Time Off Issue 1590

THE JUNGLE GIANTS

TIM ROGERS

SLASH

NOEL FIELDING

NASUM ALPINE LOON LAKE IOWA

N O W AVA I L A BL E O N I PA D • 15 AU G U S T 2 012 • 159 0 • F R E E

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A PERFECT CIRCLE THE OFFSPRING PARAMORE GARBAGE TOMAHAWK STONE SOUR KYUSS LIVES ANTHRAX SUM 41 DRAGONFORCE ALL TIME LOW FLOGGING MOLLY GHOST DUFF MCKAGAN’S LOADED MOTION CITY SOUNDTRACK THE LAWRENCE ARMS KINGDOM OF SORROW FOZZY SLEEPING WITH SIRENS CANCER BATS MADBALL VISION OF DISORDER PIERCE THE VEIL PERIPHERY SHAI HULUD OF MICE & MEN MISS MAY I DANKO JONES WOE, IS ME THE WONDER YEARS WHILE SHE SLEEPS LUCERO SUCH GOLD SIX FEET UNDER DEAF HAVANA RED FANG CHUNK! NO, CAPTAIN CHUNK! MEMPHIS MAY FIRE ...WITH MANY MORE TO BE ANNOUNCED!

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TIME OFF • 3

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NEW ALBUM NIGHTFLIGHT OUT NOW 4 • TIME OFF

TIME OFF • 5

GIVEAWAYS Thanks to Madman Entertainment we have ten double passes to give away to a preview screening of Your Sister’s Sister. One year after his brother’s death, Jack (Mark Duplass) hasn’t recovered. His best friend, Iris (Emily Blunt), prescribes solitary reflection and sends him to her father’s empty cabin.

But she doesn’t realise her sister, Hannah (Rosemarie DeWitt), is there for similar reasons, having just walked out on a sevenyear relationship. The screening is on Tuesday 28 August at 6.30pm at Palace Centro.

Thanks to Roadshow Entertainment we have five copies up for grabs of Tricky Business, as seen on Channel 9. The series stars Shane Bourne, Gigi Edgley, Debra Byrne, Lincoln Lewis, Kip Gamblin, Antony Starr and Sophie Hensser.

of industry, assassin, beggar, monster, family man. He seems to be playing roles, plunging headlong into each part… but where are the cameras? Only at the Movies Aug 23.

Thanks to Kristian Fletcher we have two doubles up for grabs to the next Weird Wednesdays movie night. It’s on Wednesday 22 August at Tribal Theatre and features Steel Dawn (1987) (M) at 6.30pm and Deathsport (1978) (M) at 8.15pm. Entrants must be 18+.

We have got one double pass to give away to the Reggaetown World Music Festival at The Kuranda Amphitheatre on Saturday 1 September! Situated 27kms north-west of Cairns the festival is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year. Blue King Brown, Katchafire, Gramps Morgan and more will be playing at the festival. Please note: The tickets do not include transport or accommodation.

Thanks to Crucial Music we have five doubles to give away to each of Children Collide’s upcoming Brisbane gigs. You can catch them at The Zoo Friday 24 August and Saturday 25. Entrants must be 18+.

Thanks to Icon Films we have ten double passes up for grabs to the new film, Holy Motors. From dawn to after nightfall, a few hours in the life of Monsieur Oscar, a shadowy character who journeys from one life to the next. He is, in turn, captain

The Laurels are playing at The Beetle Bar Friday 17 August, and we have got two double passes up for grabs! Entrants must be 18+.

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ISSUE 1590

W E D N E S D AY 1 5 A U G U S T 2 0 1 2

TIME OFF

FRONT ROW

Foreword Line – news, opinions, tours, Backlash, Frontlash 8 We catch up with Bloc Party to talk about their new record 12 Slash tells us the thinking behind his Apocalyptic Love 14 We never thought we’d get a chance to see Nasum 16 It’s always nice to hear from Tim Rogers 18 They’re one of our finest exports right now; we catch The Jungle Giants as they look to make their next big step 19 Their debut record is out, and Alpine are ready to show it off to everyone 20 The mighty Psycroptic are back in action 22 Melbourne’s Iowa have just released one hell of an indie rock record 22 We get inside the brutality of Antagonist AD 24 Asa Broomhall tells us about his Jangle House 24 Nathan Cavaleri has a new lease on life with Nat Cole & The Kings 24 Victorian indie lads Loon Lake are making their next assault on Brisbane 24 On The Record has the latest, greatest and the not so greatest new musical releases 26 Chris Yates spotlights the best (and worst) tracks for the week in Singled Out 26

Check out what’s happening This Week In Arts Jeremy Renner, the star of The Bourne Legacy, talks about the transition into the spotlight Noel Fielding admits to looking at photos of fans’ cats while on break from The Mighty Boosh Shake & Stir’s Nick Skubij speaks about their latest adaptation of Orwell’s 1984 We chat with Five Minutes’ Shane Hill who is performing at the Gangsters Ball

CREDITS

Madeleine Laing, Tom Hersey Front Row: Baz McAlister, Mandy Kohler, Lauren Dillon, Adam Brunes, Matt O’Neill, Mitch Knox, Jessica Mansour, Guy Davis, Rowena Grant-Frost, Danielle O’Donohue, Helen Stringer, Alice Muhling Photography: Stephen Booth, Kane Hibberd, Terry Soo, John Taylor, John Stubbs

EDITORIAL Group Managing Editor: Andrew Mast Editor: Steve Bell Contributing Editor: Dan Condon Front Row Editor: Cassandra Fumi Interns: Keagan Elder, Sophia De Marco ADVERTISING Advertising Account Executives: James Tidswell, Alex Iveson DESIGN & LAYOUT Cover Design/Designer: Matt Davis ACCOUNTS & ADMINISTRATION Administration: Leanne Simpson Accounts: Marcus Treweek CONTRIBUTORS: Time Off: Ben Preece, Dan Condon, Daniel Johnson, Chris Yates, Matt O’Neill, Adam Curley, Lochlan Watt, Carlin Beattie, Tyler McLoughlan, Mitch Knox, Sam Hobson, Rachel Tinney, Tony McMahon, Benny Doyle, Jake Sun, Helen Stringer, Brendan Telford, Rip Nicholson, Cyclone, Amber McCormick, Brad Swob, Siobhain McDonnell, Sky Kirkham, Bradley Armstrong, Carley Hall, Eleanor Houghton, 6 • TIME OFF

themusic.com.au

28 28 30 30 30

BACK TO TIME OFF! Get the drum on all the coolest happenings in local music last week, this week and beyond in Live Dan Condon gets the dirt on the blues scene from the Roots Down Lochlan Watt gives you brutal metal news in Adamantium Wolf Adam Curley cuts sick with another musical pop culture rant in The Breakdown Cyclone has the wide urban world covered with some OG Flavas Get the latest gearhead news from Australian Musician iFlog, the only way to flog

31 34 34 34 34 39 42

EDITORIAL POLICY The opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publishers. No part may be reproduced without the consent of the copyright holder. © PUBLISHER: Street Press Australia Pty Ltd Suite 11/354 Brunswick Street Fortitude Valley QLD 4006 POSTAL: Locked Bag 4300 Fortitude Valley QLD 4006 Phone: 07 3252 9666 Email: info@timeoff.com.au Rural Press

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TIME OFF • 7

FOREWORD LINE

NEWS FROM THE FRONT

IN BRIEF Brisbane’s The Medics have taken out the Album Of The Year, New Talent Of The Year and Song Of The Year awards at the weekend’s National Indigenous Music Awards in Darwin.

SOMEBODY EVERYONE KNOWS

His upcoming shows in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide and Brisbane are Gotye’s first – and only – Australian shows this year and first since he topped the charts and toppled numerous records around the world. There will be no further shows announced. What has been announced, however, is the supports for the tour, which hits the Riverstage Wednesday 12 December, and they are PVT, pictured, and Bertie Blackman. Awarded ‘Best Local Release Of The Decade’ by Sydney’s FBi Radio for their seminal 2008 album O Soundtrack My Heart, PVT are one of the most challenging and fascinating bands to emerge from Australia in the past decade, crossing musical paths across a wide terrain of electronica, jazz, improvised rock and beyond. Bertie Blackman, meanwhile, is about to release her new album Pope Innocent X – 11 tracks of visual, evocative storytelling: spiky, fertile pop blended with electrifying sonic tales and otherworldly, dark dares. Tickets via Ticketmaster.

WAVE OF METTALICATION

After months of intense rumours, confirmations, alleged minor leaks and a hell of a lot of denials, the first line-up announcement for the 2013 Soundwave bill is here, and it seems like organiser AJ Maddah used Blink-182 (with drummer Travis Barker), pictured, as somewhat of a decoy to hide the fact that legends Metallica will also be taking headlining duties! The rest of the massive line-up looks a little like this: Linkin Park, A Perfect Circle, The Offspring, Paramore, Garbage, Tomahawk, Stone Sour, Kyuss Lives, Anthrax, Sum 41, Dragonforce, All Time Low, Duff McKagan’s Loaded, Fozzy, Flogging Molly, Ghost, Kingdom Of Sorrow, Sleeping With Sirens, Madball, Vision Of Disorder, Cancer Bats, Pierce The Veil, Periphery, Shai Hulud, Miss May I, Woe Is Me, Lucero, Six Feet Under, Danko Jones, The Wonder Years, While She Sleeps, Such Cold, Deaf Havana, Red Fang, Chunk! No, Captain Chunk! and Memphis May Fire.

Head to soundwavefestival.com for tickets, which go on sale Thursday 23 August, for the festival which goes down Saturday 23 February at the RNA Showgrounds.

SEAMAN SOUNDS

There aren’t many artists who’ve sound tracked the birth of dance music and are still leading its development more than two decades later. There are even less who have gifted both the club and pop scenes with unforgettable musical moments that get talked about in hushed tones years after their creation. Dave Seaman is one of a select few. Whether it’s one of his spine-tingling Global Underground or Renaissance CDs that’s still burning a hole in your stereo years after its purchase, or the perfect pop of Kylie’s Confide In Me that he wrote, produced and remixed, there’s very few with their heart in electronic music who haven’t had a Dave Seaman ‘moment’. No doubt you’ll find plenty of those moments when he plays Lemon & Lime at Sky Room, Sunday 2 September.

8 • TIME OFF

Gotye has topped another US chart this week, with his Somebody That I Used To Know now sitting atop the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart.

Hot new rock act The Rubens have signed a management deal with Umbrella (Cloud Control, Urthboy, Belles Will Ring, Fishing) for Australia and New Zealand.

US post-hardcore band Alexisonfire have announced that Australia will get two shows as a part of their nine-date final ever tour. Sadly they are to take place in Sydney and Melbourne.

My Chemical Romance vocalist Gerard Way features as vocalist on Professional Griefers, the new single from dance music superstar Deadmau5.

ORBITING HERE

Sydney band Breaking Orbit is an outfit that closes the gap between alternative and progressive rock. Their debut album, The Time Traveller, is a captivating mix of eclectic soundscapes, driving poly-rhythms, euphoric vocal melodies, tribal drum breakdowns and heavy grooves – taking the listener on an epic journey. The ablum’s title track truly encompasses the band’s sound, poised to place them amongst the country’s best prog-rock acts.

The four-piece are heading around the country to launch the hour-long journey into Breaking Orbit’s sound, and they play Basement 243 on Friday 7 September. Whether it’s their eclectic soundscapes, tribal grooves or cracking musicianship, the raw energy and power in their expression is set to engage all that experience the band in full flight.

Killing Joke frontman Jaz Coleman has been located in the Western Sahara after disappearing two weeks ago. He denies being the author of a rant against touring buddies The Cult and The Mission, blaming an online impersonator.

DEMOLISHED THURSTON

Key member of critically acclaimed art rock band Sonic Youth, Thurston Moore will tour Australia this October performing tracks from his latest record Demolished Thoughts and his solo back catalogue. Regarded as one of the greatest guitarists of all time, Moore formed the highly influential Sonic Youth with Lee Ranaldo and Kim Gordon in 1981. The seminal New York-based band went on to release 16 studio albums, including groundbreaking records such as Daydream Nation and Goo, which brought them to the attention of the critical elite. Turning his attention to his solo career, Moore spent much of the last year touring his 2011 album Demolished Thoughts. The intensely personal record was produced by longtime friend Beck Hansen, and the result is an intimate, brooding and beautiful work of art. Presented by Street Press Australia, Thurston Moore plays The Hi-Fi Saturday 27 October. Tickets via handsometours.com and thehifi.com.au.

themusic.com.au

A series of dates for a reformed The Monkees have been announced in the US, the band reuniting with Mike Nesmith for the first time since 1997.

M.I.A. has revealed that her fourth album Matrangi should be released this December.

PAPER SHIPS

After having experienced a whirlwind of success since their debut EP Woodland, young indie-folk five-piece The Paper Kites announce the release of their brand new EP, Young North, out 7 September. Their new material has an energetic feel while maintaining the romantic and whimsical appeal of their current favourites. The earthy sounding instruments meld together to create a perfect backdrop for the band’s harmonic, strong and sensual voices. Joining The Paper Kites are very special guests Art Of Sleeping and Battleships. Art Of Sleeping’s first single Empty Hands and then new single Above The Water are already big hits, while Sydney four-piece Battleships’ debut single is currently on high rotation on triple j. Catch the triumvirate Thursday 25 October at Woombye Pub, Sunshine Coast, Friday 26 at The SoundLounge, Gold Coast and Saturday 27 at The Zoo.

MIRROR MEN

Described as the “ultimate mix tape”, All Tomorrow’s Parties invites an artist or band to handpick their favourite performers to play at the festival. After the inaugural series in 2009 (hosted by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds), ATP returns for I’ll Be Your Mirror, co-curated by perennial Aussie live favourites The Drones, Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 February, 2013 at Midday Westgate Entertainment Centre and Grand Star Reception in Altona, Melbourne. As expected from an ATP line-up, it’s pretty spectacular, and will be headlined

by My Bloody Valentine in their first Australian appearance since 1992, plus Canada’s Godspeed You! Black Emperor in their first ever Australian show. This is backed up by The Drones of course, the reformed original line-up of Beasts Of Bourbon, Einstürzende Neubauten, Swans, The Dead C, Lost Animal, Thee Oh Sees, Harmony, HTRK, Sleepy Sun, Cam Butler & The Shadows Of Love, Standish Carlyon and more TBA. Tickets via ATPFestival.com.

GENTLEMANLY SONS

UK country-folk outfit Mumford & Sons have announced details for the Australian edition of Gentlemen Of The Road, a one-day stopover camping festival extravaganza, headlined by the band themselves. To be held in the historic town of Dungog, in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, the four-piece have recruited local and international acts to fill out the bill including Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros (who had already been announced as support for Mumford & Sons’ Australian tour dates), Sarah Blasko, Matt Corby, Husky, US singer Willy Mason and Yacht Club DJs. The Gentlemen Of The Road stopover has evolved into a global series for the ‘Sons, debuting in the UK earlier this year in June. The Australian tour and stopover will follow from the band’s forthcoming release, Babel, which will hit the stores on Friday 21 September. Tickets from Wednesday 15 August via gentlemenoftheroad. com. Camping options available, and encouraged.

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TIME OFF • 9

FOREWORD LINE

NEWS FROM THE FRONT

IN BRIEF The crowd funding target of $28,000 for the Cosmic Psychos’ upcoming documentary, Cosmic Psychos: Blokes You Can Trust, was reached last week.

TRIPLE THE VOLUME

It’s time for 4ZZZ’s Radiothon, aiming to entice 4ZZZ’s listeners and community members to subscribe for their chance to win awesome prizes.

2012’s theme is Pump Up The Volume (based on the cult ‘90s pirate radio movie) and sees a couple of big weekends coming up. Saturday 18 August is the Radiothon BaZZZar at West End Twilight Markets, with live music from I Am Not A Nihilist, Marcy’s Pospects, Scraps, Kitchen’s Floor and others. Then the Rock N Roll BBQ Sunday 19 at the Mustang Bar features Flangipannis, To-sha-munda, Goldstool and Blood Relative. The following weekend 4ZZZ just wants everyone to Get Happier! on Friday 24 and Saturday 25 at the Bridge Club with a couple of huge line-ups. Friday sees Bitch Prefect, pictured, Holy Balm, Sarah Mary Chadwick, Sky Needle and Tight Slip, before Saturday hosts New War, The Garbage & The Flowers, Terrible Truths, Rat King and Cannon. Tickets via Oztix.

QUIRKY TURKEY

Relive the joys of childhood – filtered through the fun of being an adult – with legendary children’s entertainer Peter Combe as he hits the road for a series of concerts just for grown-ups. The enigmatic artist and multiple ARIA award-winner has just released his thirteenth album, the fantastically-titled Quirky Berserky (The Turkey From Turkey), and to celebrate has organised a series of all ages shows, followed each time by a special evening adultsonly performance. This year marks three decades in the industry for Combe, so it’s no surprise he has a huge legion of adult fans of classics like Newspaper Mama, Wash Your Face In Orange Juice and Spaghetti Bolognaise. The new album incorporates jazz, pop, bluegrass and choral music styles, as well as augmented story-telling. Joined by the Quirky Berserky Bellyflop In A Pizza Band, he plays the Tempo, Sunday 23 September. $22 plus BF via thetempohotel.com.au, $25 door.

JLOVE DON’T COST A THING

It seems hard to believe, but global superstar Jennifer Lopez (or JLO to her peeps) will be touring Australia for the first time ever in her 13-year long career. JLO will be touring down under as part of her Dance Again World Tour, which has already visited countless cities across North America, South America, Europe and Asia in recent months. On the tour she’ll performing hits from across her expansive career, which features seven studio albums that have sold more than 70 million records worldwide.

It comes in time to celebrate her recently released greatest hits collection Dance Again...The Hits, filled with all the old faves like Love Don’t Cost A Thing, Jenny From The Block and I’m Real, plus new banger On The Floor featuring Pit Bull. Hear them all Tuesday 18 December at Brisbane Entertainment Centre (all ages). Tickets via Ticketek from 21 August.

LANGE LIVES

One of the trance scene’s biggest names, an artist of top calibre who continues to break boundaries – the UK’s Lange – is globally recognised as one of the most influential dance artists of the past decade, remaining at the forefront of the scene and producing vastly popular dance music that continues to think outside the box. After an exhausting list of achievements including 20 UK Top 40 hits, film soundtrack features and remixing duties for mainstream artists such as the Pet Shop Boys, Lange still remains at the top of his game. A prolific international DJ has made appearances for some of the biggest club brands in the world, including Godskitchen and Ministry Of Sound, as well as performing for prestigious festivals such as such as Global Gathering and Creamfields; Lange plays Lemon & Lime at BarSoma, Fortitude Valley, Sunday 14 October.

10 • TIME OFF

Country star Randy Travis has been arrested in north Texas after being found trying to buy cigarettes while naked and threatening to shoot and kill police.

The new record from The Angels, their first with the Screaming Jets’ Dave Gleeson, is to be called Take It To The Streets and released on Friday 31 August.

Melbourne’s Polyester Records is re-launching the record label arm of their business, looking to issue vinyl editions of Australian releases.

Their first three projects are New War’s eponymous debut, Grand Salvo’s Slay Me In My Sleep and Maidenhair by Max Crumbs.

CIRCUS IS IN TOWN

MAKING AMORE

From the first strikes of their angular yet melodic chords, LA hardcore-punkers Touche Amore, pictured, bring to mind the balance of rage and melody that ‘Revolution Summer’-era DC bands Rites Of Spring and Ignition once carried. Within each song they build a musical tension while impassioned vocalist Jeremy Bolm’s shouts resonate, ripe with intellectual introspection. This collective outpouring of traditional hardcore anger returns to Australia in October, joined by Make Do And Mend.

Formed in West Hartford, Connecticut in 2006, Make Do And Mend’s own brand of post-hardcore is as melodic as it is fierce, perfecting a sound that’s more than able to convince you that aggressive emotion and heartfelt honesty are not dead in the punk music that we fell in love with. Wednesday 31 October they play The Zoo and Thursday 1 November Distortion Studios (all ages). Tickets via Kill The Music and Oztix.

Renowned metal label Century Media have returned to Spotify after its fans convinced the label executives to rethink their boycott of the service.

The Jagermeister Independent Music Awards are to take place at Melbourne’s Revolt on Tuesday 16 October.

Insane Clown Posse have revealed they plan on suing the FBI as its loyal supporters – juggalos – are considered to be gang members in a number of American states.

Circus Records is the brainchild of Doctor P, Flux Pavilion, DJ Swan-E and Earl Falconer (of UB40 fame). Started in 2009 as a platform for Flux and Doctor P’s dubstep productions, the label has grown quickly to become synonymous with top quality bass-driven music. Circus’ mission is to throw away the conventions of the music industry and do things the way they think things should be done. After their first national tour only a few weeks ago, WA bass crew Big Ape return with the Circus Showcase tour, featuring the abovementioned head honcho and mastermind behind Sweet Shop Doctor P, pictured, joined by label lads Cookie Monsta, Funtcase, Slum Dogz and the master of ceremonies, Krafty MC. Thursday 20 September will be a night of bass music madness at Coniston Lane. Tickets via thebigape.com.au or Moshtix.

MELTING SKY

See avant-garde music scores collapse into a speck.

Watch rioters throw stones as the world burns. Be blinded by 13,000 watts of white light and deafened by 105 decibels of white noise. Melbourne artist Marco Fusinato explores the rhetorics and realities of extremism in art, music, and politics. His work is the subject of The Color Of The Sky Has Melted, a major exhibition now open at the Institute Of Modern Art, running until Saturday 6 October. Fusinato also works as a musician in the avant-garde noise music tradition, exploring the use and abuse of electric guitars. He has collaborated with such musicians as Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore and The Dead C’s Bruce Russell, and his most recent CD releases include Ripping Skies (2009) and Ambianxe (2010). Fusinato will also present an all-day sound performance at IMA as part of the project on Saturday 13 September.

NICK RE-RELOADED

The Australian and New Zealand dates for Nicki Minaj’s Pink Friday Reloaded Tour – previously announced for September and October this year have been rescheduled to November/December, continuing to hit all cities as previously announced and with original support Tyga still joining her on the trip. They’ll now be appearing at Brisbane Entertainment Centre Monday 3 December, with tickets going on sale via Ticketek August 16.

OZ ROCK OPERA

Summer series favourite A Day On The Green launches an invasion of Australian rock’n’roll with its next national tour. Hoodoo Gurus, pictured, The Angels with Dave Gleeson, Baby Animals, James Reyne and Boom Crash Opera will join forces for five rollicking hours of irresistible Oz rock classics at Sirromet Wines, Mount Cotton on Sunday 4 November. The legendary Gurus are by any measure one of Australia’s greatest, best loved and most enduring rock bands; the Dave Gleeson-fronted Angels unleash their eagerly-awaited new album this month to feverish Angels fans; the Baby Animals are back in the studio and ready to rock again; James Reyne’s new album Thirteen has proved to be anything but unlucky with stellar reviews, and openers Boom Crash Opera fronted by charismatic Dale Ryder round off the bill with panache.

Tickets range from $89.90 plus BF to $149 plus BF via Ticketmaster from August 17.

GINUWINE DISAPPOINTMENT Bell Biv DeVoe and Ginuwine’s joint Australian tour scheduled to start last weekend was cancelled. Due to unforeseen circumstances that are not yet able to be fully disclosed for legal reasons, the highly-anticipated near sold-out tour cannot go ahead. Patrons who purchased their ticket(s) using credit card for Ticketek for the Sunday 12 August show at The Tivoli will receive a refund of the full purchase price within ten business days, otherwise head to point of purchase.

BACKLASH

FRONTLASH

Thank god the Olympics have finally finished for another four years. National pride is cool, but listening to people talk about sports with which they have no normal affinity as if it’s a matter of life and death is excruciating.

The new Velociraptor album is one of the greatest things to come out of this state in a long time. As addictive as heroin, although (hopefully) without the adverse long-term health impact and associated mood swings…

FINALLY...

DINO MIGHT!

JUST DON’T

BRINGING THE ROCK

Great, Big Brother is back, and to make things even better we got an email today here framing the various betting markets for the new season. If you watch Big Brother you’re a douche, but if you watch it and bet on it then you’re so far beyond douchedom there’s not even a name for it yet…

Some of the tour whispers we’re hearing from OS for this summer are almost killing us with anticipation.

Fucked Up leaked their one themselves so we can blag that, but you’ll have to stay tuned for the rest. Oh the humanity…

MERRY MEREDITH The line-up for this year’s Meredith Festival just came out, and it’s freaking unbelievable. There will be some amazing Queensland tours by great bands on the back of it, so why the backlash? Because some of you fine readers won’t be able to join us in the gorgeous natural amphitheatre, natch…

JERSEY POISE

FUCKED UP – ON THEIR WAY?

themusic.com.au

We went along to see the local production of Jersey Boys expecting it to be cool (because musicals are rad), but we weren’t expecting to be totally floored by the amazing production. The music of the Four Seasons is the drawcard, but everything about the affair is topnotch, do yourself a favour…

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CLEANING HOUSE

BLOC’D ACCESS

Four is a record from a sharper Bloc Party. A smarter Bloc Party.

A Bloc Party that knows better than to listen to journalists...

“I don’t really want to talk too much about the inner workings of our band,” Kele Okereke says in response to rumours of the band’s tension during their hiatus. “I’m happy for people to believe what they want to believe. It doesn’t affect me. It’s all propaganda. This is all stuff that has nothing to do with the reason we got together to make music or with the music that we have made. So, I’m happy for people to believe what they want to believe as long as they don’t say anything slanderous or libelous - but I’m not going to engage with it.

“Really, it is all just propaganda. This conversation, even. I’m talking to you right now because I want to promote a record - and you can bet that I won’t be telling you anything other than exactly what I want you to know. I won’t say anything about the inner workings of our band or our relationships - because some things are private,” the singer says candidly. “Like I said, I am generally quite suspicious of the media - because I know how it works. I know how it operates.

“Under the premise of ‘news‘ or ‘spreading information’, you can conceal a lot of things - you can conceal power structures and ideologies. I’m fully aware of that. So, I’ve always been somewhat guarded and sceptical about engaging with the media - but I know it’s also a tool to be used. So, I’m going to use what I can to promote my record - but I’m never going to read a word you write. I’ll never know what’s in this article and I’ll never really want to know, either. I don’t read music press.” that group. And I think, to be honest, we’ve always tried to fight against that.”

Bloc Party have returned from the brink of destruction to deliver a raw new album. Matt O’Neill corners vocalist Kele Okereke to get the story behind Four. Cover and story pic by Kane Hibberd.

