Issue 1407

33,560 OCTOBER 2012 MARCH 2013 - AUSTRALIA’S HIGHEST CIRCULATING STREET PRESS

BO NINGEN

OKA

STRAY SISTERS

BORGORE

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NEWSDESK

LOCAL NEWS

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GLOBAL NEWS

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

FIELD OF DREAMS Aussie sister act, Stonefield, are coming back to our neck of the woods for a quick run of dates over the Valentine’s Day weekend. The four will play Bunbury’s Prince Of Wales on Thursday, February 13; Clancy’s Dunsborough on Friday, February 14 and Capitol on Saturday, February 15. Tickets are available through Oztix.

Stonefield

HATTY N.E.R.D. legend Pharrell Williams dominated the Grammys the other night, not only during his performance of Get Lucky with Daft Punk, Nile Rodgers and Stevie Wonder, but with his vintage Vivienne Westwood hat.

Boom! Smashing to know, then, that Pharrell has been announced as part of the Future Music line-up on the East Coast and has also added a headlining sideshow right here in Perth, taking over Challenge Stadium on Friday, March 14, for an all-ages show. Tickets go on sale from noon on Monday, February 3, via ticketmaster. com.au (136 100).

Pharrell Williams

CHAPPELLE’S SHOWS The excitement was nationally tangible last week when it was announced that cult comedian and famed heckler destroyer, Dave Chappelle, was touring Australia. The anticipation resulted in sell-outs for his shows all around the country, including Perth, but the good news is that a second Perth show has been announced for 10pm at the Riverside Theatre on Tuesday, February 25. Essentially, after his - already sold-out - 7pm show Chappelle will freshen up and hit the stage again for the later slot.

Tickets for the second show are on sale now, so get to it. For full tour and ticket details hit up livenation.com.au.

MARLEY & I AND I

Q & ANARCHY Since premiering some six years ago, US hit TV series Sons Of Anarchy, has captured the world’s imagination with its gritty depiction of life in an outlaw motorcycle gang. Fans of the show will be pleased to know that Sons Of Anarchy - An Evening With The Cast is coming to Australia, featuring Kim Coates (Tig), Theo Rossi (Juice) and Mark Boone Junior (Bobby) for a moderated panel conversation, audience Q&A and special audio and video treats.

Sons Of Anarchy - An Evening With The Cast hits Metropolis Perth on Sunday, March 30.

Tickets through oztix.com.au with VIP meet and greet packages also available.

Sons Of Anarchy - An Evening With The Cast

Dave Chappelle

MORE IN STORER Soon to hit the Boyup Brook Country Music Festival, Australian storyteller Sara Storer had a big night at Saturday’s 2014 Country Music Awards Of Australia.

Storer won the Album of the Year award for her first album in six years, Lovegrass, as well as Female Artist of the Year and Vocal Collaboration of the Year.

The Boyup Brook Country Music Festival takes place from February 13-16. Full details at countrymusicwa.com.au.

Lee Kernaghan and Sara Storer, fellow victors at the 2014 Country Music Awards Of Australia

The Bob Marley Outernational Birthday has been running for 33 years now, donating part proceeds to Oxfam, giving the first 50 people through the door a free t-shirt, not to mention amazing food and merchandise stalls, two stages (outdoors and indoors) and great vibes all ‘round.

Headlining this year are ABC Exhumed winners Jahsifik, along with Aust/NZ sensations Jahmoko, plus the cream of WA reggae bands with The Isolites, NBA Rastaz, Downbeat, Zimbabwean/ Australian local artist Komichi Alliance and singer/ songwriter Sista Cera.

There’s also seven of Australia’s top reggae DJs, featuring Veeness (reggae club DJ comp winner), King Messy, DJ K.S., DJ Simba, Tutomath and Australia’s first ladies of dancehall The Empressions - Sista Che & Mumma Trees and from RTRFM/Jah Wisdom, the one-and-only General Justice.

It’s all yours this Sunday, February 2, at the Railway Hotel from 2-10pm. Tickets are $25 on the door.

Jahsifik, Bob Marley Outernational Birthday, Railway Hotel

BLUNT FORCE Not only does James Blunt own Twitter trolls, he sells out shows like nobody’s business as well. It’s no exception here in Perth, with Blunt selling out his recently announced Friday, June 13, show at Crown Theatre.

If you missed out, don’t worry, as a second show has been announced for Thursday, June 12. Bookings through ticketek.com.au (132 849). Frontier Touring members can access a pre-sale on Monday, February 3, from 11am WST, the show goes on sale to the public from 9am on Monday, February 10.

FLOWER POWER

Much loved Aussies Papa vs Pretty have let it be known that their second album, White Deer Park, will be released on Friday, February 21. The band will head out for some quick-fire dates at round that time, including one WA show (only) at Mojos on Sunday, February 23. Tickets are available from oztix.com.au for $14.30 (plus booking fee).

After being invited to play a handful of showcase shows at this years SXSW, Perth’s Flower Drums are off on a three-week run of the US, touring in support of their upcoming debut album.

To help raise funds to finalise the album and assist in touring expenses, Flower Drums have started a Kickstarter campaign. There’s a bunch of limited edition Flower Drums merch, as well as vinyl pre-orders available, just head to kickstarter.com/ projects/flowerdrums/flower-drums-debut-albumus-and-australia-tour.

Papa vs Pretty

Flower Drums

PAPA VS PRETTY

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EDITORIAL - 9213 2888 MANAGING EDITOR Bob Gordon: editor@xpressmag.com.au DANCE MUSIC & FEATURES EDITOR Rachel Davison: danceeditor@xpressmag.com.au LOCAL MUSIC & ARTS EDITOR Travis Johnson: localmusicarts@xpressmag.com.au GIG & EVENT GUIDES CO-ORDINATOR guide@xpressmag.com.au COMPETITIONS win@xpressmag.com.au For band gigs and launches - plugyourgig@xpressmag.com.au

TOUR: JURASSIC 5

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One of the world’s most loved hip hop acts, Jurassic 5 are back in action and have been touring their new show around the world, which will visit Australia in March. The group broke up in 2007 after the six-piece consisting of Chali 2na, Mark 7even, Zaakir, Akil and DJs Cut Chemist and Nu-Mark released four successful albums and 13 singles including the now classic, Quality Control and What’s Golden. Catch them on Friday, March 28 at Metro City. Tickets are on sale through Oztix, but if you’re lucky you might just win a double pass by emailing: win@xpressmag.com.au.

Jurassic 5

FESTIVAL: THE BIG DAY OUT The Big Day Out rolls in town this Sunday, February 2 at Arena Joondalup featuring a whole swag of big names including Pearl Jam, Arcade Fire, Snoop Dog, Major Lazer, Tame Impala and The Hives, to name but a few and thanks to one of their event partners, General Pants Co., we’ve got two double passes to giveaway. All you have to do to win is tell us what you’ll be wearing to the festivities on Sunday. Email us quick at: win@xpressmag.com.au.

Bluejuice

COMEDY: THE ANTI-CHRIS Chris Wainhouse is being touted by some as one of the best comedy writers in Australia and he’s bringing his show The Anti-Chris to Perth as part of Fringe World. It’s basically a hilarious exploration into his religious upbringing - the work of a (now) militant atheist who’ll take you on a journey from the 6000-year-old planet he grew up on to the 4.5 billion-year-old planet he now calls home. The show runs from January 31 to February 5, but to win one of two double passes to the opening night at YaYa’s on Friday, January 31, plus a free drink upon entry - email us quick at win@xpressmag.com.au.

EDITORIAL DEADLINES General: Friday 5pm, Eye4 Arts: Thursday 10am, WIN: Friday 5pm, Salt Clubs: Monday 5pm , Local Scene: Monday Noon, Gig Guide: Monday 5pm

Joni In The Moon

ADVERTISING DEADLINES Cancellations: Monday 5pm, Ads to be set: Monday Noon Supplied Bookings / Copy: Tuesday 12 Noon, Classifieds: Monday 4pm

COMEDY: IT’S EDDO!

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33,560 OCTOBER 2012 MARCH 2013 - AUSTRALIA’S HIGHEST CIRCULATING STREET PRESS

DANCE/THEATRE: THE MAN The Man is a new dance theatre work by WA’s most celebrated choreographer, Chrissie Parrott and it’s happening as part of Fringe World Festival.

Presented as a series of interweaving dance solos, each scene explores a re-imagining of the dark stories that drive the back stories of seven men, who undertake a complex search for personal salvation and transformation. To win a double pass to a 9pm session happening between February 6-9 at the Chrissie Parrott performing arts space in Maylands; email: win@xpressmag.com.au.

The Man

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GIG: JONI IN THE MOON Perth folktronic siblings Joni and Josh Hogan aka Joni In The Moon are launching a new live show and putting out a full length album called Sorrow Trees.

So far they’ve had nominations for the 2013 WAM Song Of The Year with songs Dove Song and L’il Star and so you can expect a collection of nature-inspired folk tales coupled with electronic soundscapes. The frivolities are happening at the Fly By Night on Friday, February 7 with special guests, Rokwell & Groom and Hayley Beth. If you’d like to win a double pass, email: win@xpressmag.com.au.

After hit shows at the Edinburgh Fringe, Melbourne International Comedy Festival and over 60,000 hits on YouTube, comedy sensation Anne Edmonds (who’s also appeared on ABC1’s Wednesday Night Fever and It’s A Date) is bringing all her best characters, stand up and songs to Perth for the comedy show, It’s Eddo! as part of Fringe World Festival. It’s running in the Circus Theatre in the Perth Cultural Centre, Northbridge from February 2 to 9 and to win one of two double passes to the opening on Sunday, February 2 at 6:30pm, email: win@xpressmag.com.au.

DVD: YOU’RE NEXT Billed as one of the most terrifying slasher films in years, You’re Next stars Home & Away’s Sharni Vinson and it’s all about a gang of masked, axe-wielding murderers who descend upon the Davison family reunion... but they pick the wrong family to target.

Director Adam Wingard says it’s a “home invasion bloodbath” that mixes chilling horror with some wicked black humour, but it’s perhaps not for the faint-hearted. To win of 10 copies on DVD, email: win@xpressmag.com.au.

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EVENT: SOFT SOFT LOUD Soft Soft Loud presents the finest musicians in progressive and post classical music in the beautiful inner courtyard of Fremantle Arts Centre. This year see an ensemble of WA’s best classical musicians perform works by The National’s guitarist and acclaimed composer Bryce Dessner, plus compositions

by New York composer Nico Muhly and WA’s own James Ledger. Dessner himself will be performing a solo piece on Thursday, February 13 at 8pm. Get your tickets for this one via Oztix or for the chance to win a double pass, email: win@xpressmag.com.au.

Bryce Dessner

FESTIVAL: AVON VALLEY VINTAGE As you get planning for the next public holiday, i.e. the Labour Day long weekend just over a month away, make sure you add in the Avon Valley Vintage Festival to your list of fun things to do. Happening on Saturday, March 1 and Sunday, March 2 at the new Northam Recreation Centre (an hour’s drive from Midland) it’s about all things retro including vintage cars, free antique valuations, photographic and museum displays, a vintage poker den, animal farm, old-fashioned kids games, market stalls and much more. Head to avoneventsandmarketing.com for more info and to win one of three double passes valid for the weekend, email: win@xpressmag.com.au.

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FLESH

NEWS - INTERVIEWS - REVIEWS - CONTENTS

spirits’ that loved life and were big supporters of our music since we started out over a decade ago.

OKA Spirits Having Flown

How much did their memory permeate the creation of the album? Or was it more a context to work with from which you could begin the work from?

They were the inspiration of the title track which lead to the album title. Initially the album was a way to help support the young daughter who was left without parents. But it has become a great lesson in ‘intentions’ in music. Putting out more pure positivity!

THE STRAY SISTERS My Waif

What’s it like now performing these songs live? Does it become a celebration of their memory?

It’s definitely a big celebration when we play tunes off the new album. I feel it captures the joy and energy we experience at an OKA gig.

OKA launch their new album, Free Spirit, on Thursday, January 30, at Mojos; Friday, January 31, at the Indi Bar; Saturday, February 1, at Settlers Tavern, Margaret River, and Sunday, February 2, back at Mojos.

Your new album was inspired by the murder of two of the band’s good friends. Given that tragic background what was your vision for Free Spirits?

Without going into to much detail out of respect for the families, my friends were two ‘free

Musically speaking, what styles are you most having fun with these days?

Our music is always inspired by the places and people and music we are exposed to on tour.

So at the moment we are very much inspired by the bohemian native music of North America.

With the new LP out now, what are your plans - and indeed hopes - for 2014?

We just wanna create and play music and fill the world with more sunshine smiles and positive rhythms. 2014 will be great adventure for us as we tour through Europe and South America, while revisiting North America and lots of Asia. A lot to look forward too, the journey continues.

STU FOR YOU After sharing his music with thousands of fans whilst supporting Passenger, Stu Larsen is back in Australia for a run of shows, performing songs from his forthcoming album, along with favourites from his acclaimed EPs. He’s off again to Europe in a few months, so make sure to catch Larsen at Ellington on Wednesday, January 19, and Mojo’s on Thursday, February 20.

Tickets are available now from oztix.com or stularsen.com.

Stu Larsen

DON’T MISS MIGS Following a sold-out tour last year, San Franciscan DJ Miguel Migs is returning to Australia in mid February. With a career spanning some 15 years - with close to two dozen EPs and three LPs to his name - Migs is one of the deep house genre’s most revered and dynamic figures.Catch Miguel Migs on Friday, February 14, at Geisha Bar. `Tickets on sale now from eventbrite.com.au.

Rainy Day Women, South West Craft Beer Festival

Miguel Migs

A compelling singer-songwriter who blends classical, rock, country and folk influences to stunning effect, Emily Barker has released three critically acclaimed albums, played a string of sold-out UK dates, performed with Frank Turner at the London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony and written the BAFTA and Ivor Novello award-winning themes to hit BBC dramas Wallander and The Shadow Line.

Barker has made her home for the past 12 years in the UK, but was born and raised in WA, growing up by the Blackwood River, which features in many of her songs. She returns to play one show at the Astor Lounge this Sunday, February 2.Tickets available from liveattheastor.com.au

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News Win Flesh Music

Snoop Dogg / Grouplove The Wonder Stuff Deftones / Bo Ningen / Primus Festival Guide New Noise 21

GRIN AND BEER IT The South West Craft Beer Festival celebrates the region’s finest brews over the weekend of SaturdaySunday, February 22-23 at Old Broadwater Farm, Busselton. Heading the live line-up on Saturday will be Rainy Day Women (triple j’s most played Unearthed band for 2013). Also appearing will be Perth hip hop maestro Mathas, as well as Needing Cherie, Kris Buckle & Friends, Kiress, Short & Curly, Hilltrax, Brayden Sibbald, Pete Ladd-McGovern, Kate Tillman and Valdaway. Saturday tickets (noon-6pm) are $30 and Sunday tickets (10am-4pm) are $15, available now from oztix.com.au. For full details head to swbeerfest.com.au.

BARKER ROAD

Emily Barker

Eye4

Cover: 100 Million Nights All Is Lost / Fear Of A Brown Planet Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones Arts Listings 25

Salt

Cover: Borgore News / Producer’s Cut / Salt Nights Out Run The Jewels / Himanshu Suri Club Manual Rewind: Avicii 31

Scene

Karnivool / Gun Fever Party / Ken Stringfellow Local Scene 34

Tour

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Gig Guide Volume

Tour Trails NAMM 2014 FRONT COVER: Snoop Dogg plays the Big Day Out this Sunday, February 2, at Arena Joondalup.

Photo by Stefan Caramia.

SALT COVER: Borgore lays down the gorestep at Villa on Saturday, February 8.

The Stray Sisters perform on Wednesday, March 26, at the Fly By Night Club; with the John Butler Trio on Thursday, March 27, Fremantle Arts Centre, Friday, March 28, at Belvoir Amphitheatre and Saturday, March 29, at Old Broadwater Farm Busselton then end the tour with a headline show on Monday, March 31, at Albany Entertainment Centre. BOB GORDON reports.

There’s been a lot of life happening since we last heard of The Waifs.

Between the two of them, sisters Vikki Thorn and Donna Simpson, have six young boys. Simpson, in actual fact, gave birth to two boys, Blue and Sonny Jim, in the space of 13 months.

The sisters have, however, somehow found the time to get together for a brief tour as The Stray Sisters.

“When we called ourselves The Waifs, there was a term, ‘the waifs and strays’, out there,” Simpson recalls. “It was always in books; it’s an old saying. A friend of a friend mentioned, ‘they should call themselves The Strays’. I thought, ‘fuck yeah,’ because that just suits as well.

“We’re just heading out on our own; leaving the rest of the boys behind (laughs). And we’re not going out gung-ho, we’re just straying from them for a little while. We’re nervously straying to the side. To the left when others have gone to the right.”

With Thorn living in Utah, it’s not quite like the days of old for the sisters, living in each other’s pockets as The Waifs (along with Josh Cunningham, now based in California) travelled our wide brown land.

“You know what? Vikki and I really just fucking miss each other. And we really miss playing music and singing together. She’s always sending me songs that she’s written. She’ll write a beautiful long email with photos and she’ll have a song at the end of it.

“When she came back to stay for a short holiday she was just in the backyard with my guitar the whole time. She’d sit there and play. She always has a guitar; she’s always playing. She gets five minutes and her eyes fall to the back of her head and you can’t talk to her, her kids know not to go near her when she gets like that. I was kind of envious, ‘Jesus, how do you do that?

I haven’t picked up my guitar in years. I haven’t written

a song in four or five years’. I’m not feeling jealous or envious... well I s’pose (laughs).

“But we just started picking it up... and I just sort of missed her and playing together. Her songs are just so beautiful that she was sending through. Josh is off on his own thing, his own journey, for a while. It’s just a good chance for us to get together, to go travelling and playing live music without the whole recording, having a CD, selling your single, promoting stuff. We just want to go out and play music together.”

In other words, it’s a little bit of showbiz, minus the business.

“Yeah, it’s just the show,” Simpson affirms.

“Which is what I’ve always said when I’ve ever sat on music boards, or at conferences. People go, ‘how did you do it?’ I’d always say, ‘just play. Just go out and play live. Live, live, live’. Then I started thinking about my own words, thinking, ‘that’s just what I want to do’. And leave all that other shit behind.”

The sisters could sit and play together for hours without giving it a thought, but there’s some preparation in store... at some point.

“We had Skype dates set up, and a Dropbox so I could get songs and download them and rehearse,” Simpson says. “And none of that’s really become fruitful. Someone’s internet drops out or it’s too cold or someone’s kid’s sick. So we’re doing what we can and we’re writing individually... but we also fight a lot. So we’re kind of avoiding getting together too much. So when Vicki flies out there’s actually a whole week of down pat rehearsal of what we’re going to do this tour.

To me, that’s the magic.

“I’m excited about that because if you can understand... two girls, two sisters. The younger one’s so fucking bossy, it’s ridiculous (laughs). I’ve given her freedom for this to be her baby. She said, ‘I want to be musical director, I want to be the boss of this’. I’ve always been, ‘just let it happen’, and Vikki likes to make rules and have it all set out. So I think there’s actually going to be a lot of magic when we get together.”

You just have to find some middle ground?

“I wouldn’t call it middle ground,” Simpson laughs. “I’d call it more... my way. My way’s better!”

The Waifs are scheduled to perform at the Kimberley Moon Experience in May, but this is a chance for fans to catch The Stray Sisters performing Waifs favourites and some new tunes besides, more intimately (not to mention locally). The tour culminates in some support slots for the John Butler Trio and old friend and Jarrah Records labelmate.

“Finishing the tour by opening for John, it’s just... family,” Simpson says happily. “It feels like a celebration, really. Like a big birthday. I just need a microphone and a stick of lippy.”

PLAY SUN CITY Perth indie pop duo Sun City have announced a national headline tour, following a busy year which included two new singles All We See and Colour Blind alongside a string of remixes (including an official remix for The Crystal Fighters’ single, LA Calling). The video for their track, High, won ‘Australian Music Video of the Year’ and ‘Best Western Australian Music Video’ at the Australian Independent Music Video Awards in Canberra.

The duo heading capped off 2013 with a three-week tour of South Africa and Zimbabwe. Catch Sun City this Saturday, February 1, at Amplifier. Tickets available at the door, which opens at 8pm.

A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN Major Leagues celebrating the release of their debut EP, Weird Season, with their first Australian headline tour next month. Supported by locals Gunns and Hamjam, they hit the Newport Hotel on Thursday, February 27; Prince Of Wales Bunbury (with Gunns only) on Friday, February 28, and Amplifier on Saturday, March 1. Tickets via oztix.com.au.

Major Leagues

Sun City, Pic: Max Fairclough

MANN & WIFE Freshly returned from a run of special gigs in Sydney, husband and wife duo Bec Schofield and Dave Mann are doing two debut performances in Perth and Fremantle. They perform on Friday, February 7, at the Astor Lounge, joined by like minded friends/ musicians Qynn Beardman, Justin Walshe and Phoebe Corke (tickets via liveattheastor.com.au). On Sunday, February 9, they’ll head to the Flytrap in Fremantle with Wil Thomas and Phoebe Corke (tickets from flybynight.org).

Dave Mann & Bec Schofield

SNOOPADELIC News just in! Our Big Day Out cover star Snoop Dogg will perform an exclusive two-hour DJ set this Saturday, February 1, at Metropolis Fremantle. Doors sales start at $20 from 8pm, and support comes from Dtuck, Dr Wazz and Benny C.

LAX - MEL - PER

PARTY DON’T STOP

Dance adventurers, Miami Horror have returned home (to Melbourne) for the Australian summer after a long stint in Los Angeles. They released a new single late last year called Real Slow, which has now been followed up by Colours In The Sky - both off their forthcoming album. Following their appearance at Sets On The Beach last December, catch the fourpiece on Saturday, February 15, at Amplifier Bar for their own show. Tickets on sale via Oztix.

