The Music (Brisbane) Issue #66 by TheMusic.com.au

DOWNLOAD NOW # 6 6 • 2 6 . 11 . 1 4 • B R I S BA N E • F R E E • I N C O R P O R AT I N G

G E T Y E R C O S P L AY O N F O R D O C T O R W H O ’ S M A DA M E VA S T R A

eat

WAFFLES

bluesfest

CHRIS ROBINSON BROTHERHOOD

festival

BAPFF

release

BERTIE BLACKMAN

2 • THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014

THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014 • 3

CREDITS PUBLISHER

Street Press Australia Pty Ltd

GROUP MANAGING EDITOR Andrew Mast

NATIONAL EDITOR  MAGAZINES Mark Neilsen

EDITOR Steve Bell

ARTS AND CULTURE EDITOR Cassandra Fumi

GIG GUIDE EDITOR Justine Lynch gigs@themusic.com.au

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Bryget Chrisﬁeld

CONTRIBUTORS Alice Bopf, Amorina Fitzgerald-Hood, Anthony Carew, Baz McAlister, Ben Marnane, Ben Preece, Benny Doyle, Bradley Armstrong, Brendan Telford, Brie Jorgensen, Carley Hall, Chris Yates, Cyclone, Dan Condon, Daniel Johnson, Dave Drayton, Guy Davis, Helen Stringer, Jake Sun, Jazmine O’Sullivan, Lochlan Watt, Madeleine Laing, Mandy McAlister, Michael Smith, Mitch Knox, Paul Mulkearns, Roshan Clerkea, Sam Hobson, Sky Kirkham, Sophie Blackhall-Cain, Tessa Fox, Tom Hersey, Tony McMahon, Tyler McLoughlan

THIS WEEK THINGS TO DO THIS WEEK • 26 NOV - 2 DEC 2014

laugh

PHOTOGRAPHERS

geek

Freya Lamont, John Stubbs, John Taylor, Kane Hibberd, Markus Ravik, Rick Cliﬀord, Sky Kirkham, Stephen Booth, Terry Soo, Tessa Fox

QLD SALES Juliet Brooks, Madeleine Budd sales@themusic.com.au

ART DIRECTOR Brendon Wellwood

ART DEPT Eamon Stewart, Julian De Bono

ADMIN AND ACCOUNTS

Charity and comedy make for great bedfellows. This Friday night Eatons Hill Hotel is hosting Stand Up For Sick Kids with comedians including Fiona O’Loughlin, Smart Casual, Greg Fleet, Tommy Dean and Kat Davidson. It’s all part of the B105 Christmas Appeal and raises cash for the Children’s Hospital Foundation – they reckon laughter is the best medicine so kill two birds with one stone and have a blast in the process!

It’s time to embrace the inner nerd in all of us – Supanova Pop Culture Expo! Held at the Brisbane Entertainment and Convention Centre (sans exclusion zone), the Expo happens from this Friday through Sunday and covers all aspects of popular culture – as long as its sci-fi, pulp fiction, comic books, cartoons, games or toy-related. Gear up and get ready to cheer up! Bullies be damned!

Jarrod Kendall, Leanne Simpson, Loretta Zoppos, Niall McCabe accounts@themusic.com.au

DISTRO Anita D’Angelo distro@themusic.com.au

SUBSCRIPTIONS store.themusic.com.au

CONTACT US Phone: (07) 3252 9666 info@themusic.com.au www.themusic.com.au Street: Suite 11/354 Brunswick Street Fortitude Valley QLD 4006 Postal: Locked Bag 4300 Fortitude Valley QLD 4006

win

There must be a reason why over the years Woodford Folk Festival has built a reputation as one of the stalwarts of the Australian festival circuit but it’s hard to put a finger on it – it may be the beautiful Woodfordia where it all happens, perhaps the stellar line-up of bands or possibly just the down-to-earth, organic nature of the whole affair. Regardless, you can find out for yourself because we have two season passes (six days each) to giveaway – head to themusic.com.au/win to enter! Woodford Folk Festival runs 27 Dec - 1 Jan and tickets can be purchased online at www.woodfordfolkfestival.com. BRISBANE

THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014 • 5

national news news@themusic.com.au BILL BURR

DRAKE

BURR HAHA

Considered one of the top comedians of his generation, Bill Burr first burst onto the international consciousness in his recurring role in the second season of Chapelle’s Show. Burr co-stars with Kevin Costner in the forthcoming feature film, Black Or White, and after that’s released, he’s coming to Australia on a national tour that will see him perform 27 Jan, Riverside Theatre, Perth; 29 Jan, Hamer Hall, Melbourne; 31 Jan, City Hall, Brisbane; and 1 Feb, Sydney Opera House.

FROM THE BOTTOM

Canada’s brightest contribution to contemporary hip hop and R&B, Drake will not only be headlining the forthcoming Future Music Festivals but also headlining his own sideshows. Drake hits the Allphones Arena stage in Sydney, 25 Feb; Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne, 27 Feb; Perth Arena, 3 Mar; and Brisbane Entertainment Centre, 5 Mar.

GONNA LIVE 4EVER

The Veronicas return to Australian stages with their Sanctified Tour, showcasing songs from their new self-titled album. They play Perth Concert Hall, 12 Feb; Forum Theatre, Melbourne, 15 Feb; Enmore Theatre, Sydney, 20 Feb; and City Hall, Brisbane, 21 Feb.

BREATHING DEEPLY

With standout sets at major festivals Bonnaroo and Austin City Limits in their home country, followed by a successful tour of the United Kingdom and Europe, American rockers Needtobreathe are hitting up Australia for the first time in support of their new album, Rivers In The Wasteland. They’ll be playing Hordern Pavillion, Sydney, 11 Feb; Royal Theatre, Canberra, 12 Feb; Festival Hall, Melbourne, 13 Feb; HBF Stadium, Perth, 16 Feb; Riverstage, Brisbane, 20 Feb; and Newcastle Entertainment Centre, 21 Feb. More dates from theMusic.com.au.

YULETIDE HANLON

Darren Hanlon is gearing up for his annual Christmas tour with the release of a new single, When You Go, lifted from his forthcoming sixth album. Hanlon plays solo 15 Dec at Mojo’s Bar, Fremantle; 18 Dec, Northcote Uniting Church, Melbourne; 19 Dec, Northcote Social Club, Melbourne; 20 Dec, St Stephens Church, Sydney; and 21 Dec, New Globe Theatre, Brisbane.

The finalists of the long-running Golden Guitar awards have been announced. Topping the list is Kasey Chambers and Luke O’Shea who are represented in six categories each, including Male and Female Artist Of The Year. Keith Urban, Adam Harvey, The McClymonts and John Williamson are also prominently featured, with the winners announced 24 Jan.

DOUBLE THE DEATH

Taking to the road together under the banner, The Despise The World Tour, two of the world’s most iconic and brutal death metal bands, New York’s Suffocation and Poland’s Decapitation are co-headlining their way across Australia in May. They hit Brisbane’s The Hi-Fi, 7 May; Sydney’s Manning Bar, 8 May; Melbourne’s Corner Hotel, 9 May; and Perth’s Rosemount Hotel, 10 May.

IM BORED OF THE OLD MEN THREATENING YOUNG WOMEN AS ENTERTAINMENT TREND AND MUCH MORE INTERESTED IN THE YOUNG WOMEN GETTING $ TREND. ZZZZ @IGGYAZALEA ADDRESSES EMINEM’S LATEST SONG THAT DESCRIBES THE OFFICIALLY IRRELEVANT RAPPER RAPING HER. 6 • THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014

GO FOR GOLD

THE BEAUTIFUL GIRLS

UP THE CREEK

Tasmania’s boutique festival Party In The Paddock gets bigger every year, and next year, its third, sees acts such as The Beautiful Girls, Allday, Jinja Safari, Dune Rats, The Smith Street Band, Willow Beats, The Delta Riggs, KLP, Dappled Cities, Luca Brasi, Little Bastard, The Middle Names and more taking to the stage. Held at Burns Creek on 20 & 21 Feb, the festival’s also BYO alcohol. Good times ahead. Proudly presented by The Music.

BUILDING EXCITEMENT

Hugely influential metalcore legends Architects have unveiled the blueprints for their national headline tour. After selling out a few small shows in September they’re back in support of their Lost Forever, Lost Together record, joined by Stick To Your Guns, Being As An Ocean and Stories: 9 Apr, Capitol, Perth; 11 Apr, Arrow On Swanston, Melbourne; 12 Apr, 170 Russell, Melbourne; 15 Apr, ANU Bar, Canberra; 16 Apr, UNSW Roundhouse, Sydney; 17 Apr, Cambridge Hotel, Newcastle; and 18 Apr, The Hi-Fi, Brisbane.

JONSON STREET BYRON BAY FRI 28 NOV

VELSHUR THE NEW HIGH KYLE LIONHART SAT 29 NOV

SEA LEGS THE BADLANDS SKYWAYS ARE HIGHWAYS THU 4 DEC

LIME CORDIALE TIMBERWOLF FRI 5 DEC

PILOTS

SAT 6 DEC

MILLIONS THU 11 DEC

NEW NAVY FRI 12 DEC

THE LAZYS SAT 13 DEC

GAY PARIS FRI 19 DEC

BOOTLEG RASCAL SAT 20 DEC

TY SEGALL FRI 26 DEC

DROP LEGS NEW YEARS EVE

GOONS OF DOOM OCEAN ALLEY THE BADLANDS DJ CHRIS BRADLEY TICKETS AVAILABLE ONLINE WWW.THENORTHERN.COM.AU

THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014 • 7

local news

FRONTLASH MULLUM MADNESS

The Mullum Music Festival is an unmitigated delight right on our doorstep, and the 2014 version was an absolute pleasure. Music and merriment in endless doses with an entire town at your disposal, too much fun!

LIFTING THE HOODS Don’t always agree with Anonymous, but gee it’s funny watching (from a distance) as they poke fun at the stupid KKK. Dumbass white sheets don’t help much in the internet age...

PEDAL POWER So cool that local guitar maestros Tym Guitars have unleashed the signature Bob Mould (Hüsker Dü) ‘Beauty & Ruin’ guitar pedal, adding to their enviable collection. Helping keep Brissie cool...

MALLUM MAGIC

BACKLASH BACK TO SCHOOLIES

It’s time for hysteria to mount and the media to start frothing as hordes of kids flock to the Gold Coast to celebrate finishing school while everyone older pretends that they were angels at that age. Play hard but fair kids.

UNITED THEY FALL It’s hard to tell whether to laugh at PUP falling apart or cry because that oxygen thief Jacqui Lambie is free to run rampant in the Senate. Trust a Tasmanian to make a mockery of the Australian electoral system...

COSBY SWEATS If the beyond nasty allegations against Bill Cosby turn out to be true then hopefully this proves that you can’t hide from such horror no matter how rich and famous you are.

8 • THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014

qld.news@themusic.com.au

AHOY MATEY

SLOW CLUB

Brisbane merrymakers The Good Ship are putting on a special Christmas show at the New Globe Theatre on 20 Dec. It’s going to be celebratory and touching, no doubt, and it’ll be a good chance to blow off some steam at the end of a busy year. Support comes from Suicide Swans and Folklore.

GET PERSONAL

Brisbane’s own “groggy pop” four-piece, Nite Fields, signed to LA-based label, felte Records, will finally be releasing their debut album, Depersonalisation, in February, and in the New Year will be heading off for a threemonth tour of Europe and the UK. Before they go, though, Nite Fields are launching the first single from it, You I Never Knew, 12 Dec at The Bearded Lady.

A BIRDY TOLD ME

French hardcore outfit Birds In Row are embarking on a tour of Australia’s east coast for the first time, joined by fellow Frenchmen Calvaiire and Melbourne’s Colossvs. It’s set to be a dark night when the three drop by YAC, Byron Bay, 29 Jan; Crowbar, 30 Jan; and 199 Upstairs, 31 Jan.

