March Issue
Sydney | Free
P o n d Amplifying dissatisfaction, fear and confusion
INSIDE
The Annual Power 50
Australian Music’s Most Influential
TASMANIA
“Allbrook, much like Bradford Cox or even Bowie, has a knack for conveying the beauty and madness of the human condition in his lyrics and performance… POND’s slickest effort so far”. UNCUT ALBUM OF THE MONTH – 8/10
OUT NOW
Sydney, The Metro, 06.03
PREORDER NOW | OUT 29.03.19 TOURING FOR DOWNLOAD FESTIVAL
Credits Publisher Street Press Australia Pty Ltd Group Managing Editor Andrew Mast National Editor – Magazines Mark Neilsen
I
Senior Editor Sam Wall
’m one those people who wasn’t that impressed with Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody. Don’t get me wrong, I’m as much for screaming along with Don’t Stop Me Now as the next person. Also, the film looked great and, the now Oscar-winning, Rami Malek pulled off an impressive impersonation of Freddie Mercury. But, let’s face it, the film was homophobic (Mercury was only allowed redemption once he kowtowed to the heteronormative values of ‘settling down’ as predicated by the straight band members), was flexible with timelines (Mercury was not the first member to go solo) and omitted some of the band’s uncomfortable history (that’d be like the time they didn’t join the Sun City boycott). But you get the feeling that the film was made with only one thing in mind: a future of eternal singalong screenings. There are more rock biopics on the way but the most satisfactory one of recent years would have to be Nico, 1988. Never widely released in Australia, the 2017 film explores the last years in the life of singer-actor-model Nico (you know, she who performed featured vocals on the Velvet Underground’s debut album). Director Susanna Nicchiarelli wisely chose to only depict Nico’s final years before her death in 1988 (according to Nico’s biographer Richard Witts, the singer played fast and loose with her origin story, which led to his book The Life & Lies Of An Icon being both a wild and wildly lengthy tome). Nico, 1988 is the complete opposite of Bohemian Rhapsody. Where the Queen film plays like an overblown caricature, the Nico biopic is intimate, raw and honest to a fault. The performances in Nico, 1988 are as intense as they were in reality (I was lucky enough to see Nico on her solo tour of Australia). Currently, I’m reading Grace Jones’ autobiography I’ll Never Write My Memoirs. Now, it would make the kinda biopic that I’d line up at the box office for. It could work as either a big budget singalong event film or a lo-fi portrait (like Nico, Jones spent a lot of time hanging with the Factory crew, so maybe it would naturally lean in a similar direction). Until then, this month’s issue features acts whose possible biopics also lie in the future. Hannah Story spent some time with Pond’s Nick Allbrook, not only discussing the band’s new album but also how he goes about coping with the kind of fame that brings tabloid attention. Sydney’s Dean Lewis has also found himself catapulted into fame with the success of last year’s single Be Alright, Anthony Carew chats to him about what’s next. Speaking of fame, we also look at how our current obsession with true crime is making stars of podcasters and police. And, if you flick to the centre of the mag you can find the annual Power 50 - a list of the most influential people in the Australian music industry last year. And this year’s number one has already been lucky enough to have seen themselves portrayed in a biopic (hint: he was played by Aaron Glenane in the made-for-TV Molly).
Editors Daniel Cribb, Neil Griffiths Assistant Editor/Social Media Co-Ordinator Jessica Dale Editorial Assistant Lauren Baxter Arts Editor Hannah Story Gig Guide Henry Gibson gigs@themusic.com.au Senior Contributors Steve Bell, Maxim Boon, Bryget Chrisfield, Cyclone, Jeff Jenkins Contributors Nic Addenbrooke, Annelise Ball, Emily Blackburn, Melissa Borg, Anthony Carew, Uppy Chatterjee, Roshan Clerke, Shaun Colnan, Brendan Crabb, Guy Davis, Joe Dolan, Joseph Earp, Chris Familton, Guido Farnell, Donald Finlayson, Liz Giuffre, Carley Hall, Tobias Handke, Tom Hawking, Mark Hebblewhite, Kate Kingsmill, Samuel Leighton Dore, Joel Lohman, Alannah Maher, Taylor Marshall, MJ O’Neill, Anne Marie Peard, Michael Prebeg, Mick Radojkovic, Stephen A Russell, Jake Sun, Cassie Tongue, Rod Whitfield, Debbie Zhou Senior Photographers Cole Bennetts, Kane Hibberd Photographers Rohan Anderson, Andrew Briscoe, Stephen Booth, Pete Dovgan, Simone Fisher, Lucinda Goodwin, Josh Groom, Clare Hawley, Bianca Holderness, Jay Hynes, Dave Kan, Yaseera Moosa, Hayden Nixon, Angela Padovan, Markus Ravik, Bobby Rein, Peter Sharp, Barry Shipplock, Terry Soo, Bec Taylor Advertising Leigh Treweek, Antony Attridge, Brad Edwards, Thom Parry sales@themusic.com.au Art Dept Ben Nicol, Felicity Case-Mejia print@themusic.com.au Admin & Accounts Bella Bi accounts@themusic.com.au Distro distro@themusic.com.au Subscriptions store.themusic.com.au Contact Us Melbourne Head Office Ph: 03 9421 4499 459-461 Victoria Street Brunswick West Vic 3055 PO Box 231 Brunswick West Vic 3055 Sydney Ph: 02 9331 7077 Suite 129, 111 Flinders St Surry Hills NSW 2010
Happy reading.
Brisbane Ph: 07 3252 9666 info@themusic.com.au www.themusic.com.au
Andrew Mast Group Managing Editor
The Music
•
12
•
T h e s ta r t
OXFORD ART FACTORY
g les ourin .com.au re-sa festt for p 1 blues bluesfest ribe g subsc esttourin .com.au ring luesf 0 b esfesttou blu
SUNDAY 14�� APRIL
FANTASTIC NEGRITO MONDAY 15�� APRIL
THE MARCUS KING BAND WEDNESDAY 17�� APRIL
TREVOR HALL
MONDAY 22�� APRIL
LARKIN POE
WEDNESDAY 24�� APRIL
VINTAGE TROUBLE
E R T EA
H T Y OR
T �� APRIL FAC 6 SDAY 1 TUE
METRO THEATRE
SATURDAY 13�� APRIL
NATHANIEL RATELIFF & THE NIGHT SWEATS
THURSDAY 18�� APRIL
FLOGGING MOLLY
SATURDAY 20�� APRIL
NAHKO AND MEDICINE FOR THE PEOPLE
EK B’ MOS’ DAY 17�� APRIL WEDNE E N O T S N ALLE SDAY 18�� APRIL THUR N O S L E N S LUKA MISE OF THE REAL & PRO RDAY 20�� APRIL O L L E C SATU O E G E D N L L E H S ME AY 22�� APRIL MOND S E V A R G Y SHAKE T E R MO
TUE NESDAY 1 WED
WEDNESDAY 24�� � THURSDAY 25�� APRIL
RAY LAMONTAGNE
E
R T A HE
ENSDAY 16�� 7��� APRIL STATE THEATRE
ON LE SA W NO
EST ESF S BLU SHOW SIDE
TS SEN PRE
Y A R G D I V DA DAY 21�� APRIL SUN Y P P U P Y K SNARURDAY 20�� APFIRNIALLTRTAOLUIRA IN AUS SAT N O T N I C L I C L E E D G A R K O GE LIAMENT FUN & PAR
The Music
•
March
Our contributors
This month 12
Editor’s Letter
This month’s best binge watching
Shit We Did: Entomophagy
82
Code Orange, Download highlights
17
Slaves (UK)
19
Album reviews
83 84
Bryget Chrisfield A lifelong love of music and writing consolidated when Bryget Chrisfield started penning live reviews for Inpress (now The Music) while studying professional writing and editing at RMIT. After graduating, Bryget was initially employed as full-time staff writer before being promoted to Victorian
Pic
: Pooneh Ghana
editor of this national street press publica-
Pond Solemn and scared, but also stanky and joyful
20
Will live music be resurgent on Australian TV this year?
22
Neko Case
23
tion where she remained for over ten years.
The Arts
She is currently a freelance journalist as well as a journalism lecturer at Collarts and it is through interviewing musical geniuses that Bryget finds true happiness.
The best arts of the month
88
Film & TV reviews
89 Joan Morgan Bringing hip hop feminism to All About Women
The Power 50
90
Rod Whitfield Rod has been a music journalist since 1995, when he started at Forte Magazine in
The 2019 edition The Music presents its annual countdown of the biggest influencers in Australian music
91
Veronica Milsom
Geelong. Since then he has written for The Music, Beat, UK Prog and many more. A former drummer, he retired from playing in bands in 2015 and turned his hand to writing books and screenplays.
25
Your Town
Guest editorial: Co-founder of The Seed Fund, Danielle Caruana
45
A music fan’s guide to the NSW state election
77
Today years old Everyday stuff that blind-sides us
94 Taylor Marshall
True crime stories On their rise and their players becoming celebrities
Dean Lewis Creation comes naturally
78
81
96
This month’s local highlights
A Swayze & The Ghosts, VOIID & Crocodylus
96
Your gigs
97
The end
98
The Music
•
14
•
T h e s ta r t
When he isn’t heading to live shows, Taylor spends time in his Gold Coast home with his two Labradors and is studying Business Management and Entertainment. He also fronts and self-manages his solo project Messycable.
Kylie
Us of aaahh! The trailer alone had us hiding behind a pillow so chances are Jordan Peele’s mind-bending new psychological horror Us- starring Lupita Nyong’o and Winston Duke - is going to be pure nightmare fuel. The writer-director’s Get Out follow-up hits cinemas nationally 28 Mar.
Sleeper hits
Special K
In their biggest headline tour to date, this month electronic duo SLUMBERJACK are heading ‘round the country to share their recent EP, with stops in Adelaide Perth, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane. The Sarawak tour kicks off 8 Mar.
The legendary Kylie Minogue’s first Australian tour in four years starts 5 Mar! Minogue will be playing four headline shows and three A Day On The Green shows during the run, marking her first time performing outdoor headline concerts in Australia.
Rita Ora
Charles chance Oraght oraght oraght Pop superstar Rita Ora’s biggest ever Australian tour gets rolling 1 Mar. The run is in celebration of the British singer’s recent second album, Phoenix, and stops in Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane before wrapping in Perth.
The Music
•
16
•
T h e s ta r t
Coming to Netflix this 15 Mar, Turn Up Charlie stars Idris Elba (swoon) as a struggling DJ who finds an unexpected lifeline babysitting his megastar best friend’s unruly 11-year-old daughter, Gabby (Frankie Hervey).
Us
Stream dreams
This month’s best binge watching
American Gods, Season 2
Based on Neil Gaiman’s book of the same name, American Gods focuses on the story of a recently released ex-convict named Shadow who becomes involved in a war between
SLUMBERJACK
the old and new gods of the world. Sounds a bit like WWE if you ask us! If the end of season one was anything to go off, the second coming of this series will be just as fucking mental as the first.
Streams from 10 Mar on Amazon
Secret City: Under The Eagle
Khruangbin
“Kroongbin” After selling out their debut Aus tour months in advance, adding shows and upgrading venues, Khruangbin are finally on their way. The psychedelic American trio’s east coast run starts in Melbourne this 12 Mar.
Secret City, everyone’s favourite political drama about Canberra, is set to return for a second season of more Parliament House paranoia with political journalist Harriet Dunkley (Anna Torv). In our opinion, a different thriller set in Canberra’s southside would also make for a terrific programme. Meth galore, barefoot muggings in the Tuggeranong mall, loonies forming new rap groups every day: all the ingredients for a delightful romp in the style of Breaking Bad.
Streams from 4 Mar on Foxtel Now
After Life
Snail tales
Turn Up Charlie
Baltimore indie rocker Snail Mail is playing her debut Australian shows this month. As well as spots at Farmer & The Owl and A Festival Called Panama, she’ll be playing tracks from her debut LP, Lush, along the east coast from 5 Mar. Snail Mail
The Music
•
17
•
T h e s ta r t
Love him or hate him, you’ve gotta admit that old mate Ricky Gervais continues to carve out quite a career for himself. His latest dark comedy series, After Life, is based around the premise of a bloke named Tony (played by Gervais) who decides to say and do whatever he wants following the devastation of his wife’s sudden death. Sounds like typical stuff from England’s favourite atheist, we’re sure it’ll be worth a watch.
Streams from 8 Mar on Netflix
Net gains
Live nights at Freddy’s
The Internet are incoming from 1 Mar. The Grammy-nominated neo-soul outfit will perform at Perth Festival, Golden Plains and as part of the Melbourne Zoo Twilights series, as well as playing their own shows at Sydney Opera House and The Tivoli in Brisbane.
New Zealand group Fat Freddy’s Drop are back in town this month for their first full Aus tour since their 2016 sell-out run. Ladi6 will be joining the group for the shows, which kick off in Melbourne 15 Mar after their WOMAdelaide appearance.
The Internet
Fat Freddy’s Drop
Podcast of the month:
Finding Drago
With his best friend and co-host Cameron James in tow, Alexei Toliopoulos tries to unravel the mystery of unauthorised Rocky IV spinoff Drago: On Mountains We Stand and its elusive author, Todd Noy. As James himself puts it, “It’s like Serial, but it’s stupid as hell.”
The trip to Australia
Lucy Dacus
To see Lucy Lucy Dacus, acclaimed solo artist and one-third of indie supergroup boygenius, is heading our way for her first-ever Australian tour. She arrives in Sydney on 27 Mar before heading to Brisbane, Melbourne and By The Meadow.
Cult comedian Rob Brydon is taking his new stand-up show I Am Standing Up around Australia this month, starting in Brisbane at the QPAC Concert Hall on 12 Mar. Expect wry asides and a lot of spoton impressions. Rob Brydon
The Music
•
18
•
T h e s ta r t
Odette Era of Ignition: Coming Of Age In A Time Of Rage & Revolution by Amber Tamblyn
National ‘dette
Sh*t we did With Maxim Boon
Following her sell-out album run for To A Stranger, and with her debut headline Europe/UK tour coming up fast, ARIA-nominated breakout artist Odette will be heading around the country from 27 Mar for the Lotus Eaters tour.
