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THIS WEEK THINGS TO DO THIS WEEK • 11 MAR - 17 MAR 2015
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Let your fingers do the walking! It’s that time of the month again (the second Saturday, naturally) when vinyl sellers from all around SEQ (and some from much further afield) converge on West End and set up shop to flog their musical wares! For no charge at all you can move between The Boundary Hotel and the Rumpus room and satisfy a plethora of artistic wants and needs (in wax form) at the West End Record Fair.
Get ready for a major dose of the strange and surreal when GoMA opens their David Lynch: Between Two Worlds exhibition this Saturday. The complex array of art, film and music which runs over the ensuing few months examines the wonderful creative vision and occasionally twisted worldview of the wonderful auteur Lynch, with focus on his quest for finding a deeper reality amidst the mundanity of the everyday.
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BRISBANE
Paul Thomas Anderson’s career-long writer-director hit streak looks to continue merrily on its way from Thursday with the release of Inherent Vice. Anderson, possessing the ability to switch easily between comedy and drama gives Joaquin Phoenix a go at being funny; he can do everything, apparently. The story sees a paranoid private eye (Phoenix) burning out the end of the psychedelic ‘60s by attempting to rescue the current boyfriend of his former lover.
watch
JONSON STREET BYRON BAY FRI 13 MAR
VERNAS KEEP HOUSE OF LAURENCE DJ TAYA MILLS SAT 14 MAR
TIMBERWOLF AYLA SUNROSE THUR 19 MAR
TIKI TANNE FRI 20 MAR
SHERIFF ROYAL ARTILLERY GUTHRIE SAT 21 MAR
FEELING DAVE WED 25 MAR
STICKY FINGERS BOO SEEKA THURS 26 MAR
CLINT BOGE FRI 27 MAR
LUKE MORISS BAND SAT 28 MAR
STICKY FINGERS BOO SEEKA SAT 4 APR
LEPERS & CROOKS FRI 10 APR
JACKSON FIREBIRD TICKETS AVAILABLE ONLINE WWW.THENORTHERN.COM.AU
THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015 • 7
national news news@themusic.com.au
DYLAN MORAN
BLACK NO MORE PEACHES
PEACHY KEEN
It’s time to listen to the teaches of Peaches once more, with the progressive singer set to tour Australia as part of the Groovin The Moo festival. She’ll also be playing national headline shows, bringing her first studio album in more than five years, Rub, plus all the fan faves no doubt, to the stage at The Bakery, Perth, 29 Apr; The Hi-Fi, Melbourne, 1 May; The Hi-Fi, Brisbane, 6 May; and The Hi-Fi, Sydney, 8 May.
COMMUNE WITH OPETH
Rejoice! Swedish prog-metallers Opeth are returning to Australia to showcase their 11th album, Pale Communion. Last here two years ago, Mikael Åkerfeldt and the boys are playing 3 May at Enmore Theatre in Sydney, 6 May at Eatons Hill Hotel in Brisbane, 7 May at Forum Theatre in Melbourne and 8 May at Astor Theatre in Perth.
COUNTRY MEETS CITY
Two of country music’s most acclaimed singer songwriters, Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell, are set to tour Australia together, with special guest Harmony James in tow. It’ll be a show to remember when they come to Perth Concert Hall, 21 Jun; AIS Arena, Canberra, 23 Jun; Palais Theatre, Melbourne, 25 Jun; The Star Event Centre, Sydney, 27 Jun; WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong, 28 Jun; Jupiters, Gold Coast, 1 Jul.
F*@K, IT’S…
Professional skateboarder and star of Jackass, Bam Margera is returning to Australia in his other incarnation fronting Fuckface Unstoppable, a band that includes members of CKY, Viking Skull and Guttermouth, so you know it’s quality musical debauchery to match the Jackass stunts. “Balls Deep In Australia!” as the poster puts it, catch them 7 May at Manning Bar in Sydney, 8 May at The Triffid in Brisbane, 9 May at The Small Ballroom in Newcastle, 10 May at Mona Vale Hotel in Sydney, 13 May at Entrance Leagues in Bateau Bay, 14 May at Barwon Club in Geelong, 15 May at Corner Hotel in Melbourne, and 17 May at Capitol in Perth.
MAPLE, BY GEORGE
Sydney electro/soul artist George Maple has a new single out. Titled Where You End And I Begin, it’s not a Radiohead cover but it does feature a rap courtesy Philadelphia artist Grande Marshall. It’s the follow-up to last year’s debut EP, Vacant Space, and its accompanying hit single, Talk Talk, and Maple will be showcasing it, plus much more, on her maiden Australian national tour. Maple plays 23 Apr at Black Bear Lodge in Brisbane, 24 Apr at Oxford Art Factory in Sydney, 25 Apr at Howler in Melbourne, and 1 May at The Bakery in Perth.
WHY DIDN’T WE JUST GO ALL THE WAY AND SEND MARK HOLDEN? #EUROVISION OH, THE POSSIBILITIES, @DONCANDON 8 • THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015
While Dylan Moran co-wrote the comedy, Black Books, he was and is first and foremost a stand-up comedian, and has earned an enviable reputation as “the Oscar Wilde of comedy” in the process. A frequent visitor, Moran is returning with his new show, Off The Hook, playing 10 Jul at Perth’s Riverside Theatre, 17 Jul at Newcastle’s Civic Theatre, 18 Jul at the State Theatre in Sydney, 27 Jul at Melbourne’s State Theatre, 4 Aug at QPAC Concert Hall in Brisbane, 5 Aug at the Arts Centre on the Gold Coast and 15 Aug at the Royal Theatre in Canberra.
RUN TO WONDERLAND
Alison Wonderland is celebrating the release of her debut album, Run, in the way she loves best – with a whole bunch of album launch parties right around the country. Best of all, buy the album, bring along your proof of purchase and you get into the intimate gig for free. Only problem is that all the gigs have capacity restrictions, so it’s very much a case of first in best dressed. Catch her if you can 17 Mar at 66 Cecil Street, South Melbourne; 18 Mar at 33 Bayswater Road, Kings Cross, Sydney; 19 Mar at 249 Brunswick St, Fortitude Valley, Brisbane; 21 Mar at 329 Charles St, North Perth, and 22 Mar at 142 North Terrace, Adelaide.
COLLEGE HUMOR
LAFFIN’ LARRIKINS
Internet sensations and stars of College Humour and MTV’s Pranked, Amir Blumenfeld, Jake Hurwitz & Streeter Seidell, will be coming to Australia for the first time in June. You might also know Jake and Amir for their popular webseries, Jake & Amir. Seidell joined the SNL writing team last year. The three comedians will appear at Corner Hotel, Melbourne, 10 Jun; Metro Theatre, Sydney, 11 Jun; The Triffid, Brisbane, 12 Jun; Astor Theatre, Perth, 14 Jun. Special guests at all shows will be our own Josh & Steve (Free Shit Men, Magic 8 Ball).
local news qld.news@themusic.com.au
FRONTLASH ORDER IN THE COURTS
They came, they rocked, they conquered. NY indie stars Parquet Courts consolidated their reputation as one of the planet’s most exciting live acts on their killer Oz tour. Kudos.
ONYA PAUL The great man has penned a couple of enduring cricket odes over the years, now Paul Kelly’s branching out sportwise, having penned a sonnet about the beauties of AFL. Man of the people or what?
WORK BITES It’s like going back in time with The Triffid rebooting Rock Against Work 20-odd years since it last ruined a perfectly good Friday. Get into it!
PARQUET COURTS. PIC: STEPHEN BOOTH
BACKLASH PLAINS SAILING
It’s always so sad leaving Golden Plains, but it’s sweet to know the clock’s ticking on the next one. Brilliant line-up, so much fun.
SOHO WAVE So are Violent Soho on next year’s Soundwave or not? It’s been driving us mad trying to follow it, surely they’re worthy of a pretty sweet slot by now...
TOO LONG This political manoeuvring and shows of strength by Indonesia are excruciating to watch from a distance, but imagine being the guys in the midst of it. They’ve turned the whole thing into a sad circus.
BONFIRE
FRENZAL RHOMB
Bonjah have released their latest single, Burn produced by Jan Skubiszewski, who has worked with such acts as Dan Sultan and John Butler Trio. The band heads on one last run of dates before they jet off for Canadian Music Week. The indie chart toppers have enjoyed such career highs as touring with The Who. 1 May, Woolly Mammoth; 2 May, Sol Bar, Sunshine Coast; 10 May, Surfers Paradise Festival, Gold Coast.
PRETTY, WITTY AND GAY
The Arts Centre, Gold Coast, will launch the Gold Coast’s inaugural LGBTIQA festival on 12 Mar at QT Gold Coast Hotel. The festival’s program will feature exciting arts and culture celebrating all things gay – there’ll be cabaret, theatre, art gallery displays, films, live performers and street vendors. The week-long celebration is set to take place from 28 Sep, finishing up on the Labour Day long weekend on October.
TIME TO REMEMBER Co-written and produced by Grammy Award winner Joel Little, Do You Remember catapulted Brisbane singersongwriter Jarryd James into the national spotlight. Having recently opened for Broods and Angus & Julia Stone, James is putting in a quick run up the east coast headlining his own shows, including 9 Apr at Woolly Mammoth.
FRENZAL LOGIC
Intent on sharing their cumulative wisdom through song, the inimitable Frenzal Rhomb are hitting the road and taking their message to the people, for your amusement and edification, 17 Apr at Coolangatta Hotel, Gold Coast and 18 Apr at The Brightside.
LONDON CALLING
Garage rock is alive and kickin’, as evidenced by the rise and rise of London’s explosive two-piece The Graveltones. They’re releasing their debut album, Don’t Wait Down, 3 Apr, but better still, The Graveltones are heading out to introduce themselves in person, playing 12 Apr at Black Bear Lodge.
POPULATION INCREASE
Timberwolf has announced the supports for his upcoming Fallen Sun tour, with Ayla and Meredith joining him 12 Mar at Black Bear Lodge. Citizen have also announced the supports for their upcoming run of dates, with Postblue and We Set Sail joining them at The Brightside, 24 Apr; and on 25 Apr, it’ll be Postblue and Stone Hearts, at The Lab.
ON THE ROAD
Touring all too infrequently these days, the good news is that Melburnian singer-songwriter Laura Jean is doing just that, showcasing her latest and self-titled album, She hits Brisbane on 3 May to play Junk Bar.
KLP
LOCAL FRANTI
They’re even plugging these sideshows on SBS! The always amiable Michael Franti is returning to Australia with Spearhead to play Bluesfest, but while they’re all here, they couldn’t not put in as many sideshows as possible. Among those sideshows is 10 Apr at The Tivoli.
RAW FORM
In a special one-off show, MKO will abandon synthesisers, samples and her band in favour of a grand piano and her signature glimmering vocals. Here’s the chance to see her in an intimate setting. 22 Mar, Upstairs at 199.
TALKIN’ ‘BOUT PARTY
With a brand new collaborative single, Talkin’ ‘Bout It, Sydney “Mistress of Mutability”, KLP, and Brisbane’s Young Franco are dusting off the disco ball and preparing to take the party out to dancefloors across the nation. 10 Apr at Upstairs on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast and 9 May at Oh Hello!. THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015 • 9
local news qld.news@themusic.com.au THE PEEP TEMPEL
WILLA HOLLAND
SUPANOVA GIRLS
Willa Holland, aka Thea Queen in Arrow, and Rachel Skarsten, currently playing the bounty hunter, Tamsin, in Lost Girl, are the latest additions to the already ridiculously huge and exciting line-up of artists and stars that will be lighting up the universe at Supanova Pop Culture Expo 18 & 19 Apr at Gold Coast Convent ion & Exhibition Centre.