RESTLESS NO MORE

Grammy Award-winning superstar Leo Sayer has announced he’s heading Down Under for his Restless Years Tour next year, his first time taking to Australia solo in four years. With over 80 million albums sold worldwide and over 40 years of touring, he’ll be bringing a wealth of experience to the country when he plays 19 Mar, The Tivoli; and 22 Mar, The Events Centre Caloundra, Sunshine Coast.

BUILDING SPEED

UK duo Slow Club are returning Down Under in 2015 to show off their new album, Complete Stranger. The record contains a bit of everything, from ‘70s pop to Motown, making it a bigger production than ever before. Get in on their harmonious hooks and rockabilly beats at Black Bear Lodge, 16 Jan.

ANYTHING BUT

Fresh from tearing up stages across North America and Canada (three times!) over the past year, The Lazys are primed and ready to hit their home turf in December to support the release of their new self-titled album. Soak up the energy and discover just how much they’ve learned abroad when they return to perform Crowbar, 11 Dec; and The Northern, Byron Bay, 12 Dec.

READY TO ROCK

Japanese psychedelic fusion funk band Dachambo are on their way back to Australian shores, and aim to rock their way into the new year by lighting up Woodford Folk Festival from 27 – 29 Dec and taking on a bunch of sideshow dates, including Solbar, Sunshine Coast, 28 Dec; The Northern, Byron Bay, 30 Dec; The Bearded Lady, 1 Jan; Woolly Mammoth, 2 Jan; and Byron Bay Brewery, 4 Jan.

FOURWARD, MARCH

Austrian drum’n’bass maestros Fourward have had a massive year with the release of their Countdown EP, and now have announced their debut Australian tour. After grabbing the attention of Friction on BBC Radio 1, signing with Shogun Audio and their upcoming inclusion on the Way Of The Warrior 2 label compilation, Fourward’s continuing to kick goals. See ‘em at The Biscuit Factory, 20 Dec.

FEELING BLUE

In official Bluesfest sideshow news: John Mayall puts in a sideshow 5 Apr at Brisbane Powerhouse; while Jurassic 5 play 4 Apr at The Tivoli.

FESTIVAL UPDATES

The Knife announced good news/bad news recently, with their planned arena tour being cancelled in favour of a headline slot at Future Music Festival, 7 Mar, RNA Showgrounds. In Soundwave news, Bayside joins the already packed line-up, 28 Feb & 1 Mar, Brisbane Showgrounds.

EVEN I’M GETTING SICK OF ME, HOW DO YOU GUYS DO IT?

@CHET_FAKER DEALS WITH HIS OWN POPULARITY.

local news qld.news@themusic.com.au SUNNYBOYS

WOVEN SKY BY WANG WEN CHIH

ARTY FOLKS SHINING BRIGHT

Following a series of sold out east coast shows earlier this year and a national theatre release of their documentary, punk rockers Sunnyboys are back on the road in 2015. Get ready to celebrate the deluxe reissue of the band’s second and third albums, Individuals & Get Some Fun. The Riptides join them at The Tivoli, 13 Feb.

This year, the Woodford Folk Festival (running 27 Dec – 1 Jan) will collaborate closely with two renowned, large-scale artists from Ireland and Taiwan. Noelene Kavanagh of Irish spectacle company Macnas will lead the creation of a five-metre puppet for Woodford’s Opening and Closing Ceremonies. Taiwanese artist Wang Wen Chih, in partnership with Sydney arts collective, Cave Urban, will create a monumental bamboo sculpture, called Woven Cloud, the sister sculpture to Wang Wen Chih’s Woodford debut work, Woven Sky, from last festival. It’s just another addition to what’s already on offer at Woodford Folk Festival.

SOUNDS LIKE SUMMER

The Beautiful Girls are continuing their summer touring tradition with The Summer Sound System tour, hitting up all the surfing meccas including 8 Jan, The Northern, Byron Bay; 9 Jan, Coolangatta Hotel, Gold Coast; 13 Feb, The Triffid; and 14 Feb, Solbar, Sunshine Coast.

THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014 • 9

event

RISE OF THE LIZARD QUEEN Neve McIntosh never expected her one-off appearance on cult sci-fi smash Doctor Who as a pair of antagonistic ancient lizard-people would make her one of the show’s most loved recurring faces, but it feels like the stars are the limit, she tells Mitch Knox.

eve McIntosh is no stranger to performance. In fact, the ebullient, raven-haired Scottish actress has spent 15 years in various spotlights of stage and screen, and occasionally radio, but to hear her speak of her recurring role as past-dwelling reptilian detective Madam Vastra in the BBC’s world-beating revival of long-running sci-fi series, Doctor Who, is to hear a thespian who has arrived at their station completely free of the cynicism and jaded sighs so often encountered among experienced performers. Perhaps, though, that has something to do with the somewhat circuitous route McIntosh took to assuming Vastra’s mantle after first appearing on the show in 2010 as a pair of villainous Silurians – ancient, Earth-native lizard people that predate humanity – and assuming that was it for her brush with the Doctor. “Every time I get the call to go on, it’s a bonus,” McIntosh bubbles down the line. “It’s the sort of program that it can take whatever twists and turns, and I never for the life of me thought I would be back in it after I played the initial two bad ones… And then hearing that I’d be coming back and playing a goodie, then the way that that’s expanded, I mean – when they gave us episodes like Crimson Horror and the first one of [new Doctor] Peter [Capaldi]’s, you know – we very kindly heavily featured, thank you very much, Mr Moffat [Steven Moffat, Doctor Who showrunner]

– so it’s incredible. It’s gone from strength to strength as a character that people just love. I mean, not just her on her own – the whole Paternoster Gang.” Indeed, the unlikely heroes of the Victorian-era crime-solving team known as the Paternoster Gang – Vastra, her human wife, Jenny, and their alien comic relief, Sontaran commander, Strax – have become utterly invaluable to the Doctor over his past two incarnations, leading to several calls – especially in the wake of Torchwood’s disappearance – for the trio to earn their own spin-off honours. “Oh God, I hope so!” McIntosh gushes at the suggestion. “Everyone keeps asking about that, and, I mean, I haven’t heard anything – if Steven Moffat phones me up and tells me it’s happening, then I’ll believe it, d’you know what I mean? – but God, yeah, I’d love to do something like that. Even if we don’t do a series, you know, you start thinking, ‘Well, what about a one-off special?’ Then, of course, I start going, ‘Well, what about a movie? A three-picture deal!’ “There’s the whole steampunk element to it. I mean, you could have us – ugh! It’s such a great time to base stuff in, because it’s the start of the Industrial Revolution… I mean, there’s so much going on in Victorian time. Look at the writing that came out of it – the imagination – so yeah, I think it’s a brilliant time. Fingers crossed!”

NEVE MCINTOSH AS MADAME VASTRA IN DOCTOR WHO

10 • THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014

ALAN TUDYK AS HOBAN IN FIREFLY

VOICE OF REASON A self-proclaimed “weirdo” who creates trouble for animators of multi-million dollar Disney films, US actor Alan Tudyk’s taken to subtly ripping on a “jaded” and “litigious” crowd as of late. Daniel Cribb investigates.

visit to Australia for Supanova may have fans of cult hero/voice actor master/all-round nice guy Alan Tudyk in a flurry, but it’s actually his second trip Down Under this year. At the beginning of 2014, he ventured to Victoria to film 2015’s Oddball, alongside a wealth of Aussie talent, including Shane Jacobson (Kenny). “It’s about a dog and some penguins,” an affable Tudyk laughs. “It isn’t some drama where we’re in pain or struggling or fighting off some alien invasion or anything too overbearing.” Stepping away from his home and spending a prolonged period of time in Australia gave him an interesting perspective on the US. “Australia reminds me of America, but [Australians] are not quite as jaded, and not as litigious. There’s a little bit more personal responsibility down there, which allows for more fun.” It’s the difference in cultures that Adult Swim parody news show Newsreaders feeds from, and season two – which is currently rolling out – sees Tudyk take the lead as news anchor Reagan Biscayne. “It’s a good place for comedy because,” he pauses to prep his deep news anchor voice, “newscasters are typically very serious people and they’re an authority figure, and if an authority figure comes on and says, ‘Tonight, we discuss how my gerbil was able to fly for a very short period of time, and then he experienced rapid weight loss.’ It’s ridiculous, and it’s funny. “I feel like we’re losing – at least here – that authority news figure.

Our news anchors want to be your friend; they’re funny and they tweet and giggle. There isn’t that kind of serious news so much anymore, and the lines are blurred... I think the people who really need the news are the ones that are missing out.” As evident with a series of different roles in multiple genres, Tudyk makes whatever he’s working on his own. He made a name for himself with Joss Whedon’s [Buffy, Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.] cult hit Firefly and its accompanying film, Serenity, which wrapped up in 2005, but was quick to break free from being typecast. On top of frequently voicing games such as Halo, he’s also a regular on blockbuster animated films like Frozen, Ice Age and new kids hit Big Hero 6. “I’ve always played with my voice; doing different voices growing up, mimicking people who I thought had funny voices… Just to be able to match a voice to a drawing, that’s a lot of fun, and in the world of animation, you can do anything. You’re in your head; you’re not seeing animation in front of you. “And also, any noises you make – ‘eewweeeww’ – they’ll animate something happening to the character that would validate him making that noise and that is a really fun collaboration to do. You just made a noise because you’re a weirdo like me, and then you’ll see they took it and made something. That’s a lot of fun.”

OUR PICKS FOR SUPANOVA

JACK GLEESON AS JOFFREY BARATHEON IN GAME OF THRONES

LOUISE BREALEY AS MOLLY HOOPER IN SHERLOCK

JACK GLEESON

LOUISE BREALEY

Let’s be clear – Jack Gleeson is not Joffrey Baratheon. Jack Gleeson is a lovely young man who was once in a Batman movie and then did a tremendous job of making everyone hate him for three seasons on Game Of Thrones, but you don’t have to hate him now. We’ve all seen him away from the world of Westeros, which points to him being nothing short of a total charmer.

Since first stepping into her role as eternally put-upon St Bartholomew’s staffer Molly Hooper in the BBC’s Sherlock, Louise Brealey has established herself as a vital part of the show’s cast. Through the series’ nine episodes, she has capably evoked insecurity as well as obvious strength through her performances as the unlucky-in-love pathologist harbouring a doomed crush on Benedict Cumberbatch’s emotionally detached detective.

NEVE MCINTOSH Scottish actress Neve McIntosh has seen her role on Doctor Who grow into a far bigger commitment than she ever expected, and she wouldn’t have it any other way. A delightful, open and affable person, she’s full of fascinating insights about life on one of the world’s best-loved sci-fi series, and emits an undeniable warmth that belies the reptilian heritage of her character, Victorian-era crime-solving lizard-woman Madam Vastra.

JEREMY SHADA The adolescent star of cult-smash cartoon Adventure Time seemingly lives a life as fantastical as that of his character, the brave and bold Finn The Human. The holder of a day job in which he found himself surrounded by his childhood heroes before he was old enough to shave, Shada emits a maturity that belies his young years, simply oozing affability and intelligence, as well as being a bottomless trove of fascinating tales of life growing up surrounded by the sorts of folks who voice the likes of Bender the robot and SpongeBob SquarePants. Also, make sure you don’t miss his (thirdever) performance with pop-punk outfit Make Out Monday!

AUSTIN ST JOHN AS THE RED POWER RANGER IN MIGHTY MORPHIN’ POWER RANGERS

AUSTIN ST JOHN The original red Power Ranger. Do you really need more reason than that? Well, maybe the fact that Austin St John spent the near18 years between departing Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers and re-emerging on the fan-convention circuit as a real-life hero – earning his EMT credentials and spending time serving in the Middle East – will help drive home the fact that it would be simply inexcusable to miss the opportunity to be in the same room as this man.

JOHN JARRATT From Play School host to Wolf Creek series villain, via Better Homes & Gardens, it’s safe to say that John Jarratt has had one of the more eclectic trajectories along Australian screen popular culture. And, if you’re old enough to remember Jarratt playing with the different-sized Teds and screwing around with the Rocket Clock, certainly one of the more disturbing to behold – but that just makes him all the more a thoroughly compelling prospect, one who evokes both feelings of warm nostalgia and ice-cold terror with ease. A veritable Aussie legend who you’d be crazy to miss.

