Brag#612

ISSUE NO. 612 MAY 13, 2015

FREE Now picked up at over 1,600 places across Sydney and surrounds. thebrag.com

MUSIC, FILM, THEATRE + MORE

INSIDE

B R E AT H I N G S PA C E

This Week

MÖ T L E Y CRÜE

“We came, we saw, we kicked its ass.” Tommy Lee says farewell.

RUB Y BOO T S

After crafting a record around the country, she’s on the road again.

BORIS

Get ready for an injection of Japanese noise.

DOUGL A S COUPL A ND

The elusive author shares his story for Sydney Writers’ Festival.

Plus

VOYAGER RED FANG DEEZ NUTS

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Thu May 14 • Metro Theatre • SYDNEY Fri May 15 • Metro Theatre • SYDNEY 2nd SHOW! - SOLD OUT Sat May 16 • Metro Theatre • SYDNEY 3rd SHOW!

BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15 :: 3

rock music news

the BRAG presents

welcome to the frontline: what’s goin’ on around town... with Gloria Brancatisano, Ayla Dhyani and Sam Caldwell

VOYAGER Factory Floor Saturday May 23

songwriters’ secrets WITH

MOJO JUJU

ADAM GIBSON

an underground Bondi cult band called The Few. The song was called ‘Travelling Girl’ and was a heavily Midnight Oil-influenced punk rocker. I can still sing the words but you don’t want me to…

The Last Song I Released We’ve just released my new 2. album called Australia Restless. One of my favourite songs on it is called ‘The Years Nobody Cared’. It’s about a time, not that long ago, when no-one really cared what you did and you just lived your life. Now everyone seems to want to monitor you and keep track of what you’re doing. And many people actively encourage that. I don’t.

Songwriting Secrets I am primarily a lyricist and a 3. vocalist. People like my brother Simon or others more often than not provide or articulate the music. In terms of lyrics, I look for the small things in life,

the little details and unusual angles. Language usage is important to me, as are vernacular phrases. I generally find I do my most and best writing when travelling, when on the road in some dodgy coastal Australian motel.

MARMOZETS Newtown Social Club Thursday July 23

4.

The Song That Makes Me Proud With my other band The Aerial Maps we did a song called ‘On The Punt’. It was about my father and a certain era of Australia, now passed, and seems to have struck a chord with quite a few people.

AZEALIA BANKS Metro Theatre Friday July 24

5.

The Song That Changed My Life The song ‘Wide Open Road’ by The Triffids changed my life. It gave me the real sense of Australian distance and space and fuelled a desire to try to also write about such space. I regularly listen to it to try to uncover its mystery after all these years.

WOLF ALICE Oxford Art Factory Friday July 24

What: Australia Restless out now independently With: Mick Thomas Where: The Vanguard When: Sunday May 17

YEARS & YEARS Oxford Art Factory Sunday July 26

Years & Years photo by Mike Massaro / Wolf Alice photo by Jordan Hughes

The First Song I Wrote The first song I wrote the lyrics 1. for was for one of my brother’s bands,

Newtown Social Club Saturday June 20

A RUDDY GOOD TIME

MANAGING EDITOR: Chris Martin chris@thebrag.com 02 9212 4322 ONLINE EDITOR: Tyson Wray SUB-EDITOR: Sam Caldwell STAFF WRITERS: Adam Norris, Augustus Welby NEWS: Gloria Brancatisano, Sam Caldwell, Ayla Dhyani, James Di Fabrizio, Meggan Turner ART DIRECTOR: Sarah Bryant PHOTOGRAPHERS: Katrina Clarke, Ashley Mar ADVERTISING: Georgina Pengelly - 0416 972 081 / (02) 9212 4322 georgina@thebrag.com ADVERTISING: Les White - 0405 581 125 / (02) 9212 4322 les@thebrag.com PUBLISHER: Furst Media 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: Sarah Basford, Sam Caldwell, Ayla Dhyani, Meggan Turner - gigguide@thebrag.com (rock); clubguide@ thebrag.com (dance, hip hop & parties)

Following their scheduled appearance at Splendour In The Grass in July, Xavier Rudd & The United Nations have announced a national tour in celebration of their new release ‘Flag’, the second single from their debut album Nanna. The United Nations, or Rudd’s “dream project”, had their first stint of shows with a national tour in March, ending with a massively popular set at Bluesfest, and have been met with similar acclaim abroad. With 35 dates for the Flag Tour, regional Australia now has the chance to catch Rudd and friends at his finest. Xavier Rudd & The United Nations take over the Enmore Theatre on Friday September 4. Tickets go on sale Thursday May 21.

TEAM WORK MAKES THE DREAM WORK

The Grates have announced their long-awaited return to national stages for their Team Work Makes The Dream Work tour. They’ll be joined by Straight Arrows as they make their way down the Passion Pit

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SO FAR, SO GOOD

A PASSION PROJECT

Michael Angelakos’ synthpop sensation Passion Pit are coming to Australia this August, with shows in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. It’s been two years since Angelakos and his mates were here for Splendour In The Grass 2013, and they managed to sell out numerous sideshows to boot. With the release of a third album, Kindred, featuring the single ‘Lifted Up (1985)’, Passion Pit will no doubt be showing off their progress of the time away.

They’ll be supported by indie rockers The Griswolds, who come fresh from a huge North American tour after the release of their debut album Be Impressive. Catch them at the Enmore Theatre on Sunday August 23. Tickets go on sale Tuesday May 19.

California punk rockers The Story So Far are joining forces with Man Overboard for their Supply Australia tour this September. The Story So Far’s shows come hot on the heels of the anticipated Friday May 22 release of their selftitled album. Joining them will be Melbourne rockers Apart From This. Catch the show on Sunday September 6 at the Metro Theatre.

MCMAHON IN THE WILDERNESS

US singer-songwriter Andrew McMahon has announced he will travel to Australia to play shows with his new band In The Wilderness this August.

Andrew McMahon In The Wilderness is the third musical incarnation for McMahon, who made his name as frontman of Something Corporate, before releasing music under the moniker Jack’s Mannequin. The tour, which will stop in Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Perth, will see McMahon not only playing songs from Andrew McMahon In The Wilderness’ self-titled debut album, but also classics from his two previous projects. The show is at the Factory Theatre on Saturday August 22.

THE SUPREME MARY WILSON

Iconic singer Mary Wilson has announced two shows at The Vanguard in June. The 71-year-old, known for being a founding member of one of the most widely celebrated Motown groups in the world, The Supremes, is now heading to Newtown to perform her acclaimed solo show. Set to include standards like ‘New York State Of Mind’ and ‘I Am Changing’, the shows will be an intimate experience for those who wish to witness a living music legend who is known for her tellall performances. She’ll be in town on Sunday June 14 and Monday June 15. xxx

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Mary Wilson

Following the release of their latest album, Endless Forms Most Beautiful, which ranked at 16 on the ARIA charts, Nightwish will return in summer for a 2016 tour. Directed by band creator and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen, the rockers will perform tracks from their latest album as well as some fan favourite classics. See Nightwish at the Enmore Theatre on Saturday January 9.

EDITORIAL POLICY: The views and opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher, editors or staff of the BRAG.

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As well as appearing at this year’s Splendour In The Grass, Death Cab For Cutie are all set for a debut show at the Sydney Opera House. Following the release of their eighth studio album, Kintsugi, earlier this year, the indie favourites will no longer be performing with founding member Chris Walla after he announced the album would be his last. Joining the band for the tour are Dave Depper and Zac Rae, bringing an all-new dynamic to their live sound, while still maintaining the true essence of Death Cab For Cutie. They’ll be performing at the Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House on Saturday August 1.

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DEATH CAB IN THE HOUSE

east coast following an appearance at Splendour In The Grass. Tracks from their latest album Dream Team will be performed, as well some older classics we know and love. Catch them at Oxford Art Factory on Friday August 14.

AWESOME INTERNS: Meggan Turner, Ayla Dhyani, Sarah Basford

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Death Cab For Cutie

thebrag.com

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live & local

free stuff

welcome to the frontline: what’s goin’ on around town... with Chris Martin, James Di Fabrizio and Meggan Turner

he said she said WITH

with them as we head into an Australian winter…

You’ll be travelling to Australia, all the way from France, for a run of shows with Voyager.

What should we expect from your live set?

You released your first album Duplicate way back in 2003.

How has your music developed over the years?

Klone began to play metal with rock influences. Over the years the music becomes more and more atmospheric with clean vocals, and more and more progressive.

We don’t like to have frontiers, we just wanna play good music.

Can you tell us a little about your most recent release, Here Comes The Sun? We really worked hard on this

album – it was a real challenge for us to not repeat what we did on our previous albums. This new album is emotionally intense and this music was written to touch the people in their hearts – a sort of ‘call to meditation’. With Here Comes The Sun, the band’s songwriting has reached the next level.

What’s the live music scene in France like these days?

We have really good bands like Gojira, Trepalium, Hacride, Lizzard, Hypno5e, et cetera. The fact is that all these band are really passionate [for] the music and they dedicate their life for that. You can feel it on the stage – all of them are true and intense.

What: Here Comes The Sun out now through Bird’s Robe Where: Supporting Voyager at the Factory Floor When: Saturday May 23

Alabama Shakes have really been shaking up the Aussie music scene of late. The fourtime Grammy nominated four-piece from Alabama stunned the world with their 2012 debut album Boys & Girls, which was met with huge critical acclaim. They also killed it at Bluesfest in Byron and an accompanying Sydney sideshow last month. Now, they’ve finally released their anticipated new album, Sound & Color. Co-produced by Blake Mills, who’s played alongside Lana Del Rey, Sound & Color has demonstrated the versatile style of these guys, with tracks like the garage rock freak-out ‘The Greatest’ met with the psychedelic space jam ‘Gemini’.

To celebrate the release, we have three copies of Sound & Color to give away. Visit thebrag.com/freeshit to enter the draw.

Alabama Shakes

xxx

GEMMA GLENDENNING

The omnipresent Gemma Glendenning will continue her march on the Sydney live music scene this weekend. Glendenning, an accomplished vocalist and guitarist, is one of those hard-working performers who keeps said scene going – she’s worked in Sydney and overseas for up to six nights a week for more than 15 years and counting. Expect a range of ballads, rock and jazz standards at the Nag’s Head Hotel on Sunday May 17.

A BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATERS

KICK ON WITH KUČKA

WAM Song of the Year Grand Prize winner Kučka will be embarking on a national tour as she amps up to the release of a new EP. The tour will give audiences the first taste of her unreleased material, complete with a new set of live visuals. It has been a big year for the electronic pop queen,

Alabama Shakes photo by Brantley Gutierrez

F

rench alt-rock heavyweights Klone are making their way Down Under for a slot on Voyager’s upcoming tour. The trip follows the release of Klone’s sixth studio album in 12 years, Here Comes The Sun. Here’s hoping they’re bringing the sun

ALABAMA SHAKES

GUILLAUME BERNARD FROM KLONE Yes, we’re very excited to come and play in Australia! Klone will play songs from our three last albums: Black Days, The Dreamer’s Hideaway and Here Comes The Sun. Klone’s music has the particularity of allowing the spirit to travel. On the stage the band is full of energy – just let the music catch you.

head to: thebrag.com/freeshit

Mike Waters

who has been cutting her teeth supporting George Maple, Clark, Safi a and landing a set at Laneway Festival. Kučka will be playing The World Bar on Friday June 5.

FRANKIE’S VINYL FAIR II

After the success of its last fair, Frankie’s is opening up for some sweet vinyl business once more. With a stack of great vendors and their new, old, weird and wonderful stock, this is one event you won’t want to

Musicians come in all shapes and sizes.

Most fans know that much already, but even Mike Waters’ friends and family were floored when the web developer and full-time desk man revealed he’d been secretly writing and rehearsing tunes in his bedroom. All this hard work gave birth to Life, Waters’ debut EP, which is out now and being celebrated with a three-date live tour. He’ll be a sight to behold at Oxford Art Factory on Friday June 12. Now that Waters’ transformation is complete, we’re just waiting for the first rock star to take the plunge into web development.

miss if you’re a fan of wax. They’ll also have some pretty groovy posters and prints for you to feast your eyes (and wallets) on. If that’s not enough to draw you in, Frankie’s is even having an ale crafted especially for the day. There will be DJs spinning vinyls all day long, and then some live acts to get excited about in the evening: namely Bin Juice and Blackbird. The Vinyl Fair kicks off at Frankie’s from 12pm this Sunday May 17, with bands onstage from 6pm.

Francisco’s Fortune

Claude Hay

Sal Kimber

KEEP ON ROLLIN’

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Sydney-based solo man Claude Hay has released his latest track, ‘Crossfire’, and announced a string of tour dates. He will be embarking on an east coast tour to promote the release before he heads over to the Netherlands to do the same thing in Europe. Hay’s determination to be a one-man band is strengthened by his new handmade guitar, christened ‘Lucy’. Lucy is unique because she can create the sounds of a guitar as well as a banjo, and even a piano. This diverse instrument will prove its worth on the road, when Hay plays his shows solo. Hay will appear at Lazybones Lounge in Marrickville this Friday May 15, and at Sydney Blues & Roots Festival at the Fitzroy Hotel in Windsor on Sunday May 17.

A REEL OF FORTUNE

Sydney-based indie popsters Francisco’s Fortune are gearing up for their next local show this month. It’s all a part of their east coast tour in support of a new single and film clip, ‘The Bells’, itself taken from the band’s upcoming EP, Sans Inhibitus. Francisco’s Fortune is the project by multi-instrumentalist and singer Manik Mayadunne, who’s taking time off from a full-time medicine career to front a band, because that’s rock’n’roll, alright? We’re no experts in Latin, but we expect there’ll be no inhibitions when Mayadunne and friends set up at the Captain Cook Hotel on Saturday May 22.

thebrag.com

xxxx xx

To celebrate their new single ‘Stumble In The Dark’, Sal Kimber and The Rollin’ Wheel have announced they will head off on a national tour this June. The seven-date tour will begin in Melbourne, before heading through Tasmania, New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia. Their first studio release in over three years, ‘Stumble In The Dark’ was written in a beach town shack

by Sal and her sister Beth Kimber. The single offers a sneak peek at the followup to their self-titled album, due out later in the year. Sal Kimber and The Rollin’ Wheel play Newtown Social Club on Sunday June 14.

HAY WHILE THE SUN SHINES

WE ARE MADE OF MOVIES

3-14 JUNE ON SALE NOW! FLEXIPASSES & SINGLE TICKETS

VINCENT

TANGERINE

DOPE

THE GOOB

SAT 6 JUN 9:45 PM STATE THEATRE SUN 7 JUN 9:30 AM STATE THEATRE

FRI 12 JUN 6:30 PM STATE THEATRE SAT 13 JUN 11:40 AM STATE THEATRE

MON 8 JUN 8:30 PM STATE THEATRE SAT 13 JUN 9:30 PM EVENT GEORGE ST

FRI 12 JUN 4:15 PM STATE THEATRE SAT 13 JUN 9:15 PM EVENT GEORGE ST

A young man takes on superhuman qualities when he comes into contact with water in this gentle, minimalist French superhero film with a difference, filled with playful humour, deep emotion and constant surprises.

Wickedly funny and refreshingly offbeat, Tangerinee is a hilarious journey with two transgender sex workers through the lively streets of LA. The film is all the more remarkable given that it was filmed entirely on an iPhone 5s.

Fresh, exuberant, brilliantly acted and paced, Dopee is a smart comedy about a group of geeks who are landed with a stash of drugs that they have to sell in order to survive.

In this visually stunning feature debut from British director Guy Myhill, a troubled teen struggles to escape the confines of his hometown and the violent impulses of his mother’s brutish boyfriend.

PEOPLE, PLACES, THINGS

THE DIARY OF A TEENAGE GIRL

THE SMELL OF US

TURBO KID

SAT 13 JUN 9:45 PM STATE THEATRE SUN 14 JUN 5:30 PM EVENT GEORGE ST

SAT 6 JUN 6:15 PM EVENT GEORGE ST SAT 13 JUN 6:45 PM EVENT GEORGE ST

THU 4 JUN 7:00 PM DENDY NEWTOWN TUE 9 JUN 8:40 PM EVENT GEORGE ST

SAT 6 JUN 8:00 PM DENDY NEWTOWN MON 8 JUN 8:15 PM EVENT GEORGE ST

This charming romantic comedy stars Jemaine Clement Flight of the Conchords as a talented graphic novelist re-entering the dating world while attempting to avoid the perils of fatherhood.

A hit at Sundance based on the popular novel, The Diary of a Teenage Girll is a warm, comic coming-of-age drama about a teenage girl discovering her sexuality. With Bel Powley, Kristen Wiig and Alexander Skarsgård.

Twenty years after his controversial Kids, Larry Clark turns his attention to Parisian youth in this energetic and explicit study of French teens who meet every day to skate, goof off or get stoned.

In the post-apocalyptic year of 1997, a lovable young scavenger, The Kid, and his cheery sidekick, Apple, enter a deadly duel with Zeus, tyrant of the wasteland. Winner of the Midnighters Audience Award at SXSW.

THE TRIBE

THE EMPEROR’S NEW CLOTHES

SFF DRIVE-IN IS BACK! ATTACK OF THE DOUBLE FEATURE! WED 10 JUN 6:45 PM DENDY LOUNGE | FRI 12 JUN 9:00 PM SKYLINE DRIVE IN

THU 4 JUN 8:35 PM EVENT GEORGE ST TUE 9 JUN 8:30 PM DENDY NEWTOWN SUN 14 JUN 7:45 PM EVENT GEORGE ST

MON 8 JUN 2:00 PM EVENT GEORGE ST TUE 9 JUN 6:35 PM EVENT GEORGE ST

Winning over 25 awards at international film festivals, The Tribee is a shocking, exhilarating film performed entirely in sign language, without subtitles. Sexually explicit, violent, and always riveting.

Russell Brand joins forces with Michael Winterbottom, the director of 24 Hour Party Peoplee and The Tripp (SFF 2011), in an inspired and often hilarious tirade against much that is wrong in our society.

INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS Hysteria and paranoia mount as alien invaders assume the bodies of earthlings in a sleepy Californian town. Don Siegel’s 1956 sci-fi masterpiece remains as scary and chillingly relevant as ever.

THEM! This classic sc-fi horror from 1954 established the template for tales about nuclear radiation turning everyday creatures into giant-sized marauding monsters, with it’s Oscar-nominated special effects.

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Industrial Strength Music Industry News with Christie Eliezer

THINGS WE HEAR * Will there be a legal skirmish over the name of a festival that’s been axed for good? * Which rising singer-songwriter is causing a family rift about a new song (not played live yet) that recounts a family scandal involving a dead relative? * Will Australians have to pay more money for digital music as a result of a proposed 10% GST on digital transactions? * After his Aussie tour, Ed Sheeran went on to do six shows in South America, selling 750,000 tickets and grossing US$4.7 million. * While Foo Fighters may be cool with playing concerts crowdsourced by their fans, Pearl Jam turned down a fan who raised US$140,000 for a show in New York. Their manager

said they loved the “passion and enthusiasm” of such fans, but want to make it clear they won’t do such shows. * Drake had to fork out US$6,000 to fellow rapper The Game after losing a bet over a basketball match. * Blank Tape is about to announce a new home for its studio, label and stable, as well as some new signings, * Sufjan Stevens is only playing Vivid LIVE in Sydney this time, but says he’ll be back for a full tour next year. * U2 dressed up as buskers and played a surprise acoustic set in the New York City subway, which was filmed for their appearance last Friday on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. * After watching him on a TV feature, Coldplay’s Chris Martin emailed a British man who had lost all four limbs, his mouth and his nose from a deadly infection,

WILL SPARKS SETS UP LABEL WITH MOS, LUCKY ENT Top-tier Australian DJ Will Sparks has launched his own label, Bourne Recordings.

“When I first started producing, I always wondered how on earth I could get my music signed and released or who to contact,” said the 22-year-old who helped take the Melbourne Bounce sound global. “I created this project for anyone with talent. If you’re seriously confident and know that your track is great, I’d love to hear from you.” For more info and submission details, go to facebook.com/ bournerecordings. The name comes from Mel-‘bourne’.

The label has been set up in conjunction with Ministry of Sound Australia and the Lucky Ent management agency that looks after Sparks, Joel Fletcher and Tigerlily, among others. Jeff Drake, head of A&R for Ministry

sending him £10,000 and telling him he was “inspirational” and renewed his “faith in life”. * Ever since Meghan Trainor broke into the Australian charts, people have been telling Gabi Elgood from StarFM Orange that they looked like identical twins.

The pair finally met at the Logies and compared faces. * Broods and Flight Facilities bonded during Groovin The Moo, finding time to record together.

Meanwhile, Remi jumped onstage with The Delta Riggs at the Bendigo show, after the two collaborated on a new version of ‘Hey Victor’. * Deep Purple topped a poll of Rolling Stone USA readers on who should be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2016. Following them were ELO, Yes, Cheap Trick, Chicago, Warren Zevon, Little Feat, Iron Maiden, The Moody Blues and The Smiths.

of Sound Australia, said: “As one of the very first artists to deliver the classic Melbourne Bounce sound beyond its origin city, Will is largely responsible for inspiring a generation of producers, so collaborating with him and Lucky Ent to curate and deliver those sounds to the world is hugely exciting.”

