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themusic 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
“THE SUGARINESS OF THIS TUNE IS WHAT STANDS OUT, AND IT TRULY IS CATCHY AS SHIT.”
#026
INSIDE NEWS Vance Joy
Julian Clary
feature
Cults La Dispute The Naked & Famous Russian Circles Rufus Dizzee Rascal
THIS WEEK Ambar
KANE SUTTON GETS STUCK INTO WAVE RACER AND MORE IN THIS WEEK’S SINGLES COLUMN [P33]
“SOMEONE SAID THAT THEY HAD A DREAM THAT THEIR DAD KILLED THEIR MUM AND THEN BURIED HER IN A CEREAL BOX IN THE BACKYARD, WHICH WAS KIND OF ODD.” HANNAH STORY GETS WEIRD WITH PAPA VS PRETTY [P26]
Syrup Arcade Spaghetti In The Suburbs
FEATURES Deadmau5
Richie Sambora Korn Okkervil River Brillz Skream Naughty Boy Papa Vs Pretty Zebrahead Missy Higgins
ALBUM Bayside
The Lucky Numbers
“IT’S ME PRETTY MUCH DOING WHAT I LIVE TO DO, AND THAT’S JUST SORT OF WEAVE IN AND OUT OF WHAT’S PUT IN FRONT OF ME.”
TYLER MCLOUGHLAN DECIPHERS THE MEANING BEHIND ††† [P17]
review “SHE SAID IT WAS ALL ABOUT TRUSTING YOURSELF – KNOWING YOU HAVE THE SKILLS TO DO WHATEVER IT IS YOU NEED TO DO.”
TED DANA HITS CHEVRON FESTIVAL GARDENS AND LEARNS A THING OR TWO FROM LADI6 [P34]
Beck Papa Vs Pretty
“THE VIBE THAT CAME FROM THIS CONNECTION WITH THE AUDIENCE WAS INCREDIBLE, AND IT WAS A CREDIT TO THE BAND AND THE INFLUENCE THEY SO CLEARLY POSSESS.”
The Holidays
LIVE
The National Tired Lion Lilt DJ Shadow
THE GUIDE
TASH EDGE WITNESSES THE NATIONAL WEAVE THEIR MAGIC [P34]
Harlem DJs Q&A Opinion Columns Eat/Drink Giveaways 6 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
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From prosciutto on panini to prosecco with panna cotta, who doesn’t love Italian cuisine? Spaghetti In The Suburbs is a film exploring the history and cultural significance of Perth’s most renowned Italian deli, The Re Store. Opening its doors in 1936, the store became a central point for Perth’s growing Italian population and ignited Perth’s love affair with international cuisine. Screening 22 Feb, 5.30pm, Hyde Park. More info at vincent.wa.gov.au.
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Celebrating the return of Perth’s premiere EDM venue, Ambar, pop-locker turned producer Brillz leaves downtown LA to rattle the joint 21 Feb. His Twonk EP is packed full of hard knocking hip hop funkiness and bone rattling bass lines featuring trap anthems like Rvtchet Bitch and Old School. Along with tracks from his debut EP, Brillz will showcase his signature smooth remixes drowning in sub-bass frequencies and filthy synth lines. Supported by Tonic, Black & Blunt, Benny P v DNGRFLD v Genga. Grab your tickets now through Boomtick.
party
dance
Emerging from hibernation, Syrup is back with a bang. Reinventing the dusk-til-dawn club night into an outdoor technicolour playground, Syrup Arcade will transform Fremantle’s Westgate Mall into a festival-like atmosphere showcasing the best of Perth’s visual and musical talents, including Zeke b2b Charlie Chan, Leon Osborn, Boy P b2b Bolsty keeping the tunes pumping. Final release tickets on sale from ticketbooth.com.au.
THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 9
national news news@themusic.com.au RUFUS
JULIAN CLARY
RAISING THE RUFUS
FAVOURITE POSITION
Back by popular demand, international comedy treasure and self-proclaimed ‘Lord of the Mince’ Julian Clary will return for his eighth Australian tour in April with a brand new show, Position Vacant: Apply Within. It sees the sharp-tongued comedian and Celebrity Big Brother winner welcoming a selection of eligible bachelors on stage to win his hand in marriage. It’ll be a flamboyant and hilarious night out at Astor Theatre, Perth, 17 Apr; Her Majesty’s Theatre, Melbourne, 19 Apr; State Theatre, Sydney, 22 Apr; and The Tivoli, Brisbane, 24 Apr.
BE CULTIVATED
New York indie duo Cults will be hitting stages across the country for their own headline tour dates while in the country as part of Groovin The Moo. This is their second visit, after wowing Laneway audiences in 2012. See the two talented 24-yearolds when they perform at Metro Theatre, Sydney, 29 Apr (all ages); Corner Hotel, Melbourne, 30 Apr; The Zoo, Brisbane, 6 May; and The Bakery, Perth, 9 May.
OVERJOYED
It’s only mid-Feb and Vance Joy’s already nabbed the #1 spot in triple j’s Hottest 100 with Riptide, made the top ten in the UK singles chart, played Laneway festivals for the first time and been announced as part of this year’s Groovin The Moo. Oh yeah, he’s also headed to the UK and Europe, then supporting Young The Giant around the US as well as appearing at SXSW. Way to overachieve, mate. Vance Joy will play headline shows as he goes around Australia with GTM. See for yourself why he’s done so well for himself at the following dates, on which he’ll be supported by Gossling and Teeth & Tongue (except Perth): The Hi-Fi, Brisbane, 6 May; The Bakery, Perth, 8 May; Metro Theatre, Sydney, 16 May (all ages); and Forum Theatre, Melbourne, 23 May.
THE WRITING ROOMS
To write their new record, Rooms Of The House, Michigan post-hardcore band La Dispute rented a cabin in a remote area in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula so they could write every single day and not do much else. The resulting concentrated efforts will be released on 18 Mar through the band’s newly established label, Better Living, and then La Dispute are set to bring their passion to stages around Australia, with support from Balance & Composure. The tour takes in Rosemount Hotel, Perth, 7 Jun; YMCA HQ, Leederville, 8 Jun (all ages); Corner Hotel, Melbourne, 12 Jun (over-18) & 14 Jun (under-18); The Basement, Canberra, 15 Jun; Metro Theatre, Sydney, 18 Jun (all ages); Trinity Hall, Brisbane, 19 Jun (all ages); and The Hi-Fi, Brisbane, 20 Jun.
“I SNEEZE LIKE I’M TRYING TO CONVINCE YOU OF SOMETHING” THAT YOU’RE BEING DISGUSTING @MARYKOCO? 10 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
Indie-dance trio RÜFÜS have announced their Worlds Within Worlds national Australian tour. This tour aims to amplify the escapist quality of their gold-selling debut record, Atlas. Head along to the following shows, supported by Hayden James, to find out how RÜFÜS will achieve that goal: 9 May, Coolangatta Hotel; 10 May, The Tivoli, Brisbane; 15 May, Palace Theatre, Melbourne; 16 May, Wool Exchange, Geelong; 30 May, Players Bar, Mandurah; 31 May, Fremantle Arts Centre; 6 Jun, Panthers, Newcastle; 8 Jun, Beach Hotel, Byron Bay; 19 Jun, ANU Bar, Canberra; 20 Jun, Waves, Wollongong; and 21 Jun, Enmore Theatre, Sydney (all ages).
STRIPPING TO THE TOP
New Zealand’s very own electro-rock quartet The Naked & Famous showed us they know how to draw a crowd at their recent performances at the Big Day Out. Proving they can’t get enough, they’re coming back for Groovin The Moo and have announced a national tour around that to showcase their bold second album, In Rolling Waves. For their headline tour they’ll be joined by Brisbane’s young gun, singer-songwriter, Vancouver Sleep Clinic. Check out the hype on 30 Apr, 170 Russell, Melbourne; 5 May, The-Hi-Fi, Brisbane; 11 May, Astor Theatre, Perth; and 13 May, Metro Theatre, Sydney.
RUSSIAN CIRCLES
RUSSIAN AROUND
Russian Circles return to our shores this April/May in support of their latest release, Memorial. The instrumental trio from Chicago have spent the last decade perfecting their atmospheric and entrancing heavy sound, and continue to push boundaries on their latest and fifth record. They’ll turn up the volume at their shows at Crowbar, Brisbane, 29 Apr; The Hi-Fi, Melbourne, 1 May; Rosemount Hotel, Perth, 2 May; and Manning Bar, Sydney, 3 May.
X-WRAY
Food • Coffee • Sound • 7 days till late Wednesday 19/2 – Singer-Songwriter Showcase with Molly Black and Joel Barker (7pm – 10pm) – free Thursday 20/2 – The Jack Doepel Jazz Quartet (8pm – 10pm) – free Friday 21/2 – Kenny & Dolly with special guest Emily Joy (8:30pm – 11:30pm) $5 entry Saturday 22/2 – Woman’s Cancer Research Fundraiser Sunday 23/2 – John Bannister and The Charisma Brothers (4pm – 6pm) / DJ Click Brown Fox (7pm – 10pm) – free Tuesday 25/2 – The Tom Tale Jazz Quartet (7pm – 10pm) free
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Lot 4 Fremantle
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• 3 • 9430 9399 •
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THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 11
local news wa.news@themusic.com.au
DEAD OWLS
KIM ANN FOXMAN
…LIKE A FOX
For the past few years, Kim Ann Foxman has been brewing a club cult following. Crisscrossing everywhere from Japan to Cologne and Chicago, she’s established herself as one of the most sought-after DJs and artists on the house scene. Splitting her time between New York City and her globetrotting schedule, she heads over to Connections on 2 Mar, straight after headlining Sydney’s Mardi Gras the night before, with Connections DJs on hand. Ticketbooth for tickets.
YOU SPIN ME RIGHT ROUND
It’s been said there’s something in the water in WA, and Spinning Top Music are proud ambassadors of that notion.The label are delivering a big night out to celebrate that fact, and they are unleashing the talent of their local repertoire in one incredible night of west coast wonder. Pond, AAA Aardvark Getdown Services, Felicity Groom, The Silents and DJ Lady Carla all make their way to Chevron Festival Gardens on 22 Feb to get your/their groove on. Hit up perthfestival.com.au for tickets and details.
GET GARDENING
Straight off the plane from her sold-out tour of the UK and USA, Courtney Barnett has announced her first-ever West Australian headline show at Mojos on 8 Mar. It’s been a whirlwind six months for Barnett, who will be playing songs from two internationally acclaimed EPs, as well as road-testing songs from her soon-to-be recorded debut. This is a killer chance to see Courtney and her band, “The Courtney Barnetts”, in full rocking, sprawling flight. Tickets $12+bf through Oztix and $15 door from 8pm.
HEARTS AND SPADES
SuicideGirls - the sexiest, smartest, most dangerous collection of outsider women in the world - are bringing their full Blackheart Burlesque Tour to Australia. SuicideGirls is an online community that celebrates alternative beauty and indie culture from around the world. Since 2001, tens of thousands of models have submitted millions of photos to the website hoping to earn official SuicideGirl status. The show heads to The Astor on 19 Mar. Metropolistouring.com for tickets.
HANDS ON HANLON
Armed with material from her incredible new album The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You, Neko Case is make her longawaited return to Australia. Supporting Neko at all headline shows will be Darren Hanlon, one of Australia’s favourite musicians, with his wonderful mix of folkrock and memorable pop hooks. They both head to Fly By Night on 27 Feb. 12 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
BROOD IS THICKET THAN WATER
English singer-songwriter – and dominator of many young hearts – Ellie Goulding is making her way to Australia in a bit, playing Challenge Stadium on 28 May. Now it’s been announced that brother-sister duo Broods will be supporting her. The synthpop duo captured the attention of listeners and tastemakers immediately with their sparkling mix of tinkling notes and bold synth beats, in addition to Georgia Nott’s dulcet tones. Tickmaster for tickets.
MY IRELAND HOME
One of Ireland’s favourite singer-songwriters, Eleanor McEvoy’s new album Stuff! revisits some of her songs from past albums that have not been available as downloads, and a few new songs from live performances that have become favourites with her audiences here in Australia. Eleanor’s touring again this year, heading Rosie O’Grady’s Northbridge, 23 Apr; and Fairbridge Folk Festival in Fairbridge Village, 25-27 Apr.
GET AMPED Applications are now open for AmpFest 2014; young musicians have until 7 Mar to submit their entries. AmpFest is a live music competition open to original, unsigned bands, duos and solo artists aged between 12 and 25. Entry is free and all genres are welcome. There will be cash prizes, with the winner taking $5,000 and runner-up receiving $1,000. Past winners of AmpFest have included Mink Mussel Creek (the proto-Pond), Goodnight Tiger, Dead Owls and Sisters Doll. Get your application in at nedlands. wa.gov.au/ampfest4sure like right now.
FRESH VEGGIES
The reason you may not have heard of Formidable Vegetable Sound System is that the electro-swing sustainability freaks have been on tour since 2012. Forming at the Eclipse2012 Festival in Cairns as a result of a programming mishap involving Ensemble Formidable, they harness the power of upbeat folk, with one catch: all of their instruments are made from vegetables. Yes, vegetables. They rocket into Kulcha on 8 Mar, supported by The Brow Horn Orchestra.
MICHAEL PAYNTER
PAYNT US A PICTURE
Having spent the last seven years traveling and touring across almost every venue in Australia from major arenas to small bandrooms, being signed to one of the biggest record labels in the world and then appearing on the highestrating TV show in the country, The Voice, it’s no wonder Michael Paynter is thrilled to finally be releasing his debut album. He brings Weary Stars to The Astor Theatre on 22 Mar. Liveattheastor.com.au for tickets.
local news nsw.news@themusic.com.au
ADRIAN EDMONDSON & THE BAD SHEPHERDS
FAIR ENOUGH
In 2014 Fairbridge Festival celebrates 22 years of bringing folk and world music to Western Australia in what is the premier festival of its kind in the state. The longstanding and much-loved family festival goes beyond simply presenting great music. Adrian Edmenson & The Bad Shepherds, Aimee Williamson, The Barons Of Tang, The Chipolatas and a whole bunch more hit Faribridge Village between 25-27 Apr. Fairbridgefestival.com.au for more info.
NO FEAR
Ten years, non-stop relentless worldwide touring and five albums under their belt, Terror are heading to Perth, so be prepared to be pulverized. ‘Live By The Code’, the band’s latest album, and their most-loved, it’’s their “dirtiest, rawest and most hardcore”, according to them. Catch one of the most-respected bands on the hardcore scene for a special Sidewave, also featuring Letlive. and Your Demise, at Amplifier on 2 Mar. Oztix for tickets.
GRIN AND TONIC
Combining their love of ‘60s beat music and ‘90s grunge, The Bitter Grins are launching their debut single Hey Pretty Swagger at the Rosemount Hotel on 20 Mar, roping Lionizer and Dan Cribb & The Isolated in to support. Since blasting onto the scene in late 2013, The Grins have been met with a furore of support. Hey Pretty Swagger topped out the triple j Unearthed rock charts, while follow-up single Comorbidity hit second place.
THE PAPER KITES
NOT TANGLED
Melbourne’s much-loved folk five-piece, The Paper Kites have enjoyed a whirlwind six months since the release of their highly anticipated debut album, States. Following on from a successful national tour, the band embarked on a sold out headline tour of the USA and Canada as well as an illustrious support slot alongside Canadian singer-songwriter, City & Colour. They head to Artbar on 19 Jun and Prince Of Wales, Bunbury, 20 Jun.
PEEL AWAY THE LAYERS
In 1992, John Waters and Stewart D’Arrietta took to the small stage at the Tilbury Hotel, Woolloomooloo, Sydney with their debut production of Looking Through A Glass Onion. What was initially a one-week booking quickly sold out and extended into a sixweek, sell-out season. The show, which celebrates the life, music and passion of John Lennon, now hosts sell-out shows at the Sydney Opera House. The King Of Sleaze brings his show to Queens Park Theatre, Geraldton, 7 Aug; The Astor Theatre, 8 & 9 Aug; Mandurah Arts Centre, 13 Aug; and Bunbury Entertainment Centre, 14 Aug.
SHOUT OUT LOUD
Singer Mali, of Boston band Jaggery, returns to Australia for a solo tour after a stint as a special guest of Amanda Palmer. Mali’s voice, “one of the most beautiful in modern music” according to The Oedipus Project, can move from “new age songbird to woman scorned to woodland fairy to bloodthirsty werewolf to sultry lounge singer”. Her piano-based songs bring to mind a more classical, organic, avant-jazz oriented Cocteau Twins, or a “white witch” counter to the haunting Diamanda Galas. Check her out at The Ellington on 9 Mar, along with NZ’s April Fish, Joni In The Moon and Leah Emily Grant.
WASTE NOT WANT NOT
The Monarchy, long-time collaborators of the partyfest Richard series, are putting on a new show at The Bakery on 7 Mar. Called High Waste, it’ll feature alt-drag genius and performance artist Jonny Woo, legendary Berlin DJ Boris, London DJs, Alex Karotsch and Lyal Hakaraia, plus an amazing local line-up TBA. It’ll be a crazy melding of London and Belrin sounds right at hmoe. Stay tuned for more info.
