BMA Mag 360 Nov 10 2010

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Pharoahe Monch Knows his Wordsworth

Philadelphia Grand Jury

Trialling new material

#360NOV10

I m A u o Y

Tip the hat to Canberra once more

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Bianca Meier AT the front

“Half of the music industry is full of alcoholics who can’t actually make anything of themselves.” Who said this? To find out turn to page 30.

# 3 6 0 N O V 1 0 Fax: 02 6257 4361 Mail: PO Box 713 Civic Square, ACT 2608 Publisher Scott Layne General Manager & Advertising Manager Allan Sko T: 02 6257 4360 E: advertising@bmamag.com Editor Julia Winterflood T: 02 6257 4456 E: editorial@bmamag.com Accounts Manager Ashish Doshi T: 02 6247 4816 E: accounts@bmamag.com Super Sub Editor Josh Brown Graphic Design Cole Bennetts Exhibitionist Editor Yolande Norris E: exhibitionist@bmamag.com Film Editor Mark Russell Principal Photographers (The Flashbulb Posse) Andrew Mayo Nick Brightman NEXT ISSUE 360 OUT NOV 24 EDITORIAL DEADLINE NOV 15 ADVERTISING DEADLINE NOV 18 Published by Radar Media Pty Ltd ABN 76 097 301 730 BMA is independently owned and published.

Opinions expressed in BMA are not necessarily those of the editor, publisher or staff.

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With a voice that’s been compared to the likes of Julia Stone and Ani DiFranco, Sydney folk/roots artist Bianca Meier will take the stage at The Front on Wednesday November 24, as part of a national tour to promote the release of her debut EP Oh Bright Night. At the tender age of 21 Meier has already carved her name in the Australian live music and recording scene, playing alongside artists such as Ian Moss, Matt Corby and recording with The Whitlams and DIG on Oh Bright Night. For more info head to www.biancameier.com .

run SQUIRREL AT THE POTBELLY Making their way down the east coast for the first time, Run Squirrel will be stopping

by Canberra on Thursday November 25. Forming in Newcastle, the four-piece play a blend of emotive and moody rock channelling bands like Kings of Leon and Sparta. Run Squirrel will be joined on tour by songwriter and Novocastrian Corey Price playing a solo set.

Appearing alongside them will be duo acoustic act Racecar Bed and coast boys Absence of State. It’s all going down at The Potbelly Bar in Belconnen. Head to myspace.com/runsquirrelnc to have a listen.

GENEVIEVE CHADWICK three shows With her husky voice, superb songwriting and gutsy go-get’em performances, roots/rock sensation Genevieve Chadwick is attracting attention wherever she plays. Genevieve has toured the east coast with leading Australian musicians including Little Birdy, The Screaming Jets, Diesel, Richard Clapton and more. Along with winning both the ACT and NSW Battle of the Bands competition, Genevieve was a finalist in Cosmopolitan Magazine’s Fun, Fearless Female awards in the category of Rising Star

in 2010. Genevieve has three gigs in Canberra in the coming weeks; at The Front on Sunday November 14, at Phoenix on Thursday November 25 and PJ O’Reilly’s in Civic on November 26. Head to myspace.com/ genevievechadwick for a listen.

MICFEST AT CIT MICfest 2010 is an all day music festival, showcasing the talented students from CIT’s Music Industry Centre (MIC). MICfest kicks off at 1pm with local secondary students competing in the School Stars Band Competition, followed by the first year student bands.

The entertainment continues into the evening with the official MICfest EP launch. The second year MIC students will then perform until 10pm. Gig goers and the general public are encouraged to attend and enjoy all that the MIC has to offer.

The date to lock in is Saturday November 20, and the place is CIT, on the corner of Hindmarsh Dr and Ainsworth St Phillip.

NEW LP FROM BIGFOOT They say good things come to those who wait, so the Oz hip-hop scene must have been exemplary lately, because Bigfoot’s debut LP is about to drop. Never one to rush things, the man with the size 15 feet has taken his time to put together an album featuring guests such as Muph, Miss Brown, Dialectrix and assorted Hired Goons. Unlike a lot of Oz albums out lately, Giant Steps keeps the mood varied – there’s no 15 track whinge fest here.

Giant Steps drops on Friday November 12 through Broken Tooth Entertainment.

GEMMA RAY AT THE SHINE DOME Gemma Ray, the muchcelebrated UK pop-noir starlet, will play Canberra in support of her covers album It’s A Shame About Gemma Ray. The torch-singing, guitar-taming heroine, touring solo, will stay faithful to the stripped down spirit of the album, so this will be a rare opportunity to catch her in this guise. Expect a procession of hits from The Gun Club, The Cookies, Ella Fitzgerald, Obits, Mudhoney, Etta James, Gallon Drunk, Buddy Holly, Gershwin, Alex Harvey and more. She will also be equipped with her kitchen knife, which she uses to extract the sounds of the ‘other side’ from her guitar, and which she famously hospitalised herself with this summer, accidentally stabbing herself live on-stage in Oslo. Oo er. Gemma will be at The Shine Dome, that funny looking domey thing near ANU, on Saturday November 20.

DIGITAL JAM AT THE NGA Digital Jam is an underground experimental project by digital artists projecting live video and motion graphics and mixing sound on multiple stages.

Projections by video artists including London-based video director and illustrator Danny Sangra will dovetail with an epic sound space and dance music by a number of DJs including Melbourne sound artist Buttress O’Kneel. It’s all happening at the National Gallery on Saturday November 20 and tickets are on sale now.

Head to www.digitaljam.com. au for all the info.

danny sangra

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FROM THE BOSSMAN With year's end comes summer, with summer the festival season, and with the festival season the re-emergence of the most perplexing contribution to the world; the Festival Bogan.

The Festival Bogan, or Roidus Flurasis to use the non-existent Latin, is a curious creature to say the least. Anthropological greats such as David Attenborough and Charles Darwin would struggle to define their exact purpose and worth. Often seen in minimal clothing, many times replete with pants or skirt riding low enough to show off their 'sick plumage' and ultra-orange spray tan, the Festival Bogan will attempt to infiltrate its body with as many poisons in the quickest amount of time possible in order to get themselves into 'the zone' for attracting the opposite sex/general attention.

FBs have an impressive vocal range, with cries of “Maaaaaaaate!” and “You sick c*nt!” often heard as far as three blocks away. A bastardised form of Greco Roman wrestling – which is in no ways gay, they will be quick to point out – often serves as a greeting between two males, and in the Guinness Book of Records under the category Loudest Sound in the Universe, you will find listed “the vocal greeting made by two FB females seeing each other for the first time”. A potent combination of high FB libido and low standards of education have seen their numbers swell dramatically over the years. What was once a quaint pimple on the face of a festival has now erupted into an outbreak of acne that would see the Elephant Man himself recoil in horror. And as their numbers go up, the enjoyment of a festival goes down.

YOU PISSED ME OFF! Has someone yanked yer chain recently? Well send an email to editorial@bmamag.com and have your sweet vengeance.

And for the love of God, keep it brief! [All entries contain original spellings] To all the people in the nosebleed section for Jet at the recent powderfinger concert, harden up and get with the program! Its a ROCK concert people!! If you’re not there to jump around and make some atmosphere, make some room and dont be surprised when everyone next to you starts rioting when the epic chorus riffs hit! Go back to your kingston cafe stool and listen to some Dido over caramel slice for christ’s sake!

And to the STUUUUPPID woman who thought the mosh was a good place to bring her 6yr old daughter.... are you fkin serious lady?! Are you trying to clear the slate and get another baby bonus?

I’m all for people enjoying the music in their own way but GET WITH THE PROGRAM PEOPLE! The crowd is segregated for a reason and the front of a rock show is not for latte sipping douche bags and irresponsible mums dragging their soon to be trampled offspring! YOU ALL PISSED ME OFF!

I’m not alone in this sentiment. So infuriated was a countenanceof-a-kitten photographer friend of mine after a festival – where he was subjected to roided up knuckle-scrapers, attempted head butts for greetings and, no word of a lie, a man twirling his appendage like Gene Kelly with an umbrella – that he was courting the idea of FB genocide. For a man who doesn’t say a bad word about anyone, it speaks volumes.

I realise for some people my words are enough to induce overpriced alcopops to be angrily spat in my direction, followed by a charming invitation to shove a dagwood dog in a place it wouldn’t normally occupy, before launching into sentiments to the effect of, “Cram it poindexter, you’re just some speccy, bitter condescending egghead twat talking down with yer fancy werds to people you consider to be your inferiors, hiding behind a veil of writing because you’re too scared to man up in person.”

Well, I have two responses to that hypothetical statement; the first is yes, spot on. I don’t want to find myself throwing down with an orange gorilla with the IQ of a child, a bicep as big as my head and enough chemicals in the system to be classified as a pharmacy, as I feel my well worded pleas for clemency will fall on deaf cauliflower ears.

The second, is that despite how my previous words could be perceived, I’m not here to stereotype or judge or talk down to.

You want to wear your pants super low to show off the tireless hours you spent at the gym? Go for it. Like a drink? There but for the grace of God go we. You’d prefer a spray tan to conform to modern day ideals of attractiveness whilst avoiding the damaging affects sunbeds? Go nuts. Think the sickly colour of fluoro is the new black? You have my sympathies.

But for love of God people; get some fucking manners.* Everyone loves a festival, but nobody likes a dick. So this summer festival season, just remember: Cut the ‘tude, dood. And for the love of weeping baby Jesus, put it away.

ALLAN SKO - allan@bmamag.com *Yes, I am aware of the irony of that statement.

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another thing…

It has been brought to my attention by my good chum and sometime drinking compadre Nambucco Deliria that certain people in the A&R (that’s artists and repertoire – the people who used to go out every night to gigs in search of fresh talent) world don’t leave their offices anymore – they simply sit at their desk for eight hours a day trawling MySpace, looking for the next big thing on the interweb. Spurred on

by Uncle Nambo’s anger at the moral lassitude of these people, we decided to try it out one day. Could we sit at a desk, for a day, and become involved in a management capacity with heavy metal’s next big thing? “Almost certainly,” I said. So off we went. I typed in the word ‘metal’ into MySpace’s music search engine and off we went.

First up was 3 Inches of Blood, from Vancouver, Canada. I was immediately consumed by the Priest-esque ludicrosity unfolding before my ears, and set about composing an email to the band, offering our representation services. Then Nambucco pointed out that they were already on their third album, and appeared to be doing alright without us. Bugger. Not as easy as I thought… Trying again, and looking to narrow the field slightly, I typed the word ‘goat.’ I’m not sure how these things work, but seconds later we were ‘enjoying’ some plodding black metal – Avail the Autocrat of Evil by Norwegian-based outfit Furze, if you’re interested – and generally letting our minds wander waiting for it to finish, idly throwing rolled up socks at the ever increasing column of empties that was building up on the carpet. At the end, I noticed that the first song in the ‘songs similar to Avail the Autocrat of Evil' section was Help Yourself by Tom Jones. Anyways, whether that was indeed the case or not, Nambucco had once again discovered that Furze are also signed to quite a big record label too – where were all these unsigned bands hiding? What ‘open sesame’ style wording should we be using to unlock MySpace’s hidden treasures?

Going out on a limb, Deliria typed ‘satan,’ but that was no good because we just got sidetracked by loads of spurious non-satanic music invoking the horned one’s name, for instance Satan by the Zydepunks, which turned out to be a Cajun-klesma wigout (not half bad as it goes) of epic proportions, but wasn’t the jump off point for the purchase of a new palatial southside abode.

We were getting ratty now; or rather I was. Where had Nambucco got this information? Were people really being paid to sit around all day listening to experimental bebop from the Ivory Coast in the hope of finding the new Wolfmother? Finally we worked out how to use the bloody thing. Clicking on ‘genres,’ then ‘metal,’ then ‘unsigned’… and we were in.

First up was a band of Christian death metallists from St Louis, America – In the Midst of Lions. Despite being in the ‘unsigned’ section, you guessed it… three albums out on Facedown Records…

Are these people making their releases up? Finally, we stumbled upon Knightstorm, from Massachusetts, a band that genuinely seemed to be without management or indeed a record company… …for a very good reason, as it turned out. Promising a heady blend of metal, powerpop and rock, they actually sounded like a bad version of Creed, with all of the terrible associations that band name brings up. Exasperated, we gave up and went back to picking the toe jam out from between our toes whilst reminiscing about the good old days. We won’t give up – we’re professionals – we will make our A&R fortune on the web – stay tuned for more updates. scott adams thirtyyearsofrnr@hotmail.com

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WHO: Strapping young things WHAT: Fun Machine Tour Paunch with Rubycon WHEN: Fri Nov 26, 9pm WHERE: The Clubhouse

Fun Machine are tour. Like all good cadventures, let’s meet at a bar in Civic above The Pancake Parlour. Then, if you don’t have any summer plans, wish your family convoyage and pack extra vaganza for hitting the road! There will be antics, cycling, blood transfusions, NBL matches and a break for Meredith. Get the dates at www.myspace.com/morefunmachine ! This is a genuine invitation for open-minded people who enjoy summer, particularly if you have necessary tour skills like meatless snack preparation or break-dance helmet ownership. Send any questions to nutsaboutbrazilnuts@gmail.com .

WHO: You! WHAT: Belconnen Festival’s Riot Stage and Silent Disco WHEN: Fri Nov 12 and Sat Nov 13 WHERE: Margaret Timpson Park

Emily Loomes, coordinator of the youth section of Belconnen Community Festival has been talking to young people in the Belconnen area through schools, social networking sites and U-Turn Youth Services since June this year. The result of her consultation is The Riot Stage at the Belconnen Festival and a Silent Disco at the Festival Opening Party. The Riot Stage includes free food, performances and workshops. The centrepiece is an amazing Gypsy Caravan Stage packed with local bands, including Rubycon, Steady the Fall and a stack more. The Silent Disco kicks off the night before at 6.30pm. For all the info head to bcsact.com.au .

WHO: Beth n Ben WHAT: EP Launch with Fun Machine, Big Score, and The Cashews WHEN: Sun Nov 14 3-7pm WHERE: Corroboree Park (or in the hall if the weatherman is mean)

Words from Ben himself: “We've been on the road touring our brand new EP Boarding Pass and have a huge gig lined up with the Canberra Musicians Club for the official Canberra launch. We decided on a Sunday arvo so it would be both family and hangover friendly.

Our good friends Fun Machine and Big Score are coming along to support us and we're making The Cashews come and do Cashewy covers of the bands playing on the day as a bit of payback for their CD launch. CMC will be running a bar and BBQ, and there'll be ball games and other frivolities. Entry is $12/10 or $17/15 with a CD.”

WHO: WHO: Lovers of the magic pipe WHAT: That One Guy WHEN: Thurs Nov 18 WHERE: Transit Bar

Words from That One Guy himself: “Hello friends in Canberra! That One Guy here. Me and the magic pipe, magic boot, and magic saw are looking forward to rocking with y'all at the Transit Bar. We're going to have a funky good time! That’s a promise from me and the rest of the ‘band’. Awoooooooooo!” You heard the man. Magic pipe, magic boot and magic saw. That One Guy plays an instrument he designed and built called The Magic Pipe, a seven-foot tall collection of swivelling pipes, metal gears, bass strings and electronic buttons, all connected by a rainbow of coloured wires that has to be seen, and certainly heard, to be believed.

WHO: Festival Fiends WHAT: Majura Festival WHEN: Sat Nov 20, 10am4pm WHERE: Dickson Square, Carpark at Dickson Shops

Majura Festival is ready to rock for another year with back to back entertainment and live music. This year’s line-up features Drumaffect, Kulture Break and Special K. The Majura festival has something for everyone, so bring your mum, kid brother or a group of friends and watch some amazing martial arts, check out the awe-inspiring acrobatics being performed by Warehouse Circus or visit the variety of stalls on offer. There will also be a petting zoo, jumping castle and face painting for the littlies. So come one, come all and enjoy a great community event. For more information head to www.northside.asn.au or phone 6163 0436.

WHO: You! Yes, you!

WHAT: A Night for the Whales WHEN: Thurs Nov 18 WHERE: Tilley’s

On Thursday November 18 you've got the opportunity to see buccaneer Captain Paul Watson update Canberrans with word from the frontier of the whale war. Cap’n Watson is the infamous founder of the Sea Shepherd crew that seize the high seas to stop whales being slaughtered for ‘research’ and Iron Chef. This is a rare chance for fascinating stories, plus you’ll help: the night’s a fundraiser for their upcoming Antarctica campaign, and there's an afterparty happening at The Front featuring D'Opus and other top notch Canberra acts. See you there.

