YOUTH IN REVOLT ISSUE.15

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YOUTH

H IN REVOLT Issue.15 Editor-in-Chief Nicole Wilson Editor and Creative Director Diarmaid Murray Art, Photography and Fashion Editor Olivia Mroz Music Editor Cam Johns Regular Contributors Made Stuchbery Millie Clayton Cover by Marina Fini

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Letter from the Editor 07 Dullife 08 Grizzly Jim 17 IRL LDN 22 Headphones In, World Out 26 Nuala Swan 29 This Sex Is On Fire 44 Marina Fini 46

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57 Subconscious Matters 58 Tom Milsom 62 Bargain Buys 63 At Least I Run Faster Than Internet Explorer 65 Seeing Double 73 Once Upon A Banjo String 74 Alexis Winter 86 A Young and Groovy Westerner’s Guide to Buddhism yirmag.com

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Letter From The Editor I’ve been looking at this blank document for twenty minutes now, sipping on my lukewarm tea and thinking ‘Ain’t nobody got time for this’ and to be honest I almost quite literally don’t. These last two months have been close to the most stressful of my life. God bless our pharmaceutical companies for the invention of Valium, am I right? Besides, I knew going into this that throwing a free party to celebrate our first ever promotional video wasn’t going to be easy.

Oh you didn’t know we’re throwing a free party? Have you been living under a rock!? Sorry. For those of you who didn’t read last issue, I get cranky when we’re out of coffee. Even more so when the milk to boiled water ratio in my tea is waaaaaay off. Those of you who did read last issue can rest easy; the mouse situation is under control.

As I just typed that last sentence I had two simultaneous realisations, a) Alright, maybe my year 11 English teacher had a point when she said I had a habit of going off topic and b) The day this issue goes live will be exactly a week before the party. Cue uncontrollable excitement followed my irrational panic.

And we’re back.

I quite literally just ran to the bathroom and splashed water on my face. Don’t judge me. I’m honestly not sure where I would be mentally if I didn’t have the amazing team behind me that I do. Not to mention our partners in party crime, RaRaKIN. I can’t speak more highly of these wonderfully talented and overall just really rad kids.

I guess I should elaborate on this little shindig we’re throwing for those of you who are hearing about it now for the first time now. Where do I start? Although the night’s original purpose was to celebrate our promotional video it has grown into so much more than that.

In collaboration with RaRaKIN collective we’re causing a public nuisance under the name, Enter : Outer. It’s a celebration of all things creative and an opportunity to draw much needed attention to the incredibly active artistic culture growing in Melbourne’s western suburbs, especially Footscray. Plus it’s a great opportunity to get loose, just sayn’.

So come down to the Reverence Hotel on the 8th of August. The party kicks off at 6pm and doesn’t finish till late. The beers are on you! Because after pumping out this issue whilst juggling set times, house mixer fees, press releases, decorations, and office coffee supply (which I’ve obviously failed at) the team is going to need about 20. Each.

Also worth a mention is how jam packed this issue is considering everything that’s been going on. Articles, interviews, illustrations, art, fashion. We look after you guys even if sometimes we go a little insane in the process.

So get comfortable and enjoy another revolting issue.

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Interview yirmag.com

by Olivia Mroz 9

Roslyn Anne Peric, 21, Mutt, Melbour ne

Tell us about the story behind the name:

“we’ve seen the nightmare of the lies that you speak, the beast that i lie beneath is coming in, well it’s a dullife, it’s a dullife...”

It’s a yeah yeah yeah’s tune, i’m lame, whatever.

Describe dulllife’s style: Somewhat sinister.

Why do you create?

I guess it’s my outlet. Some people jog or do yoga, i just like using my hands. I’m terminally sentimental and always have been, so creating can sometimes help me move on from things or indulge my nostalgia by experiencing a memory or an event all over again.

What do you do while you create?

It kinda depends on what sort of work i’m doing. I find i either zone out and let my How old were you when you started?

I was about 18 when i first got into the jewelry hands manipulate what i’m doing when i’m side of things, but before that i guess it’s been just generating ideas/concepts but if it’s a more delicate project with a set outcome i a bit of a lifelong thing. tend to chuck on some music and really get What mediums do you use to create your into it. Sometimes i won’t take a break for 6 or 7 hours and then wonder when it got dark dull life pieces?

Mostly what i can afford or what i find. Silver, outside. steel, bones, crystals, hair, roadkill haha.

What and who are your creative I really prefer materials that have a sense influences and inspirations? of history, like a past life, or a story they’re So many people and things. Lou reed, death, keeping.

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henry wellcome, morbidity, natural history, superstition, music, antiques, yoni wolf , archaeology, glam rock, trash rock, punk rock, badass hip hop, solitude, tattoos, the moon, decay, grime, nostalgia, medicine, abandonment, science, the cosmos, anthropology, david bowie, psychology, dead shit, crime, anatomy, fashun, depravity...

So much shit.

What revolts you jewelry wise?

Diva, lovisa, the shit you see in places like ‘dotti’ and ‘sportsgirl...’ That crap is all 100% ripped off smaller designers who try to make a living doing what they do.

When a company like those comes along and makes a replica out of brass on a production line in china and you buy it, you’re shitting all over the original and they’re wiping their asses with the profits. The product might be 20, 50 or 200 dollars cheaper but has no meaning, no longevity and no integrity.

What separates you from other brands out there?

I’m a broke-ass art student?

Hahah i dunno, i guess my aesthetic is what most people find a bit left of center.

Why do you create jewelry?

You can tell a story with jewelry. It can be concealed or outrageous. You can bridge the gap between garment and ‘accessory.’ There’s a lot of freedom.

What’s your favorite piece? Tell us about it.

Probably some of the more recent stuff i’ve been working on using a process called electroforming. The results aren’t quite there yet but the process has been really fun.

It’s kinda mad scientist meets taxidermy art freak hahaha.

Where do you see the brand in the next couple of years?

Hopefully expanding. Heading overseas. Constantly collaborating, creating, evolving, refining, learning.

Tell me a little about your creations:

i try to create physical objects that invoke specific emotions or memories in the viewer and the wearer. I like the idea of jewelry attaining some kind of ephemeral quality even though it is a somewhat permanent object.

Any extra things you would like to add: see you when the sun sets east..

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www.thedullife.blogspot.com

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G r i z z ly J i m Melbourne drummer turned singer songwriter

Grizzly

Jim

La w r i e

was nice enough to answer some questions on the tail of his new single ‘ M i d n i g h t R u n ’ a n d u p c o m i n g t o u r.

I would encourage you to read on.