WED feb 19 LIONIZER Doors 8pm, $8 entry + Hyte + Shimmergloom + The THU feb 20 SILENCE TO THE LEFT Georgians Doors 8pm, $6 entry + Valdaway + Lights of Berlin + Legs fri feb 21 VUDELO EP LAUNCH Electric 8pm, rosemounthotel.com.au TOUR FUNDRAISER + Datura + The Dirty South + SAT feb 22 THE VOLCANICS The Fortunados Doors 8pm, $15 entry Main Room 4pm, $10 + ‘The Get Down’ feat sun feb 23 AUSTRALIAN INVITATIONAL BEAT BATTLE The Community in the backyard 3pm, free with Bex & Turin. Want to perform? Contact turin.undergrowth MON FEB 24 OPEN MIC NIGHT @hotmail.com or call 0404 917 632 Free entry from 8pm + Dan Cribb and the Isolated + Paper Plains + Being Beta
live music in four5nine: www.facebook.com/Four5Nine www.rosemounthotel.com.au corner of angove & fitzgerald streets, north perth.
THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 13
music
WITH ME OR AGAINST ME
supports and regularly references indie game Minecraft, on which he has several in-game skins modeled after the trademark mouse-head (and that whole entire dedicated server). He met an 8-year-old fan backstage at a show in Edmonton, Canada, after the 8-year-old started a Twitter account devoted to images of the mouse-head.
Deadmau5 is what DJ/producer Joel Zimmerman calls himself when he puts a giant mouse head on and performs to sold-out stadiums. When he’s not wearing the giant mouse head, Zimmerman is probably trolling someone on Twitter. He chats about popular music with Callum Twigger.
A
lright, to set the tone of things - Joel Zimmerman, aka Deadmau5, roasted Miami nightclub Mansion during a New Year’s Day show he was the star of: “Putting fans in the back and trust fund kids up front is fucking stupid as fuck,” waxed the Toronto-born DJ on the private subscription part of his website, referring to a photo he took of preppy fans taking selfies in the front row. That wasn’t the end of it. On 4 Jan, house DJ/producer Porter Robinson said he was going to Miami and that he loved the city. A fan told Deadmau5 via Twitter, and Deadmau5 started tearing into Robinson via twitter. “He’s a fucking dickhead,” wrote Zimmerman, and things escalated. Robinson bit back hard. “You might want to put less weight into twitter: ie, fewer meltdowns, contrived controversies, marriage proposals,
$100 (plus a $17 service charge). After fans complained (perhaps unfamiliar with what Australians have to fork out) about the prices, Zimmerman announced he was apparently unaware of what was being charred, and he hammered the venue on Twitter: “nice ticket prices… didnt i do a full production / cube show in MTL for 50$ once? yeah. thanks for
The Music asked him what the recently launched subscription service section of his website, suckscription, offered fans. “Eh, to be simple about it, I just wanted all my shit in one place for the Deadmau5 fan. Simple as that,” he says. “And by doing so, it kinda costs me a good chunk of change, and, well I’m sure the fans get that, and they contribute, and I give back with all the goods. S’basically it.” Do good by Zimmerman and he’ll treat you good, wrong him and he’ll wrong you worse. The internet being the internet, Zimmerman’s profile as a shit-stirrer is huge. He’s the kind of culture warrior perfect for the click-bait churn that keeps those miserable pop-culture web ad dollars ticking over. But regardless of the perennially banal debate about the legitimacy of alternative/independent going mainstream, Deadmau5’s third record, 2007’s Random Album Title, arguably broke the wave of stadium-sized electronic music for better or worse in America during the late ‘00s. Zimmerman was and is still and transformative figure within the art of popular music, whatever you think of the art. The States gave birth to electronic music, but for two decades the increasingly divergent subgenres of house and trance and D&B et al were largely strangers in their homeland - dance music’s
“AFTER POP CULTURE SHITS OUT EDM, AS IT INEVITABLY WILL... I’M SURE WE’LL MOVE ONTO SOMETHING ELSE.” etc,” countered the 21-year-old. “Dickhead status confirmed, little fuckin dickhead” wrote Zimmerman. “lmao dude - don’t you have an anime porn tattoo?” It’s one battle in the online war conducted by Zimmerman against almost anybody and anything that pricks him in the wrong place at the wrong time. He’s called Lady Gaga’s fans “braindead”, and alleged Justin Bieber ruined his chances of “getting on Top Gear”, verbatim: “You little prick. You just fucking ruined every chance I ever had of getting on fucking Top Gear,” tweeted Zimmerman. Depending on your perspective on gamers, the DJ demonstrates the fearless honesty and/or mild sociopathy evident among the 4chan anons and gaming community forums from which Zimmerman drew his name: Deadmau5, the five being (permit a cringe) an S in the 1337-speak of internet yore. In our interview, he is concise and polite. “Twitter is Twitter, tweeters gunna tweet… Mind vomit conduit extraordinaire. Prone. Expected. Not really affected by it,” Zimmerman explains. And at the moment, the self-styled “expert griefer” with his own Minecraft server is playing “just Minecraft and CS Source… maybe a bit of Diablo III”. He is a brawler. There is a duality to the yin of the bullshit he gets into online and the yang of the largesse with which he rewards the faithful: the Machiavellian cliche of ‘I can be your best friend or worst enemy’, gone everywhere by the internet. Case in point: on January 3 of this year, a Deadmau5 show was scheduled at New City Gas in Montreal, with initial ticket prices set at 14 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
throwing me under the bus.” In a matter of hours, Zimmerman announced the price tag had been halved and that an extra show had been added to his tour’s run. “Okay MTL, here we go! tix are now 50$. AND imma do 2 shows for you. :D okie? thanks to @ newgascity for working this out with me :D <3 MTL,” he tweeted.
first wave spent the 90s across the Atlantic, evolving in the clubs of Amsterdam, Berlin, London, Birmingham and Ibiza. Zimmerman’s adopted progressive house sound is an offshoot of continental house music, a distant relation to the Euro-house of Tiesto (which is also good at filling stadiums too). But why is EDM so big in North America? Why now? Who brought it home? “Popular music needed the competition,” argues Zimmerman. “Now, it’s just kinda absorbed it, as it does everything else. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Right Limp Bizkit? ‘Rap-rock is awesome’, they said, ‘it’ll be fun’, they said. And after pop culture shits out EDM as it inevitably will... I’m sure we’ll move onto something else. That’s the basic truth,” he says.
Besides the gladitorial spectator sport that is his Twitter feed, Zimmerman does try hard to do right by his online legion. It’s difficult to find another act in electronic dance music of Zimmerman’s profile who gives their fandom such involved love, tempered as it may be by the occasional outburst or tantrum. Zimmerman regularly updates and interacts with users on his Deadmau5 reddit. He
The Toronton has been producing music since about the new millennium, his debut record is now almost a decade old: Get Scraped features the sound of genre fossils like trip-hop and chip tune and noise-pop. Random Album Title’s success was also the watershed for Zimmerman’s development as an artist, but he’s circumspect about the record’s impact. “Like I said, it was at a time when I wasn’t so market-savvy, or popular for that matter. In fact rather fringe, at least in my parts”, he believes. “It was nice to be able to carve out an identity at that time... it was the perfect time. A guy wearing a mouse head playing with a five-piece boy band just wouldn’t have worked. Kinda like staking your claim, it’s timing.” he says. If Tiesto didn’t do what Tiesto did at the time, he’d be nowhere on the fucking map right now. But he did, so yay, same with me. The newcomers to EDM now don’t have staying power. They’re fucking in and out, it’s
THE WORLD ACCORDING TO DEADMAU5 A collection of Joel Zimmerman’s sentiments about figures within the arena of popular music. “Dear @justinbieber, would you please grow the fuck up already? In the meantime, put a shirt on, and stay away from nightclubs.” - On Justin Bieber, via Twitter. “That’s your big message to ultra attendies? hipsterspeak for looking for drugs? Fuck off.” - On Madonna, asking an Avicii crowd at Ultra Festival if they were looking for Molly, via tumblr “I fucking hate him. He’s just trying too hard.” - On Kanye, via Vibe
kinda scary. Thank GOD for DJing. 99% of the market would implode in on itself if we weren’t allowed to play shows for 500k whilst playing other fucking dudes’ music. Fucking weird man, but whatever. ‘Hey man, I’m a DJ, you need us’. Why? You don’t buy our shit. You download it off a blog, and play it. Fucking good on ya mate. He prefers production, though. “Of course. While technically most of “us” aren’t fucking Mozart, at least there’s an effort [in producing].” What’s more, he doesn’t believe young producers need to know how to DJ. “What’s wrong with being a young producer? Be a producer.” He’d also advise an up-and-coming producer to give away music through an online platform like SoundCloud. “It’s a good jump-off platform, yeah. Obviously not everyone can just magically start up a subscription model and be all hey, but I think artist development take tiiiime man, lots of it. Ten years in before I made a dime doing anything. Just put in the time,” Zimmerman says. Put in the time.
“What the actual fuck? If some idiot howls in the woods and no ones around, does it make a sound? MYTH BUSTED” - On the art of Lady Gaga, via Twitter “Skrillex isn’t doing anything too technical. He has a laptop and a MIDI recorder, and he’s just playing his shit.” - On Skrillex, via Rolling Stone. Skrillex at one point was signed to Zimmerman’s label, mau5trap, a signing credited with helping to launch his career.
WHEN & WHERE: 2 Mar, Future Music Festival, Arena Joondalup; 3 Mar, Good Life Festival, Perth Arena
THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 15
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IT’S HIS LIFE Richie Sambora stepped away from one of the biggest bands in the world. On the eve of his Soundwave visit, he tells Dan Condon why.
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ichie Sambora will always be known as the man who co-wrote some of the biggest rock songs in history as guitarist in Bon Jovi, but last year, after 30 years, he decided not to rejoin the band on tour. “It was my daughter and my family,” he says of his reasons for leaving the band. “I missed so much of my daughter’s life and my heart was breaking. “I know [leaving Bon Jovi] wasn’t a popular decision that I made, but… thirty years is a good run. It’s almost unheard of. I had to make a pretty unpopular decision, but I had a chance to go to my kid’s parent teacher night, her sweet sixteen birthday party, I got to go and watch her cheerlead – honestly, that bond needed to be done. I missed it. “I missed so much of her life and she’s all I got. My wife [actress Heather Locklear] and I are obviously divorced, and I want to be a dad.” The workload was also extreme, Sambora admits, with the band keeping up a schedule that didn’t allow him to have a sufficient balance in his life. “I said very openly it should have been a bit longer [between tours]. We had just had two massive tours back to back. I needed a little more time home to be with the family, but the guys wanted to go, so that’s cool. I don’t think it’s the end of the organisation or the end of the band at any point. People grow at different speeds and they have different desires.
“When you’re in a band it’s a compromise, but this is my solo project and, if you listen to [2012 LP] Aftermath Of The Lowdown, I’m talking about my life explicitly and it was pretty deep. I got a list of stuff that I don’t do well – if somebody asked me to cook dinner, that
He’s now coming to Soundwave as a solo artist, something he says he finds liberating. Performing as the leader of the band is something of a liberating experience for Sambora. “It’s nice to say ‘I’m not perfect’. I’m just like everybody. I’m not trying to pretend that I don’t have struggles in my life. Look, I’ve got a very blessed life, but everyone goes through emotional stuff; you lose parents, you lose people, you get divorced – and that freaks you out – it’s just life.
Sambora says Australia has always been a particularly special place for him. “Obviously I’ve had a love affair with Australia for a long, long
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As for Soundwave itself, he admits the invitation to be a part of it was a surprise, but accepting it was a no-brainer. “It’s a little bit baffling to me, but, look, I’m ready to get out and play. I’ve been gigging a lot and it’s been a lot of fun. It was a resounding ‘yes’ from me. Before they got the sentence done I was like, ‘Yeah!’ “I’m gonna bring down a bunch of great musicians and we’re gonna jam. The essence of this festival is rock and
“I’M NOT TRYING TO PRETEND THAT I DON’T HAVE STRUGGLES IN MY LIFE.” wouldn’t be good; if someone asked me to build a house I couldn’t do it – but if someone asked me to write a song… After working on that craft for such a long time, I think I’ve got a leg up on it. I decided to bare my soul on this; if they listen to the lyrics they’ll get to know me better as a person.”
“But I have no malice whatsoever. And I think at some point we’ll make some more records and go out and tour again, but it’s time for a break, man.”
time. You guys opened your arms up to me from the moment I set foot on the shore. Honestly, it’s ridiculous, you guys just got us, man; it was a great, great thing.”
that leads to improvisation. I just want to get out there with great musicians and put them in the architecture of really great songs and let the wild horses run.” It was at a New Year’s Eve jam on the Hawaiian island of Maui with his old buddies Alice Cooper, Sammy Hagar and Steven Tyler that Sambora met 28-year-old, Adelaide-born guitar gun Orianthi Panagaris; now he’s bringing her over for Soundwave. “I gotta tell you something,” he whispers. “I don’t know a better guitar player – and that includes me! She’s got everything, man, and she’s such a sweet person, but fierce. There was some kind of chemistry there that was natural and unsaid in a way. It’s killer, man. It’s just one of those things. ” WHEN & WHERE: 3 Mar, Soundwave, Arena Joondalup
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NATURAL CROSS Having stepped off a plane from Australia with Deftones less than 48 hours prior, Chino Moreno tells Tyler McLoughlan about his approach to the †††’s debut album.
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ossessing a vocal technique that could just as soon soothe a baby as frighten a ghost, Chino Moreno can move between gentle and hostile territory by shaping melody, rhythm and timing like no one else in the heavy rock world. Honing his inimitable style as the frontman of Deftones, the highly revered Californian alt-metal outfit established in 1988, Moreno now turns his focus to the “beautiful gloom” of †††. “We didn’t actually have an idea to make a record and to go on tour or make a band or anything like that. It was just more or less, ‘let’s see how many songs we can knock out’,” Moreno explains the process that led to forming ††† with childhood friend and Far guitarist Shaun Lopez and producer Chuck Doom. Initially roped in for vocals on just one track, the pair were so pleased with Moreno they suggested he sign up for the project. “We ended up doing, I think, somewhere between twenty and twenty-five songs, which was a lot of songs. I mean, it was done over a period of time and the cool part about it was that we didn’t have a record label, we didn’t have any expectations; people, the fans, no one knew that we were actually doing this project, so it was very under the radar. I think that lent itself to just be something that happened very organically.” Released quietly online in 2011, EP † did the rounds without the pre-release hype and leaks that had taken the fun out of Moreno’s Team Sleep side-project. Packaged together with 2012’s EP †† and with the addition of five new tracks, the trio’s just released eponymous debut long player is proof that one doesn’t need a barrage of guitars and hard-hitting drums to be heavy. Both points excited Moreno greatly. “I felt like I was in a really good creative space when we started working on this. The Deftones had just got done releasing our Diamond Eyes record which, you know, at that time I think there was this real resurgence of creativity with me and even with Deftones as a band – I was just in a really creative place and I wanted to create as much as possible in my downtime. It wasn’t a preconceived idea that I was gonna try this different or
do that different [with †††]. Honestly, I just reacted to what was put in front of me and really that’s what I do with Deftones too. I didn’t put on a different hat… It’s me pretty much doing what I love to do, and that’s just sort of weave in and out of
because it was one of the more ‘upbeat’ songs, I guess you could say. It was also an experiment in trying something that I’d never really done. I mean, there’s no guitars in that song really – it’s not a rock song by any means, but it’s not this delicate electronic thing either. It’s got this almost dancehall kind of rhythm to it and, I dunno, just vocally the way I approached it was to me interesting because it was like nothing I’d ever done, but yet it’s very catchy,” Moreno explains how it cleverly depicts the themes of the album as a whole and reveals much about his evolution as a vocalist. “I feel that way about a lot of the songs on this record; without trying to be pop or to steer in that direction, I think there’s a pop sensibility that runs through a lot of this music that just sort of happened. It really fell into place. As opposed to taking a left turn when things were just sort of naturally guiding me away, I kind of just went with the flow instead of trying to make everything really weird or whatever. I really just felt comfortable with singing along with the songs and going where they took me naturally… If something seems like it’s
“THE MUSIC SPEAKS TO ME AND THEN I SPEAK BACK AND A LOT OF THE TIMES IT WORKS OUT”
what’s put in front of me… The music speaks to me and then I speak back and a lot of the times it works out – it’s as simple at that.” With dark synths, fuzzy bass and electronic percussion, This Is A Trick was the first glorious taste of †††. “It stood out from a lot of the other ones
too easy then I go, ‘Well, there’s a reason why it’s too easy, so I need to take a left turn here and try something difficult.’ And I think that’s good for a lot of the stuff that I do. I think it’s the reason why I’ve maintained a career in music for this long, because I don’t just take the easiest road all the time. But with some things I’ve learnt to relax a little bit.”
WHAT: ††† (Sumerian/ADA) WHEN & WHERE: 3 Mar, Soundwave Festival, Arena Joondalup
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PUNISHMENT TIME After a decade alone, James ‘Munky’ Shaffer has been reunited with his partner in riff, and Korn sound all the better for it. The guitarist tells Benny Doyle about the positives of friendship and why we still should be following the leaders.