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MOVING FORWARD peter krbavac

After a week of Victorian shows, Andy Kent has just arrived back in Melbourne and is en route to a celebratory band lunch. With YOU AM I’s membership now split across Sydney and Melbourne, this is a rare opportunity for the old friends to catch up outside of a Tarago or dank backstage area. These days, the bassist explains, band operations ebb and flow, sliding in around other musical projects, jobs and families.

“In the ‘90s it was very intense because we’d do long tours here, in America and Europe and we’re just not doing those big American and European tours anymore, so that’s opened it up a bit,” Andy says. “No one wants to be a slave to it all, so I think it’s creatively, personally and generally pretty helpful to go away from the band and do other things. It energises you, gives you a bit of perspective and fuels you up with inspiration so when you do come together, you can bring new things to it rather than being the same four guys over and over again.”

You can look back when you’re 75, but not when you’re in your thirties and making rock and roll

Nevertheless, Andy, drummer Rusty Hopkinson, axe-slinger Davey Lane and frontman Tim Rogers are looking at a busy 12 months ahead, with tours of New Zealand, Europe and the US on the cards.

As much as anything, these jaunts give You Am I an excuse to catch up with old touring buddies.

“Half of Seattle comes to our gigs when we play,” Andy says.

“The Mudhoney dudes, the guys from Screaming Trees, all our old touring mates come and say hello and guys like Steve Turner from Mudhoney play with us. It’d be good to see the Soundgarden dudes. I’m not sure how approachable Chris [Cornell] is these days but the other guys – we do see them when we get over there.”

Indeed, You Am I have friends all over the country, including onetime producer Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth and comedians Janeane Garofalo and David Cross. “[Cross] is a huge fan and he always comes and hangs out,” Andy says. “We always look forward to getting back there. Some of our favourite people and parts of the world are in the US.” Last month, You Am I released their ninth full length, a self-titled record. Compared to the slash and burn of 2006’s Convicts or the band’s early records, You Am I is a slow burner, more in line with 2008’s Dilettantes. Aus music ‘it girl’ Megan Washington even crops up for a quick turn at the mic.

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Far from being another day at the office for these old hands, Andy says making a new record is always a challenge. “We aren’t a band that has a formula,” he says. “We don’t write songs that have to keep within the boundaries of who we are as a band. God bless AC/DC, they’re one of the greatest rock and roll bands of all time, but they’re never going to write a fuckin’ psychedelic ballad or a country-tinged whatever. They’re never going to play a bludgeoning punk rock song. Some of those bands, the bigger they get, the more they get locked in to who they are and how they have to be.

“I think we’ve been lucky enough that the songs that people know, there’s a range of them,” he continues. “There’s not one You Am I song: there’s your Berlin Chair but there’s also your Heavy Heart and your Damage, so I don’t think anyone expects us to head in one direction, they actually expect us to head in about three. So the challenge is to play what’s in front of you, to use a terrible football analogy.”

“The other thing with You Am I is we don’t ever look backwards,” Andy says, clearly on a roll. “We don’t sit down and debrief the last record before we move on to the next, we just look forward.

Every year we get offered money and an opportunity to play the old records in their entirety. People want us to do it but [none of us are] interested in it at all. It’s always about looking forward. You can look back when you’re 75, but not when you’re in your thirties and making rock and roll.” Not that Andy is completely averse to the idea of these ‘Don’t Look Back’-style shows, however.

“I went and saw Daydream Nation,” he says. “It was great, I loved it. I wonder whether it’s a fad or whether it does bore right into the diehard fans and the moment the band was seized by their fans. There is that point, maybe not even in record sales or mass popularity. I mean Sonic Youth, the Goo record was their biggest record but Daydream Nation is potentially the one that really locked them with people that understood them. I think The Damned are going to come out and do a record,” he mentions as an aside. “I’m into [the idea] but I don’t think I’m into it for You Am I right now. If it does happen it should be special and we should do it with the full compliment, make that gig sound as impressive as possible, whether it be Hourly Daily or Hi-Fi Way or whatever.

“I can’t imagine we wouldn’t do it at some point because it could be fun. We might even do it with this new record next year which I think a lot of people who have the record and love it would really enjoy, because it’s about the now and not about the past.”

You Am I play The Maram in Wanniassa on Wednesday November 24 with Cabins and Hancock Basement. Tickets are $30 +bf through Moshtix. You Am I is out now through Other Tongues.

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ALL AGES The 14th annual Japanese Film Festival is set once again to take place at the National Film and Sound Archive. The festival begins on Wednesday November 10 and will take place over 12 days ending on Sunday November 21. You can browse a detailed list of all 11 exciting films to be screening in Canberra, as well as a full schedule for the films on 14th.japanesefilmfestival.net/filmlist.html.

Tickets can be bought from the NFSA, and cost only $11 or $9 for concession. You can also check out the Max pass, which seats you in ten screenings for only $80. With films ranging from live action to animation, both of which Japanese film makers do with great prestige, the Japanese Film Festival promises a unique opportunity to see this talent on the big screen.

Circo Belco and the Future Footprints Sideshow presented by the Belconnen Community Festival not only offers a beautiful carnival environment for the whole community to enjoy for free, but a massive line-up of local entertainment. The festival will be energised by Los Capitanes, Drum Assault, The Fuelers, Atlantis Awaits, Beth n’ Ben, Rafe Morris, Kulture Break, Servants of Sound, Rubycon, Astrochem and much more live entertainment.

This event at Margaret Timpson Park in Belconnen is of course a free event open to the entire Canberra community from 10am until 5pm on Saturday November 13.

After having been postponed from mid October it’s now right around the corner. Electric Lake II is to be held at the Commonwealth Park Amphitheatre on Saturday November 13. It’s also the coming summer’s first outdoor all ages festival in Canberra. The festival will present us with acts such as The Fighting League, Cat Cat, Crash the Curb, Waterford, Danger Beach, Voss, Killing Birds, Mornings, From the South, Jerkstore, Julia and the Deep Sea Sirens, The Warm Jets, Heute Und and with more to possibly be announced. The music begins at 12pm and will shake our city 'til 9pm. It is a free, BYO event, so bring some of your friends, bring your family, bring a picnic basket and bring all your best grooving attire.

Just as we begin to lose faith in our city’s all ages scene, BAM! Word on the street is that The Maram in Erindale has announced The Capital Rock Music Festival, a licensed all ages gig. On Saturday November 20, you can be part of an impressively extensive line-up including some of the finest musical talent that our city has ever seen. That’s right, Canberra will play host to a number of bands, some living right across the road and some jetting all the way from as far away as New Zealand. For just $25 (+bf) you can be a part of this unforgettable line-up featuring Aussie names Sydonia, Jericco, Point of View, Atlantis Awaits, Spoil, Breaking Orbit, Zero Degrees, Bellusira, Escape Syndrome, The Blaqk Year, Steady the Fall, Frozen Alice and These Four Walls. Doors open at 12pm, tickets can be purchased from any Moshtix outlet.

NAOMI FROST allagescolumn@gmail.com

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LOCALITY

On October 29 Stateline ACT ran a story on the recent explosion of local festivals. All the big ones got a mention - Stonefest, Foreshore, Corinbank, Folkies - but along with the majors there now seems to be a local festival every month; the Belconnen Community Festival’s on this weekend, the Woden Lift Off Festival was on last weekend and Capital Rock Music Festival is just around the corner. Is the market being over-saturated? As Stateline reporter Ben Lisson explained, “In the literally crowded market festivals are constantly competing with one another. But there’s also an interdependence with each event, building Canberra’s reputation as a music destination.”

One man who’s done a world of good for Canberra’s burgeoning live music scene is original founder of Birds Love Fighting Records, Warwick Smith, who along with a small band of enthusiastic musicians, the CMC, hellosQuare recordings and Dream Damage, established Electric Lake, a free outdoor all ages festival.

Unfavourable weather forced the second instalment to be postponed ‘til Saturday November 13, so I thought I’d catch up with Warwick to give EL II one final plug within these pages.

What motivated you to establish Electric Lake? Glen and Pete, who are some of the faces behind the event – we got talking and established that the music scene we’re involved with needed some kind of reason to kick back and make a nice day of what we love, and be able to share it with folk that can’t usually make late nights and blurry mornings.

What have been the biggest challenges (apart from the weather)? Choosing the line-up and being swamped by artists and band managers asking if their band can play; the challenge there is saying no because there are so many great bands at the moment that it has been hard to do.

Why do you think there’s been a recent explosion of local festivals? Canberra is expanding and dare I use the word ‘contemporising.’ Different genres are taking off and people are excited by it; promoters, bands and audiences are really getting behind it and taking it on in their own way, whether it be for financial gain or inspiring Canberra to showcase what it can do.

What does the future hold for Electric Lake? I can only hope it keeps its head on. It’s easy to say ‘bigger and better’ next time, but I like that it’s chilled out, small, non-financial and easy to manage.

What do you think the future holds for Canberra’s live music scene? Being recognised as a place where quintessential Australian music is born and remembered for the next few generations. One day someone will write a book.

Electric Lake II features Hoodlum Shouts, Kasha, Voss, Julia & The Deep Sea Sirens and many more on Saturday November 13 at Commonwealth Place Ampitheatre. It kicks off at noon sharp. See you there.

JULIA WINTERFLOOD julia@bmamag.com

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DANCE THE DROP The very first thing you need to do to become a superstar DJ is to come up with a name. You need a snappy alias, something that says ‘I am a god, but I also bleed’ – something celestial but approachable.

Do not make this decision lightly or you will end up on the lost island of idiotic stage names alongside lackadaisical luminaries like ‘Whisker Biscuit,’ ‘DJ Samoan Carebear’ and ‘DJ MuffyMcSnatchFace.’

And just in case you were wondering, oh yes, those are real.

One artist who managed to forge the right balance is DJ Krush. His moniker suggests that he will pulverise his opponents with so little as the breath of air from his cross-fader, but it is spelt with a ‘K’ and is therefore hip and non-threatening. You can test my theory on Thursday December 2 when the Japanese wizard will be appearing in a special intimate show at Transit Bar. Tickets are only $25, so you pretty much have no excuse not to attend, right?

Canberra’s very own hetero life mates, Paul Beohm and Paul Richter (better known as Karton) have just released their long awaited artist album, entitled For All Seasons. As the title suggests, this epic anthology contains a mixture of future sounds and is a testament to their passion for electronic music. Grab a digital copy on iTunes now or if you like holding things in your clammy hands, you can also wander in to Landspeed Records for your chance to pick up a limited run CD. Support local music!

Now, I promised you last week that I would hunt down one of the Kicks Directors for an exclusive chat about Foreshore 2010, which as we go to print has officially sold out! I checked my carefully laid bear trap the next morning and found co-founder Paul Azzopardi to be quite conversational for someone with a bleeding leg.* “The layout will be even better than previous years. The event site has been expanded and moved to be able to hold the massive production of Tiesto and The Temper Trap as well as providing more trees and lovely green grass!” says Paul. “The expanded event site, East and West Lawns, is one of the most unique event sites in the country.”

And on the inclusion of a few hip-hop acts, he adds “the Block Party stage has also been added to create even more diversity on the line-up... when Pharoahe Monch and Chip Fu from Fu Schnickens became available we knew we had the ingredients to make a stage that would have fans of this sound losing their minds! I think we have the recipe for the best Foreshore yet and the best event Canberra has ever seen.”

Finally, from local legend to future kings, Loose Youth are fast becoming one of the hottest electro tag teams in the ACT. You can catch the duo dropping heat at Stage Fright at the Merimbula Lakeview Hotel on Saturday December 18. Adios!

TIM GALVIN tim.galvin@live.com.au * No Foreshore promoters were hurt in the creation of this article.

myspace.com/pangnight

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THE ELEVENTH HOUR

OM NOM NOM

JAZ HERMANN

zoya patel

Canberra is in many ways a transitional town; people come and go… transitional – you with me? And sometimes the swinging door gives way to those we’ve loved and cherished, shepherding them out into the wild, wild world. And we’d like to remember them with a smile.

HUNGRY KIDS OF HUNGARY didn’t have your run of the mill beginnings as a band. In fact, the core songwriting members of the band didn’t even meet each other face to face before they started making music together. While keyboardist Kane Mazelin was overseas he sent demo tapes back home to friend and drummer, Ryan Straithe. Eventually, Ryan introduced Kane to Dean McGrath (guitars) through virtual means, and before they were all on common soil, it was clear a musical partnership had been born.

Cue Remembrance Day: our national day of remembering (at least I think that’s what it’s about). This Remembrance Day, Thursday November 11, at 11pm, a spectacularly eclectic bunch will play 11 songs to farewell the friends they’ve drunk and smoked and laughed with over the years. For many Australians, particularly those who frequent The Phoenix, remembering anything after your third drink can be difficult. So give this band a round of applause for even attempting to remember their last few years in Canberra… on a stage.

The thing is Canberra, this is what we do. There aren’t many cities in the world where people say yes and venues give you a stage to say a wildly public and musical goodbye to the people and the city you love. The members of THE HOWLING CATS didn’t know they were in a band (how could they, it didn’t exist until a few weeks ago) until they were told to be at the first practice.

The incredible Cardboard Charlie booked them before they had any songs or, for some members, any talent.

The incredible Cardboard Charlie booked them before they had any songs or, for some members, any talent

The players are old-timer Joe Oppenheimer, Bec Taylor and Ramsay Nuthall (of Fun Machine fame), Anthony Irving, Hannah Beasley and Meg O’Connell (ridin’ on Josef Salvat’s coattails) and new talent Jacquie Chlanda. Also featuring Sham Sara rockin’ the mic. Cutting things right down the gendered line they’re promising girls in heels singing you the songs and boys in the back playing you the tunes, a mixture of originals from members’ other projects and some covers from their better known peers like Mariah Carey and Billy Joel.

This Thursday will be the first (and final) show by the band and is surely the one and only way to celebrate Leonardo DiCaprio’s birthday, the end of semester, the dawning of a new day and good old Marlon Brando (why not?). It’ll be a little bit big band (there’s just quite a few of them), a little bit r‘n’b, a little bit wannabe girl band (with just as many boys), pretty last minute and a whole lotta fun. So what ya gonna do when you get outta jail? I’m gonna go to The Phoenix to see The Howling Cats, the 11th hour set, on the 11th of the 11th at 11pm.

“They are rumoured to be one gig wonders, get in while you can.”

- Baz Luhrmann “On this, the day of my birth, a gift more wonderful I could not have imagined.”

- Leonardo DiCaprio Catch The Howling Cats, along with One Way Fare and Vermillion, live at The Phoenix on Thursday November 11, starting at 9pm. Entry is free, so get in early, and get ready to sing.

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Although it all sounds a bit unusual, Dean thinks it felt completely natural. “People often say ‘that’s really strange,’ but we never thought of it that way. At that When we played first meeting when we played it felt totally natural together it felt together, and it’s been that way ever l totally natura since.” Since then, Hungry Kids and it’s been of Hungary have fast become that way ever crowd favourites, with their summery indie pop tracks since pleasing the ears of fans everywhere. With single Wristwatch already riding the airwaves to huge radio success, and their new album Escapades recently released, the band has been gaining momentum like crazy. “We’re extremely excited that the album’s out. The whole recording process went on for ages, so there’s definitely a sense of relief and accomplishment having it out now,” Dean says.

In many ways Escapades is a time capsule of the band’s musical journey, and, as the title suggests, the experiences they had in that time. “The album sort of spans the length and breadth of what we’ve done together as a band. There are songs on there that we’ve had since the beginning and there are songs that are only a few months old.” Old and new, all of the tracks on Escapades have a lot to offer.

I ask if infectious pop music was always the goal for the band to produce. “Well, we play pop music because it’s what we’re into,” Dean explains. “But it helps make your music accessible to people, and helps make people want to jump around, too!” Despite the album only having been out for just over a month, Hungry Kids of Hungary are already busy touring. “It’s been a lot of fun so far!” Dean enthuses.

I excitedly ask him where he is now, expecting him to be sitting in the back of a tour bus, perhaps parked at a regional petrol station, forced to take interviews while on the road. “Uh, actually, I’m at home in Brisbane right now,” Dean tells me. “We’ve got a few days to hang out at home before we have to set off again.”

Well, despite that decidedly mundane setting, it’s still pretty exciting that Hungry Kids of Hungary will be playing in Canberra soon, for only their third time ever. “The last time we were there, we played at this tiny little venue in town, Transit, and we had an amazing time, so we’re definitely looking forward to getting back!”

Catch Hungry Kids of Hungary live at The Maram on Saturday November 13. Supports are Big Scary and Ball Park Music; tickets are $15 (+bf) via Moshtix.