FLIP YOUR GEAR ONLINE WITH THIS DREAMER An online auction site for musical equipment, Gearflip, has been launched in Australia

by Chris Shaw, bassist with Dream On Dreamer. He said he’d seen too many musos getting ripped off by international retailers, various scams or PayPal disputes. Gearflip only deals with Australian musicians, so everything’s in Aussie dollars. Shaw invites retailers to use the site as an extension of their own websites. Gearflip takes a 2.5% commission.

* Australian country performers wanting to get their records played on US country radio beware: keep your tracks under three minutes. Rather than risk their listeners getting bored, the stations are editing out guitar solos from tracks – even by those by such guitar heroes as Keith Urban and Brad Paisley. * Goulburn City allocated AU$50,000 to investigate which sites could be used as a new performing space.

Among those is a large area in the Conservatorium, which is presently used for storage. The council will allocate $2 million in 2016/17 to make the project happen. * Byron band Valhalla Lights’ half-hour documentary, Shades Of Black – The Valhalla Lights Story, has been accepted into a number of short film festivals.

It’s had 1,000 views on their YouTube channel in a month.

SPAIN’S DAY WITHOUT MUSIC Spain’s promoters and music venues are mooting a day of no music on May 20 to protest rising taxes throttling live music. Last November, the Spanish government made moves to cut the 21% VAT (the European version of the GST) on tickets and 10% royalty on performances, but is moving too slowly. One promoter said the 24-hour silence would show “how miserable life is without music”.

NEW ‘BLURRED LINES’ TRIAL? After ‘Blurred Lines’ was slapped with a US$7.4 million judgment for infringing Marvin Gaye’s ‘Got To Give It Up’, Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams have gone back to court asking for a recount. They say they lost the case because of “errors in instructions” to the jury from the judge, an “improper” testimony from a musicologist, and that there was “insufficient evidence” to say the two songs were similar. There’s two ways this could go.

The new judge could agree with Thicke and Williams and say they are entitled to a new case. Or he could increase penalties over US$7.4 million. Otherwise, he could say that Gaye’s family could charge huge licensing fees for ‘Blurred Lines’ to be used.

AUSSIES HIT CANADA Sounds Australia put on three shows at Canadian Music Week in Toronto. This year Australia was a spotlight country, with sets

by Xavier Rudd and The United Nations, Ben Lee, Caitlin Harnett, JuliaWhy?, The Love Junkies, Kingswood, Ecca Vandal, Hein Cooper, Even, The Lazys, Hamish Anderson, Pierce Brothers, Twin Lakes and Sweet Jean, among others. JuliaWhy? are now doing a 16-date Canadian tour with the UK’s Fat White Family and America’s Gateway Drugs, while The Lazys are doing a 30-date Canadian run. ‘Shake It Like You Mean It’ is getting airplay across Canada after its October release on the Parlophone label, going top ten in the Active Rock chart and reaching number two on CBC’s Rock Chart.

JUDGE THE CBAA AWARDS Want to be a judge for the CBAA Awards?

These are held by the Community Broadcasting Association Of Australia to recognise achievements in radio and TV. You can be involved in up to three of 18 categories. They cover best music radio program, excellence in music programming, outstanding contribution to music and outside broadcasting, as well as community participation, volunteers, training, current affairs, sports, et cetera. Go to cbaa.org.au.

SONY MUSIC PULLS TRACKS OFF SOUNDCLOUD Sony Music has quit licensing negotiations with SoundCloud to set a rate for which its acts will get paid. It has pulled half a dozen acts from the site, including Adele, Hozier, Miguel, Kelly Clarkson and Passion Pit. Warner Music has already signed an agreement. SoundCloud has 350 million monthly users, helped break Lorde and has been used by major names such as Beyoncé and Drake to debut new material.

MTV’S WENDY SAUNDERS AT NOVA Former MTV Australia music programmer Wendy Saunders has joined Nova 96.9 Sydney as music director.

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Lifelines Born: son, Alfie, to Nova presenter Tim Blackwell and wife Monique, their second.

Blackwell quipped, “We waited two days for a magazine exclusivity deal, but apparently a princess was born on the same day.”

Engaged: Emma Watkins and Lachy Gillespie, AKA the Yellow and Purple Wiggle.

Recovering: B.B. King, 89, is at home in Las Vegas after a minor heart attack. Police were called after an argument between King’s daughter and manager over his medical treatment.

Hospitalised: it looks like Sam Smith needs surgery on his throat.

Hospitalised: Daniel Johns with minor head injuries after tripping and hitting his head on the pavement outside Sydney’s Low 302 during a night out.

In Court: a 32-year-old stalker of radio host/singer Sophie Monk got a suspended eightmonth sentence. He cannot leave Tasmania, contact her or go within 200 metres of her, and must undergo psychiatric treatment. He’d been sending her nasty messages via social media.

In Court: US police dropped charges against Richie Sambora over an angry phone call to his ex-girlfriend in which he threatened to “dig a hole in the desert and bury her”. It was a “big misunderstanding”.

In Court: a US Exodus fan locked up for eight days on terrorism charges – to wit, posting online the lyrics to their song ‘Class Dismissed’ (“Student bodies lying dead in the halls / A blood splattered treatise of hate / Class dismissed is my hypothesis / Gunfi re ends in debate”) – is suing the arresting cops.

In Court: Kevin Wayne Smith, who kept Tamworth’s Dungowan Hotel open past licensed trading hours on the first day of the Tamworth Country Music Festival, escaped without a conviction against him.

In Court: Las Vegas police dropped a charge against singer Chris Brown, brought on by a man who said that Brown had punched him during an argument over a game of basketball.

In Court: a UK woman, 23, was jailed for two years for selling £121,280 of false tickets to 311 EDM fans (made on her laptop, complete with barcode) to Belgium’s Tomorrowland festival after its 180,000 tickets sold out in hours.

In Court: 19-year-old Matthew Forti, accused of selling the ecstasy pill that led to the death of teenager Georgina Bartter at Harbourlife, changed his plea to guilty last week in Downing Centre Local Court. He returns to court May 15.

Died: Errol Brown of Hot Chocolate, 71, from liver cancer.

Died: original Rainbow bassist Craig Gruber, 63, of cancer.

He also appeared on Black Sabbath’s Heaven And Hell album.

Died: Swedish bassist Rutger Gunnarsson, 69. He worked with ABBA, the Chess musical, and appeared on records by Celine Dion, Westlife, Elton John and Adam Ant.

thebrag.com

IT'S TIME TO PLAY

Vivid Sydney Game Zone at Pyrmont & The Star 2 2 M AY – 8 J U N E Introducing you to a world of amazing lighting – and the best part is, you can be in control.

Interactive installations, games and pop-up eateries will treat your senses at every turn, from Pyrmont Bridge all the way up to The Star’s spectacular rooftop venue, Sky Terrace.

There’s fun for the whole family, so get ready to light up your night!

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80 PYRMONT STREET, PYRMONT The Star practises the responsible service of alcohol. Guests must be aged 18 years or over to enter the casino.

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

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LURCH & CHIEF F

iguratively speaking, to find one’s voice means to develop a unique personality and feel confident displaying one’s individual qualities.

Essentially, the same definition applies to the literal procedure of finding one’s singing voice. In March, Melbourne six-piece Lurch & Chief released their second EP, Breathe.

The first thing that stands out when comparing Breathe to 2013’s Wiped Out is that Lilibeth Hall now performs the majority of lead vocals.

While Hall’s vocals were present on the band’s debut, she played a back-up role to co-vocalist Hayden Somerville. Naturally, the transition into the spotlight encouraged Hall to develop her singing personality.

“I hadn’t been in any bands before Lurch,” she says. “I’m enjoying it.

It’s nice to be able to express a bit more and bring out that more powerful, feisty attitude. I’ve gone out a lot over summer and seen a lot of live acts. I think there’s beautiful, intriguing facets of certain performers that are more understated, then there’s the more dominant performers that are in a similar genre to us.”

Hall’s expanded dynamic range is on display throughout Breathe. For the EP’s lead track, ‘Fading Out’, she adopts a tone of imposing confidence that recalls a young PJ Harvey. Meanwhile, on ‘Echo’, Hall incorporates a touch of silky whimsy that gives a nod to Lykke Li.

FADING INTO VIEW

“I listen to a diverse range of artists, so I try to take away something from them all,” she says. “There’s artists like Banoffee, which is something quite left of what we’re doing, then there’s The Preatures – Isabella [Manfredi] is amazing, I saw her live and she blew me away. People like Portishead, who have the beautiful softness but also that fiery strength, that’s what I want to cultivate onstage.”

The greater focus on Hall’s vocals isn’t all that sets Breathe apart from its predecessor. The six-piece now sounds like a stronger, intuitively congealed unit, which contrasts to the sense of aimlessness that surfaced on Wiped Out’s second half.

“Wiped Out was written over a long period of time,” Hall says. “[The recording] was quite staggered, so it was quite a different process. We were finding what we liked about Lurch & Chief and what worked and what didn’t. You’ve got to do a lot of that before you can home in.”

Despite its somewhat ragtag constitution, Wiped Out’s two lead singles ‘Mother/Father’ and ‘We Are The Same’ were both picked up by triple j, introducing Lurch & Chief to listeners all around the nation. However, when it came time for EP number two, the band was more interested in flexing its collaborative limbs than replicating past successes.

BY AUGUSTUS WELBY

“We went away to the Grampians [in western rural Victoria] and just wrote a bunch of tracks all together,” Hall says. “So all of the tracks on the EP were actually written over the course of about two weeks.

We definitely wanted to explore a lot more of an experimental side and just honour the music that we’d written in a patient way. We all worked pretty closely together to get a unified sound, but that kind of came naturally, writing all the tracks together. They seem more like a group of friends, but it wasn’t too conscious in terms of homing in and making them all sound the same.”

Interestingly enough, the group’s loose-gripped songwriting approach is precisely what led to the increased emphasis on Hall’s vocals. “We just followed the energy of the songs and if that meant my vocals were pushed to the front or Hayden’s were more dominant, then we just let it happen,” she says. “Sometimes we’ll find melodies and it sounds better with my vocals or Hayden’s vocals. I think you’ve just got to respect the music and where it takes you. It’s like a little dragon – it leads you sometimes.”

After 14 solid days of writing and demoing, the band booked time with an old pal, Lindsay Gravina at Melbourne’s Birdland Studios. Over the course of a tri-decade career, Gravina has worked with everyone from Cosmic Psychos and Rowland S. Howard to The Living End, Magic Dirt, Boy In A Box and Clowns.

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“He always has amazing things to offer,” says Hall. “He’s really talented and he’s a very wise guy. He’s had a lot of experience and structurally he’ll help songs and sonically show us different techniques. He definitely has an ear for what he likes in us and really pushes us to explore, which pushes us to new levels.”

Along with his storied career credits, Gravina is well known for his eccentric in-studio behaviour.

“He works from 12 until 12-plus, so sometimes you go a bit crazy in the studio,” says Hall. “But I think that’s his strategy – getting it out of you. Some of the best thoughts I’ve had have been when I’ve been very delirious and had little sleep.

Sometimes you make the most sense when you’re absolutely beside yourself. It’s nice to tap into that and I think that’s where a lot of creativity comes from. But obviously you’ve got to get some sleep every now and again. If not, you can just have a few whiskys and get weird.”

Ahead of releasing Breathe, Lurch & Chief relinquished their DIY independence to sign with Illusive Records (Bliss N Eso, Stonefield, Owl Eyes). Given the band’s auspicious career beginnings – which saw ‘We Are The Same’ come in at number 174 in the 2013 triple j Hottest 200 – Illusive would be looking to harvest even more success. Yet while they weren’t oblivious to such expectations, Hall says Lurch & Chief didn’t obsess over crafting another radio favourite.

“I guess you’re always somewhat conscious of that, but I try not to be.

“I think you’ve got to move forward.

I was hoping that people liked the bittersweetness that ‘We Are The Same’ has, which ‘Fading Out’ might have as well, but that was a few years ago and it’s onwards ever onwards, really. I’m just so excited to keep writing, and you can’t be too focused on that otherwise you’ll become a bit stagnant.”

Perhaps she’s right, for not long after its release in February, ‘Fading Out’ became one of triple j’s highest played weekly tracks. Either way, Lurch & Chief’s growing fan base is made plainly apparent by the size of the shows on their current EP tour, which brings them to Newtown Social Club next Friday night. Having recently completed a national tour with Kingswood, Lurch & Chief have quickly adapted to life on the road.

“You never really know what to expect,” says Hall. “One minute everyone will be grumpy, and then the next minute everyone will be laughing, and next minute you’ll be in a sunny apartment in Brisbane jamming and trying to get some sleep here and there, and your eyes are falling out of your head the next day when you have to get up and get back on a plane. We just focus on having a really good time together. That’s what keeps us going.”

What: Breathe out now through Illusive Where: Newtown Social Club When: Friday May 22 And: Also appearing at Moonshine, Manly on Thursday May 21 and the Small Ballroom, Newcastle on Wednesday May 27

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“YOU’VE JUST GOT TO RESPECT THE MUSIC AND WHERE IT TAKES YOU. IT’S LIKE A LITTLE DRAGON – IT LEADS YOU SOMETIMES.”

Akin to countless musicians before them, Gravina’s input led to a further evolution in Lurch & Chief’s sound.

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Red Fang Burning Questions By Patrick Emery

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very band needs a plan. It can be aspirational (‘be the best rock’n’roll band in the world’), radical (‘fuck the system’), decadent (‘dope, guns and fucking in the street’), economic (‘shitloads of money’) or artistic (‘fuse Bitches Brew-era Miles Davis with Love Gun-era KISS’). Aaron Beam, bass player and vocalist with Portland-based stoner metal band Red Fang, says the group came together with three goals in mind.

“The only criteria we had was: firstly, that we all felt inspired by the music we were playing; secondly, our music made people want to party; and finally, we wanted to minimise odd time signatures and overly complicated arrangements – that is, ‘Keep it simple, stupid.’”

But despite their professed reliance on linearity, Red Fang are anything but simplistic. The band formed in 2005 when Beam, drummer John Sherman and guitarist David Sullivan found themselves in an individual and collective musical void. Sherman, Beam (at that time playing guitar) and Sullivan started jamming in Sherman’s basement in Portland, Oregon, gradually working out a bunch of instrumental tracks.

When rhythm guitarist Bryan Giles returned from San Diego with a collection of his own fledgling tracks, Red Fang was born – almost.

“We had a problem,” Beam says.

“We were getting ready to play our first show and we had three guitarists and no bass player. We each took a turn as bassist, and it became clear pretty quickly that I was not going to be playing guitar in this band anymore.”

After playing a show under the name Panda on December 31, 2005, the band soon changed its name to Red Fang (which, according to some Star Wars nerds, is a lesser-known bounty hunter). In 2009, Red Fang released their debut self-titled record. “That record absolutely captured exactly what we were all about at the time,” Beam says.

The recording of the album was split between the living room of Sullivan’s house and a studio that wasn’t much different to Sullivan’s

“We each took a turn as bassist, and it became clear pretty quickly that I was not going to be playing guitar in this band anymore.” living room. “At that point I would say none of us had really yet devoted much mental energy to the studio process,” Beam says.

“Going into the studio at that point was always more about making a historical document of songs we had spent time perfecting live, and was not as much of an independent creative process.”

Red Fang have gone on to release another two albums, Murder The Mountains in 2011 and Whales And Leeches in 2013. Chris Funk – multi-instrumentalist for The Decemberists and producer of records by alt-country artist Langhorne Slim and folk-rock outfit The Builders and The Butchers – produced both albums. “If Whales And Leeches was a ship, then Chris was the navigator,” Beam says. “He made sure we stayed the course and didn’t veer too far into dangerous waters.”

While it’s Red Fang’s brutal stoner metal riffs that hit you first, within the band’s lyrics can be found evocative images and challenging psychological themes. “I think it is safe to say that in 100 per cent of cases we begin writing a song based on a riff,” Beam says. “I’d say probably half the songs we have recorded from Murder The Mountains forward, we have had little to no lyrics or melody written before we go into the studio to do them. Bryan has been known to completely ad-lib during a vocal take and not even need to redo.”

A sense of darkness and foreboding can be glimpsed in songs such as ‘Voices Of The Dead’, ‘Behind The Light’ and ‘No Hope’. However, Beam says the band’s gaze isn’t that deep. “‘Voices Of The Dead’ is specifically about my fear of failure to write a decent record amidst all the pressure I was feeling to make a follow-up to Murder The Mountains. It’s about the death of Red Fang, really. ‘Behind The Light’ is similarly themed, although it’s a bit more optimistic,

actually. It presents the idea of walking behind the light rather than into the light as a way of denying death, I suppose. ‘No Hope’ was a song Bryan wrote and I think it’s about how hard it was for him to get the high score on the Doctor Who pinball machine. Or maybe it was about how much he loves kittens,” Beam laughs.

As residents of Portland, the members of Red Fang are very familiar with the characters and scenarios played out by Fred Armisen (who features in the video to ‘Blood Like Cream’) and Carrie Brownstein in Portlandia.

“The reason Portlandia is so successful is because it effectively lampoons a segment of the population that had previously been sort of left off the hook,” Beam says. “It’s called Portlandia because a disproportionately large percentage of the population of Portland is like those characters.

And that is part of what makes Portland so desirable and comfortable to live for some people, and part of what makes it attractive to me, so naturally I identify with some of those characters. There is a dark side to all this, but that would be a whole separate interview.”

Right now, Red Fang are midway through their second trip to Australia, after playing Soundwave in 2013. In the future, well, that’s another story. “I think the future holds for Red Fang the same thing it holds for everyone else,” Beam says. “We will all turn into grey-skinned hermaphrodites with our brains directly attached to the internet. We will become a single being with many bodies.”

What: Whales And Leeches out now through Relapse/Rocket With: King Of The North, Los Hombres Del Diablo, Lo! Where: Manning Bar When: Thursday May 14

King Parrot Rather Be Dead By David James Young

K

ing Parrot have become very much a ‘show’ band as opposed to a ‘tell’ – you can tell people about them all you like, but you’d have to show them in order for them to truly get it. You could do far worse than show one of King Parrot’s music videos, their most famous being the Bonox-loving sensation ‘Shit On The Liver’. The video cemented a reputation when it came to the band’s audiovisual representation – and, while many would consider that a burden, these local thrash/grind boys see it as a challenge.

“I get emails from people that have never listened to heavy metal in their life – they just like the videos!” laughs bassist Wayne ‘Slatts’ Slattery. “We get shared around offices and things like that. We’ve really come to enjoy making them – when that first video came out, we more or less had no idea what we were doing. We were just looking to draw attention to the band – especially for people that’d never seen us live before.”

It’s suggested that people are drawn to King Parrot’s videos on account of the connection between the extremely aggressive music and the dark humour employed in them. “We always play our music professionally, but away from that we’re all just fucking around,” says Slattery. “We always like to inject humour into what we do. I know there are a lot of bands out there that are predominantly concerned with their corpse paint or looking tough – there’s certainly a place for that, but at the same time, I think there’s room to be a bit of a fuckwit as well.”

King Parrot are on the verge of releasing their second studio album, Dead Set, this week. Fans have already been treated to singles ‘Like A Rat’ and ‘Home Is Where The Gutter Is’. The latter, in particular, is indicative of a group exploring a new stylistic approach – it’s a slower, more

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blackened metal sound, with vocalist Matt Young showcasing a far lower range than many would be used to hearing. One could assume that tracks like this are indicative of the band challenging itself to try new things, but Slattery clarifies – to borrow a phrase from Crowded House – that it’s only natural.

“I wouldn’t say it was completely intentional,” he says. “I think it was just a different approach to creating. We had a month off last year in America because it was too expensive to fl y back between two tours, so we had four weeks in which we just wrote, rehearsed and created.

We had all fi ve of us in a barn together. We were able to explore different elements – go slower, go heavier, go faster. It all came down to the way we were writing.”

The band is currently on a national tour in support of Dead Set with cut-throat punk-metal proprietors High Tension, as well as blackened doom barnstormers Colossvs. It’s a decidedly mixed bill, which is something Slattery and the rest of King Parrot pride themselves on.

“I’ve absolutely no interest in going to a show where every band sounds the same,” he says.

“That’s what metal is – it’s so many different things. I think that punters will feel the same – it’s so much better when every band on a bill is bringing something different to the table. That’s why you’ve gotta get there early and you’ve gotta stick around till the end. With us three together, honestly, it’s gonna blow people away.”

What: Dead Set out now through EVP Recordings With: High Tension, Colossvs Where: Newtown Social Club / The Small Ballroom, Newcastle When: Saturday May 23 / Sunday May 24

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Deez Nuts The Unbreakable Bond By Natalie Rogers

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ntil now, you probably thought you’d never see the words Peppa Pig and Deez Nuts in the same sentence. Well, think again.

“I’m in Germany with my daughter – we’ve been here for a couple of months leading up to our European tour,” reports Deez Nuts frontman JJ Peters. “So right now I’m sitting around watching Peppa Pig, which is kind of the furthest thing from playing hardcore shows that you could possibly do!” he laughs.

This side of his personality may come as a surprise to some, but not to those who’ve paid close attention to the four-piece in recent years.

Since their formation in 2007, the Melbournebased hardcore punks have garnered a reputation for breaking the rules and challenging people’s expectations. “The life I live can be seen as polar opposites at times,” says Peters. “I love where I am right now, but I can’t wait to get in the thick of it.”