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hen Brian ‘Head’ Welch denounced Korn and announced his newfound passion for that lord and saviour character in 2005, you couldn’t help but think the split was going to send the Californian band into a conclusive spiral. The departure of original drummer David Silveria a year later did nothing to dispel this expectation either. But Korn have long been a band that have defied general belief – that’s why the nu-metal trailblazers are still standing, still creating, and after a ten-year sabbatical Welch is shoulder-toshoulder with them once more, returning just in time to cut the band’s 11th studio album, The Paradigm Shift. “To me it’s a very fresh version [of Korn],” begins fellow guitarist James ‘Munky’ Shaffer. “I wouldn’t say we made huge leaps as far as creating some revolutionary new sound – it still sounds very Korn to me. But we definitely wanted to play off our strengths, which is the back and forwards guitar thing. Jonathan [Davis] came up with some great melodies on this record, some very catchy choruses, and of course you have Fieldy’s bass rumbling in the mix and Ray [Luzier] just did a phenomenal job on tracking the drums. It feels like a live band – with The Path Of Totality, where the drums are electronic, it felt a little constrained. This one feels like a train that’s about to come off the tracks.” Considering the flash-in-a-pan touchstones that nu-metal held (awful fashion, throwaway social commentary, immediate oversaturation), Korn have done pretty damn well, not only to emerge from the drop-D heap but to continue challenging themselves and their fans. But even with a new record to plug, undoubtedly the most thrilling prospect for long-time Korn fans heading to Soundwave is the chance to see Munky and Head trading riffs together again. Shaffer admits that their complementing playing styles gives him an unmatched confidence. “He has a way of making me sound better than I actually am, and I’m really good at covering up some of his mistakes and making them sound like he was supposed to do that,” he smiles. “And it works when we’re writing – if he’s making a mistake and doesn’t realise it, Fieldy and I
or Ray and I, we tend to say, ‘That’s cool’, and we point out those things and I think everybody becomes better, especially when we’re in a room together, because it’s those inconsistencies that make
it well. But when the guys talked about bringing in another guitar player I totally refused. It was a process man, the whole thing was super heartbreaking and a real rollercoaster of a time. It took some maturing on my end, to step back and go, ‘Wow, this wasn’t all about the band and it’s not my fault he left’, and a lot of that goes on, like, ‘Could I have helped him not leave?’ but now he’s just a better person on so many levels I’m glad he went through what he had to go through – he might not be,” he laughs. “We still have our personal issues, we’re human, we still get on each others’ nerves. But I’m willing to accept that we all have our shit.” After two decades which have seen offensively high highs and stomach-twisting lows, Korn now seem balanced – like they’ve rediscovered the joy of their existence. But far from thinking complacently, Shaffer stresses that the band are still playing like everything is on the line, and urges the masses to rediscover that passion with them.
“THE WHOLE THING WAS SUPER HEARTBREAKING AND A REAL ROLLERCOASTER OF A TIME.” us human, and when we start to feel insecure about a riff or something there’s that reassurance from just being friends for so many years.” Clearly hit the hardest by Welch’s departure, Shaffer became something of a mediator in the years following, valiantly trying to maintain the peace as his bandmates tore strips off each other in the press. “It took me a longer time to bounce back from it than everybody else,” he laments. “I didn’t process
“I think people are going to be really surprised by how much of a great show we put on. People haven’t seen us in a long time – sure there are pictures on the internet but you really don’t know if [a band’s] still got it until you see them live. And for new listeners, that’s what keeps us pumped up, is that we still want to impress some of the newer generation. And that goes for our peers too, we’re still out there to prove that we have a great catalogue of songs that fucking demand their attention.” WHAT: The Paradigm Shift (Prospect Park/Caroline) WHEN & WHERE: 3 Feb, Soundwave, Arena Joondalup
THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 19
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GETTING TO KNOW GESAFFELSTEIN Cyclone speaks to Mike Lévy aka Gesaffelstein about working with Kanye West (“I was really impressed by the way he works with his team”) and making techno music.
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rench techno rebel Gesaffelstein (aka Mike Lévy) has made music for Kanye West’s electro-punk Yeezus. Now he’s dropping his much-anticipated debut album, the techno noir Aleph, led by the searing Pursuit. So why is he reluctant to talk to the media? Lévy has always been secretive. He offers scant biographical guff online. Even in a new press shot the brooding DJ/producer, resembling a dapper European count, is shrouded in mist. “I’m not looking for mystery,” Lévy protests in lilting English. The Lyons native has had a rapid ascendance, premiering in 2008 with the characteristically forcible Vengeance Factory on OD Records before forging an alliance with The Hacker – the Zone label boss a key influence on his post-electro techno. But it wasn’t until Lévy, currently Paris-based, aligned himself with Tiga’s Turbo stable that his career ‘exploded’ – and he settled on a media strategy. “I decided to not do interviews and stuff and focused on the music,” Lévy explains. “If you look cool, if you look ‘fashion’, all that stuff, then people are gonna forget about the music. Also I don’t like to talk!” Lévy’s Gallic techno needs no elucidating – or mythologising. “There is nothing special behind that – it’s not like Daft Punk-style or Underground Resistance-style. I have nothing to say, you know? It’s really, really simple.” The irony? Lévy, today hot property, is signed to a major through the Warnerowned Parlophone – and disseminating artily slick videos such as that for his latest single, Hate Or Glory. Over time Lévy famously befriended Louis “Brodinski” Rogé, releasing music on his cult Bromance Records. He remixed Lana del Rey’s Blue Jeans. Still, dance types were aghast when Lévy contributed to Yeezus – he’s credited as producer on the single Black Skinhead and Send It Up, both alongside Daft Punk and Rogé. Send It Up, industrial ragga, is trademark Gesaffelstein (Aleph’s grinding Hellifornia is its relative). West had dug Lévy’s 2011 Viol. However, Lévy was unfamiliar with Yeezy’s catalogue – and, he’s claimed in interviews, was no hip hop head. “I discovered hip hop with Brodinski, like, four years ago,” Lévy clarifies. “I’m a newcomer in this world. So it’s not my favourite music. But there are a lot 20 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
of interesting things in it.” West wasn’t seeking straight hip hop beats, anyway. “It was a good opportunity to add, I think, electronic music to hip hop. The way he asked us to produce music for him was just the best way – because we were
with him. Everybody shares ideas, so it’s really different. I was a bit afraid of this process, but the result is really good. I can tell that I’m happy about that – and I think I learned something from that story… maybe.” Lévy is open to (other) pop collaborations – eventually. “I’m gonna go on tour and I don’t think that I’m gonna have a lot of time to go in the studio this [next] year – so maybe in the future. But I would love to do that. At the same time, I have no idea what I’m gonna do. Maybe I’m gonna produce for Kanye
“MAYBE I’M GONNA PRODUCE FOR KANYE AGAIN OR MAYBE I’M GONNA DO A REMIX AGAIN, BUT I DON’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE FUTURE.” like, ‘What do you want to do?’ And he was like, ‘Just do what you want!’ So for us it was just easy, in a way.” He is proud of his involvement in Yeezus. “I was really impressed by the way he works with his team. It’s really different than the way I work in electronic music because, when I go to the studio, it’s a solitary thing. When you go to the studio with Kanye, there are a lot of people
again or maybe I’m gonna do a remix again, but I don’t know anything about the future. We’ll see.” Lévy is returning to Australia following 2012’s inaugural outing with Stereosonic. This tour he’ll stage his live show at Future Music Festival. “I’m really excited. It’s really different than a DJ set because, when I play live, I play only my tracks – so I can change all the tracks from the album and then I can add many effects and a lot of things to it. When I play as a DJ, I just play the records from other DJs... Also I have more pleasure playing live.” WHAT: Aleph (Parlophone/Warner) WHEN & WHERE: 2 Mar, Future Music Festival, Arena Joondaulup
THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 21
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TWICE A CHILD Okkervil River’s new album The Silver Gymnasium is based in frontman Will Sheff’s childhood hometown during his adolescence, but he tells Steve Bell that there’s far more to the project than glorifying his own past.
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here’s always been a strong narrative bent to the music of Brooklyn-based indie ensemble Okkervil River, chiefly due to the inherent literacy of frontman and songwriter Will Sheff. Naturally it wouldn’t all work without the considerable charm of their rustic, folk-indebted rock’n’roll, but the words play an integral part in the band’s indubitable emotional heft. On recent studio album The Silver Gymnasium, Okkervil River take this penchant for powerful storytelling to a whole new level, the record a conceptual suite set in Sheff ’s boyhood hometown of Meriden, New Hampshire in 1986 – slap bang in the middle of his adolescence. “I wanted to write a record that was about nostalgia to a certain extent and about missing the past, but which was also about what that feels like and why you feel that way, and where that comes from and how you process that,” Sheff explains. “The urge to make it didn’t necessarily come out of any urge to glorify my own past, although to some extent that’s what that record does. But it’s [more] about the act of glorifying the past – what that feels like and why you would do that.” “I felt that it had to be autobiographical – not necessarily because I felt that my story is more interesting than other people’s, but because who else are you going to talk about but yourself if you’re trying to be sincere about these things? I think if I’d spoken general platitudes about the past it wouldn’t [resonate with] people in any way, so I felt like I needed to put something of my own on the table.” When viewed through the lens of The Silver Gymnasium, Meriden seems a rather insular place, and Sheff attests that this is no mere distortion of childhood memories. “It was incredibly small,” he concurs. “There were about 300-plus people there and it was very rural and isolated. We had two TV channels. My dog used to sleep in the middle of Main Street because there were no cars coming down the road. It was a really isolated place. But it was a different time – the incessant rate of media changed everything a long time ago, you can be isolated now and still be vaguely aware of what’s going on in the rest of the world. And I really like the contrast of the day-glo, synthetic aspects of the 1980s as they filter in
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to the attention span of a kid who’s living in a totally rural environment, and a lot of The Silver Gymnasium is trying to contrast those two things. Did Sheff manage a happy adolescence? “No, not really,” he reflects. “It wasn’t miserable, but there was a lot of unhappiness. But at the
who had stayed there hadn’t really done anything – kind of at all – with their lives, really. I mean that’s a mean thing to say, but that’s how it looked to me at the time. I had big dreams I guess, but I also knew that my town was important to me and that I wanted to come back.” With this overt autobiographical aspect does Sheff feel that there’s more of himself invested in The Silver Gymnasium than usual? “Yeah, it does feel a lot more personal, although that wasn’t necessarily the goal,” he muses. “Although I’ve felt invested in all of my records, and there are songs
“THE URGE TO MAKE IT DIDN’T NECESSARILY COME OUT OF ANY URGE TO GLORIFY MY OWN PAST.” same time I was always aware that I loved my town and I loved the people in it – even when those people were being super fucking shitty to me sometimes, I still felt there was something beautiful there. It’s a magical place, it really is. “I remember saying to a friend, ‘I’ve got to get out of here. But I know that I’ll come back eventually’. I was aware that it was very provincial and isolated, and I was aware that the people
like (Shannon Wilsey On The) Starry Stairs [bonus track from 2007’s The Stage Names, reworked as Starry Stairs on 2008’s The Stand Ins] where I was very drawn to the character in that song, this porn actress named Savannah. I was really fascinated by her story. I’ve never seen a movie with her in it or anything like that, I just thought it was a sad story and it spoke to me; that’s a song that really has very little to do with my experience, but that song is very personal to me. I’ve felt very connected to it ever since I wrote it, and I really relate to that character, so even when a song is not at all about me I still feel a connection to it. Some more than others.” WHAT: The Silver Gymnasium (Spunk) WHEN & WHERE: 19 Feb, Perth Festival, Chevron Gardens
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BRILLZ’S SKILLZ Hold onto your glowsticks: LA-based trap DJ and producer Brillz is bringing his twerk-tastic skills Down Under. He sits down with Scott Aitken to discuss ‘twonk’, collaborations, and his new EP.
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hat exactly is ‘twonk’? Since he coined the phrase almost a year ago, Brillz says the word has become adopted by his fans and gone on to have a life of its own. “To me at the end of the day, it’s about energy and creativity,” says Brillz. “It’s not about following the herd or trying to fit in, it’s about trying to stick out and be different and that was the whole deal behind it. I’ve always been attracted to weirdness and so really twonk is just about having
high positive energy and embracing that weirdness that everybody has. And when I’ve been touring I’ve just been seeing the fanbase grow and seeing how many kids are getting excited about it. The movement and the music has just created a new level of inspiration for me as an artist.” Buzzwords aside, it’s his talent for creating filthy trap cuts and turned-up electro jams that first helped him make a name for himself, whether it was on his Twonk LP or collaborating with fellow bass artists Diplo and Kill The Noise. Despite this, he says he’s constantly on the hunt for new sounds
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and collaborations to move his sound forward. “I have a motto: ‘evolve or dissolve’. That’s how I kind of look at my music and my fashion and everything I’m doing,” he says. “Pushing things forward and experimenting and trying new things are what make it exciting for me as an artist to make music. I just try to keep it exciting for myself and then in turn my hope is that my fans and audience are excited too.” With the release of his Twonk LP, Brillz saw a huge surge in popularity, going from support slots to headlining his own shows. Despite the increased touring schedule, he says he’s still working hard on new music. “I have like 20 songs that I started but I haven’t been home long enough to really sit down and finish them off,” he says. “I’m going to put out a new EP in a couple of months with four of my favourite tracks and they’re all really different, diverse and definitely taking it one step further. I’m mixing up a couple of different genres and working a little bit more with vocalists and rappers. So there’s going to be a little bit more of a vocal element on the new stuff. It’s a cool progression and I’m pretty excited about it. Brillz says he’s going to keep making music while he’s in Australia as well as building the ‘twonk’ brand. “I’m working on a one-hour mix for triple j right now, but I’m just going to be chilling out really,” he says. “I’ve also got some productions out here so I’m working on stuff. We’re also releasing some new twonk gear in two weeks called the Yalien where the design is like a ying-yang and an alien put together. And we’re building a new website for ‘twonk’. So there’s like a million things going on.” WHEN & WHERE: 21 Feb, Ambar
PRIMAL SKREAM Brit DJ Skream tells Cyclone about life after dubstep – and possibly Magnetic Man.
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ast year Oliver “Skream” Jones dramatically reinvented himself, shedding the dubstep he’d pioneered for bassy house and techno. In 2010, Mixmag described the dedicated DJ as “dubstep’s guardian against predictability” – so prescient. “Olly”, the younger brother of the junglist Hijak, left school early to work in Croydon’s Big Apple Records, bonding with Adegbenga “Benga” Adejumo. The pals would develop the nascent dubstep. Jones, who first DJed at FWD>>, masterminded a cult-yet-crossover track in Midnight Request Line. He also teamed with Adejumo and Arthur “Artwork” Smith to form live supergroup Magnetic Man, issuing a monumental eponymous LP. Jones’ disillusion with dubstep is understandable. The music has long been commercialised (and co-opted by Americans). Instead he’s drawn to a new nebulous post-brostep bass culture. Jones, who’s hosted a BBC Radio 1 show with Adejumo since 2012, instinctively sought to keep things fresh – for himself: “I got to a point in the clubs where I was playing stuff that wasn’t me at heart, really.” He’d grown up on UK garage. “I’ve always bought house records and the odd bit of techno, but the music I was being sent, the stuff that I liked, was sort of like the more Boddika [stuff ]… It was just something that felt right.” While his manoeuvres intrigued the dance media, Jones met with resistance, and even antagonism, from some fans who were “deeply upset”. He blames an article in The Daily Star tabloid,
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its headline misquoting him proclaiming that “Dubstep Is DEAD”. Jones then unleashed the acclaimed nu-disco Rollercoaster, featuring Sam Frank. “I just always wanted to make a record in that vein – like a fullon record with all live instruments, et cetera.” In 2014 Jones is into producing techno. In fact, he broke out of dubstep with his eclectic last solo album, Outside The Box. “Nobody expected the album to sound like that – and that was the whole point of it. 2010 would have been the time for me to make a peaktime stadium anthem dubstep record. [But] I really didn’t wanna do that.” Jones has since collaborated with
rocker buddy Miles Kane (First Of My Kind) and Kelis (notably Copy Cat). Alas, the latter exchange ended in tweets. “I will never work with Kelis again in my life!” Jones asserts. The “diva” publicly accused Jones of not letting her cut the video she desired – which “automatically confused” him because they’d already organised a clip starring her to be shot in Los Angeles. “It made me look like a bit of a dick,” he rues. Magnetic Man’s future is in doubt – despite being half way through a second album. Adejumo just announced his shock retirement from DJing via Facebook – he wants to raise a family. “I’d no clue it was gonna happen,” says a baffled Jones. “He hasn’t been doing [radio] shows this year, or towards the end of last year, so there was something going on. But I haven’t actually spoken to him in about a month. He’s just been a little bit missing.” WHEN & WHERE: 22 Feb, Villa Nightclub
WINNING PLAY
the noughties. Khan thought she’d be perfect for Hollywood. “I needed someone who’s kind of seen it all – ‘cause that song deals with the rise and fall...”
Emeli Sandé is yet to tour Australia, but her chief cohort Naughty Boy, AKA Shahid Khan, will hit the Future Music Festival. He talks to Cyclone.