E X H I B I T I O N I S T

Photo: Jeff Busby

Lantana. Undoubtedly, some audience members will come to the show with Lantana as the only yardstick against which they will judge When the Rain Stops Falling. However, Drummond downplays any expectations people may have when seeing a production directly linked with such a lauded film.

“To be honest, I can’t say what’s actually going on in people’s heads”, he admits. “Ultimately though, regardless of any expectations, I think they’ll notice the similarities, and in that respect, all comparisons will be very favourable. In all Andrew’s stories it takes a while for the pieces to fall in place, and this is the case here also.”

RAIN MEN BEN HERMANN It’s Alice Springs in the year 2039. A fish falls from the sky and lands at the feet of Gabriel York, a young man in the middle of a search for his missing, and probably dead, father. This is strange enough in itself, except that 80 years earlier, his grandfather predicted that in 2039 fish would fall from the sky - heralding a great flood that would overcome the human race.

Thus begins WHEN THE RAIN STOPS FALLING, the most recent play from writer Andrew Bovell. The play has received endless acclaim both domestically and internationally since its debut in Adelaide in 2008. This month Canberra audiences will finally get a chance to experience the beautifully funny, sad and cryptic production before it ends its run in Alice Springs in only a few weeks time.

Most notably, the play has received grand reviews for its stunning audio and visual production. Bovell wrote the script in collaboration with and simultaneously to the set design by Hossein Valamanesh, lighting by Niklas Pajanti and piano score by Quentin Grant.

“In the early days, we all sat around together and did a lot of improvising”, explains the play’s director Chris Drummond, a week out from the show’s Canberra debut.

“Andrew was in the middle of all of that – he took our ideas and went and turned them into a play. It’s an unusual production in that a lot of it existed before the script did. But we wanted the set and the score to do more than just interpret Andrew’s play – we wanted the script, the music, and the design to be one big conversation. My role in it all was to be the conduit to weave it all into one clear, coherent production.”

Bovell will be familiar to most as the writer of Speaking in Tongues, his most successful play to date, adapted in 2001 for the film

Speaking of film, I push Drummond to speculate on the chances of When the Rain… ever being made into a film. Speaking in Tongues performed incredibly well prior to being turned into Lantana, however with the swag of awards When the Rain... has picked up, along with productions of the script being produced in Auckland, London, New York and Germany, it’s fair to say that it has met, if not surpassed the success of Speaking in Tongues.

“I think that one day it will definitely become a film. As a theatre director I’ve never considered asking Andrew about it, but I know he’s been approached from a number of people. For the moment I don’t think he’s ready to do it because he’s got other projects that he’s focussing on. But one day, we will see it.”

The play’s aforementioned production across the globe speaks strongly to the universality of its messages and themes, and the skill of Bovell in communicating these in such a uniquely Australian context. So often Australian art – predominantly cinema, theatre, literature and music – suffers from the catch 22 of either being branded as overly influenced by its North American or European counterparts, or conversely being ‘Australian’ to such a degree that its international appeal is limited.

When the Rain… however, has defied this tradition by addressing themes and messages that are universally appreciable, doing so in a beautiful, uniquely Australian setting without having recourse to the kitsch, tacky elements of Australian ‘identity’ that (we think) endear us to foreign audiences.

“There are certain things that Australians will appreciate more, in particular with regard to the geography”, Drummond says.

“Australians understand that you can go to the Coorong and have only three families living in the space of 90 km, and that in such a huge, vast area you will still only run in to people you know.

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WHEN THE RAIN STOPS FALLING CONTINUED “In Europe, they don’t appreciate the reality of that – they think it’s just coincidence. However the themes, the stories and the characters are all universally appreciable, and that’s the play’s strongest drawcard.”

One such theme is the ability to acknowledge the link between past and future; the realisation that the past must be used as a lesson in order to change the world for the better.

“That particular theme definitely struck me and has resonated strongly with me throughout the play’s life” Drummond says.

RETREIVING KNOWLEDGE

“The play was written in the post-September 11, War in Iraq era. It was a pretty despairing and depressing time. The play responds to that despair, and stresses that the pattern of life must be changed in order to not repeat history; to respond to the past and live a different life in the future. It’s very eloquent in conveying that, in a way that only Bovell can accomplish”

emma gibson

When the Rain Stops Falling plays at The Playhouse from Wednesday November 10 to Saturday November 13. Tickets available from the Canberra Theatre Centre.

Canberra Youth Theatre’s new production is a site-specific performance installation in the National Library of Australia. In RETREIVAL there’ll be no sitting still in theatres; instead, you’ll travel deep into the library, encountering dark nooks in a heroic quest. “The story is that the audience is called to go into the building and retrieve as much knowledge as possible before the building is completely destroyed by moths. It becomes almost an individual spiritual journey for the audience as they enter eight spaces across five floors - some of them publically inaccessible spaces that no one has been in before,” explains CYT’s Artistic Director Karla Conway.

The performance has been fully devised by CYT actors and was an 18-month process in total. It’s interactive and features hybrid performance elements, including original music composed by Cathy Petocz. “It’s been a 360 degree turnaround from what we thought we were going to create through to what we are going to present.

We created a new narrative for today, exploring our inability to sift through the clutter of life to find what’s important and preserve it— be it knowledge, family, global events or climate change” Conway says.

“Something you can really read into this are issues around social injustice and what results from a lack of justice, over-consumption and waste. All those things have fed really beautifully into the narrative of a quest for knowledge before it is all gone.”

It seems like dystopian stuff, with the style of thought provoking sci-fi you might associate with Doctor Who. Conway says that in the development of Retrieval they did draw on many cultural references, and although the Doctor was one of them it certainly wasn’t central.

The partnership with the National Library has been a dream come true for CYT. “At the library they have been absolutely fantastic - I can’t even begin to describe how open they’ve been to letting us take over their building. Every time we throw around some wacky idea they just jump on it and say yes. We’ve been able to really dream creatively and bring that to fruition, not be hampered by realities or restrictions. They’ve been with us every step of the way, they understand what we’re trying to achieve and we’re all really excited about it.”

Photo: Jeff Busby

Conway reminds us all that it’s not just for young people. “For me it’s the spectacle event of the Canberra theatre calendar this year, so I think everyone should come. A broad audience from eight to 80 will enjoy the story we have to tell, and it’s an important message. Learn how to stop living in a bubble, stop over consuming, realise we’re a global community and come together to make a difference locally, nationally and globally.”

Retrieval runs from Friday November 19 to Sunday December 5 at the National Library of Australia, Parkes Place.

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up director and dramaturge Gail Kelly from Melbourne, and she has been amazing at keeping us on track and helping us collate our ideas into something that really reflects us all.

The Blue Marquessa – Q&A with Elena Kirschbaum Naomi Milthorpe Tell us about The Blue Marquessa. The Blue Marquessa came about when applications for The Street Theatre’s Made In Canberra program opened. I hadn’t done a theatre show in a while, so I was keen to apply, but didn’t really have a show in mind. So I took a different angle, and decided that rather than pitching an idea for a show I would bring together the artists that I would be the most excited to work with, and see what we would create together. I loved the idea of picking artists who I thought were doing great work, but across any art form.

What have been some of the challenges of working with such a diverse group of artists? The main challenge has been the different angles that we’ve all been coming from. We work in different mediums, but more than that, we work in different styles, looks and we like different things. However early in the process we brought

How is the show structured? The show is based on a cabaret or variety performance, with an MC running the show and a ‘band’ playing all the music live, and a series of different acts. However it is more than a variety performance, it is a cohesive ensemble show, with ensemble numbers, characters interacting within other people’s acts, and interrupting or helping out. It’s also very interactive and hands on. It’s okay - no audience volunteers, but the action is happening around, on top of, above the audience, so it will be a very immersive experience.

For the uninitiated, what is multi-art or cross-art performance?

The beauty in this kind of performance for the audience is that you get everything a variety show has to offer: the spectacle of circus, the beauty of dance, the entertainment of comedy and banter and the emotional journey that music offers.

How do you classify your work as an artist? With circus in particular that’s a question we often ask ourselves - are we artists, or entertainers? Often I would classify the work I do as entertainment - thrills, spectacle - but it’s shows like this where I get to do work that I think of as art. […] I like my performance with a bit of dark comedy, a hint of the macabre but with real old-fashioned spectacle and at least a moment of real honest beauty. If I can make a performance with each of these components then I think that’s a great work.

Highwire Entertainment presents The Blue Marquessa at The Street Theatre from Thursday December 2 to Saturday 4 at 7pm & 9pm nightly, as part of Made In Canberra 2010.

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ARTISTPROFILE: byrd

What do you do? Most of my time is spent putting pictures on walls, which involves reading and re-dressing spaces. To this end I also make objects which are less reliant on an external predetermined space.

When did you get into it? Some time around 1992 I started using public spaces as a place to publish my art, but I’ve been making stuff and drawing forever.

Who or what influences you as an artist? Stuff I come across, pieces of things, fragments of the world. The way an old man carries himself on the bus, the colour of middle-aged women’s shoes, a wall that’s never buffed with the same colour twice, the words a child uses. Paying attention to other artists’ processes. Collaboration, technical prowess and giving it a go.

What’s your biggest achievement/proudest moment so far?

Getting a line right or being happy with a painting the day I finish it. Having people say “Oh you did that?!”. Selling a collection of my handmade stickers to the NGA. What are your plans for the future? To turn some of the drawings I’ve been doing lately into paintings and stencils. Have a solo show sometime this year. Seize what opportunities are presented to me and travel a little more extensively.

What makes you laugh? Just about everything. Misreading situations/intentions/people.

What pisses you off? I love that people care so much about so little.

I despair that people care so little about so much.

What’s your opinion of the local scene? I’m not so closely involved as I once was and even then my involvement was peripheral, but people drift in and out, few stick with it. The stayers at the moment are a Graff crew, a clothing brand and a Sydney based artist, I didn’t even make that list.

What are your upcoming projects? I’ve got work in the National Gallery of Australia show Space Invaders ‘til Feb. I’ve also got a number of public commissions coming up and any number of little interventions as the mood/opportunity strikes.

Contact info: byrd.hq@gmail.com

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palace of drugs, gambling and sex slavery and Julian is taken aback by the brutality, bringing his own demons back to light. He aims to make things right, redeem his past and save the day, all set to a wicked score by Andrew Giddings (Jethro Tull). Murphy filled me in: What to expect? Hmm. It’s a serious, dark drama, so we lightened it up with the action scenes. There’s shoot-outs, classic cars, babes and high stakes poker. The old Kenmore Asylum at Goulburn was a creepy but excellent location to shoot.

The story’s inspiration? Hmm, I’m still unsure, I just wanted to make a cool movie about a bad guy going good, a knight in shining armour sort of thing, with me as the hero.

THE HOBBYIST ALEX SHULZ When I landed this assignment I smiled. I had met Paul J Murphy two years ago at my local (more like he approached us and started joking) and much jocularity has occurred since. His previous incarnations involved stand up comedy and getting high with a Cessna’s joy stick in his hands, but now the Canberra-based Murphy is taking his first turn as writer and producer and appearing in his second acting role. He’s working in conjunction with writer and director Brad Diebert and Hero Films International, and together they are the first locals to produce a commercial film release in 40 years.

In association with SilverSun Pictures, HOBBY FARM is set in 1970s outer Sydney. Julian (Murphy) is rewarded by the crime boss (Gerard Kennedy, amongst greats as Travis McMahon and Vince Sorenti) and sent to the Hobby Farm for R&R. The farm is an underworld pleasure

What’s best about film making, besides groupies? I am still to get the groupies. It’s a lotta fun to make movies, from writing the story, casting, the challenges of production, balancing everything and putting it all on the line. It’s tough - in 2008 we won the Best International Drama category at the New York International Film & Video Festival and still had competition to release since then.

Plans? Well, there’s many possibilities with big names here and in LA. But so much gets planned and never made that only once distribution has begun can you count your chickens.

Your hobbies? Mine is expensive and can’t be done half-heartedly.

Flying - I love to fly. Also computer games, but since I can’t write code, I make films. Best of all - friends, cracking jokes and bad impressions of Arni.

Distributed by Cameron Miller through Verdict Entertainment Group, Hobby Farm will see its premiere at the Metro Boronia Cinema, Melbourne, on November 17. It then opens to the public in Melbourne on November 18 and Adelaide on November 21, and can be seen at Limelight Cinema in Canberra from December 2. Check out www.hobbyfarmthemovie.com.au .

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WHO: Jessica Herrington WHAT: Exhibition Cave WHEN: On now until Sunday November 14 WHERE: Canberra Contemporary Art Space Manuka

bit PARTS WHO: Lovers of homegrown theatre WHAT: Love, Lies and Hitler WHEN: November 18 – 27 WHERE: The Street Theatre The play that asks: is it worse for a liar to tell the truth than for a lover of truth to lie? Enter morally ambiguous territory with Lies, Love and Hitler by Elizabeth Avery Scott. It’s a ‘dramedy’ exploring the boundaries of love, friendship and personal significance.

With the playwright’s husband James Scott playing the lead of Dr Paul Langley it’s like Canberra’s very own Cate and Andrew!

The contemporary Australian drama was shortlisted for the 2009 Rodney Seaborn Playwrights Award and is now playing at as part of The Street Theatre’s awesome independent artist series Made In Canberra. There will be twilight and evening showings, so check The Street’s website for all the booking details www.thestreet.org.au .

Jessica Herrington has spent recent years making her mark on the local, interstate and even international contemporary art scene.

Many first came to know of her after she took out the inaugural National Youth Self Portrait Prize with a photographic work, while studying Printmedia at the ANU School of Art. Now Herrington has moved on to the third dimension, and, informed by an artist residency at the Research School of Chemistry at the ANU, is creating amazing sculptures of crystalline structures, paint, glitter and all things shiny. Her exhibition Cave (and the title doesn’t lie) is currently showing at CCAS Manuka. Mmm. Mystical.

WHO: Timo Nest WHAT: Exhibition Misunderstood WHEN: On now until Sunday November 14 WHERE: M16 Artspace, Griffith Timo Nest, one of Canberra’s most respected and innovative photographers, journeyed to Iran at the end of last year. Needless to say he packed his camera, and ended up taking thousands of photographs to document what he saw, the people and places he came to know. Through images that highlight everyday life in Iran, and the ‘human face’ of Iranians, Nest sets out to dispel a sometimes negative western perspective of Iran and Islam. A portfolio of images is now on show in Nest’s exhibition Misunderstood at M16 Artspace.

WHO: Shoppers of the night WHAT: Night Markets WHEN: 6.30pm, Thursday November 11 WHERE: Smiths Alternative Bookshop Stop press! If you have just picked up your freshly minted copy of BMA, then chances are you still have time to get thee to the night markets! The good people at Smiths Alternative Bookshop have gone above and beyond AGAIN. Not satisfied with simply selling fine books and providing a cosy city hideaway, the Smiths crew have been presenting gig nights, poetry readings and most recently – the night markets. Thursday night from 6.30 the bookshop will be taken over by market stalls of glee, touting second hand and homemade wares, with drinks available to fuel your socialising and shopping good times! If you missed out this round then keep an eye on their very entertaining Facebook page for up to the minute updates.

WHO: Circus folk and circus lovers WHAT: Circo Belco WHEN: 8pm, Friday November 12 WHERE: Margaret Timpson Park, Belco A stellar line-up of Canberra talent in one of the most memorable nights of the year – all housed in a beautiful boutique circus tent!

Enjoy an evening of circus, song and eccentric entertainment in The Bally, in Belconnen’s Margaret Timpson Park. Alongside live music and thrills from a host of performers, saucy circus snippets from Elena Kirschbaum and Jane Schofield will spice up the night. These two incurable, globetrotting carnies are virtuoso hula-hoopers; they juggle, contort and wear fabulous costumes. Elena is the brains and the beauty behind Highwire Entertainment and The Bally. They will preview material from their up-coming Street Theatre show, The Blue Marquessa. Tickets are $18/$15 – for bookings contact 6264 0232.

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WHO: Video and sound artistes WHAT: Digital Jam WHEN: 8pm, Saturday November 20 WHERE: NGA underground Car park that is. But the hefty concrete surrounds make the perfect setting for cooler than thou live events – a fact that Digital Jam 2010 takes full advantage of. On Saturday November 20 settle in for a night of video, live sound scapes and people watching.

Projections, including work by London-based video director and illustrator Danny Sangra, will dovetail with an epic sound space and dance music by a number of DJs including Melbourne sound artist Buttress O’Kneel. Naturally there will also be a lounge/bar to aid your enjoyment. Check out www.nga.gov.au for more info, but swing

by Moshtix.com.au to secure yourself a place.

BIRD ON A WIRE

TOO HOT TO HANDAL

scott adams

zoya patel

KASEY CHAMBERS is one of us. I know this because I’ve met her.

