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Contents 05 CAVE MAN CHRONICLES 09 14
genkstasy the label
20 25
THE BIRTHDAY PARTY REMASTERED
pivot from PROBLEM to OPPORTUNIty
LIFE IS A CABARET
30
FILM NOIR REVIEW THE THIRD MAN
Contents 37
DENISE ON FICTION
41
ALBUM REVIEW - MELANIE SAFKA
46
manager's persective
51 pop to the shop 53 RUBY'S MUSIC QUIZ The Hornet Press 229A Swan Street, Richmond 3121 Editor - Anthea Palmer Assistant - Ruby Watson Inquiries: info@jimmyhornet.com
CAVE MAN CHRONICLES If you're a red hot fan, this info may come as no surprise, but for the amateur cave dweller, here are some surprising facts on arguably one of the most intriguing creatives alive today.
He writes his songs on a typewriter He’s no hipster, he’s just a genuinely strange but cool guy. Nick attests that when he bought his first computer in the 90s, “practically all of my note-making stopped” and he was "hitting delete left, right and centre." Back to the trusty typewriter, he went.
he is an author Nick has published several books over the years, including novels, collections of plays and poetry, and memoirs of his life. In 2020 he released a book called ‘Stranger than Kindness’ which gives a detailed insight into Cave’s life and creative journey.
He liveD in Sao Paulo He made the move in 1990, apparently to escape the ‘goth and punk cults’ who worshiped him. There he met and married Vivian Carneiro, with whom he had his first child Luke. He lived there for three years all up. There's no saying whether the Brazilian goth and punk cults discovered him.
HE REJECTED A NOMINATION FROM MTV He was nominated for best artist in '96 for his iconic duet with Kylie Minogue "Where the Wild Roses Go." He said his music exists "beyond realms inhabited by those who would reduce things to mere measuring." Deep!
he is a member of the sons of lee marvin Speaking of cults... I doubt they actually meet up but hey, who knows? Basically, it's a club for famous people who look like they could be the son of American actor Lee Marvin. Tom Waits, John Lurie, and Richard Boes are also members.
HE GREW UP IN RURAL VICTORIA He hails from a town called Warracknabeal. Yeah, I'd never heard of it either. Warracknabeal is a Wheatbelt town 330km northwest of Melbourne. When Nick was 13 he was expelled from school and his family moved to Murrumbeena, a suburb in Melbourne.
his dream was to be a painter He studied art at Caulfield technical college in Melbourne but dropped out. " the lifestyle, and what I considered a painter to be, I found very attractive when I was young ".
HE IS GODFATHER TO Tiger Lily Nick was good friends with Michael Hutchence, the lead singer of INXS (up until his death in 1997). He is the godfather to Hutchence's daughter Heavenly Hiraani Tiger Lily Hutchence Geldof (full name) who is now 25.
The Birthday Party “Pleasure Heads Must Burn" D V D R e m a s t e r e d 2 0 2 1 P o s s u m R e c o r d s Nick Cave, while fully aware of his legacy and its evolution, is not someone that spends a great deal of time dwelling on his past musical achievements. Sure, each tour has a nostalgic throwback, but generally speaking, he is an artist that is forever forward-looking.
That is not to say that his audience does not or should not take a walk down amnesia lane and reflect upon an earlier incarnation of one of the world’s most creative and innovative acts of all time. Upon its initial release, the VHS Pleasure Heads Must Burn was already an attempt to cash in on the legacy of a band that had just disbanded and the promise
of Nick Cave’s future with the recently formed Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds. At the time the video compromised of 6 songs performed at The Hacienda in Manchester on 22 July 1982 and a further 7 tracks performed at the same venue on 24 February 1983. Sandwiched in between these two performances was the promo video for “Nick the Stripper”. It was slapped together and the quality was pretty ordinary.
This newly remastered version of the DVD includes additional material including two songs (Fear of Gun/Hamlet (Pow Pow Pow) performed live at the Ace Cinema in Brixton in 82. Plus there is the incredible performance of Deep in the Woods from the Trade Union Club in Sydney from 83 which became the unofficial video clip for the track.
Finally, and most importantly it includes the remarkable performance on Junkyard recorded at VPRO TV studios in 82. Personally, I love this performance and it looks better now than I have ever seen it before. It is chaotic, shambolic yet utterly mesmerizing. It is remarkable how they even got the gig in the first place! According to legend the entire performance was cut short as the network deemed them as offensive.
That could have something to do with bassist Tracey Pew doing an awful amount of humping. For those who have not seen the concert footage before, you are in for a treat. While it is remastered, please note that it was originally filmed with some seriously primitive equipment so you cannot expect
crisp clean images and sound. BUT what you can see is a notoriously explosive band at the peak of their game. Yes, the second set is during a time that they were imploding – but what a way to go. The drama (with tracks like Wild World) and the horror (with Release the Bats) are worth the price of the disc alone. Fans of Nick Cave will respect that while he has matured and become a lot more subdued, many of his stage mannerisms featured in Pleasure Heads Must Burn have remained with him to this day. The finger pointing to random people in the crowd, the intense gazes he will give to someone in the audience that he has singled out and those erratic pelvic thrusts are all still part of the routine today – some 40 years later. In addition to Nick, we have wonderful footage of the coolest guitarist of all time Rowland S Howard. To see him move around the stage with a cigarette hanging from his mouth is incredible. I cherish every piece of footage and audio available of Rowland as there is simply not enough out there.