Interview by Cam Johns yirmag.com

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Tell me about your life before music I started out with music when I was pretty young so I can’t really remember much before it…I can say that I was a pretty unsuccessful sportsman in school. My brother was good at footy, basketball and cricket so I followed in his footsteps but with more aspiration than talent. Took me a fair while to realise though, being a young sportsman has a bit of ego attached so you can persevere for a while not noticing how bad you are… I still love playing cricket and basketball, but I think my competition days are over..

try to juggle it with my own. We’re all on good terms, I still see everyone and play with some of the guys. But they have an awesome new drummer, Lachy, who’s a monster behind the kit, so I love seeing them live now too, even if it’s just to perve on his mad skillz.

What was the catalyst for going solo and getting out from behind the drums?

I’ve always loved song writing so once I’d gotten some pretty dismal attempts

How did you get started in the music business?

My brother and I both got into music around the same time when we found mum and dad’s record collection, my brother took up bass guitar and I started playing drums. We used to play a lot together just rocking out grunge and rock riffs, and eventually ended up playing in bands together…

The first band that we were in together saw mild success supporting some people at Melbourne’s Forum Theatre and doing some pretty cool festivals, but we called it quits to do other things because we were all pretty young.

How was your time with Eagle And The Worm? And what is your current status with them?

I really enjoyed playing with EATW. We didn’t all really know each other before playing together so I ended making some awesome friends within the band, and also made a lot of friends out of the band. We did some great tours together, and partied hard together, but I just wasn’t getting the creative stimulation that I was craving so I decided to put my time back into my own thing. I had chosen to put more time into EATW instead my own project for a while and it took a long time to make the decision but opted to leave the band instead of

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at high school love songs out of my system, I built the faith in my song writing and the balls to play solo in front of people. Although the first year or so was nerve racking, I just found something about playing my own songs so much more fulfilling than playing drums. That’s not to say I don’t love drumming though, it’s got a special place in my heart, but writing songs is kind of like figuring out a puzzle and all the layering you can play with…ah its good stuff. My mate Rich Bradbeer

from the Greasers equates the feeling of playing live to having sex, or eating the perfect bowl of two minute noodles…I reckon singing and writing is like that for me, it’s hard to put a finger on the attraction to it, but it’s one of those unexplainably profound feelings…

Also… What is the meaning behind “Grizzly”?

I’m a pretty hairy guy… Pretty much as soon as I left high school, and their restrictions on facial hair, I grew a beard. Since then I’ve never looked back. A friend of mine used to tell me I looked ‘Grizzly,’ and, possibly with willful naivety, I believe that was referring to my beard rather than post party disheveled hobo look that came with going to uni. I thought it sounded cool as a moniker so I went with it. It draws a lot of old school Blues connotations with that whole culture of putting an adjective before your name, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Cripple Clarence Lofton, etc. but I didn’t really intend it to…

Describe your sound for me.

I guess its acoustic driven pop rock at the moment. The first album was very acoustic and got lumped in the country singer songwriter basket but I don’t think the country influence is as big now with a fuller instrumentation and less focus on the acoustic guitar.. There’s a lot of influences coming in from everywhere(Fleetwood Mac, Crowded House, The National) so the sound varies, but I like to think there is a strong focus on lyrics, because that’s really important to me.

How was your experience with making your debut album ‘Paying My Debts From The Grave’?

I wrote a lot of the songs for the

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first album by myself, without much other than an acoustic and vocals in mind. In the studio, we added to that with various instrumentation but the sense of the band as a whole wasn’t really there. I didn’t mind that at the time because I was doing a lot of solo shows and it suited the live format of the show, but I grew out of that format as a live performer and I think in the process distanced myself from it as a recording. I’m really proud of the songwriting on that album, but I’m writing a lot more band focused songs now and the challenge of playing those songs live seems override that, and we’re mainly playing new tracks at the moment.

Why do you make music?

I can’t really imagine not doing it.

I can’t really explain it, but it’s a compulsion. The feeling I have is that I have to do it in order to get through the rest of it…if I didn’t do it, I wouldn’t be able to deal with other crap that gets flung at you by life..

Its two parts catharsis, two parts love, one part bad habit*. *I only say bad habit because it’s so common to hear suggestion of having a ‘back up plan’ from concerned family members when you pursue music as a love or career.

to party because I always want to go home and play guitar after seeing people play.

I find influence in a lot of other places too.

I love short stories.

Raymond Carver and for Stephen King is a great storyteller. I also really love kids picture story books, and find myself getting inspiration and influence from them. Shaun Tan and Chris Van Allsburg are great!

With your newest single ‘Midnight Run’ you have added a lot more instrumentation to your sound, is this a sign for the future or just a one off?

Yeah, we’re definitely going for more of a full band sound. It’s just the way I’m writing at the moment, and something I’m enjoying more live too. The sound is moving more towards rock pop territory and we’ve got some great musicians in the band to be able to add to that sound.

Which artists and/or people inspire and influence you?

There’s definitely a whole bunch of songwriters that get me going when listening to them. At the moment a lot of Jackson Browne, The National, Kurt Vile and Fleetwood Mac. But they’re all big names, and we’re spoiled in Melbourne for awesome music. There’s so many writers of the local scene that influence my songwriting…New Gods, Big Smoke, Jen Cloher, Van Walker, Courtney Barnett, Fraser A Gorman, the Toot Toot Toots… I find that going out to a gig directly conflicts with wanting

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With this fuller sound, what can one expect from a live show of yours now?

Our live show now is really good, with equal parts feel good rock n roll and downbeat melancholic melody.

It’s more high energy than it has been in the past and we love a good improvisational outro. I still love to bring the dynamic down a bit with an acoustic number now and again but the majority of the show is a full band rocky vibe.

And, any plans for another full length in the near future?

Definitely. We have one written that is in its planning stage at the moment.

Midnight Run will be on that album, but we wanted to record something and get it out there while we work on recording the rest of it. We will hopefully have another single ready to go by summer and then the album shortly after that.

So, I have noticed you have quite a formidable beard growing at the moment. As a man who also likes to sculpt a beard, do you have any tips on how to grow and maintain a beard such as yours?

Haha. My only advice is to stress less. I recently trimmed my beard back and found a bald patch the size of a five cent piece under my chin…

God knows how long its been there!

But when I started growing a beard, I had full coverage. Now I have some inability to grow hair in this one really small and really specific part of my beard. I’m livid. I have no idea where it came from or why its there, but people are telling me its probably from stress… I don’t think that I’m a particularly stressed out person, but one way to maximise stress is to tell a bearded man that he’s losing hair in small patches in or around said beard…

And finally, if you could create a public holiday what would it be for and what date?

