigots. But in recent months, that word has
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In an age of extreme politics, the intolerance paradox is the biggest head-scratcher of our troubled times. Maxim Boon looks for answer to this ethical conundrum.
begun to develop a double edge. If alt-right rebuttals, delivered with pearl clutching indignation, are to be believed, to brand someone as a bigot is to also be bigoted, and thus we find ourselves tangled in the oxymoronic threads of the so-called tolerance paradox. For the absolutely tolerant — a frame of mind that, short of being on the cusp of Nirvana, is pretty much impossible to achieve — tolerance is a binary state; you either are, or you’re not. You cannot be somewhat tolerant, or kind of tolerant, or occasionally tolerant. You cannot cherry pick what principals, people or politics you will tolerate. Tolerance demands that we be unanimously tolerant, and of course, this includes tolerance of intolerance. If someone is actively participating in acts of intolerance, for example, campaigning against marriage equality or wearing a Swastika armband, those who are truly tolerant cannot speak out against this, since to do so would itself be an act of intolerance. If your head is starting to hurt, you’re not alone, but this nifty loophole has been conveniently weaponised by those who hope to defend the indefensible, using a finger wagging bait and switch to label any such lefty snowflake bellyaching as hypocritical. Clearly, this is a model that simply doesn’t function, primarily because it gives one side of the equation all the power while the other is hamstrung by their own
Opinion
inflexible principles. Yet, the notion of boiling down ethical choices to their bluntest, most maddeningly simplistic state is one that plays up to the antiintellectual sensibilities of the alt-right. Hate doesn’t have to be logical or robust enough to stand up to reasoned scrutiny, it just needs to be bullishly head strong and ignorantly stubborn: “I hate the things I hate because I hate them. This way of thinking is like falling off a log for those whose viewpoint veers to the right, but for those who see themselves on the opposite side of the argument, a far greater challenge faces them. Believing we are morally superior is not enough — our actions, or rather inactions, must speak louder than our protest chants. This impossible imposition of a self-inflicted gag order, to avoid the implication of bigotry however nonsensical, has played magnificently into the hands of global alt-right movement, where the liberal media are
For the absolutely tolerant — a frame of mind that, short of being on the cusp of Nirvana, is pretty much impossible to achieve — tolerance is a binary state; you either are, or you’re not.
concerned. #FakeNews can easily dismiss even the most unignorably ironclad reporting, without anything more rigorous to back it up. But when right wing media appropriates the left’s vernacular, using the same accusations to neuter left-wing activism, equating White Supremacists and Neo Nazi’s with Antifa (Anti-Fascist) protesters, as Donald Trump infamously did in the aftermath of the deadly Charlottesville demonstrations, these slings and arrows wound, because words like
“bigot” encapsulate every quality a truly inclusive society should reject. So, how do we resolve the paradox of tolerance? One strategy would be to forget tolerance altogether and make intolerance our guiding star. After all, intolerance as a principle does not demand that we be consistently or unanimously intolerant, instead offering us the luxury of choice, to choose when and to whom we are intolerant. But hang on a minute, that’s starting to sound a lot like right wing politics — it’s easy to see why such sentiments accrue such a massive popular following. Academically, game theory has much to say on the benefits of universal tolerance, but such highbrow investigations tend to leave out the most unpredictable and irresistible part of the equation: emotion. To idly stand by while hate is being spread is to be complicit in it, so while total tolerance might be the most peacefully conducive behaviour, it is the least rational in the minds of those who have strongly held beliefs. It’s this innate lack of logic that reveals one of the most problematic qualities of this troublesome paradox: tolerance operates outside the bubble of instinctual, reflexive morality. It is a light switch, that has no relationship or interest in what its function illuminates. It does not care about what is right or what is wrong, whose argument makes a positive contribution and which are negative. It merely demands that both are considered equal. Indeed, provision for equal protection for all parties willing to tolerate opposing ideas is the cornerstone of western democracy, despite its inherent faults. It really is a bloody head-scratcher, but as Australia prepares to engage in a national exercise in tolerance, as the marriage equality plebiscite postal vote hoovers up millions of dollars with its non-binding referendum on human dignity, one overwhelming thought seems to howl above the din of the far from reasoned and thoroughly disrespectful debate: tolerance and intolerance do not equate to right and wrong. Our vocabulary may be garbled, our meaning may be warped, but our moral compass can still show us the right course when we’re lost for words.
THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 25
Music
X Marks The Grog
Failing to prepare is preparing to fail people, and if you had any doubt about how true that adage is, I suggest you bask in the oh so prepared glory of New York Festival genius Alex. Knowing that his trip to the upcoming Electric Zoo festival would be all the sweeter with a few drams of vodka, he visited the site of the festival three weeks in advance, and buried a bottle at a location he marked with GPS coordinates. On the day of the fest, with the help of a few mates to provide some huddled camouflage during the critical excavation phase of this beautiful plan, Alex found his voddy safe and sound, and proceeded, we assume, to have a sweet AF time at the fest. The man has promised to release a book next year with many other festival hacks. We suggest you bow down to the wisdom of the sensei, grasshopper. This shiz knows the biz.
26 • THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017
impending overseas trek. “We did decide the other day that no matter how much we prepare, we’re probably not going to know truly what it’s like. But we’re really hoping that we’ll play as good as we can. We’ll be really excited to see who, if any people, have caught wind of us and know the songs already. That will be really interesting to see; almost like an experiment to see where is the most on to it. We’re just really hoping that we show everyone that we deserve to be there, and we deserve to come back.” When politely pressed for a descriptor of their music, Adams dubs it “blackened metalcore” and name-checks Gorgoroth and Dark Funeral among his black metal influences. “We really love a lot of heavy stuff, really grindy stuff, but we also love stuff that isn’t quite so heavy. We try to be as diverse as we can. Really abrasive, dark and emotional, but something that a lot of people could latch on to it and find something in it.” Although inspired by the grim and frostbitten, their shows certainly don’t incorporate black metal aesthetic elements like corpse-paint. “When it comes to the performance it’s probably more reminiscent of just, sort of, a more regular hardcore thing. We don’t bring too much of the blackened image with us, probably because I think we’re more comfortable just dressing up however we are usually, and just going for it the way we are,” Adams laughs. “For a long time our bass player used to wear an Akubra on stage, just ‘cause he absolutely loved it. It was him, so we just let him go for it.”
Out For Justice
Sydney’s “blackened metalcore” outfit Justice For The Damned are approaching getting in the van with wideeyed enthusiasm. Brendan Crabb discusses onstage Akubras with guitarist Nick Adams.
S
pawned several years ago via high school jam sessions, Sydney metallers Justice For The Damned have unleashed maiden full-length Dragged Through The Dirt. Befitting of such an occasion, 21-year-old guitarist/vocalist Nick Adams’ eagerness is palpable. “We’re nervous for what the future’s holding, but really excited,” he says. “We’re really keen to get up there (on stage) and bring all the heart and soul we’ve built up over the years of grinding.” Their feverish itinerary will facilitate considerable opportunities to do so. There were shows with Ocean Grove, their current headlining gigs and their first international tour (in Europe supporting heavy-hitters Thy Art Is Murder) is also on the horizon. Not surprisingly, they’re looking to scrimp as much as possible. “Because of [the busy touring schedule] we’ve obviously got a lot to save for,” the axeman explains. “Everyone’s been stuck down in saving mode. A few of us work in a call centre, a few of us are baristas, one of our guys is from Dubbo and was back out there working. Everyone is doing the hard yards. “We’re all speculating a lot about what it will be like over there,” he remarks of the
What: Dragged Through The Dirt (Greyscale) When & Where: 16 Sep, Hamilton Station Hotel, Newcastle; 17 Sep, Red Rattler; 18 Sep, Rad Bar, Wollongong
Theatre
In His Sights Sondheim’s controversial musical Assassins offers a glimpse into the minds of presidential murderers. Director Dean Bryant tells Maxim Boon about taking aim at Trump.