It’s times like these that Peters refers to as “the calm before the storm”. Right now fans all across Europe are waiting to be unleashed in sweaty, packed-to-capacity venues in anticipation of what Deez Nuts do best – playing to sold-out crowds who sing in chorus back to the band. “That’s always what we want when we’re writing a song,” says Peters. “It doesn’t get much better than hearing the lyrics you’ve poured your soul into sang back to you at fever pitch.”

“Exorcising those demons with a pen and paper was huge for me – I don’t think I’d be as stable a person if I didn’t have that in my life. I’d been living a pretty ridiculous life up till then.”

What: Word Is Bond out now through UNFD With: Antagonistic A.D, Relentless, Earth Caller Where: The Bald Faced Stag / Red Rattler When: Friday June 5 / Saturday June 6

Peters credits Sheffield metalcore band Bring Me The Horizon for giving Deez Nuts the exposure needed to be successful in the UK and Europe.

“Our first-ever European tour with the BMTH boys gave us the strength to come back [to Europe] and tour and tour and tour,” he says. “Seven years on, and Europe is our strongest market. If it weren’t for our friends doing stuff like that for us back then, we wouldn’t be where we are today, so we always try to return that same courtesy to our friends. In fact, it worked out so well that we can bring Antagonist A.D with us for the Australian dates – they’ve just released an album too. We love those guys.”

Also joining Deez Nuts for their hometown shows are Sydney locals Relentless and Melbourne up-and-comers Earth Caller. “Earth Caller are relatively new on the scene and they’ve just released their debut album called Degenerate.

They’ve come a long way,” says Peters.

“We picked the supports ourselves,” he adds. “We spend 80 per cent of the year on tour, so we want to be with people whose company we enjoy and music we love. That’s always first and foremost for us. We’re just lucky to have very talented friends! It always helps when you’re trying to put together a tour.

“Although, I don’t know if it’s always worked in our favour. I think sometimes it’s worked to our detriment – choosing friends rather than bands that, in some people’s minds, are going to position us for better things in the future. This industry is geared heavily on ‘you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours’. We’ve been pushed to consider bands that are atrocious to our eyes and ears simply because it may benefit us getting on another tour in the future. We don’t play that game.”

With Deez Nuts, what you see is what you get.

“We don’t fuck around,” Peters says plainly. This sentiment is reflected on the latest album Word Is Bond. “You could say that phrase is a mission statement for the band, and I think this album is our most honest yet.

“In between our last album [2013’s Bout It] and Word Is Bond, I’d gone through a lot of changes in my life and some pretty dark times as well. Reflecting on that while writing these songs was extremely therapeutic. I had a lot of cathartic moments in the studio and leading up to the recording – I felt a huge weight lift off my shoulders. Exorcising those demons with a pen and paper was huge for me – I don’t think I’d be as stable a person if I didn’t have that in my life.

I’d been living a pretty ridiculous life up till then – a non-stop party for ten years. I’m in a different place now.”

Deez Nuts photo by Hartley

With a new outlook on life came the desire to innovate in their live performance. “These shows will be bigger and better than ever before,” says Peters. “We rehearsed a lot before this Euro tour and we’ll be in fine form when we come home in June.

“We also wanted to make the tracks on Word Is Bond easier to recreate at these gigs, so we made the conscious decision to limit the number of features on this album. Bout It was littered with guest spots – it was more like a rap album. And honestly, when we began recording this album we all felt and agreed that it was so strong it was able to stand on its own two feet. It would be to the album’s detriment if we were to clutter it up with too many guests. This album is us.” thebrag.com

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Mötley Crüe The End Of The Line By Peter Hodgson

“That was cool! Billy [Corgan] just said, ‘Man, do your thing.’ He told a funny story where he was sitting there working on the demos and he said to the other guitar player, Jeff Schroeder, ‘I want it to sound like a Tommy Lee groove right here.’ And Jeff goes, ‘Well, why don’t you just fuckin’ call him, dude?’ And that’s when I got the call from Billy!

“It was so cool. I’m sitting there tracking the drums and I look into the studio at Bill and I see him jumping up and down, like, so excited. That for me was like, ‘OK, this is the shit now.’ It was good stuff, man.”

Beyond drums and vocals, Lee is a multi-instrumentalist. “When I was about 12 years old I was taking piano lessons and I was playing marching drums in the marching band. And I was getting frustrated, pissed off. ‘This isn’t what I wanna do. Basically I wanna rock shit,’ y’know? ‘I’m not feeling this piano business.’

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There were some hiccups along the way – a fatal car accident involving vocalist Vince Neil, a heroin overdose for bass player/ primary songwriter Nikki Sixx, a debilitating spinal condition for guitarist Mick Mars, tabloid fame

and jail time for drummer Tommy Lee. Then there was a grungeinfluenced album with a different singer, which remains a fan favourite, and a stint with Ozzy Osbourne drummer Randy Castillo, which was cut short by cancer.

Fights. Breakups. Reunions.

Unprecedented mega-scale tours.

And now it’s over. Mötley Crüe are putting an end to the madness once and for all.

“It’s so weird, man,” says Lee. “It’s weird to even explain. It’s the most bizarre, multi-emotional thing.

Shit, man – we came, we saw, we kicked its ass and we’re gonna walk away from this thing with the legacy intact.”

The band is swinging by Australia one last time to lay waste to

Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, with Alice Cooper in support. The victory lap of the world will continue until a run of dates at Los Angeles’ Staples Center. And then that’s it. No more Crüe for you. Once upon a time, Lee says, the band considered it a huge, huge deal to book a trio of shows at the Whiskey A Go Go on the Sunset Strip; now those days seem a million years and a million venues ago.

Lee is already planning his life away from Mötley Crüe, and although he’s released his own music in the past (including with his Methods Of Mayhem project), in a way, his new creative freedom started last year when he recorded the drums for the latest Smashing Pumpkins album.

“Then you start hearing guys like Eddie Van Halen with ‘Eruption’ coming on the radio and you’re going, ‘What the fuck was that?’

So I’ve always loved guitar and I’ve always taught myself how to play. And I play the guitar like a drummer would. I don’t really play stuff with solos or any of that stuff.

I’m a rhythm whore. I attack it like I would a drum. For the life of me I’d been trying to figure out how

to play a guitar like a drum, so I designed this momentary switch so I could hold a chord down on the fretboard, then hit the switch with my hand on the body of the guitar, so I could pound on it and it would open up the chord, y’know? And I remember a couple of guitar player friends of mine were like, ‘Dude, that’s fucking genius.’ But it was just me trying to figure out a more percussive way to play the guitar.”

I couldn’t let Lee go without asking about the 1994 self-titled Mötley Crüe album with John Corabi on vocals. That material is conspicuously absent from the farewell celebrations so far.

“It’s huge! Y’know what? Honestly dude, it’s one of my favourite Crüe records. Sonically, the songs, the playing on that record is gnarly.

We worked our asses off on that record. We had so much to prove: Vince was gone, we had a new singer who also plays guitar and writes and he brought a whole new element to this. But once fans are used to a certain thing, they just didn’t want to know about any other version of Mötley Crüe.

That’s understandable, but when you break it down, that record still sounds rad today.”

With: Alice Cooper, Smokin’ Mirrors Where: Allphones Arena When: Saturday May 16

Mötley Crüe photo by Paul Brown

he rock world needed Mötley Crüe right when they came along. Led Zeppelin were gone. Van Halen were too much fun. Black Sabbath were too dark.

Punk didn’t have enough sex. So the Crüe stepped in to fill the void. They were loud. They were glitzy. They sang about the devil like Black Sabbath and getting laid like Van Halen. It felt like Mötley Crüe would beat up all the dudes, bang all the chicks, then party till daylight with all the dudes and chicks.

“So I got my mum and dad to help me out and buy a little Epiphone or something, some not-so-great guitar and a second-hand amp, and I just remember getting my hands on that thing and turning the distortion all the way up and going, ‘Fuck yeah!’ I remember opening my window up and putting my amp on the windowsill because I wanted all the neighbours to hear it. I just wanted the whole neighbourhood to hear me rockin’ shit.

“We came, we saw, we kicked its ass and we’re gonna walk away from this thing with the legacy intact.”

Voyager The Many Shades Of Metal By Adam Norris “It’s melodic, catchy, it’s a bit poppy.

I appreciate we’re branded as metal, and I love it, but it doesn’t always fit.

The first metal band that hooked me was called Type O Negative, a band in the early ’90s. I remember listening to triple j’s Three Hours Of Power and I remember hearing melody, hearing this heavy guitar and thinking, ‘What. Is. This?’ All I’d been listening to up until then had been Nirvana, and the combination of that real heaviness, those chunky low guitars and the amazing melodies completely turned me.

And it all went downhill from there!

The next week I was there listening to really hardcore black metal, which my dad described as sounding like a vacuum cleaner.”

While Voyager’s popularity at home has seen both national tours and some impressive supports, it is the international successes that really mark the band as an act making steady waves. Europe seems to be the spiritual home of metal these days – and has certainly embraced the Perth lads with open arms – but the biggest response so far came unexpectedly.

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seem to slide between labels.

However you style them, they’ve certainly found a surging audience from every corner of the globe.

What’s more, you can play them to your folks without fear of explosion.

“It’s interesting you should choose me as the subject for your metal initiation, because we really

struggle with the definition of metal,” Estrin says. “People hear ‘metal’ and they think Metallica, Slayer, all that hardcore stuff. And then they hear Voyager and it’s like, ‘This isn’t metal!’ Still, it’s how we’re defined, but people tend to hear us and say, ‘Cool, this is music I can show my mum and she isn’t going to fall over in a heap and die!’” he laughs.

“We just headlined a major festival over there in the Netherlands, which was huge and amazing – but the big surprise is, I think our popularity in Europe has been dwarfed by what we’re experiencing in the US and Canada. They’re difficult markets to break. We played there for the first time in 2011, and got invited back for

Despite this, there are still rumblings from hardcore metalheads that Voyager have no place in metal at all. Though each album is arguably darker than its predecessor, there is such musical variety within the band that the term ‘metal’ seems rather restrictive.

“I think a lot of diehards just say, ‘What, keyboards? Singing?

Blaaarg.’ There’s been a couple of old-school people who only like the old stuff, but generally people from all genres like our music. We’ve got people in the audience singing at the top of their voice through our pop, sappy numbers while wearing a massive Dismember T-shirt.

These big, burly dudes. And then there’s the crowds we found supporting Dead Letter Circus, who are more triple j-friendly, and they loved us as well. So there’s a strong crossover, and the positives far outweigh any negatives.”

What: V out now through IAV/ Bird’s Robe With: Klone, Mish, Dawn Heist Where: The Factory Floor When: Saturday May 23

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hatting with Danny Estrin is a genuine treat. Not only is he a funny guy, but I’m also shamelessly exploiting him as my guide into the world of prog metal, and he’s totally down with that.

Partly this is to do with Voyager’s own uncertainty about their place in the music world; they love metal, and love what they do, yet somehow

17 shows in 2012 and the reception was just incredible. Fans around the world are always different, but they always know that we bring a good live show, and while we take our music seriously, we don’t take ourselves too seriously.”

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Boris Bring The Noise By David James Young

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or over 20 years, the name Boris has been synonymous with all things heavy, noisy and abrasive – not only in their native Japan, but on a global scale. It’s a reputation that is nigh on unshakable. They’ve been fl agbearers for the brutal and the belligerent across more than 20 albums (including collaborative records) and countless tours across the world – so much so that there is a real weight to the expectations around each release that comes along under the Boris name. One would understand and empathise if this were a burden on the band. Boris insist, however, that it’s water off a duck’s back.

“We have never intended to change our musical styles intentionally,” says founding member Takeshi, who provides bass, guitar and vocals. “Some may feel we do, but we don’t. As long as it still means ‘heavy’ for us, [we play] whatever music style sounds great to us.

There is a certain signature sound and music that only three of us can play, and that will never end.”

The band’s most recent offering is an LP succinctly titled Noise.

Described by Boris as their “most all-encompassing effort to date”, it saw them once again exploring the greater reaches of the Boris sound via both sprawling compositions and blunt brutality. It also officially marked their 19th studio album in 18 years – an insanely impressive feat any way you cut it. As warmly

as the album was received, Boris are adamant that the songs have become even better through playing them live.

“It is pretty exciting to see how our songs grow and are being developed with playing those songs in front of audiences and being accepted in an unpredictable way,” says Takeshi.

“That feeling will lead a motivation to do a new one for us. We prefer to play new songs because we can show an audience our most updated sound and style live, and would like to present to our audience the latest one freshly.”

Despite this commitment to performing fresh music, one can never be sure what to fully expect from a Boris show, with literally hundreds of songs to choose from across their vast canon. Even when material is predominantly predetermined – as it was the last time the group was in Australia, playing the entirety of 2000 LP Flood – there’s still room for plenty more where that came from.

Takeshi admits that assembling what the band is going to be playing across any given tour is one of the more difficult tasks Boris face.

only for our audience, but also for us.”

country is strong – hence why they’ve kept coming back for so long.

“Basically, Boris play our latest songs for the show – though it is pretty hard for us to decide the setlist,” he says. “We want to have both new and long-term fans enjoy shows at once. Boris have always tried to play enjoyable sets – not

The trio returns for a run of headlining shows this month, taking in Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth, and two nights in Sydney.

Takeshi enthuses that Boris always enjoy visiting Australia, and that the relationship they have with the

“[Keyboardist/guitarist] Wata was so happy when she held a koala and watched the kangaroos and the other animals last time,” he says. “Audiences in Australia look so excited … we can enjoy our own shows every time. We are all

What: Noise out now through Sargent House Where: Newtown Social Club When: Thursday May 28 and Friday May 29

she spent working on a pearl boat off the coast of north-west Australia. “I think that’s the beauty of song. I feel like my job is to create a story with enough of myself in it, and enough emotions, that people can then adapt and take on as their own … When I’m writing, and when I’m putting a lot of myself into it, I wonder if anyone else has felt the way I’ve felt, and I try to write with that in mind.”

lined up, and you’re reminded [what it is] that you’ve been working 12 hours a day on. Once you’re on the road, you’re in that world, and it makes everything worth it.”

looking forward to [the] upcoming shows too!”

Ruby Boots The Solitary Life By Tom Clift

When questioned further about her process, Chilcott explains that a big part of it is simply fi nding the time. “As a modern artist today, there is so much to juggle outside of writing and recording.

So essentially you have to be fl exible. There will be times where I’ll put a month of Mondays aside.

If I’m in Perth I’ll go around to my guitarist’s place. And then there are other times where I’ll go away for a couple of weeks, just to get out of the country. And then there are other times where I’m just feeling really inspired, and just mucking around on the guitar.

L

“I feel like I recorded four different albums,” laughs Chilcott, as she recounts her round-about recording process, one that involved travelling around the country to work with a ramshackle crew of producers, singers and bands. “I got to play with so many great artists from around the country, and it meant that there was so much energy in the songs. I started in Melbourne with Jordie Lane. We recorded ‘Lovin’ In The Fall’ in Soundpark Studios in Northcote, and I just love that

“Once you’re on the road, you’re in that world, and it makes everything worth it.”

16 :: BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15

place to pieces. Then there was Sydney, with Tony Buchen. There were some great sessions over there. Then back to Melbourne with Anna Laverty.

“People can sometimes worry about the cohesiveness of something when it’s so staggered and spread out, but I think at the end of the day, the tracks sit together well.”

For an album called Solitude, it sounds like there was quite a lot of collaboration. According to Chilcott, the title instead encapsulates a personal journey.

“I wanted to pay homage to where I started writing and playing songs, which was out on the boats,” she says, tipping her hat to the time

Asked if she ever feels exhausted by the juggling act, Chilcott admits that sometimes it can feel a bit like hard work. “I have wonderful, supporting people in my team, but I’m the one who has to hold it all together,” she says. “I have to be an entrepreneur and a businesswoman as well as an artist. So that can feel like work at times. But then you get on the road, once everything’s (hopefully)

As for the music itself, Chilcott is determined to keep doing things on her own terms. “In my eyes, I know that I’m not making straightdown-the-line country music, in terms of what Australia labels it,” she says. “I can’t sit still for more than fi ve fucking seconds, so I’m not going to be able to sit down and write this particular way all the time. It’s just not within my nature as a person.

“My take on the record is that something like ‘Walk Away’ is a straight-up-and-down country song, leaning more on the traditional side, whereas ‘Ruby Blue’ is more from the Americana side of things, and ‘Cola & Wine’ is almost a little poppy. I don’t even know what you’d call ‘Baby Pull Over’. And it’s more fun for me doing it that way. I think on the commercial side of stuff, it’s about generating money, and I’ll never be about that. I live off the smell of an oily rag, so I’m going to make the kind of music I want to make, all the time.”

What: Solitude out now through Universal With: Raised By Eagles, Andy Golledge Where: Newtown Social Club When: Thursday May 21

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Xxx

ast month saw the release of Solitude, the debut album from singer-songwriter Bex Chilcott, better known by her stage name, Ruby Boots. To quote the last track on the record, it’s a debut that’s been a long time coming. Since embarking on her musical career at the beginning of the decade, the West Australian alt-country act has slowly but surely cultivated a dedicated fan base, playing more than 100 live gigs in the last 12 months alone, while putting the final touches on an album that’s been three-odd years in the making.

“You know my favourite place to write lyrics? On a plane. Because no-one’s calling you, no-one’s emailing you. There’s nothing to distract you, and I fi nd myself getting into this amazing, lyrically creative zone. I feel like that time is precious. And it’s great, because I catch a lot of planes these days, so I’ve really learnt to cherish that time to be able to get some stuff down.”

So how does Chilcott feel now that the record is fi nally out there?

“Relieved!” she exclaims. “I’m feeling really relieved, and a lot lighter, and I’m actually starting to feel excited again now that it’s out. When you have a body of work that you’re sitting on, you really need to just get it out into the world.”

arts in focus

arts news...what's goin' on around town... with Chris Martin, Meggan Turner and Ayla Dhyani

five minutes WITH

MATHIEU RAVIER FROM HIJINKS

up bars for grown-ups. Moving to Tussauds was always the plan; they’re owned by the same group as the Aquarium. Who can turn down the chance to knock one back with Audrey Hepburn, Barack Obama and Mad Max?

Big Spenders

H

Madonna’s. Wait. 1980s Madonna.

She knew how to strike a pose.

Who are some of the artists and entertainers appearing at the 15 Minutes Of Fame event?

We’re going all out and shamelessly embracing the artifice, the excess and the fun of celebrity culture. Audience members (many in costume) will mingle with C-listers, wax figures, lookalikes and impersonators. Expect a Katy Perry tribute show from Pickled Tink, an Elvis performance by Nick ‘The King’ Nicolas, a Marilyn drag show by Decoda Secret, stand-up

by Sam Kissajukian, a Beyoncé dance lesson by Diesel Darling and a chorus girl performance by the Big Spenders.

Will you be having some fun with any of the wax figures on the night?

That’s a surprise. You’ll have to see for yourself. The wax figures are amazing, by the way. They’re meticulously crafted by master craftsmen, requiring over 800 hours of work each (six weeks just to insert each human hair!). And yet you can touch, kiss and hug them. They won’t bore you with their life story or steal your drink, plus they look hot in pictures.

There’s also a Beyoncé vs.

Madonna sing-along marathon – whose side are you on?

The Brick Man Experience

head to: thebrag.com/freeshit

INFINI PRIZE PACK

Ex-Dancing With The Stars host and Neighbours heartbreaker Daniel MacPherson has set out to rid of his pretty boy typecast. His latest film, Infini, sees the world becoming overpopulated by humanity, and so his character, Whit Carmichael, decides to seek a place a little less bleak for his family to live in. Whit and his team make the treacherous journey into space, where they stumble upon a situation even more disastrous than anything imagined on Earth.

Now, they must stop the threat in space before it arrives on our home planet.

Infi ni is out now through digital platforms, and thanks to its release, we have three giveaway packs on offer including three other great titles: Skyline, Europa Report and Source Code. If you want to get your hot little hands on them, you’ll have to head to thebrag.com/freeshit.

What: Hijinks’ 15 Minutes Of Fame Where: Madame Tussauds Sydney When: Friday May 29

Infi ni xxx

ijinks is taking over Madame Tussauds Sydney after a series of Sydney Aquarium parties – what inspired the move?

We take over museums and attractions and reimagine them as after-hours playgrounds and pop-

The Festivalists have been responsible for some great Sydney events (before Hijinks it was Jurassic Lounge).

What’s the ethos behind the programming?

Many of the spaces we work in, from the Australian Museum to the Aquarium, from Elizabeth Bay House to Goat Island, are fascinating treasure troves.

They’re popular with some, yet for a lot of us, they hide in plain sight, taken for granted. Our mission is to throw parties that allow locals to rediscover their own city in a new light, while

showcasing some of Sydney’s best emerging artists.

free stuff

IT’S THE BRICK MAN

If you’ve been looking for the perfect outlet for your inner child, this could be it. The Brick Man Experience is an exhibition made entirely out of Lego bricks. 60 works made up of over five million bricks will be on display at Sydney Town Hall this year, as well as a number of opportunities to build your own creations. If you’re lucky, you’ll also be able to get a picture taken with the stars of The Lego Movie. The Brick Man himself is Ryan McNaught, the only Lego Certified Professional (seriously, how do you get that job?) in the Southern Hemisphere. The exhibit runs from Saturday June 27 – Sunday July 12.

NICK VEGAS DESIGN DAY

One of the biggest names in 3D design for film, games and multimedia, Nick Vegas, is set to host a one-off workshop at Sydney’s JMC Academy this month. Vegas’ 3D work has been

seen in Dexter, The Tonight Show With Conan O’Brien and for Target, to name a few items on his CV, and he’s set to pass on a few morsels of insider knowledge to students and 3D fans Down Under. If you’re considering a career in the third dimension, pencil in Saturday May 30.