I’d probably have to go with ‘Meredith Monday’. Happens twice a year on the day everyone is supposed to go back to work after a sleep deprived, drug fuelled weekend with Aunty Meredith.

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Gram Parsons – Grievous Angel

1974

by Cam Johns

Along with Jeff Buckley Gram Parsons is an artist that passed with a very limited, but extremely celebrated discography, which has fans of theirs always wonder what their legacy would have been had they not left us so soon. Admittedly Gram has a much bigger catalogue to refer back to, contributing on 6 albums in 6 years, his death at 26 from an alcohol and morphine overdose cut down a great performer in his prime. His two solo records were undeniably his best, GP and Grievous Angel, with the latter a perfect blend of country, rock and even some aspects of piano balladry too. His vocals lending perfectly to all these styles and the pairing with the heavenly twang of legendary country star and friend of Gram’s Emmylou Harris on tracks such ‘Return Of The Grievous Angel’, ‘Hearts On Fire’ and ‘Love Hurts’ provided a perfect contrast of vocal styling’s that really added depth. But ‘Brass Buttons’, the only track not containing any additional vocals, is the most stripped down track on the album and in turn is the most intimate. A piano ballad with electric slide guitar and slight percussion with the emphasis on Gram’s vocals and introspective lyrics such as this one “a dream much too real to be leaned against too long”, this was Gram at his musical best.

This was the last of Gram’s releases, actually released 4 months after his death, and it will go down as one of the greatest country/rock albums of all time.

Majical Cloudz – Impersonator

2013

This record is one of the most vocal heavy and vocal centric albums I have ever had the pleasure of listening to. Majical Cloudz, Canadian duo comprised of singer songwriter Devon Welsh and producer Matt Otto, have created an album that enforces the fact that the simplest of song structures can be the most powerful. From the opening track and title track ‘Impersonator’ the emphasis on vocals is at the forefront. With a looped vocal layered into the beat on top of very spacious and airy production, Devon’s deep vocal

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delivery arrives over the top and proceeds to steal the show. Matt’s production continues to be very understated for the entirety of the album, acting like the heartbeat to the vocals and lyrics, adding the perfect amount of accompaniment to Devon’s extremely strong voice. Often with music these days, lyrics can be hard to decipher and even hear clearly… this is not an issue at all here. The elocution and the sheer volume of every word sung makes for an experience where after just the 2nd listen it will have you repeating, and subsequently belting out, most if not all the lyrics. As Impersonator goes on Devon varies his pitch on tracks ‘Illusion’ and the gorgeous ‘Bugs Don’t Buzz’, with the latter a haunting and simple piano lead song with Devon sounding emotional and urgent, reminding me of a song Perfume Genius would be proud to own. I love every choice made on this album and its replayability will have me coming back for more.

Sonny & The Sunsets – Antenna To The Afterworld

2013

Sonny Smith, singer songwriter and guitarist of Sonny & The Sunsets, is a prolific musical chameleon with the last three years netting three differing records. 2011’s Hit After Hit delivering a lo-fi garage rock record. 2012’s Longtime Companion is a country filled Byrds inspired record that made me want to square dance. And now coming into 2013 Sonny and his merry men (and woman), with the release of Antenna To The Afterworld, have dipped into synth layered surf rock-pop inspired beauty. A much more washed out record with Sonny’s vocals taking somewhat of a backseat on a majority of these tracks, like ‘Dark Corners’, ‘Palmreader’, ‘Void’ and ‘Earth Girl’. Of course when I say Synth layered it is a subtle inclusion, often just a flourish contained within most tracks, with it blending seamlessly together (And as mentioned before a stark contrast from the very twangy Longtime Companion).

While predominantly a regular sweet love struck record, with songs like ‘Path Of Orbit’ claiming his love is back again and ‘Primitive’ where he can’t explain why he wants someone he just does, scattered throughout are mentions of intergalactic love (take particular note of ‘Green Blood’). Sonny has the innate ability to craft interesting stories, which should keep you immersed in his music even if you feel the sounds are not that revolutionary. I personally love the different sounds he has experimented with here and I am extremely intrigued to see what musical style he adapts to next. yirmag.com

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NUALA SWAN

26, Scottish, Glasgow

Interview by Olivia Mroz

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What inspires you?

I get inspired by different things all the time. It could be the work of another photographer, a film or a piece of clothing.

Why do you create?

I can’t imagine not taking photographs. It’s something that I know I’ll be doing for the rest of my life whether I make a career out of it or not.

What mediums do you use?

I switch between shooting digital, and on traditional 35mm film. I also shoot using Instax instant film. I love the feeling anticipation from going to collect the prints, and there’s a nostalgia there too. I’m hoping to start developing my own films at home soon, so that I’ll be in control of the process from start to finish. Instax is great because the whole team gets to watch the image develop. When the Instax turn out well it gives everyone a boost and you know you’re on the right track.

What do you do while you create?

If we’re shooting indoors then music that suits the tone of the shoot is a must. If we’re outdoors then that’s not so easy!

How old were you when you started?

I’ve always had an interest in photography, my dad used to take hundreds of photos, and develop them himself. I didn’t get into it seriously until I bought my first DSLR a few years ago. More recently I’ve gone back to the analogue stuff.

Tell us a little about the shoot This editorial was shot in beautiful private gardens in Edinburgh. I used my dad’s old Olympus XA film camera, which I love because the colours are always beautiful.

I worked with a great team on the shoot, the models are some of my favourites, and the stylist and make-up artist are regular collaborators.

Tell me a little about your creations I concentrate mostly on fashion based images. I love the team collaboration that you get with those types of shoots.

You might have one vision in your head, but having other people involved means that the shoot might take new directions that you hadn’t originally thought of. Having said that, I also like the really simple shoots, where it’s just the photographer and the subject.

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Photographer: Nuala Swan Models: Hamish, Daniel and Taylor at Superior Stylist: Rebecca McLeod Make Up and Hair: Molly Sheridan Garments: Danni McWilliams

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This Sex Is On Fire I always was of the opinion that there were two kinds of injuries one could sustain in the act of coitus; the humorous, bumbling kind of knee-scraps and burnt folds of flesh that come with getting a little too ‘experimental,’ or the kind which sees you on an extended course of antibiotics and brandishing a tube of Zovirax and telling anyone within ear shot “it’s just a cold sore!”

But, as I was compiling stories and anecdotes for this article, I realised that there is no greater sexual injury than the pain inflicted upon your soul as you begin counting the length of time since you last did the horizontal monster mash in months, not weeks. Oh, how the soul aches.