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ince Donald Trump first bulldozed his way into American politics, artists have found themselves drawn to his anarchic blunderings. As much as his loathsome ideals and thinly veiled prejudices are detestable, his caricaturish, pantomime villain personality has proven to be a seemingly limitless muse, with references to Trump, both explicit and subliminal, percolating through the outputs of creatives across virtually every artistic practice. But while artists have found Trump’s absurdities inspiring, POTUS’s followers have been quick to call foul when satire has strayed too close to propaganda. Earlier this year, comedian Kathy Griffin was blasted by those on both the left and right ends of the political spectrum when she tweeted a picture of herself holding a bloodied severed head ­- fake, of course — with an unmistakable likeness to Donald Trump. Connections were immediately made to the beheadings carried out by Islamic extremists, and Griffin quickly kowtowed to the backlash with an apology. Similarly, a production of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, staged in New York’s Central Park, transplanted the action from ancient Rome to present day Washington. Rightwing protestors disrupted several performances, which depicted a Trump-esque Caesar being fatally stabbed. But whereas some artists have taken aim at Trump metaphorically, Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins takes the anti-president sentiment to another level entirely. In the guise of a vaudevillian cabaret, this musical offers a revue-style exploration of the men and women who have attempted, some successfully, others thwarted, to kill an American President. Written in 1990, Sondheim’s musical, with book by John Weidman, was penned decades — and three full presidencies — before Trump’s ascent to the Oval Office, and yet staging this show at the present moment feels nonetheless provocative. Director Dean Bryant, whose new production of Assassins opens at Sydney’s Hayes Theatre, has been fascinated by the moral conundrum Sondheim
These ethical issues have always been part of this show from the start.
poses. “These ethical issues have always been part of this show from the start, long before Trump came along,” he insists. “Of course, as soon as you put humans on stage, you’re asking an audience to empathise and engage with them, and given the subject matter, people are going to be making those Trump connections. The reason the show has been programmed now was, of course, because of the presidential situation. It’s so horrific, but it feels just by putting on a show like Assassins we’re already addressing the elephant in the room, without having to do anything besides actually presenting it like any other production: well cast, well designed, well executed.” Ironically, for a work that feels so closely aligned with the political now, Bryant has resisted over emphasising links to Trump. “The piece already does so much of the work for you,” he explains. “Making those connections too overpowering could easily diminish the power of the work as a whole. It is a historical piece. It gets into the guts of these critical moments and tries to make the audience curious about these people who made extraordinary choices to change the course of history. I think where Trump comes into play is in the way he has made politics this win or lose game, as opposed to what it’s meant to be, which is finding a decent way for 250 million people to feel that their interests are being met.” Another facet where Trump’s influence can be felt is in the design of the production. “You can kind of see Trump’s values manifest in his personal style. He loves things that are tacky. The people who he thinks are cool are usually just awful. In many ways, I think people dislike him personally more so than his policies, because he’s so distasteful and vulgar. I don’t think that would matter so much if he were vulgar and savvy. But he’s vulgar and shallow, and that combination is incredibly unlikeable,” Bryant notes. “We’ve kind of placed the action in a junkyard theme park, where there’s all these left behind signs that used to promise fun and thrills. Now they’re just tacky and dead, a pile of broken promises.”
What: Assassins When & Where: 15 Sep — 14 Oct, Hayes Theatre THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 27
OPINION Opinion
It’s All True
Moderately Highbrow Visual Art Wank And Theatre Foyers With Dave Drayton
OG F l ava s Urban And R&B News With Cyclone
“G
oodnight Springton, there will be no encores.” With these seven words, David St Hubbins, or more accurately the writers of The Simpsons, perfectly parodied the peculiar performances that occur on stage in between performing actual songs. And while this all too often consists of little more than baiting banal banter or
T
trite compliments there are moments of brilliance buried there, and bands and performers who offer more of these moments than most. Seminal posthardcore act Fugazi are one such band, and composer Travis Just and writer Kara Feely have been combing through more than 1,200 hours of their archival live recordings for such moments. Just and Feely worked to notate all the between-song banter, incidental drum hits and guitars tune, toned
he UK’s Adrian “Tricky” Thaws is among the most influential acts in contemporary music. The Bristol trip-hop auteur presaged urban pop’s nowpervasive interiority — and that fervour for indie. His aesthetic has rubbed off on Drake, The xx and Lana Del Rey. He pioneered mumble — and, possibly — cloud rap. Inevitably, Thaws’ 1995 debut Maxinquaye has become the touchstone for everything he issues. But, subversively proclaiming himself “Nearly God” way before Kanye West’s ascendancy, Thaws is a one-man cultural sound system — spanning dub, hip hop and rock. He has long espoused gender fluidity while liaising extensively with female musicians (PJ Harvey!). Nonetheless, Thaws’ latest album, ununiform, is particularly inspired, both sonically and in its sanguine outlook. Thaws has followed Russian hip hop for 20 years. For ununiform, he travelled from his current Berlin base to Moscow, collaborating with post-Soviet hip-hop renegades such as the MC Scriptonite. Thaws cut The Only Way alongside beatmaker Vasily Vakulenko (aka gangsta rapper Basta) — the delicate single revealing acoustic guitar, piano and strings. Thaws here offers acid techno and more house (Dark Days, featuring Mina Rose). New Stole — sung by Francesca Belmonte — is Thaws reclaiming from Del Rey. And, as the finale, Thaws reunites with the quixotic Martina Topley-Bird (remember the recasting of Public Enemy’s Black Steel In The Hour Of Chaos as Black Steel) for the sublimely Tricky existentialist When We Die. Seek!
28 • THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017
and checked; they transcribed the tension between tracks, and scored the 100-minute mess as a cacophonous collaboration between four electric guitars, two drum kits, and four actor-singers. After months of work they emerged with It’s All True, a contemporary opera by the New York-based Object Collection. Having premiered in Bergen, Norway last year, and showing in London this month, I’m crossing fingers for an inclusion in the 2019 Sydney Festival. In the mean time, UK label Slip have announced a vinyl pressing of It’s All True, complete with additional liner notes by Fugazi guitarist Guy Picciotto, which means not only can you own a copy, but you can listen to the opera at their Bandcamp.
