The advertising will tell you that Brisbane's BIGSOUND is all about a whole lot of music, played by whole lot of bands, at a whole lot of venues over a whole lot of nights. And it is. But there is a deeper subtext to the festival — it's a deliberate symposium of an important cross-section of 'the music industry'. Music label representatives, radio producers, agents, artists, producers and even lawyers descend upon the Valley in an expedition to unearth and support Australian talent. BIGSOUND 2017 had an especially broad and eclectic showcase this year, guaranteeing no two punters had the exact same experience. But, in an attempt to compress four nights worth of amazing performances into a list, here's the ten most kickass, going places artists we came across. [caption id="attachment_636231" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Bec Taylor.[/caption] BOAT SHOW Boat Show might be one of the most important bands that played BIGSOUND this year. They've opened for San Cisco and Pond, yet still haven't reached the acclaim one would expect for possibly the best punk band in Australia at the moment. Punk — not post-punk. Boat Show don't just play sharp and sweet compressed guitar lines with nonsense lyrics about petty modern gripes. Boat Show are angry, and their tracks are poignant, feminist anthems about the many patriarchal constructs in society that need to change — and the energy Boat Show brought to Heya Bar made the entire audience embrace the notion that it can be achieved. Lead singer Ali Flintoff jumped from amp to amp, got amongst the crowd, and demanded to be heard. She even approached the lanyard-wearing audience members and made a public, ironic, and hilarious attempt to 'network'. Boat Show has big things ahead of them. [caption id="attachment_636279" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Bec Taylor.[/caption] OH MERCY Oh Mercy aren't exactly undiscovered as such — they've been around since 2008, have four studio albums under their belt and an ARIA. But the aesthetic of Oh Mercy, canvassing both the ensemble and the sound of the band, is perpetual, and the band we saw at BIGSOUND 2017 seemed to resemble a contemporary take on Brit-Pop, with some remnant of resemblance to the Hoodoo Gurus. The founding member Alexander Gow took to the Woolly Mammoth stage looking like a dashing Garth Marenghi with his leather jacket, and sung of love and heartbreak in that way only an acoustic guitar-playing front man can. His backing ensemble was tight and rich, and it was evident Gow had complete faith in his band, and this afforded him the complete freedom to engage with the audience in an authentic way. [caption id="attachment_636239" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Bec Taylor.[/caption] DONNY BENET There's nothing about Donny Benet and his big band that doesn't scream '80s, with his killer saxophone solos, rippling, almost ironic synth tones and endless hip movement. Benet himself might have been one of the most personable performers at BIGSOUND. At both his shows he danced with the crowd and was seen around the Valley inviting people to rub his bald head. A man you could call the king of anachronistic fashion (a heavily contested title amongst the BIGSOUND crowd), he was a favourite for photo opportunities, and embraced the role with relish. His songs are sensual synth-pop anthems detailing sexual ballads, all homages to the age of shoulder pads and powersuits. As a musician, Benet is doing something no-one else is in Australia is — and as a live-act he's wickedly fun. [caption id="attachment_636252" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Bec Taylor.[/caption] SLOW DANCER Slow Dancer (Simon Okely), along with Didirri and Stella Donnelly, completed the trio of the most beautiful, simplistic artists at BIGSOUND 2017. His whispered anthems and minimal instrumentation made for one of the most heartwarming sets of the festival. His music is deeply thought-provoking — best listened to with closed eyes, prompting reflection on childhood memories and lost loves. His set at the Blackbear Lodge was one of the last acts of night one of the festival, and the crowd sat absorbed in an appreciative silence. [caption id="attachment_636230" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Bec Taylor.[/caption] BIG WHITE Big White is Australia's answer to Pavement, almost two decades later. Their distinct jangle rock filled The Zoo on the second day of BIGSOUND to a solid crowd. The five-piece seem to be an ensemble in the truest meaning of the word, a single pulsing organism working as one to produce technically fanciful yet fun music. Their almost ineffable stage demeanour is that of a band of brothers (and sister), and is one expressed well by their music. While they haven't made the festival headlines yet, if their insanely dedicated fanbase keeps growing as they are, it won't be long before Big White are an established name in the national scene. [caption id="attachment_636255" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Bec Taylor.[/caption] BRIGHTNESS There is a certain kind of band where someone can listen to the lead singer and think "gosh, I hope he's okay". Such are the lyrics of Brightness. Lead singer Alex Knight conducts his backing ensemble as an iconoclastic figurehead. His sound is an angry indie-rock but the resounding authenticity of the sound lies in Knight's acoustic guitar and gripping vocals. One only needs to listen to their hit single 'Oblivion' to perfectly understand the allure of Brightness. Simple lead guitar and bass lines (usually played on one string) create a musical vacuum in which Knight's art is free to grow and dominate the stage. [caption id="attachment_636258" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Bec Taylor.[/caption] DIDIRRI Like Slow Dancer, Didirri was one of the more acoustic, meditative sets of BIGSOUND. Comparable to Slow Dancer's beautiful lyrics and stage presence, and Stella Donnelly's endearing modesty, Didirri is a natural performer. Even when only using a nylon-string guitar, Didirri, in his recordings and in his live performances, fills all spaces in an uncanny way. Didirri might actually be magical — or a great vocalist, multi-instrumentalist and gripping storyteller, at the least. [caption id="attachment_636248" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Bec Taylor.[/caption] MADDY JANE Maddy Jane's entry on the Spotify BIGSOUND playlist was 'No Other Way', a dole-wave, blues pop hit that's fiercely catchy and reminiscent of Courtney Barnett. With interesting guitar lines and endearingly peculiar lyrics, one might have expected her BIGSOUND sets (of which she played an above-average, three) to mimic Barnett. But her sets were far beyond this scope. Maddy Jane's musical prowess, lyricism, and engaging stage presence is amazing for someone of only 22 years old. Both Jane and her band seem to truly enjoy performing, and the audience of 256 Wickham couldn't help but get on board with this compelling energy. [caption id="attachment_636225" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Bec Taylor.[/caption] BAKER BOY A lot is said about Australia's hip hop and rap scene, and most of what is said is generally valid criticism. Which is why talented Australian rappers are such diamonds in the rough and usually cause a good deal of excitement. Based on Baker Boy's set at Oh Hello! on the second day of BIGSOUND, he's an Australian rapper to get very, very excited about. This 20-year-old artist is from remote Northern Territory and he is doing everything right — poignant lyrics (some of which he sings in the language of his people, the Yolgnu), a bit of didgeridoo, and the best dance moves of BIGSOUND. Baker Boy told the crowd we could expect new music from him shortly — so look out for that. [caption id="attachment_636263" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Bec Taylor.[/caption] STELLA DONNELLY Stella Donnelly was one of the last acts of BIGSOUND. This may have been a deliberate choice as her performance was nothing short of emotionally draining (in the best conceivable way). She is an endearingly human performer and engages her audience in frank conversation. She committed herself fully to her performance at the Heya Bar, from crossing her eyes when she hit her high notes, to throwing her body into each and every rhythmic beat. With only an electric guitar and a microphone as her instruments, every member of the crowd was moved by Donnelly's performance, laughing and even crying together as a single presence. In the course of half an hour she sung little comedic ditties, and deeply heartbreaking ballads — an especially impressive juxtaposition to her equally striking work as the rhythm guitarist for Boatshow. Go listen to her stuff.