Festival season is well and truly upon us with the Big Day Out arriving in town this Sunday and Laneway Festival dropping by its new home in Fremantle next Saturday, February 8. And the party doesn’t stop there.

Following the stellar list of acts appearing on The Esplanade, there’ll be a Laneway Festival after-party hosted by Future Classic from 9pm at Metropolis Fremantle featuring DJ sets from Haim, Cashmere Cat, Chvrches and Jono Ma (of Jagwar Ma) with more to be announced soon. Get your tickets via Oztix.

Miami Horror

Cashmere Cat

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MUSIC

VIEWS

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INTERVIEWS

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STORIES

SNOOP DOGG The Lion Speaks Tonight Snoop Dogg plays the Big Day Out this Sunday, February 2, at Arena Joondalup.

ALI HAWKEN reports.

What’s his name again? While Snoop Dogg’s debut single was released some 20 years ago, Who Am I? (What’s My Name?) now rings out like some kind of clue as to what lay ahead for his career.

With all his various monikers and name changing, Snoop Dogg is damn well giving Prince a run for his money these days.

It’s hard to keep up – Snoop announced last year he was now to be known as Snoop Lion after converting to Rastafarianism, which in recent months has be forsaken in favour of Snoopzilla. ‘Zilla – being a homage of sorts to legendary ParliamentFunkadelic bassist Bootsy Collins, who often referred to himself as Bootzilla – released 7 Days Of Funk last week, the result of his latest collaboration with Dam Funk. And let’s not forget DJ Snoopadelic, and that’s just touching on his musical personas – don’t let’s get started on his forays into film and television. So who is the real Snoop?

Growing up in Long Beach, California, Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jnr was nicknamed ‘Snoopy’ by his parents because of his appearance. He began singing and playing piano at the local Baptist church from a young age.

“I grew up listening to a lot of old school and soul music, and I play a lot of that to this day,” tells Snoop. While he listened to rap from Grandmaster Flash, Whodini and The Sugarhill Gang, he also looked up to soul artists like Curtis Mayfield “because he was a bad motherfucker.” As he explained it to Playboy Magazine back in ‘95, “That’s why motherfuckers say that I sing instead of rap. That’s why I got more of an R&B sound. They say my shit is gangsta shit because of the words I use. But if you listen to it, it’s R&B shit.”

In school, he spent his days hanging out with the likes of Nate Dogg and Warren G, the three on them going on to form the band 213 in 1990, named after the Long Beach area code. His music career didn’t really take off, however, until a couple of years later when he was discovered by Dr Dre, who brought him onboard to collaborate on his record, The Chronic. In 1993, Snoop unleashed Doggystyle onto the world, his first solo record debuting at number one on the US Billboard charts and selling almost a million copies in its first week, signifying Snoop was set to join the greats of the rap game.

From the outset, it was clear that he was never going to be anything but legendary. I managed to catch Snoop Dogg on one of his visits to Australia several years ago when he played a music festival on an island just off the Gold Coast. A typically hot summer’s day, all the punters had to walk the long road that joined the island to the mainland to get to the festival grounds, a road lined with nothing

but eucalypts and pine trees. Sometime around midafternoon, one festival-goer making their way there made the grave mistake of throwing a cigarette butt into the surrounding bush, and so an almighty bushfire ensued. With close to 20,000 people all stranded on this island with no other means to get back to the mainland, to say it was a scene of chaos is an understatement.

All the bands had ceased playing, as none of us could see the stage due to all the smoke. The First Aid tents were inundated, as people were having asthma attacks left, right and centre. Police were all standing around nervously assessing the situation as they needed an evacuation plan. My friends and I were making plans to swim ashore and had all but given up on seeing the headliners we were promised later that night, as surely this was reason enough for Beastie Boys and Snoop Dogg to forego their commitments.

Then, to the astonishment of all onlooking, as if something out of a clichéd gangster film, a limo burst through the wall of flames and pulls up at the festival gates. Yes, that’s right – it’s Snoop-motherfuckingDogg. His pimpin’ fur jacket on (nevermind the 40 degree day) and smoke in hand, he took to the stage.

Dozens of police were standing by to see what Snoop Dogg had in store for everyone. And you better believe it when I tell you, the motherfucker did it – he opened with Dr Dre’s Fuck Tha Police. If anyone were to have the balls to do such a thing, it’s Snoop-motherfucking-Dogg.

“I’ve pretty much seen it all and done it all in my career,” he tells me with a laugh when I asked him about playing that festival. “That Australia show with the bushfire was a good one, though.”

This time around, he’s back Down Under as Snoop Dogg to play the Big Day Out, with a touch of Snoop Lion thrown in for good measure. “You can expect all the classics with some new stuff sprinkled in,” he reveals. “And a live ass show!”

As he tells it, Snoop Lion was a Rastafarian reincarnation of the artist formerly known as Snoop Dogg, while Snoopzilla is more of a branch of his truer self rather than another character altogether.

“Snoopzilla is another extension of my personality, not so much of a Superman/Clark Kent thing. We do what we feel,” he explains. “Snoopzilla is into THE FUNK!” My prodding as to whether there might be another incarnation of Snoop in the foreseeable future is met with a “you’ll just have to wait and see!” As he told Rolling Stone this month, “One day I will go back to being Snoop Dogg, because I love him and he loves me. Right now, what’s necessary is Snoopzilla – because this is the funk, and may the funk be with you.”

Under this latest moniker, he’s just released the 7 Days Of Funk record with Dam Funk. But just as quickly as ‘Zilla came, he left again, with a return to his Snoop Dogg roots set for later this year, announcing the Doggfather will be teaming up with Wiz Khalifa for a new album.

And then what about the ‘family man Snoop’ behind closed doors? “Life as a family man is a whole ‘nother side of me,” Snoop reveals. “Family is very important to me. I started my SYFL youth football program from being involved in my own kids’ lives and what they were doing. Shout out to my wife the Bosslady and my kids.”

Then there’s the side of Snoop that’s into fashion, having teamed up with Adidas to design his very own kicks. “I gotta stay suited and booted,” he explains about this other creative avenue. Snoop tells me he likes to keep things interesting by trying new things, both for himself and for his fans. “I’m always working and thinking of new ways to reach my fans.”

And how could we properly discuss the shifting personas of Snoop without reference to his widespread film career – both Hollywood and Bollywood. He’s had cameos as himself in over a dozen films and television shows, and then there’s the various characters he’s taken on: there was Huggy Bear Brown in Starsky & Hutch, Ja’Marcus in Scary Movie 5, Mac Johnson in Mac & Devin Go To High School, there’s Dra-Man, C-Dwag, Blue, Rodney, Jimmy Bones...ahh, you get the picture. Snoop even had a cameo in the 2008 Bollywood film, Singh Is Kinng, his first ever rap in an Indian movie. Is there anything this guy won’t do?

So who exactly is the real Snoop? Tell you what, I’ve still got no fucking idea.

“I won’t name any bands, but we’ve done tours with some bands who only like playing their singles because that’s what people know,” she says.

“The great part is getting people on board with the songs that they don’t know from the radio. That’s so much fun to me – to see someone in the audience visibly being like, ‘I don’t know this track’, and then totally getting into it and jumping around by the end of the song. Hopefully, it means they’ll go and get the rest of the album, then.”

The Big Day Out marks Grouplove’s third time here, following appearances at the 2011 Splendour In The Grass festival and the 2011/2 Falls Festival. Their 2014 return sees the festival on

somewhat shaky ground – not only on account of losing a headliner, but due to criticism that there was a notable lack of women present on the bill. Hooper is one of them, and she’s somewhat reticent in her response to the criticism.

“I guess I don’t really look at things that way,” she says after a pause. “I’m kind of used to being the only girl. On the last tour we did, there were like 50 guys backstage... and I didn’t even realise until the end that me and the cook were the only women. It’s crazy. But I don’t feel like there’s a fight for women to be featured and noticed. I definitely feel the need to represent women and girls in a cool, positive way – we’re smart and we’re badass. There’s a difference

between pop girls and rock girls, I feel. I’m definitely a rock girl. I like to represent that.”

Not only is Hannah in love with Australia, she gushes about getting to tour with acts like Arcade Fire and CSS; the latter of whom will join Grouplove at their headlining shows in Sydney and Melbourne.

“I can’t believe it,” she says. “In the middle of January, to be in the most beautiful place in the world, playing with my favourite bands in the world... it’s just going to be a crazy experience. And not to bring a guy into this, but I hear Eddie Vedder is an accomplished painter now – so I’ma try to talk to him about painting!”

GROUPLOVE Wide Eyed And Tongue Tied Grouplove love up the Big Day Out this Sunday, February 2, at Arena Joondalup.

DAVID JAMES YOUNG chats with Hannah Hooper.

It’s impossible to be unhappy while listening to Grouplove. The Californian pop-rockers exude a sunny disposition and an endless cheeriness that is matched by bounding energy and the kind of hooks that require roughly 10 seconds to learn and the rest of the month to get out of your head.

They’ve had a stellar year by any measure; their second album, Spreading Rumours, dropped in September. Its lead single, the rollicking Ways To Go, cracked a top five position in the US alternative chart.

The band also played dozens of headlining shows and festivals both in the US and abroad. It was a lot to take in – and the band’s vocalist and keyboardist, Hannah Hooper, has taken none of it for granted.

“I think the biggest highlight of the year for me was recording the album,” she says. “We had so much fun making it, and we’re amazingly better friends after touring it. We’re better songwriters, we’re better performers... there’s just something so exciting about being a band that’s developing still. I keep hearing about the ‘sophomore slump’ when it comes to writing your second album, and I’m so lucky that we never had that.

We got to avoid that altogether and just enjoy the ride.”

Aside from ensuring that everyone at a Grouplove show has the best night of their lives, the band also like to make a point of keeping the crowd involved every step of the way. That, of course, means introducing them to songs they may not know all that well; or, indeed, not at all. Hooper says that the band is adamant to stick out in that regard, where they get just as much of a reaction out of a song from their self-titled EP or a non-single as they would a popular number like the chart-topping Tongue Tied or the infectious Itchin’ On A Photograph.

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DEFTONES Beauty Versus Aggression Deftones play the Big Day Out this Sunday, February 2, at Arena Joondalup.

WAYNE MARSHALL speaks to drummer, Abe Cunningham.

Back in November, with only eight weeks until Australia’s premier summer festival, the Big Day Out, Deftones had no firm plans for the New Year.

Then...

“A band called Blur cancelled and someone came calling,” recounts Abe Cunningham, drummer of the alternative metal veterans. Speaking from his home in Sacramento, California, Cunningham is clearly rapt about the 11th hour deal that saw his band included in a three-for-one replacement for Blur (the other two being Swedish rockers The Hives and the Liam Gallagher-fronted Beady Eye).

“We were back at home base and supposed to be off,” says Cunningham, having recently wound up a world tour for Deftones’ resurgent seventh album Koi No Yokan, which saw the band hit Australia last May. “It’s pretty wild. Usually there’s a few years between trips and so this is wonderful. Australia is one of our favourite places to travel to and we’re more than stoked.”

2013 marked the 25th anniversary of Deftones, whose original and distinctive take on metal, according to Cunningham, “has always been a battle of beauty versus aggression.” As with any band that’s endured that long, you’d expect them to have encountered a few tough times over the journey and Deftones have had more than their fair share in recent years.

In 2008, bassist Chi Cheng was involved in a serious car accident that left him in a coma.

In April of last year, having recovered enough to leave hospital, Cheng tragically passed away due to sudden heart failure. Throw in inner-band rifts, drug abuse and all the myriad trappings of the rock’n’roll lifestyle, and for a few years it looked inevitable that the quintet would self-implode.

But they made it through. When asked if the band’s survival can be attributed to the fact that three of its core members have been friends since they were teenagers (Cunningham, singer Chino Moreno and guitarist Stephen Carpenter grew up together in Sacramento), Cunningham answers, “Yeah definitely. There’s certainly been times when

BO NINGEN One Big Jam Japanese psychedelic band Bo Ningen hit Perth for the first time as part of Big Day Out this Sunday, February 2, at Arena Joondalup. JESSICA WILLOUGHBY chats with guitarist, Kohhei Matsuda.

So there were these four musicians from Japan that were a seemingly inconspicuous bunch. But when their powers combined, their jams evoked the spirit of ‘wizard rock’ in all its glory.

Or so the story goes for Bo Ningen. A band that originally hails from the island nation in East Asia, its members never actually started playing together until their paths crossed at the current home base in London seven years ago. Their slow-burning success has seen them go from bills with purely Japanese artists - due to their vocalist Taigen Kawabe’s desire to sing in the language of his homeland - to the prestigious Venice Biennale in 2011.

But now they are conquering their biggest tour yet – Australia. Heading down under for the first time this month as part of the annual Big Day Out run, guitarist, Kohhei Matsuda can hardly contain his excitement.

“There is so much we want to do while we are out here,” he tells X-Press. “I’m from a mountainside in Japan, so I’ve never been familiar with the sea. It’s so great just to see it. I can’t express how it makes me feel. Plus, living in England for a few years now, it’s always so cold and rainy. It’s a proper summer here.

We’re totally kind of disgusted about English weather now. We’ve also been stuck in the studio recently 14

things were not so peachy. But I really do believe we’re based on a friendship. We’ve experienced a lot over the years. We’ve seen the world over and over.

And every day is a chance to do something new and exciting. And what better way to do it than with friends.”

Perhaps the longevity of Deftones also has something to do with the freedom they allow each other to pursue other projects. Moreno, in particular, has been prolific of late, with his excellent Palms collaboration with three ex-members of ISIS, as well as his ongoing Crosses project.

recording for our next album, so it’s nice to have a few days off in-between the shows to relax.”

The album Matsuda refers to is the yet-tobe-named follow-up to 2012’s Line The Wall. Although it is still under construction, the guitarist believes this full-length LP achieves a level of clarity unheard on the band’s previous offerings.

“We are working on a direct recording technique,” he explains. “It took us a long time to do Line The Walls. But we rented a studio for two weeks this time around and just jammed. The record is one big jam. Then we picked the best parts and started to compose it. We found it was more sophisticated this way. We ended up having more clarity and the album became more song-based.

“We’ve also written the lyrics, but it’s still all in Japanese. We tried to convince our singer to write them in English, but he didn’t want to do that. We just thought it’d be much easier for English people to get the songs.

“His lyrics are so abstract, in a way – so it’s hard to get the meaning sometimes. He writes them in the studio, just before we record and changes them all the time. We also live in London and everyone around us speaks English, so we just thought it’d be more natural. But I respect how our singer decided to keep it in Japanese.”

But it is Bo Ningen’s live shows that have really propelled them to a whole new level in 2014. “I believe that our live show is the ultimate experience for both the audience and ourselves,” Matsuda says.

“You use your five, even six senses… whatever they feel becomes an ‘experience’. The live shows totally depend on the audiences.

“Performing live is kind of a purification for me sometimes. For recorded music, you only use your ears to focus on listening. It’s totally different.

But I don’t mean that our live music is better than our recorded material; we believe that we can give something you can’t get from our live shows in the recorded material.”

“Chino is just a busy, busy boy,” laughs Cunningham. “He’s always making music. At first it can be a bit like, ‘what, you’re not getting that from us, so you’re going somewhere else to get it?’ Kind of like cheating. But now I look at it this way: whatever experience any of us have from playing with different people, we bring that back to our mix and I can only think that it strengthens it.”

A s fo r w h at ’s n e x t fo r D e f to n e s , Cunningham is quick to quell rumours that the band is set to release the shelved Eros album of 2008.

“It’s definitely been talked a lot about in the press.

People have a serious interest in that album for a lot of reasons. It’s a very heavy record. And quite frankly, the record’s not done. People think that we’re just sitting on it, but we’re not, it needs to be finished.

It’s a heavy, heavy record for the fact that it’s the last thing we did with Chi. We’ll give it a look when we can, but it’s not that easy, man.”

For the moment at least, Cunningham and his bandmates are content to focus on the good fortune that’s enabled them to be jetting off for another Australian summer as part of the travelling circus that is the Big Day Out.

PRIMUS

more seriously that, “I write a different setlist every night. We’ve got a lot to choose from, so who know?”

Tantalisingly, Claypool says now that Alexander is back and fitting in well, new material could be on the cards later on this year.

“It’s not been that long since he’s been back,” he says, “but when we get together, there’s been some creative juices spilling out around the room. The whole notion of all of us is to continue moving forward. I don’t like to just sit and be nostalgic about things, so I’m sure we will be coming up with some new material and bringing it forth in the next year or so.”

Considered a guru of the bass guitar, Claypool has collaborated with many other artists, and likens his playing to communicating on a human level.

“I’ve been playing my instrument for so long, it’s an extension of my, like, communication - it’s like having a conversation,” he explains. The more you want to interact with different people, with different perspectives, the more versed you are going to become as a conversationalist, and I think that’s exactly the same as an instrumentalist as well.

“You learn from everybody you play with, even people who aren’t necessarily overly skilled, you learn by their shortcomings, or by helping them, or whatever.

It’s all communication, it’s seeing different perspectives, different approaches - there’s no one way to skin the cat, so seeing and experiencing and playing with all these different people, all it does is help you grow.”

There’s never a dull moment in Claypool’s life, it seems, with talk persisting about a reunion of his early 2000’s band Oysterhead with The Police’s Stewart Copeland and Phish’s Trey Anastasio; an acoustic hillbilly album from his Duo De Twang outfit, and a pilot fishing TV program filmed with Dean Ween.

“Oh I got some dull moments,” he counters, “just never a non-busy moment!”

Golden Tickets With a Big Day Out main stage appearance fast approaching for Primus this Sunday, February 2, at Arena Joondalup, Les Claypool tells SHANE PINNEGAR he has “a lot of pots on the stove.”

Just in time for their Big Day Out visit, Primus are newly reunited with drummer, Tim Alexander, a member of the band from 1989-1996, and then 200310, and those periods remain a favourite with many Primus fans.

Les Claypool says he’s settled back in nicely.

“We did our big annual New Year’s show with him a few weeks back, and it went really well. He’s in a great place these days, so it’s great to have him back,” laughs the bass player and singer of one of the most alternative of the ‘90s alternative bands.

That New Year’s show - which featured a wild, Willy Wonka-themed stage, with band costumes and Oompa Loompas, was tagged Primus And The Chocolate Factory – Claypool says they might take it on the road one day.

“There’s talk of doing that in the future,” he explains. “It’s something that’s being discussed... maybe next time around.”

Claypool jokes that the band prepared for their Australian assault by “doing lots of push-ups, drinking some wheatgrass juice, getting all fit,” adding

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SUMMER FEBRUARY

ST JEROME’S LANEWAY FESTIVAL 8 Esplanade Park & West End, Fremantle

BIG DAY OUT

SUMMERSET ARTS FESTIVAL Birds Of Tokyo 8 Scarborough Beach Amphitheatre

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 2 Arena Joondalup

This year the Big Day Out turns 21!

And what better way to celebrate this coming of age than to throw a huge party with Pearl Jam, Arcade Fire, Tame Impala and The Hives.

The Big Day Out rolls into Arena Joondalup this Sunday, February 2.

Tickets from www.bigdayout.com.

TAME IMPALA

THE NATIONAL 14 Belvoir Amphitheatre

SUNDOWN SESSIONS

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 21, 2014 5:00PM UNTIL 10:00PM Scarborough Beach Amphitheatre

Bringing a sensational evening of live music to the beach, Offworld Productions is thrilled to announce the next Sundown Sessions for 2014! Singer Songwriter Missy Higgins headlines the next installment of Sundown Sessions, Friday 21st February 2014 with special guests to be announced soon! Tickets Available through: www.sundownsessions.oztix.com.au

ED KOWALCZYK 5 Metro City ASH GRUNWALD 5 Indi Bar 6 Prince Of Wales, Bunbury 7 Settlers Taver, Margaret River 8 Fly By Night 9 Ravenswood Hotel BRUCE STRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND 5,7,8 Perth Arena Kevin Parker, Tame Impala Pic: Rachael Barrett

TAME IMPALA Loner Mister Tame Impala play the 2014 Big Day Out at Arena Joondalup this Sunday, February 2, alongside Pearl Jam, Arcade Fire and Snoop Dogg. MIMI VELEVSKA chats with Kevin Parker.

At the tail end of what has been a mammoth year for Tame Impala touring the globe - including appearances at The Rolling Stones-headlined Glastonbury Festival, a performance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, winning three ARIA awards and a recent Grammy nomination for Best Alternative Album for their sophomore psychedelia rock dream-pop release, Lonerism - we speak to Tame Impala brainchild Kevin Parker while he is at his studio/bedroom back here in Perth.

“It feels good to be back home,” he notes. Yet 2014 is also looking to be an very big year for the band, recently receiving the highest of musical nods, a Grammy nomination amongst the likes of Vampire Weekend, Nine Inch Nails and Arctic Monkeys, whom they’ll be touring with in May next year after performing at Big Day Out. But with their well-deserved growing global love, is there anything that they miss about the way of life back in Perth and does their growing success give them more or less creative freedom?

“That’s the thing about going through the stages,” Parker explains. “As one door opens, another door closes. The small pub stages can’t really happen again.” Does the notion of success and perhaps being a by-product of his own lonerism further alienate him? Parker adds, “In a way, but I don’t like to think my life is a slave to it.”

A brilliantly lush and synth-laden album delving into the psyche of a self-confessed loner over poppier melodies, Parker admits that, thematically, Lonerism only took shape halfway into the album’s fruition.

“Lyrically, from the beginning I didn’t know what I was doing, putting words and phrases and emotion that fit the music – there was no master plan in the start and halfway I realised what was the running theme.”

While some would interpret ‘lonerism’ as being alone, but not lonely, Parker clarifies that it is in fact the opposite – that feeling of loneliness amongst a room full of people.