But I digress.

I am a university student and, like many of my peers, as soon as that heartfluttering, sweat-inducing period of time known as ‘examinations’ is over, I have a tendency to blot out the textbook-induced panic and stabbing pain in my brain with copious amounts of alcohol. Like, I’m talking nights beginning with pints of beer ‘watered-down’ with vodka and ending with a stern reprimand from the local police for blocking local traffic in my paralytic state as my friend vomits into the charity bucket that the local Red Cross volunteer is brandishing.

After a particularly loose night spent travelling from bar to bar for Halloween, a friend of mine had to be placed on a course of antibiotics because her nose-stud had been ripped out of her face at some point and gangrene or Jungle Fever had set in and was essentially rotting her flesh.

What she didn’t tell the doctor was the injury sustained to her bejeweled face was as a result of the stud getting tangled in the pubic hairs of one of the medical students from across the hallway and, as you could imagine, her nose was torn asunder. Living across the hall from her, I heard her scream but, assuming that the medic knew his way around the female form quite well, thought nothing of it. Oh, the hilarity that ensued the following morning as she recounted the tale to us over the breakfast table. Made me feel marginally better about having slept with one of the American exchange students that same evening who was very into hair pulling. But that’s another tale for another day...

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Considering that I am now in my third year of study, and I have attended two universities in the two separate hemispheres of this planet, I would humbly put it to you, dear reader, that I am well-versed and experienced in the world of human suffering and pain known as ‘Sexual-Related Injuries.’

And I cannot help but draw parallels with the rate of injury and the severity of said injury with the consumption of alcohol. People have a tendency to loosen their ties and their legs as the number of drinks they’ve consumed reaches numbers with two digits. You never hear tales of Amish couples having to be separated after attempting to recreate a particularly exotic position from the Karma Sutra which really seemed like a good idea after their third Tequila shot. But you do hear about dumb-ass 20 year olds with chaffed penises after attempting to see how many times it is possible to masturbate before passing out. (For your information, it’s 16 times, according to an anonymous source of mine. Thanks, Jimmy.)

Another friend of mine one recounted the tale of a drive through the countryside with her boyfriend at the time. Whether it was the vibrations given off by the ancient 20-year-old Commodore driven by said boyfriend, or the pressure building from a very-full bladder, she insisted they stopped somewhere off-road and quiet for a little alfresco sex. The boyfriend, more than happy to oblige, quickly pulled off down a dirty, dusty road and proceeded to jump from the vehicle, woman in tow.

Everything was going swimmingly, until the boyfriend grabbed his short-less girlfriend, sans panties and plonked her onto the bonnet of the Commodore.

Now, I’m no mechanic, but even I know that a car that’s been driven for hundreds of kilometers in the hot Australian sun will surely have collected some heat in the solid metal bonnet. Which is exactly what happened. Hot bonnet + bare bum = disgruntled girlfriend, a severe drop in libido and a trip to the emergency room for bum burn.

Six months later, the Kings of Leon released their stella single ‘Sex on Fire.’

I wonder if they were listening as I clawed at my raw butt cheeks, denim shorts gathered around my ankles, my screams echoing through the lush greenery of the Yarra Valley bush.

I mean, around my friend’s screams, obviously...

Made Stuchbery

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Marina Fini 21 Italian/Polish/Russian Los Angeles

Interview by Olivia Mroz

Pansexual

What do you do?

I am a filmmaker, photographer, and costume designer. I am essentially a producer because I build mostly everything from the ground up in terms of making my fantasies come alive. I use film and photography because I like creating stories that make people question their reality, to elevate consciousness, but most importantly I’d like my viewers to feel a change (good or bad). For me my costume and jewelry design goes hand and hand with my visual aesthetic. I studied costume design in college and was able to really grasp the idea of character development, as well as theorizing how people translate clothing as a certain role. It fascinates me to know that when someone looks at a person, they have an inherent assumption of who that person is or what they do, without taking the opportunity to question whats behind their life. I just think its pretty surreal that clothing or someones’ daily “costume” can be seen as a specific character in this realm.

What

inspired/s

signs?

your

jewelry

thought of symbology that represented the internet culture that is present right now.

So I began making huge ironic pieces like @ symbols and hand cursors to sort of trip people out when I am out in public.

I hope my jewelry makes people smile and brings about a certain charismatic nature to whoever wears them. My slogan is “Handmade Galactic Warrior Princess Jewelry.”

When did you start photography and film?

I started making films in high school and photography even earlier but never really took it seriously until 2-3 years ago. I majored in Film production in college at UC Santa Cruz and ended up experiencing some of the best classes and teachers of my life. They really inspired me to just not give a fuck and to pursue what you love, but to especially be honest with yourself.

And thats what I am doing now, I just want to create and collaborate with people all over the world and hopefully inspire people to be themselves.

de-

Where

I get really inspired by native tribes from all over the world because I like the idea that jewelry is some sort of armor or spiritual protection. My crystal pieces really signify the connection with the earth and I want people that wear these crystals to feel some sort of progressive and creative change within themselves. When i started to learn laser cutting over a year ago, I

elry

is

or

your

heart

really,

in

jew-

photography?

My heart lies in all types of creation, but especially filmmaking. Photography is a huge part of that though because if I can make a still or 2d image powerful then I know I can turn it into a moving image, giving it more potential. I really enjoy working on an image for a while, seeing it my head and trying my best to get that one

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epic shot. Getting projects done and making it happen is the best feeling I could ask for.

Photography is a bigger challenge for me because I need to have the concept there and ready where as with film I can lead into the idea more slowly. But either way they are both obstacles that are constantly provoking my mind to think and enable me to become an image magician.

What inspires you?

Anyone that is staying trill (true + real) inspires me. So many people lie behind expectations and masks that layer them into a fake spiral due to what the human is supposed live up to. I really like people who go against the grain and are sort off the grid of society. In the next year or two, i would like to travel across America and eventually the world and live out of a trailer where I make costumes and dress random people I meet a long the way, documenting my journey of illusive characters. Sometimes I fantasize of becoming a monk in Tibet or something like that, separating myself from this consumerist lifestyle and being a completely different person.

Why do you create?

I create because it is just engraved in my body to manipulate everyday reality.

Producing visually stimulating imagery, whether it is through my jewelry, film or photography is what I want to share. I also create because i want to change peoples minds of what is expected in front of the camera. I purposely don’t use professional models because they are unfortunately taught to look and be a certain way that demeans their natural being. I like raw, natural and real people who haven’t been exposed to that industry, all shapes and sizes, who have never even thought of modeling before. It gives the image more authenticity and preserves a sense of innocence.

