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SYDNEY SHOWGROUND

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rock music news welcome to the frontline: what’s goin’ on around town...with Chris Martin and Xiaoran Shi

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speed date WITH

JORDAN MCDONALD FROM THE ART porcelain cheeks of a geisha’s arse the next. Obviously it’s also important to be sharing the ride with cats you love and respect, ’cause without the love it’s pretty fucking hard to rock the skin-on-skin proximity.

Keeping Busy We just finished our first world 2. tour, about six months across the

1.

What Do You Look For In A Band?

Commitment, resilience and authenticity. Rock’n’roll posers are a dime a dozen. You need the kind of personnel who understand that for

all the glory there’s gonna be equal measures of uphill, shit-smeared, bare-knuckle fucking grind. It takes a pack of tenacious fucks. All four of us will live on one-dollar tacos one week and feast on sashimi off the

US and Europe. It was a chance to sharpen the blade. Stealing tricks from some of the fucking sick, veteran rock acts we got to play with, build a strong fan base and write our brand new release, Weirdo Superhero. Back here in Oz we finished recording, shot two amazing film clips, and personally, I manage the beer and music side of shit at Frankie’s Pizza. It’s been fucking ridiculous. I’m overworked but at least I’m oversexed too so it all kinda balances out.

Best Gig Ever Every gig has its charms. Big 3. festivals are unreal ’cause you get

to hang with idols then usurp their glory and wank off onstage like a bona fide godhead, rock’n’roll dictator. Clubs are just as fun ’cause there’s no pressure and the intimacy tends to earn you more friends/fans.

If I had to pick a fave though it’d be the first show out with Hollywood legends, Faster Pussycat, at Hard Rock Hotel in Vegas last March.

We rolled into town and they had a fucking billboard for us, right on the Strip. We immediately felt as though we’d shelved a few 100mg Viagra tabs and absolutely nothing was gonna stop us penetrating that town with the sickest show we had.

Current Playlist The latest Kvelertak record 4. is getting plenty of spins. They’re a Danish metal band with this classic, Thin Lizzy kinda edge. It’s a party from track one to 12. Oddly, I’ve also been getting into country recently.

Something just clicked! I absolutely love the Southern states and most sentiments expressed in country

music are so simple and reflective of their general attitude and hillbilly culture.

Your Ultimate Rider My singer Azaria always requests 5. us a vegan rider. The motherfucker isn’t even vegan! While you ponder that, my ultimate rider consists of the promoter or venue owner’s favourite local foods and craft beer. Aussie riders are fucking shit so I always get distributors to deliver a mixed case of crazy ales to the venues in our path.

Most US joints oblige though, and in non-English speaking countries I’m just really happy with the surprise element so never specify. The Steel Panther tour in 2012 treated us to a bevvy of delicious porn stars who were pretty much on the rider.

With: The Dead Love, Doc Holliday Takes The Shotgun, Fox Company Where: The Standard When: Saturday January 25

THE ALMOST

EDITOR: Chris Martin chris@thebrag.com 02 9212 4322 ARTS + ONLINE EDITOR: Hannah Warren hannah@thebrag.com 02 9212 4322 STAFF WRITERS: Alasdair Duncan, Jody Macgregor, Krissi Weiss, Augustus Welby NEWS: Chris Honnery, Xiaoran Shi ART DIRECTOR: Sarah Bryant GRAPHIC DESIGN: Alan Parry PHOTOGRAPHERS: Liam Cameron, Ashley Mar, Jamie Williams, Prudence Upton ADVERTISING: Bianca Lockley - 0412 581 669 / (02) 9212 4322 bianca@thebrag.com ADVERTISING: Les White - 0405 581 125 / (02) 9212 4322 les@thebrag.com PUBLISHER: Rob Furst MANAGING DIRECTOR, FURST MEDIA: Patrick Carr patrick@furstmedia.com.au, (03) 9428 3600, 0402 821 122 DIGITAL DIRECTOR/ADVERTISING: Kris Furst kris@furstmedia.com.au, (03) 9428 3600 GIG & CLUB GUIDE COORDINATORS: Thea Carley, Julienne Gilet, Mina Kitsos, Xiaoran Shi, Andy Huang - gigguide@thebrag.com (rock); clubguide@thebrag.com (dance, hip hop & parties) AWESOME INTERNS: Mina Kitsos, Callum Wylie, Xiaoran Shi, Julienne Gilet, Thea Carley, Andy Huang

The Almost

The biggest Christian punk/emo band in the world? Almost. Either way, The Almost have spread the good word for Australian fans – they’ll be headed back our way this April, joined by Young Lions and Drawing North.

Fear Inside Our Bones, The Almost’s third studio album, was recorded entirely live and captures the raw vibes that have captured raw hearts. They play the Factory Theatre on Saturday April 19, and Newcastle’s Small Ballroom on Sunday April 20.

SOUNDS OF THE STREET

Mission Australia’s Creative Youth Initiatives, which provide free arts programs for disadvantaged youth, will release Basement Chronicles on Thursday February 6. It’s an album of original music by students from the Sounds of the Street (SOTS) program.

Spanning an eclectic collection of genres

from indie rock, folk and metal to hip hop and electronica, Basement Chronicles is the delicious fruit of a 20-week TAFE-accredited course where students learn to compose, perform and record their own music. The compositions were professionally mixed and mastered at Studios 301. To showcase the diversity of talent on display in Basement

Placebo

REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS: Nat Amat, Marissa Demetriou, Rachel Eddie, Christie Eliezer, Jesse Hayward, Chris Honnery, Cameron James, Lachlan Kanoniuk, Jody Macgregor, Alicia Malone, Daniel Prior, Amy Theodore, Raf Seneviratne, Leonardo Silvestrini, David Wild, David James Young Please send mail NOT ACCOUNTS direct to this NEW address 100 Albion Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010 ph - (02) 9212 4322 fax - (02) 9319 2227

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No tricks here. It’s all treats: the Triple Treat tour, in fact, featuring Eves, Jesse Davidson and Jordan Leser. QLD product Eves, AKA Hannah Karydas, kicked some big goals in 2013 with singles ‘Heavy’ and ‘Zen’. In celebration, she’s heading out on a tour alongside young talents Davidson (whose debut EP is set for release in the near future) and Sydney’s Leser, who’s played support slots for The Preatures, Glass Towers and more. The Triple Treat tour reaches Goodgod Small Club on Friday February 28.

Tales In Space and Yeo join forces for a co-headliner gig this Thursday January 23 at Brighton Up Bar. They’ll be bringing their unique brands of indie-electro-pop-rock to the wonderfully vibed and intimate venue, joined by the amazingly talented Sean Pollard of Split Seconds acclaim. Both headliners enjoyed great success in 2013 with their radio hits ‘Shades’ and ‘Girl’ getting tonnes of airplay.

They are showing no signs of slowing down in 2014, so this is sure to be an electrifying show.

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Chronicles, SOTS students will be performing their original music at the Red Rattler on Thursday February 6 from 5pm as part of the album launch.

LOS CORONAS

SIDEWAVES ROUND-UP

Tickets go on sale at 9am this Thursday January 23 for Soundwave sideshows led by Placebo, who play the Enmore Theatre on Monday February 24. Brian Molko and co. released their seventh studio LP Loud Like Love last year, as anthemic and instant as ever.

The multi-multi-multi-million-selling Stone Temple Pilots featuring Chester Bennington play the same venue on Tuesday February 25. Creed spinoff band Alter Bridge are joined by funk metal legends Living Colour at The Hi-Fi, also on February 25, while Rob Zombie and Korn – shit yeah! – play Luna Park’s Big Top on February 24.

There’s nothing like kicking back with a Corona. Los Coronas, to be exact – and the legendary Spanish outfit is returning to Sydney this March. Touring their Adios Sancho album, the sultans of surf rock will return for the first time since performances at Woodford, Pyramid Rock and Sydney Festival in 2012/13.

And don’t worry about what happened to the Sancho in the album’s title – it translates to something like, “See ya, fella with whom my lady cheated on me.” Sancho – not a good guy. Los Coronas play Lizotte’s Newcastle on Tuesday March 4, and The Basement on Wednesday March 5 and Thursday March 6. thebrag.com

BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14 :: 9

rock music news

free stuff

welcome to the frontline: what’s goin’ on around town...with Chris Martin and Xiaoran Shi

speed date WITH

SPIRIT OF AKASHA

GYPSYS GIFT told our gigs are like watching a movie… We don’t know what that means, but we like it.

Keeping Busy Jimi May: We recently 2. kidnapped ourselves for a welldeserved secret hideout in the mountains. Turned off our phones, no laptop allowed. Brought a guitar, some paper and a pen and got back to ourselves. Sometimes the city does our head in; it’s always good to seek a fresh, genuine perspective for the year ahead. Other than that we’ve been writing and pre-producing our first album, Chapters, which will be released this year. A couple of months back we won at the Australian Independent Music Awards for Folk/World song – ‘The Fight’ – and we’re still pretty stoked! More recently we’ve been on the search for new members to join the live band/family.

What Do You Look For In A Band?

1.

Gemma Ameera: We’re a chamber rock duo from Sydney and we spend our time dreaming up the future and conjuring it into

the present. We like to write and share stories about everything from society to mythical legend.

We write with a message or the intention to move someone; sometimes both. We’ve been

DUELLING BANJOS JUST A TROLL

Pioneers of folk metal Finntroll will be enchanting our fair shores Down Under in June with their signature brand of brooding metal intensity fused with Finnish ‘humppa’ polka. Self-described as “Beetlejuice on crack”, the band’s sixth album, released early last year, has seen it push the genre in exciting new directions. Blodsvept takes inspiration from samba and even makes ample use of duelling banjos. The unlikely marriage of folk and metal is made all the more fascinating in Finntroll’s live performances, where the band has committed to dressing in full trollish garb, right down to the floppy, gnarled ears. Join the trolling fun on Saturday June 21 at Manning Bar.

SCORE YOUR FIX

Need an indie rock fix, stat? Look no further than North Shore nice guys The Fixators and their latest EP, Colourblind. After taking Australian audiences by storm last year and winning the Fitz Band Competition, the band will be once again gracing the east coast with their high-energy stage presence. For your local dose of alternative/stadium rock,

Best Gig Ever JM: The last time we played 3. at Lizotte’s in Sydney was our personal favourite. The venue is intimate and allows us to connect with our audience as a duo. This particular night had a great vibe and beautiful crowd that really listened and moved with us.

Lizotte’s has a real bohemian feel and we’re all about that, so it’s always a pleasure playing there.

To top it all off, at the end of the show we had Johnathan Devoy join us for a cheeky cameo.

Current Playlist GA: Guns N’ Roses, 4.

Florence and The Machine, Mumford & Sons, Civil Wars, Lana Del Rey, and we listen to organic psytrance around the house. In terms of playlists, my iPhone features: ‘vintage’, ‘nature’, ‘moody’, ‘doof’ and ‘rock’. Stick all that in your pipe and smoke it.

Spirit Of Akasha is a brand new Australian film created in honour of Albert Falzon’s surfing classic Morning Of The Earth, which is 40 years old this year. Reaffirming Falzon’s original ethos of surfing’s soul and spirit in a present-day context, Spirit Of Akasha blends the realms of wave-riding, music and filmmaking. Directed by noted local Andrew Kidman and mentored by Falzon himself, the new movie will premiere at Sydney Festival on Saturday January 25. The soundtrack – released this Friday January 24 – is as important as the film itself and features musicians with strong ties to the surfing community: Brian Wilson, Atoms For Peace, Xavier Rudd and Matt Corby to name but a few. We’ve got ten copies of the album to giveaway – for the chance to win, head to thebrag.com/ freeshit and tell us your favourite surf song of all time.

Your Ultimate Rider JM: Usually we ask for 5. a bottle of JD, some ice, and a 750ml bottle of Diet Coke.

Perhaps a meditation with a guru and/or the odd Nerf gun…

However, beings it’s my birthday at the Hard Rock Caf, and I’m turning 21 (again), I expect nothing less than a bottle of Grey Goose, Patron and Single Barrel on arrival (or held until after I play) along with nachos and chicken wings. Hint hint.

Where: Hard Rock Cafe When: Friday January 31

Xavier Rudd

don’t miss The Fixators at the Sydney Roller Den Launch Party on Friday March 7 or at Newcastle’s Small Ballroom on Saturday March 22.

TYRONE NOONAN

The Boy (from) George is back. Tyrone Noonan, previously one half of Brisbane sibling duo George, has returned to Australian shores after a five-year stint in New York, and he comes bearing gifts. They don’t take the conventional form of a dozen roses and a box of chocolates, but rather a new mini-album entitled I’m A Believer, a reimagining of his debut solo record I Believe, as well as a tour featuring a select number of national headline shows. The ARIA award-winner is excited to be re-engaging with an Australian music scene that is “taking charge globally”, a factor he cites for his most recent transatlantic move.

“When I first headed overseas it was still essential to ‘be there’ to have an international career, but now, fortunately, you really can do it from home,” Noonan says. I’m A Believer will be released by MGM on Friday February 7. Catch Noonan in the flesh on Saturday February 15 at Spectrum, with support from Melburnian electronic percussionists Pludo.

Royal Hunt

A RIGHT ROYAL HUNT

MAIDS

Electric Newcastle group Maids are paying their dues as only a rock’n’roll band knows how. Last year they won the triple j Unearthed contest to play Fat As Butter Festival, and have supported the likes of Regurgitator, Stonefield, The Delta Riggs and Sparkadia. Now they’re about to launch a string of sweaty national dates. See them at The Lansdowne on Saturday February 15 with Mezzanine, Oslow and Royal Chant, and at Newcastle’s Tiki Bar (Great Northern Hotel) on Saturday February 22 with Horror My Friend and Archers.

Maids

The hunt for melodic metal royalty is over. After forming more than two decades ago, Royal Hunt will finally make their way to Australia for two exclusive shows. Having sold over one million records worldwide, the Danish lads have long cemented their status atop the world of prog, especially in the wake of their reunion three years ago due to popular demand from fans and promoters. Encompassing a discography of 12 studio albums including last year’s A Life To Die For, Royal Hunt are going as strong as ever.

Don’t miss this rare chance to rub shoulders with royalty. Tickets for the Factory Floor show on Friday April 4 are on sale via Metal Massacre.

SOUNDWAVE THIRD ANNOUNCEMENT

The final announcement of acts for Soundwave 2014 has been wanted, dead or alive (wait for it…), for weeks, so it’s just as well Bon Jovi’s guitar hero Richie Sambora (there you go – sorry.) leads the list. Joining him on the third and final lineup reveal are Filter, I Killed The Prom Queen, The Ghost Inside, Authority Zero, Darkc3ll, The Defiled and The Dangerkids. As if Soundwave wasn’t big enough already. Pffschht!

It all goes down Sunday February 23 at Sydney Olympic Park.

LIOR ANNOUNCES NEW ALBUM, TOUR

Israeli-born, Sydney-raised singer-songwriter and hyphenate-extraordinaire Lior will have a new album, Scattered Reflections, ready for your eager ears by Friday March 7. Nine years after the achievements of his debut Autumn Flow, which remains one of the most successful independent releases in Australia, Lior has selfreleased yet another album, this time inspired

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head to: thebrag.com/freeshit

by the “richer life experience” gained during the course of his recent travels. Funded largely via a PledgeMusic campaign, Scattered Reflections is a testament to the enduring adoration of his fan base. Ahead of the album’s release, however, Lior will begin an extensive tour traversing Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Hobart and a number of regional centres. See Lior at the York Theatre, Seymour Centre on the album release day itself, Friday March 7.

ROCK’N’ROLL MARKET

Part-market, part-music festival, the Sydney Rock’n’Roll & Alternative Market is back with a vengeance in 2014 as a two-day weekend event for the first time in its history. With the biggest selection yet of over 80 stalls, you can find everything from rock’n’roll and vintage clothing, records, comics and tattoo art to retro hair and make-up stylists, including a new alternative section which caters to those with darker tastes.

To get a slice of the action on Saturday February 8 and Sunday February 9, scoot on down to Manning House at Sydney Uni, where it kicks off across all three floors. thebrag.com

ARE YOU NEXT?

SYDNEY AUDITIONS AUSTRALIA TECHNOLOGY PARK BAY 8, 2 LOCOMOTIVE STREET, EVELEIGH

REGISTRATION 11AM - 5PM FRIDAY 24 JANUARY 9AM - 3PM SATURDAY 25 & SUNDAY 26 JANUARY BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14 :: 11

Industrial Strength Music Industry News with Christie Eliezer

THINGS WE HEAR

* Outkast are doing 40 festivals around the world as part of their reunion: the Australian stop is heavily rumoured to be Splendour In The Grass. * Melbourne dance music station Kiss FM is taking the Australian Radio Network to the Federal Court for using the name KIIS FM for its new Sydney station. * Original AC/DC singer Dave Evans is featured in a US B-movie The Haunting Of Booger County, a paranormal flick by newcomer director Eric Williams. * Kanye Westâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Yeezus finally went platinum (sales of one million) in America, seven months after release.

It means all seven of his albums have been certified, tied with other hip hoppers Outkast, LL Cool J, Beastie Boys, Snoop Dogg and Nas. Jay-Z holds the record for most platinum albums for a rapper with

an amazing 15. Meantime, Bruce Springsteenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s High Hopes is his 11th US number one album. * Nine of Cat Powerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 11 Aussie shows through January and February have sold out. * Another festival has hit hard times â&#x20AC;&#x201C; this time it's Beerfestabull in Bundaberg, QLD, which lost a reported $50,000. Creditors include bands, hired help, fireworks suppliers, ad companies and community groups.

Michelle Esposito of Brisbane-based entertainment agency The Gig Factory told the Bundaberg News-Mail that one of her bands, Chisel Revived, is owed $3,000.

She said that organiser Clint Jensen told her the only way they could get their money back would be to play at a Beerfestabull being planned for Melbourne in August. Esposito nixed that idea. * Another supergroup (still untitled) is recording music together. This

PPCA DISTRIBUTES $33.6M

The Phonographic Performance Company of Australia (PPCA), which grants licences for radio, TV, internet, live music venues and public broadcasts on behalf of artists and record labels, handed out a record $33.6 million to them through 2013. This was an increase of almost 16% on the 2012 distribution of $29 million, and set a new record. PPCA CEO Dan Rosen said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Whilst we are delighted to be able to provide increased distributions to artists and labels, PPCA is conscious that there are still a number of areas where creators, and those who invest in them, are not yet adequately

one features Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker, Limp Bizkit guitarist Wes Borland, former Nine Inch Nails multi-instrumentalist Danny Lohner and rapper Scroobius Pip. * At Englandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s NME Awards, Arctic Monkeys lead the nominations with eight gongs including Best British Band, Best Live Band, Best Album, Best Track, Best Music Video, Music Moment Of The Year and Best Fan Community, while frontman Alex Turner is up for Hero of the Year. Haim follow with six (including Best International Band) with Queens Of The Stone Age, Lily Allen and Arcade Fire up for three apiece. * alt-Jâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s bass player Gwil Sainsbury has left the building. * DJ Nina Las Vegas and Sneaky Sound Systemâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Connie Mitchell were among guests when model Bambi Northwood-Blyth and Ksubi founder Dan Single married in Byron Bay.

THEHIFI.C

compensated for their creative efforts and investment. PPCA will continue to work hard to achieve fair returns for our stakeholdersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; creative content.â&#x20AC;?

NAME CHANGE FOR ENTERTAINMENT CENTRE

The Sydney Entertainment Centre is now the Qantas Credit Union Arena. The partnership was announced as venue management company AEG Ogden took over as its operator until the end of 2015. This means thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be a major entertainment venue in the Sydney CBD for most of the time that

Info here:

This Week

Coming Soon

Supernova U18s Headhunterz

Ghost (SWE) Tue 28 Jan

Thu 23 Jan: U18s

Havok (USA) & King Parrot

COUNTING CROWS SUE UNIVERSAL

Counting Crows are the latest to sue their record label, Universal Music, over download royalties. The argument is that their digital revenues should be paid on a licensing basis (which would give them a 50% share) rather than a simple sales one (which gives 15%). Others artists to sue their labels over this issue were Eminem, Sister Sledge, Kenny Rogers, Chuck D, Peter Frampton and Rob Zombie.