It's such a shame David Bowie's not around to see this. Sydney installation artist Michaela Gleave has come up with an app that translates constellations into musical scores so you can 'play' the stars above you. Wherever you are in the world, at anytime of night, A Galaxy of Suns can read your geolocation and plays the music it transcribes from the constellations within your view. But don't expect space to sound like Ziggy Stardust or Sun Ra. Instead, the app reads the galaxy as though it's a score. The transposing — which has been years in the making — was a collaboration between Gleave, composer Amanda Cole and programmer Warren Armstrong. What's more, every 'song' comes with a matching light display, choreographed according to the stars' movements, as they rise, cross the sky and set. Gleave launched the A Galaxy of Stars app at Dark Mofo's Dark Park this month, where the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra helped to bring the night sky's songs to life. She'll be doing a similar performance with the Bristol Choir at the Bristol Biennial in September this year for the work's international premiere. But you don't need a choir to do this thing. You can download the app for yourself via iTunes (for iOS) or Google Play (for Android).
Sex and horror movies go so well together, but it never turns out good for anybody. Despite being the most deviant of genres — kids have been sneaking into gory flicks for as long as there have been cinemas, plus slasher movie sleepovers and late-night screenings of cult classics have been corrupting young minds for generation after generation — these gruesome films sure do have some old-fashioned attitudes to this most natural of human interactions. Here are eight films that have given us something to think about when it comes to scary cinema and what goes on between the sheets. IT FOLLOWS Last year it was The Babadook, but 2015’s must-see horror film is this chic American indie, perhaps the ultimate culmination of cinema’s warnings about sex. When small-town beauty Jay (Maika Monroe) sleeps with her boyfriend, little does she know that he is passing along to her a sexually transmitted haunting. The only way to stop this mysterious, shape-shifting being from slowly and methodically hunting her down is to have sex with somebody else and pass it along. It sounds loopy, but it works, and is super scary to boot, as Jay and her friends must not only outrun her supernatural infection, but weigh up the moral and bodily obligations of irresponsibly sending somebody else to their potential doom. It echoes with a throbbing synth-driven score that would make John Carpenter smile, and never lets the audience question its ridiculous conceit. It Follows is in cinemas nationally on April 16. GINGER SNAPS The 2001 teen-horror flick Ginger Snaps takes a trope as old as the hills — this time lycanthropy — and injects it with a heavy dose of subversive smarts. Director John Fawcett essentially made 'Puberty: The Horror Movie' in this energetic and entertaining horror comedy, presenting the terror of adulthood and its horrific body-altering effects in a terrifyingly new way. Brings new meaning to the old menstruation euphemism, “the curse”. SCREAM The characters in Wes Craven’s 1996 bloody whodunit have seen all the horror movies and know all the tricks, including that “sex equals death”. So when Sidney (Neve Campbell) loses her virginity to bad boy high school boyfriend Billy (Skeet Ulrich) and lives to tell the tale, it effectively flipped the script on horror conventions that audiences had come to expect. Unfortunately for poor Randy (Jamie Kennedy), who was “happy to be a virgin” after surviving the genre-reviving slayings, he went to college in the sequel and found out the hard way that some traditions are hard to keep down. VIDEODROME The term “body horror” was around long before Canadian auteur David Cronenberg made his first forays into filmmaking, but his unique brand of frights popularised the term. Perhaps never was he more warped than in Videodrome, which is about a television executive who broadcasts a Malaysian program that he believes to be staged snuff (the real torture and murder of anonymous victims), but which leads him down a dangerous path that includes his own torso becoming a sexually suggestive VCR player. Hallucinogenic and bravely surreal, this 1983 film not only demands audiences confront the increasingly techno-oriented world of sex, but asks us to question their own desire for the sexualised violence made so popular in films of the era. HALLOWEEN Virginal high school student and babysitter Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) can’t even get a date let alone sleep around, which makes her perfect for John Carpenter’s groundbreaking 1974 slasher, Halloween. Every one of Laurie’s friends are dispatched as easily as they take their tops off, but Laurie puts up one hell of a fight in this and the sequel Halloween II. It wasn’t until 1998’s Halloween H20 that a sexual Laurie Strode (now Keri Tate, single mother and private school principal) battles Michael Myers and lives to see another day. Well, until the sequel Halloween: Resurrection, wherein she plummets to her death from the roof of an insane asylum. The slasher movie’s sex = death rule found even stronger adherence in the never-ending Friday the 13th franchise, which began in 1980. ROSEMARY’S BABY If you’re sick and tired of explaining why you don’t want to have children, just reference Roman Polanski’s film about a young woman who believes there is a witch’s coven in her fancy new Manhattan apartment building and that they’re planning on having her birth Satan’s baby. That’s messed up! This scandalous creeper classic is every expectant mother’s worst nightmare. Just six months after the film’s release, Polanski and then-wife Sharon Tate would discover they were expecting a child, but no amount of Hollywood horrors could prepare him for the violent events that followed. PSYCHO Alfred Hitchcock’s iconic 1960 Oscar-nominated horror begins with a cheating couple lounging in their risque underwear in post-coital bliss. Not even five minutes in and already audiences of the day were aware they were seeing something new and different, including a heroine who was a thief with dubious sexual morals. But when Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) strips down to take a shower in the unassuming Bates Motel, she gets her comeuppance. Smartly playing with audience expectations, Psycho shocked crowds and gave karma a wicked name. NOSFERATU Vampires have always been a much sexualised villain. Whether it’s the teen sexual angst of Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the after-dark strip club employees of Vamp, the art of seduction is key to the nature of being a vampire. And so despite its age, it’s not surprising that FW Murnau’s 1922 gothic horror Nosferatu, a blatantly unauthorised adaptation of Dracula, is full of it, too. In the film’s famous climax, the female heroine, Ellen (Greta Schroder), uses her goodness of heart and distracting beauty to hold the nefarious Count Orlok at bay just long enough to see him stung by the rays of the morning sun, ultimately brought down by his need for sex (aka the drinking of her blood) from a virtuous woman.