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Tell

us

a

little

about

your

favorite

(jewelry).

My favorite piece that I made was this crystal crown headpiece for a Microsoft commercial. I got approached by a costume designer at Universal Costume Dept earlier this year and I ended up getting commissioned to make the most epic crystal piece I ever made. I would like to make more of them but they cost so much to produce. Another favorite would probably be my rainbow crystal point chokers, I wear this one specifically everyday because I am so attached to the crystal. piece

If

you

would

started

it

a

revolution

what

be?

My revolution would be mostly about equality, global coexistence and ridding gender binaries. I personally don’t believe in gender, thats why I put myself as pansexual, which is a term that I am sure a lot of people relate to. After studying enough film theory in college, I began to get more and more angry about how film and media has manipulated society to maintain these unhealthy roles for both men and women. I think so many people restrict themselves from expressing who they are because of this. Fortunately enough I have met a ton of people who go beyond these boundaries which has influenced my work heavily. I feel that gender creates a binary that doesn’t really exist because everyone exhibits qualities of the female & male archetypes, so why restrict us to one or the other...after all we are all human and we all come from the universe.

What both

do

you

do

mediums.

while

you

create?

In

Whenever I make something I also have an intention of some kind. I really like to intrigue people with over the top jewelry/ costumes, while creating images that make people wonder what they are looking at. I am all about optical illusions things that trick the eye. I also practice analog techniques

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with my work, stressing the importance of in camera effects versus relying on photoshop. Theres nothing better than manipulating your image during the shoot in my mind because you can find tricks and utilize objects that preserve the art form.

Do or

you do

always

you

just

plan go

before with

a

the

shoot, flow?

Anytime I produce a film or photoshoot there is always a plan but no plan at the same time. The actors or models know the concept and the intent but on the day of shooting everything is usually improvisational. I really like being able to be flexible with ideas and movement because sometimes my muses end up doing something very unexpected and brilliant, which can never be planned in my mind.

How old were you when you started?

I was 15 when I made my first film and probably 8 when I first learned how to use a camera. It wasn’t until I was around 1920 that I started to make jewelry.

Tell

me

a

little

about

your

cre-

ations:

OPTICAL ILLUSIONS AND FLOWER POWER big, loud, eccentric, statement pieces!

Don’t mess with the crystal power Who’s your favorite photographer?

My favorite photographer right now is Kerstin Zu Pan. A friend showed me her work a few months ago and I am a huge fan of what she’s been doing. You can really see how much production goes into her imagery although it holds such simplicity at the same time.

What mediums do you use?

35mm photography digital film & photography costume & jewelry construction lazer cutting yirmag.com

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S U B C O N S C I O U S W H Y

W E

S H O U L D

A N A LYS E

M A T T E R S O U R

D R E A M S

It’s funny how I am a fully functional human being who has had the greatest of childhoods yet I am capable of such concerning thoughts. I’ve recorded my dreams since I was young because I think that it is the most intimate way of getting to know yourself. I wasn’t interested in my perception of self in relation to others but what I am truly like, as so displayed in the dark and ominous corners of my mind. Dream analysis gives me the opportunity to delve.

I have a confession to make. I have had more than one instance where I’ve had an incestuous dream. Additionally, situations revolving around bestiality have popped up on the odd occasion. Obviously I was extremely freaked out upon awaking as a young, impressionable and underdeveloped woman remembering this. What followed was a choice; I could either ignore this part of myself, the part that made me ashamed, or I could investigate. Surely I wasn’t so predictable as to fit neatly inside Freud’s concept of the repressed?

It turned out that after some harrowing inquiry, incestuous dreams are quite common. Especially common in those who are in early stages of adult life (phew).

It speaks of the two sides of self integrating together yet still fighting for dominance.

In my case, sides of masculinity and femininity.

But why couldn’t my dream just come out and say that point blank? There is no system to the language of the subconscious. Through the formation of words, we build structures communicating the thoughts we are experiencing. There is a limit to this communication but it is expanded through our body’s own language. There is a chasm. Between what we say and how we are positioned on that chair. Between what we are thinking consciously and what we are interpreting unconsciously.

The unconscious has no such system. It is cryptic. It speaks not through a system but with imagery. It is symbolic. It is subjective. It is debatable. It is metaphorical.

We try to assign meaning to it but it cannot be spoken in absolutes. The problem lies in the absolutes. Although we find comfort in the definite, there is none in the art of dream analysis nor in anything to do with life. It is time for civilisation to stop being afraid of the unknown. The darkness. The bones. Death. They are all mystifying.

Fright and terror needs to be replaces with intrigue. Trepidation with excitement.

Dreams have an ambiguous nature not to be irritating but to reward you with that light bulb moment. The moment which forces you to think really hard about what the precipice of your mind is trying to communicate to you, the forefront. If it was in plain terms then we wouldn’t pay attention to it. It is only when we delve deeper, that we get the gift of an epiphany. Those moments of real clarity, where the mirror in front of our faces becomes less fogged. The moment I get from realising the symbolism of my dreams.

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Interview by Di

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iarmaid Murray

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Why do you make music?

Man, this is something I think about all the time, but answers aren’t particularly forthcoming. Sometimes I really wanna make music just for the sake of making it. Sometimes I have to force myself to sit down and finish a song I’ve stopped being excited about because I know it’s good and needs to be finished because it’s my job. I have such a broad relationship with music, both as a creator and a listener, and to pull it apart and understand the core underlying impetus is difficult and to be honest not something I’m sure I want to expose, but even on the most simple level hearing how sounds interact with us and each other has always been a source of fascination for me, and I don’t see that stopping any time soon.

How would you describe your music to somebody who hasn’t heard it before?

I tend to describe it as psych-pop, which gives people some impression of what to expect.

Tell us about Organs

Oh man, ok! So Organs is the main project I’ve been working on for the last two years. It’s an album about bodies, our relationships with our own bodies, trying to understand them as naturally growing machines, trying to comprehend the complexity of them, and examining how a bag of meat can feel “sad”, and whether that should be embarrassing or affirming or whatever. It’s pretty intense, but it’s also intensely pretty. It’ll be out before the year’s over!

How has your music evolved over time?

I work today basically the same way that I did when I started, but the projects are on a much bigger scale. Some of the songs I’m working on for Organs have taken as long to record as my whole first and second album did, combined. It used to be so casual, I’d write these fun little songs and record them in a day and it’d be over, and now when I’m struggling for days to write a good lyric for a certain song or whatever I think back to those effortless sessions where I’d crap out loads of songs and I have to remind myself that while it was maybe more fun at the time, it’s important that I keep pushing myself to record more ambitious things.