Holding The Man

SYDNEY SYMPHONY, I CHOOSE YOU

The Sydney Opera House will briefly turn into Pokémon Stadium this November when the Sydney Symphony performs Pokémon: Symphonic Evolutions. It’s an event for video game fans and classical music followers alike, as the musicians of the Sydney Symphony bring to life all-new arrangements alongside visuals from the canon of Pokémon games on screen. From Pokémon Red to Pokémon Y, it’ll be a comprehensive journey through the games and cartoons that brought up a generation.

Pokémon: Symphonic Evolutions plays at the Concert Hall, Sydney Opera House on Friday November 20 and Saturday November 21.

ARCHIBALD ENTRIES OPEN

Sylvie Guillem photo by Bill Cooper

SYDNEY FILM FESTIVAL PROGRAM

The full program of 251 films for the 62nd edition of the Sydney Film Festival has landed. The festival’s already announced opening night feature will be a world premiere of Brendan Cowell’s Ruben Guthrie – the film adaptation of his hit Belvoir Street Theatre play. Another Australian film, Neil Armfield’s Holding The Man (starring Ryan Corr, Anthony LaPaglia, Guy Pearce and Sarah Snook) will close the festival. The 2015 Official Competition features 12 films competing for the $60,000 Sydney Film Prize, including three Australian films. The wider schedule includes several programs appealing to a diverse range of cinema audiences, including a new Animation Showcase, the music films of Sounds On Screen, the Freak Me Out horror program and an Essential Bergman collection curated by film critic David Stratton. Sydney Film Festival 2015 takes over cinemas and other venues around Sydney from Wednesday June 3 – Sunday June 14.

For full program listings and ticketing info, visit sff.org.au.

thebrag.com

Get your paints out, because Archibald Prize entries are now open for 2015. If you happen to be excellent at portraiture, you can submit your entry for Australia’s most prestigious art prize online. The prize is now valued at $100,000, up from last year’s $75,000. The finalists and winners of the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prizes are selected by the Art Gallery of New South Wales trustees. Other awards include the Packing Room Prize, as selected by the Gallery staff, and the People’s Choice, as selected by visitors to the exhibition. The winners will be announced on Friday July 17, and the portraits will be exhibited at the Art Gallery of New South Wales from Saturday July 18 – Thursday September 27. Head to artgallery.nsw.gov.au for entry and exhibition details.

ADVENTURES IN THE SKIN TRADE

As part of the international centennial celebration of acclaimed author Dylan Thomas, the Sydney Opera House is welcoming Adventures In The Skin Trade – a captivating coming-of-age story from Thomas’ final and unfinished novel. Adapted for the stage by Lucy Gough and Theatr Iolo, the story follows the life of Samuel Bennett and his search of an exhilarating life in London after leaving the confines of his home in South Wales. While it was written nearly a century ago, the play

Sylvie Guillem

SEE YA, SYLVIE

One of the world’s greatest ballerinas, Sylvie Guillem, will be performing her final Australian shows in August before she slips into her well-earned retirement. Guillem has been in the ballet spotlight for over 35 years, taking on each of the leading roles in the classical repertoire with the world’s major ballet companies.

Her compelling performances have seen her pick up an Olivier Award, a Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement from the Venice Biennale, the Officier de la Légion d’Honneur, Commandeur dans l’Ordre National du Mérite, Officier des Arts et Lettres, and, in Britain, an honorary CBE. Each of her six Australian farewell performances will include a solo, duo and group performance. Sylvie Guillem’s Life In Progress will be performed at the Drama Theatre, Sydney Opera House from Wednesday August 19 – Tuesday August 25.

is still relevant to young adults today, with Thomas interweaving universal themes of youthful exploration and the search for the self-discovery. The play will be at the Studio, Sydney Opera House from Friday July 31 – Sunday August 2.

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Infini [FILM] A New Frontier By Kate Robertson

I

nfi ni is a tense sci-fi thriller about a specialist search and rescue team sent to retrieve the only survivor of a biological contagion on an off-world mining facility.

In this hostile environment, the characters are overwhelmed by their primal instincts and base emotions in what becomes an extreme contest for survival. We speak to actor Daniel MacPherson about his lead role as Whit Carmichael and his experiences on set.

“[Infi ni] just looks like another sci-fi movie,” says MacPherson. “And then it just flips on its head and takes you down this hole that I hope that you never expected.”

This immersive experience is shaped through the film’s lo-fi aesthetic, with the production design by George Liddle visually evoking classic 1970s sci-fi. “[The film used] very little green screen, especially for an ambitious sci-fi movie like Infi ni,” MacPherson explains. “It really helped that old-school feel. You look at the control room; all the computers were old-school, the graphics were

old-school, the lighting was very specific to a time in sci-fi history.”

Being cast in the lead role of the stranded soldier Carmichael in a cast that also features Grace Huang and Luke Hemsworth was a great opportunity for MacPherson.

“I read the script and was pretty convinced that I wasn’t going to be the guy for the role – I was pretty convinced that this was going to go to some kind of bigname Hollywood dude,” he says.

“I ended up having a very long Skype session with [director] Shane Abbess when I was in LA and we clicked. We recognised a deep hunger in both of us to do something different, to do something better, and to go and prove to the world what we were capable of.

“I got to the point in my career where I was craving a big challenge, and I was craving proving myself – hopefully, I think, beyond anyone’s expectations, including myself and what I’m capable of as an actor. And that meant throwing myself into it 150 per cent.

“Thankfully, I had Shane Abbess as a very close ally as the director, and we worked very closely together … [he is] a master manipulator, a master tactician, and a real film connoisseur, and in particular a sci-fi connoisseur – he was kind of the puppetmaster throughout the set, and a lot of the reactions that we captured on camera were due to Shane manipulating the actors against each other to force authentic reactions that no-one expected.

So a lot of that stuff onscreen was unrehearsed and spontaneous.”

MacPherson explains that the relationships between the characters in the film were facilitated by a rapport created in pre-production. “We had a couple of nights out together, in character, creating authentic memories that we could draw on,” he says.

“One by one, we were challenged beyond our expectations.”

When it came to working on the set proper, the former Neighbours star and Dancing With The Stars host says his experience was both exhausting and exhilarating.

Daniel MacPherson in Infi ni set; it was a very intense set that demanded the most out of everybody. It was the single most challenging set that I’ve ever worked on and because of that it was the most rewarding, for sure.”

“This was done in a stinking hot converted warehouse in Western Sydney through the beginning of summer – it was such an oppressive, intense environment to work in,” he says. It was also emotionally gruelling. “The stuff that you couldn’t prepare for was this onslaught and this barrage of ferocity that took place on set when the entire cast were in there together. It was a ferocious

What Infi ni (dir. Shane Abbess) When: Out now digitally through iTunes and other major platforms

Strength In Adversity [PHOTOGRAPHY] Every Woman Has Her Story By Louise Jeckells

A

few days after the war broke out in South Sudan, a lady fled the village with her husband and several men. The men were killed, while the woman was shot and left for dead. A boy from the opposing tribe put her in a wheelbarrow and ran hundreds of kilometres to the nearest town, where she received help. That’s just one story being showcased by Australian photojournalist Ilana Rose at her exhibition Strength In Adversity, showing at Australia’s premier photography festival, Head On, this month.

unseen led her to World Vision.

Rose has been a freelance photojournalist for 20 years. During this time, her career has veered away from capturing youth culture and towards social justice. She has worked with The Big Issue, government departments such as Women’s Affairs and Human Services, the Indigenous Unit in Melbourne, the Victorian Police, and countless welfare organisations.

Rose’s interest in documenting the

“Strength In Adversity is about women; their courage, passion and stories. But women don’t stand alone – there is always a community, children and families involved,” Rose says.

Since joining the organisation at the start of 2012, Rose has taken photographs for major campaigns in Ethiopia, Bolivia, Ecuador, Indonesia, Zimbabwe, India, Sri Lanka, Peru, Rwanda, South Sudan and Uganda. On her first assignment in Samre, Ethiopia, Rose met a women named Teye. Teye showed Rose examples of the love and strength she needed to protect her children.

It was this force and endurance that initially inspired the current exhibition.

“I was in Uganda in January and South Sudan last year, so I got to see what happens in war-torn countries – people trying to escape the trauma, dead bodies everywhere

and women who need to get their families to safety. No matter what their circumstances, they have to survive so they can do the best for their families. This is where women come into force – in a time of need.

They are community-builders; they look after economical developments, nutrition, child health and much more.”

As the themes suggest, Strength In Adversity is a thought-provoking exhibition that profiles women holding their families and communities together in even the harshest of circumstances. Although the images on show present people from certain countries, the pivotal idea behind the exhibition is to demonstrate the strength of women universally.

The photographer knows this exhibition will display a different viewpoint to those usually seen in World Vision campaign images.

“Some of these photos are harshly different to what we see in World

Lucia Eugenio de Mamani by Ilana Rose Vision brochures; they can be dark and sometimes hard to see. The dignity is very visible.”

Nonetheless, Rose doesn’t want the harshness of this topic to scare people away, as such an opportunity to view important images concerning social justice is uncommon. “The chance to show this type of social justice to a wide audience is amazing,” she says. “It is incredibly

rare to get these kinds of images shown in galleries around Australia.

Head On is an incredible platform for self-expression and to tell these stories.”

What: Strength In Adversity Where: The Depot Gallery, Waterloo When: Until Saturday May 30

Douglas Coupland [LITERATURE] Tales Of Time And Place By Adam Norris fabulations of friends we might best understand who they truly are. It also implies that to be understood – and be distinct – you must be damned secure in your craft. Much of Coupland’s writing is lauded for its immersion into a particular world; be it the Mojave Desert in Generation X, Silicon Valley for Microserfs, or a Vancouver high school for Hey Nostradamus! Developing an ear for detail, in other words, is crucial.

D

xxxx

ouglas Coupland is one of those writers. You know the kind. The voraciously readable, disarmingly prescient variety of author whose output is, to be cavalier, impressive if you’re into that kind of thing. With 13 novels, seven non-fictions, short story collections and a slew of other projects to his name, Coupland is also credited with popularising the now-ubiquitous term ‘Generation X’ via his selfsame first novel, and seems to be a pretty affable guy. He will soon appear in conversation at the Sydney Writers’ 18 :: BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15

Festival, and though coy about notions of legacy, he is otherwise refreshingly direct.

“I’ve known people for 35 years and I don’t think I really know them,” Coupland admits. “If one of them would write fiction it would make my understanding of them so much easier. But they don’t. So how does anyone ever know anybody? And then you die.”

It’s an intriguing (if grim) response, suggesting that through the

“Hyperspecificity to a time and place is important. If you’re a young writer, remember that. It doesn’t date your work; it turns it into a time capsule.

An instantaneous way to write something people won’t even register, let alone remember, is to write it in a indeterminate present and place. People can sniff the scent of writers’ workshops from a few valleys over.”

It’s an ethos that has served him well, and has led to that coveted acclaim that seeps so irregularly between critics and the wider public.

Of the accolades Coupland has received, the poignant, somewhat

elegiac Hey Nostradamus! is held as one of his finest novels. Detailing the lives of four characters affected by a suburban high school shooting, its echoes of the Columbine massacre among tragically recurrent others (“Get used to them,” Coupland says of such frequent public shootings, “They’ll be going on for centuries”), it is also one of the books of which he is most proud.

With its focus on victims rather than mythologising the attackers, one might expect it required a great deal of emotional investment to conjure these characters and make their lives seem sincere. Yet surprisingly, this does not seem to be the case at all.

“No such thing. I don’t think it’s about victims even – it’s about how the belief systems of a family propagate themselves even when family members think they’re doing the opposite. How does that happen? It still baffles me now … [Still,] characters never leave you. After they’re born, they’re part of your Greek chorus forever. The book came out around the time of Gus

Van Sant’s Elephant and because of that, the book was viewed as part of a cluster of Columbine-related artistic production rather than being a book on its own. That’s just how the media works. The script for the book was recently finished, and Peter Webber [Girl With A Pearl Earring] is attached to direct. I’m really happy about that.”

With a film en route, the legacy of the Hey Nostradamus! story is now firmly secured. Probing Coupland on the sense of his own testament, however, is a touch more oblique.

“That’s a French verb I learned two days ago,” he says. “Témoigner.”

Touché.

What: Douglas Coupland: Writing That Defi nes Modern Culture as part of Sydney Writers’ Festival 2015 Where: Roslyn Packer Theatre (formerly Sydney Theatre) When: Sunday May 24

thebrag.com

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

Playing at Bondi Pavilion Theatre until Saturday May 16 What’s most refreshing about Animal/People is its focus on the theatrical experience.

This is not the bums-on-seats kind of programming that plagues contemporary Sydney theatre, but raw, glistening poetry with deeply engaged design. Though not the most exhilarating production you’ll see this year, it is a sign of great things to come from all involved.

Two voices emerge from the darkness – a man who abandons the victim of a dog attack while on his morning run, and a woman afraid for (and of) her wheelchairbound son. These two characters weave a shared tapestry of memory, carefully shaped to reason through – and justify – their own unconscionable acts as parents and community members.

wherever the actors touch. Their sweatstained clothes mirror the black-streaked walls and the skirtings thick with grit. Lit with an omnipresent hostility by flickering fluoros, it is a space perfectly analogous to the cracks and stains left by their actions. Atmos is laid on thick by James Brown and Tom Hogan’s unsettling sound design.

Writer Brooke Robinson, whose short film Hunger was a highlight of ATYP’s Voices project, has here honed her visceral, intimate style of writing to a knife edge – the play is reminiscent of Dennis Kelly and the sustained shock of We Need To Talk About Kevin. It’s also very well cast, with both Georgia Adamson and Martin Crewes possessing a magnetic physical presence.

The lighting seems poised to draw special attention to their strained, honed muscles and tendons.

While Robinson’s monologues are wonderfully delivered, the play enters into uncomfortable territory when the characters directly interact. There’s something unnatural to their conversation, and it is unfortunately distancing. This, combined with an unsatisfying conclusion and Crewes’ distractingly ocker accent, creates a disconnect that leaves a slightly bitter taste.

A full lockout is vital to the atmosphere that director James Dalton wants to build in the opening – we glimpse only faces at first, and Benjamin Brockman’s lighting is careful not to give away too soon the wonder of Dylan Tonkin’s exquisite set. To his great credit, Dalton eschews the current trend of immersion in naturalism in favour of expressionist architecture that keeps the two actors trapped.

Though falling short of true greatness, Animal/People is indicative of the talent and quality material that is Rock Surfers’ focus, and a tense, engaging night of theatre.

The beauty of the design is that the tar-black gravel covering the floor leaves a residue

David Molloy

■ Comedy

ROSS NOBLE Reviewed at the Enmore Theatre on Monday April 27 You have to be careful with Ross Noble, lest you find yourself suddenly transformed from a hapless audience member into a punchline so surreal you’ll spend the following days desperately trying to remember who you originally were. Similarly, woe unto those who arrive once the show is already underway, and will find themselves mocked mercilessly.

In fact, from the moment you step into the same room as Noble, everyone is fair game, though I was fully prepared to throw my theatre-buddy to the wolves if the comedian’s attention drifted our way.

His signature brand of stage shenanigans found Noble engaging with several audience members over the sprawling show, fashioning bizarre vignettes and observations from the responses in the crowd – a gamble, since you’re essentially panning for gold. Several reviews of recent Noble gigs in other cities have criticised the familiar format of his comedy, but I wonder if they just happened to catch him with a weak crowd. It’s a risky road to success, but when it works – as it certainly did for this rescheduled performance – he is outright hilarious.

The reason behind the rescheduling was fair enough; during the hailstorm that struck

Sydney, the Enmore Theatre suffered a malfunction of the collapsed roof variety, and the damage was still evident as Noble insisted were it not for the promise of widespread electrocution the show could have gone on. As it was, the gig covered vast and unlikely ground, and though there would no doubt have been rehearsed material scattered in the mix, such is Noble’s command of the tangent that he mixes action and anecdote with remarkable speed and ease.

He’s also quite lucky in that even if someone in the audiences surreptitiously films part of his act (despite an entertaining pre-show cartoon warning against the perils of doing just that), it won’t really ruin the joke for future gigs; every show is different, and I’ve no doubt you could see back-to-back performances and be just as entertained (and fascinated) by his improvisation every time. That said, our performance ended with a surprise wedding proposal onstage, so it was especially unique.

Even when the jokes don’t quite find their feet, Noble throws himself into them with such wide-eyed passion that you can’t help but smile. Sure, the quality of each show might be a little chancy, but if you’re that concerned, you could always help the guy out by showing up late.

Adam Norris

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Arts Exposed What's in our diary...

Pyrmont Precinct, Friday May 15 – Sunday May 24

In cinemas now Ex Machina feels like something otherworldly. It balances so many dramatic elements alongside so much human emotion that it feels more like a dream than a film.

It all starts with Caleb Smith (Domhnall Gleeson), a coder working for a playboy software progeny, Nathan Bateman (Oscar Isaac).

He is tasked with testing the AI of an ultra-top-secret machine called Ava (Alicia Vikander), and to assess whether or not she has developed consciousness.

Simply put, is this machine now a living, sentient being?

Locked away in a secure facility, Caleb questions Ava through scientific observation. It’s all very standard, but Ava’s answers grow cryptic, and Bateman’s surveillance becomes constant and invasive. And slowly, Caleb is led to think that there are ramifications to creating artificial life – deadly and maddening ones.

Ex Machina is a film that does many things, and yet somehow pulls it all off. It is gently unnerving, sinister and yet seductive, and deals in themes and values that are both new to our social psyche and as old as our DNA. From a theatrical perspective it is

a hard-science-fiction thriller, a corporate conspiracy flick, a paranormal romance and a body horror nightmare.

From a thematic point of view it seems to encompass the whole breadth of human experience in 108 minutes – love, lust, joy, wonder, terror, rage, human curiosity, creativity and our destructive tendencies too.

What makes this a great film isn’t how much is in it, or what it is about. It’s the fact that it shows all these things in a manner that leaves you feeling relieved and shocked at the same time. It’s softly stunning.

Gleeson is wonderful as the brainy but wimpy tech-head and tragic hero. Vikander is unspeakably beautiful, talented, and downright scary too. But it is Isaac’s performance that stamps the seal of approval on this film’s cast. He drawls like an old king whose condescending attitudes have finally tainted

Head to pyrmontfestival.com.au for more information.

those around him to the point that he infects himself with its caustic poison.

Director Alex Garland deserves absolute praise too.

His eye for shape, colour, texture, for symbolism and for iconic visual cues, is masterful. The contrasts he captures between hard, industrial chic and the epic, rolling forms of geography and nature blend together seamlessly. His cinematography is measured and enthralling.

It’s important to note, too, the soundtrack for Ex Machina, which is an appropriate blend of safe, foyer room classical music, surprise popular culture referencing and a unique cyberpunk element that reminds one of concert halls more than trenchcoats and sunglasses. It only adds more flavour to the palette on offer.

Anthony Bell

162 ST JOHNS RD GLEBE 02 9660 1591

Live Music SUNDAY 17 TH

GEMMA GLENDENNING DUO

ACOUSTIC/FOLK ROCK

FROM 6PM

• FREE ENTRY •

SUNDAY 24TH

OPEN MIC SIGN UPS FROM 5:30PM

ON WEDNESDAY’S

$50 voucher for best performer

FROM 7:30PM with

Drink Specials for performers

of vouchers to be won

as Pl e e n wh

The 2015 Pyrmont Festival is about to set all cheese, wine and art lovers’ inner fires alight.

The ten-day festival, in collaboration with Central NSW’s Mudgee Region, will showcase a wide array of products produced by Mudgee vendors as well as local Pyrmont eateries. The highlight of the festival is the two-day weekend headline event at Pirrama Park, including live music, local artists, activities and over 100 stalls. There’ll also be wine and food tastings on offer for those keen connoisseurs who wish to dabble in some new and classic flavours.

thebrag.com

Ex Machina

EX MACHINA

FREE ENTRY

Pyrmont Festival 2015

Pyrmont Festival

■ Film

FREE pool on Sundays ALL DAY

$140 WORTH

& HUGE BONUS

$10 Lunches

of $1550

EVERYDAY EV VERYDAY ffrom rom 112pm 2pm

ROUND JACKPOT

bo ho u rs tel .