F

our is a neat album. For all Bloc Party’s sinewy instrumentation and nervous energy, they’ve never been a band of restraint. 2008’s divisive Intimacy threw everything from dubstep breakbeats to choral arrangements at a listener. 2007’s A Weekend In The City was effectively a concept album. Even their 2005 debut, Silent Alarm, was almost overloaded with ideas. Four, though - Four is different.

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It’s tight. Economical. The band’s eclecticism remains - Octopus’s mangled guitar hook, for example, followed by banjo-led melodies in Real Talk - but there’s a sense of liveliness that undercuts even their most ambitious excursions. It’s telling that, in recording the album, the band opted for neither of their previous producers but Alex Newport, a man perhaps best known for his work on Sepultura frontman Max Cavalera’s industrial-metal Nailbomb project.

“The only discussion that we had about the musical direction of it was, when we got together at the end of 2010 to discuss what we were going to do with Bloc Party, I said ‘If we’re going to make another Bloc Party record, I think it should be the sound of the four of us in a room together - or as close to that as possible,’” frontman Kele Okereke says of the record. “I think all of our previous records have been quite studio-based records.

“You know, from Silent Alarm through to Intimacy, we’ve kind of written our songs and then figured out how to play them live. This one’s quite a bit leaner.

In recording it, we knew we didn’t want a producer someone who would craft the album. We wanted more of an engineer - someone who would just document the sound. I remember listening to Alex’s showreel and being very impressed by his restraint and his detail.”

Critics have already been quick to explain the record’s direction with a variety of theories, most popularly positing it as a reaction to the electronic experimentation of Intimacy. More ambitious critics have drawn a line from Intimacy through the band’s year-long hiatus and Okereke’s equally electronic 2010 solo album, The Boxer, suggesting Bloc Party’s remaining members had become oppressed by Okereke and that Four is his apology.

12 • TIME OFF

“There’s no validity to that idea at all,” the frontman says in response, his tone seemingly pitched halfway between annoyance and amusement. “Without wanting to talk too much about our internal writing processes, I can categorically state that that was never the case.

I certainly don’t see Intimacy as any kind of disaster.

I see it as being part of our back catalogue. I see it in the same way as Silent Alarm or Weekend In The City.

“I look at it in the same way that I’ll most likely look at Four once this touring cycle as finished - it was part of our journey as a band. When I look back at any of our previous records, I hear things I’d like to have redone. I hear things we didn’t get quite right.

You know, I have that trouble with our first album. For a period there, I couldn’t listen to it at all because I just heard all the things that weren’t right about it.

“Still, I feel they’re all steps on our journey and I think of them all in the same way. You know, listening back to Intimacy, I still think it has some of our best work on it. It has some of our best songs. I think it has some of my best lyrics. So, really, I actually feel quite fond of that record. I don’t think of it as any kind of disaster or missed opportunity or anything of the sort.”

Speaking to Okereke, one begins to suspect Four is representative of a much larger shift. Bloc Party have

“

Musically, their output has been similarly complex.

Given that their initial rise to fame was in no small part predicated on their kinship to classic British post-punk and indie-rock, their sound has showcased an unbelievable scope of influences over the years from elements of grunge, new wave and pop through to aspects of dubstep, garage, grime and hip hop. Four actually seems to reference heavy metal on occasion.

“When we started making music together, we were very much bonded by a dislike of what was happening around us at the time. When we started this band, the bands that were popular in the UK were bands like Travis and Starsailor. Real kind of namby-pamby, acoustic singer-songwriter bands. We just wanted to make something with a sense of energy. That’s the only thing I remember wanting to do at the time.

“In terms of specific sounds, I’m not sure there ever really was one. One of the clubs that we went to that was one of the biggest influences for us and how we think about genre was this club called Trash. Defunct now, sadly. It was quite instrumental for us as a band because you’d go to this club and hear Joy Division mixed with Madonna mixed with Missy Elliot mixed with Nine Inch Nails.

I LEARNT THEN THAT GENRE ISN’T SOMETHING TO DEFINE YOU. IT’S SOMETHING TO RAIL AGAINST.”

always led a surprisingly complicated existence.

The slightest remark from Okereke can lead to any number of controversies and rumours. Most recently, an offhand comment in a triple j interview led fans to believe Four would be the band’s final album. (Not the case, as Okereke later clarified.)

“Well, it’s nice to know people are listening,” the vocalist reflects diplomatically of his relationship with the press which, all too recently, also gave rise to the rumour that he had been kicked out of his own band. “It’s nice to know that you can reach people and there are people out there interested in what you do. I’m not going to lie, though - I have always generally been quite suspicious of the media.”

“You’d hear all this music from very disparate places in popular culture - but they were coming together and working together because it was good. It was good music. I learnt then that genre isn’t something to define you. It’s something to rail against. It’s not something I want to be part of. I want people to see I’m as into the Deftones as I am Squarepusher as I am Nicki Minaj as I am Blur.

“You know, I think we’ve always tried to distance ourselves from other bands. I can remember in 2005, we were supposedly a part of this British Invasion of bands - that we didn’t really know as people or we weren’t really fans of their music. Wherever we went, we always found ourselves lumped in with

themusic.com.au

Four doesn’t seem so much a reaction to Bloc Party’s previous album. Bloc Party’s hiatus seems, in retrospect, a reaction to their career, from an industry that forced them to prematurely churn out a third album, to a media more interested in Okereke’s personal life than music (he came out as gay in 2010), to their own inconveniently expansive ambition; Bloc Party’s career has always been complicated.

No longer. The band refuse to tour for more than three weeks at a time. In conversation, Okereke is cordial but guarded (see sidebar). While he will not rule out a fifth Bloc Party album, he is similarly circumspect about committing to one. Having spent their career at the mercy of others, Bloc Party seem to have recently become determined to live by their own terms. And that, more so than anything else, is the sound of Four.

“I do think about Bloc Party’s future. I do think about it, for sure,” Okereke admits. “But part of the problem that we had at the end of 2009 was that we felt that our lives were simply going from one year-long world tour and then straight into the studio to make a record and then back out into the world to tour that record. You know, you can only do so much of that before the situation starts to feel a little bit toxic.

“You know, you start to find it hard to figure out how to have a life outside of what you do for a living. I think we’re all a bit wary of rushing back into that routine, into that rhythm, because it was quite destructive. “Creatively, right now I’ve got no idea what another Bloc Party record would sound like right now - but that’s a good thing. I think that’s a good thing.

We’re ready and willing to be inspired - and I’m sure that will happen over the next year.”

“But,” the frontman stresses, “that’s a conversation we would need to have between us - whether we actually want to go through it again. One of the good things I learnt about taking that time out - having six months of not doing anything in particular and just taking time to breathe, is a good thing. It’s very important. You know, none of us need Bloc Party. If we stopped, we’d all be fine. We don’t need to do this.

“That actually takes the pressure off, though,” Okereke adds. “I know that, if we do make another record, it will only be because we want to. I just don’t think we’ll know if we want to go through that again until the end of this year.”

WHO: Bloc Party WHAT: Four (Frenchkiss)

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STILL HUNGRY After enlisting a star-studded cast for his previous solo record, Slash focused on working with one singer on new disc Apocalyptic Love.

Brendan Crabb gets in the bunker with rock’s legendary axeman.

A

few days after making a guest appearance during Alter Bridge’s set at the Sydney leg of the Soundwave Festival, Slash is finalising the Apocalyptic Love mixes, as well as beginning a day of promotion for the new album. While fielding questions about the status of supergroup Velvet Revolver, he quickly remarks that they’ve been on hiatus for some time and little more. When quizzed about Guns N’ Roses’ then upcoming induction into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame, he’s initially amicable, then jovial on the topic. When pried too much for his liking about whether he’s spoken to fellow former Gunners members about it though, it’s a polite, but firm case of, “I don’t want to talk about that anymore” and a quick change of subject.

discussing Apocalyptic Love. He grins when it’s suggested that it sounds more like a fully-fledged band effort than its predecessor.

His 2010 self-titled album featured numerous guest vocalists (Ozzy Osbourne, Fergie, Lemmy and Chris Cornell among them) and appearances from several former Guns N’ Roses members.

Apocalyptic Love’s vocals and lyrics are solely handled by Alter Bridge’s Myles Kennedy, who also appeared on Slash. Did he feel the band vibe was something vital missing from Slash?

However, the top hat-donning guitarist is infinitely more enthusiastic whilst

There is obvious songwriting chemistry between Slash and Kennedy – something the former says he felt immediately.

“No, just as a rock‘n’roll kinda thing, the unity of an actual group is something that I pretty much strive for,” he explains. “But when I was doing the first record, which sounds great to me, it wasn’t put together that way because of the amount of people involved and just the way that it worked out. But the guys that I worked with, we still played together sort of in a band environment when I was doing that record. But this has got a little bit more of a synergy with the other guys. We’ve been playing together on the road for the last year-anda-half and the songs were performed live in the studio, as opposed to pieced together, the way that a lot of people do records these days.”

“That’s happened right from the very first rehearsal and then the ensuing shows. I started thinking this would be a good band to do a record with. It seems like everybody knew who Myles was but me,” he says when asked about his history with the vocalist/ guitarist. “Matt Sorum [ex-Guns N’ Roses, Velvet Revolver] had reached out to him a couple of times over a long period with Velvet Revolver, but I didn’t know who he was until roughly around 2009. I reached out to him, because I knew of his reputation and I needed somebody to sing a couple of songs on the record. I’d finished the rest of it; I had two songs left over and I couldn’t think who should sing these two songs. I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that Zeppelin had called him in to replace Robert Plant at one point. So I thought, ‘This guy’s gotta be good!” he laughs.

“I flew him into LA and we met for the session for a song called Starlight that was on my record. And that’s where we started.”

It’s remarked that it must be easier to write with just one singer in mind.

There’s more to this story on the iPad “Yeah, well, that’s the way I’ve been doing it for years,” he laughs.

“I just did one record where I used a lot of different vocalists, which was a lot of fun, but it wasn’t a career move, it was just a project that I did.” It’s asked whether he envisions attempting the multiple vocalists’ schtick again. “No, that was just sort of a one-off. I might do something like that down the line at some point, but right now I’m just concentrating on this record, this tour and I would think that it would probably be if I was going to do another record after this tour was over I would do it with the same guys (known as Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators). That kind of chemistry just doesn’t happen all the time… You can’t take it for granted when it happens.

We all work really well together and there’s a sort of spark there.”

Touring is what Slash seems most enthused about; he lights up at the mere suggestion of returning to the road, with a return to our shores in August. While other acts have to focus more on the touring side to make a living due to free-falling record sales, the veteran guitar-slinger is in the enviable position of being able to largely work according to his schedule.

“Because I’m sort of my own record company and I’m more or less in control of my own destiny, really the only criteria for songwriting is just write something that’s good. It’s not necessarily focused on singles. But you know, there are people I work with that go, ‘Well, this would probably make a good single,’ and I’m like, ‘Okay, whatever’,” he laughs.

The era of artists selling millions of copies of debut albums a la Guns’ 1987 classic Appetite For Destruction is largely no more. What does he think of where the industry is headed?

“It is what it is,” the guitarist ponders. “There are certain aspects of it that I think are more or less progressive and sort of a natural par for course. And there are some aspects of it that I don’t agree with. But I don’t preach about it very much, I just figure out my own route to follow, and sort of navigate the terrain. It’s definitely a different time. I talk to a handful of young artists over time, here and there about it. Because they ask me,’What’s the best way to do it?’ The model that I used when I first started is non-existent, pretty much, now. So now it’s sort of like the Wild West, you’ve gotta just go out and make it up. There’s no tried-and-true method anymore… There’s a lot of great resources. But there’s no guarantee that any of them will work, you know?” he laughs. “So you just have to sort of pick your own path and try and make the best of it.

“There’s not a lot of artist development, like what I was familiar with, throughout the whole industry. It’s very few and far between, but there are people in the industry who really care about music for music’s sake, and are there to try and help.

But you know, the business at large, it’s hard to really trust that, wait for that to happen,” he laughs. “But fortunately there are some people out there that really care about developing a band and going out and looking to see who’s around or what talent is out there. So it’s not non-existent, it’s just limited compared to how it was when I was first coming up.”

WHO: Slash feat. Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators WHAT: Apocalyptic Love (Dik Hayd International/Sony) WHEN & WHERE: Thursday 23 August, Riverstage 14 • TIME OFF

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PHOENIX RISING The Swedish grind revolution that is Nasum came to an abrupt end with the death of a founding member nearly eight years ago. In 2012 it is back for one last blast. Bassist Jesper Liveröd talks to Lochlan Watt.

B

oxing Day, 2004 – a tsunami rising from the Indian Ocean tsunami slams Indonesia and kills roughly 230,000 people. One of those lost was holidaying Nasum vocalist and guitarist Mieszko Talarczyk, aged 30. His band had been on a warpath of creative destruction since their formation in 1992, having released four highly-praised albums through Relapse Records in addition to dozens of EPs, splits and compilation appearances.

The beast was suddenly stopped in its tracks and had no intention to ever replace Talarczyk or perform again.

Drummer Anders Jakobson formed death metal group Coldworker, guitarist Jon Lindqvist got his crust on in Victims, guitarist Urban Skytt continued to shred in goregrinders

Regurgitate, and Liveröd threw his energy into one final album from his progressive metal group Burst. Nasum released Grind Finale in 2006 – a compilation of rare and unreleased material, as well as a retrospective book on the band – and the world was told that was to be the final chapter of their legacy.

Then in October 2011 the announcement came that Nasum would be reforming for one final tour – a tour that included them saying goodbye to places familiarised by the band, and giving continents that had never seen the group, such as Australia, a chance to experience their songs live.

“It has been lurking back there,” comments Liveröd, who joined the band in 1999, on the urge to end things right. “We don’t live in the same cities. One would mention it now and then but not really take it seriously for a few years. Anders has been thinking about it the most out of us, and I think in 2010 he came up to see us in Stockholm, and had dinner and a few beers, and talked about Nasum, talked about Mieszko, talked about everything, and he suggested that we do something to acknowledge both the band as it is, and the 20th anniversary, and to give the band a proper farewell. Everything was very abrupt obviously when Mieszko died. We wanted to end the band the way it was supposed to be, not the way we were forced.”

Keijo Niinimaa – vocalist for fellow Swedish grinders Rotten Sound – was selected to carry forth the vocal front for the group.

“Obviously it was important that if we were going to do this thing, it needs to be as good as possible, with a very competent singer who can really deliver. It was also obviously very important to us that whoever does this has a clear connection to the band, that we know, and that there was a connection also with Mieszko.

We didn’t want anybody to be the new singer of Nasum – this is a guest that is supposed to have some sort of relation to us. All things considered, Keijo pretty soon stood out as more or less the only candidate that we could ever think of. We have history with his band Rotten Sound – we have toured with them, they recorded with Mieszko when he was still alive, we all stayed in touch with him, and to top it off he is a great singer and a great performer too.”

And how did Niinimaa handle the massive torch he was selected to carry?

“He was nervous, man. He was a really big fan of the band as well. He was a Nasum fanboy basically. He was very nervous and took it very seriously. Keijo is a very professional guy and he has been rehearsing like crazy for the last year-and-a-half.

Even when we haven’t met up he’s been rehearsing on his own, going jogging and singing the lyrics, all kinds of weird stuff. “[There’s been] one or two internet detractors, but apart from that it has been surprisingly above that,” he says on whether or not the decision to reform with a guest member was met with any negative backlash. “We’ve been surprised at how well this thing has been received. It’s such a sensitive thing when someone dies, when someone is such an integral part of a band, the position of Mieszko was sanctified. We really had to think about what we’re doing and how we’re doing it.

“I think that people have the same perception as us – that Nasum wasn’t only one person, Nasum was a band, with several individuals, and the band itself was not only Mieszko. This is not so much a tip of the hat to our old singer, but a tip of the hat to a band that meant a lot to us, and to a lot of fans. I guess the lack of critique from people, I would have expected a bit more.

It has been super positive for us, and people have been really understanding that this is a one off for us, and that we aren’t capitalizing off Mieszko’s death. We are blasting, grinding, having a good time, getting over the grief and just doing what we were supposed to, and going out the way we were supposed to, and not ending it like how it suddenly happened a few years ago.

People appreciate the way it is and see it the way we do.”

Having played their first show back in the band’s hometown of Orebro, Sweden, Liverod determines that the experience was “liberating”. The show was attended by “a lot of friends from the past, all of Mieszko’s friends, and all of everyone involved with that city’s music was basically there. The nerves were pretty on the outside for us, but going out there and just blasting away, every sense of nervousness just flew out with the blasts.”

The schedules lined up, and Tasmania’s technical death metal legends Psycroptic were selected to support the group on their Australian tour, much to the chagrin of internet-warring grindcore purists. So how then does Liverod feel on the issue of mixing it up?

“Grindcore is still important to me, and I love grindcore as much as I ever did I think, but you know, for us as well as for the others, we appreciate mixed bills... whether it’s metal, hardcore or punk.

I was always irritated at that purist way of looking at this genre.

Grindcore to me is all a part of the same music scene, and I don’t see why variation is a problem to people. When you tour and there’s five grindcore bands opening up for you every day, it tires us a bit, and I’m going to say that I think the audiences would get a bit overwhelmed by five grindcore bands then us. Nothing would really stand out, and it kind of flows into a big mould of grind. I can appreciate that, but I also appreciate variation a bit. I really hope that people can pick the gems from the different types of music styles that are going to be represented on this tour, and just go above and beyond the limitations of just one genre.”

WHO: Nasum WHEN & WHERE: Friday 17 August, The Hi-Fi

16 • TIME OFF

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TIME OFF • 17

ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE Songwriter extraordinaire Tim Rogers has been spreading his creative wings of late, but has rejoined the musical fold with yet another excellent solo record. He talks to Steve Bell about fucking great art and preventing self-mutilation of the groin.

B

y now the concept of a Tim Rogers release being relegated to mere ‘You Am I side-project’ status is surely a relic from a bygone age, for over the last 13 years he’s carved a body of work away from his beloved brethren that would be the envy of most other bands, both in magnitude and quality. Kicking off with his 1999 album with The Twin Set and including efforts with his outfit The Temperance Union and the T’N’T collaboration with Tex Perkins, Rogers has now released six albums away from the comfort zone of his day job, remarkable given that You Am I have pumped out five studio albums and a handful of compilations in that same timeframe.

His latest solo long-player, Rogers Sings Rogerstein, is an unusual conceit for an album – professed to be a creative collaboration

with an elusive American cohort, Shel Rogerstein – but irrespective of its genesis it’s one of the best batch of songs that Rogers has collated outside the construct of his band, and possibly the best since the aforementioned Twin Set debut What Rhymes With Cars And Girls. It’s an eclectic batch of songs from a musical standpoint and a powerful batch lyrically; exactly as you’d expect from one of our country’s best and most enduring songwriters.

“These were a group of songs that just kept coming back to me,” Rogers shrugs of his latest effort. “Most of them I started to write quite a while ago for other projects – a cabaret show and couple of film and theatre projects – and I kept finding myself coming back to the ideas of the songs. I spoke to my friend Shel who lives in Cleveland – I hadn’t spoken to him for a while – and I sort of drew some ideas out of him, and he came back with some ideas… I dunno, I was kind of gearing up to make a new You Am I record, but then I got offered a lot of work that I couldn’t really say no to – because it’s work – but these songs kept coming back to me, more than the other songs I was writing at the time. I thought, ‘Look, I’m just going to record them’, and then I dunno, put them on a cassette and play one or two shows for people who want to come along and hear them.

“So I started recording with [producer] Shane [O’Mara] – grabbing an hour here, two hours there in his studio – and we just started getting more involved in it, and we really, really wanted to complete it. Then the ABC heard that I was recording and said, ‘Look, we really want to back you up on this’, so we finished the fucker and wanted to make something really good of it.

“It’s pretty basic stuff – initially it started off as a little boogie, three-chord rhythm’n’blues thing, with a drum machine and two electric guitars but then I started looking at too much tango and some other composers who were doing different stuff,” Rogers explains. “Then in the end I thought, ‘Well, rather than just make it one kind of record, why don’t I make ten types of records and put it all on one?’ Shane then of course gave me that ominous look – ‘Are you really sure you want to do this?’ – but fuck it man, if I’m going to be ten different people in a day, then let’s do something that’s representative of that. I just don’t want to ponder over records and make them linear conceptually, so I just came up with this sort of jumble sale of things which suits my attention span.”

As much of a musical potpourri as the album is, it all hangs together robustly due to Rogers’ inimitable character shining throughout.

“Quite possibly, as much as I carry on about how sclerotic my attention is and my muse,” Rogers laughs, “there’s a pretty common thread of me just being a ‘dilettante mixed with a country dandy’ thing going on, so anything with a bit of toughness to it I’ll break up with a bit of foppishness, and anything that’s too foppy I’ll inject with a little bit of brute, and maybe posthumously they’ll find that character popular somewhere.”

Character traits aside, projects such as Rogers Sings Rogerstein are an invaluable chance to see another side to Rogers, one equally adept in doling out the quiet as well as the loud.

“It’s funny, within You Am I even our love is making a glorious fucking racket, but what we discuss as a group and what we’re into individually is a lot more eclectic,” he tells. “For example Rusty [Hopkinson – drums] and I collect Noel Coward letters and memorabilia, and Andy [Kent – bass] is my manager and we talk about the film and theatre projects that I’m getting involved with and we’ll cross-reference those all day, and Davey [Lane – guitar] and I are different again, I’ll just follow whatever he’s listening to and bask in his freakish musicianship.

So it’s all there as well – they’re intelligent guys, so well-read and rounded and I get so much from them – so it doesn’t feel that far removed from You Am I. But then looking back to the record we made it clearly is [different]; with You Am I there’s power there even when we’re trying to be delicate.”

With Rogers having expanded his work portfolio recently to include extra-curricular activities such as film and theatre projects, does he feel the need to justify spending time outside the normal rock’n’roll parameters?

“I just think that there’s rightly a bit of cynicism out there for someone like me going down a different path, like, ‘Oh, so rock’n’roll’s not good enough for you then?’” he concedes. “Well rock’n’roll absolutely is [good enough] – it’s my first love and I want to die doing it – but I’ve got to work man, and if someone offers you work, I’ve got to take work. And as it turns out I get more from it: I have less time but it’s truly inspiring, there’s so much wonderful music and theatre and art out there, and I just want to suck it all up, I want to sleep with it and fuck it. I’m just lucky, I put myself out there and I’ve been getting a lot of work, and because I’ve got this face and this body but not necessarily the skill, I’ll put the work in. I love turning up to work and working hard – it keeps me out of the bar until late, there’s nothing bad in it. I may make some mistakes along the way, but I figure that that’s a better way to go out than thinking, ‘I’m the guy who wrote Hourly Daily, so I’m going to write that way for the rest of my life’. I’d rather punch myself in the dick all day than do that.”

WHO: Tim Rogers WHAT: Rogers Sings Rogerstein (Four | Four/ABC) WHEN & WHERE: Thursday 23 August, Old Museum, Saturday 24, The Northern, Byron Bay

18 • TIME OFF

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BIG TIMES It’s been a short but fast ride so far for Brisbane’s The Jungle Giants, whose hook-ridden indie pop has woven its way into the hearts and minds of an attentive audience. Tyler McLoughlan shares a couch with bassist Andrew Dooris and guitarist/vocalist Sam Hales to get the lowdown on their whirlwind adventures ahead of a national tour supporting sophomore EP She’s A Riot.

H

igh school is a common place for sonic experimentation and the formation of musical friendships, though it wasn’t until Sam Hales had graduated in 2009 and was struggling through a university degree that he realised that guitarists and school pals Andrew Dooris and Cesira Aitken were the key to his musical future.

“We were still at school, but I still remember the Facebook message that Sam sent me,” says Dooris, adopting a geek voice to explain Hales’ first approach. “‘I know you can sing and play guitar, like I was just wondering if you want to start up a band with me and Cesira? I know you don’t play bass yet but do you wanna try?’”

The pair erupt into fits of giggles as Hales apes: “Do you wanna play bass?” before Dooris comes clean on the reason he said yes.

“It’s really funny because another friend had asked me a very similar question and I said no. But it was only because I’d heard Sam’s songs before and I knew I really liked them – I had an overwhelming faith in his songwriting. I’ve never actually told you that,” he says, turning to the frontman who was last year awarded the Billy Thorpe songwriting scholarship. “But I always thought that we’d actually get something done if we did anything [together],” he divulges of the quartet, fleshed out with drummer Keelan Bijker.

“I love love,” he shouts, suggesting that the cat-and-mouse games of EP track Don’t Know What Else To Do would summarise his current romantic situation. “I’m just a free pup – got no chains!” Hales giggles, without realising that his off-the-cuff funny likely sums up why the Australian public has become so quickly enamoured with the free-spirited Brisbane quartet.

WHO: The Jungle Giants WHAT: She’s A Riot (Create/Control) WHEN & WHERE: Friday 17 August, Elsewhere, Gold Coast; Saturday 18, The Zoo

“It was a pretty easy change because I used to do singer/ songwriter gigs, and I would play at Bar Soma when I was 17,” says Hales. “I loved doing that but I got really over doing that whole singer/songwriter thing just because people never really pay attention, you’re sort of just there and people are having drinks and stuff, and I was like, ‘I feel like I just want to let loose on stage, but I can’t – I’m playing my little ditty’”.

By this time, Hales was taking in a musical diet of Cloud Control and Local Natives, devising how his path could lead to such explorations.

“I was like, ‘wow’ – I really want to write music like this,” Hales continues. “I just had this inspired vision and then we just started working on everything in our rooms. I dropped out of uni at that time and then got two jobs so we had enough cash to splash around for recording. I worked a lot for six months… McDonalds and a convenience store; two of the worst jobs I could find!

“It was weird, I was on a mission! If I tried to do that now I would so not be able to do it. I was working like 60-hour weeks easily, both jobs… It was actually really funny ‘cause in the same day I’d get someone come to Night Owl convenience store and buy like a bottle of Coke, and then they’d come get dinner at McDonalds. One guy was like, ‘dude, do you have a brother?’

And I was like, ‘nah man’ and he was like, ‘there’s someone who looks just like you at Night Owl’ and I was like: ‘that’s me!’”