GIVE US A PEEP
GIRLS ON FILM
Iris DeMent is heading to Australia for the second time in as many years. After being absent from our shores for almost 15 years, DeMent returned in 2013 to perform three sold out shows in Sydney, Melbourne and Meeniyan in regional Victoria. This time around she will be joined by acclaimed US folk singer Pieta Brown on a tour that includes her very first shows in Adelaide, Newcastle and Brisbane. She is considered a gem of modern Americana, so if it sounds like something you’ll dig, head to Old Museum, 24 May.
The Gold Coast Film Festival will feature guest appearances by George Takei, Margaret Pomeranz and Dolph Lundgren. Running from 9 – 19 Apr and featuring Cannes Film Festival favourite Clouds of Sils Maria featuring Kristin Stewart and Juliette Binoche. Takei will screen his doco To Be Takei and Pomeranz will be joined by her stepdaughter at the inaugural women in film luncheon.
PITT THE ELDER
PUNK PITT
There surely wouldn’t be many of you that realise that Melbourne punks Pitt The Elder are referencing an 18th century English parliamentarian who would have been horrified at the thought of being represented in this way in the 21st century. How punk is that? Pitt have a debut album, At The End Of The Day, about to drop, and that means TOUR! That tour kicks off 3 Apr in the 4ZZZ carpark, followed by a proper gig 4 Apr at Crowbar.
HELPING HANDS
Fellow English singer-songwriter Jamie Lawson and local singer-songwriter Conrad Sewell have been announced at special guests on the forthcoming sold-out national tour by Ed Sheeran. 20 – 22 Mar, Riverstage Theatre. 10 • THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015
Melbourne trio The Peep Tempel have been dominating lately, thanks to their latest album Gettin’ On By. They’ve now announced a national tour in support of the record, bringing their gritty, distinctly Aussie rock’n’roll to fans at Miami Tavern, Gold Coast, 15 May; The Brightside, 16 May.
MAKE IT DOUBLE
CROM WELL
Label head/DJ/producer Andre Crom makes his way back Down Under. He’ll take to the stage to show us the more underground techhouse and techno direction he’s going in, with tunes from his newest record, The Devil. Boat Cruise, leaving from Wheel Of Brisbane, 4 Apr.
THE REAL HOUSEWIVES FORMULA IS EXACTLY THE SAME WORLDWIDE. SO COMFORTING AND UNHEALTHY. IT’S LIKE MCDONALDS.
US WRITER ROXANE GAY (@RGAY) IS HERE FOR SOME EVENTS AND DID SOME EXCELLENT LIVETWEETING OF OZ TV DURING HER DOWNTIME.
IT’S HIGH TIME
Adelaide punk rockers Hightime have a second album to unleash to the world, and they’re heading out on a national tour to do it. Get in amongst their sentimental songwriting and menacing stage presence when they bring Mother Crab to Crowbar, 4 Apr; Boat Cruise, 5 Apr.
BY DEMAND
Due to popular demand, ‘90s emo pioneers American Football have upgraded their Brisbane performance venue from The Brightside to The Zoo. They’ll be making you cry tears of happiness and sadness simultaneously on 3 Jul.
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music
THE UNTOUCHABLES When Bryget Chrisfield sits down with half of British India, frontman Declan Melia and guitarist Nic Wilson, their trajectory from 200-capacity bikie bars to sharing a stage with The Rolling Stones is discussed and a palpable newfound confidence unfurls: “Fuck trying to be cool, like, we are cool,” Melia enthuses. Cover and feature pics by Kane Hibberd.
H
ang on a minute, where’s the beers? This is The Music’s first face-to-face interview with British India that’s not in a pub. Clad in all black, frontman Declan Melia is running late and appears frazzled. “You wouldn’t think it’d take half an hour to get a taxi on a Thursday morning, but it did,” he says in trademark, rapidfire fashion. Guitarist Nic Wilson is also seated at a boardroom table inside Mushroom HQ. On British India’s longevity, Melia casts his mind back
two pubs in town and if you pick the wrong pub, no one’s fuckin’ going. If you pick the right one, you’re gonna have a fuckin’ ball.” The band spent some time recording album number five, Nothing Touches Me, in Berlin and the fact that producer Simon Berckelman (aka Berkfinger from Philadelphia Grand Jury) has a studio there proved a drawcard. “We admired his stuff with Art Vs Science and Velociraptor – they’re really well produced [albums] – but then we heard something that he’d done for a lesser-known band, Red Ink, who were kind of from where we’re from [sonically],” Melia explains. Although a lot of the material was rerecorded locally at
also, and I said this at the time: it felt for the first time like British India were exactly where they need to be at exactly the right time in a way that probably we hadn’t felt since we recorded the first album [Guillotine] in Sydney with Harry Vanda. Every album since then, the recording process has felt like a compromise but that there, it just felt great. Granted, as I said, and I’ll repeat that a lot of what you hear on the record was redone.” “We like to think of it as; the album was so good that we recorded it twice,” Wilson laughs and Melia joins in, “Yeah, ha ha, but something kinda happened over there [in Berlin] that made the album better as far as I’m concerned… When we came back from there we saw how the album could be – you know, how much better it could be. It was kinda like, ‘We’re here [marks a spot in the air with one hand], but we can get to here’ [defines another point in space with his other hand]. And so there was a matter of, once we were back, just making that happen.” “And also because of the time it took to realise that it was all wrong, and to reorganise the recording, a lot more songs got written,” Wilson adds. “So you kibosh, you know, and it just made [the album] stronger.” “The process of getting there was less to do with the sound and more to do with the kind of philosophy,” Melia muses. “And I think I’ve been talking to some people today and I realised, or theorised, that I think – certainly me – never before have we been less embarrassed by what British India is. I think if I listen to Avalanche and Thieves and Guillotine, we were
“NEVER BEFORE HAVE WE BEEN LESS EMBARRASSED BY WHAT BRITISH INDIA IS.”
and then works out that, since they formed in Year 12, they’ve existed as a band for 12 years. British India are renowned for gigging hard in all corners of our Great Southern Land and, when asked what the smallest capacity rural venue would be that they’ve ever played, Melia estimates, “200? Like, remember Chilli Lounge in Wyong? That was really small.” Wilson remembers it, alright: “Yeah, that was a bikie bar. We were young enough and loud enough to sort of work in all those places.” “I met some women who were probably in their mid-30s, but they seemed really old at the time, who gave me a bong upstairs… They were like, ‘Oh, do you want some spin [tobacco] in it?’ I thought they meant speed and I’m like, ‘I don’t want any crack,’ so I said no and then they just gave me a pure thing.” Wilson illuminates, “A straight bong.” “I was 18,” Melia says. “I was, like, fucked outta my head. [Makes a descending, whistling sound].” When it’s pointed out that Melia is lucky he didn’t wake up missing a kidney, he admits, “I was missing a T-shirt, which is even worse.” In British India’s experience, playing outback shows can be a gamble; one would assume that considering so few bands pass through that the entire town population would turn up. “Then you go to a place and it’s Roger’s fuckin’ 18th birthday and it’s like, ‘How fuckin’ small is this town?’” Wilson opines. “It’s incredible, there can be 12 • THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015
Sing Sing Recording Studios, he says British India’s time in Berlin “was still instrumental to the whole process”. “We went over to Berlin with a very different record than we came home with, you know. It really kinda galvanised how we wanted the record to be.” As hard as the band try to stay away from Sing Sing, Melia ruminates, “It just seems to work there. It just hit the spot in a way that it didn’t – I’m not sure, we’re the ‘unproduceable’ band perhaps.”
kind of – I was maybe more than the others – almost embarrassed to be such a guitar band, to be so rock, you know?” Does Melia suspect this was because of other Australian bands – The Presets, Cut Copy, Midnight Juggernauts – that were popular around that time? “Oh, a big part of it,” he allows. British India’s “breeding ground” was The Duke Of Windsor, the Melbourne pub where Jet also honed their craft. The Vines were also making waves around this time. “Look, I say to this day that we’re far better than both those aforementioned bands, but that’s just me,” Melia declares.
On Berlin, he gushes, “It was just a breeze. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that that was one of, like, the golden periods of my life [laughs]. I just loved it. A lotta love between the four of us, you know, really locking in. And
When they’re back home in Melbourne, Melia reckons it’s hard not to absorb the music around you. “It’s very in your face. Like, we would drive to the studio – me, Will [Drummond, bass] and Matt [O’Gorman, drums] – and we’ll be listening to triple j and so you hear what’s coming out and you hear what all the kids are listening to. Then, you know, you’ll be on a festival bill and you’ll see that this band is billed above you because they sound a certain way. And then you go to Berlin and you don’t hear any of these records, and you don’t
“This record, and it might be something to do with being in your late 20s where you kinda know who you are, like, ‘This is me, this is it,’” he offers. So I think with this record we were unashamedly British India in a way that – and that happened in Berlin, you know, that was like, ‘Fuck trying to be cool, like, we are cool,’ and that’s why the record, to me, sounds much more confident than any of the others.”
PLANE ADVICE “This is the worst rock’n’roll story ever, but we were on a plane and we met the guy from Goanna,” Melia says before jokingly adding, “It’s very glamorous being in British India, you get to meet people like Goanna. When you talk to Cut Copy, they’ll be saying how Kanye was in their dressing room – we met the guy from Goanna [Shane Howard].” So obviously the band always travels first class. They laugh knowingly and Wilson contributes, “Tiger [Airways], near the toilets.”
think about these bands – they’re not in your head – and then suddenly you play differently, you know.” After recovering from the disappointment of The Rolling Stones cancelling their Hanging Rock appearance last year due to lead singer Mick Jagger battling a throat infection (British India were scheduled to support the legends together with The Preatures), both bands were fortunately also booked for The Stones’ regional performance at Hope Estate Winery in the Hunter Valley. And we need stories. “It was cool,” Wilson recalls. “If one of them [The Stones] needed to get from A to B, if they were walking past, it was like boom gates going down. Everyone had to sort of stop and let them pass… Even if you’re a roadie and, like, need to plug something in you just have to stand there and wait until they’re gone and then it’s like, ‘Ok, everybody! Get back to what you were doing!’” “We got to meet them,” Melia reveals. “We were kinda told during the day, ‘Oh, be here at quarter to nine and you’ll get to meet the guys.” Although he admits to being “just a bit cynical” about the whole thing, Melia quickly clarifies, “I mean, I was obviously gonna do it.”“I was kinda standing there grumpily but then – you know, I don’t consider myself someone who really falls for celebrity – when they walked out I was like, ‘Fuck! It’s them!’ They had a real presence, it was really awesome.” “And Mick’s a fist bumper, he won’t shake [hands] ‘cause the germs,” Wilson continues.
“But we got a photo and then The Preatures got a photo and I read about how The Preatures talked to them for 15 minutes,” Melia points out. Wilson utters under his breath, “Bullshit,” while Melia continues: “And Mick Jagger said to the girl [Isabella Manfredi], ‘Oh, I really loved your singing,’ or whatever and, yeah! Absolute bullshit. We were there the whole time.” Acknowledging that they were the only people present who could disprove what he labels an “absolute spin”, Melia then jokes that his band
are “bitter fuckheads” for calling The Preatures out. “But it literally takes the amount of time that it takes to take a photograph,” Wilson elaborates. “It’s just like chk-chk-chk, all right, ‘cause they do it on the way to the stage.” “They said, this is the best time for [The Rolling Stones] to do the photo and I just thought, ‘That sounds insane,’” Melia asserts. “Like, you know, on the way to the stage when you’re nervous. But that’s the time when they’re in their makeup and in their gear; that’s when they’re happy to get their photo taken.”
Solid Rock by Goanna is a corker of a track. “That may be, but,” Melia chuckles, “he said all kinds of things, you know, talking about the glory days, and then as we got off the plane he looked at Nic and said, ‘Make hay while the sun shines,’ you know?” Wilson stresses, “It just starkly resonated.” “It’s the best advice we’ve ever got,” Melia continues. “So as well as wanting to tour and wanting people to hear the songs, we wanna do as much as we can while we’re still around, you know. There’s a ticking time bomb on your career in music for sure, and no one’s more conscious of that than us, so we just wanna do as much as we can while we’ve got hair [laughs].”