The Heavy Shit Metal And Hard Rock With Chris Maric
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n 24 Aug, the metal scene lost one of its most beloved sons. Mick Burke sadly passed away at the age of 50. Mick was a founding father of the scene in Australia and had a profound influence on the metal world as a whole! Heavy Shit spoke with Steve Hughes about his longtime friend, former bandmate and high school partner in crime. In the early ‘80s, Burke and Hughes would write to bands in Europe via addresses they found in the liner notes of cassettes. People like Quorthon
OPINION Opinion
would write back amazed that someone in the great dust bowl of western Sydney had even heard of his band Bathory, let alone write to him about it! These two knockabouts expanded Sydney’s knowledge base of the greater metal world and also put Australia on the map in the process. Burke and Hughes went on to form one of the most influential metal bands ever, the criminally underrated Slaughter Lord, whose impact on the global scene cannot be underestimated. Hughes can lay claim to inventing blast beats, which happened by accident when he played Slayer records at the wrong speed! Burke’s guitar style was copied and recopied everywhere. At The Gates even covered Slaughter Lord’s track Legion, which appeared as a bonus track on the 2002 re-issue of their landmark album Slaughter Of The Soul. And, of course, Burke is probably best known in the greater metal world for playing on Mortal Sin’s Face Of Despair album.
Hughes says Burke had a “massive heart and lived for music”. Even the genetic illness he endured wouldn’t stop him from being front and centre at the home of metal in Sydney, the Bald Faced Stag where he would make his way from the suburbs of Parramatta as often as he could. The Stag’s Buzz Burnsen says he was “always genuinely excited to see Mick walk through the door”. “He was such a champion and always had a smile on his face and a beer in his hand,” he recalls. A huge supporter of local bands, Burke “was a great soul with a pure passion for music” and “it’s not going to be the same without him”, according to Burnsen. Burke’s good friend Trudy Johnson says he was “an inspiration to many and was very much appreciated for his active support of the scene. He happily gave his time to encourage new players and loved to share a story or two with them. If he wasn’t down the front at every gig with his camera in hand, he had a beer in it and raised the horns with his other.” Burke’s mobility deteriorated quite quickly in recent times, but he didn’t let that stop him. “His strength and determination was just another reason people loved and admired him,” Johnson says. Sydney photographer and all ‘round nice guy Mick Goddard loved sharing the photo pit with Burke and says, “He had a heart of gold, unless you spilt his beer [laughs]”. Mortal Sin’s Andy Eftichiou remembers Burke as a big part of their sound and that his “songwriting and vision was amazing”, while Mortal frontman Mat Maurer says Burke “had an awesome feel for songs” and “pushed the boundaries, making each of us take it up another notch just to keep pace!” As for Face Of Despair, Maurer says, “metalheads around Mick Burke. Pic: Mick Goddard the world still rave about songs on that album. Kudos, Mick Burke, you’re a bloody legend.” Yes, he was. May he Rest In Peace \m/ Next time you’re at Bald Faced Stag look on the wall next to the barrier, where a plaque has been erected in his honour.
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THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 29
Album / E Album/EP Reviews
Album OF THE Week
Angus & Julia Stone Snow
★★★★
Prophets Of Rage
Concrete & Gold Sony
Prophets Of Rage
★★★★
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Aneta Grulichova
EMI
Foo Fighters
When you think of Foo Fighters, it’s easy to just think of huge, stadium-filling rock songs. You know, like Best Of You, The Pretender and My Hero. It’s just as easy to forget that this sixpiece monster of a band started out with just Dave Grohl, playing songs like Big Me, Floaty and For All The Cows by himself on his 1995 post-Nirvana project, Foo Fighters. What Foo Fighters ninth studio album offers is a blend somewhere between the two; moments of big ‘70s rock sounds, balanced with softer lullaby-esque tracks. The opening bars of album opener T-Shirt will lull you into a false sense of security. ‘Oh, this is going to be a Skin & Bones type album,’ you’ll be thinking... and then the guitars come in and blast your brain into
Just when you thought Angus & Julia Stone couldn’t get better, they leave you breathless. Snow is captivating with its magical folk tunes and dreamy vocals as the Sydney-born siblings dazzle through every written and produced track. Julia’s la la’s open the album with Snow, with its soft guitars and Angus’ rugged dreamy vocals accompany his sister’s. Oakwood has a more rock-folk vibe with a rhythm that almost sounds like Fleetwood Mac before Angus’ hypnotic vocals take over. Their songs are raw and intimate with tracks like Sleep Alone while Julia’s vocals are gentle, beautiful in Nothing Else as the lyrics “I like you, just the way you are,” ring out. Things are shaken up with synths and organs getting the groove going in Who Do You Think You Are as the acoustic guitars ring in. Sylvester Stallone, the song has nothing to do with the actor, offers a cute love story that is enchanting and captivating with the harmony between the Stones. With the Big Jet Plane days behind them, Angus & Julia Stone are back better than ever, exploring new skills and taking listeners on another journey. A brilliantly orchestrated album with tantalising sounds and lyrics that will keep one dreaming for days.
Sony
★★★½
expecting the unexpected for the remainder of the album. The beginning of La Dee Da wouldn’t feel out of place in something on a Nine Inch Nails album, but then Dirty Water rolls around to remind you what you liked from that first, self-titled album to begin with. What Foo Fighters set out to achieve with Concrete & Gold was to challenge themselves, and in turn, they’ve also challenged their listeners in the best way possible. Jessica Dale
The Rage Against The Machine/ Public Enemy/Cypress Hill amalgam Prophets Of Rage have the Trump administration, racism, homelessness and more to dissect on their debut LP. Mission statement Unfuck The World readily attested that this all-star hard rock/hip-hop outfit’s filled with big voices and even bigger personalities, so achieving a songwriting balance could have been problematic. Not every song proves memorable, but the majority work and ego clashes aren’t a consideration as they’re clearly revelling in this new environment. Rage Against The Machine guitar hero Tom Morello and rhythm section Tim Commerford and Brad Wilk retain such chemistry they can likely finish each other’s sentences nowadays. Vocalists
B-Real and Chuck D aren’t on that level, but gel efficiently. Prophets Of Rage may prove a more diverse offering than anticipated for those primarily seeking a dose of heavy rock. The record moves at a boisterous clip though and boasts such funk-laced energy and tasty textures it’ll be of little consequence. Take Me Higher, Smashit and stomping Who Owns Who are simply aching to be performed live. You could argue this middleaged collective has already blazed their musical trail. They still have a message to express, however; as a certain band once posited, anger is a gift. Brendan Crabb
EP Reviews Album/EP Reviews
Caligula’s Horse
Tired Lion
SLØTFACE
Ben Ely
In Contact
Dumb Days
Try Not To Freak Out
Inside Out/Sony
Dew Process/Universal
Caroline
Strange Tales Of Drugs And Lost Love Valve/MGM
★★★★
★★★★
★★★★
★★★★
It’s very rare, but some bands, even when several albums into their career, manage to keep topping themselves with everything they release. Brisbane’s Caligula’s Horse, now four albums in, is one of those bands. In short, In Contact is a masterpiece. End to end, the playing, production and most importantly songcraft, are relentlessly magnificent, and the deeply personal concept that runs the length of the record and infiltrates all of its imagery works to a finely honed T. All culminating in the stunning 15 and a half minute closer Graves. This album sets new standards, both for themselves and for progressive heavy music in general. In Contact is a work of unimaginable beauty.
Perth rockers Tired Lion turn the heat up the moment Sophie Hopes screams into Japan with roaring guitars right behind her. The album’s title track explores youth while Fresh bids it a bittersweet farewell. Tracks like early single Cinderella Dracula and Cilantro take over with heavier guitar and Hopes’ edgy vocals reaching new heights before Hawaiifive0 brings them back to earth with softly sung, dreamy lyrics and gentle, grooving tunes. Dumb Days showcases Tired Lion’s endless talent, which keeps growing with each song they write and produce, keeping fans satisfied from beginning to end.