Not only have I met her; when this face-off was being set up, her publicist blithely suggested a face-to-face and a cup of coffee to have a chat about her (then) upcoming album and tour in support of same. As you know, coffee doesn’t sit well with BMA – the caffeine excites us and makes us go all shaky – and so, quite reasonably, Canberra’s liveliest read demanded a meet in the pub. And our heroine was only too happy to comply.

ALI HANDAL had a fairly unorthodox introduction to the music industry, by performing guitar on the TV show The Price Is Right!.

That’s right, she was the woman who demonstrated how to play the exciting new guitars that were given away as prizes. “The first time I performed on The Price Is Right!, it was pretty nerve-wracking – especially because I was being presented on this revolving carousel while playing electric guitar. It was fun, but surreal,” the American singer-songwriter says of the experience.

“This is a really nice little place,” she smiles as we settle in to the Transit Bar for an expansive chinwag on all things Chambers, like the most recent album, Little Bird – “a really easy album to make for me. I go through phases as a songwriter, and when it came time to make this album the songs were falling out of me!” – recording with brother Nash and father Bill – “it’s such good fun, and all I’ve ever known really. I grew up doing that! So it was really good having Dad back in the studio to play guitar on this record.” – that song – “of course I love it – It bought me a house!” – and the possibility of recording another album with husband Shane Nicholson, of which there will be more written about later.

Since those early days, Ali has created quite a name for herself as a strong female musician, standing alongside the likes of Ani DiFranco and Alanis Morissette. Singing I was presented songs ranging from the topics of on this revolving love to covers of The Knack’s My Sharona, Ali is as diverse as she is carousel while playing electric charming. “I’ve always loved My Sharona. When I was growing up, I guitar. It was fun, but surreal thought it was the sexiest song I’d ever heard,” Ali reminisces.

“Ironically, my girl version of the song has more ‘balls’ than the original – it’s much heavier!” The track is featured on Ali’s third album, Make Your Move, and sits alongside a mix of slower ballads and aggressive rock songs, all set to the tune of Ali’s superior guitar skills.

When it came time to make this album the songs were falling out of me!

Chambers is happy enough to answer questions on anything BMA can think of, though when the conversation turns to kids she becomes even more animated. “It just gives you a whole new perspective on things, and new things to write about. The kids love coming out on the road, to the point where Talon [her eldest kid, now eight] thinks people are coming to see him – he thinks it should be him on stage!” Bless him. But surely touring with school age kids can be a bit of a grind? “Yes and no. As long as you do it sensibly, I think it’s okay.” So no plans to decamp to Nashville and the bright lights of the US country scene? “Absolutely none! Why? I love my life, the kids love where we live on the Central Coast – there’s no need.”

With the new album doing so well, is it too soon to think about another bone rattling outing with husband Shane? “You know, we were so stoked that people liked Rattlin’ Bones as much as they did, but at the moment I’m concentrating totally on Little Bird. We’re definitely thinking about it though. In fact Shane’s thinking about it a bit too much. He said that because I was pregnant when we wrote and recorded the last one – and it was a success – that maybe we’d better wait ‘til he knocks me up again before we start the next one – can you believe that?”

As Alan Partridge might say – on that bombshell…

Catch Kasey Chambers on the Canberra leg of her album launch tour for Little Bird live at the Canberra Theatre on Sunday November 21. Tickets are $61 and are available through the venue’s website.

When it comes to her favourite songs, Ali doesn’t like to pick and choose. “I don’t have just one favourite track – I have about six, which doesn’t narrow it down much, does it?”

Luckily for us, Ali will be down under touring this month playing a grand total of four shows in Canberra (that’s right, FOUR shows), and even one in Queanbeyan. Never before has Canberra been shown this much love by a musician. “I am extremely excited about my upcoming tour!” Ali gushes. “I first visited Australia in the early 1990s and I fell in love with the country, the people and the koalas.” Those marsupials are a huge crowd pleaser. The Australian landscape has also been an influence on Ali’s music. “The Great Barrier Reef was the first place I tried scuba diving and I absolutely fell in love with it. That experience had a profound effect on me, so much so that years later I wrote a song and entitled my second CD Breathing Underwater.”

And have Australian musicians had any kind of effect on Ali? “As far as Australian musicians I admire – all I can say is ‘for those about to rock, we salute you!’ I saw AC/DC in concert while I was growing up, and to quote (exactly) my teenage concert diary, ‘AC/DC was baaaad!!! The Jack was the BEST!!!’” I can imagine some teenage girls having similarly effusive reactions to Ali herself after they see her play live. With her crazy hooks and sultry vocals, it’s hard not to become addicted. And the good news is that there’s at least a week’s worth of gigs to keep you satisfied!

Catch Ali Handal at the first of a number of Canberra performances at The Front Gallery in Lyneham on Saturday November 13. For more details on the other shows, head to alihandal.com .

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CHINESE WHISPERS

BACK IN BLACK

mel cerato

dave butler

Comprising two brothers and a mate, Victorian band THE VASCO ERA combine blues, rock, pop and a whole bunch of other genres to make them one of Australia’s favourite live acts; something they proudly showcased in early October to Chinese audiences.

Sponsored by a Department of Foreign Affairs initiative to bring a year’s worth of Australian culture to China called Imagine Australia, The Vasco Era were lucky enough to be picked to go on tour to show just what Australian music has to offer.

If you can judge a piece of creative work by the trials, mishaps and cock-ups that have gone into it, then BLACK CREEK’s new album Ragged Shark has got it all. During the making of their new album, the Canberra lads managed to roll one car, break another two, and travel up and down the east coast of Australia, playing one show to a bunch of bored, surly hipsters in country Victoria, and then on the next night playing to a packed house at the Espy in St Kilda.

Frontman Sid O’Neil spoke about the trip, describing the We can just do opportunity to play in a foreign whatever we like ‘cause that’s country and the unfounded stigma of China. “We don’t have when the best much money to go overseas for things happen our own holidays so it was good that the band took us over there for free,” he says. “It was kinda different to what I expected [in that China] wasn’t as strict [as I thought]. You’re still allowed to party and they let you fly without any shoes, just little things like that that you would think would be stricter over there weren’t.”

Plans for further overseas travel for the band are seemingly more and more likely to coincide with the next album, according to O’Neil.

“We’re going to America next year,” he says. “We’re going to live and play gigs and either finish writing our album or wait for it to come out ‘cause we’ve almost got enough songs to record it before we go or do it over there.”

O’Neil believes that Australian music is continuing to gather acclaim overseas because of the varied influences and internal support. “[The music scene] is tightknit in a sense, like, some of my best friends are in bands that I’ve played with, but on the other hand, it’s pretty big so there are lots of different scenes.”

And how will the new album sound? “Sounds very different to the last one, very different, but that’s the same as everything we’ve done.” With different musical influences and more varied experiences, O’Neil anticipates that the album will bring out a new side of the Aussie trio.

After recently returning from the short trip, the boys are about to embark on their next tour, creatively entitled the Back From China tour. Excited about starting the tour, O’Neil expects this time around to be a little different from other visits to the capital. “It will be spontaneous, that’s the plan,” he says. “I don’t want to have any ideas of what we’re going to do before the shows so it could be anything.

The last couple of tours, we’ve had a keyboard player so we’ve had to use a setlist,” says O’Neil. “I don’t want to do that anymore so we can just do whatever we like ‘cause that’s when the best things happen I think.”

Catch The Vasco Era and supports Wons Phreely and I Am Giant at The Maram on Friday November 19. Tickets are $19 through Moshtix.

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Catching up with the four members of Black Creek, the interview quickly descends into a series of jaw-dropping stories from the road; a mangled mix of stupidity, laughter, generosity and some hastily compiled back up plans.

We’ve played these songs live a thousand times – it was just a matter of banging them out

It fits in well with the band’s mix of alt-country, blues and classic rock ‘n’ roll. And with Ragged Shark about to be officially launched in Canberra, the guys are over the moon to have the hard work behind them.

“We went down to RMIT Studio 1 in Melbourne and recorded the album pretty much live in just under two days, and then came back on another day to finish off the vocals,” drummer Jack McGrath says. “We’ve played most of these songs live about a thousand times, so it was just a matter of banging them out,” singer Brent Wijnberg adds.

Under such a tight timeline, some parts were written on the fly, with Wijnberg admitting to writing whole verses in the bathroom mere moments before the final take.

A polished debut but nicely scuffed around the edges, Ragged Shark comes off like a mixture of The White Stripes at their most ferocious, then tempered with the smooth southern rock of early Kings of Leon, with some moments of sweet, lilting alt-country added in for good measure.

And with a new album to spruik, Black Creek are heading back out on the road, with an east coast tour planned for early next year.

“We’re putting together a tour for the album around March, probably doing the Brisbane to Melbourne highway and playing a bunch of gigs along the way,” Wijnberg says. “And we’ve just written a few new songs on top of the new album tracks, so the ball has started rolling for the next album as well,” McGrath adds.

With a hometown album launch scheduled for Friday November 19 at the ANU Bar, Black Creek has the match fitness under the belt and is ready to kick out some rattling good tunes to local fans. Crazed frontman Brent Wijnberg is under strict orders from the rest of his band to stick to the limits: “six beer minimum to get him warmed up, ten beer maximum to keep him in line,” drummer Jack McGrath says.

You can tell that he’s learned this one from experience.

Catch Black Creek live at the ANU Bar on Friday November 19 for the launch of their highly anticipated album Ragged Shark.

GOOD TO BE PICKY shaun bennett Whilst speaking to Brisbane troubadour CHRIS PICKERING it is impossible not to be bowled over by his charm, intelligence and relentless work ethic that has transformed him from being another typical solo artist with some mellow tunes into an elaborate and versatile singer-songwriter. After hearing about his time spent in Nashville, Tennessee and a spot at the South by Southwest Festival, I’m obviously not the only one to fall under his spell. “I got to a certain point here [in Australia], where I was stuck in the same routine where I was recording and touring and playing with the same people and crowds and not going up a level. The America trip was to do something different and it worked and I’m really happy with the record and I’m excited to start touring again.”

Right when you think you’re lost, you find yourself exactly where you’re meant to be, and with the right people

Pickering’s latest offering Work of Fiction was recorded at the famous Ardent Studios in Memphis, which has seen the likes of Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan and REM. However, while that experience looks good on his résumé, Nashville was where he felt rejuvenated and at home as an artist.

“The place itself very quickly became my home, and adopted me as one of its own. Tennessee is like that. Right when you think you’re lost, you find yourself exactly where you’re meant to be, and with the right people,” he says “There’s actually quite a large mafia over in Nashville. When locals realise you’re Australian they start asking you whether you know people – it’s quite interesting.”

Pickering says he is the kind of artist that doesn’t like over-dubbing and producing too much and prefers the organic sound that comes from playing with a band live. “I do see recording as preserving music,” he says. “I think that once something is done you should just walk away rather than over-producing. You can’t take away the vibe of people playing together.”

After reading his biography and hearing his experiences via his charming and witty personality I am suddenly reminded of other solo artists from Brisbane such as Bernard Fanning and Darren Hanlon.

Interestingly enough this has occurred to him as well. Something in the water up north, perhaps? “I’ve never met Darren, but we wanted to get him to play with us and one of our shows but he’s overseas at the moment,” he says. “Even though Darren and I have some awesome similarities, I wanted to try to tour with an artist who was different to me musically.” As such he recruited Newcastle-based songstress Catherine Britt to accompany him on his current national tour.

Unfortunately she cannot make the Canberra leg of the tour, but maybe desired future collaborator Darren Hanlon can make it along?

“Maybe next time, it’s a good idea!” Pickering says.

Chris Pickering will be in Canberra on Saturday November 13 at The Front Café and Gallery. His album Work Of Fiction is out now through Other Tongues.

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motherfuckers to get money off them [to make an album].”

STREETS OF PHILADELPHIA jessica conway Simon “Berkfinger” Berckelman of PHILADELPHIA GRAND JURY lives the muso lifestyle, but with remarkable restraint and moderation. The night before our chat he admits to “getting crazy drunk and doing silly things” around Sydney city streets, yet I found a remarkably coherent and conversational man on the other end of the phone line. He concedes, however, that this does not apply to many members of the industry. “I would say that at least half of the music industry right now is full of alcoholics who can’t actually make anything of themselves, but want to be a part of the process.”

The fuzzy-faced Philly Jays do not fit this criteria, taking their music seriously and letting it develop organically, spontaneously and fluidly.

They record instruments and vocals wherever and whenever the mood strikes; be it on the road, in a mate’s bedroom, rocking out on a drum kit in their kitchen or sneaking into Big Jesus Burger after hours (the renowned Sydney studio where Simon worked). This level of control is a must as they refuse to “have to rely on any other

30

Half of the music industry is full of alcoholics who can’t actually make anything of themselves

Their ability to record as they please is clearly working well as they have just come off one helluva tour of the UK and USA. Simon reckons they “went to every friggin’ town and met every crazy person” in the UK, but the States sounded like the real experience. Simon recalls “we played lots of really bizarre parties and took all of our clothes off, kicked everything over and broke a lot of stuff,” true punk rock style.

And be prepared Canberran folk, they are set to bring these onstage antics here, to our placidly perceived capital – well, we hope. Ya see, these boys have had some trouble playing in our neck of the woods previously; first attempt gig was cancelled, second Simon got swine flu, third their drummer missed his plane, but fourth time lucky they ended up taking their gig to the street and jamming with the crowd.

The guys draw inspiration for their “smart punk” from classic punk and old boys of rock and roll “who really fucked with what a performance was.” Simon doesn’t know if they will unleash on the pavement again but states “we never know what’s going to happen, but we know something has to.” To add to their allure, their present drummer is the one and only Susie Dreamboat/Patten, of I Heart Hiroshima fame, adding a new dynamic with their “easy musical connection” bolstering their latest tracks. Simon notes “people love her ‘cause she is a girl, and she is little but she’s tough.” Alongside their engaging, exciting and energetic stage show there is their re-released album, Hope is for the Hopeless. Amped up with bonus tracks and a DVD of a Brissie house party performance, it is a must for any fan, follower or music aficionado.

Catch Philadelphia Grand Jury with supports Howl and Bearhug live at the ANU Bar on Friday November 26. Tickets are $20.85 (+bf) via Ticketek.

JOY TO THE WORLD peter krbavac Ben Andrews is holed up in his record label’s offices, in the middle of an eight hour block of interviews leading up to the release of MY DISCO’s third album Little Joy. “Just ask me about boxing instead,” the guitarist chuckles. “The US welterweight 147 pound division.

I follow Miguel Cotto, Manny Pacquiao and those sort of dudes.”

Unfortunately for Ben it’d be a one-sided conversation, so it’s back to band matters.

My Disco have spent much of the last two years touring Europe and the US, though the first of these US trips was stymied by stolen passports and laptops.

“You speak to enough bands and invariably the same stuff happens. You’ve either had your van broken into, your van break down, gear or personal items stolen,” Ben says. “I remember speaking to The Drones when we played London this year and we were just trading off ‘oh this happened to us, this happened to us.’ For us it just seems that everything bad that could possibly ever happen has happened, but on the last US and European tour everything went well so maybe our luck’s changing.”

It means you can play at whatever volume because no one’s going to bother you on the ocean

Ben recalls a particularly memorable show on their last trip to France playing Sonic Lyon: a docked boat converted into a venue.

“You play on the first floor, just under water level. It’s really fun and it means you can play at whatever volume because no one’s going to bother you on the ocean.” As with the band’s last album Paradise, Little Joy was recorded in Chicago with Steve Albini at the “homely” Electrical Audio studios. “They’ve got the right personnel and the right attitude in there that makes any band feel really comfortable,” Ben says. “It’s like no other place in the world and it deserves its reputation and more – and so does [Albini].

“A lot of engineers have got their own way on things – and he’s got his own way that he does stuff – but he’ll listen to whatever you have to say because essentially you’re employing him,” Ben says. “That’s a cool attitude. With a lot of engineers it’s their way or the highway. With him it’s just mutually understood that whatever you want can happen.”

With the recording completed, My Disco then selected Scott Horscroft – whose credits include The Panics, Sleepy Jackson, The Presets and Silverchair – to mix the album. Horscroft embellished the famously minimalist trio’s raw recordings, layering on reverb, delay and vocal overdubs. “We wanted a different approach from an outside perspective,” Ben says. “Some of the effects turned into instruments themselves. On the song With Age we tracked the vocals by utilising this analog reverb delay effect that turned into this vocal drone which acts as a whole other dense layer in the song, almost as if it was a synth line or another guitar line. “They’re a bit more expansive and in some ways lusher,” Ben says of the new songs.

“It’s almost like a proper band,” he laughs.