Pleasure Heads Must Burn, may not be loved by all of today’s Nick Cave fans, but all fans old and new should watch and appreciate the mastery that had already developed in to something out of this world.
by Steven Scheloske
w i n a d v d & m a g a z i n e pa c k
+ - Valid for the first 10 readers to apply. - email info@jimmyhornet.com and ask for The Birthday Party Offer.
GENKSTASY IS A COLOURFUL FASHION-FORWARD LABEL DEDICATED TO NON-BINARY STREETWEAR. WE ASKED CREATIVE DIRECTOR EVIE WILLSTEED SOME CANDID QUESTIONS ABOUT HER BUSINESS.
What's the vision behind Genkstasy? Ultimately it's to help create a better world; a happier, healthier future for humans, and all life on Earth. I'm working on that from my abilities and passions: creating loving spaces and validating/empowering clothing for queer and gender-diverse folk. Genkstasy is about being seen, and loved, for exactly who you are. I create clothing for diverse bodies, so all of us can feel comfy and fabulous when we're out
What makes your garments ethically made?
I source all my fabrics with a holistic approach to sustainability as the goal. You have to think big picture, everything has pluses and minuses. So I use a range of vintage, end-of-roll, and new organic/OEKOTEX certified natural fabrics. Then, I design to reduce fabric waste, re-use or compost what cut-offs I do have, and my studio is run on 100% solar power.in the world. Gender is a spectrum, even for 'straight/hetro' folk, it's liberating for all of us tolet go of those constructs and embrace broader, more playful versions of ourselves! When we truly accept ourselves, can be kind to ourselves, we can more easily accept and be kind to others too. A ripple effect, starting small, with big dreams.
How did you come up with your brand name? Is there a back story? Well, I wanted to create a name for the label that encompassed what it was about, but could also be easily searched online (since google fails so much on searches these days!) so it couldn't be a word that existed already. That, and I'm a language nerd, was studying Japanese at the time, and really liked their word Genki which means 'spirit, life-force, and energy'. Part of my personal story is one of having deep grief/loss change my life - through experiencing the shifting of energy as my Mum passed from this life into the next - it moved something in me and helped me to overcome fear/anxiety/depression and start living my life more in line with it's potential. So Genki was a reminder of that wisdom. And then I blended it with Ecstasy, which was what I wanted my life to become, and what I wanted the brand to help others feel within, and about themselves.
So in short, Genkstasy means joyful spirit. The journey from suffering to self-awakening and elation.
Photo by Kate Bonnie
How did you come to work in fashion? I was drawn to it I suppose... My Aunty was always a styler and I looked up to her when I was little, she was so loving and kind, and she had great taste. Plus, I was really fussy about textures and sensations as a child, so fabric and clothing were a big deal to me, comfort mattered. Then as a
I started to experience body dysmorphia and social anxiety, so clothing was a safety net, a shield, and a way to speak something about myself when I didn't have the words. I could dress myself to fit in, even though I didn't feel I did, or I could dress weird to let people know what to expect, to save me having to pretend to be normal. I was super unsure of myself in my early 20s, so tried different work and creative paths, but fashion just kept calling me back.
Can you share any tricks or advice on getting into a creative mindset? Rest and play. Whenever I hit a creative block I know it's one of two things: I'm tired, or I'm restricting myself (either through self criticism, or allowing in societal ideas of what's acceptable, d most, do that, then sit back at my desk, or on the floor, and see what flows.
What tools (digital or otherwise) do you use to conceptualize and design your clothing? I'm an IRL person. I'm very tactile. So I feel fabrics and get inspired by their textures, and colours. I let them speak to me, and start to visualise what they could be. I'm also very inspired by the people I'm lucky to share this life with. So I often come up with a design thinking of a specific person, what they'd wear and how they'd like, or need, it to function. My newest piece I was thinking of Naavi Karan, her presence on stage, and at home when we share tea and stories.
Have you experienced any haters along the way? Thankfully I've been very lucky to meet mostly like-mindedly kind, compassionate, intelligent folks who are accepting of different viewpoints or experiences, and
Hannah Macklin and Band. Photo by Fry Candy
who know how to communicate if there are ever any disagreements. I think when people are cruel or critical, it says more about them than who they criticise, so I tend to have compassion for those people and don't hold onto those memories longer than what it takes to process them.
What are some of the struggles you face as a developing business? Cash flow is tough in these times, especially when making and selling consciously. And pricing things for what they're worth given the time and materials that go into them can be hard because it often puts a garment in a price range that isn't affordable to all the people I'd like it to be available to. It's a work in progress that one, it's hard to tick all boxes, all the time.
What can we expect to see from Genkstasy in the next few years? More creativity. More colour. I'm excited to make some one-offs, big statement pieces from all the gorgeous remnants of silks, etc that are in my stash, and a 'butch/masc' collection - I've done a lot of 'femme' designs recently and now I'm feeling some of that yang energy is ready to make itself seen again too. Always balance. And always slow, so there's time to do things well, and time to take it all in.