“Patti Smith would never put up with this shit,” Slotface frontwoman Haley Shea sings on the opening track of the Norwegian punk band’s debut album, Try Not To Freak Out. From that opening song, Magazine — that deals with body image and the unrealistic standards portrayed in media — to upbeat closer Backyard, the album is fun and full of energy and meaning. Shea, guitarist Tor-Arne Vikingstad, bassist Lasse Lokoy and drummer Halvard Skeie Wiencke set the bar high for themselves with the success of their EPs, but manage to exceed it with Try Not To Freak Out.
Seeing Ben Ely move back to the Brisbane haunts of his formative years perhaps explains the age-conscious banter of recent Regurgitator shows, which also heavily informs his third solo album. Dispensing with his trademark raucousness, companion songs 1988 and 1989 deliver on the album title’s promise with stories from his LSD dabbling, biffo-evading late teenage years. These Strange Tales seem regaled for an Aussie David Lynch movie with the confessional tone of Billy Bragg and the rawness of (The Basketball Diaries author) Jim Carroll. Having Ely stripped down to his guitar and 50-buck amp yields ample intimate rewards.
Madelyn Tait
Aneta Grulichova
Mac McNaughton
Rod Whitfield
More Reviews Online Majora Aphotic
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Ariel Pink Dedicated To Bobby Jameson
Nothing More The Stories We Tell Ourselves
THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 31
Live Re Live Reviews
Client Liaison, Total Giovanni, Muki Enmore Theatre 7 Sep
Client Liaison @ Enmore Theatre. Pic: Angela Padovan
Client Liaison @ Enmore Theatre. Pic: Angela Padovan
Client Liaison @ Enmore Theatre. Pic: Angela Padovan
Gang Of Youths @ Hordern Pavilion. Pic: Hayden Nixon
Gang Of Youths @ Hordern Pavilion. Pic: Hayden Nixon
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Gang Of Youths @ Hordern Pavilion. Pic: Hayden Nixon
With a line-up like Muki, Total Giovanni and Client Liaison (feat triple j’s Tom Tilley) there was one thing on everyone’s mind last night: party time. Adorned in matching Adidas tracksuits and sequined headdresses, the lads of Total Giovanni well and truly warmed up the audience with their sexually charged discotheque, while rising Sydney star Muki brought her own intriguing brand of soda pop to the party. When Client Liaison took their spotlit position on stage it was clear they were ready to get down to business. Standing with hands firmly on hips and wearing outrageously patterned suits, the ‘80s-inspired synth pop act kicked off their A Foreign Affair world tour show with a literal bang (pyro cannons) and the conviction and flamboyance that has won them fans world over. The stage was suitably dressed as an ‘80s office; complete with a PC, desk lamp, fern plants and illuminated water coolers. Genius. The crowd lapped up the outrageous dance choreography, costume changes and cheesy guitar solos that are no strangers to a Client Liaison production. Set opener End Of The Earth was an ode to Australiana, which took a detour through a sample of Pink Floyd’s Another Brick In The Wall before culminating with frontman Monte Morgan playing the didgeridoo. When the dance troupe arrived for Feed The Rhythm, the moshpit turned into a nightclub, with fists pumping, lights beaming and glorious shapes being thrown all over the dancefloor. Before long a whole load of Foster’s Classic Lager tinnies were being handed out to the lucky punters in the front row, while
‘80s-like advertisements looped on screen and Client Liaison covered Stardust’s Music Sounds Better With You. To everyone’s disappointment, Tina Arena did not join the Melbourne duo for their latest collab track A Foreign Affair, but the boys did flaunt some pretty dashing glittery robes for the number. The crowd
When the dance troupe arrived for Feed The Rhythm, the moshpit turned into a nightclub. went absolutely berserk when confetti cannons let off a rainbow explosion within the Enmore Theatre for fan-favourite and supposedly last song World Of Our Love. For the inevitable, and very well-rehearsed encore, Client Liaison topped off a stellar performance with Canberra Won’t Be Calling Tonight and Off White Limousine from their debut LP Diplomatic Immunity, complete with another impeccably styled costume change and epic choreography of course, plus a sneak preview of some promising new tunes. The concert ended there, but the party certainly didn’t, with Client Liaison inviting fans to join them at the official after party at Marly Bar. Shannon Andreucci
Gang Of Youths Hordern Pavilion 8 Sep It is a very, very full Hordern Pavilion for Sydney’s own Gang Of Youths; sold out, even. The crowd waits patiently, although
eviews Live Reviews
as soon as the band’s opening video projections take to the screens they lose it. And then they lose it some more when the band actually appear on the stage. They kick off with What Can I Do If The Fire Goes Out? and Atlas Drowned from their latest album, Go Farther In Lightness. The band are in great spirits, especially frontman David Le’aupepe who is jovial and forthcoming with the crowd. He shares a story about his youth and trying to get into the Hordern Pavilion for a show he couldn’t afford a ticket to. “I promised myself when I was 12 years old that I would play here one day,” he tells the crowd, receiving huge cheers. “It’s going to be a good long set for you, it’s a hometown show. This one’s called Keep Me In The Open.”
It’s going to be a good long set for you, it’s a hometown show. Le’aupepe’s voice has no problem filling every cavity of the building, but it seems to be a space that lacks intimacy, with the crowd choosing to talk over the top of even the most sensitive of songs. They play through the poignant Kansas off their first album, The Positions, though it’s not long before Le’aupepe is back to his joking ways. “Welcome to the Thunderdome, children,” he says, eliciting big laughs from the crowd. “Three years ago we played here with Vampire Weekend and it was the worst show we ever played,” he says, before promising that they’ll make it up to anyone who was in attendance that night.