BEATS MUSIC TO LAUNCH IN US

Dr. Dreâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s headphones brand Beats will launch its Beats Music streaming service in the US on Tuesday January 21, taking on Spotify, Rhapsody and Google Play Music All Access. Beats Music claims its strength will be the quality of its music recommendation. It has employed Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor as chief creative officer, and asked people from radio and music journalism outlets (Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, DJ Mag, Country Weekly) to set up playlists.

MUSIC WINNERS AT SMACS

Build Your Music Empire Today E HIFI 1300 THO M.AU

the new International Convention Centre Sydney is under construction, venue GM Steve Hevern said. Since 1983, the SEC has hosted 4,000 events for more than 26 million people, and is ranked fourth in the world in ticket sales for venues with 10-15,000 seats.

Toro Y Moi + Portugal The Man Wed 29 Jan

Groundation (USA)

Kerser

Fri 7 Feb

Sat 8 Feb: All Ages

Thu 6 Feb

TnT, Frequencerz, + More Sat 15 Feb: U18s

The FBi Radio SMAC Awards saw Cloud Controlâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Dream Cave gonged as Record Of The Year, Sarah Blasko as Best Live Act, The Preaturesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Is This How You Feel?â&#x20AC;&#x2122; taking Best Song, Elizabeth Rose as Next Big Thing and boutique festival Secret Garden as Best Music Event. The awards were held at Carriageworks and broadcast live on FBi.

AUSSIES HIT PLATINUM, GOLD

Aussie acts are doing well in sales. In the singles section, certified double platinum were Guy Sebastianâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Like A Drumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, Justice Crewâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Everybodyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, Taylor Hendersonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Borrow My Heartâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; and Nathanielâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. Winning their first gold were Flume and Chet Fakerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Drop The Gameâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; and The Preaturesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Is This How You Feel?â&#x20AC;&#x2122; Of albums, going platinum were The 12th Manâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s best of, Willy Nilly, Taylor Hendersonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s self-titled and Tina Arenaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Reset.

AC/DC AMONG TOP CAR SONGS

Given that AC/DCâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Brian Johnson is carmad and is to host new British TV show Cars That Rock, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not surprising the band scored well in a new poll on the best car songs conducted by Insurance.com. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;You Shook Me All Night Longâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; got 22% of the vote, putting it third on the list behind Journeyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t Stop Believinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;&#x2122; (30%) and Queenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Bohemian Rhapsodyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. The Baha Menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Who Let The Dogs Out?â&#x20AC;&#x2122; topped the list of worst car songs with 29%, followed by Taylor Swiftâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;We Are Never Ever Getting Back Togetherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; (25%) and Cherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Believeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; (22%).

POLICE INVESTIGATIONS

Police are investigating two incidents involving the music community. One is a fire which gutted Byron Bay nightclub La La Land. 20 people were in the club at 9:30pm on a Saturday night when the fire, said to be started in an air-conditioning unit, broke out. No-one was injured. The second involved burglars breaking into the rented Coomera, QLD rehearsal space of musician Fady Hanna and making off with $50,000 worth of instruments and equipment, including a guitar signed by Johnny Cash.

Hannaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new band was using the space to rehearse for their first gig, obviously now cancelled.

$10,000 GRANT FROM HILLTOP The Coronas (IRL)

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Fri 28 Feb

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Sat 8 Mar

Darkside

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An emerging Australian hip hop/soul act will win a $10,000 grant from the Hilltop Hoods to help record and promote their debut album. Applications for the 2014 Hilltop Hoods Initiative close on Friday February 28. The winner will be announced on Thursday March 27. The prize also includes legal advice courtesy of David Vodicka and Media Arts Lawyers, and Shure microphone and Zoo York packs. The judges are Canberraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Koolism member Hau Latukefu, who presents triple jâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s The Hip Hop Show, Sydney manager and promoter Ran-Dee, Adelaide graff artist and promoter Nish, Melbourne artist and owner

of Blank Clothing Raph, and QLD beat boxer and graff artist Tom Thum. See apra-amcos. com.au for details.

THE UPSKIRTS JOIN HARBOUR

The rise of Sydney psychedelic band The Upskirts continues with the band signed to the Harbour Agency by Jordan Campbell.

The act, which last year played Britainâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s The Great Escape festival, is about to record an EP.

NY FILM ACADEMY OPENING IN SYD

Film and acting school the New York Film Academy is opening up in Sydney at the corner of Pitt and Liverpool Streets on Thursday January 30. It is already taking enrolments for the government-accredited One-Year Acting and One-Year Filmmaking diploma courses, as well as short and evening courses. The Academy also has campuses in Los Angeles, Abu Dhabi and the Gold Coast.

For more info visit nyfa.edu.au.

NEW FESTIVALS

NSW punters have three new festivals. Infinity Music is a regional all-ages event which combines electronic music, motocross and pyrotechnics. Full dates and venues are yet to be announced by promoter VA Entertainment, but it kicks off in Dubbo in October and will visit places like Coffs Harbour, Townsville, Boyne Island and Wagga Wagga.

Washington, The Rubens and Emma Louise are locked in to headline the Lost Picnic festival in Centennial Park on Sunday March 23 with an all-local bill.

The music, arts, culture and environmental Mountain Sounds event hits the Central Coast on Saturday March 15. It will be held in the Mount Penang Parklands, Kariong, halfway between Sydney and Newcastle. The eclectic bill is headlined by Ball Park Music.

WOMEN IN COMMUNITY MEDIA

Women in Community Media is a training program designed to increase the participation of younger women in the community media industry, especially those from disadvantaged or marginalised backgrounds. Participants will have access to mentors, live classrooms and webinars. See cmto.org.au, deadline is Friday February 14.

STAR STUDDED BIKE RIDE FOR HEADSPACE

Rock N Ride, the star-studded motorcycle ride started by Grinspoonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Phil Jamieson and Big Day Out CEO Adam Zammit for mental health support group headspace, has kicked off its second annual 1,500-mile ride around various Big Day Out stops. Original crew Chris Joannou (Silverchair), Kate Peck (MTV) and Jake Stone (Bluejuice) are joined

by Pat Davern (Grinspoon), Art vs Science, Danny Clayton (Channel [V]), Reegan McLaughlin (Nova/ Music Feeds), Chris Tanti (headspace CEO) and Kingswood. See headspace.org.au.

Lifelines Engaged (?): speculation has run rampant about Jessica Mauboy and Darwin football player boyfriend Themeli Magripilis after she posted a photo on social media wearing a ring on her wedding finger.

Injured: Switchfoot had to postpone a nightclub appearance after singer Jon Foreman sustained injuries to his face while surfing.

Arrested: Lisa Stockbridge, founder of Sydney entertainment website Urban Society, on charges she supplied cocaine and ecstasy to clients, The Daily Telegraph said. The website has closed, and staff were retrenched owed pay.

Died: US 1960s psychedelic rock poster artist Gary Grimshaw, 67, at his home in Detroit from numerous illnesses. He was closely associated with MC5, having grown up with the bandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Wayne Kramer.

Died: British guitarist Ronny Jordan, a leading player in the acid jazz movement of the â&#x20AC;&#x2122;80s and â&#x20AC;&#x2122;90s, aged 51.

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E

oin Loveless is feeling the effects of a big one. The 22-year-old guitarist is at his girlfriend’s house, having only recently woken up, and it’s not that hard to imagine him, bleary-eyed and messy-haired, running over the events of the night before in his mind and coming to terms with the realities of the hungover world around him. It’s not that hard, either, to square this image of Eoin Loveless with his musical output. Along with his brother Rory, he makes up Drenge, one of the UK’s most celebrated young bands.

Their music is hard, dirty, droney, grimy, grungy, scuzzy and bluesy, coloured in with the most basic rock instrumentation.

At this point in time, Drenge find themselves in a funny position.

Though their attitude and general demeanour suggests they shrug off attention, the siblings find themselves the focus of plenty – from booking agents, from journalists, from detractors on the internet… the list goes on. “It’s fine when people are coming to shows and buying records and stuff,” Eoin says of life in the spotlight, his voice cracking a bit. “That’s all really great. But then you have the weird part, the negative attention that the internet can bring, which really isn’t so nice.”

“I have a friend who rounds up all the negative tweets about us, about our personalities and the way we look, and sends them over in massive batches. Every morning, I get ten or 15 negative tweets, and they just grow week on week; that’s a very odd thing. Your private life seems to slowly unravel.” Are the brothers ever tempted to bite back? “I guess so,” Loveless says, “but we’ve seen it happen to a lot of people before.

It’s just a natural human impulse to want to have a go at something. I guess I’m probably just as bad for complaining about it. It’s still weird to think of all this directed at us, though.”

The name Drenge comes from a slightly mangled pronunciation of the Danish word for ‘boys’. It’s a

14 :: BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14

DRENGE

YOUNG AND FULL OF THE DEVIL • B Y ALASDAIR DUNCAN name that can be taken fairly literally, thanks to Eoin and Rory’s tender age. Given they have grown up under the same roof and now play in a band together, I ask Eoin if the songwriting is any easier, or if the natural brotherly impulse to fight and compete makes things difficult.

“Because we know each other so well, we’re able to cut through a lot of the bullshit and just get on with it,” he says. “I do take pride in that; the fact that we’re able to work together so easily.”

“We argue about things because we both have strong opinions,” Loveless continues, “but we always find a way to make it work. We’re a lot more confident because we’re able to talk to each other honestly and not get too personal or too bogged down in silly stuff.” With that in mind, though, there are a few key differences that set the brothers apart. “I think Rory has much better taste in music than I do,” Eoin laughs, “and a completely different idea of what makes a good track. When we write songs it’s just a case of balancing that, as well as trying to make the songs sound as

good as they can. Ultimately, when we’re writing together, the main consideration is that we only write music that we’d really want to play live, or that we think people would really want to hear.”

There’s a rough and raw quality to Drenge’s music – their songs are about as unpolished as can be, although according to Loveless, this extremely basic approach suits them just fine. “I did some recording with a couple of friends a couple of weeks ago, and they were really amazed by the fact that I didn’t know how to use Pro Tools or any other really simple recording software,” he says with a laugh. “All the songs are written really simply to be played live, that’s the most important thing, and recording them is just a way of documenting that, maybe with a little bit of embellishment. We’ve always written as a live band and thought of ourselves as a live band.”

The lyrical subject matter of Drenge’s songs is equally plain, with a general theme of young people fucking about and getting into trouble in a dreary

English backwater town. Loveless explains that they try to write as simply and honestly as possible, using only influences from their real lives and observations.

“To be honest, most of the songs just come from walking the streets.

It’s like, if you were to go into a dodgy pub and get a drink and then just sit down and watch everything happening around you, talk to people – those are the kinds of things that really inspire us. I don’t write about any real people necessarily, but I build the lyrics based on my observations. I like them to be quite visual and image-based.”

While there’s obviously a negative side to the growing fame – not least of all the opinions of various Twitter tossers – the upsides of breaking out certainly outweigh the downs.

The past 18 months have given the Loveless boys their fair share of exciting moments, and I ask Eoin if there’s one particular experience that stands out, one moment that made him realise it was all coming true.

“We played to a pretty wild crowd at

“WE GET STRONGER AS A BAND THE MORE SHOWS WE PLAY, SO I FEEL LIKE BY THE TIME WE GET TO LANEWAY, WE’LL BE EVEN BETTER THAN WE ARE ALREADY.”

Reading Festival last year,” he says.

“The most exciting part is that there were two mosh pits, side by side.

I’ve never actually seen that before, and it was really crazy to be able to watch that from the front, from a performer’s perspective instead of an audience one. That’s one of those moments where you think, ‘Yeah, wow.’”

Speaking of new experiences, Drenge will soon be making their first trip to Australia, and are about as excited as two youngsters who are about to jet off to a far corner of the world can be. “We really, really can’t wait to make it down there. We’ve not got much time to spare, but we have a few days off in between Laneway and the sideshows we’re doing. There’s a lot of flying involved, of course. Thankfully, because we’re playing a festival, we get a lot of time on the day to relax and see some other bands when we’re not playing, which is great.”

Loveless can’t quite predict what Drenge’s live show will involve come Laneway, however. “We’ll probably be drenched in a lot of sweat, because I imagine it will be very hot in Australia!” he says. “We’ll probably just be big sweaty messes for a lot of it. I don’t know apart from that. I feel like we get stronger as a band the more shows we play, so I feel like by the time we get to Laneway, we’ll be even better than we are already. I’m honestly really excited to be coming down – I never expected anything like this to ever be happening for us.

I didn’t think that we’d get big enough that we could actually get down to Australia.”

With: The Creases Where: Goodgod Small Club When: Tuesday February 4 And: Also appearing alongside Lorde, Haim, The Jezabels, Savages and more at Laneway Festival, Sydney College of the Arts, Sunday February 2 More: Drenge out now through Liberator/Infectious

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Grouplove Girl Stuff, Boy Stuff By David James Young

I

t’s impossible to be unhappy while listening to Grouplove. The Californian pop-rockers exude a sunny disposition and an endless cheeriness that is matched by bounding energy and the kind of hooks that require roughly ten seconds to learn and the rest of the month to get out of your head. They had a stellar 2013 by any measure: their second album, Spreading Rumours, dropped in September, and its lead single, the rollicking ‘Ways To Go’, cracked a top fi ve position in the US alternative chart. The band also played dozens of headlining shows and festivals both in the US and abroad. It was a lot to take in – and vocalist and keyboardist Hannah Hooper has taken none of the success for granted.

“I think the biggest highlight of the year for me was recording the album,” she says. “We had so much fun making it, and we’re amazingly better friends after touring it.

We’re better songwriters, we’re better performers… there’s just something so exciting about being a band that’s developing still. I keep hearing about the ‘sophomore slump’ when it comes to writing your second album, and I’m so lucky that we never had that. We got to avoid that altogether and just enjoy the ride.”

Spreading Rumours pushes out the band’s sound from all angles, delivering their most wigged-out, rocking moments as well as their most restrained and atmospheric. When it comes to songs she enjoys playing most from the album, Hooper points to the riff-heavy ‘Borderlines And Aliens’ as well as the track ‘Bitin’ The Bullet’. “I get to bust out this hardcore rap verse in it!” she says excitedly of the latter. “Everyone in the crowd always seems to be entertained by the weird redheaded girl rapping. It’s totally my moment!”

Although Hooper is quick to choose her favourite songs to play live, she is somewhat more reluctant to select a favourite to record.

She says the album, which was produced by drummer Ryan Rabin and features songwriting contributions from all five band members, brought together tracks that were all unique in how they were written and recorded. “Every single song on this album has its own identity and came to us from its own little adventure,” Hooper explains. “Each song had such a different writing process – and, even though it’s a bit of a cop-out answer, they were all so much fun to make.”

“I don’t feel like there’s a fight for women to be featured and noticed. I definitely feel the need to represent women and girls in a cool, positive way – we’re smart and we’re badass.”

Aside from ensuring that everyone at a Grouplove show has the best night of their lives, the band also likes to make a point of keeping the crowd involved every step of the way. That, of course, means introducing them to songs they may not know all that well, or indeed not at all. Hooper says the

group is adamant to stick out in that regard, where they get just as much of a reaction out of a song from their self-titled EP or a non-single as they would a popular number like the chart-topping ‘Tongue Tied’ or the infectious ‘Itchin’ On A Photograph’.

“I won’t name any bands, but we’ve done tours with some bands who only like playing their singles because that’s what people know,” she says. “The great part is getting people on board with the songs that they don’t know from the radio. That’s so much fun to me – to see someone in the audience visibly being like, ‘I don’t know this track,’ and then totally getting into it and jumping around by the end of the song. Hopefully, it means they’ll go and get the rest of the album, then.”

The Big Day Out marks Grouplove’s third time here, following appearances at the 2011 Splendour In The Grass festival and the 2011/2 Falls Festival. Hooper is one of the more prominent women on this year’s BDO lineup, though she doesn’t see herself as a standard-bearer.

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

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

Not only is Hooper in love with Australia, she gushes about getting to tour with acts like Arcade Fire and CSS; the latter of whom will join Grouplove at their headlining shows in Sydney and Melbourne. “I can’t believe it,” she says. “In the middle of January, to be in the most beautiful place in the world, playing with my favourite bands in the world… it’s just going to be a crazy experience. And not to bring a guy into this, but I hear Eddie Vedder is an accomplished painter now – so I’mma try to talk to him about painting!”

What: Big Day Out 2014 With: Pearl Jam, Arcade Fire, Snoop Dogg AKA Snoop Lion, The Hives, Major Lazer, Beady Eye and more Where: Sydney Showground When: Sunday January 26 And: Also appearing with CSS at the Metro Theatre, Saturday January 25 More: Spreading Rumours out now through Canvasback/Atlantic

Cass McCombs Creationism By Augustus Welby

T

he back catalogue of nomadic songwriter Cass McCombs invokes many tropes of classic American songwriting. On his latest release, the 2013 double album Big Wheel And Others, McCombs’ contemplative folk musicality is aptly complemented by his lyrical universality and melodic familiarity.

McCombs’ storytelling has an empathetic depth, philosophically musing on life, love and death with both sorrow and dry humour. His seven albums don’t exactly sound archaic, but his traditional spirit doesn’t correlate with the drive for stardom dominant in contemporary rock music. McCombs’ personality matches the relative anonymity of his music; in fact, even though all of his pursuits are conducted under his name alone, he rejects the tag ‘solo artist’.

“I’m not a solo artist. I’ve never performed solo in my life, so that’s a misperception. Just because it says my name doesn’t mean that I’m a solo artist,” he says.

When McCombs comes to Australia for the touring Laneway Festival, he’ll be joined by the same group of musicians he’s been playing alongside for a number of years. He explains that it isn’t a master/slave arrangement. “Every man and woman expresses themselves in the moment the way they want to. There’s no direction at all. If you’ve got something to say, just say it, do your thing, express yourself. It’s vital for your survival so let it out immediately.

That’s our philosophy.”

This call for everyone’s impulsive input might seem a naïve attitude, which couldn’t be practically effective. McCombs says it’s more about mutual understanding. “I just think it’s the easiest thing in the world, actually, to express oneself. Our society’s built to inhibit us and stop us from expression. But once you’ve liberated yourself from that bondage you realise that it’s just like, ‘Oh, that was easy’.”

McCombs’ confidence in the simplicity of selfexpression helps to explain his prolific release history. Seemingly, processing his thoughts through song comes quite naturally, yet he doesn’t have a go-to songwriting method.

“All the songs have a life of their own and a creation point. Most of the time I cover my tracks anyway – I can’t even remember how the thought originated,” he says.

Of course, songs can arise in any number of ways and exploring the mystery of music often leads to discoveries that couldn’t have been premeditated. “There’s no reason to do it if you know the outcome,” says McCombs. “If you think that you know everything, then you know nothing. If you think you know nothing, well, you’re a little bit closer.”

An open-minded, almost childlike attitude is valuable in any creative activity, but surely good songwriting must be directed by some roughly formulated intention? McCombs doesn’t quite agree. “There’s so much

neuroses going around in music, as if people can ‘choose this lyric’ or ‘choose this style of music’. Choice is nonsense. It’s automatic.

What you’ve done is what you did. There’s no choice, you just did it.”

Not that McCombs is suggesting creativity is merely a catalyst for pre-determined outcomes.

“I’m not talking about destiny. There’s no destiny, there’s no fate. But our options only appear in hindsight, they don’t appear in front of us. Only in hindsight do we see, ‘Oh, I could have made this other decision.’ We get neurotic about our past. Therefore our past is almost insignificant. It puts the seeds of doubt in our minds.”

“It’s much better to just create and not worry about neurotic elements.”