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pivot from problem to opportunity Do you dwell on problems, and is the worry it causes stifling your optimism and creativity? Consider the most successful people you know. Regardless of their skill set or industry, chances are they have the ability to turn problems into opportunities. Unfortunately, there is no magic switch you can flip in your brain, but with consistent effort over time, and using some of the following tips, you can alter your mindset and leap over even the biggest hurdle.
1. Acceptance
Start by accepting that problems are inevitable. Most of us react negatively to problems because they take us by surprise. They are always going to rear their ugly heads, so train your brain to accept them as normal and completely unavoidable. This mindset will assist you to handle problems with more grace and objective understanding.
2. know thyself
Cultivating self-awareness is an important way to understand that the person living your life … is YOU! To prevent your life from becoming a constant reflection of your past, you must become aware of the habitual thought patterns that keep you stuck. Many of our irrational judgments, limiting beliefs, and cognitive biases arise from our sense of attachment to the past. The more knowledgeable we become about these, the better equipped we are to overcome them.
3. ask thyself
Sit yourself down and ask yourself the hard questions:What fear or pain is this problem bringing out in me? Have I felt this fear or pain before? Do I continue to feel this way because the underlying cause needs attention? Is there a skill or knowledge that I can only gain from this problem? What is the hidden gift for me in getting through it?
Negative emotions or experiences are a good sign that school is in session and you are headed toward some important learning.
4. distance Think of the problem as a separate entity, unrelated to you. It allows you to temper your emotions and thinks about the problem objectively. Try describing the problem as if it were happening to a friend: "Bob has a cash flow problem. He needs to ….…” Try this tactic to avoid the egocentric emotional reactions that typically arise.
5. Keep it real
If you’re a practical thinker, another option is to isolate the real consequences of the problem from your exaggerated or imaginary ones. Shift your focus from seeing the problem as a burden or destructive force, to seeing it as a neutral force that allows you to take action. Make a list of all the significant negative consequences the problem will cause. This exercise will typically illustrate that your problem is not as destructive as it seemed on the surface. Our brains are wired to imagine worst-case scenarios and exaggerate potential threats so we can overprepare rather than under-prepare.
6. mind map
Create a mind map or visual snapshot of a problem and possible solutions. This can help focus the mind, stimulate the brain, increase the capacity for creative thinking, and generate more ideas and solutions. Draw your problem as a central idea, then add “main branches” consisting of all the reasons for the problem. Use “sub-branches” to explore further details.
Next, make a separate Mind Map of all possible solutions to the central problem. Add “main branches” showing all the ways that your problem can be solved. Add “sub-branches” to further explore the details. Make a final branch with the most suitable solution for the main problem.
7. SHAKE IT UP!
We are rarely aware of the habitual nature of our own thoughts. Our minds are constantly regurgitating. The result is that our actions and behaviours don’t change much either. Consciously choose to think new thoughts and act in new ways.
When we do something out of the ordinary, the brain pays attention. It brings us into the present moment and forces us to think in new ways. Our daily lives present countless opportunities to do things differently. We may not be aware of how much our habits and routines shape our lives until we consciously try to shake things up. Make a commitment to do something new and out of your comfort zone at least once a week. Skip a day or a week of using social media — or use it for a new purpose Cook up a new recipe with ingredients you wouldn’t usually use. Take a different route to work. Spend five minutes a day learning a new language. Listen to a different genre of music from your usual playlist. Shaking things up will aid in the creation of new neural networks. It helps our creativity by aiding us in spotting patterns between existing ideas. The brain loves it, and rewards us with dopamine. We feel motivated to keep exploring further.
8. Brain Boost Learn new things or think about familiar concepts differently. To build up your brain muscle and develop new problem-solving techniques, practice some logic puzzles and other games. The winning strategy when playing chess or Sudoku is actually to work the problem backward, not forward. The same strategy can apply to realistic strategic-thinking situations.
9. ATTACK!
Go into full attack mode when strongly challenged. This is no time to be timid. Attack a crisis or challenge with enthusiasm, confidence, and the conviction that you will win. Try to put aside the psychological and career risks associated with a crisis. See the opportunities offered and attack possible solutions with high energy.
10. DANCE Dancing has a positive impact on neural processing and pathways. It helps to divert from dopamine-depleted blockages in the brain. Ballet or other forms of structured dance may facilitate convergent thinking. In other words, it may help you find a single, appropriate answer to a problem. If you need help with divergent thinking, engage in more improvised types of dance such as hip-hop or tap. Dance it OUT!
embrac th disconten The truth is that we are hard-wired to want challenges, and to some extent we even seek them out. Thomas Edison said, “Restlessness is discontent, and discontent is the first necessity of progress. Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you a failure.” You're always going to have problems in your life, whether they come up as personal issues, professional challenges, or flat-out bad luck. If you can train your brain to view these problems as opportunities for growth, you'll become far more adept at handling them quickly, efficiently, and with less stress.