Entomophagy Most Westerners baulk at the thought of chowing down on creepy-crawlies, but raiding nature’s larder for insects has provided a dietary staple for humans since prehistoric
Lit Out 5 Mar, Era Of Ignition examines the fractious metamorphosis of a country “actively confronting our values and agitating for change”. Through a personal lens, actor and activist Amber Tamblyn’s book gives scope to some of the largest issues of our time..
times. For billions of people, bugs are still on the menu, and in many cultures, even held up as coveted delicacies that can sell for prices far in excess of meat. And yet, Western eating habits have all but completely rejected insects as a viable food source; we’re more likely to gag than gorge when a plate of bugs is served. However, there is a growing movement of grassroots gastronomes working to raise the profile of edible insects and the many advantages they offer. A growing population coupled with inefficient farming techniques means our world is fast approaching a tipping point, when our ability to produce food will be surpassed by the number of mouths to feed. Space and resources needed to raise livestock are hugely damaging to the environment. Bugs on the other hand, in addition to their nutritional value – a low-fat, carb-free source of protein – are far less impactful. Farming them requires a fraction of the
Tim Minchin
space, feed and water of their mammalian counterparts, and even raised as a source of feed for animals, insects offer better nutritional quality for lower ecological cost. It seems inarguable that recognising insects as a food source is something the West should embrace. So, why do most of us still find the concept hard to swallow?
The Verdict I consider myself pretty adventurous when it comes to food but I spend a not insignificant amount of time trying to avoid being in direct contact with insects, so the notion of putting them in my gob is a big fat nope. However, this month I have faced my phobia, all in the
App of the month: Reigns + Reigns: Her Majesty bundle From the same people that published Hatoful Boyfriend (the beloved pigeon dating sim), the Reigns series has been described as light RPGs played with Tinder mechanics. Swipe left or right to become a hated tyrant or benevolent ruler. Die lots either way.
BACK in town Australian legend Tim Minchin’s first national headline tour since 2012 starts this 5 Mar. The WA-raised comic and musician will premiere his new show, BACK, in Adelaide, followed by performances in Canberra, Perth, Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.
name of quality journalism. Crickets are one of the most widely farmed insects, owing to their size, nutritional value and flavour, so this seemed an ideal place to begin this culinary torture. Flash fried and well-seasoned, to my great surprise my cricket experience wasn’t entirely horrific. In fact, I’d even go so far as to say I enjoyed it but I wouldn’t necessarily call myself a total convert. It seems the biggest barrier to entry for edible insects is psychological. If bug farmers can overcome this sticking point, they could very well be on the front lines of a much-needed food revolution.
The Music
•
19
•
T h e s ta r t
Stanky and joyful Pond frontman Nick Allbrook tells Hannah Story about overcoming a crisis of confidence, the impending doom of climate change, and having his privacy invaded by the Daily Mail. Cover and feature pics by Kane Hibberd.
N
ick Allbrook, the 31-year-old frontman for Perth psych-rock band Pond — made up of Allbrook, Joe Ryan, Jay Watson, James Ireland and Jamie Terry — can come across as a kind of cult leader during their expansive live sets, seeming to almost proselytise to his followers as he jerks and kicks across the stage. For his part, Allbrook sees that interpretation as a matter of perspective: “I’m sure other people would just think I was a bit of a little quince dancing around on stage... I reckon some people probably think I look like a wanker, and some people maybe think it’s all real good.” He appreciates the crowd’s response — expressing itself as a ritualistic, physical outpouring of emotion, bodies hurling against each other, arms outstretched: “I definitely wouldn’t be making music and playing live if it wasn’t for that.” After the band took a break from touring and releasing music, Allbrook says he suffered from a crisis of confidence as a set of live dates loomed. “I thought everyone was gonna see me and be like, ‘Oh, he’s different! Fuck this band, I’m out of here!’ But it was like the opposite. We are fragile little wimps and we need constant reassurance that we’re doing something ok, so crowds responding to us positively is essential to us making music.” What got him through that experience were “betablockers” — drugs that inhibit the effects of adrenaline, often prescribed to beat anxiety — and the crowds themselves: “People’s actual faces and bodies and voices right in front of me. I didn’t need to block the beta for very long because seeing people physically react to your music is pretty powerful.” While Allbrook is flattered by the image of himself as the enigmatic frontman, he doesn’t see himself as a “massive voice to the people”: “This idea of the artist as being a prophet isn’t true with me.” But it’s still important to Allbrook that he uses his music to approach difficult subjects like climate change and national identity, as he does on their new record Tasmania, out this month, and on “sister album” 2017’s The Weather. In the intervening two years Allbrook says the topics — especially around our obstinance in the face of manmade climate change — have “gotten more real and more scary”, and what his music offers is a “different, progressed take on them”: “It’s harder to be like an angry, tub-thumping left-wing type guy and you start just feeling sad. Sad and desperate.” What is a musician and writer’s role in tackling issues like these? “I think it’s essential if you’re actually concerned about it because otherwise you’re not speaking your mind. And really, it’s pretty important and I think whatever makes it louder, whatever makes people’s dissatisfaction and fear and confusion louder and more visible is probably a good thing in the end.” As an evolution from The Weather, Tasmania sees the band getting older and more honest lyrically, as they continue to explore the sonic textures of 808s and sequencers. They’ve reunited on the record with producer Kevin Parker (Tame Impala), who has worked with them on almost all of their albums except 2009 debut, Psychedelic Mango, first as their drummer and then producing since 2012’s Beards, Wives, Denim.
“We were getting more into [electronic music] gradually as the albums went on, sort of following this path down that kinda sonic territory and we just kept following it. I think we got a bit better at being honest lyrically and it’s also a progression just as far as your outlook and what’s consuming your brain. “It’s just moved on, I like to think you’re always learning and always progressing your views and stuff like that. I think it’s a little bit more diverse in it being a bit more solemn and scared and resigned but also then stanky and joyful.” That urge to be completely honest is, for Allbrook, “the only way to be truly satisfied with art or music you’re making”: “I just wanted to make something that was gonna make me feel good instead of feeling like there’s still something clogged up inside of me.” Allbrook says his “love for [the] country grows” the more he’s away from Australia, with the band keeping up a hectic international touring schedule: “It just blows my mind that people from far away appreciate what we’re doing.” Explicitly local imagery comes through in the lyrics on Tasmania, which speak of frangipanis and bronzed chests and bushfires — even just on opener and single Daisy. Allbrook links that Australianness to getting older, and to a sense of nostalgia: “I don’t know what it is but there’s something about ageing that you just want to and you naturally turn into an old person and you start saying ‘ripper’ instead of ‘sick’ or something like that, you know what I mean? “And nostalgia [is] being heightened by the prescient figure that it could all fall down soon. Or burn up soon or something like that. Or that the thing that I love so much is based on genocide and stuff like that — it just sorta preoccupies my mind. “I find it really hard to write lyrics when I’m not quite emotionally piqued by something, and those sort of things are very emotional. They bring up a lot of fear and shame and pride and nostalgia, all of these vast dichotomies of feeling. So that’s probably why there’s a lot of songs about it because it’s like all of these things are the things that make me feel enough to write something that I think is good.” Allbrook became gossip fodder in September last year, when the Daily Mail cottoned on to the fact he had been dating Tiger Hutchence-Geldof since mid-2017. First, they used photos from Instagram to write about Allbrook and Hutchence-Geldof’s relationship, before going on to publish intimate pictures of the couple together in Birmingham, England. He says he only found out about the articles because his manager sent them through to him: “It was pretty creepy because I had no idea that someone’s taking a photo of me.” And while he knows it’s just a reality of our age, where everyone has a smartphone with a camera, he still thinks it’s “fucked up”: “Having a zoom-in across the street on an intimate moment is real weird, yeah — it’s quite creepy.” The frontman says that invasion of privacy was part of the reason he pulled back on using Instagram, that and the so-called “perils of social media”: “I don’t use Instagram anymore for anything other than music information and I delete it again as soon as I’ve put that shit up. It’s a scary place.
The Music
•
20
•
Music
“Seeing people physically react to your music is pretty powerful.”
“I’m not fuckin’ Jay-Z, but you do get people you will never know — you don’t know and will never know — telling you you’re a piece of shit or something like that.” Ultimately, Tasmania, while bristling with desperation, takes on a hopeful tone — helped by its glam-pop aesthetic. It’s an album that, in touching on difficult issues, is also made for dancing: “There’s something nice about having the body part of it being really visceral and physical and dance-y, and the brain part of it being less so.” Allbrook, in the end, connects that embodiment to a feeling of “optimism and love”: “Part of the whole resignation towards bad things happening is that you’ve gotta make the best of your time and appreciate things that are physical and tangible. And when real big things are threatened to be taken away from you, like the water and the trees and stuff like that, it’s like you want to try to enjoy the music [and] dancing.”
Tasmania (Spinning Top) is out this month. Pond tours from 3 Mar.
Check The Guide on theMusic.com.au for more details.
The Music
•
21
•
Music
Will live music make a grand recovery on Aus TV in 2019?
“Maybe the tide is turning.”
Live music on Australian TV has been an important part of the country’s cultural history. This year, stations are offering new programs with the promise of putting greater focus on local content. Jessica Dale investigates what this could look like.
A
ustralia has a long and rich history of live music on TV. The ‘70s and ‘80s saw Countdown as king, the ‘90s were all about Recovery, and the ‘00s saw Foxtel’s local music programming skyrocket with channels [V], Music Max and MTV, and quiz shows viewed in a different light thanks to RocKwiz and SBS. For the past ten years though, it would be easy to only think of reality singing competitions as the country’s default setting when it comes to live music on our screens. But with such an impressive back catalogue of band performances being broadcast into lounge rooms across the nation, is it perhaps time for a less manufactured format to return to its glory days? Looking at 2019’s local programming schedules, it looks like it may already be happening. Mid-last year, MTV Australia announced they would be launching their own localised version of MTV Unplugged, the much-loved and revered format made famous in the ‘90s by acts like Nirvana and Eric Clapton. The local version launched with Gang Of Youths, giving the show a strong and anticipated local debut. Since, Amy Shark and DMA’S have scored episodes, while there’s a show from The Rubens expected to drop soon. MTV Australia followed the MTV Unplugged news, and its successful launch, with an announcement that its Total Request Live (TRL) program would make a comeback in early-2019, after going off-air in 2006. When asked if the strong reaction to Unplugged spurred on the decision to bring back TRL, Simon Bates, Vice President and Head of MTV APAC, shares that the show’s return was always on the cards. “TRL was always a part of the plan, but yes, the success of MTV Unplugged Melbourne in Australia definitely gave us confidence that the strategy is right,” he says.
The Music
“We chose to focus on TRL and MTV Unplugged for very different reasons. MTV Unplugged is global. It’s a completely unique opportunity for Australian artists. Not only does it have the incredible legacy, it is arguably the most iconic music show ever created. It’s an opportunity to showcase Australian music to a global audience. Australian Unplugged Melbourne shows have been broadcast globally on MTV, followed by the opportunity to release an MTV Unplugged Melbourne album, which we have seen from Gang Of Youths. “TRL is more of a local show for Australian and NZ audiences only. It’s a party and performance every week at the MTV head office and studio in Sydney where we are ultimately filming a show. We will also have the opportunity to distribute our content into other global markets, and across all our digital platforms - YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.” Along with the return of TRL, this year sees the launch of Chris & Julia’s Sunday Night Takeaway - with Dr Chris Brown and Julia Morris - and Saturday Night with Rove McManus, which are all set to host regular musical performances. The Feed has introduced a live musical appearance as part of its new weekly format, while 2018 saw strong debut seasons from The Set and All Together Now. Hosted by Julia Zemiro, All Together Now launched with 813,000 viewers and had a consistent first season. Only weeks ago, it was announced that the Zemiro-hosted RocKwiz would not return to SBS after an 11-year run. The show had not released any new episodes since 2016 and its future remained unclear for fans and the show’s stars alike. Zemiro is understanding and gracious when she speaks of the show’s time with SBS ending (its live format continues with
•
22
•
news
shows scheduled in Melbourne and Byron Bay this year). “Every TV station is allowed to do what they want with their money. And I will say this, Matt Campbell, who now works at CJZ that makes Home Delivery [Zemiro’s show with ABC], who commissioned our show back then, he was someone who was in a position of power and luckily he chose our show and SBS have been magnificent over the years, in nurturing us and pretty much letting us do what we want and I think that’s a big plus.” So what was it about RocKwiz that made it become so beloved and successful with fans? “I think Brian says it best when he says, ‘These are people, the people who get up on stage to answer the questions, they’ve been waiting for this show their whole lives’... With us it was, because Brian picks the best four of a group of 24, the ones that get backstage are pretty great and I simply can’t do the show without them. I can’t. So when you need your punter as much as they need you, it’s a beautiful combination because you have to make each other look good, you just have to.” Throughout the discussion, Zemiro comes back to the same word - kindness and believes that this could be the shift for the future of music programs on Aussie screens. “There’s going to be more shows in the future, and I’m thinking of Julia Morris and Chris [who] are going to do a tonight show [Chris & Julia’s Sunday Night Takeaway], and I remember reading somewhere her saying, ‘We want it to be a kinder space.’ So maybe the tide is turning.”
RocKwiz Live tours from 19 Apr.
A Case of you
Check The Guide on theMusic.com.au for more details.
From Stockholm to Sydney, Neko Case is bringing her seventh solo album Hell-On Down Under this month. Steve Bell discovers why “the beach, the music lovers and the environment” keep drawing her back.