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hahid Khan, the Brit R&B/hip hop producer who goes by Naughty Boy, has enjoyed huge solo success with his garagey La La La (featuring Disclosure singer Sam Smith), a UK #1 and multi-platinum here. His eccentrically conceptual album, Hotel Cabana, also taking in the earlier Wonder with Emeli Sandé, is populated by other illustrious guests: Tinie Tempah, Gabrielle, Bastille, Ed Sheeran and token American Wiz Khalifa (who partners Ella Eyre on the current single, Think About It). The inspiration came from an old job. “I used to work in a five-star hotel – I was a waiter there
for two years in 2004,” Khan explains. He’d observe the rich and famous in the “luxurious” surrounds. “I became a bit obsessed with it, in a way. I wanted to be able to afford to go there myself. But then I started thinking, as I spent time working there, the guests seemed a bit lonely and depressed. They had money, but not many friends. I just started to see the other side of it.” For Khan, Hotel Cabana is an allegory for fame, its artists really like guests – “they check in and they check out.” Gabrielle was a big name in the ‘90s, best remembered for the classic Dreams, but, disillusioned, she ‘retired’ in
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A sometime business student, raised by Pakistani immigrant parents in Watford, Khan was determined to crack the music industry, finding enterprising means to kit out his garden shed studio and establish a company. Not only did he receive a grant from The Prince’s Trust, Prince Charles’ youth initiative, he also signed on as a Deal Or No Deal contestant – Khan scooped £44,000. “I kept my cool throughout the whole thing. I didn’t get out of my chair, I didn’t hug anyone, I didn’t do anything like that. I just stayed calm and I was just trying to trust my instincts – and I beat the banker, so it worked out really well!” Along the way, he connected with Sandé, then an aspiring singer/songwriter, and they created Chipmunk’s 2009 hit, Diamond Rings. Khan was heavily involved in Sandé’s mega Our Version Of Events. Khan, these days producing for US acts like Rihanna, has been attached to various blockbusters, including the upcoming MKS (former Sugababes) album. “There are rumours,” he admits coyly. Khan is “so busy” promoting Hotel Cabana he’s had to decline offers. Nevertheless, work has begun on Sandé’s second. Khan will be joined by his band at FMF. “I’m bringing Hotel Cabana to Oz,” he enthuses, referencing La La La’s Wizard Of Oz-themed video. “Basically, I’m gonna be like the Wizard and I’m gonna bring all the different characters – and there’ll be some surprises... I want it all to feel like you’re coming into this world – so my band members might be dressed like hotel workers.” WHEN & WHERE: 2 Mar, Future Music Festival, Arena Joondalup
THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 25
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PAPA PREACHES
this kind of not-real world… People are getting gradually more narcissistic and apathetic, and it’s less cool to be passionate. It becomes more cool to just not do anything.”
Papa Vs Pretty aren’t 18 anymore; in fact, they’re coming to terms with their own mortality, frontman Thomas Rawle and drummer Tom Myers tell Hannah Story.
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omeone said that they had a dream that their dad killed their mum and then buried her in a cereal box in the backyard, which was kind of odd.”
Two members of Papa Vs Pretty, 22-year-olds Thomas Rawle and Tom Myers are lounging around The Music’s office, talking about the weirdest message they received as part of their Smother hotline. They had a phone line running into the studio and planned on having recorded messages left by strippers (“Hi, my name’s Tiger, I’m a size...”) on the track itself, but weren’t able to nab the rights to the sound bites. So instead they used the hotline to ask fans questions. Those same fans were later able to call the hotline to hear Smother for the first time, before leaving the band a voicemail. Frontman and lead guitarist Rawle explains the concept: “Obviously with social media, anyone can contact you via the web, but it’s not as personal as someone actually calling you. It’s quite strange.” Drummer Myers interjects, “We’d call them back, too. We’d pick a couple and we’d call them back and be like ‘Hi, this is whoever, thanks for calling in’, and that was always a nice little thing to do in the studio.” Papa Vs Pretty have since emerged from the studio with their hotly anticipated second album, White Deer Park, in hand. After all, the band gained a lot of momentum with their 2011 debut United In Isolation (released when they were only 18), which was nominated for the ARIA for Best Rock Album. They don’t feel pressured to measure up to their first record though. “There’s no real pressure,” Rawle says. “Everyone says there’s pressure but you just have to decide whether you want to feel that or not... We wrote a lot of songs, did a lot of work, we had a new guy join the band, Luke [Liang].” “[It was about] getting back to the basics of being a band and getting into a room together and playing together,” says Myers. “And with the new guy Luke, getting to know the way he plays and how he functions in our group. I thought that was one of the most important things that we did over the whole period, getting into a room for four days a week to play and work on songs
that were going to end up on the album.” During their time in the studio they recorded 80 songs, then culled the list down to the best 14. Lyrically speaking, Rawle wanted to interrogate two main concerns: the first was
The other was the mechanics of modern relationships. “I’d just come out of one and I kind of tried to analyse the concept of a relationship in the sense that you kind of hold on. Life is temporary, right, and I find myself in relationships where I’m holding on and I realise that it’s kind of an inability to accept one’s own mortality. It’s like, ‘This is going to last forever’, and it doesn’t and you won’t last forever so what’s the point of holding onto something that’s not working?” Rawle has his philosophy for working as a musician. “If you’re making music, you want to be doing it to progress as a songwriter. I feel as a songwriter or an artist or anything, like a filmmaker or a painter or an author or whatever you’re doing, what you should be doing is try to seek some kind of truth that benefits society culturally and increases
“IT’S LESS COOL TO BE PASSIONATE. IT BECOMES MORE COOL TO JUST NOT DO ANYTHING.” what he calls our current “culture of apathy”. “I find it kind of strange that we live in this age where we’re so blinded by information and stuff that we don’t look at anything but ourselves,” Rawle says. “Even if you have all this information thrown at you, it’s kind of all in relation to you... And for me I found that really alarming because I started to feel really lonely and I felt that everyone was drawn up in
empathy… My biggest ambition as a songwriter is to be able to eloquently summarise big things that I find undeniably huge and also unsummarised.” He concludes, “Your duty as a songwriter, because you don’t exist in a corporate structure as obviously as everyone else, is you have the opportunity to be a free mind totally, and analyse and try and make sense of these things and eloquently describe them through your perspective. And that’s all we ever try to do, and whether it’s useful or valuable is debatable.” WHAT: White Deer Park (EMI) WHEN & WHERE: 23 Feb, Mojos Bar; 24 Apr, Astor Theatre; 26 Apr, Prince Of Wales, Bunbury; 27 Apr, Newport Hotel
MATING SEASON
time on the group to focus on his young family, with Death By Stereo’s Dan Palmer jumping into the role.
Between the squawks of wild parrots, Ali Tabatabaee lead vocalist of American punks Zebrahead tells Benny Doyle about friends with benefits. hese parrots escaped from this pet shop years ago and they fly by my house every day around this time – they sound like dinosaurs,” says Ali Tabatabaee from his home in Pasadena, California. “A pet store was burning down so they released all these parrots, and now they have this pattern of trees that they like to go to – everyone knows them as the Pasadena parrots.”
“T
undeniably sharp listen, and is actually a product of what the title suggests, the Orange Country pop-punk five finding themselves on the phone line plenty during the record’s creation process.
Those birds aren’t the only animals enjoying their freedom; Zebrahead too are revelling in the wild. The band’s latest LP, last year’s Call Your Friends, is an
“As cliché as it sounds, it was a labour of love,” he smiles. We’d call each other at two in the morning and be like, ‘Dude, I just listened to the song, and what if the bridge went like this, or what if we changed the verse to this?’ There was a lot of that going on, but it was always very positive.” This zeal was driven by the introduction of fresh blood in the band. Founding member, guitarist Greg Bergdorf, called
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“It was the best scenario in the way that we already knew that Dan was a great guitar player, he could play the songs and got along with everybody. We’ve been friends with him forever so it was a smooth transition in that way.” And although those changes took places while writing for Call Your Friends, Zebrahead were helped far more than they were hindered. Tabatabaee describes Palmer as a positive workhorse, forever generating laughs and creating a great energy in camp. “Those things have been huge and [have] really helped us get through the transitional [period],” informs the frontman. “He’s very optimistic with [regards] to what we want to do in the future, he just has a great attitude, and that catches on with everybody.” After visiting Australia with good friends Reel Big Fish and Goldfinger at the tail-end of 2012, Zebrahead will return for Soundwave 2014. Tabatabaee can’t mask his enthusiasm. “It’s rare when people aren’t misbehaving – let’s put it that way,” he laughs. “It’s like a travelling circus of band members who play shows during the day, and then get on the plane together and fly to another city, so you’re always with these different guys that you might never have talked to before, but by the end everyone is friends and hanging out – it’s such a weird experience, there’s nothing else like it.” WHAT: Call Your Friends (3Wise/Sony) WHEN & WHERE: 3 Mar, Soundwave, Arena Joondalup
PEACE WARRIOR
film
Director Justin Chadwick and lead actress Naomie Harris talk to Sarah Braybooke about their film Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom and the legacy of their subject.
A
fter more than 16 years in development, the opening of the official Mandela biopic couldn’t have come at a more symbolic time – the night that Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom premiered in London also turned out to be the last of the great man’s life. News of his passing reached the audience – which included Prince William and Mandela’s own two daughters – just before the end of the film, making it a more poignant, and more timely, celebration of his life than anyone could have planned. Just the day before however, director Justin Chadwick had been describing how the movie almost didn’t happen at all. When Chadwick was first approached with the idea, which had been in development for well over a decade at the time, the Manchester-born filmmaker was reluctant: “I said no at first, because I had a perception of who I thought Mandela was, what he represents. And I knew that his life represents a hundred years of struggle of apartheid.”
The film covers a huge chunk of apartheid history, but at its centre the relationship between Mandela and his second wife, Winnie Madikizela-Mandela. Chadwick says, “[I wanted] the film to show them as men and women: to show [Mandela] as a lover or a father or a husband or a grandfather.” His mission was to make “a film that would be able to talk about Mandela’s flaws, and him as a whole man, rather than just a one-dimensional character from the history books”. Chadwick explains that he cast
Idris Elba because he thought he captured Mandela’s presence, which he’d heard described as “just electric”. Naomie Harris, most recently Miss Moneypenny in Skyfall, plays Winnie, who is a divisive figure in South African politics. Describing her as “incredibly complex”, Harris admits she had no idea what she was taking on when she was offered the role of Mandela’s exwife. “I was like...” Harris laughs and puts on a super chirpy voice, “‘Great! How amazing! Because Winnie was Nelson Mandela’s wife, and how great that there’s going to be a film that is like a celebration of Nelson Mandela!’ I had no idea that Winnie was such a controversial
figure.” Portraying real-life political figures, whether they are alive or dead, brings with it a heavy responsibility, one that Harris recognises well. “You become asked to be a spokesperson for that person. And nobody can do that.” One of the most difficult things about the part for Harris was showing the transition that Winnie went through as she was persecuted by the apartheid police after Mandela went into prison. These experiences radicalise her and eventually turning her down a more violent path. By contrast, it shows Mandela’s long imprisonment as the time when he developed his philosophy of reconciliation. Chadwick explains, “[Mandela] went into prison and he learnt how his enemy worked... He understood them, and he understood where they were coming from... [Mandela knew that] understanding leads to forgiveness. It takes a truly great man to understand that.” WHAT: Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom In cinemas THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 27
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FREQ SHOW Queensland’s Band Of Frequencies are back on the road, bringing along their awesome rock/roots/psych/anything fusion. Cam Findlay catches up with main man Shannon Sol Carroll.
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unshine Coast’s Band Of Frequencies might best be described as a “surf roots” band, and in most cases they are. Sure enough, there’s enough Jack Johnson to Shannon Sol Carrol’s voice, and there’s some gentle acoustic strumming here and there. But there’s a lot more to Band Of Frequencies’ sound. There’s a range of influences, from old-school rock to prog, and that’s earned them so many fans internationally. With their last full-length, Rise Like The Sun, coming out in 2012, those fans are duly waiting for new material. Thankfully, there’s no stopping for the Freqs.
“We’re really in the middle of getting ready for touring again at the moment, but at the same time we’re furiously writing down all these ideas we’re getting too,” Carroll explains over the phone. “It really is our favourite phase of the whole process, getting new ideas down and putting together all these little bits and pieces from different people’s influences, and I guess from different moments in our lives. It’s a good phase,” he laughs. Rise Like The Sun was a natural result of those eclectic influences, from the reggae of Golden to the grunge of the title track. “It’s pretty much the whole spectrum, actually; there really is no rules to how we make
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music. I might start with a lyrical concept and then little acoustic bits and pieces that I might come up with. And then there’s that other side, where the band literally has sound-tech jams which turn into pieces, and then we try and find more pieces that fit the groove. And so it all comes from all these different directions, really. There’s no set method. It’s just pretty much putting our antennas up and seeing what we can catch,” he laughs. “Influences come from all kinds of different angles, so it’s really just about being able to catch them when they come. “We all came from different environments, and kind of arrived at the idea of being in a band at different points. I think what’s most important for us is that we all met through a love for the experimental, instrumental side of music, you know, where the idea is that you just start playing music and see what happens. I guess that’s a real jazz influence, which I haven’t really thought about,” Carroll chuckles, “but that’s just how it works for us.” When it comes to the aforementioned shows, the band come into their own. “We’ll be bringing over some new material with us this time around, which is really exciting. We’re still working out how we’re going to play them live. Since we come from the jamming background, and then kind of learnt how to write songs from there, it’s the reverse live. We have all these short, concise versions, but then we have the 13-minute, extended fuck-around versions,” he laughs. “They’re the ones we’re excited about playing.” WHEN & WHERE: 26 Feb, The Ellington; 27 Feb, Indi Bar; 28 Feb, Mojo’s; 1 & 2 Mar, Nannup Music Festival; 7 Mar, Settlers Tavern, Margaret River; 8 Mar, Prince Of Wales, Bunbury; 9 Mar, Clancy’s, Dunsborough
DIRECT FROM BERLIN Travelling can be a pain, especially if it’s part of your job. Berlin techno/house DJ Cassy Britton talks to Scott Aitken about juggling her hectic touring schedule and playing Australia for the first time.
B
eing on tour as a musician has its pros and cons. On one hand, you get to travel and see new places while also playing and promoting your music to the world. On the other, it also means jet lag and dodgy accommodation while still being depended upon to put on a great show. Fortunately for Cassy Britton, she says she’s been doing it long enough now that she can handle whatever comes at her. “It’s kind of become my lifestyle and my everyday mental routine. It’s like I don’t have a home but I feel comfortable in so many different places so I guess I’m sort of a gypsy in that way. I definitely enjoy it a lot and that’s part of the charm, I guess. I’m sure there are different ways of living a profession, especially as a DJ. I mean you can be a radio DJ or just play in one club but I really enjoy going around and playing for different crowds and people in different environments.” She’s now set to drum up a few more frequent flyer points after recently being announced to play three shows in Australia alongside techno legend Marcel Dettman after hanging out with family and touring through the US and Asia. “I was in Mexico for BPM and then I went on holiday to see my family in the Caribbean and Barbados,” she says. “Then I went to New York to play and then Japan where I am right now. You get used to it. It’s great and challenging and very exhausting sometimes. I’m not
28 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
an artist or someone who goes up to people and says, ‘I want to play here and there’ and obviously I’ve always wanted to go to Australia and experience it and play there but it had just never happened so far.” Britton says she originally started out as a vocalist but it was at Berlin’s Panorama bar that she first started honing her DJ skills when she moved to Germany in 2003. Despite her increasingly busy schedule, she continues to perform at the club regularly. “I play there like four times a year now,” she says. “At the beginning I played there like
once a month but obviously now it’s pretty difficult to do that.” Despite this, she still maintains admiration and respect for the venue and everyone she’s worked with throughout the years. “I just love the club and love playing there and I’ve always had a really good relationship with the owners and the people that work there. It feels like home, it feels like a nest so I would not want to leave.” While leaving Panorama has given her more time to tour, she also says we can expect plenty more music from her, hopefully some of which will get a spin when she arrives. “I’ve got some remixes on the way. The next release will be for the 20-years compilation of 20/20 Vision but I’m happy to be working and making more and more music now.” WHEN & WHERE: 21 Feb, The Factory
HEEDING THE CALL Currently recording her latest album, Missy Higgins gives Amber Fresh her take on sharks, the power of many, and whether she still ever plays those songs.
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hen Missy Higgins quietly quit music in 2008 after the dazzling success of 2004’s Sound Of White and 2007’s On A Clear Night, minus the farewell tours, the singer and her legions of fans were left to grieve separately. But beating a serious case of musician’s block by writing about writing for 2012’s The Ol’ Razzle Dazzle reinvigorated Higgins’ sense of having something to say and being able to express it. The success of songs like Scar and The Special Two were part of the simultaneous blessing and curse of a quick rise from high school student to Australian pop icon. “I
don’t really play my old songs for fun. I can’t even listen to them on the record. It’s too painful. I’ve played them live so many times that if there is any kind of electricity left inside them for me I don’t want to waste it at home, you know? “I’m coming back [to WA] in the middle of recording my album, but I probably can’t talk about it ‘cause it’s a bit of a surprise,” she teases. For the one-off show Higgins is joined by a new full band. “I’m asking a lot of them – I’m asking them all to memorise four-part harmonies as well as playing their instruments, so I’m kind of crossing my fingers we can get it together before the show.”