LIFE IS A
Part 4: Little Edie Beale For this month’s edition of Life is a Cabaret I’d like to shine a light on a lesserknown cabaret performer: the truly unique Edith Bouvier Beale, who was nicknamed “Little Edie”. Little Edie’s life really was a cabaret - she achieved fame by living a truly eccentric life which was broadcast to the world in 1976 in the documentary “Grey Gardens” filmed by Albert and David Maysles.
Little Edie was originally born in New York City in 1917, and was from a wealthy aristocratic family - she was the cousin of Jackie Kennedy and grew up living a lifestyle of upper-class luxury. Their family home was located in East Hampton - a 28 room mansion called “Grey Gardens”, where little Edie would dance soft shoe shuffles and sing with her mother
in their home. Her mother, ‘Big Edie’ pursued an amateur singing career whilst being supported by her husband, Phelan Beale. After Edie finished her studies, blessed with Hollywood looks and dancing talent, she spent her youth from 1947 to 1952 pursuing a successful career as a model, dancer, and actress. However, her aspirations of being a star performer were put to a halt when in her late 30s she developed alopecia, causing her hair to fall out and wear her signature headscarf wrap on her head.
On July 29 1952, at her Mother’s insistence, Little Edie moved back home to Grey Gardens - where she would spend the next 25 years taking care of her mother and living in seclusion. The pair lived in squalor - surrounded by cat feces, a diet consisting of tinned pate and ice cream, and completely withdrawn from public life. It wasn’t until 1972 when Edie’s cousin, Lee Bouvier Radizwill, hired filmmakers to make a documentary about the pair’s obscure life that they would gain public attention.
EADIE BEALE AND HER MOTHER AT THEIR HOME IN NEW YORK
In the documentary, we see that Edie has true star quality. Despite barely leaving the house for 25 years, her charisma and presence shine through the camera. The on-screen relationship between Little and Big Edie shows one of dysfunction - Edie feeling trapped by her mother, but also unable to leave her side to pursue her performing career. Both seem stuck in yesteryear, but there is an undeniable charm to them both and brutal honesty which makes you fall in love with them.
There are some important lessons that can be drawn from Little Edie’s unique, if bizarre life for a performer:
1. The power of being “Staunch” "I tell you if there's anything worse than dealing with a staunch woman...
S-T-A-U-N-C-H.
There's nothing worse, I'm telling you. They don't weaken, no matter what."
Despite all the setbacks in her life, from feeling trapped and burdened for having to look after her elderly mother, Little Edie remained true to herself and never seemed to let her unusual situation get the better of her positive attitude. She kept her child-like sense of creativity - in the Grey Gardens documentary, there are many clips of Edie making up dance routines, bursting out into song, and performing for the cameramen. Even if she wasn’t performing on Broadway as she had dreamed, she treated her house as a stage and still persevered with her artistic career in her own way.
2. You can look fabulous on a budget Even though Little Edie lived below the poverty line for 25 years, caring for her mother in Grey Gardens and living off welfare checks, she still managed to maintain a sense of glamour. Because her funds were so limited, she invented her ‘costumes’ from scraps around the house and developed her own unmistakable style.
“This is the best thing to wear for today, you understand. Because I don't like women in skirts and the best thing is to wear pantyhose or some pants under a short skirt, I think. Then you have the pants under the skirt and then you can pull the stockings up over the pants underneath the skirt. And you can always take off the skirt and use it as a cape. So I think this is the best costume for today.”
3. It’s never too late to follow your dreams After 25 years of living in seclusion with her mother, Little Edie made the brave decision at 60 to finally pursue her dreams of being on the New York stage. She performed her own revue consisting of eight shows at the Reno Sweeney Club in New York. Whilst the reviews were negative, the audience loved her and she finally felt like she had achieved what she wanted in her life, saying to the press: “I'm finally beginning to live...at the end of 12 performances, I will know a little more about myself and what I should do in life.” On one hand, Little Edie lived a sad and reclusive life - but what I find inspiring about her, and for any performer, is that she never let go of her dreams even through her hardship. She persisted through the turmoil of her life to become a cult pop-culture icon - proving that you can shine and perform at any age and that perhaps sometimes it is your actual LIFE which is the cabaret act!
Until next time, Mes Cheries: à bientôt!
jack lynch
T H E T H I R D M A N CAROL REED 1949 By Steven Scheloske When Carol Reed’s The Third Man was released in 1949 it was met with mixed reactions internationally. Critically and commercially, it was a hit in the United Kingdom. In Austria, where the film is set, most critics were underwhelmed. Across the Atlantic in America, after initial dismissive reviews, it was reconsidered in light of its developing commercial success, and reviews were rewritten to praise Reed for successfully blending art and entertainment. Today it is rightfully regarded as the greatest British film of all time.
BUT WHAT MAKES THE FILM SO GREAT? What makes The Third Man a brilliant film is that it is incredibly ambitious and succeeds in every daring endeavor. The Third Man is technically a piece of Film Noir. This is traditionally a genre that is associated with American movies of the 40s and not the UK. It’s not an overly complex film, despite a lot going on. It has been made to be easily understood and most importantly, to entertain, but it still challenges us with expressionist cinematography, seedy settings and the most unconventional yet unforgettable score of all time. Combine that with brilliant direction, a super tight script, incredible performances, and the greatest monologue in film history and The Third Man, in my opinion, is one movie that everyone must see at least once in their lifetime.