My Disco play the ANU Bar on Wednesday November 24 with Hoodlum Shouts and Sparktak. Entry is $15/$10 for students.

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THE REALNESS G’day – no doubt you’ve seen me expanding the reaches of this column of late and this issue is no different. In fact, I’m moving each farther away from hip-hop in recommending two new records. First up is the new album from Atlanta’s Deerhunter entitled Halcyon Digest. Truly an incredible record of forward-thinking music, this is an album to be absorbed by playing from start to finish. With their fourth album, Bradford Cox and the boys have delivered a hypnotic stream of musical consciousness. There is a primal immediacy to the album that really pulls you in – and not to mention some of the most amazing melodies of the year. They’ve always been a cryptic group, but I found this album more immediate than their previous work. Like Bradford Cox’s excursions under the Atlas Sound moniker though, there’s plenty of wonderful psychedelia to be found in this new album. The final tune is a beautiful tribute to the late Jay Reatard. Highly recommended.

Also extremely impressive is the debut album from Florida-born George Lewis Jr aka Twin Shadow. Entitled Forget it is out on Terrible Records which is run by Chris Taylor from Grizzly Bear who also coincidentally produces the album. Washed in dirty synthesizers and drum machines, Twin Shadow’s debut is full of restless grooves and earnest, soulful lyrics. There’s nothing fake about this music, which carries an undeniable ‘80s vibe – not in a retrospectively kitsch sense either; this is proper dense underground music.

One of my fave d‘n’b producers Break is set to release his second full length LP in a week or so following his brilliant Symmetry album released back in ‘08. His newie, Resistance, is shaping up to be a dynamic listen featuring collaborations with SpectraSoul, Calyx + Teebee, Die, Nico, Silent Witness and Survival. The album format lends itself to the multiplicity of Break’s production skills allowing him to explore different facets of drum and bass rhythms from straight out ball-breaking rave head crackers to more subtle jazztipped rollers. Again vocalists Kyo and SP:MC show up to bless the beats. Can’t wait to hear it.

Nottingham’s Lone is killing me right now – his Pineapple Crush single being one of my faves of the year. He’s set to follow it up with a new album entitled Emerald Fantasy Tracks this month. Formerly exploring psychedelic hip-hop inspired beats, Lone has been pushing towards housier riddims of late and the album sets to explore the region between the two styles. Launching the album on his own brand new imprint Magic Wire Recordings, Lone seems set to blow in 2011. Check for him or miss out!

Acclaimed bass music veteran Shackleton is set to helm the next instalment of the Fabric series with his Fabric 55 mix of old, new and exclusive material – all with that dark tribal-esque Skull Disco vibe. Like Villalobos and Omar S before him, Shackleton has delivered a set made up of entirely his own tunes, based on his recent live performances at Fabric. According to interviews he has stated that “some of them are not even tracks, just coincidental parts merging with each other between tracks… those are the best bits actually.” If it’s anything like his recent Three EPs album I’ll be suitably impressed.

To hear music from all these releases and more, tune in to The Antidote on 2XX 98.3FM every Tuesday evening from 9:30 – 11pm or stream at www.2xxfm.org.au .

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ROSHAMBO roshambizzle@yahoo.com.au

THE ART OF W.A.R. PALIMAH PANICHIT To say that PHAROAHE MONCHE is merely an MC is like saying Wordsworth was merely a poet. Like Wordsworth, Monch knows what words are worth. His near universally undisputed finesse is hyperbole’s dream; passages often featuring twistingly tyrannical turns of phrase that are snake-like in coiled precision, evoking terror and awe at once. His language is beautiful in an angularly vicious fashion, a lyrical savant setting landmines and trapdoors rather than punch lines, delivering meticulously sculpted invective in a seething primal baritone: rapping more like rapid-fire Coltrane-esque bursts of molten lava.

I think there’s a savvy music audience in Australia in general, not just for hip-hop

“[What] I figured out, after all these years of doing music, is that they call the intellectuals the people who intrinsically get this type of music,” Mr Monch says, sounding tired, explaining that he had been to many meetings before the interview.

“Worldwide, there’re still hundreds and thousands and millions of people who want to hear, or are privy to propaganda and the things that are set aside for the majority. Those people are who the album will speak to. It’s unapologetically witty and lyrical; I think there’s a group of people who are ready for that.” When asked if the Australian audience is ready for that, Pharoahe laughs loudly. “I’ve been blessed to come over again and do my own tour, which is really dope – we talk about the [past Australian shows] all the time. There’s an energy and a connection there that I really bond with. I think there’s a savvy music audience over there in general, not just for hip-hop.”

Monch has recorded with Hilltop Hoods, which is where he linked up with M-Phazes, who, according to Pharoahe “…did extensive work on the album. I just recorded with Jill Scott [renowned soul singer] and she was like ‘who the hell is this producer, man? He’s incredible.’”

Like his previous records, Pharoahe explains that W.A.R. has a specific intention. “The theme of W.A.R.… speaks to – at first glance – a small percentage of people who are in tune to a war within themselves; a war that is fighting for their attention and their dollar; a war against the industry and authority. These people I see as renegades. Each song on the album deals with a specific aspect of being a renegade. It’s just being aware, you know? It’s not an outcry every song. It’s based on situations I’m aware of. It’s a very emotional war; a psychological war of perseverance. There’s a beauty in acknowledging that it’s the man in the mirror that makes the change in a lot of these things.”

I ask him how it is possible to write such ridiculous verse and Pharoahe laughs again, pausing to seemingly reminisce. “I grew up on Led Zeppelin and Rush. I grew up on music that really moved me, but was ten or 15 years removed. What caused this music to have a long shelf life? That’s what inspired me. As a writer, I want to do things that are layered and not necessarily trendy.”

Catch Pharaohe Monch at Foreshore on Saturday November 27. Tickets have now sold out.

33

METALISE Grimmest greetings. Stupid UFC has announced their next PPV event in Australia is on the same day as Sydney Soundwave (Sunday February 27). How am I supposed to be in two places at once to satiate my appetite for violence and see High on Fire? These are the sorts of tough decisions facing a metal loving public these days. Sacrifices must be made. To add insult to injury, Melbourne is getting a Sidewave show featuring Primus and The Melvins on Thursday March 3. Sydney, please deliver us many and as tantalising Sidewave shows as this one!

Following on from last week’s regional focus, there’s a few cool shows coming up in and around Canberra to get keen for. Wagga Wagga is an underprivileged regional centre for its size when it comes to shows and so it was pleasing to see promo start for early 2011’s Wagga Open Air Festival on Thursday January 6 next year.

Headlined by Darkest Hour, the festival also features Carnifex, Anno Domini and Alice Through The Windshield Glass in the initial line-up announcement, with eight acts to be announced later, the promise of three of Australia’s major metal acts in that list. You can get tickets through Moshtix right now.

Also, last issue I told you of a show out at The Maram that happened on Saturday November 6. I had neglected to let you know that it also was the album launch for Sydney melodic death band Daysend.

Within The Eye of Chaos is out now through Stomp.

The Basement has a couple of big shows on Saturdays this month with Shadowmill popping down from Sydney Saturday November 13 and then the week after, Saturday November 20, the even more massive Festival Of The Bread that features a great bill of local, NSW and Victorian talent with Australian Kingswood Factory, Witchgrinder, Aprocessof, Absence of State, Na Maza, Teen Skank Parade, No Longer I and The Drill.

A few albums I’ve listened to of late that will be of interest to fans of the slower end of the heavy spectrum are absolute must buys for your 2010 666mas stocking. Electric Wizard’s Black Masses is out through Rise Above and takes off where Witchcult Today left off, in ‘70s analogue horror movie sounding hell. Actually, it’s less horror movie and more akin to a ‘70s occult exploitation flick.

It’s not as heavy, but it’s still amazing. Cough from America are a bit like the Wiz but with an unhealthy dose of American nihilism and their new album Ritual Abuse is utterly stunning in every way; crushing psychedelic doom metal. For a more upbeat and thoroughly angrier dose of trVe, check out the new Lair Of The Minotaur album Evil Power. How angry? Track two, entitled Let’s Kill These Motherfuckers, pretty much tells you everything you need to know.

The Mung from Melbourne recorded an EP called The Splatter Sessions earlier this year and I had a listen to the record early on at Goatsound Studios on a Melbourne visit. The vocals are 100% unaffected. That statement might read innocuous now, but go listen to a sample on MySpace – holy crap. Another Melbourne doom band well worth your time is Wurms featuring little brother of Aussie doom pioneers dISEMBOWELLMENT and their record Natives Are Getting Restless. Stay brutal.

Josh NP – Electric Wizard – Satyr IX – Black Masses JOSH NIXON doomtildeath@hotmail.com

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THE WALLS OF JERICCO daniel boyle The race that stops a nation didn’t stop this interview. Melbourne rock band JERICCO will be heading to Canberra shortly. “We’re pretty excited – we don’t get so many chances to get to Canberra. Last year we played at Stonefest, so this will be our second visit to Canberra.”

Jericco have recently released their second EP Nice To See You. Fetah tells me “the sound on the new EP, it’s more developed. It’s more of a full band writing effort this time around. It’s harder to write that way, but in the end it’s much more rewarding.”

Jericco have a Middle Eastern sound due to the backgrounds of a couple of their members. “I’m from Palestine and Roy is from Israel,” explains Fetah. I ask if they ever clash due to their respective homelands’ perpetual conflict. “No, not really. We agree on the whole thing, it’s all nonsense really.

Melody, big riffs, straightforward.

That seems to be the vibe at the moment

“We’d like to go over to the Middle East at some stage – we’re working on some shows next year.” I had read something recently about bands boycotting Israel, so I ask Fetah’s thoughts on it. “A lot of people in Israel disagree with the occupation, you’re not helping by not going there. It’s better to go there, visit the Palestinian areas, see what’s really happening.”

The band will be part of the Capital Rock Music Festival, happening at The Maram on Saturday November 20. “We’re really excited to be playing with Sydonia again – those guys have been going really well lately. We’ve got some tour plans for next year, but it’s under wraps at the moment. It should be great though.”

The rock scene is going quite strongly in Australia with bands like Karnivool and many others making a name for themselves. “We take inspiration from bands like that, in the way they operate, but with the sound, you want to have your own sound. If it sounds too much like another band, we have to can it.”

Jericco are becoming acquainted with the countryside of Victoria at the moment. “We haven’t really done any regional shows before, but we’ve begun our tour now. We’ve played in Ballarat, Traralgon and Shepparton. The people there, not too many bands play there, so they get pretty excited. We’ll be back again for sure. Next week we play in Geelong, we haven’t been there in a long while – then we’re up to Canberra after that.”

It won’t be too much longer for fans wanting some more music. “We’re in the recording process already. We’re going to do a full length next up; we’ve got some songs ready to record already. The sound will be another development for us. I think it’s more straightforward, less of the prog sound, more focus on the lyrics, the instruments, rather than effects. Melody, big riffs, straightforward. That seems to be the vibe at the moment for us.”

Catch Jericco and a host of others at the Capital Rock Music Festival at The Maram on Saturday November 20. Tickets are available through Moshtix.

35

the word

on albums

album of the issue Gold Panda Lucky Shiner [Notown/Rough Trade]

Lucky Shiner’s opening seconds perfectly capture what’s to come; a tape deck sounds, a melody comprising Indonesian-sounding singing cut into super tight loops blooms and is introduced to four-four percussion. It’s the old meets new, East meets West. It’s also one of 2010’s most intriguing, beautiful and enchanting albums.

The magnificently named 29 year-old Derwin Panda, hailing from Chelmsford, Essex, spent his early years on the remixing tip, amassing over 100 tracks including mixes for Telepathe, Bloc Party and Simian Mobile Disco. After three critically acclaimed EPs we arrive at this, his debut album.

Slavering genre hounds eager to classify may struggle; we have the percussion-less downtempo acoustic guitar of Parents; the slow stomp, Mobyesque strings, and Boards of Canada chimes of gentile closer You; and ebullient nods to Booka Shade in highlights Vanilla Minus and Marriage.

But Lucky Shiner is largely indefinable. Whilst it becomes slightly directionless in the final quarter (bar closer You), one listen to the roborant Same Dream China with its looming chimes, clashing percussion and deep driving bass, will have you mesmerised.

ALLAN SKO

36

AUTUMN GRAY DIARY OF A FALLING MAN [independentt]

Flying Scribble We’re a Chameleon [Queen Silver Records]

Karton For All Seasons [Sound of Habib]

When is a band considered truly unique? Against a myriad of musicians – is it too much to expect something truly ‘different’? Those who are labelled quirky are often equally as quirky as others; those who are ‘different’ are inevitably mimicked. If you follow this train of thought, a conclusion in the guise of another question forms abruptly in the mindgrapes: Does that affect the quality of music? Autumn Gray are a dreamy indie rock band from Melbourne. To paraphrase a certain genius TV show: they sound exactly as their name indicates. Now, I listened to this record 13 times before I put my point on pixel. I was utterly convinced that I had multiple album length blackouts.

I forgot this record 13 times.

Sonically the record is beautiful, an intricate web of field recordings, saucepans and toy pianos – to name a few. All kinds of swooping piano flourishes and lullaby strings are utilised, lurching under distant vocals and pointless interludes, melodies seeming to burn out rather than light a fire in the listener’s mind. My knee-jerk reaction was to deride this record for how absurdly derivative it is; they use reverb in the same way Snooki uses fake tan. The songs are as indistinguishable as Ewoks.

But it is now, my ravishing readers, that we discover that we’ve gone about this question of uniqueness the wrong way.

Maybe it simply boils down to whether or not they’re your cup of tea. Regardless, as Diary of a Falling Man has graciously demonstrated, an album at least has to stick.

This inventive duo, comprising vocalist/drummer Gray Taylor and organist/bass pedal/backup vocalist Louise Terry pushes the envelope in alternative indie pop. Their wildly experimental instrumental journey explores the full range of what’s musically possible, when you’re armed with only an electronic drum kit and a midi organ. The CD title is well chosen as the colours in the music alter constantly to suit the prevailing mood.

Porthole’s tempo fluctuates like the gait of a staggering drunkard and Anyway provides a dramatic transition from frantic drumming to merrily ambling keys. The singing style swings wildly too, from the high pitched operatic style of the lead track (courtesy of Louise) to the balmy harmonies of Tree to Tree and Animation in My Head. The girls tease with lyrics whose veiled meanings delve into the riddle inside the mind of every individual. Still waters run deep and there are some sinister undertones underlying the superficially cheerful tunes. Highlights include Keep Going, with its deep warbling keys overlaid with tingling glockenspiel tones, Don’t Follow Me and the Latin rhythms in Coconut Walk. Special effects included recording bass in a wooden lift shaft and amplifying electronic percussion sounds using cast off speakers inside a dog kennel. Full of surprises, this enigmatic CD throws up a mix of unconventional rhythms and complex vocal arrangements that are a puzzle for the audience to fit together.

Finally! We’ve waited long enough for this treasure from a couple of blessed Canberra boys. They’ve had world breaks award nominations, their original tracks are being played by big guns overseas, they’ve supported names like Plump DJs and Freestylers (who will often drop a Karton track or two themselves), and their remixes often find themselves getting popularly flogged on beatport. Now they have their very first album For All Seasons, and it’s so, so smooth.

All 15 tracks are meticulously crafted, suggesting a couple of perfectionists who have spent the last two years making, breaking and re-making every layer for the flawless debut sound. It’s as if their dirty secret’s been let out at long last. The album takes a formula that tunes in, pumps up, breaks down then kills it, crossing over breaks, DnB, pop and electro.

Local vocalists Jeff Hann, Nick Craven and Cris Clucas, and Infusion front-man Manuel Sharrad make gorgeous, organic additions to Karton’s complex breaks, and some cool acoustic guitar makes appearance on a couple of drum and bass gems.

It’s a safe first album; and I mean that in the nicest of ways.

There’s heaps of sing-along fun stuff to get stuck in your head for days like catchy We Bleed.

There are atmospherical tunes to chill out to in tracks like Musical Chairs and flat-out floor busters throughout the built-up middle of the list. Definitely crack this out and hear the electronic talent Canberra’s been hoarding.

RORY McCARTNEY

dan-dans

PALIMAH PANICHIT

singled out

with Dave Ruby Howe

Love Remains How to Dress Well [Lefse] Not long ago I would’ve trashed this album after the first two tracks, but I met a girl recently who made me really listen to music. Now I understand the whole Bon Iver craze and make time for things that require the listener’s devotion. In this, German songwriter Tom Krell’s debut album, there are only one or two tracks that give the listener somewhere to start.

Don’t mistake me – this isn’t entirely a bad thing - but this album is about a sustained emotional and thematic experience and enmeshing oneself in an aural tapestry, and not at all about overt lyrics or standout tracks.