A number of prominent Australian musicians, including Little May, Montaigne, Ngaiire and Abbe May, are uniting through social media in order to throw their support behind International Breast Cancer Awareness month. The I Touch Myself Project was inspired by the 1990 hit song by Australian rock band Divinyls, whose lead singer Chrissy Amphlett died from breast cancer in 2013. The campaign was originally launched by the Cancer Council in 2014, with the likes of Megan Washington, Sarah Blasko and Olivia Newton John collaborating on a music video to encourage women to check themselves for the disease. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FeaO2BrrIf8 Now the campaign has been resurrected by a new group of female artists, who have taken to Instagram to share photos of themselves holding their breasts in their hands and encouraging other women to do the same, using the hashtag #itouchmyselfproject. "Every year, hundreds and thousands of women die from treatable breast cancer, simply because they are diagnosed too late," posted the members of Little May. "In memory of the late legend, Chrissy Amphlett, we have joined friends @ngaiire @actualmontaigne @katysteele @abbemayzing to touch ourselves as she had asked." Every year, hundreds and thousands of women die from treatable breast cancer, simply because they are diagnosed too late. In memory of the late legend, Chrissy Amphlett, we have joined friends @ngaiire @actualmontaigne @katysteele @abbemayzing to touch ourselves as she had asked. The Divinyls 'I Touch Myself' is now an anthem for the early detection of breast cancer. For International Breast Cancer Awareness month take a picture of your own hand bra, and tag 5 of your friends to do the same.. @becsandridge @catalish @ella_hooper @lexi_b__ @jessicahamiltn #myhandbra #itouchmyselfproject @itouchmyselfproject A photo posted by Little May (@littlemaymusic) on Oct 3, 2016 at 8:54pm PDT Every year, hundreds of women die from treatable breast cancer, simply because they are diagnosed too late. @actualmontaigne @abbemayzing @katysteele , @littlemaymusic and I have stepped out in our hand bras in honour of the late Chrissy Amphlett who wanted her song 'I Touch Myself' to be an anthem for spreading the awareness of touching ourselves for early detection. Spread the word this Breast Cancer Awareness Month by taking a pic of your own hand bra and tagging 5 of your friends to do the same. Will you touch yourself @beemcsee @haileycramer @julianedisisto @summerpagaspas @mamikoyo @vassi_lena ? #myhandbra #itouchmyselfproject #ngaiire A photo posted by N G A I I R E (@ngaiire) on Oct 3, 2016 at 7:07pm PDT Chrissy Amphlett did a wonderful thing before the world lost her to breast cancer, and that was to make sure she was doing the most she could to avail women of a similar fate. I am proud to be a part of the #itouchmyselfproject and to raise awareness of breast cancer alongside a plethora of other excellent women and @berleiaus. I touch myself for breast cancer awareness. Will you? Photographed by the amazing Tony Mott! A photo posted by Montaigne (@actualmontaigne) on Oct 4, 2016 at 2:08am PDT Every year, hundreds and thousands of women die from treatable breast cancer, simply because they are diagnosed too late. In memory of the late legend, Chrissy Amphlett, I am humbled to join friends @ngaiire @actualmontaigne @littlemaymusic @abbemayzing to touch ourselves as she had asked. The Divinyls 'I Touch Myself' is now an anthem for the early detection of breast cancer. For International Breast Cancer Awareness month take a picture of your own hand bra, and tag 5 of your friends to do the same.. @tanzertanzertanzer @leelulahula @sezzyfilmy @wheelsanddollbaby @jaala_bandthing Photo by #tonymott @itouchmyselfproject #itouchmyself #myhandbra A photo posted by Kａt y S t e e l e (@katysteele) on Oct 4, 2016 at 3:02am PDT Every year, hundreds of women die from treatable breast cancer, simply because they are diagnosed too late. The great @ngaiire, @actualmontaigne, @katysteele , @littlemaymusic and I have stepped out in our hand bras in honour of the late Chrissy Amphlett who wanted her song 'I Touch Myself' to be an anthem for spreading the awareness of touching ourselves for early detection. Spread the word this Breast Cancer Awareness Month by taking a pic of your own hand bra and tagging 5 of your friends to do the same. #itouchmyselfproject #myhandbra Photo taken by the radical Tony Mott. A photo posted by Abbe May (@abbemayzing) on Oct 3, 2016 at 7:10pm PDT
After a string of applauded festival appearances, these Swedish sisters appear to have fallen in love with life in Australia. Johanna and Klara Soderberg, the angelic pair behind folk act First Aid Kit, are set to hit stages for shows along the east coast this week. Captivating fans with their dreamy, heartfelt harmonies, these two certainly know how to pull a crowd. First venturing to Australia in July last year for Splendour in the Grass, First Aid Kit are about to embark upon their largest Australian tour yet. Audiences can expect to be greeted with the duo's signature spine-tingling vocals and melodic arrangements. Featuring a fresh offering of tracks from their recent album Stay Gold (the pair's third released to date), these shows promise gorgeous acoustic storytelling, with a dash of classic country Americana. With dates in Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney (supported by Melbourne indie duo Luluc), and after glowing reports of their sets at Golden Plains and WOMADelaide earlier this year, First Aid Kit will leave you wondering who wrote 'America' in the first place.
If you head to Mr Chester Wine Bar & Bistro's website, you'll be greeted with a simple, bold statement — "What a wine bar should be!". And we have to admit, whoever wrote that is bang on. Everything to love about wine bars, be it the ambient lighting, simple European fare, unpretentious staff and soft background jazz, they've got it. Oh, and the wine. They've got that too, thankfully, in barrel-loads. The focus here is on Aussie and New Zealand winemakers, while a few from beyond our shores also make the list. It doesn't matter if it's a young gun trying to reinvent chardonnay (again!) or a seasoned winemaker who remembers the days when you couldn't get wine by the glass in Australia; if you're good enough, you'll make it on the list. Like all good wine bars, the list is constantly evolving at Mr Chester Wine Bar & Bistro. Still, as we write this, some of the highlights of the whites include a Skipjack sauvignon blanc from Marlborough, a Mandi 2021 pinot grigio from the Murray Darling and a gorgeous grenache-blanc from Terra Alta, Italy. If you're keen on rosés, try its chilled blend of saparavi, sangiovese, verdelho and semillon. If red is more your vibe, look towards the Unico Zelo grenache blend for something medium-light, while a big hearty Barossa shiraz makes the list from Torzi Matthews. And like all good wine bars in Brisbane, the food here is also next-level. And the options here are primarily classic Mediterranean dishes and share plates — think arancini with bacon and semi-dried tomato or the baked camembert with pistachio crumb and truffle honey for something small. There is also a range of pizzas, with the diavola on point — featuring tomato, fior di latte and soppressata. Pasta dishes include a gorgeous squid ink linguine, while there's just one dessert — a white chocolate cheesecake that is worth the visit alone. You can easily pop by Mr Chester Wine Bar & Bistro to simply have some dessert and a nightcap.
There's a reason that flexing, the rhythmic street dance style from Brooklyn that has gained traction over the past decade, is also known as bone breaking. Just one glimpse of the performer's gliding, contortionist movements and you'll be wondering how their limbs remain intact. At the aptly named FLEXN, however, something else will set your jaw agape. Flex pioneer Reggie 'Regg Roc' Gray and theatre and opera director Peter Sellars have corralled a cohort of dancers use their moves to tackle post-Ferguson social injustice. In their pausing, snapping and other energetic dance displays, a beautiful, brutal statement is made.