ANIMAL/PEOPLE

Xxxx

■ Theatre

e ar res ig h riv pect ou r ne the ing g at & leavin

The Nags Head Hotel supports RSA & RCG

e: info@nagshead.com.au

to give away this week!

conditions apply

DA ILY DRINK SPECI A L S $15 Toohey’s New Jugs $5 House Vodkas WWW.NAGSHEAD.COM.AU BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15 :: 19

BRAG

BARS B R A G ’ S G U I D E T O S Y D N E Y ’ S B E S T WAT E R I N G H O L E S

The Attic 275 Pitt St, Sydney CBD (02) 9284 1200 Mon – Fri 11am-1am; Saturday 5pm-1am

The Rocks (02) 9247 2229 Mon – Sun 10.30am-midnight

Assembly 488 Kent St, Sydney CBD (02) 9283 8808 Mon – Tue 5-11pm; Wed – Fri noon-midnight; Sat 5pm-midnight

Balcony Bar 46 Erskine St, Sydney CBD (02) 9299 3526 Mon 5pm - late; Tue – Fri noon-midnight; Sat 5pm-midnight

The Australian Heritage Hotel 100 Cumberland St,

BAR100 100 George St, The

Rocks (02) 8070 9311 Mon – Thu noon-late; Fri – Sat noon-3am; Sun noon-midnight

The Baxter Inn Basement 152-156 Clarence St, Sydney CBD Mon – Sat 4pm-1am Bondy’s L1, 16 Philip Ln, Sydney CBD (02) 9251 2347 Thu – Fri 5pm-late; Sat 5pm-late

Bar Eleven Lvl 11, 161 Sussex St, Sydney CBD (02) 9290 4712 Thu 4-9pm; Fri – Sat 4-11pm

Bulletin Place First Floor, 10-14 Bulletin Place, Circular Quay Mon – Wed 4pm-midnight; Thurs – Sat 4pm-1am

The Barber Shop 89 York St, Sydney

deVine

CRANE BAR Tell us about your bar: Crane Bar is a Potts Point hotspot, known for delicious and unique cocktails and the best Japanese fusion menu in town. Located on the infamous Bayswater Road, Crane Bar caters for cocktail connoisseurs, serious foodies and music lovers every night of the week from Wednesday to Sunday. Crane Bar is also one of Sydney’s most stunning and versatile event spaces, catering for private dining right through to large corporate events.

bar

OF

ADDRESS: 32 BAYSWATER ROAD, POTTS POINT PHONE: 9357 3414 WEBSITE: CRANEBAR.COM.AU OPENING HOURS: WED-SUN MIDDAY-LATE

TH

EK

A Work In Progress 50 King St, Sydney CBD (02) 9240 3000 Mon – Fri noon-2am

Ash St Cellar 1 Ash St, Sydney CBD (02) 9240 3000 Mon – Fri 8.30am-11pm

CBD (02) 9299 9699 Mon – Wed, Sat 4pm-midnight; Thurs – Fri 3pm-midnight

E E W

Frankie’s Pizza 50 Hunter St, Sydney CBD Mon – Fri noon-3am; Sat – Sun 4pm-3am Gilt Lounge 49 Market St, Sydney CBD (02) 8262 0000 Wed 6pm-midnight; Thu & Sat 6pm-2am; Fri 5pm-2am The Glenmore 96 Cumberland St, The Rocks (02) 9247 4794 Mon – Thu, Sun 11am-midnight; Fri – Sat 11am-1am Goodgod Small Club 53-55 Liverpool St, Sydney CBD (02) 8084 0587 Wed 5pm-11pm; Thu 5pm-1am; Fri 5pm-3am; Sat 6pm-3am Grain Bar 199 George St, Sydney CBD (02) 9250 3118 Mon – Sun noon-late Grandma’s Basement 275 Clarence St, Sydney CBD (02) 9264 3004 Mon – Fri 3pm-late; Sat 5pm-late The Fox Hole 68A Erskine St, Sydney CBD (02) 9279 4369 Mon 7am-3pm; Tue – Fri 7am-evening

What’s on the menu?

Japanese fusion at its best. Our regulars tell us our sushi is the best they’ve ever had, and head chef Taichi Ito’s famous karaage has been approved by none other than Snoop Dogg. Everyone loves dumplings and on Wednesday night they’re only a dollar each. Our current Dumpling Master devoured 84 in a sitting.

Anyone up for taking him on? Oh, and we’ve just launched Taco Truck Thursday. Yep, that’s tacos in a truck for five bucks. That’s what I’m taco’n about!

The Grasshopper 1 Temperance Ln, Sydney CBD (02) 9947 9025 Mon – Thurs & Sat 4pm-late; Fri noon-late

Our resident DJs create the perfect vibe. Whether it’s smooth tunes to help you unwind at the end of the working week or something that will get you on the dancefloor after a bit of liquid courage, they’ve got you covered.

Highlights: If you haven’t already been here then what are you doing? Sydney’s best Japanese fusion food in a setting second to none. Whether it’s date night, mates night, social or corporate events or ‘just having one drink’, Crane Bar is guaranteed to impress.

Care for a drink?

It seems unfair to narrow down Michael Finelli’s extensive cocktail list to just one, but our most popular would have to be Drunk In Love. Named by one of our favourite regulars with an unhealthy Beyoncé obsession, it contains 1800 Coconut Tequila,

32 Market St, Sydney CBD (02) 9262 6906 Mon – Fri 11.30am-11.30pm; Sat 5.30-11.30pm

Malibu, hibiscus and a couple of other secret ingredients. Our $10 espresso martini is also a big crowd-pleaser.

Sounds: We’re all about house music at Crane Bar. Vocal, deep, soulful, disco and everything in between.

The bill comes to: You can feed a crew and have a few drinks on Dollar Dumpling Wednesday or Taco Truck Thursday for a hundred bucks.

You can indulge in some of our signature dishes and cocktails for a special occasion and your date will cost you around the same. Our menu and weekly specials cater for all budgets and all occasions.

Check out the menu and come on down.

Harpoon Harry 40-44 Wentworth Ave, Sydney CBD (02) 8262 8800 Mon – Sun 11:30am-3am The Lobo Plantation Basement Lot 1, 209 Clarence St, Sydney CBD 0415 554 908 Mon – Thu, Sat 4pm-midnight; Fri 2pm-midnight The Loft UTS 15 Broadway, Sydney (behind 2SER) (02) 9514 1149 Mon – Wed 2pm-10pm; Thurs – Fri 2pm-late Mojo Record Bar Basement 73 York St, Sydney CBD (02) 9262 4999 Mon – Wed 4pm-midnight; Thu, Sat 4pm-1am; Fri 3pm-1am The Morrison 225 George St, Sydney CBD (02) 9247 6744 Mon – Wed 11.30am-midnight; Thu 11.30am-1am; Fri – Sat 11.30am-2am; Sun 11.30am-10pm Mr Tipply’s 347 Kent St, Sydney CBD (02) 9299 4877 Mon – Sat 10am-late Palmer & Co. Abercrombie Ln, Sydney CBD (02) 9240 3172 Mon – Wed 5pm-late;

20 :: BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15

Thu – Fri 3pm-late; Sat – Sun 5pm-late Papa Gede’s Bar Laneway at the end of 348 Kent St, Sydney CBD Mon – Sat 5pm-12am Ramblin’ Rascal Tavern 199 Elizabeth St, Sydney CBD Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sun 6pm-10pm Rockpool Bar & Grill 66 Hunter St, Sydney CBD (02) 8078 1900 Mon – Sat lunch & dinner The Rook Level 7, 56-58 York St, Sydney CBD (02) 9262 2505 Mon, Sat 4pm-midnight; Tue – Fri noon-midnight The SG 32 York St, Sydney CBD 0402 813 035 Tues – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat 6pm-midnight Shirt Bar 7 Sussex Ln, Sydney CBD (02) 8068 8222 Mon –Wed 8am-8pm; Thu – Fri 8am-10pm Since I Left You 338 Kent St, Sydney CBD (02) 9262 4986 Mon – Wed 5pm-10pm; Thu – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat 6pm-midnight Small Bar 48 Erskine St, Sydney CBD (02) 9279 0782 Mon – Fri noonmidnight; Sat 5pm-midnight The Smoking Panda 5-7 Park St, Sydney CBD (02) 9264 4618 Wed – Sat 4pm-late Stitch Bar 61 York St, Sydney CBD (02) 9279 0380 Mon – Wed 4pm-midnight; Thu – Fri noon-2am; Sat 4pm-2am The Swinging Cat 44 King St, Sydney CBD (02) 9262 3696 Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight

Hills (02) 9211 6632 Wed – Sat 4-10pm Arcadia Liquors 7 Cope St, Redfern (02) 8068 4470 Mon – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm Banter Surry Hills 425 Bourke St, Surry Hills (02) 8354 0954 Tue noon-midnight; Wed – Sun 6pm-12am Bar H 80 Campbell St, Surry Hills (02) 9280 1980 Mon – Sat 6pm-late; Sun 11am-3pm Bellini Lounge 2 Kellett St, Potts Point (02) 9331 0065 Thu – Sun 6pm-late The Beresford 354 Bourke St, Surry Hills (02) 8313 5000 Mon – Sun noon-1am Black Penny 648 Bourke St, Redfern (02) 9319 5061 Mon – Sat 7am-midnight; Sun 7am-10pm Brooklyn Social 17 Randle St, Surry Hills 0451 972 057 Tue – Sat noon-2am Button Bar 65 Foveaux St, Surry Hills (02) 9211 1544 Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight Café Lounge 277 Goulburn St, Surry Hills (02) 9016 3951 Mon – Thu 5pm-midnight; Fri – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sunday 4-10pm Casoni Italian Bar & Eatery 371-373 Bourke St, Darlinghurst Tue – Thu 5pm-11pm; Fri – Sat 5pm-midnight; Sun 5pm-10pm Ching-a-Lings 1/133 Oxford St, Darlinghurst (02) 9360 3333 Tue – Wed 6pm-11pm; Fri – Sat 6pm-1am; Sun 5pm-10pm The Cliff Dive 16-18 Oxford Square, Darlinghurst Wed – Sat 6pm-4am

Tapa Vino 6 Bulletin Place, Circular Quay (02) 9247 3221 Mon – Fri noon11.30pm

The Commons 32 Burton St, Darlinghurst (02) 9358 1487 Tue – Wed 6pm-late; Thu – Fri 12pm-late; Sat – Sun 6pm-late

Uncle Ming’s 55 York St, Sydney CBD Mon – Fri noonmidnight; Sat 5pm-midnight

Darlo Bar 306 Liverpool St, Darlinghurst (02) 9331 3672 Mon – Sun 10am-midnight

York Lane 56 Clarence St, Sydney CBD (02) 9299 1676 Mon – Wed 6.30am-10pm; Thu – Fri 6.30pm-midnight; Sat 6pm-midnight

Eau De Vie 229 Darlinghurst Rd, Darlinghurst 0422 263 226 Mon – Sat 6pm-1am; Sun 6pm-midnight

121BC 4/50 Holt St, Surry Hills (02) 9699 1582 Tue – Sat 5pm-midnight Absinthe Salon 87 Albion St, Surry

The Flinders 63-65 Flinders St, Surry Hills (02) 9356 3622 Tue – Thu 5pm-3am; Fri – Sat 5pm-5am The Forresters 336 Riley St, Surry Hills (02) 9212 3035 Mon – Wed noonmidnight; Thu – Sat noon-1am; Sun noon10pm thebrag.com

COCKTAIL OF THE WEEK Pour it in your mouth-hole... (responsibly).

Tues – Sat 5pm-midnight Pocket Bar 13 Burton St, Darlinghurst (02) 9380 7002 Mon – Wed 4pm-midnight; Fri – Sat 4pm-1am; Sun 4pm-midnight The Print Room 11 Glenmore Rd, Paddington 0424 034 020 Wed – Fri: 3pm-late; Sat 12pm-11pm, Sun 12pm-10pm Queenie’s Upstairs 336 Riley St, Surry Hills (02) 9212 3035 Tue – Sat 6pm-late & Fri noon-3pm Peekaboo 120 Bourke St, Woolloomooloo 0403 747 788 Mon – Thu 4pm-10pm; Fri – Sat 4pm – 12am Roosevelt 32 Orwell St, Potts Point 0423 203 119 Tue – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm Shady Pines Saloon Shop 4, 256 Crown St, Darlinghurst Mon – Sun 4pm-midnight

BREWED AWAKENINGS @ THE ARGYLE, 18 ARGYLE STREET, THE ROCKS Ingredients: • 30ml fine espresso • 45ml of vanilla infused Belvedere vodka • 15mL Kahlua • 2-8ml sugar syrup (quantity to taste)

Method: A sexy take on the original espresso martini; pour all ingredients into a cocktail shaker and shake vigorously with ice, strain the mixture into a martini glass and serve with a garnish of coffee beans floated on top, and enjoy!

Glass: Martini glass Garnish: Coffee beans Best drunk with: Fellow coffee and vodkaloving amigos During: An after-dinner nightcap While wearing: A glamorous 1950s feather boa for the ladies and a neckerchief for the gents And listening to: Frank Sinatra – ‘The Way You Look Tonight’

Gardel’s Bar 358 Cleveland St, Surry Hills (02) 8399 1440 Tue – Sat 6pm-midnight Gazebo 2 Elizabeth Bay Rd, Elizabeth Bay (02) 9357 5333 Mon – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat – Sun noon-midnight Goros 84-86 Mary St, Surry Hills (02) 9212 0214 Mon – Wed 11:30am-midnight; Thu 11:30am-1am: Fri 11:30am-3am; Sat 4pm-3am The Hazy Rose 1/83 Stanley St, Darlinghurst (02) 9357 5036 Wed – Thu 5pm-midnight; Fri – Sat 3pm-midnight; Sun 3-10pm Hello Sailor 96 Oxford St, Darlinghurst (02) 9332 2442 Tue – Sun 5pm-3am The Hills 42 Chalmers St, Surry Hills (02) 9212 3814 Mon – Sun midday-1am Hinky Dinks 185 Darlinghurst Rd, Darlinghurst thebrag.com

(02) 8084 6379 Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sun 1-10pm Hollywood Hotel 2 Foster St, Surry Hills (02) 9281 2765 Mon – Wed 10am-midnight; Thu – Sat 10am-3am Hustle & Flow Bar 105 Regent St, Redfern (02) 9310 5593 Tue – Sat 5pm-midnight Jekyll & Hyde 332 Victoria St, Darlinghurst (02) 9360 5568 Wed – Fri 4pm-late; Sat 8.30am-late; Sun 8.30am-evening Li’l Darlin Darlinghurst 235 Victoria St, Darlinghurst (02) 8084 6100 Mon – Sun 4pm-late Li’l Darlin Surry Hills 420 Elizabeth St, Surry Hills (02) 9698 5488 Mon – Fri noon-late; Sat 4pm-late LL Wine and Dine 42 Llankelly Place Potts Point (02) 9356 8393 Mon – Thu 5pm-11pm; Fri – Sat noon-late; Sun 11am-10pm

The Local Taphouse 122 Flinders St, Darlinghurst (02) 9360 0088 Mon – Wed noonmidnight; Thu – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-11pm Love, Tilly Devine 91 Crown Ln, Darlinghurst (02) 9326 9297 Mon – Sat 5pm-midnight; Sun 4-10pm Low 302 302 Crown St, Surry Hills (02) 9368 1548 Mon – Sun 6pm-2am Mr Fox 557 Crown St, Surry Hills 0414 691 811 Tue – Wed 5pm-late; Sat 10am-midnight; Sun 10am-10pm The Norfolk 305 Cleveland St, Surry Hills (02) 9699 3177 Mon – Sat noonmidnight; Sun noon10pm The Passage 231A Victoria St, Darlinghurst (02) 9358 6116 Mon – Sat 5pm-late Play Bar 72 Campbell St, Surry Hills (02) 9280 0885

The Soda Factory 16 Wentworth Ave, Surry Hills (02) 8096 9120 Mon – Fri 5pm-3am; Sat – Sun 6pm-3am Surly’s 182 Campbell St, Surry Hills (02) 9331 3705 Tue – Sun middaymidnight Sweethearts Rooftop 33/37 Darlinghurst Rd, Potts Point (02) 8070 2424 Mon – Thu 2pm-11.30pm; Fri – Sun noon-11.30pm This Must Be The Place 239 Oxford St, Darlinghurst (02) 9331 8063 Mon – Sun 3pm-midnight Tio’s Cerveceria 4/14 Foster St, Surry Hills Mon – Sun 5pm-midnight Unicorn Cellar Basement, 106 Oxford St, Paddington (02) 9360 7994 Tue – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri – Sat noon-midnight Vasco 421 Cleveland St, Redfern 0406 775 436 Tue – Sat 5pm-midnight The Victoria Room Lvl 1, 235 Victoria St, Darlinghurst (02) 9357 4488 Wed – Fri 6pm-midnight; Sat noon-2am; Sun noonmidnight The Wild Rover 75 Campbell St, Surry Hills (02) 9280 2235 Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sun noon-10pm The Winery 285A Crown St, Surry Hills (02) 9331 0833 Mon – Sun noonmidnight

Anchor Bar 8 Campbell Pde, Bondi (02) 8084 3145 Tue – Fri 4.30pm-late; Sat – Sun 12.30pm-late Bondi Hardware 39 Hall St, Bondi (02) 9365 7176 Mon – Wed 5pm-late; Fri noon-midnight; Sat 9am-midnight; Sun 9am-10pm The Bucket List Shop 1, Bondi Pavilion, Queen Elizabeth Drive (02) 9365 4122 Mon – Tue 11am-5pm; Wed – Sun 11am-late The Corner House 281 Bondi Rd, Bondi (02) 8020 6698 Tue – Sat 5pm-midnight; Sun 3pm-10pm Fat Ruperts 249 Bondi Rd, Bondi (02) 9130 1033 Tue – Fri 6pm-late; Sat – Sun 2pm-late Mr Moustache 61-79 Hall St, Bondi Beach (02) 9300 8892 Mon – Fri 5pm-11pm; Sat noon-11pm; Sun noon-10pm The Rum Diaries 288 Bondi Rd, Bondi (02) 9300 0440 Tue – Sat 6pm-midnight; Sun 5pm-10pm Speakeasy 83 Curlewis St, Bondi (02) 9130 2020 Mon – Sat 5pm-11pm; Sat – Sun 4pm-10pm Spring Street Social (and Jam Gallery) Underground 195 Oxford St, Bondi Junction (02) 9389 2485 Tues – Sat 4pm-3am Stuffed Beaver 271 Bondi Rd, Bondi (02) 9130 3002 Mon – Sat noonmidnight; Sun noon10pm

The Angry Pirate 125 Redfern St Redfern (02) 9698 9140 Tue – Thur 5pm-midnight; Fri – Sat 3pm-midnight Bar-racuda 105 Enmore Rd, Newtown (02) 9519 1121 Mon – Sat 6pm-midnight The Bearded Tit 183 Regent St, Redfern (02) 8283 4082 Mon – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri – Sat noon - midnight; Sun midday - 10pm Blacksheep 256 King St, Newtown (02) 8033 3455 Mon – Fri 4pm-11pm; Sat 2pm-11pm; Sun 2pm-10pm Bloodwood 416 King St, Newtown (02) 9557 7699 Mon, Wed – Thu 5pm-late; Fri – Sat noon-late; Sun noon10pm The Chip Off The Old Block 3 Little Queen Street, Chippendale (02) 9318 0815 Tue – Sat 4pm-11pm Cornerstone Bar & Food 245 Wilson St, Eveleigh

(02) 8571 9004 Sun – Wed 10am-5pm; Thu – Sat 10am-late Corridor 153A King St, Newtown 0422 873 879 Tue – Fri 3pm-midnight; Sat 1pm-midnight; Sun 1pm-10pm

Mr Falcon’s 92 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 9029 6626 Mon – Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri 3pm-midnight; Sat noon-midnight; Sun 2pm-10pm

Your bar’s not here? Email: chris@thebrag. com 5pm-midnight

Newtown Social Club 387 King St, Newtown (02) 9550 3974 Mon 9am-6pm; Tues – Fri 9am-8pm; Sat 10am-8pm

The Hayberry Bar & Diner 97 Willoughby Road, Crows Nest (02) 8084 0816 Tue – Thu 4pm-12am; Fri & Sat noon-midnight Sun noon-10pm

Different Drummer 185 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 9552 3406 Mon – Sat 4.30pm-late

The Oxford Tavern 1 New Canterbury Rd, Petersham (02) 8019 9351 Mon – Thu midday10pm; Fri – Sat midday11pm; Sun midday-9pm

Hemingway’s 48 North Steyne, Manly (02) 9976 3030 Mon – Sat 8am-midnight; Sun 8am-10pm

Doris & Beryl’s Bridge Club and Tea House 530 King St, Newtown Mon – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat – Sun 5.30pm-midnight

The Record Crate 34 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 9660 1075 Tue – Sat noonmidnight; Sun noon10pm

Earl’s Juke Joint 407 King St, Newtown Mon – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sun 4-10pm

The Royal 156 Norton St, Leichhardt (02) 9569 2638 Mon – Thu 10am-1am; Fri – Sat 10am-3am; Sun 10am-midnight

Cottage Bar & Kitchen 342 Darling St, Balmain (02) 8084 8185 Mon – Wed 5pm-midnight; Thu – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm

Freda’s 107-109 Regent St, Chippendale (02) 8971 7336 Tues – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sun 4pm-10pm The Hideaway Bar 156 Enmore Rd, Enmore (02) 8021 8451 Tue-Thu 4pm-midnight; Fri – Sat noon-1am; Sun noon-10pm Hive Bar 93 Erskineville Rd, Erskineville (02) 9519 9911 Mon – Fri noonmidnight; Sat 11am-midnight; Sun 11am-10pm Kelly’s On King 285 King St, Newtown (02) 9565 2288 Mon – Fri 10am-2.30am; Sat 10am-3.30am; Sun 11am-11.30pm Knox Street Bar 21 Shepherd St, Chippendale Tue – Thu 4pm-l0pm; Fri – Sat 4pm-11pm Kuleto’s 157 King St, Newtown (02) 9519 6369 Mon – Sat 4pm-late; Thu – Sat 4pm-3am The Little Guy 87 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 9200 0000 Mon – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat 1pm-midnight; Sun 3pm-10pm Mary’s 6 Mary St, Newtown (02) 4995 9550 Mon – Fri 4pm-midnight; Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm The Midnight Special 44 Enmore Road, Newtown (02) 9516 2345 Tues – Sat 5pm-midnight; Sun 5pm-10pm Miss Peaches 201 Missenden Rd, Newtown (02) 9557 7280 Wed – Sun 5pm-midnight The Moose Newtown 530 King St, Newtown (02) 9557 0072 Wed – Sat 6pm-midnight

Secret Garden Bar 134a Enmore Rd, Enmore 0409 284 928 Mon – Sun 1am-11pm

Honey Rider 230 Military Rd, Neutral Bay (02) 9953 8880 Tue – Sat 4pm-midnight; Sun 4pm-10pm In Situ 1/18 Sydney Rd, Manly (02) 9977 0669 Tue – Fri 5pm-midnight; Sat 9am-midnight; Sun 9am-10pm The Hunter 5 Myahgah Rd, Mosman 0409 100 339 Mon – Tue 5pm-midnight; Wed – Sat noon-midnight; Sun noon-10pm

The Spice Cellar Basement 35 Erskineville Rd, Erskineville (02) 9519 9899 Mon – Wed 4pm-late; Thu 5pm-2am; Fri 5pm-4am

Jah Bar Shop 7, 9-15 Central Ave, Manly (02) 9977 4449 Mon – Fri 4pm-late; Sat 9am-late; Sun 9am-10pm

Thievery 91 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 8283 1329 Tue – Thu 6pm-11pm; Fri 6pm-midnight.