ALAN TUDYK

ALAN TUDYK Though keeping busy with a fair bit of voice work these days – Wreck-It Ralph, Frozen, Big Hero 6, countless TV shows – Alan Tudyk, at least for some diehards, will never quite step out of the shadow of his breakthrough role as Wash on Joss Whedon’s criminally short-lived sci-fi romp Firefly. It’s a little unfair, because he’s done great work since, but it’s a testament to his performance that, nine years on, we still can’t let Wash go.

WHEN & WHERE: 28 – 30 Nov, Supanova, Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014 • 11

music

SPACE COWBOYS

garde electronic stuff; I mean, where does it all come from? People are always trying to label what you do, and to me our music should be hippie baroque.”

Life is pretty down home but also a little cosmic in the world of Chris Robinson Brotherhood, as Michael Smith discovers chatting to the man himself, Chris Robinson.

lassic swampy Southern blues-rock meets Doobie country rock meets ‘60s sci-fi synth wibblywobblyness is probably as close as you’ll get in describing the sound of Chris Robinson Brotherhood. Frontman Chris Robinson has always been a bit out there, as anyone who knows his work in his previous band with brother Rich, The Black Crowes. The oddcollides-with-the-familiar quotient is upped again on the Brotherhood’s third album, Phosphorescent Harvest. Turns out Robinson has a name for that ‘collision’. “I mean, that was our thing,” Robinson explains from his home in Santa Monica, California. “Adam (MacDougall,

music

keyboards, ex-Black Crowes) and I were really in this before anyone else came on board, and we were kind of discussing a visualisation if you will of a covered wagon, but Herbie Hancock in the [1971 album] Mwandishi era in the back of the covered wagon playing, like, all his synthesisers and shit. So, cool – our band’s a covered wagon but it has a warp drive. I think, again, that’s where we all are as musicians. There’s the roots side of us – we’re equally happy listening to George Jones records or Buck Owens records or Jimmy Driftwood – and then we listen to mid-century avant-

The Chris Robinson Brotherhood came together the year after The Black Crowes went into their second “hiatus” in 2010, and released two albums, Big Moon Ritual and its companion, The Magic Door, within four months of each other in 2012. Phosphorescent Harvest is the first to feature songs Robinson has written in collaboration with Brotherhood guitarist Neal Casal. “What a unique opportunity, for any time in your life, to have that kind of wellspring of creativity, but especially in the big cosmic scheme of things. Neal and I had met a while back and we were always into the same stuff and I always loved his guitar playing. So this opportunity came and we both jumped right in there, and I think that’s part of the allure for us, as well as our commitment to this. We’ve stumbled upon some little musical alchemy that just we like, and if we dig it maybe other people will, you know what I mean? Now the next thing is to get everybody else equally involved, ‘cause Adam I think has a lot of things to say with his composition that you’ll start to see, and hopefully that’s the progression you’ll hear in the next few cycles. “We’re just trying to make, I think, something that we feel is beautiful and something that could blossom at any moment. We can take something super folkie and earthy and turn it around into something really atmospheric and spatial. And if you can do that and keep it melodic and have the poetic imagery be something that people can hang their own feelings on, then good.” WHAT: Phosphorescent Harvest (Silver Arrow) WHEN & WHERE: 2 – 6 Apr, Bluesfest, Byron Bay

SHADES OF GREY Thirty years into their uncompromising career The Mark Of Cain are showing no signs of losing momentum. Bassist Kim Scott tells Steve Bell that you can teach old war dogs new tricks.

delaide power merchants The Mark Of Cain have been laying pretty low since touring their fifth long-player, Songs Of The Third And Fifth, around the country in early 2013. Now they’re returning armed with that album’s third single and a birthday to celebrate to boot. “This year’s our 30th year, so we contemplated getting out there and doing some celebratory shows,” explains bassist Kim Scott. “We talked about maybe even picking a couple of albums and doing them back-toback in their entirety – but in the end my work has always been challenging in terms of finding the time, and John [Scott – guitar/vocals] was struggling at the time with family responsibilities and of course [drummer] John Stanier’s availability is always limited because of the other bands he plays in – Battles and Tomahawk are usually either recording or on tour – so getting his time is always a challenge, which is where [temporary drummer] Eli Green fitted in last tour. So we thought we should just have another crack, and we’re really looking forward to getting back into it.” The rhythm section is integral to The Mark Of Cain’s live power, but Scott claims that having a different drummer doesn’t alter things on stage too substantially. 12 • THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014

“Eli’s 22 years old and an incredible talent and it’s just worked really well,” he gushes. “We had to find a drummer who could… not fill the shoes of Stanier because we weren’t looking to replace him, but someone who could execute the songs as tightly and as well. We said, ‘Here’s four or five songs’ to a few drummers we were talking to... Eli turned up and because he’s classically trained and teaches drums himself he transcribed it all into sheet music! We’re sitting there going, ‘What the fuck?’... And he just played everything flawlessly to the point where he was telling us how our parts went!”

And despite routinely strong albums The Mark Of Cain have always been best experienced loud and live. “When John and I started the band 30 years ago... he always had a firm view of how we wanted to perform,” Scott recalls. “Seeing bands perform live influenced us a lot. For me one of the big turning points was supporting Big Black at Adelaide University... They were visceral in their approach, and we’d had a degree of that from our earlier influences like Joy Division, but it wasn’t until we experienced Big Black that our sonic fell into place. Someone described us once as ‘English melody meets American sonic’, and it’s that American sonic – that intensity and the visceral bass and drums that you feel in the gut – that’s really hard to capture live.” WHEN & WHERE: 28 Nov, The Zoo; 29 Nov, Coolangatta Hotel, Gold Coast

THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014 • 13

music

THE POP VIEW

Dash, a very spontaneous collection in a way that draws on the music of her childhood, as played by her bohemian mother Genevieve de Couvreur.

Bertie Blackman’s latest album draws on the music her bohemian mum played when Blackman was a child, as Michael Smith discovers.

he task singer, songwriter and multiinstrumentalist Bertie Blackman set herself on her last album, 2012’s Pope Innocent X, was an examination of her relationship with her father, the late and celebrated Australian painter Charles Blackman; an intense experience to say the least and one that consumed two years, coming out of it, Blackman felt she needed to recharge the creative batteries with a project a whole lot more fun. “Working with (producer) Francois Tatez,” she explains, “was a very complex experience. He likes to get in and

really know you and what you’re about and what the songs mean, and I spent, like, a year in a room with him just talking about the songs and then writing more songs. So I took a breather for six months before I could really write anything else again and then I really wanted to do a bit of an opposite process and just write whatever came to me and finish it on the spot. I wanted to explore whether that process would work for me, whether I could write a song and finish and produce it and everything with the co-writers in two days, which I think brings a bit of a freshness and an airiness to the record.” The result is her fifth album, The

music

“I grew up in Australia in the ‘80s and hanging out with mum, who was wearing full-length hand-knitted flouro dresses and having really cool parties playing music really loud, as an eight year old, life was really good. So I thought, why don’t I start there and go where the music takes me.” In another first for Blackman, she decided to try writing with other songwriters, among them Julian Hamilton from The Presets; Louis Schoorl, who has worked with Daniel Johns and 360; and John Castle, who has worked with Megan Washington. “I definitely learned about pop song structure,” she admits. “Sitting in a room and working with someone who understands music keys and what chord goes better next to that chord and all that kind of stuff, for me I don’t think about music in that way. For me I just hear it and it comes out, so it was interesting being around people who work in that world.” Inevitably though, in there amongst the chirpy ‘80s synths and pop, the lead guitar-wielding indie-rock chick still comes through, in the track Darker Days. “Yeah, it always does. As much as I was actually trying to show a bit of a different side of me on this record, it always kind of slips through, and usually it’s that one that’s my favourite song. It’s a very Bertie song!” WHAT: The Dash (Warner) WHEN & WHERE: 27 Dec, Woodford Folk Festival

OUTLAW KIN

Brisbane quintet Bandito Folk have already been remarkably prolific during their short lifespan, but keyboardist Aled Humphreys tells Steve Bell that they’re just trying to please themselves, listeners be damned.

ocal five-piece Bandito Folk have only been with us for a short time, but they’ve already flagged their intentions to remain here for the long haul. Their new EP The Perimeter Fence is not only an assured collection of songs, but it’s the second instalment of a bigger puzzle. “It’s the second EP in what’s planned to be a collection of three,” keyboardist Aled Humphreys explains. “We don’t want to leave too much time between the EPs, so it’s really just been a case of workshopping the songs and saying, ‘Do we like it?’ Yep. Go!’ It’s been really quick-fire decision-making with the songs, just trying to get the best product from our time in the studio.” Humphreys says that while the EPs are tied thematically, the band is still primarily interested in expanding sonically.

“The titles are based on a collection of short stories by an author called JG Ballard,” he continues. “Technically this is our third EP but it’s only the second in this trilogy – we just want to have something that we can put together as a collection at the end so we can say, ‘We’ve done this in two years’. Thematically there won’t be too much of a link between all three of them, but each EP is based on one concept. Josh [Tuck] our singer definitely follows a narrative from a lyrical perspective, but musically I think we’re just trying to develop the sound more and 14 • THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014

more as we go with an aim to become more professional-sounding.” In purely musical terms, there’s a definite progression from the trilogy’s first instalment, The Embankment (2013). “We’re getting better in the studio, and we’re getting better as our own producers as well,” Humphreys posits. “We try to focus a lot on the art and not worry too much about whether it’s fitting into a popular construct – we don’t direct the music towards the listener, we just try to make something that we really, really like. We’ve been together a long time and the energy’s starting to ramp up now because we’re hitting our

stride in terms of music and songwriting. I certainly think that it sounds more professional than the previous ones. “There’s certainly some common ground in what we all listen to, but then on the other hand our drummer Zander [Hulme] has a background in gypsy music and is currently working on a hybrid of music from the ‘40s and ‘50s combined with electronic music – it’s mental, we come from all different musical stock. I think we just try to stay as open as possible, because there’s so much to take from all of our different tastes and it’s exciting to blend them altogether and make something that doesn’t sound like absolute shit. We definitely try to stay open-minded, because we all have such different tastes and backgrounds. You can’t go in there with too much of a pre-conceived idea of how it’s going to end up, otherwise it stops being original. You’ve got to let it become what it’s supposed to become.” WHAT: The Perimeter Fence (Valve) WHEN & WHERE: 28 Nov, The Underdog Pub Co

RES THE DJS THE GIGS THE PRODUCERS THE EMIXES THE ARTISTS THE FESTIVALS THE GRO BUMS THE TOURS THEMUSIC.COM.AU THE FA THE INDUSTRY THE LOCALS THE BLOGS THE S THE GIGS THE PRODUCERS THE CLUBS THE TISTS THE FESTIVALS THE GROUPIES THE ALB THE FANS THE BANDS THE INDUSTRY THE LO S THE ENCORES THE DJS THE GIGS THE PROD LUBS THE REMIXES THE ARTISTS THE FESTIVA PIES THE ALBUMS THE TOURS THE FANS THE DUSTRY THE LOCALS THE BLOGS THE ENCOR HE GIGS YOUR DAILY SPA THE CLUBS THE R BANDS THE INDUSTRY THE LOCALS THE BLOG RES THE DJS THE GIGS THE PRODUCERS THE EMIXES THE ARTISTS THE FESTIVALS THE GRO THE INDUSTRY THE LOCALS THE BLOGS THE S THE GIGS THE PRODUCERS THE CLUBS THE TISTS THE FESTIVALS THE GROUPIES THE ALB THE FANS THE BANDS THE INDUSTRY THE LO S THE ENCORES THE DJS THE GIGS THE PROD

THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014 • 15

music

WORLD DOMINATION A record-breaking crowdfunding campaign has led to Ne Obliviscaris embarking on their first world tour. Frontman Tim Charles chats to Scott Aitken about what went into it as well as their brand new album Citadel.