At this point, it's not really a surprise when Uber announces some strange, attention grabbing promotion. Sometimes they bring you ice cream. Other times, it's kittens. And this Australia Day, they're delivering the most Australian thing of all: an umpire to officiate your high stakes game of backyard cricket. Starting from 11am on January 26, Uber users in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide and Canberra will be able to log onto the app and, with the touch of a button, request an UberUMPIRE who can lay down the law when it to comes to the at best sketchily laid out rules of the countries favourite backyard pastime. "Like so many great traditions, the official ‘rules’ of this revered sport have long been a cause of debate, testing the patience (and mateship) of well-meaning backyard athletes across the nation," reads a statement on Uber's website, confirming that yes, this is in fact an actual thing that is happening. "We thought it was about time someone put a stop to this, so we’ve joined forces with the legendary Billy Bowden and our mates at Optus to bring you UberUMPIRE – your very own, real-life, legit, Cricket Umpire on-demand." https://youtu.be/7Gxi6TKtVFk Via Pedestrian. Image via Dollar Photo Club.
The world now has unprecedented access to Australia's most recognisable landmark, after the launch of a new partnership between the Sydney Opera House and the Google Cultural Institute. More than 1000 historical items, including photographs and architectural drawings, have been made available online as part of the new digital collection, along with a virtual reality tour featuring some of Australia's leading classical musicians. Developed over more than six months, the online exhibition can be accessed by anyone with an internet connection, providing them with a behind the scenes look at one of the most iconic performance in the world. Archival footage, interviews, photographs and other documents take visitors through the history of the building's design and construction, but perhaps the most exciting element of the collection is the 360-degree tour for Google Cardboard, complete with performances by young Australian soprano Nicole Car, and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra in rehearsal on the Concert Hall stage. "The Sydney Opera House is the symbol of modern Australia, its premier cultural venue, number one tourist destination and a World Heritage-listed masterpiece of human creativity," said NSW Deputy Premier and Minister for the Arts Troy Grant. "The launch of this incredible collection will mean more people can explore the Opera House's rich history and the diverse artistic and cultural experiences it offers, wherever they are." "We're delighted to have worked with the Sydney Opera House to bring this cultural icon online and make it available for all the world to experience," added Google Cultural Institute Director Amit Sood. You can access the Sydney Opera House on the Google Cultural Institute via desktop, tablet or mobile. Just visit the Google Cultural Institute's Sydney Opera House page or download the Google Arts & Culture app from the App Store or Google Play.
Home wine delivery is finally catching up with the wine fiend’s need to sample as many drops from as many places as often as possible. A new US-based service by the name of Vinebox brings wines to your door — by the glass, rather than by the bottle. For a neat monthly price, subscribers score three premium drops, sourced from wine regions all over the planet. Fingers crossed for an Australian version. Each tasting comes in the form of a 100ml vial. Thanks to Vinebox’s patented, cutting-edge tech, the packaging process meets the stringent standards demanded by bottling. The wine is not exposed to oxygen at any point, so you can store your samples for at least three years. Vinebox’s team of specialists and sommeliers are experts in unique vineyards, obscure locations and wines that wouldn’t normally be available in the US, so subscribers can count on fun and interesting discoveries. And the company provides your own user account, enabling you to keep track of your tastings and thoughts. Once Vinebox has established your preferred flavour profiles, you can choose to receive personalised recommendations — very much like this savvy taste-predicting app. So who dreamed up this handy service? Vinebox is the creation of two former attorneys from New York City, Matt and Rachael, who quit their jobs to pursue their passion for wine. Their goal is to promote “spectacular” wines made in independent wineries around the world that often don’t make it to bottle shop shelves. Unfortunately, Vinebox is only taking sign-ups from US residents at the moment. We’re hoping it’s not long before it catches on here.
Cities make possible the suspension of night and day. With enough neon and insomnia at our disposal, we can turn them into places where we can do anything we want, whenever we want. In New York City, for example, you can shop for nuts and bolts, stalk your crush with a nocturnal flower delivery, nab the latest smartphone and spruce up your hairdo 24/7. Like Simone Beauvoir wrote, “There is something in the New York air that makes sleep useless.” The big question is, now that we have this potential at our fingertips, what should we do with it? To what extent does a cosmopolitan city depend on infinite opening hours? Many laud the energy, excitement, romanticism and economic benefits of the 24-hour metropolis. Marion Roberts, a professor of urban design at the University of Westminster, concludes that it “generates more jobs, activities and social solidarities”. Others fret about excessive alcohol consumption, noise pollution and the next generation turning into a horde of sleep-deprived, hedonistic narcissists. With the one-year anniversary of Sydney’s controversial lockout laws looming over us, we take a look at how much napping is happening (or not) in some of the world’s best cities, and how essential it is their success on the world stage. WHERE NIGHTLIFE IS A RELIGION BERLIN In Germany, closing times are determined by each town or city. For Berlin, this means there’s no such thing as last call. Bars decide on their hours independently, with oodles of them operating according to the ebb-and-flow of demand, and a bunch of
From vending machines lining the streets to combinis (that is, convenience stores) taking up real estate on every corner of Tokyo, it's clear Japan is a nation puts a lot on emphasis on convenience. The Japanese attitude to fast food is no different — except in Japan, convenience doesn't have to mean compromising on quality. From curry houses filled with salarymen, ubiquitous heartwarming hamburgers and contemporary takes on traditional Japanese meals that will set you back less than $5AUD a pop, this is where to get real fast food in Japan. [caption id="attachment_629778" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Lucy Dayman[/caption] SUKIYA No matter how long you spend in the country, Sukiya (すき家) is one sight you'll become familiar with fast. With over 1600 stores dotted throughout the nation, the store's red, white and gold logo is a staple on the Japanese urban landscape. The 24-hour restaurant delivers no fuss, classic Japanese dishes, though their most iconic dish is gyudon, which translates to 'beef bowl'. What you'll get is shredded beef served over rice accompanied with topping of your choice. What's great about Sukiya is the chain's dedication to experimentation and perfection, with additions and modifications being made to the menu — so no matter how many times you've visited, there will be something new to try. A meal will set you back about ¥500-800 ($6-10AUD). [caption id="attachment_629781" align="alignnone" width="1920"] cathykid via Wikimedia Commons.[/caption] OOTOYA Ootoya might be a little steeper in price than beef bowl outlets like Yoshianoya and the aforementioned Sukiya, but it's worth the extra yen. Plus, with the average price hovering around ¥800 ($9-10AUD) it's still cheaper than anything in Australia. Ootoya specialise in classic Japanese teishoku 'meal sets'. Though a meal set sounds like something you'd get in a retirement village or jail, it's actually the best way to appreciate carefully curated Japanese cuisine. It will usually include rice, miso soup, and a main dish, which might be fish, or soba noodles. At Ootoya the sets are seasonal, so you won't be stuck eating the same thing over and over. [caption id="attachment_629779" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Lucy Dayman[/caption] HIDAKAYA RAMEN It's impossible to speak about Japanese fast food — or just Japanese food, for that matter — without giving time to the nation's most internationally loved culinary creation: ramen. In Japan, ramen is as diverse as it is popular; every prefecture, city, restaurant and even chef has a different take on the dish. In Tokyo the ramen options are almost excessive, so, if you do your research, you can definitely find the most perfect bowl for your palate. However, if you're after consistently good, cheap, filling and easy-to-access ramen, you can't miss Hidakaya. This generally 24-hour outlet is the perfect place to rest your weary body and dive into a warm comforting bowl any time of the day or night. Most meals will cost you little more than your pocket change at ¥500 ($6AUD) and, if you want to drink, booze options start at ¥270 ($3AUD). [caption id="attachment_629782" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Dick Thomas Johnson via Flickr.[/caption] UOBEI GENKI SUSHI Like ramen, you sushi is incredibly diverse in terms of options, price points and specialties — but as a little local tip, Uobei Genki Sushi is kind of special. Cheap and always delicious, the crew at Genki Sushi have reinvented the concept of conveyor belt sushi. Rather than constantly rotating dishes, the Genki Sushi use the conveyor belt method to deliver specifically ordered dishes right to you. With touch screen menus, all you have to do is select what you feel like and, within moments — like some strange futuristic dream — the sushi will take a ride on a little delivery plate stopping right in front of your face. With dishes costing around ¥100 ($1.20AUD) and simple English ordering, there's really no excuse not to go. [caption id="attachment_629783" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Hunter Nield via Flickr.