Sat 11pm-3pm & 6pm-midnight

The Local Bar 8 Young Ln, Neutral Bay (02) 9953 0027 Tue – Fri 11.30am-midnight; Sat 7am-midnight; Sun 7am-10pm

Timbah 375 Glebe Point Rd, Glebe (02) 9571 7005 Tue – Thu 4pm-10pm; Fri noon-11pm; Sat 3pm-11pm; Sun 4pm-8pm The Workers Lvl 1, 292 Darling St, Balmain (02) 9555 8410 Thu – Sat 5pm-3am; Sun 2pm-late ZanziBar 323 King St, Newtown (02) 9519 1511 Mon – Sat 10am-4am; Sun 10am-12am Zigi’s Wine And Cheese Bar 86 Abercrombie St, Chippendale (02) 9699 4222 Tue 4pm-10pm; Wed – Sat 2pm-late

Firefly 24 Young St, Neutral Bay (02) 9909 0193 Mon – Thu 5-11.30pm; Fri 4-11.30pm; Sat noon-11pm; Sun noon10pm The Foxtrot 28 Falcon St, Crows Nest Tue – Wed 5pm-midnight; Thu 5pm-1am; Fri – Sat 5pm-2am; Sun 4pm-10pm Harlem On Central Shop 4,9-15 Central Ave, Manly (02) 9976 6737 Tue – Sun

Manly Wine 8-13 South Steyne, Manly (02) 8966 9000 Mon – Sun 6.30am-late The Mayor 400 Military Rd, Cremorne (02) 8969 6060 Tue – Wed 5pm-late; Thu – Sat noon-late; Sun noon-10pm Miami Cuba 47 North Steyne, Manly (02 99775186 Tue – Thu 8am-10pm; Fri – Sat 8am-1am; Sunday 8am-4pm Moonshine Lvl 2, Hotel Steyne, 75 The Corso, Manly (02) 9977 4977 Thu 5pm-2am; Fri 1pm-2am; Sat noon2am; Sun noonmidnight The Pickled Possum 254 Military Rd, Neutral Bay (02) 9909 2091 Thu – Sat 9pm-1am SoCal 1 Young St, Neutral Bay (02) 9904 5691 Mon – Tue 4pm-late: Wed – Thu midday-1am; Fri – Sat midday- 2am; Sun midday-midnight The Stoned Crow 39 Willoughby Rd, Crows Nest (02) 9439 5477 Mon – Sun noon-late Wilcox Cammeray 463 Miller St, Cammeray (02) 9460 0807 Tue – Thu 4pm-10pm; Fri – Sat 2pm-11pm; Sun 2pm-10pm BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15 :: 21

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

ALBUM OF THE WEEK TIM ROGERS & THE BAMBOOS The Rules Of Attraction Atlantic/Warner

Melbourne soul/funk band The Bamboos and the inimitable Tim Rogers have already had one successful partnership with the 2012 single, ‘I Got Burned’. Fast-forward a few years and they’ve collaborated on an album.

A full-length collaboration means plenty of good times courtesy Rogers, Ferguson and friends.

BORN JOY DEAD Stones In My Shoe Mucho Bravado

It always warms my heart to see a band break up, only for the members to go on and start several other bands like some kind of musical Hydra. This is the case with Brisbane indie-pop band Hungry Kids Of Hungary, whom we have to thank for Born Joy Dead and their debut EP Stones In My Shoe.

Frontman Ben Dalton was not the singer in Hungry Kids, which makes it all the more satisfying to watch him carry the torch. This band is a little more rock-based, a little less silly, and features a lot of strong vocal work and catchy melodies throughout. ‘Stones In My Shoe’ and ‘Upside Down, Inside Out’ are the standout tracks here, with the former being a catchy dream-pop effort, and the latter a Black Keys song from an alternative indie universe.

This release can be described as more of a sampler than an EP – each of the four tracks have their own feel, like the band is showing off all the avenues it could walk down in the future. The EP’s constant changing of directions is fine thanks to its concise length, but Born Joy Dead will need a more consistent sound to survive the full-length treatment.

It’s one that achieves a balance between the band’s patent introverted groove and Rogers’ effervescent rock’n’swagger from You Am I. The result is something that sounds varied (in the best possible way), fresh and brimming with enthusiasm.

Rogers himself believes the record sounds like a mix of The Jackson 5 and Eric Burdon’s War, while Lance Ferguson wanted to write a Bamboos song that sounded like The Police.

In reality these 12 songs and four demos share those musical touchpoints and a whole lot more from the ’60s. In essence, it’s about complex and exciting pop music that can make you tap your feet and nod along like you know it all already.

The Rules Of Attraction is upbeat and joyous, showing some Australian musical darlings simply plugging in and having a ball. They trade riffs, grooves and ideas and create a cool, retro sound with a contemporary bite. It’s tight, a little cheeky and dapper as hell.

Natalie Salvo

CEREMONY

XAN MÜLLER

BOP ENGLISH

THEY MIGHT BE GIANTS

The L-Shaped Man Matador/Remote Control

Your Ancient Future Surveillance Party

Constant Bop Downtown / Create/Control

Glean Breakaway

In a move that will surprise few, ex-powerviolence-turned-hardcore punk-turned-garage-rockers Ceremony are back and unleashing their inner Ian Curtis for this letdown of a next instalment in their discography. Taking some heavy cues from Joy Division’s monotone brand of post-punk, Ceremony have made a fatal flaw in trying to become a jack of all trades, while mastering none.

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, Xan Müller is making techno electro to play in clubs on starships. Your Ancient Future is a mix of future techno and DnB with vocals that hark back to late-’90s/ early-2000s pop. However, it’s an uneasy mix and the balance is never quite there.

The last titular bop in pop music was Pat Wilson’s ‘Bop Girl’ back in the ’80s. Now a rascal from White Denim, James Petralli, resurrects the bop on a debut solo record. Solo in the broadest sense, however, as most of White Denim also feature on Constant Bop. Nevertheless, Petralli has opted for some pastel on account of this venture that is somewhere in the Warren Zevon/ Turin Brakes universe.

Meet the new ‘Doctor Worm’, same as the old ‘Doctor Worm’. Those who love They Might Be Giants from the days of old will still be enjoying their wry, sardonic and illustriously absurd brand of indie pop-rock to this day, even as Johns Linnell and Flansburgh enter their 50s.

While there are some interesting parts to the music – rolling bass and drum combinations in ‘Bleeder’, guitars that set the mood well and a solid execution of that familiar Curtis style of singing – the record is plagued by poor song structure that ultimately results in an unmemorable whole. The guitar solos are weak, the semblances of instrumental build-ups peter out in disappointing choruses and the lyrics do little to inspire narrative or even fire up the listener’s imagination.

The abrasive sound that Ceremony were recognisable for pre-2010 is completely lacking in this release, begging the question why a band noted for having such a raw and powerful sound would want to attempt to recreate a style already beaten to death by bands such as Editors or Interpol’s later incarnations.

A friendly debut from a nice indie-pop band. Triple j’s summer soundtrack comes five months early.

To put it bluntly, The L-Shaped Man is plain boring and inspires nothing besides disappointment.

Spencer Scott

Thomas Brand

Müller commits to a singular musical aesthetic with his tracks, and what starts off as genuinely unique and interesting becomes exhausting as the album goes on.

The relentless pacing of tracks makes the album feel longer than it should, and while the production elements are strong throughout, the lyrics feel forced to match the ‘space’ aesthetic, particularly in ‘Home Planet’. The space-related metaphors for loneliness and loss also make it hard for a serious message to sink in.

The Sydney-based Müller is a talented producer, but Your Ancient Future doesn’t quite live up the promise of his earlier tracks like ‘Journey In CF Minor’.

The first half of the album is decisively stronger, with ‘Vision Of Myself’ and ‘Forgotten My Love’ both standout tracks – showing Müller has more to offer just yet.

Lachlan Mackenzie

INDIE ALBUM OF THE WEEK It’s been almost exactly six months since the last King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard album, so right on cue they’ve delivered their new record, Quarters!

Each King Gizzard album introduces a new innovation to their music, inspiring a flabbergasted ‘woah’ from the aciddamaged psychedelic fan in all of us; be it the opening 15-minute song suite of I’m In Your Mind Fuzz, or how half of Float Along – Fill Your Lungs was dedicated to a single track.

KING GIZZARD & THE LIZARD WIZARD Quarters!

Flightless/Remote Control

22 :: BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15

This time, they’ve produced a foursong album, each song being ten minutes and ten seconds in length exactly. Only they’re not songs so much as extended, mid-tempo psych passages. The vintage production techniques employed on previous

albums have been stepped up on Quarters!, which helps to give the album a sustained mood, but it also means the different sections blend together. Describing the individual songs is an arduous task – they all sound the same and do the same things. There’s none of the explosiveness of past peaks, but that’s only a disappointment if you were expecting such things. The Gizz don’t want to be easily pigeonholed, and Quarters! stands tall amongst their ever-increasing discography.

It’s a fully formed album, aiming for a more passive listening experience than past outings – one fit to put on next time you feel like re-enacting a Russ Meyer movie.

An unnatural love of The Kinks and a general mendacity are clearly evident on ‘Struck Matches’ and show that recycling all the influences he can remember goes a long way with Petralli. Let’s, for a period, forget that Bop English is such a blatantly silly moniker and forgive him for that. ‘Have I Got It Wrong’ is plainly not correct as the piano flits along. It all sounds extremely familiar and like a cratedigger’s reverential dream.

Of course, not everything works.

Stand up, ‘Falling At Your Feet’.

But then the gentle ‘The Hardest Way’ is a multi-coloured reflection on love as it tries to break your heart. In a perfect world, it should not be so difficult.

Much like the two records that precede it – 2011’s Join Us and 2013’s Nanobots – Glean has a killer opening track (‘Erase’), a bit of dorky fun (‘Unpronounceable’) and its share of diehards-only filler (the title track and ‘Madam, I Challenge You To A Duel’).

It’s safe to say that the Giants have found a method that works for them – and, quite probably, them only – and stuck with it through thick and thin. And why not? After all, it’s not as if the band has anything to prove to a younger generation – ones, perhaps, even too young to recall the band’s last charting hit, ‘Boss Of Me’.

The Johns know their audience, and the audience knows the Johns.

To upset the balance so late in proceedings just wouldn’t make sense for either camp.

The head-nodding tunes and psych-pop grooves are a bold step backwards and explore an exceedingly relaxed, almost sedated mood. Good on yer, boy.

Just adjust your glasses and take it all in for what it is. To overthink Glean is to undersell that relationship.

Bronius Zumeris

David James Young

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

THE GRATES - Gravity Won’t Get You High MARC COHN - Mark Cohn BACKSTREET BOYS - Backstreet’s Back

BLUR - The Magic Whip TOOL - Lateralus

Leonardo Silvestrini thebrag.com

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live reviews

up all night out all week . . .

What we've been out to see...

Maitland Showground Saturday May 9

As we were waiting for the lights to go down for RL Grime, Luke “from Newy” shared with me the reason he returns year after year to the Maitland Showground, resisting the big lights of Sydney festivals for this regional superstar, Groovin The Moo. “The Sydney shows have the production,” Luke told me, “but you can’t beat the vibe out here.”

As a long-time city slicker, the annual pilgrimage out to Maitland has rose-tinted my vision of the festival, but each year, remarkable lineups, impeccable logistics and an enthusiastic, gracious audience affirms the impression. As the Los Angeles-born trap lord started on a blistering set, throwing in What So Not cuts for extra local appeal, that familiar sense of fantasy took hold again. There’s a reason they call the tent the Moolin Rouge.

Grime might have had the trap kids losing their minds but there was also plenty on offer for the free spirits with their shimmering temporary tattoos.

You’d be forgiven for thinking that San Cisco and Broods were two of the biggest rock bands this country and its neighbour have ever produced, such was the reaction to quasi-nationalanthems ‘Run’ and ‘Mother & Father’. Elsewhere the emo kids had You Me At Six to look forward to and the hip hop heads the Hilltop Hoods. This diversity

would usually cause ructions in crowd and atmosphere alike, but manifested itself instead in felt hats cozying up to gold chains and headdresses rubbing shoulders with the rave-gloved.

Perhaps the apotheosis of this intermingling came with newbie electronic heroes Carmada, who mashed Blink-182 into Jay Z into their own tracks, all to a backdrop of psychedelic imagery.

If not officially in its mandate, Groovin The Moo has long been a champion of Australian acts. Performances from Meg Mac (superbly soulful), Ball Park Music (tripping the light, fantastic) and One Day (prodigiously popular) showed how backing local artists pays off in spades.

Regardless of their Inner West beginnings, hip hop crew One Day proved themselves a readily translatable, festival-ready success. Fellow Sydneysiders Sticky Fingers delivered a more restrained, less exhilarating performance. Meanwhile, British pop wunderkind Charli XCX shirked national borders to pop up fronting Carmada, introduce Tkay Maidza to ‘Fancy’ and generally make us proud of our Commonwealth association.

Finally, with RL Grime as a hard act to follow, Flight Facilities made the most of their headlining opportunity, winning over scores of girls on shoulders cooing to ‘Crave You’. Luke was dead on. How’s the serenity?

David Seidler

you me at six

PICS :: AM

GROOVIN THE MOO

06:05:15 :: Metro Theatre :: 624 George St Sydney 9550 3666

Every Friday in May we’ve got free live acts playing in Liverpool.

JEREMY GREGORY Come listen to R’n’B/ Soul artist Jeremy’s powerhouse vocals and see his charismatic stage presence.

Friday May 15 4pm – 7.30pm

Macquarie Mall Macquarie St, Liverpool Liverpool Live is a free program of events.

Brought to you by Liverpool City Council.

Saturday May 15 2pm X-factor contestants

JESSICA JADE & ROB ROY

For the full program visit www.liverpool.nsw.gov.au/liveatthemall thebrag.com

BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15 :: 23

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live reviews

up all night out all week . . .

PALOMA FAITH, JOEL CULPEPPER Sydney Opera House Sunday May 10

Do the songs make the show?

Hackney-born Paloma Faith is blessed with a powerful voice and an immensely disarming stage demeanour, yet pulling primarily from her third album of OK-butuninspiring retro-soul, her Sydney Opera House show ultimately fell flat.

Even in terms of energy and enthusiasm, the star was outshone by soul singer and occasional rapper Joel Culpepper. Taking just a small corner of the stage with his band, the South Londoner strutted and shuffled his way through a short set and set the tone for the night with a couple of blistering cover versions – showing that a great song is a good way to get the crowd on your side. Kelis and Andre 3000’s ‘Millionaire’ was pure fun, while his rendition of Prince’s ‘Purple Rain’ made you take his ability seriously. Plenty of similar talents have gone before and failed, but Culpepper, possessing perhaps the best British male voice since Omar – no lie – deserves to sell albums.

What we've been out to see...

Paloma Faith’s performance, like her latest LP, A Perfect Contradiction, had an air of the ’80s about it. There were no shoulder pads in her gorgeous, split-tothe-thigh, grey-and-glass ball gown, but her band looked like the ultimate cabaret back-up in gold tuxedos. The songs too, right from the top and the electro-funk of ‘Mouth To Mouth’ (“Let’s just do it like we just met”).

The biggest reception – aside from the one for recent ARIA chart-topper, ‘Only Love Can Hurt Like This’ – was reserved for later on and a version of Sydney anthem ‘Never Tear Us Apart’, transformed into an atmospheric James Bond theme.

It’s no mean feat to get the Opera House on its feet, which Faith, to her credit, managed several times, but most effectively with an encore rendition of ‘River Deep – Mountain High’. It served to highlight the gulf between a genuine classic and a palatable pop song, and that the strength of a gig depends largely on the quality of the material.

David Wild

DIESEL, RIN MCARDLE Newtown Social Club Saturday May 9

Diesel is an Australian staple. If you live on the east coast of Australia, chances are that Diesel has either just passed through your vicinity, or has a gig coming up. He’s released 13 albums over the past 26 years, with a smattering of charting singles. If you switch on a radio even now, there’s an outside chance they’re playing one of his songs.

The man otherwise known as Mark Lizotte has spent the better part of the last decade exploring the more intimate sides of music, focused more on the acoustic guitar, and playing smaller shows (mostly at his family’s Lizotte’s venues). This Amplifi ed tour does as the name suggests, however, seeing Diesel front a three-piece band in a more traditional venue, Newtown Social Club.

Earlier, Rin McArdle opened up the show with a handful of soul-inspired tunes. Switching between different synth sounds and an acoustic guitar, McArdle had a warm presence and a great voice, which only solidifi ed the songs she was performing.

PHOTOGRAPHER :: ASHLEY MAR

24 :: BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15

aver

The set was fun and easy-going, but still tight as hell. Diesel was backed up by a rhythm section that could have played this material upside down and underwater. He made sure they went through all the major hits, and threw a few surprises in too. A collaborative cover of Patti Smith’s ‘Because The Night’ was a set highlight. Other wildcards included a cover of ‘Have Love, Will Travel’, and a song that segued into Hendrix’s ‘Spanish Castle Magic’. Encores featured some more familiar favourites, ‘Tip Of My Tongue’ and ‘Can’t Stand The Rain’.

One of the best parts about the evening was the positive energy that was in the room. You could tell that Diesel enjoyed being onstage, and it was a feeling that was refl ected back to him by the audience. In a career that is enjoying its third decade, it’s comforting to see that the passion is still there, from performer and audience alike.

Spencer Scott

PICS :: AM

The headliner himself played guitar like he had kept every instrument he owned and locked them in a basement

for ten years, and this was the first time he’d taken them out to play again.

Diesel swapped guitars and pedals like a restless child, using each one for extended guitar solos and jam sessions.

Even the lone acoustic guitar he brought onstage eventually got swamped in a layer of distortion.

10:05:15 :: Frankie’s Pizza :: 50 Hunter St Sydney thebrag.com

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up all night out all week . . .

ALT-J, ÁSGEIR, MANSIONAIR Qantas Credit Union Arena Saturday May 9

Alt-J can’t get enough of Australia, or Australia can’t get enough of Alt-J – it’s hard to tell anymore. No sooner had they left our shores, and they’re back for their biggest headlining Australian tour dates.

Opening act Mansionair pulled an early crowd of their hometown followers and overexcited Alt-J fans that wanted to see anyone play an instrument. Mansionair always seem to have a gold star next to their name – it mightn’t be long until they are headlining stadium tours of their own.

Next up, Ásgeir gave everyone a free trip to Reykjavík, as rich, deep harmonies of an Icelandic soundscape fi lled the arena. Long notes of lost love and harsh elements crashed on the walls as the powerful sound dragged you under the waves. Switching languages partway through the set, the beauty of Icelandic completes Ásgeir’s sound.

The slow building intro of ‘Hunger Of The Pine’ echoed though the building, and the silhouettes of Alt-J appeared onstage against epic stage lighting.

As the screen behind them projected

visualisations that matched the energy of the crowd, a festival vibe had taken over the general admission area by the end of ‘Fitzpleasure’.

A balance of tracks from both of their albums proved the consistent quality of music Alt-J produce. Even on the evidence of the indulgent lyrics of ‘Every Other Freckle’ and settling into the groove of ‘Left Hand Free’, we may still not have seen the best Alt-J have to offer.

Their stage act has developed since we saw them last – unison claps and a fi ll-in-the-blanks sing-along for ‘Matilda’ entertained the masses. Nonetheless, Alt-J are the same old friends that arrived here two years ago, and the strong harmonies of ‘Ripe & Ruin’ are still a set highlight. Holding up triangles instead of phones for ‘Tessellate’, theirs is an audience that wants to be in the moment – not just the spectacle.

Returning onstage for an encore, the Englishmen thanked their “best fans ever” and promised they would return soon, before closing with ‘Breezeblocks’.

The fans were left yelling, “Please don’t go, we love you so,” and realising they really meant it.

Tanydd Jaquet

KE PHOTOGRAPHER :: KATRINA CLAR

COURTNEY BARNETT Metro Theatre Thursday May 7

Courtney Barnett is finding out what happens when a proudly indie artist releases a critically and commercially successful debut album; you sell out everlarger venues faster then the time that’s required to refine your sound to make it big enough to fill such venues.

