Fortitude Music Hall Opening Party, 26.07.2019
It had the hype. The media was all over it. Radio or TV, turn on either and you couldn’t escape the coverage. The opening of the Fortitude Valley Music Hall was an event. But it wasn’t just a happening for the city’s musical community. It was a bigger moment, one which made a statement about […]
Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever @ The Triffid, Brisbane, 24.04.2019
In an imagined universe where The Go-Betweens’ ‘Apology Accepted’ was a hit single or The Velvet Underground ran all the way to the top of the charts the week it was released, a band like Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever would be king. It’s not that I want to peg them as cult just yet – you could […]
Beach House @ The Tivoli, 26.02.2019
Beach House’s Music Is About Escape
I like Beach House. The older records hold up, they seem to have the strength of resisting time. At their best moments Beach House transcend, pushing aside labels and cliché they touch upon white-hot moments of feeling and the spaces between. And just to go back on that earlier point, Beach House have been around […]
Laneway Festival 2019 @ RNA Showgrounds, Brisbane, 02.02.2019
Walk in. Methyl Ethel. Jake Webb strikes his guitar. Sings. ‘Scream Whole’ then ‘Ubu’.People babble, cry, drink and jump. Excitement. Exit shade of tent. Sun, heat. Vendors sweat. Boys lean on grandstand rails. Girls walk on the concourse, arms linked. Most sit,a sea of crossed legs and bobbing heads on green grass. Seeking excitement. Find […]
Gizzfest 2017 @ RNA Showgrounds, Brisbane, 18.11.2017
Rain. Wiping a small ocean away from my face I make peace with the realisation that this year’s Gizzfest isn’t something to be attempted sober. I slide a drink out of my pocket and into my mouth, wincing. Alright. Okay. All good, some pitch shifting reggaeton chugs out from the radio from a car that […]
The Melvins + Red Kross @ Crowbar, Brisbane, 10.11.2017
Here’s a true story. The Melvins play Crowbar Friday night. Supporting them are Red Kross. Equally notorious, these Californians pave their contemporaries’ way with languid metal and throttling punk. A thundering performance comes littered with time-honoured rock gestures, power pop hooks and plenty of lose-your-shit moments. As the Melvins take the stage I’m reminded of […]
Beaches @ The Foundry, Brisbane, 28.10.2017
Within a digital world celebrating the polarising extremities of the bright and obvious, something a little denser or opaque can cut across as a refreshing concept. An occasional shot of capital-A-for-Art artifice can be a welcome diversion. Author’s Note: I’m not sure why I’m analogising Beaches to progressive rock but here we are. Tracks like […]
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 […]
NO ZU @ QAGOMA, 01.09.2017
NO ZU are a group which is difficult to pin down. Reaching into a rich history of dance music obscurity with magpie mentality they combine the deep cuts of disco-funk, no-wave, and worldbeat with their own inventive ideas. The result is something you can’t quite put your finger on but is instantly danceable. Live they […]
Kirin J Callinan @ The Foundry, Brisbane, 09.06.2017
The story of Kirin J Callinan post-Mercy Arms has been remarkable without question. In the wake of 2013’s Embracism, his following and reputation have undeniably grown. Yet for anyone with a greater interest in sweeping statements of musical identity than drip feeds of social media content, there’s creeping question that, as well loved and enmeshed […]