Le’aupepe returns to his piano and performs Knuckles White Dry, a song dedicated to his late ex-wife. An instrumental movement from Go Farther In Lightness comes in after the song and it’s apparent the mood will now be shifting. They move onto the catchy Let Me Down Easy, and it is something to behold, hearing 5,500 people singing a word as odd as ‘solipsism’ back at a band. Soon after, Le’aupepe climbs atop of the risers on stage and waves his arms like a conductor to the opening bars of their best-known track, Magnolia. The crowd are fervent, singing and dancing, and it’s apparent that the band are just as thrilled in the reaction. The show is not without a lot of touching moments, particularly when the band surprise a close friend with the arrival of her husband on stage to join them for a song, especially considering she still thought he was in LA. They close out their main set with The Heart Is A Muscle and massive cheers. It’s not long before their back on stage with an encore. They play through Do Not Let Your Spirit Wane and Go Farther In Lightness, before closing out to the triumphant Say Yes To Life, with the whole goddamn Hordern singing back at them. Jessica Dale
Ariana Grande ICC Sydney Theatre 8 Dec Just a few months after the devastating terrorist attack at an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, those attending the first of her Sydney shows were advised beforehand that no cameras, tablets, clutches or bags whatsoever would be allowed at the event. Fans, many wearing Grande’s signature bunny ears and all carrying small ziplock bags containing their phones, wallets and keys
lined up for an airport style security check outside the new ICC Sydney Theatre in Darling Harbour. With no support act, a long countdown appeared on the huge screen behind the ICC stage, and every minute we got closer to seeing the American pop sensation, ear-splitting screams drowned out the huge room. Accompanied by a skilled troupe of dancers, and a
Confetti cannons sprayed fake money with Grande’s face on it into the audience, pink balloons rained down from the ceiling
at one point, there was an impressive laser show during her performance of The Weekend collaboration Love Me Harder and cool choreography with light bars during Problem. The show was lacking a bit of audience interaction though — apart from an “I’m so happy to be here,” and “Come on Sydney,” Grande didn’t say much between songs. With the singer having so many hits over the last four years, it would be hard to choose a concert highlight — but Break Free and Into You showed off Grande’s incredible voice — she can really sing! She paid tribute to the 22 people who lost their lives at her Manchester concert with an emotional performance of Somewhere Over The Rainbow, her voice shaking throughout the last lines. She finished with a Grande performance of the title track of the tour, Dangerous Woman, and left the stage to deafening cheers. Madelyn Tait
talented band, Grande took to the stage, opening with Be Alright from her 2016 album, Dangerous Woman.During one of the shows many costume changes, words and phrases like “Empowered”, “Not asking for it” and “Female” were projected across the screen, before the Side To Side set — one similar to her 2016 VMA performance — was revealed. She started the song on an exercise bike, with her dancers using various gym equipment, and finished with video footage of Nicki Minaj performing her verse before transitioning into their other collaboration (with Jessie J) Bang Bang. There were a few other spectacle moments — confetti cannons sprayed fake money with Grande’s face on it into the audience, pink balloons rained down from the ceiling THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 33
Arts Reviews Arts Reviews
too bad because It is one of King’s most ambitious, substantial, harrowing and haunting works. Long in the planning stages, a new adaptation of the novel is now lurching its way into cinemas. So, does it do It justice? Well, kind of. This is a terrific mainstream horror movie, the kind that’ll have viewers gasping in shock and grasping for their significant other when the slow-building tension suddenly erupts into a well-staged scare. Watching It is not unlike riding the best roller coaster at the amusement park (actually, maybe the best ghost train is a better analogy). Having said that, a fair bit of the material that made King’s novel so skin-crawling — the subplots about It’s malignant influence on the town, the subtext about the commonplace horror that co-existed alongside the supernatural horror — has been trimmed away in this adaptation. But what remains is a truly captivating and enthralling story about a bunch of outcast kids finding strength in their friendship and purpose in their mission to destroy the evil preying on their town and its youngest, most vulnerable residents. Every 27 years, something rises from the sewers running under the town of Derry to feed on any child unfortunate enough to cross its path. While it can take many forms, it seems most comfortable in the skin of dancing clown Pennywise (Bill Skarsgard, who has a nicely weird array of leers and hisses). For Bill (Jaeden Lieberher), the leader of the self-dubbed ‘Losers’ Club’ — which includes hypochondriac Eddie (Jack Dylan Grazer), wisecracking Richie (Finn Wolfhard) and brave Beverly (Sophia Lillis) — finding and killing Pennywise is personal, because the clown lured his little brother to his death. These young characters are so wellwritten and so well-performed that it’s a pleasure watching them simply hang out together. But It’s a downright thrill when they unite against a common enemy, and the movie depicts that with great, crowdpleasing energy. IT
IT
Film In cinemas now
★★★★ Are you scared of clowns? It’s nothing to be ashamed of — Bozo has been making a lot of people a little uneasy for a long while now, and the blame can be laid squarely at the feet of bestselling horror author Stephen King. Well, not just him. Actor Tim Curry is also culpable, thanks to his iconic performance as sinister supernatural clown Pennywise in the 1990 TV miniseries based on King’s novel It. Playing the embodiment of an evil force — the It of the title — that terrorised the children of a small American town, Curry apparently ruined clowns for an entire generation. The rest of the IT miniseries, however, couldn’t really match the actor’s creepy clowning, which was
Guy Davis 34 • THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017
The Deuce
The Deuce TV Streaming via Foxtel
★★★★ There is a tendency, especially among men of a certain age like yours truly, to romanticise the grimy heyday of New York in the 1970s, especially the cesspit of vice in the 42nd Street area of the city - hell, there’s a Facebook page devoted to the area and the era titled Dirty Old 1970s New York City that has close to 250,000 followers (you have to admit, that’s pretty good numbers for recollections of a city on the verge of social and economic ruin). I can’t speak for the other quarter of a million or so people who dig that stroll down memory lane but I will speculate that any nostalgia is accompanied by a dash of relief. For as much as many of us like the idea of wandering to the wrong side of town, the idea of actually spending time there is worrisome. When I first heard about the new HBO series The Deuce (the title derived from the slang name for 42nd Street), my initial concern was that it might romanticise the time, place and attitude somewhat, offering just enough grit and danger to give viewers a walk on the wild side. This despite the involvement of series creators David Simon and George Pelecanos, veterans of The Wire. Watching the pilot episode of this eight-episode run, it was clear I was mistaken. Look, for children and/ or aficionados of the 1970s there’s certainly plenty of period texture to revel in (my favourite throwaway line was a pimp ribbing a cop by calling him ‘A Quinn Martin Production’, the maker of many of the decade’s cop and lawyer TV shows), but The Deuce isn’t a tourist. It’s a resident. The area’s sex trade - prostitution and eventually pornography - gives Simon and Pelecanos ample opportunity to explore their interest in systems and structure, how people operate within them and what they can do to transcend them. What they’ve done with The Deuce is graft that interest onto a vibrant gallery of characters whose paths seem set to intersect in compelling ways. Guy Davis
THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 35
Comedy / G The Guide
Wed 13
Down With The Ship
Gillian English + Luke Joseph Ryan: Bank Hotel (Waywards), Newtown SOSUEME feat. POW! Negro: Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach
Dan Sultan
The Painted Piano feat. Simon Tedeschi + Kevin Hunt: Camelot Lounge, Marrickville Bert Kreischer: Enmore Theatre, Newtown
The Music Presents Ali Barter: 28 Sep Oxford Art Factory; 29 Sep The Small Bandroom Dan Sultan: 28 Sep The Academy Canerra; 29 Sep Bar On The Hill Newcastle; 30 Sep Metro Theatre At The Drive In: 29 Sep Hodern Pavilion Caligula’s Horse: 5 Oct Cambridge Hotel Newcastle West; 6 Oct Factory Theatre Vintage & Custom Drum Expo: 8 Oct Factory Theatre Diana Anaid: 22 Oct, Cruelty Free Festival; 1 - 3 Nov, Australian Music Week Mono: 9 Nov Manning Bar Mullum Music Festival: 16 - 19 Nov Mullumbimby Vanfest: 1 Dec Forbes Showground sleepmakeswaves: 9 Dec Oxford Art Factory
Ultimo TAFE Music Showcase with Saffron Mash + Penny Drop + Thebes Revenge + Brizz + more: Foundry 616, Sydney Hack The Mainframe: Hamilton Station Hotel, Islington Roadhouses: Lansdowne Hotel, Chippendale Sam Newton + Amber Rae Slade + Jason Walker + Sarah Humphreys: Leadbelly, Newtown James Bennett: Lizottes Newcastle, Lambton John Chesher + Paul B Mynor + Paul McGowan + Gavin Fitzgerald + Chris Brookes + Kenneth D’Aran + Pete Scully: Old Fitzroy Hotel, Woolloomooloo Deaf Havana + Eat Your Heart Out: Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst Songs On Stage feat. Russell Neal + Ray David + Elizabeth Hylton + more: Paddington RSL, Paddington Scum Shuvit + Space Boys + Cheyne Howard + Crushed Tinniez + Scab Baby: Rad Bar, Wollongong
Oh Captain, My Captain Adelaide easy-core outfit Down With The Ship are taking their debut EP on the road with the EZ Livin’ tour. With mates No! Not The Bees! heading along with them, get rowdy and wild this Thursday at Valve Bar.