The plot revolves around a second-rate author of westerns, Holly Martins (played to perfection by Joseph Cotton) who arrives in a divided, post-war Vienna on the invitation of his childhood friend Harry Lime (Orson Welles) on a promise of work. Things immediately go wrong for Holly. Upon arrival he is informed that Lime was struck by a car while crossing the road and killed. At the funeral, Holly meets some of Lime’s current friends, acquaintances, associates, and his lover Anna Schmidt (played by Valli). The stories recounted of Lime’s death from different perspectives all begin to sound incredibly suspicious.
Initially it is reported that Lime’s driver and a friend are those to pick up Harry and remove him from the road. Coincidentally, Lime’s doctor is walking by and pronounces him dead. But a resident in the neighbourhood recounts things a little differently; while he did not see the actual accident, he did see three men (not two) carry the body from the street. In addition to that, the police who are following Martins every move, inform him that Lime was an evil racketeer and are certain he met with foul play. This inspires Martins to adopt the persona of one of his characters in his westerns and to discover Lime’s true cause of death and innocence.
When watching the film, the first thing that strikes you is the mood and atmosphere that is created by the settings, as well as Robert Krasker’s artistry as a cinematographer. While the techniques used were not new, his expressionistic view, common in the silent films of Germany in the twenties, was not the norm in a modern British film.
Krasker’s use of stark black and white, harsh lighting, and disorientating Dutch Tilt (a technique where the camera is set at an angle so the horizon appears diagonally) enable the viewer to better relate to Martin’s world which has just been turned upside-down. Renowned author Graham Greene (Brighton Rock and The Power and the Glory) with the uncredited assistance from Carol Reed and Orson Welles, produced a script that was not only tight and thrilling but also humorous, romantic, horrific, and utterly believable. The dialogue is rich and real, and never pretentious. Lime’s speech in the Ferris wheel is an astonishing feat on its own. What is being said, how it is being said, is nothing short of brilliant. Martin’s reaction as his world has been turned upside down once again is just as remarkable.
THE PERFORMANCES Much has been written about Orson Welles. He was a visionary, a talented actor, gifted writer and director that was ahead of his time. Welles became disillusioned with the movie business and its unwillingness to explore the artistic possibilities of the medium and swore to never be a leading man again. In The Third Man, Welles appears in it for less than 10 minutes, yet the power of his performance and presence leaves you thinking he was much more visible. Joseph Cotton, who had been a friend and colleague of Welles since the thirties in the Mercury Theatre, delivers a career high performance (and that is no small feat for the man was a principal character in Citizen Kane and in Hitchcock’s masterpiece Shadow of a Doubt). He embodies the confusion, the passion and innocence of Holly Martins perfectly. Trevor Howard, as the Police Major Calloway, displays cynicism, compassion, understanding and worldlines every time he appears on screen.
Holly Martins, played by Joseph Cotton (left) and Harry Lime played by Orson Welles (right)
As for Valli, who rose to fame as an Italian beauty (Mussolini called her the “most beautiful woman in the world”) proves she is not just a pretty face. Her performance is wonderfully understated. She expresses so much without having to use words. While Cotton’s character has the greatest arc, she is definitely the one who has gone through the most. Finally, there is Anton Karas’ score that is performed almost entirely on a zither. No review of The Third Man could possibly conclude without mentioning the zither score. Much has been said of the music featured in the film. While some people love it, many have hated it. Regardless, Reed’s decision to refrain from using a traditional orchestrated score is a bold and powerful one that I believe adds to the out of place world of The Third Man. The Third Man is one of those rare occasions where a director experiments in every traditional element of film making and succeeds. Whether it is tilting the camera, having the films biggest star only appear for 10 minutes or challenging the audience with an uncomfortable score. All of it leads to a film that will resonate with you for years to come.
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Artwork by Meg Kolac
DENISE
on fiction
Light Perpetual by Francis Spufford The Light Perpetual, authored by Francis Spufford, and published by Faber, was shortlisted for the 2021 Booker Prize. In the movie Sliding Doors, viewers watch the life of the protagonist play out according to two scenarios. Missing or catching a train leads to heartache or happiness. The Light Perpetual uses a similar trope. What might have happened to five children living through the blitz had the rocket failed to obliterate them? The writing is beautiful and the five protagonists skilfully drawn. A little like the television series 7 Up, we are offered studies of each person several years apart. Ben struggles with mental illness throughout his life. We meet him as a child on his father’s shoulders at a football game. He disappoints his dad who realises his lad hasn’t enjoyed something important to him, and in fact has barely registered the experience. We meet him again as a young man as he tries to communicate his desire to remain on antipsychotics in residential care at the age of twenty five, and again at forty as he struggles with obsessive thoughts about burning flesh as he issues tickets on his regular bus route. Spufford’s
descriptions of what’s happening in Ben’s mind is a marvellous reminder of how little we can ever know about each other’s internal struggles. Who of us can’t relate to his frustration with thoughts that tumble round and round?