What: Laneway Festival 2014 With: Haim, The Jezabels, Jagwar Ma, Frightened Rabbit, Lorde, Kurt Vile and more Where: Sydney College of the Arts, Rozelle When: Sunday February 2 And: Cass McCombs plays Oxford Art Factory on Thursday February 6 with support from Melodie Nelson More: Big Wheel And Others out now through Domino/EMI xxx

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Deftones Peachy Keen By Wayne Marshall

B

y now everyone knows the story. Back in November, with only eight weeks until Australia’s premier summer festival Big Day Out was due to kick off, Britpop icons Blur dramatically pulled out of the event with a single post on their Facebook page. A veritable shitstorm of finger-pointing ensued. Who was to blame? Blur? The festival? And more to the point, with one of Ken West’s three ‘white whales’ gone from the bill, who was going to be the replacement?

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

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

2013 marked the 25th anniversary of Deftones, whose original and distinctive take on metal, according to Cunningham, “has always been a battle of beauty versus aggression”. As with any band that’s stayed together that long, you’d expect them to have encountered a few tough times along the way. But Deftones have copped more than their fair share in recent years. In 2008, bassist Chi Cheng was involved in a serious car accident that left him in a coma. In April last year, having recovered enough to leave hospital, Cheng tragically passed away due to sudden heart failure. Throw in the internal rifts, drug abuse and all the myriad trappings of the rock’n’roll lifestyle, and for a few years it looked inevitable the quintet would self-implode.

of reasons. It’s a very heavy record. And quite frankly, the record’s not done. People think that we’re just sitting on it, but we’re not, it needs to be finished. It’s a heavy, heavy record for the fact that it’s the last thing we did with Chi. And from that point on we’ve sort of just gone forward.

That’s not to discredit him or anything. That was just a heavy time, and we’ve just gone forward from there. We’ll give it a look when we can, but it’s not that easy, man.”

For the moment at least, Cunningham and his bandmates are happier to focus on the good fortune that’s allowed them to be jetting off for another Australian summer as part of the travelling circus that is the Big Day Out. What: Big Day Out 2014 With: Pearl Jam, Arcade Fire, Snoop Dogg AKA Snoop Lion, The Hives, Major Lazer, Beady Eye and more Where: Sydney Showground When: Sunday January 26 And: Deftones also play UNSW Roundhouse on Tuesday January 28

WARPAINT

But they made it through. When asked if the band’s survival can be attributed to the fact that three of its core members have been friends since they were teenagers (Cunningham, singer Chino Moreno and guitarist Stephen Carpenter grew up together in Sacramento), Cunningham answers, “Yeah, definitely. There’s certainly been times when things were not so peachy. But I really do believe we’re based on a friendship. We definitely know each other well enough to ignite a flame in each other at the drop of a dice. But, you know, it’s fun, we’re brothers. We’ve experienced a lot over the years. We’ve seen the world over and over. And every day is a chance to do something new and exciting. And what better way to do it than with friends?”

“[Our sound] has always been a battle of beauty versus aggression”.

One of the other keys to reaching the quarter-ofa-century milestone, according to Cunningham, is the lean years the band endured before becoming successful. After all, when Deftones’ seminal sophomore record Around The Fur took off in 1998, the band was already ten years old.

In stark contrast, the nu-metal machine from which Deftones originally emerged was firing out overnight sensations on a near-weekly basis at around the same time.

“Our whole thing was very slow and very gradual,” recalls Cunningham. “I couldn’t have asked for a better way for it to happen. We knew a lot of people around us who were in bands that got so huge, so fast, and you’re really not allowed to figure it out in that kind of setting. It’s allowed us to be around to this day, to be able to appreciate things.”

Perhaps, in recent times at least, the longevity of Deftones also has something to do with the freedom the band members allow each other to pursue other projects. Moreno, in particular, has been prolific of late, with his excellent Palms collaboration with three ex-members of Isis, as well as his ongoing Crosses project with Shaun Lopez of Far. “Chino is just a busy, busy boy,” laughs Cunningham. “He’s always making music.

At first it can be a bit like, ‘What, you’re not getting that from us, so you’re going somewhere else to get it?’ Kind of like cheating. But now I look at it this way: whatever experience any of us have from playing with different people, we bring that back to our mix and I can only think that it strengthens it.”

As for what’s next for Deftones, Cunningham is quick to quell rumours the band is set to release the shelved Eros album of 2008. “It’s definitely been talked a lot about in the press. People have a serious interest in that album for a lot thebrag.com

NEW ALBUM OUT NOW Touring on the Laneway Festival Available at: Abicus • Beatdisc • Hum • Landspeed Records • Music Bizarre • Phoenix Music Redeye • Sandy’s Dee Why • Stop ‘n’ Rock • Title (Surry Hills & Crows Nest) remotecontrolrecords.com

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Frightened Rabbit Not So Pedestrian By Keiron Costello

H

e’s been playing guitar and keyboards in Frightened Rabbit since the Scottish band released the highly acclaimed The Midnight Organ Fight in 2008, but Andy Monaghan joined the group almost by accident. He was playing in a few bands in the Glasgow scene at the time Frightened Rabbit started out, and became friendly with lead singer Scott Hutchison after appearing on the same bill on a few occasions. But one fatefully drunken New Year’s Eve saw Monaghan invited to join the band… he thinks.

“They went and recorded Midnight Organ Fight and put too many instruments on it, so Scott got really wasted one night and asked me to join the band. I don’t know if it was by accident or not, but I’m still here now so he can’t be that pissed off!” laughs Monaghan. “I was totally hammered when he asked me, and the next day I could hardly remember what happened. I texted him a couple of days later saying, ‘Did you ask me to tour?

I can’t really remember what happened,’ and he was like, ‘Yeah man, if you’re up for it.’”

Even after such an inauspicious introduction, Monaghan hardly made the best impression on his new bandmates. “I went to meet

“They went and recorded Midnight Organ Fight and put too many instruments on it, so Scott got really wasted one night and asked me to join the band.

I don’t know if it was by accident or not, but I’m still here now”.

with the guys and Scott says, ‘What kind of guitar have you got?’, thinking I had some like really nice guitar and knew what I was doing, but I had the worst guitar in the world and he was kinda like, ‘Oh… is that it?’”

Despite the shaky beginnings, Monaghan has been a constant fi xture of Frightened Rabbit since then, as they followed the success of The Midnight Organ Fight with The Winter Of Mixed Drinks and last year’s excellent Pedestrian Verse. The new album marked a signifi cant change for the band, as they released it on Atlantic after their previous three albums had been put out by indie label Fat Cat Records. According to Monaghan, the change allowed the group to relax and take time to fi nd new songs, rather than be pressured by the studio constraints of an indie label.

“I guess they just gave us a bit more time than Fat Cat usually allowed us to. There was no deadline to get the album done by. We were allowed to go away for a year and a half or something, we could record ourselves and try out a few new things and get to grips with actually working as a band in the studio.”

While they’ve been releasing consistently brilliant music and touring almost constantly for the last half-decade, it seems 2013 was the year that Frightened Rabbit fi nally broke out. Their earnest brand of folk-tinged indie rock with lyrical themes of heartbreak and domestic drama – a style Monaghan paradoxically refers to as “depressing, uplifting Scottish guitar music” – has been winning over fans on an unprecedented level for the band.

With Pedestrian Verse cracking the top ten in the UK charts, Frightened Rabbit opening for The National on their US tour and a debut appearance on the Late Show With David Letterman, the Scotsmen have been quietly courting bigger and bigger audiences on both sides of the pond. “We just had nine weeks in America, which was amazing.

Three weeks with The National and then fi ve weeks headlining ourselves, which were some of the biggest shows we’ve ever done. It’s been a really enjoyable last couple of months.”

On top of their heavy touring of the US and their native UK, Frightened Rabbit are no strangers to our shores,

having played festivals such as Splendour In The Grass, Groovin’ The Moo and the Woodford Folk Festival in recent years. They’ll return next month for St Jerome’s Laneway Festival, and Monaghan says the always-appreciative crowds – and maybe also the weather – is what keeps bringing them back.

“Obviously we love Australia, it’s a great place to be, a great place to hang out and we’ve got a lot of friends there. Coming to Australia is such a good thing for us, coming from Scotland. The culture and everything is really different, and just being able to get some sunshine is fantastic.”

Their frequent visits defi nitely appear to be bolstering Frightened Rabbit’s Australian fan base; after playing the Oxford Art Factory during their previous trip to Sydney in May last year, they’ll be stepping up to the considerably larger Metro Theatre for a Laneway sideshow this time round. Monaghan puts their growing popularity down to the good old-fashioned hard yards they’ve done touring over the years.

“Whenever we come back here the shows are slowly getting bigger and better, and we’ve been over to Australia maybe three or four times. The more you go, the more people can hear about you and the more people want to come to shows, and it just has that knock-on effect I think,” he says. And when that level of popularity gets them on a festival bill with so many other exciting artists, it’s a win for both Australian audiences and Frightened Rabbit themselves.

“The Laneway Festival, it’s unbelievable, the lineup for that is so good. I’m over the moon to be in that lineup with Kurt Vile, Warpaint and Chvrches; that’s going to be a fantastic tour to be on.”

What: Laneway Festival 2014 With: Haim, The Jezabels, Jagwar Ma, Lorde, Kurt Vile and more Where: Sydney College of the Arts, Rozelle When: Sunday February 2 And: Frightened Rabbit play the Metro Theatre on Thursday February 6 with support from Gang Of Youths More: Pedestrian Verse out now through Atlantic

Finch Backburning By James Nicoli

H

ow quickly things can change over the course of 12 months. If you’d asked Finch guitarist and founding member Randy Strohmeyer a little over a year ago if he thought his band would reform, play a string of sold-out reunion shows across the US and the UK, and now be getting ready to jet on over to Australia for Soundwave, it’s quite likely he would have said, “Not a chance.” But that’s exactly what’s happened, with Finch enjoying a whirlwind existence over the past year and in many ways a second life.

“The band had been broken up since 2010, when we called it a day, and I don’t think any of us thought that we were going to play again,” Strohmeyer says down the phone line from sunny California. But call it fate, luck or something else entirely, the stars did align and saw the original lineup, plus bassist since 2007 Daniel Wonacott, come together again. From there things happened quickly.

“Initially our manager Andy [Harris] called us all individually and was like, ‘Guys, what do you think about getting back together and doing some What It Is To Burn shows?’ I was like, ‘I don’t know, maybe we should do one and see how it goes. But you have to talk to the other guys.’”

Released in 2002, the band’s debut album What It Is To Burn exploded into the mainstream on the back of singles ‘Letters To You’ and ‘What It Is To Burn’ as well as riding the early 2000s emo explosion. It was a time when punk rock officially crossed over to the masses, and bands such as Finch seemed to be in the right place at the right time.

But after their initial success and the subsequent release of second album Say Hello To Sunshine, Finch endured a tumultuous few years, with a number of lineup changes, record label splits and a hiatus. By 2010 the wheels had officially fallen off.

But life has a funny way of

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“I don’t think any of us thought that we were going to play again”. throwing up the unexpected, and in the case of Finch, one reunion show at California’s Glasshouse venue suddenly snowballed into many. “We booked the first show, we put it on sale and it sold out immediately,” remembers Strohmeyer. “Then we added another show and it sold out quicker. So we just added more shows at the Glasshouse, and then after that we were like, ‘Let’s go to London.’

“We booked a show at [O2 Academy] Brixton, which is like the biggest place we had ever played. We put it on sale and went over there and it sold out and it was crazy. So we made a year of shows out of What It Is To Burn, which has led us to where we are now. It’s just been amazing and super surprising and we’re so grateful.”

Just a month out from returning to Soundwave to treat their Australian fans to the What It Is To Burn retrospective, Strohmeyer insists that he and his bandmates are going to savour every last moment of their trip Down Under. “When we broke up before doing these reunion shows, not knowing what was going to happen really, I thought – there’s so much cool shit we could be doing like Soundwave, that would be awesome if we could do it again.

We’re lucky enough that we can have that opportunity so we’re not taking it for granted. We’re just going to enjoy it”.

What: Soundwave Festival 2014 With: Green Day, Avenged Sevenfold, Alice In Chains, Placebo, AFI, Korn, Newsted and more Where: Sydney Olympic Park When: Sunday February 23

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Unknown Mortal Orchestra Party Rockers By Daniel Prior

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umble beginnings aren’t always a common thing in bands, especially in those which know they’re onto a unique and powerful sound. The restraint it takes to develop with patience is often beyond the band members themselves; it is simply too strong a temptation to throw their hands up and yell to the world, “It’s us! We are the ones you should be adoring – give us your love and praise!”

Unknown Mortal Orchestra managed to maintain their composure when the single ‘Ffunny Ffrends’ appeared on the internet with no information or credits listing who created it. The song’s popularity took off and roaming packs of bloggers began an online manhunt to discover who was responsible for the track.

Ruban Nielson, formerly of New Zealand experimental rock-pop band The Mint Chicks and founding member of Unknown Mortal Orchestra, eventually raised his hand and took credit.

“When I first started, I thought it would be more basic – someone would like the song, they’d listen to it and that would be that. When it started taking off, it was funny because no-one knew who made the music, and I didn’t want anyone to know it was me.

I mean, even my family didn’t know I had started making music again. It wasn’t me trying to hide or anything, I just didn’t think the knowledge of my involvement was a necessary factor for the song’s popularity.

And I was right.”

Origins as humble as these only made Unknown Mortal Orchestra’s success that much more impressive. After finally being ‘outed’, the band went all-out, releasing its debut self-titled record in 2011. The album won NZ’s prestigious Taite Music Prize, as well as being nominated for Best Alternative Album at the New Zealand Music Awards (with Nielson himself winning Best Male Artist). More recently, UMO have won several awards for their second album II. “It’s a bit weird to go from our quiet beginnings to winning awards and having such notice and reception,” Nielson admits. “[But] I’ve been working so hard for so many years now that it doesn’t seem as weird as it used to. When we first started getting noticed, there was a bidding war between my favourite labels to sign us. That was weird. To have such amazing labels fighting over each other to get us, it was pretty surreal. It doesn’t feel that weird now because it just feels like my job.”

The atmosphere of UMO’s music is key to their success. Driven by an intoxicating groove, their simple and psychedelic sounds are underlined by the expansive tones evident in all their songs. “Our music usually starts out with a sound. I’ll mix with a pedal and a mood and an ambient noise; some pretty weird-sounding stuff, basically, and then I’ll start working to get the atmosphere

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and mood right before we begin to turn it into a more understandable song.”

On top of their musical signature, UMO have also gained quite the reputation for nonstop touring. After the release of their Blue Record EP, they went on the road for almost a year straight. II was also conceived and written while on tour. Nielson finds that both touring and studio time have their equal but very separate effects on the band.

“I like both the same, even though they’re opposites. I’ll do one and then want to do the other. I definitely need to do both of these things. It’s like, I’ll want to be alone and write and record music, and I enjoy doing that, but if I do it too long it starts to feel as if I’m unemployed and I begin to wonder what’s going on in the world outside my door. So we go touring and it feels great again, very freeing, while having that sense of work and accomplishment. The downside is that we can get strung out and narky with each other and need some alone time, which is difficult to do when you have to work with the same people day in, day out for such a long time.”

Over the years, bands develop a way of dealing with these things; keeping morale high and making sure everyone’s enjoying what they’re doing. UMO’s approach is simple. “We party a lot. It’s one way to deal with the stress. It’s probably the best way. But, I mean, we think about it a lot and we always worry about morale. Like, if everyone has been working too hard, I’ll send everyone to a spa, tell them to get a massage.

“Everyone can get a bit touchy, and it’s a weird thing to be stuck with the same people all the time, you have to be careful not to annoy anyone. I bought everyone a present for Christmas recently, so right now everyone is still in high spirits!”

Booked for performances at the St Jerome’s Laneway Festival in 2014, as well as other tour dates across Asia, Australia and NZ, UMO are lining up another big year.

“I’m looking forward to going to China, I’ve never been there before and I’m quite excited,” says Nielson. “Also coming back to NZ and Oz and hanging out with some friends there. The [Laneway] Festival will be great, the band will still be touring and it’ll be awesome, but we won’t be touring as much [for the rest of the year]. Instead, we’ll be getting some studio time to get the next album ready. It’s going to be a good year.”

What: Laneway Festival 2014 With: Haim, The Jezabels, Jagwar Ma, Frightened Rabbit, Lorde, Kurt Vile and more Where: Sydney College of the Arts, Rozelle When: Sunday February 2

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arts frontline

free stuff head to: thebrag.com/freeshit

arts news...what's goin' on around town...with Hannah Warren

five minutes WITH

STRICTLY BALLROOM! MUSICAL! WIN!

BRIAN CASTLES-ONION for a few quick questions.

What inspired you to get into conducting?

My inspiration came from the desire to tell my own story through the music of the great opera composers. Hopefully, what an audience experiences is a combination of MY personality, the drama of the sung words and the music of a great composer.

What’s your favourite piece of music to conduct?

I don’t have a favourite. Whatever I’m conducting at the time is the most important music in my mind.

It has to be – to communicate that passion to the audience with a clarity and energy.

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ocal and international artists will gather under the stars for Opera Australia’s annual Mazda Opera in the Domain on Saturday 1 February at 8:00pm.

The free outdoor concert will feature popular arias from works by opera’s greatest composers and celebrate the magic and

memorable moments in opera.

Conductor Brian Castles-Onion has worked with Opera Australia, New York’s Metropolitan Opera, the Rossini Festival in Italy and the Canterbury Opera in New Zealand, and now he’s really looking forward to Opera in the Domain. The BRAG grabbed him

What can people expect from Mazda Opera in the Domain?

Opera Australia’s Opera in the Domain performances are always ‘Events’. Where else can you experience a great orchestra, excellent singers and a program of operatic favourites combined at a fabulous venue for free?

It’s a highlight of the Sydney 2014 musical year. I’m incredibly honoured to be on the podium for the performance.

What’s your next project going to be?

The morning after Opera in the Domain, I fly to Perth to conduct TOSCA. Then I return to Sydney to conduct Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour MADAMA BUTTERFLY… then I conduct CARMEN for Opera Australia in Melbourne. I’m very fortunate that I’m so busy conducting the greatest operas ever written.

Do you ever get called Maestro?

Never at home...just at work. I dislike the term and prefer to be known as Brian!

What: Mazda Opera In The Domain When: Saturday February 1 Where: The Domain More: opera.org.au

We all knew that it was only a matter of time before everyone’s favourite Australian ballroom dancing film was turned into a musical.

Yes, Strictly Ballroom will finally be hitting the stage in March, and I’m SO excited.

It will be brought to life by the original creative team behind the classic 1992 film, including director and co-writer, the wonderful Baz Luhrmann, so we can expect just as much magic on stage as we got on the extended footage limited edition DVD that we've watched 43 times. Phoebe Panaretos will be playing the clueless Fran, and Thomas Lacey will be the hunky Scott.

To celebrate, BRAG is giving away two double passes to the show on Wednesday April 9. Huzzah!

If you want to win tickets to this timeless ode to the bogo pogo, just head on over to thebrag.com/freeshit and tell us your favourite dance move. Mine is the lawnmower. Yeah, I’m that cool.

SHORT + SWEET TAKES MANILA

Short + Sweet, the Sydney-born festival of ten-minute plays, has expanded to Manila, and event organisers were swept away by the amount of interest. As many as 28 plays have been commissioned for the Manila season of what is now the biggest little play festival in the world. It began in Sydney 11 years ago, but has since expanded to other locations around Australia, as well as India, Malaysia, New Zealand, Dubai, Singapore and the UAE, with plans to hit China, the USA and the UK in the near future. The Sydney heats began on Wednesday January 8, and the finals will be held at the King Street Theatre on March 6 – 9. Head to shortandsweet.org for the deets.

SURF, SKATE AND ART AT MANLY

Head to Manly Beach between Saturday February 8 and Sunday February 16 for the 2014 Hurley Australian Open of Surfing.