N
eko Case was hell-bent on getting outside her comfort zone for HellOn. It had been five years since her last solo release, and — despite having played pivotal roles on lauded albums with her indie-pop band The New Pornographers and her case/lang/veirs project alongside k.d. lang and Laura Veirs in the interim — she was determined to try something new. To achieve this Case set off intrepidly to the Swedish capital of Stockholm, where together with co-producer Bjorn Yttling (of Peter, Bjorn & John fame), she crafted an album of immense depth, defined by meticulous production, fully fleshed songs and her inimitably expressive voice which flits from gargantuan velvet-clad power to coquettish sensitivity with ridiculous ease. “I wanted new sounds, and I really loved projects that Bjorn was involved in and of course his own band,” Case reflects. “There are similarities between his own stuff and The New Pornographers and I wanted to work with somebody different in a different place, and like I said I wanted someone who would bring brand new sounds.” But it wasn’t just on the sonic side she was seeking change: having long ago morphed away from the alt-country stylings of her early work, she was striving to perfect more traditional song arrangements as well. “I like hooks and catchy moments so as always I made sure there were plenty of those, but I also usually like things not to be cyclical. Sometimes I write very linear songs, so I wanted to dabble more in the songs that have choruses, etc. You can still be telling a story.” And tell a story Case does. Hell-On contains the most lyrically evocative songs yet from a writer renowned for her rich storytelling and deft narratives. “There’s always an element of autobiography in everything I write,” she ponders. “You’re writing from your own perspective no matter who you’re trying to be in a song, so you can’t completely leave yourself out. I just try to leave a lot of room for people to personalise a song for themselves too.” Case attests that when it comes to creativity and songwriting, the ease of the process is dictated by pesky life situations. “Sometimes it comes easily, depending on how hard I’ve practiced being in the moment. Being an adult there’s a lot of your life that gets in the way and you have responsibilities and work and all kinds of things, so I don’t get those moments as much as I’d like. But I do have moments where it flows pretty easily, and then maybe a quarter of the song is really difficult to finish.” The songs were pretty much finished and some guitars and vocals had been laid
down before Case sojourned to Stockholm for the Hell-On session, but even from afar she was able to harness the internet and rope in a stellar array of guests to appear on the album, including Mark Lanegan, Beth Ditto and even our own Robert Forster. “Well it’s really nice working with these folk, and it’s a lot easier to pull them in now that technology makes it so easy. A lot of people worked in studios down the street from their house — or in their house — and contributed, so it’s really nice because it really brings the world of these people together.” This way of working also facilitated Case’s first ever co-write with AC Newman, from The New Pornographers, on the upbeat Gumball. “Yeah, which is dumb considering we’ve been in a band together for a thousand years,” she laughs. “But it’s a very funny song. We’ll write again together for sure, we both had fun, but I think if we’d tried to do it earlier it would have been a lot harder... “We’ve never been in a studio that often, just because there’s two bands going all the time for me, so the fact that he can work on something in his house and send it to me and then I work on something and send it back, it makes it so fluid and you’re not on the spot when you want to think of something. So yeah, we’ll totally write together again.” One of Hell-On’s defining moments is a duet with former Archers Of Loaf frontman Eric Bachmann — an erstwhile member of Case’s touring band — on a cover of the gorgeous Sleep All Summer, penned by Bachmann and originally recorded by his solo alter-ego Crooked Fingers. “The first time I ever heard that song I had to pull my car over and cry on the side of the road because it’s so beautiful, it’s just the perfect song,” Case sighs. “We would sing it live and it’s just really gorgeous and I believe in that song so hard, and I thought, ‘Ah, what can it hurt to ask?’ and he was, like, ‘Sure, why not!’ “So he worked hard to make sure that it didn’t sound like the version he had done before or the version that other people had done — because a lot of people have covered that song because it’s so great — and it was a really lovely thing. “A lot of people are really responding to it and they’d never heard it before, and that was the goal — I want more people to hear it, because like I said before I just believe so much in that song. And I just think Eric is the greatest.” Another pivotal song Bad Luck was influenced in the studio by news that Case’s 18th century farmhouse in Vermont had been completely razed by fire, somewhat
“The first time I ever heard that song I had to pull my car over and cry on the side of the road because it’s so beautiful, it’s just the perfect song.”
strange given the lyrics include a litany of untimely life events (albeit none as bad as your house being destroyed). “The album was almost finished when the fire happened. I sang Bad Luck the day my house burned down and I was very stunned, and I think it changed the way that that song sounded... I was speaking to the sound engineer and I said, ‘I dunno, I think my singing sounds rather flat,’ and he said, ‘Maybe that’s how someone sounds when their house burns down?’ “And I realised that was true, so I decided that I wanted the backing vocals to be much louder than the lead vocal and I think in the end that sounds really exciting to me, but I don’t know if I would have made that decision otherwise.” Case is now deep into the touring cycle, and even the tyranny of distance can’t stop
Pic: Emily Shur
The Music
•
23
•
Music
her from loving the long trip Down Under to share her musical joy. “Yeah, I’d tour there every year if I could! Twice even!” she gushes. “It’s just that it’s so expensive, that’s the only thing that keeps me away. I love the beach, the music lovers, the environment — there’s nothing to not love about it, I love coming there and can’t wait to be back!”
Neko Case tours from 9 Mar.
ON SALE NOW VIA
3 SHOWS SELLING FAST
WWW.CORNERHOTEL.COM AND 1300 724 867
2 SHOWS SOLD OUT
57 SWAN ST, RICHMOND, 3121
01/03 02/03 04/03 05/03 06/03 08/03 -
AMYL AND THE SNIFFERS SOLD OUT DANCE GAVIN DANCE USA - SOLD OUT PUBCHOIR SOLD OUT JOYCE MANOR USA PUBCHOIR SOLD OUT BUDDY HOLLY 60TH ANNIVERSARY
09/03 12/03 15/03 16/03 22/03 23/03 27/03 28/03 29/03 30/03 04/04 05/04 -
MODERN LIFE IS WAR USA TOURIST UK - SOLD OUT C.W. STONEKING SOLD OUT DUOUD FRANCE MAGIC NUMBERS UK TROPICAL FUCK STORM SOLD OUT ODETTE SELLING FAST ODETTE SELLING FAST ODETTE SELLING FAST OBSCURA DE THRASH BLAST GRIND TOUR FT. PHIL AND THE ILLEGALS SELLING FAST BUTTERFINGERS SELLING FAST
06/04 -
MALLRAT
06/04 07/04 08/04 11/04 12/04 13/04 14/04 15/04 17/04 -
MALLRAT SOLD OUT MALLRAT SOLD OUT MALLRAT SOLD OUT YOU AM I THE MAJESTY OF TAP (MICF) MONTAIGNE SOLD OUT MICK THOMAS ALLEN STONE USA - SELLING FAST FANTASTIC NEGRITO USA LUKAS NELSON & PROMISE OF THE REAL USA - SELLING FAST TREVOR HALL USA SKA NATION FT. AREA 7
18/04 19/04 -
FT. SKYSCRAPER STAN, DANNY M C DONALD + MORE
(15 YEARS OF ‘BREAKFAST AT FATBOYS’) U18’s MATINEE - SELLING FAST ALCOHOL FREE
ORPHEUS OMEGA + OMNIUM GATHERUM FINLAND 21/04 - THESE NEW SOUTH WHALES 23/04 - SHAKEY GRAVES USA - SOLD OUT 24/04 - CALIFORNIA HONEYDROPS USA 25/04 - VINTAGE TROUBLE USA - SELLING FAST 26/04 - VULGARGRAD 27/04 - COUSIN TONY’S BRAND NEW FIREBIRD SELLING FAST 03/05 - SOFI TUKKER USA 08/05 - G FLIP SOLD OUT 09/05 - G FLIP SOLD OUT 10/05 - CHILLINIT SOLD OUT 11/05 - BLACK CAB SELLING FAST 16/05 - CANNED HEAT USA 18/05 - SET MO SOLD OUT 19/05 - GHOSTEMANE USA - SELLING FAST 22/05 - LAUREL UK TH 23/05 - KISS DYNASTY 40 ANNIVERSARY FT. STU RUDD, DAVE LESLIE + TRAVIS DRAGANI 24/05 - DEAR SEATTLE SELLING FAST 25/05 - CLARE BOWDITCH 30/05 - MANSIONAIR SELLING FAST 31/05 - MANSIONAIR SOLD OUT 13/06 - CHOIRBOYS 20/04 -
20/06 21/06 12/07 14/07 02/08 03/10 22/10 -
G FLIP
08 & 09/05
SOLD OUT
SOLD OUT
TROPICAL FUCK STORM
TOURIST UK 12/03
23/03
SELLING FAST
SOLD OUT
MONTAIGNE
VINTAGE TROUBLE
12/04
USA - 25/04 SELLING FAST
‘6 PACK OF CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL’ SOLD OUT
THE WHITLAMS THE WHITLAMS SELLING FAST BEARTOOTH USA - SELLING FAST COCKNEY REJECTS UK THE PALADINS USA BIG COUNTRY SCOTLAND CAST UK
PLUS HEAPS MORE AT WWW.CORNERHOTEL .COM
2ND SHOW SELLING FAST
ODETTE
27, 28 & 29/03
SOLD OUT
SET MO
BLACK CAB
18/05
11/05
2ND SHOW SELLING FAST
ON SALE NOW VIA WWW.NORTHCOTESOCIALCLUB.COM AND 1300 724 867 301 HIGH ST, NORTHCOTE, 3070
LUCY DACUS US A 31 /03
JOAN AS POLICEWOMAN US A - 1 0/05
01/03 - CHILDREN OF ZEUS UK - SELLING FAST
29/03 - LUCY DACUS USA - SOLD OUT
03/03 - THE GOON SAX MATINEE - SELLING FAST
31/03 - LUCY DACUS USA - SELLING FAST
02/03 - MALLEE SONGS
THE GARBAGE & THE FLOWERS NZ / ON DIAMOND / CAROLINE NO 06/03 - KIM PETRAS DE - SOLD OUT 07/03 - KIM PETRAS DE - SELLING FAST 08/03 - BUGS SELLING FAST 09/03 - ICECREAM HANDS (20TH ANNIVERSARY) - SOLD OUT 1 1 / 0 3 - BONGEZIWE MABANDLA RSA - MATINEE 11 / 03 -‘MONDAY NIGHT MASS’ WITH DEAD / SHALLOW / FRAG / INTRINSIC LIGHT 12/03 - THE MOULETTES UK 14/03 - WALLIS BIRD IRELAND 15/03 - YOUNG VINCENT 16/03 - MELBOURNE UKULELE FESTIVAL FT. MR SILLA ICELAND 17/03 - LYDIA COLE NZ - MATINEE 21/03 - VANDERLAY 22/03 - TRAFFIK ISLAND 23/03 - POOTY TANG FT. JAMES DELA CRUZ 04/03 -‘MONDAY NIGHT MASS’ WITH
SOLD OUT
RINI 13/04
SOLD OUT
THE MARCUS KING BAND US A - 1 7/04 2ND SHOW SELLING FAST
GENESIS OWUSU 12/04
KIM PETRAS DE 0 7/03 SELLING FAST
SOLD OUT
LEISURE NZ 30/03
BUGS 08/03
30/03 - LEISURE NZ - SOLD OUT 04/04 - 30 / 70
05/04 - CHILLINIT SOLD OUT
06/04 - WINTERBOURNE SELLING FAST 07/04 - RICH WEBB MATINEE 12/04 - GENESIS OWUSU 13/04 - RINI SOLD OUT
17/04 - THE MARCUS KING BAND USA - SOLD OUT 26/04 - JACK LADDER
27/04 - THORNHILL SELLING FAST
02/05 - JOAN AS POLICE WOMAN USA - SOLD OUT 04/05 - FINN ANDREWS 09/05 - HUNTLY
10/05 - JOAN AS POLICE WOMAN USA - SOLO SELLING FAST
17/05 - HATCHIE SELLING FAST
24/05 - I KNOW LEOPARD SELLING FAST 31/05 - ALICE IVY
06/06 - LUCY ROSE UK
PLUS HEAPS MORE AT W W W.NORTHCOTESOCIALCLUB.COM
Click here to read
The Power 50
The Power 50 Australian Music’s Most Influential
P O W E R
5 0
2 0 1 9
Click here
e to read
P O W E R
5 0
2 0 1 9
Subscribe now To our daily newsletter. For up-to-the-minute industry news Subscribe at:
theMusic.com.au
The Music
•
March
A music fan’s guide to the NSW state election
While elections are usually about big ticket issues like infrastructure, education and health, the folks at MusicNSW have provided a ready reckoner about who you should vote for with regards to musicrelated policies in their state election report card.
Policy: Total contemporary music funding commitments Labor
Liberal & National
Greens
Keep Sydney Open
$35M to support contemporary music
Not stated.
Substantial increase in funding and sup-
$100 million in state funding for
port for the arts and music; support for
contemporary music over four years,
the NSW Opposition’s funding commit-
quadrupling Victoria’s investment to
ment of $35M over four years to support
become Australia’s cultural capital.
in NSW over four years.
contemporary music.
Policy: Contemporary music funding program for artists and industry Labor
Liberal & National
Greens
Keep Sydney Open
Create a $5.1M Band Aid program
$1m in live music grants through Create
Support for NSW government funding
Allocate $10 million to a ‘Street Party
to help musicians record and tour
NSW’s Music Now funding program.
for increased and secure funding for
Fund’ to activate public spaces with
regionally and nationally; establish a
music festivals; Aboriginal and Torres
street festivals.
$1.3M Music Passport program to help
Strait Islander arts; accessible and
musicians from NSW to tour interna-
affordable music education; ongoing
tionally; invest $3M into grants for live
funding for community radio and televi-
music venues.
sion; support funding for arts workers and musicians.
Policy: Regulatory reform for live music venues Labor
Liberal & National
Keep Sydney Open
Amend the Liquor Act to introduce
Establish an expert advisory panel to
Facilitate the Development Applica-
Streamline liquor licensing approvals
a “Right to Play” principle to remove
advise NSW Government of better ways
tion process to achieve better venue
and development consent processes;
conditions which impose arbitrary
to integrate liquor and planning approv-
management that protects the amenity
introduce a separate class of liquor
restrictions on live entertainment and
als; trial for a new licence for pop-up
of local and creative industries residents;
licence for live music venues.
introduce a new class of licence specifi-
bars and events.
reformation of licensing laws.
Greens
cally for venues dedicated to live entertainment.