That’s not a slight on the always solid backing of Bones Sloane on bass and Dave Mudie on drums, or Barnett herself.

It’s just that at a place such as the bassheavy Metro, Barnett’s charming indie twang can get drowned out. So the jaunty ‘Elevator Operator’ that begins her album became a sluggish concert opener that underwhelmed – a feeling that followed for half the concert. No matter how energetic the players onstage were (and they can’t be faulted for performance), they couldn’t overcome the muddy sound of the room.

That’s a usual trapping of a standard threepiece set-up. I know her usual ancillary guitarist Dan Luscombe can’t always be in attendance (as he wasn’t here) thanks to Drones-related duties – although, if a permanent joint tour of The Drones and The Courtney Barnetts could be arranged, that would be great – but a secondary guitarist would go a long way in beefing up the group’s sound, and would free up Barnett to deliver more of her brilliantly

ragged solo work that she can’t always do if she’s the sole guitarist.

It’s no surprise, then, that the songs that matched the intensity projected off the stage were the ones where Barnett turned on a bunch of fuzz and distortion pedals and just let loose. ‘Pedestrian At Best’, ‘Canned Tomatoes (Whole)’ and ‘Nobody Really Cares If You Don’t Go To The Party’ were the songs that really got the Metro moving. Slow burners ‘Small Poppies’ and ‘Kim’s Caravan’ did one better – their incremental waves of noise momentarily hypnotised the crowd.

I say momentarily, because the other new development when becoming a quick success is the increase in gig attendees who are only there to hear one song. While it was gratifying to hear a roomful of people sing along to the hook in the brilliant ‘Depreston’, I’m not sure it was worth having no choice for the rest of the concert but to listen to a group of dudes around me debate the merits of the new Avengers movie (they weren’t big fans).

For those types of punters, it would have been a decent gig. They got good performances of the singles, and that would have been enough. But for the more devoted, this was a glimpse of a great artist going through some growing pains as she rapidly expands her fan base. Hopefully she works it out soon, and starts delivering the type of fantastic gigs her recorded output hints at.

Leonardo Silvestrini

KE PHOTOGRAPHER :: KATRINA CLAR

thebrag.com

BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15 :: 25

g g guide gig g

send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com

pick of the week Mötley Crüe

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

SATURDAY MAY 16 Allphones Arena

Mötley Crüe + Alice Cooper 7:30pm. $60.

WEDNESDAY MAY 13 ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK Ionia + Dear Orphans The Gasoline Pony, Marrickville. 7pm. $5.

Jeremy Gregory Soda Factory, Surry Hills.

7pm. Free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Free.

Mark Travers Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

9pm. Free.

Muso’s Club Jam Night Bald Faced Stag Hotel, Leichhardt. 8pm. Free.

Phil Hancock + Holly Terrens Cafe Lounge Bar, Surry Hills.

7pm. Free.

Tonewolf + Chugro + Sptr + Tilky Mits + Neon Agenda Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 7pm. $5.

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC Aaron Michael Band

Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8:30pm. Free.

The Roots & Riddim Club feat: The Errol Renaud Trio + DJ Dizar Play Bar, Surry Hills. 8pm.

Free.

THURSDAY MAY 14 ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

De’May + James Thomson The Gasoline Pony, Marrickville. 7pm. $5.

Forest Falls + Jenny Broke

Black Zeros + Hedge Fund + DJ Saarzy Standard Bowl, Surry Hills.

9pm. Free.

Flaccid Mohawk - feat: Michael Crane + Jones The Cat Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 8pm. $10.

Fm99.3 All-Star Variety Fundraiser - feat: Sam McNally + Barry Leef + Jeff Duff + Doug Williams + Diana Rouvas + The First Ladies Of Soul + Jo Elms + Liza Ohlback + Amanda Easton + Dave Weir + Nic Jeffries + Kimi Tupaea + Tom Ferris + Craig Calhoun + Jason Bruer + Dave Plenty + Harry Brus + Greg Ohlback + Dave Longo + Damon McMahon + Skye Elisabeth + Fenix Martinez + Emile Nelson Rick Robertson + Daniel Moore Lizotte’s, Dee Why. 7:30pm. $35.

Morgan Bain Frankie’s Pizza, Sydney.

8pm. Free.

Muso’s Club Jam Night Carousel Inn Hotel, Rooty Hill. 8pm. Free.

Red Fang Manning Bar, Camperdown.

8pm. $50.

Rock The World (Bar) feat: Various Artists The World Bar, Kings Cross.

8pm. $15.

Steve Crocker Manly Leagues Club, Brookvale. 7pm. Free.

The Pinheads Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. Free.

Watsup

Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

9pm. Free.

FRIDAY MAY 15 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC Jeremy Gregory Macquarie Mall, Liverpool.

4pm. Free.

Sexy Sunday Jam Bellini Lounge, Potts Point.

7pm. Free.

Ted Nash Manly Leagues Club, Brookvale. 9:30pm. Free.

The HP Coronados The Annandale Hotel, Annandale. 8pm. Free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

Gang Of Youths Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $18.70.

Harbour Masters Duo Crown Hotel, Sydney. 8pm.

Free.

Jonathan Jones Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

4:30pm. Free.

Kallidad Kings Cross Hotel, Kings Cross. 9pm. $10.

Miles Away + Blacklisted + Downside + Controlled + Deadly Visions Red Rattler, Marrickville.

8pm. $25.

Ocean Alley Moonshine Cider & Rum Bar, Manly. 6pm. Free.

Reckless Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

9:30pm. Free.

Rosco & Gene Fortune Of War, The Rocks.

8pm. Free.

Soviet X-Ray Record Club feat: Sounds Like Winter + DJ Action Ant + DJ Kafka The Basement, Circular Quay. 8pm. $10.

Spandau Ballet Qantas Credit Union Arena, Darling Harbour. 8pm. $101.85.

The Getaway Plan Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $30.

The Lockhearts + Jody + The Strange Goodgod Small Club, Sydney. 8pm. $10.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK Adam Harvey + Luke O’Shea Sydney Opera House, Sydney. 7:45pm. $69.

Big Rich

Vineyard Hotel, Vineyard.

9:30pm. Free.

Charlie Forster Marrickville Ritz Hotel, Marrickville. 8pm. Free.

Claude Hay Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8pm. Free.

Fuschia Petersham Bowling Club, Petersham. 8:30pm. $10.

Kurt Williams Chatswood RSL, Chatswood.

5pm. Free.

Rebecca Moore Panania Diggers, Panania.

8pm. Free.

Rob Eastwood Campbelltown Catholic Club, Campbelltown. 6pm. Free.

The Maybees The Gasoline Pony, Marrickville. 7pm. $5.

The Sydney Rock + Soul Review - feat: Sally King + Ward’s Xpress + Sametribe Brass Monkey, Cronulla.

7pm. $25.

Vanessa Heinitz Kings Park Tavern, Kings Park. 7pm. Free.

SATURDAY MAY 16 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC Sexy Sunday Jam Bellini Lounge, Potts Point.

7pm. Free.

Taikoz Goodgod Small Club, Sydney. 8pm. $42.60.

Ted Nash Fortune Of War, The Rocks.

3pm. Free.

Ted Nash The Belvedere Hotel, Sydney. 7:30pm. Free.

Weird Assembly The Annandale Hotel, Annandale. 8pm. Free.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

Common Eclectic + David Bridie + Fred Smith Glebe Town Hall, Glebe.

2:30pm. $30.

Dan Sharkey Fortune Of War, The Rocks.

8pm. Free.

Forest Falls + Bears With Guns The Gaelic Club, Surry Hills.

8pm. Free.

Jasmine Rae + Matt Cornell Rooty Hill RSL Club, Rooty Hill. 8pm. $23.

Mojo House Band - feat: Jesse & James Mojo Record Bar, Sydney.

7pm. Free.

Paul Hayward

Xxx

Echo Deer Corridor Bar, Newtown. 5pm.

The Window Bondi Bowling Club, Bondi.

8pm. Free.

Jimmy Maddon Music - feat: Snoteleks + Nick Coady Music + The Invisible Circus Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 9pm. $10.

Little Wolf + Ina Maka Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8:30pm. $10.

Nick Saxon Black Penny, Surry Hills.

8pm. Free.

Peter Bibby + The Dandelion Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $15.

Stormcellar Camelot Lounge, Marrickville. 8pm. $10.

The Button Collective The Annandale Hotel, Annandale. 8pm. Free.

Vanessa Heinitz Fortune Of War, The Rocks.

7pm. Free.

26 :: BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15

thebrag.com

g g guide gig g

send your listings to : gigguide@thebrag.com Town & Country Hotel, St Peters. 4pm. Free.

Rebecca Moore Picton Hotel, Picton. 8pm.

Free.

Rob Eastwood Crown Hotel, Sydney. 8pm.

Free.

Shotgun Wedding The Gasoline Pony, Marrickville. 3pm. $5.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

AJ + Lochie Manly Leagues Club, Brookvale. 9pm. Free.

Chris Wilson + The Cyril B Bunter Band The Basement, Circular Quay. 7pm. $25.

David Bridie + Fred Smith Glebe Town Hall, Glebe.

2:30pm. $22.

Elevate Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

9:30pm. Free.

Eric Grothe & The Gurus Macarthur Tavern, Campbelltown. 9pm. Free.

Alice Cooper

Eye Of The Tiger Carousel Inn Hotel, Rooty Hill. 8pm. Free.

Floyd Vincent And The Temple Dogs + Echo Deer + The Subterraneans + Brendon Ludlow + Josh Reeves Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8pm. $15.

Half Nelson Club Engadine, Engadine.

8pm. Free.

Harbour Master Marrickville Ritz Hotel, Marrickville. 8pm. Free.

Jack Ladder & The Dreamlanders Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst. 8pm. $28.90.

Jericco Bald Faced Stag Hotel, Leichhardt. 8pm. Free.

Jessica Jade + Rob Roy, Macquarie Mall, Liverpool.

2pm. Free.

Jimmy Bear Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

4:30pm. Free.

Jonny Gardiner Kings Park Tavern, Kings Park. 7pm. Free.

Miles Away + Blacklisted + Downside + Controlled + Deadly Visions Red Rattler, Marrickville.

8pm. $29.10.

Mötley Crüe + Alice Cooper Allphones Arena, Sydney Olympic Park. 7:30pm. $60.

Ocean Alley + Blueberry Circuit Metro Theatre, Sydney. 4pm. $13.30.

Rosco James Coogee Diggers, Coogee.

8pm. Free.

Sons Of Mercury Scruffy Murphy’s Hotel, Sydney. 10pm. Free.

The Getaway Plan

+ Limpin’ Jimmy & The Swingin’ Kitten + Wally Wally + Andy Travers + The Crimplenes Manning Bar, Camperdown.

10:30am. $5.

The Mighty Surftones Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 6:30pm. Free.

Vinyl Fair II - Feat: Bin Juice + Blackbird Frankie’s Pizza, Sydney.

12pm. Free.

Newtown Social Club, Newtown. 8pm. $30.

The Haunted + Insomnium + Daemon Pyre Manning Bar, Camperdown.

7:30pm. $66.60.

Vanity South Hurstville RSL Club, South Hurstville. 9pm. Free.

Venom Clubnight - feat: Absolution + As Paradise Falls + To The Grave + Ghosts Of Pandora + Diamond Construct Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 9pm. $15.

MONDAY MAY 18

SUNDAY MAY 17 JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Ted Nash Riverstone Sportsmans Hotel, Riverstone. 1pm. Free.

ACOUSTIC, COUNTRY, BLUES & FOLK

From Street To Stage feat: Joe Moore + Various Other Artists Soda Factory, Surry Hills.

6pm. Free.

Isingonthecake Choir The Gasoline Pony, Marrickville. 5pm. $5.

John Vella The Mill Hotel, Milperra.

11:30am. Free.

Kentucky Moon Union Hotel, Newtown. 4pm.

Free.

Rob Eastwood Fortune Of War, The Rocks.

8pm. Free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

The Rocksteady Ratpack Sunday Courtyard Sessions - feat: Jenna + Zana The Annandale Hotel, Annandale. 3pm. Free.

The Blackhill Ramblers Marrickville Bowling Club, Marrickville. 4:30pm. Free.

INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS

AJ Hotel Pennant Hills, Pennant Hills. 5:30pm. Free.

Andy Mammers Duo Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

4:30pm. Free.

Ben Fox Trio Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

8:30pm. Free.

Bill Kacir Picton Hotel, Picton. 1pm.

Free.

Dave Debs

Ingleburn Hotel, Ingleburn.

5:30pm. Free.

Driverside Airbag - feat: Larange Bucket + Skinpin + Arse Eyes + Tick Us A Bag + Garden Hose Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 3pm. $10.

Finn Ruby L’otel, Rozelle.

6:30pm. Free.

Harbour Master Macarthur Tavern, Campbelltown. 2pm. Free.

Kurt Williams Kings Park Tavern, Kings Park. 12pm. Free.

Lucky Luke & His Shooting Stars The Forresters, Surry Hills.

2pm. Free.

Sydney Rock ‘N’ Roll & Alternative Market - feat: The Rocksteady Ratpack + The Detonators + Backy Skank + Cruisin’ Deuces

They Call Me Bruce Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

9pm. Free.

JAZZ, SOUL, FUNK, LATIN & WORLD MUSIC

Sonic Mayhem Orchestra Lazybones Lounge, Marrickville. 8:30pm. Free.

TUESDAY MAY 19 INDIE, ROCK, POP, METAL, PUNK & COVERS Anton Orient Hotel, The Rocks.

9pm. Free.

Live & Originals @ Mr Falcons - feat: Declan Kelly + Armistice +

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g g picks gig p

up all night out all week...

WEDNESDAY MAY 13

Spandau Ballet Qantas Credit Union Arena, Darling Harbour. 8pm. $101.85.

Peter Bibby + The Dandelion Newtown Social Club, Newtown.

8pm. $15.

The Getaway Plan Newtown Social Club, Newtown.

8pm. $30.

THURSDAY MAY 14 Black Zeros + Hedge Fund + DJ Saarzy Standard Bowl, Surry Hills. 9pm.

Free.

Morgan Bain Frankie’s Pizza, Sydney. 8pm. Free.

Red Fang Manning Bar, Camperdown. 8pm. $50.

Morgan Bain

FRIDAY MAY 15

The Lockhearts + Jody + The Strange Goodgod Small Club, Sydney.

8pm. $10.

Adam Harvey + Luke O’Shea Sydney Opera House, Sydney.

7:45pm. $69.

SATURDAY MAY 16

Gang Of Youths Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst.

8pm. $18.70

Common Eclectic + David Bridie + Fred Smith Glebe Town Hall, Glebe. 2:30pm. $30.

Miles Away + Blacklisted + Downside + Controlled + Deadly Visions Red Rattler, Marrickville. 8pm. $25.

Gang Of Youths

Forest Falls + Bears With Guns The Gaelic Club, Sydney. 8pm.

Free.

Jack Ladder & The Dreamlanders

Jack Ladder & The Dreamlanders Oxford Art Factory, Darlinghurst.

8pm. $28.90.

Miles Away + Blacklisted + Downside + Controlled + Deadly Visions Red Rattler, Marrickville. 8pm. $29.10.

Ocean Alley + Blueberry Circuit Metro Theatre, Sydney. 4pm. $13.30

SUNDAY MAY 17 Red Fang

Vinyl Fair II - Feat: Bin Juice + Blackbird Frankie’s Pizza, Sydney. 12pm.

Free.

EVERY BANDS, BOOZE, BOWLING, GOOD TIMES! THURSDAY DOORS OPEN

9PM-LATE

FREE Y

ENTR Y

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BLACK ZEROS + HEDGE FUND + DJ SAAZY

28 :: BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15

thebrag.com

BRAGâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s guide to dance, hip hop and club culture

brag beats

inside:

plus: + club guide + club snaps + weekly column

onra

hot dub time machine donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t stop till you get enough

thebrag.com

BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15 :: 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 Martin

five things WITH

KWEEN G Your Crew These days my crew 3. is myself and Original Dancehall Queens (Memuna and Heloise). But you can’t forget where you came from and I’m a Killaqueen till day dot. I have definitely grown as a lyricist and writing less party tracks and more life tracks. It’s our responsibly as vocalists to talk of the times we are in and not pussyfoot around like shit is sweet.

JOELISTICS JOINS THE CLASS

Elefant Traks signees Joelistics and Astronomy Class have joined forces for a co-headline tour of the east coast, set to embark later this month. MC Joelistics of TZU fame used his 2014 solo LP Blue Volume to explore a more political side of his music, while also indulging in collaborations with the likes of The Smith Street Band’s Wil Wagner. Meanwhile, Astronomy Class (featuring The Herd’s Ozi Batla and producers Chasm and Sir Robbo) took collaboration to the extreme on their last record, Mekong Delta Sunrise, teaming with Cambodian Space Project frontwoman Srey Channthy for an album of Khmer-infused hip hop and soul. Channthy and Vida Sunshyne will join Astronomy Class onstage as they play Newtown Social Club on Saturday May 30, with the bill also featuring Joelistics and special guest Ellesquire.

Joelistics

The Music You Make The Ladies Love DJ 4. lineup – Josie Styles, Ms. Hennessey, Krystel Diola and Taline – are all experienced crowd rockers and guarantee a night to remember. We also have the pleasure of the Stay Fly ladies, who will be down with some love art. My live set is still live with some confronting moments to get us thinking, but I’ll still make some heads nod and bodies move.

Music, Right Here, Right Now 5.

The local scene is the

Growing Up I grew up in an area 1. where being the only

has helped me to build a thick skin.

African family meant that you were related to 2Pac… no seriously, I actually rode with that for some time. These days I wouldn’t call that so cool since I’ve opened my eyes and ears to ignorance. Having older brothers is a definite influence in my life as that was my introduction to hip hop. It also meant that being an only girl I was one of the boys, and I think that

Inspirations I was mostly inspired 2.

by African soukous, artists like Koffi Olomide, Kanda Bongo Man, Awilo Longomba, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh. I was a dancer before I ever dreamt of being an MC. It was when I met Mr. Zux, The African Spear, that I was inspired to take on recording my own songs and roughly mixing them.

inspiration behind the threepart series of Still Love Her: Ladies Love Hip Hop. It’s time to bring the energy to the women and join forces for the better of this culture we have come to grow and be a part of. We also expect to be introduced to ladies who love and make hip hop that want to play, spray or have something to say.

What: Still Love Her: Ladies Love Hip Hop With: Josie Styles, Ms. Hennessey, Krystel Diola, Taline Where: Play Bar When: Saturday May 16

Seth Sentry

KISS MY TIGERLILY

A Sydney partystarting favourite returns to the Ivy decks this weekend, as the effervescent Tigerlily and her production collaborators bring the Kiss My Tigerlily show back to Pacha. It’s the type of action you’d fi nd in Hollywood: an intergalactic world of laser cats, unicorns, mermaids and ‘sextronauts’. Oh boy. Of course, Tigerlily will have plenty of big room beats to offer on the night, as will a host of local spinners including Glover, Kyro, Acaddamy, Moto, Bronx, Samrai, Chris Arnott, Just1, Losty, A-Game, King Lee, Jace Disgrace, Chris Fraser, E-Cats and Trent Rackus. It all goes down this Saturday May 16.

SPICE GETS FOXY

If there’s one thing dance music crowds appreciate, it’s a creative and innovative artist. Too often DJs and producers can rely on the tricks of technology to coast through a party without breaking a sweat. Not so Andras Fox, a Melbourne producer who stands on his reputation for making things musical: always creative and often imperfect.

Fox is the latest addition to The Spice Cellar’s lineup at its new home, the Imperial Hotel in Erskineville, alongside UK producer Harvey McKay, who’s broken out from the Glasgow underground. Together, they’ll hit Spice on Saturday June 6. Ben Fester, Andy Webb, Adi Toohey, Adam Proctor and Al Hearnshaw will be there in support.

NO FLASH IN THE PAN

Feeling a little fl ashy this weekend? You’d best make your way to Marquee, where DJ Flash lights things up this Friday May 15. Flash, AKA Michael Gray, carries a CV that boasts Stereosonic and Future Music festival slots and a residency at Platinum Nightclub on the Gold Coast. To bastardise a Queen lyric, he mightn’t be the saviour of the universe, but he sure will bring the party.

SETH SENTRY’S STRANGE NEW PAST

Fresh from announcing the release of his new album, Strange New Past (due out Friday June 5) and premiering its lead single ‘Hell Boy’ on triple j, big-shot Aussie rapper Seth Sentry is taking his show on the road. Already, Sentry has revealed he’s eager to get back into the lyrical flow – and not just be famous as the guy behind the catchy yet tame (by hip hop standards) ‘The Waitress Song’ – and ‘Hell Boy’ goes some way to proving it. Sentry’s huge national tour kicks off at Come Together Festival on Saturday June 6 at Luna Park, and he’ll also play Panthers Newcastle on Saturday June 27 and The Entrance Leagues Club on Sunday June 28.

30 :: BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15

Ridvan

MEANWHILE AT THE LAUNDRY

Bass is the name of the game at Chinese Laundry this weekend, as Future Classic’s HWLS leads the line. HWLS is the new side project from Ta-Ku in collaboration with producer and remixer Kit Pop, and already they’re delivering a progressive twist on deep house, hip hop and R&B. Hatch, Ventures, Robustt, Gold Brix, Nick Berry, Dis DJs, Brown Bear, Young Butter, Rat Life and Chenzo are in tow this Friday May 15.