Ravi Coltrane: The Basement, Sydney Tom Woodward + Chris Endrey + Ella Hunt: The Phoenix, Canberra
Thu 14
Anthony Charlton: Australian Arms Hotel, Penrith
Alt-J: 9 Dec ICC Sydney
Songs On Stage feat. Stuart Jammin + Bradley Primmer + Vegas Nerve + Elizabeth Hylton + more: BMW (formerly Beats.Eats.Drinks), Glebe
sleepmakeswaves: 9 Dec Oxford Art Factory
Chickasaw Bayou + Taylor Trash + Charlotte Rose: Gasoline Pony, Marrickville Zack Martin + Chris Brookes + Kenneth D’Aran: Harbour View Hotel, Dawes Point
Placebo + Deaf Havana: AIS Arena, Bruce Christopher Cross: Anita’s Theatre, Thirroul
Festival Of The Sun: 7 - 9 Dec Port Macquarie
Claude Hay + DJ Quaalude: Frankie’s Pizza By The Slice, Sydney
Manalion + The Kava Kings: Hotel Steyne, Manly Billie Eilish: Lansdowne Hotel, Chippendale
The Getaway Plan
Mark Olson + Sam Shinazzi: Brass Monkey, Cronulla Blind Man Death Stare
Dare To Stare It’ll Grow On Ya is the title of Melbourne punk rockers Blind Man Death Stare’s debut album, full of rough and intense energy. Let it grow on ya when they launch it at Valve Bar this Friday.
Cosmic Spice + HiaGround + Plastic Jack: Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst Katchafire: Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle West Kim Churchill: Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle West Katie Noonan + Maples: Camelot Lounge, Marrickville Sancha & The Blue Gypsies + Gadjo Guitars: Camelot Lounge (Django Bar), Marrickville Michael Jackson Legacy Tour with William Hall: Cessnock Performing Arts Centre, Cessnock Gad Elmaleh: City Recital Hall, Sydney
Christopher Cross: Shoalhaven Entertainment Centre, Nowra Just For Laughs feat. Kevin Bridges: Sydney Opera House (Concert Hall), Sydney Just For Laughs feat. Joel Creasey: Sydney Opera House, Sydney
Legendary alt-rockers The Getaway Plan are in the middle of their Other Voices, Other Rooms anniversary tour across Australia. Fuel your nostalgia and hear the iconic album in full when they hit up Metro Theatre on Friday night.
Elvis To The Max: Civic Theatre, Newcastle Spring Comedy Carnival: Comedy Store, Moore Park Grinspoon + Hockey Dad: Entrance Leagues, Bateau Bay Simone Waddell: Foundry 616, Sydney
36 • THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017
The City Meets The Sea
Caitlyn Shadbolt + Melanie Dyer: Lizottes Newcastle, Lambton Larger Than Lions: Marble Bar, Sydney
Gigs / Live The Guide
Hot Potato Band
The Adele & Amy Songbook with Bloom: Brass Monkey, Cronulla
PVT + Nico Niquo + Dongelis: Lansdowne Hotel, Chippendale
Chango: Petersham Bowling Club, Petersham
Tia Gostelow + Emma Davis + Jake Berry: Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst
James Bennett: Latin Loafer, Port Macquarie
Gold Member + Pluural: Prince of Wales Hotel, Merewether
The Australian Guns n Roses Show: Bull & Bush, Baulkham Hills
Patrick James: Leadbelly, Newtown
The Last Exposure + Roses in Hand + The Nah + Ekko: Rad Bar, Wollongong
Vince Jones: Lizottes Newcastle, Lambton
Bangers & Mash With the absence of any drums, bass or electric instruments, Hot Potato Band find themselves with a unique 11-piece brass brand sound. Immerse yourself in their eclectic tones and captivating energy when they play Metro Theatre this Thursday.
Port Royal: Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle West
Outerphase: Long Jetty Hotel, Long Jetty
Jellybean Jam: Revesby Workers (Infinity Lounge), Revesby
Arj Barker: Camden Civic Centre, Camden
Clive Hay: Lynwood Country Club, Pitt Town
Elvis To The Max: Rooty Hill RSL, Rooty Hill
Monsieur Camembert: Camelot Lounge, Marrickville Steve Edmonds Band: Camelot Lounge (Django Bar), Marrickville
Hatchie
Jesse Bloch + Sammy Boyle: Candys Apartment, Potts Point Paper Hearts: Charing Cross Hotel, Waverley Graves: Chinese Laundry, Sydney Californication - Red Hot Chilli Peppers Show: Colonial Hotel, Werrington Spring Comedy Carnival: Comedy Store, Moore Park The Sea Gypsies: Coogee Bay Hotel, Coogee
DIET. + Stumps: Marlborough Hotel, Newtown
Jimmy Bear: Coolibah Hotel, Merrylands West
All Ages Show with The Hot Potato Band: Metro Theatre, Sydney
Michael Jackson Legacy Tour with William Hall: Dee Why RSL, Dee Why
John & Yuki: Osaka, Potts Point
The Headliners: Engadine Tavern, Engadine
Shag Rock: Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst
Thelonius Monk played by Michael Griffin Octet: Foundry 616, Sydney
Cody Munro Moore + Holy Balm + Hair Die + Dom Talarico + Ontrei: Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst
Queen Porter Stomp: Gasoline Pony, Marrickville
Porch Light Sessions with Hollie Matthew + Liam Gale + John Mason: Petersham Bowling Club, Petersham Feeling Dave + Totty + Project Jurassic + Ugly Mundays: Rad Bar, Wollongong
Hatchie & Scratchie With only one smashing single under her belt, indie singer Hatchie has scored the support slot for Brisbane quartet The Creases. Metro Theatre plays party host to the superstar line-up this Saturday night.
DJ Sam Wall: Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly POW! Negro
Arcturus + Blood Incantation: Manning Bar, Camperdown Brown Sugar + DJ Trey: Marble Bar, Sydney
Tommy Alexander + Sasha March + Willowy: Staves Brewery, Glebe
The Baddies + The Stukas + Katy Kaos: Marrickville Bowling Club, Marrickville
Soul Roots Revival Band: The Bunker (FKA Coogee Diggers), Coogee
Katchafire + Ria Hall + The Hanlon Brothers + DJ Tickelz: Max Watt’s, Moore Park
Kelly Brouhaha: The Fox Den, Gloucester Fyrebyrd + The Kids: The Hideaway Bar, Enmore DJ Graham M: The Newport, Newport Down With The Ship + No! Not The Bees + Flicker + Frenzy: Valve Bar (Basement), Ultimo The Thursday Shuffle: Venue 505, Surry Hills Bonnie Kay + The Bonafides: Vic On The Park, Marrickville
The Getaway Plan: Metro Theatre, Sydney
Easy Off Pow!