elbourne prog metal six-piece Ne Obliviscaris are currently gearing up for a huge world tour to promote their second album Citadel, the highly-anticipated follow-up to their 2012 debut Portal Of I. But before that can happen, lead singer and violinist Tim Charles has a bit of work to do to pay back some of the contributors of their crowdfunding campaign that made it happen. “I have a couple of violin solos I’ve got to record. I’ve got to do one next week actually

music

cause there’s an Italian band that’s paid us the $500 reward to get one of us to do a solo on their album and so we had a couple of people choose those things.” In what’s now the most successful crowdfunding campaign in Australian history, the band managed to raise over $80,000 in a 60-day Pozible campaign, making over double their targeted amount and breaking the Australian record for music-related crowdfunding by more than $25,000. Charles says the idea for the campaign came about right before the band entered the studio to record Citadel at the end of 2013. “Doing

a world tour crowdfunding campaign was a little bit risky and ambitious just because there weren’t a lot of similar campaigns to study. I only found a couple other bands with campaigns that were in any way similar and I guess that’s because crowdfunding is fairly new and most people are doing it for their records so to do something like this where we were guaranteeing people tours hadn’t really been done before this way.” In addition to Europe, UK, North America and Asia, the band has used the additional pledge money to add more dates to the tour. “We’ve been trying to see where else we could go and how far we could stretch the money to get to as many countries as possible. One of the additions we managed to add in is Israel, which is really exciting for us to be able to play to fans because it’s somewhere I’d never thought we’d get to go to.” The band will kick off a run of shows in Australia starting in Launceston on 8 Nov and continuing all the way until Soundwave next year in March before tackling the rest of the world. According to Charles, the new material should gel well with the rest of their material in their live shows. “I think all the songs are going to work really well live. We always jam the songs a lot as a band and that gives a good vibe of how things will come across in the live atmosphere. We’re getting all the new stuff up to scratch so we can do a completely new set for this tour and we’re really excited to have the amazing Beyond Creation from Canada to support us as well as playing some of the biggest venues we’ve played and it’s looking like it’s going to be the biggest headline tour we’ve ever done in Australia so we’re definitely very excited.” WHEN & WHERE: 29 Nov, The Brightside; 1 Mar, Soundwave, RNA Showgrounds

MILES ON THE CLOCK

New Zealand’s finest The Datsuns still love their rock’n’roll. Frontman Dolf de Borst tells Steve Bell to buckle up because they’re still a long way from the scrapheap.

t doesn’t seem like very long ago that Kiwi rockers The Datsuns were the new kids on the global rock block, blowing everyone away with their retro stylings, but a lot of water’s passed under the bridge since then. These days the four-piece are verging on elder statesmen status, with six records and well over a decade of experience under their belts, and – despite now being scattered to the wind and living all over the planet – they’re showing no signs of banging on the brakes anytime soon. Their new album Deep Sleep finds them continuing on their merry way, although it was birthed in somewhat different circumstances than usual. “We wrote the new record really, really fast at the start of the year – we basically wrote it as we recorded it over that ten day period,” recalls vocalist/bassist Dolf de Borst. “We live on two different sides of the planet and some of us are starting to have families and stuff now, so all of that has to be taken into consideration, and when we do see each other it’s like, ‘Let’s try and make a record!’ It was all very spontaneous, I think we had maybe two or three days booked, and that ended up becoming five or six days, and then we were, like, ‘Fuck, let’s try and make a record!’ We’d never really tried anything like this before in that quick a time, so we kind of set ourselves a bit of a manifesto – which we don’t normally do – and I think the experiment was pretty successful, creatively anyway.

16 • THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014

“The album we did before, Death Rattle Boogie, half of it was done in Sweden and half of it was done at a studio in Auckland called Roundhouse Studios, owned by Neil Finn, and we got into a nice rhythm working there. So when we went back [to Roundhouse this year] we’d been really comfortable there, so this time around we wrote down specifically how we wanted things to sound and how we wanted to go about recording. It was all done very, very fast.” Rather than usher in a feeling of tyranny of distance, de Borst believes that the bandmates

being separated from each other serves to keep the dynamic fresh. “The thing is that we’ve always been massive music geeks, and we’re super into ‘60s and especially ‘70s stuff – not just classic rock stuff, but record collector geeky stuff too,” he admits. “Plus all the modern stuff we listen to. So when we get together it’s, like, ‘Check out this record!’ or ‘Check out this weird thing I found!’ – we’ve somehow managed to stay music fans. Which is really important because with a lot of musicians, especially as you get older, the cynicism can really set in, like, ‘I’ve heard this before’. We try to stay fresh in our approach to music and try to stay in love with it, because it’s so easy to fall into, ‘Fuck that band’, or ‘This band sucks!’ or whatever.” WHAT: Deep Sleep (Hellsquad/Valve) WHEN & WHERE: 6 Dec, Crowbar To read the full interview head to theMusic.com.au

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festival

RIVER MOVIE

could get done if we were there, on the ground. The narrative was more about trying to push a style, a certain kind of methodology, to see just how fast and chaotic and loose we could swing it.”

Amiel Courtin-Wilson talks to Anthony Carew about filming “on the ground”.

y his own estimation, Amiel Courtin-Wilson’s latest feature, Ruin, is “a beautiful, brutal, fable-like love story that just happened to be made in an unusual fashion”. That ‘unusual’ fashion was in Cambodia, shooting entirely in Khmer. Expanding the docudrama approach of 2012’s Hail, Courtin-Wilson and co-director Michael Cody have fashioned a piece of pure cinema charting a pair of lawless lovers (Ros Mony and Sang Malen) fleeing from Phnom Penh along the Mekong. “After we both premiered Hail in Venice, we flew to Cambodia. We had no idea what we were doing: was

SANG MALEN IN RUIN

festival

it going to be a Chris Marker essay film? A series of photographs? A short? All of the above?” Through filmmaker Kulikar Sotho (The Last Reel), a “force of nature” who served as on the ground producer and gateway to Cambodia, Cody and Courtin-Wilson started interviewing a “ridiculous array” of subjects: “everyone from NGO employees to rural fishermen, ex-police officers, ex-child sex workers, ex-gang bangers who’d been deported from America and dropped back in Cambodia”. “It was really an experiment in sheer momentum, and seeing what we

PATRIARCHY PROTEST

Kitty Green explores the inner workings of the FEMEN phenomenon with Anthony Carew.

n 2011, Ukrainian-Australian filmmaker Kitty Green was visiting relatives in Kiev when she stumbled upon her first-ever FEMEN protest. The infamous feminist group – who practice a performance-art-ish form of ‘topless’ protest – were in a fountain, bodies painted in slogans, crowd gathering around them. “I had my DSLR [camera] with me, and started shooting the protest, and it was really beautiful footage, and I was full of adrenaline, and the police were grabbing them and throwing them into the van, and they were screaming,” the 29-year-old recounts. “I’d never experienced anything like it, and I was instantly hooked.”

UKRAINE IS NOT A BROTHEL 18 • THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014

Green sent FEMEN the footage and asked if they were interested in making a documentary – “they were so contradictory, so bizarre, yet also really beautiful and easy to make look cinematic – they were a perfect subject” – and soon found her entire life changing. “I spent 14 months living with them; there were six of us in a two-bedroom apartment. We became like a family. I became their videographer. I spent a year with them documenting every protest, and started making this film.” Ukraine Is Not A Brothel is a non-fiction chronicle of the life and times of the women of FEMEN, an “honest portrayal of what their experiences of

Cody, who had spent time in Cambodia as foreign correspondent and photographer, was hyper-aware of “the potential minefield of two white male filmmakers coming to Cambodia and making a story about locals”. But Courtin-Wilson cut his teeth making documentaries – 2000’s Chasing Buddha, 2008’s Bastardy, 2010’s Ben Lee: Catch My Disease – and is used to being an observer, “letting other people tell their stories”. But Ruin found him directing two people he’d met only two weeks before they started shooting and with whom he struggled to communicate. Eventually, that ‘language barrier’ led to long, improvised takes of little to no dialogue, with the supposed ‘limitation’ of language becoming liberating. Just as Courtin-Wilson was free to shoot improvised takes, so was his co-director. “Working with a co-director is always going to be potentially perilous,” CourtinWilson admits. “But our answer to any argy-bargy was: you shoot what you want, I’ll shoot what I want, and we’ll work it out in the edit. Then we had three editors working on it, so there was five of us in the edit suite, working through... over 150 hours of footage. It could’ve been a potential nightmare. But it worked out really well, because the spirit of the project was just to work really quickly, and really instinctively. Because it was made so instinctively, and put together with such rapidity, there wasn’t time for anything to become overly precious.” Ruin screens 30 Nov, Brisbane Asia Pacific Film Festival, GOMA

being in this movement were actually like.” The result is a film that is part go-go ‘girl power’ feminism, part sobering portrayal of the realities of how society treats young women taking their clothes off. Eventually, Green discovered that FEMEN’s ‘consultant’ Viktor Syvatski functions as its self-appointed svengali, the collective’s founding father finding the blondest, most beautiful girls – as confessed “marketing strategy” – then keeping them on a short leash. “I started out making a film about a feminist movement, then came to discover, slowly, that [FEMEN] was being run in a way that wasn’t exactly feminist,” Green explains. “This discovery was very disturbing, in some ways. Discovering just how dark these contradictions were, just how strange and corrupt the organisation was, that became my fascination.” This marked shift raises questions about complicity and compromise, adding layers of complexity and contradiction. For Green, it was a “disheartening” revelation but one which – along with her eventual on-camera conversation with Syvatski – proved rewarding. “It undoubtedly made for a better film. A movement protesting against patriarchy having a patriarch at the helm: it was one of those stories you could only come across by accident... There are secrets in there that they would rather I’d not revealed, but at the same time they understand that this is their past, their story. And it’s a story that, hopefully, other women can learn from.” Ukraine Is Not A Brothel screens Ruin screens 30 Nov, Brisbane Asia Pacific Film Festival, GOMA

DRIVERS WANTED MUST HAVE A RELIABLE VEHICLE! (VAN, UTE OR WAGON)

Keen reliable couriers wanted to distribute our magazines every Wednesday morning on the Sunshine Coast. t Early start t Great part time work t Must have ABN

EMAIL: distro@themusic.com.au THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014 • 19

★★★★½

album/ep reviews

JOOLS HOLLAND & HIS RHYTHM & BLUES ORCHESTRA

WU-TANG CLAN

A Better Tomorrow Warner

Sirens Of Song

ALBUM OF THE WEEK

Warner Jools Holland is prominent as one of British music’s most recognised and trustworthy. A couple of years back, Holland’s talent for composition was refreshed with 2012’s The Golden Age Of Song, a star-studded effort. Holland must have had the itch to repeat that highly successful and pleasant experience, only this time around he’s kept it between him and the ladies. What Holland nails here are his choices of leading ladies for each track, which offer so much in the way of delightfully surprising and sublime covers. Jamaican songstress Ruby Turner sasses up Ray Charles’ Jumpin’ In The Morning, our own pop princess Kylie Minogue puts

her pout to The Clash’s Should I Stay Or Should I Go, and Emeli Sandé admirably takes on 1920s standard Love Me Or Leave Me. Among the standouts, though, are Louise Marshall’s A Vow, a poem by one of Holland’s favourite English poets, Wendy Cope; Joss Stone’s soulful attack in Letting Me Down; and the playful ska in Monkey Man, brought to life by the late, great Amy Winehouse. Holland’s orchestra never falters, nor do the man’s fingers on the ivories, and running throughout is a vibrant sense of celebration for not only these skilful lasses but for the sheer act of making music with many different talents. Carley Hall

Back in the day ‘The Wu’ could do no wrong. A superb debut album, banging side projects like the Gravediggaz and a string of superlative solo releases meant that the Wu-tang logo equaled instant quality. Then came the missteps – bloated double LPs, overly commercial hooks, albums from shady hangers on and second-rate solo albums. Well, it seems those days are over. A Better Tomorrow is probably the best Wu-tang ‘group’ album since the debut. Behind the boards RZA brings a slew of soul samples, sparse beats, kung-fu samples and some lush arrangements. This isn’t a return to the grimy styles of Protect Ya Neck, but it is an album that boasts a sonic coherence that has been sorely lacking in Wu efforts of late. Vocally the entire Clan shines – well-known members, most prominently Method Man, sound