Since re-emerging into public view, Higgins has used her platform to raise awareness of issues as diverse as Indigenous rights and factory farming, and most recently a very tongue-in-cheek jab at Qantas’s vegetarian food options, causing a minor online brouhaha as fans weighed in.
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The singer’s first visit to WA since the influential Concert for the Kimberley sees her performing on one of the west coast’s newly controversial beaches. “I don’t know enough to have a really strong opinion either way, but it seems pretty horrendous to me, the fact that there’s all these sharks being killed. “I’m not always across every political issue because I get news fatigue. It just depresses me reading the news so most of the time I try to close my eyes or block my brain off, until I really have to listen. You know, why do they have to tell me about some family being burned to death on the other side of town? There’s nothing good that can possibly come from me knowing about that! You can begin to feel a bit hopeless after a while. “But whenever things do come up, like the Barrier Reef situation, what makes me hopeful is when I see these huge rallies going on, or big petitions. When so much is going wrong in the current political climate, I think people tend to find solidarity and really galvanise themselves against the government, or against a problematic industry. And that can be really great because it means that we feel empowered, and it means that the people are actually making themselves heard. Sometimes, unfortunately, it has to get to that stage in order for people to really do something extreme about it.” WHEN & WHERE: 21 Feb, Sundown Sessions, Scarborough Beach Amphitheatre
LIFE IS NOISE PRESENTS
AUSTRALIAN TOUR 2014 with special guests
FRIDAY MAY 2 ROSEMOUNT HOTEL Tickets from lifeisnoise.com, oztix and the venue.
sargenthouse.com / russiancirclesband.com
THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 29
ALBUM OF THE WEEK
★★★★
album reviews
BECK
THE HOLIDAYS
Capitol/EMI
Liberation
There are many albums where esteemed artists break from the mould of their musical oeuvre, an action that proves divisive, having hardcore fans either gnashing their teeth or ravenous for more. Not many have drawn hordes of fans based on that one album blip – yet Sea Change has been a record that has stood as a solitary bastion to gentle, intricate songwriting without the pomp and bombast that Beck is known for. Many admirers are fans based on this album alone. Yet it seemed there would never be a repeat performance in these nuanced sonic locales, and after 2008’s Modern Guilt saw Beck create a songbook rather than songs, some thought it might be the end of his studio recordings altogether.
There’s more than a few flashes of The Holidays of old to be found on Real Feel, but this record offers so much more than the tropical indie that summarised 2010 debut Post Paradise. A four-year break has given the band the technical skills and creative scope to write songs with kaleidoscopic vision, the sounds bouncing around the record in a floating state, pulling you up and away as you listen in and get lost.
Morning Phase
But Beck has always done what he wants, and with Morning Phase he veers back into the beautiful introspection of Sea Change with a brace of
Real Feel
eloquent, sustained sounds. After the prologue of Cycle, the first moments of Morning even mirror the soft, melancholy lilt of The Golden Age – yet rather than feel like cribbing from past endeavours, it comes as a hushed embrace, a wonderful return to the fold. Whilst the hushed weariness and thick, lush orchestration that Sea Change brilliantly evoked is here, there is a sunnier disposition in places too – songs like Heart Is A Drum and Blackbird Chain are more akin to ‘60s folk-pop troubadours. Let’s hope Morning Phase is the birth of a new era and not just another flight of fickle fancy. Brendan Telford
Long Now immediately tells you that you’re about to embark on an adventure – the synths are sci-fi, while the drums and piano are straight thriller. Simon Jones’ vocals soon arrive, albeit with sonics far richer than their first record, and together it all makes for an ideal intro. All Time High stands out as single fodder and on first listen you’re quickly taking the bait, but repeated spins show the track to be fairly shallow; Voices Drifting is way
PAPA VS PRETTY
ST VINCENT
White Deer Park
Loma Vista/Caroline
EMI
It’s testament to Annie Clark’s individual and idiosyncratic talent that even as she crosses a typical scattergun of styles to find some unexpected corners for her synthesised muse, it all remains singularly hers. It’s in those moments THAT beauty emerges from apparent chaos; Bring Me Your Loves is one such moment, a whirling dervish in a Turkish market, before collapsing into the title plea. That so-identifiable voice of hers going from longing to near threatening to matter-offactly informing Birth In Reverse’s ‘ordinary day’ includes putting the bins out and masturbating. And you simply accept it as truth.
Rather than filling the shoes left by debut United In Isolation, Sydney’s Papa Vs Pretty have taken some time to gently tiptoe from the past, with key moments of second record White Deer Park carving their own place in the heart. All 12 full-length tracks are doused with frontman Thomas Rawle’s gritty belt, flipping to an honest, crisp and enthralling falsetto. White Deer Park does have its near misses – Rawle’s voice often overpowers the song’s musicality, and alternatively, flimsy lyricism is shielded by interesting harmonics (Rain Check). That being said, the hits are a complete bullseye. Sliding comfortably into ‘90s pop-rock, Suburban Joan Of Arc intensifies from pure enjoyment to a soaring conclusion, only to be outdone by anchors of the album’s second half, While I’m Still Young and Dementia Praecox, 30 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
★★★ ½ more intriguing, with layers of effects and cutting guitar combining to make you pine for the afternoon sun in your eyes. The Phoenix-aping Japan Window again challenges the expected, with a variety of sections feeling foreign yet super inviting, while the back-end and additional percussive elements during the final few tracks push through some languid moments before Morning Workout bursts in conclusive colour. Real Feel is a confident move forwards from a band that could’ve easily got lost in the indie flood, and although not defining, it definitely feels good. Benny Doyle
St Vincent
★★★ ½ revealing a delicate, poignant weight. The true success of White Deer Park is first single My Life Is Yours, a sophisticated narrative of lost love. Delving deep into passion and doubt, Rawle’s vocals are excruciatingly tender, possessing an honesty not altogether found in To Do or Smother, additions that instead encapsulate Papa Vs Pretty’s capacity for shredding rock‘n’roll. White Deer Park is surely a fan favourite, but equipped with certain gems, it also has the potential to move anyone who has experienced life’s mishaps. A healthy progression from an album that seemed impossible to top. Mat Lee
There are echoes of the Love This Giant project with David Byrne: Digital Witness has some of the stutter that marked that collaboration’s territory – although here it’s provided by keyboard taps rather than genuine wheezing brass. Working with the Talking Head emeritus appears to have given Clark more
★★★★ focus, although occasionally an idea still meanders and drifts away, rather than Clark selfediting as she probably should. Then again, this is of the art side of pop, so such discipline may not even be relevant to her work. Elsewhere, Clark dips into some perhaps unexpected grab-bags. Prince Johnny is machine-made doo-wop making a You’re So Vain for this century, while the quietly soaring I Prefer Your Love is plaintive kind of soul, undercut by the title’s postscript ‘to Jesus…’. It’s the little asides and afterthoughts that keep you a bit off balance, yet captivated. She remains special. Ross Clelland
THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 31
album reviews
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BAYSIDE
SIETTA
VANISHING POINT
LO-FANG
Cult
The Invisible River
Distant Is the Sun
Blue Film
Hopeless/Unified
Elefant Traks/Inertia
Rockstar Records
4AD/Remote Control
Rhythmic and deafening drums greet us in Cultâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s opener, Big Cheese, and a grinding, metalesque guitar riff slides into the unique and gripping vocals of Anthony Raneri. Bayside have returned with their sixth record, and to say it sounds huge would be an understatement. Put headphones on and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll sound like youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re being suffocated by a sea of organised chaos. When Time Has Come rolls around, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s clear that every part of every song serves a purpose. If youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re keen to get into Bayside but donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know where to start, track five, Pigsty, would be your best place.
Siettaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s second album is even more staggeringly impressive than its predecessor, beginning slowly and hauntingly with the opening refrain of Let It Go. This Darwin-bred hip hop ensembleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s original sound shines particularly bright in Disturbingly Beautiful, which features a complex and infectious beat complemented expertly by Siettaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s famed vocals. The most powerful track on the album is undoubtedly Agree To Disagree â&#x20AC;&#x201C; energy, musical prowess and sass in equal measure. The album closes as it began, Invisible opening slowly and building into a particularly chilling and heartfelt tune. This release embodies all their musical talent and energy.
Personnel changes and seven years removed from predecessor The Fourth Season, these Melburnians continue to play to their (substantial) strengths. An hour-plus of deeply melodic, lush prog-metal, vocalist Silvio Massaro possesses an urgent, soulful quality suggesting he could sing the Yellow Pages and still engage, here lifting majestic Let The River Run and As December Fades to grand heights. Symphonic flourishes are thankfully no mere window dressing; pointed, thoughtful guitar lines increasingly seep into your subconscious. Boasting anthem-in-the-making a la power metal gem When Truth Lies, the European market beckons.
On paper, this should be a brilliant record: 4AD-released indie-electro, composed by a classically trained multiinstrumentalist with an ear for grooves and a mind for heartfelt lyrics. Unfortunately, the sum of these parts is oddly less than presented individually. Clunky lyrics and all too often meandering compositions wound every great idea. Immaculately produced, the album does have shades of hip indie electroniceers James Blake and Twin Shadow, but the songs themselves just donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t quite stand up. Pleasant and enticing, but ultimately a little hollow â&#x20AC;&#x201C; hopefully itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s simply an inauspicious start to Lo-Fangâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s career.
Lucia Osborne-Crowley
Brendan Crabb
Andrew McDonald
Daniel Cribb
â&#x2DC;&#x2026;â&#x2DC;&#x2026;â&#x2DC;&#x2026; ½
â&#x2DC;&#x2026;â&#x2DC;&#x2026; ½
â&#x2DC;&#x2026;â&#x2DC;&#x2026;â&#x2DC;&#x2026;â&#x2DC;&#x2026;
â&#x2DC;&#x2026;â&#x2DC;&#x2026;â&#x2DC;&#x2026; ½
PHANTOGRAM
THE FRAY
THE NOTWIST
WILD BEASTS
Voices
Helios
Close To The Glass
Present Tense
Universal
Sony
Spunk
Domino/EMI
On their second LP, NYC duo (and sometime Flaming Lips/Big Boi collaborators) Phantogram donಏt feel like dancinಏ much like the office gossip doesnಏt want to tell you something juicy you wonಏt believe. So, as if the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and the Naked and Famous are running the DJ booth, Black Out Days sees Sarah Barthel wail about ಯa thousand voices in my headರ, Howling At The Moon gets cartoony-gothic and Celebrating Nothing confesses to indulgent self-destruction, all under a veneer of glossy leather-pop. Voices has enough bite to leave a mark but isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t as menacing as one might hope.
Helios is The Frayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s attempt at convincing the world they didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t peak too early. Stuart Price (The Killers, Madonna) was recruited to provide a fresh take on the bandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s direction, yet his electronica influence only serves to detract from the bandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s greatest strength â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Isaac Sladeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s iconic voice. Opener, Hold My Hand is a nice showing of their tested and true form of light rock, but mostly Helios is characterised by the bandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s struggle to redefine their identity. The Fray may well see success like How To Save A Life again, just not with anything on this record.
The Notwist, those of the dark German indie rock leanings, have finally dived full-force into electronic experimentation on Close To The Glass. Call it their OK Computer, with even more experience and confidence, if you have to compare it to something. Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s delicately used sparseness, powerful segues between acoustic and electronic sections, and the overarching angst Notwist do such a good job of harnessing. A few tracks, like Run Run Run and Lineri, sway towards dubby dance â&#x20AC;&#x201C; probably a tip of the hat to Four Tet and Caribouâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s remixes â&#x20AC;&#x201C; but this is definitely a late-night-alone album.
Wild Beasts have been on something of an evolutionary arc with each album showcasing their willingness to dig deep into creative corners. Present Tense continues that trend, taking them further into the world of lush electronica. Daughters dials up drama like a subtler Depeche Mode, harnessing tension and some abrasive sonics to create an absorbing dynamic within a fairly standard song structure. Sweet Spot is just as engaging but rides on Thorpeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hooky chorus melody, while New Life is Flemingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s strongest vocal performance to date. This is the most measured and confident release from Wild Beasts.
Mac McNaughton
Ash Goldberg
Cam Findlay
Chris Familton
32 â&#x20AC;˘ THE MUSIC â&#x20AC;˘ 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
singles/ep reviews
★★★½
★★★
★★★
THE LUCKY NUMBERS
PACES
VELUDO
For The Win
Julian EP
Stay Young
Streamers
Independent
Independent/Die High
Independent
Future Classic
Another parasol on the party beach courtesy of Gold Coast producer Mike Perry, Julian is a more restrained, almost basic piece of skippity club tropicalia than weಬve come to expect from Paces. The 813 Remix does a better job upping the beats and dropping the ravey ಯYayರs. Open Your Eyes skirts the dub steps in melancholic form while its Chiefs Remix careers towards Notwist territory via mid-noughtiesಬ garage. Props for a well received DJ Shadow support and the national tour, for which The Julian EP is a tasty teaser, which concludes in Perth mid-March.
Veludo have created a cruisy, comfortable pop record with debut EP, Stay Young. Veludo means velvet in Portuguese, and that’s actually a pretty apt description of their sound. Floaty synth lines backed up by a solid rhythm section give the songs that smooth glide, while modern rock distortion forms a rough sheen over the top. What really sets Stay Young apart are the vocals; frontman Gabriel Vargas’ powerful voice dips and soars like the proverbial feather in the wind. Indigo, in particular offers up some great melodic hooks that all but force a smile out of you.
YEAH BOY
Though its gimmicky title may suggest otherwise, The Lucky Numbers’ debut, For The Win, is a record for old souls. Led by New England native Josie Crosby, the quartet’s often sombre, folk-tinged blues numbers are grounded in old world influences and sophisticated songwriting. Sixminute slow-burning ballad, Blood On My Door, is the highlight, its imagistic verses amplified by Crosby’s diverse vocal delivery. Things get a little repetitive in the album’s final third, but the band’s penchant for evocative melodies and cohesive flow between songs make For The Win a solid and promising debut.
Can’t Get Enough
Matthew Tomich
WAVE RACER Waveracer incorporates a more electronic sound to his new tune, but again, the sugariness of this tune is what stands out, and it truly is catchy as shit.
N’FA JONES Money Better Come Rubber Records Jones’ track Money Better Come is yet another track you can envisage yourself getting loose to, or reflective over, and his vocal delivery combines a beautiful element of soul into hip hop.
Mac McNaughton
Bailey Lions
Atlantic Records / Warner Music / Sweat It Out This electro-pop track leans towards the groovier side of things with some smooth rhythms which slide through synth and hip hop with elements of piano and original beatsy material.
★★
★★★★
★★★½
YOUNG THE GIANT
VARIOUS
LOST IN THE TREES
Feels So Good
Mind Over Matter
Past Life
Pilerats Records
Atlantic/Warner
The Wolf Of Wall Street – Music From The Motion Picture
Perth-based Sable has incorporated synth, sunbeams and bouncy beats to create a super sugary sweet dance tune.
A band should know when their album has missed the mark. Following the success of their indie-pop debut, Young The Giant have decided to attempt to break into the arenarock sound with Mind Over Matter. The band have made the baffling choice to record song after song of incessant synths and ‘80s sound effects. The acoustic Firelight provides a brief respite from the overproduced flash, but lyrics reminiscent of a teenager’s diary dampen even that. If anything, Mind Over Matter shows us that a record shouldn’t be written in anticipation of a future light show.
EMI
The eerie-pop orchestral collective from North Carolina, led by heart-on-sleeve frontman Ari Packer, follow up on their largely underrated but very good album, 2012’s All Alone In An Empty House, with a less folk-leaning record, the pendulum swinging more towards dreamesque soundscaping and synth-based song arrangements. Like the previous album, it’s another slow-diffusing album full of well thought-out composition and introspective (sometimes melancholic) light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel lyrics. Weary, rewarding and ultimately beautiful, it’s that bit more accessible yet will still challenge the listener.