WHAT: Nothing Touches Me (Liberation) WHEN & WHERE: 1 May, Soundlounge, Currumbin; 2 May, Urban Country Music Festival, Queensland State Equestrian Centre THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015 • 13
music
ROOTS INTERNATIONALE Pulling together a band drawn from a variety of cultures, Xavier Rudd has created something quite new, for him anyway, as Brendan Hitchens discovers.
“I
wasn’t sure what I was going to call the band and I didn’t have a name until after we had made the record,” reveals Xavier Rudd on The United Nations, the fitting title for his new backing band of international musicians. Subtly referencing his activism, the name’s strongest connection is to the band members, who come from all corners of the globe and represent the cultures of Australia, Indigenous Australia, South Africa, Samoa, Germany and Papua New Guinea. “Everyone was hanging their flags in the studio when we were making the record and there were all the nations’ flags around from everyone that was in the band. I was just like, ‘This is The United Nations,’ and we had the name.”
While Rudd’s previous albums have been a mixture of folk and blues-inspired roots music, Nanna, his eighth album, finds the Byron Bay-based musician head in a reggae direction. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do, this project, but I was very, very patient with it. I wanted it to be really heavy and powerful, so it needed to be right in every way. I’ve waited and this year presented the time. Everything was right musically, spiritually, physically and literally. All those things that were pending for this kind of a project lined up and it all just came together.” An album inspired by creation and
music
reconciliation, as a storyteller and lyricist, Rudd’s strength lies in his ability to transform the negative into something uplifting and enriching – lead single, Come People, a prime example, mobilising listeners to take a stand and unite. “In a musical space, you can go to the heart, the root of what makes us happy and what makes us dance. We can sing about our struggles with pride and power and with happiness, because we’re making music and nothing else matters at that point.” Riding high on the global success of his 2012 album, Spirit Bird, which saw him tour to all corners of the world over 30 months, Rudd is ready to hit the road. “I love playing music. I love this band and I love this record. I should probably learn to say no a bit more, but there’s so many great artists in the world playing great music that don’t have the opportunities that I have. I have been really blessed, so out of respect for other artists and for what I do, I dig in and go for it. It can be tiring and you need that little piece of home to fuel up again but the shows are very powerful. It’s good medicine.” The multi-instrumentalist is renowned for playing guitar, didgeridoo and percussion, often all at once. This time around however, with the aid of an eight-piece band that includes guitar, bass, drums, percussion, keys, horns, flute and backing vocals, he’s relinquishing much of the responsibility but couldn’t be more excited. “We rehearsed and made a record. It’s going to be super powerful. It’s a pumping band and going to be amazing live. I can’t wait.” WHAT: Nanna (Salt X/Universal) WHEN & WHERE: 22 Mar, The Tivoli; 5 Apr, Bluesfest, Byron Bay
STILL HARD Celebrating the release of his first new album in seven years, Jimmy Cliff tells Michael Smith he’s still got a lot to say.
H
e’s best known outside the UK for his contribution, as an actor and a songwriter, to the 1972 Jamaican crime thriller, The Harder They Come, for which he wrote the title track. However, by then Jimmy Cliff had already been a hitmaker for a decade, scoring his first hit, albeit only in Jamaica, with a tune titled Hurricane Hattie, when he was just 14. “Well you know something?” Cliff begins, on the line from Miami, recalling his audacity in fronting up to the only real recording studio in Kingston, Jamaica, and telling the owner, Leslie Kong, he should make a record. “In the life, you just do what you have to do. You know, if I hadn’t done that, coming from where I’m coming from [St James Parish], out of a ghetto situation, and not wanting to live the way I see some of my friends live… and they’re not around anymore – something like that said, ‘I gotta do this,’” he chuckles. “I was pretty confident, but when you find yourself in a situation, you’d better step up to the table.” His latest album, 2012’s Rebirth, was produced by Rancid frontman Tim Armstrong, the collection a mix of Jimmy Cliff originals and some choice covers, including The Clash’s The Guns Of Brixton and Rancid’s Ruby Soho. “Reggae music was quite influential on punk music, because the political/social aspect of it is parallel to
14 • THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015
each other. So it was very interesting. I had quite a few songs, but we did write quite a few as well while we were going along.” Alongside tracks like Reggae Music, which recounts that first meeting with Leslie Kong, there are songs of social commentary like Children’s Bread, inspired by a tour through West Africa. “Indeed it’s a very important message. The social aspect of my career, my writing as an artist and all of that is something that comes very natural. I’m sensitive to it and they do come natural. Unfortunately, we have to find a way to use the resources of Africa more wisely, to help all the people,
and I hope that our leaders wake up and have a more collective thinking for now in the future, ‘cause I think that is one of the problems, is individual thinking. Even in Jamaica, life has improved… for some. For quite a lot, life hasn’t really changed that much since I was a boy, you know? That’s another thing we are striving to work on, to see that our leaders again, in Jamaica and the Caribbean, think more collectively. “But you know, this thing of ‘politics’? I looked up the word ‘politics’ and I saw that ‘poli’ means people, and ‘tic’ is a blood-sucking parasite that prays on lives of others, so essentially, the nature of politics is like that. So you might get one or two people go into the arena of politics with a good intention, but once you get into that arena, boy they change overnight. That’s the thing right here we have to work on.” WHEN & WHERE: 2 & 3 Apr, Bluesfest, Byron Bay
GETTING THERE Russell Peters chats to Evan Young about breaking records, an awkward moment with Jon Bon Jovi, and his latest acting gig.
W
hen The Music calls up Canadian comedian Russell Peters, he’s enjoying a picturesque afternoon by the beach in Malibu, California. Having just returned to North America from Africa and Asia before heading our way for a two-and-a-half-week stay to perform his new show Almost Famous, Peters is enjoying a rare few days off. “I leave for Australia very soon, and I’m looking forward to being back,” he says excitedly. Back in 2010, Peters set an Australian record for the largest audience at a stand-up comedy show, before breaking it on his next visit in 2013. Australians obviously love him, and according to the funnyman
himself, the feeling is mutual. “Australia has always been phenomenal for me,” he says. “It’s funny, in 2010 I set the record, and then in 2013 I broke the record that I set. I love being there.” Despite smashing records and winning the attention, laughs and hearts of countless fans around the world, Peters admits he still gets a little starstruck, recalling a story from the set of 2011 rom-com film disappointment New Year’s Eve. “Have you seen that cinematic classic?” he asks me abruptly, self-deprecating sarcasm in full effect. “On the first day on set, I had just met Jon Bon Jovi and [we] were just standing beside each other
waiting for the director to yell ‘action’. I’m freaking out thinking: ‘Holy shit, that’s Jon Bon Jovi beside me.’ All of his songs are going through my head when we’re standing there dead quiet. So to break the tension I go, ‘Hey, you know that part [in Livin’ On A Prayer]: ‘Johnny used to work on the docks...’ And without missing a beat he goes, ‘It was Tommy.’ And then you hear ‘ACTION!’” he winces. “But he took it well [and he] is actually one of the coolest dudes I’ve ever met. He’s just so cool, a real classy guy. Not what you’d expect from a rock star.”
comedy
It’s not unusual for stand-up comedians to drift into film and television these days, and having been performing for more than two decades now, Peters’ acting resume has grown considerably. Chef, Bob’s Burgers, Last Comic Standing and Mr D have all since joined New Year’s Eve on his film and TV CV, exhibiting his impressive versatility as a performer. But while he is very excited about an acting gig he’ll do shortly after his Australian tour, Peters admits stand-up is his true passion. “I’m actually doing an episode of Family Guy next month. That for me is huge, because I have been huge fan since it started in 1999. I’ve been with the show as a fan for the past 15 to 16 years,” he says. “However, I feel the most at home when I’m doing stand-up, and always feel a little bit out of my element when I’m doing the other stuff. It’s what I’ve been doing for 26 years, that’s what I’ll be doing in the new show and hopefully, for the rest of my life. So yeah, Australia, get your ass down there!” WHAT: Russell Peters: Almost Famous World Tour WHEN & WHERE: 22 Mar, Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre
THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015 • 15
music
NIGHT MOVES DZ Deathrays stumbled organically onto the formula that’s endeared them to so many, but drummer Simon Ridley tells Steve Bell that in their minds the party’s only just beginning.
T
he last few years have been a wild ride for Brisbane-based duo DZ Deathrays, the friends – Shane Parsons (vocals/guitar) and Simon Ridley (drums) – having blitzed all-comers with their hyper-energetic brand of dance-punk. Just a few years back they were a fixture on the Brisbane house party circuit, now they’re just as likely to be found hobnobbing backstage at festivals in London or New York as they are in some beer can-strewn backyard. “I guess in the beginning we just wanted to make something for house parties where we could just play and it would be fun,” Ridley recalls. “But then after a while we thought, ‘Let’s try and go as far as we can
with this,’ and after that it was just working jobs so that we could go and play shows to nobody down in Melbourne or whatever. It was always that kind of progression from the outset.” This early ambition paid handsome dividends immediately, their hybrid of rock and dance earning global accolades pretty much everywhere they ventured. Having achieved so much traction Ridley sees little point altering this successful formula too dramatically. “I always hated bands when I was younger that changed their sound,” he smiles. “I think that DZ has always been a party band, so as long
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as it can exist within a party atmosphere we should be fine. [2014 second album] Black Rat was always written as a nighttime record – there’s thrashy moments for early in the night when everyone’s energetic, and then there’s slower songs for the end of the night when everyone’s kinda lethargic and boozed out and that sort of thing. In my mind, Northern Lights is like a 3am song, and that’s how we wanted it to flow – it has dance elements, it has rock elements. “Shane and I both like going to see crazy rock bands at the start of the night when you’re boozing hard, then you go to a dance club and just hang out, and then you go back to someone’s house and just listen to chilled-out music – that’s how we approached Black Rat. We always wanted it to be a nighttime sort of thing. So I think we’ll always keep it like that – music that’s appropriate for partying or nighttime.” Does all of the success achieved in such a relatively short time – such as winning an ARIA for Best Hard Rock/Heavy Metal album for Bloodstreams in 2012, and Black Rat last year – add pressure to the creative process? “No, not at all,” Ridley laughs. “I still live with my girlfriend at her mum’s house – we’re not rockstars or anything. It’s still just us having fun. There’s no gigantic gains or losses to be made – I still just feel like it’s us making music for us and our friends to enjoy. That kind of sounds selfish, but it’s got to be – if we don’t enjoy the songs then why the fuck are we making them?” WHEN & WHERE: 13 & 15 Mar, The Brightside; 15 Mar, Music Industry College; 21 Mar, El Grande Festival, Gladstone
GHOST BUSTIN’ When Canadian trio BADBADNOTGOOD were given the opportunity to make a record with rap legend Ghostface Killah, they thought it was too good to be true, keyboard player Matty Tavares tells Tom Hersey.