[/caption] MOS BURGER It's impossible to speak about fast food in Japan without acknowledging the country's growing love of western cuisine. Like so many things here, Japan has turned appreciation into full-blown obsession and somehow managed to improve the already perfect. Though from the outside it seems like an average burger joint, MOS Burger is a not-so-little takeaway restaurant with a connection to the land: M.O.S stands for 'mountain, ocean, sun'. With over 1700 stores across the country, the store's mission is to "make people happy through delicious food". In a time where other burger chains are constantly unveiling artery clogging Frankenstein-style creations to garner publicity, Mos' humble attitude to producing made-to-order, well-crafted hamburgers is pretty refreshing. Depending on how fancy you want to go a MOS Burger will cost between 200- ¥600 ($2.50-8AUD) [caption id="attachment_629784" align="alignnone" width="1920"] kici via Wikimedia Commons.[/caption] COCO ICHIBAN Though the icon status goes to ramen and sushi, curry is actually the most popular dish in the country. With over 1200 locations sprinkled throughout Japan (and more internationally), Curry House Coco Ichibanya are the local curry kings. Traditionally, Japanese curry is a more mild take on the Indian dish and it comes in a variety of forms. From curry with udon noodles, 'curry pan' (that's curry-filled bread) and the classic karē raisu (aka curry rice), this dish is a lot more Japanese than you anticipated. What makes Coco Ichiban so exciting is your freedom to fully customise your order. The amount of rice, spice and all those toppings are so nice that it means you're never going to get a mass-produced run-of-the-mill plate here. Depending on your order you can easily get a serious meal for less than ¥700 ($8AUD).
Over the span of the universe, ten years is the blink of an eye. In a human lifetime, a decade can zip by unnoticed. In the realm of public works (a realm so dense that all previous laws governing time and space break down around it) ten years is, in practice, a millisecond. Projects can drag on for eternity before we see a single blade of grass (hell, in six seasons of Parks and Rec they only managed to fund one weeny little park). So you can understand why people may secretly believe Leslie Koch, president and CEO of The Trust of Governors Island in New York City, to be some kind of time-travelling magician. Since her instatement in 2006, she's worked with city government and private sector alike to transform a flat, derelict military island off Manhattan into a thriving public space with nearly half a million visitors each summer. Under Leslie's guidance, the first phase of the master plan, including 12 hectares of parkland, was opened to the public in May 2014. The second phase (named The Hills for the rolling Teletubbyland-esque vista and 360 degree panoramic views of New York City) is slated to open in July, a year ahead of schedule. And the next phase for Governors Island is even more ambitious: a 13.4 hectare innovation incubator and public campus to service the growing startup culture in New York. Leslie's flying in to Sydney to appear as one of the keynote speakers for REMIX Sydney 2016, so we found a tiny window in Leslie's obviously jam-packed schedule to sit down and talk big. [caption id="attachment_572737" align="alignnone" width="1280"] The Hills, Governors Island.[/caption] THE PESKY PROBLEM OF HAVING MORE IDEAS THAN EMPLOYEES Revamping Governors Island as a startup haven is a superhuman feat in itself, but let's backtrack for a moment. America is in a bind: the age of manufacturing has passed and technological innovation is now the hot economic commodity to sink graduates into. Tech startups are bread-and-butter for the emerging generation of computer scientists. However, there's a gaping crevasse between practice and education theory. The tech industry waits for no one, particularly not one who spends four years and a small fortune on a tertiary education only to emerge and find the skills they've learned are not the skills employers want — nor, often, are they even relevant anymore. "I was meeting with a very successful serial entrepreneur the other day and he said, 'Look we actually can't hire enough people for the ideas that we have'," Leslie Koch muses "There's no shortage of ideas, there's a shortage of people." The solution, she believes, begins with physically merging private sector components into the education model, eliminating the lag between industry practice and educational canon. It's an inevitable direction, considering our career path structure is changing — everyone's a freelancer, untethered by company loyalty, each in possession of a long resume dotted with short tenures. If you want to stay employable in a competitive marketplace rocked to and fro by the all-powerful internet and all her resplendent memes, you've got to freshen up your skills every now and then. ON BUILDING THE SILICON VALLEY OF THE EAST COAST Governors Island represents more than a green lung to New York City's concrete playground. In its second phase it will become an incubator for innovation, the Silicon Valley of the east coast and, as Jack Donaghy would say, 'innoventually' develop a solution to the human capital crisis in the tech industry in NYC. But just what is so magical about Silicon Valley that's worth mimicking? Does innovation bubble up from the very ground water? General consensus is the Valley works for two reasons. First, early in the game, big companies collaborated with educational institutions (to mould their chickens before they hatched). Second, a close physical proximity, as well as a focus on innovation, encouraged knowledge convergence and cross-fertilisation between tech startups. The underlying lesson here? Physical space organisation is incredibly important for knowledge sharing (there's a reason why open-plan offices are everywhere, and it's not just to keep you off Facebook during work hours). ON CREATING AN 'INNOVATION INCUBATOR' ON THE ISLAND The next stage for Governors Island is to build an 'innovation incubator'. It may sound like jargon, but the articulation of an 'incubator' draws on those ideas that people, and young startups in particular, hugely benefit when they physically share space with their contemporaries. "[A technology incubator] gives companies flexibility in leasing and acts as a social space, a cross-fertilisation space, that you wouldn't have in a conventional 'I'm going to rent my office, hire my people and I'm never going to interact with the other companies in my building' model," says Leslie. The needs of early stage technology startups go beyond infrastructure and financial support — expertise and knowledge must be shared freely to the benefit of all. WHY NEW YORK CITY GENERATES A DIFFERENT KIND OF STARTUP TO CALIFORNIA The Silicon Valley of New York (coming soon to Governors Island!) won't actually be all that similar to the Californian model. The startups coming out of New York (such as Tumblr, Kickstarter, Etsy) are an intrinsically different breed than the West Coast startups (Facebook, Google, Apple) — they're flavoured by the city. Leslie is very aware of this. "The second chapter of my career was in technology on the West Coast. I worked at Microsoft and, like its analogist companies in the Valley, it started in the suburbs and there were a few of us who commuted out to Redmond, Washington. What you're now seeing is companies recognising that to innovate, there's something about being in a city rather than isolated. When you create campuses with an urban flavour, that really makes sense for innovation." A city, unlike the 'burbs, is a cluster model in itself. The Governors Island incubator model will perhaps not be a scaled down version of Silicon Valley but of NYC itself, with educational institutions and private sector components physically merged instead of adjacent. "High-tech companies move to the city because of the messiness of the city and the interactions you have with all kinds of people and different kinds of industries… I personally believe that cities are the place where innovation takes place," she says "What I couldn't have planned for was the amount of emotion that New Yorkers have for Governors Island. We made a place people have embraced, have come to love, even though it's a place no-one has ever spent the night and it's never been open for more than 120 days a year." Australia has only 10 percent the urban density of America so notions of space can be a tricky to wrap your head around; space is a nuisance most of the time. But the cluster model is starting to take hold in Sydney and it works, no doubt in part, thanks to the mapping done on the front lines in the US. [caption id="attachment_572738" align="alignnone" width="1280"] The Hills, Governors Island.[/caption] WHAT'S NEXT? Sadly, Leslie recently announced she'll be stepping down as CEO after the Hills opens to the public. "This is a natural inflection point and when you run a seasonal recreation destination, you're on-duty every weekend so the thought of having my first summer off in 11 summers was just too good to pass up." And what a hard-earned summer it'll be. You can catch Leslie speaking at REMIX Sydney from June 2-3 at Sydney Town Hall. Your mates Concrete Playground will be there too, introducing you to Sydney's most successful entrepreneurs — the businesses we couldn't write fast enough about — with a special curated session on 'How Long Does It Take to Become an Overnight Success?'. More info right here. Top image: Iwan Baan/Governors Island.