SABLE
VELUDO Stay Young Independent This tune screams ‘90s. You’re hit with plenty of nostalgic guitar lines and melodies in this pop-rock track; it’s a tune people will be wanting to sing along to in their cars with the rooftops down. Kane Sutton
Ash Goldberg
Whilst the film buffs stroke their chins and dispute whether or not The Wolf Of Wall Street is yet another example of why we are blessed to be living in a time when Martin Scorsese is making movies, what’s not up for debate is the soundtrack. Loaded with yet another slew of primal rock ‘n’roll and roots music – from Cannonball Addereleys’s soul-jazz meltdown Mercy Mercy Mercy to Howlin’ Wolf ’s Smokestack Lightening – the tracks by themselves form a compelling narrative arc, just like all great mixtapes should. Christopher H James
Anti-/Warner
Adam Wilding THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 33
live reviews
LILT, SAM PERRY, SARAH PELLICANO Astor Lounge 14 Feb Sarah Pellicano casually made her way onto the stage first, and sang her first song to a mostly empty room. Despite limping slightly from a cold, Sarah stayed positive with knock knock jokes, while attempting, and nailing, the high notes of her melodic, beatdriven electronic set – serenading the room with her most recent single Do You Think? A crowd leisurely formed, celebrating with a cheer for the delightful solo act. Sam Perry snuck on stage, giving a quick rundown of how he was to produce his sound as
clearly had the most stage presence on the night. However, the full band delivered a seamless sound with newest member Dan Firkin on drums. An ill-fitted smoke machine had the room choking on white dust, but Lilt charged on with enthusiasm. Throbbing bass accompanied delicate vocals, creating an ethereal feel in the intimate auditorium. Listening to Can’t Hear live confirmed that spending the universal day of love at Astor Lounge was a solid choice. Josie McGraw
TIRED LION, THE MORNING NIGHT Claremont Hotel 15 Feb Whoever was lucky enough to catch the Saturday night antics
TIRED LION @ CLAREMONT HOTEL. PIC: JOSEPH WILSON
a one-man orchestra. Exactly as described, he slowly built up each element using a microphone, effect station and loop pedal. Haunting vocal harmonies led into heavy bass lines and beatboxed rhythms. He manipulated the songs like a humble craftsman, layering each effect on the slice of delicious audio cake. Although the audience offered hardly a head bob during the performance, perhaps due to the extended length and similarity of the tracks, there was a roaring applause after each song. Sam was observably happy that he pleased the crowd, ending his set with a distorted rendition of Eminem’s Back To Reality. From beat one, the chatty audience went quiet as Lilt unveiled their first euphoric song. Louise Penman rocked a gold onesie, cradling the audience into a hypnotic state with every glassy note. The blonde songstress 34 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
the main stage to watch Tired Lion’s set. Led by the innocuous yet grungy pop-driven vocals of Sophie Hopes, the band carefully transitioned the ‘60s psych that The Morning Night played into a sound that drove the listener to believe they were reading nihilistic poetry in a Seattle alt-rock bar in the early ‘90s. Hopes’ voice was so infectious it seemed to possess one intoxicated patron to demand multiple encores by singing a drunken rendition of Daft Punk’s One More Time. Sadly, the band had to stick to their track list, which consisted of singles from their recently released EP, All We Didn’t Know, and previously released singles such as Bright Eyes. Desperate created a raw, stripped-back experience through the inclusion of lilting high-pitched guitar arpeggios, contrasting against the verse
LADI6 @ CHEVRON FESTIVAL GARDENS. PIC: TED DANA
at the Claremont Hotel were rewarded by the entertaining sounds of local rock bands The Morning Night and Tired Lion. The turnout for The Morning Night’s performance would best be described as disheartening, for the only patrons present were the bar staff and Tired Lion, who were sitting to the side of the stage nodding to band’s songs attentively. But the lack of a cheering crowd did not impede on the band’s overall stage presence, much of material the band played that night coming from two of their released albums, 2013’s Amberola and 2012’s Otis. Gotta Get Away stood out, with its reverbed pitch bends in the intro creating a nostalgia that fondly recalled the ‘60s psychedelic. After a brief intermission that involved some more remixes from DJ John, a small, anticipating crowd began to gather around
the call came out for everyone to come to the main stage. Homebrew took the stage and showed that this wasn’t just another skip hop act. The guys rhyme hardcore but still don’t take themselves too seriously. Some bands banter about the background of their songs, or about something they’re working on – but not these guys. They tell the crowd to just imagine this is happening in a backyard and they’re all just chillin’. Cups of Hennessy on ice in one hand, mics in the other, the three homies rapped to music from a live backing band (guitar, bass, keys, and drums) but definitely lacking the brass section that was touted on Facebook. They even showed some love on stage for Abraham, the guitarist, by singing him Happy Birthday. After well and truly getting the crowd pumped up the guys made
HOMEBREW @ CHEVRON FESTIVAL GARDENS. PIC: TED DANA
with a chorus that contained angst-filled, reverbed vocals and lengthy clusters of distortion from the rhythm guitarist. Tired Lion’s performance was then farewelled with a brief thanks to the small crowd that, despite the low turnout, was still impressed by both of the bands. Joseph Wilson
LADI6, HOMEBREW
Chevron Festival Gardens 13 Feb Walking into the artistic chaos that is the Chevron Festival Gardens, you know you’re in for a treat. Two DJs spinning from an old jalopy were keeping punters entertained while they ate and drank waiting for the show. But it wasn’t long before
way for New Zealand’s answer to Mary J Blige, none other than Ladi6. Hitting the stage with a korowai around her shoulders and a dress by Perth designer Monsters Alphabet, Ladi kicked off the show with Shine On dedicated “for the lovers”. Ladi kept the flow going right in to Bang Bang from her album The Liberation Of… before stopping for a moment to introduce the title track from Automatic. She said it was all about trusting yourself – knowing you have the skills to do whatever it is you need to do. And the confidence on stage while singing that just magnified the point she was trying to make. Before capping off the night Ladi introduced the band to the crowd and finished off with Call You Out, dedicated “to the ladies – let’s call ‘em out!” Ted Dana
perth festival
DJ SHADOW, SAMPOLOGY
Chevron Festival Gardens
to break free of the shadow of his classic Endtroducing/Private Press period but as he reminded us when recovering from an earlier technical hitch: “‘Keep looking forward’- that’s my motto.”
15 Feb
Mac McNaughton
See. Sampology. Now! By themselves, Poggioli’s frisky beats are enough to cause minor seismic activity on the dance floor. Married with a playful array of live-mixed visuals which took in everything from The Graduate, Bollywood colloquia and homespun animations, Sampology’s hour is a stupendous wower.
THE NATIONAL, LULUC
Welcomed with reverence wearing a hometownchampioning baseball cap, the always charming (and dare I say studly) San Franciscan Joshua Paul Davis, aka DJ Shadow,
Belvoir Amphitheatre 14 Feb Support act Luluc, originally hailing from Melbourne but currently based in Brooklyn, played a chilled-out set with just the two members onstage swapping between various guitars; having recorded their soon-to-be-released second album with Aaron Dessner from The National, it seemed only
DJ SHADOW @ CHEVRON FESTIVAL GARDENS. PIC: CHAU GOH
set out the manifesto: Tonight would not be a ‘Greatest Hits’ set. We are promised the “newest new shit”, beats and cuts he’s ravenously snuffled from new artists. Newer than new, in fact. So ironically, as the intro counted us in and asked “Are you ready?” electrical issues packed in and Shadow was halted as soon as he’s started. A second necessary stop stymied the vibes with heartfelt apology, but the packed Chevron Gardens were a forgiving lot. Finally, Shadow was able to deliver a hip hop-fortified wall of beats and bass. A few Shadowy classics made the mix (a reconstructed Six Days, a dirgey Number Song, the marching I Gotta Rokk, the inevitable Organ Donor) but most tantalising was a new track (of his own making, this time) which came across like Squarepusher going acidhouse. He may forever be trying
consistently brilliant throughout the show, his sweet baritone like warm melted caramel for slower track I Need My Girl. Final song of the night, Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks was played acoustically, which as you can probably imagine is usually quite difficult with an audience of that size. Not for these guys, though; the whole audience sang along and Berninger selected a lucky few members of the crowd to sing into the microphone, much to the amusement of everyone else. The vibe that came from this connection with the audience was incredible, and it was a credit to the band and the influence they so clearly possess. Finishing on this note was unlike anything this reviewer has witnessed before, and it’ll be a long time before it’s done this well again. Tash Edge
THE NATIONAL @ BELVOIR AMPHITHEATRE. PIC: BRON WOODWARD
SITUATION ROOMS
Also based in Brooklyn, but originally from Cincinnati, five-piece indie rockers The National didn’t disappoint. Swelling to seven members for the live shows and playing a hectic two-hour set, they gave an impressive performance that ended with lead singer Matt Berninger spending most of the encore in the audience, much to the delight of the crowd. Playing a good mix of old and new tracks, I Should Live In Salt from the new album was a personal highlight, and their classic Bloodbuzz Ohio had the majority of the highly excitable audience singing along at the top of their lungs. Ever-socharming Berninger’s voice was
ABC Perth Studios to 23 Feb
Perth Festival
Throughout the course of the installation you see life through the eyes and ears of 20 individuals; each person’s experience is compartmentalised to these elaborate and interactive rooms that vary from a Syrian street scene to an executive’s office.
This is a compelling, technologically ambitious interactive force that submerses viewers in the unfamiliar; it’s an eye-opening experience. Olivia Gardner
NOT BY BREAD ALONE Perth Festival
Regal Theatre (finished) Not By Bread Alone is unlike any other stage production because it is performed by the world’s only professional deaf-blind theatre ensemble. The play opens with the actors seated at
NOT BY BREAD ALONE @ REGAL THATRE.
fitting that they’d join them on this tour. Their new material gave a good indication of the excellent quality we have to look forward to on their new record.
Equipped with an iPad and headphones, you are positioned at varying entry points to this massive installation. Here you wait in uncertainty for the number on your screen to count down before it’s your turn to enter and become someone completely different.
The performance compels a global experience informing its viewer of the individuals behind the current political and social climate.
a long table, kneading dough. As the actors first knead and then bake the bread, they share their dreams for the future. Their stories and observations are moving, but also surprisingly funny. One actor, Itzik Hanuna, relates that if a beautiful blonde were in the building it wouldn’t mean a thing to him. This, spliced with odd little vignettes involving actors on stilts pushing prams; a very Lucille Ball-style hair salon scene. Finally the audience is invited to come up onto the stage to taste the bread and meet the actors. Director Adina Tal said she feels that eating the bread and talking with the actors (through interpreters) is a form of acceptance. A mustsee show for those of us who have the privilege of sight. Rebekah Barnett THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 35
arts reviews
OVERWHELMED
OVERWHELMED Comedy
The Pleasure Garden, Fringe World (finished) Life can be overwhelming – especially if you live in Pat Burtscher’s head. With so many ideas rattling around his brain, it’s no wonder he has a pocketful of notes to keep him on track. Part philosopher and part conspiracy theorist, Burtscher is that guy at a party sitting in the corner surrounded by a group of people, half rolling their eyes in ridicule at his misanthropic ramblings while the others listen intently, nodding in agreement. Despite
having absolutely no shred of a structure whatsoever, Burtscher holds onto the audience with endearing Canadian humility and charisma amidst his scattered thoughts. The show unfolds organically in response to the audience – effortlessly funny, not relying on shtick, gags or rehearsed punch lines in exchange for cheap laughs. Well versed in Australian affairs, such as shark culling and mining, Burtscher makes for an unlikely intellectual as he broaches issues like environmental devastation, societal structure, sexual discrimination and the basics of humanity all with humble hilarity. Burtscher’s strong opinions and theories manage to sit somewhere between child-like innocence and jaded cynicism, and with enough of whatever Burtscher’s been smoking, no doubt he would make a lot of sense. Considering Canada’s lax attitude towards drug use and left-wing liberal thinking, it’s surprising Burtscher hasn’t already been elected for office: PM Burtscher anyone? Taelor Pelusey
SHE WAS PROBABLY NOT A ROBOT Theatre
Blue Room Theatre, Fringe World (finished) If the world ended in fire and flood and one guy survived, you probably wouldn’t expect Stuart Bowden’s central character to be that guy. But there he is, floating on his air mattress to safety, waking up out at sea as the last man alive on earth. Bowden’s newest one-man Fringe show, She Was Probably
Not A Robot is a very funny, whimsical little comedy about how the end of the world probably isn’t as bad as breaking up with your girlfriend, because at least it gives you something to do. Bowden plays two main characters, the second being an alien called Celeste, who has built a life-sized model of Earth just in time for the death of the original. The story the two characters tell is imaginative and playful, cast under a Mighty Booshlike aesthetic and performed with great energy and timing. Bowden is keenly in tune with his audience the whole way through and plays skilfully to their reactions. As with any good concept, it can be difficult to know how to cap it, and Robot does flounder in the final quarter. It ends well, but loses pace in the lead-up. Despite this, the piece is genuinely entertaining and an excellent – if light – way to spend an evening.
SHE WAS PROBABLY NOT A ROBOT
Zoe Barron
. . . m o r f s g n ı t e e r G
SPINNING TOP MUSIC PRESENTS
POND / AAA AARDVARK GETDOWN SERVICES (FEAT. KEVIN PARKER & CAM AVERY) / FELICITY GROOM / THE SILENTS / PETER BIBBY / DJ LADY CARLA SATURDAY FEBRUARY 22 CHEVRON FESTIVAL GARDENS TICKETS FROM WWW.PERTHFESTIVAL.COM.AU 36 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
the guide
HARLEM DJS
Left to right: Peter Payne, Genga, JS Tell us a little bit about Harlem. JS: It’s based on hip hop and bass music mainly, but we will always search for and push the most current sounds that we feel are bound to get girls and guys shaking and breaking. Why should people attend? Peter Payne: Harlem is a movement; it’s a mini-culture in itself within Perth. The music is new and fresh and the drinks are cheap and strong! What makes the Harlem DJs such a great team? Genga: We all trust in each other’s abilities and we all enjoy each other’s company. There’s lots of love there behind the booth. We have some new faces joining us these days that you will have to come meet too. JS: We are mates outside the club and we also respect each other as DJs/producers, there are no egos aboard this ship and we are all about what’s best for the team!. What can punters expect to hear when you’re in control of the dancefloor? Genga: Party bootleg bass music. Fuck genres, if the vibe is right the track will get a play. Catch the Harlem DJs every Wednesday night at Capitol. Pic by Aaron Versiontwo THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 1
eat/drink
DO US A FLAVOUR Flavoured beers: for the days when you’re torn between having a beer and having something different. Here are some beers with that little twist. Illustrations Brendon Wellwood.
COFFEE
CHOCOLATE
On sunny afternoons when you can’t decide between an early beer or a late coffee, look no further than TSA Brewing Co Double Espresso – the coffee-flavoured beer that won the World’s Best Flavoured Beer in 2012 at the World Beer Awards. The WBA described it as a “smooth and creamy eamy mouthfeel”. Sensual.
A rich dark beer and a top example of chocolate-flavoured beers, Young’s Double Chocolate Stout is the proverbial crème de la crème (so to speak) of the category with its impressive back catalogue of awards. Try it over ice cream for a tasty treat.
BERRY
HONEY
For a different, sweeter brand of fruit-flavoured beers, Edinburgh-based brewing company Innis And Gunn’s Melville’s Strawberry and Raspberry Beers are light and summery. They’re recommended to be drunk over ice for the perfect hot weather brew.
A must-have for dedicated sweet-tooths and a mustavoid for dedicated vegans, try Samuel Adams Honey Queen. This is one for those who like their flavours rich and decadent. We can imagine that this one would be doubly sticky if accidentally spilled on yourself, though.
APPLE For an interestingly flavoured beer that simultaneously flatters your tastebuds and does its best to keep the doctor away, check out Unibroue Éphémère Apple, the apple-flavoured beer.
WHAT’S APP’NIN’ CLEAN & GREEN EATING Who says eating well is hard? With the Clean & Green Eating app on hand, eating macro, organic, raw or all three at every meal is as easy as fast food (almost). Shopping lists, a 122-strong recipe file that includes drinks and snacks and an On-Hand function where you can punch in whatever is left in your crisper take all the stress out of being wholesome. There’s also estimates of kitchen time (not the misleading cooking time) so you won’t accidentally lock yourself away for hours cooking.
38 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
eat/drink FOOD TRUCKIN’
HEY PESTO
What is the best aspect of having your business mobile? We can take our food to the people for their convenience and work in an ever-changing environment.
43 Bromley St, Embleton heypesto.com.au Answered by: Mathew Williams
What food fad do you see being popularised next? Trucks that specialise in serving great quality food. Trucks that concentrate on only serving one particular “genre” of food out of funky and quirky food trucks that don’t cut corners just because they have limited equipment or space like a restaurant. What is your dream festival to cater for? Someday to be involved with a large amount of great food trucks serving all different cuisines, fads, trends and styles of food with all my favourite music artists playing live in the background.
Who is serving/cooking and what makes them special? We are a small, family-run business with my wonderful wife having the back of house/ truck duties, cooking our famous muffins and poking me with a stick to drive me towards our goals and dreams. What should I order when you pull up? You can’t go past our steak burger. We source the locally bred beef, using only scotch fillet, serving it on a steamed Turkish bun with fresh salads, Capel Vale Cheddar and a green tomato relish. It only just beats our chicken fillet burger.
HOT SPOT DELISH ICE – 175 WILLIAM ST, NORTHBRIDGE Delish Ice artisan ice pops are delivered to you via ‘50s-style caravans and carts around Perth, Mandurah and the Dunsborough and Margaret River regions, and now in a pop-up shop in Northbridge too. Their ever-changing menu includes regular fruity flavours like Banana Coconut Choc Chip and Basil & Elderflower, bubbly ones such as Watermelon Lemonade, and creamy pops like Salted, Malted Caramel.
EATIN’ OUT DON TAPA Shop EX1, E Shed Markets, Peter Hughes Drive, Fremantle dontapa.com.au What’s one food you can’t live without and why? Ceviche; its freshness and flavour. It’s just addictive. What is an ingredient you couldn’t live without? Lime and coriander: quintessential Latin American ingredients.