The result of the hard labour was The Jungle Giants’ eponymous 2011 debut EP, spawning the jangle pop loveliness of Mr Polite and No One Needs To Know that gained a following and triple j rotation straight off the bat. “We recorded it and we’d never done a gig,” explains Hales. “It was a weird approach to record before we gigged... We were just like, ‘we have all these songs, lets record them’, and I think it was sort of to do a demo so we could get gigs, but we were really proud of the EP and [producer] Yanto Browning did such a good job so that it turned out more than demos – it was a good, quality EP.” With a management deal and an action plan soon hatched, The Jungle Giants were thrown headlong into gaining their gig legs, supporting Ball Park Music nationally, co-headlining an interstate tour with San Cisco and accompanying Boy & Bear as main support on a two-month, 30-date haul which finished in June. “…It’s a bit of a softer crowd to what we’re used to, I mean we weren’t playing sweaty pub gigs, we were doing [Sydney’s] State Theatre,” Dooris says, still in awe of the Boy & Bear experience. “Maybe not necessarily what we’re suited to but definitely something that was a very big learning curve – not relying so much on a crowd to be drunk and sweaty and screaming your name.”

“Their crowds were really mixed,” Hales mentions. “There’s older people and really young people, so at each show we’d have a few people getting kinda loose then there’d be lots of people sitting down or lots of people just listening, whereas in a San Cisco gig like almost every night, 50 people would run up on stage and kick our stuff over and kiss us while we’re trying to sing. And it just got so ridiculous by the end – we had so much fun – but people were just going crazy,” he says, as Dooris admits there was only one gig of the tour in which he didn’t crowd surf.

Opening their new EP She’s A Riot with a title track full of handclaps and hope, fans are reintroduced to the vibrant outfit who crashed onto the scene less than a year-and-a-half ago, though Create/ Control’s most recent signing showcases a broader musicality spurred on by the successes of their various tour buddies. “The whole idea for this EP was to be a lot less sugary,” Hales says seriously. “The first EP was very naïve; we hadn’t done a gig before, we were trying a lot of the sounds in the studio, whereas now these songs are toured and tested – especially She’s A Riot. We’ve been playing that for a few tours now, we’ve just been working on it really hard so now we have a way more sure way of how we wanted to record them. There’s a lot more depth of sound,” he admits. Dooris offers his thoughts: “Because the songs were so ready… there was more time to put embellishments and stuff on it, and more time to experiment not on the structure of the songs so much, but tone and just like the whole recording process.”

As for the lyrical themes, Hales looks to one of the more common points of inspiration for young blokes like himself.

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TIME OFF • 19

MOUNTAIN HIGH Following their fantastic Zurich EP of 2010, Melbourne sextet Alpine are finally ready to break the ice with their debut full-length. Phoebe Baker shares some of the experience with Benny Doyle.

I

f you’re talking about breakout Australian musical acts in 2012/2013, then you’d be a smart punter to back Alpine to the gates. Led by the twin voices of Baker and Lou James, the intriguing and undeniably unique band have been drip feeding us bursts of glistening indie-pop brilliance for a couple of years now, and it’s this gradual rise which has allowed them to created a subtle and warm presence, the perfect foundations from which to build their profile from.

“It’s been I guess, for lack of a better word, organic, and really natural,” the softly-spoken Baker informs. “A few of the songs that are on the album were on the EP (Villages, Hands) and they’re songs which we wrote quite a while ago as well, so there wasn’t a tremendous rush in that respect. We’ve always managed to keep our own pace when it comes to writing so it’s been good – there’s no pressure or anything. Right now [though], it’s really surreal, and because we recorded [the album] a few months ago we’ve just been sitting around weirdly for a period of time – and just having an album ready, y’know? Nowadays, it’s not what the album used to be, with downloads and everything; it’s different now so it’s a strange thing but still really exciting and precious, like, ‘It’s our baby’.”

The ladies, as well as their four male counterparts – Tim Royall (keys), Phil Tucker (drums), Ryan Lamb (bass) and Christian O’Brien (guitar) – create music that simply washes over the listener – in a good way. There is a liquid quality to the songs on A Is For Alpine, swirling layers that swim around your senses and provide new highlights as the musical tide moves majestically back and forwards. When posed with such musings, Baker points out that although it may not have been a direct goal, the way in which the album was written may have naturally produced such results.

“When I write and when I’m collaborating with everyone we’re looking for something that is interesting to listen to and not just easy – we want bits that will surprise you, hopefully. And a lot of the times that we are writing, maybe always, you are really improvising to try and surprise yourself. And a lot of these new songs are

20 • TIME OFF

much more of a collaborative effort in how they were written, so there are so many more influences coming into it. And there are lots of genres, like I don’t think we need to be tied down to anything specifically, we can just go anywhere and that’s the fun of writing.

“I think lyrically and thematically for us it’s not all just about the happy experiences. There’s anxiety in there because both Lou and I have had periods of suffering from that, and there is whole lot of other things too, so there’s a mixture. But a lot of [the songs] are sort of joyous, like I feel the instrumental parts are more in that vein even though the lyrics might not be so.”

Ironically, it was in the Australian bush where Alpine really managed to refine all their energy and broad ideas into 11 succinct tracks, each standing tall on its own while still working amazingly well together. Getting away from their central Melbourne base, they ventured a little way north to Gisborne, Victoria, Baker admitting the setting was vital to the creation of the record.

“I think it definitely helped because you couldn’t just walk down the street and go to the shops,” she says.

“We were out of town surrounded by paddocks and it was great to have that nature, wildlife atmosphere around us, and quite relaxing which helped us to focus more on the music and not get too distracted.”

At the helm for the recording was Dann Hume, skinsman for platinum selling Kiwi brothers Evermore. Although better known for his work on the stage as opposed to in the studio, he has crafted songs for Lisa Mitchell, and with his family has built a cosy studio out on the borders of the town, aptly titled The Stables. Baker is quick to lay praise on the young musician and producer, saying he allowed the band to feel comfortable in their own skin while still pushing to get the best possible songs.

“He was just the king – he was amazing,” Baker unabashedly tells. “I actually couldn’t imagine [recording] with anyone else now that we’ve done the album. He was so patient and lovely and hilarious, and was just great to work with. He really brought out the best in all of us, and hopefully you can hear that in the recording.”

Although the band weren’t familiar with Hume’s production skills prior to the making of the LP, or even the man himself, Baker says that not only have they walked away from the sessions with a shiny new record – they have also discovered a great friend.

“Our management suggested him and we were like, ‘Who? Who is this guy?’ But after a couple of meetings we really got along and he’s a similar age as well, which was nice. I think it was very important to have someone who was going to be patient with us so we could just take our time and repeat takes, to do all that kind of stuff, and also someone who we could just talk rubbish with. He’s like an old friend – kind of like a groovy grandpa. He would hate that [description] – I don’t know why he reminds me of a grandpa?” she exclaims. It’s really weird.”

Although the album is awash with gorgeous, lush arrangements, choral beauty and some serious hipwagging grooves, there is also a darker side to A Is For Alpine, an edge that shows itself to be sharper with every spin. Personal blood is spilt across the record, and far from shallow ponderings, what you find here are rich excursions into what it means to be

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young and free. Baker let herself go through the process and when you hit play, so should you.

“I feel like you write your best stuff when you are feeling your most vulnerable and emotional, and when you are ready to let stuff out of your system,” she finishes thoughtfully. “Cathartic sums it up – it’s almost like an explosion or a vomit of words.

Sorry, that sounds really gross! But you just can’t help it come up in your system and that’s the most passionate and raw and honest part of you, and that’s what makes a good song. [And that] could be anywhere. I might be out and something might come to me during the day and I’ll just say, ‘I have to go.

I’ve got to get home and get it out and write it down’.

Inspiration can happen at any time and any place.”

WHO: Alpine WHAT: A Is For Alpine (Ivy League) WHEN & WHERE: Thursday 16 August, Great Northern, Byron Bay; Friday 17, The Zoo; Saturday 18, Coolangatta Hotel, Gold Coast

MAKE IT HAPPEN...

CERTIFICATE, DIPLOMA & DEGREE COURSES IN:

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FREE PROGRAM THIS WEEK...

FRIDAYS

MUSIC Brisbane Powerhouse and Brispop present

THE RESIDENTS:

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Fri 17, 24, 31 August, 6pm, Turbine Platform

Pictured Laneway

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QUT Creative Industry students deliver five hours of contemporary sounds.

Sat 25 Aug, 12pm, Turbine Platform Please note there is no free music program on Saturday Aug 18

SUNDAYS

MUSIC Brisbane Powerhouse and Brispop present

LIVESPARK:

JIMI BEAVIS & BAND, ASA BROOMHALL Sun 19 Aug, 3.30pm, Turbine Platform Pictured Asa Broomhall

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Join us on Sunday nights for complimentary comedy from Brisbane’s up-and-coming comedians. Past jokers include Josh Thomas and Mel Buttle.

Every Sunday, 6.30pm, Turbine Platform

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TIME OFF • 21

VOLUME CONTROL

SMASHIN’ FASHION

Melbourne rockers Iowa have carved out a raucous debut in Never Saw It Coming. Jordan Barczak teaches Brendan Telford to feel the noise.

Dave Haley from Tasmanian overlords Psycroptic jumps off the drum stool to chat to Benny Doyle about their challenging new record and the hazy lines that draw up the Australian heavy music scene.

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sycroptic’s fifth album The Inherited Depression is yet another chapter in the quartet’s storied career, the record seeing Australia’s foremost death metal exports continue to deliver lighting paced technicality with an unrelenting strength that few acts, domestically and abroad, can compete with.

Although the album was unleashed on the world six months ago, the band are only just about to embark on their Australian launch tour. Not that they’ve been relaxing, having done an extensive tour through Europe and dates in South East Asia; Psycroptic have simply been doing things their way, as they always do.

“We just want to do what’s fun, and that’s sort of how we’ve always worked,” Haley says. “We’ve never had this thing, y’know, ‘Okay, let’s push the band and try and live off it’. We still want to play a lot, but we just want to have that balance with work and home life. I guess that’s what’s given us our longevity and keeps us all very enthused with the band. We do as much as we can while just trying to make everything count.”

With time to reflect on the album, Haley speaks warmly about what the band accomplished on the record and the new ground that they covered, sonically and thematically. But although he admits that it’s his LP of choice from the band’s discography, he’s quick to counter that it’s more so because it’s current as opposed to superseding any of the Tasmanian’s previous efforts.

“The new albums we release are always our favourite albums because that’s what we want to do at the time,” the drummer levels, “so when it comes to writing and recording the next album, then that is going to be our new favourite. We evolve as our listening tastes evolve and change, and we’re influenced by everything that is going on around us, musical and non-musical.”

When pressed for any revelations though, he laughs off the notion. “I’d like to say that there was some turbulent, massive life-changing event and that it was a super-emotional album but nah, I haven’t got any stories like that.”

22 • TIME OFF

Written in sporadic bursts around the band’s individual pursuits, Psycroptic have taken a more hands on approach to The Inherited Depression than anything they’ve ever done before, a trend that Haley admits should only become more constant in the future.

“There’s a real strong DIY ethos with this record,” he says. “Joe [Haley – guitar] recorded it from start to finish, he mixed it then we got someone else to master it so essentially it’s all self-produced and recorded within the band so from that point of view we’re really proud of it.”

As the tides move around them, Psycroptic continue to stand tall on the Australian metal landscape. Haley finishes by weighing in on the state of the present environment.

“Heavier styles of music are definitely way more accepted [nowadays], but there’s still this huge division between ‘metal’ and ‘hardcore’, where the lines are so blurred,” he explains. “Now there’s all these deathcore and thrash bands that sound exactly like hardcore bands. But the only real division is this fashion thing at the moment. A lot of people have in their heads, especially from the hardcore scene, that, ‘Oh, the metal scene’s fucked; it’s just a bunch of long-haired losers’.

And then there’s the metal scene thinking that the hardcore kids are just into tattoos and looking cool, so there’s still a division there but sonically speaking I don’t think it’s much. But I think the more people into heavy music the better, at the end of the day.”

WHO: Psycroptic WHAT: The Inherited Depression (Nuclear Blast) WHEN & WHERE: Friday 17 August, The Hi-Fi; Saturday 13 October, Bastardfest @ The Hi-Fi

ince their inception over two years ago, Melbourne trio Iowa have worked tirelessly at getting a foothold in the overpopulated Melbourne music scene, relying on their innate sense of hook and melody, and their adherence to the J Mascis school of rock, both of which informs their insistence of playing incredibly loud. They’ve built a steady following off their own bat, put out a few well-received seven-inches, and it’s all culminated in their debut longplayer, Never Saw It Coming.

“We recorded (the seven-inches) before we’d even played a show,” bassist Jordan Barczak explains. “We’d been rehearsing for six months, and our drummer was going overseas and we had some good stuff together so we thought we should record something. We played two shows and they went really well, so we were left with seven or so songs that we were really proud of. It wasn’t really an EP, it wasn’t enough for an album, and we had no profile, so we had eight months to develop further. The album stems from that initial session.”

With so much time spent in refining their sound and developing the album, the end result is naturally a labour of love that is consistent across the board. The interest it’s garnered has quickly spread interstate, with their film clip for Complete Control on high rotation also.

“It’s natural that when you put something out that you think that you will get shitcanned,” Barczak states drily.

“The response has been great though, with the singles on Sydney and Brisbane radio, and triple j picked us in their mag which was unexpected. Then the video getting picked up by Channel V was wholly unexpected.

It’s a funny thing how it all works out. We didn’t aim for any of this to happen, but it certainly helps.”

The name Iowa has presented some logistical nightmares for the band, with some left-field connotations linking them to things that they could never have envisioned.

“We probably picked the worst time to come out as Iowa,” Barczak laughs. “It’s the tenth anniversary for Slipknot’s Iowa album which has some people coming

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to our page thinking we are some sort of tribute band, and lots of people looking for Mitt Romney because he’s from Iowa. Probably the biggest misconception though is there is a Russian pop diva called Iowa too, and she’s hijacked our Last.fm page, so you have all of these confused Russian comments and metalheads saying that we can’t fucking use that name because it’s sacrilege. But that in turn has led to some love from a Russian stoner metal blog and a shoegaze blog from Brazil who we just did an interview for, which has been interesting. Still, you have to make sure you make the Australian connection to Iowa when punching it in to Google to avoid some embarrassing results, I think.”

All misconceptions aside, the Iowa sound speaks for itself, the trio blazing a trail with their energetic and thunderous live performances. “When we started this band there were no preconceptions other than to play stuff that we always liked and had grown up listening to, and playing it really loud,” Barczak clarifies. “We wear our influences on our sleeve, we would listen to things like Dinosaur Jr when 15, 16, and that’s how we learnt how to play. We’ve all been in bands before, and in the past we’ve veered away from that because the group you’re with, you trying to find a certain sound or crack some market, but none of that appeals to us. We just love to play together in a room with everything turned way up.”

WHO: Iowa WHAT: Never Saw It Coming (Independent) WHEN & WHERE: Friday 17 August, X&Y Bar; Saturday 18, Tym Guitars (afternoon instore) and The Waiting Room (evening)

TIME OFF • 23

VITRIOLIC THERAPY

IN THE HOUSE

NZ hardcore tyrants Antagonist AD have always been passionate about life and making a stand. Reflecting on their latest album, Sam Crocker enthuses to Brendan Telford, “We are coming out swinging.”

Affable, charming and good natured, Asa Broomhall is a natural entertainer. He shares some laughs with Benny Doyle as they discuss Jangle House, the most ambitious album of his career.

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hree albums in, and Antagonist AD are more passionate than ever. Using their frenetic and powerful performances as a soapbox to vent about societal ills, the band have always espoused that to be hardcore, it had to mean something. The new album Nothing For No One proves to be the most aggressive musical endeavour they have put to tape, yet with its focus coming from a slightly different direction.

“It took the majority of 2011 to write and record,” vocalist Sam Crocker admits. “We didn’t want to set a precedent by placing a time limit on what we were doing. Some of the songs had working titles for months, and we would change a riff here, a line there.

In many ways it let us be more direct and thought-out with the writing, by adding more layers and depth to the music. It’s more refined, it isn’t rough around the edges like we jammed certain songs together.”

Lyrically Crocker has avoided previous fascinations with social and political topics to venture within, with surprising results. “When we started the band I had all these topics that I wanted to sing about, yet it got to the point that we had played these songs so often and I had said what I wanted to say about these issues; I said them the way I wanted to. Hardcore for us is about being real, so I had always been reluctant to write anything personal, to attach myself to the lyrics rather than it being a stance or viewpoint. I focused on more personal issues, feelings of paranoia and anxiety, the idea of being isolated in your own head, and it was so therapeutic. There is so much more connection and energy from me now, being able to relive these experiences and use its weight to push through.”

The title Nothing From No One is particularly pertinent to the band, with the album standing as a sign of intent of what is in store. “There was no rush to find a title for the album, I wanted it to jump out and choose itself,” Crocker explains. “We had gotten through half the

album and that line stuck out and changed the tone of the album. Geographically, we are a small band from a small country jammed into a hardcore world that is large and significant, and we are starting to make ripples in the pond, so the album sounds like we have a point to prove. We are coming out swinging.”

The boys also recently signed up to Mediaskare Records, a deal that has Crocker grinning. “It’s been an awesome move,” he gushes. “We found it hard to believe that they showed interest in putting us out, because as far as we were concerned we were just some band on the other side of the world. To be recognised by a respected American label, who have put out a tonne of music by bands we’ve been listening to for ages – it gives a real sense of validation to what we do. We played our first show at a venue called Youthzone in Hamilton, one of the first places where I went to shows when growing up as a grommet, so playing the final show there before it shut down was the pinnacle – we didn’t really look further than that, that was an amazing thing to achieve. We used to see punk bands like NOFX and wish that we could be doing those things, so [the fact] that we are getting to now is a really humbling thing.”

WHO: Antagonist AD WHAT: Nothing From No One (Mediaskare)

The songwriter put down the skeleton tracks for Jangle House with his established bandmates Zoltan Campbell (bass) and Chris O’Neill (drums) at The Guitar Shop, the iconic store in Paddington.

WHEN & WHERE: Saturday 18 August, X & Y; Sunday 19, Eagleby Community Hall (all ages)

Having turned to the guitar when diagnosed with leukaemia as a child, Nathan Cavaleri found considerable success as a teenage guitar prodigy. In addition to playing with BB King, he also performed at the opening ceremony of 2000’s Paralympic Games and released three albums with Epic Records. Yet, he actually walked away from such success – not touching his guitar for five years and producing local acts in his garage.

“I stepped away from the actual instrument when I was seventeen for, I don’t know, maybe five years. I did some work as a labourer, I got into producing. I actually produced some local hip hop acts,” the guitarist chuckles. “You know, I just needed to know what I wanted from music.

24 • TIME OFF

Broomhall says it was important for him to really get to know the songs and this raw approach – the three men facing each other in one room – was the truest way to do that. Honest is how this record was made, and because of this the Queenslander hopes that the songs will stand tall now and in the future.

“For me this album’s going to creep into people’s houses for years and creep into their lives, and it’s cool to see it happen,” Broomhall concludes philosophically. “Sometimes you want to see it happen quicker but it slowly just trickles out there.

Great songs don’t go out of fashion like bands, great songs will be there forever, and I’d like to think I’ve written a couple of them hopefully that will see people’s kids born and see people put to rest.”

WHO: Asa Broomhall WHAT: Jangle House (Vitamin Records) WHEN & WHERE: Friday 17 August, Solbar, Maroochydore; Sunday 19, Brisbane Powerhouse; Friday 24, The Irish Club, Toowoomba; Friday 31, Redcliffe RSL; Saturday 1 September, Red Deer Music Festival @ Mt Samson

Melbourne outfit Loon Lake may originally hail from country Victoria, but as frontman Sam Nolan tells Steve Bell, they’re quite partial to some northern exposure.

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In a sentence, Cavaleri says all he needs to about his outlook as a musician. Given his background, one would be inclined to expect Cavaleri to be either a mainstream musician safely ensconced within a bubble of his own success – or a nerdish musician more concerned with flashy playing than any genuine sense of artistry. As such a reactionary outlook to videography attests; neither is the case.

“It’s been a music shop since the early-‘80s,” Broomhall informs, “and like all the shops along that Latrobe Terrace there, they’re all in rambling old houses. It’s an iconic and charismatic place and somewhere that a lot of music has been made so it has a rich heritage, and we were lucky enough that it closed for five days over Easter 2011 so we could basically set up a temporary studio to bash out the base tracks.”

ALL THE THREES

Nathan Cavaleri made his name as a guitar prodigy – but there’s more to his work than his past. Matt O’Neill catches up with the singer-songwriter to discuss his band Nat Col & The Kings.

“Well, with all due respect to bands like Nickelback and bands like that, we just didn’t want Coming Home to have some power ballad video – you know, us playing our guitars in the rain or whatever,” Cavaleri laughs – the actual video revolving around a man in a furry animal suit frolicking through the Australian wilderness. “There’s a director down here that we like to work with and he just pitches ideas like that at us. We couldn’t resist.”

“That was a bit of a flashback to the Kenny G era!” he cackles. “Most people that have heard [the album] are pretty surprised because it covers a lot of ground musically. A lot of people say, ‘You’re going for this or that’, and I just say it’s the way I want to write and I want to try styles that I haven’t written before.

There’s rockabilly and Southern-influenced country rock and I’ve never written stuff in that vein. And I want to play it and sing it because you are doing it so many times that you’ll get bored otherwise.

“I’m writing songs that I want to be a bit more third person in, in order to connect with the audience in a different way,” he carries on. “And I’ve tried to make the songs pretty light, not stuff that you have to listen to five or six times too really get into it – just something that people can get into straight away. [But] it’s a bit like escapism for me this CD, because there’s a lot of things that were close to me and meant a lot to me that I sung about, and there’s other stuff that I just wanted to write, and vocal melodies that I just wanted to sing so that’s why I wrote them. It seems a little selfish but I just wanted to write songs I’ll enjoy playing.”

MO’ BLUES

ometimes, a throwaway remark says it all.

Nathan Cavaleri has a more interesting musical career than most to discuss – few guitarists can lay claim to having toured with BB King at age thirteen – but it’s an idle comment about a videoclip that seems to reveal the most about his work as a musician. More specifically, the surreal videoclip for his band Nat Col & The Kings‘ new single Coming Home.

roomhall has been a stalwart on the south-east Queensland music scene for roughly a decade now, and on his fifth record Jangle House he’s setting out to keep things interesting and fun, not only for the listeners but for himself too. More commonly associated with chilled out acoustic and relaxed electric fare, the Sunshine Coast native has tackled a variety of styles on his latest LP, offering up some gruff rock, a bit of full-blooded blues, some quiet, introspective moments; hell, there’s even a bit of sexy, sexy sax for good measure.

I needed to kind of figure out what I wanted to do rather than just kind of float by on autopilot.”

It’s an attitude particularly reflected by his work with Nat Col & The Kings. Formed with former Screaming Jets drummer Col Hatchman, Nat Col & The Kings are ostensibly a blues-rock band – but they’re not traditionalists. There’s a raw, muscular, contemporary edge to Cavaleri’s songwriting (the guitarist having stepped up to the mic in recent years as well) that plants them firmly in the present. At the vanguard, even.

“Yeah, with blues, I get drawn to the older stuff – but I can hear the influence of that older stuff in bands like Queens Of The Stone Age. When you listen to Jack White’s stuff, you can hear that older blues stuff. And it’s that sound that I love,” Cavaleri explains. “You know, because it just fucking grabs you and punches a hole straight through your heart. It hits you hard; whenever you hear it.

“And that’s why we kind of avoid terms like traditional,” the guitarist laughs. “With complete respect for those sorts of artists, blues bands can often be quite conservative. Very calm and orderly. We’re a much freer band. You know, in all those years between my solo work and The Kings, I was working in all different genres away from blues. And I think you can hear where we’ve folded all that stuff back into our version of the blues.”

WHO: Nat Col & The Kings WHAT: Coming Home (Independent) WHEN & WHERE: Friday 17 August, Tempo Hotel; Saturday 18, Racehorse Hotel; Sunday 19, Mansfield Tavern

oung Melbourne quintet Loon Lake hit the ground running upon their inception a few years back, pricking ears left, right and centre with their vibrant and distinctive brand of indie-slash-garage rock. A lot of those ears were connected to the right heads too, and before they’d even released anything official they’d become triple j staples and won the BIGSOUND competition to come up to Brisbane and represent at the country’s biggest music conference.

Last year they released the excellent debut EP Not Just Friends, whose cache of catchy tunes gained the band even more traction, and now they’re following it up with the equally infectious Thirty Three EP. There’s a definite musical evolution on show, plus a distinct change in lyrical tone (perhaps due to a breakup), but it’s still the same band and still the same vivacious aesthetic.

“We’re stoked, I’d say we’re even more happy with this than the first one,” offers affable frontman Sam Nolan of the new release. “We just wanted to progress a bit and I think we’ve done that so we’re really happy.”

Nolan and his brothers – Simon on guitar and Nick on drums – grew up in rural Victoria not far from Wangaratta, and there’s a definite familial bent to much of their musicianship.

“We’ve all been playing since we were teenagers, but we certainly weren’t in a band together until recently,” Sam continues. “I was in a couple of little things, but we weren’t in anything of any substance until we all got together. Nick, the youngest one who’s the drummer – he’s probably a better guitarist than any of us – he did a lot of study, because we got him into it when he was really young. He went to uni for a couple of years and was studying jazz, but he didn’t like that direction so he’s doing another course now. Dan [Bull – guitar] was in a lot of cover bands in Melbourne when he was younger, and he was in an original band called Hot Rubber Glove when he spent a little bit of time in Brisbane and Cairns. But none of us have ever been

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into anything properly until Loon Lake; we were all mainly playing in the bedroom until three years ago.”

According to Nolan the band’s distinctive sound is as much a happy accident as anything.

“Just having three guitars and just trying to find a space for everyone, that sort of helped develop it,” he offers. “Sime’s got a Gibson 335, and I’ve got a Tele and Dan’s got a Strat so there’s three pretty different sounds there, so it just developed. And as we started to develop a distinctive sound we were really quite conscious of finding it and honing it.”

And with two separate Queensland jaunts scheduled for the next month or so the band couldn’t be happier, quite content spending time in this neck of the woods.

“We came up there when we won the BIGSOUND comp for triple j a couple of years ago, that was right at the start and was a real buzz for us because we hadn’t done anything like that,” Nolan enthuses. “And then we came to BIGSOUND again last year, and now we’ve got it again this year – we love it! We went up there and played with Kaiser Chiefs as well, we love playing in Brisbane – the crowds are great and the people are cool, plus I have some good mates up there from work, so it’s always fun to hit Queensland. And it’s great to get away from the fucking cold here too, I can tell you!”