Policy: Plan and commitment to reinvigorate night-time economies Labor
Liberal & National
Greens
Appoint a Minister for Music and the
$500k in grants for “one-off unique
The NSW Greens have a Night Time
Night Time Economy, as well as a Night
ideas that encourage a vibrant night-
Culture and Economy spokesperson
Life Commissioner; establish a perma-
time-economy” through the Office
who has campaigned against the Syd-
nent Night-Time Economy Roundtable
Of Responsible Gambling’s Activate
ney lockout laws and the use of sniffer
to develop policies.
Sydney@Night Grants.
dogs as well as advocating for increased
Keep Sydney Open A dedicated NSW Government office that serves as a focal point for leadership, coordination and accountability for live music and the night time economy.
public transport options at night.
To see the full report card, head to musicnsw.com
The Music
•
77
•
PoliticS
Truth is stranger than fiction Hannah Story talks to David Rudolf, the lawyer from The Staircase, Trace journalist Rachael Brown and Josie Rozenberg-Clarke, host of All Aussie Mystery Hour, about the rise and rise of true crime stories, and turning their players into celebrities.
T
rue crime stories seem to be having a bit of a moment in 2019 — a kind of cross-medium mass saturation. There are investigative and chatty podcasts; a seemingly endless stream of documentaries on Netflix, HBO, everywhere, illuminating implied miscarriages of justice or trying to reveal something about killers’ inner psyches; and even big budget movies about some of the 20th century’s most horrific crimes. It’s been a long time coming — every year it feels like we reach another zenith. Last year The Australian’s podcast The Teacher’s Pet won the highest accolade in Aussie journalism, the Gold Walkley. The year before, the ABC released their first true crime podcast Trace. 2016 was the year FX dropped The People V OJ Simpson: American Crime Story, starring Cuba Gooding Jr and John Travolta, picking up nine Emmys. In 2015, Making A Murderer and The Jinx blew up. And it feels like the current wave started in 2014 when the object of our obsession was Serial. Josie Rozenberg-Clarke is one half of PEDESTRIAN. TV’s All Aussie Mystery Hour, where she and her co-host Mel Mason chat about unsolved mysteries close to home — both gruesome crimes and the strange and fantastic, like the Lithgow Panther. She disputes that the public’s interest in true crime is a new phenomenon at all, and instead points to a change in the way we consume those stories. She sees the cases of JonBenet Ramsey and OJ Simpson in the ‘90s as examples of true crime stories that generated huge amounts of media interest — it’s just that we only had newspapers and TV. “Now there’s different ways to watch TV, there’s different ways to get movies. and podcasts are so easily available and I just think, yes there’s a lot and it seems like it’s a new trend, but kinda not really, it’s just that it’s available in more places.” Well before Serial, in 2004, the original The Staircase documentary was released, before two followups in 2013 and 2018. The complete 13-episode package landed on Netflix last year — and this month, the lawyer at its centre, David Rudolf, arrives in Australia to talk about the case and the man he represented, novelist Michael Peterson, who was tried and convicted in 2003 for the murder of his wife Kathleen. After years of ultimately successful attempts to have his conviction overturned, and with a retrial approaching, in 2017, Peterson entered an Alford plea — a guilty plea where the defendant acknowledges there’s enough evidence to convict him while still maintaining innocence. Rudolf, along with Laura Nirider and Steven Drizin, two post-conviction lawyers for Making A Murderer’s Brendan Dassey, are speaking across the country as part of Inside Making A Murderer & The Staircase. Rudolf says the events will be an opportunity for people to have their questions answered “about things they might not understand or be confused about or just what to know which we’re not covering in the documentaries”.
But he also hopes he and his fellow speakers will be able to talk about the “deeper lessons” of the documentaries and “talk about the systems and what the problems are in the systems and how those problems could be addressed in some way going forward”. There’s something interesting about the public’s interest not only in true crime, but in the people close to them — whether lawyers like Rudolf, or journalists like The Teacher’s Pet’s Hedley Thomas, or cops like Ron Iddles, the homicide detective who investigated the murder of Maria James, the subject of ABC’s Trace podcast. They’ve each been elevated almost to a level of celebrity, speaking at panel events, or in Iddles’ case starring in a new Foxtel series titled Ron Iddles: The Good Cop. Rachael Brown, the journalist behind Trace, says that in the case of Iddles, it’s less about “celebrity” than finding “valuable education opportunities”: “Some policing organisations have become stuck in their ways. But [Iddles] recognises times have changed, audiences get their news in different ways, [and] so too must policing strategies change.” She references Iddles speaking at a recent Melbourne conference about what podcasting offers investigators: “’Why wouldn’t you want to reach into 2.5 million houses? You might actually touch the killer, or you might touch someone who knows.’” Generally, Rudolf says people have been “respectful” of him when they’ve recognised him in public, but admits that it’s been strange to be asked for autographs or selfies. Rozenberg-Clarke is reluctant to say that All Aussie Mystery Hour is generating a fandom around it, but acknowledges that much of their audience comes from people who “like us and like the way we present things. A lot of our reviews are like, ‘These girls are like talking to friends’”. It’s tempting to think that the public’s interest in these stories comes in some part from curiosity about their more grisly aspects. But when asked what it is about these stories that captures people’s attention, Rudolf, is more optimistic about viewers. “I don’t think it’s the grisly part of this that really fascinates people — this is not like a horror film or a voyeuristic documentary, nor are any of these that have been popular. I
think it has to do with people’s desire for and expectation that justice is gonna be done in these kinds of cases. “Really the driver here is getting this inside, behind-thescenes view of a system that people thought they understood, and now found out that they really had a false view of. I think that’s a real eye-opener.” Brown too sees that an interest in true crime might provide a kind of learning opportunity — she notes that an ABC survey recently found true crime addicts crave ‘insight into the legal system’: “[Speaking tours] could help raise community awareness about the justice system, how to navigate it and where its weaknesses are.” While Rozenberg-Clarke sees an interest in the “dark side of humanity” as definitely part of the cultural fascination in true crime, she also lands on ‘learning’ as something that piques people’s interest. “It’s also that interest in learning more, especially when it’s Australian, learning more about your own culture and things that you might not have known. It’s like a history lesson and a humanity lesson all at the same time.” Often at the core of these stories is a tragic loss of life — a loss that’s been turned into something to be binged, consumed, into a form of entertainment. Brown says that kind of “slippery slope” was at the forefront of her mind when making Trace. So to negate that possible impact, she made sure both to get the full blessing of Maria James’ sons and of Iddles, and to follow up all leads around potential ‘persons of interest’, “to give listeners/readers all the facts and let them make up their own minds”: “I wanted Trace to be both a forensic investigation and respectful of all those caught up in this case.” Rudolf believes that people, for the most part, don’t see true crime as a form of entertainment in the same way as comedies or romantic movies: “This is entertaining because it illuminates things that people didn’t realise. “I think all of these documentaries are quite respectful of the people in them. Obviously there might be some people who are viewing it on a level of pure entertainment and don’t really care about what they’re learning or what the message is, but I think for the most part what people are getting out of this is the real purpose of the documentary, certainly The Staircase, was to shine a light on the criminal justice system.”
“It’s like a history lesson and a humanity lesson all at the same time.”
Inside Making A Murderer & The Staircase tours from 21 Mar. Disclosure: Hannah Story has written for PEDESTRIAN.TV
Check The Guide on theMusic.com.au for more details.
The Music
•
78
•
C u lt u r e
SIGN UP NOW
DRUM MASTERY 2019 THE SHURE DRUM CONTEST
WIN: A TRIP TO LONDON
INDIVIDUAL TWO-DAY DRUMMING WORKSHOP AT METROPOLIS STUDIOS
SHURE GEAR WORTH USD $5,000
LOCK DOWN THE BEAT. FIND YOUR GROOVE. GRAB THE GLORY: DRUM-MASTERY.SHURE.COM
The Music
•
March
Valve 871 George street, Sydney City
THE Tambourine Girls DONNA AMINI | SYNTAX ERROR | GOLDHEIST THE WARTS | CAPTAIN TRAGIC | UNIGLO DAVE FAVOURS AND THE ROADSIDE ASHES PLUS ... Food, Bar, Bellydancing, Puppetry, DUNGHUTTI DANCERS Lily’s Kids Explosion & MUCH more! GET OUT emerging talent for local
GARAGE pril ...5-9pm
HITECH HALLUCINATION
BASEMENT THU 14 8PM
BASEMENT SAT 2 8PM
KANDI RAVERS VS GOTH RAVERS
R MOR E DETAILS
(SEE WEB)
WITH “MECHANICS”, “BLACK THE SVN”, “AMAMMOTH”, “ROOTED”, “NUMBSKULL” WITH A-TREIDES, PSY-KET-DELIC, MELLIFLUOS, RAPTOR, SARIN, BRAIN GAMES
WITH LUX, VENDETTA 7, FURBYCAKEZ, SC@R, AUTOCLAWS B2B MIXEN VIXEN, DJ VELD, CRIMINAL QUASNTROL, HOSTED BY MC RIDDLE
CLUB KURI MARDI GRAS AFTERPARTY WITH DRAG SHOW, MANY SPECIAL GUEST PERFORMANCES
BASEMENT FRI 15 9PM
LEVEL ONE FRI 15 10PM
“MIXED FORTUNE” PRESENTS
INDIE SHOW
WITH “ZENITH 17”, “GUILTY ANIMALS”, “MIDNITE SOCIÈTY” , “THE MISSORTS”
BASEMENT THU 7 8PM
“THE INSECTS” PRESENTS
BASEMENT FRI 8 8PM
PUNKED
LEVEL ONE FRI 8 10PM
SEE WEBSITE FO
SOON! $20 ENDS
LEVEL ONE FRI 1 10PM
BASEMENT SUN 3 5PM
OF YOUR
EARLY BIRD TICKETS FROM
BASEMENT SUN 10 5PM
LEVEL ONE SAT 2 10PM
WALCHA SHOWGROUND | ONSITE CAMPING Fri 12 A
VALVE BAR SLUDGE FEST
BASEMENT FRI 1 8PM
William Crighton
valvebar@gmail.com
ROCK SHOW
WITH “MADAM FATALE”, “ALIANATIV”, “CALL TO FLORIN” WITH “THE GNARLY FEW”, “PLANTS”, “TSHITAKI”, “THE DISAPPOINTMENTS”, “99 SCAPEGOATS”, “THE BLISTERED MINDS”
BLITZ ROMANCE
80S PROM NIGHT ALTERNATIVE/ NEW WAVE/SYNTHPOP/80S POP, PHOTO BOOTH AND MUCH MORE 80S!
BASEMENT SAT 9 8PM
SANCTUARY WITH A TWIST
LEVEL ONE SAT 9 10PM
DJ SOUNDBOY PRESENTS
SYDNEY’S PREMIER ALTERNATIVE CLUB NIGHT FEATURING BEST ALTERNATIVE DJ’S AND PERSONALLY RECOMMENDED BY IAN ASTBURY OF “CULT”
AFROBEAT PARTY
•
March
THE WITCHING HOUR
PUNKS UNITE AT VALVE BAR
BASEMENT SAT 23 9PM
BLINK ANNIVERSARY
FEAT: “NUNCHUKKA SUPERFLY” WITH SUPPORT BY “I HATE PEOPLE”, “CUNDALINI’S REVENGE”, “KID ON A LEASH”, “THE LEFTARDS”
SPEWY VS SHITNEY
WITH “GRIM”, “JOHN HOWARD”, “CREAM SODA”, “NECESSARY VENGEANCE”, “UNLAWFUL ACTION”, “BODY MELT”, “NUMBSKULL”, “HUMAN FAILURE” NEVERLAND PRESENTS
TECHNO PARTY
WITH LIL LEBOWSKY, DJ GIDI, YOUNG LEMON, OBSOLETE, EMULATE, MIXNOSIS, ANDREW STRINGER
LEVEL ONE FRI 15 10PM
DEEPSPACE ENTERTAINMENT PRESENTS:
SYDNEY OVER 25 LIVE ACTS COMPETING FOR GRAND PRIZE
LEVEL ONE SAT 23 9PM
BASEMENT SUN 17 5PM
“THE VEGAS NERVES”
BASEMENT WED 20 7PM
ANTNY
BASEMENT THU 21 8PM
“SOUND ENVELOPE” PRESENTS
ROCK SHOW
WITH SUPPORT FROM “NAUGHTY BOYS”, “THE DERROS”, “JIMMI CARR BAND”, “EARTH BLOOMERS”
“THE/F”
WITH “HALFWAIT”, “FYRE BYRD”, “KATHRYN HARTNETT” AND GUESTS
WITH DJS SPINNING METAL AND ALTERNATIVE
TRASH ANNIVERSARY
WITH DJS SPINNING PUNK AND ALTERNATIVE
“OAF”
BASEMENT WED 27 8PM
GOOD VIBES TRIBE PRESENTS
BASEMENT THU 28 8PM
“SPEEDBALL” PRESENTS
BASEMENT FRI 29 9PM
WITH SUPPORT FROM “RUBBER NECKER”, “SPACE BOOZIES”
NIGHT OF URBAN SOUL FEAT: EMERGING TALENT
PUNK SHOW
WITH SUPPORT FROM “THE RAMPANTS”, “AUTOMATIC HEROES” AND GUESTS ESSENCE ENTERTAINMENT PRESENTS:
BALLAD FOR THE BROKEN HEARTED
EP RELEASE WITH NJE, UNTAYMABLE, PRIMITIVE, PUNISH ONE, PUSH2SHOVE, EMBRACE, WOODFORD AND MANY MORE LEVEL ONE FRI 29 10PM
LIVE WITH MANY SPECIAL GUESTS
EP RELEASE WITH SUPPORT FROM YAW, INFERNO, RIDDO AND MANY MORE
GOTH/DEATHROCK/PUNK/ POST PUNK WITH ALL STAR CAST OF DJS
BASEMENT SUN 24 5PM
COME TO THE DARK PSY’D
FEAT HAEMOGOBLIN, FERGISON, PROFESSOR SMOKES, KISENTRIC, DROID ASSEMBLY
For band bookings please email valvebar@gmail.com
The Music
LEVEL ONE FRI 22 10PM
IN ROCK/INDIE/ELECTRONIC/ RAP FUSION WITH MANY SPECIAL GUESTS
THE SHOWCASE TOUR
WITH MANY SPECIAL GUESTS
www.valvebar.com.au
“HOLLOW HEIGHTS”
BASEMENT SAT 16 8PM
BASEMENT FRI 22 8PM
BAR & VENUE
H.D.O. FRIDAYS PRESENTS:
CLASSICS
WITH THE PRINCIPAL, THE KHEMIST, AZARIA, RALLEN, KEEKZ, TOSH1R, DZASTA, WILDFYRE, JAI, PARANOIZ, TIM DAWES, TWISTED MELODIEZ
BASEMENT SAT 30 9PM
ABSORBED IN BASS OLD SKOOL JUNGEL 1992-1995 WITH DJS MURDA 1, SEMPER-FI, DEVIANT, VICTIM, MUNK, ALF, RITUAL
LEVEL ONE SAT 30 10PM
PRESCRIPTION SOCA/ DANCEHALL CARIBBEAN STRONG CLUB WITH DJS FASMWA AND MANY MORE
BASEMENT SUN 31 5PM
“THRAXAS” PRESENTS
METAL SUNDAY
WITH SUPPORT FROM MANY SPECIAL GUESTS
facebook.com/valvebarsydney
D
Dean dreams Dean Lewis’ highly anticipated debut album might have some thinking they know exactly what it’ll sound like, but the Be Alright singer-songwriter assures Anthony Carew he has unknown depths.