What’s the design/ atmosphere of your restaurant? Repurposed sea container with an architectural twist. Recycled fruit pallets made into bench seating with planters. Friendly staff, relaxed vibe, family and dog friendly. Takes you away to another world. Who is serving/cooking and what makes them special? Chefs Antony Margry and Max. Both
have Michelin-starred restaurants’ experience. Antony has spent the last three years exploring South America and showcasing his work at his restaurant in Uruguay. Our team has diverse backgrounds from Australia, France, England, Chile, Ecuador and Aruba.
Where do you eat out? Don Tapa, Il Lido In Cottesloe and trying out new or hidden places. What should I order when I come down? We stand by every item our menu. Some favourites include spicy beef empanadas, ceviche, gringo grango gazpacho and prawn moqueca.
BAR FOOD RECS
Croquettes – Those delicious deep fried cheesy parcels are named after the French word for ‘crunch’ and that is exactly what you will do. Repeatedly. Because no matter what’s in them, they are hard to resist. Chicken Karaage – Often described as the Japanese version of popcorn chicken, it is mandatory to like karaage. It feels much less greasy than the Colonel’s chicken but tastes just as good. Wasabi Peas – Superior to the standard beer nut, the wasabi pea is always crunchy, relentlessly spicy and makes you feel slightly healthy because it’s green. Be warned: the heat in these babies is the ultimate bartender ploy to get you drinking more. Vegetable Fries – We’ve all eaten potato fries but how about chunky strips of eggplant, all crispy on the outside and gooey inside? Or parsnip, or sweet potato, or pretty much any vegetable in chip form? Oysters – Certainly not for everyone but if you do like them, you’ll know they go well with just about every drink. Champagne, G&Ts, beer, a dry white are all perfect pals for a natural oyster.
THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 39
opinion MODERATELY HIGHBROW ARTS, CULTURE AND THE INBETWEEN WITH CAM FINDLAY I have fond memories of Fairbridge. Growing up in Mandurah, there were a bunch of little festivals and events that forced us to pack up our shitty first cars, make the trek and revel. I remember seeing The Butterfly Effect there, and waiting for COG before a storm disastrously blew the stage down (I never saw COG live, by the way). The Fairbridge Festival was but a locally known event at that point, but it’s now pretty well known amongst the hoity-toity folk of the city. Fairbridge’s camping set-up is now professional as hell, leaving you to simply enjoy the trip – which is, by the way, between 25-27 April this year. Then there’s the acts – a heady mix of world music, folk, dance and, well everything. Adrian Edmondson & The Bad Shepherds? Funkalleros? Grace Barbe AfroKreol? The freakin’ Barons Of Tang? Yes please, yes please to all of that. And then stretch that out to France, Gambia, Ireland, India, Denmark and the US, and you have some idea of what “world music” really means. Between that there’s circus troupes, art installations, art classes, food stalls and just general hanging around in a vibey setting. Probably one of the most important parts of Fairbridge Festival is just how casual it is; there’s no pandering to big-name acts (though Ade Edmondson does fall in that category), but just an ideal to make the whole experience enjoyable for everyone involved. Fairbridge Village is also just a great place to spend time in. In conclusion: sorry, people of Mandurah. I still visit sometimes.
THE BARONS OF TANG
40 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
TRAILER TRASH
COMIC RELIEF
DIVES INTO YOUR SCREENS AND IDIOT BOXES WITH GUY DAVIS
COMIC BOOK ACTION WITH GARETH BIRD
SHIA LABEOUF
I like Shia; I make no bones about that. I dug his early appearances in movies like Constantine, Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle and I, Robot, where he basically played hyperactive sidekicks or exposition-delivery devices but did so with a wised-up, streeturchin charm. I really enjoyed his work in the Transformers movies, even though Michael Bay’s boom crash operas were seemingly manufactured for the sole purpose of giving me a headache, because Shia didn’t coast through them – he committed, man, bellowing “OPTIMUS!” with total conviction every damn time. Hell, I didn’t even mind him in Indiana Jones And The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull, even though his character was a poorly-constructed knockoff of ‘50s-era Brando/James Dean affectations and accessories. Lately? Well, there’s some cause for concern, it appears, when it comes to LaBeouf. Just as Barney Gumble did after his stint in The B Sharps, Shia’s taking to straaaange new places. Whether he’s following a carefully-plotted course or simply wandering in the wilderness is hard to discern at this stage. Shia has long been a bit of a wild one, but past antics had an air of lowlevel douche-brat behaviour/ child-star entitlement – driving under the influence, being indiscreet about hook-ups, trash-talking former colleagues in a manner more thoughtless than malicious. Lately, however, LaBeouf has ripped a few pages out of the Joaquin Phoenix playbook and started livin’ by the ol’ Hunter S Thompson adage “When the going gets
weird, the weird go pro”. Is it a response to the tepid reaction at his stab at more grown-up roles in so-so projects like Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps or The Company You Keep? Is it an attempt to show the world that Shia’s waters run deep? Has spending half his life in the showbiz trenches broken his damn brain or something? It’s probably the middle one, actually, and it’s not a new and particularly groundbreaking tactic, although it’s always interesting to see a trainwreck in progress, even if it is one that’s kinda choreographed. Phoenix is perhaps the most recent example of career immolation in the name of ‘art’ – the mumbly appearances on talk shows, the reports of odd behaviour, all that jazz. Shia looks to be going through similar motions. Multiple acts of artistic plagiarism perhaps weren’t the best place to begin, though – even if you claim you were repurposing existing material so it could viewed in a new light, most folks are gonna consider you an unoriginal chump. Getting all kinds of naked in a Lars von Trier movie? Well, that’s not a bad move – the filmmaker has bona fides to spare (and his film Nymphomaniac reportedly has boners to spare), so maybe some of that cachet will rub off. Walking around with a paper bag on your head, especially a bag on which ‘I AM NOT FAMOUS ANYMORE’ is written? Shit, you can’t accuse of Shia of not being committed to the bit, huh? The dude’s working diligently to burn some bridges – hopefully he’ll find solid, fertile ground on the other side.
This week we’re delving into the world of your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man. In particular, the upcoming relaunch of Marvel’s Amazing Spider-Man. But first, a crash course on what’s been happening to the webslinger recently. For the past year, Doctor Octopus has been SpiderMan; sounds crazy, I know! Thanks to a desperate ploy from the dying villain, Otto Octavius was able to transfer his mind into the body of Peter Parker, and defeat his long-time foe by trapping him in his dying frame. Since occupying Peter’s body though (and with the help of lingering Spider-Man memories), Doc Ock has been overcome with the need to be a better hero than his predecessor ever was. Cue the arrival of a Superior SpiderMan! Fan outcry was immediate. Thousands of long-time readers cancelled their subscriptions, condemning the move as a cheap promotional stunt, with many questioning how long before Marvel caved and returned to the status quo. As the issues came and went though, the impossible happened: the story was praised across the board for its fresh, darker take on a familiar title, and sales began skyrocketing. Marvel find themselves in quite a tough spot. The new approach has been an unqualified success, so do they risk alienating fans again in order to tie in to a Sony film that they have no input on, or do they try to have their cake and eat it with both an Amazing and Superior Spider-Man on the shelves? We’ll see how far fan patience (and wallets) will stretch… COMICZONE’S BOOKS OF THE WEEK Batman; She-Hulk; The Bunker; X-Force; Fatale
SUPERIOR SPIDER MAN PORTAL
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FRONTLASH
LIVE THIS WEEK
CALL THE DOCTOR
Start saving those pennies as it looks like Scrubs is set to be revived as a stage musical.
FALSE ALARM JUST VISITING
WALKER ON THE WILD SIDE
Holding On To What Hurts is the first single from Tourist’s longawaited debut album Race Against Time. It’s a spacious, soulful rock track; hear it at Clancy’s Dunsborough, 21 Feb; Prince Of Wales, Bunbury, 22 Feb; and Nannup Festival on 1 and 2 Mar.
Don Walker is a national treasure. From Cold Chisel to Tex, Don and Charlie, Walker has written the soundtrack to our lives. To celebrate the launch of his new album Hully Gully, he heads to Clancy’s Freo on 21 Feb, with the awesome Lucky Strikes.
THE PRINCESS DIARIES
ON THE FACTORY FLOOR
Awesome ladies Dianas had an absolutely huge 2013, gaining a bunch of local attention and some pretty big supports. They’ve just polished off their second EP, and they launch it at The Bird on 21 Feb, supported by Catbrush and Childsaint.
Cassy Britton has meticulously fashioned her craft over the last decade, approaching her DJ sets with passion that is hard to surpass. Flying out of the hallowed halls of Berghain, she heads to brand new venue The Factory on 21 Feb.
CROOKED RAIN
WHERE NO MAN HAS GONE BEFORE
Crooked Colours released the second single Come Down, off their upcoming sophomore EP, late last year to an impressive reception. The boys are looking to up the ante with a national tour which hits The Causeway on 22 Feb.
Unfortunately claims that LA Clippers star Blake Griffin punched Justin Bieber are false. Also, we’re getting kind of tired of talking about Justin Bieber.
BEST IN THE WEST FINALLY! Kanye West hits Perth Arena in May.
SCRUBS
BACKLASH A WORLD OF PAIN
After 30 years, Fremantle world music institution Kulcha has decided to close its doors, citing a lack of funding from the State Government as the culprit. Meanwhile, more funding is given to shark culling. Great to see their priorities are in order.
Local metal dreadnaughts Voyager have attained what can only be described as a worldwide cult following. They’re currently in the midst of Kickstarting their next album, and launch a new single at Amplifier on 21 Feb.
CONSPIRACY THEORISTS
TIME TO EXPLODE
Reptiluminati make David Icke wet his pants. That’s their words: we probably wouldn’t be as consise. But if that sounds fun, the freak jammers from other great local bands play The Bird on 20 Feb with other literate bands in support.
Local rockers The Volcanics will be touring Spain in March with The Chevelles. Come celebrate with them and help them raise a bit of dosh for the tour at The Rosemount on 22 Feb along with Datura, The Dirty South and The Fortunados.
GRAND OPENING
STATE OF EMERGENCE
Today’s a very special day for two great local musos; Bex Chilcott (ie Ruby Boots) and folkster Turin Robinson are kicking off a brand new open mic night at Bar 459, from 19 Feb through every Wednesday night.
PJ Bloom,Carolyn Miller, Ben Akers and Jonathon Kneebone all head to the second annual Emergence Creative Festival in Margaret River from 19 to 21 Feb 2014. Emergencecreative. com for full details.
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SON OF A DICK How I Met You Dad? Really?!
PRISON BREAK
THIS WEEK’S RELEASES… PAPA VS. PRETTY White Deer Park EMI
19 detainees at the Manus Island detention centre have been injured after tearing down a fence and trying to escape during a disturbance at the Papua New Guinea facility. So is it really working?
THE HOLIDAYS Real Feel Liberation ST. VINCENT St Vincent Loma Vista/Caroline SEAN PAUL Full Frequency Atlantic/Warner THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 41
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HAVE YOU HEARD
SINGLE FOCUS
LIVE THIS WEEK
BEZWUN
THE COLD ACRE
THE SUN NEVER SETS
BEERFEST
Name: Tom Beziuk
Answered By: Richard Moloney
When did you know DJing was the gig for you? When I mixed my first house party! Being able to create moods and emotions through music that I controlled gave me an awesome feeling. And the fact that people were grooving on the dancefloor!
Single title? Audrey
Offworld’s Sundown Sessions, is back for another round. There’s already been some killer nights over the holidays, and now it’s Missy Higgins, Sarah Blasko and Jae Laffer’s turn to get things going on 21 Feb. Oztix for tickets.
Rainy Day Women headline the 2014 South West Craft Beer Festival On 22 Feb, with Mathas, Needing Cherie, Kris Buckle and Friends, Kiress, Short & Curly and more at Old Broadwater Farm, Busselton.
DO THE SHUFFLE
GETTING STICKY
The Aston Shuffle continue to craft the sort of dancefloor fillers that you just can’t shake. New track Tear It Down is house music like it should be done. They hit Sets On The Beach at Scarbourough Beach on 23 Feb.
Syrup have transformed Freo’s Westgate Mall into a kaleidoscopic playground for Syrup Arcade; Zeke b2b Charlie Chan, Leon Osborn, D.Y.P btb Bolsty, Boy P b2b Saxon, Clunk, Ben T b2b Ben M and Genga b2b Benny P fill it on 22 Feb.
BORN TO RUST
SPACE JAM
Forming in Perth, in 2001, four-piece rockabilly outfit Rusty & The Dragstrip Trio geared themselves towards a traditional ‘50s look and sound. With energetic live performances, They get it rollin’ at Mustang Bar on 22 Feb
Slaving away on a remote island, only accessible by hollow metal shells and paddles, Spacemanantics have conjured together an album that weaves all corners of the musical world together. They launch it for round 2 on 22 Feb at Mojos.
NEWPORT PROSPEKT
SOMEBODY SKREAM
Alt/Rock triumvirate Nevsky Prospekt showcase some brand new songs from their forthcoming EP on 23 Feb at the Newport Hotel. Filthy Apes, Custom Royal and September Sun join ‘em. Doors open at 6pm and entry is free.
As one of the biggest names in the world, Skream’s contribution to the entirety of the dance music spectrum over the last decade has been unparalleled. Mixing old and new, Skream heads to Villa on 22 Feb for a huge show. Tickets through Moshtix.
BLOODY PUNKS
DEER IN THE HEADLIGHTS
Catch some great local midweek indie-punk-rock with Lionizer, Dan Cribb & The Isolated, Paper Plains and Being Beta all hitting the stage. Some great local revelry, all at the cheap price of $8.
Papa Vs Pretty’s new album, White Deer Park, unfolds some of the mysteries of their musical alchemy, and just how they make the music they do. They bring it our way on 23 Feb at Mojo’s. Tickets through Oztix.
What’s your most memorable musical moment? Opening the main stage at Breakfest 2013 with Tonic. What release should everyone have in their collection? DJ Fresh - Gold Dust (Vocal Mix). It is a fun-filled happy party track that gets everyone moving. From the infectious vocals to the quirky synth stabs, it just reaches out to people! Who’s the act everyone will be talking about in 12 months? JS. Spending countless hours in the studio perfecting and honing his sound, and surgically executing technical DJ sets, his commitment and hunger for quality is what I think will take him above and beyond. What can punters expect to hear when you’re in control of the dancefloor? Party music fused together with some cutting and scratching. No genre usually left untouched. From booty breaks to drum and bass, glitch hop to electro, basically anything and everything to get the dance floor rocking! Website link for more info? http://www. soundcloud.com/bezwun Bezwun hits Japan 4, 22 Feb at Ambar
What’s the song about? Dropping all boundaries and confidently taking hold of life for yourself. Making a change for the better. How long did it take to write/record? The song was written in one rehearsal and recorded over three days. Is this track from a forthcoming release/existing release? Audrey is the 3rd track on our EP Lies, which was released in 2013. What was inspiring you during the songs writing and recording? We had recently restructured the band and were feeling more in tune with each other than we ever have. We were looking to the future and feeling very positive. We’ll like this song if we like... Gyroscope, Nirvana, The Rolling Stones, Silverchair, Violent Soho, Children Collide, British India. Do you play it differently live? We wanted to record our EP as close as possible to how it would sound live, as we wanted to portray ourselves as a raw yet professional alternative rock band. When and where is your launch/ next gig? Our Single launch is at The Beat Nightclub on 21 Feb. Website link for more info? http:// www.facebook.com/thecoldacre
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LIVE THIS WEEK
GIVEAWAYS
BIG STARS
ANTICS IN YOUR PANTS
Ireland has been home to some influential artists; The Coronas are no exception. Their live shows have made them one of the country’s most popular concert attractions; see what the fuss is about at Amplifier on 23 Feb.
On 22 Feb, The Claremont Hotel sees Antics – a night of live indie bands and DJs, featuring the top crop of local up’n’comers and old guards. This week, catch LYTS and Man The Clouds plus DJ John Black. Free entry ‘til late!
RAMBLIN’ MAN
ANIMAL CROSSING
BLESS YOU
Three years ago, Stu Larsen made a decision to leave behind normality, security and comfort. He’s back in Australia at Mojo’s on 20 Feb, after sharing his music with thousands of fans whilst supporting Passenger.
Kate Ceberano and Teddy Tahu Rhodes literally meet in the middle in a unique musical collaboration with WASO backing them up. Join them under the stars at Perth Zoo on 22 Feb.
It’s hard to pigeonhole Tasmanian DJ/producer Akouo into any one electronic music genre, with his organic yet direct approach to electonric music. Catch him at Capitol on 22 Feb with Sid Pattni and Kla.
WE’RE FRYIN’ TONIGHT
LUCKY NUMBER 7
MOONLIGHT SERENADE
Mustang Bar brings you the allyou-can-eat Tailgate Sundays, every Sunday from 4pm. Ice cold beers and tasty burgers accompanied by WA’s best bands and DJs, with free entry.
A celebration of soul, funk, jazz, hip hop, disco, Latin, Afro and hip hop all on the 7” format: That’s 7th heaven at The Bird on 22 Feb. Catch local 7” slingers Nathan J, Ben Taaffe, John Safari and Charlie Bucket.
Insomniac? Shift worker? Vampire? Night Cap Sessions at The Ellington has the cure for what ails you. Catch a late night helping of jazz goodness at from 10.30pm on 22 Feb. $5 on the door, no bookings required.