“H
onestly, until I actually saw the test pressing of the record, I never thought it would come out as this full LP,” says Matty Tavares of Sour Soul. He wasn’t alone; there were serious doubts in the BADBADNOTGOOD camp. On paper, it seems like a weird move for bona fide rap god to hitch his wagon to a trio of jazz musicians from Toronto who like to dabble in minimalist electronica. Tavares takes us back to the record’s genesis to explain how it evolved: “Frank Dukes, who produced this record and is a really good friend who we now share a studio with, came to us three years ago and said, ‘Do you want to do a Ghostface record?’ because he had toured with him. So that’s where the initial plan got started before anything got locked in with Ghostface. Then we went to New York and left the songs with Frank, just instrumentally, because we were thinking, ‘Yeah, this would be cool but if it doesn’t work out we’ll still have these songs,’ but then he rapped on all of them. Then over the next three years we kept going back and forth to make it a real record.” That back and forth, stuffed between BBNG and Ghostface’s busy touring schedules, was the time where Tavares’ doubts about the record really started to grow. He was aware it might never happen, just like the long-rumoured Supreme Clientele sequel or
16 • THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015
the DOOMSTARKS full-length. “There were so many times that we were making it that we thought it wasn’t going to come out. We wanted the songs to be really good and Ghost wanted them to be really good, but we were touring so much and he was touring so much that getting little moments where we could get things into place was really hard.” The timing of the album proved a blessing and a curse for BADBADNOTGOOD. While they were working on their record, Killah would go ahead and do two full-lengths with live instrumentation: 2013’s Twelve Reasons To Die with Adrian
Younge and last year’s 36 Seasons with The Revelations. “We started working on it before Ghost had even done that Adrian Younge record, and all these other records he was doing with bands, so that was a bit disappointing. When we started we thought we were going to make this record, as a band, with Ghost, and then he did these other records… But then I kind of started to think it was cool that he’d done those other records. Because we both kind of interpreted similar influences in very different ways.” For all the similarities between the last three Ghostface Killah records, Tavares is quick to point out a major difference. Sour Soul eschews the regular guest verses from the usual suspects, and helps to contemporise, if not revitalise, Ghost’s sound. “[Sour Soul] doesn’t have anybody from Wu-Tang on it. And that was on purpose, because we wanted to see how Ghost would sound like somebody like Danny Brown, or like DOOM – because obviously they’re amazing when then do stuff together.” WHAT: Sour Soul (Lex/Warner)
STORE.THEMUSIC.COM.AU
ORDER NOW ! !
STORE.THEMUSIC.COM.AU
THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015 • 17
music
DOING NO WRONG One of the most genuinely Aussie bands around, The Bennies are enjoying huge success of late. Guitarist Julien Rozenbergs chats to Kane Sutton about ‘photobonging’ and meeting his heroes while touring the US.
“I
t’s been pretty hectic, but we had a bit of time off at the start of the year to do a bit of writing, so that’s been a pretty fuckin’ good chill out time to get back into making new songs and stuff.” Rozenbergs and The Bennies certainly did have a huge 2014, catapulting themselves into the watchful eye of triple j with their banger of a track Heavy Disco, and taking themselves all the way over to the US, where they quickly became famous for something entirely unrelated to their music. “We sort of woke up and it had gotten like a million hits or whatever.”
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Rozenbergs is talking of a supposedly accidental image of theirs that went viral thanks to Reddit, which depicts Rozenbergs himself in a mirror reflection, puffing on a bong while the other members pose for a photo. “It sort of originated while we were in Canberra touring with The Dead Kennedys, I think, and I think it was accidental. I actually can’t remember how the second one – the one that got a lot of attention – it was the first couple of days in the States and a good chance that that was snapped completely accidentally, and then we realised... It was one of those things, I don’t know if
it’s because it’s the States or whatever, like they’d never seen a bong before, we kind of thought, ‘Oh, fuck,’ you know, you can’t try and do that stuff.” Aside from that, the band still had a fantastic time in the Land Of The Free. “It was fantastic, man. Getting a chance to meet a lot of our heroes, that was a big component.” They didn’t just get to play alongside these heroes either. “We actually recorded a few tracks before playing in Florida, and we were recording next to this brewery, and The Interrupters, which we’re big fans of, were actually playing during our dinner break in the evening, and they ended up coming back and partying and recording on the tracks with us. Those weird moments, it goes back to that dumb luck, we couldn’t have organised that, and it just seemed that in the States we could do no wrong... It was really nice to bring our brand of rock’n’roll there to see how we would fare against it, and people were so supportive and receptive, so it put a big boost in our sails, man. We played everything from dive bars to DIY spaces to big shows, and every turn was like, ‘Fuck, this is like the bar from Cheers.’ No matter what happened, there was something good to draw from it.” It’s busy times for The Bennies currently, the band gearing up for a national tour around the country this month. As Rozenbergs sees it, it’s their job as a band to continue doing just that. “We love to play, we’re a band. It’s a loose belief, it’s not a doctrine, but you know, bands tour, our role models tour, and as an Australian band, we like to feel that we’re holding the torch of a touring act, and I suppose we’re seeing the benefits of having that attitude.” WHEN & WHERE: 14 Mar, Crowbar; 15 Mar, The Time Machine, Nambour
HAPPY MEN Sunnyboys’ vibrant music is once more being unleashed on the world, only, as bassist Peter Oxley explains to Steve Bell, now it sounds how they originally heard it in their heads.
T
he triumphant return of iconic Australian ‘80s legends Sunnyboys continues unabated. After reissuing an expanded version of their seminal self-titled 1981 debut last year, the remainder of their catalogue – 1982’s Individuals and 1984’s Get Some Fun – is getting the same treatment, having been re-mastered and expanded with extensive bonus tracks. But with Individuals the overhaul goes ever further. It’s a predominantly different mix altogether, comprising the rough mixes that producer Lobby Loyde had compiled during the album’s recording in New Zealand, ultimately a far more accurate representation of the album that the band had set out to record. “We re-mastered [the rough mixes] because we didn’t like the mix of the Individuals album when it came out,” explains bassist Peter Oxley. “We were going, ‘Oh man, that’s how the record should have sounded!’ We were really glad to get those so that we could prove to ourselves that we hadn’t made a badsounding record. When Individuals came out we were still young, and we realised soon after that that we didn’t really have much control over what happened in the big world, because when we heard that original mix we went, ‘Oh no, that sounds awful! Please can we remix it?’ Essentially we weren’t allowed to, so those rough mixes were a revelation for us all. It did make us angry at the time, and I think it really knocked the steam out of us. It stopped us in our tracks, basically; because we 18 • THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015
weren’t happy with how it sounded we had great difficulty in playing those songs live – we sort of just avoided it. Which is really unfortunate, because I think that there’s some really fantastic songs on that record.” Get Some Fun is also an underrated affair, with frontman Jeremy Oxley’s songwriting undergoing a quite fascinating evolution. “He was getting heavier, in both the sound and the chord structure,” his brother recalls. “He was moving slightly away from that pure pop that he’d been writing. At the time he was really influenced by Robert Fripp and Adrian Belew [of UK prog rockers King Crimson], they were the guitar
players that he really loved so he was trying to get that texture happening in the songs. On [1977 David Bowie single] Heroes, Robert Fripp plays on that, and all that textural guitar stuff was what Jeremy was really into.” And while recording the album in the UK Sunnyboys got to play their only ever overseas shows, including some anecdotally brilliant (albeit misunderstood) gigs at the Marquee Club. “We were a really tight band and we played really well,” Oxley smiles, “and we could be quite heavy sometimes too, but back then we all had really short hair and the feedback from all the record companies that were in attendance was all about our haircuts! They all asked, ‘Are these guys a skinhead band?’ Which was really strange because we were all just little surfers from Australia with short hair!”
WHAT: Individuals/Get Some Fun (Feel Presents) WHEN & WHERE: 12 Mar, The Triffid; 13 Mar, The Tivoli To read the full interview head to theMusic.com.au
THE OLD FIRM They were his halcyon days, but Bruce Foxton never imagined his revisiting The Jam back catalogue would be so enthusiastically embraced. Michael Smith talks to The Man From The Jam.
B
ass player Bruce Foxton spent 15 years in one of the seminal UK New Wave bands, Stiff Little Fingers, but it’s for his halfdozen incendiary years in The Jam that he is best remembered. Today he finds himself travelling to Australia for the first time in an unexpected but more than welcome “revisiting” of The Jam catalogue, as From The Jam, and he’s chuffed. “Yeah, that’s life isn’t it?” Foxton suggests philosophically. “No one knows what’s round the corner. Thankfully, throughout my career, and I know
it’s a cliché, but as one door closes another one opens. I’ve been very fortunate – there’s been more highs than lows. With The Jam, we served our apprenticeship – we cut our teeth treading the boards up and down the country – and my style of bass playing developed as The Jam developed.” Foxton certainly wasn’t thinking about putting together a tribute to the band that put him on the international musical map and broke up in 1982, when the opportunity arrived. He’d been touring with a new band, The Casbah Club, formed in 2004 and fronted by Simon Townsend, Pete’s brother,
opening across the UK for The Who. They’d released an album, Venustraphobia, and in 2006, the band just happened to be on the same bill as a band playing Jam covers and featuring former Jam drummer, Rick Buckler, called The Gift. Buckler invited Foxton up for a couple of songs, it felt great and From The Jam was duly born. A couple of years in, Buckler left and Foxton brought in his Casbah Club drummer, Mark Brzezicki, who’d been in Big Country among other acts. Taking up the essential frontman/guitarist spot in The Gift and now From The Jam is Russell Hastings, ably filling those very big Paul Weller shoes.
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“I hadn’t played with Rick on stage in 28 years and it was fantastic,” Foxton admits of that first night. “The spark between Rick and myself – and the audience – was still there. So we got asked were we gonna do more, which I did; towards the end of 2006 I did a little guest slot, played a few more songs, and in 2007 we said, look, it’s going really well, there is a demand out there, shall we take it on full time?” Thus From The Jam was born, and demand has seen them touring pretty constantly in the intervening years, including much of Europe, the US and Canada as well as the UK. But it’s not all about the past. Foxton released a solo album, Back In The Room, last year. “Russell and myself are looking at writing the next one at the moment, but Back In The Room really helped to raise my profile again – not just ‘the bass player that used to be in The Jam goin’ out playing Jam songs’ – and we’re playing a couple of the songs of it in the set.” WHEN & WHERE: 13 Mar, Twin Towns, Tweed Heads; 14 & 15 Mar, New Globe Theatre
SECRET INGREDIENT
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While there have been tours with another guy, for Garrett Dutton, who travels as G Love, it’s getting the old bassist back into Special Sauce that’s made everything new, as he tells Michael Smith.
T
he email that accompanies confirmation the interview with The Music is happening warns that the artist must be addressed as G Love, or more familiarly G, not Garrett Dutton. For all that, G Love, on the line on tour from Portland, Oregon, is as approachable and chatty as ever, chuffed with the latest album, Sugar, and overjoyed that the original Special Sauce double bassist, James Prescott, is back in the fold. “The band’s really playin’ great,” he explains, obviously pleased. “You know, something magical happens when Jim, Jeff [Clemens, drums] and I play. I mean of course I can play my songs solo acoustic, I can play ‘em with an orchestra, I can play ‘em with anybody and I’d just be doin’ my thing, but there is definitely somep’n really special about the three of us pulling it together and it’s hard to put a finger on it but we have a certain chemistry and it’s really great.” The story’s well known but basically back in ’93, G had recently moved to Boston from his native Philadelphia when he scored a fill-in gig opening a night at an Irish pub his then girlfriend was working at and was spotted by Clemens there, who called up Prescott, and the blues/soul/hip hop hybrid G Love & Special Sauce were born. Fast forward seven
albums to 2009 and Prescott opted out, but as of January last year, he was back and the trio headed into the studio. “When we went to make Sugar, we hadn’t played together in a few years, but man, it just came so naturally, Jim and Jeff in the pocket together. Jim has a really interesting way of making up bass lines and he’s a very unique musician. He’s a big part of the sound, the melodic bass lines that he comes up with. I think it’s interesting to be with musicians like that, who surprise you and push you and do things you wouldn’t have thought of yourself. That’s the whole point.”