What has been the reaction to that evolution?

I’m not sure it’s quite such an obvious change when you’re an onlooker; I sometimes get people saying they listened back to my first album and what at the time was super great now sounds like a kid futzing around in his room compared to my contemporary stuff but it’s rare. The shift’s really happened implicitly within the people who listen to my music, and how they engage with it. My earlier stuff was fun and entertaining, and people engaged with it on that very surface level, which was fine, but today people are actually examining what I do and looking for something deeper within it, which is great.

What artists would you love to work with?

I was listening to Björk last night, fantasising about a collaboration with her. It would be mental.

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What do you do when you’re not making music?

I draw a lot. I hang out with people a lot too, I’m a deeply social creature, I love having people over and cooking and talking about stuff. Sometimes when I’ve been making music for too long I run out of things to write about because I haven’t been living or thinking about anything outside of the ideas I already had, so I go do some living for a bit, get some ideas in.

What is your idea of a modern artist?

Isn’t a modern artist anyone who was making fine art between like 1945 and 1989?

Do you have any goals as far as music is concerned?

I actually don’t. I mean obviously I wanna finish Organs, and there are some cool collaborative projects I’ve got planned for while I’m in America, but I’m really enjoying living in the moment and doing what feels right at the time.

Do you have any advice for budding musicians?

Yeah, listen to music. Listen to music all the time. Read about music.

Think about music, think about it while you’re listening to it. But most of all, write music. Record it. Play music with your friends. Find the heart of what draws you to music and sit inside it, embody it until you love it enough that playing music all day every day isn’t tiresome but sustaining, and don’t worry about your progress. Keep going. Getting better is an inevitability if you do something enough. You don’t have to devote your entire life to music, but viewing everything through a creative eye is something that will improve anyone’s life. I’m sure of it.

Get Tom’s EP Here. iTunes

Bandcamp

tommilsom.com

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Youtube

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By Cam Johns Vincent Van Go Go – Do U Know?

2006

From the first track of this 2006 album, I felt the highest sense of confusion that I actually started to uncontrollably laugh. I believe I literally uttered the words “What the fuck is this?” Take the first track ‘Girls’. “Girls like clean and smooth/They go UH UH UH UH”… it is evident that this Denmark based group just got a slight grip on the English language and threw together an album of nonsensical lyrics about fun times and picking up chicks, and I was enjoying myself… well at least I thought I was. While I did enjoy 3 of these tracks, everything around them left me unsatisfied. My emotions went from happy to bored too often with the good tracks really sticking out, while everything else just seemed to suck the enjoyment out and remove everything that made their songs fun. While I felt quite happy listening to some of these tracks, the desire to ever hear them again got swiftly booted out with the amount of mediocre tracks that they were drowned in.

Tracks to check out: Girls, Do U Know? We’ll See.

BIN IT Max Tundra – Mastered By Guy And The Exchange 2002

My eyes would not allow me to not get this, my body tried to move away but to no avail. A sea creature with a mans head playing the longest floating set of piano keys I have ever seen while also playing what looks like a snare drum… Sold. English multi instrumentalist Ben Jacobs a.k.a Max Tundra has created an album that has so many ideas and differing sounds it has my head spinning trying to keep up. My attempt to categorise this into any type of genre only caused migraines, with my best attempt maybe electronic IDM blended indie pop. Tracks like ‘Cabasa’ have so many twists and turns, I didn’t know which part of the song to focus on. Max has found a way to blend all of these sounds that normally would not fit together and create an adventure that cannot possibly be conquered in one listen.

Track to check out: MBGATE, Lysine, Fuerte, Cabasa, Lights

KEEP IT This 2008

Bike

Is

A

Pipe

Bomb

–

Convertible

Although This Bike Is A Pipe bomb doesn’t tread any new ground their raw energy and often A.D.D style of folk/punk is engrossing, making me want to read into the lyrics behind the chaotic instrumentals. And with tracks like ‘Roscoe Arbuckle’, a song about a heavy person taking a shot of heroin “to make it feel like someone loves me”, you can see why. With no track reaching over 2 and a half minutes and the whole Convertible album not exceeding 25 minutes it was all over a little too quickly that ended in me shouting at my CD player “Give me more!” I eventually realised that my CD player does not really respond to vocal cues so I decided to press play instead. Each track contains punchy instrumentals with great honest lyrics and emotionally strained vocals, a perfect example of quality of quantity.

Tracks to check out: Adreena Kitt, Roscoe Arbuckle, What To Do, Strange Fruit, Diggin Ditches, The Minimum Wage Song

KEEP IT

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At least I run faster than Internet Explorer

by Made Stuchbery

I’m going to be brutally honest here; I do not understand the appeal or the concept of The Gym. I’ve recently moved back home with my mother upon my return to Australian soil. But, after discovering that I would be back bunking in with my little sister, I swiftly found a new apartment in the city and, thankfully, will be moving back to Melbourne where the sane people are. Each and every morning I am awoken by my sister’s rustling in the room as she rises like a Gothic manifestation of Dracula and heads off, tote bag in tow, to the local gym for a pre-dawn work out. And, through the fog of slumber, I hate her for it. I cannot understand how she could possibly enjoy scraping her hair into a bun and spending an hour forcing herself to sweat as she picks up the heavy thing and surrenders it to gravity, only to pick it up again once more.

Now, I’m lucky to have been blessed with a relatively good metabolism. Which means that, whilst I am no Paris-thin waif eating tissues, I have so far managed to sustain a writers existence, spending my time hunched over either a computer or note-pad, shoveling m&m’s into my mouth in a monotonous fashion and pausing only to wipe the steam that fogs my glasses as I lean over my 54th cup of Earl Grey for the day. My diet is terrible in that, whilst it is relatively low in kilojoules, is basically just a cup or two of sugar a day watered down with tea or coffee, depending on what deadlines I have and how fast they are approaching.

My sister, on the other hand, has morphed into something of a fitness freak. She eats a certain amount of carbs/protein/vegetable matter per day. She goes to the gym at least once every 48 hours, and refuses to ingest sugar after 8PM. Granted, she’s normally in bed by 7.30PM, but that’s beside the point. At some point in her life, she decided it was a good idea to wear tight-fitting gym clothes and run around with strangers on treadmills and ride a bike that is mounted to the floor, so her legs are spinning, but she remains stationary. What is the point of riding a bike if you’re not travelling anywhere, say to the general store on the corner to buy $5 worth of Jersey Caramels?