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Whilst experiencing the album and soaking it all in is one experience, Tame Impala live is another. It feels incredibly personal watching them re-create these incredibly huge multi-layered psychedelic grooves and enchanting melodies delving into realms of sonic explosions live, which positively isolates a listener to make them feel as if they’re playing just for you. Having spent over six months mixing the album himself and the overall production being a two-year process, he recalls the moment that makes him happiest about touring the album.

“When we’re on tour and there are fans, you can just see it on their face that you’ve really got them attached. You realise that it’s affected them in a deep way. To see the result your music has is the pinnacle of what it’s about.”

When asked what the album has taught him most about himself, over a year since its release, Parker says, “It’s taught me that whilst it’s therapeutic, it won’t fix your problems. It’s like taking Panadol. At the time it seems like it’s fixing a problem.” He also adds, “I’ve become more free and open to expressing my emotions.”

“When we’re on tour and there are fans, you can just see it on their face that you’ve really got them attached. You realise that it’s affected them in a deep way. To see the result your music has is the pinnacle of what it’s about.”

While Tame Impala are well known for their many equally brilliant side-projects, which fall under the psych-inspired umbrella (Pond, GUM, Allbrook-Avery) and really showcase the individual band members’ musical abilities as multiinstrumentalists, Parker has already got a new project in the works.

“I’m currently working on another band I’ve started like a weird super repetitive Kraftwerk, but with disco.” Having previously stated that he is an unashamed lover of sugary pop, could we ever see Kevin Parker taking a leaf out of Sia’s book, writing hits for some of the world’s biggest pop stars, amongst the plethora of music he creates, performs and produces?

“That’s my fantasy,” he says. “That’s the dream, writing super pop hits after doing the hard yards. You’d just observe them being performed by others and watch the songs grow like they’re your children”.

BOOKER T JONES 6 Chevron Festival Gardens EDDIE VEDDER 7 & 8 Riverside Theatre

PERTH INTERNATIONAL ARTS FESTIVAL FRIDAY FEBRUARY 7 - SAT MAR 1 Various Venues

The Perth International Arts Festival is the longest running annual international multi-arts festival in the southern hemisphere and offers some of the world’s best theatre, music, film, visual arts, street arts, literature and free community events. No single art genre, concert, performance or exhibition series can cover the breadth of intellectual and imaginative territory of the Perth Festival, nor reach as broadly into the community. For two generations of locals, summer in Perth without the Festival is simply unimaginable. From February 7 - March 1. Full details at perthfestival.com.au.

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MISSY HIGGINS

SETS ON THE BEACH

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 23 Scarborough Beach Amphitheatre

‘Sets on the Beach, End of Summer Pardy’ will be the send off of the season! Happening Sunday, February 23, at the Scarborough Beach Amphitheatre with a huge party line up that won’t disappoint.Featuring: The Aston Shuffle, Jinja Safari, Goldroom (DJ Set), Motez, The Swiss (Live), Mighty Mouse [UK], Glen Horsborough (Hed Kandi UK), Louisahhh! & Maelstrom, Client Liaison.

JINJA SAFARI

FESTIVAL GUIDE 2014 MANGO GROOVE 21 Red Hill Auditorium SUNDOWN SESSIONS: MISSY HIGGINS, SARAH BLASKO, JAE LAFFER (THE PANICS) 21 Scarborough Beach Amphitheatre POND, AAA AARDVARK GETDOWN SERVICES, FELICITY GROOM, THE SILENTS, DJ LADY CARLA 22 Chevron Festival Gardens DOLLY PARTON 27 Perth Arena NEKO CASE 27 Fly By Night Club PUBLIC ENEMY 28 Chevron Festival Gardens BRUNO MARS 28 Perth Arena

NANNUP MUSIC FESTIVAL

JURASSIC 5 14 Metro City

BOZ SCAGGS 14 Crown Theatre

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 28 - MONDAY MARCH 3 Nannup

PHARRELL WILLIAMS 14 Challenge Stadium

SKID ROW & UGLY KID JOE 23 Metro Fremantle

Immerse yourself in a long weekend of musical, cultural and artistic diversity, Friday 28th February - Monday 3rd March.

NEIL FINN 16 Perth Concert Hall

MICHAEL BUBLE 26 & 27 Perth Arena

THE ROLLING STONES 19 Perth Arena

AARON NEVILLE DR JOHN & THE NITETRIPPERS 26 Riverside Theatre

Some of the great things happening will be: Emerging Artists award, Artwear Parade, Comedy, Poets Breakfast, A Great Debate (is music better than sex?), Workshops, Market Stalls, Kids’ Talent Quest, Buskers, a special Anzac feature… and much more.

KERSER 1 Metro City

FUTURE MUSIC FESTIVAL SAFARI 2014 SUNDAY MAR 2, 2014 Arena Joondalup

From Sahara sounds to jungle jams, we’ve drummed up an animal cracker of a line up that reflects what’s happening in music right now. Don’t forget to pack your party; this safari is far out…

Lions and tigers and gnomes, oh my!

30 SECONDS TO MARS 25 Challenge Stadium

APRIL

THE WONDER STUFF 2 Rosemount Hotel

BILLY BRAGG 8 Perth Concert Hall

DARK TRANQUILLITY & ORPHEUS OMEGA 25 Capitol

HUNTER & COLLECTORS 29 (sold-out) & 30 Kings Park & Botanical Garden

LIONEL RICHIE & JOHN FARNHAM 2 Sandalford Winery Swan Valley

BRIAN MCKNIGHT 7 Riverside Theatre

SEBADOH 25 Rosemount Hotel

JOHN BUTLER TRIO 27 Fremantle Arts Centre 28 Belvoir Amphitheatre 29 Old Broadwater Farm, Busselton

MARCH

GOOD LIFE ft. Deadmau5/Macklemore & Ryan Lewis/ Hardwell 3 Arena Joondalup

KATE MILLER-HEIDKE 21 - 22 Quarry Amphitheatre

FREMANTLE STREET ARTS FESTIVAL

SATURDAY APRIL 19 - MONDAY APRIL 21, 2014 Various Venues

The internationally renowned Fremantle Street Arts Festival showcases some of the world’s most acclaimed street, outdoor theatre, music, comedy, circus and cabaret performers. This precocious festival has attitude, breaks conventions, is full of surprises and is guaranteed to entertain you, make you laugh and leave you on a natural high.

PACO PENA 2 Perth Concert Hall

SOUNDWAVE 2014 MONDAY MARCH 3 Claremont Showgrounds

A truly massive show hits the Claremont Showgrounds, including Green Day, Avenged Sevenfold, Stone Temple Pilots, Alice In Chains, Rob Zombie, Megadeth, Placebo, AFI, Korn, Baroness, August Burns Red, A Day To Remember, Mastodon, Pennywise, Jimmy Eat World, Crosses, The Boss Hoss, The Black Dahlia Murder, Bowling for Soup and many more! Tickets and info through soundwavefestival.com.au.

The festival will also have a major focus on enhanced, state of the art audio and will deliver spine-tingling light shows and crystal clear sound, using new technologies such as audio mapping. In 2014 each and every punter will soak up their favourite artists loud and clear, no matter what stage they’re performing on or where they’re dancing!

KYLESA 6 The Bakery SUZANNE VEGA 11 Astor Theatre 13 Fremantle Park

WEST COAST BLUES AND ROOTS FESTIVAL

SUNDAY APRIL 13, 2014 Scarborough Beach Amphitheatre

Now in its 11th year, Sunset Events are thrilled to announce the return of the festival to one jam-packed day full of musical goodness, with the talents of John Mayer, The Dave Matthews Band, The Doobie Brothers, Erykah Badu, Matt Corby, Boy And Bear, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, Steve Earle & The Dukes, Morcheeba, Gary Clark Jr., Russell Morris and The Soul Rebels. Full details are at westcoastbluesandroots.com.au.

FOLKWORLD FAIRBRIDGE FESTIVAL

FRIDAY APRIL 25 - SUNDAY APRIL 27, 2014 Various Venues

FolkWorld Fairbridge Festival 25– 27 April: An annual familyfriendly celebration of folk and world music in a traffic-free, self-contained bush land retreat with something for everyone. Over 90 acts will entertain you on this amazing and magical weekend escape from our everyday lives.

Fairbridge Village, South West Highway, 5 km north of Pinjarra, Western Australia just an hour’s drive from central Perth.

Stay posted for lineup and ticket releases.

Please note: We play rain or shine.

This is a licensed event. Over 18s only. Photo ID required. ROAR. www.futuremusicfestival.com.au GREEN DAY

GOLD PANDA 9 The Bakery QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE & NINE INCH NAILS 11 Perth Arena JOSH PYKE 12 Quarry Amphitheatre WWW. XP RE SS MAG.COM. MAG .COM. AU

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PIC: GEORGE TAYLOR

THE WONDER STUFF Miles To Go ‘90s UK legends The Wonder Stuff perform their Never Loved Elvis album in full at the Rosemount Hotel on Sunday, March 2.

Frontman, Miles Hunt, chats to GARETH GORMAN. “I’m actually writing after I’ve finished talking to you lot,” says Miles Hunt at the top of the interview. This sounds like good news for those of us who know of him as quite the witty, erudite wordsmith and barb-slinger.

“Yeah, I’m working on my autobiography... or the band’s, really. I’ve kept diaries over the years and been going through them to see what’s of interest. It will be the day-to-day account of a band on the road, dealing with all the people you meet and come up against.

“I read a lot of other music autobiographies leading up to it, to the point where I can’t bear to read any more for a while. So I haven’t read Morrissey’s – I suppose I may at some point, but I suspect I won’t come out of it liking him too much.

Tim Burgess’ I’d like to read, I like him.

“While I’ve kept the diaries all these years, I didn’t think it would be worth doing anything with them, until I was 40 and then another seven years whooshed by without me really getting stuck into it and then suddenly I got a move on with it. And out of reading the countless other autobiographies, I decided the diary format would prove to be the best.

“I got really, really, bored with the, ‘I grew up in wherever and this thing and that thing happened to me when I was a kid or a teenager’. So I think the diary approach will supply the good stuff.

“An entry I was working on today reminded me how futile and useless we were in living the rock’n’roll dream. We were in LA and I was coaxed into doing the trashing-a-room thing.

We thought of chucking the TV out of the room, but dismissed it as too clichéd. Then we thought about the wardrobe, but I couldn’t do it. ‘What about the hangers?’ I was asked, but I couldn’t even do that – they were wooden and heavy and I wouldn’t have been able to bear it, if they hit anyone. So in the end, all I did was chuck a couple of matches out. Very un-rock ‘n’roll.”

1991 was the last full Wonder Stuff headline tour down under, although they have been out here over the years on shared-bills. I was fortunate enough to be in the audience for their Metropolis show in Fremantle. The band were riding high on the success of the Never Loved Elvis album and a number one hit record with UK comic, Vic Reeves – a cover of Tommy Roe’s Dizzy.

“I wasn’t aware that Dizzy was so big over here and I guess it does say something about the version we all did of it that it did so well in Australia if Vic Reeves’ shows hadn’t been transmitted.

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“The gigs we’re doing on this tour will feature us going back in time and performing our third album, Never Loved Elvis, in its entirety. We’ve enjoyed doing the tours of the preceding albums – Eight Legged Groove Machine and Hup and we’ve decided to keep running with that idea of playing them live in the order that they were released. The rest of the set comprises what we’ve worked, goes over well and what we do well.”

The current Wonder Stuff line-up has managed to find them snaffling up one Fuzz Townshend, formerly of Pop Will Eat Itself on tubthumping duties and a man who once told me he lived in a house with no square rooms.

“Ha, that wouldn’t surprise me. He’s quite the character is Fuzz. You should see his current place, a ramshackle place half-way up an impenetrable mountain, that is pretty much impossible to get to, which I believe is the way he likes it.”

“The gigs we’re doing on this tour will feature us going back in time and performing our third album, Never Loved Elvis, in its entirety. We’ve enjoyed doing the tours of the preceding albums – Eight Legged Groove Machine and Hup and we’ve decided to keep running with that idea of playing them live in the order that they were released. The rest of the set comprises what we’ve worked, goes over well and what we do well.”

A love of music that’s come out of the Midlands has also been something that flames Miles’ fire. This first showed up for fans with their cover of Slade’s Cuz I Luv You. It’s carried through to a covers compilation From The Midlands With Love that accompanies their most recent ‘real’ album, Oh No It’s The Wonder Stuff.

Miles admits that he’s definitely enjoying being in a band more now than their first flush of success and how the use of social media has brought him closer to the fans than before something confirmed by him tweeting about our conversation before he moved onto his next interview.

“After all these years of doing it, I think I actually understand it now. Back in the day, I was young and inexperienced and didn’t get on with the original members that well, to be honest. “Now the people in the band genuinely enjoy being in The Wonder Stuff and want to work on new songs. The old members just thought about money and didn’t want to work on new stuff.

“The other thing is I like getting on Facebook and Twitter and all that. Plus we have a seriously cool merchandise site where you can get all our tour stuff without even seeing us! But above all that, with all the fan interaction - I have seriously learned plenty from The Wonder Stuff’s audience that are out there and happy to tell me what they think.”

NEW NOISE

For more album reviews head to xpressmag.com.au

3.5

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OUT OF 5

BO NINGEN

HALFWAY

Line The Wall Stolen Recordings

Any Old Love +1 Records/MGM Distribution

We’ve all heard some weird music in our lives. That’s what friends are truly for. Japanese psychedelic rock quartet, Bo Ningen, know the meaning of an orthodox sound… and have harnessed it to perfection.

Weeks before their appearance at Big Day Out; the London-based collective have released their second LP Line The Wall, an album that breaks down the boundaries of modern music and takes listeners on an hypnotic journey of melodic riffs, atmospheric settings and unique structures. Sure it’s in Japanese, but who cares? The music itself is a showcase of the endless possibilities psychedelic rock has to offer, and whilst none of the tracks would be ‘singles of the year’, the album itself is a once-in-a-lifetime experience that is rare in this day and age.

From the pumping drum tempos and echoing lead guitar in opening track Soko, to the groovy and unpredictable beats in Nichijyou, Bo Ningen simply unleash themselves as they see fit. Confident in their sound and daring to push conventional barriers, Line The Wall will convince you to add these guys to your Big Day Out timetable.

Formed in 2000, Halfway could well be the best thing to ever come out of Rockhampton. The eight-piece country rock outfit capture the pop smarts of Brisbane with their own brand of twang. Any Old Love not only reunites Halfway member John Willsteed with fellow Go-Between Rob Forster in the production chair, but also returns the band to Central Queensland with these tales of desolation and despair from Barcaldine.

The songs on Any Old Love are based around the Shakespeare Hotel and the ex-jockey who dragged his family to this remote community. Honey I Like You is the most optimistic that Halfway get on this venture as they explore love and a healthy dose of luck. The pedal steel and pleasant harmonies don’t hurt a bit either.

Things turn sour soon after with Hard Life Loving You where the protagonist’s wife takes the kids and leaves. A tale that would be dour in other hands is given a touch of sweetness in the heartfelt and wholesome tones of the fine voiced Halfway.

Dulcify - the racehorse who was favoured to win a Melbourne Cup but ended up first to take a bullet, is the inspiration for the hopeless stories that appear on Any Old Love.

Halfway are a band that should be better known outside of Brisbane than they currently are.

With a touch of The Go-Betweens and melodic dexterity of The Welcome Mat thrown into the rich harmony and ample twang, there is plenty to like about Any Old Love.

AARON BRYANS

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CHRIS HAVERCROFT

REAPER’S RIDDLE

4

Game Over EP Independent

OUT OF 5

Reaper’s Riddle is that rarest of heavy metal bands – one that crucially understands that to be heavy, modern and relevant, you do not have to forgo all trace of melody and intelligibility, and consequently every release from them is more compelling, interesting and enjoyable that the last.

All the elements of a world class metal band are present on Game Over – crushing riffs, frenzied solos, memorable songs covering interesting lyrical themes and, in Clayton Mitchell, they are fronted by a singer who can really sing, not to mention growl menacingly at the appropriate moment.

There’s a touch of prog-metal to what these Perth stalwarts do, in their over the top zombie-edged live show, their intricate playing and lyrics that go far over the horizon from the stereotypical ‘hey baby let’s go out tonight’ brand we’ve heard so many times before.

The Clock Part 1 sees an edgy Mitchell over a riff worthy of Tony Iommi’s Heaven & Hell, his performance showcasing his vocal range as it alternates between clean and melodic and raw and intimidating.

Closing track If You Died Tomorrow thought provokingly reflects on the legacy we’ll leave behind when we’re gone, starting softly and again showcasing Mitchell’s talent atop a band that knows when to go at breakneck speed, and when to show restraint and a lighter touch.

LEECHES Lords Of Dullsville Bridge Sounds Named after Perth’s (mostly unfair) reputation as the Sleepy Hollowest capital in the land and sporting cover art and props from Hard-Ons legend Ray Anh, Leeches’ album comes flailing through the moshpit at you at 100 mph and is gone in the blink of a slammingly furious eye.

Having said that, the likes of Choking, Cracked And Broken, Drain and the appropriately titled Media Frenzy never sound rushed – as speedy as Lemmy after a four-night bender, but never suffering premature cessation.

Lords Of Dullsville is, instead, a ball tearing meth-fuelled thrash through 10 madhouse tracks made for slamming into walls at a full sprint, and it’s the most intense 12 minutes you’ll spend this summer.

Brace yourself for the comedown – nothing seems the same after a dose of Leeches.

SHANE PINNEGAR

SHANE PINNEGAR

3.5 OUT OF 5

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MOGWAI WARPAINT Warpaint’s self-titled sophomore album is good but if this is what the band feels to truly represent Warpaint, as opposed to 2010’s debut The Fool, then it’s somewhat disappointing. Admittedly, three-anda-half years is a long time and the ‘Paint seem to have discovered a new bunch of bells and whistles to accentuate their droll yet completely radcore psychgirl-rock sound, but seriously, if it ain’t broke?

The inexorable thick guitar picking of Keep It Healthy is a good start for the album, starting off where their breakthrough single from 2010, Undertow, finished. Emily Kokal’s vocals still sit back in the mix with a slight phase giving her an almost American Indian chant-like etherealness.

Love Is To Die breaks into a post-punk canter under-laid by a new romantic rhythm giving the song a well-timed inconsistency that builds then falls into a sombre chorus of, ‘Love is to die / Love is to not die / Love is to dance, love is to dance’.

The two aforementioned tracks (two and three) get Warpaint off to a tantalising start but from there it kind of gets lost in overproduction, with Kokal’s voice breaching the realms of toned down musicality and entering a caterwaul. However, this is still a good album from an excellent band.

Rave Tapes Spunk/Universal

The haunting, bell-like keys that open the eighth Mogwai album suggest a continuation of their superlative soundtrack work on creepy French TV series, The Returned. As opener, Heard About You Last Night, develops in their textbook quiet-to-loud manner, all the familiar Mogwai elements slot into place to assure you that this will be a classic run of Mogwai in the vein of Rock Action and The Hawk Is Howling.

After 2001’s Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will, the Scottish quintet pull out another cheeky album title, one which suggests that this could be an assortment of experimental dance numbers uncovered from the archives. Although the band further their dabbling in electronica, it’s all very well contained within their sturdy post-rock fortress; it’s an album that’s tighter in length and structure, but looser in sound and sonics.

Vocals remain an almost superfluous addition to the ensemble, at times even a little distracting. A ramble about subliminal messages in Repelish feels like it was slotted in to boost a middling composition, while the hushed vocal on Blues Hour only serves to strip away the song’s mystique. The wellworn vocoder is used to great effect on the excellent closing track, The Lord Is Out Of Control. It’s a striking end to a mixed bag, but there’s enough classic material here to make this another must-have Mogwai album.

DENVER MAXX

CHRIS GIRDLER

Warpaint Rough Trade/Remote Control

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The incredibly hard to categorise Canyons - otherwise known as former Perth residents Ryan Grieve and Leo Thomson - have teamed up with acclaimed Indigenous visual artist, Daniel Boyd, to present a work that is kind of hard to describe. A combination of live music and video installation, it even gives Grieve himself trouble when the question of what it’s all about is put to him.

“What is 100 Million Nights?” he muses, pausing for a few moments before continuing. “It’s a collaboration between us, that is Canyons, and Daniel Boyd, a Sydney based visual artist. It’s basically... we’ve scored music to Daniel’s visuals and vice versa - he created visuals from our music as well across the collaboration. It’s a collaboration in the true sense. We weren’t just putting music to his visuals - it was back and forth. That was a very important part, to make it a real collaboration. At times the focus was on the

music and at times it was on the visuals.”

But that explanation only scratches the surface. “Technically, that’s what it is,” he continues. “And I guess the themes behind it are all to do with things like creation and decay, nature and time and space and all things, a little bit. It’s a little hard to pinpoint.”

Clearly. Leaving aside the actual form and function of the thing for a while, we move on to how this welding of forces came about. According to Grieve,

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it was a fairly organic process.

“We’re all kind of friends. We have a bunch of mutual friends and it came about through Daniel, who got in touch with me maybe a couple of years ago - I’m not sure how long. He’d just come back from London after doing some work over there and he had an upcoming exhibition and asked me if I wouldn’t mind writing some music for it. I did it, we had a great time doing it and then I went and saw the exhibition.

The exhibition, Black Matter, was shown in this totally blacked out room and there are screens, four screens, one on every wall and you’re kind of immersed and the music is blaring. We saw that and thought we could maybe try and do something like this live. So that’s kind of how it came about, so me and Leo and Dan got together and it all went really good.

“Basically, it started from a couple of pieces we did for Dan that we had left over from previous work,” Grieve goes on. “Sometimes it would go from

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that, where we’d start playing and just see where it goes, so we’d record it and send that to Dan and he would work from that. So some of the pieces were like that, and then others Dan would send us the visuals and we would write to that. It was just a bunch of back and forth, really. You’re just kind of getting into each other’s headspaces.”

Of course, we don’t have access to those vaunted cranial vaults. If we want to get a handle on 100 Million Nights, it seems we’re going to have to go and see it for ourselves.