COLLARBONES

AC/DC

Two Bright Lakes/Remote Control

Sony

Return

Collarbones are a force all of their own. On Return they can be heard switching it up from down-tempo pop tunes to straight-up acid house jams in the space of a heartbeat. Their take on club music, dance music, electronic music, whatever you wish to call it, is removed from trend and focused entirely on making ears tingle and feet move. Marcus Whale has the melodic vocal tones of the finest R&B performers and he can make them soar or surrender over beats with his bandmate Travis Cook. There’s something deliciously subversive in the way the sung voice is often disassociated from the central beat, and it’s only once immersed in the music that it all seems to fit perfectly in place. There’s a clever mix of catchy tunes on Return: Only Water featuring Oscar Key Sung is one that’s bound to be stuck in brains after a few spins. Big reverberating synths, two20 • THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014

★★★½ reinvigorated, while lower profile emcees in the crew offer up some of the best verses of their careers (check out U-God’s furious verse on The Pioneer Frontier). That said there are still missteps (the bouncy Hold The Heater comes off as lightweight and the hook-driven Miracle is somewhat saccharine) but none are serious enough to sink the project. The first emcee you hear on this record is ODB (RIP) – a clear admission that the Clan knows they have to recapture what made them great in the first place. And on the whole they’ve done that – where they go from here will be interesting. Mark Hebblewhite

Rock Or Bust

★★★★ part harmonies and a mess of modulated noises make for a magnificent tune. There are clever little hooks laid into each track that enter the mind deceptively and keep the listener coming back for another listen, like the trilling synth twirl on Emoticon, perfectly complemented by Whale’s voice calling out “echoing emotion/Duplicate devotion/Binary emotion.” Turning is an immediate standout on the record; lavishly produced, vocals catch up with an electronic crescendo that is pure dance magic. It’s hard not to envision yourself on a dancefloor somewhere, lasers and fog machines in full force, leaping in time. Sevana Ohandjanian

Victims of their own success, AC/ DC long ago passed the point where anyone expected them to ever again reach the heights of their late ‘70s, early ‘80s heyday. The best part of any new album from the last 30 years has been that it’s an excuse for the band to tour and play those ‘70s and ‘80s favourites, while the audience grudgingly puts up with whatever two tracks they insist on playing off the latest release. It’s those last three decades of disposable filler that makes Rock Or Bust such an awesome surprise. This is a looser, more organic, authentic sounding AC/DC than anything since Back In Black. Don’t let first single, Play Ball fool you. While it might sound like it came straight out of the AC/DC-o-matic computer program that has given us so many interchangeable singles over the years, it’s a rare dip on an album that reaches frequent and impressive heights. Songs like the opening and title track and Miss

★★★★ Adventure embrace the dirty blues that helped define the band all those years ago. They also add a new groove and cocksure strut to the guitar sound that embraces that classic Young brothers sound, while evolving more in one album than they have in decades. There’s still the odd track of formulaic clichés, but when Rock Or Bust hits, it hits hard. While it’s easy to take AC/DC for granted, this latest collection is proof that these old boys still have plenty of life left in them. Pete Laurie

album/ep reviews

★★★

BUSTAMENTO

Intercontinental Journey 7 ABC/Universal “Please mister, don’t touch me tomato. Please mister, don’t touch me tomato/Please mister, I’m a pumpkin potato. Please mister, don’t touch me tomato,” Nicky Bomba sings in the penultimate track of this album. Yes, readers, it was necessary to mention that – these things have to be appreciated. Such nonsense is rarely utilised in such a juxtapositional way, matched with both expertise and musical frivolity. Drummer, ukulele player, band leader and singer Bomba, in one-ofmany projects Bustamento, does that and much more. This album is to be taken with a hearty dose of carefreeness. Lukas Murphy

★★★★

★★★½

DAVID BOWIE

FRANK TURNER

MARY J BLIGE

Parlophone/Warner

Xtra Mile/Shock

Capitol/EMI

This umpteenth overview of Bowie’s nearing 50-year career comes in various formats, but the double-disc edition is a straightforward choice. It’s a handy grab bag from the glam of Ziggy, through the coke-headed funk of Young Americans, the glorious aloofness of the Heroes years, to ongoing moments of some extraordinary pop constructions. There are even new things, among them, Sue (Or In A Season Of Crime) is studied but still distinctively of him, while a James Murphy remix of Love Is Lost shows ongoing generations still falling over themselves to get a nod of recognition.

The English folk-punkster’s strength has always been in his storytelling rather than in his vocal chops, which is undeniably part of his everyman charm. This, his third in a series, again celebrates that fact by bursting with songs that make you reflect, enjoy and even feel warm and fuzzy inside with some festive tidings. Covers of Queen, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney and Tom Petty are humbly done with no ego-filled attempts to make them his own, while rarities and live gems The Ballad Of Me And My Friends and Dan’s Song are poignant.

Mary J Blige’s The London Sessions is proof that switching things up can be the best thing for an artist at any stage of their career. It’s been a while since we heard the queen of hip hop and soul sound this fresh. The London Sessions is best when it goes house, particularly when the Disclosure boys come into play (Right Now, Follow). And it’s a shame the ol’ school, gritty blues feel of opener Therapy doesn’t appear more on the album – a great start to an even greater record. The queen is back.

Nothing Has Changed

Ross Clelland

The Third Three Years

The London Sessions

Sally-Anne Hurley

Carley Hall

MORE REVIEWS

themusic.com.au/music/album-reviews

★★

★★★

VARIOUS

CJ RAMONE

Warner

Fat Wreck/Shock

Even for a cover album, Sounds Of The 80s is uninspiring. With 37 tracks, you’re assured a certain quota of the listenable (London Grammar) and the inventive (Ward Thomas), but before long you’re drowning in a sea of similarity. Ed Sheeran covering Atlantic City sounds exactly like Ed Sheeran (with a chord sheet) singing Atlantic City – neither terrible nor worthwhile. Nostalgia and fidelity have their worth, but this feels too much like an album of remasters, like a computer program stripped old tracks of their vocal parts and cut-and-pasted in their nearest contemporary equivalent.

Late entry to the Ramones family, CJ Ramone hasn’t stopped carrying the four-chord poppunk torch since his namesake band split in the mid-‘90s. His second solo album, Last Chance To Dance sounds exactly as you might expect: full of mid-tempo, pleasantly nostalgic punk tunes peppered by sing-along choruses. It never reaches the heights of the band that spawned him, but what could? Considering CJ himself is now the age Joey was when he died, this fanpleasing album is really all we could ever ask from him.

Sounds Of The 80s

Last Chance To Dance

Andrew McDonald

★★★★

MISTER & SUNBIRD The Anatomy Of Mister & Sunbird Independent It’s been four years since M&S’s first record, and they’ve compensated well: Anatomy Of Mister & Sunbird stretches over 65 minutes and is split up into four parts: Bones, Blood, Body and Brain. It’s a little difficult to tell if that layout has any effect on the style, but they’ve managed to create some catchy and enjoyable jazz music, and Scott Kociuruba’s vocal performance oozes a sense of smooth confidence – exactly what you want out of a blues singer. If they’ve proved anything with this record, it’s that it’s worth the time to get it right.

Azealia Banks – Broke With Expensive Taste RL Grime – Void XTRMIST – XTRMST Vices – We’ll Make It Through This Matt Andersen – Weightless Richard Dawson – Nothing Important Ani DiFranco – Allergic To Water Speed Orange – The Order Of The Brave Young Souls Grigoryian Brothers – This Time

Kane Sutton

Naaman Zhou

THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014 • 21

live reviews

THE SMITH STREET BAND; THE FRONT BOTTOMS; APOLOGIES, I HAVE NONE; KIRI 21 Nov

than they ever have before in their career. And the crowd is stoked to help Wil Wagner and the boys get to that level. Maybe it’s because as they’ve continued to grow they’ve remained honest, but Smith Street Band have attracted very little of the underground tall poppy backlash. Only the most jaded foot soldier of the fashion gestapo could deny the rousing charm of cuts like Sigourney Weaver or Something I Can Hold In My Hands.

People are pouring into The Hi-Fi as soon as the doors open tonight: a rag-tag bunch of Melbourne punks who used to play little DIY venues, but now those same punks play shows that feel like An Event. The Event gives local collective Kiri a chance to showcase the spazzed-out mathy post-hardcore of their debut 7” to perhaps their biggest audience

The whole pit is singing back, word for word, whenever TSSB hit anything off their just-released third long-player Throw Me In The River and everyone seems to be having a good time, despite how sweaty everything is getting. As long as The Smith Street Band can continue to inspire and uplift audiences like they do tonight, they’ll never become

The Hi-Fi

THE SMITH STREET BAND @ THE HI-FI. PIC: MARKUS RAVIK

ever. Good on the headliners for keeping an ear to the underground and helping to expose what’s cool. London’s Apologies, I Have None are up next and offer up a pretty potent slab of melancholy to temper the mood of the evening. Even if things do get pretty downbeat, it’s pretty hard to deny the band’s attempt to marry Christian Death and Fugazi. Americans The Front Bottoms do the same heart-on-sleeve lyrics as our headliners, and the same general looseness on stage because emotional catharsis is be way more important than getting everything to sound perfect. And the crowd is right there with them. It seems whenever The Smith Street Band roll through town, they’re proclaiming they’ve reached some new milestone. Tonight it’s that they’re playing a headline show to more people 22 • THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014

too big for their own good. It will be interesting to see how big a venue they pack out the next time they roll through town. Tom Hersey

TORI AMOS, MATT WALTERS QPAC 21 Nov The support slot for a Tori Amos concert is generally going to be a tough gig given the extreme fanaticism of her devotees. Tonight, however, Melbourne’s Matt Walters makes the most of the moment, gliding through his songs with a sense of warmth and emotive openness, and the crowd responds in kind. He lightens the mood as he jokes about forgetting to introduce himself at a previous show on the tour, and then quips, “This song

is called Build A Place. It’s about architecture.” His guitar is mixed a little low, but the delicacy of his voice has all the room to shine and the songs find their way home. After abandoning us between the long years of 1994 – 2005, Tori Amos has affectionately nestled her Australian fanbase back to her bosom over the course of four tours in as little as nine years. Like two of the three before it, this tour sees her performing solo (with the exception of two special shows at the Opera House that featured the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in accompaniment). Freed of the constraints of her band, Amos is able to delve into the deepest, darkest recesses of her catalogue when selecting setlists and fulfilling requests, and for many diehards this is a slice of heavenly satisfaction. After the semi-mandatory opener, Parasol,

briefly leaves the stage and on her return the backing tracks for Cornflake Girl fire up, the full-bodied rendition of the classic drawing everyone to their feet. Most stay this way, swaying their way through Wrong Band and the vulnerable closer, Winter. Although recent album, Unrepentant Geraldines, barely gets a look in tonight, it’s as if many selections are performed in part through the personality the performer has adopted for said album, and this makes the experience all the more unique. Given her vibrancy and spiritedness it’s hard to believe Amos is now a veteran of the music scene, and if tonight is anything to go by, she will be wielding her great powers for some time to come. Jake Sun

TORI AMOS @ QPAC. PIC: STEPHEN BOOTH

the room is ignited by …Choirgirl Hotel gem Spark, a balanced selection that seems to please fans of all degrees. Perched in the middle of a grand piano and a keyboard, Amos swivels between the two and imbues the song with a fresh set of characteristics. Early into Josephine, an exclamation of “Fuck!” signals a misfire, but Amos is quick to weave her magic and saves it with a hilarious “It was bound to happen… in my menopausal mind” impromptu ditty. With the exception of Mother, the set then heads into relatively more obscure terrain. Things are broken up shortly after midway by the “Lizard Lounge” covers section. The Velvet Underground’s New Age and Joni Mitchell’s A Case Of You get a good response and before long favourites Sugar and Blood Roses are bringing things back to familiar territory. Amos