DAN SULTAN Performing live at the Art Gallery of WA on 6 Mar, Dan Sultan will launch the sixth season of Artbar. After erupting back onto the scene with bold soul-rock shot Under Your Skin his first release in over four years - Dan Sultan is set to return and give the first electrifying taste of his upcoming album. You can get your hands on a double pass to the show through our website. NINA LAS VEGAS Triple j’s very own Nina Las Vegas returns to Metropolis Fremantle, and she’s bringing some friends with her. Last in WA for her wildly successful House Party National Tour, Nina loves to get the party started over our way, and 6 Mar will almost definitely be no exception. We have two double passes to give away to the show, which also includes the Death Disco DJs. To enter our comps, head to themusic.com.au/win-prizes
THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 43
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THE MUSIC PRESENTS FUTURE MUSIC FESTIVAL feat. BAAUER, CUT COPY, DEADMOU5, ERIC PRYDZ, KASKADE, KNIFE PARTY, MACKLEMORE & RYAN LEWIS, MARKUS SCHULZ, NETSKY, PHOENIX, RUDIMENTAL, SLEIGH BELLS, SVEN VATH, TENZIN, TIMMY TRUMPET & MORE: MAR 2, Joondalup Arena ABSU, PORTAL, DENOUNCEMENT PYRE: MAR 20, Amplifier CLOUD CONTROL: MAR 20, The Saint; MAR 21, Settlers Tavern, Margaret River; MAR 21, Yallingup Caves House Hotel; MAR 22, Empire Bar; MAR 22, Ocean Beach Hotel; MAR 22, The Northshore Tavern; MAR 23, The Brisbane Hotel; MAR 23, Whistling Kite SHAPESHIFTER: MAR 21, Metro City CALLING ALL CARS, THE LOVE JUNKIES, THE
SINKING TEETH: MAR 21, Amplifier; MAR 22, Prince Of Wales Hotel, Bunbury; MAR 23, Indi Bar CASPIAN: MAR 22, Mojos Bar MONSTER MAGNET: APR 3, Amplifier SUZANNE VEGA: APR 11, Astor Theatre BLISS N ESO: MAY 2, Signal Park, Busselton; MAY 3, Wellington Square THE JUNGLE GIANTS: MAY 9, Rosemount Hotel ARCTIC MONKEYS: MAY 13, Perth Arena
WED 19 THU 20
Bingay & POP!+DJ Scout + Curlee + Various DJs: Connections Nightclub, Northbridge
FRI 21
Brillz + Black & Blunt + Tonic + DNGRFLD + Genga + Benny P: Ambar, Perth Capitol Fridays with DJ Roger Smart: Capitol, Perth Physt + Various DJs: Flyrite, Northbridge Detroit Swindle: Shape, Perth Troy Division + NDorse: The Aviary, Perth NDorse: The George, Perth
WED 19
Harlem Wednesdays / Lenox Ave+Genga + Peter Payne + JS + Philly Blunt + BMB + Pussymittens + Benny P: Capitol (Upstairs), Perth
NORTHLANE: MAY 28, Fly By Night; 29 MAY, Capitol
Luke Dux + Jozef Grech: Clancys Canning Bridge, Applecross
ONGOING:
Night Cap Session + Stu Larsen: Ellington Jazz Club, Perth
GIGNITION: Upcoming band showcases 4-8pm last Sunday of each month at The Railway Hotel BEX ‘N’ TURIN’S OPEN MIC NIGHT: 8pm-late every Monday at Rosemount Hotel
CLUB GUIDE
DJ JJ + DJ Reuben Cameron + Various DJs: Connections Nightclub, Northbridge
GIG OF THE WEEK PAPA VS PRETTY: 23 FEB, MOJOS BAR
SAT 22
Japan 4 + Various DJs: Ambar, Perth
Death Disco feat. Death Disco DJs: Capitol, Perth Metropolis Saturdays + Darren Tucker + Dr Wazz + Various DJs: Metropolis, Fremantle DJ Samuel Spencer + Troy Division + NDorse: The Aviary, Perth Skream: Villa Nightclub, Perth Syrup feat. Zeke + Charlie Chan + Leon Osborn + Bolsty + Saxon + Clunk + Ben T + more: Westgate Mall, Fremantle
SUN 23
Rooftop Sessions feat. NDorse + Philly Blunt: The Aviary, Perth
Chet Leonard’s Bingoteque: Clancys Fish Pub, Fremantle
Trojan John: Indi Bar, Scarborough Akuna Club feat +Young Franco: Llama Bar, Subiaco The Kite String Tangle + Kilter + Leure: Mojos Bar, North Fremantle
Della Fern + The Mondays + DJ James MacArthur: Mustang Bar, Northbridge Dilip n the Davs: Newport Hotel, Fremantle Silence To The Left + Hyte + Shimmergloom + The Georgians: Rosemount Hotel, North Perth Chaos Club feat. +The Insinnerators + Aborted Tortoise + Baloney Abbott + more: Rosemount Hotel (459 Bar), North Perth
Easy Tigers: Crown Perth (Groove Bar), Burswood Rockin’ A Gogo+Various Artists: Devilles Pad, Perth Cuddles: Dunsborough Tavern, Dunsborough Jarrad Wilson: East 150 Bar, Ascot Howie Morgan: Empire Bar, Rivervale
Ale Stars: Settlers Tavern, Margaret River
Chris Gibbs Trio: Gosnells Hotel, Gosnells
Shotdown From Sugartown: Swallow Bar, Maylands
Greg Carter: Greenwood Hotel, Greenwood
Sciatika + Social Madness + Fuzz Bucket + Ascending Fall: Swan Hotel (Lounge), North Fremantle
Shades Of Indigo: Herdsman Lake Tavern, Wembley DJ Eugene: Hotel Rottnest, Rottnest Island
Mitch MacDonald + Andrew Ryan + Craig McElhinney: Moon Cafe, Northbridge
Reptiluminati + Scum of the Earth + Fake Shaman + DJ Brendan Jay: The Bird, Northbridge
Easy Tigers + DJ Giles: Mustang Bar, Northbridge
Kim Boekbinder: The Fly Trap, Fremantle
Esperanzaganza: Kulcha, Fremantle
Lionizer + Dan Cribb & The Isolated + Paper Plains + Being Beta: Rosemount Hotel, North Perth
Off the Record: Universal Bar, Northbridge
Jason Ayres: Last Drop Tavern, Warnbro
Indigo + These Winter Nights + Nevada Pilot: Rosemount Hotel (459 Bar), North Perth
FRI 21
Boom! Bap! Pow!: Indi Bar, Scarborough
Retriofit: M On The Point, Mandurah Josephine: Malaga Markets, Malaga
Open Mic Night+Various Artists: Settlers Tavern, Margaret River
Voyager + Caligula’s Horse + This Other Eden + Mophica: Amplifier Bar, Perth
DJ Razor Jack: Swallow Bar, Maylands
Mike Nayar: Balmoral, East Victoria Park
Tw!st with+Harry J: The Bird, Northbridge
Roger Roger: Belgian Beer Cafe, Perth
Crocodile Rock: Mt Henry Tavern, Como
Retriofit: Universal Bar, Northbridge
Electrophobia: Belmont Tavern, Cloverdale Passionworks: Best Drop Tavern, Kalamunda
Cheeky Monkeys + Oz Big Band + Swing DJ + DJ James MacArthur: Mustang Bar, Northbridge
Frenzy: Boab Tavern, High Wycombe
Adam James: Port Kennedy Tavern, Rockingham
Acoustic Aly: Brass Monkey Hotel, Northbridge
Chill Divine: Quarie Bar & Bistro, Hammond Park
Velvet: Carine Glades Tavern, Duncraig
Mango Groove: Red Hill Auditorium, Red Hill
James Wilson: Chase Bar & Bistro, Baldivis
THU 20
Uncle Jed: Clancys Fish Pub, Fremantle
Rock n Roll Karaoke+Various Artists: Devilles Pad, Perth Night Cap Session + Manteca + Sophie Foster: Ellington Jazz Club, Perth
Bonfire + The Australian Angels Show + The Bad Piper: Metropolis, Fremantle VoxBox: Moon & Sixpence, Perth
The Kite String Tangle + Kilter + Special Guests: Flyrite, Northbridge
Jean Proude: Citro Bar, Perth
Veludo + Valdaway + Lights Of Berlin + Legs Electric: Rosemount Hotel, North Perth
Don Walker: Clancys Fish Pub, Fremantle
Howie Morgan Duo: Sail & Anchor, Fremantle
Open Mic Night+Various Artists: Indi Bar, Scarborough
Zarm: Clancys Fish Pub, City Beach
King of Travellers: Settlers Tavern, Margaret River
1000S OF GIGS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS. FOR MORE HEAD TO THEMUSIC.COM.AU 44 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
Fiona Lawe Davies 3: Como Hotel, Como
THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 45
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MON 24
The Dead White Males + Something In The Rye + Discordians: Swan Hotel (Basement), North Fremantle
Wire Birds: Brass Monkey Hotel, Northbridge
Lydia Schubert + James Atles + Ralway Bell + Greys & Blues + Jasmine Atkins: Swan Hotel (Lounge), North Fremantle
Wire + Usurper Of Modern Medicine: Chevron Festival Gardens, Perth
Greg Carter: Swinging Pig, Rockingham
Triple Shots: Mustang Bar, Northbridge
The Dianas + Catbrush + Childsaint: The Bird, Northbridge
Voicebox+Various Artists: The Fly Trap, Fremantle
TUE 25
The Morning Night + Whails + Tristam Corbett: The Fly Trap, Fremantle
Open Mic Night with +Josh Terlick: Brass Monkey Hotel, Northbridge
Summers Soul Quintet + Stella Donnelly: The Laneway Lounge, Perth Adrian Wilson: The Principle Micro Brewery, Midland
DON WALKER: 21 FEB, CLANCYS FISH PUB, FREMANTLE
Nightmoves: Universal Bar, Northbridge Hells Bells + Over The Top + Oz Rock Salute: Wanneroo Tavern, Wanneroo
Peter Ashton: Endeavour Tavern, Lancelin
Jonny Dempsey: Belmont Tavern, Cloverdale
Uncle Jed: Ya Ya’s, Northbridge
Heather Peace: Fly By Night, Fremantle
Danny Bau: Brighton Hotel, Mandurah
Greg Carter: Gate Bar & Bistro, Success
Travis Caudle: Broken Hill Hotel, Victoria Park
Speakeasy feat. +Wave Racer: Gilkisons Dance Studio, Perth
Bare Bones: Brook Bar & Bistro, Ellenbrook
DJ Eugene: Hotel Rottnest, Rottnest Island
The Coronas: Capitol, Perth
SAT 22
Akouo + Sid Pattni + KLa: Amplifier Bar, Perth Retriofit: Balmoral, East Victoria Park In The Groove: Bentley Hotel, Bentley James Wilson: Boab Tavern, High Wycombe Crooked Colours: Causeway Bar, Victoria Park Squid Live: Clancys Canning Bridge, Applecross Toby: Clancys Fish Pub, Fremantle Zakhuta: Clancys Fish Pub, City Beach Antics feat. +LYTS + Man The Clouds + DJ John Black: Claremont Hotel, Claremont Why Georgia: Crown Perth (Lobby Lounge), Burswood Black Magic Disco+Various Artists: Devilles Pad, Perth Ian Cocker: Dunsborough Tavern, Dunsborough Jonny Dempsey: East 150 Bar, Ascot
Blue Shaddy: Indi Bar, Scarborough
Open Mic Night with +Josh Terlick: Captain Stirling, Nedlands
Hot Suga: Kardinya Tavern, Kardinya
Dynamic Duo: Chase Bar & Bistro, Baldivis
Altan: Mandurah Performing Arts Centre, Mandurah
The Zydecats: Clancys Fish Pub, Fremantle
Milhouse + Rusty & The Dragstrip Trio + DJ Holly Doll + DJ James MacArthur: Mustang Bar, Northbridge
DJ Boogie + The Salt Shaker Selectors: Clancys Fish Pub, City Beach
Kate Ceberano + Teddy Tahu Rhodes + WASO: Perth Zoo, South Perth Social Madness + Envy Awake + Gravity Punch + Witness The Addiction: Railway Hotel (Main Room), North Fremantle The Volcanics + Datura + The Dirty South + The Fortunados: Rosemount Hotel, North Perth Better Days: Sail & Anchor, Fremantle Bobby Alu: Settlers Tavern, Margaret River Game of Syncs feat. +PJ Bloom: State Theatre Centre (5pm), Perth
Ansell & Fretall: Como Hotel, Como
Tanya Ransom + Harry Jakamarra: Margaret River Resort (Knights Inn), Margaret River
Tailgate Sundays feat. +DJ James MacArthur + DJ Holly Doll: Mustang Bar (4pm), Northbridge
Leighton Keepa: Lucky Shag, Perth
Nevsky Prospekt + Filthy Apes + Custom Royal + September Sun: Newport Hotel, Fremantle Gignition feat. +Sciatika + Loners + The Hacks + Mindfreakz + Potato Dice: Railway Hotel (Beer Garden), North Fremantle Australasian Beatmaker Invitational+Dazastah + Creed Birch + Mat Rafle + Paulie P + Various DJs: Rosemount Hotel, North Perth
Neil Adams: Endeavour Tavern, Lancelin
The Limelights Jazz Trio: Swallow Bar (5pm), Maylands
Sophistikats: Esplanade Hotel, Fremantle
Dirtwater Bloom + The Jackdaws + Bev Mulcahy: Swan Hotel (Lounge), North Fremantle
Allen Smith + Hot Suga: Malaga Markets, Malaga
Matty T Wall: Swan Hotel (Lounge / 8pm), North Fremantle Dirtwater Bloom + The Jackdaws + The Lone Daisy: Swan Lounge, North Fremantle Cartel: Universal Bar, Northbridge
Star Wars Night with +Ol’ Bouginvillea + Still Frame Mind + Kortisol + Big Swiftie & The Giant Boogie: Swan Hotel (Lounge), North Fremantle Frenzy: Swinging Pig, Rockingham 7th Heaven + DJ Nathan J + Ben Taaffe + John Safari + Charlie Bucket: The Bird, Northbridge Astrid Ripepi + Mario McClean: The Laneway Lounge, Perth Soul Corporation: Universal Bar, Northbridge
SUN 23
The Coronas: Amplifier Bar, Perth
Andrew Winton: Balmoral, East Victoria Park
STU LARSEN: 20 FEB, MOJO’S BAR
1000S OF GIGS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS. FOR MORE HEAD TO THEMUSIC.COM.AU 46 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014
Jack & Jill: Crown Perth (Groove Bar), Burswood Hans Fiance: Crown Perth (Lobby Lounge), Burswood
Acoustic Session with+The Brothers Thin: Settlers Tavern (Verandah / 3.30pm), Margaret River
Jacob & The Rudeboys: Indi Bar, Scarborough
Howie Morgan: Crown Perth (Meridian Room), Burswood
Papa Vs Pretty: Mojos Bar, North Fremantle
Thierynno: Crown Perth (Lounge Bar), Burswood
Don Walker: Fremantle Arts Centre (Front Garden / 2pm), Fremantle
Perth Blues Club feat.+Tin Dog Trio + Paul Gioia + The Tone Doctors: Charles Hotel, North Perth
Danza Loca Salsa Night: Mustang Bar, Northbridge Dave Chappelle: Perth Convention & Exhibition Centre (Riverside Theatre), Perth Siren Song: Swinging Pig, Rockingham James Wilson: Whistling Kite, Secret Harbour
the end
THE B(ADD)EST OF KEVIN SPACEY THE USUAL SUSPECTS (1995) CHARACTER
Roger “Verbal” Kint/Keyzer Soze
RUNDOWN Soze blackmails crims (including Kint, who suffers from cerebral palsy) to destroy a ship full of cocaine.
WHY BAD? TWIST, he’s Soze, has been faking cerebral palsy.
NOT THAT BAD He’s kind of endearing, and you feel bad for him for like 9/10 of the movie.
AND THE BEST… Actor In A Supporting Role at the 1996 Academy Award
AMERICAN BEAUTY (1999) CHARACTER
Lester Burnham
RUNDOWN Hates his life and is infatuated with his daughter’s best friend. Is later brutally murdered.
WHY BAD? As a dad and husband, quits his job after blackmailing the company, and starts smoking pot. So, a regular guy.
NOT THAT BAD Kinda charming in his free-roaming way. Like I never wanted him to die.
AND THE BEST… Actor In A Leading Role at the 2000 Academy Awards
HOUSE OF CARDS (2013 -) CHARACTER
Francis ‘Frank’ Underwood
RUNDOWN A congressman who will do anything to get what he wants, after being passed over for the Secretary of State job
WHY BAD? Extortion, affairs and murder are all in a day’s work: “Sex is about power,” he says. It’s like Mean Girls for politics except without the redemption.
NOT THAT BAD He breaks the fourth wall to let the audience in on his plans. How kind.
AND THE BEST… Nominated for Best Performance By An Actor In A Television Series – Drama at the 2014 Golden Globes THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014 • 47
48 • THE MUSIC • 19TH FEBRUARY 2014