TRAVIS JOHNSON

Part of the 2014 Perth International Arts Festival, 100 Million Nights will be performed at The Chevron Festival Gardens on Tuesday, February 11, with support from Mathas. For tickets and info, head to perthfestival.com.au.

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THE RUSSIANS RUSH IN

A TICKLISH TASTING PLATE Fringe World can be overwhelming - what do you see, where do you go, should you wear something waterproof? To help the easily confused, the good folks at The Laugh Resort have put together the Fringe World Comedy Showcase. Every Wednesday at Rosie O’Grady’s in Northbridge you can sample a selection of the best comedians the festival has to offer. Tonight, January 29, you can catch Chris Bedding, Jon Bennet, Suns Of Fred, Nellie White, Manfred Yon, Xavier Toby and Adam Peter Scott. For more info - and tickets - go to fringeworld.com.au.

Suns Of Fred

POPPING UP IN FREO Artist Anya Brock is opening a pop up gallery in Many 6160 - formerly Fremantle’s old Myer Building - and the opening night is this Friday, January 31, from 6pm. The shop promises an everchanging range of small works, framed prints and large originals. Also featured will be photographic work by Anya’s sister, Marika.

SCULPTURE BY THE SEA RACKS UP A DECADE Now a mainstay of the Perth artistic calendar, S c u l p t u re B y T he S e a ce l e b r at e s i t s 1 0 t h anniversary this year. The outdoor exhibition will run for 18 days from March 7 - 24 and will feature works from over 70 artists local, interstate and international. For more info, go to sculpturebythesea.com.

One of the most acclaimed dance troupes the world has ever seen, The Imperial Russian Ballet Company will tour Australia in April and May, 2014. This time around they will be performing Don Quixote, based on the classic novel by Cervantes, which was first performed as a ballet at Moscow’s Bolshoi Theatre in 1869. They will perform in Perth on Saturday, May 17 and Sunday, May 18. For tickets and times, go to ticketek.com.au.

The Imperial Russian Ballet Company

PIGGY PIGGY PIGGY One of the must see shows at this year’s Fringe World - and one that certainly adheres to the “Fringe” part of the festival’s name - is this production of controversial playwright Neil LaBute’s blackly hilarious chamber piece, Fat Pig. Directed by Hermione Gehle, it runs at The Velvet Lounge on February 3, 4, 10 and 11. Go to fringeworld.com.au for tickets and session information.

WOMEN WHO WRITE The Society Of Women Writers WA have a full calendar of events planned for 2014, with a range of classes, workshops and courses available for those who wish to turn their hand to the written word. John Harman will be giving two writing workshops, Plotting Your Novel and Show, Don’t Tell, while the awardwinning Helen Iles will be running a Writing Boot Camp in March. On Saturday, March 22, the Society will be holding a Marathon Writing Competition, which strikes us as a great way to get your creative juices flowing. For information on all these and more, head to swwofwa.com.

CLOSING TIME Entries for the 2014 Mandjar Art Award close this Friday, January 31, at 4pm. Head to manpac.com.au for full details.

ALL IS LOST The Old Man And The Sea Directed by JC Chandor Starring Robert Redford 1700 miles off the Sumatran Straits. Lost at sea.

Adrift. Bereft of food, water, and hope. All Is Lost.

The captain of the Virginia Jean (Robert Redford) finds himself in an epic struggle for survival after his yacht is holed by a floating shipping container. As he scrambles to repair the damage, he is thrown into a storm and the situation gets much worse.

R o b e r t R e d fo rd g i ve s a v i r t u o s o performance here, not merely because he is the only person on screen for the entirety of the movie, but because he carries off the performance in virtual silence. Besides the opening coda (a desperate address to loved ones) and the occasional exclamation of frustration, Redford is completely taciturn. Instead of constructing a painted volleyball, CG tiger, or an astronaut George Clooney, the film is content to let Redford convey meaning through his actions. The audience can clearly see every decision agonised over, the frustration building as failures mount, and the desperation increase as the situation grows grim.

It also must be added, that for a man in his late 70s, it is a remarkably physical performance. Our man is tossed by wave, thrown around the interior of the Virginia Jean and drenched through to the bone by torrential rain.

Of course, as nature abhors a vacuum, the atmospheric diagetic sound effects fill the void left by dialogue. The audience becomes acutely aware of the numerous noises of the sea, adding to this film’s rich sense of location. Little wonder that it is in this area that All Is Lost earned its only Oscar nomination. The musical soundtrack is used sparingly in the first half of the film, its haunting refrain occasionally adding an air of melancholy to the proceedings. In the latter half of the film the music becomes more commonly used and helps emphasise the emotional tone, without reaching the bombastic heights of many scores (you know what you did, Hans Zimmer).

In All Is Lost director JC Chandor (Margin Call) crafts a carefully constructed survival movie.

Similar to last years Gravity, it pits the protagonist against an environment hostile to human life, but where Gravity is a thrill ride, All Is Lost seems like a meditation on mortality. Beautifully shot, it conveys a stunning sense of the open sea. On board the Virginia Jean you can see the ocean stretching to the horizon, reinforcing to the audience at all times how isolated Redford’s character is. Yet there is also a wonderful, oft-repeated sequence of marine life slowly building under the raft, clearly demonstrating the circle of life and death that is at play here.

An exquisite piece of cinema, All Is Lost presents a tense battle of man against the elements.

All told with barely a word spoken, bravely letting the performance and images speak for themselves.

DAVID O’CONNELL

All Is Lost screens as part of the Lotterywest Festival Film season at Somerville from February 3 - 8 and Joondalup Pines from February 11 - 16. For more details, head to perthfestival.com.au.

FILM

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY: THE MARKED ONES Bruja Brouhaha Directed by Christopher Landon Starring Andrew Jacobs, Jorge Diaz, Gabrielle Wash The latest Paranormal Activity film follows the found footage history of its previous iterations, bringing the audience more of what they would expect from this franchise. In general, that means shaky camera work, dimly lit environments and a plethora of creatures jumping at the camera in an attempt to provoke a scare.

The Marked Ones gives this series a fresh lick of paint, by shifting the focus to the semi-urban Latino neighbourhood of Oxnard and concentrating on a new set of characters. Jesse (Andrew Jacobs) and Hector (Jorge Diaz) have just graduated high school, and are content with slacking off and filming puerile stunts with their newly acquired camera. When one of Jesse’s neighbours (a supposed “bruja” - witch) is murdered, the boys find themselves exploring her apartment, partly out of curiosity and partly out of boredom. What they find is a link to the occult, a link that becomes more pronounced as Jesse notices a 22

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strange bite mark on his arm. As stranger and more sinister events start to occur, Jesse and Hector find themselves in a battle against demonic forces for both body and soul.

Writer/director Christopher Landon (Burning Palms) has been involved with the scripting of this series since the second movie, so it is little surprise he knows the mythology of this series back to front. It really shows here for both good and ill. Whereas the story plugs well into the already established fictional world and contains numerous references for the fans of the previous films, it is also markedly similar to those prior tales in terms of storyline and outcome. There is little new here, despite the change of scenery, to breathe life into the franchise. A few hints of the larger scale of the witches’ plan are tantalising, but this film’s scope (like its budget) remains small, contenting itself by clasping tightly to the original film’s structure until it literally entwines itself into the first plot.

Not that there aren’t the occasional flashes of brilliance here, such as the haunting image of the dark eyed children by the satanic altar, or a possessed Jesse telekinetically torturing his dog, or the gunfight against the coven (a welcome burst of action from a Paranormal Activity protagonist), but these are few and far between. Instead it is the standard nauseainducing, poorly framed shaky-cam shots through ill-lit buildings while dark shapes lurch at the audience with clockwork regularity and as much predictability.

For fans of the series there may be enough of the same to satisfy their craving until the sixth movie comes out later this year. For the rest, there are plenty better examples of both the horror and found footage genre to warrant giving this damp squib much of a viewing.

DAVID O’CONNELL

SUMMER FULL OF DREAMS Heart Full Of Motion Chrissie Parrott Arts, in conjunction with Fringe World and Act, Belong, Commit, presents Summer Full Of Dreams, a full program of beautifully realised dance and performance works that explore the range of possibilities in modern dance to their fullest possible extent.

Rites, presented by Steamwork Arts under director Sally Richardson, mashes together basketball, acrobatics, comedy and modern dance in a funny and furious look at the nature of competition in both sport an art. This imaginative take on Stravinski’s Rite Of Spring runs Tuesday, February 4 until Sunday, February 9.

The Man is choreographed by Parrott herself, who, with dancer, Kynan Hughes, as her canvas, paints an intriguing, dark yet playful portrait of manhood under duress. Drawing on the works of such writers as Kafka and Chekhov, The Man presents the stories of a number of men who, burdened by their darkest impulses, undertake a search for redemption. It runs from Thursday, February 6 until Sunday, February 9.

Louise Honeybul’s I Don’t Care About Your Dreams explores the stories of Raymond Carver and all their attendant love, loss, betrayal, heartbreak and jealousy. It runs from Saturday, February 15 until Tuesday, February 18.

I Don’t Care About your Dreams

The Night Jar

Counterpoise by Iridescence Dance Company is a collection of solo and duet works that explore relationships both complementary and oppositional. It runs from Sunday, February 16 until Thursday, February 18.

Dagaz Productions push the boundaries with The Disorder, a blackly humourous look at the irony of working to prolong life beyond the capacity to appreciate it. A disturbing and at times downright grotesque work that examines questions about ageing, disease, life and death that we all must face sooner or later, it runs from Wednesday, February 19 to Sunday, February 23.

The Night Jar is performance poet Scott Patrick Mitchell’s inquiry into how frayed the border between consciousness and oblivion, waking and sleeping, dreams and reality really is. It runs from Wednesday, February 19, until Sunday, February 23.

Benched, by Martin del Amo and JulieAnne Long, takes the audience outside the confines of the traditional venue and out into the beautiful York Reserve in Maylands, for a performance based on different sitting positions as observed in different social and entertainment contexts. It runs from Thursday, February 120 to Saturday, February 22.

TRAVIS JOHNSON

Benched aside, all performances take place at Chrissie Parrott Arts. For information and tickets, head to chrissieparrottarts.com or fringeworld.com.

Benched - Photo by Lucy Parakhin

FEAR OF A BROWN PLANET Race Relations Comedian Aamer Rahman, nominally 50 per cent of the confrontational, controversial comedy duo, Fear Of A Brown Planet is in a good mood.

The Bangladeshi-Australian funnyman has just learned that one of his heroes, Dave Chappelle, has announced an Australian tour.

It makes sense that Rahman cites Chappelle as an influence; like the African American comic, Rahman and his partner, Nazeem Hussain, have made their names talking about race in an intelligent, abrasive and downright hilarious manner, and their new show promises more in that vein.

“It’s basically the show that we’ve been touring around over the last year,” he tells us. “Which is the first Fear Of A Brown Planet show we’ve done in a while. We came back together after quite a long time apart doing solo stuff.”

At first taste, Rahman’s material seems to be completely without boundaries - in one infamous routine he compares Indigenous Australians performing at Australia Day celebrations to Jews dancing on Hitler’s birthday - but he admits that he does have a censor, albeit an external one.

“I definitely run everything I do past my sister,” he says. “And there have been plenty of times when she’s said, ‘Why are you doing this? This is not funny.’ I mean, every comedian has stuff that they think is hilarious that is actually not funny. At the end of the day, you don’t decide what’s funny – the audience decides what’s funny. But I’ve never done anything on stage that I’ve regretted later, like crossed some huge line or anything. We know our audience pretty well and I’ve never made that kind of big mistake.

“I was actually thinking about this the other day,” he continues. “I think male comics have this obsession with rape jokes, you know? There’s this kind of idea that comedians should be able to talk about anything – well, not really! I don’t know who made that rule up, you know what I mean? The idea that comedians are some exceptional class of people that are somehow not bound by the rules that affect everyone else. Probably comedians, actually – probably comedians are the ones who came up with that. Well, not everything’s funny, you know what I mean? I think that the more unacceptable

or the more upset people become about things, it just becomes like a red flag for comedians – ‘Well, I should be able to talk about that if I want! I bet I’m smart enough to come up with a joke that’s not going to offend people.’ There’s like a million and one things in the world you can talk about; you don’t have to keep going back to these sort of topics, yeah?”

TRAVIS JOHNSON

Fear Of A Brown Planet, aka Aamer Rahman and Nazeem Hussain, perform as part of Fringe world at Teatro in the Perth Cultural Centre on Saturday, February 1 and Sunday, February, 2. For tickets and further information, head to fringeworld.com.au.

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Hamlet: New Fortune Theatre, University Of Western Australia This new iteration of Shakespeare’s most renowned tragedy takes place on the only replica Elizabethan/ Jacobean stage this side of the equator. It runs from January 31 - February 15. Book tickets at grads.org.au.

The Man: Chrissie Parrott Arts Chrissie Parrott and Kynan Hughes present a dark, incisive vision of masculinity in distress. Inspired by the works of Franz Kafka, Anton Chekov, Bruno Schultz and Patrick Suskind, this interlocking series of solo dance performances runs from February 6 - 9 and is presented as part of Fringe World. Go to chrissieparrottarts.com for more details.

The Rocky Horror Show: Crown Theatre It’s Time Warp time again when this 40th anniversary production of Richard O’Brien’s essential cult show rolls into town. Featuring Craig McLachlan as the irrepressible Dr Frank N. Furter, this is one of the must-see shows of the year! It runs from February 14 - March 9. Go to crownperth.com.au for details.

The 400 Blows, screening at the Alliance Francaise French Film Festival.

VISUAL ARTS 140 ART: 140 Nationally recognised artists and local emerging talent both contribute to this temporary gallery project that runs until January 31. Andy Quilty, Phibs, Amok, Anya Brock, Pip McManus and more will use shopfronts and walls along Wellington, William and Murray Street as a canvas for an ambitious urban art project. Head to 140.com.au for further information.

2013 Bankwest Art Prize: Bankwest Place The exhibition of all the finalist pieces for this prestigious annual award, including works by Rachel Coad, Penny Bovell, Susanna Castleden, Thea Constantino, Penny Coss, Jo Darbyshire and more, runs until March 3. Go to bankwest.com.au for more.

A Private View - Modern Masters From The Kerry Stokes Collection: The Art Galley Of Western Australia 26 paintings drawn from one of the most significant private art collections in Australia, representing the major art movements of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It runs until March 3. Go to artgallery. wa.gov.au for further information.

Within These Walls: Wanneroo Library And Cultural Centre Gallery A free combined exhibition collated by the Wanneroo Museum and Art Collections, this innovative and quirky exhibition will showcase rarely seen artefacts from the Museum’s collection, juxtaposed and

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harmonised with art works from the city’s art collection. It runs until February 2. Visit wanneroo. wa.gov.au for more.

THEATRE/DANCE/ PERFORMANCE The Deep: Spare Parts Puppet Theatre Adapted from Tim Winton’s acclaimed children’s book, The Deep is a family-friendly tale that contrasts the fear of the unknown with excitement and joy of discovery and new experiences. It runs until February 1. Head to sppt.asn.au for more.

Flood: Studio Underground, State Theatre Centre Directed by Adam Mitchell and starring a plethora of WA’s best young acting talents, Flood details the moral tribulations of a group of friends who have determined to bury a shared secret no matter what the cost. Presented as part of the Black Swan Lab, it runs until February 2. Go to bsstc.com.au for session times and tickets.

Summer Nights: The Blue Room Theatre Presented as part of Fringe World 2013, this incredible program of theatre and dance runs from until February 22. 32 different shows will be presented, including Squidboy, She Was Probably Not A Robot, Gym & Tonic, Run Girl Run and more. Plus, there’ll be encore seasons of the great puppet show, Bruce, and the incredible allegorical play, Great White. Head to blueroom.org.au for further information.

MUSIC

Squidboy, part of The Blue Room Theatre’s Summer Nights.

Otello: His Majesty’s Theatre The West Australian Opera presents Verdi’s masterful piece as part of the Perth International Arts Festival.

Performances from February 4 - 11. Go to waopera. asn.au for more details.

Perth International Arts Festival Perth’s biggest celebration of art, film, music, theatre, dance and culture runs from February 7 - March 1. Head to 2014.perthfestival.com.au for the full program.

FESTIVALS

Avon Valley Vintage Festival Over the Labor Day weekend, the Northam Recreation Centre will host a wide variety of stalls, exhibitions and activities, including antiques and collectibles, with contributors including the Avon Valley Vintage Vehicle Association, the Army Museum Of WA, the Vintage Cycle Club Of WA and more. It runs from March 1 - 2. go to avoneventsandmarketing.com for more.

Fringe World More than 450 shows across over 60 venues, encompassing traditional entertainment forms and the most outré, avant-garde live acts. It runs until February 23. Go to fringeworld.com.au for the full programme and ticketing.

Summerset Arts Festival The City Of Stirling’s annual arts celebration runs until February 8 and encompasses a whole range of familyfriendly activities, exhibitions, demonstrations and performances across a wide number of venues. Head to summersetartsfestival.com.au for more.

Emergence Creative Festival A three day themed event based on “the currency of creativity,” this conference for creative professionals runs in Margaret River from February 19 - 24, with guests and speakers including PJ Bloom, Mark Herbert, Jonathan Kneebone and Eric Phu. Go to emergencecreative.com.au for further information.

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Alliance Francaise French Film Festival 2014 So Frenchy, so chic! The greatest Gallic film festival is just over the horizon, once again bringing Perth cineastes the finest of filmic treats. It runs at Cinema Paradiso from March 18 - April 6. Go to affrenchfilmfestival.org for details.

To have your performance, exhibition or cultural event listed, get in touch via

localmusicarts@xpressmag.com.au For more Art Stories head to

xpressmag.com.au

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“DUBSTEP IS DEAD” Israeli jazz musician and metal drummer-turned dubstep king, Borgore aka Asaf Borger has never let himself be tied down in any one genre. He chatted to TOM KITSON about the post-dubstep era ahead of the Inhibit show at Villa on Saturday, February 8.

Finding a love of dubstep and electronic music in mid-2000, Borger set up his own label, Buygore Records and created the self-described sub-genre of ‘gorestep’ comprised of “triplet drum patterns with heavy metal influences”.

He’s had to rebound from dubstep’s decline and incorporate more of his favourite genres into the mix.

“Dubstep is kind of dead right now, it’s not happening,” he says.

“I think the Skrillex-inspired boom helped things get really big, really fast and like many things that happen quickly, it went away just as quickly.

“Skrillex brought such a high quality product that everyone else wanted to emulate, so there were a lot of copies and unoriginal material coming out, new things weren’t being explored and the genre got tired.”

A multi-faceted trained musician always takes an interest in different genres, so Borger was able to tweak his electronic sound with trap and house music influences. He performed in LA for New Year’s Eve, a fair stretch from his beginnings as a jazz musician entertaining some less than energetic crowds.

“New Year’s Eve was unreal,” he says. “We did a show in the (Hollywood) Palladium, one of the most iconic places in LA with 1300 people there, so it was really a night to remember.

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LOVE IS IN THE AIR

Continued from cover.

“I used to play jazz for years, where you go crazy improvising and playing complicated things at 300 bpm with a few hand claps from older people in the crowd,’ he says. “Then you go and play electronic music with a few notes over a crazy bassline and everyone’s going mental, so I’d say I like that experience better.”

Mostly renowned for his heavy electro sounds and big room style, Borger says outside of show time he’s always listening to new things and coming up with ideas not solely designed to be electronically produced.

“I’ve always loved writing music in general, spending most of the day in front of the piano writing songs and not for any particular genre,” he explains.

“My passion for electronic music has come from how much I enjoy playing live and having such a huge crowd response.”

The party’s well and truly charging on with the release of the Wild Out EP last November, featuring Waka Flocka Flame and up and coming producer Victor Niglio.

“I had really good times working with Waka Flocka and I think we made a really good track together combining trap and that big room sound.

I think the whole EP is really eclectic, with Wild Out being quite commercial and Booty Monsta (featuring Niglio) being unlike anything else out there.”

A key inspirational factor for Borger going forward is drawing upon like-minded producers and labels like Spinnin’ Records and Dim Mak, combined

with his personal taste coming through in his sets.

“I’ve really been into what Spinnin’ Records are doing - deep house and trap are really cool and I still like putting on a few dubstep tracks,” he says. “I always remind myself that people come to my show to have a good time and I’m there to entertain them more than anything.

“Everything is very party orientated, but I like to throw in a few tunes I personally like regardless of that.”

With his EP and latest influences the cornerstone for his upcoming visit to Perth, Borger says his sets need to be improvised on the night to maintain freshness and keep the crowd interested and liking what they hear.

“You have to know what music suits what crowd,” he says. “Songs that might be huge in the US might not be the same in Australia for example, so I always like to ask local people what they listen to and I try to relate to them in their language.

“Being a small club tour this time, it will just be me and my music; maybe a few dancers coming up on stage for some songs that are really exciting me at the moment.”

With releases planned on Spinnin’, Buygore and Dim Mak in 2014 along with the added pressures of constant touring, he likes to think of time spent at home recording as the only chance he gets for a holiday.

“For me recording is time off,” he laughs.

“I like to be in the studio and spend some free time playing video games; I’m a pretty simple person.”

3.5

2.5

OUT OF 5

While it seemed that Bourgeois Bogans’ ‘80s prom nights were just a distant memory, the crew are back with the teenage debacle that is prom night. So for this Valentines Day - Friday, February 14 at Rooftop Movies, pull out your best pleather, hairspray and shoulder pads and get yourself a date (and ticket) to The Prom. Along with kissing booths, punch and the crowning of the prom king and queen, you can also catch Melbourne’s, Chela and locals Bastian’s Happy Flight, Usurper of Modern Medicine, Flower Drums and a ton of local DJs including Silkie Krusher & Johnny Hotrod (Bourgeois Bogan High School Alumni), Manimal and Nik Ridik to name but a few.