Sean Forbes: Metro Theatre (The Lair), Sydney
Six-piece powerhouse POW! Negro will be at Sosume at Beach Road Hotel on Wednesday to celebrate the release of their latest EP Jasmine & Licorice.
Diesel: Miranda Hotel, Miranda
Fri 15 My Leonard Cohen with Stewart D’Arrietta: Anita’s Theatre, Thirroul Born Lion + Rad Island + Particles: Bank Hotel (Waywards), Newtown
ABBAsolutely Fabulous feat. Rhonda Burchmore + Lara Mulcahy: Mounties (Starz Function Room), Mt Pritchard
Just For Australia: Live with Tommy Little: Sydney Opera House (The Studio), Sydney Just For Laughs feat. Joel McHale: Sydney Opera House, Sydney Just For Laughs feat. Luke McGregor: Sydney Opera House (Playhouse), Sydney Wolf & Cub + The Dead Love + Moon Brain: The Bunker (FKA Coogee Diggers), Coogee Junkyard Dogs: The Merton Hotel, Rozelle DJ Diola + DJ JR Dynamite + DJ Sam Wall + Max Marvel: The Newport, Newport Signs & Symbols + Marlon Bando + Lost Coast: The Phoenix, Canberra Lost Tropics: The Record Crate, Glebe
Whiskey Empire: Old Dave’s Soul, Coogee
Black Rabbit George: The Stag & Hunter Hotel, Mayfield
Luke Million + Mookhi + Nocturnal Tapes: Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst
Maggot: Hamilton Station Hotel, Islington The Hot Potato Band: Heritage Hotel, Bulli
Shag Rock: Smiths Alternative, Canberra
Atonez + Zeek + Shots Fired: Oatley Hotel, Oatley
Chase The Sun: Old Manly Boatshed, Manly Red Rack’em: Goodbar, Paddington
Caitlyn Shadbolt + Melanie Dyer: Rooty Hill RSL, Rooty Hill
Los Scallywaggs: Oxford Art Factory (Gallery Bar), Darlinghurst
Grinspoon + Hockey Dad: Towradgi Beach Hotel, Towradgi The Transformers: Towradgi Beach Hotel (Sports Bar), Towradgi Kim Churchill + Taj Ralph: Uni Bar, Wollongong
THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 37
Comedy / G The Guide
Blind Man Death Stare + Hostile Objects + STFU + Cap A Capo: Valve Bar (Basement), Ultimo
Kim Churchill: Street Theatre, Canberra
Tia Gostelow
Defqon. 1 Festival feat. Various DJs: Sydney International Regatta Centre, Castlereagh
Blackout Aboriginal Club Night with DJ Digital Mouth + DJ Aycuz + DJ Don Juan: Valve Bar (Level One), Ultimo
Just For Laughs - All Star Gala feat. Various Artists: Sydney Opera House (Concert Hall), Sydney
New Fridge + Dweeb City: Vic On The Park, Marrickville
Just For Laughs Australia Live with Various Artists: Sydney Opera House (The Studio), Sydney
Anthony Charlton: Warragamba Workers & Sporting Club, Warragamba
Sat 16
Blind Man Death Stare + No KDY + Yoko Oh No + Ebolagoldfish + Sketch Method: The Basement, Belconnen
One Night Only - The Bee Gees Show: Anita’s Theatre, Thirroul
Vince Jones: The Basement, Sydney Lamp Lighters: The Beach Hotel, Merewether
Metal United Down Under feat. Horizons Edge + Elm Street + Saralisse + more: Bald Faced Stag, Leichhardt Kris McIntyre: Bathurst Panthers, Bathurst The Adele & Amy Songbook with Bloom: Brass Monkey, Cronulla The Hideaways + Brunette Drive + Eluka: Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst Memphis Minx Soul & Blues: Bull & Bush, Baulkham Hills
The Kite String Tangle
Ha The Unclear: The Bearded Tit, Redfern
Glow-up Gostelow Tia Gostelow is taking her That’s What You Get tour on the road. She may be new, but she’s making a name for herself. Head to Brighton Up Bar on Friday to celebrate the rise of this folky-singer.
Flava D: Chinese Laundry, Sydney Bag Raiders + Ben Jackson + Sam Blanch: Coffs Harbour Hotel, Coffs Harbour Mark Nelson: Comedy Store, Moore Park Spring Comedy Carnival: Comedy Store, Moore Park Captain Bob’s Station House Seven: Corrimal Hotel, Corrimal Chris Smithson + Love Drunk Hearts + Michael Meaco: Cronulla RSL, Cronulla
Damien Dempsey + Mick McHugh: Manning Bar, Camperdown C Major + DJ Trey: Marble Bar, Sydney The Creases + Hatchie: Metro Theatre (The Lair), Sydney Dashboard Confessional + Far Away Stables: Metro Theatre, Sydney Port Royal: Newtown Hotel, Newtown The Jacks: Oatley Hotel, Oatley Lyn Bowtell: Orient Hotel, The Rocks
Flying High Brisbane’s The Kite String Tangle are joining electronic duo Odesza on the Aussie leg of their tour. The first show on Saturday at the Enmore Theatre has sold out, so get in quick for Sunday’s show of electro-pop.
Odesza + The Kite String Tangle + Running Touch: Enmore Theatre, Newtown
Tired Lion: Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst
Ten Part Intervention: Foundry 616, Sydney
Shows on Stage feat. Rachel T + Russell Neal: Paddington RSL, Paddington
The Tommyhawks + Particles: Frankie’s Pizza By The Slice, Sydney Afternoon Show with Out of Nowhere: Gasoline Pony, Marrickville The Ukes of Hazzard: Gasoline Pony, Marrickville Justice For The Damned + Hindsight + Staunch + Honest Crooks: Hamilton Station Hotel, Islington
Manic Soul + Fight Ibis: Panthers, Port Macquarie Best of You - Foo Fighters Tribute Show: Penrith Golf Club, Glenmore Park Shy Guys: Penrith RSL (Castle Lounge), Penrith
Oceanic Rhythms - Sounds of the Pacific with MC Trey + Maybelle Galuvao + Illsavani Kava + V Tribe: Campbelltown Arts Centre, Campbelltown
Crawl File - Australian Crawl Show: Kiama Leagues Club, Kiama
Luen Jacobs: Proud Mary’s, Erina
Le Pie + Egoism + Moody Beach: Lansdowne Hotel, Chippendale
Pandemic + Archy Punker + The Dardi Shades + Wavevom + Quite Like Pete: Rad Bar, Wollongong
Rufflefeather + Ha The Unclear: Leadbelly, Newtown
Akmal: Ramsgate RSL, Sans Souci
Lyn Bowtell: Lizottes Newcastle, Lambton
The Smooth Groove: Revesby Workers (Infinity Lounge), Revesby
Gin Mill Social feat. Greg Poppleton + Sheba + Missy + Mr Gorski: Castlereagh Boutique Hotel, Sydney Kora Naughton: Central Hotel, Shellharbour City Centre
38 • THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017
The Getaway Plan: Long Jetty Hotel, Long Jetty Cath & Him: Manly Leagues Club (Menzies Lounge), Brookvale DJ Tim Boffa + DJ Alex Mac: Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly
Christopher Cross: The Cube, Campbelltown Flava D: The Grand Hotel, Wollongong Stormcellar: The Greens, The Entrance Ministry of Sound feat. Throttle + Tyron Hapi: The Ivy, Sydney Big Dog Zydeco: The Merton Hotel, Rozelle DJ MK-1 + New Venusians + DJ Saywhut!? + Animal Ventura: The Newport, Newport PTSD + Ill Winds + Dog Name + Sob Story: The Phoenix, Canberra Trojans + Set Me On Fire: The Small Ballroom, Islington The Dark Clouds + The Not Nots + Trashed Again: The Stag & Hunter Hotel, Mayfield Grinspoon + Hockey Dad: UC Refectory, Bruce
Le Pie
K.P.: PJ Gallagher’s, Moore Park
The Music of XTC with Scarecrow People: Heritage Hotel, Bulli
ABBAsolutely Fabulous feat. Rhonda Burchmore + Lara Mulcahy: Canterbury Hurlstone Park RSL (Auditorium), Canterbury
The Brave + Stepson + Thornhill: The Chippendale Hotel, Chippendale
The White Bros: Pittwater RSL (Distillery), Mona Vale
Beatnix - Beatles Show: Camelot Lounge, Marrickville
Zac Waters: Candys Apartment, Potts Point
AM//PM feat. Emo Cover Set (members of Northlane & Polaris) + Diamond Construct + Junkhead + Wildfires: The Burdekin, Darlinghurst
Cambo: Plough & Harrow, Camden
Katchafire + The Hanlon Brothers + DJ Tickelz: Rooty Hill RSL, Rooty Hill Mihka Chee + Field of Wolves + Funky Punch: Staves Brewery, Glebe The Pat Powell Band: Street Market Asian Tapas, Crows Nest
Australian Pie Her bio says her sound is as vulnerable and dark, as it is uplifting and gorgeous. So come on down to Lansdowne Hotel on Saturday well prepared for Le Pie to bare all of it on stage for you.