Returning to the Tyagarah Tea Farm over the Easter long weekend, Bluesfest is set to gumboot-stomp its well-worn spot in the Australian festival game as one of the tightest productions on the calendar. This year's lineup has generated more buzz than usual, landing one of the most awaited Australian returns of the last year — Kendrick Lamar. Alongside the multi-Grammy-winning artist and The Blacker the Berry maestro comes Bluesfest's usual, eclectic, heavily star-studded lineup. 'The Voice' is coming. Not the Delta kind, the only kind. Living legend and eternal 'Sexbomb' Tom Jones sits at the top of the bill, alongside The National, D'Angelo, Modest Mouse, City and Colour, Eagles Of Death Metal, UB40, Haitus Kaiyote, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds and more. Things are going to get real Byron when The Wailers perform all four of Bob Marley's albums Exodus, Survival, Uprising and Legend in their entirety. Memories will be flooding (along with Bluesfest, if it rains again) with the appearance of Jackson Browne, alongside the The Decemberists. Returning Bluesfester Steve Earle is back with The Dukes, and we'll be front and centre for The 'Original' Blues Brothers Band. Add to this some of the best festival food in the game? You've got yourself a humdinger of a muddy, muddy weekend. BLUESFEST 2016 LINEUP: In alphabetical order... Allen Stone Archie Roach Ash Grunwald Backsliders Blackberry Smoke Blind Boy Paxton Chain City And Colour Cold War Kids Con Brio Digging Roots Dustin Thomas D'Angelo And The Vanguard Eagles Of Death Metal East Journey Elle King Emdee Emma Donovan & The Putbacks Eugene Hideaway Bridges Fantastic Negrito Frazey Ford Grace Potter Graham Nash Harts Hiatus Kaiyote Houndmouth Hussy Hicks Irish Mythen Janiva Magness Jason Isbell Jeff Martin (The Tea Party) Joe Bonamassa – Bluesfest exclusive Kaleo Kamasi Washington Kendrick Lamar Kim Churchill Lord Huron Lucky Peterson Lukas Nelson & The Promise Of The Real Marshall Okell Melissa Etheridge Mike Love Modest Mouse Mojo Juju Nahko and Medicine For The People Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds Pierce Brothers Playing For Change Band Raw Earth. Rhiannon Giddens Richard Clapton Russell Morris Sahara Beck Shakey Graves Songhoy Blues St. Paul & The Broken Bones Steve Earle and The Dukes Steve Smyth Sturgill Simpson Tedeschi Trucks Band Tex Perkins & The Ape The Blind Boys Of Alabama The Bros. Landreth The Cat Empire The Decemberists The Mastersons The Mick Fleetwood Band The National – Bluesfest exclusive The Selecter The Wailers The Word The "Original" Blues Brothers Band Tom Jones Tweedy UB40 Featuring Ali Campbell, Astro & Mickey Virtue – Bluesfest exclusive Vintage Trouble Wards Xpress + more Bluesfest runs Thursday, March 24 – Monday, March 28 at Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm, Byron Bay. Tickets from Byron Bay Bluesfest. Image: Andy Fraser.
Why make one drink when you can make ten? Batched cocktails have grown significantly in popularity across the cocktail world. They're a great, easy option for the amateur bartender — particularly useful when you're hosting a party, because you're not going to be stuck behind the bar all night mixing drinks if you plan ahead. You'd expect that bartenders would turn up their nose at a pre-mixed cocktail, but the trend has caught on in multiple Australasian venues — it turns out they love pre-mixing too. One of the main reasons why is that it's much more practical for bartender and consumer. They don't have to spend 15 minutes mixing and muddling up a complex cocktail, and you don't have to wait. Cocktail ingredients are pre-prepared (bars usually pre-mix cocktails two to three hours before opening), and the ingredients in the drink are left to infuse. When you're using gin, this means there's enough time for botanicals to infuse with the other ingredients, and richer, bolder flavours appear. In partnership with Bombay Sapphire, we asked Sean Forsyth (the Bombay Sapphire Australian ambassador) to show us how to mix up a big batch of Coffee Negronis — literally just the Negroni cocktail you know and love with cold-drip coffee added. Like a Negroni, coffee is sweet, bitter and complex — so it's the perfect ingredient to complement and spice up this famous gin cocktail. Get your hands on some cold-drip and you've got yourself a breakfast-appropriate cocktail. "If you walk into a bar and they don't know how to make a Negroni, leave," Forsyth says. He's right. To make a Negroni you just need to know how to mix gin, vermouth and Campari — it's easy. To make a batch of Coffee Negronis, you need water, a one-litre measuring jug, a funnel and a one-litre glass bottle instead of a shaker. It's getting much, much easier to make good cocktails. THE COFFEE NEGRONI (Serves 10) Ingredients: 250ml Bombay Sapphire 200ml Martini Rosso 200ml Campari 100ml cold drip espresso 250ml water 1 litre sealable glass bottle Method: Using a funnel and a one-litre measuring jug, build ingredients into a clean one-litre glass bottle Shake and add into the freezer one hour before service Pour into rocks glass filled with cubed ice Garnish with an orange slice Images: Kimberley Low.