WHO: Loon Lake WHAT: Thirty Three (Independent) WHEN & WHERE: Friday 17 August, Alhambra Lounge; Saturday 18, SolBar, Maroochydore; Thursday 13 September, BIGSOUND Live

SPOKEN IN ONE STRANGE WORD JUDITH WRIGHT CENTRE OF CONTEMPORARY ARTS

AUGUST A.RAWLINGS

(2012 POET IN RESIDENCE)

ROBERT ADAMSON (NSW)

HOLLY THROSBY (NSW)

L.E. SCOTT

(NEW ZEALAND)

CHARMAINE PAPERTALK-GREEN (WA)

A MILLION BRIGHT THINGS SHOWCASE AND MUCH MORE FO R F U L L P R O G R A M D E TA I L S V I S I T

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ON THE RECORD

HOLY BALM It’s You

Independent

LOON LAKE Thirty Three Independent Melbourne’s Loon Lake have been plugging away as quiet achievers, and already have a couple of gems under their belt, but the new EP Thirty Three really takes things up a couple more notches. While a lot of it bounces along with a high energy pop bombast of tracks like Fantastica, the real gem in the collection is the highly-strung Heart Stomper at the end, with an emotionally charged guitar and vocal line that makes it really stand out as something different. When the whole band kicks in at the end it seals the deal.

Frenchkiss/Cooperative Don’t expect to recognise the Bloc Party of now from the one of ’04. They’ve been going in different directions for years, and this is more apparent on Four than on any of their previous three releases.

You won’t find festival anthems here, nor will you find overtly-danceable indie. What you will find is at times noisy, and at other times heartbreakingly painful. This record is the soundtrack of a band unravelling and building themselves back up again, if only briefly, and it makes you work for every point.

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So He Begins To Lie kicks things off in an awkward and dark fashion. Built around a chugging low-end riff that twists and spirals, the song is a perfect indication of the record to follow. Nothing on Four is sunny, no part an easy listen. It’s a band on the brink setting up in a studio together and letting every idea and inspiration explode out of them.

Fleeting moments of familiarity such as Octopus and Real Talk recall the romantic Bloc Party jangle of old. But even these are rawer and bare, the live essence of the recording process captured honestly in lo-fi purity. For the most part, however, the Brits pummel you and it’s simply brilliant.

After their somewhat abrupt goodbye following the release of 2008’s Intimacy, frontman Kele Okereke has said that this album cleans up the unfinished business that was left lingering. If this is indeed true and stands as the album Bloc Party go out on, then what a way to say goodbye; Four is a master class in muscular, sharp rock that stands tall as their defining body of work. ★★★★★

DELTA SPIRIT

We Were Exploding Anyway/ Heavy Sky

Benny Doyle

Delta Spirit Shock

Bird’s Robe Records

Delta Spirit’s ascendant journey has been a swift one. Since releasing their debut long-player in 2008, LIVE the San Diego quintet have enjoyed touring alongside household indie magnates Cold War Kids and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, released a follow-up album, and experienced the honour of playing Coachella last year. Their self-titled third album is the latest and it’s a solid revisiting of what they do best; blending soulful Americana with an approachable indie-pop wash.

Originally released overseas back in 2010, Bird’s Robe have grabbed the Australian distribution rights to 65daysofstatic’s back catalogue and are giving everyone who missed this brilliant 2010 album and EP a chance to find out what they missed the first time around.

Originally a straight instrumental post-rock band, albeit one of the better ones, 65daysofstatic made a significant shift with We Were Exploding Anyway, moving heavily into the realms of processed electronics.

Pulsing electronic bass, catchy arpeggios and perfectly scattered drums create a pounding beast of an album, while the careful layering and intricate builds that have been a hallmark of the band make sure that it rewards repeat listening and unfolds under headphones. Despite the underlying delicacy, the superficial simplicity to stand-out tracks like Mountainhead, Crash Tactics and Weak4 would make them sound appropriate in a club; a rare and impressive combination.

There’s some interesting texture created in the VD opening tracks with some clear preference for the

The Heavy Sky EP, a collection of outtakes from the sessions that produced the main album has been expanded and included here. Already a solid addendum, with genre experimentations that were always interesting even when they didn’t quite work, the new version features six extra tracks and while they’re not all great, a couple of them – After San Francisco and the Sleepmakeswaves version of Tiger Girl – are excellent additions to the band’s oeuvre.

old drum machine, in this case set to a sporadic almost jungle drum beat in Tear It Up, with high guitar strums cascading behind singer Matthew Vasquez’s pleasantly nasal delivery. California brings some ballsy dirge alongside shimmering distortion, and Idaho gives the band their point of difference; their very indie-rock use of jangly guitars and synth sparkles is perfect alongside Vasquez’s nostalgic, almost 1970s American folk scene upper-octave vocal.

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The stoner rock origins of Regular John are still apparent on this track off their new record Strange Flowers, even if it’s just in a tiny snippet between all the big shiny power ballad chords that makes up most of the song. Actually there are a whole bunch of different guitar sounds making up the background noise, even swirling into a bit of shoegaze noise, especially towards the end.

The lyrics and vocals are a tad overwrought and earnest, but it’s only a minor distraction really.

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REGULAR JOHN

BLOC PARTY

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Sydney’s Holy Balm represent a slight departure from the usual garage punk that resides on their hometown label, but they still inhabit the same space conceptually. This minimal synth-based jam is a steady grower that starts with a toe tap and progresses to a hands-in-the-air party.

The stark electro beat is contrasted by the soft buttery edges of the vocals, and everything is shrouded in a cloak of reverb that pulls the disparate parts of the mix together. It all washes out into tides of white noise, and then you listen to it again and then again, and so on.

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RIP Society

65daysofstatic have crafted something quite unique here and, upon relistening, the album has aged remarkably well. Combining the slow builds and explosive climaxes of their roots with a dancefloor sensibility, this was one of the best albums of 2010. For those new to the records, it should be similarly acclaimed in 2012.

The only failing with Delta Spirit’s self-titled effort is the mid-section. It’s a bit like a wet bedsheet pegged at either end on a clothesline; a strong start and finish but the middle sags. There’s just a slight loss of direction following the change of pace in the sweet but deep and ominous sounds of Home. Tellin’ The Mind and Time Bomb seem to spin off in a melodramatic fashion, with almost Chariots Of Fire-like synth lines, some Rolf Harris-inspired oral percussion sounds, and Vasquez’s vocal grating slightly during repetitive and forced phrases. But on the whole, it’s a quite distinct milestone in their journey towards a unique sound within a genre already crowded by their indie-rock peers.

★★★★½

★★★

Sky Kirkham

Carley Hall

THE PRESETS Ghosts Modular It started in Africa, but The Presets didn’t.

Pretty sure they’re from the suburbs. It could be an interesting mix – with the dramatic sea shanty delivery and some naval chanting that gives the impression it’s about something deep but you can tell it really isn’t. Despite taking the hook from Baltimora’s Tarzan Boy and a few liberal doses of Devo’s Here To Go, The Presets are as humourless as ever.

TIM ROGERS

Go On Out Get Back Home Four Four/ABC Welcome back Tim! We have missed you. While we probably shouldn’t call it a comeback, you have been very busy doing things like plays and stuff, it’s good to see you back on the rock’n’roll wagon, so to speak. As a songwriting collaboration with Ohio’s Shel Rogerstein, this approach seems to have reinvigorated Rogers and Go On Out Get Back Home is a slice of country light reminiscent of the work of M Ward more than Rogers’ previous leanings towards country.

LUPE FIASCO Bad Bitch Atlantic Trying to address the issue of the misuse of the word ‘bitch’ in hip hop, Lupe becomes a public service announcement instead of a rapper. His delivery is clumsy and its basically just Nas’ I Can without the bigger issues addressed. Nas said a whole lot more in one verse than this drawn-out moralising. The beat is minimal but doesn’t snap and the bass is weak. Lupe still has some promise but he refuses to capitalise on it.

26 • TIME OFF

DIE! DIE! DIE!

RAZIKA

REDD KROSS

Records Etcetera/Inertia

Smalltown/Fuse

Merge/Shock

Raucous Dunedin trio Die! Die! Die! have consistently poured sweat and spat blood over stages the world over throughout their frenzied career, and unlike many of their contemporaries have been able to capture such vitriol on their recordings. Fourth album Harmony doesn’t disappoint. Despite a line-up change (The Mint Chicks’ Michael Logie taking over bass duties from Aussie ex-pat Lachlan Anderson) the trio have laid down ten tracks that informs on their frenetic back catalogue whilst introducing some melodic tangents that suggest their longevity will continue for quite some time yet.

European chanteuses have always pulled off the twee, chirpy vocal with great aplomb (think Bjork, Soko, First Aid Kit). In recent times, it’s almost unheard of for this to exist in a band format. Now along comes Norwegian all-girl four-piece Razika, brandishing those same vintage, pastel-hued vocals but wielding a delightful knack for sunny but ska-infused pop on debut album Program 91.

Bassist Steve McDonald hadn’t even hit his teens when he and his brother Jeff – only a few years his elder – were playing gigs with Black Flag in the halcyon days of early-‘80s hardcore, yet here they are more than three decades later still waving the flag, and doing a quite remarkable job of it.

Harmony

Program 91

Opening with typical aggression on Oblivious, Oblivion, the tempo shifts on the title track, a song that flirts with a shoegaze wash, albeit with buzzsaw bass and Michael Prain’s fevered drumming, a sonic brushstroke that also informs later tracks Trinity and Seasons Revenge. These slower tracks illuminate the depth of songwriting, with frontman Andrew Wilson’s nihilist wails countered by Trinity’s passionate chorus and Seasons Revenge’s dreamy malaise. Such tempered moments heighten the impact of the more aggressive rants, of which there are a few – pivotal track No One Owns A View harkening back to the band’s abrasive early days, blasting forth with wailing punk snarl and hiss; Erase Waves is a short discordant punch to the face; 16 Shades Of Blue swirls around like a long lost Swervedriver track before dissolving into a morass of wanton destruction.

These 20-something lasses have been crafting tunes since their mid-teens and the influences are clear to hear (although they’ve fervently denied references to The Slits, it’s along the same vein). Their blend of leading lady Marie Amdam’s sweet, sunny vocals and jangly guitars over fast-paced but no-fuss drums in opener Youth is the perfect introduction. This pattern repeats itself, somewhat a little tediously by album end, but on the whole the transitions from breathy Norwegian to clipped English are pretty adorable, and it’s hard not to get on board with the sparse, surf rock guitars and ska beats.

Why We Have To Wait is a fun updated cover of Norwegian 1960s pop group The Pussycats, and it’s all fun and frolic with an infectious chorus, cascading guitars and clean percussion. There’s a bit more variety to be had in the more garage Vondt I Hjertet with some spacey offbeat snares and electric guitar noodling, and there’s a bit more pout and less puff in the galloping two/four pop-punk number Nytt Pa Nytt.

Researching The Blues

Their sound morphed dramatically over the intervening years – as you’d expect – and what they’re peddling now is a distinctive, hook-laden brand of glam-imbued power pop, all fuzzy melodies, catchy harmonies and a vibrant worldview you’d expect from a band half their age. New album Researching The Blues – their first studio effort in 15 years – is a typically exuberant affair, the effervescent title track opening things up and setting the pace for the rest of the quick-fire proceedings (ten tracks clocking in at under 33 minutes). Tunes like Stay Away From Downtown and Uglier fit perfectly into their oeuvre – irreverent and immediate in the best bubblegum tradition – and Jeff still sounds remarkably like a nasally John Lennon, their love of the Fab Four manifesting in tracks like Meet Frankenstein and Choose To Play, albeit wrapped up in crunchy guitars and distortion.

Signing off with enigmatic slowburner Get Back that explodes in a wash of acrid feedback and anthemic drums, Wilson’s voice warbling in and out of the mix, Harmony is a clever, sinuous beast of an album that proves that Die! Die! Die! are more potent than ever.

These girls have found a winning formula, and hence, don’t stray too wide of it. Album closer and acoustic noodler Walk In The Park proves there’s more to be had from Razika when the reins are loosened and the pace relents.

In an alternate universe Redd Kross might have been a massive sensation but it wasn’t to be, yet it doesn’t seem to have affected their love of music and popular culture one iota. Researching The Blues is far more than a token reunion album, rather a welcome return from of this fine underground outfit, and should also be held up as a beacon of light for experienced musicians everywhere, an apt reminder that that where there’s life there’s hope.

★★★★

★★★

★★★★

Brendan Telford

themusic.com.au

Carley Hall

Steve Bell

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SLUG GUTS

GOOD HEAVENS

PETER BLACK

SLIPKNOT

Sacred Bones

Rice Is Nice/Inertia

Citadel/Fuse

Roadrunner/Warner

Opening track Scum sums Playin’ In Time With The Deadbeat, the third longplayer from Brisbane’s purveyors of Gothic nihilism Slug Guts, up perfectly.

Three minutes of claustrophobic instrumentation (including a heady saxophone that emulates the vocals, an aural equivalent of the gnashing of teeth), Scum breeds darkness, desperation and despair, kicking and screaming in the cesspit of oblivion. It’s heavy stuff, mirroring the debauchery and disdain that the band sweat from their pores, and it’s a damaged masterpiece that’s hard to come back from.

From little things, big things grow. Or, from dissolutions, stronger incarnations grow. Good Heavens sees theredsunband’s Sarah Kelly teaming with Myles Heskett and Chris Ross (they who left the ballooning ego-trip of Wolfmother back in 2008). This threesome isn’t that far removed from her former band, except that where once the backbone of her songs was sinuous, it’s now made of titanium. The cover art of debut album, Strange Dreams – multi-coloured pulled teeth – is a bizarrely fitting image for a brace of tracks that appears at once dreamlike and vicious.

Yet somehow they do. Old Black Sweats oozes forth like a diseased blues ramble, threatening to infect everything it touches. The vehement rants on Suckin’ Down echoes out from an abandoned well, the drums pummelling them further down into the hole. The cavernous production amplifies the anguish and horror, whether it’s the empty warehouse grind of Order Of Death, the gross bluster inherent in Adult Living or the title track’s feverish swagger. You can hear the ghosts of The Birthday Party and Venom P Stinger in the band’s aesthetic, bashing their skulls in both agony and ecstasy. Yet there are tangential slivers of intent, as the almost pop tempo of Stranglin’ You Too and the carnival grotesquery of Glory Holes attests. These boys may be in pain, but they revel in it.

Things kick off with Know Your Own Heart, a soulful number that bubbles above with a soaring final third driven by Kelly’s heavily-distorted guitar. It’s a call to arms, reinforced as It’s Not Easy Being Mean and Are You Sick? roar with acrid intensity. The lilting fragility of I Am Not Afraid is a red herring, as Anybody But You tears back into the aggressive nature that the trio prove they do so well. It would be fair to assume that Kelly’s breathy, fragile vocals would struggle to rise above such a heavy display of acid-tinged rock heft, but it stays afloat, its incongruous nature helping to accentuate the brute force of the instrumentation. I’ve Got This Feeling and Down On Me are more reminiscent of the early days of theredsunband, especially as the volume is tempered, allowing Ross’ organ to make a prominent entry – before Kelly’s solo shatters the uneasy truce.

Much of the news surrounding seminal rockers The Hard Ons’ axeman Peter “Blackie” Black has focused on the dreadful assault he endured whilst driving his taxi cab in May. Thankfully he’s recovered from this horrendous incident and is already back spruiking his second solo album, No Dangerous Gods In Tunnel.

Those who only know Black from his “day band” most likely won’t understand what’s going on over the duration of the record, and those disappointed in the trajectory he took on his first foray into acoustics aren’t likely to change their mind. But for those interested in deliberately eschewed pop songs with falsetto vocals that focus on warped lyricism interspersed with lush string arrangements, this is the album for you.

A decade-plus on, four studio records in and tragically down one bassist, Iowa’s (only?) cultural export Slipknot are taking stock of their career so far with Antennas To Hell, a new best-of compilation. The one-disc offering (there’s a deluxe edition with an additional live album if you’re feeling saucy) sticks to the hits, proving Slipknot are a band that can dispense with whatever gimmicks (masks, jumpsuits, rotating drum risers, superfluous percussionists et cetera) people might accuse them of relying on and still capture and communicate the frustrations of their audience in an honest, and commercially viable, way.

★★★★

Brendan Telford

Strange Dreams is a ferocious mission statement, a feverish mark of intent that’s exhilarating in its confidence. Resolute to the final chord, Good Heavens refuse to go quietly into the dark, dark night. ★★★★½

Brendan Telford

Black openly concedes that his relationship with the acoustic guitar and the solo guise are in their infancy, and at times this shows. Whilst some tracks, such as the sonorous Looking For The Devil In Every Detail, Tickle and Dumb Dumb, are strangely affecting numbers whose crooked hooks bury themselves into your brain like an insistent burr, and Bus Catcher is like a perverse marriage between Syd Barrett and Dan Melchior, others fare less kindly. Algebra And Calculus feels like Eleanor Rigby without the nuance or intellect, whilst Cloud Nine’s overly simplistic lyrics and instrumentation is little more than a Playschool tune for adult contemporary audiences.

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Arguably the biggest metal band of the last decade, listening back to some of these choice Slipknot nuggets is an enjoyable exercise in nostalgia; one that makes you realise how shrewdly they’ve spent their career coyly following whatever was trendy in heavy metal at the time. Unless you’re listening closely, you don’t realise that the band morphed the turntable-heavy Jumpdafuckup-styled nu-metal of numbers like Wait And Bleed and Spit It Out into the catchy metalcore of latter-day cuts like Pyschosocial.

No Dangerous Gods In Tunnel is a curio likely to inspire a fierce reaction in all those who hear it. It is a hodgepodge of ideas constructed in a robustly unique way, with some gold to be found for those willing to wade into its depths.

But the jewel in the ‘Knot’s crown has always been their 2004 effort, Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses), and perhaps one of the most gratifying aspects of Antennas... is how it compares the band’s material from albums like Iowa and Slipknot to Vol. 3. In the light of public remarks made by Corey Taylor and co heaping shit on Vol. 3 producer Rick Rubin, the tracks taken from the album stand out as the best on the entire compilation.

★★½

Tom Hersey

Howie Tanks

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Slug Guts are demons of filth and lords of wanton aggression, and Playin’ In Time… is their most consistent document of their riotous yet wilful decline.

This won’t be everyone’s elixir, but for those ready to roll up the sleeves and dive into the filth, there’s not much more disturbingly rapturous than this.

Strange Dreams

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Playin’ In Time With The Deadbeat

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THIS WEEK IN

ARTS

After years of hard work, somewhat in the background, Jeremy Renner, the star of The Bourne Legacy, talks his transition into the spotlight with Guy Davis.

LOCO MARICON AMOR

THURSDAY 16

SATURDAY 18

The Harbinger – an old man hides away in a dusty old bookshop, forgotten and alone with only a handful of beautiful memories as comfort. An adult fairytale from Queensland’s Dead Puppet Society who meld live performance, puppetry, animation and stage trickery to create a richly magical world where the lines between reality and make-believe fall away. Written and directed by David Morton (The Timely Death of Victor Blott) and Matthew Ryan. Opening night, La Boite, 7.30pm until 1 September.

Loco Maricon Amour – Federico García Lorca and Salvador Dalí crossed paths and their lives were inexplicably set alight. Together these art-radicals fought to express through their work a freedom that was never theirs. A performance piece from the Danger Ensemble, which fuses dance, image and song to create the surreal world that Lorca and Dali fell in love in.

Directed and Designed by Steven Mitchell Wright, !MetroArts, 7.30pm until 1 September

Richard Hamilton – pop art artist, Hamilton created a huge body of work drawing on pop-culture imagery. Well known for his blanksleeve design for The Beatles’ 1968 double album known as The White Album). Hamilton was also responsible for introducing Marcel Duchamp’s proto-conceptualist work to Britain. In 1969, James Scott made documentary on the artist. IMA, Screening, 6pm.

Wonders of a Godless World – an apocalyptic play that spans from the beginning of time to the end of the earth. Set in a gothic hospital resting in the shadow of a volcano, a wordless orphan girl works on the wards housing the insane. From the novel by Andrew McGahan, adapted for the stage and directed

by Shaun Charles and performed by final year Griffith University applied theatre students. Opening night, Brisbane Powerhouse: Visy Theatre, 7.30pm until 25 August.

FRIDAY 17 Madonna Party – Celebrating 30 years of music from Madonna, this is the seventh annual Madonna Party that spans across this icons career. Featuring rare footage in retrospective screening her music videos and live clips. St Paul’s Tavern, 7pm.

A NEW LEGACY

SUNDAY 19 The Color of the Sky Has Melted – an exhibition from Melbourne artist Marco Fusinato, an exploration into the rhetoric of extremism in art, music, and politics. Including installation piece Aetheric Plexus, were the viewer triggers a huge sound-and-lighting rig that blasts them with 13,000 watts of blinding white light and deafening white noise. IMA until 6 October.

Broken Embraces – directed by Pedro Almodóvar after the success of All about My Mother and Volver, he took on this 1950s American film noir tale of dangerous love.

About Harry Caine, a blind writer that goes to heal his wounds form the past where he was still known by his real name, Mateo Blanco and directing his last movie. Starring Penelope Cruz, Part of the retrospective of films of Pedro Almodóvar, GOMA, 3pm.

TUESDAY 21 Akmal – Australian comic Akmal draws on his Arabic heritage, his experiences immigrating to Australia at the age of 11, and his disillusionment with religion and the modern world to deliver a stand-up show that is fresh, honest and well…funny. Opening night, Brisbane Powerhouse, 8pm until 2 September.

CALLING ACTORS 16 experienced and emerging actors are invited to participate in an intimate eight-week Masterclass program at La Boite’s Roundhouse Theatre. With La Boite Artistic Director David Berthold who will lead some of workshops, treating participants with unique practical insight into their personal styles of performance making. Group four starts 27 August – 22 October, Mondays at 6.30pm – 9.30pm. For more info go to laboite.com.au

Right now, Jeremy Renner feels like a shark. After more than a decade as a character actor adding gritty texture to supporting roles in films like 28 Weeks Later and The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, he gained a higher profile with his compelling performance in Kathryn Bigelow’s Oscar-winning The Hurt Locker.

Joining the ensemble casts of blockbusters like Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol and The Avengers only enhanced his standing (as did Academy Award nominations for his performances in The Hurt Locker and Ben Affleck’s crime drama The Town), and now the 41-year-old actor is taking centre stage in The Bourne Legacy, an action thriller that expands the world established in the three Bourne movies starring Matt Damon as the titular amnesiac secret agent.

The taxing Bourne Legacy shoot was smack in the middle of a two-year, five-movie run for Renner, a run that included megaproductions like Ghost Protocol and The Avengers – in fact, he went straight from filming Legacy to playing sharpshooting archer Hawkeye in The Avengers without a day off – and while he admits he was concerned about his ability to keep up the pace he wasn’t about to turn down any of the opportunities that had come his way. “If I don’t keep going, I’ll die,” he smiles. “But I am taking a break after all this.”

Watching Legacy, it certainly seems like he’s earned it. As Aaron Cross, an operative in a top-secret Department of Defence program called Outcome (similar to the Treadstone and Blackbriar programs in the previous Bourne films), Renner convincingly does his fair share of running, jumping, kicking and punching as he tries to keep himself and Dr Marta Shearing (Rachel Weisz) one step ahead of the assassins dispatched

by Eric Byer (Edward Norton), Outcome’s pragmatic head honcho.

Working with the likes of Weisz and Norton, as well as writer-director (and Bourne franchise veteran) Tony Gilroy were “huge, huge checks on the list of reasons to go to work”, says Renner. But just as much of an incentive was the chance to bring Cross to life. “I have to connect with the character some way, find how they resonate with me and

BARRACKS 07 3367 1954 61 PETRIE TCE, TOP OF CAXTON ST

And Renner never really felt daunted by taking on a series so synonymous with another actor.

“It’s easy for me to say no if they offer me Jason Bourne; that’s a character that has already been played brilliantly by another actor who is a friend of mine,” he says.

“But a script that opens up the world and offers a character like Aaron Cross, I’m going to find that interesting. It’s more excitement than reservation, I suppose, because of the possibilities. You could pit Cross and Bourne against each other, you could have them work together. If there are any thoughts about the future of it, leaving avenues open is what’s most important. They have to make sense, though. If they don’t make sense, you might as well just kill everybody in one movie and be done with it!”

WHAT: The Bourne Legacy WHEN & WHERE: Opens in cinemas tonight.

HOLY MOTORS (CTC) (NO FREE TIX) ADVANCE SCREENINGS FRI-SUN 4.10, 8.40PM

4.45, 7.00, 8.15, 9.15PM

THU/FRI/MON-WED 12.50,

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THE SAPPHIRES (PG)

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Russian activists Pussy Riot have finally garnered the international support they’ve been seeking since having been arrested back in March for donning balaclavas and performing a punk-rock prayer requesting that the big man in the sky attend to Vladimir Putin and his oh-so-democratic regime. Having languished in custody for five months, the three women are now facing seven years in jail for hooliganism motivated by religious hatred.

Putin himself weighed in on the proceedings, saying that he didn’t think “they should be judged so harshly” which is usually a fair indication that the Supreme Leader has held a trial in his head and is handing down the exact judgment the courts will – coincidently – come to pass. For their part, the Russian judiciary have once again demonstrated their complete impartiality during the (show) trial and it seems unlikely that Pussy Riot will avoid a custodial sentence.

I’m quite fond of the New Testament, despite being an atheist.

I see Jesus as the ancient, hairy, messianic predecessor of Henry Rollins, a real-life man I adopted as my spiritual guide back in 1999; as far as I can tell, Jesus was a punk rocker. He trashed temples (Matthew 21: 12-17); repeatedly held an upright middle finger to the government (The New Testament in general); hung out with prostitutes (Luke 7: 36-50); cavorted with lepers (Mark 1: 40-50) and generally caused the Romans a world of pain. Jesus didn’t just oppose the inequities of a system; Jesus

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28 • TIME OFF

Cross, on the other hand, offered a palette of personality traits for Renner to work with – there’s steeliness offset by affability, with an underlying desperation and even ruthlessness when it comes to achieving his goals. There’s a bit more happening than the traditional action-figure poses.

“Well, they’re human traits, aren’t they?” says Renner. “They’re genuine personality traits, and that’s what I gravitate towards and connect to in a character.

The storyline offered Aaron Cross the opportunity to really exist as a human being, not someone constantly running and gunning... well, not immediately anyway.”