Sugar began as something of a heartbreak album, but with the return of Prescott, it morphed into a celebration of being in a band through all these years and making it through. “I had kind of recorded half of the record and, yeah, it was, like, a lot of heartbreak songs and I’d recorded them all,” G chuckles, “and the label was like, ‘No, go do another session. We don’t think you’ve got a full record here.’ So I said, ‘Alright, lemme go and record this other group of songs,’ and it was the songs that we hadn’t recorded kind of because they had a whole different thing about ‘em and I thought, ‘Oh, this is way more refreshing to hear about than how I got my heart broken again,’” he admits, laughing out loud. “And actually, I didn’t even really think about it theme-wise. I was just thinkin’ about it song-wise and style-wise. And it happened to be about the pursuit of music.” WHEN & WHERE: 2 & 3 Apr, Bluesfest, Byron Bay THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015 • 19
★★★½
album/ep reviews
XAVIER RUDD & THE UNITED NATIONS
BRITISH INDIA Nothing Touches Me Liberation
Nanna
ALBUM OF THE WEEK
Salt X Records/Universal There are some stylistic hints to be taken from Xavier Rudd choosing to have his eighth record mixed in Jamaica by Errol Brown, known for his work with Bob Marley, Alton Ellis and a long list of other luminaries – Nanna is more reggae than any record we’ve heard from the Australian master of roots experimentation, though, true to form, it’s no one-dimensional affair. Boasting a supergroup of musicians from around the world, Nanna may be bereft of self-sufficient acoustic pop/folk gems like Follow The Sun, though strip the joyful Rusty Hammer of its flute riff, brass flourishes and didge breakdown and the bones of Rudd’s instinctive feel for a tidy pop progression are revealed. Flag is robust in message and in structure, particularly given Georgia
Corowa and Alicia Mellor’s classy harmonies that elsewhere, on the sun-drenched While I’m Gone, offer a warm and deeply feminine anchor. Lead single, Come People is typical of Rudd’s lyrical sense of spirit, land and community – as is Nanna on the whole – and it offers some surprising instrumentation in the form of classic piano tones that one would not normally associate with reggae styling; the entire record goes a long way to challenging preconceptions of the genre. Rudd’s percussive, bluesy roots are missed for a moment, though Nanna is best experienced with an open mind, and heart. Tyler McLoughlan
★★★★
THE RAAH PROJECT Take Me Elsewhere Equinox Recordings The RAah Project could never be accused of thinking small. The vision of the ambitious Melburnian duo is undeniably widescreen, taking in the spirit of Australian pub rock, the sweeping sounds of a full-blown orchestra and sprinkles of their original incarnation within the city’s hip hop and dance scenes. Their sprawling second album is dreamy, sombre and angsty, yet ultimately uplifting, vocalist Ryan Ritchie straying into Tex Perkins territory only to be rescued from the abyss by swelling orchestral strings and the ebbing and flowing of aggressive drum patterns and flashes of electro-tinged synth. Darren Collins 20 • THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015
The Melbourne group’s new album is reminiscent of early Wombats and Brit pop of the early ‘00s – there’s something so lovable about it. Spider Chords features the line, “She is lighter than a feather, I am heavier than lead,” and this is only the beginning of the prolific lyrics that lead vocalist, Declan Melia, sings out. There’s also an appropriate build in this opening song to complement the weight of those lyrics. Angela was a strategic ploy, writing a song with a girl’s name in order to take that romantic angle; it’ll make sales with its heartfelt pleas to “Lie down next to me.” Things begin to get more electronic indie pop in Suddenly, clean and emotive with plenty of those one-liners that are evenly dispersed throughout the whole 12-track album.
★★★ ballad, Jay Walker, is a little underwhelming, nor is the title track the strongest track, though it has the potential to be. Aside from a few ‘skip over’ tracks with some missed opportunities to draw in greater indie influences, the album does feature some great songs that should be noted. In the final one, Departure Lounge, with its strong Vampire Weekend-style intro, the album ends light as a feather, but could have hit as heavy as that aforementioned lead. Emilie Taylor
The boys have not been overly zealous with experimentation, but hard work has clearly been put into the release. However,
★★★
★★★★
★★★★
DJ YODA
MODEST MOUSE
Kartel/Shock
Epic/Sony
Yoda seems like the type of guy who’d ask, “What does this button do?” Never afraid to throw seemingly disparate sounds together, with scant regard for the consequences, the UK DJ/producer’s latest creation is a hip hop album, but not as most would know it. Under the rhymes of a clutch of English rappers, trappy hi-hats hiss at big bands and blues, hard club beats squeal like a pig for backwoods banjo, and ‘50s doo-wop is skewered with near-ravey breaks. Despite being intriguing and kinda fun, it has limited appeal.
One of the least likely indie crossover successes in recent times continue on their merry way with their first album since 2007, and its strength and depth reflects its relaxed gestation. As ever, frontman and creative chief Isaac Brock’s acerbic and often bleak worldview is front and centre, offset by often jaunty and uplifting music, while the complex arrangements are ambitious with plenty happening in the margins. Brock’s trademark bouncy vocals return on up-tempo tracks like Lampshades On Fire and Sugar Boats, while pared-back tunes like Shit In Your Cut and Ansel bring a welcome diversity.
Speed and technicality characterise Psycroptic’s sixth full-length; terrorising, unrelenting blast beats play as scales are traversed with undeniable style and flair. Intelligent breakdowns offer juicy guitar riffs and the standard pace is mostly 100 miles a minute. There are some wicked vocal patterns on a standout A Soul Once Lost, the composition of which will wow the bollocks out of you as the culminating guitar solo weaves in and out of a breakdown. The record is purely satisfying carnage. The skill and integrity involved in writing music of this calibre is the product of years of dedicated practice. Purchase!
Steve Bell
Jonty Czuchwicki
Breakfast Of Champions
Darren Collins
Strangers To Ourselves
PSYCROPTIC Psycroptic EVP
album/ep reviews
MORE REVIEWS
themusic.com.au/music/album-reviews
★★★★
★★★★
TOBIAS JESSO JR
SWERVEDRIVER
True Panther Sounds/ Remote Control
Poison City Records
Goon
Tobias Jesso Jr is shaping up to be one of those Hollywood zero-to-hero stories. It started with Jesso sending a hopeful email to Chet “JR” White (from the band Girls) and ended with him shacked up on White’s couch recording Goon. The result is a fearless collection of piano-driven ballads that evoke the big-hitters of yore. Nowhere in recent memory has an entire album full of such shamelessly heart-on-sleeve piano ballads been attempted by an artist on an indie label, let alone executed with such deft, evocative precision. Alex Michael
I Wasn’t Born To Lose You
★★★★
THE CHARLATANS Modern Nature Cooking Vinyl
Dick Diver – Melbourne, Florida Darlia – Petals
UK shoegaze legends Swervedriver have finally released their fifth album (and first this millennium), a fluent, reflective collection less reliant on volume and grunt and more focused on nuance and texture. That said, their distinctive noise-pop aesthetic hasn’t altered significantly; softly-layered guitars awash with reverb and delay still weave in and out, although all rough edges have been sanded down and frontman Adam Franklin’s vocals seem smoother and more effusive. Effortless melodies still abound, and the whole thing has a dreamlike quality that is more pretty than powerful.
Not even losing yet another key member (drummer Jon Brookes, to brain cancer) can keep The Charlatans down. The melting pot of Charlies trademarks – Tim Burgessಬ stoned, nasal vocals; Tony Rogersಬ Hammond organ-ics; Northern English blue-eyed soul – coagulate in upbeat reflection for their 12th album. The gospel-tinged Come Home Baby, So Oh and the itchy skiffle of Emilie should soundtrack summer coastline drives. Best of all is Let The Good Times Be Never Ending, a seven-minute jubilation that refuses to let tragedy get the better of making Modern Nature such a soulful repast of nourishing energies.
Steve Bell
Mac McNaughton
Soko – My Dreams Dictate My Reality The Tango Saloon – Suspicion All That Remains – The Order Of Things Pete Cullen – Saltwater Cowboy Jayteehazard – Red Shift To Kill A King – To Kill A King
THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015 • 21
live reviews
LONDON GRAMMAR, WET, UNTIL THE RIBBON BREAKS Riverstage 7 Mar Relishing their very first Aussie trip, UK trio, Until The Ribbon Breaks’ set coincided with the setting sun. A quick 30-minute set showcased how Pete Lawrie-Winfield’s original solo project has taken off since 2012. Including drums, keys, synth and brass, the band had something for everyone and enticed eager punters off blankets and down to the barrier early on.
straight into Disclosure’s Help Me Lose My Mind featuring the stars of the night. The standout quote, “You know it’s a big show when there’s a nacho van at the back of the crowd” summed up the night. There was an air of importance to the show after such a long time between visits that lead vocalist (aka goddess) Hannah Reid had to say that even though Australia is so far away, it still feels so much like home. A deafening singalong to Strong supposedly ended the night before a genuine encore chant resulted in two last tunes, If You Wait and Metal & Dust, with a blinding light show teamed with Reid’s vocals pushing the performance to new heights, elating every soul and leaving everyone hoping
LONDON GRAMMAR @ RIVERSTAGE. PIC: DAVE KAN
Following suit were American three-piece Wet, with their stunning mix of electronic, groove, pop and R&B to boot. Dreams was spun early on and perked sets of ears all round. The too short set consisting of just five songs, merely whetting the audience’s appetite. Thirty to 40-minute breaks felt a little stretched but each time the lights dimmed for the next act to start, it felt worth the wait. A five-minute build of layered textures, lights and smoke had fans bursting at the seams before London Grammar’s opening track, Hey Now had even begun. Melting a tentrack setlist together, their flawless record now fades in comparison to the live rendition. Flickers introduced slow bongo percussion that ended in booming drum machine heights before diving 22 • THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015
through the molasses haze, and while they’re wilfully discordant at times, Matt Kennedy’s slightly nihilistic purview makes for some cool rock tunes. Conversely, Blank Realm have been playing swags of shows of late – as well as being squirrelled away recording a new album – so they’re in red-hot form, with their ever-present simpatico understanding taken to giddy new heights. Recent standards like the supercharged Acting Strange and delightful Reach You On The Phone still hold many wonders, but the true delight tonight occurs with the unveiling of two new songs. NY indie icons Parquet Courts take the stage to a heroes’ reception and bring an adrenaline rush from the outset, You’ve Got Me Wonderin’ Now,
LONDON GRAMMAR @ RIVERSTAGE. PIC: DAVE KAN
that it’s not as long between visits for London Grammar. Stephanie Oakes
PARQUET COURTS, BLANK REALM, KITCHEN’S FLOOR The Zoo 5 Mar Locals Kitchen’s Floor have long been mainstays of the Brisbane underground scene in different guises but have been strangely absent of late, so it’s great to see them back tonight and in typically damaged form. They exude a calculated sloppiness but songs like Down betray hooks to burn peering
to full band treatment in the live realm, while Duckin’ & Dodging propels forward in an ecstatic surge and Pretty Machines jettisons hooks like they’re going out of fashion. The lyrics spit forth like raging torrents of strange slogans, only every grab holds up to close scrutiny as being intelligent and essential, Content Nausea’s propulsive title track hitting like a cavalry charge before they finish a breathtaking set with the singalong glory that is Light Up Gold II, which runs straight into the machine-gun clatter of Sunbathing Animal. They file offstage never to return, because a set that good requires no encore. Parquet Courts have delivered once again, and to ask for more would be simply selfish. Steve Bell
PARQUET COURTS @ THE ZOO. PIC: STEPHEN BOOTH
Bodies Made Of and the frenetic Black And White barrelling past in an amphetamine blur before they’ve even had time to register. Co-frontman Andrew Savage is the band’s live fulcrum and spews more words in a single song than some singers would emit in an entire gig, but he’s unflinchingly erudite and delivers with complete conviction, which in turn ushers a tangible purity of essence. The four-piece are like a machine in the way they intuitively lock into unrelenting grooves, drummer Max Savage and bassist Sean Yeaton bringing as much to the table as the Savage/Austin Brown vocal combination wielding the axes. Songs from recent lo-fi release Content Nausea, such as sprawling Southern gothic epic Uncast Shadow Of A Southern Myth and the urgent Psycho Structures translate wonderfully
MORE REVIEWS
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DRAKE @ FUTURE MUSIC FESTIVAL. PIC: TERRY SOO
Drake @ Brisbane Entertainment Centre Mogwai @ The Tivoli Sharon Van Etten @ The Zoo Future Music Festival @ Doomben Racecourse
arts reviews situation to situation; people drop in and out of the narrative, occasionally providing some necessary nugget of information or insight but more often just adding a chunk of texture. It’s kind of a mess. I loved it.