It's time to make the pilgrimage to the Supernatural Amphitheatre once again, Golden Plains has opened the ballot for 2017. Taking place over a long weekend under a full moon, Meredith's other beloved festival returns for March 11-13, 2017. And they've announced on heck of a legend to top the bill: Neil Finn. As always, the lineup will appear on one stage in the Supernatural Amphitheatre, fronted by one of history's greatest songwriters. Crowded House legend Neil Finn will play a special career-spanning set under the full moon. It's been seven years since Finn played The Sup', so this should be pretty special. The full lineup will drop soon. Meanwhile, Golden Plains is set to be the same festival you know and love — no dickheads, no need to hide your goon sacks, no commercial sponsors — but with a new sound system, new campaground, new foods and kids under 12 can attend the festival free. The ballot for GPXI is open now until 10pm on Monday, October 17. Visit www.goldenplains.com.au for details.
Hitting the indoor mini-golf course for a few holes of pop culture-themed fun and a few rounds of delightfully named beverages isn't just something Brisbanites should enjoy, or Sydney residents either. After launching in Queensland in late 2016, and announcing their first New South Wales venture, Holey Moley Golf Club officially opens in Melbourne today, Thursday, April 20. From noon, 590 Little Bourke Street will be home to 27 holes of club-swinging antics across two levels. It's Holey Moley's biggest venue yet, which means that there's plenty of room for the three nine-hole courses. The Brisbane bar is known for its creativity when it comes to creating courses, and this venue is no exception. Melburnians will be able to tap, tap, tap their way through rooms dedicated to The Simpsons and Game of Thrones and throwbacks to Pacman and Barbie dolls. Plus, everyone will be able to break out into song at the same time, with karaoke part of the antics. If you choose to work your way through the Happy Gilmore soundtrack, no one will stop you (at least not any of the staff). Drinks-wise, expect cocktails. The Caddyshack Bar boasts a pun-laden drinks list that includes the The Sugar Caddy, the Teeyonce Knowles and a Long Island Iced Tee (just what it sounds like, but with an appropriate name). Beer, cider and wine will also be available, but when you're aiming for a hole-in-one, it seems appropriate to be drinking from one (made from Pampero white rum, cinnamon whisky, half a banana, sugar syrup and a doughnut — yep, a doughnut) at the same time. Holey Moley Golf Club is now open at 590 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne. It will be open noon till late Monday to Friday, and 10am till late on weekends. For more info, check out their website. Images: Lucas Dawson.
What would you do if you were a little less freaked out by consequences? Would you talk to more new people, fear a bit less, dance a little more like FKA Twigs, or quit your desk job and start that business you've always wanted to give a red hot go? Some sparkling young Australians are already flinging their inhibitions into a ziplock bag and seizing this little ol' life with both hands. Concrete Playground has teamed up with the Jameson crew to give you a sneak peek into the lives of some of the country's boldest characters who took a big chance on themselves. They've gone out on a limb and rewritten their path, encapsulating 'Sine Metu', the Jameson family motto which translates to 'without fear' — getting outside your comfort zone and trying something new. After all, we only get one shot at this. Take notes. Having dabbled in his fair share of pulse-quickening activities as a youngster, Sydney street artist and skateboarder Sid Tapia is no stranger to the concept of overcoming big fears. In a career that started at age ten, he's hung out of train doors to tag them, skateboarded at a pro level and even founded his own label, Crown St. rediscover a passion he thought he'd lost forever. FUEL THAT FIRE IN YOUR BELLY Sid got cracking on his creative pursuits pretty early on, recalling being captivated by his mother's old handwriting textbooks at the age of four. Soon after that, Sid began recreating the characters in his life: the faces of friends and family. "I'd spend ages trying to do what I saw," he says. "I would see someone or something that I thought was beautiful and be like, 'I want to do that on paper'." It's an interest that would eventually lead him into the graff scene, swapping out paper and pens for trains, walls and spray paint. Meanwhile, Sid's older brother Walker was offering his own brand of influence, introducing him to alternative music genres, hip-hop culture and, ultimately, the street art movement. "He was like my mentor-slash-father figure growing up," Sid explains. "He really taught me a massive step in being able to overcome not just challenges, but confrontations as well." NEVER STOP LEARNIN' At around age ten, Sid discovered the world of graffiti, and he was instantly hooked on this risky, yet exhilarating form of creative expression — especially the risky sport of train tagging. The fact that he could lean out of a train, paint his name up and others would see it was both scary and adrenaline-pumping (not to mention highly illegal). But just a few years later, Sid's flirtation with locomotive art was rattled, after his friend was injured in a serious train accident, reminding him (very bluntly) of the elephant in the room: mortality. "Graffiti was never the same after that," Sid says. "It was nerve-wracking — it was scary." And so he gave up graff. Having come so close to paying the ultimate price for his passion, Sid diverted his attentions to skateboarding — and despite being discouraged from the sport by his family, it was clear he had some serious skills. "My grades were really bad, but I knew that my skating was really good," he says. "And I was like, 'I'm gonna do this thing.'" Skating was a passion that continued well into his twenties, landing him sponsorship deals and a heap of recognition on the Sydney scene. He was even profiled in the awesome 1997 short film by Warrick Thornton for SBS's Eat Carpet. Like many twenty-somethings, at the time it looked as though Sid had, in his own words, "everything sorted" — but he was really "a wreck". So he turned to an old friend to navigate through it: books. "To understand what it is to overcome, what it is to get through a challenge, what's needed — and a lot of the time what's needed is knowledge." TACKLE THE CHALLENGES AND GET BACK IN THE DAMN GAME 23 years later, Sid was still shaken by that train accident — and his own decision to run away. "I had to live with that for a long time," he admits. "I knew I ran away from something massive that could have helped her out. I was just too scared. But about a year ago, I thought: 'I have to face up to this'." So he located his former friend and reached out to her on social media, laying down the emotional apology that had been such a long time coming. "I was in tears…it was heavy," Sid says. "That was a fear I had to overcome by literally confronting it…having to just man-up and be emotional and apologise." Like the big cats he spray paints on his walls, Sid was finally fierce in approaching the situation, and moved forward regardless of harboured fears. And in doing so, he not only opened up a positive new relationship with his old friend, but a newfound positive relationship with his art. Sid's back doing the graffiti thing again — only this time around, it's in a much more holistic (and completely legal) capacity. Working on both commissions and his own pieces, his striking large-scale murals grace walls across Sydney, from the skate park at Bondi Beach to countless buildings in Stanmore, Camperdown, Newtown and the inner west. His lettering and illustration work is equal parts mind-blowing and mindful. He's a highly sought-after, full-time working artist now, running the odd class with Work-Shop and the Museum of Contemporary Art, and working with Marrickville Council's 'Perfect Match' program pairing residents with street artists. All those setbacks? Turns out he didn't let them set him back at all. "I love that I'm able to get what I do and bless people with it. I want to put something out that's going to inspire, or encourage… spark a little bit of wow in someone's life." Want to experience a little bit of 'Sine Metu' yourself? Thanks to Jameson and The Rewriters, one extremely fortunate Concrete Playground reader (and their even more fortunate mate) will get the chance to 'fear less' and go on a big ol' adventure to Ireland. In addition to two return flights departing from your choice of Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane, this epic giveaway comes with five night's accommodation and $500 spending money you can use to paint the Emerald Isle red. ENTER HERE. For more about how 'Sine Metu' influenced John Jameson's journey visit Jameson's website. Images: Sid Tapia.