Tickets on sale via fringeworld.com.au.

HOME GROWN Local promoter, Inhibit are introducing a new series of club nights dedicated to celebrating the ton of talent based right here in Perth. It’s called Local and it’s 100 per cent focused on local bass and party tracks across both levels at Shape Bar. Round one kicks off this Friday, January 31 with Killafoe & J.Nitrous, Vltrn, Ekko & Sidetrack, Casuel, Illusiv & Dvise, Sistym and JD4D - to name just a few. Tickets on sale at the door.

Ekko & Sidetrack

Chela

FUTURE FUNK Long-standing hip hop, electro, reggae, bass (and anything else that’s danceable) monthly night, Hussle Hussle returns to Mojos Bar this year - with the next session on Friday, February 14. On the billing this time ‘round is Fremantle electronic hip hop trio Childs Play; Perth via Scotland freestyler Silvertongue; and local blues man and member of Optamus’ band, Moondog J; plus DJ Silence on the wheels of steel. The night kicks off at 8pm and get your tickets on the door.

Brisbane producer, Young Franco has been getting nods of approval all over the Australian dance community for his blend of funky beats, old disco and ‘90s hip hop, plus his debut EP, Futurefunk.

Inspired by the hip hop greats, he began learning his way around turntables at the age of 15 and now at only 19, has already supported the likes of Alison Wonderland, What So Not, Drapht and Illy as well as playing Laneway Festival and Splendour In The Grass.

Catch him on Wednesday, February 19 at Akuna Club @ Llama Bar and on Friday, February 21 at Mondo @ Ginger. Tickets on sale at the door.

Childs Play

Young Franco

DO THE HUSSLE

BEHIND THE DECKS

OUT OF 5

Best track to open and close a set with?

Going To Heaven With The Goodie-Goodies by us.

What’s the secret to creating a killer remix?

Having taste, balls, soul and a music background and culture.

ANGEL HAZE

Strangest thing that’s happened to you behind the decks?

One day in Brazil a big LED screen fell on us!

CLAMS CASINO

Dirty Gold Island Records/Universal

Instrumentals Vol. 3 (Download from clammyclams.com)

Here’s an album to divide folks. As a rapper, Angel Haze has immense attitude and displays more skill than most big names of the moment without veering into the territory of Foxy Brown or Lil’ Kim. Then there are the choruses. Haze demonstrates in her raps that she’s a thoughtful songwriter, but these sung hooks are going for a pop sound and for a hardened rap fan, they just don’t land. There again, if you are looking for an original sounding R&B album, this could be just your cup of tea - the beats are somewhat innovative, drawing on a trap (as in Southern rap) vibe, while Haze demonstrates she really can sing. This might sound confusing, but it’s also quite interesting. Neither the rap or pop parts of her songs sound forced at all. Haze is a creative artist and just seems to be trying to showcase her range. This duality does work well on certain tracks such as single Echelon (It’s My Way) and the Sia-assisted Battle Cry, where the subtle singing or use of a guest vocalist, makes the juxtaposition less jarring.

Maybe the album title gives it all away from the outset.

It’s overly polished in some places, but streetwise and grime-y in others. It’s hard to say whether this album will make waves or get swept aside, but either way Haze is someone to keep an eye on.

It’s hard to find the right approach from which to listen to this latest effort from the hyped hip hop producer Clams Casino. The songs for the most part are intricate and skilfully produced, often using granular synthesis and disembodied loops that call to mind Oneohtrix Point Never and Balam Acab. But they are packaged with club-friendly beats that make them more appropriate as backing tracks for artists like A$AP Rocky and Mac Miller. At its best, this combination creates a vehicle for rich pieces of sound art to reach a wider audience. On the other, it can feel like the addition of a user friendly beats can lower the value of its more abstract elements.

LVL, first heard on Rocky’s Long. Live. A$AP, is a great demonstration of Clams’ knack for drawing interesting textures from looped samples, but cuts like Hell just feel half-baked and repetitive without a lead vocal over the top. The main problem with Instrumentals Vol. 3 is that Clams Casino’s versatility means it’s hard to approach the mixtape as a singular, cohesive piece. Each track on its own can be appreciated for the skill and artistry with which it’s built, but as a long player the songs just don’t gel enough to reward any type of listening beyond ambient background music, which given the overall quality of the work, is a pity.

NICK SWEEPAH

PATRICK O’BRIEN

4

OUT OF 5

CEO Wonderland Modular Recordings/Universal ‘And I felt like I opened Pandora’s Box…’ says the voice opening Whorehouse, the first song off CEO’s second album Wonderland. Prying open Pandora’s Box is exactly what it feels like listening to Eric Berglund’s solo project CEO, and much like the accompanying imagery, the album is bursting with kaleidoscopic 26

colour. Berglund, originally one half of Sweden’s The Tough Alliance, has a way with synth-popping tunes, every moment of his music filled with the promise of lasting elation. Wonderland is emblematic of CEO’s energy and if sound was image, this would be vibrant objects blurred by speed. It’s hard to pinpoint what’s so majestic about CEO, maybe it’s the way Berglund pastes together such a wide variety of samples without a hint of futility, creating a futuristic sound that maintains your undivided attention until the end.

Or maybe it is Berglund’s understanding of light and dark ideals, worldly or otherwise, heard particularly on Mirage. Berglund tells prospective listeners these words of advice: You should listen to Wonderland “in a state where your identity and intellect are on a well needed holiday.” CEO is definitely a reality palate cleanser and Wonderland is an addictive escape.

Best show ever?

Magna Carta New Year’s Eve (in London) was amazing. London shows are really good, and the crowd is crazy.

AMINE EDGE & DANCE Describe your genre: House-y, bass-y, hip hop, funk!

Raddest DJ trick?

Google translator didn’t know what ‘raddest’ means (no French word for rad?).

What’s on the cards for 2014?

Keep working hard without thinking about tomorrow.

Latest release and the best place to get it?

Our edit for Carnao Beats - Know My Name on Beatport of course.

Anything else you’d like to tell X-Press?

Can’t wait to fuck with Australia!

What are your tools of the trade?

My iPhone - I can’t live without. But as a DJ we use Macbook Air plus Audio 10 Traktor + Traktor X1 and the best cables!

French duo Amine Edge & Dance play Parker on Friday, February 7. Check out their G-House Cuff mix at: soundcloud.com/amine-edge/sets/cuff001-amine-edge-dance

SALT NIGHTS OUT

raw form. It’s a 45-minute visual adventure as the world wakes and sleeps, accompanied by myself live using only my voice.

What can we expect to see/hear?

An upbeat, energetic Samsara without the budget and incorporating integrated scripted stories of struggle and survival. I’ll be jamming with the visual on screen using an effects pedal, loop station and microphone live on the spot!

Sam Perry

THE WORLD IS Answered by Sam Perry Overview of Sam Perry’s The World Is. For the past three months Brendan Joel, Liberty Hills and myself have been roaming around Western Australia with camera equipment, tents and no money filming Mother Nature and its people in their

NAOMI FAYE WWW. XP RE SS MAG.COM. AU

Cool stuff?

It’s in the Piccadilly Cinema - a heritage listed building located in the heart of Perth. It’s opening its doors one last time to host my new live show and a handful of others for three weeks only.

You should attend if...

You’ve paid for a ticket.

Sam Perry’s The World Is, is being held at Fringe World’s Noodle Palace at the Piccadilly Cinema between February 5-9 at 7.30pm.

RUN THE JEWELS Sparring Partners Building upon a rapport consolidated by their work on each other’s respective solo LPs, El-P and Killer Mike joined forces last year to form Run The Jewels. LACHLAN KANONIUK checks in with rapper/ producer EI-P ahead of their appearance at Laneway Festival on Saturday, February 8 at Esplanade Park, Fremantle.

“We couldn’t be happier,” beams El-P, speaking from his Brooklyn studio about Run The Jewels’ runaway success.

“Surprised? Yeah I’m always surprised when I get to wake up and do what I love to do; I don’t take this shit for granted. We loved the album, we thought it was a great album and we’re happy people responded to it. You can’t hope for much more as a professional artist. If people like your shit, it’s a good day.”

El-P and Mike each possess a distinct legacy built over the course of a decade, both in career-best form with solo records R.A.P. Music (Killer Mike) and Cancer 4 Cure (El-P). It was quickly apparent that Run The Jewels were becoming a force in their own right when fans of the duo were not necessarily well-versed in the soloists’ back catalogues.

HIMANSHU SURI Out Of Hiding Former Das Racist rapper Himanshu Suri aka Heems, is performing in Perth for the first time this Friday, January 31 at Dave’s Cans at Many 6160. He speaks with JOSHUA HAYES about the show, his upcoming solo album and projects forthcoming on his Greedhead label.

“I will wear Indian clothes, I will rap really good, I will make jokes between songs,” Suri says when asked what local punters can expect from his show.

“I will play the guitar on my microphone.

I will not make eye contact with the crowd until I’m comfortable, and even then I will look at them in an odd way like, ‘what are you even doing here, I suck’. But I won’t suck at the rapping. I’m really good at that I realised recently.”

He’s joking of course. This is the man who bellowed ‘I’m fucking great at rapping’ on Das Racist’s single Michael Jackson - although even that line is arguably a joke when it comes from someone who takes pleasure in skewering hip hop’s norms.

The fact is; he’s a very good rapper. Das Racist - the now defunct trio consisting of Suri, fellow rapper Kool A.D. and hype man Dapwell - were initially written off as jokesters when their song

“It’s definitely a phenomenon...” says El-P. “When we started touring this record, we were setting the show up where it was going to be hour-long sets of each of our solo material, then come out and do Run The Jewels. Three or four shows in we started to realise we were opening for Run The Jewels. Like, ‘oh shit, there’s a whole group of motherfuckers here just for Run The Jewels...’ We started trimming that shit down to half an hour, which is not to say anything except the record is hot, people are responding. In a lot of ways, it just feels like a fuckin’ fresh start, creatively. It’s got bigger than we expected.”

Formidable rappers in their own right, El-P and Killer Mike seem to push each other to the next level with their Run The Jewels rhymes.

“I’ll put it to you this way - we’re like sparring partners. When you throw someone into the fucking ring with a nasty-ass boxer, you need to fight your ass off. We’re on the same team, but we are making each other sharp. To be able to spar and bounce off someone as charismatic, as interesting and as dope as Mike is exciting. We both feel like we are pushing each other to make better shit. That’s what being in a group is all about - finding someone who pushes you, who inspires you, with a balance of power in terms of what you’re doing creatively... We go at it; when Mike sets something down I know I have to come up with something just as good, if not better.”

More than a few rapper/producers tend to move away from the production side of things as they progress. Not so with El-P, who retains a passionate commitment to the art of beatmaking.

“This is what I do, this is my life. There’s a reason for it; I’m obsessed with it. I could never find myself in a position where I’m outsourcing what I do.

Physically creating the record is just as important to me as writing the record. The process of making the music is just as important as the end product - it’s what I do every day and I don’t want to be cheated out of a single moment of that.”

Combination Pizza Hut And Taco Bell went viral.

Though they proved to be anything but, delivering a whirlwind of sardonic humour, obscure hip hop references, social commentary, tangled wordplay and electronica-tinged beats on two acclaimed mixtapes in 2010, Shut Up, Dude and Sit Down, Man, as well as their 2011 debut album Relax.

The group spent most of 2012 on the road (including Big Day Out - although they didn’t come to Perth) with Suri and Kool A.D. beginning to release solo mixtapes, before announcing at the end of the year that they’d broken up. Suri’s two solo mixtapes, Nehru Jackets and Wild Water Kingdom, found him delivering more focused, politically-edged raps over beats built around samples of Bollywood and other Indian music.

2013 saw him spending time in India working on his solo debut.

“My anxieties wash off of me in India, Goa specifically. I recorded the album in three days in Mumbai in December. It’s done. It’s awesome. I don’t know what people will think though, it’s different from my older stuff but that’s art, you know?” he says.

“I’d say in (my solo mixtapes) I kind of hide behind my Indian identity and in Das Racist’s material, I hid behind humour, but on my new work I’m not hiding anymore. It’s me. It’s your boy, Heemy.”

Suri says the album will be released on his Greedhead label once the paperwork has been sorted. He’s also working on a release from his new project Swet Shop Boys, which is a collaboration with British actor Riz Ahmed (star of acclaimed films Four Lions and The Reluctant Fundamentalist) who also raps under the name Riz MC, and a mixtape with comedian and Parks And Recreation writer Joe Mande.

Suri says these projects will come out on Greedhead along with frequent Das Racist collaborator Lakutis’ new project, and releases from oddball New York MC, Prada Mane, and Issue - a Bay Area rapper and son of the legendary E-40.

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AMPLIFIER Academy BAR 120 Lady Lauryn BRASS MONKEY Vicktor CAPITOL (UPSTAIRS) Harlem Wednesdays CLUB RED SEA Cheek GOLD BAR Famous GROOVE BAR (CROWN) 5 Shots LLAMA BAR Akuna Club Lancelot THE GRAND FiveO METRO FREO Next Gen MUSTANG BAR DJ James MacArthur NEWPORT HOTEL Newport Wednesdays SOVEREIGN ARMS Jordan Scott THE VILLAGE BAR Village People Wednesdays

EVE NIGHTCLUB Retro Thursdays ft. EVE DJ Team GOLD BAR OG Thursdays GROOVE BAR (CROWN) Decoy KALAMUNDA Grizzly LEISURE INN DJ Peta NEWPORT HOTEL Tiki Bar Open Mic Night FRI 31/01

AMPLIFIER Fridays Are Back THE AVENUE DJ Lokie Shaw THE AVIARY Troy Division Ben Sebastian Hykus THE BAYSWATER Mario Zuli THE BEAT (DOWNSTAIRS) PLAY THE BRASS MONKEY Vicktor & James Ess THE BRIGHTON DJ Peta

Benny Ill - Fri, Jan 31 @ Flyrite

C5 METRO FREO Fresco Flow ft.

Surge, Don Migi, Nano CAPITOL Capitol Fridays ft. DJ Roger Smart CAPITOL (UPSTAIRS) I Love 80’s & 90’s THE CARINE Jimmy Beats THE CAUSEWAY Acoustic Sundowner

THE COMO Funky Bottoms THE CRAFTSMAN Dazman DAILY PLANET Sundowner Sessions DAVE’S CANS Himanshu Suri THE DEEN Student Night EVE NIGHTCLUB Recharge Fridays FLAWLESS Monarch Fridays

THURS 30/01

THE CAUSEWAY Xport Thursdays CLUB RED SEA Thursday Night Revolution CONNECTIONS Bingay THE CRAFTSMAN FiveO THE COLLECTIVE The Collective

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SATURDAY @ AMPLIFIER

OCEAN ONE BAR

MUSTANG

WED 29/01

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James Zabiela - Sun, Feb 2 @ Born Electric, The Court

FLYRITE This Is R.A.D GINGER NIGHTCLUB Mondos “Feel Good” Dance Party GOLD BAR Fox Friday THE GOOD SHEPHERD Throwback GROOVE BAR (CROWN) DJ Crazy Craig THE HIGHWAY HOTEL Crackers LAKERS TAVERN Grizzly LEISURE INN Mel Burns LIBRARY Sneaky MALT (nu disco, hip hop) MUSTANG BAR Swing DJ DJ James MacArthur METRO FREO Frat House Friday’s ft. Death Disco MY PLACE Karaoke PARAMOUNT Friday Nights PARKER Hannah Wants PLAYERS BAR Madam Montage THE QUEENS Reuben THE SAINT Garrison and Britty SOVEREIGN ARMS Ang3l THE WHALE & ALE DJ Spinback

Marc ‘MK’ Kinchen - Fri, Feb 7 @ Geisha

SAT 01/02

AVENUE Lokie Shaw THE AVIARY Zel Troy Division NDORSE THE BALMORAL Back To The 80’s BAR ORIENT The Reggae Club BEAT NIGHTCLUB (UPSTAIRS) CANVAS BEAT NIGHTCLUB (DOWNSTAIRS) Big Kidz BRASS MONKEY DJ Peta & Jordan Scott THE BRIGHTON Miss Chief C5 METRO FREO I Love 80s + 90s ft. Darren Tucker and Dr Wazz CAPITOL Death Disco CAPITOL (UPSTAIRS) Cream of the 80s ft. DJ Roger Smart

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THE CAUSEWAY House Party THE COMO Jay Lee Lloyd THE CORNERSTONE Byron O’Neill EAST END BAR Home FLAWLESS LQ Saturdays FLYRITE Benny Ill GOLD BAR Pure Gold THE GOOD SHEPHERD Chocolate Jesus GROOVE BAR (CROWN) Hero DJs LEEDERVILLE HOTEL (DOWNSTAIRS) Under The Arena Party LOST SOCIETY Chalk MATCHES Progress Inn D-sens Drewan Paul Devins Optomal

Flume

Big Day Out ft. Snoop Dog, Major Lazer, Flume & more SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 2 @ ARENA JOONDALUP METRO FREO Metropolis Saturday’s ft. Mr T, Dr Wazz , Ben C, DJ Shane NEWPORT HOTEL Gravity Tahli Jade PARKER Parker Saturdays PARAMOUNT Saturday Nights PLAYERS BAR Luxe ft. DJ Tito THE QUEENS Kenny L SHAPE Dillon Francis THE SAINT Crackers SOVEREIGN ARMS River Milnes WOLF LANE Nick Sheppard

FDEL THE WEMBLEY HOTEL Jon Ee YAYA’S Arcadia All Nighter SUN 02/02

THE AVIARY Troy Division NDORSE THE BIRD Mr. Ties THE BRIGHTON Squinty THE COURT Born Electric ft.

James Zabiela, Catz n Dogz, Drew Hill & Pedestrian LAKERS TAVERN River Milnes ROSEMOUNT HOTEL

The Get Down THE SAINT Jon Ee Az-T THE SODA LOUNGE Lokie Shaw THE QUEENS 3mmanuel and Philly Blunt MON 03/02

MUSTANG BAR Triple Shots THE ROSEMOUNT HOTEL Bada Bingo!

TUES 04/02

THE BIRD The Bird’s Open Mic Night MUSTANG BAR Danza Loca Salsa Night

Deadline Monday 5pm. The Club Manual is a service to advertisers listing all DJs & Dance Music. All inclusions are at the discretion of X-Press. Email guide@xpressmag.com.au

THE COURT

FRIDAY @ BAR DE HALCYON

TRIPPY TURTLE 7 Gilkison Dance Studio

THIS WEEK OKA 30 Mojos 31 Indi Bar

HIMANSHU SURI 31 Dave’s Cans HANNAH WANTS 31 Parker DEADWEIGHT! ft.

Benny Ill 31 Flyrite THE LUCID DREAMING BOAT PARTY 1 Carnac Island DILLON FRANCIS 1 Shape PROGRESS INN, D-SENS & DREWAN 1 Matches Lounge OKA 1 Settlers Tavern, Margaret River 2 Mojos BORN ELECTRIC ft.

James Zabiela, Catz n Dogz, Drew Hill & Pedestrian 2 The Court MR TIES 2 The Bird FEBRUARY SAM PERRY’S THE WORLD IS 5-9 Noodle Palace

TOMAS FORD’S ELECTRIC CABARET 5-23 Noodle Palace ALICE RUSSELL 6 & 7 Chevron Festival Gardens ANIME EDGE & DANCE 7 Parker Nightclub

MARC ‘MK’ KINCHEN 7 Geisha ST JEROME’S LANEWAY FESTIVAL ft. Cashmere Cat/ Earl Sweatshirt/ Four Tet/ Jamie XX 8 Esplanade Park & West End, Fremantle BORGORE 8 Villa XPLOSION BEATZ RAFT UP PARTY ft. Lady Lauryn & Holly J 8 Swan River SUMMER CONCERT #3 ft.

Naik & Mathas 9 Weld Square DVS1 9 The Court 100 MILLION NIGHTS 11 Chevron Festival Gardens LADI6 & HOME BREW 13 Chevron Festival Gardens MIGUEL MIGS 14 Geisha THE PROM ft.

Chela & more 14 Rooftop Movies JONO FERNANDEZ 14 Limelite @ Parker DJEMBA DJEMBA & DJ HOODBOI 15 Dave’s Cans MARLO 15 Metro City

MIAMI HORROR 15 Amplifier DJ SHADOW 15 Chevron Festival Gardens DJEMBA DJEMBA & DJ HOODBOI 15 Dave’s Cans EBONY BONES 16 Chevron Festival Gardens ROOFTOP PARTY ft. Sonny Fodera 16 Bob’s Bar AUSTRA 17 Chevron Festival Gardens

ft. The Aston Shuffle, Jinja Safari, Mighty Mouse, Goldroom, Motez, The Swiss, Glen Horsborough, Louisahhh! & Maelstrom, Client Liaison 23 Scarborough Beach Amphitheatre ROBERT GLASPER EXPERIMENT ft.

Roy Ayers 27 Chevron Festival Gardens PUBLIC ENEMY 28 Chevron Festival Gardens

DJ FOOD, DJ CHEEBA, DJ MONEYSHOT 18 Chevron Festival Gardens

OLIVER TANK 28 The Bakery

THE PARTYSQUAD 19 Newport Hotel

AUSTRALASIAN BEATMAKER INVITATIONAL 28 The Rosemount

THE KITE STRING TANGLE & KILTER 19 Mojos 20 Flyrite

NINA LAS VEGAS, MOTEZ & more 28 Metropolis Fremantle

YOUNG FRANCO 19 Akuna Club @ Llama Bar 21 Mondo @ Ginger

MARCH KERSER w/ DJ Dazastah, Bitter Belief, Complete & Omac 1 Metro City

CASSY BRITTON 21 The Factory SKREAM 22 Villa SPEAKEASY ft.