There will be great surf, but fun doesn’t stop at the sand. The pavements will play home to some of the best skaters in the country, and Australian street artists will use the Hurley Printing Press (flown in from the US) to create special limited edition t-shirt designs. Different artists, all with unique styles, will be around on each day, so it might be worth going more than once. Check out hurley.com for more details.

BIGGEST DANCE CLASS EVER

To promote the launch of Strictly Ballroom The Musical, Baz Luhrmann will be holding a 4,000-person outdoor ballroom dancing class –the largest ever seen in Australia – on the Opera House forecourt on Sunday February 23. Anyone is welcome to register, and entrants will be selected by ballot on Monday February 10. The event will be filmed and photographed from above to capture thousands of people ballroom dancing around the most iconic building in the country. There are prizes up for grabs, and each entrant will

Elena Lev-Bakkar performs in Empire

EMPIRE EXTENDS SEASON

Empire by Spiegelworld opened its return Sydney season at the Entertainment Quarter on Tuesday January 7 and it was such a huge hit that they had to add an extra 16 shows to the season. The performance, which showcases circus, cabaret and burlesque performers from all over the world, will now run until Sunday March 2. Following the Sydney season, Empire will head to Melbourne where the season starts on Tuesday March 11. Check out empireaustralia.com for details and booking.

Sydney Theatre Company has just announced that they will be selling tickets for just $20 in order to encourage theatre attendance by a wider range of people. The Suncorp Twenties tickets will be released every Tuesday at 9am for performances on the following Monday to Sunday. Best of all, this sweet deal is running for the rest of 2014. Keen theatre-goers can grab their cheap-as-chips tickets over the phone or from the Box Office. Click over to sydneytheatre.com.au for the T&Cs. 20 :: BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14

ALAIN DE BOTTON SAYS ‘DON’T READ NEWS’

Swiss philosopher Alain de Botton returns to the Opera House on Saturday March 29 to discuss his latest book The News: A User’s Manual. He will talk about the way our contemporary society has invested the news with importance and authority, and question whether it’s doing us any good. You should probably stop reading the news now, but don’t forget to check out sydneyoperahouse.com for details and tickets.

ST GEORGE OPENAIR CINEMA LAUNCH

St George Openair Cinema launched in Sydney on Friday January 10 with the premiere of Tracks. The red carpet was chokka with VIPs including Mia Wasikowska, Robyn Davidson, and a few camels. Because camels are very into cinema, you know. The cinema is located at Mrs Macquaries Point, near the Botanical Gardens, and the screen sits in front of the water, with the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House in the background. Stunning.

The season runs until Saturday February 15, and limited numbers of tickets are available on the door each night. If you’re a keen bean, visit stgeorgeopenair.com.au for the program.

get a commemorative number patch and a link to the aerial photo. Strictly Ballroom The Musical opens on Tuesday March 25. To sign up for a once-in-a-lifetime dance class, throw your name into the hat at thetelegraph.com.au.

ASIO IS WATCHING

From Wednesday January 22 until Saturday February 1, Smart St Films in conjunction with the Damien Minton Gallery will be exhibiting Through The Looking Glass – previously secret ASIO surveillance photographs of people considered to be a threat to the country. Subjects of the photos include well known Australians such as film critic David Stratton, activist Gary Foley, and Bob Gould. These photos came together during research for the SBS series Persons Of Interest, and the exhibit will coincide with its broadcast.

You can catch a sneak peek at damienmintongallery.com.au.

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Empire photo by Elena Lev-Bakkar

$20 THEATRE? YES PLEASE.

Mrs Petrov at the Beach with an ASIO officer

The Cast of Tracks

THE WOLF OF WALL STREET

Martin Scorsese’s latest dark comedy

By Alicia Malone

arts feature

Leonardo DiCaprio in The Wolf Of Wall Street

“I

t’s funny but it’s not funny!” laughs director Martin Scorsese, trying to explain the dark humour of his latest film, the Oscar nominated The Wolf Of Wall Street.

“It’s funny within the context. It’s not pleasant, but it is funny. That craziness, the arrogance of youth. But then as we know, many older, revered figures behaved in a similar way in finance.”

Scorsese’s 23rd feature film, like many of his others, takes a look at an underworld filled with unlikeable characters doing despicable things.

But this isn’t the mob; it’s a peek inside the hedonistic world of a group of Wall Street stockbrokers who stole from the rice and gave to themselves. Based on the best-selling biography of the same name, The Wolf Of Wall Street stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Jordan Belfort; a young stockbroker who saw a loophole in the financial system and figured out he could make millions from it. With his partner Donnie Azoff (Jonah Hill) and a group of shady characters, Belfort set up a successful company and ran riot with drugs, sex, and endless amounts of money, until eventually the FBI caught up with him.

It was DiCaprio who first came across the project six years ago, and convinced Scorsese to come on board as its director. The film went through many financial troubles of its own, including surviving the 2008 Wall Street crisis, before finding funding with a group of independent backers. Once filming finally commenced, the producers were adamant that if they were going to make a film about this excessive culture, they wanted Martin and Leo to really go for it. “We definitely pushed them,” says producer Joey McFarland. “Granted, we didn’t think they would go that far! But we

definitely encouraged these guys to have fun and do something special.”

Screenwriter Terrence Winter describes The Wolf Of Wall Street as a “tsunami of craziness” with the preposterous activities the stockbrokers get up to. But, Leo says, the impact of the story would not have been the same if it were censored. “It is important not to sanitize,” he explains. “This is a dark comedy, but what we’re talking about is a very serious subject and it’s something that’s in our very culture.

You look at youth today, and you look

Margot Robbie, Leonardo DiCaprio and Martin Scorcese on set

at what the American dream is. This idea of accumulating more seems to be rampant.”

Jonah Hill just scored his second Oscar nomination for his role in the movie, but admits he didn’t like his character at all. “These people were actually doing these things. So you have to treat it really honestly, even though you’re playing someone really messed up and bizarre. I did not like Donnie, I just didn’t. And that was the most challenging part of doing this!

Every character I’ve played before, they’ve had flaws, but they had a good heart. Donnie is not a good person. He’s a bad guy, a bad human being. I would go home and feel guilty about what I had done that day!

But I would do anything for Martin Scorsese. Simple as that. I did stuff that I don’t think any other director could get me to do.”

To prepare for his role, DiCaprio spent time with the real Jordan Belfort, who, after serving time for fraud, wrote two memoirs and now travels the world as a motivational speaker. Although DiCaprio doesn’t approve of his past actions, he says it was very useful to be able to call him up and ask questions. “I do admire his honesty.

And from an actor’s perspective he was very beneficial. I think what he was doing was deplorable, and he’ll tell you the same thing; he’ll tell you

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he looks at that period of his life as a time for learning. He’s now going out doing seminars, like Tony Robbins style seminars, and talking about his past, the mistakes that he’s made, the dark path that he went down and how to have integrity in the world of finance. But for me, as an actor, the fact that he would divulge all this stuff was incredible. I got to call him, sometimes in between scenes, and ask him what the environment was like, what he was thinking, and he was so candid with me, it was hugely beneficial as an actor.”

The Wolf Of Wall Street also marks the fifth collaboration between DiCaprio and Scorsese, and both have been nominated for Oscars, in the Best Actor and Best Director categories. Over the years these two have formed a great working relationship. “I don’t know if I would describe it as father and son, sometimes he’s the father!” says Scorsese, laughing. “He’s the one that says, ‘sit down, take it easy buddy!’

We talk a lot, and we like working together. We’re friends.”

“Any actor would want to work with Martin Scorsese, I got very lucky,” says DiCaprio, “I got lucky because I hunted down one project and said, I know you’ve always wanted to do Gangs Of New York, and we ended up

“This is a dark comedy, but what we’re talking about is a very serious subject and it’s something that’s very in our culture.” doing that. And then the trust builds up, and over time it just becomes like we automatically know what we’re trying to do. And what’s amazing about him is his thirst for making great movies is still as powerful as it was when he was first starting out. He’s such an admirer of film as an art form that I think he has so many gods of cinema swirling around his head that he has to answer to. He feels like they’re looking down on him so he’s motivated to keep making great movies.”

What: The Wolf Of Wall Street Who: Martin Scorsese, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill When: Out Thursday January 23 Where: Cinemas nationwide

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Oedipus Schmoedipus [THEATRE] The Inevitibility Of Death And Theatre By Emma McManus

S

ydney performance group post have been creating waves in Sydney in recent years.

The three members (Zoë Coombs Marr, Mish Grigor and Natalie Rose) have performed at almost every major theatre company in Sydney and have made work about everything from the Global Financial Crisis to deciding which member of Post is the best. For Sydney Festival, post are returning to Belvoir to present Oedipus Schmoedipus, a democratic theatrical extravaganza which takes the death scenes from several hundred of the most famous plays of all time and presents them using a chorus of unrehearsed volunteers.

Post began the process of Oedipus Schmoedipus looking to make something different. “Our last show Who’s the Best? was all about ourselves,” says Grigor. “We spent like a year talking to each other about ourselves in intimate detail; that felt like an incredibly narcissistic endeavour and we wanted to do something completely different after that, we wanted to do something about a really big topic, so we decided to do a show about death.”

While working on Who’s the Best?, post found themselves engaged with a more traditional theatre conversation, sparking them to link the idea of death with the Western theatrical canon.

“When something is part of the canon there’s this reverence, there’s this sense that these things are universal,” says Coombs Marr. “How can they possibly be universal when they’re all written by

the same guy, they’re all written by white men?”

This common idea that these plays are universal is one of the things that post want to challenge.

“Death is the only thing that is universal,” says Grigor, “but these plays claim to be universal.

So we decided to look at the actual universal through the lens of something that claims to be.”

Post then began the long and rigorous process of trawling through these plays to find any reference to death, creating huge spreadsheets of quotes and categorising them according to different systems. “Once we started looking at these plays we kind of hit up against a brick wall,” says Grigor. “How can we actually speak these words? As performers and makers we make our own work, we speak our own words, and we felt kind of uncomfortable [speaking the words of the canon]. It was an interesting problem for us.

Because in a way, it’s the whole thing that we don’t want to speak, it’s the whole institution that we’ve turned away from. So we decided to invite guests to speak the words of the canon. For us, doing that kind of duplicates the process of being handed these texts as though they’re absolutely integral to our culture.”

This idea of guests speaking the lines has become a large part of Oedipus. Over the course of the season, post will work with over 7000 volunteers. Each night a different group of volunteers will take to the stage and perform without prior rehearsal. The volunteers were found through an open call out and anyone

Oedipus Schmoedipus

who applied could take part with no previous performance experience required.

Despite all this talk of death, the show also promises the keen wit we have come to expect from the post girls. “Sometimes all this talk makes it sound really serious. It’s very silly. The fact that we are outside of [the traditional theatre] world means that we don’t have much reverence

for it, we don’t hold the texts on high, we sort of rip everything apart and poke fun of it.”

What: Oedipus Schmoedipus When: Thursday January 9 to Sunday February 2 Where: Belvoir Theatre, 25 Belvoir Street, Surry Hills

[PHOTOGRAPHY] A Photographic History Of Ordinary People By Pamela Lee following the Cultural Revolution, it provides a remarkable portrait of the Chinese capital and its inhabitants during a period of dramatic social change. The BRAG spoke to curator Thomas Sauvin about the project that shows “a new face of China” to an international audience.

homas Sauvin, French photography collector, editor and curator, describes his solo exhibition Beijing Silvermine as “a portrait of Beijing and the life of its inhabitants at the end of the 20th century”. This extraordinary collection of photographs is presented at the 4A Centre of Contemporary Asian Art in association with the Sydney Chinese New Year.

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The project began in 2009 when the Beijingbased collector encountered a man by the name of Xiao Ma who stockpiled negatives to recycle for their silver nitrate content.

Recognising a rare chance to resurrect lost memories, Sauvin struck up a deal to buy the negatives by the kilo. He collected, edited and archived the rescued photographic negatives. This ‘silvermine’ of anonymous and vernacular photography styles covers a period of roughly 20 years – 1985 to 2005 – allowing us to witness the intimate and public lives of ordinary Chinese people through “a combination of major life events and meaningful anecdotes.”

Beijing Silvermine is a collection of over 500,000 photographs taken by amateur Chinese photographers. Spanning the decades

“I have been looking at these half a million photographs for about four years now. Some very crucial themes emerged, themes about

Miss A In A Bubble

birth, love and death,” said Sauvin. The exhibition explores these themes, allowing us to travel through the lives of the Chinese. It expresses the social changes within China as the country started to open up to the West. The subjects pose beside new refrigerators, they begin to travel and there is an unavoidable and contagious ‘joie de vie’ radiating from the entire collection. “I tried to use private snapshots to portrait collective memories,” said Sauvin, who has painted an unseen insight into a recent past.

The exhibition subtly illustrates the stupendous depth of the silvermine. It includes mesmerising video animations, produced by the Beijing based animator Leilei in collaboration with Sauvin. The animations reveal the surreal landscape of the photography while reflecting “the quantity of the images in the archive without erasing the content.” We are also invited to discover original negatives, some of which Sauvin himself has not yet seen. This is an insight into the incredibly personal nature of the project.

Also included is a documentary by French filmmaker Emiland Guillerme which tells the story of Thomas Sauvin’s Beijing discoveries.

Beijing Silvermine accounts for a period when affordable consumer film first came into widespread use in China to when digital photography encouraged mass disposal and wilful neglect of film. The exhibition illustrates the wondrous, imperfect and perishable qualities of film photography itself while presenting a rare connection between the photographer and his subject. As Sauvin points out, “this is something you rarely find in photojournalism or contemporary photography where the photographers position themselves as observers.”

Sauvin continues to collect 9000 negatives a month and presents a different grouping for each exhibition making this an exclusive experience. Beijing Silvermine is an opportunity to see a unique collection of emotive photographs and witness extraordinary moments in everyday life that have been rescued from oblivion.

What: Beijing Silvermine When: 6 – 11 January Where: 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art

Empire [CIRCUS] Getting all twisted up at the circus By Adam Norris

A

s Miss A in A Bubble, Lucia Carbines is currently living the dream (should your dream involve running away with the circus to be suspended inside a giant perspex globe performing contortions in a tent full of gawking strangers – which, if it doesn’t, it should). Having been granted a preview performance of Lucia’s act, I was lucky enough to sit down with the

22 :: BRAG :: 546 :: 20:01:14

Australian aerialist to discuss the realities of contortion, what can happen when tricks go wrong, and what it is about the circus that still hooks audiences after so many years.

of the performers being so closely scrutinised, Empire takes this even further, and I wonder if the proximity of the audience ever becomes unnerving.

Don’t get me wrong: the strength of Empire is in the dizzying audacity and abilities of its performers. But it’s also a hell of a sexy show, replete with lingerie-clad girls in gorilla masks, muscle-clad foot jugglers, exhibitionist hosts, and the graceful Lucia herself, manipulating her limbs into the most unlikely of positions while hanging precariously above centre stage in a great perspex globe. The effect is somehow terrifying and titillating all at once.

“Performing in a place like the Spiegeltent, where people can see everything I do, they can hear me, and I can see them...” Lucia smiles slightly.

“At first it was so distracting. Doing a trick and seeing someone’s face so close, if they were totally freaked out by what my body was doing.

There are times I’ll look out and I’ll see these faces going, ‘Ewww!’ with the most shocked expressions. So for the first couple of weeks I would just stand backstage saying to myself over and over, ‘Don’t think about the people, just focus on the act’, and really get myself into a certain state where I could go on stage and not be affected by what I’d see in the audience. Now, though, I love having people so close, because you can interact with them, you can smile at one particular person and make them feel special.

On a big stage, that’s just not possible.”

“You definitely have to seduce your audience,” Lucia agrees, “and if someone is being sexy on stage, drawing you in, then the audience feels they’re a part of it too. I think that’s definitely why a lot of the show takes that sexy approach, because it makes people feel like they’re more involved in what’s happening on stage. If you have a night where you can tell are really enjoying the show… It’s almost like an invisible fuel. It makes the whole thing feel really special.”

In any live performance I am always struck by the inherent voyeurism of the audience. In such a small circular venue, with every movement

Unlike the majority of contortionists who have to train long and hard to reach the kind of flexibility we see in Empire, Lucia’s spine is naturally – and remarkably – mobile. As a result, although there is still a huge amount of training and exercise that goes into the act, her movements

seem very fluid and graceful; such is her talent that even the most unlikely contortion seems as natural as stretching. Like any aerial act, though, there is always an implicit danger to the performance.

“One performance, I’d moisturised my hands, put tuff-skin on, and then, I got hot. As my skin started sweating, the moisturiser underneath the tuff-skin was suddenly a real problem. Not only did I have sweaty hands, but moisturised sweaty hands. There’s a trick when I hold onto the bottom of the ball and I’m hanging by my hands, and I put my leg through the gap, and all of my weight is on my fingertips. As my fingertips started slipping, I could see myself falling face first onto the floor. I tried to pull myself back into the ball when one hand actually slid off and I suddenly swung around sideways, trying to find a better grip and pull myself back inside. My heart was booming, I was sure I’d fall. But,” she laughs, “you just try to make it look like part of the act.”

What: Empire Where: Entertainment Quarter, 122 Lang Road, Moore Park When: Until Sunday March 2 More: empireaustralia.com

thebrag.com

Beijing Silvermine. Courtesy Thomas Sauvin and 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art

Beijing Silvermine

Film & Theatre Reviews Hits and misses on the silver screen around town

■ Theatre

ON THE SHORE OF THE WIDE WORLD

World remains thought-provoking, endearing, and moving.

Toni Servillo in The Great Beauty

Justin Wolfers ■ Film

47 RONIN

Christopher Holmes in On The Shore Of The Wide World Until Saturday February 1 / Griffin Theatre Alex has the whole world in front of him, is ready to reach for it, and yet, and yet… Griffin Theatre is known for showcasing fresh, exciting writing, and UK playwright Simon Stephens’ On the Shore of the Wide World is another fascinating example of this. It’s a tender, gruelling familial drama played out over three generations, where the characters all long to escape, but find that the ties that keep them together can also hold them back.

Blessing by Song Ling. Coutesy City Of Sydney

This production brings together a troupe of very strong performers from the actors’ collective pantsguys, who are engaging throughout; bringing depth to characters that are torn between what they could have had, and what they are faced with now. Though the set is fairly unremarkable, and the musical interludes don’t leave a mark, Anthony Skuse’s direction takes great care with the pacing, ensuring that its emotional impact is gradual and understated. The pathos takes a good while to build; but the reward is that we follow the characters’ trajectories as the plot develops, and avoid feeling like victims of melodrama.

Alex (Graeme McRae) is young, confident, and selfish enough to escape the awful situation at home, but his parents cannot make the same changes, seemingly tied to their town and their grievances without really knowing why. Huw Higginson is truly excellent as the father, Peter, ranging from mousy to both broken- and lion-hearted, and Amanda Stephens-Lee is gripping, and unsettling as the strong but embittered mother. The grandparents (Paul Bertram and Kate Fitzpatrick), whose unhappiness with their splintering relationship seems even more ingrained, provide an historical context for Alex, who is the first in the family to leave town. He has a terrible time in London and, as the prodigal son, returns, though we know it is temporary. Although it lacks a dynamic range at times, On the Shore of the Wide

Keanu Reeves in 47 Ronin Playing now Keanu Reeves is one of those lucky actors, limited but likeable, with the knack for starring in seminal popcorn. Point Break, Speed, The Matrix – has any actor appeared in more action classics? But every lucky actor runs out of luck sooner or later, and it’s been a long time since Reeves has figured in the summer movie conversation. His latest, 47 Ronin, a flop in America and plagued by production issues, is unlikely to change that.

Which is a shame, because it’s more fun than the vast majority of the actual, honestto-goodness blockbusters (Iron Man 3, The Lone Ranger, Man of Steel et al) that brought home the big bucks last year.