‘I wish I could take my head off and wash it out with a hose.' We meet Vern, Val, Alex and Jo as children in Miss Turnbull’s singing class at school.
”Deep breaths, everyone”, she says. “Open up those lungs. Use those chests. Bring the music up from your toes. Mouths open all the way. Heads \ high and sing out. Stephen Jenkins, wipe your nose. With your handkerchief! And one-two-three-four-- “ She plays the opening bars with heavy hands, and no excitement at all, but it doesn’t matter. We follow Vern’s plans to become a successful entrepreneur and developer. He is aching to be part of the bight, shiny post war world. Planning to trick a young b-grade footballer into presenting as the public face of his new business, he takes them both to lunch somewhere ‘posh’, both to impress thelad, and to make his point.
‘“..all this stuff down here – these people – this placeit’s all very nice, but it’s basically over. It’s the past, innit. And I’m not bothered about the past. I’m for the future.”’
Despite his at times questionable business dealings, this huge, burly man surprises us with his love of opera. Alex creates for himself a career as a newspaper compositor until technology changes his world, and we join him in protest. And we nervously watch Val as she’s drawn to bad boys and good times. With Jo we explore her dreams to be a musician. Jo’s experiences in the wings at the Pelican Club remind us of the way women were (and often still are) treated by their male counterparts.
‘But right now, she’s girl furniture as far as these whispering, oblivious boys are concerned. They’re locked in the serious business of male-to-male musical adoration. Withouteven noticing it, the one with the sideburns has backed her against the amp stack. The one with the thin, froggy lips has blocked her view of Reeves. The skinny one with the nose has trodden on her foot, then tried to kick it away under the impression it’s cabling. She’s been absentmindedly pushed behind a wall of bloke.’
As we watch the progress of these five lives we are also watching the changing face of the society in which they live. Together they weave a picture of changing economic forces, the rise of new forms of community violence, the battle for women to craft the lives they crave, and the changing expectations of each generational wave. The writing of this book was influenced by a plaque the author regularly walked past on the way to work that commemorated the 1944 V-2 attach on the New Cross Road branch of Woolworths. The novel is in part written in memory of the children who lost their lives as victims of a rocket. It is not about any particular child, but is a fitting epitaph for all of them.
Although the opening chapter is critical to the book, I had to read it several times before I understood and appreciated its place as a foundation for what was to follow. This is no doubt at least in part a reflection on the reviewer, but despite the fact by the end of the first chapter I was hooked, my disappointment in the opening persisted when I closed the back cover. If this happens to you, read on. It is worth the investment, although as I think back to my reading experience two weeks on, I realise I didn’t love any of the characters, and they are already fading for me. This might be a reflection of where I was when I read the story, or it might be that clever writing isn’t the same as engaging writing.
Denise Picton's new novel 'The Family String’ will be published by Ultimo Press June 2022.
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Melanie Safka Candles In The Rain 50th Anniversary Remastered (1970) by Victor Stranges
Melanie Anne Safka-Schekeryk (or more popularly known as “Melanie”) established herself as a bona fide performer in the folk clubs of Greenwich Village, New York, which led to her first recording contract with Columbia Records in the United States. She released two singles on the label and later signed to Buddah Records. She achieved some modest European chart success with songs released from her first two albums on Buddah but it was her performance at the Woodstock Festival in 1969 which paved her way into the mainstream consciousness. Melanie cites her inspiration for her first major hit in the U.S. (and Australia), "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)", from her spirited performance at Woodstock where audience members lit matches and lighters during her performance. She was instrumental in this future rock concert phenomenon of bringing candles to shows. That is until BIC launched their disposable lighter in
1973, which would take the place of candles from then on. "Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)" is a rousing song with gospel-style vocal accompaniment from the Edwin Hawkins Singers. Australian label, Possum Records, has just released a remastered version of the album which interestingly kicks off with the B-side of the single “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)", and it is also called “Candles In The Rain.” It is a spoken word recording and it channels, yet pre-dates, Patti Smith who found success some five years later in the early days of punk. This track could have easily been included on Smith’s debut album, “Horses.” It is an uncanny soundalike that really puts front and centre Melanie’s artistry and confidence as a poet. The songs on the album are mainly self-penned except for a couple of offerings. The James Taylor song about homesickness, “Carolina On My Mind,” gets a graceful treatment as does the Jagger/Richards song, “Ruby Tuesday.” In fact, “Ruby Tuesday” was her first U.K. hit but her version was not a direct rendering of the original in its phrasing. The singer slowly releases the words from her mouth yet somehow manages to catch up by the end of the chorus. v “Citiest People” is about the hard knocks of coming to New York City and how they left indelible character traits on the author’s life. It’s a slow melancholic ballad of which the title is tongue in cheek but not coming from a place of humour, but rather, pain. A string section comes and goes making a pronounced statement of its own and somehow befriends an innocent glockenspiel that marries the lyrical sentiment so well.