Wave Racer, Basenji, Sable 22 Villa THE ASTON SHUFFLE 23 secret show SETS ON THE BEACH END OF SEASON PARTY:

Miami Horror SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 15 @ AMPLIFIER

FUTURE MUSIC FESTIVAL ft. Deadmau5, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Phoenix, Hardwell & more 2 Arena Joondalup GOOD LIFE ft. Deadmau5, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Hardwell & more 3 Arena Joondalup

METROPOLIS FREMANTLE

HANDPICKED ft. Ta-Ku, Ryan Hemsworth, Flying Lotus 7 Fremantle Arts Centre DERRICK CARTER 7 Geisha THE UPBEATS & STATE OF MIND 8 Villa GOLD PANDA 9 The Bakery MOVE D 14 Geisha ILLY 21 Capitol SHAPESHIFTER 21 Metro City BATHS 23 The Bakery JURASSIC 5 28 Metro City MINISTRY OF SOUND CLUBBERS GUIDE TO 2014 ft. Ember & Joel Fletcher 29 Villa APRIL VENGEANCE 4 Ambar A$AP FERG 5 The Bakery DUB FX & OPIUO 5 Villa NEKO PLANET 9 The Bakery ELIZABETH ROSE, SAFIA, FISHING 11 Amplifier 12 Mojos MAY ELLIE GOULDING 28 Challenge Stadium

AVICII Top of his Game Will Sparks, New World Sound Perth Arena Monday, January 27, 2014 Having conquered the world of EDM in 2013 with international sell out tours, a Grammy nomination, the headlining of Future Music Festival alongside The Prodigy, and an album launch to boot, Sweden’s dance music phenomenon Avicii, once again hit Australian shores for a promotional tour to support last year’s release, True.

Before the Perth Arena’s enthusiastic audience could get down to the sounds of the headliner, they were treated to a feast of hard hitting tracks from the first support, New World Sound. These two Gold Coast brothers, who have recently amassed over seven million views on YouTube with their Thomas Newson collaborative track Flutes, worked up the early arrivals into a frenzy prior to Melbourne electronic music sensation, Will Sparks stepped up the intensity with a selection of full force dance anthems.

With high energy tunes including an intensive work out of the remixed version of Laidback Luke’s Dynamo, Spark’s DJ’ing prowess kept the now fully packed out venue (which looked more like a rave warehouse) on their feet for the hour long warm-up set.

A short break ensued while the stage crew organised the final touches to the platform, and coming on a little later than prescribed, Avicii mounted the stage to a phenomenal crowd

response and launched into a two hour performance that set the room alive with bursts of pyrotechnic smoke plumes and ticker tape streamers.

Hidden from view by the platform and monitor speakers surrounding the DJ booth, this didn’t seem to bother anyone, as two monster-sized projection screens displayed Avicii’s enthusiastic beat matching arm gestures, while the video screens behind blended images of the star’s familiar logo with trippy computer animations and city scapes that added to the spectacle.

As the night continued, fans were treated to an audio barrage of Avicii’s own hits, with Liar Liar receiving full appreciation early on. Armin Van Buuren’s This Is What It Feels Like also took the dancing masses to the next level, while the remix of Tim Berg’s Seek Bromance had everyone singing in unison to the vocal club hit. Paying homage to his homeland roots, the Swedish House Mafia’s master track Don’t You Worry Child, this time to the flavour of the Tom Staar and Kryder remix had all arms up-in-the-air.

Towards the end of the show, after many more bursts of smoke cannons and a seemingly endless number of tracks, several of his album hits came forward including Dear Boy. Showing off his diverse DJ talents, Avicii mixed an intro from Primal Scream’s Loaded and then went onto blend Snow Patrol’s Chasing Cars into the Rihanna hit Diamonds, showing just why the star is one of the top three DJs in the world.

The track, Levels, that originally brought Avicii into the lime light came forth (to the delight of admirers,) and with proceedings ending all too soon for some, a final bang of luminescent fireworks and tremendous cheers ended an entertaining night in the transformed Perth Arena.

MICHAEL CAVES

Ladi6 THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 13 @ CHEVRON FESTIVAL GARDENS Photos by Michael Caves WWW.XPRESSMAG.COM.AU

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KARNIVOOL Dead Letter Circus/ sleepmakewaves Red Hill Auditorium Thursday, January 23, 2014 If rock ‘n’ roll is a religion, then this show was a mass, with the people coming to worship at the altar of their gods at the last leg of Karnivool’s Polymorphism tour.

Sleepmakewaves opened the night and began the ceremony. Complex guitar lines intertwined each other as they began an energetic live performance. Taking place at Red Hill Auditorium with the heavens above, the sun began to descend in time to the music. As sleepmakewaves loosened the crowd, bodies began to slowly move as alcohol sales picked up.

Dead Letter Circus followed and the crowd was treated to the taste of the band’s own take on the rock ‘n’ roll genre. The performance was hotter than a Perth summer with the crowd energetically pumping the air. Lead singer, Kim Benzie, neglected to wear a shirt, showing how much hotter this set was about to get. Frantic rock intertwined with selfassurance, Dead Letter Circus know they have arrived at the scene and are making it last. Delivering an energetic performance filled with passion and tingling with simple desire, they were the very image of rock and roll.

Yet these warm-up acts were nothing compared to Karnivool’s return to their native town.

Like the prodigal sons of the Perth rock scene, Karnivool have returned home after an extensive European and Australian tour. Glad to be back, they played old and new favourites to a crowd that took them in with open arms and cheered them on. The mosh pit built up and emotions ran high as heavy sounds filled the venue. Known for their soaring melodies and complex tracks, Karnivool delivered.

Ian Kenny’s vocals were clear as he dueted with the audience, who shouted out the lyrics in time to the music. This live engagement with the audience shows the special connection that Karnivool has with their fans.

The band’s latest album, Asymmetry, is critically acclaimed and was influenced by the great acts. Whether or not Karnivool can be defined as great is up for debate; they have an original sound that has found them recognition nationally and internationally but they take their time in releasing new work. Still they have managed to maintain a raw and honest sound year after year despite the wearing of time and the natural evolution of things.

However, while Karnivool’s performance

KEN STRINGFELLOW Chris Stamey Astor Lounge Friday, January 24, 2014 Thanks to a massive night playing Big Star’s Sister Lovers the evening before in Sydney, Perth was treated to two power pop luminaries in the form of Chris Stamey and Ken Stringfellow. After the previous night’s massive blow out, the show at the Astor would be an affair where the two performers had ‘set the trap for quail’ and gave their all to the most modest of modest crowds.

Former member of The Sneakers and The dBs, Chris Stamey, looks like a shrunken version of Neil Finn but has as many pop chops. The diminutive singer was joined by a viola and cello as he played a set of tunes including the opener Far Away And Long

French Rockets - Photo by Rachael Barrett

GUN FEVER AUSTRALIA DAY PARTY Flyrite Sunday, January 26, 2014

Karnivool - Photo by Denis Radacic

at Red Hill Auditorium was good, it failed to convert new listeners into fans. Loudness and familiarity was more important than substance, with the bass somewhat deafening at points. Rock architects they may be but this performance could have been better, with a tighter set and slight sound adjustments. Yet this didn’t stop the energy of the night with the crowd whipped into a wild frenzy with a Mexicanwave effect at play and a fair amount of thrusting occurring. A vital force to be reckoned with, this band revolts against the status quo and rewards its worshippers.

LAUREN WISZNIEWSKI

Ago that he insisted was from the dBs album ‘that is not one of the albums you like.’ Stamey showed off a collection of tunes that the string players learnt on the spot from the sheet music supplied, including solo works such as 27 Years In A Single Day. With decades of material to choose from, Stamley didn’t draw too readily from one era but Happenstance was the most welcome addition of the night. While Stamey’s guitar playing is impressive to say the least even on an acoustic guitar, no effort was made to hold up his status as a pop maestro with most tunes being pared back and slowed down.

It was a fine set but not as impressive as it could have been.

While Stamey was polite but aloof, Ken Stringfellow addressed the crowd as if they had dropped into his place for dinner. After having rounded up the punters from the bar and waited for everyone to find their seat before he stepped on stage, Stringfellow launched into one of the most entertaining opening banters for some time.

Stringfellow swapped between guitar and keyboards at will as he worked his way through an ever-evolving setlist. Known Diamond was well received and Fine Yourself Alone was the first request

Smrts were up first with their thoughtful and almost surf-rock sound. Their evolving and well paced instrumental style provided a perfect opening to the evening. Health Legend were up next and things took a turn for the heavy as rounds of coarse vocals and high paced instrumentation hit the crowd at dangerous speeds.

The devilishly alluring band known as FAIM were up next to the smash the room. Packing a ridiculous quantity of energy personified in front man Noah Skape, FAIM were relentless. Their music and performance style combines pop, punk, theatre and pure sexual exuberance in such a way that it’s impossible to draw your eyes away from their writhing and organic energy. FAIM are a great example of the indelible truth of live music; the more sweat and less clothing on the performers’ persons, the greater the show.

Gracing us with their presence all the way from Queensland were the relatively laid back Tape/ Off. Packing a gnarly stoner blues kind of sound, Tape/Off built energy through mellow progression, punky breakdowns and waves of resonating feedback.

While the vocals could be a little loose at time, there was a truth and authenticity to their entire performance which made for a worthy experience.

The pace was seriously relaxed by the next outfit, The Leap Year. These boys were packing a full sound built on melodic vibes with unusual rhythms.

When they did lift the pace, it was explosive and the music was carried well by superlative use of effects and a powerful voice from the lead singer.

Fall Electric were up next for the penultimate set of the night. This group made perfect use of the sonic space with well measured and mixed use of all instruments, each one working it’s space in the spectrum. Bluesy tones and thoughtful songwriting told a real story while measured use of samples and synths created a nostalgic and whimsical feeling. The cello was outrageously beautiful and brought the sound together in such a way that the soul felt full and satisfied just to listen.

The final band of the night were the magnificent French Rockets. This music was really superb, building layers and layers of sound into beautifully psychedelic organisms, pulling the listener gently along for the ride. The interplay between the musicians was reminiscent of the jam bands of old, yet the precision and professionalism was vivid and verged on perfection.

Hats off to Gun Fever for putting together this fantastic night. The feeling was good, the crowd was thriving and each band wove their own little piece of magic into the tapestry. On a day when people are busy losing themselves to booze and blinkered national pride, this was a party purely about loving the music and each other.

JAMES HANLON

of the night that Stringfellow obliged politely. The evening got more intimate as time wore on with Stringfellow walking off stage with his guitar to stand amongst the punters whether delivering the tunes or sharing his thoughts on Justin Bieber and Canadian border officials.

The touring member of REM pulled well into his kit bag, with a slowed down take on Solar Sister being the best received tune of the night.

The criminally underrated This One’s On You was stripped back and was all the better for it, being the finest six minutes of the show. Having been on stage for close to two hours Stringfellow checked the time and still had plenty left to give. Sparrow, Death Of A City and Big Star’s Nightime were all given the delicate treatment of their peers and Stringfellow announced that CD are for sale in the foyer.

It was an intimate, odd and yet entertaining evening that was ended with Stringfellow chatting and shaking hands with all as they left the venue.

Each person in attendance would have left feeling that Stringfellow pulled out a little extra just for them and gave them more than their monies worth.

CHRIS HAVERCROFT

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Ken Stringfellow - Photo by Rachael Barrett

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LOCAL NEWS

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INTERVIEWS

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Q & A

KARNIVOOL Dead Letter Circus/ sleepmakewaves Red Hill Auditorium Thursday, January 23, 2014 If rock ‘n’ roll is a religion, then this show was a mass, with the people coming to worship at the altar of their gods at the last leg of Karnivool’s Polymorphism tour.

Sleepmakewaves opened the night and began the ceremony. Complex guitar lines intertwined each other as they began an energetic live performance. Taking place at Red Hill Auditorium with the heavens above, the sun began to descend in time to the music. As sleepmakewaves loosened the crowd, bodies began to slowly move as alcohol sales picked up.

Dead Letter Circus followed and the crowd was treated to the taste of the band’s own take on the rock ‘n’ roll genre. The performance was hotter than a Perth summer with the crowd energetically pumping the air. Lead singer, Kim Benzie, neglected to wear a shirt, showing how much hotter this set was about to get. Frantic rock intertwined with selfassurance, Dead Letter Circus know they have arrived at the scene and are making it last. Delivering an energetic performance filled with passion and tingling with simple desire, they were the very image of rock and roll.

Yet these warm-up acts were nothing compared to Karnivool’s return to their native town.

Like the prodigal sons of the Perth rock scene, Karnivool have returned home after an extensive European and Australian tour. Glad to be back, they played old and new favourites to a crowd that took them in with open arms and cheered them on. The mosh pit built up and emotions ran high as heavy sounds filled the venue. Known for their soaring melodies and complex tracks, Karnivool delivered.

Ian Kenny’s vocals were clear as he dueted with the audience, who shouted out the lyrics in time to the music. This live engagement with the audience shows the special connection that Karnivool has with their fans.

The band’s latest album, Asymmetry, is critically acclaimed and was influenced by the great acts. Whether or not Karnivool can be defined as great is up for debate; they have an original sound that has found them recognition nationally and internationally but they take their time in releasing new work. Still they have managed to maintain a raw and honest sound year after year despite the wearing of time and the natural evolution of things.

However, while Karnivool’s performance

KEN STRINGFELLOW Chris Stamey Astor Lounge Friday, January 24, 2014 Thanks to a massive night playing Big Star’s Sister Lovers the evening before in Sydney, Perth was treated to two power pop luminaries in the form of Chris Stamey and Ken Stringfellow. After the previous night’s massive blow out, the show at the Astor would be an affair where the two performers had ‘set the trap for quail’ and gave their all to the most modest of modest crowds.

Former member of The Sneakers and The dBs, Chris Stamey, looks like a shrunken version of Neil Finn but has as many pop chops. The diminutive singer was joined by a viola and cello as he played a set of tunes including the opener Far Away And Long

French Rockets - Photo by Rachael Barrett

GUN FEVER AUSTRALIA DAY PARTY Flyrite Sunday, January 26, 2014

Karnivool - Photo by Denis Radacic

at Red Hill Auditorium was good, it failed to convert new listeners into fans. Loudness and familiarity was more important than substance, with the bass somewhat deafening at points. Rock architects they may be but this performance could have been better, with a tighter set and slight sound adjustments. Yet this didn’t stop the energy of the night with the crowd whipped into a wild frenzy with a Mexicanwave effect at play and a fair amount of thrusting occurring. A vital force to be reckoned with, this band revolts against the status quo and rewards its worshippers.

LAUREN WISZNIEWSKI

Ago that he insisted was from the dBs album ‘that is not one of the albums you like.’ Stamey showed off a collection of tunes that the string players learnt on the spot from the sheet music supplied, including solo works such as 27 Years In A Single Day. With decades of material to choose from, Stamley didn’t draw too readily from one era but Happenstance was the most welcome addition of the night. While Stamey’s guitar playing is impressive to say the least even on an acoustic guitar, no effort was made to hold up his status as a pop maestro with most tunes being pared back and slowed down.

It was a fine set but not as impressive as it could have been.

While Stamey was polite but aloof, Ken Stringfellow addressed the crowd as if they had dropped into his place for dinner. After having rounded up the punters from the bar and waited for everyone to find their seat before he stepped on stage, Stringfellow launched into one of the most entertaining opening banters for some time.

Stringfellow swapped between guitar and keyboards at will as he worked his way through an ever-evolving setlist. Known Diamond was well received and Fine Yourself Alone was the first request

Smrts were up first with their thoughtful and almost surf-rock sound. Their evolving and well paced instrumental style provided a perfect opening to the evening. Health Legend were up next and things took a turn for the heavy as rounds of coarse vocals and high paced instrumentation hit the crowd at dangerous speeds.

The devilishly alluring band known as FAIM were up next to the smash the room. Packing a ridiculous quantity of energy personified in front man Noah Skape, FAIM were relentless. Their music and performance style combines pop, punk, theatre and pure sexual exuberance in such a way that it’s impossible to draw your eyes away from their writhing and organic energy. FAIM are a great example of the indelible truth of live music; the more sweat and less clothing on the performers’ persons, the greater the show.

Gracing us with their presence all the way from Queensland were the relatively laid back Tape/ Off. Packing a gnarly stoner blues kind of sound, Tape/Off built energy through mellow progression, punky breakdowns and waves of resonating feedback.

While the vocals could be a little loose at time, there was a truth and authenticity to their entire performance which made for a worthy experience.

The pace was seriously relaxed by the next outfit, The Leap Year. These boys were packing a full sound built on melodic vibes with unusual rhythms.

When they did lift the pace, it was explosive and the music was carried well by superlative use of effects and a powerful voice from the lead singer.

Fall Electric were up next for the penultimate set of the night. This group made perfect use of the sonic space with well measured and mixed use of all instruments, each one working it’s space in the spectrum. Bluesy tones and thoughtful songwriting told a real story while measured use of samples and synths created a nostalgic and whimsical feeling. The cello was outrageously beautiful and brought the sound together in such a way that the soul felt full and satisfied just to listen.

The final band of the night were the magnificent French Rockets. This music was really superb, building layers and layers of sound into beautifully psychedelic organisms, pulling the listener gently along for the ride. The interplay between the musicians was reminiscent of the jam bands of old, yet the precision and professionalism was vivid and verged on perfection.

Hats off to Gun Fever for putting together this fantastic night. The feeling was good, the crowd was thriving and each band wove their own little piece of magic into the tapestry. On a day when people are busy losing themselves to booze and blinkered national pride, this was a party purely about loving the music and each other.

JAMES HANLON

of the night that Stringfellow obliged politely. The evening got more intimate as time wore on with Stringfellow walking off stage with his guitar to stand amongst the punters whether delivering the tunes or sharing his thoughts on Justin Bieber and Canadian border officials.

The touring member of REM pulled well into his kit bag, with a slowed down take on Solar Sister being the best received tune of the night.

The criminally underrated This One’s On You was stripped back and was all the better for it, being the finest six minutes of the show. Having been on stage for close to two hours Stringfellow checked the time and still had plenty left to give. Sparrow, Death Of A City and Big Star’s Nightime were all given the delicate treatment of their peers and Stringfellow announced that CD are for sale in the foyer.

It was an intimate, odd and yet entertaining evening that was ended with Stringfellow chatting and shaking hands with all as they left the venue.

Each person in attendance would have left feeling that Stringfellow pulled out a little extra just for them and gave them more than their monies worth.

CHRIS HAVERCROFT

WWW. XP RE SS MAG.COM. AU

Ken Stringfellow - Photo by Rachael Barrett

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LOCAL NEWS

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THE LOCAL TAPHOUSE HOTTEST 100 AUSSIE CRAFT BEERS The Sail And Anchor Sunday, January 26. 2014

ROSEMOUNT HOTEL MOJOS Thursday, January 30, OKA play, featuring Marcus Berg (Sweden) and DJ Swami. Tickets are $18 through okamusic.com and $20 at the door on the night from 8pm. Friday, January 31, do not miss Huge Magnet. The groove-heavy blues boogie of Huge Magnet and the cool desert twang of Day Of The Dead will be stitched together by the enigmatic blues taste selector, The Blind Tiger blues box. No mucking round all night, good music, good people hosted by the iconic cultural treasure that is Mojos Bar. Entry is $10 from 8pm.

This Wednesday , January 29, catch US rockers Lemuria with special guests Grim Fandango, Dan Cribb And The Isolated and Lionizer, while Thursday night you’ll find locals Archer And Light, The Atlas Mountains, Nevada Pilot and John Martyr’s Ghost.

Saturday, US punkers Backtrack hit the stage along with The Others, Truthseeker, Idle Eyes and Losing Grip. Check out rosemounthotel.com.au for ticketing and other info.

Fremantle celebrated Australia Day in fine style, with the Sail And Anchor eschewing triple j’s Hottest 100 to instead rate that most Australian of fluids, beer.

Photos by Matt Jelonek

Kate, John Streety, Stephen

Lemuria

OKA

Bec, Tim

RAILWAY HOTEL

SWALLOW BAR Live entertainment at Swallow Bar this week starts on Wednesday night with Nick Sheppard, bringing his funk, soul ‘50s and ‘60s nostalgia into the venue.

Thursday’s resident rockabilly band Shotdown From Sugartown return. This Sunday the Bresdom Smith Trio showcase their bossanova grooves including a great trio of local talent in Dom D’Leno, Robbie Bresland and Michelle Smith. That night’s entertainment kicks off at 5pm. Check swallowbar. com.au for details.

Bresdom Smith Trio

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Orlaith, Aisling

This Sunday, January 2, at the Railway it’s the annual Bob Marley Outernational Day featuring live tunes from Jahmoko, The Isolites, NBA Rastaz, Downbeat and Kohmici Alliance in the beer garden and Veeness, King Missy, DJ KS, DJ Simbam Tutomath, The Empressions and General Justice in the main room.

Doors open 2pm and goes until 10pm. Entry is $25 and the first 50 people through get a free t-shirt!

The Isolites

THE BEAT NIGHTCLUB Following the release of their new EP How Deep?, Adelaide death-core giants Balls Deep are coming to Perth with two big shows at the Beat! Friday, January 31, upstairs, they will be supported by Severtone, Tusk, Eyes Cast Skyward and To Hell With Honour - doors open at 8pm. Then Saturday, February 1, they’ll be downstairs at Runaways supported by Havoc. Doors 10pm.

James, Mara

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Pete, Rob, Dave, Jo

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ONE THOUSAND YEARS This Saturday, February 1, Freo rockers One Thousand Years launch their debut album, Get Your Rabbit’s Foot And Run, at The Odd Fellow, with support from Tom Fisher And The Layabouts and Datura. They’re calling the whole thing La Fiesta De Mexicana Loca and, as you can guess, it has a distinct Mexican flavour. We caught up with Chris Boyd, singer and guitarist.

You guys have been around for years. Why has the first album taken so long?

Yeah, we started jamming together around 2005, 2006ish and, to be honest, we were never really very good or dedicated musicians. We had an idea of what goals we wanted to achieve in the band but knew that we needed more practice at writing before we’d be able to put together a good album. Also, songs have minds of their own and need to evolve over time to get to the point to where they are ready to be recorded. You can’t rush evolution.