Out of context, every track on this album is just formless, moody chillout, but together they form something. And if anyone can tell me what that something is, please do. What with Krell’s distant falsetto, the spare and fragile piano, and the overcooked distortion, echoes and electro-slurring, it was all just too damned impersonal.

If you can find a structure you recognise or pick what Krell is singing about more than a few times, I cannot commend you enough. Also, I would love to hear what it might be, because whatever it is, he means it. This album may be glorified ambient noise but it is crafted noise, and Krell, to his album’s detriment, has obscured every easy inroad to appreciating that craft.

I’d advise him not to obscure them so well in future. Exercise extreme patience.

ASHLEY THOMSON

Syd Barrett An Introduction to Syd Barrett [Harvest] So much has been written about the troubled life of psychedelic music pioneer Syd Barrett, there isn’t much left to say in that department. Better then to focus on the music, and biographer Rob Chapman’s observation that “Syd Barrett was at his most prolific at a time when pop music was arguably enjoying its richest period of experimentation.”

That period was the mid to late 1960s when seismic shifts were taking place in popular culture, and listening tastes were so opened up that radical noise making might even reach the top 10. The Beatles did some pretty good stuff on the always acclaimed 1967 album Sgt Pepper, but it should also be remembered that right down the hall at London’s Abbey Road studio, Pink Floyd were putting down some of the most mind blowing sounds ever committed to tape with vocalist/guitarist Syd Barrett at the helm. The first six tracks on this carefully mastered compilation feature early Pink Floyd singles with some tasty offerings to keep obsessive fans on board including an intriguing version of Matilda Mother from debut album Piper at the Gates of Dawn which gets those lysergic happy trails running free. The remaining 12 tracks survey Barrett’s short lived solo career with lighter moments interspersed with the deeper intensity of something like Dark Globe. Although his take on the world became increasingly tenuous as time moved on, this music is first class all the way.

Dan Bigna

Grateful Dead Crimson, White and Indigo [Rhino] The Grateful Dead. If you have a cursory understanding of rock history you’ll know the name, but probably couldn’t pick a tune to avoid a back alley knifing. At a stretch you might be able to peg them as that indulgent perpetually stoned psychedelic rock band from last century. The Dead are, for all intents and purposes, dead. After Jerry Garcia’s (lead guitar, vocals, heroin) passing in 1995 they officially disbanded, but by my reckoning over 60 live albums have been released from the bands extensive vault in the last decade. Crimson, White and Indigo captures the band in 1989 on one of their brief latecareer creative resurgences.

Not withstanding their genre-defining excursions into alt-Americana (Workingman’s Dead, American Beauty – both essential) the Dead were primarily a live proposition, where spontaneous explorative melodies would float unrestrained for days before exploding into distilled pyschriffing. But, they also knew how to get bogged down in meandering twaddle. There is good and there is bad Grateful Dead. This is pretty good Grateful Dead. Brent Myland’s ‘80s clonky keyboards rankle this traditionalist but there is an energetic and fluid Scarlet Begonias->Fire on the Mountain and Garcia’s fragile vocals are better than average especially of a jaunty Wharf Rat. Not the best live introduction to the band (the 1977 shows, especially their Cornell University gig on May 8, is the Rosetta Stone) but a fun trip, nonetheless.

JUSTIN HOOK

Black Eyed Peas The Time (The Dirty Bit) [UMA] The big thing for Will.i.Am and his ‘Peas is that they’re doing futuristic pop. Alright, I’ll pay that. But the future they’re from is a pretty fucking dreadful one.

Mark Ronson & The Business Intl.

Somebody To Love Me ft.

Boy George & Andrew Wyatt [Sony] Again Ronson demonstrates his frighteningly good knack for a good guest list, picking up Miike Snow’s Andrew Wyatt and Boy George for a surprisingly stirring turn, perfectly embodying the sallow-eyed romantic at the song’s core.

Pink - Raise Your Glass [Sony] Pink is the source of a lot of adolescent trauma for me. I remember my sister was turning 17 or 18 and she wanted me to get her Pink’s M!ssundaztood. Brutal, right?

So I carted off to Big W Woden, ambled up to the electronics section and reticently grabbed a jewel-case copy of that shit and shuffled nervously over to the counter like an old sleaze buying porn at the news agency.

The clerk just looked at me with a mixture of disgust and sympathy. All I could do was stammer a faint “it’s not for me”, but I knew the damage had been done. Alexis Ruby Howe and her co-conspirator Pink had obliterated whatever social standing I may’ve had at Big W Woden and to this day I can’t step foot in there without experiencing painful flashbacks like a Vietnam vet. The moral of this story should be pretty clear by now; basically, Pink is shit.

37

the word

on films

WITH MARK RUSSELL

Who would’ve thought a film about facebook could be one of the best of the year (well, besides us Sorkin and Fincher fan-boys anyway)? The Social Network left an indelible impression on me but it also created many a deep question about our society as a whole.

First and foremost for me: is writing a status-update about The Social Network ironic, post-modern, meta-cool or just a little sad? Poke me if you have an answer.

quote of the issue “You’re going to go through life thinking that girls don’t like you because you’re a nerd. And I want you to know, from the bottom of my heart, that that won’t be true. It’ll be because you’re an asshole.”

Erica Albright (Rooney Mara), The Social Network

38

the social network

Paranormal Activity 2

red

The Social Network is a beautiful example of the core elements of filmmaking, expertly wielded by their respective gurus, coming together to be greater than the sum of its parts.

If there’s anything that we learned from the surprising success of The Blair Witch Project, it’s that films made up of ‘real’ footage tend to truly intrigue the masses. After the first instalment of Paranormal Activity, which depicted the horrific haunting of a young couple, proved to be quite the hit, it made more than good sense for Hollywood to serve up a sequel.

As you may have seen in the preview, Red features a sequence involving Bruce Willis stepping out of a car while it’s midway through a screeching 360-degree spin. Though lacking its full impact when seen out of context, this is one of the slickest and most inventive bits of action committed to celluloid in a while, and sets the tone beautifully for the film as a whole.

The story of facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg has been spun expertly by West Wing/A Few Good Men writer Aaron Sorkin, with his trademark fast paced verbal tradeoffs proudly stamped on the film ensuring we’re never shy of quips, rips, and intelligence. Director David Fincher handles Sorkin’s material with aplomb, matching the dialogue with fast cuts and sublime editing, and injecting a moody tone through sets, angles and lighting throughout.

Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’ soundscape is brooding and heightens the tension superbly.

And the acting is uniformly excellent, Arnie Hammer playing both twins, Andrew Garfield injecting much needed heart as former best friend Eduardo Saverin and Jesse Eisenberg as Zuckerberg in particular shine through; Eisenberg following up his excellent turn in Zombieland with a perfectly pitched portrayal of this genius sociopath.

What makes the film truly great is how these elements blend together so well throughout the entire film. Scenes that could otherwise have been flaccid and dull – the opening scene, the hacking and setting up of Facemash, the boat race – are elevated to moments of aesthetic beauty and tingling emotional power. The film meanders slightly towards the end (the only reason it misses out on top marks) but this is easily one of the year’s best. allan sko

The premise is simple - after a break-in, a family installs a system of security cameras that record around the clock (though why anyone would actually do this is beyond me).

This footage forms the bulk of the film, as well as some handycam footage. Of course, the cameras end up catching more than just everyday life – you could say that they record some truly paranormal activity.

Paranormal Activity 2 can actually be pretty creepy at times, if you’re willing to get into the spirit of things (pun intended). The film does get a bit too Blair Witch towards the end (shaky night-vision camerawork, lots of banging and running around), and frankly goes from being delightfully subtle (read: occasionally dull) to pretty damn obvious.

Overall, while there’s nothing too groundbreaking here, Paranormal Activity 2 is fun enough. Also, the story is cleverly tied in to the first film, which at least makes it feel like more than just a ploy to get more money out of a successful idea. Best viewed with popcorn, friends, and maybe some sort of alcoholic beverage.

Megan McKeough

This tonal primer is very important as we move into the story of a group of retired CIA operatives, who jump back into the field when they’re targeted for termination. Tongues are planted firmly in cheek and realism becomes subjective as Hollywood heavyweights Willis, Morgan Freeman, Helen Mirren, John Malkovich and Brian Cox prove they’re not too old for this shit. As the body count scrolls up and the quips come rapidfire, we share in many knowing winks to the filmmakers.

It’s impossible to ignore the sheer pleasure everyone’s having with this material.

Unfortunately, things err a little too far towards self-indulgent as it progresses. Too many liberties are taken as fun takes precedence over little things like character and plot. The pacing and editing could also have done with an upped dose of urgency. A lacklustre second half squanders a little more of the early potential.

Though all of this probably sounds a little doom and gloom, Red still offers very strong action played with gusto. And by some talents you might not expect to see in this kind of fare.

MARK RUSSELL

the word on dvds

Get Him To The Greek [Universal]

Leap Year [Universal Pictures]

The Crazies [Roadshow]

Russell Brand makes an unlikely movie star. An ex-junkie with an outrageous wit, enviable command over vocabulary to back it up and a string of scandals (the heroin years, the infamous BBC Radio sacking, the profligate shagging) who never really acts, more so just plays a variation of himself.

In Get Him To The Greek he’s turned a supporting character role in a marginal bromance comedy caper (Forgetting Sarah Marshall) into the star attraction. Washed up rocker Aldous Snow (possibly some sort of self-congratulatory knowing riff about the doors of perception and cocaine) was a carnal force of nature in Forgetting… and this time the only way forward is more: more drugs, more debauchery, more uncomfortable situations, more everything. Except laughs. A & R man Aaron Green (Jonah Hill) convinces his boss Sergio Roma (Sean Coombs) that to reverse the fortunes of his ailing record company they should put on a 10th anniversary show celebrating one of Snow’s more famous performances. Green is dispatched to England to get Snow to the Greek Theatre in three days time. Cue drug and sex fuelled mania; AKA a standard Brand weekend circa 2003. The good things first.

Sean Coombs as the head of Pinnacle Records reverses over a decade’s worth of annoying pouting – he’s fantastic, displaying an assured sense of comic timing few would have credited him with. Rose Byrne as Snow’s girlfriend steals the movie with a gloriously louche, leg-splitting performance on live TV. The African Child clip – an uproarious Live Aid spoof – is pitch-perfect. Unfortunately the rest of the film is repugnant drivel. There’s never any recompense – just a rock star being a prick and an all-forgiving crony. This isn’t a clever satire of out of control celebrities. It’s a muddle-headed 90 minute excuse for asshole addicts.

Leap Year is a lacklustre attempt at a romantic comedy.

So what else is new?

Hollywood’s being eating itself for generations. It’s not a startlingly new trend for braindead producers to stumble across an old film and think that it deserves a remake; only with more explosions and nudity.

Hell, Hitchcock even went to the trouble of remaking his own films. Horror films have been enjoying – if that’s the right word – a particularly fertile period of remakes, re-imaginings and reboots (Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Elm Street et al) and drilling down even further you have the films of George A Romero; the most famous of all horror directors. Zack Snyder’s 2004 remake of Romero’s 1978 masterpiece Dawn of the Dead was an achievement in that it didn’t overly piss on the grave of its source material. Since then Romero himself has added another three films to the Dead canon, with diminishing returns.

The Crazies is one of Romero’s lesser known films but one that adheres strictly to the goofyspectacled director’s roll call of mandatory tropes; (i) rural town Middle America peopled by Godfearing innocents who succumb to (ii) a shady government cover up of an unknown disaster leading to (iii) out of control infected inhabitants pursuing a (iv) plucky group of survivors, one of which will surely be (v) pregnant, another of which will undoubtedly (vi) get infected by the unknown virus and take a bullet, all the while (vii) lawlessness and gallons of blood ensue. Of course the metaphor of an out of control military freely executing citizens is, sadly, becoming universal (Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan… take your pick) and whilst obvious, it isn’t necessarily ham-fisted. Tim Olyphant (Deadwood) is excellent as the uptight town Sheriff and Joe Anderson (Control) channels southern hick extraordinarily well for an English toff. The Crazies is a solid, if graciously slow, film, and is one of the better remakes on offer.

JUSTIN HOOK

Anna Brady (Amy Adams) wants the perfect life, so when her cardiologist boyfriend, Jeremy (Adam Scott), doesn’t propose to her on their four year anniversary, she decides to surprise him on a business trip to Dublin – and propose herself.

Of course, a woman being so forward and forthright about her feelings couldn’t possibly be an everyday occurrence. Such presumptuous behaviour is only allowed because her beau will be in Dublin on the 29th of February – it’s a leap year – and Irish tradition dictates that on this day a woman may propose to a man. Of course, the course of true love never did run smooth, and Anna finds herself road-tripping with the cynical, scruffy Declan (Matthew Goode), and sparks fly.

Adams is, as usual, cute as a button. Goode has that whole scruffy charm thing going on.

The two of them have natural screen chemistry, and their bickering is believable. Plus, there are those beautiful Irish landscapes as a backdrop. But the script is such a complete and utter travesty that even the forces of Adams, Goode and the entirety of Ireland combined can’t save it. The plot is predictable, the romance trite, and the slapstick ‘comedic’ moments in the film could only be called as such if the word is placed in quotation marks.

With a couple of deleted scenes on the DVD – and trust me, they were deleted for a reason – there isn’t any reason to rent Leap Year, let alone buy it. Although the day this film is named after is supposed to be something special, the film Leap Year certainly isn’t. It’s just another charmless, harmless non-event.

Melissa Wellham

JUSTIN HOOK

39

the word

BLACKBOX

on games Cut the Rope / Super Scribblenauts Developer: ZeptoLab / 5th Cell Platform: iPhone / DS Style: Nippy puzzles / Open-ended puzzles Length: 1 – 3 hrs / 5+ hours Rating: Worth grabbing / Get it for your kids

I could sum this review up in one line: for a buck o’ five (or so), why the hell wouldn’t ya? Indeed, like the iPhone classics that precede it, Cut the Rope possesses all the hallmarks of a high class game. Crisp and kooky visuals, simple physics based gameplay and a race to the bottom price tag (in other words, it’s cheap as chips. Actually, chips are more expensive, so scrap that). Of course, there are many that have tried replicating this formula and failed, but on this occasion it’s definitely a success.

The premise of the game is simple; you have to swing, float and blow a piece of candy from one side of the level into the mouth of a hungry little monster thing (not surprisingly the back story is a bit lacking, so god only knows what it is). Each attempt takes a matter of seconds, making the gameplay fun and fast paced. For this reason, having to re-watch the level intros each time can become tiresome, but that’s a pretty trivial qualm. The game’s greatest issue is its length, or lack thereof. Even with 100 levels on offer, you can get through them in an hour or two, even with three stars each.

That said, you’ll still definitely get your money’s worth, especially considering its Game Center support. *** Given the pubescent nature of this games column (with regards to age rather than sophistication), Super Scribblenauts marks the first title we’ve come to revisit. For those who missed the first instalment, the game centres around a number of little puzzles that you need to solve using a large assortment of items. Think a robot zombie will be of use?

Write it down and bam! Just now make sure it doesn’t kill you.

While the premise is an awesome one, more than ever before the game feels like it could have just as easily been replaced using a pure text-based approach. Whilst the special action-based levels are an exception to this, as the name would suggest they are in short supply. In an attempt to spice things up, they added the ability to use adjectives to objects, thereby allowing you to create something like a fake, winged, mongoose. Once again, whilst potential is awesome, in practicality their use feels mostly contrived. There are however some improvements since the last title, foremost of which is ability to now control Maxwell, the main character, using the D-pad. The level menu has also been spruced up a bit and there’s even a level editor. That said, whilst this game would be a great learning tool for younger kids, I personally didn’t find it overly fun to play.

TORBEN SKO

40

Lots of the new Australian offerings this year have been a bit of a disappointment – think Cops LAC (WIN, Thu, 9.30pm) – and the tradition of great Aussie dramedy, so beautifully weaving cynicism, humour and quirkiness through the fabric of well written drama, seems to have dropped from our screens. Offspring (SCTEN, Sun, 8.30pm) is better viewing than most but it tries to cram too many different ideas and revelations into each character and episode, and then it just moves on to a new set without exploring the first. There is hope. Rake (ABC1, Thu, 8.30pm) is superb. In a role that seems written for him, the inimitable Richard Roxborough plays a morally bankrupt barrister who doesn’t care about justice but believes in the law. He’s in love with a prostitute, gets relationship advice from his psychologist ex and is being pursued by the tax department.

But that’s just the backstory – the characterisations are quirky yet sublime and the dialogue razor sharp. Must watch TV at Chez Blackbox (I second that - Ed.).