A clunky framing narration introduces us to the concept of the Ronin, the most shame-filled fellows in Japan – samurai who have failed to protect their master and now wander, leaderless. Then comes the thornier expository interlude, in which the unlikely presence of a white boy – future Keanu – in feudal Japan must be explained away. One sympathises with the makers of Hollywood movies like this. Who doesn’t want to make use of the big budgets only Hollywood regularly throws around to make a rollicking samurai yarn, or a gripping thriller about the plot to kill Hitler, or a panoramic epic about the crusaders’ clash with Saladin?

The problem is that to secure those budgets a filmmaker has to cast a big star, which straight away puts them on the back foot. If the director’s task is to make the world on screen a believable one, one that seems idiosyncratic and indigenous, Keanu Reeves wearing a kimono is not the best start. 47 Ronin at least seems to realise this, and steers clear, or clearer than most, of the white-man-as-saviour shtick Hollywood still trots out at an alarming rate (Dances With Wolves, The Last Samurai, Avatar).

■ Film

LA GRANDE BELLEZZA (THE GREAT BEAUTY) In cinemas January 23 The trailer for director Paolo Sorrentino’s latest film looks positively profound. Flashes of decadent parties, hints of complex characters, thought provoking flickers of dialogue; all in the context of the gutturally powerful splendour that is Rome. Unfortunately for filmgoers, the beauty of the city is the only part of the teaser that translates to the feature film.

65-year-old Jep Gambardella (Toni Servillo) knows everyone. One-time hit novelist, he now spends his

days writing the occasional article for a high end magazine and his nights partying with the who’s who of Rome’s glitterati. However, soon after his birthday and the passing of his first love, Jep begins questioning his ebbing life and ultimately his own happiness.

This film takes Sorrentino back to his native Italy after previous feature, 2011’s This Must Be The Place (starring a gothedup Sean Penn), saw his English language debut. The Great Beauty is also Italy’s submission in the category of Best Foreign Language Film at the 2014 Academy Awards.

Visually breathtaking, the striking evocations of Rome and immersive style are reminiscent of Fellini in their

scope. Nonetheless the meandering nature of the already very loose storyline means there’s little left to hold the viewer’s attention for the 2 hour 20 minute running time. Sub-plots involving an aging stripper and a soonto-be sainted nun hint that Jeb may make a real human connection. Ultimately though, nothing comes of these interactions and he continues his partying lifestyle none the richer for his experiences.

Rather than being an enlightening study on the way we derive meaning from our lives, this is a lethargic and unfocused effort that, like its protagonist, fails to live up to its potential.

Lee Hutchison

Some conventions die hard.

Xxxxx

See www.thebrag.com for more arts reviews

Arts Exposed What's in our diary...

Crossing Boundaries Sydney Town Hall January 22-26 This week, from Wednesday January 22 until Sunday January 26, head to Sydney Town Hall for Crossing Boundaries, an artistic exploration of the relationships that exist between Asia and Australia.

This exhibition is part of the Chinese New Year Festival, and includes art from a diverse range of mediums, daily fl oor talks and artist forums in which artists refl ect on journeys, exploration and boundaries. The highlight is the painting Safety And Peace In Four Seasons, which features on the CNY Festival banners throughout the city.

Look at sydneychinesenewyear.com for more details.

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BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14 :: 23

Album Reviews What's been crossing our ears this week...

ALBUM OF THE WEEK BEYONCÉ Beyoncé Sony

Xxxx This is the body of work by which Queen Bey should be remembered.

SARAH BLASKO

I Awake: Live At Sydney Opera House Dew Process/Universal

If you didn’t happen to be in Sydney in February last year when Sarah Blasko performed at the Sydney Opera House, or weren’t one of the many who watched the show live on YouTube, then the release of I Awake: Live At Sydney Opera House will be a welcome treat.

Backed by the Sydney International Orchestra, Blasko treated fans to a performance of her entire 2012 record I Awake, as well as a number of songs from her previous albums, What The Sea Wants, The Sea Will Have and As Day Follows Night. For a live album, the mix and production is top notch – at times you could be forgiven for thinking it was all done in the studio.

Opening with ‘(Explain)’, Blasko plays a selection of songs from her back catalogue including ‘All I Want’ and ‘Bird On A Wire’ before launching into I Awake from start to finish. The singer’s performance is flawless throughout and the orchestra breathes just enough life into the songs to give the album added appeal.

Everything Beyoncé Knowles, Sasha Fierce, Mrs. Carter, whatever you want to call her, has represented and spoken about in the past – female empowerment, self-empowerment, sexiness, class, groove – all coalesce righteously on Beyoncé.

Without the visual accompaniments, I think the minimalist grandeur, brazenly honest lyricism and hush-hush leak-proof global release has to be commended. But couple that with the fact that every minute of this album has been synchronised with its own filmic depiction, and we have a behemoth of modern commercial music, full stop. We now live in a post-Beyoncé world. If you think I’m being overzealous,

STEPHEN MALKMUS AND THE JICKS Wig Out At Jagbags Spunk

After the energised pop of 2011’s Mirror Traffic, Wig Out At Jagbags sees Stephen Malkmus and his Jicks take another left turn. All Malkmus’ trademarks are here (rambling, brilliant guitar solos matched with rambling, brilliant lyrics), but they’re assembled in a very relaxed way, even for him. He sounds adult and content on this one, making it hard to compare to his other albums.

Pig Lib with more focus? Real Emotional Trash’s flashy guitar without the wank? His self-titled album’s professionalism with better songs? All are partially true, leaving it easier just to describe it as a batch of quintessential Malkmus.

And what a batch it is. ‘Lariat’ and its refrain “We grew up listening to the music from / The best decade ever” makes it nostalgic for any listener, regardless of age. ‘Chartjunk’ and ‘J Smoov’ feature Malkmus’ most extensive use of horns yet, and both are highlights. With no disrespect to The Jicks, Wig Out is what a Stephen Malkmus of Pavement solo album should be. All other Malkmus albums tried to have some separate musical identity.

you haven’t listened to this album. And if you have: you haven’t watched this album.

From the opening track ‘Pretty Hurts’, with its sampling of Beyoncé herself (playing a mock beauty pageant contestant, Miss 3rd Ward) stating her aspiration in life is simply “to be happy”, we’re given the warning that though we might be along for the ride, this is a body of work made for one person.

Look out for a stellar appearance from both husband Jay-Z in the epic ‘Drunk In Love’ (spitting gems like “We sex again in the morning / Your breasts is my breakfast”) and young daughter Ivy Blue in the aptly titled ‘Blue’, closing out the album proper with a cute-as-pie refrain.

If you thought Beyoncé was a powerful force before, prepare to shut up, bow down and be humbled yet again.

Matt Panag

SHEARWATER

WOODEN SHJIPS

WOMEN IN DOCS

The last 12 months have seen a number of cover albums released by strong male vocalists (Paul Dempsey and Mark Lanegan spring to mind), and Shearwater’s Jonathan Meiburg throws his hat into the ring with an intriguing twist.

Fellow Travelers is a tribute to bands that have shared the stage with Shearwater, from the stadium-filling pop of Coldplay to the obscurity of David Thomas Broughton. Meiburg complicates the theme further by inviting many of these artists to contribute to other tracks on the album; Clinic plays on The Baptist Generals’ ‘Fucked Up Life’, The Baptist Generals return the favour on Clinic’s ‘Tomorrow’, and Sharon Van Etten (formerly Shearwater’s tour manager) sings on the album’s only original track, ‘A Wake For The Minotaur’. Shearwater are eager to experiment with their covers; unafraid to discard style and willing to record takes that sound nothing like the original versions. It largely pays off, with the album’s weakest cover also being the most faithful to the original – Folk Implosion’s ‘Natural One’.

Drone rock is a difficult beast to enjoy.

Once you’re past a minute and a half you wonder what the difference is between it and any other annoyingly persistent sound. That being said, if you can get into it, there are a lot of great albums to be enjoyed. Wooden Shjips’ latest album Back To Land, unfortunately, is not one.

Back in my suburban high school days the act of wearing Doc Martens was a statement of the wearer’s experience and readiness for street battle. By the time I got to university, Doc Martens had been adopted as the footwear de jour of self-proclaimed left-wing anarchistsocialist-communist-feminist rhetoricians; by the time Natasha Stott Despoja proudly showed her parliamentary Docs to the world, the boots had lost much of their original shock value.

Fellow Travelers Sub Pop/Inertia

With such exceptional musicianship on display, combined with a masterful mix, this is one of the better live albums out there.

Here, he’s just put together a collection of fine songs, finally realising that’s all he needs to do.

With an eclectic set of songs and a willingness to stray from the blueprint, Shearwater have avoided the traditional traps of the cover album and made a rewarding and satisfying record.

James Nicoli

Leonardo Silvestrini

Keiron Costello

INDIE ALBUM OF THE WEEK The second album from James Vincent McMorrow sees the Irish music-maker dramatically broaden his musical horizons. The folkpop of his 2010 debut Early In The Morning has magically converted into something that more accurately represents McMorrow’s own musical tastes, involving fewer guitars, R&B inklings and many, many more layers.

JAMES VINCENT MCMORROW Post Tropical Believe/Dew Process

McMorrow is clearly a fan of the fullbodied chorus. ‘The Lakes’ builds up a massive swell and fades out with tropical twangs evocative of the oddly paradoxical album art (because every tropical setting should include a polar bear lurching from an iceberg in the background, obviously).

You can find anything in Post

24 :: BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14

Tropical if you listen closely enough – tapping raindrops intercepting with foot thudding in ‘All Points’; broad, thunderous brass and glittering syncopation in ‘Gold’; and atmospheric R&B in almost every song, but especially the single and album highlight ‘Cavalier’.

Back To Land Twelve Suns/Rocket

Labelled as “spacey psychedelic rock”, the album feels more like the work of a burnt-out drone/psych band which has fallen into a nearvegetative state thanks to drug binges that lasted years on end.

Album opener ‘Back To Land’ sets everything off to bad start, with overly insistent reverb and echo and not a whole lot of anything else for underlying substance. In fact, the entire album is like this. ‘Ghouls’, ‘Other Stars’ and ‘Servants’ try to cover it up by playing even louder, but it doesn’t hide the fact that these guys are nuts for reverb and echo.

The only songs that do make you sit up and notice are ‘Ruins’, which is not bad rather than enjoyable, and ‘These Shadows’, which is actually a really good song, so much so that the album closes with an acoustic version.

Carousel Plus One Records

Women In Docs aren’t out to make a statement any more than other female folk duos are out to do anything but write songs with lush melodies and captivating lyrics. And that, in distilled essence, is just what Women In Docs – AKA Roz Pappalardo and Chanel Lucas – are doing with their first release in eight years. With the exception of a re-recording of ‘Tin Roof’ (originally released on the duo’s debut EP), and a charming cover of Bob Dylan’s ‘Wagon Wheel’, Carousel is a collection of new and original material as fresh as a temperate morning breeze. The harmonies are noteperfect; the melodies invigorating.

‘These Shadows’ aside, Back To Land is a huge misstep from a great band.

Carousel is nice, pleasant and will probably make your day a whole lot more enjoyable – which certainly couldn’t be said for Doc Martens back in the day.

Daniel Prior

Patrick Emery

OFFICE MIXTAPE And here are the albums that have helped BRAG HQ get through the week...

BASTILLE - Bad Blood ARCADE FIRE - Funeral SLEEPY SUN - Spine Hits

McMorrow has put his everything into this album and it shows, no more so than in his emotiondrenched vocals and lyrics.

James Vincent McMorrow wanted to make the most beautiful thing he could imagine with Post Tropical – suffice it to say, it’s hard to argue with the results.

PEARL JAM - Lightning Bolt FUNKI PORCINI - On

Katie Davern

thebrag.com

live reviews What we've been out to see...

JOHN GRANT, JOHN MURRY, DARREN SYLVESTER Sydney Town Hall Thursday January 16

heroin addiction, unfortunately, just not mine.â&#x20AC;?

And he conducted a vote over which cover to play, in the end going with John Prineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Paradiseâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;. The sprawling â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Things We Lost In The Fireâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; was gut-wrenching but magnificent.

second WFor h athe t w e ' v eyear b erunning, e n o Sydney u t t oFestival see... transformed Town Hall into an echo of the legendary Amsterdam venue Paradiso, with warm pendant lights and the rainbow glow of neon signs bouncing off art deco mirrors. As noted by the eveningâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s MC, â&#x20AC;&#x153;We get to rock out in the same place local councillors make arbitrary decisions. But please donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t scratch the floors, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re very expensive!â&#x20AC;?

Melburnian Darren Sylvester warmed up the space with his melancholy-tinged, â&#x20AC;&#x2122;80s disco snare-driven beats looping through his sampler as he sang of love lost and awkward encounters.

Mississippi-born John Murry led with a question for the conspiracy theorists â&#x20AC;&#x201C; in a soft Southern drawl he asked, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Whatever happened to Prime Minister Holt?â&#x20AC;? before launching into â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;The Ballad Of The Pyjama Kidâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; from last yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s stunning The Graceless Age, a collection of rough-hewn ballads on which he laid bare his battle with heroin addiction. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s able to joke about his past struggles, though: â&#x20AC;&#x153;This songâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also about

The second John of the evening, John Grant, took the stage impressive beard first, followed by his (mostly) Icelandic band. The former Czars member has two solo albums under his belt, the title tracks of which made impressive set highlights. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Pale Green Ghostsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; was all roiling, clanging synths, with an unearthly rhythm that echoed around the hall. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Queen Of Denmarkâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; was equal parts boisterous and victorious. Grant has got to be one of the most enunciated cursers performing today; his wit and scathing observations were a delight to behold, and â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;GMFâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; was particularly impressive. To his credit he balances the snark â&#x20AC;&#x201C; â&#x20AC;&#x153;Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got really nice clothes / Bet you didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t pay for thoseâ&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x201C; with measures of self-criticism: â&#x20AC;&#x153;I had it all the way up to my hairline / Which keeps receding like my self-confidenceâ&#x20AC;?.

Grant was dashing and appreciative, and after an encore of â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Chicken Bonesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, left Soft Pink Truth et al. to spin the party into Friday morning.

Natalie Amat

5th Juke Baritone

12th Graveyard Rockstars Archaic Revival & Bones Atlas

19th IAMS PHOTOGRAPHER :: JAMIE WILL

MIKE PATTON, LEE RANALDO

in the abstract sections while a tidy, familyfriendly summary of feelings was provided by the songs.

Tonight saw two of the most important figures in alternative rock history separately assuming a relatively unconventional guise alongside Sydneyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Ensemble Offspring (a bunch of sharp-looking, orchestrally savvy locals). I say â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;relativelyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; because, really, unconventional (syn. irreverent, fauvish) is exactly why theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re so damn important. There was a relaxing informality to the whole event, which stopped it from having a pretentious rock-guys-expecting-you-to-take-themseriously atmosphere.

Mike Patton was last at Sydney Festival with his radicalised showcase of Italian standards, Mondo Cane. Tonightâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s performance, Laborintus II, also borrowed from Italian music history. The piece was written in the 1960s by experimental composer Luciano Berio and tonight saw Patton imparting intimidating Italian narration over leaping female vocals, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;controlledâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; orchestral chaos, and apocalyptic jazz.

City Recital Hall Thursday January 16

For Hurricane Transcriptions, Sonic Youth guitarist-turned-solo artist Lee Ranaldo re-enacted the sounds of Hurricane Sandy hitting New York in late 2012. Three extended orchestral segments were each followed (or refreshed) by a guitar and vocal-based song. A creeping, wooshy beginning quickly erupted into a scene of discordant alarm, courtesy of stabbing strings, crashing percussion and Ranaldoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s droning keyboards.

Meanwhile, the folk-leaning first song proper, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Last Night On Earthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, had a distinctly Rodriguez feel thanks to Ranaldoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s nasal tenor vocals, acoustic guitar and some bassy brass work. Ranaldoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s well-loved Fender Jazzmaster was welcomed onstage for the next verse/chorus number, which melodically resembled R.E.M. Perhaps the highlight of the set was when this songâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s panic-stricken spoken word coda was met by enough orchestral intensity to have you cowering under your chair. Ranaldoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s show was like a musical: dramatic events were acted out

Central to the performance were the three female vocalists aerobically imitating instruments (rather than singing standard vocal lines) and an eight-strong male choir yelping Italian absurdities. At times the cacophony of strings, clarinets, harps and jumbled Italian speech impacted like war propaganda, taunting you to either enlist or crumble.

The nightâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most captivating moment was a breathless two minutes when Patton addressed a megaphone to vocally whip an unknown but evidently aggravating target. It was a completely gripping and somewhat terrifying scene. Elsewhere, recurring spasmodic jazz intervals, furnished by dual percussionists, gave the performance an amusing Lynchian unpredictability.

On paper, tonight involved Mike Patton narrating a dizzying avant-garde Italian opera and Lee Ranaldo covering (and reflecting upon) a hurricane. And it was just as bewildering and unrivalled as it sounds.

Augustus Welby

GROOVERFEST Very special super unnannounced secret guest & Jugular Cuts, The Owls

The Wameki

26th

VULGAR DISPLAY OF PIZZA

Australia Day Mozzarella Metal Fest DA HC 5A !F589 GCIB8 @=;<HG B J=69

F99 'IG=7 J9FM -IB85M

:F5B?=9GD=NN56MH<9G@=79 7CA :CF GH5;9 H=A9G IAMS PHOTOGRAPHER :: JAMIE WILL

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BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14 :: 25

live reviews What we've been out to see...

Goodgod Small Club Saturday January 18 Courtney Barnett wowed the crowd at the sold-out Goodgod Small Club on Saturday night, once again proving that her recent overseas attention is not simply hollow hype, and making everyone in the crowd wonder for just how long they’ll have the chance to see her at such a small venue.

Nic Cassey opened the show, and while he and his backing band are obviously talented musicians, and his songs’ mix of Modest Mouse/Cold War Kids-style indie and Steely Dan-brand yacht rock is somewhat fresh, the guy really needs to improve his vocals. Or hire a singer.

Sures followed, and absolutely killed. The heavy chillwave reverb heard in their studio stuff doesn’t carry over live. At least, it couldn’t be heard in the tiny venue. Instead, their music mutated into tight, ’70s power pop with undeniably great melodies, more akin to a punchy Big Star than Wavves.

Hopefully they incorporate this live sound into future releases; everyone’s playing

up all night out all week . . .

chillwave at the moment, but hardly anyone is playing immediate power pop songs that you fall in love with on first listen.

Then Barnett appeared, and her set didn’t let up for its entire 45-minute duration. When played live, the ragged blues that is her bread and butter makes every song seem like the perfect soundtrack to a Tarantino film thanks to its added danceability. While her brilliant lyrics understandably aren’t easily understood live, she makes up for it by delivering her songs with sheer brute force thanks to the skill of her backing band, The Courtney Barnetts, and it makes all her songs sound better.

The brilliant lyrics were on full display, however, in Depreston, a new song Barnett previewed without the aid of her band, and the highlight of the set (the loose version of ‘History Eraser’ was a close second.) Its matter-of-fact lyrics like “Now we’ve got that percolator / Never made a latte greater / I’m saving $23 a week,” are what make her such an intriguing and refreshing artist. I look forward to paying at least double the $12 ticket price on her next tour.

Leonardo Silvestrini

sun ra arkestra

PICS :: PU

COURTNEY BARNETT, SURES, NIC CASSEY

snap sn ap

18:01:14 :: State Theatre :: 49 Market St Sydney 9373 6655

Factory Theatre Friday January 17 Kathleen Hanna, frontwoman of The Julie Ruin, has long been the face of the Riot Grrrl revolution. But 20 years after Hanna’s heyday, her new Brooklyn-grown band came onstage at Marrickville’s Factory Theatre with as much fervour as ever. ’Cause though Hanna may have come dressed fit for church, her pretty blue dress still managed a feminine-is-badass-andI-will-stomp-on-you-with-my-kitten-heels aesthetic. And every bit the punk princess, she really did wear kitten heels, and they really did do a lil’ stomping.