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Mullum Music Festival @ Mullumbimby Jimmy Eat World @ The Tivoli Prong @ The Hi-Fi Bearhug @ Grand Central Hotel

arts reviews

MAPS TO THE STARS

MAPS TO THE STARS Film

In cinemas

★★★ In David Cronenberg’s seething LA satire Maps To The Stars, Hollywood is a place where a “disfigured schizophrenic” gets off the bus from backwater Florida and a week later is driving a convertible, instantly at home in this rarefied realm of grotesque wealth and sociopathic privilege. A Greek tragedy in the form of a caustic comedy, Bruce Wagner’s

script turns the lives of celebrityculture’s modern-day gods into fable for a self-consuming society, Hollywood, here, a realm of decadence and death. Its denizens are haunted, often literally: Julianne Moore an aging starlet involved in a vindictive/victimised dialogue with the cruel ghost of her bellewho-died-young mother, Sarah Gadon; Evan Bird a cunty tween superstar visited by the spectre of a girl he PR-opp visited on her deathbed; Mia Wasikowska the upwardly-mobile schizophrenic whose burns are the scars of past building-to-the-big-reveal trauma. John Cusack plays a new-age soothsayer who presides over the trio – and a media empire – with his healing hands, spouting quasi-mystical jargon rich with self-help platitudes, 12-step philosophies and selfmythologising horseshit. Wagner’s righteously-revolted script is full of familiar satirical tropes but Cronenberg, as is his way, literalises the horrors-of-Hollywood into a horror-film, the movie-biz a glittering necropolis, celebrity itself a veritable deathwish. Anthony Carew

NIGHTCRAWLER Film

In cinemas 27 Nov

★★★ ½ As an indictment of the amoral mindset the media can sometimes display in the pursuit of ratings and profit, Nightcrawler is very effective but doesn’t say anything especially new. As an exploration of various ugly and unpleasant character traits – desperation, entitlement, blind ambition – it feels original and striking. And much of the credit must go to Jake Gyllenhaal. Here, as Lou Bloom, the night-crawling freelance news cameraman of the title, he pulls off the remarkable feat of draining himself of all humanity while creating a compellingly poisonous character. Bloom exists on the fringes of Los Angeles’ society, scavenging and stealing whatever he can sell in order to get by. But he has dreams of something better, and he’s cunning enough to work hard

for his goal. When he discovers that local news stations will pay for video footage of accidents and aftermaths of crimes, he invests in a cheap camera, recruits an intern (Riz Ahmed, terrific) and begins his new career. Bloom is a natural – mainly because he doesn’t care about the injured or dying people on the other side of his lens. Writer-director Dan Gilroy has a number of fair-tomiddling B-movies on his resume as a screenwriter, but he’s upped his game with his debut behind the camera, giving Nightcrawler a propulsive, pulpy energy that meshes ideally with its unsettling insights into human nature. Guy Davis

NIGHTCRAWLER

THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014 • 23

24 • THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014

the guide

SPIRIT BUNNY

Member answering/role: Joel – I play noise boxes and hacked toy keyboard. In-between I sing and dance. How long have you been together? Our first show was mid-2013 – but that show was a mess of wild uncontrolled noise we don’t often acknowledge. We dropped our first single at the end of last year and have been showing off our moves ever since. How did you all meet? Onstage supporting Girl Talk circa-2009. Kate and Cameron were parts of two different backing bands for my solo music. You’re on tour in the van – which band or artist is going to keep the most people happy if we throw them on the stereo? A mixtape based on the letter D – Deerhoof, The Drones, Dirty Projectors, Danielson, Death Grips, Destiny’s Child, Dirty Three. Would you rather be a busted broke-but-revered Hank Williams f igure or some kind of Metallica monster? We are a broken and despised monster. Which Brisbane bands before you have been an inspiration (musically or otherwise)? Noise-pop bands like The Rational Academy, Shuriken, Turnpike, Sky Needle, Old Growth Cola. Aso whole labels/communities like Room40, LoFly, Sonic Masala, Bedroom Sucks, Disembraining Machine/Audiopollen inspire our attention. What part do you think Brisbane plays in the music you make? We cut our teeth in DIY spaces around Brisbane. Our songs celebrate 38 degree days, hanging in suburban malls, dancing in living rooms. Uniquely Brisbane cultural events. Is your band responsible for more make-outs or break-ups? Why? Make-outs. Fast make-outs. You have about two-and-a-half minutes each time a song starts to find a new partner, and show them your moves before it’s all over and we move on. What’s in the pipeline for the band in the short term? We released two download singles with remixes in the past 12 months. Those tracks are off a record we’ve nearly finished. So 2015 will hopefully result in a full-length record coming out. Spirit Bunny play The Bearded Lady on Thursday 27 November (free). Pic: Terry Soo THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014 • 1

eat/drink

WAFFLES Not just an alternative to the pancake, waffles are taking on a new personality. Still sweet as ever, they’re also getting serious and savoury these days, popping up on cafe menus everywhere. But enough waffling; onto some waffle talk. Words Sarah Barratt. Illustration Sophie Blackhall-Cain.

PULLED PORK WAFFLES

CHICKEN & WAFFLES

Mix your standard waffle-mix with some finely chopped parsley, chopped spinach and grated potato. Or try your hand at making cornbread waffles. Top with some slow roasted pulled pork and caramelised onion from the pan.

Bring that authentic feel of the streets of Harlem to your plate with the classic chicken and waffle combo. Take your normal waffle; pile on a fried chicken wing, garlic aioli, gherkin and homemade coleslaw. Add maple syrup to be truly authentic.

CHOCOLATE WAFFLES

FRUITY WAFFLES

A good dessert or dessert-forbreakfast option. The ultimate one for sweet-tooths. It doesn’t really matter what else you put on the waffle in this instance besides chocolate sauce/melted chocolate, but you can add sliced bananas, strawberries, cream/ice cream. Just anything that won’t take away from the hero: chocolate.

You can’t go past the classics sometimes. Trick yourself into thinking you’re balancing the stuff that’s bad for you with the stuff that’s good for you: top your waffle with seasonal fruits (berries, mandarin pieces, stone fruit all work well) and maybe a scoop of ice cream or dollop of whipped cream, and a splash of maple syrup or berry coulis.

WHERE TO GET WAFFLES Geláre in South Bank makes waffles to order and they also make their own ice cream to top the waffles with. People rave about the texture of Geláre’s waffles. Petite Waffles has five stores around Queensland, and offer vanilla, maple, cinnamon, chocolate, strawberry flavoured waffles; you can serve them up hot with toppings or just cold, like a cookie or donut. Delicatezza in Mitchelton offers waffles with brulee bananas, salted caramel, crème chantilly, lime.

26 • THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014

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INDIE NEWS

CHART WRAP

RAPT ABOUT IT

MINI BUT MIGHTY

HIGHLY FESTIVE

The ever-changing Brisbane ten-to-15 piece, Velociraptor, are touring to celebrate the release of their self-titled debut fulllength album. Hitting up The Triffid on 28 Nov, the band will be supported by Jeremy Neale (pictured) and White Lodge.

Golden Guitar winner Lachlan Bryan and QLD Music Award winning songwriter Harmony James are teaming up for a mini-tour – check them out at 27 Nov, Junk Bar, Ashgrove.

Rising Brisbane rockers Woodstock Road may be five months old, but they’ve already turned plenty of heads. Go check out what the all the fuss is about when they launch new single Rainy Day Trippin’ at The Milk Factory on 27 Nov.

IT’S FAMILY

SWARMING SOUND

KIWI TALES

Newbies around the Brisbane traps, The Family Jordan showcase their forthcoming debut album of “cosmic country” 28 Nov at Black Bear Lodge, supported by Moonshine.

Performing as Wasp Summer, singer-songwriter Sam Wareing is returning to Australia from Berlin for a run of shows that, 5 Dec, pulls up at Couplet in Brisbane Library Square and 10 Dec at Skakum Lounge.

Now based in Melbourne, New Zealand folk singersongwriter Sean Kirkwood takes his debut EP, Tales For The Barman, around the nation, playing 28 Nov, Cardigan Bar; and 30 Nov, The Milk Factory.

BB-APPROVED

THE FUTURE IS NOW

WENT TO SEE SEA

Now based in the US, Melbourne songwriter and guitarist Hamish Anderson is back in Australia to launch his new single, Burn, and EP, Restless. Catch him 26 Nov, The Bearded Lady.

Melbourne spacecore band AlithiA are blasting off once more. Their music has been described as playing “astral anthems of the future” and that’s by people from the future, so that’s a big compliment. They play Beetle Bar, 28 Nov.

Central Coast indie-pop revellers Sea Legs have dropped the DIY music video for their latest single Christopher Strong and will bring the party to The Northern, Byron Bay, 29 Nov; and Sounds On Sunday, Gold Coast, 30 Nov.

HELPING HAND

POST-PUNK REVOLUTION

UNITED METAL

AMP nominee Tom Cooney is working on an album right now, and brings his songs of love and indifference to Black Bear Lodge on 3 Dec when he supports indie-folk duo Luluc on their homecoming tour.

Leon Trotsky stayed true to the Revolution and paid with an ice pick in his head. Postpunks The Trotskies are staying true to the musical revolution with new single, DYR, taking their musical ice pick into Black Bear Lodge 5 Dec.

Metal United Down Under happens 29 Nov, featuring Inhailed, 4 Dead In 5 Seconds, Dark3ll, Demodocus, AZREAL, Tria Mera, ASYLUM and more at Vibe in Indooroopilly Hotel.

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Newly minted Future Music Festival drawcards Knife Party have emerged as the best-performing newcomers in a week of fresh debutants on the Carlton Dry Independent Music Charts, with their debut album Abandon Ship claiming the third-highest spot on the Albums ladder, just beating out old school fave Countdown and its various artists compilation (#4) for the honour. Extreme prog-metallers Ne Obliviscaris step out at an impressive #7 with Citadel, while Dan Sultan is back in action with Dirty Ground, which slides in at #12. CW Stoneking strums his way to #12 with Gon’ Boogaloo, and Jack Ladder & The Dreamlanders rounds out the field with Playmates, which enters at #17 this week. However, despite all the fresh faces, incumbent respective top two the Hilltop Hoods (Walking Under Stars) and Flight Facilities (Down To Earth) remain unmoved from their positions atop the pile. It’s a similar situation over on the Singles chart, where the top two have switched since last week to see the Hilltops’ Cosby Sweater in pole position once more, finally displacing the longtriumphant Freaks, by Timmy Trumpet (now #2). Vance Joy has released yet another top ten single on debut, with new cut First Time coming in at #8. That’s just below Riptide (#7), but well above recent track Mess Is Mine, which is hanging in there at #15. The week’s final newcomer, Will Sparks’ Ah Yeah, steps out at #16; Sparks is one of only four acts, alongside Sia (Chandelier, #6), San Cisco (Run, #9) and Meg Mac (Roll Up Your Sleeves, #19), to be a unique proposition on the ladder – every other spot is filled by a multiple place-holder. THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014 • 27

the guide qld.live@themusic.com.au

SINGLE FOCUS

SINGLE FOCUS cutouts from magazines like TIME and Vice. I laid it on the table as we formed the track then flipped through my lyric journal to see what popped out. We’ll like this song if we like... Extremes.

GEORGE MAPLE Single title? Talk Talk What’s the song about? Talk Talk is written from a place of frustration. It is about longing for people to take action. How long did it take to write/ record? It was written in Sydney in January. It followed me around the room for a few months and then Harley and I finished it in June. Is this track from a forthcoming release/existing release? It’s taken from Vacant Space EP which will be released via Future Classic on 1 Dec.

It was summer in Australia. I was having fun. It was the first time I’d had a break in a year. It was a time of complicated romance. We’ll like this song if we like... To dance? Do you play it differently live? I play with two other musicians when I perform live. We workshopped the track until we were all happy with how it felt. It was a challenging process. Website link for more info? facebook.com/georgemaplemusic

GRACE Single title? Pluto What’s the song about? Wanting something out of bounds, giving in to temptation and then chaos erupting. How long did it take to write/ record? Dave (Sitek) and I wrote the song in one night on our first day in the studio.