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find a way in,” he says. “Matt had a really great character but he was slightly trapped in that [Bourne] didn’t know who the hell he was.

That was a difficult task – how do you create a character when you don’t know who you are? You’re constantly at the mercy of what happens around you, you’re thinking all the time but you’re sure what or why you’re thinking, and there’s something interesting about that.

It’s wide open in a different way.”

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It’s therefore confounding to me when people insist on behaving as though Christianity is based on a profound respect for authority and that any person who fails to act with the appropriate amount of reverence whilst in the presence of religion or within the hallowed walls of places of worship is a disrespectful, blaspheming philistine on a short, fast path to perdition.

In the case of Pussy Riot, political protest is being treated as a crime against religion because that protest was an unpalatable type of prayer that happened to have been staged in a church. It’s a conflation of content that essentially proves the point the balaclava-clad women of Pussy Riot were making: that the relationship between the Russian Orthodox Church and Putin’s government is less than sound.

On a spiritual note, the prosecutor has said that cussing in a church is an “abuse of God”. Really? I may be an atheist, but I hardly think God’s so sensitive that three women saying “shit” in a cathedral would get Him all hot and bothered. I’m not sure I can say the same about His reaction to a prosecutor, President and judiciary purporting to have the authority to judge whose prayers are legitimate and whose are not. I’ve only got four letters for Putin: WWJD?

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opposed the system of the entire world. Admittedly at the time the “entire world” was thought to be quite a bit smaller than we later discovered, but he vehemently opposed it nonetheless. If there’s anyone who knows about damning the man it’s the son of God.

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BANDS THE INDUSTRY THE LOCALS THE BLOG RES THE DJS THE GIGS THE PRODUCERS THE REMIXES THE ARTISTS THE FESTIVALS THE GRO LBUMS THE TOURS THEMUSIC.COM.AU THE FA THE INDUSTRY THE LOCALS THE BLOGS THE E S THE GIGS THE PRODUCERS THE CLUBS THE TISTS THE FESTIVALS THE GROUPIES THE ALBU THE FANS THE BANDS THE INDUSTRY THE LOC S THE ENCORES THE DJS THE GIGS THE PROD LUBS THE REMIXES THE ARTISTS THE FESTIVA PIES THE ALBUMS THE TOURS THE FANS THE (L@FD AX )TRSHMD 6@KONKD

TIME OFF • 29

F R O N T R O W @ T I M E O F F. C O M . A U

C U LT U R A L

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WITH MANDY MCALISTER

Last Friday Simon Pegg tweeted, “Hello the World, we are a small island in the North Sea, we gave you Shakespeare, The Beatles and we won 60+ medals at the 2012 Olympics.” It was a grand Olympics but now that it’s over and we’re all still feeling a touch Anglophilic, it’s a good time to turn to the another of those Great British exports, Shakespeare.

Though often performed in Brisbane, no one does Shakespeare quite like the Queensland Shakespeare Ensemble. Always eager to engage with the text, QSE are tackling their latest production, The Two Gentlemen Of Verona, from left of centre by interpreting the work as a western.

Director Rob Pensalfini explains that it’s actually a fairly natural fit. “The energy suits that genre,” he says.

“Another thing is that the moral structure of the play suits the world of a western – a lot of it is about honour and mateship, and the limits of trust and forgiveness. Once we started looking at the text in this way, we saw all kinds of western tropes already there, without us having to do anything. The clown characters are very much like the yokels and servants in westerns; the women in the play are much tougher and more powerful than they first appear, just like women in westerns; there’s an ageing sheriff, The Duke, he’s even called “The Duke” like John Wayne, two life-long amigos, and love comes between them; the rich but despicable oil baron/ rancher, Sir Thurio... the list goes on” As is par for the course, amid the chaos of intersecting storylines The

Two Gentlemen... features characters of pure comedic value. Also par for the course is a little cross casting between male and female roles. As he tells it, casting Claire Pearson as the clownish servant Speed in The Two Gentlemen... was a no brainer for Pensalfini. He says, “Claire Pearson is playing Speed as written, as nominally male, though really more an androgynous ‘youth’. Claire is perfect for such a role because of her build, voice, energy, sense of comic timing. She’s really the best Speed we could imagine.”

For her part, Pearson seems wrapped to take on Speed. “For me personally, it’s very invigorating to play a role such as Speed as because of my build/look I’m often cast in the innocent/young woman type,” she says. “It means I feel a bit more freedom too in terms of physicality, but overall I don’t think playing in a cross-gender role means I have to over act being a man/boy.”

With Campbell “Scissorhands” Newman putting arts workers on notice, we may see theatre houses continuing to host Shakespeare’s popular comedies. While there have been some absolutely cracking productions of these recently you can never underestimate the thrill of seeing a Shakespeare play for the first time. “It’s true that it’s much easier to get audiences to Romeo & Juliet, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Macbeth or King Lear,” says Pensalfini, “but part of our mission is to engage Queensland audiences with the variety and depth of Shakespeare’s work.”

QSE’s production of The Two Gentlemen Of Verona previews tonight at the Roma Street Parklands Amphitheatre. See qldshakespeare.org for details.

ART S TA R T E R

“WOW! How far back do you want to go?” is Shane Hill’s immediate response when I confess ignorance about hypnotism and mentalism.

“Hypnosis has been used possibly since ancient times,” he explains, “Egyptian priests used it to convince the masses of things, but our modern history has it really starting medically about WWII when it was used to help wounded soldiers during battles. Mentalism however really came into the fore I guess back with the spiritualist movement in the 1800s, when people like the Fox sisters and others used the rudimentary form of psychological magic to fool people that they were either having their minds read or that they were talking to Uncle Harry or Aunt May from the spirit world.

“Hypnotism and mentalism are very different,” Hill reveals. ”Hypnosis has a scientific back ground – research is done on it constantly – doctors dentists and other professional use it, there have even been cases of the police using it, to enhance 30 • TIME OFF

Noel Fielding likes to look at photos of fans’ cats while on break from The Mighty Boosh.

Anthony Carew does not offer him a picture of his pussy.

Warning: if you watch Noel Fielding’s post-Mighty Boosh TV show, Noel Fielding’s Luxury Comedy, you will get its groovy, minimalist, hypnotic theme tune stuck in your head. Perhaps forever.

“It is a bit of an earworm, isn’t it?” laughs Fielding, the 39-year-old comedian who is, it must be said, pretty much always laughing. “I’ve had so many people say that to me: ‘I can’t get that fucking tune out of my head!’ I’m not sure that’s the best way to win people over, by making them angry due to the catchiness of your theme tune. But it’s like a permanent advert, this insistent jingle that’s always there. When you’re walking around going ‘luxury comedy/ ooooh, yeah’ all day, people are permanently reminded that I exist, that I’m there, on their tellies.”

Luxury Comedy finds Fielding and friends — brother Michael, director/ animator Nigel Coan, Kasabian’s Sergio Pizzorno (with whom Fielding plays as Loose Tapestries, and will soon release an album of music from the show) — taking the dress-ups surrealism of The Mighty Boosh further into even kookier realms, with little in the way of narrative coherence at all.

Its star describing it as a “pretty homemade... inelegant half-sketchshow/half-sitcom mish-mash.”

“I wanted to make this surreal television show, something a bit Spike Milligany, like Q, or like Vic & Bob. I thought, after the Boosh, I just wanted to make a show for myself, like a bit of a Trout Mask Replica, Captain Beefheart kind of a show. Just: ‘This one’s for me!’”

Fielding enthuses. “I’m interested in imagination, fantasy worlds, magic

Also big fans of Luxury Comedy: kids and cats. “I love when kids like the show,” Fielding says.

“Because they don’t have barriers, they’re quite open to stuff. Some would say I’m like a kid — that, perhaps, I’m childish — because I’m the same way. Adults are the ones who get confused: ‘A man with a shell for a head? Excuse me, that’s not logical!’ Whereas kids are like: ‘A sandwich made out of folk music? OK, cool.’ But, weirdly enough, people kept sending me pictures and letters saying: ‘My cat is obsessed with your show!

It’s never shown any interest in television before, but when your show comes on it stands in front of the telly for the whole show, then leaves when it’s over.’ I literally got twenty-five photographs of people’s cats looking at my show. I’ve accidentally made a hit show for just cats! People were nonplussed, but the cats, they loved it! I’m king of the cat world!”

realism, surrealism. I love stuff like that. I don’t like fantasy in terms of Lord Of The Rings; I’m not really interested in science-fiction either.

I’m more into Jorge Luis Borges and Lewis Carroll, people who create these unreal worlds. It was a bit like owning my subconsciousness, giving it a place to let all the trippy, weird stuff come out. It’s pretty amazing Channel 4 just let me do whatever I want, in this day-andage. In an era of reality TV, here I am, the berk making unreality TV!” After Fielding and Boosh co-creator Julian Barratt went on hiatus in 2010 (“I’m sure we’ll get back together and do something; I think we should do a Boosh film,” Fielding says, allaying fears of their permanent demise), he found his head “loaded with stuff [he] needed to get out,” ridiculous characters that would’ve once had a happy home on The Mighty Boosh now needing an outlet. Fielding and Barratt had made The Mighty Boosh thinking no one would actually watch it; “forget wanting to attract

a large audience, we never even bothered trying to attract one at all,” Fielding admits. Yet, subsequent live tours brought them face-to-face with a cult following attending in full costume. ”Looking out from stage would be quietly terrifying: there’d be five Hitchers, six Rudi van DiSarzios, and a really amazing Crack Fox in the front row,” Fielding laughs. Thus, his latest lark had a tough act to follow. “It was a bit of a no-win situation for me, because the Boosh had become so beloved.

A lot of people saw this and were like: ‘This isn’t the Boosh! What’ve y’done! You’ve killed the Boosh!’

And I was like ‘chill out, we’re just having a break!’” Does Fielding care what other people think? Well, sometimes. “I’m quite shallow, so if someone cool likes my show” — he mentions French electro act Justice, who befriended Pizzorno simply because of his connection to Luxury Comedy — “I’m a sucker for that, but if someone’s wearing bad shoes I couldn’t care less what they think.”

He’s also king of the music-themed panel shows, with a recurring stint on Never Mind The Buzzcocks, which is now on UKTV. “I love being captain. I took over from Bill Bailey when he didn’t want to do it anymore. The other captain is Phill Jupitus. We get on really well: we’re like Baloo and Mowgli in The Jungle Book.”

So, has Fielding ever been a captain before? “I think I used to be a captain of a football team when I was young,” Fielding recalls. “Hilariously! I bet you can’t imagine me being a captain of anything.” Perhaps a doomed ship? Fielding, as he does, laughs outrageously. “‘There’s no one at the wheel, Noel, there’s no one at the wheel!’ I was up on the deck dancing with some strange sea creatures that we’d just pulled up.

‘He’s dancing with a porpoise! No one’s steering the boat!’ But I can’t be that guy forever, because now I’m the captain of my own ship. I’m the captain of Luxury Comedy!”

WHAT: Luxury Comedy out on DVD Wednesday 22 August (Universal Sony Pictures)

BRAVE NEW WORLD

Five minutes with

SHANE HILL

NEVER MIND THE BOOSH

witnesses memory of a crime.

Mentalism on the other hand is entertainment, even though the basic principle is the same; a good understanding of the human mind and how it ticks.

For example both hypnosis and mentalism rely to some degree on the mind’s ability to focus. If in hypnosis I can get you to focus on me, and what I’m saying, you will drop into a trance – in fact we do this when we are watching TV. In mentalism however I might want you to focus not on me and what I’m doing but on something else.

“I’ve been screwing about with this work since he was a kid,” he explains of a skill that has become his polished comic art form. “My ability to convince almost anybody of anything appeared pretty early, I once made my sisters – I have five – convinced that our house had disappeared.“ Paul Andrew WHO: Shane Hill WHAT: The Gangsters Ball WHEN & WHERE: Saturday 15 September, The Tivoli

Co-artistic director of youth-oriented theatre company Shake & Stir Nick Skubij talks Helen Stringer through their latest George Orwell adaptation and the development of non-patronising theatre.

Before the term Big Brother was associated with a trashy television series premised on appealing to the lowest common denominator with its combination of equal parts public humiliation and everyday voyeurism, it belonged to George Orwell’s bleak vision of the future. Orwell envisioned a world in which government powers equate to complete control: thoughts monitored, language systematically dismantled, every action perceived as an act against or for an allpowerful state. Whether Orwell’s vision of the world is more or less disturbing than the reality television incarnation is debatable but that 1984 is a classic text on a harrowing and grim dystopia is undeniable.

Having already tackled Orwell’s Animal Farm to much acclaim, Queensland youth-oriented theatre company, the much-lauded Shake & Stir, is bringing 1984 to QPAC. Shake & Stir co-founder and co-artistic director Nick Skubij explains of the back-to-back Orwell, “When we got into our main-stage stuff we really

did sit down and think what could we do that people haven’t seen before?” After bringing Shakespeare to younger audiences, he says that looking to other classic texts, like Orwell, was a natural progression.

“As with Animal Farm last year,” Skubij says, “it’s a text that is something that’s studied quite frequently in schools and it lends itself to stage adaptation. But,” he laughs, “we didn’t set out to be a George Orwell company.

But at the same time, we look for texts that lend themselves to re-contextualisation and adding our contemporary spin to them.

1984 especially; it’s not going to feel like it’s an old, heritage text and that’s the nature of that work. It’s uncannily modern.”

Whilst traditionally Orwell might be a dreaded component of the high school curriculum, Skubij explains that the production is modern and, true to the source, pulls no punches about the dark content.

“The whole third part of the book is

all about torture and it’s got these dark sadistic overtones to it; all the while you’ve got this feeling of oppression and voyeurism from the fact that you know every move is being monitored right down to thoughts. You’ve got this terrible feeling that nothing is private… it’s always monitored and there’s a very exciting feeling of impending doom that runs from the outset.

It’s horrifically grim.” For this production, he says, “[You] get to see the text as it was intended: to scare the audience and to provide a cautionary tale about where we could be heading.”

It’s perhaps precisely this preparedness to stay true to original texts despite complexity and darkness – a trait that’s often absent in youth productions – that has garnered Shake & Stir so much success; shows are youthoriented but never patronising.

Skubij explains of Shake & Stir, “We wanted to really focus on creating a company that’s not

necessarily only a youth company, but that’s really heavily committed to creating theatre that young people can really get involved with in all sorts of ways. The other guys had similar sorts of ideas: there was a gap in the market for high quality, engaging contemporary theatre for young people.

“We’re all really interested in the theatre that we produce,” he continues, “we’re all really committed to remaining in Queensland and helping the industry continue to develop and continue to offer substantial opportunities for actors to remain in Queensland without having to jump states. We’re really happy that we’ve been able to stay around and continue to grow.”

WHAT: 1984 WHEN & WHERE: Thursday 16 August to Saturday 1 September, Cremorne Theatre, QPAC

DUBMARINE Member/role:

Joel Alexander – former synther/current drummer.

How long have you been together?

Since 2007.

Why so many members in the band?

You know what they say? Many hands make heavy bass. We are sort of like the ark in the respect we have two of almost everything: two singers, two trombones, two guitarists (one of ‘em bass), two drummers and two basses (one of them synth)... Well almost two of everything…

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?

Roots Manuva, Santigold, Kingfisha, Digital Mystiks. But it’s the music liked by half of the van that makes the best trips.

Would you rather be a busted broke-but-revered Hank Williams figure or some kind of Metallica monster?

Hank type figure, cause we’re halfway there already ie. broke and busted. But as Mike Skinner said, cult classic not best seller.

Which Brisbane bands before you have been an inspiration (musically or otherwise)?

It’s the Brisbane bands of now that we’re inspired by. There is a whole heap of music coming out now that’s kicking arse. A lot of excellent world-class releases coming out of the Tanuki Lounge from bands like Kingfisha, Kooii and Darky Roots. Plus you have bands like OKA who are punishing the overseas touring circuit. Gotta work hard to keep up.

What part do you think Brisbane plays in the music you make?

With no major label headquarters and only a handful of decent venues to play, Brisbane musicians are uninhibited and originally creative. There is no pressure to align our music to a particular scene, we just write the music we love, present wherever possible, and see how it goes.

Is your band responsible for more make-outs or break-ups? Why? We’re all about bringing people together. Although we do have a don’t screw the crew policy... a policy that the trombones often ignore.

What reality TV show would you enter as a band and why?

Dancing With The Stars. Have you not seen our Trombonist Mikael on stage?

He’d dance the shit out of Nicky Webster, let’s just say that.

If your band had to play a team sport instead of being musicians which sport would it be and why would you be triumphant?

Baseball of course, cause we got the heaviest bass balls in the business.

What’s in the pipeline for the band in the short term?

Long Player sessions at the Powerhouse, this Saturday. Dubmarine will be performing The Prodigy’s The Fat Of The Land in its entirety.

Dubmarine perform The Prodigy’s The Fat Of The Land at Brisbane Powerhouse on Saturday 18 August as part of the Long Player Sessions.

Photo by TERRY SOO.

TOUR GUIDE FEATURE TOUR

JINJA SAFARI

SATURDAY 18 AUGUST, THE HI-FI Don’t you just love triple-dipping? If it wasn’t enough that young Sydney indie darlings Jinja Safari are gracing us with their most awesome presence this weekend as part of their Blind Date Tour, they’re bringing with them some more than simply esteemed guests: from New Zealand we have Opossom (the new project from former Mint Chick Kody Neilson), and all the way from sunny LA we have White Arrows and their intoxicating blend of psych and pop. Three bands, three countries, no filler: head along to The Hi-Fi this Saturday night and find out if there is indeed any chemistry and whether this musical blind date will turn into anything more lasting!

TIME OFF PRESENTS PASSENGER: The Hi-Fi Aug 16 THE LAURELS: Beetle Bar Aug 17 THE JUNGLE GIANTS: Elsewhere Aug 17, The Zoo Aug 18 LONG PLAYER SESSIONS: Brisbane Powerhouse Aug 18 XAVIER RUDD: Rumours Aug 29, The Tivoli Aug 30, LKCC Aug 31, Coolangatta Hotel Sep 1, Byron YAC Sep 2 RED DEER FESTIVAL 2012: Samford Sep 1 PLUS ONE RECORDS SHOWCASE: The Zoo Sep 11 BIGSOUND 2012: Fortitude Valley Sep 12-14 JULIA STONE: Spiegeltent Sep 19 and 20, Byron Community Centre Sep 21 OH MERCY: The Zoo Sep 21, Joe’s Waterhole Sep 22 TZU: SolBar Sep 21, The Zoo Sep 22 MYSTERY JETS: The Hi-Fi Sep 25 THE BEARDS: Beach Hotel Sep 28, Spotted Cow Oct 4, Coolangatta Hotel Oct 5, The Hi-Fi Oct 6 BLACKCHORDS: Ric’s Sep 29 TIM & ERIC AWESOME SHOW: The Tivoli Oct 4 WINTER PEOPLE: Black Bear Lodge Oct 4, The Loft Oct 6, Brisbane Powerhouse Oct 7 THE MEDICS: The Northern Oct 5 DAPPLED CITIES: The Zoo Oct 6 CLARE BOWDITCH: Old Museum Oct 11 GROUPER: Brisbane Powerhouse Oct 11 BASTARDFEST: The Hi-Fi Oct 13 LAST DINOSAURS: Alhambra Oct 13, The Hi-Fi Oct 19 MUMFORD & SONS: Brisbane Riverstage Oct 17, Gold Coast Convention Centre Oct 31 BILLY BRAGG: QPAC Oct 25 THURSTON MOORE: The Hi-Fi Oct 27 CHERRY POPPIN’ DADDIES: Tempo Hotel Nov 1 XIU XIU: Brisbane Powerhouse Nov 18 GOLDEN DAYS FESTIVAL: Coolum Beach Nov 17-18

INTERNATIONAL NASUM: The Hi-Fi Aug 17 COLD BLANK: Electric Playground Aug 17 OPOSSOM, WHITE ARROWS: The Hi-Fi Aug 18 SLASH: Brisbane Riverstage Aug 23 CHRIS LAKE: Family Aug 24 PENNYWISE, THE MENZINGERS, SHARKS: Coolangatta Hotel Aug 23, Eatons Hill Hotel Aug 24 THE BEACH BOYS: BEC Aug 28 PITBULL, TAIO CRUZ: BEC Aug 29 APOCOLYPTICA: The Hi-Fi Aug 30 DIE! DIE! DIE!: The Zoo Aug 30, Elsewhere Aug 31 KATCHAFIRE: The Hi-Fi Aug 31, Kings Beach Tavern Sep 6, Caloundra RSL Sep 7 32 • TIME OFF

THE REMBRANDTS: The Tivoli Sep 1 DAVE SEAMAN: Sky Room Sep 2 CARTEL: Crowbar Sep 5, Surfers Paradise Beer Garden Sep 6 THE BRAND NEW HEAVIES: The Hi-Fi Sep 6 PATRICK WOLF: The Tivoli Sep 7 EARTH: The Zoo Sep 9 RUFUS WAINWRIGHT: QPAC Sep 12 INGRID MICHAELSON: Spiegeltent Sep 12 SUBHUMANS: Prince Of Wales Sep 13 MARCO FUSINATO: IMA Sep 13 SIX60: The Tivoli Sep 13 RIVAL SCHOOLS: The Zoo Sep 14 JONAH MATRANGA’S ONELINEDARWING: Crowbar Sep 15 AMERICA: Twin Towns Sep 15 BARRY ADAMSON: Beetle Bar Sep 16 MACY GRAY: Jupiters Casino Sep 19, QPAC Sep 20 HANSON: The Hi-Fi Sep 20 ENTER SHIKARI: Eatons Hill Hotel Sep 20 EIFFEL 65, N-TRANCE: The Hi-Fi Sep 21 FUTURE ISLANDS: GoMA Sep 21 WHEATUS: The Hi-Fi Sep 23 MUSIQ SOULCHILD: Mystique Sep 15 FAR EAST MOVEMENT: Eatons Hill Hotel Sep 19 SCISSOR SISTERS: Arena Sep 25 MARIANA’S TRENCH: The Zoo Sep 25 MYSTERY JETS: The Hi-Fi Sep 25 FEAR FACTORY: The Hi-Fi Sep 26 FERRY CORSTEN: Family Sep 28 FUNKAGENDA: The Met Sep 28 JAMES MORRISON: Eatons Hill Hotel Sep 28 ULCERATE: Beetle Bar Sep 30 DEFEATER, BLACKLISTED: Mount Gravatt PCYC Sep 30, Byron Bay YAC Oct 1, The Zoo Oct 2 JOE BONAMASSA: QPAC Oct 3 STEEL PANTHER: Eatons Hill Hotel Oct 4 TIM & ERIC: The Tivoli Oct 4 NEKROMANTIX: The Hi-Fi Oct 4 RUSSIAN CIRCLES, EAGLE TWIN: The Zoo Oct 5 GRANDMASTER MELLE MEL: Coniston Lane Oct 6 CANNIBAL CORPSE: The Hi-Fi Oct 8 MARTIKA: The Hi-Fi Oct 10 EVERCLEAR: Coolangatta Hotel Oct 10, The Hi-Fi Oct 11 GROUPER: Brisbane Powerhouse Oct 11 TORTOISE: The Zoo Oct 12 GOMEZ: Coolangatta Hotel Oct 13, The Tivoli Oct 14 LANGE: Barsoma Oct 14 GRAILS: The Zoo Oct 17 MUMFORD & SONS: Brisbane Riverstage Oct 17, Gold Coast Convention Centre Oct 31 XIU XIU: Brisbane Powerhouse Oct 18 LEE RANALDO BAND: The Zoo Oct 21 SMASH MOUTH: Jupiter’s Oct 21 SHELLAC: The Zoo Oct 23 HOT CHELLE RAE: BCEC Oct 23 SUNN O))), PELICAN: The Tivoli Oct 24 WEDNESDAY 13: The Zoo Oct 25 THE BLACK KEYS: BEC Oct 26 THURSTON MOORE: The Hi-Fi Oct 27 AT THE GATES: The Hi-Fi Oct 31

DEAD LETTER OPENER @ THE ZOO PIC BY SKY KIRKHAM

DEAD LETTER OPENER, THEREIN, CALIGULA’S HORSE THE ZOO: 09/08/12

Up from the Gold Coast, Caligula’s Horse combine a strange and eclectic mix of influences with a basic metal base to rather varied effect. The first few songs combine reggae, progressive metal, ‘80s guitar solos and fairly MOR rock, but the parts don’t gel well and the segues between ideas are messy, making it hard to connect. The vocals are the defining point of the set, with the singer displaying impressive range and clarity, and when the band settles and some of the songs stick to a single idea, they’re very good. The sound is surprisingly muddy for The Zoo tonight though and when the vocals take a break, the band sounds a little hollow.

Opening with a thrash metal track, Therein display skill and an understanding of the genre, with enjoyable riffs and growled vocals. Attempts to expand beyond that are less than convincing, however. A slower track feels unenthused and features too many unnecessary shifts in tone, while a country-inflected track with mandolin and tin-whistle parts seems more like a jam than a finished song. When they stick to the heavier end of the spectrum they command attention and execute well, but again the transitions are messy and too frequent and it makes it hard to enjoy any song in its entirety.

Dead Letter Opener vocalist Mick Millard sounds a little unenthusiastic as the band sets up, but within seconds of their first track they show that they’re still one of Brisbane’s most impressive metal bands and, as the set goes on, that impression only strengthens. Richard Young’s ridiculously complex beats and extended double kick sequences keep the songs driving forward while Chris Lait makes the hardest guitar parts look effortless.

After a crushingly heavy (in the best possible way) first few tracks, DLO slow things down and put their progressive side on display, as Millard shows off his clean vocals and ridiculous piano skills on the excellent Anger Management. Unlike the other bands tonight, there are never any empty moments; with or without vocals the music overwhelms the room. A new track and their first ever cover further enhance the set and the crowd shows its appreciation, the moshpit going absolutely wild during the final couple of tracks.

It’s not all smooth sailing – the gaps between songs stretch out a little and while some of the banter is funny, a small part is needlessly offensive (there’s really no place for homophobia these days, intentional or otherwise). When they let the music do the talking though, Dead Letter Opener are amongst the most talented and interesting groups operating in metal today.

Sky Kirkham

JEREMY NEALE, GO VIOLETS, JAMES X. BOYD & THE CEOS BLACK BEAR LODGE: 09/08/12

Tonight’s show is exciting for a lot of reasons: firstly it’s the start of Jeremy Neale’s single tour, so his

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band won’t be Brisbane’s not-very-well-kept secret much longer, plus it’s also James X. Boyd’s first solo show, and expectations are high. Finally, Go Violets are starting to make headway after years of being one of Brisbane’s most consistent actss, and tonight they’ve also got a new single to debut.