Hanna claimed to have danced like a loser at her school prom, but she wasn’t lying when she said, “Tonight, I’ll make up for that.” Despite suffering from the exhausting Lyme disease, Hanna bounced, moved like a robot and played an air guitar all night.

OK, some might call that dancing like a loser, but to others it’s damn cool.

Featuring fellow Bikini Kill veteran Kathi Wilcox (along with Kenny Mellman of Kiki and Herb, Sara Landeau and Carmine Covelli), The Julie Ruin haven’t fallen far from the Bikini Kill tree. Combining their ’90s punk stylings with the electro sounds of Hanna’s Le Tigre project, they've got tracks like ‘Girls Like Us’ that are equal parts pleasurable and political. Hanna screamed the way a good grrrl should through lyrics like “Girls like us use highlighter pens / Especially to write our poems” and “Girls like us are most perfect / When we’re biting off all our fingernails”.

Performing a range of The Julie Ruin, Bikini Kill and Le Tigre tracks meant pleasing fans both old and new. And along with the energetic Mellman on keyboards – who really knows how to wail and thrash a head of hair – Hanna made plenty of banter with the audience, for which the Factory Theatre was the perfect setting. None of us – with our angry t-shirts, chunky boots, miniskirts and sass – could have asked for more.

Rachel Eddie

edwyn collins

PICS :: JW

THE JULIE RUIN

sarah blasko

PICS :: AM

misfits 14:01:14 :: St Stephen's Uniting Church :: 197 Macquarie St Sydney 9221 1688 26 :: BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14

PICS :: LC

19:01:14 :: The Spiegeltent :: Hyde Park

18:01:14 :: Factory Theatre :: 105 Victoria Rd Marrickville 9550 3666 S :: LIAM CAMERON :: ASHLEY OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER :: N UPTO

ENCE MAR :: JAMIE WILLIAMS :: PRUD

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up all night out all week . . .

17:01:14 :: Selina's :: Coogee Bay Hotel 253 Coogee Bay Rd 9665 0000

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jugular cuts

I MAG I N E BE I NG MAD E TO

19:01:14 :: Frankie's Pizza :: 50 Hunter St Sydney

FEEL LIKE CRAP JUST FOR

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so frenchy so chic in the park

BEING

18:01:14 :: St John's College :: 10 Missenden Rd University Of Sydney 9394 5000

ENCE MAR :: JAMIE WILLIAMS :: PRUD S :: LIAM CAMERON :: ASHLEY OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER UPTON ::

thebrag.com

LEFT

H A N D E D.

Okay, that’s hard to imagine? But being gay, lesbian, bi, trans or intersex is no different to being born left handed, it’s just who you are. So stop and think because the things we say are likely to cause depression and anxiety. And that really is pretty crap.

GO TO LEFTHAND.ORG.AU TO WATCH THE VIDEO

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BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14 :: 27

g g guide gig g

send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com

pick of the week Pearl Jam

Bar100, The Rocks. 5pm. free.

Musos Club Jam Night Carousel Inn Hotel, Rooty Hill. 8pm. free.

Songsonstage - feat: Peach Montgomery + Guests Forest Lodge Hotel, Forest Lodge. 7:30pm. free.

Songsonstage - feat: Andrew Denniston + Warren Munce + Starr Witness Ruby L’otel, Rozelle. 7:30pm. free.

The Spoils + Tequila Twins Hotel Steyne, Manly. 9pm. free.

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC Cole Soul And Emotion feat: Lionel Cole The White Horse, Surry Hills.

8pm. free.

Dr King & The Stem Cells + Midnight Tea Party + The Brassholes Venue 505, Surry Hills.

8:30pm. $10.

Jazz Degustation - feat: Michelle Owen The Spice Cellar, Sydney.

7pm. $55.

The Cellar Jazz Jam - feat: Phil Stack & Guests The Spice Cellar, Sydney.

10pm. free.

The South African Project - feat: Abdullah Ibrahim + Hugh Masakela + Bheki Mseleku + Merton Barrow + More Foundry616, Ultimo. 8:30pm. $20.

SUNDAY JANUARY 26 Sydney Showground

Big Day Out Pearl Jam + Arcade Fire + Snoop Dogg AKA Snoop Lion + Major Lazer + Deftones + Beady Eye + The Hives + many more 11am. $185.

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 22 INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS Vibrations at Valve Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 7pm. $15.

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC Joe Chindamo Trio Foundry616, Ultimo. 8:30pm.

28 :: BRAG :: 546 : 22:01:14

$27.50.

Slowpoke Rodriguez Venue 505, Surry Hills.

8:30pm. $15.

ACOUSTIC/ COUNTRY/BLUES/ FOLK

Concert On The Park - feat: Fallon Campsie RSL, Campsie. 1pm. free.

Hat Fitz & Cara The Brass Monkey, Cronulla.

8pm. $17.

Jay Parrino Duo Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

9:30pm. free.

Musos Club Jam Night Bald Faced Stag Hotel, Leichhardt. 8pm. free.

Pulp Kitchen And Folk Club - feat: Live Rotating Folk Bands Soda Factory, Surry Hills.

5pm. free.

THURSDAY JANUARY 23 ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK Live Music Thursdays

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Anthems Of Oz Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

9:30pm. free.

Big Star’s Third - feat: Cat Power + Edwyn Collins + Tim Rogers (You Am I) + Kim Salmon (The Scientists) + Dave Faulkner (Hoodoo Gurus) Enmore Theatre, Newtown.

8pm. $89.

Dane Overton + The Snakemen + Empty Fish Tank Brass Monkey, Cronulla.

7pm. $10.

Greg Byrne Scruffy Murphy’s Hotel, Sydney. 8pm. free.

Tales In Space + Yeo + Sean Pollard (Split Seconds) Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $12.

Tees Playground Launch Party - feat: B Deep + Sex Tape Freda’s, Chippendale. 7pm. free.

The Anthems Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

9:35pm. free.

The Bucket Lounge - feat: Declan Kelly + Callum Wylie + Monica Welander + Broden Tadros 34 Degree South, Bondi Beach. 8:30pm. free.

The Dirty Reeds + The Insiders + The Beans + Home Burial Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 7pm. $10.

FRIDAY JANUARY 24 ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

Big Blind Ray Trio + Narla Lewisham Hotel, Lewisham.

8pm. free.

Finn Edgeworth Tavern, 8:30pm. free.

Live Music Fridays Bar100, The Rocks. 5pm. free.

Los Tones + Black Springs + Smoke And Silver The Standard, Surry Hills.

8pm. $10.

The Spoils Coogee Diggers RSL Club, Coogee. 8pm. free.

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Aron Ottignon Venue 505, Surry Hills.

8:30pm. $17.

Nicola Milan Foundry616, Ultimo.

8:30pm. $21.50.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

A Billion Beats - feat: Nick Hoorweg + Rosie & The Bees + Junk + Maz Mazak + No Qualms Blue Beat, Sydney. 7pm. $10.

Calling All Cars + Kim Killspeed + The Venus Alkatraz + Lot 8 Tattersalls Hotel, Penrith.

8:30pm. free.

Counterfeit Tribute (Aussie Rock III) feat: The Red Room + Telafonica + Rex Havoc Banned + Chiko & The Rollers + The Blarney Stoners + More The Imperial Hotel, Newtown. 7pm. free.

Dragon + The Lazys Brass Monkey, Cronulla.

7pm. $47.

Elevate (Duo) Stacks Taverna, Sydney.

5pm. free.

Kye Brown Cock ‘n’ Bull, Bondi Junction. 7pm. free.

Lëura + Jsmith & The Kids + Enerate FBi Social, Kings Cross.

8pm. $10.

Live Music At The Royal The Royal, Leichhardt.

9:30pm. free.

Soul Principle Reckless Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

4:30pm. $5.

The Getaway Plan Coogee Bay Hotel, Coogee.

8pm. $23.50.

Vanity Scruffy Murphy’s Hotel, Sydney. 10pm. free.

SATURDAY JANUARY 25 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Copia Tattersalls Hotel, Penrith.

8:30pm. free.

The Jazz Rooms - feat: Russ Dewbury Venue 505, Surry Hills.

8:30pm. $15.

Vince Jones Foundry616, Ultimo.

8:30pm. $27.50.

Yuki Kumagai + John Mackie Well Co. Cafe And Wine Bar, Leichhardt. 11am. free.

ACOUSTIC/ COUNTRY/BLUES/ FOLK

Bandsonstage - feat: Lilliputian + Velvet Road + Insanity Proof + Stuart Jammin Hampshire Hotel, Camperdown. 7:30pm. free.

Dave Mason Cox + Party Central Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

4:30pm. free.

Hat Fitz & Cara

The Basement, Circular Quay. 7:30pm. $25.

Live Music Saturdays Bar100, The Rocks. 4pm. free.

Max Power Trio Coogee Bay Hotel, Coogee.

10:30pm. free.

Paul Hayward & Friends Town & Country Hotel, St Peters. 4pm. free.

Stormcellar The Royal Hotel, Bondi.

8:30pm. free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS 3 Way Split Moorebank Sports Club, Hammondville. 9pm. free.

Dragon + The Lazys Brass Monkey, Cronulla.

7pm. $47.

Electric Anthems Trio Paragon Hotel, Sydney.

9:30pm. free.

Grouplove + CSS Metro Theatre, Sydney.

8pm. $54.

Hailgun - feat: Blockade + Disparo + Frank Rizzo + Quinnipiac + Alf Stewart Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo.

12pm. $10.

Ignition Scruffy Murphy’s Hotel, Sydney. 10pm. free.

Kittens - feat: Busy Kingdom + Enerate + Tim Fitz Spectrum, Darlinghurst.

8pm. $10.

LJ Peachtree Hotel, Penrith.

7pm. free.

The Art + The Dead Love + Doc Holliday Takes The Shotgun + Fox Company The Standard, Surry Hills.

8pm. $15.

The Momos Botany View Hotel, Newtown. 7pm. free.

The Trotskies + Little Napier The Square, Haymarket.

8pm. $15.

V.I.P (Beyonce Special) PJ Gallagher’s, Parramatta.

9pm. free.

SUNDAY JANUARY 26 INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Bad Day Out Festival - feat: The Holy Soul + Spinning Rooms + Shining Bird + Zeahorse + Mere Women + The Ocean Party + Whipped Cream Chargers + Adults + Broadcasting Transmitter + Bad Jeep + Big Dingo + Mezko + Okay Cocaine Petersham Bowling Club, Petersham. 1pm. $22.

Ben Bennett Coolibah Hotel, Merrylands.

2pm. free.

Big Day Out - feat: Pearl Jam + Arcade Fire + Snoop Dogg AKA Snoop Lion + Major Lazer + Deftones + Beady Eye + The Hives + Flume + The Lumineers + Tame Impala + Grouplove + Dillon Francis + Steve Angello + Mac Miller + Flosstradamus + Portugal.

The Man + Toro Y Moi + The Naked And Famous + Pez + Mudhoney + Northlane + Loon Lake + Kingswood + DZ Deathrays + More Sydney Showground, Sydney Olympic Park. 11am. $185.

Prinnie Stephens The Star, Pyrmont. 9:30pm. free.

Rust + Ozrock + Punk Rock Karaoke + Punk + thebrag.com

gig picks

g g guide gig g

send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com Ska DJs Clarence Hotel, Petersham.

12pm. free.

The Rocks Australia Day feat: Cloud Control + The Bamboos + Tijuana Cartel + Emma Donovan And The Putbacks + Sketch The Rhyme First Fleet Park, The Rocks. 12pm. free.

The Rocks Australia Day - feat: Kira Puru & The Bruise + Ngaiire + Collarbones + Jones Jnr. + Microwave Jenny The Rocks Square, The Rocks. 12pm. free.

Vulgar Display Of Pizza - feat: Bastardizer + The Corps + Darker Half + Disintegrator + The Eradicated Frankie’s Pizza By The Slice, Sydney. 6pm. free.

ACOUSTIC/ COUNTRY/BLUES/ FOLK

Australia Day Celebrations - feat: The Beatvilles + Gary Johns Trio + Reckless Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

1:45pm. free.

Intimate Sessions Paragon Hotel, Sydney.

6pm. free.

Live Music Sundays Bar100, The Rocks. 1pm. free.

Spurs For Jesus Botany View Hotel, Newtown. 6pm. free.

Sunday Blues And Roots The White Horse, Surry Hills. 5pm. free.

JAZZ, SOUL,

up all night out all week...

FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Australia Day Celebrations - feat: Revolution Incorporated Enmore Park, Enmore.

3pm. free.

Suite Az The Star, Pyrmont. 9:30pm. free.

The Brassholes Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 6pm. free.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK Funk Engine Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8:30pm. free.

Jack Thompson Twins + Ed & Astro Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

2pm. free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Big Swing Band Tattersalls Hotel, Penrith.

7:30pm. free.

Latin & Jazz Jam Open Mic Night World Bar, Kings Cross.

Grouplove

TUESDAY JANUARY 28 INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

MONDAY JANUARY 27

Frankie’s World Famous House Band Frankie’s Pizza, Sydney.

9pm. free.

7pm. free.

Motown Mondays - feat: Soulgroove The White Horse, Surry Hills. 8pm. free.

Reggae Monday Civic Underground, Sydney. 10pm. free.

Old School Funk And Groove Night Venue 505, Surry Hills.

8:30pm. free.

ACOUSTIC/ COUNTRY/BLUES/ FOLK

Nick Kingswell Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

9:30pm. free.

The Lumineers Enmore Theatre, Newtown.

7pm. $79.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Arcade Fire Qantas Credit Union Arena, Darling Harbour. 8pm. $99.

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Rumba Motel Salsa - feat: DJ Willie Sabor + Friends Establishment, Sydney.

6pm. free.

THURSDAY JANUARY 23

SUNDAY JANUARY 26

Big Star’s Third - feat: Cat Power + Edwyn Collins + Tim Rogers (You Am I) + Kim Salmon (The Scientists) + Dave Faulkner (Hoodoo Gurus) Enmore Theatre, Newtown. 8pm. $89.

Tales In Space + Yeo + Sean Pollard (Split Seconds) Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $12.

The Bucket Lounge - Feat: Declan Kelly + Callum Wylie + Monica Welander + Broden Tadros 34 Degree South, Bondi Beach. 8:30pm.

Free.

Bad Day Out Festival - feat: The Holy Soul + Spinning Rooms + Shining Bird + Zeahorse + Mere Women + The Ocean Party + Whipped Cream Chargers + Adults + Broadcasting Transmitter + Bad Jeep + Big Dingo + Mezko + Okay Cocaine Petersham Bowling Club, Petersham.

1pm. $22.

Big Day Out - feat: Pearl Jam + Arcade Fire + Snoop Dogg Aka Snoop Lion + Major Lazer + Deftones + Beady Eye + The Hives + Flume + The Lumineers + Tame Impala + Grouplove + Dillon Francis + Steve Angello + Mac Miller + Flosstradamus + Portugal. The Man + Toro Y Moi + The Naked And Famous + Pez + Mudhoney + Northlane + Loon Lake + Kingswood + DZ Deathrays + More Sydney Showground, Sydney Olympic Park. 11am. $185.

The Rocks Australia Day - feat: Cloud Control + The Bamboos + Tijuana Cartel + Emma Donovan And The Putbacks + Sketch The Rhyme First Fleet Park, The Rocks. 12pm. Free.

The Rocks Australia Day - feat: Kira Puru & The Bruise + Ngaiire + Collarbones + Jones Jnr. + Microwave Jenny The Rocks Square, The Rocks. 12pm.

Free.

Vulgar Display Of Pizza - feat: Bastardizer + The Corps + Darker Half + Disintegrator + The Eradicated Frankie’s Pizza By The Slice, Sydney.

6pm. Free.

FRIDAY JANUARY 24 Los Tones + Black Springs + Smoke And Silver The Standard, Surry Hills. 8pm. $10.

Calling All Cars + Kim Killspeed + The Venus Alkatraz + Lot 8 Tattersalls Hotel, Penrith. 8:30pm. Free.

Dragon + The Lazys Brass Monkey, Cronulla. 7pm. $47.

The Getaway Plan Coogee Bay Hotel, Coogee. 8pm. $23.50.

wed

22 Jan fri

thu

(9:30PM - 12:30AM)

23 Jan

25

(9:35PM - 1:30AM)

(4:30PM - 7:30PM)

24 Jan sat

SATURDAY JANUARY 25

(9:30PM - 1:30AM) (4:30PM - 7:30PM)

SATURDAY AFTERNOON

Jan

(9:30PM - 12:30AM)

Hat Fitz & Cara The Basement, Circular Quay. 7:30pm. $25.

Grouplove + CSS Metro Theatre, Sydney. 8pm. $54.

Kittens - feat: Busy Kingdom + Enerate + Tim Fitz Spectrum, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $10.

The Art + The Dead Love + Doc Holliday Takes The Shotgun + Fox Company The Standard, Surry Hills. 8pm. $15.

The Trotskies + Little Napier The Square, Haymarket. 8pm. $15.

TUESDAY JANUARY 28 Arcade Fire Qantas Credit Union Arena, Darling Harbour. 8pm. $99.

The Lumineers Enmore Theatre, Newtown. 7pm. $79.

Arcade Fire

AUSTRALIA DAY (1:45PM - 4:45PM)

mon

27

sun

Jan

26 Jan

(2:00PM - 5:30PM)

(9:00PM - 12:00AM) (7:00PM - 10:30PM)

(5:30PM - 8:00PM)

tue

(9:00PM - 12:00AM)

thebrag.com

28 Jan

(9:30PM - 12:30AM)

BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14 :: 29

brag beats

BRAG’s guide to dance, hip hop and club culture

dance music news club, dance and hip hop in brief...with Chris Honnery

five things WITH

Claire Morgan

ROBBIE LOWE Your Crew I’m a resident DJ at The 3.

Spice Cellar. I love it and it’s a real family vibe. Murat, Rebecca, Steve Sullivan, Joong, Telly, the resident DJs and the rest of the team are all great to work with, and the people on the dancefloor week in and out are just awesome. I also work with the Swerve guys Hadi and Ignacio on Sundays at Marco Polo, Ivy Pool Club – another great venue and crew.

The Music You Make When someone asks me 4. what type of music I play I find it really hard to answer. I like so many different music genres and have always had the attitude that if I like it, I will play it! I also never tend to stay on the same vibe. My sets can be quite unpredictable at times. For my eight-hour set at Spice I’ll be loaded with a broad range of sounds but don’t really know how I’ll play it until I feel the vibe in the room on the night.

I am so excited for this party. It really is a dream to be able to play eight hours of music to my favourite dancefloor!

Music, Right Here, Right Now 5.

Sydney is buzzing. We have a

played in the house thanks to my mother. She loves her music and has really good taste! So there was always very cool music playing in our home environment, including a lot of early DJ mixes, anything from acid house, hip hop and house. All these have had a

major influence on me today.

Inspirations When I was a grommet 2. some of my influences came from Public Enemy, Ice-T, Prince, Soul II Soul, Grace Jones, Womack & Womack and George Michael.

Moving to dance music, some early inspirations came from Adeva, Deee-Lite, Tyree Cooper,

Jungle Brothers, Quincy Jones and FPI Project. Further down the track, DJs like Sasha & John Digweed, Danny Howells, Terry Francis and Eddie Richards have been big inspirations. I love their music taste, style and approach to building sets. Also, locally, Paul ‘Flex’ Taylor, Phil Smart and Sugar Ray have all been inspirations.

Baths

What: Robbie Lowe celebrating 20 years of DJing (eight-hour set) Where: The Spice Cellar When: Saturday January 25

HOUSE OF MINCE FT MR.TIES

Berlin cult favorite Francesco De Nittis, an Italian who goes about his business under the nom de plume Mr. Ties, will headline the forthcoming House of Mince bash at the Civic

4our will host its first bash of the year, a BYO warehouse party at an as-yet undisclosed location on Saturday February 1. As usual, 4our’s resident DJs Kate Doherty, Trinity and Magda Bytnerowicz will spin, along with Claire Morgan, who has returned Down Under after six years in Berlin. While abroad, Morgan has played at renowned clubs such as Berlin’s Panorama Bar and Watergate, as well as at Austria’s Snowbombing bash. She has also established herself as a producer, releasing on Sasse’s Moodmusic label and remixing Kruse & Nuernberg. The revelry will commence at 10pm, with first release $20 tickets available online.