ean Lewis’ Be Alright is the kind of song where the phrase ‘hit single’ doesn’t quite capture its success. It’s probably more apt to say the 2018 jam is a ‘monster smash’. It sat at #1 in Australia for five weeks, going five times platinum. And it became a global calling card, introducing the 31-year-old Sydneysider to an international audience when it cracked the Top 10 throughout Europe. And, Be Alright also meant that Lewis’s debut album, A Place We Knew, was going to arrive as a much anticipated first LP. “I thought Waves was a life-changing song for me,” Lewis says, referring to his debut 2016 single that hit #12 on the local charts. “But this has gone way beyond that. Waves was big in Australia, this is big all over the world. Even now, it’s Top 40 in America, man, it’s mental. I feel very lucky, because I know a lot of great songs get put out and then nothing happens. [But] straight away I knew it was a good song, because the first time that I played it, people came up to me and were like, ‘That song about the phone, that’s a good one, are you gonna release that?’ So, the reaction was good straight away.” So, then, the question begs: why does Lewis think this particular song has so struck a chord, with listeners far and wide? “What I can guess,” Lewis says, “is it’s about the vocal, and the emotion of the voice moreso than the melody or the production. A lot of songs that I’ve done, it’s been about that; you can chuck in a lot of production, double-track your voice, make the chorus sound ‘big’. But, Be Alright is a song that’s so dependent on the vocal that the arrangement could’ve been just a piano. There’s also something universal about a song where it’s someone telling you, ‘It’s going to be okay.’ But, I wish I knew exactly why [people love it]. That’d be awesome.” When Lewis was releasing Be Alright, he harboured genuine ambitions: “I had this goal of, ‘I wanna hit 200 million streams,’” Lewis says. Big dreams for someone who didn’t grow up dreaming of making music.
That dream only came to life, in an instant, when he was 18, when his dad showed him a DVD of Oasis playing live. “I remember the way that [the Gallagher brothers] walked on stage, it was just, ‘This is what I wanna do.’ It was the coolest thing I’ve ever seen,” Lewis recounts. So, he asked for a guitar for Christmas, and after that “spent [his] time watching The Kooks and Oasis on YouTube, learning how to write songs”. Lewis felt, instantly, that it was a natural artform for him: “The first song I wrote, well, it was terrible, but it came very quick. The creation of ideas was there from the start. I feel very lucky. Creating ideas is something that feels very natural to me, I pick up a guitar and ideas flow out. It’s like a tap. I just have to make sure I push record.” Lewis, at first, thought he’d find a music career as a songwriter-for-hire, penning songs for others. But, he always kept some songs for himself, and harboured dreams of a solo career. While the success of Be Alright means, for many listeners, he’ll always be a sensitive balladeer, Lewis has big ambitions for his music. “I don’t wanna make singer-songwriter, just-a-guy-with-a-guitar-in-his-room [music],” he says. “There’s so many of those guys out there. I want to make more of a band thing, this big festival sound. I always wanted it to be so much bigger than one acoustic guitar.” After releasing his debut EP, Same Kind Of Different, in 2017, Lewis set out to make his first album, which took him to various studios, in various countries, working with various producers. He was, always, chasing musical dreams. “I’d just work on something, over and over, until it sounds like the song that I imagined in my head. I’d listen to [other people’s songs] and say, ‘That sounds insane, the production level!’ And then I’d think, ‘Why doesn’t [my song] sound as good as that?’ And then I’d just rerecord it until it did. That kind of pissed
“I know what a Dean Lewis song is. It’s, like, first person lyrics, telling a story, raw.”
The Music
•
81
•
Music
everyone off, because you might end up recording a song four times, and it’s a lot more expensive.” But, Lewis continues, “I know that I sound like. I know what a Dean Lewis song is. It’s, like, first person lyrics, telling a story, raw. Usually some sort of loud, prominent acoustic guitar in there. All my songs have a very distinct approach, this first person storytelling... Half A Man and Don’t Hold Me, both of those are about actually not feeling good enough. There’s songs about relationships. Then there’s Hold Of Me, where I really felt, like, ‘I don’t wanna write another sad song.’ So it’s kind of about me saying to this girl, ‘Just trust me, I know you’ve been hurt, but everything is gonna be okay.’” In bringing together these songs, Lewis eventually settled on a title for this debut that seemed evocative of the whole, and — to the songwriter — a micro-narrative unto itself. “A Place We Knew, it tells a story in a single sentence,” Lewis offers. “To me, it [evokes] that I recorded these songs in all these different places around the world. And, secondly, it has this specific feeling to it. You know when you drive past an old house you used to live in with an exgirlfriend, or whatever, and it’s two years later, and everyone’s moved on, but there’s all those feelings, and emotions, and memories of that place, and it’s quite a bittersweet feeling. A lot of the songs have that longing to it. That’s so powerful to me. It sums up everything.”
A Place We Knew (Island/Universal) is out this month. Dean Lewis tours from 6 May.
Check The Guide on theMusic.com.au for more details.
“We love doing sideshows, but what we’re trying to do is try to wheel new people in. While the sideshow allows us to play for a bunch of our fans, we want to get in front of new people... I love playing those shows, but we want those shows to grow, and the only way to do that is to put ourselves in new positions.
“You’re going to feel scared.”
Download Code Jami Morgan of Code Orange explains to Rod Whitfield that for these hardcore punks playing festivals is all about making new fans.
P
ittsburgh-based noise merchants Code Orange have only toured Australia once previously in their decade-long career and that was back in 2015 when they ventured Down Under to plug 2014 record I Am King. Now they’re returning as part of Download Festival. Little can prepare the average punter for the catastrophic onslaught that is Code Orange live, however drummer and vocalist Jami Morgan has a few choice words that attempt to do exactly that. “We’re going to bring it, 100%. Especially with the shorter [festival] set, you’re going to get a lot of blistering intensity, but also a lot of dynamics, not just ‘Ra-ra-ra!’ You’re going to feel scared.” That said, they are actually a band that is difficult to categorise, combining elements from right across the broad spectrum that is heavy, metal, hardcore and punk music. The end product is something really quite unique,
and this manifests itself palpably in their live show as well as on their records. “We bring it, like I said, but I think we bring it in a very different way than most bands, and especially most bands that you’re going to see playing at this festival. I don’t think there’s anyone playing there that’s similar to us, and that’s really cool. We have our own lane that we drive in, and I think we’re going to be in a really nice spot for a lot of new people, and hopefully there’s some people familiar with us there too. “We try to paint a whole landscape with our live set, whether that’s through the electronics that we thread through the songs, or just the general way we approach it all.” According to Morgan, this festival tour, which includes a sideshow of their own in Brisbane, has come at a great time for the band, as they try to make new fans across the globe.
“That’s why we waited a little bit. We knew 100% that we’d get there to play for all of our fans in all the different places, but this time we need to get out there and get in front of new people.” It is obvious that this growth strategy is already working. By the time the band reaches our shores, their last album Forever will be just on two years old — and its popularity goes partway to explaining demand to see the band live. “I think the record definitely took us to a different level, and that’s what the record needs to do every time. It more than did its job and got us some mainstream recognition too, whether than means getting nominated for a Grammy or getting played on WWE. The main reason that stuff is cool is, again, trying to get exposed to new people, and I think that the record really did that.” Morgan is very confident that it won’t be too long after Download before we see them in Australia again — maybe off the back of a new record. “Probably not, but the next record will probably be here sooner than you think, so I wouldn’t worry about it, we’ll be back soon.”
Code Orange tour from 9 Mar.
Check The Guide on theMusic.com.au for more details.
Download Down Under We get it, you wanna see Slayer and Anthrax and Judas Priest before they either retire or get arthritis. That’s totally fair. But what isn’t fair is snubbing some of our nation’s very own wicked talent that’ll also be there at this year’s Download Festival. Here’s three Aussie picks that we know you’ll love.
The Music
Aversions Crown If you ever find yourself at a festival thinking, “God, I could go for a breakdown right now,” or, “Can’t this singer just start growling like a very sick animal already?” then Aversions Crown is the band for you. A deathcore outfit from Brisbane, these boys know their blast beats like we know the microwave food at our local IGA. That is, very well!
•
82
•
Music
Fight for your right Ensuring their gigs are a safe space for everyone is of primary importance to Slaves. Singer/drummer Isaac Holman tells Bryget Chrisfield that, like Beastie Boys, the duo just wanna have fun and do what they want.
L
ast year, guitarist Laurie Vincent stopped a Slaves headline show, mid-song, when he noticed a girl in the front section looked “a bit distressed”. After asking her what had happened, it was soon discovered that she had been sexually abused at their gig. When we ask singer/drummer Isaac Holman to share his memories from this incident, he elaborates, “We’ve always really kept one eye on the crowd the whole time, and our shows have always been like that, and I guess because we have a lot of time between songs in which we talk to the crowd, or tell stories, we always kind of make sure people are ok. I’m glued to my drums so I’m kind of static — I’m looking forward — but Laurie moves around the stage and he looks at the crowd a lot. He noticed this girl who was looking a bit distressed and he just told me to stop. So we stopped the show and I went down and just spoke to her, and asked what was goin’ on, and she told me and then, yeah! They got the guy! The security got the guy — he was trying to make his way out of the gig after they called him out. And the security came up to me after the show and they were like, ‘We caught the guy, by the way. He’s been
arrested.’ So, you know, it was both a good thing and a bad thing.” The lack of female representation in the moshpit is also something that doesn’t sit well with Holman. We discuss how an intentional grope can easily be explained away as an accident within the commotion of a mosh. “I hate all that, it’s horrible,” Holman stresses. “It’s so hard and it’s so fucked up as well, but we’re just trying to create a safe space, basically, where everyone feels like they can — yeah! We just want everyone to feel safe and have a good time.” For the pair’s latest and third album Acts Of Fear & Love (2018), Slaves returned to producer Jolyon Thomas (who also produced their debut Are You Satisfied? set). During softer moments on tracks such as Daddy and Photo Opportunity, Slaves show they’re not afraid to express vulnerability through lyrical content and definitely give listeners something of substance to mull over. “I think maybe now we’re more established — and we’ve been doing this for a while now — it’s kind of like: you just don’t really care anymore about what people think of you,” Holman shares, “and you wear your heart on your sleeve a li’l bit more and, yeah! I think it is just about time — now more than ever — [that] people, especially men, need to be talking about their feelings a lot more openly. So I think we tried to do that with this album.”
On their previous album, Take Control, Mike D of Beastie Boys sat in the producer’s chair and Holman confesses, “Even now, when I think about that whole situation, I can’t believe it happened. It was mental. Mike D just called Laurie and was like, ‘Hey, it’s Mike D,’ and Laurie was like, ‘What the fuck?’ [Mike D] was meant to be working with someone else on our label, but they didn’t really work out and then he heard our music and just wanted to work with us and, yeah! We were just blown away. It was a real, like, pinch yourself moment.” His dad (“an obsessive vinyl collector”) often played Beastie Boys records at their family home and Holman enthuses, “I love Beastie Boys. It’s such a huge deal
for both of us [in the band]. In many ways, we feel a little bit similar to [Beastie Boys] — like, our attitude towards music and the industry and everything — they were just havin’ fun and they were doin’ what they wanted, and I kind of like to think that that’s what [Slaves are] all about as well.”
Slaves tour from 6 Mar.
High Tension
The Beautiful Monument
Whether it’s on record or on stage, High Tension always go off. Lead singer Karina Utomo is a
What a beautiful moment it’ll be when you see The Beautiful Monument! Haha, ah, couldn’t
regular talking point for anyone who’s ever been to one of their live shows, and for good reason,
help ourselves there. Anyway, The Beautiful Monument are a Melbourne metal group who’ve
she’s a vicious metal vocalist and frontwoman. With three albums under their belt already,
been chipping their way into the big leagues for a while now. And here they are! With a big sin-
now’s the perfect time to dive into the world of High Tension.
galong factor to their music, The Beautiful Monument are bound to impress on a festival stage.