" To t h e c i t i e s t p e o p l e i n t h e w h o l e w i d e w o r l d Yo u ' v e b e e n u n k i n d t o a n u n - c i t y g i r l From the stone walls you grew So I'm not blaming you” - Citiest people
“What Have They To My Song Ma” is delightfully humorous, helped along by accordion, honky-tonk piano and some French lyrics to boot. A stark reminder that when you release an original song, anyone can cover it… for better or worse. An amusing fact is that this song was later covered by The New Seekers, without the irony. Look what they’ve done!
“Alexander Beetle” is a song about losing your pet beetle as can happen when your grandmother opens the matchbox it was stored in. “The Good Guys” is a study of character building using someone else’s personality and looks for the “outside walls”, but they “ haven't got a thing within.”
“Lovin’ Baby Girl” is a song about selling your wares as a musician and yet the subject could be applied to any employment situation that involves substituting a personal emotional connection for pay. “Leftover Wine” became a live favourite of Melanie for the vocal emotional doors it opens in the listeners mind. A meditative track if you want it to be. The spare arrangements from producer Peter Schekeryk were developed from a very close relationship with Melanie. In fact they were married in 1968 and were life long partners until his death in 2010. Melanie described their working relationship to Michael Dwyer from the Sydney Morning Herald while promoting Australian shows in 2018. "He was eastern European in that Phil Spector-ish way. He wasn't a monster and he never killed anybody but you know, he had this intensity that … I'm not sure where to go with that.… I was with this man for 45 years and we were linked completely as an artistic couple. I ran songs by him. I would run a line by him. He would tell me, 'That's a hit', or 'You should call it something else'. We bounced off each other in a way that, when that was no longer there, I saw who I was, all by myself.” “Candles In The Rain” is a far cry from much of today’s pop music where thoughtful introspection is not seen as a marketable feature in the main stream. Well it was a different time then and Melanie went on to sell over 80 million albums in the years that followed.
Melanie was invited by the lead singer of Pulp, Jarvis Cocker, to perform at the Meltdown Festival in 2007 at the Royal Festival Hall in London. The sold-out show had critics heaping praise on her performance. A fitting write up from the U.K. publication, The Independent, is quoted as saying, "it was hard to disagree that Melanie has earned her place alongside Joan Baez, Judy Collins, Joni Mitchell and Marianne Faithfull in the pantheon of iconic female singers. Meltdown was all the better for her presence." Her influence can be heard in countless performances and cover versions of her original songs including Mott The Hoople, Greta Van Fleet, Dolly Parton, Todd Rundgren and Ray Charles. Her songs have been sampled including “Do You Believe?" which appeared on Phoniks’ remix of Wu-Tang Clan’s "Back In The Game." Today Melanie is not necessarily one the most recognisable names in pop history but for the modern day chanteuse or songwriting fan, “Candles In The Wind” is a ‘must listen to’ album for its charm, humour, wordplay, sincerity and storytelling.
MANAGER'S PERSPECTIVE by Nathan Brenner “All animals streams are equal, but some animals streams are more equal than others.” Paraphrase - George Orwell, Animal Farm how much do streaming services pay artists in 2021?
Another hiccup in my month, so next month the final Gig article, as I’ve had many questions regarding Online Streaming Rates, how big or small they are, how many sales does it take to make $100.00 or even $10.00? So let’s look at this year’s rates, overall. DSP Streaming (Digital Streaming Platform) ‘officially’ state that there is an established payment between $US0.003 and $US0.0084 per stream, with an average payout of $0.004 per stream… (But)
Firstly, and it should come as no surprise, Spotify the No. 1 streamer (36% of market share and counted 286 million monthly active users in Q1 2020, 1 million streams will net an artist in the $US3,000-$US6,000 range) has over 800 payout systems. So for them, plus Tidal, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and Deezer, etc. there is NO FIXED PAY PER STREAM RATE. Core variables include listeners, country, currency rates, and time of day, if the streamer is on a free platform, ad-supported type, subscription, premium, special, high-quality stream, promotional, bonus stream, if distributed by a third party - their ‘rate’, pricing, and discount; the list goes on and on.
According to Forbes: “… For 1 million plays of a song, artists receive roughly the following payout from these streaming services: Amazon Music $5,000; Apple Music $5,000-$5,500; Google Play $12,000; Pandora $1,400; YouTube $1,700….” Here’s a current Streaming Music Royalty Calculator:
Streaming music royalty calculator
The comprehensive concern is of course the manipulation of artist royalties as the transparency and verification of them is beyond the purview of most creators. If history is the yardstick, precedent indicates that the artist gets the short end of the financial stick, especially in an opaque system. The ‘winners’ in this scenario are the streamers and the major labels. Of course, there's more concern with the introduction of Al or 'engineered filtration units.
At the core of all streaming services is the big ‘influencer’, the Algorithm Recommender. Though more obviously found at the heart of personalised playlists, it extends to ‘discovery’ elements such as those associated to pitch songs to a streamer’s personalised playlist in the passive form, what it (or other big brother types) deem as ‘similar content’, the ones showcased near your selection, you’re listening to or looking at. (YouTube). On YouTube, recommendations represent 70% of the total time users spend on the platform. So let’s break it down a bit more. Believe Digital (2020) estimates streaming from your own playlists or searching for your favourite album or artist; 68% of total streams are streamer driven, 14% of streams are algorithmic driven, and 10% editorial driven. So the idea could be, as an artist, to obtain access via, algorithmic, then editorial to streamer driven (passive), and then streamer driven ‘active’ (choice). Content or behavioural similarities are the entry door data points.