By the time James X. Boyd & The CEOs start up, Black Bear Lodge is already half full of with a crowd ready to have their faith realised. The band doesn’t disappoint, with stripped back guitar and laconic vocals (it’s a rare treat to hear James Boyd’s voice free of reverb) and a sound like Lou Reed meets The Go-Betweens (via Dick Diver). There’s an obvious shared vision between Boyd and guitarist Michael Fletcher; although this is definitely Boyd’s show, Fletcher’s confident lead lines are vital and seamless.

Go Violets’ sound is like the good parts of the ‘60s and the ‘90s, held together by the immediately likeable vocal of Phoebe Imhoff. Her lyrics read like confessions but are sung like demands, and when she asks the crowd to come closer not many can resist. The band is tight, and the set builds in intensity until current single Teenagers, which is a sweet and joyful punch in the face.

Sometimes at the gigs of new (or new-ish) bands you can play a game where you try and guess which song they’ll release next as a single. With Brisbane’s omnipresent Jeremy Neale and his ragged bunch of followers, however, this is goddamn impossible. Every song is so instant and swimming in hooks and melody.

They’re also all, maybe more importantly, completely memorable, deployed by a band with obvious knowledge of how pop songs work. Neale himself gives the performance a sheen of heartfelt precision, with everpresent charm and a voice which is pretty and forceful in equal measures. Towards the end of the set comes the double points combo of Winter Was The Time and Darlin’, before the band finish a brilliant performance and turn their attention towards triumphantly riding this wave of goodwill all the way to Sydney and beyond.

Madeleine Laing

ROSETTA, CITY OF SHIPS, NUCLEAR SUMMER, HOPE DRONE CROWBAR: 09/08/12

The setting for Rosetta’s final Australian show is kind of poetic, being that they’re an underground band playing a basement club. Yet tonight’s lineup means there’s a lot more to dig on than band/ venue synchronicity. First up, local four-piece Hope Drone push their amplifiers to their limit. Proving themselves true to their droning moniker, their set hits that sweet spot between black and drone metals.

Locals Nuclear Summer play the second support slot like they’re determined to lighten the mood, or remind everyone that heavy music is supposed to be fun too. The five-piece really seem to be having a good time as they thrash about some of the tracks from their self-titled full-length.

Making the trip with their State-side brethren, post/ prog/heavy/whatever rockers City Of Ships are tonight’s main support. Though they stand out as the most melodic band on tonight’s bill, the crowd of postmetal enthusiasts can appreciate the smorgasbord of sounds created by the three-piece outfit. As the bill’s sort-of dark horse, what City Of Ships do with their time onstage stands out particularly. Their swirling guitar lines are disarmingly infectious, and their uniquely mellow take on some of post-metal’s textures keeps everyone in the club interested.

Philadelphia four-piece Rosetta have described their music as ‘metal for astronauts’. If that’s the case, when they take to the stage in Crowbar they aren’t floating through the orbital phase of a space voyage, but re-entering earth’s atmosphere, hurtling towards the ground like a blaze of fire. The ethereal textures of earlier albums like Wake/Lift and 2005 epic The Galilean Satellites, which served as the centre-piece of their last Australian tour, are superseded by the grit and power of the band’s newer material. Vocalist Michael Armine is shirtless and in the faces of the front row, commanding action with a hardcore-styled bark while the ambient soundscape component of Rosetta’s music is pushed towards the background. Buried amidst a mess of J. Matthew Weed’s guitars and the fierce crash of Bruce McMurtie Jr.’s drum kit. While Rosetta’s music has always had an element of hardcore’s brawn amidst the overt braininess of meticulous space rock arrangements, tonight their set is all muscle. Even during the six-minute plus efforts, when the audience expect the band to settle into the kind of drone-influenced motifs that can be appropriately appreciated with thoughtful head-nodding, a brutish squall of distortion will come from nowhere to shake everything up and cause a pit to break out.

In the chaos of these moments, the band’s performance hits its zenith. It’s this sweaty yet intelligent hybridisation of hardcore and metal that, when Rosetta take their exit from the stage, leaves the crowd in awe of Rosetta’s near-unmatched dexterity.

Tom Hersey

BILLY TALENT, THE CITY SHAKEUP THE HI-FI: 10/08/12

Midweek gig attendance is always hit and miss, especially throughout the winter months, however, The City Shakeup needn’t worry about that as they are greeted by a packed and receptive room all but ready to get bashed around with some chunky riffs.

The Gold Coast foursome show a level of confidence that is fairly unheralded for a support act, but when the tracks stand up, it’s no surprise they’ve got plenty to crow about. Lanky guitarist Cam lays down creative lines in what seems to be a MCR jacket circa Black Parade, but no one holds it against him, especially when they rip heavily into new track Too Frightened To Offend. The band offer a nice balance of full punk sounds with traditional rock flair, and Hanging By A Thread caps the set off in stomping fashion, the bouncy song leaving the right taste in the mouth as we bide time during intermission.

As their name hangs ominously in blanket bold letters behind the drum riser, Billy Talent nonchalantly stroll out on stage, the band quickly setting the tone for the night as guitarist Ian D’Sa unleashes the thick opening riff of Devil In A Midnight Mass, the track jamming a rocket under the arse of every punter in the room which the Canadians then promptly set off with a quick fire Turn Your Back and Living In The Shadows.

The band treat the converted to a ‘best of’ set, well balanced across their three studio albums. Frontman Benjamin Kowalewicz is an absolute maniac centre stage, calmly sending out verses on more refrained tracks like Rusted From The Rain and Surrender before practically exploding in a ball of fury, veins pressing out from his skin, his eyes darting around the room furiously, looking for a punter to connect with and make their night. Not that that was ever in question. Brand

new single Viking Death March is an exciting taste of their upcoming LP, the anthemic track suggesting bold shout-alongs a plenty, but it’s the older stuff that really gets volume in voices, tunes like Line & Sinker, River Below and a brilliant Try Honesty ripped into with impassioned vigour, the back-ups of D’Sa and bass player Jonathan Gallant inciting wild fist pumping throughout. Then just in case we still had something left in the tank, the band put us to bed with a three song encore of Devil On My Shoulder, Falling Leaves and Red Flag; and although the closing track might suggest that “The kids of tomorrow don’t need today”, when it’s a day like this it’s more than clear that they do.

Benny Doyle

HOME BREW, SKY’HIGH, FORTAFY, PROVOKAL (FEAT. DIALEKT), DJ SUBSTANCE CONISTON LANE: 12/08/12

Since this venue morphed from its old, hipster-ific form, it’s safe to say that the flat-cap/human ratio has greatly increased. The quirky old paintings on the walls have been replaced with repetitive graffiti, and a crowd to match. Tonight is one of Antipodean pride, with the acts bringing a form of hip hop that’s unmistakably local. There are Wu-Tang sweaters and American basketball caps, but American insignia is completely drowned out by thick Kiwi and Aussie accents.

The first to grace the stage is Australian Indigenous MC Provokal, accompanied by Dialekt from Darwin.

As the night’s just kicking off the crowd is at its smallest, but this doesn’t deter the guys, who proffer an awesome set of tracks with a whole lot more power in them than the small audience could appreciate.

Fortafy take the mic next, with a more US-inspired sound. Bouncing around on stage, these guys give the tracks a lot more intensity than in the prerecorded versions, and the crowd laps it up. As their set comes to an end the flow of people arriving becomes almost constant, the room quickly filling (although the dancefloor’s still uncharted territory).

As final support act Sky’High take the stage, it’s refreshing to see some female MCs bringing a completely different sound for a while. Sky’High herself touts really impressive rhymes, backed up by her offsider who has equally gutsy but well-tuned vocal gymnastics and harmonies. These two girls are so confident and comfortable that they completely own the stage. DJ Substance fills the gaps between the acts, and finally filled the floor, skipping between hip hop classics before they work their recognisable magic.

farewells one Australia’s best-loved blues and roots three-piece. It’s a varied crowd and it’s somewhat of a testament to the way these three lads have ingrained themselves into consciousness this past decade, with a swag of summertime favourites, accolades, and massive world tours under their belts to boot. DJ Rudecat does his thing as the hoards sweep in, and his playful blend of bossa nova beats with the street-savvy reggae of groups like The Skints gets things warmed up to a suitable clime.

Eschewing any other support slots in order to play their whopping two-and-a-half hour set, The Beautiful Girls take the stage soon after with humble grace, giving the rapturous attendees a quick wave and a, “What’s up, Brisbane?” from leading man Mat McHugh. The gents get down to it with the title track from 2005’s We’re Already Gone. Settling into an easy vibe and a slow gentle reggae with drummer Bruce Braybrooke’s rim shots and piercing horns in tow, the guys cover some ground from their four studio albums, swiftly moving through faithful renditions of Bring Me Your Cup and My Mind Is An Echo Chamber before the shoulders drop and Mat let’s rip on his electric guitar in And We’ll Dance On The Ashes Of What’s Left. Suggesting we get a drink as “there’s a lot to get through tonight”, McHugh trades his electric for his acoustic and launches into popular crooner Learn Yourself.

McHugh’s voice is pretty near faultless, as it generally has been over the past ten-plus years, and there are some pretty special moments between him and the crowd during long-time cherished tunes like Let’s Take The Long Way Home, Periscopes and Blackbird. After calling for a beer, McHugh sees fit to unleash a bit of Phil Collins’ In The Air Tonight before getting into the ska-tinged I Thought About You and the patriotic Under A Southern Sky, bursting with Paulie Bromley’s chunky bass. Some weighty distortion is unleashed in bluesy number Morning Sun, and with that the guys take their exit, leaving feedback in their wake.

DJ Rudecat returns to assure the still-hungry crowd that TBG will be back “before they head to the Ekka”. The boys bound back to close with La Mar, fittingly acoustic and crowd inclusive. It’s a poignant goodbye to Brisbane, the epitome of all things The Beautiful Girls are about: the beach, love, good times and chilling out. It’s hard to separate these songs from scorching summers and it’s fair to say this year’s won’t quite be the same without them.

Carley Hall

After a night full of new talent, we’re treated to Home Brew. The crowd finally move in, followed by a sweet smelling cloud that’s quickly stopped by a bouncer.

Home Brew instantly have the crowd under their spell, but the artists seem underwhelmed by the lack of anger in their fans and start a provocative chant of “Fuck you, Brisbane!”. Their point is proven when the audience have to be told to yell back “Fuck you, too!” but the yelling back and forward eventually works, and everyone gets riled up enough to join in the chorus that goes “shit, fuck, shit, fuck…”. The bonding continues and by the end of the gig most of the audience have climbed on stage, bottles have been clinked and bros hugged. Walking out onto the street after most people have dispersed, some of the guys from the night can be found having a good ol’ fashioned rap battle, while the rest of Brisbane watches on with a confused look.

THE BEAUTIFUL GIRLS, DJ RUDECAT THE TIVOLI: 11/08/2012

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TOUCH AMORE, MAKE DO & MEND: The Zoo Oct 31, Sun Distortion Nov 1 CHERRY POPPIN’ DADDIES: Tempo Hotel Nov 1 RADIOHEAD: BEC Nov 9 BEN HARPER: BCEC Nov 9 RICK ASTLEY: Twin Towns Nov 16, Ipswich Civic Hall Nov 17, The Tivoli Nov 18 RON POPE: Old Museum Nov 18 COLDPLAY: Suncorp Stadium Nov 21 NICKELBACK: BEC Nov 22 DARK FUNERAL: The Hi-Fi Nov 23 GEORGE MICHAEL: BEC Nov 27 THE SELECTER: The Zoo Nov 29 NICKI MINAJ: BEC Dec 3 REGINA SPEKTOR: BCEC Dec 6 POUR HABIT: Crowbar Dec 6, Miami Shark Bar Dec 7 SIMPLE MINDS, DEVO: Sirromet Wines Dec 9 JENNIFER LOPEZ: BEC Dec 18 NIGHTWISH: Arena Jan 4 WEEZER: BEC Jan 13 ED SHEERAN: Brisbane Riverstage Mar 2

NATIONAL

ALPINE: The Northern Aug 16, The Zoo Aug 17, Coolangatta Hotel Aug 18 THE LAURELS: Beetle Bar Aug 17 LOON LAKE: Alhambra Aug 17, SolBar Aug 18 IOWA: X&Y Bar Aug 17, Tym Guitars (afternoon) & The Waiting Room Aug 18 JINJA SAFARI: The Hi-Fi Aug 18 CHILDREN COLLIDE: Spotted Cow Aug 23, The Zoo Aug 24, The Northern Aug 26 TIM ROGERS: Old Museum Aug 23, The Northern Aug 24, Spotted Cow Aug 25 DAVE GRANEY & THE MISTLY: Starcourt Theatre, Lismore Aug 23, Miami Tavern Aug 24, Beetle Bar Aug 25, SolBar Aug 26 BODYJAR: The Hi-Fi Aug 24 CHANCE WATERS: X&Y Bar Aug 24 KING CANNONS: SolBar Aug 24, Shark Bar Sep 15, The Northern Sep 15 GRINSPOON, SPIDERBAIT, THE MISSION IN MOTION: Eatons Hill Hotel Aug 25 CASSIAN: LaLaLand Aug 25, Oh Hello! Sep 7, Elsewhere Sep 22 KATE MILLER-HEIDKE: The Hi-Fi Aug 25, 26

FESTIVALS

Eleanor Houghton

It’s a bittersweet one at The Tivoli tonight and judging by the amount of early movement through the doors, there’s going to be few dry eyes as Brisbane

TOUR GUIDE

THE BEAUTIFUL GIRLS @ THE TIVOLI PIC BY SKY KIRKHAM

PRADA UPLATE: Queensland Art Gallery Aug 31 – Nov 2 RED DEER FESTIVAL: Mt Samson Sep 1 BIGSOUND: Fortitude Valley Sep 12 - 14 PARKLIFE: Botanic Gardens Sep 29 BASTARDFEST: The Hi-Fi Oct 13 WHIPLASH: The Hi-Fi Oct 21 ISLAND VIBE: Point Look Out Oct 26 – 28 QUEENSLAND FESTIVAL OF BLUES: The Hi-Fi Nov 3 SPRUNG HIP HOP FESTIVAL: RNA Showgrounds Nov 10 GOLDEN DAYS: Coolum Nov 17 – 18 HARVEST: Botanic Gardens Nov 18 STEREOSONIC: RNA Showgrounds Dec 2 BIG DAY OUT: Gold Coast Parklands Jan 20 SOUNDWAVE: RNA Showgrounds Feb 23

TIME OFF • 33

ROOTS DOWN

OG FLAVAS

ADAMANTIUM WOLF

BLUES ‘N’ ROOTS WITH DAN CONDON ROOTSDOWN@TIMEOFF.COM.AU

URBAN AND R&B NEWS BY CYCLONE

METAL, HARDCORE AND PUNK WITH LOCHLAN WATT

Fiennes’ (Roman) General contemptuously spits to starving rioters, “Go, get you home, you fragments!”

PLAN B LUCERO Well, it’s happened again! You might recall quite some time ago I went on a rant about how Lucero are a great band doing Americana better than almost anyone else in the world right now and that I was all pissed off because they were playing with the Dropkick Murphys and not playing their own show and so on and so forth. Well last week it was announced that the band would indeed be back in Australia early next year, but they are going to be here with the Soundwave festival that heads around the nation. Now I have nothing against Soundwave, they book some good stuff, but there aren’t any other bands on the bill this year (so far) that I’d recommend your regular Roots Down reader ought to go and check out! I have heard rumours that they will play sideshows with The Lawrence Arms (who are a pretty great punk rock band), so there’s always that option. If you do get a chance to catch them, you should do it. And make sure you get on top of their new record Women & Work, which they released early this year.

The Angels have just announced a whole bunch of dates; one of them being the headlining slot on the Sydney Blues & Roots Festival, some of them with Hoodoo Gurus, James Reyne, Baby Animals and Boom Crash Opera, and some of them by themselves. Why? Well, turns out their new record is coming out very soon! Just a couple of weeks, in fact. At the time of deadline I had not yet had the chance to listen to any of the record, so I can’t tell you whether it’s any good or not, but I can tell you it’s called Take It To The Streets and it’ll be out on Friday 31 August. Doc Neeson is no longer with the band, Screaming Jets frontman Dave Gleeson is out the front; so we’ll see how he handles the task soon enough!

Quick reminder that the new Mia Dyson record The Moment is out this week; this is a record I have had a chance to listen to and I can confirm that it is very good indeed.

I’m not going to condone the fact that she waited so many goddamn years to bring us a new record, but I will forgive her as I believe she’s taken another step up from where she was when she left Australia all those years ago. Great to have her back.

There’s a new Tim Rogers record about to drop and one monstrous tour to coincide with it as well; the record is called Rogers Sings Rogerstein and he says this is because the songs were written by his friend Shel Rogerstein, but it sounds pretty much like Tim Rogers penned fare to me… Perhaps I am wrong. I am a big fan of pretty much all of the man’s work, this new record included, and I always relish the opportunity to see him in solo mode, something that hasn’t happened for a while, so these shows ought to be a lot of fun.

In support is Catherine Britt, a young lady who has just dropped her new record Always Never Enough, which is one of the better Australian country records I’ve had the pleasure of hearing recently. I’ve not paid a great deal of attention to Britt’s work in the past, I must admit, but upon hearing that the aforementioned Rogers made a guest appearance on the record, as well as another one of my personal favourite songwriters of all time – the great Guy Clark – then I knew I had to have a listen. It’s most definitely a country record, so if you have an aversion to that particular style then this isn’t the record for you, but I urge those of you who can handle a little twang to give it a crack. You can see both of these great Aussie artists at the Old Museum on Thursday 23 August.

34 • TIME OFF

Plan B, aka Ben Drew, has swagga – ol’ skool style (which we’ll be getting a nice dose of at Parklife Sunday 30 September). Indeed, William Shakespeare, that humble glover’s son, introduced the German word ‘swagger’ into English with A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The MC is carrying on the tradition of Britain’s most fabled wordsmith with poetically subversive hip hop in iLL Manors. iLL Manors is the soundtrack to Drew’s full-length directorial debut (as-yet-unscheduled to screen in Australia). However, it stands on its own as a concept album (iLL Manors uses film dialogue, but has additional songs).

In fact, the Forest Gate, East London native is returning to the underground rap of 2006’s debut, Who Needs Actions When You Got Words, encompassing the confrontational Kidz. Drew, who once aspired to be an R&B singer, decided that he needed “a break from the politics of hip hop,” as he told NME. For The Defamation Of Strickland Banks he donned a sharp – not shiny – suit, performing retro soul. So successful was that album (UK quadruple platinum) that he could finally realise iLL Manors. Though Drew, a self-proclaimed “polymath”, has established himself as an actor – with roles in Noel Clarke’s Adulthood, Harry Brown (alongside Michael Caine) and the upcoming reboot of The Sweeney (Ray Winstone) – he only cameos in iLL Manors. Riz Ahmed is the drug dealer protagonist.

Today’s pop culture is strangely void of socio-political critique, let alone protest – Russian feminist punks Pussy Riot aside. Popdom actually appears to be defending the status quo, Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises disturbing with its anti-Occupy theme (Andrew Bolt loves it). More cogent is Ralph Fiennes’ punk adaptation of Shakespeare’s Coriolanus.

Drew is throwing hip hop back to the streets, telling the stories of a demonised underclass living in the Olympic Stadium’s shadows. He exposes the causes of 2011’s London riots, and the profound inequities of David Cameron’s Isles Of Wonder (or Plunder), redressing biased tabloid reporting.

Drew is clearly one of those “fragments”.

Danny Boyle’s Olympics opening ceremony represented a peculiar co-option of punk (Sex Pistols!), rave (The Prodigy) and urban, yet Drew reclaims them all – and with a dangerousness you won’t hear from Example. The iLL Manors title-track, aggro bassline sampling German rapper Peter Fox’s quasi-classical Alles Neu, is his counterpart to Melle Mel’s The Message. David Cameron doesn’t care about poor people – and Drew refers to him as a “stupid cunt.”

ILL Manors is no mere bass music album, but a furnace of vintage dub, hardcore, Bristolian trip hop, UK garage, and hip hop beats that hark back to seminal Bomb Squad and RZA productions. Brit Al Shux, famed for masterminding Jay-Z’s Empire State Of Mind, is iLL Manors’ primary producer – and dude’s on fire.

Reviewers have stressed how divergent iLL Manors is from The Defamation..., but the latter was not only musical, but also narrative-driven. Here, the dubby I Am The Narrator skews Romantic composer Camille Saint-Saëns’ Aquarium from The Carnival Of The Animals. Imagine Wu-Tang ambushing a sound system. Labrinth produces, and sings on, the poignant Playing With Fire, about the brutalities of gang initiation. As an MC free of street machismo, Drew considers the struggles of impoverished women in his latest single, Deepest Shame, a necessarily sombre relative of Emeli Sandé’s Heaven.

Drew has taken a commercial risk with iLL Manors, but it’s already hit No. 1 in the UK and, with triple j support, Top 10 here. While Brit critics have suggested that iLL Manors is too much of “a harrowing ride”, and possibly exploitative, Drew has a conviction not heard since Public Enemy’s glory days. Let England Shake.

THE BREAKDOWN POP CULTURE THERAPY WITH ADAM CURLEY

ANTONY HEGARTY It’s good timing for our discomposure that a couple of months before their appearance here for the Melbourne Festival, Antony & The Johnsons have released a live album. In October, the group will perform their stage show, Swanlights, in Melbourne with the backing of a 44-piece orchestra, a slightly scaled down version of the show they presented at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall in January with a 60-piece orchestra. Cut The World (Spunk) was recorded last year in Copenhagen with the Danish National Chamber Orchestra – 42 pieces – and is comprised of flourished renditions of ten previously released songs, the new title track and an intimate speech titled Future Feminism.

It’s the speech that has been the focus of much writing about the album so far, from Ann Powers on her NPR blog to Kitty Empire in The Guardian, and for good reason: it presents on record what Antony Hegarty has been growing as an artistic theme in recent years, the idea of a more holistic vision of humanity’s relationship to the earth through “feminine systems of governance”.

As Hegarty concedes near the end of the sevenminute address to his on-board audience (but then they’re Danish and at an Antony concert so of course they’re liberals) his message is “obviously a very broad statement”. Though you get the feeling he easily could outline specific ideas as ways forward for this movement, Hegarty seeks mostly to awaken in his listeners merely the possibility of a world in which the social and natural processes of motherhood are used as a blueprint for human governance. Hegarty has spoken before about his

experience, as a transgendered person, of the impact oestrogen and testosterone have on thinking and the need for us to understand and exploit those differences rather than have the goal of aligning the roles of men and women. But it isn’t a balancing of the genders that Hegarty espouses; his vision is for the wrongs done by men to be greatly righted by women, and it’s very much tied to paganism – and a rejection of “sky gods” – and a need to alter our thinking about the changing environment.

Before this column turns into a hammering of Hegarty’s humble ideas, it’s this more humble point I want to make: It’s easy to listen to Future Feminism and Hegarty’s list of progressive (not ‘radical’) ideas and think them wondrous thoughts from the ether, the kind that exist up there somewhere but don’t have a whole lot of relevance in the drudgery of day-to-day. It’s easy to praise them just as we praise Hegarty’s voice, which we also so often describe with words such as ‘ethereal’ and ‘angelic’ – words that remove him from the human experience because his talents seem so far removed from the limitations of it. It’s even easier, particularly in our rush to embrace ‘atheism’ as a reactionary label against organised religion and in our debates about carbon taxes and industry standards, to forget we’re human and to listen to our own experience of that, by which I mean it’s easy it let those labels and conversations separate us from what we are. It’s also easy to forget that our artists are human, that their voices aren’t from other worlds but can reflect what’s happening to us here. But we shouldn’t.

Like Hegarty’s message, the above is a very broad statement. It’s one that comes directly after a couple of days with Cut The World, which features some of Hegarty’s most impacting songs, including Cripple & The Starfish, Another World and I Fell In Love With A Dead Boy. And it’s this impact that makes the sum of Hegarty’s work larger than its parts: his music brings us back to ourselves so that we can hear his valuable message. Really hear it.

“Every atom of me, every element of me seems to resonate, seems to reflect the great world around me,” Hegarty says in Future Feminism. It’s a wonderful day to be alive.

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So the Soundwave line-up for 2013 is pretty insane. In case you missed it, here’s the line-up: Metallica, Linkin Park, Blink-182, A Perfect Circle, The Offspring, Paramore, Garbage, Tomahawk, Stone Sour, Kyuss Lives, Anthrax, Sum 41, Dragonforce, All Time Low, Flogging Molly, Ghost, Duff McCagan’s Loaded, Motion City Soundtrack, The Lawrence Arms, Kingdom of Sorrow, Fozzy, Sleeping With Sirens, Cancer Bats, Madball, Vision Of Disorder, Pierce The Veil, Periphery, Shai Hulud, Of Mice & Men, Miss May I, Danko Jones, Woe Is Me, The Wonder Years, While She Sleeps, Lucero, Such Gold, Six Feet Under, Deaf Havana, Red Fang, Chunk! No Captain, Chunk! and Memphis May Fire. Woah. The Brisbane installment will take place at the RNA Showgrounds on 23 March.

Tickets go on sale 23 August, with a second announcement expected to follow shortly after.

Alexisfonfire have announced a worldwide farewell tour that spans only nine shows. Australia is lucky enough to get two of them – you can say goodbye to the influential post-hardcore band on 11 December at The Horden Pavillion in Sydney, and on 12 December at Festival Hall in Melbourne.

Progfest will be sweeping the nation throughout September, October and November.

Melbourne’s Ne Obliviscaris will headline all the shows, with the Brisbane set to take place on 20 October at the Beetle Bar – a full lineup announcement is expected this week.

Thanks to Oceanic Sharks, Swedish death metal legends Hypocrisy are finally making their way to Australia for the first time in their 22-year history. The band has released 12 studio albums, the most recent being 2009’s A Taste Of Extreme Divinity. The tour kicks off in Brisbane at The Hi-Fi on 16 January, and tickets are on sale now.

Awaken Solace have been selected to open up for the epic European ‘metal with cellists’ act Apocalyptica at The Hi-Fi on 30 August.

Rise Of Avernus scored the Sydney slot at The Hi-Fi on 31 August, with Be’lakor getting home from Europe just in time to play the The Hi-Fi in Melbourne on 1 September.