Gigs / Live The Guide
Troldhaugen: Uni Bar, Wollongong
Lah-Lah: University Of Wollongong (University Hall), Gwynneville
Ode to Black feat. Splinter Cell + Vader + Geoff Da Chef + Spindo + more: Valve Bar (Basement), Ultimo
Ode to Black feat. Mack Da Ripper + Convict + Catzeyez + Mantello + more: Valve Bar (Black Room), Ultimo Cumbiamuffin: Venue 505, Surry Hills Accidental President + TJ + Alex + Psycho Smileys: Vic On The Park, Marrickville Michael Jackson Legacy Tour with William Hall: Wentworthville Leagues Club, Wentworthville
Battlesnake + Grasshole + King Coyote + Port Royal: Frankie’s Pizza By The Slice, Sydney Town + Belle & Osker: Gasoline Pony, Marrickville
Lah-Lah: Southern Cross Club, Woden
Utzon Music Series feat. Debussy String Quartet: Sydney Opera House, Sydney The Getaway Plan: The Basement, Belconnen
The Sleepyheads: Hamilton Station Hotel, Islington
The Humm: The Beach Hotel, Merewether
The Roamin’ Jasmine + Lachlan Bryan: Hardys Bay Club, Hardys Bay
Spike Flynn + Gary Brown: The Merton Hotel, Rozelle
Animal Ventura: Hotel Steyne (Moonshine), Manly
DJ Graham M + Gang Of Brothers + DJ Cool Hand Luke + NJ Duo: The Newport, Newport
Mike Waters: Kings Cross Hotel (Rooftop), Potts Point
Caitlyn Shadbolt + Melanie Dyer: The Oaks Hotel, Albion Park Rail
Kelly Brouhaha: Lass O’Gowrie, Wickham James Bennett: Leadbelly, Newtown
Mick McHugh
Katchafire + Declan Kelly: The Rhythm Hut, Gosford The Kites: Towradgi Beach Hotel (Sports Bar), Towradgi
Katie Noonan
Mon 18
Taking The Mickey Irish folk act Mick McHugh is crossing the seas and joining fellow Irishman Damien Dempsey on his Soulsun album tour. Be moved by his one-man band this Saturday night at Manning Bar.
The Sydney Jazz Orchestra: Foundry 616, Sydney Frankie’s World Famous House Band: Frankie’s Pizza By The Slice, Sydney Songs On Stage feat. Russell Neal + Paul Ward + Michelle Benson + Chris Brookes + Kenneth D’Aran: Kellys on King, Newtown
Pete Allan + DJ Stuart B + DJ Tim Boffa: Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly
Lost Legends Showcase: West Ashfield Leagues, Ashfield
Dante & Dwight: Marble Bar, Sydney
Sun 17 Open Mic Night with Andrew Denniston: BMW (formerly Beats.Eats.Drinks), Glebe The Music of XTC with Scarecrow People: Brass Monkey, Cronulla
World Peace Day with Elsen Price + Shanti Fire + Brother Brad + more: Metro Theatre, Sydney Tish: Oatley Hotel, Oatley AJ Tracey + Slim Set + Yemisul: Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst
Jed Zarb: Bull & Bush, Baulkham Hills
Blake Tailor: Penrith Panthers (Squires Terrace Bar), Penrith
Alex Parkmen + Friends: Camelot Lounge, Marrickville
Jive Express: Penrith RSL (Castle Lounge), Penrith
Alturas: Camelot Lounge (Django Bar), Marrickville
The Crooked Fiddle Band: Petersham Bowling Club, Petersham
Christopher Cross: Canberra Theatre Centre, Canberra
Darren Johnstone: Pittwater RSL (Distillery), Mona Vale
Madison McKoy: City Recital Hall, Sydney
Outline In Color + Bayharbour + Kings + Diamond Construct: Rad Bar, Wollongong
Mirusia: Commercial Club, Albury Odesza + The Kite String Tangle + Running Touch: Enmore Theatre, Newtown
Justice For The Damned + Hindsight + Staunch + Honest Crooks: Red Rattler, Marrickville
Motionless In White + Darkc3ll: Metro Theatre, Sydney AJ Tracey + Kwame + Cache One: Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst
Michael Misa: Smiths Alternative, Canberra
Grasshole + Love Buzz + Uncle Axel + Cheyne Howard: Rad Bar, Wollongong
Now It’s Personal
Stephanie Lea: Wentworthville Leagues Club (Wenty Lounge), Wentworthville
Songs On Stage feat. Russell Neal + Matt Gerber: Kellys on King, Newtown
Justice For The Damned + Hindsight + Staunch + Honest Crooks: Rad Bar, Wollongong
Neon Highways + Kilroy + Kopasetic + Rich Murray: The Phoenix, Canberra
Ever wanted to get up close and personal with 4 x ARIA award winner Katie Noonan? Now is your chance. The master of folk will be at Camelot Lounge on Thursday.
Dream Theater: Hordern Pavilion, Moore Park
Cath & Him: Rooty Hill RSL (Tivoli Showroom), Rooty Hill Camp Cope + Worriers: The Basement, Belconnen
The Sea Gypsies
Smooth Sailing Bring in the weekend with a unique mix of rock and reggae when The Sea Gypsies head off on their Spring tour. Be transported to another universe as their tunes fill the walls of Selina’s this Friday.
Tue 19 Sydney Conservatorium Jazz Orchestra: Foundry 616, Sydney Charli + Warren Munce + Jeffrey Webb: Gladstone Hotel, Dulwich Hill
THE MUSIC • 13TH SEPTEMBER 2017 • 39
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