Marlon Williams and The Yarra Benders @ Howler, Melbourne, 20.11.2017
Here in Australia we love to claim New Zealanders, especially musicians, as our own. It’s pretty safe to say that we’d kill to brag about Marlon Williams being an Aussie. I mean, he was based in Melbourne for a while. Let’s face it, he’s a prodigy. A rare vocal genius and still only 26 years […]
A Passion Unstated but Deeply Felt: Beaches’ ‘Second of Spring’
There are few Australian groups which can truly grasp the mind-manifesting ideas of the psychedelic sound and its underpinning ethos but Beaches are an act that consistently strikes the anvil on its head. A collection of members from well-known Melbournian acts with a few more extra hands thrown in, the five-piece have retained a lengthy […]
Sigur Rós @ Margaret Court Arena, 27.07.2017
Although it’s almost five years since Sigur Rós last played in Melbourne, memories of the second ‘Harvest’ festival remain strong. Back in November 2012, Sigur Rós headlined a brilliant line up on the great lawn sprawling before the historic Werribee Mansion. That night was perfect and emotionally resonant. My partner didn’t make that festival; he […]
Xiu Xiu Plays The Music of Twin Peaks @ The Substation, Newport, 23.06.2017
For a moment, when technical difficulties intrude, Jamie Stewart’s mask slips. “Sometimes, all you can do is just fucking start over” he offers to the crowd at Melbourne’s electrical-warehouse-come-arty-locale The Substation. It’s only song two of the evening, but Stewart’s missed vocal entrance is easily forgiven – given the scope of the evening, it’s a […]
The Specials @ Melbourne Zoo, 11.03.2017
Storm clouds threaten but never come close to snuffing out the enthusiasm of the crowd at Melbourne Zoo for what is the ultimate gig in this year’s Zoo Twilights series. It’s been five years since The Specials last toured Australia and the fans are more than appreciative of the balmy Saturday evening and happy vibe […]
SOTD #751 – The Pink Tiles
However your 14 February is going, bringing you all or the joy you hoped/expected or being just another day of abject disappointment, think of today’s Song of the Day as our valentine to you. Remember, here at Collapse Board we’re lovers not haters.
Poliça + Jaala @ Melbourne Recital Centre, 31.05.2016
I spent the first few minutes of Polica’s set at the Melbourne Recital Centre wondering whether or not this whole ‘sitting down’ thing was going to work for a band that, as I understood them, thumped and grooved enough in a way that might warrant a little boogie. Sitting down seems so academic, so chin […]
The Stranglers @ Corner Hotel, Melbourne, 20.04.2016
By Venita Munir It’s been over a decade since I last saw legendary punk outfit The Stranglers play, so it’s with keen interest that I rock up at Melbourne’s Corner Hotel to see them in their most recent incarnation. The gig is a sell-out, the crowd mainly middle-aged men. I wonder how many used to […]
Gregor – Thoughts and Faults (Chapter Music)
There’s two videos on the YouTube page of Melbourne lo-fi pop fellow Gregor. One of them is him sitting behind a Yamaha keyboard playing a twinkly pop tune, and the other is entitled ‘stylised trout response’, or to use the video’s description, “a romanticised look at how the movement of swimming trout might be translated […]
The Decemberists @ Hamer Hall, Melbourne, 29.03.2016
By Venita Munir For the second time in a month I find myself ‘down by the water’ for a show at Melbourne’s Hamer Hall, and for the second time in a month, it’s not to see the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. First it was Calexico, now The Decemberists, an indie folk-rock band from Portland, Oregon. Being […]