I went to a gym once. It was awful. They have these mirrors plastered up all over the walls, so not only was I forced to look at the odd mountains of muscle that pass for the male body builder, my own reflection was refracted and hurled back at me. And, under those bright lights, I did not like what I saw. I felt tired. I was red in the face and my hair was plastered to my face with sweat. my arms aches from picking up and putting down heavy weights over and over again, and my legs were trembling from having tried to use a cross trainer. And, as far as I can tell, it’s only called a ‘Cross Trainer’ because that was my state of mind after having tried and failed to grapple with the complexity of the pushing and pulling and running and jumping that the machine required for operation. I left an hour earlier than my friends and went and had a Kit Kat. yirmag.com

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My sister and I are clearly chalk and cheese. She; the gym bunny who counts calories and gives me a stern look every time I decide that Tim Tams would be a sufficient breakfast. Again. And I: who has a complete and utter disdain for most forms of physically exertion.

But get this: we weight exactly the same. Despite the copious amounts of sweating and running and appearing in public in weird Lycra outfits, my sister is not drastically skinnier or smaller than I. So, why bother?

I understand health and fitness is important to people. And perhaps if maintaining a clean bill of health was easier and involved minimal movement, I’d be all for it too. But, alas, in this world it seems in order to be a successful, mainstream beauty, it is essential to slave away for hours each week at the temple of vain indulgence and self-worship known as the gym. And that is something that utterly and completely terrifies me. The fact that my littler sister, someone who I would fight a rabid bear in order to protect, feel compelled to slave away for hours attempting to perfect her body so she feels comfortable within the restrictions of societies perception of ‘the modern woman’ makes me writhe in anger. I wish that I could take away that utter fear and self-hatred she puts herself through as each night she changes into her gym gear and heads off for an hour of punishment. I wish I could make her as confident and self-assured in her abilities as an intelligent, beautiful, compelling young woman as I feel. But I can’t. That’s something that she has to learn herself.

I leave her, and you readers, with this snippet of an interview with Dustin Hoffman after his portray of a transexual woman in the famous 1982 film Tootsie. I found it compelling and heartbreaking, and I hope you do too.

“If I was going to be a woman, I would want to be as beautiful as possible. And they said to me, ‘Uh, that’s as beautiful as we can get you.’ And I went home and started crying to my wife, and I said, ‘I have to make this picture.’ And she said, ‘Why?’ And I said, ‘Because I think I’m an interesting woman when I look at myself on screen, and I know that if I met myself at a party, I would never talk to that character because she doesn’t fulfill, physically, the demands that we’re brought up to think that women have to have in order for us to ask them out.’

She says, ‘What are you saying?’ and I said, ‘There’s too many interesting women I have not had the experience to know in this life because I have been brainwashed.’

It was not what it felt like to be a woman. It was what it felt like to be someone that people didn’t respect, for the wrong reasons. I know it’s a comedy. But comedy’s a serious business.”

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Seeing Double

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Photography & Styling: Jessica Donnellan Models: Bridget McCormack and Tara McCormack

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Once Upon a Banjo String Every so often in our sexual lives we come across a specific issue which we’ve never encountered. I don’t mean ‘Oh, Ansell come in Olive Marinade flavour now’ or ‘How do I ask my boyfriend to smack me more?’ but a sudden, dramatic issue which involves all parties and can be really fucking scary. If you’ve never heard of the ‘banjo string’ it’s about time you learned, because whether you’re sexually active or not, what you read in the next few paragraphs could potentially save someone from completely freaking out one day – if not you then most likely your besties. Also it’s nice for us girls to know that boys’ bodies occasionally do weird things that neither they nor we understand (at first).

So. The frenulum. It comes from a Latin term meaning ‘little bridle’, and refers to any small fold of bodily tissue which restricts or secures another part of your body which moves around a lot. You’ve actually got a few of them: there’s the one under your tongue, the one under your top lip, and there’s one special one which boys have. It’s colloquially referred to as the banjo string, and during sex (or masturbation, as I learned from the survey I conducted for this article) it can tear or break. As you’d imagine with all the blood hauling ass down to the nether regions during sex, when the string breaks you end up in the middle of what can look like a slasher crime scene, and if no one knows what’s going on, then that already alarming situation will be a little bit freakier.

Tim* says that when it happened to him he felt the tear, but kept on grinding with his girl because he didn’t really know what had happened. When he went to the bathroom to clean up afterwards, the volume of blood he saw caused him to pass out. Gareth was scared he’d need to go to hospital but was too embarrassed, so “lay on the bed for half an hour with a flannel on [his] knob praying it would stop bleeding.” It seems that generally, none of the guys knew for sure what had happened. And often, the girls didn’t either. “She freaked the fuck out; awkward scenes at the breakfast buffet the next morning” and “the blood kinda freaked us both out” are responses which came back in one iteration or another again and again, as well as this beauty: “When [my girlfriend] figured out it was my blood and not hers, she just went back to bed.” That was from Tim, the guy who passed out... nice. Ben says that “I think she was more disappointed that we could not continue”, and that’s probably the best reaction you could have.

Because as long as you are using a condom or have both been tested, there shouldn’t be an issue with STIs. Most guys learned what had happened from their friends; Gareth says “Spoke to a mate and he said straight away, ‘Ahhh, you snapped your banjo, we’ve all done it.’” This is good. What’s not good (and we all know this, but pretty much do it anyway) is self-diagnosis on the net. “[I] freaked out because a common treatment was circumcision,” says Nic of his little Google adventure. “Ended up going to the doctor who told me to chill out, and that it would heal in a couple of weeks.”

It will never happen to some guys. Sometimes it only happens once. Sometimes it happens repeatedly and dude will consider getting a frenuloplasty (a small operation in which the surgeon makes a little cut in the string to lengthen it) or a straight-up circumcision to remedy the problem. Of all the guys I surveyed, only one had experienced a torn string just once. Of the others, some haven’t had it happen again in years, while others didn’t wait long enough for the tear to heal and ended up in another bloodbath a few months later.