Do you play it differently live? The recording is made up of mostly electronic instruments, so to develop it for the shows we incorporate live drums and guitar to enhance the sound and volume. When and where is your launch/next gig? 4 Dec, Black Bear Lodge. Website link for more info? iheargrace.com

Is this track from a forthcoming release/existing release? Pluto is the first single from my EP which will be released in the new year. What was inspiring you during the song’s writing and recording? My scrapbook which has

What was inspiring you during the song’s writing and recording?

HAVE YOU HEARD

EP FOCUS

– what would it be? This new Julian Casablancas & The Voidz album because I love it and can’t work out what he is saying but it is rewarding when I do. For re-listening value.

FUN MACHINE Answered by: Ocelot Heartattack How did you get together? Engine had this organ with a funny name and wanted to start a band and I just yelled and yelled in his doorway then we all had too many ideas. Sum up your musical sound in four words? Bodies bodies bodies bodies. If you could support any band in the world – past or present – who would it be? We supported The Darkness and they were great. Bonaparte resonates like a cave with our goals.

Greatest rock’n’roll moment of your career to date? Thought it was when I threw up on stage and kept playing. But no-one noticed because I kept playing, and it was only because I had had too much pizza, nothing “cool”. Why should people come and see your band? Because you have some sort of body, and it deserves what we have to give it. When and where for your next gig? WOODFORD FOLK FESTIVAL HOO BOY SO PUMPED PASS MY GUMBOOTS LET’S PARTTTTY! 27 Dec – 1 Jan. Website link for more info? mostfunmachine.bandcamp.com

When and where is your launch/ next gig? 28 Nov, Soundlounge, Gold Coast; 29 Nov, The Zoo.

EP title? Monsters How many releases do you have now? Two: Rosie, named after my dog, and this one.

Website link for more info? thelmaplum.com

Was anything in particular inspiring you during the making? I wrote the EP at the end of last year. I was in a relationship at the time that was making me pretty sad so these songs are kind of a reflection of that. What’s your favourite song on it? Mmmmm, it changes.. But probably Monsters. It is reminds me of when I was a child. We’ll like this EP if we like... Strings, feeling sad and more strings.

You’re being sent into space, no iPod, you can bring one album 1 • THEE M MUSIC U • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014

THELMA PLUM

S U P P O R T I N G

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SINGLE FOCUS

SINGLE FOCUS release, however we’re open to putting the song on any future releases later next year. What was inspiring you during the song’s writing and recording? My verandah, storm-watching, Kingfisher’s Seafood Basket, and of course; Mary Jane.

MOSES GUNN COLLECTIVE

WOODSTOCK ROAD

Single title? Mary

Do you play it differently live? We extend a few bits and shorten a few bits but no one ever really notices, which is okay.

What’s the song about? Mary is a love song, but she is not in fact a person. Or is she?

When and where is your launch/next gig? At The Brightside on 28 Nov.

How long did it take to write/ record? It only took one day.

Website link for more info? facebook.com/ mosesgunncollective

What’s the song about? Brisbane summer storms, taken from the perspective of a disaffected youth yearning for escape in a drug-induced rainy wonderland.

Answered by: Lewis Stephenson

Is this track from a forthcoming release/existing release? Yep, it’s from our EP Morning Shakes, coming out next week.

WED 26TH NOV

TRALALA BLIP

FOX ‘N’ FIRKIN (10:30PM) + CACTUS DILL-DOS (9:30PM)

FRI NOV 28TH

SKYWAYS ARE HIGHWAYS (9:00PM) + GUEST (8:00PM)

SIXFTHICK’S LAST SHOW OF THE YEAR GRIEG EL NORTO

SAT NOV 29TH

GARAGE/SOUL, 60S, FUNK, MOD VINYL PARTY

‘GIMME SHELTER’

SUN NOV 30TH

THE BEARDED LADY BIRDLESQUE

Website link for more info? facebook.com/ woodstockroadband

CAFÉ - BAR

GAMLA STAN (10:00PM) + SMASHED JAFFAS (9:00PM)

SPIRIT BUNNY NO MAGIC MNTTAB

When and where is your launch/ next gig? The Milk Factory (formerly the Joynt) on 27 Nov, supported by good friends Belligerent Goat and Foxsmith

321 BRUNSWICK STREET MALL, FORTITUDE VALLEY

CATHEDRAL CALAN MAI

THU NOV 27TH

Do you play it differently live? Our drummer’s girlfriend plays the outro riff on violin with all sorts of crazy effects. Also serves as a perfect end to a show.

Is this track from a forthcoming release/existing release? At this stage, the song is just a single

We’ll like this song if we like... Dreaming and stargazing.

HAMISH ANDERSON

Single title? Rainy Day Trippin

How long did it take to write/ record? I wrote the song on the afternoon prior to Cyclone Oswald in January 2013. We weren’t even a band then so recording didn’t take place till August this year.

What was inspiring you during the song’s writing and recording? Pentecostal Church, evangelical preachers and the holy snail.

WED NOV 26TH

Answered by: Lucas de Lastic

We’ll like this song if we like... T Rex, Fleetwood Mac, The Dandy Warhols, Mac DeMarco, rain, failure and escape.

THU 27TH NOV FRI 28TH NOV

SAT 29TH NOV

REGULAR GONZALES (9:00PM) + GUEST (8:00PM)

SUN 30TH NOV

BETWEEN KINGS (9:30PM) + GUEST (8:30PM)

MON 1ST DEC

COBBLESTONE (9:30PM) + JOEL ANTHONY (8:30PM)

TUE 2ND DEC

DONNELLE BROOKS (9:30PM) + GUEST (8:30PM) FREE LIVE MUSIC AND INDIE DJS WANT TO PLAY? EMAIL BOOKINGS@RICSBAR.COM.AU

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I N D E P E N D E N T

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THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER ERR 20 22014 0 •2

M U S I C

the guide qld.gigguide@themusic.com.au

THE MUSIC PRESENTS Dallas Frasca: Irish Club 29 Nov; Solbar 13 Dec; Bramble Bay Bowls Club 31 Dec The Delta Riggs: The Factory Maroochydore 5 Dec, The Triffid 6 Dec

20 Dec, Joe’s Waterhole Thy Art Is Murder: Crowbar 20 Dec & 21 Dec (U18) Nas: The Tivoli 20 Jan Real Estate: The Zoo 27 Feb

The War On Drugs: The Zoo 10 Dec

Sharon Van Etten: The Zoo 4 Mar

Gyroscope: The Brightside 11 Dec

London Grammar: Brisbane Riverstage 7 Mar

Festival Of The Sun: Port Macquarie 12-13 Dec

65daysofstatic: The Hi-Fi 11 Mar

Dead Letter Circus: The Hi-Fi 18 Dec

Mojo Burning Festival: New Globe Theatre 21 Mar

Dallas Frasca & Shaun Kirk: Lefty’s 18 Dec, 19 Dec, Currumbin Creek Tavern;

Bluesfest Byron Bay: Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm, 2-6 Apr

WED 26

Worldlife + The Motorik Vibe Council: Alhambra Lounge, Fortitude Valley Yarn - Eat Your Feelings + Various Artists: Black Bear Lodge, Fortitude Valley Trivia: Blue Pacific Hotel, Woorim The Zouk Social: Chalk Hotel, Woolloongabba DJ JDub: Cocktails & Dreams, Surfers Paradise Merauder: Crowbar, Fortitude Valley Trivia: Forest Lake Tavern, Forest Lake Trivia: Glenmore Tavern, Norman Gardens Trivia: Lawton Tavern, Lawnton Open Mic Night with Mick Flannery + John Spillane: Mick O’Malley’s, Brisbane Trivia: Oxford 152, Bulimba Trivia: Pelican Waters Hotel, Caloundra Trivia: Redland Bay Hotel, Redland Bay Open Mic Night + Various Artists: Solbar (Lounge), Maroochydore Jam Night + Various Artists: Stones Corner Hotel, Stones Corner Hamish Anderson + Calan Mai + Cassette Cathedral: The Bearded Lady, West End Chris Poulsen Trio: The Milk Factory Kitchen & Bar, South Brisbane Rob McMullen: The Plough Inn, Southbank Trivia: Vale Hotel, Aitkenvale Brooke Evers + Jay Robinson: Vanity Nightclub, Surfers Paradise Trivia: Villa Noosa Hotel, Noosaville

THU 27

Karaoke: Albany Creek Tavern, Albany Creek

GIG OF THE WEEK VELOCIRAPTOR: 28 NOV, THE TRIFFID Tora: Alhambra Lounge, Fortitude Valley Open Mic Night + Various Artists: Allenstown Hotel, Rockhampton Various Artists: Bay Central Tavern, Pialba Roymackonkey + Taken By Wolves + Dead Zephyr: Beetle Bar, Brisbane Young Magic + MTNS: Black Bear Lodge, Fortitude Valley Karaoke: Blue Pacific Hotel, Woorim Katy Perry + Betty Who: Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Boondall Big Jim: Brothers Leagues Club, Manunda Jam Night + Various Artists: Capalaba Tavern, Capalaba Trivia: Club Tavern, Caboolture DJ JDub: Cocktails & Dreams, Surfers Paradise Reign Havok Finals+Various Artists: Crowbar, Fortitude Valley Trivia: Deception Bay Tavern, Deception Bay Golden Sound: Eat Street Markets, Hamilton Karaoke: Forest Lake Tavern, Forest Lake Harmony James + Lachlan Bryan: Junk Bar, Ashgrove Underground Sounds - Open Mic Night Competition + Various Artists: Mick O’Malley’s, Brisbane Hat Fitz & Cara Robinson: New Globe Theatre, Fortitude Valley

Tralala Blip + Spirit Bunny + No Magic: The Bearded Lady, West End

Acoustic Artists + Various Artists: Burleigh Heads Hotel, Burleigh Heads

Green Jam Sessions + Various Artists: QPAC (Melbourne Street Green), Southbank

Counterparts + Vices: The Brightside, Fortitude Valley

Various DJs: Caloundra Hotel, Caloundra

Shannon Noll: Racehorse Hotel, Booval

Blues & Roots Night+The Lyrical: The Elephant Hotel, Fortitude Valley

Various DJs: Capalaba Tavern (Sports Bar), Capalaba

John Malcolm: Royal Mail Hotel, Goodna

Sean Kirkwood: Cardigan Bar, Sandgate

Recharge DJs: Russell Tavern, Dalby

Lucy Street: Chalk Hotel, Woolloongabba

Kingfisha + Hayden Hack Infusion: Solbar, Maroochydore

DJ JDub: Cocktails & Dreams, Surfers Paradise

Thelma Plum: Soundlounge, Currumbin

Various Artists: Commercial Hotel, Nerang

Various Artists: Springfield Tavern, Springfield

Temple Agents: Coolangatta Hotel, Coolangatta

Freakin Fridays + Rotating Residents: Springwood Hotel, Springwood

Broods + Mansionair: The Hi-Fi, West End Woodstock Road + Belligerent Goat + Foxsmith: The Milk Factory Kitchen & Bar, South Brisbane Ty Fader: The Plough Inn, Southbank Boss Moxi + Twin Haus + Salvadarlings + Shady Bliss: The Zoo, Fortitude Valley DJ Daniel De Niro + Jake Carmody: Vanity Nightclub, Surfers Paradise Tuffy: Victory Hotel, Brisbane Various DJs: Villa Noosa Hotel, Noosaville

FRI 28

Ignite The Chamber + 4 Dead In 5 Seconds: Crowbar, Fortitude Valley Various Artists: Dalrymple Hotel, Garbutt TGIF + Various DJs: Deception Bay Tavern, Deception Bay Smoking Martha + Black Diamond + Boned: Dolphins Hotel, Tweed Heads