INHERENT VICE
INHERENT VICE Film
In cinemas 12 Mar
★★★★ ½ Inherent Vice is a movie under the influence. It’s high on the aesthetic of 1970s cinema, the source material of Thomas Pynchon’s novel and writerdirector Paul Thomas Anderson’s affectionate but clear-eyed take on the story’s woozy, stoned California milieu and colourful gallery of characters. The plot meanders from place to place,
It’s the hippie lifestyle of the late ‘60s, personified by private eye Larry ‘Doc’ Sportello ( Joaquin Phoenix), who’s drawn into a complex conspiracy when old flame Shasta (Katherine Waterston) turns up on his doorstep spinning a tale about a plot being hatched against her wealthy new lover. Doc’s moral compass and deductive faculties are rendered a tad fuzzy by the dope smoke he inhales almost as regularly as oxygen but they’re still operational and he delves into a mystery involving drug-dealers, neo-Nazis, missing persons, medical malpractice and a malevolent something-orother called ‘The Golden Fang’. My advice? Don’t try too hard to make head or tail of what’s going on; just go with Anderson’s flow and enjoy what happens as it happens. Guy Davis
THAT SUGAR FILM Film
In selected cinemas from 17 Mar
★★★ ½ Somewhat ironically, Australian actor and filmmaker Damon Gameau uses the cinematic equivalent of a spoonful of sugar to help the medicine go down in his new documentary That Sugar Film, which explores the hidden and insidious effects fructose and refined sugars have on the everyday diet. Diligently providing a wealth of information and expert commentary about the history of the dreaded white powder (not to mention its other covert incarnations) and its effects while shrewdly sidestepping a dry or didactic approach, Gameau presents his pitch in a lively, entertaining fashion that has candy-coloured visuals and the kick of a sugar rush.
There’s plenty of substance accompanying the style, however, with Gameau taking the Super Size Me tactic of making himself the guinea pig by ingesting sugar for 60 days (in the ‘healthy’ form of fruit juice, muesli bars and low-fat yoghurt) after swearing off the stuff for years. Alarmingly, even this relatively brief period under sugar’s sway has a detrimental effect on Gameau physically and psychologically. It’s enough to make you drop your chop-top. Guy Davis
THAT SUGAR FILM
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THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015 • 23
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the guide
GO GO FISH
Answered by: Scott – lead yelper/guitar pilot. How long have you been together? Gosh, how long is a piece of string? Four years. A piece of string is four years long. How did you all meet? I went out on kerbside collection one night and picked up a minibar fridge. When I got home Ash [Shanahan] tumbled out of it and she kept nervously hitting things so I made her the drummer. Ange [Hibbard] chased me home from the shops one day shouting about chemtrails and I offered her a bass guitar in exchange for her groovy hemp shoes. We turned up to the band practice room and Cool Eric was already standing there completely naked except for his guitar and he somehow knew all the songs. Weirdly enough, the room had been locked from the outside... You’re on tour in the van – which band or artist is going to keep the most people happy if we throw them on the stereo? I think the only one all four of us agree on would be Frank Sinatra. Would you rather be a busted broke-but-revered Hank Williams figure or some kind of Metallica monster? Monsters for sure. We have a running joke about our ultimate #PleasureTour where we travel from city to city on yachts made of cocaine. Which Brisbane bands before you have been an inspiration (musically or otherwise)? Musically, Screamfeeder, Iron On, The Grates and Tape/Off. Alcoholically, Velociraptor. Is your band responsible for more make-outs or break-ups? Why? Break-ups. We accidentally introduced Eva Prinz to Thurston Moore at an ‘80s karaoke contest we were MC-ing at Kaliber. What reality TV show would you enter as a band and why? RuPaul’s Drag Race because it’s the only one I’ve heard of and it’s Ash’s favourite show. I never knew she liked cars so much... What’s in the pipeline for the band in the short term? Our EP If I Go Down I’m Taking You With Me is out now on Bandcamp, we launch it at the Beetle Bar on 28 Mar and we’re playing Sonic Masala Fest this weekend! Go Go Fish play Sonic Masala Festival 2015 @ Greenslopes Bowls Club on 14 Mar.
Pic: Terry Soo
THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015 • 25
eat/drink steph@themusic.com.au
VEGAN EATS
JIM MORRIS
It can be hard eating out as a vegan. Thankfully, there are a few eateries dedicated to serving up delicious vegan food; Evan Young lists a few.
SUB IT IN A lot of vegan cooking just involves substituting meat/ dairy products with other things. It’s just swapping a set of staples with a different set of staples. Like...
PIC: MATTIE HAGEDORN
Loving Hut – 2/1420 Logan Rd, Mount Gravatt It’s a tough world out there for vegans, with every second meat-eater and restaurant ready to discriminate against your dietary decisions. With everything from fakon to vegan pet food, the proverbial light from the sky shines down on Loving Hut. Literally teeming with natural, healthy and delicious food, you can definitely feel the love – and it tastes like laksa, carbonara and chow-mein. The Green Edge – 2B/229 Lutwyche Rd, Windsor “Oh, I couldn’t go vegan; it’d be too hard.” Every vegan has heard this one before, and so, The Green Edge sets out dispel the idea that 26 • THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015
veganism is a grim way of life. With extensive options in both their grocery store and delicious café menu, in truth, being vegan has actually never been more effortless or enjoyable. Kuan-Yin Tea House – 198 Wickham St, Fortitude Valley Friendly, healthy and oh so yummy, the endearing allure to this quaint little Chinese eatery extends far and beyond the delicious food on offer. The mains are all incredibly clean and very cheap, and they’ll also deliver and cater large events. Just be careful, the dumplings, mushroom noodle soup and salt and pepper “oysters” might ruin every other restaurant for you. Don’t say we didn’t warn you. Oh, and they’ve got an awesome blog, too!
Eggs: if baking something that calls for egg, you can substitute with a ‘chia egg’: one part ground chia seeds with three parts water (let it sit until it becomes an eggwhite-like texture). You can also use flax seeds instead of chia. Or use silken tofu. Cow’s milk: you can use any other milk, like soy, almond, rice, coconut... Meaty texture/ protein: soybased faux meats; tofu/tempeh. Cheese and cream: imitations made from nuts (eg. cashews) or tofu. A basic vegan cheesecake recipe involves cashews, coconut milk, coconut oil, lemon juice and agave nectar (with a base of dates and walnuts). Gelatin: agar agar, a gelatine-like product made from seaweed. Honey: agave nectar, stevia, malt syrup, molasses, brown rice syrup.
Jim Morris is a 79-year-old vegan bodybuilder from the US. He’s coming to Australia as part of the Sydney and Melbourne Vegan Festivals, and we were lucky enough to snag a Q&A with him. Briefly tell us a bit about your bodybuilding career. I started out at the age of 19 as an Olympic lifter with lifts of 235 press, 245 snatch and 305 clean and jerk in the 181 pound class for six years. I then did power lifts briefly before specialising in bodybuilding contests. I was living in New York and won all the major titles on the east coast before moving to Los Angeles in 1969. Arriving, I immediately won the Mr Los Angeles and Mr California titles followed by the Mr America and Mr USA titles. In the 1970 Mr America I was 37 years old, the oldest person to ever win the title and the only openly gay to ever win. My last competition was the Master’s Mr Olympia where I won the over-60 class. I was 61. How long have you been a vegan and why did you decide to take it up? I became vegan in 1999 after 20 years as a vegetarian out of curiosity as to what it would feel like to have a totally pure system. It’s great. What is your diet like? I eat all manner of beans, grains, fruits nuts, seeds and vegetables. My protein comes from hemp seeds. What’s your favourite meal? My favourite meal is a bowl of bean soup with yams, butternut squash and carrots cut up in it. Do you think veganism has expanded over the years and what do you think about the modern vegan community? Veganism is exploding everywhere I go. Restaurants seem to be spreading faster than markets but they are so much more of all outlets. I am reminded of the hippie generation and the Flower Children of my youth by the current vegan community. I think a lot of them are adults now and practising what they have always believed.
the guide qld.live@themusic.com.au
INDIE NEWS
CHART WRAP
MUSICAL BINGO
REVVING UP
EXCELLENT COMPANY
Disco Danny hosts Musical Bingo at Byron Bay Brewery on Thursday. Danny plays a short version of a song. If you have it on your card, mark it off. Cross off two lines to win. Prizes include an OB5 Cruiser Skateboard.
Get primed for Sonic Masala Fest by getting to Trainspotters 12 Mar and rocking out with Gazar Strips, Keepaways, On VHS and The Bear Hunt, or 14 Mar with The Vanns, pictured, Youth Allowance and Parkside Orchestra.
Australian country-folk artists Josh Rennie-Hynes, pictured, Caitlin Harnett, and Liam Gerner are touring together this week. They play Wednesday, Black Bear Lodge and Friday, Currumbin Creek Tavern, Gold Coast.
FRIENDLY ENEMY
ON THE ROAD AGAIN
HOUNDS CALLING
Coolangatta foursome Mass Sky Raid bring their latest single, Enemy, to the people Friday at Coolangatta Hotel and then 19 Mar at New Globe Theatre.
Hasn’t been long since they opened for US all-grrrl punks The Coathangers, and now Babaganouj wanna show fans their new single – Can’t Stop. Catch ‘em Friday at The Spotted Cow, Toowoomba and 20 Mar at The Foundry.
Brisbane band Hound combine their love of ‘80s post punk and ‘90s alternative rock in new single God Is Calling. They were born on a steamy, beerfuelled evening hanging out on a balcony; get to know ‘em on Saturday at The Foundry.
THE WOLF PACK
STRANGER NO MORE
IN THE CEASEFIRE
Indie/folk/rock roots artist Timberwolf has announced the supports for his upcoming Fallen Sun tour, with Ayla and Meredith joining him this Thursday at Black Bear Lodge.
Singer-songwriter Lisa Crawley has just announced the release of new single Stranger, which will be accompanied by an east coast tour. She’ll play at Habitat Restaurant & bar, Friday and The Loft, Surfers Paradise, Saturday.
Pop-punks Double Lined Minority bring their Caught In The Ceasefire EP to town this week. Thursday, Beetle Bar; Friday, Griffith University, Gold Coast; and Saturday, Upstairs 199.
HARTBREAKER
DO THE CREEP
FRIDAY FUNDAY
Melbourne funk rock virtuoso Harts has a new single, Breakthrough, and is keen to show it off live with east coast shows. Catch him rocking the stage on Friday at new Brisbane venue The Foundry.
Luke Escombe’s new EP, Creeper Vine, draws inspiration from the likes of Chuck Berry, The Rolling Stones and Elvis, as well as waxes lyrical about modern urban life. Escombe takes it to stages including Saturday, The Milk Factory.
This Friday The Triffid presents Rock Against Work, featuring live music from 2pm courtesy of Born Joy Dead (the new project of former Hungry Kids of Hungary bassist, Ben Dalton) and White Lodge (‘60s psych, fuzz and garage punk).