These overarching techniques are core to the recommendation systems and they work like this:
Article: Collaberative FILTERING Editorial can take the form, as exampled, what Spotify offered up in 2004: Music recommendations @ MLConf 2014
Article: music reccomendations New artists and releases have difficulty hitching a ride with any of these ‘recommendation systems’ Algorithms. This is commonly known as ‘the cold start’ problem.
First order of business to hurdle this, is to complete the basic bureaucratic information requirements when you submit your compositions/songs to ‘distributors (aka metadata) that you should have already registered with APRA/PPCA, etc. see (insert 1st article link). So, title, label/self, main genre, secondary genre, lyrics, release date ISRC number etc. This is ultra important as it identifies you and your songs and their classifications across the streaming service landscapes. Once directly registered, you’re in the streaming Algorithm platform maelstrom, affected by the provider’s content analysing system that expands your basic data. Your songs, their digital DNA are analysed as raw data, tagged with narrow content markers that generate content similarity recommendations.
Some ways to ‘encourage’ this Algorithmic system are to identify ‘lateral acts’, ones you the artist have an affinity with your sonically creative neighbours. Get your fans to develop playlists that feature these artists, the more the better. This helps ‘Algy’ understand your‘ position’ in the genre sweepstakes. Additionally, there are weeklydeveloped playlists and suggestions from the Streamers, built to encourage engagement. Get on those. There’s also the social network search and input Algorithmic system, where you link your playlist or write about your record and your liking of the lateral artist. A little more than half of those on streaming services say that this Algorithmic Analysis is becoming the primary source of their music discovery. As example, learn about Spotify AI:
ARticle: Spotify ai Naturally, these can be plugged into touring, live tracks, and adjunct to merchandise competitions, raising the profile, the number of mentions on the net.
The bottom line is that with every new technology Artists get the shaft; from the earliest commercial medium for recording and reproducing sound (1896 – 1915) to Acetate Disc (misnamed as it’s actually an aluminium disc coated with nitrocellulose lacquer) to Vinyl, to Compact Disk, to a stumbling variety of tapes, cassette, DAT, then mini-disc, on and on… Then there’s the marketing aspect of juicing up streaming sales, another matter deserving attention. Earlier this year the UK Parliament looked into streaming and came out the other end with milquetoast responses, leading nowhere and generally just kicking the problem down the road referring it to their ACCC, assuring that nothing much will ever happen. Here’s what 150 musicians signed up to and asked the UK government:
musicians union on twitter The story of how this all came to be can be sourced via this interesting Research Article:
Article: is streaming bad for musicians?
In each era of technological evolution, cost decrease in production and distribution benefiting Record Companies with artist royalties deteriorating to now; the lowest they have ever been, with streaming. Unions, Artists ‘representative’ groups, manager’s representatives, State based music industry groups, the usual suspect have done little; that’s beyond discussion; clearly the results of their advocacy is no change, same as it ever was…. One thing that still has the most positive uplifting effect, the live show, the wonder of performing, the great gig in the sky.. one with the audience, where you get paid and earn from Merchandise, on the spot…. so next month let's get some tips…
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music music quiz quiz Some of the most iconic bands operated under a previous identity. See if you can pick the band or group (right) by their original name (left). Heads up, some of them are pretty cringey.
B lon die d uck tape N irvan a s m ile Rad i ohe ad f re e b ee r Le d z e pp el in the tea set C old pl ay warsaw t h e cure t h e rat t l e s n ak e s U2 s tarfi sh Bare nak e d l adie s o n a fri day Goo Go o Do lls a ng el & t h e s n ak e b li nk 182 p e n c ap c he w que e n t h e pe n d le tone s Bee Gees t h e vi ll age id i ot s p in k floyd t h e pri me t t e s T H E S up re me s to uch e arth w in d and f ire t h e ne w yard b ird s t h e cl as h t h e obe lis k s im on an d garf unk e l to m an d j e rry va n h ale n r at sal ad j oy d ivi sio n t h e salt y p e ppe rs T H E b each boys t h e we ak he art d rop s Ni ck e lbac k t h e se x m aggots S pic e G irls t h e h ype
an sw ers ns we Blondie- Angel and the snake Nirvana- pen cap chew Radiohead- on a Friday Led zeppelin- the new yardbirds Coldplay- starfish the cure- the obelisk U2- the hype Bare naked ladies- free beer goo goo dolls- the sex maggots blink 182- duck tape queen- smile
Bee GEes- THE rattlesnakes pink floyd- the tea set THE Supremes- the primettes earth wind and fire- the salty peppers the clash- the weak heart drops simon and garfunkel- tom and jerry van halen- rat salad joy division- Warsaw THE beach boys- THE Pendletones Nickelback- the village idiots Spice Girls- touch
no thankyou.....
SMILE PEN CAP CHEW
INTIMATE MUSIC LOU NGE