Sixfthick: The Bearded Lady, West End

Various Artists: Alexandra Headlands Hotel, Alexandra Headlands

Young Magic + The Delicates: Elsewhere, Surfers Paradise

DJ JD7: The Four Mile Creek Hotel, Strathpine

Phil Smith: Habitat Restaurant & Bar, South Brisbane

The Preatures + Holy Holy + Babaganouj: The Hi-Fi, West End

Various Artists: Allenstown Hotel, Rockhampton Alithia + Love Hate Rebellion + Rise Overrun + Tusk + Lunar Seasons: Beetle Bar, Brisbane

Various Artists: Kawana Waters Hotel, Kawana Waters Various Artists: Kirwan Tavern, Townsville

Karaoke: Prince of Wales Hotel, Nundah

Various DJs: Breakfast Creek Hotel, Breakfast Creek

DJ LP: Love Nightlife, Broadbeach

Chelsea Handler: QPAC (Concert Hall), Southbank

Katy Perry + Betty Who: Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Boondall

Various Artists: Miami Tavern, Miami

Trivia: Sunnybank Hotel, Sunnybank

DJ Ritchie: Story Bridge Hotel (Shelter Bar / 10pm), Kangaroo Point

Captain Dreamboat + The Rocketsox: Eat Street Markets, Hamilton

Various Artists: Lawton Tavern, Lawnton

Trivia: Springfield Tavern, Springfield

Amos Pella: Story Bridge Hotel (The Corner Bar), Kangaroo Point

Body & Soul - Sandy Beyon & Sean Mullen: Absynthe French Restaurant, Surfers Paradise

Various DJs: Blue Pacific Hotel, Woorim

The Brodie Graham Band: Solbar (Lounge Bar), Maroochydore

Various Artists: Stones Corner Hotel, Stones Corner

Knockoff + Various Artists: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Platform), New Farm Sweet K: Brothers Leagues Club, Manunda Various Artists: Buderim Tavern, Buderim

S U P P O R T I N G

Various Artists + Signature Music Duo + Locky: Mick O’Malley’s, Brisbane Future Beauty Up Late with Sampology + Seja & Mel Tickle (DJ Set): QAGOMA (QLD Art Gallery), South Bank

The Moses Gunn Collective: The Brightside, Fortitude Valley

Counterparts + Vices: The Lab (All Ages), Brisbane Ingrid James + Julian Jones: The Lido Cafe & Restaurant, Ascot Declan Kelly + Radical Son + Tony Hughes + Pat Powell: The Motor Room, West End Big Boyz: The Plough Inn, Southbank The Mark Of Cain + King of the North + Turnpike: The Zoo, Fortitude Valley Jake Carmody + Jay Robinson: Vanity Nightclub, Surfers Paradise

Bjorn Again: QPAC, Southbank

I N D E P E N D E N T

A U S S I E

M U S I C

the guide qld.gigguide@themusic.com.au Various Artists: Victory Hotel, Brisbane

Various Artists: Kawana Waters Hotel, Kawana Waters

Spit Syndicate: Wharf Tavern, Mooloolaba

DJ LP: Love Nightlife, Broadbeach

Transvaal Diamond Syndicate + Buckwild: Woolly Mammoth, Fortitude Valley

Various Artists: Miami Tavern, Miami

Juice + DJ Jarrd + DJ Blitz: Wynnum Tavern, Wynnum West

SAT 29

Creek Bar Saturdays + DJ Indy Andy: Albany Creek Tavern, Albany Creek Jazz Saturdays + Various Artists: Albion Hotel, Albion Various Artists: Alexandra Headlands Hotel, Alexandra Headlands Various Artists: Blue Pacific Hotel, Woorim Sean Kirkwood: Bohemian Bungalow (Arvo), Eumundi Attori: Brothers Leagues Club, Manunda Various Artists: Caloundra Hotel, Caloundra Karaoke: Capalaba Tavern (Sports Bar), Capalaba Various Artists: Captain Cook Tavern, Kippa-Ring Wasabi + DJ Keith: Chalk Hotel, Woolloongabba Jam’n’Beats Festival feat. Bullhorn + Schoolfight + Dillion James + The 52 Pickups + Inigo + Vaguely Human + Quorum Consensus + The Rocketsox + Un Dia Antes + Keno + 41 Ninjas + more: Club Greenslopes, Greenslopes DJ JDub: Cocktails & Dreams, Surfers Paradise Metal United Down Under feat. Undermine The Supremacy + Ignite The Chamber + Frayed The Fallen + Symbolic Weapon + more: Commercial Hotel (Club Titanium), Nambour The Mark Of Cain + King of the North: Coolangatta Hotel, Coolangatta

Festival of Small Halls + The Mae Trio + Del Barber: Broadsound Centenary Hall, St Lawrence The Bachata Social: Chalk Hotel, Woolloongabba DJ JDub: Cocktails & Dreams, Surfers Paradise

Alter Egos + Ger Fennelly: Mick O’Malley’s, Brisbane

Trivia: Dowse Bar (Iceworks), Paddington

Kronic + Ember: Platinum Nightclub, Broadbeach

Kallangur Tavern: Kallangur Tavern, Kallangur

Natural NZ Music Festival + Shapeshifter + Dave Dobbyn + The Black Seeds + House of Shem + Sons of Zion + Scribe + P-Money + Anika Moa + Natural NZ Music Festival: Riverstage, Brisbane

Trivia: Kirwan Tavern, Townsville Trivia: Mick O’Malley’s, Brisbane Trivia: Mt Pleasant Tavern, North Mackay

Paua + Trevor Green: Royal Mail Hotel, Goodna

Uncle Bob’s Music Club + Various Artists: Prince of Wales Hotel, Nundah

Recharge DJs: Russell Tavern, Dalby The Preatures + Holy Holy: Solbar, Maroochydore

Trivia: Pub Mooloolaba, Mooloolaba

Shannon Noll: Springwood Hotel, Springwood

DACHAMBO + Tin Can Radio + DJ Rudi Quinzalez: The Bearded Lady, West End

Vintage Rock Box: Story Bridge Hotel (The Corner Bar), Kangaroo Point

Trivia: The Four Mile Creek Hotel, Strathpine

DJ Ritchie: Story Bridge Hotel (Shelter Bar / 10pm), Kangaroo Point Hat Fitz & Cara Robinson: The Arts Centre Gold Coast, Surfers Paradise Gimmie Shelter: The Bearded Lady, West End Ne Obliviscaris + Beyond Creation + Halcyon Prophecy: The Brightside, Fortitude Valley

Livespark + Rattlehand + Andrew Morris: Brisbane Powerhouse (Turbine Platform), New Farm Fingerprint: Brothers Leagues Club, Manunda

The Drums + Rolls Bayce + Tempura Nights: The Hi-Fi, West End

Body & Soul - Sandy Beyon & Sean Mullen: Bulimba Golf Club, Bulimba

Declan Kelly + Radical Son + Tony Hughes + Pat Powell: The Majestic Theatre, Pomona

Sunday Unplugged + Various Artists: Burleigh Heads Hotel, Burleigh Heads

Pepa Knight + JNGL: The Milk Factory Kitchen & Bar, South Brisbane

Various Artists: Captain Cook Tavern, Kippa-Ring

Blue Steel + Jezelle: The Plough Inn, Southbank Neel Kolhatkar: The Tivoli, Fortitude Valley

TUE 02

KATY PERRY: 27, 28, 30 NOV; 1 DEC BEC

Tim Lollback: Chalk Hotel, Woolloongabba DJ JDub: Cocktails & Dreams, Surfers Paradise Michael Eotvos: Coomera Tavern, Upper Coomera

Trivia: Alderley Arms Hotel, Alderley

Various Artists: Pub Lane Tavern, Greenbank

Trivia: Allenstown Hotel, Rockhampton

The Great Women of Country feat. Melinda Schneider + Beccy Cole: QPAC (Concert Hall), Southbank

Trivia: Australian National Hotel, Woolloongabba

Various Artists: Raintrees Tavern, Manunda Various Artists: Smithfield Tavern, Smithfield Stu Harcourt + Pat Tierney: Solbar, Maroochydore DJ Ritchie: Story Bridge Hotel (Shelter Bar / 3pm), Kangaroo Point Birdlesque: The Bearded Lady, West End Sean Kirkwood + Ryan Delaney + Tim Loydell: The Milk Factory Kitchen & Bar, South Brisbane

Crowieoke + Various Artists: Crowbar, Fortitude Valley

Thelma Plum + Left + Dalli: The Zoo, Fortitude Valley

The Flangipanis: Crowbar, Fortitude Valley

Sean Kirkwood: Upfront Club Maleny, Maleny

Jakob + Hazards of Swimming Naked: Crowbar, Fortitude Valley

Mar Haze: Currumbin Creek Tavern, Currumbin Waters

Day Rave with Matt Musella: Vanity Nightclub, Surfers Paradise

Cider Sundays + Various Artists: Dowse Bar (Iceworks), Paddington

Jake Carmody: Vanity Nightclub, Surfers Paradise

Ben Eaton: Habitat Restaurant & Bar, South Brisbane

Jake Carmody + Jesse Boyle + Jay Robinson: Vanity Nightclub, Surfers Paradise

Various DJs: Villa Noosa Hotel, Noosaville

Bullhorn: Harrigan’s Drift Inn, Jacobs Well

Jam Sessions + Various Artists: Waterfront Hotel, Diddillibah

NZ Music Festival After Party + Various Artists: Woolly Mammoth, Fortitude Valley

Various Artists: Lawton Tavern, Lawnton

Hair of the Mammoth + Various Artists + Mammoth DJs: Woolly Mammoth, Fortitude Valley

Karaoke: Deception Bay Tavern, Deception Bay Spit Syndicate: Flinders Social, Townsville Festival of Small Halls + The Mae Trio + Del Barber: Hervey Bay Community Centre, Pialba Metal United Down Under feat. Inhailed + 4 Dead In 5 Seconds + Demodocus + Lavidius + Azreal + The Cilikis Progressio Project + Asylum + Trinatyde + Misguided + more: Indooroopilly Hotel, Indooroopilly T-BAR Festival feat. Dallas Frasca + Asa Broomhall + Devils Kiosk + Transvaal Diamond Syndicate + Brendan Leggatt + more: Irish Club Hotel, Toowoomba

SUN 30

Hailey Calvert: Black Bear Lodge, Fortitude Valley Sunday Sessions + Various Artists: Blue Pacific Hotel, Woorim Katy Perry + Tove Lo: Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Boondall

Various Artists: Magnums Hotel, Airlie Beach Forever Breaking + Sasta + Ger Fennelly: Mick O’Malley’s, Brisbane Mimi Macpherson: Noosa Reef Hotel, Noosa Heads Various Artists: North Lakes Tavern, Mango Hill Various Artists: Petrie Hotel, Petrie

S U P P O R T I N G

Norton: The Plough Inn, Southbank Eric Nam + Elly Oh: The Tivoli, Fortitude Valley

Festival of Small Halls + The Mae Trio + Del Barber: Yeppoon Town Hall, Yeppoon

MON 01

DJ Greg Mullens: Brothers Leagues Club, Manunda Trivia: Buderim Tavern, Buderim Trivia: Captain Cook Tavern, Kippa-Ring Trivia: Chalk Hotel, Woolloongabba DJ JDub: Cocktails & Dreams, Surfers Paradise Trivia: Irish Finnegans, Condon Trivia: Pacific Pines, Pacific Pines Trivia: Prince of Wales Hotel, Nundah Trivia: Royal Exchange Hotel, Toowong Big Earle: Royal Mail Hotel, Goodna Mark Sheils: Samford Valley Hotel, Samford Valley Festival of Small Halls + The Mae Trio + Del Barber: Sarina Bowls Club, Sarin Trivia: Stones Corner Hotel, Stones Corner Trivia: The Gap Tavern, The Gap DACHAMBO + Die Rude + DJ Rudi Quinzalez: Woolly Mammoth, Fortitude Valley Karaoke: Wynnum RSL, Wynnum

Trivia: Alexandra Headlands Hotel, Alexandra Headlands Trivia: Belmont Tavern, Belmont Katy Perry + Tove Lo: Brisbane Entertainment Centre, Boondall

I N D E P E N D E N T

A U S S I E

M U S I C

32 • THE MUSIC • 26TH NOVEMBER 2014