Just when you thought they’d run out of ideas for observational docos – William McInnes narrates The Enforcers (WIN, Sun Nov 14, 6.30pm) which follows council rangers. Mary Queen of Shops (GEM, Thu Nov 18, 8.30pm) tries to turn around struggling fashion boutiques. What next? Filming Blackbox watching telly and going to the shop for chocolate?

True Stories (ABC, Wed, 8.30pm) delves into the cinematic realm to discover the real stories that inspired celluloid classics such as The Hunt for Red October, The Bourne Ultimatum, The Exorcist and The Silence of the Lambs. Funny how the truth inspires some of the best films. There’s some classic cinema coming up including Pink Panther (ABC2, Sat Nov 13, 8.30pm) and The Red Riding Trilogy (SBS1, Tue-Thu Nov 16-18, 10pm). Conan (GEM, Tue – Fri, 11.30pm), which is being ‘fast tracked’ has some interesting musical guests including Jack White, Soundgarden and Fistful of Mercy.

A Small Act (ABC1, Mon Nov 25, 9.30pm) should be mandatory viewing – it tells the story of just how successful programs to sponsor children in impoverished countries have become. Chris Mburu was a sponsored child. Now a human rights lawyer working for the UN, he has started his own scholarship fund. Powerful stuff.

You really can make a difference.

Docos to look out for include an African Journey with Jonathan Dimbleby (ABC1, Tue, 8.30pm), another instalment of Jennifer Byrne presents Graphic Novels with Nicki Greenberg, Bruce Mutard, Eddie Campbell and Sophie Cunningham (ABC1, Tue Nov 16, 10pm), JFK: 3 shots that changed America (SBS1, Tue Nov 23, 10pm) – a two parter, and Manson (SBS1, Sun Nov 14, 9.30pm) which features interviews with key players.

Don’t miss Powderfinger: The Final Odyssey (ABC1, Thu Nov 11, 9.30pm) which includes live and behind the scenes footage of their final tour, and William Shatner’s Weird or What? (SBS1, Mon Nov 15, 7.30pm). Sci-fi fans who can’t afford the DVD will be happy to hear 7Mate is airing the rest of the final season of Stargate Atlantis (7Mate, Thu Nov 25, 8.30pm). George Negus fronts his last episode of Dateline (SBS1, Sun Nov 21, 8.30pm). Best news? The final of X Factor (Prime, Mon Nov 22, 7.30pm). Interestingly the final of Iron Chef Australia (Prime, Tue, 7.30pm) which only just started is slated to air next week.

TRACY HEFFERNAN tracyheffernan@bigpond.com

41

GIG GUIDE Nov 10 - Nov 13 wednesday november 10

thursday november 11

Arts

Arts

2010 Japanese Film Festival

2010 Japanese Film Festival

Her Younger Brother (18+). Opening night free screening. 7pm.

ARC CINEMA, NATIONAL FILM & SOUND ARCHIVE

Bed, Breakfast and Belief

Touring exhibition by Flossie Peitsch. ‘Til November 14.

M16 ARTSPACE

Misunderstood

Photgraphy from Iran by Timo Nest. ‘Til Nov 14.

M16 ARTSPACE

Space Invaders

ARC CINEMA, NATIONAL FILM & SOUND ARCHIVE

2010 Japanese Film Festival

Castle Under Fiery Skies (18+). 2pm, 7pm.

ARC CINEMA, NATIONAL FILM & SOUND ARCHIVE

Comedy The Austen Tayshus Comedy Club

The biggest ever exhibition of street art, posters, paste-ups, zines and stickers in Australia.

Cave

Dance

Exhibition by Jessica Herrington. ‘Til Nov 14.

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ARTS SPACE - MANUKA

Women and Colour

New Paintings from Ninuku Arts. ‘Til November 24.

CHAPMAN GALLERY

The Pheasant and the Fool An exhibition by Emily Penso. ‘Til November 28.

9pm ‘til 11pm followed by DJ Pete ‘til 5am.

CUBE NIGHTCLUB

friday november 12

Shodo Girls. (G). 10am.

Introducing some of the finest emerging comedy talent in the country. Three comedians every night.

NATIONAL GALLERY OF AUSTRALIA

Karaoke

CASINO CANBERRA

Open Decks

8pm, free entry.

LOT 33

Faux Real

Hard hitting and sensitive. Quite the contradiction!

KNIGHTSBRIDGE PENTHOUSE

Soul Train

With Mario Gordon.

Arts Australian Poetry Slam: ACT Final

The 10 ACT semi-finalists battle for the chance to represent the ACT at the Grand Final. 8pm.

SMITH’S ALTERNATIVE BOOKSHOP

Wounds In Our Heart

4Sound Session

Deep. Techno, house. Feat. Alex Cleary, B-tham and more. $10, 10pm.

LOT 33

D’Opus

Say what, say, say, say what.

KNIGHTSBRIDGE PENTHOUSE

DJ Skywalker

Live

Dance

Brass’ere

Hippo Live

The first in a series of regular Thursday night jazz sessions. 8pm.

HIPPO LOUNGE

Domus Adultus

With The Inflections.

LEGENDS BAR, MANUKA

Live

One Way Fare, Vermillion, and Canberra supergroup The Howling Cats. Not to be missed.

Rock Nation Unplugged 8pm, free.

THE HUSH LOUNGE, PHILLIP

The Adam Hole and Marji Curran Band THE PHOENIX PUB

Wednesday Lunchtime Live

Wind Ensembles. Works of Edwards, Vivaldi, Mower, Clarke, Lennon & McCartney and more.

WESLEY MUSIC CENTRE

Something Different Fame Trivia

Do you know lots of stuff about nothing? Then why not try your hand at Trivia every Wednesday. 6pm.

P J O’REILLY’S, CIVIC

Aids Action Council Fundraiser. 9pm ‘til 5am, show starts at 11.30pm.

saturday november 13 Arts 2010 Japanese Film Festival

The Short Animation of Kawamoto Kihachiro. (18+). 2pm.

Zero Focus (18+). 4.30pm.

HA HA BAR, BELCONNEN

2010 Japanese Film Festival ARC CINEMA, NATIONAL FILM & SOUND ARCHIVE

2010 Japanese Film Festival The Summit: A Chronicle of Stones (18+). 7pm.

With Timber.

KNIGHTSBRIDGE PENTHOUSE

ARC CINEMA, NATIONAL FILM & SOUND ARCHIVE

Rev

Dance

Your weekly alternative party. DJs spin indie, rock, electro, grunge, punk tracks all night. $5.

BAR 32

Live Killing The Sound

Reso (UK)

THE CLUBHOUSE

Candy Cube

10pm ‘til 5am with DJs Matt and Pete.

CUBE NIGHTCLUB

Oli Y (Melb)

Aaron & Jacinta.

Supports: Team Wing, Hartattack, The Accused. $10, 10pm.

P J O’REILLY’S, CIVIC

Ashley Feraude

KING O’MALLEY’S, CIVIC

The Bridge Between Duo

6pm.

Hot new limited edition spring collection.

HOLY GRAIL, CIVIC

BELGIUM BEER CAFE

Alliance Française Jazz Night

Low Freqz

Kasha 7” Launch

ALLIANCE FRANÇAISE

6-9pm.

With Hoodlum Shouts and Mere Women (Syd). Free entry.

TRANSIT BAR

Open Mic Night 9pm, free.

POT BELLY BAR

Shaun Kirk

A combination of slide guitar, harmonica, stomp box and tambourine, with Joe Oppenheimer. 7.30pm.

THE FRONT CAFE AND GALLERY

Funky Fedoras

Lounge music from 7-10pm.

Chicago Charles

With Sally Greenway Project, 7–9pm.

The Riot Stage

The Bridge Between Duo

TRANSIT BAR

MARGARET TIMPSON PARK

Featuring Canberra’s finest purveyors of wax. Free entry.

THE FELLOWS BAR, ANU

Live

Vintage Vulva

Electric Lake II

With Vertical Smirk (Syd) and The Drill.

THE BASEMENT

The Rooftops

Infectious, feet-friendly grooves, soulful storytelling and sun-drenched vibes, with Fun Machine. 8pm THE FRONT CAFE AND GALLERY

THE MARAM, ERINDALE CENTRE

CANBERRA IRISH CLUB

Marking the bicentenaries of the independence of Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Venezuela.

HELLENIC CLUB IN THE CITY

Vinyl Only

5-7.30pm.

Musos Night

Every Thursday from 8pm.

Low end sounds for highly evolved apes. Feat. Dred, The Crunch, Faux Real and Jemist.

HIPPO LOUNGE

Something Different Open mic from 8pm.

KNIGHTSBRIDGE PENTHOUSE

At Belconnen Festival. Feat. Rubycon, Steady the Fall and a swag of other acts. 11-5pm.

Jester

Karaoke

42

Something Different

Despised Icon

KING O’MALLEY’S, CIVIC

CANBERRA SERVICES CLUB, MANUKA

EXHIBITION PARK

THE PHOENIX PUB

TRANSIT BAR

Presented by Overheard Productions.

7.30pm.

Continues until November 14.

LOT 33

THE GEORGE HARCOURT INN

Trivia

Canberra Country Music Festival

8.30pm.

Trivia

$5 Night.

SUB URBAN

DJ Perplex At Ha Ha’s Second Birthday

The Clubhouse is now open three nights a week. Providing your alternative music needs.

CIVIC PUB

9pm.

ARC CINEMA, NATIONAL FILM & SOUND ARCHIVE

Comedy ACT Presents Marcus Ryan

THE CLUBHOUSE

Synergy

HIPPO LOUNGE

Evening Music Matinee

Supported by Jay Sullivan, The Stevenson Experience and Joe Shellard.

8pm, $10 at door.

OLD PARLIAMENT HOUSE

CUBE NIGHTCLUB

Comedy

uniVibes Thursdays

Every Friday from 5pm ‘til late. Head to the Facebook page Double Happiness @ OPH for all the info.

Dance

KNIGHTSBRIDGE PENTHOUSE

With Buick.

Double Happiness

Drag for Dollars

ANU DRILL HALL GALLERY

Evening Music Matinee

CANBERRA CONTEMPORARY ARTS SPACE - MANUKA

ACADEMY NIGHTCLUB

An exhibition by Dadang Christanto.

‘Til Dec 19.

Supported by Ashley Feraude, David Bray, Jemist, Buick, Faux Real and more. 8pm.

HIPPO LOUNGE

Foreshore Sound Search Finals

Tix through Moshtix.

Concert of the Bicentenary

WESLEY MUSIC CENTRE

Jonny Telafone, Hoodlum Shouts, Kasha, Waterford, The Ellis Collective and more. 12pm, free.

COMMONWEALTH PLACE AMPITHEATRE

Hungry Kids of Hungary

With Big Scary and Ball Park Music.

8pm, $18.

THE MARAM, ERINDALE CENTRE

Oscar

KING O’MALLEY’S, CIVIC

The Dennis Boys THE PHOENIX PUB

The Bridge Between and Band 9-12am.

CASINO CANBERRA

43

GIG GUIDE Nov 13 - Nov 19 Something Different

Comedy

live

Hospitality Night: Nurse Your Wounds

The Austen Tayshus Comedy Club

Shadowmill (Syd)

Fame Trivia

saturday november 13

With Mad Charlie (Syd), Na Maza and Perpetual End.

TRANSIT BAR

P J O’REILLY’S, CIVIC

THE BASEMENT

tuesday november 16

Battisson Awards

The 2010 winners of the Battisson Piano Award.

Arts

Chris Pickering

BAD!SLAM!NO!BISCUIT!

WESLEY MUSIC CENTRE

Stopping by The Front on his national Work of Fiction tour. Supported by Ali Handal. 8.30pm, $15.

THE FRONT CAFE AND GALLERY

BNatural

Classic hits from 1-3pm.

THE GEORGE HARCOURT INN

Something Different April’s Caravan

If you haven’t been to one yet, then get the hell along to this kiddo.

THE PHOENIX PUB

Something Different Karaoke Love TRANSIT BAR

wednesday november 17

Introducing some of the finest emerging comedy talent in the country. Three comedians every night.

CASINO CANBERRA

Comedy ACT presents Daniel Townes Supported by Tom Gibson, Kale Bogdanovs and James Priest. 8pm. $10 at door.

Arts

4Sound Session

Jemist

Goes a little something like this.

KNIGHTSBRIDGE PENTHOUSE

2010 Japanese Film Festival

The Villon’s Wife (18+). 2pm.

LOT 33

Ced Nada 6pm.

Evening Music Matinee

uniVibes Thursdays

KNIGHTSBRIDGE PENTHOUSE

ARC CINEMA, NATIONAL FILM & SOUND ARCHIVE

2010 Japanese Film Festival Feel the Wind (PG). 4.30pm.

ARC CINEMA, NATIONAL FILM & SOUND ARCHIVE

Dance Cube Sunday

10pm ‘til late with DJ TJ.

THE CLUBHOUSE

Live

Wax Lyrical

QUENBEYAN KANGAROOS CLUB

Land of Oz Tour. 8pm.

BEYOND Q BOOKS

Dos Locos

C.C. Thornley

Sea Shepherd After Party

Thirsty Merc 8pm.

ANU BAR AND REFECTORY

Hippo Live

HIPPO LOUNGE

Wednesday Lunchtime Live Songs Without Voice by Emeritus Professor Larry Sitsky (piano).

WESLEY MUSIC CENTRE

Something Different

Tech, prog, trance. Feat. Kiron, Tim Galvin, BeeTee, Pedro, B-tham. $10, 10pm.

Featuring Cheese, Offtapia and posse.

Ali Handel

THE PHOENIX PUB

THE CLUBHOUSE

Mingle Intimates

THE FRONT CAFE AND GALLERY

7pm, free.

TRANSIT BAR

LOT 33

8pm, free entry.

St Vincent de Paul Red Carpet Charity Ball

sunday november 14

Cheese

All Female DJ line-up playing dubstep to psytrance.

8pm, free.

RYDGES LAKESIDE

Dance

Open Decks

The Clubhouse is now open three nights a week. Providing your alternative music needs.

Formed by childhood friends Albert Orr and Tom Watson, with songs that sizzle and burst. 7.30pm.

NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY

Appetite

Rock Nation Unplugged

Airbridge

An exhibition by Martin Schoeller. ‘Til Feb 13.

Dance

HIPPO LOUNGE

6.30pm, $100 per person/$950 for table of ten.

Close Up

’80s/retro. Free.

live

THE HUSH LOUNGE, PHILLIP

Arts

CIVIC PUB

A Saturday arvo garden party with an abundance of delights to keep everyone smiling! 12-3.

APRIL’S HOUSE, OPP LYNEHAM SHOPS

friday november 19

KING O’MALLEY’S, CIVIC

All proceeds go entirely to Sea Shepherd’s 7th Anti Whaling Campaign.

With Fun Machine and D’Opus. 9 THE FRONT CAFE AND GALLERY

Domus Adultus

The Argonaught, The Blue Ruins and Fun Machine.

Ashley Feraude

9pm. New local raw food menu.

KNIGHTSBRIDGE PENTHOUSE

Touch Of Soul

With The Amosa Brothers.

HIPPO LOUNGE

Rev

Your weekly alternative party. DJs spin indie, rock, electro, grunge, punk tracks all night. $5.

BAR 32

Live Black Creek Ragged Shark Album Launch

With Light Noise and Righstereoleft in support. 8pm, $10 at the door.

ANU BAR AND REFECTORY

The Vasco Era

The Bridge Between Duo

Back From China tour. Tix through Moshtix.

BELGIUM BEER CAFE

Charles Chatain

THE PHOENIX PUB

6-9pm.

THE MARAM, ERINDALE CENTRE

CC Thornley (Melb)

8.30pm.

With Shoe (Tas), Ross Royce (Melb) and John Lollback.

P J O’REILLY’S, CIVIC

The Bridge Between

CANBERRA SERVICES CLUB, MANUKA

Annie and the Armadillos

Los Pajeros

ALL BAR NUN

Fame Trivia

THE GEORGE HARCOURT INN

With Black Creek. 2pm.

Do you know lots of stuff about nothing? Then why not try your hand at Trivia every Wednesday. 6pm.

Beth n Ben EP Launch

Fame Trivia

CUBE NIGHTCLUB

Live 5pm.

Sunday Sessions On The Deck CANBERRA IRISH CLUB

With Fun Machine, Big Score and The Cashews. 3-7pm.

CORROBOREE PARK COMMUNITY HALL

Kathryn Hartnett

Trivia

Presented by Overheard Productions.

7.30pm.

P J O’REILLY’S, CIVIC

Along with good old $5 Night.

TRANSIT BAR

thursday november 18

Her stark acoustic ballads are intense and deep. 7.30pm.