Local ‘fruit traffickers’ El Alamein have made their debut EP available. You can stream New Patterns over at el-alamein.bandcamp.com. The EP will be officially launched at Crowbar on 24 August with Melbourne’s Stockades and locals Little Shadow, Wallow and Plainview.

Local tech-metal-djent lords The Schoenberg Automaton have finally unveiled their new vocalist. Jake Gerstle, one half of the vocal attack in Courting Pandora, replaces former singer Colin Cadell. A sample of him singing over some of the band’s new material can be found on YouTube, and the band still expects to release their debut album Vela before the year’s out.

Melbourne hardcore supergroup Outsider’s Code have seen their demo get the 7” treatment thanks to Midnight Funeral. Featuring members of Hitlist, Her Nightmare, Hopeless and Warbrain, head to midnightfuneral.limitedpressing.com to have a suss of the 300 copies that will be pressed – 200 black, 100 in random colour.

Tasmania’s Psycroptic has been added to the Brisbane installment of Bastardfest at The Hi-Fi on 13 October. They join an already stellar lineup that includes Astriaal, Blood Duster, Fuck...

I’m Dead, Signal The Firing Squad, Defamer, Averions Crown, IDYLLS, King Parrot and more.

The once-Australian-turned-American tech metal group Devolved have posted a new song called Enforced Supremacy on YouTube. Reprisal is to be released through Unique Leader on November 20.

GIGS OF THE WEEK:

Thursday: Burning Love (USA), Ghost Town, Shields, The Fevered – Crowbar. The Broderick, Colossus, Marathon, Closure – X&Y Bar. Friday: Nasum (SWE), Psycroptic, Dyscarnate (UK) – The Hi-Fi. The Broderick, Colossus, Shackles, Ghost Town, Shortlife – Valhalla House.

Saturday: Antagonist A.D. (NZ), Shinto Katana, Driven Fear, Ill Temper – X&Y Bar. Dollarosa, Burning Brooklyn, As Paradise Falls, Finders Keepers – Crowbar. Where I Stand, Chapters, The Dagobah System, Home By Sudden Landslide – Scream Ahead Studios.

Sunday: Antagonist A.D. (NZ), Shinto Katana, The War, Never Lose Sight, Centurion – Eagleby Community Hall.

GUNG HO FOR GUNG HO

ARE YOU LOCAL? BRISBANE SINGLES AND EPS

BY CHRIS YATES CHRIS@TIMEOFF.COM.AU

EDWARD GUGLIELMINO

Brisbane boys Gung Ho have certainly been making a name for themselves this last little while, with extensive airplay on radio and across the cyber world. The band, currently on tour with Hunting Grounds on their In Hindsight national run, are pleased to announce they will be taking to the road once again for their debut headlining tour. Their upcoming tour coincides with the release of the video to single Side By Side, with its very Gung Ho blend of surf pop and post-punk. Catch the Brissie boys doing what they do best on Thursday 23 August at Cobra Kai @ Oh Hello; Wednesday 12 September as part of BIGSOUND Live at Alhambra Lounge and on Sunday 16 September at Buddha Bar, Byron Bay.

You’ll Be The Death Of Me Mucho Bravado

Edward Guglielmino (pronounced ‘Google Maps’) is a bit rougher around the edges than a lot of the slick pop on Mucho Bravado, but that doesn’t mean he can’t find his way around a good tune. His voice is unusual and throaty, and it sounds like the words are struggling to leave his mouth sometimes, which is actually a really good thing. You’ll Be The Death Of Me has a hook that will work its way into your brain with little or no resistance, and the production of the track is crunchy and real.

TEXAS TEA

Heart Says Yes (Head Says No) Mere Noise Although capable of the kind of songs that make hard men and women weep with sadness, when Texas Tea are doing a more lighthearted romp like this they still bring the authenticity that makes them so compelling.

Heart Says Yes… leans more towards the Sam Cooke school of soul pop than it does the country end of the spectrum, which is an area they dabble in with confidence and ease. At this stage of the game and with so much quality already in the back catalogue, it’s pretty safe to say that Texas Tea can do no wrong.

PIGEON

Oh Hebe Independent It’s only a matter of time before the indie-dance crowd catch up with Pigeon. They fit neatly into the scene that has been exploding since The Presets/Cut Copy/ Van She went gangbusters, but maybe it’s because of Pigeon’s disconnect that they are coming at it from a different angle, which is what sets them apart and maybe even gives them an edge. The vocals are big and drenched in thick echo, and the combination of the fat synth and up-tempo drums melds together well and actually creates something bordering on unique.

THE MEDICS Slow Burn

Footstomp/Warner When The Medics hit the chorus of Slow Burn, there’s an intensity that kicks in which is the extra level of energy the song needed in order to get past the dramatic pop that the verse suggests. The little freakout section that happens directly after each chorus is even more interesting, although it is distracted by an unnecessary vocal falsetto wail. It really shows the drummer’s mathematical precision, which adds more colour and shade to the mix than anything else – there’s not a lot of other instrumental dynamics.

KYM CAMPBELL

Having immersed herself in the Australian way of life, Kym Campbell is now eager to share her experiences thus far, as she tells Benny Doyle.

“Real Life is very much a reflection of the lifestyle and beliefs I’ve embraced since moving to Australia; surfing, travelling and prioritising what is really important in life,” Campbell remarks, speaking of the tracks that make up her debut LP. “Some of the songs that I have written over the years leading up to this album have evolved from personal experiences, and others touch on social and political issues that are important to me.”

Her experiences down under are truly her real life, Campbell only beginning to write and perform when she arrived in the country.

Before ‘discovering’ music, she confesses that she felt slightly unfulfilled with her life.

Strumming guitar and penning tunes was the first thing that made the American native feel satisfied. The board rider’s music, made up of drifting acoustic guitar, sunny percussion and a cheeky bit of ukulele, channels her freespirited existence, while her honest storytelling is injected with confessional tales, warm anecdotes and stronger topics regarding the world around. Real Life is an extension on who Campbell is and what she loves, a fact that the singer-songwriter admits is undeniable.

“The symbiosis of surfing and music is a lot like pizza and beer – they’re both great, but best had together! Nothing beats sitting in the sun on the sand dunes trying out a few new licks on the guitar once the onshores kick in for the day and you’re surfed out from a dawnie.

That was never an option for me in Seattle, but here it’s so common and easy; I need to keep reminding myself not to take it for granted.”

WHAT: Real Life (Independent) WHEN & WHERE: Tuesday 21 August, The Music Kafe

JUNKYARD DIAMONDS

REV SUNDAY

With the release of their debut, self-titled EP, post-punk, bluesy garage rockers Junkyard Diamonds are set to take their hometown of Brisbane by storm. Tony McMahon gets the guff.

“We actually find it hard to put ourselves in a specific genre as we experiment a fair bit with the way we write,” says singer and guitarist Mitch Rich. “Most people like to think of us as a heavy rock, grunge band, which I suppose you can fit post-punk, bluesy garage rock into that mix. We basically just pick up our instruments and come up with a song and it becomes our sound, it’s all to do with the energy we create amongst ourselves.

We love doing what we do, our music is who we are, that’s the only reason why our music sounds the way it does. Oh, and a bearded viking in a dress by the name of Loki ordered us to do so.”

Junkyard Diamonds have recently supported British India, so naturally Time Off goes digging for dirt.

“Well there’s not really any dirt,” says bassist Mitch Vaughn. “They engaged us in polite banter, sipped on cups of tea and sang merry tunes backstage. They’re quite lovely actually. King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard on the other hand, demanded a blow-up pool, filled with water sent from Neptune himself. They then proceeded to baptise us in some sort of ancient surfer rock ritual involving a fine white powder, the burning of seaweed and a game played with the beaks of fallen seagulls. It sure was a jolly good show!”

Guitarist Jimmy Bibby closes by saying that the fact the band are all mates has a solid effect on the music they make.

“This band as a whole has been through a fair bit together and grown together through our music. It really does make things a lot easier having your best mates beside you creating something special.”

WHAT: Junkyard Diamonds (Independent) WHEN & WHERE: Friday 17 August, Ric’s Bar

LEISURE IS STRESSFUL Much-loved local four-piece The Stress Of Leisure have finished recording their latest album Cassowary, which is thought to be “the most ‘Queensland’ record” they’ve ever recorded. With tracks including Scuba Dive Honeymoon Hell, Shark Killer and Sex On The Beach you’d be stupid to argue against that. The Stress Of Leisure will be officially launching their album with a party of course; the Beetle Bar will see them joined by Bell Divers and Primitive Motion on Friday 31 August. The band urge you to come along – “c’mon, do it for the big prehistoric bird from North Queensland.” You’ve been told.

themusic.com.au

Sunshine Coast surf rockers Rev Sunday have had a lot of fun with their new EP, Fortunate Fields. Tony McMahon learns from guitarist/vocalist Christian Patey that making music is like catching waves.

“It’s been a great experience,” says Patey of the process of making Fortunate Fields. “We’ve released the EP through Facebook and triple j Unearthed available for free download. It’s been great fun working with the boys making these tracks, we’ve learned a lot and know what works for us now, and we’ve been lucky enough to have Sahara Beck as a featured artist working with us on our next EP. It’s incredible how someone so young can inspire us so much.”

When it comes to what it is about the indie/ surf/rock genre that attracts him so, Patey is adamant that it’s all about the fun.

“We’ve been in other bands of different genres before and none have the same vibe we get from indie/surf/rock. It’s all about having good times with close friends and having a positive outlook on life.

Also I guess because we’re all surfers, we’re on the same wavelength and understand the feeling you get from a good surf. It’s similar to playing music: nothing else matters. So the feeling that comes from that comes out through our music in a way.”

Rev Sunday’s listed influences are a reasonably eclectic lot. Is there a common theme running through them?

“Well, we all listen to different genres of music, but if there had to be one that we all listen to and that reflects back to the music we make it would have to be indie. The common theme would be alternative. We’ve been getting into the Arctic Monkeys a bit lately and that definitely comes out when writing. At this point all members of our band have brought their own style and experiences to the band, which is cool.”

WHAT: Fortunate Fields (Independent) WHEN & WHERE: Thursday 16 August, Beetle Bar

TIME OFF • 35

Rogers Sings Rogerstein TIM ROGERS

(Dreamtime side-project). While these may not be well known, household names, the night promises to be one filled with surprises and “blood-knuckle guitar shredding”.

Originally meant to be held at Tribal Theatre, due to some unfortunate occurrences the event has had to change location and date – it will now be held on Saturday 18 August at Black Bear Lodge. It’s free as well – we all enjoy free shows regardless of how absurd they are.

Mature Themes ARIEL PINK’S HAUNTED GRAFITTI

I SEE DOLLARS

ON THE TIME OFF STEREO The World Warriors VELOCIRAPTOR Quiet Heart – The Best Of THE GO-BETWEENS

Watery Domestic PAVEMENT Bee Thousand GUIDED BY VOICES Sirocco AUSTRALIAN CRAWL The Official Bootleg Series Vol. 1 FRED J. EAGLESMITH The Budos Band III THE BUDOS BAND Live At Bonnie Beacher’s Apartment BOB DYLAN

MANSFIELD MADNESS

Mansfield Tavern will be hosting Roots Cartel, an evening filled with roots, reggae, “high energy and positive vibes” on Saturday 25 August. On the bill is Fyah Walk, one of the “nation’s most authentic and respected live reggae acts” with their Virgin Island-style reggae. Brisbane’s own nine-piece One Dread is sure to play a set filled with their diverse sounds ranging from reggae, jazz and funk through to metal. African-born Australian, Sunny Dread, will also be bringing his blend of dubby beats, drum and bass, R&B and Afro reggae to the stage, where he’ll be joined by Dubmarine’s Kazman and Rudekat Sound. Keeping up the good vibes in between acts is another local, Selecta Bing, who will bless your ears with some early reggae and ska. Doors open at 7.30pm; limited presale tickets – $20/$25 on the door.

Brisbane rockers Dollarosa are set to release new EP The Never Ending Unfamiliar, which will be unveiled at a launch party on Saturday 18 August and followed with a tour. The five-piece will kick things off playing at the Crowbar alongside Burning Brooklyn, As Paradise Falls and Finders Keepers. As a one off the band is offering fans a promotional deal – buy a T-shirt ($20) and get their EP for free. Tickets for the launch show will cost $10 at the door, with doors opening at 8pm.

They will be playing further Queensland shows as part of their tour; Sunday 9 September at The Waiting Room, Saturday 22 September at the Albany Creek Hotel and Saturday 29 September at the CWA Hall, Ipswich.

DEER SEASON Sydney indie-pop outfit deerRepublic are on the verge of releasing their debut EP, The Sweet Resistance, on Friday 17 August. deerRepublic have fast built up a “reputation as one of Sydney’s great up and coming bands,” through their frequent appearances at Sydney’s Beresford Hotel.

LONG PLAYER SESSIONS

BRISBANE RAG TAG SHOW

Forward Sloth Promotions have gathered some of Brisbane’s most eclectic, eccentric and best alternative talent from their deepest, darkest dwellings for your ears’ pleasure. On the bill are “doom pop stars” The Rational Academy, violin and instrumental duo The Scrapes and Japanese speed-psychedelic influenced Dingoes Baby

LAUNCHING PAD

BERTIE PAGE CLINIC Album Name: French Tickler Label: Beast Records Where does this release sit in your discography?

This is our second release, our first was Rock & Roll In A G-String – seems like we keep naming them after things that belong in the groin region…

How do you compare it to your previous studio work?

The recording experience and final product are suburbs apart, the first recording was made in a bedroom in Lutwyche and French Tickler was recorded within the lead-lined walls of Wavelength Studios at Nundah. It was pretty flash being in a proper recording studio, the sound is high quality without stripping off our rough, punky edge.

Is it reflective of your live show or have you used the studio to enhance the material?

What you hear on the recording is essentially what you will hear in the live show, although we did use a cosmonaut vocal effect on one song, I will have to get a space suit so that I can replicate the effect live.

What have you got lined up for the launch?

The launch is going to be very classy and cultural with a ‘Russia Versus France’ theme, to celebrate the fact that Bertie Page Clinic will be touring France in a few weeks’ time. We have solid rock supports The Dirty Eastwoods and Dunes as well as Brisbane’s best burlesque troupe the Chrome Street Follies. It’s going to be a huge night of rock, tassles and feathers with lots of vodka and French knickers: just think Boris and Natasha meets Pepe le Pew. Bertie Page Clinic launch French Tickler (Beast) at Beetle Bar on Saturday 18 August.

36 • TIME OFF

Working closely with producers JP Fung and Scott Horscraft, the four-piece have smoothly blended together a blend of “hypnotic melodies”, “instinctive rhythms” and a little indie-rock for good measure. If the first offering, The Score, is anything to go by, the rest of the EP should be filled with blissful pop. The foursome will play a single Queensland show at The Barlow in Brisbane on Friday 24 August as they hit the road over the remainder of August and September promoting their new release.

SCIENCE, I MEAN MUSIC

Part of this year’s Open Frame Festival will see Maria Minerva’s very first Brisbane show, and she will also be joined by local acts Blank Realm and Tralala Blip.

The night promises to be one filled with spaced out electro grooves and beats courtesy of some of our local up-and-coming artists and international acts. Tralala Blip from Lismore are an outfit with an experimental sound, with collective members having a range of disabilities.

Together they produce and discover new forms of musical expression that is both fun and accessible. Tralala Blip has just released their debut cassette (going back in time) – Submarine Love Songs – encapsulating the experimental sound they were hoping to achieve. If you fancy wrapping you ears around these experimental sounds, head over to The Judith Wright Centre on Wednesday 29 August, tickets cost $18 available online.

How did you get together?

Lachlan Dann (frontman): “The current line-up came together as a natural progression from our old frontman needing to leave the band and myself stepping up. I had known most of the guys for more than half of my life and even before the band, we were all best mates. I have never seen any other band with a bond as strong as ours, and that is something I find pretty special.”

FESTIVAL ON YOUR DOORSTEP

Sum up your musical sound in four words.

“Energetic bunch of dudes!”

Home Festival, which had to move to a slightly later date due to the torrential rain we experienced not all that long ago, is almost upon us. The free festival is a celebration of our city’s green spaces, community and belonging – tying in arts, crafts, poetry, food and music.

On the bill at this year’s festival are local acts Bullhorn, The Rusty Datsuns, Laneway, B-Syde, Kerbside Collection, Akova and Bollyfunk Dance. So head over to Kangaroo Point on Saturday 25 August if you fancy spending the day getting in touch with these sides of life.

EPIC SYNDICATE JACKIE MARSHALL & THE BLACK ALLES BAND (MACH 3) Person Answering: Jackie Marshall Album Covering: Jeff Buckley’s Grace (1994) Why did you choose this album?

1994 was a great year for a lot of people I know!

Buckley’s album came out and it was just wild and youthy and such a beautiful vocal epic and it met all our teen requirements for blunt poetry cathartic rock all pedalled by one super hot soulful looking guy in a flannel shirt with incredible musical pedigree. Dreamboat. This album doesn’t send me back, it brings it all forward right here, it’s a hell of an album to bring to life again. Poor Jeff. Poor us. He went too soon.

When did you first hear this album?

Probably pulling cones in the back seat of a friend’s big brother’s car up at the Green Hill Reservoir back in the day. “I don’t do drugs any more.”

Does playing this album in its entirety present any specific challenges?

Jesus. It’s epic. There are a gazillion words.

Not to mention time changes. And the fact that I’m not a 20-something hot soulful looking guy in a flannel shirt with incredible musical pedigree. I seriously regret this choice now!

Thankfully I have managed to convince a wicked constellation of musicians to join me, all of them adept in the art of flying by the pant-arse. We shall be victorious, one way or the other.

HAVE YOU HEARD?

Transvaal Diamond Syndicate must have a keen love for being on the road, having played 120 gigs over the space of eight months, but as they say, all good things must come to an end. The Brisbane ‘blues with balls’ act are wrapping up their epic tour of the country – which has seen them play a gig to a mostly deaf crowd and aboard a tugboat promoting their single Sins Of The Blessed – with a couple of home shows. Fellow blues rockers Nat Col & The Kings and Black Mustang will join them as they play at the Tempo Hotel on Friday 17 August and Racecourse Hotel, Ipswich, on Saturday 18 August. Presale tickets for Tempo Hotel show cost $12 or $15 on the door.

STRAIGHT TO TAPE

In a very short space of time, Cassandra Pitman – better known as DJ Cassette – has emerged as a prominent force in the Australian club scene. Spinning alongside some of the biggest names in the biz, Sydney local favourite Cassette has created quite the hype around her name. Carefully selected as a finalist in the EMI She Can DJ competition, Pitman has been crowned one of the top ten finest female DJs throughout Australia and goes on to compete later next month. Showcasing her talents nationally and internationally, Cassette has spun her decks at festivals Parklife, Future Music Festival, Splendour In The Grass and Stereosonic and supported big names La Roux, Calvin Harris, Steve Aoki, The

DOLLAROSA

If you could support any band in the world – past or present – who would it be?

“Everyone in the band could probably agree that it would be amazing to be able to support Thrice. They have been a big influence to me in particular and have evolved and matured their sound over the years into something that is always able to inspire me.”

You’re being sent into space, you can’t take an iPod and there’s only room to bring one album – which would it be?

“I would probably take Michael Jackson’s Thriller. Maybe in space, I will finally be able to nail the moonwalk.”

Greatest rock’n’roll moment of your career to date?

“Being able to work with the amazing talent involved in our new record. We got to work with two Grammy award winners in JR McNeely (Paramore, Underoath, Anberlin) and Tom Coyne (Adele, Michael Jackson, Jay-Z), along with our amazing producer Tyse Lee.” Why should people come and see your band?

“No matter where we play or who we play too, we offer every ounce of energy into every show. We don’t fit into any particular scene but love what we do and aim to earn the time and respect of anyone listening.”

Dollarosa launch The Never Ending Unfamiliar (Independent) at Crowbar on Saturday 18 August.

Chemical Brothers, Mark Ronson, Snoop Dogg and so much more. Before heading off to tour the States, Sydney sweetheart DJ Cassette has just announced an east-coast tour later this month: catch Cassette while she’s here in town, spinning tunes at Oh Hello on Friday 17 August, joined by Kato.

Fave song from record?

Last Goodbye it ever was, my poor imagined wee broken hearts of yore will testify.

Probably right now though it’s Eternal Life. I’ve been feeling tetchy lately.

Synopsis: Given his impact and influence, it’s easy to forget Grace was Jeff Buckley’s only full studio album. Released in 1994, the album was the culmination of years of playing small clubs largely around New York City. Eventually signing to Columbia Records, Buckley began working on the album in 1993 with producer and engineer Andy Wallace. The result is a stunning mix of originals and covers – most notably Leonard Cohen’s Halelujah – with Grace considered by many one of the standout debut albums ever produced, despite the initially lukewarm response. Within three years though, Buckley would be dead – drowning as he struggled to complete the follow-up record.

Jackie Marshall & The Black Alles Band play Jeff Buckley’s Grace in its entirety as part of the Long Player Sessions at Brisbane Powerhouse on Saturday 18 August.

ALL LOVED UP

Things are certainly looking up for Gold Coast duo Laneway, with the recent release of their debut album Turn Your Love Up – a folk-ish album, filled with “roomy guitars” and “floating vocals”. Laneway have also won this year’s Grant McLennan Memorial Fellowship songwriting award, giving them a whole load of cash and the opportunity to go over to Berlin for a couple of months. Before they do that they will be touring around NSW, Victoria and of course Queensland: you will be able to catch Laneway at The Soundlounge, Gold Coast on Friday 28 September with The Stillsons – $14+BF/$16 on the door. They will also be playing Black Bear Lodge, Brisbane, on Sunday 21 October – ticket prices yet to be announced.

themusic.com.au

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TIME OFF • 37

WED 15 Anthony Bonaccorso, Kieran Waters, Mark Bono Elephant & Wheelbarrow Bears With Guns, Good Oak, Brotherfox Beetle Bar Benjam, Jeff Carter Hamilton Hotel Brisbane Gypsy Jazz Festival Brisbane Powerhouse Theatre Double Shot Duo Caboolture Sports Club Elton And Friends Caloundra Rsl Fyah Walk, One Dread, Sunny Dread, Rudekat Sound, Selecta Bing Mansfield Tavern Geoff Rayner Manly Hotel Ingrid James Trio, John Reeves, Jeremy O’connor Limes Hotel Kaleidoscope, The Dalton Gang’s Last Raid Ric’s Locky Irish Murphy’s, Brisbane Mark Sheils Bank Lounge Bar Peko, Steve Smith, Josh Lovegrove, Simon Thomas Chalk Hotel Pete Smith, Mark Z Regatta Hotel, Toowong R3ndition, John Wilkinson Exchange Hotel Russ Walker Duo Victory Hotel Tex Perkins - The Man In Black Empire Theatre The Bowery Hot Five With Mal Wood The Bowery The Broadie Graham Band, 8 Ball Aitken Tempo Hotel Vote For Pedro Breakfast Creek Hotel

THU 16 Alpine, Clubfeet, Georgi Kay Great Northern Hotel, Byron Bay Ballad Boy Loving Hut Brisbane Gypsy Jazz Festival Brisbane Powerhouse Theatre Burning Love, Ghost Town, Shields, The Fevered Basement 243 Celtic Woman Queen Street Mall Daniel Phoenix, Kings Band, + More Tempo Hotel Dave Ritter Logan Diggers Club Dim Mak Downunder, Autoerotique, + Guests Elsewhere Bar, Surfers Paradise Edward Guglielmino The End Foxes, Mr And Mrs Woolf, Pat Tierney The Zoo Heavensent, That Swedish Guy, Azza, J-Free Exchange Hotel I Can’t Believe It’s Not The Satellites The Bowery InteRim, Daves Pawn Shop Ric’s Jabba Irish Murphy’s, Brisbane Jamie Oehlers Quartet Turnaround Jazz Club John Wilkinson Fibber Magee’s, Toowoomba Junior Dixieland Band Brisbane Jazz Club Mark Bono Elephant & Wheelbarrow

38 • TIME OFF

Next Doors Playground, Cartoon Physics, The Blue Ruins The Music Kafe Nick Trovas Chalk Hotel Rev Sunday, Danger At The Door, Alla Spina Beetle Bar Rock Revolution Redland Performing Arts Centre Ron White Sit Down Comedy Club, Paddington Steve Grady Burger Urge Uq The Falls, Passenger The Hi-Fi The Tenors Caloundra Rsl The Viridian Abstract, Since We Kissed, Daniel Parsons, Blake Daymond The Loft, Chevron Island Timothy Carroll, The Trouble With Templeton The Joynt, Brisbane

FRI 17 Adam Brown Coolangatta Sands Hotel, Front Bar Ah F@#K That!, Le Murd, Thumping Bumjoys, Raygun Mortlock Queensport Tavern, Hemmant Alpine, Clubfeet, Georgi Kay The Zoo Archie Rye Duo, Mission X Elephant & Wheelbarrow Asa Sol Bar, Maroochydore Black Mustang, Transvaal Diamond Syndicate, Shano, Nat Col And The Kings, Black Friday Tempo Hotel Blind Dog Donnie, Crooked Grin, The Bench Warmers The Music Kafe B-Rad, Berst Irish Murphy’s, Brisbane Broadbeach Jazz Festival Broadbeach Claire Walters, Ryan Livings, Capitol Groove Press Club Cold Blank Electric Playground Darky Roots The Joynt, Brisbane David Ades Brisbane Jazz Club David Bentley Trio Ecco Bar And Bistro Dynamic Duo Fibber Magee’s, Toowoomba Edward Guglielmino, The Show Soundlounge, Currumbin Electrik Lemonade, In2natiOn, Akova The Loft, Chevron Island Fletcher & Ms Jackson, Resident Dj Neverland Green Sinatras Kingscliff Beach Hotel Iowa, Tape Off, + Guests X & Y Bar Junkyard Diamonds, Heroine Chic Ric’s Kato, Cassette Oh Hello!

Kindling Lock ‘N’ Load Lock & Load Mick O’malley’s Loon Lake, Glass Towers, Cub Scouts Alhambra Lounge Mace Horse & Jockey Warwick Mick Danby, Tim Pierce, Kel Harper Chalk Hotel Nasum, Psycroptic The Hi-Fi Peter Cupples Gazebo Restaurant, Hotel Urban Richard Waterson Queenslander, Goondawindi Rock Revolution Nambour Civic Centre Romeos Apprentice Caloundra Rsl

PHIL BARLOW

TRALALA BLIP

On their debut cassette, Northern Rivers’ sound manipulators Tralala Blip take us outside and under water. Randolf Reimann tells Benny Doyle about it.

