THE BENNIES SWEAT IT OUT ON TOUR The Bennies recently wrapped up their Wisdom Machine Australian tour in Maroochydore on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast. Two weeks and 15,000 kilometers later they were playing a festival in Berlin, Germany. It’s indicative of the work ethic for the Melbourne band who have earnt a reputation for not only hard partying but heavy touring.
Fiorello, who released their album in the UK and US, and they got invited to play at Belgium festival Groezrock, alongside their heroes in Rancid. Spending April and May in their fourth continent in as many years, The Bennies will return home from their European and UK tour, to continue the second phase of their Wisdom Machine tour.
So far 2016 has been a whirlwind for the band. In January, Wisdom Machine’s first single ‘Party Machine’ reached number 88 on triple j’s Hottest 100, some two months before physical copies of the album were even available.
Constantly outdoing themselves with everything they do, this will be their biggest and most expansive tour to date, with 27 shows across each state, regional shows and new destinations they have previously never visited, including Townsville, Albany, Karratha, Werribee and, by popular demand, Nimbin.
They toured the country and sold out shows wherever they went, including Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane and while they have always built their name around their live show, with Wisdom Machine, people were now talking loudly about their music. They graced the covers of magazines, scored album of the week accolades and even infiltrated the charts, with the album debuting at number 40 on the ARIA Album chart and number 10 on the Australian chart. They drew the attention of Less Than Jake drummer, and owner of Florida based label Paper & Plastic, Vinnie
Proudly presented by triple j, catch The Bennies pack out dance floors this June and July, supported by Poison City label mates Clowns, who are also fresh from European tour dates. Also along for the wild ride will be Perth punk-rock trio Axe Girl. Event Details: When: Wednesday 14th September Where: Grand Hotel, 124 Main Street Mornington Contact: 03 5975 2001 Tickets: $25 +bf Online Book online at www.grand.net.au
HOLLYWOOD’S MAN OF 10,000 VOICES BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND ‘Human sound-effects machine’ Michael Winslow will be back in Australia this July and August for his most extensive stand-up tour of our shores to date. Winslow’s mastery of vocal gymnastics first came to prominence on the stand-up circuit in the early 80s after doing voiceovers for both Disney and Universal Studios for films like Back to the Future and Terminator. His performance as Sgt. Larvelle “Motor Mouth” Jones in the Police Academy movie series saw Winslow become a household name, a role specifically created to showcase his vocal talents. Notably, his is the only character to appear in all instalments of Police Academy including all seven movies, the cartoon and the television series. Appearances in Mel Brooks’ Spaceballs and Gremlins quickly followed, with audiences amazed by Winslow’s incredible ability to create remarkably convincing sound effects – machine gun fire, helicopters, a harmonica, police
sirens – using nothing more than his voice. More recently, Winslow has been animated (and voiced himself!) on The Simpsons and Family Guy, and his in-demand talents have been showcased on countless video games and apps. A mix of impersonations, impressions, story-telling, music and sound effects, Winslow’s live show is not a traditional stand-up comedy routine but a sound-fuelled adventure that showcases his truly remarkable talent. His signature renditions of rock gods like Jimmy Hendrix and Led Zeppelin, as well as a re-enactment of an entire Star Wars battle scene, have made Winslow’s live show a ‘must-see’ performance. Don’t miss Michael Winslow, an inimitable talent and icon of comedy’s golden age, live this winter. Michael Winslow will be at Chelsea Heights Hotel on Saturday 13th August. For tickets call (03) 9773 4453 or visit chelseaheightshotel.com.au Frankston Times 1 August 2016
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