FOR MORE HEAD TO THEMUSIC.COM.AU
THE BENNIES
Melburnian punk outfit The Bennies have nailed a hat trick across the Carlton Dry Independent Music Charts’ Singles, Albums and Radio Play rankings, with a top 20 debut on each. Respectively, their Heavy Disco EP claims #19, the fulllength Rainbows In Space slides in on the borderline at #20, while Heavy Disco – the single – steps out for the airwaves at #12. The Bennies also manage the sole debut on the Singles chart, though they’re joined by Pearls and Pretend You’re Mine (#18) in the Albums stakes, with the Radio Play chart the only cabal to face a significant shakeup this week, debuts – including some new top-10 entries – coming from Roland Tings (Pala, #8), Vallis Alps (Young, #9), Sia (Hostage, #10), Dorsal Fins (Mind Renovation, #15), Miami Horror (Love Like Mine, #18) and Kučka (Divinity, #20). The Singles chart is still in thrall to Sia’s dominance, with the singer claiming #1 and #3 for another week with Elastic Heart and Chandelier respectively, while Chet Faker also remains a prominent force, with four entries – songs at #2 (Talk Is Cheap), #10 (Gold), #11 (1998) and #12 (Drop The Game, with Flume). Sheppard’s resilient Geronimo drops out of the top five to #6, overtaken by the upwardly mobile Vallis Alps’ Young taking the #5 spot. The Smith Street Band’s acclaimed LP, Throw Me In The River, also makes a move up this week to #4 from #6, as Faker’s iTunes Session release drops away to #7 to make room for Flight Facilities (Down To Earth, #2) and more Faker in Thinking In Textures at #3, pitching up a spot, while Sticky Fingers (Land Of Pleasure) hold fast at #5 for another week. THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015 • 27
the guide qld.live@themusic.com.au
ALBUM FOCUS
HAVE YOU HEARD it be and why? This Is Not The Way Home - The Cruel Sea. Great instrumentals, vocals, Tony Cohen - what more could you want? There’s even a Captain Beefheart classic. A unique band when everyone else was consumed by grunge.
GRENADIERS Answered by: Jesse Coulter Album title? Summer Where did the title of your new album come from? It seemed a succinct title and related to a lot of the subject matter lyrically. How many releases do you have now? Summer is our second album. Our first is called Songs The Devil Taught Us. How long did it take to write/record? Hard to say, as it was done in bits and pieces over a long time. Probably a couple of years.
Was anything in particular inspiring you during the making? Cheap port, mainly. What’s your favourite song on it? Probably Stay Inside. Will you do anything differently next time? Whether intentionally or not, yes. Every albums process is different, no matter what. But I think next time we may try recording live. When and where is your launch/next gig? Soundlounge, Currumbin, 1 May. Website link for more info? facebook.com/grenadiersmusic
THE WET FISH Name: Brendan Murphy When did you start making music and why? This line-up started in 2013. A couple of us were doing surf instrumentals around town ten years ago and it’s something that we felt Brisbane needed more of so we got it going again. Sum up your musical sound in four words? Surf, spy, rock, party.
Website link for more info? thewetfish.com
If you could only listen to one album forevermore, what would
JUST VISITING
going to be part of our yet to be named next album.
travelling through Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia. Can’t wait!
What was inspiring you during the song’s writing and recording? Watching people dancing at our shows. Plus a bunch of old literature. I had just read The Great Gatsby, believe it or not.
Answered by: Mike Zietsman Single title? If He Can’t Dance ft JungFreud What’s the song about? About the positive correlation between poor dancing performance and poor bedroom performance. (If he can’t dance then he can’t fuck.) How long did it take to write/ record? It took us a fair bit to finish it because of our touring schedule when we started writing it. But in all it was probably two weeks in the studio start to finish.
We’ll like this song if we like... If you like that Mariah Carey song, Hero, you’ll fucking hate this song. Do you play it differently live? We play it slightly differently live. We’ll probably do a live rework soon. When and where is your launch/ next gig? 13 Mar, Underdog. Website link for more info? phfat.com
What do you know about Australia, in ten words or less? John Butler, Great Barrier Reef, bush telephone, Wolfmother and Fosters.
Z-STAR Why are you coming to visit our fair country? For the music, sun, beaches, barbies and crocodiles. What better place to escape the British snow, have some fun, make a few mates mate and tour our forthcoming album 16 Tons Of Love! Is this your f irst visit? Yes and I’m stoked as I’ve friends down under. Though my electronic project SlowTrainSoul (Coalition) surfed the Ozzie airwaves before.
Any extra-curricular activities you hope to participate in? Shark swimming and koala hugging. What will you be taking home as a souvenir? A bush telephone and a tour tee signed by all our new music lover friends and artists we’re performing with. Where can we come say hi, and buy you an Aussie beer? Black Bear Lodge, 15 Mar Website link for more info? zstarmusic.com
How long are you here for? Two gloriously soul skankin’, mind-blowin’ months from 7 February until 7 April. We’ll be
Is this track from a forthcoming release/existing release? It is 28 • THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015
Why should people come and see your band? We’re regenerating great tunes and forgotten genres of music that you’ll unfortunately rarely hear on any radio or television stations. When and where for your next gig? Brooklyn Standard, 14 Mar and Sunday Sessions On The Green, River Quay, 29 Mar from 2pm. Both free.
If you could support any band in the world - past or present - who would it be? Los Straitjackets, this week in Brisbane. Shame we ain’t supporting but we’d probably double up on some material anyway!
SINGLE FOCUS
PHFAT
Greatest rock’n’roll moment of your career to date? Pretty tame these days, trying not to drink away gig earnings with today’s drink prices! I was inebriated and took the wrong guitar after playing a gig once. It was a dodgy one too. Is that rock’n’roll enough?
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I N D E P E N D E N T
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WED 11TH MAR
Z-STAR (DOUBLE SET) (8:30PM) + (9:30PM)
THU 12TH MAR
STUDENT NIGHT: THE SUNDAY REEDS (10:30PM) + ELSTON GUNN (9:30PM)
FRI 13TH MAR
GAMLA STAN (10:00PM) + GUEST (9:00PM)
SAT 14TH MAR
THE STATS (10:00PM) + GUEST (9:00PM)
SUN 15TH MAR
THE VULTURES (9:30PM) + GUEST (9:30PM)
MON 16TH MAR
OUT OF THE DEPTHS (9:30PM) + GUEST (8:30PM)
TUE 17TH MAR
ST PATRICK’S DAY FEAT: THE KNOCK BACKS (9:30PM) + RINGPULL (8:30PM)
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the guide qld.gigguide@themusic.com.au Double Lined Minority: Griffith University, Nathan
THE MUSIC PRESENTS 65daysofstatic: The Hi-Fi 11 Mar DZ Deathrays: The Brightside 13 Mar El Grande Festival: The Hi-Fi 20 Mar Mojo Burning Festival: New Globe Theatre 21 Mar Xavier Rudd & The United Nations: The Tivoli 22 Mar Bluesfest Byron Bay: Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm 2-6 Apr Mavis Staples: Brisbane Powerhouse 8 Apr
WED 11
Liam Gerner + Josh RennieHynes + Caitlin Harnett: Black Bear Lodge, Fortitude Valley Eagles: Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Boondall Brisbane Comedy Festival: The Pineapple Club + ImproMafia: Brisbane Powerhouse (The Comedy Channel Laughter Lounge), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: You Know What I’m Like + Anne Edmonds: Brisbane Powerhouse (Rooftop Terrace Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Fire in the Meth Lab + Jon Bennett: Brisbane Powerhouse (Graffiti Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Undercurrents + Cal Wilson: Brisbane Powerhouse (Visy Theatre), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Up to Pussy’s Bow + Mel Buttle: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Cane Toad Effect + Corey White: Brisbane Powerhouse (Graffiti Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: I Can’t Believe I Cared + Damien Power: Brisbane Powerhouse (Rooftop Terrace Room), New Farm
San Cisco: SolBar 14 May, Coolangatta Hotel 15 May, The Triffid 16 & 17 (U18) May Supersuckers & The Bellrays: The Zoo 22 May
Paula Girvan Trio: Sofitel Brisbane (Cuvee Lounge Bar), Brisbane Dan Sultan + Pierce Brothers: The Arts Centre Gold Coast, Surfers Paradise 65daysofstatic + Tangled Thoughts Of Leaving + The Red Paintings (Acoustic): The Hi-Fi, West End Buffy Sainte-Marie: The Tivoli, Fortitude Valley
THU 12
Double Lined Minority + Set The Record + When Heroes Fall + Ambience: Beetle Bar, Brisbane Timberwolf + Ayla + Meredith: Black Bear Lodge, Fortitude Valley
GIG OF THE WEEK DZ DEATHRAYS: 13 MAR, THE BRIGHTSIDE Brisbane Comedy Festival: Chalkboard + Various Artists: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm
Luca Brasi + Gnarwolves + Tired Lion: Crowbar, Fortitude Valley
Brisbane Comedy Festival: You Know What I’m Like + Anne Edmonds: Brisbane Powerhouse (Rooftop Terrace Room), New Farm
Jam Session with Andrew Garton + Libor Smoldas: JMI Live, Bowen Hills Skyscraper Stan & The Commission Flats : Lefty’s Old Time Music Hall, Brisbane Rufus Wainwright: QPAC, South Brisbane The Sunday Reeds + Elston Gunn: Ric’s Bar, Fortitude Valley Tiki Taane + Ben Merito + Asher Chapman: Solbar, Maroochydore Emma Beau + Amy Vee + Bree De Rome: The Bearded Lady, West End Lulu & The Cutthroats + The Boys + Switchblade Suzie: The Brightside, Fortitude Valley Jess Ribeiro: The End, West End Lewis Watson: The Lab, Brisbane
Brisbane Comedy Festival: The Pineapple Club + ImproMafia: Brisbane Powerhouse (The Comedy Channel Laughter Lounge), New Farm
Cody Jones & the Lost Company + Leichhardt: The Milk Factory Kitchen & Bar, South Brisbane
Brisbane Comedy Festival: You Know What I’m Like + Anne Edmonds: Brisbane Powerhouse (Rooftop Terrace Room), New Farm
Sunnyboys + The Riptides: The Triffid, Newstead
Brisbane Comedy Festival: Fire in the Meth Lab + Jon Bennett: Brisbane Powerhouse (Graffiti Room), New Farm
Rick Barron + Amy Shark: Coolangatta Hotel, Coolangatta
Brisbane Comedy Festival: Cane Toad Effect + Corey White: Brisbane Powerhouse (Graffiti Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: I Can’t Believe I Cared + Damien Power: Brisbane Powerhouse (Rooftop Terrace Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: The Motherload + Em Rusciano: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm
Tiga: Oh Hello!, Fortitude Valley
Brisbane Comedy Festival: Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred + Tom Ballard: Brisbane Powerhouse (Visy Theatre), New Farm
The Douldie Men: Brisbane Brewing Co, West End
Brisbane Comedy Festival: Up to Pussy’s Bow + Mel Buttle: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm
Devil’s Kiosk + Eddie Boyd & The Phatapillars: Royal Mail Hotel, Goodna
Ingrid Michaelson + Jack Carty: New Globe Theatre, Fortitude Valley
Peace: The Zoo 6 May
Brisbane Comedy Festival: Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred+Tom Ballard: Brisbane Powerhouse (Visy Theatre), New Farm
Sinead O’Connor: QPAC (Concert Hall), South Brisbane
Black Majic: Logan Diggers Club, Logan Central
sleepmakeswaves: The Northern 1 May, The Zoo 2 May
Brisbane Comedy Festival: The Motherload + Em Rusciano: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm
John Butler Trio + We Two Thieves: Mackay Entertainment Centre, Mackay
John Butler Trio + We Two Thieves: Kuranda Amphitheatre, Kuranda
Urban Country Music Festival: Caboolture 1-3 May
Brisbane Comedy Festival: Undercurrents + Cal Wilson: Brisbane Powerhouse (Visy Theatre), New Farm
Tech N9ne + Krizz Kaliko + Lane Harry x Ike Campbell: Eatons Hill Hotel, Eatons Hill
Lisa Crawley + Hannah Rosa: Habitat Restaurant & Bar, South Brisbane
The Beards: Spotted Cow 30 Apr, The Triffid 1 May, The Northern 3 May
Rufus Wainwright : The Tivoli, Fortitude Valley
John Butler Trio + We Two Thieves: The Venue, Townsville City Performing “Doubt”+ Jesus Jones: The Zoo, Fortitude Valley
FRI 13
Darkroom feat. Dro Carey + Cliques: Alhambra Lounge, Fortitude Valley Hits + Mick Medew & The Rumours + Big Bongin Baby: Beetle Bar, Brisbane Brisbane Comedy Festival: Sandyland + Sandra Bernhard: Brisbane Powerhouse (Powerhouse Theatre), New Farm Knockoff + Various Artists: Brisbane Powerhouse, New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: The Pineapple Club + ImproMafia: Brisbane Powerhouse (The Comedy Channel Laughter Lounge), New Farm
S U P P O R T I N G
Brisbane Comedy Festival: Fire in the Meth Lab + Jon Bennett: Brisbane Powerhouse (Graffiti Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Undercurrents+Cal Wilson: Brisbane Powerhouse (Visy Theatre), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Up to Pussy’s Bow + Mel Buttle: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Cane Toad Effect + Corey White: Brisbane Powerhouse (Graffiti Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: I Can’t Believe I Cared + Damien Power: Brisbane Powerhouse (Rooftop Terrace Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: The Motherload + Em Rusciano: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred + Tom Ballard: Brisbane Powerhouse (Visy Theatre), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: That Other Guy + Matt Okine: Brisbane Powerhouse (Powerhouse Theatre), New Farm Fingerprint: Brothers Leagues Club, Manunda Dillion James: Cardigan Bar, Sandgate MofoIsDead + Mass Sky Raid + Neon Tiger + The Round Persuasion: Coolangatta Hotel, Coolangatta A Breach Of Silence + As Paradise Falls + Sensaii + Trinatyde + Redheron: Crowbar, Fortitude Valley Liam Gerner + Josh RennieHynes + Caitlin Harnett: Currumbin Creek Tavern, Currumbin Waters Jesse Morris: Eat Street Markets, Hamilton Jessie J + Tim Omaji (aka Timomatic): Eatons Hill Hotel, Eatons Hill Renegades of Rhythm with DJ Shadow + Cut Chemist: Family Nightclub, Fortitude Valley
I N D E P E N D E N T
Green Jam Sessions with Erin Fitzsimon Quartet: QPAC (Melbourne Street Green), South Brisbane Z-Star: Queen Street Mall (Stage), Brisbane Hip Hop Night feat. Vainz + Tombstone + Mix Blood Brothers + Diggis + Soundbugz: Raintrees Tavern, Manunda Panga & The True Blues: Royal Mail Hotel, Goodna The Ska Vendors + The Fun Addicts: Solbar, Maroochydore Speak Easy + Ocean St Markets: Solbar (Lounge Bar), Maroochydore Lane Harry + Ike Campbell + Jesswar + Scott Dalton: Soundlounge, Currumbin Kele: TBC Club (The Bowler Club), Fortitude Valley Pre-Sonic Masala Fest 2015: The Bearded Lady, West End DZ Deathrays + Bass Drum Of Death + Hockey Dad: The Brightside, Fortitude Valley Harts: The Foundry, Fortitude Valley Ingrid James & Julian Jones Duo: The Lido Cafe & Restaurant, Ascot Babaganouj + Hound + The Bacchanales: The Spotted Cow, Toowoomba Sunnyboys + The Riptides: The Tivoli, Fortitude Valley Rock Against Work with Born Joy Dead + White Lodge: The Triffid, Newstead PHFAT + Tryumph + more: The Underdog Pub Co, Fortitude Valley Los Straitjackets + Big Sandy & The Oz-Rite Boys + The Hi Boys: The Zoo, Fortitude Valley CMC Rocks Queensland 2015: Willowbank Raceway, Willowbank Tiki Taane: Woolly Mammoth, Fortitude Valley
SAT 14
DJ Indy Andy: Albany Creek Tavern (Creek Bar), Albany Creek
Tha Alkaholiks + Solomon Childs + DTACH + more: Beetle Bar, Brisbane House of Laurence: Black Bear Lodge, Fortitude Valley Brisbane Comedy Festival: The Pineapple Club + ImproMafia: Brisbane Powerhouse (The Comedy Channel Laughter Lounge), New Farm
A U S S I E
M U S I C
the guide qld.gigguide@themusic.com.au Brisbane Comedy Festival: Chalkboard + Various Artists: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Tales from the Old Country + ImproMafia: Brisbane Powerhouse (Rooftop Terrace Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: You Know What I’m Like + Anne Edmonds: Brisbane Powerhouse (Rooftop Terrace Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Undercurrents + Cal Wilson: Brisbane Powerhouse (Visy Theatre), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Up to Pussy’s Bow + Mel Buttle: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Cane Toad Effect + Corey White: Brisbane Powerhouse (Graffiti Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: I Can’t Believe I Cared + Damien Power: Brisbane Powerhouse (Rooftop Terrace Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: The Motherload + Em Rusciano: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred + Tom Ballard: Brisbane Powerhouse (Visy Theatre), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: You Don’t Know What You’re Talking About + Ronny Chieng: Brisbane Powerhouse (Powerhouse Theatre), New Farm The Wet Fish: Brooklyn Standard, Brisbane The Bennies + Foxtrot + The Disables + Goon On The Rocks: Crowbar, Fortitude Valley Judah + Jesse Morris: Eat Street Markets, Hamilton The Vanns: Grand Central Hotel, Brisbane Bonez + Barefoot Alley: Mary’s Commercial Hotel, Dalby Irish Sessions + Ger Fennelly: Mick O’Malley’s, Brisbane From The Jam with Bruce Foxton + Sarah McLeod + Mick Skelton: New Globe Theatre, Fortitude Valley Skank Patricks Day + The Funaddicts + more: Prince of Wales Hotel, Nundah Mason Rack Band + Ryan Giles: Royal Mail Hotel, Goodna Dubmarine + The Hayden Hack Infusion: Solbar, Maroochydore Grace Knight: The Arts Centre Gold Coast, Surfers Paradise Manhunt + Internal Rot + Shackles + Ill Natured + Golden Bats: The Bearded Lady, West End Corn Liquor + Midnight Son & The Crime Scene + Megan Cooper: The Boundary Hotel, West End Capture The Crown + Polaris: The Brightside, Fortitude Valley Hound: The Foundry, Fortitude Valley
Biscuit Factory feat. Must Die! + Apashe + Dodge & Fuski: The Hi-Fi, West End
Brisbane Comedy Festival: Spaghetti for Breakfast + Sam Simmons: Brisbane Powerhouse (Visy Theatre), New Farm
Lisa Crawley + Jacob Lee + Amera Tabet: The Loft, Surfers Paradise
Brisbane Comedy Festival: Free Wil + Wil Anderson: Brisbane Powerhouse (Powerhouse Theatre), New Farm
Afrojack: The Met (Coco Room), Fortitude Valley
The Knock Backs + Ringpull: Ric’s Bar, Fortitude Valley
Luke Escombe & The Corporation + Aquila Young + Josh Rennie-Hynes: The Milk Factory Kitchen & Bar, South Brisbane
Brooke Fraser: The Hi-Fi, West End
Formidable Vegetable Sound System + Lee Hardisty: The Motor Room, West End Macy Gray + Special Guests: The Tivoli, Fortitude Valley The Stone Fox + My Fiction + Dr Parallax: The Zoo, Fortitude Valley Double Lined Minority: Upstairs 199, West End Kele + Nicky Night Time: Wharf Tavern (The Helm), Mooloolaba CMC Rocks Queensland 2015: Willowbank Raceway, Willowbank Oblivians + The Onyas + Woodboot + Happy Times: Woolly Mammoth, Fortitude Valley
SUN 15
Hushka + Z-Star: Black Bear Lodge, Fortitude Valley Christine Anu + Tyus Arndt + Churchie Soul Band: Bond University, Robina Mitch King: Brewski, Brisbane Livespark feat. Jo Meares + House of Lawrence: Brisbane Powerhouse, New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: The Pineapple Club + ImproMafia: Brisbane Powerhouse (The Comedy Channel Laughter Lounge), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: You Know What I’m Like + Anne Edmonds: Brisbane Powerhouse (Rooftop Terrace Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Undercurrents + Cal Wilson: Brisbane Powerhouse (Visy Theatre), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Up to Pussy’s Bow + Mel Buttle: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Cane Toad Effect + Corey White: Brisbane Powerhouse (Graffiti Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: I Can’t Believe I Cared + Damien Power: Brisbane Powerhouse (Rooftop Terrace Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: The Motherload + Em Rusciano: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Taxis & Rainbows & Hatred + Tom Ballard: Brisbane Powerhouse (Visy Theatre), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: That Other Guy+Matt Okine: Brisbane Powerhouse (Powerhouse Theatre), New Farm
Celtic Beat: The Tivoli, Fortitude Valley
65DAYSOFSTATIC: 11 MAR, THE HI-FI Brisbane Comedy Festival: You Don’t Know What You’re Talking About + Ronny Chieng: Brisbane Powerhouse (Powerhouse Theatre), New Farm The Vanns: Broadbeach Tavern, Broadbeach Rob Johnson: Coolangatta Hotel, Coolangatta DZ Deathrays + Bass Drum Of Death + The Ron Swansons: Fortitude Valley PCYC (Music Industry College), Fortitude Valley Bonez + Barefoot Alley: Miami Tavern, Miami From The Jam + Sarah McLeod + Mick Skelton: New Globe Theatre, Fortitude Valley Amela + Winter Solstice + Clea + Dirt Hand: The Bearded Lady, West End DZ Deathrays + Bass Drum Of Death + The Ron Swansons: The Brightside, Fortitude Valley Emmett & Mabel + Carrie & The Cut Snakes: The Milk Factory Kitchen & Bar, South Brisbane The Bennies + Foxtrot + The Strums + Lifeboat: The Time Machine, Nambour Dope Lines feat. Honey Cocaine + Reed Sho: The Tivoli, Fortitude Valley Sunday Grill with Rocket Train + The Molotov + Reud Mood: The Underdog Pub Co, Fortitude Valley CMC Rocks Queensland 2015: Willowbank Raceway, Willowbank
MON 16
Brisbane Comedy Festival: The Pineapple Club + ImproMafia: Brisbane Powerhouse (The Comedy Channel Laughter Lounge), New Farm Zac Gunthorpe: Habitat Restaurant & Bar, South Brisbane
Brisbane Comedy Festival: Just A Fully Naked Encounter + Harley Breen: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: The Pineapple Club + ImproMafia: Brisbane Powerhouse (The Comedy Channel Laughter Lounge), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Ultra Power Lord + Bart Freebairn: Brisbane Powerhouse (Rooftop Terrace Room), New Farm
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Brisbane Comedy Festival: Listen Out for the Castanets + Geraldine Hickey: Brisbane Powerhouse (Graffiti Room), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival + Tom Gleeson: Brisbane Powerhouse (Powerhouse Theatre), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Is Not Cool + Dave O’Neil: Brisbane Powerhouse (Visy Theatre), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Raised and Confused + Ray Badran: Brisbane Powerhouse (Rooftop Terrace Room), New Farm
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BLUESFEST SIDESHOW HIGHLIGHTS Hawaii-based singer/guitarist/songwriter Donavon Frankenreiter is undertaking a gigantic 17 date tour around his Bluesfest appearance. This tour will focus on the great surf towns of country and regional Australia so fans of his infectious, acoustic tunes will have plenty of opportunities to see him. He plays: 1 Apr, Hoey Moey, Coffs Harbour; 2 Apr, Miami Tavern Shark Bar; 5 Apr, Wharf Tavern, Mooloolaba; 16 Apr, The Triffid
TUE 17
Brisbane Comedy Festival: Hovercraft Symphony in Gammon # Major + Paul Foot: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Studio), New Farm Brisbane Comedy Festival: Womanz + Tessa Waters: Brisbane Powerhouse (Graffiti Room), New Farm
S U P P O R T I N G
I N D E P E N D E N T
A U S S I E
M U S I C
32 • THE MUSIC • 11TH MARCH 2015