RIDVAN HITS THE HEIGHTS

Burgeoning production and DJing talent Ridvan, currently out on his debut national tour, has received a big career boost after winning the international Ultra Music remix competition. The 18-year-old Melburnian, who’s now partway through an 18-date tour that’s taking him to capital city and regional venues around Australia, beat 6,000 entries from all corners of the globe in a contest to remix the track ‘Another Land’ by Australia’s own Will Sparks.

Ridvan’s mix is a slower, beats-based interpretation of Sparks’ patent sound, and belies his limited experience on the DJing scene, having only taken his place behind the decks some four months ago. He’s a young talent on the rise, and will be sure to turn heads next time he lands in Sydney.

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5-9PM THURSDAY 14TH MAY GLUE STORE CENTRAL PARK, SYDNEY Free food + drinks | DJ | Free G-Star Barber cut with every purchase |

Alcohol will be served to 18+ ID holders only.

w w w. g l u e s t o re . c o m . a u | @ g l u e s t o re

BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15 :: 31

Hot Dub Time Machine Loud And Clear By Myjanne Jensen The world’s first time-travelling dance party, Hot Dub Time Machine is one of the most exciting and universal concepts to come out of the Australian music scene in recent years, ever since its genesis at Sydney Fringe Festival. With a niche yet widely appealing premise – moving chronologically, song by song, through pop music history – it’s not hard to understand why Hot Dub Time Machine has become such a worldwide phenomenon, and has seen Loud (AKA Tom Lowndes) just last month playing at the worldfamous Coachella festival, where he mingled with super celebs and even touched the hand of a crowd-surfing Yeezus.

“Hot Dub Time Machine is a dance party for everyone because there’s this awesome, natural build that comes from working chronologically from the ’50s and ’60s, and it just brings everybody together as it goes along through time,” Loud explains.

“I start off with the ’50s, which has a lot of awesome rock, swing and rockabilly, and from there I go into the ’60s with The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Supremes. The ’70s obviously has all this great disco with The Bee Gees and where everyone starts getting their groove on, but then comes the ’80s, which has the most extraordinary music with everything like Michael Jackson, Salt-N-Pepa and Annie Lennox.

“The intensity then just keeps building with the heavy metal and grunge and modern hip hop basslines that come with the ’90s and from there through to 2014 things start to really go crazy.”

I

f the idea of booty-shaking, singing along, yelling “woohoo” and chatting up the person next to you combined with the best pop songs of all time

sounds like your kind of party, then DJ Tom Loud’s Hot Dub Time Machine is the ticket to one of the best nights of your life.

Loud and his Hot Dub Time Machine team have managed to create more than just your average dance party, with its use of huge screens and technical wizardry on Loud’s laptop,

allowing him to scratch and mash up audio and video. The DJ’s wife and actress, Alexandra Plim, also appears by his side (albeit virtually) assisting with the introduction of the show, as well as ensuring that patrons are equipped with all the best dance moves throughout the set.

Besides Mr. and Mrs. Loud, there is also a crew of production staff, so with the interchange between festivals and headline gigs, the wheels are always turning for the Hot Dub crew.

“Festivals are very different to the main show because they’re usually only a 45-to-60-minute set, whereas a Hot Dub Time Machine show is around two, three hours, so you have to pack as many moments as you can into the time you have – so it’s essentially a never-ending process.

“For a festival it takes about a week to prepare and we’ve made my wife into a hostess character, Lulu Loud, so we shoot a lot of videos prior to the show as well to use as visuals during the performance,” he says. “We’re constantly tinkering with what we do, so it’s definitely a work in progress and it’s my aim that when people come to see the show again, they can tell that it’s just getting better and better.”

Watching Loud at the top of his game and the way he works the crowd while fiddling madly with multiple turntables and other technical contraptions, it would be easy to assume that success was always on the cards. It wasn’t always that straightforward, however. Loud first started DJing well over a decade ago.

“I started DJing in 2001 and I’ve been doing it professionally for about four years, so around the time when things started to build with Hot Dub Time Machine,” he says. “I went through various stages where I wasn’t having

much success in my career and was just doing house parties like the vast majority of DJs do, so there were times where I questioned if I wanted to keep going and where I had just had enough.

“I ended up developing this odd niche where I started to play in the comedy scene and which I started to really enjoy, and after that I knew that I wanted to be a part of that world and to travel and get out there,” he says.

It was after his performance at the Sydney Fringe, and witnessing a whole room erupt and break out in dance to ‘Rock Around The Clock’, that Loud fully understood the potential of his retro show. “I put the idea on Facebook for a name to suit a time-travelling dance party and one of my mates came up with the idea of Hot Dub Time Machine, which was a lot cooler than what I originally had in mind,” he laughs.

“The first night we performed Hot Dub we managed to sell out and it was amazing, especially having people sitting there watching the whole opening bit with Lulu performing her safety demos and all that fun stuff and then seeing everybody get up and dance with the first song – that’s pretty rare to see as a DJ. “Hot Dub Time Machine is also a reaction to this whole thing now where DJs are just too cool and where people aren’t allowed to go into nightclubs because they’re too old or whatever. DJing isn’t supposed to be about being cool or about dressing up, it’s meant to focus on the dancing, and [there are] not enough places to do that anymore.”

Where: Metro Theatre When: Thursday May 14 – Saturday May 16

Onra Fundamental Beats By Shaun Cowe roducer, Parisian and jack-ofall-genres Onra, AKA Arnaud Bernard, has gathered fans across the world with his goldenera-inspired hip hop tunes and conceptual approach to songwriting.

Now, ahead of his latest LP release, Fundamentals, and a national Australian tour, a bleary-eyed Bernard has woken up to chat to us about his work.

P

to recreate the classic ’90s feel, while adapting and making it his own. For him, it all boils down to a recipe for good hip hop. “It’s mostly the voice; obviously I’m going to have to love the beat, so good drum programming, good bass, beautiful samples… [there] could be a little filter in there and a couple of vocal samples. There you go, a good hip hop track.”

“When I listen to stuff and I think it sounds good, I just trust my ears,” Bernard says, explaining his ubiquitous approach to finding inspiration for new tracks. “There’s not really a special recipe that I’m looking for. I just do whatever I want.

But then I like to do conceptual albums, so that helps me to find a direction for the whole project. Once I have that direction set in mind, I exactly know what I’m trying to look for, so that makes it easier to find samples.”

Speaking of the voice, one of the major drawcards for Bernard’s latest LP is his work with vocal artists such as Chuck Inglish, Daz Dillinger, The Doppelgangaz and Suzi Analogue.

Collaborating with vocalists was relatively new ground for Bernard, but he adapted quickly.

Bernard’s latest release sees a departure from the more exotic compositional tastes of his Chinoiseries. For him, it’s all in the name; a return to roots, a revivification of the great sounds that inspired his teenage love of music.

“You know, I’m 34 now, so I was trying to go back to when I was 15 in ’96. The kind of albums I was listening to at the time gave me this special feeling that I’ve never, ever found again in any new music coming out. I really missed that feeling of listening to a whole album.

It’s just that whole aesthetic of it that inspired me to do this album the way I did.”

Dissecting those old tracks and his love for them, Bernard has tried 32 :: BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15

“It’s my first time doing this kind of project; it’s definitely something I’d do again,” he says. “There was less pressure on me because I knew I could count on someone else to complete the track, so I actually really liked working with vocal artists.”

When it came to choosing who to work with, Bernard says he simply looked for the people who best fit into his vision. “I knew what I wanted, in terms of what kind of vibe I was going for. All those artists, they just came up pretty naturally to me. I exactly knew, with this or that person, what I was going to get without spending too much time explaining what kind of vibe I was going for.”

With the LP finished and set for release, the next step for Onra is a launch tour, which will see him play five dates across Australia including the Red Bull Music Academy showcase at the Sydney Opera

House for Vivid LIVE. For Bernard, that means a lot of preparation.

“I’ve been busy doing videos for the album a couple weeks ago in New York. Now I’m working on my live set because of my tour in Australia, so I just have to find a way to play those new songs in my set. The tricky part is to include those vocals in my set and the guests not being here onstage with me – I think it’s kind of tricky to keep people entertained.”

Bernard actually has a long-running relationship with the RBMA, going back around seven years.

“Since I was a participant in the Red Bull Music Academy 2008 in Barcelona we’ve cooperated on many different types of events, be it club shows or festivals. Sometimes

I gave a lecture in Moscow or Brazil.

I think we’re trying to establish a partnership.

“I hope I’ll be able to come back [to Australia] every year for a while, because I really love to play here,” he says. “I think maybe it’s just that I have lots of interested people in Australia that want to see my live [show]. I’m trying to represent them the best I can. I think I’m a good example to tell people, ‘Anyone can make it.’”

From his relatively humble origins as a bedroom producer to international tours and sponsorship, it’s a hard to argue with him. Already looking beyond Fundamentals towards his next release, Bernard has plans to supplant his analogue equipment with software and change the way

he creates music. When asked what advice he has for up-and-comers, Bernard has this to say: “Really, the best advice I could give is to keep on being yourself. It sounds super cliché, but I think there’s a lot of talented musicians but not too many artists, actually. So, I think if people just really try to express themselves through music, in the purest way, I think that will be to their advantage.”

What: RMBA Free Opening Night Party as part of Vivid LIVE 2015 With: Dreems, The Goods, Sui Et Sui, Physique Where: Studio, Sydney Opera House When: Friday May 22 And: Fundamentals out Monday May 18 independently thebrag.com

club guide g

send your listings to : clubguide@thebrag.com

club pick of the week Hot Dub Time Machine

THURSDAY MAY 14 SATURDAY MAY 16 Metro Theatre

Hot Dub Time Machine 8pm. $49.85.

WEDNESDAY MAY 13 HIP HOP & R&B

Sarah Connor + Astrix Little + Luen + Bam Bam Newtown Hotel, Newtown.

8pm. Free.

CLUB NIGHTS

Beyoncé Dance Class Goodgod Small Club, Sydney.

4:30pm. $17.

The Wall The World Bar, Kings Cross.

9pm. $5.

THURSDAY MAY 14 HIP HOP & R&B

Sydney Freestyle Lounge (Open Mic Night) Play Bar, Surry Hills. 8pm.

Free.

CLUB NIGHTS

Hot Dub Time Machine Metro Theatre, Sydney. 8pm. $49.85.

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

Free.

The World Bar Thursdays The World Bar, Kings Cross.

9pm. Free.

FRIDAY MAY 15 CLUB NIGHTS

Aaron Manhattan + Amanda Louise + Guests The Spice Cellar, Erskineville.

7pm. Free. thebrag.com

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

Free.

Bassic - feat: HWLS + Hatch + Ventures + Robustt + Gold Brix + Nick Berry + Dis DJs + Brown Bear + Young Butter + Rat Life + Chenzo Chinese Laundry, Sydney.

8pm. $17.50.

Blvd Fridays - feat: DJ Flash Marquee, Pyrmont. 10pm. $13.40.

Brenny B Side Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly.

8pm. Free.

El Loco Later - feat: DJs On Rotation Excelsior Hotel, Surry Hills.

10pm. Free.

Factory Fridays - feat: Resident DJs Soda Factory, Surry Hills.

7pm. Free.

Feel Good Fridays Bar100, The Rocks. 5pm.

Free.

Hot Dub Time Machine Metro Theatre, Sydney. 8pm. $49.85.

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

Free.

Mental Asylum Sydney - feat: Indecent Noise + James Dymond + Matt Bowdidge + Standerwick Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 10pm. $25.

Sydney Pony Club + Simon Caldwell + Cala Tarida + The Streat + Maximus Nice Guy Goodgod Small Club, Sydney.

11pm. $10.

HIP HOP & R&B

73 ’Til Infinity - feat: Yelo Magic (Love Bombs) + Ed Seven + Benny Hinn Play Bar, Surry Hills. 6pm.

Free.

Friday Lite - feat: Laser

Launch Party - feat: Ø [Phase] + Jordan Peters + Methodix + Matthew Lush + Dave Stuart + Completely Boys + Kato + Jozef Conor + Sekwensa + T.Mingus + James Petrou + U-Khan + Charades DJs Burdekin Hotel, Darlinghurst.

9pm. $22.

EDX Marquee, Pyrmont. 10pm. $28.60.

El Loco Later - feat: DJs On Rotation Excelsior Hotel, Surry Hills.

10pm. Free.

Flako + Black Vanilla + Beat Spacek + Dreems + Mike Who Marrickville Bowling Club, Marrickville. 10pm. $29.30.

Hot Dub Time Machine Metro Theatre, Sydney. 8pm. $49.85.

Infamous Saturdays - feat: Live DJs Scubar, Sydney. 7pm. Free.

Just A Gent The World Bar, Kings Cross.

9pm. Free.

Late Nite Tuff Guy The Spice Cellar, Erskineville.

8pm. $15.

Lndry - feat: Edu Imbernon + Flex Cop + Groove Terminator + Avon Stringer + Jeff Drage + Oh! Filter Bear + DJ Just 1 + Kingsley + Mike Hyper Chinese Laundry, Sydney.

8pm. $22.60.

Pacha - feat: Tigerlily + A-Tonez + Acaddamy +

SATURDAY MAY 16 HIP HOP & R&B

Still Love Her Ladies Love Hip Hop - feat: Kween G + Josie Styles + Krystel Diola + Ms Hennessey + DJ Taline Play Bar, Surry Hills. 6pm. $10.

CLUB NIGHTS

Benibee Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 10pm. Free.

Cakes - feat: 4 Rooms Of Live Music + DJs And International Guests The World Bar, Kings Cross.

8pm. $10.

Chipped - feat: Ghostly Bassment Takeover + Geisy + Ghostly DJs + Benj + Statz + Tom Witheridge + Rabbit Taxi The Chippendale Hotel, Chippendale. 12pm. $10.

Danny Rampling The X Studio, Kings Cross.

9pm. $40.

Dimensions Festival

SUNDAY MAY 17 HIP HOP & R&B

Reign Sundays Marquee, Pyrmont. 10pm. $18.40.

CLUB NIGHTS

Graham M + Husky + La Experiment Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly.

5pm. Free.

Kate Monroe + Paris Groovescooter + Guests The Spice Cellar, Erskineville.

7pm. Free.

La Fiesta - feat: Samantha

Fox + Agee Ortiz + Av El Cubano + Resident DJ Willie Sabor The Establishment, Sydney.

8pm. Free.

Reggae Sundays Kings Cross Hotel, Kings Cross. 5pm. Free.

S.A.S.H Sundays Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 2pm. $10.

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

Free.

MONDAY MAY 18 CLUB NIGHTS

Mashup Monday - feat: Resident DJs Side Bar, Sydney. 8pm. Free.

Strobe Light Unicorns feat: Jonny Seymour + Paul Mac + Guests The Spice Cellar, Erskineville.

2pm. Free.

TUESDAY MAY 19 CLUB NIGHTS

Chu The World Bar, Kings Cross.

9pm. Free.

up all night out all week...

FRIDAY MAY 15 Gunne Funke + The Rudy + Laprats + Cache One + Baby Face Thrilla + Victoria Kim Goodgod Small Club, Sydney.

10pm. Free.

Goodbye Cruel World Showcase - feat: 2facem Lee Monroe X Ello C + Sarah Connor + Tampered Minds + 316 + Nonne & Baskiat + Sub & Creep + Stephen Arhipoff + DJ Gold Class Valve Bar, Agincourt Hotel, Ultimo. 9pm. $10.

Hustler Fridays - feat: MC Shaba Hustle & Flow, Redfern. 7pm.

Free.

Rojdar + Mo’Funk + Samrai + Jace Disgrace + Nanna Does + Sushi + Detektives + Dylan Sanders + E-Cats + Just 1 + Skoob + Trent Rackus Ivy Bar/Lounge, Sydney.

6:30pm. $38.

Sienna Saturdays - feat: Resident DJs The Establishment, Sydney.

9pm. Free.

The House Of Who - feat: Rotating DJs + Levins + The House Of Who + Nacho Pop + Kato’s Wig Shop Goodgod Small Club, Sydney.

8pm. Free.

Tim Boffa + Super C Manly Wharf Hotel, Manly.

6pm. Free.

Just A Gent

Bassic - Feat: HWLS + Hatch + Ventures + Robustt + Gold Brix + Nick Berry + Dis Djs + Brown Bear + Young Butter + Rat Life + Chenzo Chinese Laundry, Sydney.

8pm. $17.50.

Blvd Fridays - Feat: DJ Flash Marquee, Pyrmont. 10pm. $13.40.

SATURDAY MAY 16 Dimensions Festival Launch Party - Feat: Ø [Phase] + Jordan Peters + Methodix + Matthew Lush + Dave Stuart + Completely Boys + Kato + Jozef Conor + Sekwensa + T.Mingus + James Petrou + U-Khan + Charades Djs Burdekin Hotel, Darlinghurst. 9pm. $22.

Just A Gent The World Bar, Kings Cross. 9pm. Free.

Late Nite Tuff Guy The Spice Cellar, Erskineville. 8pm. $15.

Ivy Bar/Lounge, Sydney.

6:30pm. $38.

Lndry - Feat: Edu Imbernon + Flex Cop + Groove Terminator + Avon Stringer + Jeff Drage + Oh! Filter Bear + DJ Just 1 + Kingsley + Mike Hyper Chinese Laundry, Sydney.

8pm. $22.60.

SUNDAY MAY 17

Pacha - Feat: Tigerlily + A-Tonez + Acaddamy + Rojdar + Mo’Funk + Samrai + Jace Disgrace + Nanna Does + Sushi + Detektives + Dylan Sanders + E-Cats + Just 1 + Skoob + Trent Rackus

Kate Monroe + Paris Groovescooter + Guests The Spice Cellar, Erskineville. 7pm. Free.

S.A.S.H Sundays Home Nightclub, Darling Harbour. 2pm. $10.

Edu Imbernon

Ø [Phase]

BRAG :: 612 :: 13:05:15 :: 33

snap

up all night out all week . . .

VIEW FULL GALLERIES AT

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Off The Record Dance and Electronica with Tyson Wray

Tin Man Justin Jay

A

s.a.s.h sundays

PICS :: AM

cid royalty Johannes Auvinen AKA Tin Man has announced an Australian tour. A staple on seminal imprint Acid Test, the Californian-born producer uses a Roland TB-303, 707 and other machines to create haunting concoctions of house, techno and ambient all laced with his unmistakable squelching acid lines. His full-length album Ode was also one of the highlights on 2014. He’ll perform live on Sunday June 7 at a secret location TBA. Hit the Picnic Facebook page to stay in the loop.

10:05:15 :: Home :: 101/1-5 Wheat Rd Darling Harbour 9266 0600

Every techno fan’s favourite bald DJ, Stephan Bodzin, has finally announced a return trip Down Under. A regular collaborator with fellow German pioneer Marc Romboy, over the course of his career he’s released on labels such as Systematic Recordings, Datapunk, Love Triangle Music and Spielzeug. Since 2006 he’s also been running his own Herzblut imprint. Expect to hear some tasty cuts from his upcoming sophomore full-length album Powers Of Ten when he hits Chinese Laundry on Saturday June 27.

Sydney-based touring/events company BBE and Melbourne artist collective The Operatives are once again joining forces for another incarnation of their Bear Ops party – and this time around they’ll feature none other than the first female to release music on Flying Lotus’ Brainfeeder label, Jennifer Lee AKA Tokimonsta.

With a background in classical music, the producer combines meticulous woven patchworks on jazzy glitch-hop, infectious R&B and beyond. Catch her brand new live show at Oxford Art Factory on Sunday June 7.

The youngest member of the Dirtybird family, 21-year-old Justin Jay, has

unveiled his debut Australian tour.

Already receiving support from the likes of Claude VonStroke, Jamie Jones, Disclosure, Tiga and George Fitzgerald, Jay has also released on Culprit and Southern Fried Records, and held down a residency at Sankeys Ibiza. Having recently slain it at Coachella (where he performed between his midterm exams in his last semester of university), don’t miss the house and techno prodigy on Saturday May 30 at The World Bar. Tour rumour: expect a return from Italian DJ legend Beppe Loda within the next month.

Best releases this week: The inimitable Nicolas Jaar has returned with Nymphs II (on Other People) and hooooboy, it is all that and a bag of chips. Top marks.

The Nthng record 1996 (Mörk) is also just as superb as I was hoping for, while other highlights include Lauer’s Borndom (Permanent Vacation) and DJ Stingray’s Cognition (Lower Parts). Oh, and don’t sleep on Vril’s latest podcast for Resident Advisor. Quality.

RECOMMENDED SATURDAY MAY 16

Steve Bug Imperial Hotel

Ø [Phase] Burdekin Hotel

Justin Jay The World Bar

Flako Marrickville Bowling Club

Basic Soul Unit Burdekin Hotel

Subsonic Launch Party Bridge Hotel

SATURDAY JUNE 6

Late Night Tuff Guy Imperial Hotel Edu Imbernon Chinese Laundry

Andras Fox Imperial Hotel

SUNDAY JUNE 7

SATURDAY MAY 23

Toddla T Spectrum

Kyle Hall Imperial Hotel

Tin Man TBA

FRIDAY MAY 29

Tokimonsta Oxford Art Factory

SATURDAY MAY 30

Kobosil TBA

Carmada Oxford Art Factory

Stephan Bodzin

SATURDAY JUNE 27 Stephan Bodzin Chinese Laundry

SATURDAY FRIDAY JUNE 26 AUGUST 22

Borrowed Identity Bridge Hotel

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