The point is: for all that gore and terror there is very, very rarely a serious problem. If anyone comes hysterically up to you, pulling your arm and screaming ‘I/HE BROKE HIS/MY DICK” then tell them not to panic, get them a cup of tea and explain what you know about the little bridle. You are now officially clued up. *all names have been invented, as the survey I conducted was totally anonymous. yirmag.com

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A Young And Groovy Westerner’s Guide To Buddhism

By Millie Clayton

The purpose of this piece of writing is to inform the people who want to partake in the Western trend of adopting Eastern culture, that being Buddhism most specifically. Whilst there isn’t the tension between logic and reason and unquestioning acceptance of religious authority in Eastern philosophy, a lot of Westerners aren’t looking at the bigger picture. If you are one of those individuals racing around preaching about detachment and karma, I want to make sure you really know your stuff. Otherwise you are without a doubt looking like a dickhead. Fair enough if spiritual awakening is totally the path for you but first I would make sure you are prepared to be like Buddha. This may involve leaving your wife and child behind to go and ‘find yourself ’ for the sake of the greater world.

Presently, Christianity and Judaism somewhat fail to maintain coherency and desirability in terms of human values and ends. Not only has the Christian religion been flooded with negative connotations of pedophilic-inclined priests but young people may not be satisfied with a number of aspects that its religion represents. This may include Christianity’s outright condemnation of homosexuality and contraception amongst other things like the Old and New Testament being completely contradictory of each other. Not trying to inject my own biased frustration but simply put, I just can’t say that I am ever going to get down on my knees and praise the lord unquestionably (lower case intended) if that’s what he asks of me. I’m choosing to ignore the fact that I am annoyed for God being referred to as ‘he’ in the first place as it implies that a pair of boobs and female genitalia makes you less God-like. To me, traditional Christianity doesn’t seem to fit into a post-modern society.

I perceive that my conflict with religious ideals may be due to being capable of seeing beauty in the world without fear and impending sense of doom that the Bible tries to instill when it comes to death and the afterlife. One day our corpses may be burnt and we will be amongst everyone in an omnipresent ash-form. Or else we will be buried in the ground and disintegrated into the Earth. Finally, people seem willing to accept that this just might be the fateful end. Perhaps we don’t now need a deity that demands authority for absolutely no reason as we live in an egalitarian world. A world where we would prefer to think of Jesus as a nice man with a robe that wouldn’t flaunt his ability of turning water into wine. If you’re Jewish, then maybe, just maybe, you are just sick and tired of waiting for your Prophet to rock up. I mean really, haven’t you been kept waiting long enough?

My choice of focusing on the Christian tradition in this instance is purely because it is what I am familiar with growing up. Not that my parents are religious, but it was a typical “We wanted you to have the knowledge so that you could make up your own mind,” type situation. Needless to say, Atheism ultimately became my path by late primary school. Christianity however, can be largely considered a Western religion with multicultural Australia still possessing strong Christian roots from our longestablished ties with the UK. All of this aside, it is fair to say that a lot of minorities of ‘free-thinkers’ have now turned to Eastern practices of religion and philosophy for answers. One of the most fashionable and notable in the last few decades has been Buddhism with even bloody Madonna jumping on the ol’ spiritual bandwagon. The Eastern philosophy offers great intrigue to Westerners as it not only incorporates more mythical traditions of thought but this is tied in with logic and reasoning. Religion and philosophy are more closely tied in Eastern traditions and are not dogmatic giving it utmost appeal for us ‘blogger types’. My major in Religion and Theology is finally going to serve a purpose as what follows is a lay down of the Buddhism basics…

1. Difference to Hinduism First things first, Hinduism and Buddhism differs in the sense that the former pertains to the belief that the ancient texts of the Vedas (old and ancient Sankriit scriptures) are incapable of being false. Both

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schools have philosophical roots but differ in various ways. One such arguments that exists between the two is surrounding whether or not the concept of ‘Self ’ is fixed. Buddhism advocates that the self is in constant states of flux whereas Hindu schools perceive the Self as having an eternal soul.

2. What Karma actually means Whilst Buddhism is seen as the middle path between wisdom and compassion, it does not operate on egalitarian premises. Within its system pertains the concept that people belong to different ‘castes’ in which there is a very strong social hierarchy that dictates where an individual is born and remains for life.

This can involve the mistreatment of lower social caste systems but is based on the concept that people are born in accordance to karmic residue in which karma built up over lifetimes serves to casually influence where one is born in their next lifetime.

The ways in which to burn this karmic residue is through meditation. The law of karma, whilst appealing to Westerners in a short-term time context, is extremely deterministic. It doesn’t allow some individuals in India to live in the way they aspire to this being vastly different to what Westerners know. Our capitalist society involves a state of mind in which we make our own luck and have the opportunity to gain rewards if we work hard. If you are born in within a certain caste in India then that caste you must remain in until your death.

3. Moksa Make sure you pronounce this word as ‘moksha’ as if you don’t, you will look like a fool to everyone who is more literate and knowledgeable than you. This word refers to the Buddhist ideal of liberation and freedom. In terms of relating this to Catholicism, it can be somewhat comparable to the concept of heaven. If you actually want to take the time to read what the scriptures have to say about moksa, you will most likely end up being dazed and confused but take comfort in knowing that this doesn’t mean you aren’t the sharpest tool in the shed. The definition is obscure and is not positively defined with an obvious obstacle being that we are trying to understand a concept translated into the English language from what was originally written in a text thousands of years old. Moksa is seen as only being achieved by way of being on the path of what is defined as desireless action. Perhaps moksa isn’t positively defined so as to not make people aspire towards it. This helps us avoid the realisation of the obvious paradox being trying to attain something absent of desire.

3. Bondage (not the good sexual kind) Life is perceived as nothing but suffering so long as people show what is referred to as ‘bondage’ also known as attachment. Acting with a sense of detachment is central to Buddhist beliefs and it involves not acting with the hope of receiving fruits of your actions. This is not to be confused as acting with indifference in life but acting in a way as which involves not being connected to outcomes. This ideal may be seen as the most attractive attribute for Westerners as it involves absolving consumerist and capitalist desires.

4. Rebirth Rebirth and moksa are intimately related as moksa is perceived as being the escape from the cycle of rebirth. The cycle of rebirth in Buddhism involves no ‘transmigration’ being the opposite outlook to the Hindus. This means that the Buddhists perceive that nothing substantial passes from one life to the next.

Karmic residue is said to ‘casually’ influence the next life cycle (casually creating the difference between two individuals being in a couple and being just sex buddies is the only analogy I can foster in my mind).

I understand that your experience of religion may be completely different to mine. For some, it can be a truly wonderful ideal that rewards hope and a sense of morality to those who need it most (thinking of Life of Pi). I still think meditation and Bikram Yoga is cool. I just want people to know what they are signing up for prior to booking their ticket to a Nepalese mosque retreat. I will sign off now with a Namaste…which is Hindu, but appropriate. yirmag.com

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Submit for issue 16 to be published on October 1 submissions@yirmag.com

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