The Music
•
83
•
Music
Album Reviews
Pond have hit the studio once again to deliver a powerful new album in Tasmania. It’s a cinematic experience, and the standard to which all artists should strive when creating their album. Nick Allbrook’s Daisy, describing childhood friends, family and memories in the Kimberley region, opens the album and envelops listeners in an aura of beauty. We’re then exposed to the colourfulness of Sixteen Days, which, with its French pre-chorus of “Je ne travaillez jamais travaillez” - English translation: “I never work” - conjures images of dancing under an array of lights. We’re carried on into Tasmania, which explores issues around Australian identity and the looming impact of climate change. Throughout the track, Allbrook and band show there’s still a flicker of hope left, shouting that they “might go and shack up in Tasmania before the ozone goes”. The Boys Are Killing Me combines the band’s continuing interest in synth sounds with the romping bass lines reminiscent of their earlier work on albums like Man It Feels Like Space Again and Beard, Wives, Denim. The lyrics feel personal and deeply relatable, delving into issues of colonialism and lost youth. The song draws to a satisfying climax as Allbrook sings “By the boys, the boys are killing me” before the track finishes with a brief guitar solo utilising the same Harmonist pedal effect as the band used on The Weather’s Sweep Me Off My Feet. The repetitive synths on Hand Mouth Dancer place listeners in the peak of 1980s glam-rock, and as the album moves along to Goodnight, PCC, the music seems tailored for
Pond
Tasmania Spinning Top / Caroline
HHHH½
Amanda Palmer
There Will Be No Intermission Cooking Vinyl
HHH½
Ten big tracks (often five to eight minutes in length) plus another ten mini-musical moments, There Will Be No Intermission gives an update on Amanda Palmer’s life over the last few years, including life, death and the inevitability of US politics. There’s the blatant honesty of A Mother’s Confession to the heartbreaking and lovely Voicemail For Jill (heartbreaking, lovely). There are others that also demand a lot of the listener (Bigger On The Inside takes some attention), as does Death Thing. Don’t pause, there are no breaks here — but it’s well worth the trip. Liz Giuffre
rhythmic dancing or to a moment of reflection, as acoustic guitar brilliantly fades into the accompanying instrumental section. The mix of guitars, synths and drum sample pads begin to blend together with the lyrics: “Sleep, you can sleep my friend, now that you’ve seen the end, how does it feel?” The track ends with more drum samples, as it transitions blissfully into Burnt Out Star. Jay Watson and Allbrook balance harmonies together, capturing the intensity of their live shows in-studio. Selene brings back the romping bass, with an additional subtle acoustic guitar in the background. It’s another groove-worthy addition to the album, another brilliant track. It’s safe to say that Shame feels like the final scene to a heartbreaking film, with the vast majority of the song sporting only Allbrook’s poetic vocals accompanied by different samples, and finally ends with a subtle synth. Joe Ryan finishes the album with Doctor’s In, an ode to ‘The Doctor’, a WA term for the cooling afternoon sea breeze in summer. Ryan’s track is so loud and enigmatic it may as well have been taken right from the score of classic film Blade Runner. With its array of synths, acoustic guitar and overall ambience, it incorporates sonic elements from across the album, while drawing it to a close. All together, Tasmania is an intimidating work of art - and one of the finest additions to Pond’s discography. Taylor Marshall
Dean Lewis
Spiral Stairs
Huntly
Island / Universal
Coolin’ By Sound
Barely Dressed / Remote Control
HHHH
HHH
HHHH
The first half of Dean Lewis’ emotive and raw debut album is vibrant and exhilarating, as his vocals soar above thumping bass lines and heavily strummed guitars while maintaining its gentle and comforting tones. The repeating of words and phrases become instantly catchy hooks such as in in 7 Minutes (“I forgot to love you/ Love you/ Love you”), highighting Lewis’ infectious and authentic songwriting and musicality. The harrowingly emotional vocals on Half A Man are accompanied alone by a piano as the album concludes softly, like an exhaled breath, leaving us exhausted from the thrashing our emotions have just endured.
Scott Kannberg aka Spiral Stairs’ new album picks up right where 2017’s Doris & The Daggers left off with another mix of indie-rock and his love of early post-punk. The lyrics are mostly plain and inoffensive, with a bit of Stephen Malkmus alliteration here and there. Some of the production can be quite exciting though, especially the big moments that feature brass or keys. But just like his previous two solo albums, it’s the addition of tacked-on lead guitar riffs that distract the listener from any quality vocal melodies that might be bouncing around. But Scott, if you do truly love creating music like you say you do, keep on keepin’ on.
On their debut LP, Huntly find space to expand and refine their emotional and aural palettes. Compared with 2016 EP Feel Better Or Stop Trying’s compellingly bruisedsounding takes on love, lust and loss, the mood of Low Grade Buzz is quite a contrast. For example, Wiggle is as buoyant as breakup songs get, Elspeth Scrine’s warm vocals enriched by contrast with Charlie Teitelbaum’s droning anti-chorus in a song about finding empowerment through separation. At the end of it all, Scrine herself provides a benediction in the form of the stunning title track, a melody-driven confessional pop song, razor-edged with digital textures.
Emily Blackburn
Donald Finlayson
Tim Kroenert
A Place We Knew
The Music
We Wanna Be Hyp-No-Tized
•
84
•
Album Reviews
Low Grade Buzz
For more album reviews, go to www.theMusic.com.au
Lucy Rose
Mansionair
Robert Forster
Stella Donnelly
Communion / Caroline
Liberation
EMI
Independent
No Words Left
HHH½
Shadowboxer
Inferno
Beware Of The Dogs
HHHH
HHHH½
No Words Left is Lucy Rose’s strongest album, intensely bundling together emotions, transfixing melodies and intriguing instrumentation. There’s a tension wrapped up in each of these songs and the way they unravel is a powerful pleasure for the senses. While Rose possesses a sweet, sighing warble, her musicality does have some thorns. Conversation has a slight undercurrent of apprehension thanks to some melancholy strings and pulsing guitar plucks as Rose’s vocals weave some breathy magic. Overall No Words Left is a lovely listen that has plenty of unexpected diversions to the indie-rock shtick.
These are pop songs, sure, but there is a journey, there is an enigma, there is an emotion — longing, perhaps? — that carries us through. Alibi is a great example of this. Ostensibly a big, driving dance number it still keeps its distance, leaving us in a state of disquiet, and curiosity. Then there’s Astronaut (Something About Your Love), a pulsing banger equipped with a Daft Punk-style robo-voice. Falling is gentler and more introspective. It’s a tribute to any artist that they made you feel something. Here, by using their otherworldliness to great effect, Mansionair do so exquisitely.
Carley Hall
James d’Apice
Inferno is underwritten throughout by Robert Forster’s laidback confidence: not only in his deft songwriting chops, but also belief in the versatile band assembled for the Berlin sessions, an unfettered trust in the producer and complete certainty in how these distinct roles converge and complement each other. It’s not an overly laboured affair, recorded in mostly live takes, but the results are spacious and precise, and sonically beyond reproach. The songs shine due to his inherent pop nous and ability to conjure melodies and hooks at will, as well as a consummate vocal performance adding character to this record’s already abundant charm.
Karen O & Danger Mouse
Little Simz
Hozier
Devin Townsend
BMG
Age 101 / AWAL
Columbia / Sony
Inside Out / Sony
Lux Prima
HHH½
Steve Bell
GREY Area
Wasteland, Baby!
HHHH½
In their first collaboration, Danger Mouse situates Karen O’s vocals in a luscious mix of electronica and orchestral arrangements that have a lot of cinematic intent. In this context, Karen O is unable to rock out, Yeah Yeah Yeahs style. Rather, at times, this album feels like she’s guesting on an Air album. The cinematic aspirations of this album will leave you feeling that these songs belong to a narrative which isn’t quite articulated. As a duo, Karen O and Danger Mouse exhibit a refined pop sensibility, each song laden with accessible hooks to reel in loads of listeners. Lux Prima is a delightful swirl of refined pop confection to be savoured.
Weaving soul rhythms with lo-fi leanings so that a jazz flute can somehow thrive alongside bass that could burn a discotheque, Little Simz’ latest is immediately enthralling. Produced entirely by Inflo, GREY Area has the authenticity of a garage auteur and the feel of a seasoned studio master. The whole album is relentlessly deft and punches harder than a prizefighter fending off personal demons. GREY Area is intense, inventive, and earnest, a rare rap album where bluster gives way to bluntness and bravado isn’t bragging but actually brave. Little Simz deserves her self-proclaimed place among the greats.
Guido Farnell
Nic Addenbrooke
The Music
•
85
Already one of Australia’s sharpest and unflinchingly direct songwriters, here Stella Donnelly has sharpened her searing wit to the point that it feels like she’s wielding a surgeon’s knife, dissecting cultural landscapes with ease. The strength of the record lies in its affecting storytelling and in its dichotomy of pleasant, gentle compositions, which accompany the rage of a woman who has been let down by misogynist men. Beware Of The Dogs feels like the embodiment of a movement of young artists in Australia who are refusing to let this oppressive behaviour slide. Belinda Quinn
Empath
HHHH
HHHH½
Hozier effortlessly blends blues, gospel and folk-rock with tasty pop hooks on his soulful second album, Wasteland, Baby!. He’s joined by a gospel choir on strong opener Nina Cried Power, the soulful track setting the album up well. Even on the poppier tracks like Almost (Sweet Music), Hozier’s powerful, deep voice provides a welcome edge. From belted references to political issues on Be, to crooned lines of love on Nobody, the quality of the album’s lyrics rarely wavers. Covering a broad scope of genres and styles, Wasteland, Baby! remains a consistently interesting and engaging album from start to finish.
Almost career encapsulating, Empath goes from insane extreme metal to musical theatre. Orchestral/movie soundtrack to the big anthemic rock of Devin Townsend’s recent output. Floyd-ian moments to the wistful ambience of Casualties Of Cool, plus plenty more across the course of its epic 74-minute length. It is breathtaking in its conception, head-spinning in its scope and both meticulous and joyous in its execution. Closing with the 23-minute conceptual piece Singularity, it is impossible to do justice to this track with words; it simply has to be experienced to be believed. Empath is a modern masterpiece of pure musical genius.
Madelyn Tait
•
HHHH
Album Reviews
Rod Whitfield
STREAM IT ON APPLE PODCASTS & SOUNDCLOUD EVERY WEEK
The Music
•
March
Meet The Makers: Women In Beer, Wine & Spirits The Australian Technology Park, with a little help from Cellarmasters and BWS, hosts a festival dedicated to female winemakers, brewers and distillers over two days this month, Meet The Makers: Women In Beer Wine & Spirits. The inaugural festival kicks off on International Women’s Day, with up to 30 women serving up sample tipples across three sessions, Friday and Saturday. The event features women in the drinks industry like Harriet Leigh from Archie Rose, Jayne Lewis and Danielle Allen from Two Birds Brewing, Alexia Roberts from Penny’s Hill Wines, and Rosie Signer from Heirloom Vineyards. Don’t miss your chance to knock back a few vinos and learn about these trailblazing women and how they make some of the best grog in the country.
Meet The Makers: Women In Beer, Wine & Spirits is on 8 & 9 Mar.
The best of The Arts in March
1.
1.
The National 2019: new Australian art This free showcase, across three renowned galleries, of 65 emerging, mid-career and established Aussie artists, including Eugenia Lim with her work The Australian Ugliness, pictured, illuminates and interrogates contemporary concerns around power and representation. From 29 Mar at AGNSW, Carriageworks and MCA
2.
2.
Comedy at Papa Gede’s If you fancy sipping a classic cocktail while watching some of Sydney’s finest comics, then this is the comedy club for you. Headliners so far this year have included Ray Badran and Cassie Workman – this month Daniel Townes, pictured, of ABC’s Comedy Next Gen leads another massive line-up.
3.
Every third Tuesday of the month at Papa Gede’s Bar
3.
March Dance This brand new contemporary dance festival boasts nine companies and 45 artists hosting over 50 dance events across Sydney, including new works, workshops, residencies and talks from dance makers including De Quincy Co, pictured, and Dirty Feet.
4.
5.
From 1 Mar at venues across Sydney
4.
Every Brilliant Thing Kate Mulvany, pictured (photo by Daniel Boud), stars in this moving Belvoir production, directed by Kate Champion and written by Duncan Macmillan with Jonny Donahoe. A one-woman play about mental health and family, it celebrates the little things that make life worth living. From 8 Mar at Belvoir Upstairs
5.
Balance For Better Agender, a platform for female photographers, celebrates International Women’s Day with Balance For Better, their second annual exhibition, featuring 22 Australian shooters, including Agender co-founder and former The Music photographer, Cybele Malinowski, whose shot Big Sur Little Her is pictured.
6.
From 9 Mar at SUNSTUDIOS
6.
Salome Opera Australia are putting on Richard Strauss’ opera adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s sensual - and murder-y - 1891 play of the same name, which retells the biblical story of Salome, played by Lise Lindstrom, who requests the head of John The Baptist on a silver platter. From 6 Mar at Joan Sutherland Theatre, Sydney Opera House
The Music
•
88
•
O n IN M a r c h
Film & TV Now Apocalypse
HHHH Streams from 10 Mar on Stan
Reviewed by Guy Davis
L
ike ecstasy and rave culture, we dabbled in a bit of Gregg Araki back in the ‘90s. There was something bold, distinct and sorta outlaw-ish about the American filmmaker’s view of a world populated by hot young things responding to the uncertainty of a new millennium with uninhibited sexuality and a kind of chill nihilism. And even though Araki never really broke through to the mainstream — maybe coming closest with 2004’s Mysterious Skin — he always remained a person of interest. Someone with so clear a voice tends to. Watching movies like Totally Fucked Up and The Doom Generation, one mightn’t have thought the small screen would ever be Araki’s metier. But the 10-episode Now Apocalypse, premiering 10 Mar on streaming service Stan, shows that the filmmaker’s energy remains vibrant, vital and relevant. The half-hour episodic format really suits the sprawling story of twenty-somethings exploring sex, creativity, love, paranoia, simply making the rent and extra-
terrestrial conspiracies, and the increasing latitude that television seems to be offering artists ensures Araki’s approach remains, shall we say, undiluted. Let me be perfectly clear: in addition to its other virtues, Now Apocalypse is sexual and sexy as hell. Is it a tad self-indulgent? Perhaps. But Araki has made his living in recent years directing TV like 13 Reasons Why, and this series — co-developed with Karley Sciortino of Slutever — feels like an opportunity to let his own freak flag fly, and the result feels ambitious, unfettered and fun rather than overblown or out of control. As its title indicates, Now Apocalypse does feel very tuned into the zeitgeist but it also feels like a fondly nostalgic ‘90s throwback — it has episodes titled The Downward Spiral and Where Is My Mind?. What you get in the end is a candid, clever and erotic slice of the here and now, cut with a nicely disquieting sense that all those pre-Y2K jitters we had back in the day are now starting to pay off.
