Brainteasers 49 Reviews

Trivial Trivia

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27 25 ACROSS

1. Newtown Jets murderer (5,6) 7. Victor ‘The Inflictor’ ... (6) 8. Movie (5) 9. A large colourful ribbon (4) 10. Synthetic material (5) 12. Abbreviated drip (1,1) 13. White fat product (4) 14. English actor, Idris ... (4) 17. A castrated bull (2) 18. Italian cocktail (7) 20. A sac of abnormal fluid in the body (4) 21. Foot digit (3) 22. Paramilitary organisation in Ireland (1,1,1) 24. Cooling system (1,1) 26. Hawaiian greeting (5) 27. Type of test for COVID (3)

DOWN

1. NSW Labor leader (5,5) 2. Crunchy, peppery root vegetable (6) 3. Most respected person in a particular field (5) 4. Grid patterned pancake (6) 5. Edible bulb (5) 6. Australian hat manufacturer (6) 11. Cured pig (5) 14. Spreadsheet software (5) 15. Lowest male singing voice (4) 16. Gelatinous extract of red alga (4) 19. Uncomfortable sensation (4) 23. Abbreviated abstinence based recovery (1,1) 24. Abbreviated Officer of the Order of Australia (1,1) 25. Abbreviated over time (1,1)

1. Apart from himself, who is the subject of Vincent Namatjira’s 2020 Archibald Prize-winning portrait? 2. When are night and day almost the same length? 3. The Knesset is the parliament of which country? 4. Which D.H. Lawrence novel was the subject of a 1960 obscenity trial? 5. What is the herbaceous refrain in Simon & Garfunkel’s 1968 version of Scarborough Fair? 6. What is the main ingredient of rollmop? 7. What is Australia’s oldest chocolate bar? 8. Riding breeches were named after which Indian city? 9. In Chinese astrology, 2022 is the year of the what? 10. Who won the Dally M Medal in 2021?

Words Lisa Anderson Photo Dylan Ward

Hit The Road

Genre Drama Reviewer Linda Heller-Salvador

Ahh, the joys of a family road trip! We’ve all been on one, either as a child or an adult, and they seem to be universally similar; squabbling over seating arrangements, frayed nerves, raucous laughter and unavoidable singalongs.

With the esteemed family pedigree that Iranian writer-director Panah Panahi has, it’s little wonder that his feature film debut, Hit The Road, is as impressively engaging as any you’re likely to see this year. Already garnering multiple awards, Panahi’s gorgeously stark road trip, in the vein of Little Miss Sunshine, takes us on a roller-coaster of emotions through the ruggedly picturesque landscape of Iran.

As the family of four (and one dog) weave their way towards the border of Turkey, the true nature of their life-changing journey is slowly revealed, and the gravity of their situation is realised. Although Hit The Road is often sombre and profound, it also shows us the joy that can be found in life when viewed through the eyes of an exuberant child, and the extent parents will go to in order to protect their children.

At Least I’m Free

Label Universal Music Australia Reviewer @aldothewriter Rating  WAAX is the band Courtney Love wanted to be. Remember Hole? God, they were awful. WAAX are not awful, WAAX are awesome. At Least I’m Free is a heady mix of ‘90s grunge, ‘00s shoegaze, and contemporary indie-pop, and I fricken love it. I want to dye my hair green, put on a studded belt and wave my head around in a sweaty throng of other green-headed people. I won’t of course - the neck’s not up to it - but I will do a little Shaq-like wiggle next Friday, when I crack a beer at knockoff and crank this up to a healthy level.

PANIC! AT THE DISCO

Viva Vas Vengeance

Label Fueled By Ramen Reviewer @aldothewriter Rating  Viva Vas Vengeance feels like an ‘80s teen romcom musical montage, with the whole shebang of big hair, singing into brooms and torn double denim. We’ve brought back the mullet, now it’s the perm’s turn. Come on, kids, get curling! I’ve got to admit, I’m more into this than I expected, the first few songs at least. Like any baked American cheesecake, it’s best consumed in small portions. If you don’t like Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody, I highly recommend listening to all of this album, because you really won’t like it, and I want you to suffer.

KING STINGRAY

King Stingray

Label Cooking Vinyl Australia Reviewer @aldothewriter Rating  Welcome to outback surf rock, the genre we never knew we needed. These guys recently covered Coldplay’s ‘Yellow’ for Triple J and said they’d chosen it for its simplicity, as English isn’t lead singer Yirrŋa Yunupiŋu’s first language - it’s roughly his twentieth, which doesn’t say much for Coldplay (I think they’re barely 60 per cent fluent in English themselves). Regardless, it was a cracking cover, as is this, they’re first album. It’s music you need to listen to outdoors, in good company, surrounded by red dirt. This is bloody Australia, mate!