Local singer/songwriter Phil Barlow is holding a very special launch to celebrate his debut album, Phoenix Rising. Tony McMahon finds out all about the Tribal Theatre’s acoustics.

“Phoenix Rising resembles the emergence of a new life, of new music, of a new man,” says Barlow, talking about the difference between this record and his previous EP. “It’s a continuation from the Shades Of Grey EP in terms of my personal journey (lyrically), but an evolution in terms of musical style. Music to me is about pure expression. I don’t choose what style or sound I want to create when I write; I just allow my creative juices to flow. As a result, this album has flavours of blues, rock and reggae coming through with a full band, quite a different feel to the EP.” As mentioned above, the launch for Phoenix Rising is being held at the magnificent Tribal Theatre, and Barlow says it’s the perfect deal.

“I have a great feeling about this album launch!

After playing with the new band at the Tempo Hotel in Brisbane recently, the energy between us is awesome. I grew as a performer and am being pushed to a new level with great musicians beside me. Fans have responded well to the pre-release of the album’s lead track, One Sunny Day, and I look forward to rocking it with the band on the Tribal Theatre stage, which is the best place to bring this album to life. The theatre set-up creates a grand yet intimate atmosphere with great acoustics. It’s a venue that demands quality performance.”

It’s been said that Barlow’s music has a unique ‘Aussie’ feel to it, which he doesn’t seem to mind one bit.

“I kind of like that people think my music has an Aussie feel! Certainly not something I have intended, but I am proud to be an Aussie so that’s cool with me if it comes across.”

27 Red, First Summer, Penny Rides Shotgun, Angela Toohey, Lilly & Merin, Monet The Music Kafe 4zzz Radiothon Bazzzaar West End Twilight Markets

“I don’t know why it works?” he ponders.

“Maybe because we don’t see them as two distinct worlds? We just treat it all as sound.

Sometimes I think we connect with the sounds of our environment more than we do the ones generated by oscillators. But I do love the sounds of oscillators. We enjoy tweaking the field recordings, running them through FX until we like what we hear. Maybe that’s why they blend?

We continuously revisit our noise generators too, and that always leads to associations with nature which in turn leads to us walking out of the hall to collect more sounds. The idea of natural and unnatural sounds, good or bad recordings, mean very little to us. We just go by what sounds are interesting together.”

WHEN & WHERE: Wednesday 29 August, The Judith Wright Centre

WHEN & WHERE: Saturday 18 August, Tribal Theatre

SAT 18

A collective of creative minds from the northern NSW hills, Tralala Blip’s lush arrangements manage to capture the region’s natural beauty. Reimann agrees, however, that he isn’t entirely certain why they’re able to blend landscape and soundscape so harmoniously – he just knows that it works.

WHAT: Submarine Love Songs (A Guide To Saints)

WHAT: Phoenix Rising (Independent)

Texas Tea Black Bear Lodge Texas Tea Jet Black Cat Records That Swedish Guy, Krushel, Emgee, Azza Exchange Hotel The Jungle Giants, Toucan Elsewhere Bar, Surfers Paradise The Laurels, Keep On Dancin’s, Cobwebbs Beetle Bar The Medics, Silver The Moon Brothers Leagues Club, Cairns The Royal Artillery Cbd Hotel Tom Foolery Melbourne Hotel Val Kilmer’s House Party Bowler Bar Vote For Pedro Cbx, Caloundra Who’s Charlie Coolangatta Sands Hotel, LoUnge

“The creative process varies from song to song,” Reimann says, discussing the unique stories behind the songs on their new release Submarine Love Songs. “Love To Your Heart was written

by Lydian about a heavy day that included being dumped by his girlfriend, losing his job at FoodWorks, threatening his boss with a toy gun and being chased by the cops through the streets of Bangalow. Like most of our songs, that one was recorded where we practice, in a hall in Lismore.

Castle Of Golden Sound [meanwhile] was recorded live at Brisbane’s Disembraining Machine.”

Ajar, Jack This Electric Playground Alpine, Clubfeet, Georgi Kay Coolangatta Hotel Alter Egos Elephant & Wheelbarrow Amos Coolangatta Sands Hotel, Front Bar Angela Puerta, Dj Enrique The Loft, Chevron Island Atomic Cruisers, Native Aliens, Gold Dust Rockers, Cool Lula, Stone Crazy, +More Glenwood Park Bertie Page Clinic, Dirty Eastwoods, Dunes, The Sea Follies Beetle Bar Brett Gannon Kingscliff Beach Hotel Broadbeach Jazz Festival Broadbeach Captain Dreamboat, Cc The Cat The Joynt, Brisbane Dave Eastgate Sit Down Comedy Club, Paddington Devola, Fletcher & Ms Jackson, Resident DJ Neverland Dollarosa, Burning Brooklyn, As Paradise Falls, Finders Keepers Crow Bar, Brisbane Edward Guglielmino The Spotted Cow, Toowoomba Galapogos Ric’s

Ger Fennelly, Jabba Irish Murphy’s, Brisbane Hemi Kingi Duo Morrison Hotel Iowa, Seaplane, Crass Creatures, El Motel The Waiting Room Iowa Tym Guitars (Afternoon) Jezza Manly Hotel Jinja Safari, Opossom, White Arrows The Hi-Fi Kato, Tiafau, Giv Elsewhere Bar, Surfers Paradise London Cartel Caloundra Rsl Loon Lake, Glass Towers, Cub Scouts Sol Bar, Maroochydore Magnetic Island Band, John Hoffman Brisbane Jazz Club Mark Chomyn, Flying Blind, Dj Oli, Young Blood, Afterglow Chalk Hotel Moomoopapa Lock ‘N’ Load Moondogs Gypsy Blues Band Chinderah Tavern No Trust, Headaches, Meanwhile, In Hell, Vomit Bullets Fat Louie’s Nothing From No One, Driven Fear, Ill Temper X & Y Bar Phil Barlow, We The Ghosts, Ben Campain Tribal Theatre Recharge Beats Cbx, Caloundra

themusic.com.au

Richard Waterson Queenslander, Goondawindi Rock Revolution The Brolga Theatre, Maryborough Saturday Jazz At Era, Hannah Macklin Era Bistro Steven Michael & Sarah Coolangatta Sands Hotel, Lounge That Swedish Guy, Krushel, J-Free, Azza Exchange Hotel The Febs Fibber Magee’s, Toowoomba The Idea Of North Brisbane Powerhouse The Jungle Giants, Toucan, The Universal The Zoo The Medics, Silver The Moon, Finding Luna James Cook Uni, Townsville The Rational Academy, The Scrapes, Dingoes Baby Black Bear Lodge The Royal Artillery Magnums Hotel The Whiskey Archive Old Museum Building Tom Foolery Kedron Park Hotel Transvaal Diamond Syndicate, Nat Col And The Kings, Black Mustang, + More Racehorse Hotel

THE UNIVERSAL

Isaac Bradbury, Cam Urquhart and Evan Jones of Melbourne indie gang The Universal speak to Benny Doyle about their new single Sexual Intellectual.

“It’s a good indication of the energy of each song [on Thrill House],” bassist Urquhart says about the new single, “but the songs themselves cover a lot of stylistic ground. There’s punk fury (Sexual Intellectual), elegant psychobilly (Frightened) and then [we tackle] everything from surf to shoegaze to actual danceable grooves.

But underneath it all is a wealth of energy.”

Indeed there is, however, don’t go getting the wrong idea – the boys don’t consider themselves to be sexual intellectuals. More so, the track is observational as opposed to confessional.

“Well, in the video Isaac plays the eponymous ‘sexual intellectual’ and to be honest, he wasn’t even acting,” Jones, the frontman, says with his tongue firmly in cheek. “But really, there was no one person who inspired it; it’s more about that guy that everyone knows who thinks he’s amazing with the ladies and isn’t shy about letting you know just how great he is. No one likes that guy.”

The quartet kept things in house with the recording of the EP, and as their drummer Bradbury recalls, used a somewhat unorthodox but undeniably suitable way to maintain quality control.

“Blair and I are well endowed with audio skills and decided to do it all ourselves,” he says, “borrowing gear from everyone we could and then recording it in our regular rehearsal space over two incredibly hot and sweaty, air-conditioning free but beerabundant days. We measured the quality of a take by how much we needed to shower right after it.”

WHAT: Thrill House (Independent) WHEN & WHERE: Friday 17 August, Elsewhere, Gold Coast; Saturday 18, The Zoo

SUN 19 Asa Brisbane Powerhouse Turbine Platform Flangipanis, To-ShaMun-Da, GoldstooL, Blood Relative Mustang Bar Istanbul Gypsy Groove, Cachaca Groove, The Blue Ruins, Paul Cowderoy, Darren Scott, Monet The Music Kafe Jay Hoad The Joynt, Brisbane Kenny Rogers Qpac, Concert Hall Kym Campbell Koala Bar & Café Locky, Booster, Art House Killers, Hammo, Dj Oli, Woodie Chalk Hotel Martin Party, Bubble Boys Elephant & Wheelbarrow Mick Mchugh, Ger Fennelly, Jabba Irish Murphy’s, Brisbane Nat Col & The Kings Mansfield Tavern Nothing From No One, The War, Never Lose Sight Eagleby Community Centre Owie, Dave Ritter Fibber Magee’s (Afternoon), Toowoomba Owie Southern Hotel Toowoomba Sandy Beynon, Sean Mullen The Greek Club

Sneaky Mojo, Bixby Canyon, Columbus, Fibreglass Yeti Tempo Hotel Snobs, Sessionkatz Elsewhere Bar, Surfers Paradise Stormy Weather Lock ‘N’ Load Tell Heaven All Star Gospel Review Brisbane Jazz Club Who’s Charlie Chinderah Tavern

MON 20 B-Rad Irish Murphy’s, Brisbane Funky Monkey Jam The Music Kafe JJ Horne Caloundra Rsl Mark Sheils Elephant & Wheelbarrow That Swedish Guy, Matt KitsHon, Azza Exchange Hotel

TUE 21 Blind Dog Donnie, Poncho Pilot, Kym Campbell The Music Kafe Greg Gottlieb Lock ‘N’ Load Mark Sheils Samford Valley Hotel Wanderer’s Solace, Harvton, The Doses, Decadence Of Cain Tempo Hotel Woody Lives Here Irish Murphy’s, Brisbane

R E C O R DI N G

E DI TI O N

MIDDLETON’S NEW MUSICAL FOOTPRINT THIS MONTH’S AUSTRALIAN MUSICIAN FEATURE PEERS INTO THE WORLD OF RECORDING. WE CHAT WITH SEVERAL RESPECTED RECORD PRODUCERS ABOUT THEIR CRAFT AND SPOTLIGHT SOME GREAT NEW RECORDING GEAR.

A

s a guitarist, keyboardist and a major part of Powderfinger’s songwriting team for 22 years, Darren Middleton learned a thing or two about recording great songs.

Since the demise of the band, Middleton has placed his energy into producing other artists.

Australian Musician’s Greg Phillips spoke to him about his role as record producer.

After more than two decades at the top with Powderfinger, it wasn’t easy to know which way to turn next for Darren Middleton. He’d operated his own studio in Brisbane during the Powderfinger days, had worked with a few acts and enjoyed the production side of things, so music production seemed like a realistic option and when the opportunity came up to base himself at Melbourne’s Red Door Studios, things began to fall in place.

A producer’s role can be many things, but for Darren, who has worked alongside some of the world’s best, he believes it’s all about assisting the act to reach their own potential. “I think at the end of the day, the artist needs to be voicing themselves,” Darren explains. “As a producer, you need to be able to say, well I think this would be better in the bigger scheme of the song or the project but if an artist has a very specific view, you’ve got to recognise that it’s a good thing. It’s that person being an artist and expressing that intangible quality that we all look for in musicians and bands.”

Like the artists they work with, producers can sometimes bring a unique musical flavour to a project and stamp their own sonic authority upon it.

Can you imagine The Beatles’ Sgt Peppers album produced by anyone other than George Martin or U2’s Achtung Baby without Daniel Lanois’ style all over it? For the majority of Powderfinger’s albums they used Nick DiDia, famous for his work with Rage Against The Machine and Pearl Jam. They also utilised Tony Cohen, Tim Whitten and Rob Schnapf, all whom employed different production approaches.

“With Nick, in those early days, it was a learning and growing process for him too. He eventually became about the song and the sounds and giving things a purpose. If it didn’t have a purpose, get rid of it,” says Middleton. “Tim was more about not complicating things. Rob was different again. There’s a different way of doing things overseas. The band was in a bit of an odd place at that stage personally, fairly directionless. We were looking for direction and I don’t know if Rob necessarily provided that.

We’d record and the song files would go off to a guy in a dark room with his Pro Tools setup. Cogsy and I went into the room one day to look at something and there were splice lines everywhere and you look at your music like that and just back out of that room really slowly. It was more of a technical way of making a record and not one I enjoyed doing that way.” The result was their least successful album, 2007’s Dream Days At The Hotel Existence.

With regards to Middleton’s own production style, he suggests a more immediate approach to recording can be rewarding, particularly for the home recordist. “Do it quickly and spontaneously.

Don’t overthink it. It’s good to know a bit about how things work behind the scenes but don’t let that get in the way of being creative.”

Having laid down many guitar tracks in the studio, you’d expect him to have a few recording tips for the studio too. “I’m a big fan of the Royer R-121

ribbon mics. I would stick that with just a 57 against a speaker for a direct sound and something a bit further back for ambience. I’m a big fan of double-tracking particularly for slide guitar and little bits of lead guitar if a part requires. Acoustic guitars, I keep fairly simple. In any element of recording, if you can make the links in the chain as strong as possible, good-sounding amp, good-sounding microphone through a good mic pre, through a decent converter into your computer, you’ve got to keep all those links as strong as possible.

Once you have added them all up and layered them, it doesn’t become a brittle hollow sound in the end.”

For recording vocals, Darren also likes to keep it simple. “I would stick a few mics in front of them. I have an old 87 and a couple of Rode mics as well, Neumanns. I’d definitely try a few out to find the right sound pocket where the vocals sit within whatever is already existing on the beds … which maybe very little or a lot depending on what the singer needs to get the vibe of the song. I prefer very little. Less is more, then you add stuff as needs be.”

It’s Middleton’s belief many acts get a little lost in the studio process and over-think, over-crowd songs where it’s not really warranted. “Just look for the focal point of the song and make that up front and centre and embellish where you need,” he suggests. “You’d be surprised what you hear when you mute a few things and you’ve just got drums, bass and guitar and your attention is there.”

“

DON’T OVER-THINK IT. IT’S GOOD TO NOW A BIT ABOUT W THINGS WORK BEHIND THE NES BUT DON’T LET THAT GET IN THE WAY OF BEING CREATIVE”

Apart from working with other artists such as Jac Stone, Renee Cassar and theatre troupe Geppetto, Darren has a few projects of his own which he’s excited about, one being a solo album which he hopes to have out by the end of the year. “The main reason I am doing it is that every song on it has a purpose for its existence. Lyrically they really are reflective of stuff I was going through.

We’re into preproduction. A lot of songs don’t have bridges at the moment. I’ll enlist the help of friends because you have your head up your own arse if you do it all yourself.” The other project he’s working on is more hush-hush but could see him move into TV documentary mode. www.darrenmiddleton.com www.reddoorsounds.com.au

themusic.com.au

TIME OFF • 39

ZOOM R24 REVIEW

T

he quality of home recording is so high these days it’s possible to go a long way to making a killer record right at home.

Back in the day I started out with an old fourtrack cassette recorder, then moved onto a digital multi-track unit after finally arriving at the PC- and Mac-based platforms. The great thing about the Zoom R24 is that it appeals to both the computer gurus or the “all-in-oners” because it functions as both an audio interface/ controller for computer-based Digital Audio Workstations, and a sole multi-track recorder.

The uses for this unit are staggering. I think it covers just about all bases when it comes to audio, you can chuck some batteries in it and take it away to the coast and record some demos with your acoustic, plug in your electric guitar or keys and make some “full-sounding” demos by using the on-board drum machine … or use it to multi-mic a full drum kit … or link two units together and capture the full band. You can even use the unit live and add sequencing while your drummer jams along with an independent click track he’s hearing only in his headphones. The Zoom R24 can record up to eight mono inputs simultaneously, playback up to 24 mono tracks

PRODUCT:

ZOOM R24 REVIEW

REVIEWER: REZA NASSERI

INFO:

WWW. DYNAMICMUSIC.COM.AU

Brand

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at 44.1/48kHz, 16/24 bits. It comes with a 2G SDHC card (which can be upgraded to up to 32G), PSU, a handy little 4G flash drive and a copy of Cubase LE 6 to top it off. There are two in-built condenser mics that sound great, another six phantom-powered (+24 or 48V) channels and a Hi-Z input for direct input of electric guitars and basses that can utilise inbuilt amp modelling. The unit also has a drum machine that’s not limited to preset patterns, so you can make your own beats by tapping them in with the drum pads. You can even sample, loop and edit like any modern DAW. Out of the box I decided to make a quick demo to sample the quality of this unit and test its features. I pulled out an acoustic guitar and recorded two tracks with the in-built mics, with no compression or EQ added. Later, I recorded a vocal track by using a nice insert preset that gave quite an impressive, slick vocal tone and added

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The Zoom R24 is a brilliant unit with a tonne of features and uses. It’s perfect for beginners to seasoned professionals, especially if you need to record multiple inputs at a time (drummers look here).

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some reverb and delay on playback. The in-built mics sound great, true studio quality, even on the vocal track. Next up, make a bigger-sounding demo with electric guitars, a bass, programmed drums and vocals. The on-board drum sounds were pretty simplistic and to learn how to use the sequencer involved consulting the manual. The good thing is that you can use the sample pads to play any sample so I imported some serious drums sounds by downloading free sounds off the net. The amp sims were not too bad either, especially after a little EQ, so the final product sounded slick and professional, especially after using insert effect chains, EQ and the two sends of reverb and delay to gel everything together.

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Melbourne five-piece indie rockers Loon Lake have just released their second EP, Thirty Three, via iTunes. Producer Tony Buchen is thrilled with the way the recording turned out, particularly the drum sounds: “I’ve been loving the sound of drums in as small spaces as possible. I’ve had a long-held love of open room sounds but sometimes there’s nothing quite as immediate as the supertight ‘70s dry tone of a well-tuned Ludwig kit in a small booth.

Just watch out for cymbals. Better still, take them off the kit.” Buchen was also keen on adding a Mutron/Moog flavour to the guitars. “Mutron/Moog heaven! It helps create interesting sounds by having a bunch of guitar pedals out on the island and a couple of send/return cables ready to patch over anything in your live-to-tape setup.”

Loon Lake’s current single, Cherry Lips, is enjoying high rotation play on Triple J. www.loonlake.com.au

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Features include 64-bit support: take advantage of a 64-bit application and 64-bit plug-ins. Naturally, Samplitude Pro X is capable of running on both 32-bit and 64-bit systems and 32-bit plug-ins are still supported. Also includes previous Pro features 5.1 Surround mixing, Revolver tracks, 999 tracks, 64 plug-in slots, AAF & OMF export, Hybrid Audio Engine – Perfect performance on any system, and Object editing: complete editing at object level, including effects, plug-ins, fades, equalizing, timestretching, pitchshifting, AUX sends and freeze. Completely non-destructive and real-time!

Combining three capsules and four different pattern settings, Blue’s YETI is the ultimate tool for creating amazing recordings, directly into your computer. THX Certified for exceptional sound and performance, the Yeti can capture anything with a clarity and ease unheard of in a USB microphone.

SNOWBALL MICROPHONES FROM BLUE Snowball is a plug-and-play USB mic that works on both PC and Mac with any recording program.

Featuring a dual-capsule design, Snowball allows three recording patterns: cardioid (right in front of the mic, best for singing), omni (all around the mic, best for multiple people or band practice), and cardioid w/10db pad (best for instruments), giving you incredible versatility to produce great recordings in a wide range of situations. Snowball is also compatible with iPad via Apple’s camera connection kit! The Snowball is great for the beginner or those who don’t need all the bells and whistles. While it produces quality audio used by many professionals for voice-overs and recording, it’s enough for the first time recordist or the hobbyist. Or maybe you just like the way it looks in your videos. www.ambertech.com.au

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The Yeti features Blue’s innovative triplecapsule array, allowing for recording in stereo or your choice of three unique patterns, including cardioid, omnidirectional and bidirectional, giving you recording capabilities usually requiring multiple microphones.

Transform your PC or Mac into a state-of-theart production studio with the MXL Studio 24.

This HD-quality USB microphone shines on instruments, vocals or on any audio source.

Most importantly, it captures every detail of your work with 24-bit audio quality. The Studio 24 is the perfect tool for travelling musicians and podcasters. It incorporates a 22mm condenser capsule, which is the same capsule found in high-end studio microphones. Other features include zero latency monitoring and a custom GUI for engineering-level audio adjustments such as phase, roll-off, noise gate and more.

The Yeti utilises a high-quality analogueto-digital converter to send incredible audio fidelity directly into your computer, a built-in headphone amplifier for zerolatency monitoring, and simple controls for headphone volume, pattern selection, instant mute and microphone gain located directly on the microphone.

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TIME OFF • 41

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BEST VALUE FOR MONEY RECORDING Wavelength Recording. Guaranteed world class product from $440/day with eng. Awsome classic equipment, digital or tape. Great packages to suit all budgets. Ph 0404066645 iFlogID: 18713

EMPIRE STUDIOS Recording and Rehearsal Studios close to Brisbane CBD. Highend outboard equipment, experienced engineers, comfortable working environment. Hourly and Day rates available at very competative prices. www. estudios.com.au email admin@estudios.com.au (07)38923292 iFlogID: 19433 ParallelHarmonyStudio Robina is the Gold Coast’s newest Recording & Production facility. 30m2 liveroom.

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Harps for hire.

Ph: 02 98905578 iFlogID: 15154 Music tuition, classical / flamenco guitar, celtic harp, theory & harmony, arranging. 9am - 9pm, 7 days. Parramatta area. $40 hr, $30 half hr. Mature & patient.

Harps for hire.

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VIDEO / PRODUCTION D7 STUDIO MUSIC VID FROM $250.

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MUSICIANS AVAILABLE BASS PLAYER Electric & upright bass. Good gear.

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Check out my website if you wanna hear more. http://www.wix.com/ steelechabau/steelechabau iFlogID: 16159

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DRUMMER A1 TOP PRO DRUMMER AVAILABLE FOR SESSION FREELANCE WORK, TOURS ETC. EXTENSIVE EXPERIENCE, TOP GEAR, GREAT GROOVE AND TIME. SYDNEY BASED, WILL TRAVEL. PH 0419760940. WEBSITE www.mikehague.com iFlogID: 18334

TOP INTERNATIONAL DRUMMER available.

Great backing vocals, harmonica player and percussionist.

Gigs, tours, recording.

Private lessons/mentoring also available. www.reubenalexander.net iFlogID: 14261

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I play blues and have a good ear for melody and improvisation. Im looking for likeminded people who want to start touring. Go to peterbuckley.me iFlogID: 18014

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MUSICIANS WANTED BANDS Guitarist + Guitarist/Singer looking for a BASSIST + DRUMMER to form Power Pop/Punk band in Sydney.

Think THE RAMONES meets CHEAP TRICK. No time wasters and committed musicians only.

Contact 0403 995 832 iFlogID: 19373 Looking for bass player, drummer and vocalist. Age 19 - 22. Influences include The Gazette, Avenged Sevenfold, Abandon All Ships, Hans Zimmer, and Machine Head. Contact me at rafaelerion@hotmail.com. http://soundcloud.com/rafaelerion iFlogID: 19238 Looking for singer, bass player, keyboard player, percussionist and horn section for REGGAE band in Northern Beaches NSW. Call Michael 0402549423 or email siczex@yahoo.com.au iFlogID: 18612

BASS PLAYER Looking for a bassist with influences including Pixies, Sonic Youth, Queens of the Stone Age. Preferably female, backing vocals required. Call 0411396413 or email clawsandorgans@gmail.com iFlogID: 19350

DRUMMER Experienced drummer with a commitment to practice and regular rehearsals required for Melbournebased alternative rock band.

Influences QOTSA, Foo Fighters, Nirvana… www.myspace.com/mollydredd 0411 372 469 iFlogID: 16936

GUITARIST 18 year old guitar player looking for another guitar player. Influences: GN’R, Aerosmith, Zeppelin, New York Dolls.

Preferrably someone in the south (Shire). Call Tom on 0401722767 iFlogID: 13407 Lead Guitarist Wanted Quality rock lead guitarist sort for Brisbane original band, BLACK RAINBOW. For live gigs. Tapping etc. Age 30-40yrs. Paid for rehearsals and gigs.

Ph Peter

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OTHER Get your Band or Business Online Cost effectively from $299 including Hosting, Shopping Cart and 5 email addresses!

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TUITION DRUMMER AND DRUM LESSONS Avaliable in Gladesville Teach all Levels, ages and experience.16 years experience.

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WANTED OTHER

THE SUICIDE WATCH PROJECT

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SINGER GOSPEL SINGERS WANTED for nondenominational music ministry to record triple-CD in Perth. World-class, passionate and devotional vocalists sought. View www.THE001Music.com for details. Jesus is KIng! Reverend Eslam. God Bless You! iFlogID: 13088 Looking for other original acoustic duo’s/bands with a following to share the bill and do live gigs together. Contact RemmosK@gmail.com iFlogID: 18849

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Wanted! Your love and support for our hip hop collaboration for suicide prevention. Help us break down the taboos and barriers.

Share the message ‘it’s ok to talk about suicide’. Releasing digital mixtape early September to co-incide with World Suicide Prevention Day and RU OK Day. Visit: facebook.com/TheSuicideWatchVolume1 Web: crazybandplans.com/SWV1 iFlogID: 19155

SATISFY YOUR SOUL

Bob Marley believed in a better world.

Today his family are creating it by turning their father’s ideals into actions and principles into products. The House of Marley brand is dedicated to creating the world he imagined through products that give joy, give back and satisfy your soul.

All Marley products are manufactured as earth consciously as possible. With the use of natural, recycled and ecoconscious materials, Marley products support the Marley family charitable foundation. This global movement is dedicated to supporting youth, planet and peace.

EMJH023MI

RRP $99.95

See the entire range on-line or visit a stockist: Harvey Norman, Bing Lee, Surfstitch & Volume

thehouseofmarley.com.au facebook.com/thehouseofmarley

twitter.com/houseofmarleyAU