Hotel Mumbai
HH In cinemas from 14 Mar
Reviewed by Anthony Carew
T
his decade has found a run of films in which acts of real-life tragedy/ heroism are turned into popcorn entertainments, large-scale event movies that are some strange mix of action-thriller, disaster flick, ‘inspirational’ true story, and icky muckraker. Hotel Mumbai is a local (well, local by way of international Australian/Indian/American co-production) riff on such a theme: a film about the 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai, set almost entirely in the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel. The set-up is familiar disaster movie stuff: quirks of fate lead a host of name actors (Dev Patel, Nazanin Boniadi, Armie Hammer, Jason Isaacs, Tilda Cobham-Hervey) into being in the wrong place at the wrong time, the audience’s great desire, thereafter, to see these people coming out alive. It’s loosely based on a memoir, by Victoria Midwinter Pitt, that puts this simple set-up into simpler words: Surviving Mumbai. As terrorists lay siege to the hotel, every passing minute ratchets up the danger, and the drama.
The Music
•
89
•
Reviews
Debutante Australian director Anthony Maras stitches real-life news coverage and video footage into the narrative, and the real people involved are shown in the closing credits — hopefully a grand tribute to heroism in the face of unimaginable horrors. But, in blurring the lines between real events and ‘based on a true story’, Hotel Mumbai blurs the lines between tragedy and entertainment, memoriam and money-maker. In an age where original storytelling has been farmed out to television, cinema is built on known intellectual property, where familiar characters are a ‘safe bet’ for conservative film financiers. Movies about events that dominated news bulletins feel weirdly similar, recent round-the-clock coverage making for a weird kind of brand recognition. With Hotel Mumbai, the branding gets even weirder: by turning the flick into a grand shrine to the titular hotel, its unimaginable luxuries, its brave staff, and its grand reopening, the film essentially plays as bloody tribulation turned into opportunistic spon-con.
Our picks for All About Women
Feminists Aren’t Funny Zoe Coombs Marr — who often performs as every-bloke Dave — pulls apart the preconception that women aren’t funny.
Man Up Clementine Ford, Osher Günsberg and Vonne Patiag deconstruct the notion of masculinity, and learn what makes a good man.
The Problem With Wokeness Cultural critic Ayishat Akanbi espouses the radical power of kindness and finding connections in a world where it’s easy to focus on divisive notions of identity.
Dating: A Survival Guide FlexMami, Sami Lukis and Alexandra Tweten help you to navigate modernday dating — from ghosting to Tinder to
20 years of hip hop feminism Writer Joan Morgan, who coined the term ‘hip hop feminism’ in 1999, explains to Cyclone how the term intersects with the modern #MeToo movement, ahead of her appearance at this year’s All About Women.
F
or a long time, hip hop and feminism were deemed incompatible. But the American journalist Joan Morgan introduced the term ‘hip hop feminism’ in 1999 on publishing her influential collection of essays, When Chickenheads Come Home To Roost: A Hip-Hop Feminist Breaks It Down. While born in Jamaica, Morgan grew up in the South Bronx, New York. She embarked on a career in cultural journalism at The Village Voice, before moving on to other esteemed publications. She received an award for her coverage of the Mike Tyson rape trial. The black feminist writer bell hooks previously critiqued a hyper-masculine hip hop scene that objectified, and negated, women of colour. However, Morgan specifically addressed the contradictions of being a hip hop fan and a feminist — what she refers to as “this complicated relationship”. Two decades on, and her inherently intersectional hip hop feminism is a global school. “I’m always a little amazed, actually,” Morgan reflects from an Uber, mid-conference, in Miami. “You write something and all you know is that you’ve written it and you hope that you’ve written it in a way that has communicated what was in your head and your heart, really. So I really thought that that was gonna be the swan song. I mean, I wrote it so I never had to talk about hip hop and feminism again! And so the fact that it took that turn is really quite surprising and wonderful and affirming to me. But it’s funny like — I definitely take credit for coining [hip hop feminism], but I don’t really take a lot of ownership in how it exists in the world. I really do see it as a large conversation.” Morgan is bound for Sydney’s All About Women festival, held in conjunction with International Women’s Day. She’ll lead the session ‘Hip Hop & Feminism’. Community activist Tarana Burke initiated the Me Too movement against the sexual harassment and assault of women back in 2006. Yet, hashtagged as #MeToo, it gained traction in 2017 as mostly privileged white women spoke out against Harvey Weinstein. Lately, there has been heightened discussion, too, about toxic masculinity in hip hop, centring on artists like 6ix9ine and the late XXXTentacion. Still, serious allegations of sexual predation have been directed at the R&B star R Kelly since at least the 2000s, as investigated in Lifetime’s recent documentary series Surviving R Kelly, executive produced by dream hampton. Finally, the music industry and law enforcement are responding — since The Music’s interview with Morgan, Kelly was arrested and charged with ten counts of aggravated sexual abuse against four victims, three of whom at the time were underaged. “I think it’s just a moment that’s found its political and social footing in the United States,” Morgan says. “I have always thought R Kelly was guilty of all the things that he was accused of. But I think it’s a moment that also meets #MeToo. It’s a good decade after the accusations and so there’s a way that we are much more comfortable calling out our celebrities or acknowledging that they are fallible
unsolicited dick pics.
The Music
•
90
•
C u lt u r e
than we were in, like, let’s say, 1991. D r e a m ’s documentary was incredibly well done and powerful, but I also think that it’s meeting a particular cultural-social moment in the United States. You know, they’ve had 20 years of things like hip hop feminism. We’ve become much more versed in what the culture looks like. We’ve raised generations of young women now who have that as part of their language.” Morgan considers the rise of one of hip hop’s most trailblazing women in her latest book, She Begat This: 20 Years Of The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill. “For me, the reason to write the book was less about being a diehard Lauryn fan — I did appreciate The Miseducation. and everything that it meant — but it was really an opportunity to talk about an album that was so incredibly significant at the end of the 20th century,” she explains. Morgan examines how Hill became a symbol for young black women. “I still think that we put Lauryn on a pedestal — much to her detriment and ours. I think that — looking back and not being a 30-something-year-old listening to Lauryn, but looking back as a 53-year-old — we put a lot of pressure on a 23-year-old girl to save hip hop that was patently unfair.” The author, now in academia, is currently pursuing a PhD. Ironically, Morgan isn’t necessarily absorbed in contemporary hip hop — though she enjoys the Bronx-bred Cardi B, especially as “a personality”. “I don’t really need hip hop to articulate my feminism anymore. I’ve definitely grown past that.” Mind, Morgan is curious about the impact of hip hop feminism beyond the US, welcoming cross-cultural exchange. “I remember going to Cuba for the first time and really being able to sit with Cuban hip hop artists and people who are deeply invested in hip hop culture in Cuba and understanding that it took a very different resonance for them — because of everything: their lives, their political situation, their social situation, their relationship to the United States, and imperialism. So I am really looking forward to learning what hip hop has meant in Australia to people.”
All About Women is on 10 Mar.
Wait, there’s more.... Veronica Milsom is just the first cab off the rank for the Giants In Residence series at Giant Dwarf, a program of new and never-beforeseen work from local artists and comedians.
Baby blue Anti guru Veronica Milsom tells Cyclone she’s here to share her parenting method of “knowing nothing at all”.
Georgia Mooney’s Supergroup Georgia Mooney of All Our Exes Live In Texas invites some of Australia’s best songwriters, including You Am I’s Tim Rogers, to a public jam sesh - an intimate night of collaboration,
V
eronica Milsom, who co-hosts triple j’s Drive alongside Lewis Hobba, is throwing herself into the world of stand-up comedy. The Sydneysider certainly revels in a challenge. Indeed, her show, Parent Virgin, at Giant Dwarf Theatre is about freestyling as a new mum to daughter Lila. “I’m an anti-parenting guru of sorts, because I didn’t get any time in the lead-up to having a baby to read any information about what it’s like to parent,” Milsom says drolly. “So I basically fumbled my way through it. My first year was a pretty crazy experience - having to do the radio and work out how the hell it all worked. But what I’m gonna be doing is presenting like a seminar - filled with jokes, of course - about my brand of parenting, which is knowing nothing at all. So I’m an anti-guru. I’m like a reality merchant. I tell it as it is.” Milsom’s tumultuous introduction to maternity indirectly involves a super-hero. “The reason that I didn’t actually have any time to read any [baby] books was that I didn’t get any maternity leave before having a baby - because the day after I got off-air, I had the baby. So she came a bunch of weeks early. It all was really quick - like I had the baby in three hours. My husband [television producer Nick Hayden] was supposed to be going to the premiere of Thor [Ragnarok] and he was gonna have to hand in his phone - which would have meant that, throughout the duration of Thor being on, he would have missed the entire birth. I wouldn’t have had a way of contacting him. Luckily, he decided not to go because I was like, ‘Oh, I don’t feel so good.’ He was like, ‘Ok, I’ll stay with you.” And, in that time, it was all over!” Milsom has used social media as source material for Parent Virgin. “It’s actually been interesting how much I get hit up on Instagram with people commenting on things that I’ve done and then asking questions themselves - which really did lead me to the idea in the first place. I was originally thinking I’ll base the show around questions that I’ve been asked on Instagram - which were just ridiculously practical things like, ‘Is your baby doing solids yet?’ I would answer all the questions, ‘cause I’d be sitting there just breastfeeding with nothing better to do. It became this weird Q&A forum. I was like, ‘I don’t know anything - why are people asking me? Google it, like I have done!’ But it is
covers and cool bants.
interesting the way people are constantly just wanting to gather information from sources that are unreliable - like me.” In fact, Parent Virgin flips the “dog-eat-dog” competitiveness - and judgement - that accompanies motherhood in the digital age. Regardless, Milsom’s routine isn’t sentimental. “It’s quite a smutty show, because a lot of being a parent is quite dirty - literally and also figuratively. You’re dealing with bodily fluids a lot. So it’s a bit blue - which is fun - and, unfortunately, it’s just my sense of humour.” Growing up in Geelong, Victoria, where she knew Hobba from school, Milsom studied at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts. She gigged on commercial radio in Perth and Melbourne prior to joining triple j’s weekend programming in Sydney. Milsom advanced to Drive in late 2014. Meanwhile, she honed her chops as a comic writer and actor. Milsom appeared in the sketch program, Hungry Beast. But, here, the expressive comedian is best known as a cast regular on Shaun Micallef’s Mad As Hell, which she forfeited for Drive. “I miss it so much,” Milsom sighs. “Whenever it’s on, I always watch on Wednesday nights and feel nostalgic and think, ‘Oh, I miss those guys.’ I miss wearing the wigs and doing the jokes and playing with Shaun. It was such a great time of my life.” She has previously flirted with stand-up, bringing a one-woman sketch show, Do Not Irony, to the comedy festival circuit five years back. Milsom realises that her run with triple j has “an expiration date”. Though open to future radio jobs, she’s likewise hoping to return to the small screen. “This is why I also wanted to do Parent Virgin: this stand-up show was to keep exercising those muscles and writing stuff that I could potentially develop into something more. Maybe there’s a TV show idea in here or maybe there’s a book idea. I wanted to flesh out some of the jokes and observations that I’d made about my first year of parenting to see what it could turn into.”
From 31 Mar
Alexei Toliopoulos & Aaron Chen: Table Read Local comics/film nuts Alexei Toliopoulos and Aaron Chen host table reads of cinema classics featuring a cast of comedians, where they’ll attempt to breathe new life into them - say by gender-flipping American Pie... From 19 May
Hudson & Halls Live! Todd Emerson and Chris Parker star as Kiwi chefs Peter Hudson and David Halls, whose extremely camp cookery show in the ‘70s and ‘80s earned them a cult following, in this Silo Theatre production.
Veronica Milsom plays from 19 Mar
The Music
•
91
•
From 26 Jun
COMEDY
T H E M U S I C A N D B A R B E C U E F E S T I VA L - T W O D AY S O F -
Featuring Australia’s biggest smokers and authentic low and slow barbecue
TICKETS NOW ON SALE www.meatstock.coM.AU
Pic: Eat Your Heart Out
Download Festival Attention all headbangers! This year’s Download Festival is gonna be mental, so you better get ready to bang your heart out at Parramatta Park come 9 Mar. Ozzy may have sadly pulled out, but Slayer (their final tour), Judas Priest, Alice In Chains, Eat Your Heart Out and far, far more will certainly keep you moshing all day and night.
Everybody has those moments that fly straight over their heads off into the horizon. But some other, weirdly obvious things seem to have blind-sided most of humanity. Here’s a look at the everyday stuff that made us go,“Wait, wot?”
Today years old
1.
6.
9.
Everyday ingenuity In a world full of life hacks and shortcuts, resident nonsense-writer Donald Finlayson investigates the not-so-hidden functions of everyday objects. These are the ingenious features of domestic living that we’ve all been too stupid to take advantage of, that is, until now. Illustration by Felicity Case-Mejia.
5.
7. 4.
2.
8.
3.
1. Bread ties
4. Disposable cup lids
Good people don’t just twirl the bread bag shut once they’ve opened it, they re-use the bread tie. We live in a society of rules, you animals! This is especially important considering the fact that coloured bread ties actually indicate which day the bread was delivered.
A typical scene: you’re at your bro’s mum’s house, chillin’, and sippin’ back on some powerful Fanta in a disposable cup. You set it down on her priceless, mahogany table. Boom, a stain is left behind, Mum is screaming, your bro is throwin’ hands and some old-world craftsmanship is forever ruined. Should have used the inbuilt coaster that is the lid, brah.
2. Spaghetti spoon
5. The tiny pocket in jeans
8. Apple sauce lid
We’re firm believers that the “average serving” size for most foods is complete bollocks. Average for who? A six-year-old on a diet? But if you should wish to know the average adult serving size for spaghetti, look no further than the funny round hole in a spaghetti spoon.