Where did you record and who with?

Well I’m all about DIY. I love the whole idea of wanting to learn something new and then going and learning how to do it - I go for the ‘full immersion’ style of learning. So we actually recorded the album ourselves, which is the other reason why it took so long! We basically built our own portable studio (the Chateau de la Spaceman Mobile Recording Studio – named after our 2009 EP) and did all the tracking wherever and whenever we could. It took so long because we

had absolutely no idea how to use most of the equipment.

What was the writing process like? Did you write to a theme or just keep writing songs until you had an albums worth?

A little of both really. I guess we didn’t really make a conscious decision to write to a particular theme. Some of the songs were written years ago when we starting jamming. Most were written shortly before we started recording the album. Some were written and recorded at the last minute - after we thought we had finished everything and while the album was being mixed!

What is your standout track?

Well I think they’re all amazing tracks, but I think the track that really defines us as a band is track number two, When The Sun Opens Its Eyes.

It’s got this killer riff through the verses and breaks out into this really awesome wide open gospel-blues sounding chorus.

What does the rest of the year hold for you?

We’ve got a few more shows lined up through the city and also down south through March. But, to be honest, I’m looking forward to getting back into the studio!

One Thousand Years

FREE TUNES IN FREO

POP GOES THE SPARROW

Get down to Clancy’s Fish Pub, Fremantle this Friday, January 31, to catch multiinstrumentalist Eduardo Cossio and his new trio, as well as Emma H aye s o n ce l l o and Elizabeth Millar on clarinet.

S u p p o r t co m e s from noted local singer-songwriter, Jacob Diamond.

The tunes start at 9pm, entry is free.

Eduardo Cossio

If you dug I, Said The Sparrow’s debut album, Deathpop, you’re gonna want to get down to Amplifier this Friday, January 31, for the launch of their new video, A Full Step Down Like Your Morals. Also on the bill are AMP IT UP! Make Believe Me, Beside Lights and Lowlight. It’s gonna be a large one.

The call is out for entries for AmpFest 2014. If you’re a young and Doors open at 8pm. ambitious musician, you have until Friday, March 7 to get your application in. A live music competition, AmpFest is open to original, I, Said The Sparrow unsigned bands and groups between the ages of 12 and 25. Entry is free, and the top dog takes home $5000 in cash. Past winners include HANGING AT THE ARCADE Mink Mussel Creek (Pond to you and me), Goodnight Tiger and Dead Newcomers to the Perth live scene, The Arcade Lights, make their live Owls. Shoot over to ampfest.com.au for details. debut this Thursday, January 30, at The Mustang Bar. What are they like? Can’t really say, but they describe their musical style as “rock,” and that’s good enough for us. On support duties are The Disappointed and SUNDAY SUNDAY Oak Tree Suite. Doors open at 9pm, entry is free.

Indi Bar are inaugurating the perfect end-of-weekend event, the superFIGHTING FIRE chilled Sunday Poolside Acoustic Rock out for a good cause this Friday, January 30, with the Hills Fire Sessions. From 1pm to 6pm, enjoy Fundraiser at The Rosemount Hotel. Proceeds go to disaster relief from relaxed unplugged tunes, this week the devastating January 12 Parkerville bushfires and the big-hearted from Seveno and Turin Robinson. lineup includes The Kill Devil Hills, Shallow Creek, Blackmilk, The Entry is free.

Right Way Up, Filthy Apes, Derailleur, Jonathan Brain and more to be Turin Robinson announced. Entry is $10 on the door from 7pm.

LO C A L & L AU NC H I NG 31/01

I, SAID THE SPARROW A Full Step Down Like Your Morals Video Launch Party @ Amplifier

01/02

ONE THOUSAND YEARS Get Your Rabbit’s Foot And Run Album Launch @ The Oddfellow

07/02

JONI IN THE MOON Sorrow Trees Album Launch @ Fly By Night

14/02

GUTTER DRAKES Sleep EP Launch @ YaYa’s

22/02

WIKED FURY Mummy’s Boy Single Launch @ YaYa’s

29/03

MATT WARING Smoking Gun EP Launch @ The Causeway

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TOUR TRAILS

PEARL JAM, FEBRUARY 2

THIS WEEK LEMURIA 29 Rosemount Hotel OKA 30 Mojos Bar 31 Indi Bar 1 Settlers Tavern 2 Mojos Bar SELENA GOMEZ 1 Perth Arena (CANCELLED) SUN CITY 1 Amplifier Bar BIG DAY OUT Pearl Jam, Arcade Fire, Blur, Snoop Lion, Major Lazer, Tame Impala, Flume, Northlane & more 2 Arena Joondalup CAT POWER 4 Fly By Night Club

FEBRUARY BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND 5,7,8 Perth Arena TILIAN 5 Amplifier Bar ASH GRUNWALD 5 Indi Bar 6 Prince Of Wales, Bunbury 7 Settlers Taver, Margaret River 8 Fly By Night 9 Ravenswood Hotel ED KOWALCZYK 5 Metro City MAIDS 6 Newport Hotel 7 Ya-Ya’s 8 Prince Of Wales, Bunbury ABBE MAY 7 Rosemount Hotel ALICE RUSSELL & BOOKER T JONES 6 & 7 Chevron Festival Gardens EDDIE VEDDER 7 & 8 Riverside Theatre #TOGETHER ft. TaKu, Zeke, Kit Pop, Cosmo Gets, Sable 8 Chevron Festival Gardens D AT SEA 8 Amplifier Bar 9 YMCA HQ LANEWAY FESTIVAL 8 Fremantle SUMMERSET ARTS FESTIVAL Birds Of Tokyo 8 Scarborough Beach Amphitheatre THE BASICS 9 Chevron Festival Gardens THE LOCUST 10 Amplifier Bar JULIA HOLTER 10 Chevron Festival Gardens 100 MILLION NIGHTS 11 Chevron Festival Gardens BOYUP BROOK COUNTRY MUSIC FESTIVAL Sara Storer, McAlister Kemp, Mike Carr, Buddy Goode, The Borderers, Graham Roger, Rohan Powell,

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TOURS LIVE

THE NATIONAL, FEBRUARY 14

Rob Black & the Kelly Gang, Eric Erdman, Courtney Conway, Connie Kis Andersen 12 – 16 Boyup Brook Country Music Club IALARU 12 Chevron Festival Gardens LADI6 & HOME BREW 13 Chevron Festival Gardens SOFT SOFT LOUD 13 Fremantle Art Centre Courtyard STONEFIELD 13 The Prince Of Wales Hotel 14 Clancy’s Fish Pub Dunsborough 15 Capitol HUSKY 14 Chevron Festival Gardens MIGUEL MIGS 14 Geisha Bar DJ SHADOW 15 Chevron Festival Gardens HAND OF MERCY 15 The Prince Of Wales Hotel THE NATIONAL 14 Belvoir Amphitheatre MIAMI HORROR 15 Amplifier Bar PETE MURRAY 16 Astor Theatre EBONY BONES 16 Chevron Festival Gardens AUSTRA 17 Chevron Festival Gardens DJ FOOD, DJ CHEEBA, DJ MONEYSHOT 18 Chevron Festival Gardens OKKERVIL RIVER 19 Chevron Festival Gardens OLAFUR ARNALDS & KEATON HENSON 20 Chevron Festival Gardens KITE STRING TANGLE 19 Mojos Bar 20 Flyrite UNCLE JED 20 Clancy’s Fremantle 21 Ya-Ya’s STU LARSEN 20 Mojos Bar MANGO GROOVE 21 Red Hill Auditorium DON WALKER 21 Clancy’s Fremantle 22 Civic Hotel 23 Fremantle Arts Centre DAUGHN GIBSON & OWL EYES 21Chevron Festival Gardens SUNDOWN SESSIONS: MISSY HIGGINS, SARAH BLASKO , JAE LAFFER (THE PANICS) 21 Scarborough Beach Amphitheatre POND, AAA AARDVARK GETDOWN SERVICES, FELICITY GROOM, THE SILENTS, DJ LADY CARLA 22 Chevron Festival Gardens

SOUTH WEST CRAFT BEER FESTIVAL 23 Old Broadwater Farm ALTAN 23 Chevron Festival Gardens SETS ON THE BEACH #14 THE ASTON SHUFFLE, JINJA SAFARI, GOLDROOM, MOTEZ, THE SWISS, GLEN HORSBOROUGH, LOUISAHHH!, MAELSTROM CLIENT LIAISON, MIGHTY MOUSE 23 Scarborough Beach LOS CORONAS 23 Capitol PAPA VS PRETTY 23 Mojos WIRE 24 Chevron Festival Gardens CHARLES BRADLEY 25 Chevron Festival Gardens MADELEINE PEYROUX 26 Chevron Festival Gardens ROBERT GLASPER EXPERIMENT 27 Chevron Festival Gardens DOLLY PARTON 27 Perth Arena SIX60 27 Metro City NEKO CASE 27 Fly By Night Club PUBLIC ENEMY 28 Chevron Festival Gardens BRUNO MARS 28 Perth Arena

MARCH MIKHAEL PASKALEV 1 Chevron Festival Gardens KERSER 1 Metro City FUTURE MUSIC Deadmau5, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Phoenix, Hardwell, Knife Party, Eric Prydz, Rudimental, Tinie Tempah, Chase & Status 2 Arena Joondalup LIONEL RICHIE & JOHN FARNHAM 2 Sandalford Winery Swan Valley THE WONDER STUFF 2 Rosemount Hotel SOUNDWAVE Green Day, Stone Temple Pilots, Alice In Chains, Rob Zombie, Megadeth, Placebo and more 3 Claremont Showgrounds GOODLIFE FESTIVAL Deadmau5, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Hardwell, Rudimental, Knife Party, Kaskade, Porter Robinson 3 Arena Joondalup

ALTAN, FEBRUARY 23

THE BENNIES 6 Ya-Ya’s 7 Prince Of Wales DAN SULTAN 6 Art Bar BRIAN MCKNIGHT 7 Riverside Theatre GURRUMUL 8 Kings Park BILLY BRAGG 9 Perth Concert Hall GOLD PANDA 9 The Bakery QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE & NINE INCH NAILS 11 Perth Arena JOSH PYKE 12 Quarry Amphitheatre THE ANGELS, DIESEL & MI-SEX 14 Graham Bricknell Music Shell, Bunbury JURASSIC 5 14 Metro City PHARRELL WILLIAMS 14 Challenge Stadium KASEY CHAMBERS AND BAND 15 Quindanning Inne SONGS IN THE KEY OF MOTOWN 12 Bunbury Regional Entertainment Centre 13 Mandurah Performing Arts Centre 14 Astor Theatre NEIL FINN 16 Perth Concert Hall DAMIAN DEMPSEY 17 Capitol THE ROLLING STONES 19 Perth Arena SUICIDE GIRLS 19 Astor Theatre ABSU & PORTAL 20 Amplifier Bar THE SMITH STREET BAND & THE MENZINGERS 19 Prince Of Wales 20 YMCA HQ 21 Rosemount Hotel ILLY 21 Capitol KATE MILLER-HEIDKE 21 - 22 Quarry Amphitheatre CASPIAN 22 Mojo’s Bar GANG OF FOUR 23 Capitol SEBADOH 25 Rosemount Hotel DARK TRANQUILLITY & ORPHEUS OMEGA 25 Capitol 30 SECONDS TO MARS 25 Challenge Stadium THE STRAY SISTERS 26 Fly By Night Club JOHN BUTLER TRIO 27 Fremantle Arts Centre 28 Belvoir Amphitheatre 29 Old Broadwater Farm, Busselton THE HOLIDAYS 29 Rosemount Hotel BRITISH INDIA 29 Amplifier Bar

HUNTER & COLLECTORS 29 (sold-out) & 30 Kings Park & Botanical Garden KRIS KRISTOFFERSON 30 Red Hill Auditorium

APRIL PACOPENA 2 Perth Concert Hall KYLESA 6 The Bakery SUZANNE VEGA 11 Astor Theatre WEST COAST BLUES N ROOTS Matt Corby, Michael Franti, John Mayer, Dave Matthews Band, Doobie Brothers, Boy & Bear 13 Fremantle Park BOZ SCAGGS 14 Crown Theatre 3 INCHES OF BLOOD 16 Amplifier Bar TOXIC HOLOCAUST & SKELETONWITCH 20 Rosemount Hotel KREATOR + DEATH ANGEL 20 Amplifier Bar SKID ROW & UGLY KID JOE 23 Metro Fremantle THE ALMOST 23 Amplifier Bar MICHAEL BUBLE 26 & 27 Perth Arena AARON NEVILLE DR JOHN & THE NITETRIPPERS 26 Riverside Theatre

MAY LEE KERNAGHAN 6 Princess Royal Theatre, Albany 9 Crown Theatre JASON DERULO 10 Perth Arena ARCTIC MONKEYS 13 Perth Arena PETULA CLARK 17 Perth Concert Hall SEPTICFLESH & FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE 18 Amplifier Bar THE ENGLISH BEAT 23 Rosemount Hotel 2014 AIRNORTH KIMBERLEY MOON EXPERIENCE Eskimo Joe, The Waifs, John Williamson 24 Jim Hughes Amphitheatre, Kununurra ELLIE GOULDING 28 Challenge Stadium LARRY CARLTON 28 Astor Theatre

JUNE YO GABBA GABBA! LIVE! 7 Riverside Theatre JAMES BLUNT 12 Crown Theatre 13 Riverside Theatre BASTILLE 18 Challenge Stadium FINNTROLL 22 Amplifier Bar KEITH URBAN 29 Perth Arena

TO U R TA L E S

VIOLENT SOHO, PIC: RACHAEL BARRETT

VIOLENT SOHO Scenes From The American Dream Fresh from taking the #14 spot in triple j’s Hottest 100 with Covered In Chrome, Violent Soho play the Big Day Out this Sunday, February 2, at Arena Joondalup. DAN WATT reports.

2013 was been a year for Brisbane band Violent Soho.

In 2012, momentum began to build for the band when they released Tinderbox and Neighbour Neighbour on their new label, I Oh You, but the band’s popularity got a well deserved shot in the arm with the release of their third album, Hungry Ghost.

Having been releasing music since 2006 (Pigs & TV EP) the band got some notoriety from their second self-titled album in 2008 that featured the popular singles Muscle Junkie and Jesus Stole My Girlfriend. However, a lot of the attention that album was garnered was generated by the fact it was released on Ecstatic Peace! – Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore’s record label.

The signing also saw the band move to America and undertake a gruelling touring schedule that saw the band touring with many credible contemporaries like The Bronx and Cancer Bats but, due to Ecstatic Peace! being owned by Universal, Violent Soho also toured with Thirty Seconds To Mars – ‘nuff said.

“You get on a label like Ecstatic Peace! and they get you touring with those bands and then by the time their parent company Universal/ Motown get their hands on you we had to have a stab at touring with bands like 30 Seconds To Mars and some other really shit radio bands we had to tour with,” explains singer, guitarist and primary songwriter Luke Boerdam.

Last year at Ding Dong Lounge when Violent Soho were supporting Cloud Nothings and in a conversation with your correspondent, Violent Soho’s guitarist James Tidswell expressed that during the 30 Seconds To Mars tour the band felt like they had hit a low point and it was time to move home.

“The 30 Seconds To Mars tour was the last tour we did so I think what James was referring to is that we got to the end of the 18 month stint and we were like, ‘Fuck this, let’s go home’. I mean the album was out and we had two singles, had toured Canada and America multiple times and we’re homesick,” Boerdam sheds some light on this seemingly profound moment.

“Four band members and one tour manager were living in a maximum-of-two hotel so I wasn’t getting any writing done and it got too tiring and there was also a feeling the label had lost direction of their idea with us which was kinda confirmed with us ending on a 30 Seconds To Mars tour,” surmises Boerdam on the American dream gone wrong.

However, moving back home somewhat defeated actually had a huge silver lining for the group. Not only did they find a new label in Mushroom subsidiary, I Oh You, but the material written, beginning with the double a-side and culminating with Hungry Ghost, featured a sophistication and cohesion that lacked on their previous releases.

Boerdam now tackles the difficult task of drawing a line between the old Violent Soho sound and the new. “I agree and I disagree that our sound has changed. We’ve always had the mentality of keeping our core values in place as it has been the same four members just after high school. The values are only making albums that we want to make and not listening to anyone else’s bullshit.

“Working with I Oh You was such a good thing for us because we really stand our grand on how this band works. We said to them, ‘We’re going to record a record with a super talented albeit unknown producer (Bryce Moorhead) in a shed in Brisbane over six weeks so we can experiment and get the sound exactly how we want it’,” states Boerdam.

“I’d like to think with Hungry Ghost it is a little bit different to the other bands out there that are placed in our genre. I think the whole American experience made us frustrated about how rushed it felt so with this record we made sure we had the time to get the sound exactly how we felt we should be sounding – so yeah, there is a different sound but it came from within.”

Finally, Boerdam explains that the band expects fans to lose their shit at their upcoming Big Day Out performance – getting the crowd to mosh is one of the band’s core values.

“A core element of Violent Soho – and you can hear it in the name – is that we are always going to bring an aggressive show. You can call it a throwback to the ‘90s when people used to jump around, but we are never going to bring a show that sees people standing there with folded arms.”

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GIG GUIDE

ABORTED TORTOISE/YAYA’S/ WEDNESDAY 29

WEDNESDAY29/01 AMPLIFIER BAR Academy BAR 120 Felix THE BIRD Friendsdays BRASS MONKEY Sugar Blue Burlesque THE CARINE Open Mic Night Chris Gibbs CLANCY’S FISH PUB (CANNING BRIDGE) Eduardo Cossio Dave Robertson ELLINGTON JAZZ CLUB Phil Hatton Manhattons GROOVE BAR (CROWN) 5 Shots GYPSY TAPAS HOUSE Zagoria Trio INDI BAR Little Bird LANEWAY LOUNGE (CROWN) Adam Hall And The Velvet Playboys LOBBY LOUNGE (CROWN) Hans Fiance THE LUCKY SHAG Howie Morgan MUSTANG BAR Flash Nat & The Action Men MOJOS BAR Yambeque DJ Mateo THE MOON CAFE Leigh Craft Louis Inglis Amber Fresh MERIDIAN ROOM (CROWN) Howie Morgan MERRIWA TAVERN Celebrations Karaoke

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SUN CITY/AMPLIFIER BAR/SATURDAY 1

OCEAN ONE BAR Kate Gilbertson Turin Robinson Andrew Newman Bodegas THE PADDO Dove Stu Nugent The Suntones ROSEMOUNT HOTEL Lemuria Grim Fandango Dan Cribb Isolated Lionizer SETTLERS TAVERN Open Mic Night SWALLOW BAR Nick Sheppard THE SWINGING PIG Open Mic Night Greg Carter UNIVERSAL BAR Retriofit THE VIC Leighton Keepa VILLAGE BAR Village People Open Mic YAYA’S Aborted Tortoise Black Stone From The Sun Tashi Matt Waring THURSDAY 30/01 BAR ORIENT Open Mic Night THE BIRD Beat Lounge BRASS MONKEY Rhythm Bound Karaoke BRIGHTON Open Mic Night Rob Walker THE BOAT Jen De Ness THE BROOK Open Mic Night Chris Gibbs BROOKLANDS TAVERN Celebrations Karaoke

LOCAL GIG

Archer & Light

ARCHER & LIGHT ATLAS MOUNTAIN NEVADA PILOT JOHN MARTYR’S GHOST Thursday, January 30 The Rosemount Hotel

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THE CAUSEWAY BAR Xport Thursdays DUNSBOROUGH TAVERN Open Mic Night Kris Buckle ELLINGTON JAZZ CLUB Soundgun THE GATE Greg Carter GROOVE BAR (CROWN) Switch INDI BAR Bex’s Open Mic Night LANEWAY LOUNGE Fiona Lawe Davies 3 LUCKY SHAG James Wilson MOJOS BAR OKA DJ Swami MUSTANG BAR The Disappointed The Arcade Lights Oak Tree Suite THE MOON CAFE The Weapon Is Sound NEWPORT HOTEL Easy Tigers PRINCE OF WALES Jetpack ROSEMOUNT HOTEL Archer & Light Atlas Mountain Nevada Pilot John Martyr’s Ghost THE SHED Midnight Ramblers SETTLERS Claire Warnock Latehorse SWALLOW BAR Shotdown From Sugartown UNIVERSAL BAR Off The Record THE VIC Travis Caudle THE WINDSOR Acoustic Aly YAYA’S Steady Eddy Neel Kolhatkar FRIDAY 31/01 AMPLIFIER BAR I, Said The Sparrow Make Believe Me Beside Lights Low Light THE AVIARY Troy Division Ben Sebastian Hykus BALMORAL Mike Nayar BEAT NIGHTCLUB (DOWNSTAIRS) PLAY

TIRED LION/.THE BIRD/SATURDAY 1

BEAT NIGHTCLUB (UPSTAIRS) Balls Deep Severtone Tusk Eyes Cast Skyward BELMONT TAVERN Electrophobia BOAB TAVERN Frenzy THE BIRD Flower Drums Rokwell & Groom Methyl Ethel Gilbert Fawn DJ Oddstar Shambles THE BRASS MONKEY Rhythm Bound Karaoke THE BRIGHTON Rob Walker THE BROOKLANDS TAVERN Vanerty Brothers THE CARINE Velvet CAVES HOUSE Carus CHASE BAR & BISTRO James Wilson CLANCY’S FREMANTLE Eduardo Cossio Trio Jacob Diamond CIVIC BACKROOM Soul Benefits Morse Gang Trooth Bsyde SwitchBlade ReDe Sho CORNERSTONE ALEHOUSE Sweet Surrender COMO HOTEL Fiona Lawe Davis 3 CRUISING YACHT CLUB Red Bare EMPIRE BAR Trevor Jalla ELLINGTON JAZZ CLUB Tina Harrod FAIRLANES AMPHITHEATRE Karin Page FLY BY NIGHT Motown And Soul Night THE GATE Choppa + Ryan GOSNELLS HOTEL Frank G THE GREENWOOD Greg Carter GROOVE BAR (CROWN) Tod Johnston & Peace Love HOTEL ROTTNEST DJ Eugene HYDE PARK HOTEL Ricky Green INDI BAR OKA

JOONDALUP RESORT Gary Fowlie KALAMUNDA HOTEL Vendetta LANEWAY LOUNGE Hans Fiance MAHOGANY INN Jarrad Wilson M ON THE POINT Retriofit MOJOS BAR Huge Magnet Day Of The Dead The Blind Tiger Blues Box MUSTANG Adam Hall Cheeky Monkeys DJ James MacArthur OCEAN ONE BAR Mad Agents PADDY MAGUIRES Jetpack PLAYERS BAR Madam Montage PORT KENNEDY TAVERN One Trick Phonies THE PRINCIPAL Chill Divine QUARIE BAR & BISTRO Blackbirds RIGBY’S BAR & BISTRO Undergrowth Acoustic Open Mic ROSEMOUNT HOTEL The Kill Devil Hills Shallow Creek Blackmilk The Right Way Up Deraileur Filthy Apes Jonathan Brain ROSIE O’GRADYS FREMANTLE Felix SAIL AND ANCHOR Howie Morgan Duo THE SAINT Airbag SETTLERS Sam Perry guest Turin THE SHED Huge SOUTH ST ALEHOUSE Robbie King Karaoke SWINGING PIG Greg Carter UNIVERSAL BAR Nightmoves WINTERSUN HOTEL Kane Lemin THE WOODVALE Gunshy Romeos THE VIC Nathan Gaunt YAYA’S Chris Wainhouse Steady Eddy Neel Kolhatkar

Deadline Monday 5pm. The Gig-Guide is a service to advertisers listing all LIVE MUSIC. All inclusions are at the discretion of X-Press. Email guide@xpressmag.com.au

MOANA/CLAREMONT HOTEL/ SATURDAY 1

SATURDAY 01/02 AMPLIFIER BAR Sun City Indigo Grrl Pal BAILEY BAR & BISTRO Hi-NRG THE BALMORAL Jukebox Bandits BAR ORIENT The Reggae Club BEAT NIGHTCLUB (UPSTAIRS) CANVAS BEAT NIGHTCLUB (DOWNSTAIRS) RUNAWAYS Balls Deep Havoc THE BIRD Tired Lion Puck Catbrush BENTLEY HOTEL In The Groove BOAB TAVERN James Wilson THE BROOK One Trick Ponies THE CARINE Allstar Showstoppers THE CLAREMONT HOTEL ANTICS Mt Mountain Moana.