Underground on Friday February 7. Ties is the driving force behind the ‘post queer’ Homopatik parties which take place at Berlin nightclub ://about blank, and have gained such popularity amongst clubbers that the event now transcends sexual orientation and attracts punters of all persuasions and proclivities.

With a Jackson Pollock-esque mixing style of using disparate elements, De Nittis’ DJ sets are characterised by their raw energy.While De Nittis has dropped a couple of EPs through Homopatik’s self-titled label, which can only be procured at a Homopatik party, he remains best known as a party-starter and DJ, drawing on a vast – and extremely eclectic – record collection to fuel DJ sets that have been known to span 12 hours. DJs Ben Fester and Ben Drayton will also be spinning, with $15 first release presale tickets available online.

MARLON HOFFSTADT

Teenage Dutchman Marlon Hoffstadt is set to take top billing at the Goldfish on Saturday February 22. Melding pop and house influences, Hoffstadt’s debut EP You And A Love Stoned Ghost featured Scottish singer Amy Lyon and kick-started a discography that now also includes releases on labels such as OFF, Play It Down and Stil Vor Talent, a collaboration with David Keno and his latest single ‘Keep A Dalla’, which has gained the support of BBC Radio 1’s Annie Mac. Hoffstadt began crafting deep house only a few years back, and recently teamed with Ulrich (‘HRRSN’), who will provide vocals on the pair’s forthcoming album. Hoffstadt’s forthcoming Sydney show will be a chance to see him perform before the hype machine cranks into overdrive.

Marlon Hoffstadt

ASTRAL PEOPLE PRESENT BATHS

LA producer Will Wiesenfeld will unveil his Baths live show to all in attendance at Oxford Art Factory on Friday March 21. Wiesenfeld recorded under the moniker of Post-Foetus while still in his teens, but soon began crafting ambient compositions under the name Geotic, and eventually added the Baths alias to the fold. Baths signed to Anticon Records in 2009, and the debut album Cerulean followed in 2010. Illness and Wiesenfeld’s wish to perform with a full band informed his sophomore album, Obsidian, which was released last year and showcased a darker, more brooding sound than evinced by Wiesenfeld’s earlier work. Collarbones, Rainbow Chan and Astral Huggz round off the bill.

30 :: BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14

thebrag.com

xxx photo by xxxxx

Growing Up I grew up listening to a lot 1. of dance music that was always

great scene. Our local DJs are world class and there is so much happening in the way of good club nights and events. There really isn’t a dull moment. Plus we have beautiful beaches. We are very lucky people!

4OUR

dance music news

free stuff

club, dance and hip hop in brief...with Chris Honnery

head to: thebrag.com/freeshit

five things WITH Growing Up My dad was a DJ so 1. o there were about 40,000 records around me and I used to help him organise them. m. When he used to sell any to record d buyers who’d come to the house, e, I’d help him. By the time I was ten I’d pretty much memorised ed his entire collection by their covers, so I knew which records he didn’t have and which were ere doubles.

DJ Sarah Love

JAGUAR SKILLS

soul, and disco, sou ul, l funk a nd dis d co all the way to drum’n’bass in the mid-’90s.

Throughout of this I was Throughou o t all o uenced by the heavily influe work Michael Dudikoff wor ork of Mic Sam and Sa am Firstenberg.

electronic music from deep house to jumpup drum’n’bass. I’m not concerned with the styles, I’m more concerned with the tempo and like to play around with the speed of a record a lot. Plus I play about 100 records an hour, so you have to keep up. I also jump around a lot.

Your Crew Yo 3.

My crew consists Music, Right Here, Right Now seven ninjas.

Anything that enables me to jump up of sev 5. and down wearing a mask and play the Each ninja wears a different coloured diffe mask and has ma a special skill.

When I get into W ttrouble I can activate a ninja a to help me with the aid of w my secret ring, m which I can’t wh talk about. Even telling you this tellin might have already migh compromised the comp situation. situatio

Inspirations My inspiration 2. came from film soundtracks, sound effect albums, and one specific Muppets record, which has to remain secret. Because of my dad’s collection, it included loads of weird records you couldn’t buy, like strange sound effects s and laser gun sounds; that’s hat’s what I used to listen to. In n my teens I became a massive ve hip hop head, and then opened ned up to

M Music You Make 4. The I mix all styles of

records I like has got to be a good thing, so all I can say is the music scene right now seems good to me. The best thing is to be able travel around the world meeting new ninjas. I’m looking forwards to meeting the ninjas in Australia because last time they were bonkers.

I’d love to talk more but I’ve just been called out on an urgent mission: there’s a party that needs to be rocked.

With: Deckhead, Blackmale, Double Up, Bassix Crew, FKNA and more Where: Chinese Laundry When: Friday January 24

EXIT FT TRUS’ME

Manchester’s David Wolstencroft, AKA Trus’Me, the fellow behind the Prime Numbers label, will back up from his Sydney festival performance and play Exit at The Spice Cellar this Sunday January 26.

Wolstencroft proved an immediate hit with dancers and critics alike when he released his acclaimed debut Working Nights back in ’07, which traverses disco, soul, house and jazz soundscapes. Wolstencroft followed up his debut LP with his album In The Red, which featured collaborations with Amp Fiddler, Dam Funk, and Paul Randolph of Jazzanova, and has since explored more techno-influenced sounds with cuts such as ‘Need A Job’, which

SARAH LOVE

BBC 1XTRA and MTV personality DJ Sarah Love is the UK’s first lady of hip hop, but she’s coming our way for the Australia Day long weekend. Love will headline the Soul Of Sydney bash – as always, at a secret CBD location to be revealed to ticketholders – on Monday January 27. Joining the Love-in are Frenzie, Phil Toke, Juzzlikedat, Meem, Krystel Diola, DJ Adverse and more, plus live street art from Billy Kid et al. Two lucky BRAG readers will be on the door with a double pass – to be in the hat, visit thebrag.com/freeshit and tell us in one sentence the truth about love. was reworked into a visceral slab of acid house by Vakula.

PAN-POT

The German duo Tassilo Ippenberger and Thomas Benedix, collectively Pan-Pot, will headline Chinese Laundry this Saturday January 25. Proponents of techno / tech house, the pair have released extensively on labels such as Mobilee and Einmaleins Musik, while remixing the likes of Format:B, Slam and Oliver Huntemann along the way. Pan-Pot have forged a strong reputation for their DJ sets, throwing down at marquee European festivals such as Fusion. As with all gigs at this venue, you’re advised to get to Chinese Laundry early.

Jacques Renault

PARADISO FT JACQUES RENAULT AND MEDLAR

With Sydney Festival in full swing, Future Classic will descend on Town Hall this Friday January 24 to host a double header comprising UK producer Medlar and NYC’s Jacques Renault. Medlar has risen through the ranks by crafting evocative deep house, epitomised by tracks such as ‘Knockard Pearl’. Medlar released his debut album Sleep late last year through Wolf Music, the Brighton based-label that has released material from the likes of Session Victim and Bicep in the past. Meanwhile, Renault, who is additionally known for his Runaway project, first captured the listening public through his output on the Wurst Edits and RVNG Of The Nrds imprints. However it was the release of Runaway’s massive single ‘Brooklyn Club Jam’ on both DFA and Radioslave’s Rekids label that propelled Renault to that next level of fame; we’re talkin’ money, sex, glamour and other antics that aren’t fit for publication in an all-ages magazine. Renault has since remixed the likes of Moby, LCD Soundsystem, Chairlift and Sydney’s own Lost Valentinos, and released on Permanent Vacation, Italians Do It Better and I’m A Cliché – yes, the past few years have been kind to Jacques Renault. Support for the internationals will come courtesy of Touch Sensitive, Wave Racer and the Future Classic DJs themselves.

xxx photo by xxxxx

SOFT AND SLOW FT LANCELOT

Local lad Lancelot will be jousting his way through Sydney CBD to soundtrack a sensual Soft And Slow bash at The Spice Cellar on Valentine’s night, Friday February 14. Lancelot is the brainchild of Sydney producer Lance Gurisik, who has co-written with Russ Chimes, Dappled Cities and Hot Hot Heat. He has also produced official remixes as AEONS for Grafton Primary, Lisa Mitchell, Ellie Goulding, Kids of 88 and Amy Meredith over the course of his nascent musical career. He is described by Jackplug as a ‘disco hero’, and French house hero Alan Braxe dubbed his cut ‘Spoken Word’ “an instant classic” – high praise from the man behind the anthem ‘Intro’ with Fred Falke and remixes of Royksopp and Goldfrapp (though Braxe’s credibility was diminished when he was kicked out of the DNA Lounge club in San Francisco for urinating during his set a few years ago). Anyhow, Lancelot’s forthcoming show follows the release of his latest single thebrag.com

‘Givin’ It Up’, the EP of which includes remixes from MK and Isaac Tichauer and is out now on Anjunadeep. Also curating the soundtrack of the evening, which kicks off at 10pm, will be DJs Andy Webb, Pink Lloyd and Parihaka.

Sampology

OM UNIT

London producer Jim Coles, celebrated for his musical accomplishments as Om Unit, will headline Outer Bass Sound at the Civic Underground on Saturday February 22. After dabbling with hip hop under the alias 2tall, Coles experimented with more rapid tempos in his output as Phillip D Kick, making bootlegs and edits of classic jungle and DnB that reached 160/80 bpm. He’s since established himself with his work as Om Unit, following DnB releases on Metalheadz and Exit with last year’s debut LP Threads, which melded bass, dubstep and DnB influences. DJs such as Rubio and DJ Tokoloshe will provide support for the London headliner, with doors opening at 10pm.

SAMPOLOGY BEYOND BOLLYWOOD

The man who has built a formidable reputation as one of the best audio-visual DJs in the biz, Brisbane-based Sampology, is embarking on a national Beyond Bollywood tour that coincides with the release of his new track ‘Show Me’, which will be available as a free download on Friday January 31. For anyone unacquainted with Sampology, the extremely condensed version is that he’s a DJ, AVDJ and producer who has remixed the likes of Pnau (Nick Littlemore’s breakout band), toured internationally with Australian theatre company Strut n Fret and performed at Big Day Out since he was a teenager.

Beyond Bollywood will showcase content created on Sampology’s recent first tour to India, featuring favourite tracks and visuals juxtaposed in Sampology’s idiosyncratic style, with new and unreleased tracks also set to be thrown into the mix. Sampology plays Club 77 on Friday February 14 - which doting boyfriends (and, uh, girlfriends) will tell you is Valentine’s night.

BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14 :: 31

Kerser

Generation Next By Augustus Welby Without him I don’t think I’d be able to get as much music out, no way.”

As with Kerser’s earlier efforts, S.C.O.T has again been well received by the Australian public.

The album’s first week sales managed to surpass the success of his previous two records, landing at number five in the ARIA charts and soaring all the way to the top of the ARIA Urban category. The MC’s continued success is particularly notable considering his music isn’t included on any major radio station playlists. It is peculiar that a young Australian artist with such a strong following continues to be ignored by radio programmers, but he doesn’t seem too bothered.

“I think social media has taken that over these days. When I release tracks onto YouTube they get the same amount of hype as if they were on the radio anyway. It’s kind of making the radio almost irrelevant, really.”

A

ustralian rapper Emcee Kerser is a very creatively restless man. The Sydneysider has dropped three full-length releases in the last three years, starting with 2011’s The Nebulizer. Right now he’s gearing up for the official launch tour in support of his latest LP, S.C.O.T, which was released in October. The record is Kerser’s most developed effort thus far, but its 15 songs by no means drained his creative well.

“I’m sitting on about ten or 11 songs now that I have written that I don’t

know what I’m going to do with,” he says.

and if we want to mix it up here and there.”

One option would be to use these freshly spawned songs to compile yet another album. However, it might be a bit hasty for Kerser, who likes to craft his records in one linear working period. “When I work on [songs for] the album I like to know they’re for the album,” he explains. “Me and Nebs, the producer, we sit down before every album and work out the path we want to take, what style of beats

Kerser has been working alongside budding producer and friend Nebs since he started making records.

The title of Kerser’s debut LP is an obvious nod to the producer, who’s been central to Kerser’s creative process. “We always see eye to eye, which is good,” says Kerser. “Nebs is definitely a massive part of [the music]. I have to give him big props and shout-outs on that because he puts a lot of work into it as well.

The fact Kerser’s audience is broadening even though he hasn’t been sanctioned by the gods of radio suggests his music has a personal effect on listeners. A Campbelltown native, Kerser’s lyrical interpretation of life in the hard-edged western city has always ensured him a strong hometown following. However, his growing chart success proves his following isn’t merely local.

“I get fans from all different walks of life. I’ve had fans that are into the usual Aussie hip hop that [say], ‘It’s a good refreshing sound, you’re doing something different,’ and people that aren’t usually into hip hop seem to like our stuff.”

“I think social media has taken [radio] over these days. When I release tracks onto YouTube they get the same amount of hype as if they were on the radio anyway.”

“When I first heard Aussie hip hop I was listening to the rappers and they were talking about BBQs and politics and things I didn’t really look too much into or could relate to,” he adds. “The style of music we’re doing and the subject matters I’m talking about, I think a lot of people hear it and think, ‘Yeah, I can relate to that,’ and they haven’t heard an Aussie rap about that type of stuff.”

What: Big Day Out 2014 With: Pearl Jam, Arcade Fire, Snoop Dogg AKA Snoop Lion, The Hives, Major Lazer, Beady Eye and more Where: Sydney Showground When: Sunday January 26 And: Kerser plays The Hi-Fi on Saturday February 8 with Fortay, Tycotic and Willis More: S.C.O.T out now through Kerser N Nebs Records/Obese

Run The Jewels Sparring Partners By Lachlan Kanoniuk

B

uilding upon a rapport consolidated by their work on each other’s respective solo LPs from 2012, El-P and Killer Mike joined forces last year to form Run The Jewels, resulting in a self-titled album that has gone on to capture attention equal to, if not greater than either member’s previous work. Speaking from his Brooklyn studio, rapper-producer El-P attempts to rationalise Run The Jewels’ runaway success.

“We couldn’t be happier,” he beams. “Surprised? Yeah I’m always surprised when I get to wake up and do what I love to do, I don’t take this shit for granted.

We loved the album, we thought it was a great album, and we’re happy people responded to it. You can’t hope for much more as a professional artist. If people like your shit, it’s a good day.”

El-P and Mike each possess a distinct legacy built over the course of a decade, and are both in career-best form with solo records R.A.P. Music (Killer Mike) and Cancer 4 Cure (El-P).

It was quickly apparent that Run The Jewels were becoming a force in their own right when fans of the duo were not necessarily well-versed in the soloists’ back catalogues.

“It’s definitely a phenomenon, it illustrates that Run The Jewels is its own thing with its own trajectory,” says El-P. “When we started touring this record, we were setting the show up where it was going to be hour-long sets of each of our solo material, then come out and do Run The Jewels.

Three or four shows in we started to realise we were opening for Run The Jewels. Like, ‘Oh shit, there’s a whole group of motherfuckers here just for Run The Jewels. Maybe an hour-long

32 :: BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14

set from each of us isn’t necessary.’

We started trimming that shit down to half an hour. Which is not to say anything except the record is hot, people are responding. In a lot of ways, it just feels like a fuckin’ fresh start, creatively. It’s got bigger than we expected.”

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

“I’ll put it to you this way – we’re like sparring partners. When you throw someone into the fucking ring with a nasty-ass boxer, you

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

More than a few rapper-producers tend to move away from the production side of things as they progress. Not so with El-P, who retains a passionate commitment to the art of beatmaking. “This is what I do, this is my life. There’s a reason for it; I’m obsessed with it. I could never find myself in a position where I’m outsourcing what I do. Physically creating the record is just as important to me as writing the record.

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

What: Laneway Festival 2014 With: Haim, Danny Brown, Earl Sweatshirt, Jagwar Ma, Frightened Rabbit, Lorde, Kurt Vile and more Where: Sydney College of the Arts, Rozelle When: Sunday February 2 And: Danny Brown, Earl Sweatshirt and Run The Jewels play the Enmore Theatre on Tuesday February 4 with support from Citizen Kay

thebrag.com

Peking Duk

Deep Impressions Dance And Electronica with Chris Honnery

Just Heating Up By Tom Kitson Donato Dozzy

L

W

ith new tune ‘Mufasa’ doing the rounds and three tracks listed in the ARIA top 25 club list for 2013, Canberra duo Peking Duk are just hitting top gear. And as the New Years’ holiday period ends and artists recover from weeks of relentless shows and travel, Adam Hyde has turned his thoughts to the year ahead, with a swag of new releases and big dates on the horizon.

“We’ve just done a collaboration on ‘Mufasa’ with Laidback Luke, have two singles coming out soon and we’ve got about seven demos that we’ve been going back and forth on,” he says. “We’re trying to figure out which ones to put out first because they’re all very different styles.”

“We’ve been really stoked with the reception of both ‘I Love To Rap’ and ‘Feels Like’.

The support from the public and radio alike has been a surreal experience because we never thought we’d get that or have our own proper fans, which is a really good feeling.”

Donato Dozzy photo by Seze Devres

Hyde and bandmate Reuben Styles came together in the nation’s capital, inspired by hard electro sounds, and got to work using affordable software programs. “I was doing a bunch of hip hop stuff and Reuben was in an indie rock band that was doing really well,” says Hyde. “Guys like Fake Blood, Crookers and Bloody Beetroots really intrigued us, so we decided to sit on our computers using Reason every day until we could get something sounding semi-decent.”

Now based in Sydney, the guys have joined the ranks of Australian electronic music’s elite and benefitted from the competition.

“We share a studio with artists like Yolanda Be Cool, Flight Facilities, Beni and Cassian, which makes it a really cool building. We’ve met a lot of guys just through seeing them out at clubs and using other contacts.

“The electronic music community in Australia is really tight-knit since everyone knows everyone, and everyone’s quick to offer a helping hand.”

Hinting at constructive criticism from their peers, Hyde is grateful for objective viewpoints while still maintaining an enthusiastic approach to coming up with ideas. “We can definitely bounce a lot of stuff back and forth with these guys and get

thebrag.com

“Our process changes every time ... It’s always different. I think the best things to do are keep an open mind and have fun with it.” their vibe on it,” he says. “It’s really helpful when they don’t like it because they’ll tell you what to change up.”

“Our process changes every time – I’ve been trying to figure out what the formula is so I can nail it out every time, but it’s always different. I think the best things to do are keep an open mind and have fun with it, because a lot of the time I’ll be working on an idea and I’ll get stuck with that idea and forget about the bigger picture, which can get frustrating.”

Hyde’s inspirations come from all over the music spectrum, providing means to change direction under the influence of something different each time. “Some older soul music, a lot of hip hop, indie bands like The Strokes and The Hives, and Timbaland is a massive influence as one of the best producers in the world,” he says. “Diplo is also an inspiration in the sense that he doesn’t care about what’s happening around him and just goes for it.”

Looking forward to their upcoming sets at Big Day Out and building the suspense, Hyde says there will be new music and some other faces in the mix. “I can’t say too much about our Big Day Out sets, but we will have a few guests onstage with us and a pretty cool set-up. We love both festivals and club tours, but festivals are just out of control.”

What: Big Day Out 2014 With: Pearl Jam, Arcade Fire, Snoop Dogg AKA Snoop Lion, The Hives, Major Lazer, Beady Eye and more Where: Sydney Showground When: Sunday January 26

auded Italian techno figurehead Donato Dozzy will headline the Civic Underground this Saturday January 25. The Rome-based producer is highly regarded by the electronica cognoscenti, having accumulated a formidable discography that includes last year’s Donato Dozzy Plays Bee Mask, one of the best releases of 2013.