For centuries, mankind has looked down at the tiny little pocket in their jeans and wondered, “Oi, what goes in there ay?” Well, historically they were used for keeping your pocket watch safe while it was chained to your waistcoat. Got a pocket watch at home? Chain it to your nose ring!
Eating straight up apple sauce for lunch sounds like disgusting behaviour, but then again, this is coming from a writer who regularly has unseasoned chicken breast in a zip lock bag as a meal on the go. Anyway, the apple sauce lid folds into a spoon.
3. Juice popper flaps
6. Chinese food boxes
9. The tab on a can of soft drink
Ever accidentally crushed the juice out of your popper while getting angry at something in the newspaper? It happens every day, but there’s a solution. Just start holding the popper by the built-in, extendable flaps on top of the box. Now your golden pash is safe.
Everybody loves MSG, and everybody hates doing the dishes. Chinese restaurants, in their infinite wisdom, have always known this to be true. That’s why those classic Chinese takeaway boxes are ingeniously designed to fold down into the shape of a functional little plate.
Common knowledge says that the tab on a can of soft drink has two uses. Firstly, to pop open the can. And secondly, as scrap metal for weird German artists to create erotic, industrial jewellery with. But there’s a not-so-secret third use too, and that’s to hold your slippery straw in place!
The Music
•
94
•
Your town
7. The hole in a pen lid If you’re into that sort of thing, choking is all well and good when it’s done with someone who you trust. But when it happens after you accidentally swallow the lid of a pen, it’s definitely not on. Luckily, that tiny hole is there to prevent complete asphyxiation.
Hidden in plain sight Ahh the internet. It’s a simultaneously terrifying and enlightening place. It has also brought to our attention a number of things that have made us feel, well, pretty darn stupid. Maybe you’re a superior being and knew these without needing them to be pointed out, but for everyone else, Lauren Baxter is about to blow your mind.
Pinch yourself
Don’t play with your food, work it Here’s a hot take — food is delicious. But did you know that it can be functional too? Jessica Dale looks at some ways you can extend culinary delights into other areas of your life.
Every millennial with a pulse will be able to tell you who lives in a pineapple
You go Glen Coco
under the sea. But would they have known that the Krusty Krab was actually a crab trap? Or the main characters were apparently modelled on the seven deadly sins? Or that the 20th episode in the fourth season was titled Best Day Ever? It might be scientifically impossible for ol’ Squarepants to blaze it underwater, but stranger things have happened in Bikini Bottom. To be honest, this entire show is a trip.
Brain freeze How many late night ciggie or hungover Slurpee runs have you made to your trusty local 7-Eleven? Too many to count? Us too. Let’s not even get into what the name itself means (surely 24-7 would be more appropriate for an all-hours establishment), but it turns out the ‘n’ in the uppercase logo has been lowercase this entire time and now we’re going to be mildly irritated every time we see it.
By now, we’re sure you’re already nuts for coconut oil — be it for its healthy saturated fat content or its seemingly one billion beauty uses. There are simple ones like using it as a hair mask and body moisturiser, to more extreme ones like using it for oil pulling — the act of swishing it in your mouth for ten to 20 minutes to rid your teeth of nasties (which we’re honestly not sure we encourage, but more power to you if this is your jam).
Why nut?
Divide and conquer Remember long division? Nah, we’ve blocked it out to be honest. Real world application my ass, Mr Phan. But realising the division symbol itself is actually just a blank fraction? Woah, man. Those mathematicians were genius. This is a way bigger deal than when we realised the arrow on a car’s dash pointed to which side the fuel door was on.
Grin and bear it
Remember excitedly turning up at a rental property inspection and finding that it had beautiful, slick, original wooden floors? Fast forward three months and you might find yourself screaming blue murder every time someone drags their chair in, adding another scratch. Fear nut, friend, because of the handy walnut. Rub one across the scratch and watch it fill the gap. Then watch your bank balance fill when you get your bond back.
Let’s face it, Toblerone have got the airport marketing game down pat. Every
Coff(ee) it up
damn time we hightail it through the departure lounge it seems like every damn person is carrying one of those novelty-sized prisms of nougaty goodness. But apparently there is a bear in the logo? We swear our eyesight isn’t that bad! Hats off to the design team for this one - the company itself is from Bern, Switzerland, aka the City Of Bears.
Watch yourself Okay, we don’t mean to judge, but there are people out there who literally cannot tell the time on an analogue clock. Thank God for smartphones right?
Chances are you’re already drinking coffee anyway, so why not make the most of it and do something environmentally friendly at the same time? Head online and find out how to use your coffee grinds as a garden fertiliser. It saves them going in the bin and may also help those poor, mistreated tomato plants actually sprout this season.
But did you know the clock app on your iPhone is actually a working clock?! We use this app every single day as our alarm and swear we’ve never seen the hands moving. Damn Jobs, you thought of everything.
Call it a good old fashion Aussie urban myth but we’re swearing by it — Vegemite can help heal mouth ulcers. Maybe it’s all that Vitamin B, maybe it’s the gross amount of yeast. Whatever it is, chuck some of the country’s favourite breakfast spread on next time your gums flare up and you’ll be a Happy Little Vegemite soon after. And obviously go to the doctor if symptoms persist, don’t make us tell you twice.
Just desserts One thing’s for sure, we only need two men in our life and their names are Baskin and Robbins. There’s a reason, I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream, right? And that enticing blue and pink logo ain’t just to look good - the pink actually spells out ‘31’ for the famous 31 flavours. But, that has us thinking, did ol’ Burt and Irv realise their initials spelled this when they got into business together? Did they always set out to make just 31? Or is there an elusive 32nd flavour...
The Music
Mitey good
•
95
•
Your town
The A V Cs
This month’s highlights
A Swayze & The Ghosts, VOIID and Crocodylus are some of the finest live acts coming up right now and are heading out on a tri-headline tour this month. Here’s what they’re hoping to learn from the shows.
Sydney singer-songwriter Julia Jacklin has a new album, Crushing, that dropped 22 Feb. To spread the hype, she’s embarking on her biggest national tour yet. So if you’re a local Jacklin junkie you can witness her beautiful live show on 15 Mar at Metro Theatre.
Julia Jacklin
VOIID
Jacklin Jill
“We hope the bands can teach us how to do the Cha-Cha Slide, become regional champions of competitive eating and also how to play Mambo No. 5 on alto saxophone.”
Parramasala. Pic: Salty Dingo
Melting pot The celebration of the vast cross-section of cultures in Sydney that is Parramasala returns from 15 - 17 Mar at various locations in Parramatta. You can catch an array of arts, dance, theatre, music, workshops and more including a Welcome Parade paying homage to The Carnival Of Brazil.
Hit the road
Crocodylus “Most excited to delve more into Tassie!
Roadies are a diverse and talented bunch of people, and there’d be no music scene without ‘em. Come show them some love at the Roady4Roadies Walk on 10 Mar starting at the Bridge Hotel Rozelle followed by live entertainment from Mark Callaghan, Buzz Bidstrup and more.
Crocs, VOIID and A Swayze are really different see some sparks fly on this tour.”
Hot 8 Brass Band
bands but also very similar, so we’re ready to
Got a Hot 8 tonight A Swayze & The Ghosts
Roady4Roadies
Hot 8 Brass Band, the Grammy-nominated band that emerged from the swamps and streets of New Orleans, play a spicy combo of hip hop, funk and jazz. It’s all the fun of The Big Easy without the hangover or weird alligator taste in your mouth. Catch them at Factory Theatre, 6 Mar.
“We actually have a questionnaire for both bands to fill out on arrival at our first show in
Kate’s party
Melbourne. With the responses to this very specific selection of questions we hope to determine an exact understanding of quan-
Concert For Kate is a great fundraiser for industry veteran and former You Am I manager, Kate Stewart. Funds will be going directly to support Stewart, who suffered a severe stroke last year. Be there 15 Mar at the Enmore Theatre to see artists like Smudge, Sally Seltmann, You Am I and more.
tum mechanics and its potential applica-
A Swayze & The Ghosts, VOIID and Crocodylus tour from 13 Mar.
You Am I
tions to everyday human life.”
The Music
•
96
•
Your town
For the latest live reviews go to theMusic.com.au
“Once again, St Jerome’s Laneway Festival proved itself to be the envy of summer festivals.”
Denzel Curry
– Mick Radojkovic
Laneway Festival @ Callan Park. Photos by Simone Fisher.
It was another jam-packed crowd full of enthusiastic punters as
Courtney Barnett
Laneway returned for another year with the likes of Gang Of Youths, Denzel Curry, Courtney Barnett,
Mitski
Mitski and many more.
Cousin tony’s brand new firebird MARCH 22 27 28 30
Rocket Bar Adelaide Republic Bar Hobart Saint John Launceston The Hills Are Alive Gippsland
APRIL 5 Woolly Mammoth Brisbane 12 48 Watt St Newcastle 13 Oxford Art Factory Sydney 14 The Basement Canberra 20 Lucy’s Love Shack Perth 21 Sonar Fremantle 27 Corner Hotel Melbourne doubledrummermusic.com/ct-tour
Love Is Heartbreak 1/2 page.indd 1
24/2/19 2:38 pm
The Music
•
97
•
Reviews
the best and the worst of the month’s zeitgeist
The lashes Front
Back
Pic: Matt Murphy
You’re a wizard, Harry! Harry Potter & The Cursed Child flew into Melbourne on a broomstick and proved to be as magical as the most devoted Potterhead could hope for, helping cement JK Rowling’s characters into the imaginations of a whole new generation.
Cure to all ills
Steve him alone
Cameo call
Done gone muffed it
Sex ed with Paul Bullen It’s been a month since the
Vivid LIVE announced their
The world was trying to have
Public Enemy’s Flavor Flav
The boss of Muffin Break
first act for this year’s festival,
a nice moment remember-
sent a shoutout to convicted
was forced to apologise
mansplain king reared his
The Cure, playing their
ing Steve Irwin, and PETA
pedophile George Pell via
after she accused millenni-
obstinate head to declare
seminal 1989 record Disinte-
had to piss on everyone’s
the Cameo app, which
als of being “self-important”
that vulvas are in fact the
gration in full. It kicked off a
parade. The response, a
allows people — in this case
and “entitled” because
same thing as vaginas,
mad goth scramble for the
universal fuck you to the
‘Tristan’, later described by
they’re not willing to do six-
and Paul Bullen’s been
ballot and then for tix, which
organisation, seems to have
Flav as a “dirty fuckin’ rat”
month unpaid internships
busy in the interim. He’s
promptly sold out.
brought together people
— to pay celebs to make
at a fuckin’ pastry store. The
just released a 20-page
from all walks of life. Just like
personalised videos.
muffins at Coles are bet-
dissertation explaining
ter anyway.
Steve would’ve wanted.
why he’s right and nah nah, you’re wrong.
The final thought
Words by Maxim Boon
There’s no fly in my soup. And that’s a big problem
S
omething’s been bugging me. And I think it should be bugging you too. A few weeks ago, The Guardian published an exclusive report about the chilling findings of a scientific investigation. It should have been the biggest story in the world. It should have had ‘round-the-clock coverage, front pages, TV debates. It should have had nations marching in their capitals, imploring their leaders to avert disaster. But a few days
The Music
•
after The Guardian story, despite being picked up by a few other media outlets, interest waned, the world turned, and this terrifying discovery slipped out of the public gaze. The report, detailing findings by a global scientific review, found declines in insect populations so drastic that, if unabated, bugs could become entirely extinct within a century. Through a mixture of aggressive agriculture, changing climate, and the widespread use of potent pesticides, creepy-crawlies — a type of life that has existed for literally billions of years — could soon go the way of the dinosaurs. That’s right. Every insect on the planet. Dead. Now, before you assume I’m a bleeding heart woke-AF eco-troll crying snowflakes over nothing, I should point out that my concern about this prediction is entirely selfish. As gross and scary as most bugs are, and I’m not ashamed to say I’ve sprayed many a can of Raid in my time, they play a crucial function in our ecosystem. They breakdown organic materials so they can be reabsorbed into the nitrogen cycle, they are the foundation of the food chain, they pollinate plants and crops. Without them, as the report states, there is a “catastrophic collapse of nature’s ecosystems”. Or put another way: we’re all extremely fucked. Let’s be clear — this isn’t a dystopian future like Mad Max or The Road. This is much worse. This is a fundamental environ-
98
•
The End
mental implosion, that will leave both animal and plant life unsustainable. Will it mean the end of humanity? Probably not — we are sufficiently technologically sophisticated that some semblance of our species will likely limp on. But it will mean the end of our civilisation, and the most beautiful but unessential aspects of that — music, art, literature, and much more — will be the first losses when our planet inches towards a sterilised, postbug epoch. The obvious question should be: how do we stop this from happening? And herein lies the rub. The only way for our planet to realistically tackle issues relating to the ecological nightmare unfolding before us, is for our governments to take drastic and immediate action. We know what’s causing this litany of environmental catastrophes, from the CO2 in our atmosphere, to the singleuse plastics clogging up the colons of sea turtles, to the overpopulation that is depleting our worryingly meagre resources. But corporate interests, political pandering, and a blinkered ignorance towards empirical evidence continue to atrophy efforts to slow this world-ending calamity. Without significant intervention and unprecedented international collaboration, meaningful change will remain meaningless rhetoric. I don’t usually like to round off this column with doom and gloom. But let’s be real, the time for quiet optimism is well and truly over.
Open Day 2019 Sat 15 Jun 9am–4pm
Performances, demos, talks, tours, workshops & more
Register to attend at nida.edu.au/open-day
Higher Education Provider ID: PRV12052
CRICOS Provider Code: 00756M
RTO Code:90349
@KALOF
Northern Beaches PCYC Free end of event buses to Manly and Mona Vale
Tickets $20 at Eventbrite $25 on door if not sold out Under 18s only; alcohol-free event
Security, no pass outs Enquiries: 9942 2401 youth@northernbeaches.nsw.gov.au
#KALOF