Arts

Emma Bosel

2010 Japanese Film Festival

THE GEORGE HARCOURT INN

ARC CINEMA, NATIONAL FILM & SOUND ARCHIVE

THE FRONT CAFE AND GALLERY

Classic hits from 1-3pm.

monday november 15 live Ladies Night

Kathryn Hartnett, Alice Cottee and Ali Handal.

THE PHOENIX PUB

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Millenium Actress (PG). 2pm.

2010 Japanese Film Festival

THE BASEMENT

Lounge music from 7-10pm.

Open Mic Night 9pm, free.

POT BELLY BAR

That 1 Guy (USA)

He packs a wallop with his magic pipe! $10 on the door.

TRANSIT BAR

Something Different Beaujolais Evening

To celebrate the arrival of the Beaujolais Nouveau. 3 course dinner, concert by Pat’Jaune.

ALLIANCE FRANÇAISE

Karaoke

Every Thursday from 8pm.

Golden Slumber (18+). 7pm.

HELLENIC CLUB IN THE CITY

Lies, Love and Hitler

9pm ‘til 11pm followed by DJ Pete ‘til 5am.

ARC CINEMA, NATIONAL FILM & SOUND ARCHIVE

By Elizabeth Avery Scott. ‘Til Nov 27.

Bookings 6247 1223.

THE STREET THEATRE

Karaoke

CUBE NIGHTCLUB

The Remnants

KING O’MALLEY’S, CIVIC

A rock/blues four-piece playing a mix of originals and covers. 8.30pm.

OLD CANBERRA INN

Merry Fest II: Merry As Anything

Including The Ellis Collective, Aaron Peacey, David Finig, Jacinta. 7pm.

THE MERRY MUSE

Dawn Theory

With The Flat Earth Confederacy and Chronicle.

THE BASEMENT

Piano Concert by Milos Mihajlovic

Winner of Southern Highlands International Piano Competition 2009, from Belgrade. 6pm.

WESLEY MUSIC CENTRE

Double Happiness

Every Friday from 5pm ‘til late. Head to the Facebook page Double Happiness @ OPH for all the info.

OLD PARLIAMENT HOUSE

Ben Solo

Indigent tour.

THE FRONT CAFE AND GALLERY

GIG GUIDE Nov 20 - Nov 24 saturday november 20

Capital Rock Music Festival

Arts

Feat. Sydonia, Breaking Orbit, Tonk, Zero Degrees, Bellusira and more. Tix through Moshtix.

Digital Jam

Festival of the Bread

Digital projection, sound art and DJs. Feat Danny Sangra and Buttress O’Kneel. Tix through Moshtix.

NATIONAL GALLERY OF AUSTRALIA

2010 Japanese Film Festival Live Tape (18+). 7pm.

ARC CINEMA, NATIONAL FILM & SOUND ARCHIVE

Dance Party By Jake

Get your heartbeat pumping with the PBJ crew and their renowned nights of mayhem. Free.

TRANSIT BAR

Candy Cube

10pm ‘til 5am with DJs Matt and Pete.

CUBE NIGHTCLUB

Recon

Breakbeats feat. Buick, Dial One, Dubdeckerbuss, Fourthstate, Ravs, Stunami.

TRINITY BAR

Womp Saturdays

Dubstep. The Clubhouse: Supplying your alternative music needs.

THE CLUBHOUSE

Club Chaos

Feat Jomo, DJ Kiz, Teamwing, DJ Rush, DJ Sal, Kiwi G. Free.

HELLENIC CLUB IN THE CITY

DJ Bam Bam + Daniel Farley (NZ #1 DJ)

Supports: B-tham, Team Wing, Bobby Rush. $10, 10pm.

LOT 33

D’Opus

Freeeeeessssh.

KNIGHTSBRIDGE PENTHOUSE

Voodoo

THE MARAM, ERINDALE CENTRE

Feat. Australian Kingswood Factory (Melb), Witchgrinder (Melb), Aprocessof (Melb) and more.

THE BASEMENT

Mike Chaplain

Classic hits from 1-3.

THE GEORGE HARCOURT INN

MICFest

A music festival showcasing the talented students from CIT’s Music Industry Centre (MIC). 1pm.

CIT MUSIC INDUSTRY CENTRE

Gemma Ray

THE SHINE DOME

Rupert Boyd and Jillian Norton

Critically acclaimed Australian classical guitarist Rupert Boyd is joined by flautist Jillian Norton WESLEY MUSIC CENTRE

A BITE TO EAT CAFE

comedy

Weekend People

With Julia and the Deep Sea Sirens.

Toby Halligan

THE PHOENIX PUB

Headlining The Front’s Comedy Night!

7.30pm.

Kasey Chambers

On her Little Bird tour. Tickets on sale now. canberratheatrecentre.com.au.

THE FRONT CAFE AND GALLERY

CANBERRA THEATRE CENTRE

Something Different

Begg, Borrow, Steal.

Karaoke Love

2pm.

CANBERRA IRISH CLUB

TRANSIT BAR

Art Song Canberra Season of Song, Concert 7

Wednesday november 24

Lovers of Song. 3pm.

WESLEY MUSIC CENTRE

Live

Kate Grealy

Jazz influenced Grealy’s songwriting signposts Dylan, Cohen and Woody Guthrie’s poetic storylines.

Bianca Meier

She walks the earth with the sunshine, strumming and singing her own original folk-pop tunes. 7.30pm

THE FRONT CAFE AND GALLERY

Rock Nation Unplugged

P J O’REILLY’S, CIVIC

Raw City Rukus

THE HUSH LOUNGE, PHILLIP

Miss Kitka’s House of Burlesque

With Botanics.

TRANSIT BAR

THE FRONT CAFE AND GALLERY

Jazz and blues from 1-3pm.

8pm, free.

Alex Anonymous

With Psychic Asylum.

Kitten of the Year. Tickets through Moshtix.

Something Different

THE PHOENIX PUB

Live Pro Wrestling

Miss Kitka’s House of Burlesque

With Hoodlum Shouts and Spartak.

8pm.

CANBERRA IRISH CLUB

Family Friendly Entertainment!All tickets $10.

WODEN TRADIES

sunday november 21

Ashley Feraude

Killing The Sound Ali Handel

CUBE NIGHTCLUB

10pm ‘til late with DJ TJ.

Live The Botanics

With Raw City Ruckus. Live hip-hop on a Sunday at Transit. Free, 4pm.

You Am I

Supported by Cabins and Hancock Basement. Tix through Moshtix.

THE MARAM, ERINDALE CENTRE

monday november 22

2010 Japanese Film Festival

Cube Sunday

ANU BAR AND REFECTORY

CANBERRA IRISH CLUB

dance

Millenium Actress (PG). 2pm.

My Disco

Kitten of the Year. Tickets through Moshtix.

Arts

Dance

THE PHOENIX PUB

tuesday november 23

With Beth’n’Ben. 4.30pm-6.30pm.

Carry On Karaoke

Live

Zeptepi

Lino Lounge

THE GEORGE HARCOURT INN

HIPPO LOUNGE

P J O’REILLY’S, TUGGERANONG

P J O’REILLY’S, CIVIC

ALL BAR NUN

Arial

Feat. The Crunch.

Land of Oz Tour. 8pm. With Angels Are Architects. 8pm.

Fame Trivia

5pm.

Something Different

ARC CINEMA, NATIONAL FILM & SOUND ARCHIVE

KING O’MALLEY’S, CIVIC

Timbuck 2

Wednesday Lunchtime Live Credo - Male Quartet.

WESLEY MUSIC CENTRE

Something Different

ACADEMY NIGHTCLUB

Trivia

Live

Presented by Overheard Productions.

7.30pm.

Bootleg Sessions

David Bath & the Hot-Tubs, Greg Carlin, Cherie Kotek, The Feldons.

THE PHOENIX PUB

Something Different Hospitality Night: Nurse Your Wounds TRANSIT BAR

TRANSIT BAR

CANBERRA SERVICES CLUB, MANUKA

Fame Trivia

Do you know lots of stuff about nothing? Then why not try your hand at Trivia every Wednesday. 6pm.

P J O’REILLY’S, CIVIC

Fame Trivia

Along with good old $5 Night.

TRANSIT BAR

Fame Trivia

P J O’REILLY’S, CIVIC

OUT NOV 24

children collide john steel singers the church dj krush ...and more!

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FIRST CONTACT SIDE A: BMA DJ profile

FROM THE SOUTH Group members: Conor Hutchison (vocals, guitar), Harry Bellchambers (bass, vocals), Goo (guitar, vocals), Phizz (keyboards) and Kay Chinnery (drums).

Describe your sound: Our sound is like a constant fall asleep, although the other day Kerry from The Fighting League described us to be a “well oiled pop machine.” I think a combination of both would probably be pretty close. It is quite hazy, like waking up.

Who are your influences, musical or otherwise? Buffalo Springfield, The Sleepy Jackson, The Chills, The Birds, Fleetwood Mac, Andrei Tarkovsky and Luis Bunuel.

What’s the weirdest experience you’ve had whilst performing? A friend of ours punched another guy in the face because the guy was talking to a girl who he liked.

Neither of the guys knew the girl. The show was quite good overall but the part I remember most is the eeriness of the bar as soon as the fight stopped.

What’s your biggest achievement/proudest moment so far? Probably finishing our debut album In Horizons. Before the album we had only released a scattering of EPs. What are your plans for the future? Our album In Horizons will be released early December through hellosQuare Records. We have almost finished recording our second album which will be released sometime next year. After we have finished recording the second album we will do some interstate shows to promote In Horizons.

What makes you laugh? People.

What pisses you off? Television.

What’s your opinion of the local scene? There are heaps of good bands now; there have been some really great gigs in Canberra over the last few years despite the disappearing music venues. In some ways this has made the music scene a lot stronger, forcing people to work together but in other ways it’s made the scene slightly exclusive, almost invisible.

Despite any of that Canberra has a name for itself now which is pretty sweet.

What are your upcoming gigs? Electric Lake II, on Saturday November 13 in Commonwealth Park near the chess board.

Contact info: from_thesouth@hotmail.com, myspace. com/fromthesouthmusic

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Aaron Peacey Aaron 0410 381 306 Activate Jetpack activatejetpack@ hotmail.com Adam Hole Adam 0421 023 226 Afternoon Shift Adam 0402 055 314 After Close Scotty 0412 742 682, afterclose@hotmail.com Alcove Mark 0410 112 522 Alice 0423 100 792 Allies ACT (Oxfam Group) alliesact@hotmail.com/ myspace.com/alliesact Amphibian Sound PA Clare 0410 308 288 Amplif5’d Classic rock covers band Joy 0407 200 428, joybarac-heath@hotmail.com Annie & the Armadillos Annie 6161 1078/0422 076 313 The Ashburys Dan Craddock 0419 626 903 Aria Stone, sax & flute, singer/ songwriter (guitar) Aria 0411 803 343 Australian Songwriters Association (Keiran Roberts) 6231 0433 Arythmia: Ben 0423 408 767/ arythmiamusic@gmail.com Backbeat Drivers Steve 0422 733 974, www.backbeatdrivers.com Big Boss Groove Andrew 0404 455 834, www.bigbossgroove.com.au Bill Quinn Overheard Productions bill@overheard.com.au, Ph: 0413 000 086 Birds Love Fighting Gangbusters/DIY shows - bookings@birdslovefighting.com Black Label Photography Kingsley 0438 351 007 Blister Bug Stu 0408 617 791 Bridge Between, The Rachel 0412 598 138, thebridgebetween.com.au Bruce Stage mgr/consultant 6254 9857 Caution Horses Nigel 0417 211 580 Chris Harland Blues Band 0418 490 640 chrisharlandbluesband@yahoo.com.au Clear Vision Films rehearsals/film clips/stunts - 0438 647 281 wcoulton.clearvisionfilms.com Cole Bennetts Photography 0415 982 662 /colebennetts.com Cris Clucas Cris 6262 5652 Crooked Dave 0421 508 467 Danny V Danny 6238 1673/0413 502 428 Dawn Theory Nathan 0402 845 132 D’Opus & Roshambo hifidelitystyles@yahoo.com DJs Madrid and Gordon 0417 433 971 DJ Latino Rogelio 0401 274 208 DJ Moises (RnB/Latin) 0402 497 835 or moises_lopez@hotmail DNA Vic 0408 477 020 Drumassault Kate 0414 236 323 Easy Mode Daz 0404 156 482, easymodeband@gmail.com Entity Chris 0412 027 894 Epic Flagon band@epicflagon.com Fighting Mongooses, The Adam 0402 055 314 Final Warning Brendan 0422 809 552 Fire on the Hill Aaron 0410 381 306/ Lachlan 0400 038 388 4dead Peter 0401 006 551 Freeloaders, The Steve 0412 653 597 Friend or Enemy 6238 0083, www.myspace.com/friendorenemy Funk Shui Dave 0407 974 476 Gareth Hailey DJ & Electronica 0414 215 885 GiLF Kelly 0410 588 747, gilf.mail@gmail.com Groovalicious Corporate/Weddings/ Private functions 0448 995 158 groovalicious@y7mail.com Guy The Sound Guy live & studio sound engineer, 0400 585 369, guy@ guythesoundguy.com HalfPast Chris 0412 115 594 Hancock Basement Tom 6257 5375, hancockbasement@hotmail.com Happy Hour Wendy 0406 375 096 Haunted Attics band@hauntedatticsmusic.com

Hitherto Paul 0408 425 636 In The Flesh Scott 0410 475 703 Inside the Exterior Nathan 0401 072 650 Itchy Triggers Andrew 0401 588 884 Jacqui Seczawa 0428 428 722 JDY Clothing 0405 648 288/ www.jdyclothing.com Jenn Pacor singer/songwriter avail. for originals & covers, 0405 618 630 Jim Boots 0417 211 580 Johnny Roadkill Paulie 0408 287 672, paulie_mcmillan@live.com.au Karismakatz DJ Gosper 0411 065 189/ dj@karismakatz.com Kayo Marbilus myspace.com/kayomarbilus Kurt’s Metalworx (PA) 0417 025 792 Little Smoke Sam 0411 112 075 Los Chavos Andy 0401 572 150 los.chavos@yahoo.com.au Manilla Green Herms 0404 848 462, contactus@manillagreen.com, Mario Brujo Gordon world/latin/ reggae/percussionist and DJ. 0405 820 895 Martin Bailey Audio Engineer 0423 566 093 Words for You: writer/publicity/events Megan ph 6154 0927, megan@wordsforyou.com.au Mercury Switch Lab Studios mercuryswitch@internode.on.net Missing Zero Hadrian Brand 0424 721 907 hadrian.brand@live.com.au Moots aspwinch@grapevine.com.au Huck 0419 630 721 MuShu Jack 0414 292 567, mushu_band@hotmail.com MyOnus myonusmusic@hotmail.com/ www.myspace.com/myonus No Retreat Simon 0411 155 680 Ocean Moses Nigel 0417 211 580 OneWayFare Chris 0418 496 448 Painted Hearts, The Peter 6248 6027 Phathom Chris 0422 888 700 The Pigs The Colonel 0422 412 752 Polka Pigs Ian 6231 5974 Premier Audio Simon 0412 331 876, premier_audio@hotmail.com Rafe Morris 0416 322 763 Redletter Ben 0421 414 472 Redsun Rehearsal Studio Ralph 0404 178 996/6162 1527 Rhythm Party, The Ross 0416 010 680 Roger Bone Band Andy 0413 483 758 Rob Mac Project, The Melinda 0400 405 537 Rug, The Jol 0417 273 041 Samsara Samahdi 0431 083 776 Sansutra J-Ma 0403 476 350 Simone Penkethman (Simone & The Soothsayers, Singing Teacher) 6230 4828 Soundcity Rehearsal Studio Andrew 0401 588 884 Solid Gold Peter 0421 131 887/ solid.gold@live.com.au Super Best Friends Matt 0438 228 748 Surrender Jordan 0439 907 853 Switch 3 Mick 0410 698 479 System Addict Jamie 0418 398 556 The Morning After (covers band) Anthony 0402 500 843/ myspace.com/themorningaftercovers Tiger Bones & The Ferabul-Zers Danny feralbul@aapt.net.au Tim James Lucia 6282 3740, LUCIAMURDOCH@hotmail.com Top Shelf Colin 0408 631 514 Transmission Nowhere Emilie 0421 953 519/myspace.com/ transmissionnowhere Udo 0412 086 158 Undersided, The Baz 0408 468 041 Using Three Words Dan 0416 123 020, usingthreewords@hotmail.com Voodoo Doll Mark 0428 650 549 William Blakely Will 0414 910 014 Zero Degrees and Falling Louis 0423 918 793 Zwish 0411 022 907

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