Luke Dux CRAFTSMAN Groove DUNSBOROUGH TAVERN Short & Curly DAVE’S CANS The Empty Cup Dux N Downtown The Wilds ELLINGTON JAZZ CLUB Natalie Gillespie Elouise And The Infinite Squeeze THE GATE Greg Carter GREENWOOD Cargo Beat GROOVE BAR (CROWN) Switch HOTEL ROTTNEST Morgan Bain INDI BAR Ben Merito INDIAN OCEAN BREWING CO Shawne & Luc KALAMUNDA HOTEL The Australian Santana Experience LAKERS TAVERN Celebrations Karaoke LANEWAY LOUNGE Astrid Ripepi

CATLIPS/MOJOS BAR/SATURDAY 1

MOJOS BAR Catlips Maria Mendes LemonLime & Biddis MERRIWA TAVERN Celebrations Karaoke M ON THE POINT Rhythm 22 MUSTANG Rusty & The Dragstrip Trio Rockabilly DJ Milhouse DJ James MacArthur NEWPORT HOTEL Gravity Tahli Jade PARAMOUNT NIGHTCLUB Felix PORT KENNEDY TAVERN Anderson PADDY MAGUIRES SUBIACO Cherry Lips OCEAN ONE BAR Desert Bells QUARIE BAR & BISTRO DJ Eugene RAILWAY HOTEL Jahmoko, The Isolites, NBA Rastaz, Downbeat Kohmici Alliance Veeness, King Missy, DJ KS, DJ Simbam Tutomath, The Empressions General Justice ROSEMOUNT HOTEL Backtrack The Others ROSIE O’GRADY’S FREMANTLE Felix SAIL & ANCHOR Better Days THE SAINT Mike Nayar SETTLERS TAVERN OKA THE SHED Huge SOUTH ST ALE HOUSE Robbie King Karaoke SWALLOW BAR DJ T King SWAN HOTEL (BASEMENT) Grave Forsaken THE SWINGING PIG Frenzy UNIVERSAL Soul Corporation THE VIC Leighton Keepa YAYA’S Lip Service Edie Green Belle Harvey

SUNDAY 02/02 399 BAR Undergrowth Acoustic Open Mic BALMORAL Shades Of Indigo BELMONT TAVERN Jonny Dempsey THE BIRD MR.TIES BERLIN, DE Homopatik Maria Mendes Andre St Clair THE BRIGHTON Ross Lowe BROOKLANDS TAVERN Gerry Azor CAPTAIN STIRLING Open Mic Night Josh Terlick THE CARINE Justin Burford THE CAUSEWAY Accoustic Sunday CIVIC HOTEL Frank G COMO HOTEL Ansell & Fretall DUNSBOROUGH TAVERN Brett Donald THE ELLINGTON Simon Jeans Quartet FLY BY NIGHT Stage Fright Open Mic THE GATE Ryan Web HYDE PARK HOTEL Mike Nayar INDI BAR Caravana Sun Jacob & The Rudeboys INDIAN OCEAN BREW CO Retriofit KALAMUNDA HOTEL The Mojos KULCHA Zukhuta Sundays LAST DROP TAVERN Barry Gee LAKERS TAVERN Wesley Goodlet Jamboree Scouts LOBBY LOUNGE (CROWN) Thierynno M ON THE POINT Nathan Gaunt MOJOS BAR OKA DJ Swami THE NATIONAL HOTEL The Tropical Gangsters MUSTANG The Roadmasters DJ Holly Doll NEWPORT HOTEL The Autumn Isles

THE AUTUMN ISLES/THE NEWPORT HOTEL/SUNDAY 2

Three Hands One Hoof Todd Pickett OCEAN ONE BAR Peter Ashton PADDY MALONES Sunday Sesh PEEL ALE HOUSE Sophie Jane QUARIE BAR & BISTRO The Gypsy Minions RAILWAY HOTEL Jahmoko The Isolites NBA Rastaz Downbeat Kohmici Alliance Veeness King Missy ROSEMOUNT HOTEL The Get Down SAIL AND ANCHOR Childs Play THE SAINT Howie Morgan Project SEAVIEW TAVERN Jean Proude SETTLERS TAVERN Noah SOUTH ST ALEHOUSE Sawney Bean SWALLOW BAR Bresdom Smith Trio THE SWAN HOTEL MattyTWall SWANBROOK WINERY Sundowner Sessions Shameem Kate Gilbertson Jessica Morhall SWINGING PIG Ali Hill UNIVERSAL Retriofit WANNEROO TAVERN Steve Hepple WHISTLING KITE James Wilson THE WINDSOR Adrian Wilson

THE WOODVALE Time Out YA YA’S Chris Wainhouse MONDAY 03/02 BRASS MONKEY Wire Birds THE CARINE Acoustic Aly MOJOS BAR Triple Shots MUSTANG BAR Open Mic Night YA YA’S Big Tommo’s Open Mic TUESDAY 04/02 BRASS MONKEY Open Mic Night THE CHARLES HOTEL Perth Blues Club Bob Patient Bill Blissett Pete Stone Kim Siragusa Kat Kinley THE ELLINGTON Simon Jeans quartet FLY BY NIGHT Cat Power GROOVE BAR (CROWN) Jack & Jill LUCKY SHAG Ben Merito MOJO’S BAR Crawjaw Ibis Elm Nodes The Morning Night MERRIWA TAVERN Celebrations Karaoke MUSTANG BAR Danza Loca Salsa Night OCEAN ONE BAR Undergrowth Open Mic Night YAYA’S Loners The Mondays Escelade Tailored Grace

LOCAL GIG

Huge Magnet

HUGE MAGNET DAY OF THE DEAD THE BLIND TIGER BLUES BOX Friday, January 30 Mojos

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37

MUSIC GEAR & TECHNOLOGY

DANCE CLASSES BELLYDANCE CENTRAL STUDIO CLASSES Free class Fri 7 Feb special beg. Term 1 starts Mon 10 Feb. For brochure, info and free class invite email dance@bellydancecentral. com.au. Mob: 0409511125. www.bellydancecentral.com.au FOR SALE HEADPHONES all brands & styles. 23 H a r ro g at e S t re e t , We s t Le e d e r v i l l e .

Contact Headphonic 08 93886333 headphones.com.au GENERAL EXPRESSIONS WANTED GRAFFITI ARTISTS & GRAPHIC DESIGNERS for newly formed clothing company.

Exp req’d. $$ paid for quality. Please call Mark if interested 0428 365 713.

MUSOS WANTED EXP SINGER WANTED for established local original rock band. Gigs booked, recording waiting. Text or call 0448 426 491 OPEN MIC NIGHT every Thursday night at Indi Bar. Just call Bex on 0404 917 632.

DRUMMER REQUIRED: Working rock covers band looking for reliable, capable drummer for regular fill in gigs which may develop into permanent position. We are looking for someone who has a very good handle on timing and tempo, but need not be flashy. Solid and reliable playing with the ability and willingness to play for the song is what we need. Must be available and willing to gig as required, and have own transport. If this is you, please contact 0427 471423 or 0423 369462 or e-mail pjkm@westnet.com.au PHOTOGRAPHY PROJECT PHOTOGRAPHY Promo p h o t o g r a p h y, s t u d i o , l i v e , l o c a t i o n .

Mike Wylie 0417 975 964 www.projectphotography.com When its time to ice the cake...

PRODUCTION SERVICES C D & DV D M A N U FAC T U R E C h e c k o u t our latest CD & DVD specials online at www.procopy.com.au 9375 3902 DISK BANK Perth’s premier CD & DVD manufacturer, with options for all budgets. (08) 9388 0800. www.diskbank.com.au/specials.

MATRIX PRODUCTIONS AUSTRALIA Lighting, staging, sound systems, smoke machines, night club FX, intelligent lighting, strobes & mirror balls, crowd barriers, video projectors. 9371 1551 RECORDING STUDIOS ALAN DAWSON’s WITZEND RECORDING STUDIO Prof quality albums or demos, large live room, experienced engineer, analog to digital transfers, mastering..

Alan 0407 989 128 or Jeremy 0430638178 www.witzendstudios.com ANDY’S STUDIO International multi award winning songwriter / producer. No band required.

Broadcast quality. A songwriter’s paradise. Ph 9364 3178 GOLDDUST Production Mixing, recording and composition. Leederville $80 p/h.

0408 097 407 ANALOG MASTERING VINTAGE TAPE, TUBES & TRANSFORMERS with the latest state-of-thart digital converters. Clients include: Melody’s Echo Chamber, Pond, Gossling, Knife Party, Felicity Groom, The Floors, Jeff Martin & The Panics. World class facility. World class results. www.poonshead.com 9339 4791

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CLASSIFIEDS

RECORDING MIXING MASTERING PRODUCING Fremantle location. Call Pete Kitchen Cooked Records. Ph 0407 363 764 / 9336 3764 REVOLVER SOUND STUDIO Ph 9272 7505. www.revolverstudio.com.au SONGWRITERS AND BANDS! - 30TH ANNIVERSARY DISCOUNTS! UNLOCK YOUR SONG’S POTENTIAL! FREE APPRAISALS. UK Producer, 40,000+ hours studio experience, 20 yrs in London. Kicking arrangements. Great studio and the ability to really listen will give your material the edge you need. Call Jerry on 0405 653 338 or visit www.jerichomusic.com.au THE SOUND FACTORY RECORDING STUDIOS 24 AND 16 TRACK TAPE. Vintage amps, mics & effects. Special rates for BTC/LTC/DOGE. 0423803063 REHEARSAL STUDIOS AAA VHS REHEARSAL ROOMS Great facilities, great vibe & great price!!! Unit 5 /16 Peel Road, O’Connor. Phone 9418 5815 or 0413 732 885 BIGBEAT SOUND STUDIO Clean rooms, all new PA systems, air-con and good parking . Willetton Ph: 0425 698 117.

PLATINUM SOUND ROOMS Professional rehearsal rooms, airconditioned, quality PAs mob 0418 944 722 STREAM STUDIO’S 89 Stirling St, Perth.

Mobile: 0403 152 009 info@streamrehearsal.com.au TUITION ***GUITAR LESSONS*** New Year enrolments, book online. Beg to prof, all styles. Catering to WAAPA and AMEB standards. All tutors have WWC clearance. Cliff Lynton Guitar Institute. Mt Lawley 9342 3484 / www.clifflynton.com A A A C L E AV E R A C A D E M Y O F V O I C E Voice training for singers that really works.

All techniques including speech level.

Phone 9272 4497 mb 0417 928 998.

B A S S G U I TA R L E S S O N S AVA I L A B L E

by WAAPA tutor. A practicle approach to learning. .All styles.Years of experience.

Tony Gibbs 9470 6131

CLASSIFIEDS

Gibson Hummingbird Quilt

NAMM GEARBOX SPECIAL Gibson debuted three new general release acoustic guitars at NAMM this year, the Hummingbird Quilt, the J-15 and the J-29. The new Hummingbird is particularly eye catching; a square shouldered dreadnought with a gorgeous cherry sunburst finish on its Sitka spruce top and quilted maple back and sides. It has mother of pearl parallelograms inlayed in its rosewood fret board and mahogany neck. Favouring light gauge strings, like previous Hummingbirds, it’s said to have a bright clear tone and is able to be plugged in through the LR Baggs Element pick up for on stage performances. It looks absolutely beautiful, and retailing at $3699, I guess it would want to.

Appropriately enough, given the time of year, Australia was represented at NAMM 2014. Melbourne based Cole Clark Guitars revived the Taliaman model, and debuted the Cole Clark Triumph 2. The Triumph 2 has Queensland Maple back and sides, a Bunya top and a gorgeous Australian Blackwood inlay. Most important, it maintains Cole Clarks innovative three way pickup system, which provides a more natural sound when plugged in. RRP $2,999.

Guaranteed to give the salivary glands of any Beatles aficionado a good work out, Rickenbacker unveiled their new Walnut series in Anaheim this year.

A thin oil finish gives those trademark Rickenbacker curves a lovely luxurious glow, and the all-maple neck looks a delight to play. The series includes the 360W, 4003W, and 330W. The 360 and 330 both come in 6 and 12 string versions. Of particular interest to bassists is the Rickenbacker 4003W, which promises ringing sustain to compliment its solid bass punch. In the end, you probably know whether that jangling Rickenbacker sound is what you want, and whether you have the dosh to acquire it. The 4003W has a RRP of $2159, the 360W $2499, while the 330W is a pretty reasonable $1999.

If we could quickly jaunt into the realms of fantasy (and ultimately, what is staring at musical instruments for if not that?) there were some high profile collaborations unleashed upon NAMM in 2014. The exquisitely ornate special edition Bob Dylan J-200 Gibson sat imperiously behind “do not touch” glass. There will be 120 personally autographed editions available, plus 300 less ornate and cheaper versions. The price (as well as any wider availability) remains ominously unspecified as yet. Also released was Eric Clapton’s two collaborations with Martin (as well as Clapton associate Hiroshi Fujiwara), the OM-ECHF Navy Blues Model and

Les Paul Melody Maker 38

Earthquaker Pitch Bay Polyphonic Harmonizer

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the CS-00S-14. Also cruelly rare (300 between the two of them, each individually numbered and signed by Clapton), Martin are at least good enough to tell us what it would set us back to own one; OM-ECHF Navy Blues Model is $6,999 and it will take $8,999 to land you a CS-00S-14.

Those seeking big name prestige at a slightly less ruinous price would be well advised to check out the new Les Paul Melody Maker. It has a lovely rounded 1950s style neck, a thin, solid body for an easy action and dual p-90 pickups at the neck and bridge. At $569 it’s a bit of a steal, perfect for the budding but serious guitar player.

Another affordable collision of the old and the new is the nifty little Vox SoundBox Mini – a multipurpose portable media player. You can hook basically anything up to it, whether it’s a guitar, keyboard microphone or an IPod. It has eight effects, including delay and reverb, and an inbuilt E tuner through its guitar jack. It’s miles off a performance level amp, but at $199 it’s a handy tool for someone learning, or someone who just wants to jam along with their Hendrix MP3s.

A more advanced offering from the same company arrived in the shape of the Vox AC15C1 guitar amp. It’s in what the manufacturer grandly styles British Garnett Red and has a Tygon grill cloth for that classic old amp look. Some people criticise Vox for having a scratchy sound, but I’ve always been partial to their swelling chime when clean and their crunchy, compact overdrive – something the AC15C1 promises to maintain. This acquired taste will set you back roughly $649.

Now onto pedals; Earthquaker Devices dropped a couple of new products, including the Pitch Bay Polyphonic Harmonizer, which adds gain generation to its pitch shifting and harmonising capabilities.

It’s almost a more compact, manageable version of their earlier Rainbow Machine. They hand craft their delightful idiosyncratic concoctions individually over in Ohio, and as such they are fairly pricey – the pitch bay, for example is $225.

Someone yearning for a bit more simplicity might like the Electro-Harmonix Satisfaction Fuzz, a two-knob fuzz pedal that produces a sound that is harsh and raspy at one end and a full on wall of fuzz at the other. It’s basic, compact, elemental and at $50-60 it may well prove a handy pedal board addition.

CHARLIE LEWIS

MUSIC GEAR & TECHNOLOGY

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CLASSIFIEDS

Pioneer DDJ SZ

NAMM 2014 Battle Of The Blinky Lights I really feel sorry for every DJ equipment company that forgot to make something new for NAMM this year. Pioneer is standing majestically at the top of the DJ controller mountain, holding aloft their final and most expensive entry into their highly acclaimed DDJ line up. Or as I should say, they are struggling to hold it aloft, as the goddamn thing weighs over 10 kilos.

Since its announcement on Wednesday, the DJ community has been vibrating with excitement over the new Pioneer DDJ SZ, which is as grand and complex as the helm of a starship.

At almost a meter long, it is the biggest DDJ control station they have ever made, and it combines all the technology from a full feature CDJ system without the pesky CD part. It boasts two full size CDJ2000 jog wheels, illuminated 13mm remix pads with three function banks, and the colour filter panel straight out of the DJM800.

Upsettingly, it seems to have a rave air horn button directly on the deck. But the most beautiful part of this monolith has to be its twin banks of 8 pad remix decks, the largest on the market, and each is illuminated by a full RGB LED grid.

The DDJ SZ is going to be over $3000 for Australian buyers, so we probably won’t be seeing this in the hands of most DJs. I expect that this will instead be the go-to unit we will soon see as communal equipment in nightclubs. For too long now, small crowded DJ booths in night clubs have been occupied by cheap and bulky CDJ systems. When the controllerists show up, they are reduced to balancing their gear on top of the dials of whatever beer-glazed second hand DJM700 the club skimped on. The SZ has dual USB ports and dual sound cards, so you can jack one laptop in and start the next person’s set without interrupting the flow of the one stepping down. I can’t wait to see some really good DJ battles using dual laptops thanks to this new feature.

Other DJ equipment updates came from Allen And Heath. Their famous entry level mixer, the Xone:22, has been updated and rebadged as the Xone:23. It now has an external effects send and

return, and even though it is a two channel mixer, you can still plug four audio sources into it. Their famous analogue voltage controlled filter used to just have a switch for the resonance, it now has a dial, which allows analogue enthusiasts to get the strange and bone-vibrating tones that simply do not come from a digitally simulated filter.

The heavy hitters this year have really been in the synthesizer department, including the Nord Lead A1, Roland Aira, the new Bitwig DAW software, but especially the gorgeous new Moog Sub37 prototype. Based on the famously wobbly SubPhatty, except instead of being monophonic, it is claiming itself to be “Paraphonic.” Essentially, instead of having two entirely separate tone generators to become a true duophonic, it has a single monophonic sound chain with two oscillators, but has the ability to give two different pitch values of the two oscillators. It also has an audio input to muck around with external audio sources, and when this is not being used, the dial turns into a really crunchy feedback dial for the dual oscillators.

Be very careful with this dial, because when ramped up into the really high values, it has a tendency to change from room filling voice augmentation, to some kind of angry bridge troll growl, blowing out some absolutely obese, subwoofer killing bass tones. Use sparingly.

In the midi keyboard department, Akai and Alesis are both competing for the Most Blinky Lights award this year. Now that companies like Maschine have shown that the industry wants full RGB LEDs under their drum pads, it seems that everyone’s jumping on board. This is a good thing; you can group your samples by colour code, allowing instant visual recognition. It also gives you feedback as to what bank you’re using when you start to get really technical. The design on the Alesis is gorgeous, with all the extra buttons backlit in cool aqua, and a shell design as that reminds me of Kubrick’s 2001, however the Akai tends to look like just another tired old Akai, with all kinds of crazy in-built firmware features that nobody ever uses or understands.

In terms of finger drum midi controllers, ever wanted a unit like the Maschine, but with an Arturia SparkLE style step sequencer? M-Audio made one, and it’s the Trigger Finger Pro. A huge upgrade from the classic but aging original Trigger Finger, it features a large LCD display and 16 RGB pads similar to the Maschine, four programmable rotary encoders and four vertical faders, a 16 slot step sequencer, and an aluminium face plate. It will retail for $399, which is $200 less than the Maschine, and comes with its own software, or you can plug and play with whatever DAW software you’re already used to. And yet, no built in sound card? M-Audio may have missed an opportunity for live performers there.

TULLY JAGOE

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