Featuring seven divergent reworkings of Chris Madak AKA Bee Mask’s ethereal piece ‘Vaporware’, the album came about accidentally, the result of Dozzy’s inability to contain himself and his compulsion to keep exploring the different directions he could take the original 13-minute track. Dozzy also appeared in many year-end Best Of lists in 2012 thanks to his Voices From The Lake album, which he created with long-time collaborator Neel. However Dozzy’s reputation cannot solely be attributed to his studio output. His sets at Japan’s Labyrinth Festival are the stuff of clubbing folklore, while his CV also includes an audio installation with Rabih (AKA Morphosis) at the Venice Biennale. Far from being constrained by a particular genre, Dozzy’s exploration of techno, brooding minimal and psychedelic electronica traverses broad sonic terrain. With an extended set from Theta State in support, this is not a show to be missed by anyone who likes to think – and dance – outside the square.

German producer Phillip Sollmann, who makes moody minimal house with Oliver Kargl as Pigon but is best known for his output as Efdemin, will release Decay, the follow-up album to 2010’s acclaimed Chicago, in March. Establishing himself among pre-eminent German producers with his self-titled debut in ’07 on Dial Records, Efdemin soon confirmed that he is an equally adept DJ with the release of the mix, Carry On, Pretend We’re Not In The Room, which captured the effortless sense of panorama that imbues his DJ sets. Chicago was an intricately constructed concept album inspired by an urban blues aesthetic, and while Sollmann’s trademark attention to detail continues throughout the forthcoming Decay album, the mood is far more club-oriented. Composed by Sollmann during his three-month residency late last year in Japan’s ancient capital, Kyoto, Decay was created primarily with analog equipment, showcasing deep techno soundscapes across ten tracks. At first blush, Decay seems to be a rare beast: a coherent techno album that one can play continuously from start to finish (I dare say it’s perfect for a late night drive), or pilfer for individual tracks to work a late night dancefloor. From the outset, there’s no faffing about, as the opening track ‘Some Kind Of Up And Down Yes’ immediately plunges the listener into immersive techno realms, with Sollmann culling the extraneous minute-and-a-half intro that characterises many techno cuts, crafting the tracks with listeners, rather than DJs, in mind. While tracks such as ‘Solaris’ are sure to do the business on the Berghain dancefloor, Decay retains a coherence that ensures that it is very much a techno album, as opposed to a collection of techno tracks. Have yourself a listen to Decay when it is released on the final day of March.

One of the co-founders of influential Cologne label Kompakt Records, Germany’s Michael Mayer, will play at Ivy Pool Club on Monday January 27 to round off the long weekend. Mayer is a one-man institution, responsible for classic compilations such as Fabric 13 and the aptly named Immer trilogy (‘immer’ meaning ‘timeless’ in German), both of which showcased immaculate sequencing and track selection spanning everything from peculiar pop and offkilter disco to micro house and more robust minimal techno. Mayer’s extensive back catalogue of remixes, which comprises the memorably brazen rework of Baxendale’s ‘I Built This City’ and a catchy refashioning of WhoMadeWho’s ‘Every Minute Alone’, is similarly beyond reproach. He has also released accomplished albums like Touch and his more recent outing Mantasy. Mayer will be playing as part of a 12-hour bash that kicks off at two o’clock in the afternoon.

What better way to cap off your Australia Day celebrations than partying poolside to some quirky European house and techno?

Michael Mayer

LOOKING DEEPER SATURDAY JANUARY 25 Donato Dozzy The Civic Underground

MONDAY JANUARY 27 Michael Mayer Ivy Pool Club

SATURDAY FEBRUARY 1 Andy Weatherall Oxford Art Factory

4our ft Michelle Owen BYO Warehouse Bash

Deep Impressions: electronica manifesto and occasional club brand. Contact through deep.impressions@yahoo.com BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14 :: 33

club guide g send your listings to : clubguide@thebrag.com

SATURDAY JANUARY 25

Snoop Dogg AKA Snoop Lion

HIP HOP & R&B

Enmore Theatre

Snoop Dogg AKA Snoop Lion

Austronautalis + Empire Rising + Deadbeat & Hazy + Broken Thought Theory Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst.

8pm. $17.

Snoop Dogg AKA Snoop Lion + Mac Miller Enmore Theatre, Newtown.

7pm. $79.

SUNDAY JANUARY 26 CLUB NIGHTS

Headhunterz + Q-Dance + Toneshifterz + Dillytek + The Strangerz + Fanatics + Omyqron + Dune + Ultraviolence + More Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 10pm. $70.

Hed Kandi Australia Day Special - feat: The High Rollers (Live) + Alex Taylor + Shaun Warner + Emmet Greene+ Tim Whitney +Tom Kelly Goldfish, Kings Cross. 10pm. $15.

La Fiesta - feat: Samantha Fox + Agee Ortiz + Av El Cubano + Resident DJ Willie Sabor The Establishment, Sydney.

8pm. free.

London Elektricity - feat: MC Wrec + Memtrix (Lifted Music) + Royalston (Medschool) Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst.

8pm. $40.

Marco Polo - feat: Various DJs Ivy Bar/lounge, Sydney. 1pm. $15.

Max Vangeli Marquee At The Star, Pyrmont.

10pm. $25.

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 22 CLUB NIGHTS

DJ Tom Kelly Goldfish, Kings Cross. 11pm. free.

The Supper Club - feat: Resident DJs Kit & Kaboodle, Kings Cross.

10pm. free.

The Wall - feat: Various Local And International Acts World Bar, Kings Cross. 9pm. $5.

Whip It Wednesdays - feat: DJs Camo + Snillum + Jaimie Lyn Whaat Club, Kings Cross. 9pm. free.

THURSDAY JANUARY 23 HIP HOP & R&B

Joel Rafidi + Baldwins + DJ Bobby Digital The Standard, Surry Hills. 8pm. $10.

CLUB NIGHTS

Dead China Doll + Making + Jasper Clifford Smith + Super Galaxies + Phonographics + The Laurels (DJs) Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst.

8pm. $7.

Foot Up Masquerade Ball Pres. By Mill Dread Pierce feat: Subaske (Compound) + Kwze + Granular Pixel (Elbee) + Vile Suede (Apparatus Syndrome) + Mill Dread Pierce Foliage (Live Set)

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Goodgod Small Club, Sydney.

9pm. $12.

Goldfish And Friends - feat: Regular Rotating Residents Goldfish, Kings Cross. 10pm. free.

Jujubee + Shannel The Gay Bar, Darlinghurst.

9pm. $30.

Loopy - feat: Drty Csh + Daschwood + Generous Greed + Guest DJs The Backroom, Sydney. 9pm. $10.

Pool Club Thursdays - feat: Resident DJs Ivy Bar/Lounge, Sydney. 5pm. free.

Solarium - feat: Moon Holiday Goodgod Small Club, Sydney.

9pm. free.

The World Bar Thursdays World Bar, Kings Cross. 9pm. free.

FRIDAY JANUARY 24 CLUB NIGHTS

Argyle Fridays - feat: Resident DJs The Argyle, The Rocks. 6pm. free.

Com (Baton Covert) + Gor + Markn + Paul Blackout + Geoff Da Chef + Raziel/Toon + Napoleon + Predecessor + Kader Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 8pm. $20.

Cull+ Made In Japan + Bad Jeep Goodgod Small Club, Sydney.

8pm. $12.

Factory Fridays - feat: Resident DJs

MONDAY JANUARY 27 HIP HOP & R&B

DJ Mattia Goldfish, Kings Cross. 11pm. free.

Joel Rafidi

TUESDAY DECEMBER 28 CLUB NIGHTS

Chu World Bar, Kings Cross. 9pm. free.

DJ Robin Goldfish, Kings Cross. 11pm. free.

+ Mac Miller 7pm. $79.

Repeat Sundays - feat: Various Local And International DJs World Bar, Kings Cross. 3pm. free.

S.A.S.H Australia Day - feat: Jesse Rose + Namito + Eluize + Vivi + Dean Relf + Adriano Migliorino + Matt Weir + Kerry Wallace + Garth & Pip + Sam Francisco Flyover, Sydney. 12pm. $10.

Sundays In The City - feat: Various DJs The Slip Inn, Sydney. 12pm. free.

Sydney Festival: Andrew Weatherall The Spiegeltent, Hyde Park.

11:30pm. $30.

The Beach Ball - feat: Special Guests Beach Road Hotel, Bondi Beach. 4pm. free.

Toolroom Knights - Mark Knight (UK) - feat: D. Ramirez + Jason Chance + Ramon Lopez + Special Guests The Greenwood Hotel, North Sydney. 1pm. $50.

p Soda Factory, Surry Hills. 5pm. free.

Foreigndub Meets Inner West Reggae Disco Machine - feat: Foreigndub DJs + Inner West Reggae Disco Machine DJs Goodgod Small Club, Sydney.

10pm. $5.

Jaguar Skills + Deckhead + Blackmale + Adam Zae + Double Up And Bassix Crew Hosting Cave + Fkna + Billy Green + Kleva 1 + Open Eye + Micky Roll Chinese Laundry, Sydney.

10am. $20.

Kyau & Albert Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 10pm. $20.

Loco Friday - feat: Various Live Bands And DJs The Slip Inn, Sydney. 5pm. free.

Nino Brown Marquee At The Star, Pyrmont.

10pm. $15.

Yo Grito!

Goodgod Small Club, Sydney.

9pm. free.

SATURDAY JANUARY 25 CLUB NIGHTS

Avicii Centennial Park. 5pm. $102.50.

Cakes - feat: Four Rooms Of Live Music + DJs And International Guests World Bar, Kings Cross. 8pm. $10.

Chardy + Funkagenda Marquee At The Star, Pyrmont.

10pm. $25.

Elâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Circo - feat: Resident Circus Act Performers Slide Lounge, Darlinghurst.

7pm. $109.

FBi Hands Up! - feat: DJ

send your listings to : clubguide@thebrag.com

THURSDAY JANUARY 23 Joel Rafidi + Baldwins + DJ Bobby Digital The Standard, Surry Hills. 8pm. $10.

Dead China Doll + Making + Jasper Clifford Smith + Super Galaxies + Phonographics + The Laurels (DJs) Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $7.

FRIDAY JANUARY 24 Jaguar Skills + Deckhead + Blackmale + Adam Zae + Double Up And Bassix Crew Hosting Cave + Fkna + Billy Green + Kleva 1 + Open Eye + Micky Roll Chinese Laundry, Sydney. 10am. $20.

Kyau & Albert Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 10pm. $20.

Nino Brown Marquee At The Star, Pyrmont. 10pm. $15.

SATURDAY JANUARY 25 Avicii Centennial Park. 5pm. $102.50.

Chardy + Funkagenda Marquee At The Star, Pyrmont. 10pm. $25.

Subsonic X Strange Signals Presents: Donato Dozzy + Theta State Civic Underground, Sydney. 10pm. $25.

Austronautalis + Empire Rising + Deadbeat & Hazy + Broken Thought Theory

Brighton Up Bar, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $17.

SUNDAY JANUARY 26 Headhunterz + Q-Dance + Toneshifterz + Dillytek + The Strangerz + Fanatics + Omyqron + Dune + Ultraviolence + More Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 10pm. $70.

Hed Kandi Australia Day Special - feat: The High Rollers (Live) + Alex Taylor + Shaun Warner + Emmet Greene+ Tim Whitney +Tom Kelly Goldfish, Kings Cross. 10pm. $15.

London Elektricity - feat: MC Wrec + Memtrix (Lifted Music) + Royalston (Medschool) Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $40.

S.A.S.H Australia Day - feat: Jesse Rose + Namito + Eluize + Vivi + Dean Relf + Adriano Migliorino + Matt Weir + Kerry Wallace + Garth & Pip + Sam Francisco Flyover, Sydney. 12pm. $10.

Sydney Festival: Andrew Weatherall The Spiegeltent, Hyde Park. 11:30pm. $30.

Avicii

thebrag.com

Xxx

club pick of the week

Clockwerk + Special Friends With Benefits FBi Social, Kings Cross.

11:30pm. free.

Goodgod Hai-Life Goodgod Small Club, Sydney.

9pm. free.

Jason Chance + Alex Taylor + Johnny Gleeson + Phil Hudson + Tommy Kelly + Mark Matthews Goldfish, Kings Cross. 9pm. free.

Masif Saturdays Space, Sydney. 10pm. $25.

Sienna Saturdays - feat: Resident DJs Establishment, Sydney. 9pm.

Soda Saturdays - feat: Resident DJs Playing Disco And Funk Soda Factory, Surry Hills. 5pm. free.

Subsonic X Strange Signals Presents: Donato Dozzy + Theta State Civic Underground, Sydney.

10pm. $25.

AUSTRALIA DAY LONG WEEKEND

Friday Jan 24

Francis Inferno Orchestra (Voyeurhythm/Let’s Play House – Melb)

Saturday Jan 25

Sunday Jan 26

(20 Years of DJ’ing – 8 hour set)

(Prime Numbers – UK)

thespicecellar.com.au BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14 :: 35

snap

18:01:14 :: World Bar :: 24 Bayswater Rd Kings Cross 9357 7700

PICS :: AM

cakes ft. pleasurekraft

ben ufo + pearson sound

PICS :: AM

up all night out all week . . .

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ENCE MAR :: JAMIE WILLIAMS :: PRUD S :: LIAM CAMERON :: ASHLEY OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER UPTON ::

No Cover SU NDAY 26 JA NUARY

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TS CH ECK YO UR HEAD PR ES EN

PR I N N IE STEVEiteNAzS Host ed by DJ D-Flat + DJ Na iki +

8 0 P Y R M O N T S T R E E T, S Y D N E Y

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Wed-sun 5pm til late The Star practises the responsible service of alcohol. Guests must be 18 years or over to enter the Casino.

Think! About your choices. Call Gambling Help 1800 858 858 www.gamblinghelp.nsw.gov.au. (ZRSDLXYTAI)

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snap

matmos

PICS :: PU

up all night out all week . . .

15:01:14 :: Sydney Festival 2014 :: City Recital Hall, Angel Pl Sydney

PICS :: AM

balance â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;024 ft. danny howells

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modular: juan atkins

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s.a.s.h sundays

19:01:14 :: Flyover Bar :: 275 Kent St Sydney 9262 1988

PICS :: AM

18:01:14 :: The Goldfish :: 111 Darlinghurst Rd Potts Point 8354 6630

17:01:14 :: Sydney Festival 2014 :: Sydney Town Hall, George St Sydney S :: LIAM CAMERON :: ASHLEY OUR LOVELY PHOTOGRAPHER :: N UPTO

ENCE MAR :: JAMIE WILLIAMS :: PRUD

BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14 :: 37

what’s on

BRAG’s bonza round-up of Australia Day events

the glenmore

mr falcon’s

It’s called: Australia Day @ the Glenmore.

What to see and do: Celebrate Australia Day in style on our rooftop !

lcon Sundays.

It’s called: Bloody Fa

er garden at Mr Come join us in the be What to see and do: Chasm while of the smooth sounds Falcon’s and jam out to n’t like vodka?

Do ry own Bloody Mary. you customise your ve rnishes ga ur yo en tequila. Choose types of Try one with gin or ev ee thr s, ion on ers to pickled pp pe illi ch m fro g gin ran it however you con! Get creative; make hot sauce and even ba heating up with Oh, and the grill will be want. You’re in charge! in the fridge. atever else we can find sausage sizzles and wh n’s… The l anthem is: ‘Mr Falco Our unofficial nationa in Glebe’. comfiest place to drink If you aren’t a ody Falcons of course.

Blo e: oic ch of y vv Be ft beers and our lection of Australian cra fan, we have a large se slushie. famous summer cider ays are truly r in the AM: That Sund The bit we’ll remembe d and good foo od some good music, go the best day to enjoy company. d 0 for Bloody Marys an How many AUD$: $1 g. whatever we have grillin

Our unofficial national anthem is: The number one song on triple j’s Hottest 100 countdown – we predict Daft Punk, ‘Get Lucky’.

Bevvy of choice: VB or a Kopparberg cocktail jug.

The bit we’ll remember in the AM: Good tunes, amazing view from the sundrenched rooftop and the cold beers!

How many AUD$: Free entry – you can purchase guys’ and girls’ Australia Day tees and singlets for $25 on the day.

What goes better on a meat pie – tomato sauce or BBQ sauce?

Without a doubt – tomato sauce.

Where: 96 Cumberland Street, The Rocks.

When: Sunday January 26.

a meat pie – What goes better on sauce? Tomato tomato sauce or BBQ zles. juice and sausage siz Where: Mr Falcon’s Beer Garden, 92 Glebe Point Road, Glebe.

When: Sundays from 1pm.

Our favourite day of the year is upon us again. A day off work to celebrate everything it means to be Strayan: cold beer, sunburn and triple j’s Hottest 100. To get you all geared up for Australia Day, the BRAG has put together a list of our top picks for the big day.

s.a.s.h It’s called: S.A.S. H Australia Day. What to see and do: Jesse Rose Album Launch + Namito + shit hot locals + new venue.

Our unofficial na tional anthem is : The entire 2Day FM ca talogue read out track-bytrack by Kyle Sa ndilands.

Bevvy of choice : $10 jugs of beer , $15 jugs of Magners Cider .

The bit we’ll rem ember in the AM : Either a hell of a lot or ve ry, very little.

How many AUD $: $15 all day long .

What goes bette r on a meat pie – tomato sauce or BBQ sa uce? Is that a se rious question? Tomat o beyond a shad ow of a doubt. (NO WAY BBQ FOR LIFE! – Pffff that was Kerry.)

Where: Flyover Bar, 275 Kent St . Access via Sussex Lane.

When: Sunday Ja nuary 26. Straya .

chinese laundry garden party

bucket list It’s called: Australia Day at The Bucket List.

@ ivy pool club It’s called: Born Electric Pool Party ft. James Zabiela

What to see and do: James Zabiela, one of the world’s best DJs spinning tunes poolside at the gorgeous Ivy Pool Club, along with UK artists Pedestrian and Drew Hill who were hand-selected by James to sign to his label Born Electric. Have a dip in the pool, a dance, a few drinks and listen to some awesome tunes across deep house, tech house, techno, electronica and even drum’n’bass if we know James.

Our unofficial national anthem is: Pedestrian - ‘Hoyle Road’.

What to see and do: Celebrate Australia’s most iconic day on Australia’s most iconic beach, Bondi. Down a beer to the sweet sounds of DJs from 2pm, tuck into BBQ prawns and top it off with a delicious pav!

Bevvy of choice: Easily any one of the amazing cocktails they make at the Ivy pool. Our favourite could be the strawberry caprioska… but we need to try them all again to be sure.

Our unofficial national anthem is: “…Your moves are so raw / I’ve got to let you know / You’re one of my kind.” (INXS - ‘Need You Tonight’)

The bit we’ll remember in the AM: Probably James Zabiela’s amazing technical skills and flawless mixing… it also could be somebody falling in the pool though.

Bevvy of choice: XXXX GOLD, stubbie holder on the house!!

How many AUD$: $55

The bit we’ll remember in the AM: The babes behind the bar.

How many AUD$: Na-da.

What goes better on a meat pie – tomato sauce or BBQ sauce? Skip the pie and grab a gourmet pizza at the pool club!!

Seriously though, we love a good BBQ, but it would be un-Australian to go past tomato sauce on your meat pie.

What goes better on a meat pie – tomato sauce or BBQ sauce?

Tomato sauce… are you kidding?!

Where: Ivy Pool Club, Changeroom Level 4, 320 George Street, Sydney CBD.

Where: The Bucket List, Queen Elizabeth Drive, Bondi Beach.

When: Saturday January 25, 12-8pm. Free entry to Laundry after-party with a Pool Party wristband.

When: Sunday January 26, 11am-12am.

38 :: BRAG :: 546 :: 22:01:14

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