Looking for holiday accommodation with a little more oomph? Ever considered staying on a raft? With a sauna? In the town of Joensuu in eastern Finland, a bunch of mates have put their considerable DIY skills to good use. They've built a lake-worthy, multi-level raft with a sauna, named 'Saunalautta'. And next time you're in the mood for a floating holiday, you're welcome to rent it. This vessel is the ultimate year-round destination. Come winter (which, in Finland, means -20 degree temperatures), hang out in the sauna. Up to 15 people can warm up in there at once. Come summer, sprawl out on the upper deck. There's even a few hammocks, so you can get comfy with a book, and a viewing booth, affording 360 degree views. Not interested in lying around? Spend your break perfecting your 2 1/2 front flip from the dedicated, 5.7-metre high diving tower. Wondering how this Huckleberry Finn-esque contraption stays afloat? It's built on top of a series of recycled plastic drums. And what about going somewhere? A small outboard motor gets you moving. Both seasons, there's bunk space for five passengers to stay the night, a barbecue, a hot shower, a refrigerator and a sound system: basically everything you need to turn pirate for life. Hire isn't as expensive as you might think, starting at $410 a day. Head over here for more info, after you check out a few more snappies: Via Inhabitat.
Packing well for holidays is one of the vastly underrated artforms of our time. Knowing exactly what to bring and what to spend your dimes on before the actual trip takes a long-practiced, realistic ability to predict the weather, activities and highly Instagrammable moments of your future vacation. But not everyone's got the coin to drop on exxy designer threads before they land. So we've taken it upon ourselves to pack your suitcase with affordable goods, whether you're headed for a riotous camping adventure to your chosen annual music festival, hitting art galleries and destination restaurants on a cultural endeavour, or opting for the classic ol' beach holiday. Best bit? It's all from the one place — ASOS. And because they know some of the world's most keen travellers are penny-pinching students, they're offering a 20 percent discount just for students from Wednesday, February 23. THE MUSIC FESTIVAL CAMPING WEEKEND You've loaded up your rental (or pa-rental) car with tents, tarps and tinnies. You've pored over the festival timetable and listened up to the lineup. You're in full-on camping festival mode, and the trick here is to pack light, but pack smart. You've got to toe the line between statement pieces and everyday essentials — you'll need both for this adventure. Word to the wise? Leave the exxy cocktail dresses and dress shirts at home, but remember to bring pieces that make you happy; you'll be in them all day in the hot sun, pouring rain and occasional mud-slips. And bring more undies than you think you'll need. WOMENS ESSENTIALS Reclaimed Vintage Pull Over Hooded Festival Jacket $95 Cheap Monday Denim Short Dungarees $99 Pimkie Wellie Boot $34 MENS ESSENTIALS Nike Court T-Shirt 739479-100 $51 ASOS Check Shirt in Viscose With Long Sleeves $53 ASOS 5 Panel Cap In Black Canvas With Contrast Patch $26 THE ARTY CULTURE ADVENTURE Whether you're scooting between galleries, tasting All The Wine or sauntering through some serious shopping districts, culture adventures can be the trickiest for packing light. You'll want to bring every last pair of kickass shoes in your closet. You'll have plans to debut every new outfit you've recently impulse bought. But here's the thing, you're carrying your wardrobe with you. So choose a couple of pieces you can wear day-to-night and one pair of all-purpose, super fly shoes. That way you can throw more dosh on new pieces on your holiday shopping sprees. WOMENS ESSENTIALS ASOS Oversize T-Shirt Dress With Curved Hem $47 Glamorous Bell Sleeve Smock Dress With Festival Embroidery $51 ASOS OTTAWA Heels $74 MENS ESSENTIALS ASOS Super Longline Long Sleeve T-Shirt With Hooded Drape Neck $38 Reclaimed Vintage Drapey Duster Jacket $138 River Island Chukka Boots In Brown Faux Leather $95 THE CLASSIC BEACH HOLIDAY Towel, sunnies, bathers, sunscreen, book, beer. So begins the checklist for the age old beach holiday, the classic retreat for city slickers. This vacation's the easiest to pack light for, but that doesn't mean you have scrimp on style. Invest in a few new beachy staples and you'll be staging your own magazine shoots on your next ocean-bound road trip. Just remember to slip, slop, slap, wrap etc. WOMENS ESSENTIALS South Beach Mix and Match Wrap Cut Out Bikini Top $30 ASOS Stripe Rope Belted Beach Shirt Dress $60 ASOS Strappy Maxi Dress $38 MENS ESSENTIALS ASOS Mid Length Swim Shorts With Turtle Print $38 Base London Tiberius Leather Sandals $74 River Island Round Sunglasses In Silver $43
In Patricia Piccinini's mind, bulbous creatures float through the sky. In her imagination, automobiles may as well be animals, and the line between humans and other critters is razor thin. It all sounds like something out of a science-fiction movie (or several), but the Australian artist's output isn't just confined to a screen. Across a variety of media, Piccinini explores the way that nature and technology, people and animals, and the unusual and the sublime all combine — and, more than that, she finds ways to make their weird and wonderful blend appear, feel and seem real. With Piccinini's body of work spanning from figures that look so naturalistic you'll expect them to start moving, to looping short film installations that bring strange beings to life, to paintings and sculptures made with actual human hair, wandering through her creations is like wandering into another realm. At Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art until August 5, that's exactly what's on offer. Taking over the entire ground floor of the building — and filling the place with more than 70 sculptures, photographs, videos, drawings and large-scale installations, including both exisiting favourites and newly commissioned pieces — Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection transforms GOMA into a pleasingly intriguing playground. Indeed, if Piccinini's famous animal-shaped hot air balloon, The Skywhale, literally unleashed her unique sensibilities out into the world, then Curious Affection does the opposite: it invites everyone into the acclaimed artist's mind and lets them roam around. Inside, visitors get a peek at not-quite-human lovers cosying up in a caravan, walls filled with alien-like mushrooms, and a vast array of peculiar yet beautiful creatures. And, in an exhibition designed to make you ponder what it means to be human, that's just a fraction of its treasures. In short: entering the otherworldly showcase is an experience like few others, crafted by an artist who has taken her visibly distinctive sensibilities everywhere from the Venice Biennale to Japan's skies to galleries around the world over the past two decades. Discovering exactly what her imagination has brought forth is part of the fun, but here are five things to look out for along the way — and, whether you're a Brisbanite keen on an arty staycation or you're travelling from interstate to see the exhibition, we've found you somewhere to stay as well. [caption id="attachment_667357" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Installation view 'Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection' at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art, 2018, featuring The Field 2018. Photograph: Natasha Harth, QAGOMA.[/caption] WANDER THROUGH A FIELD OF OTHERWORLDLY FLOWERS The Field isn't the first thing you'll see at Curious Affection, but this darkened room will stay with you long after you've left GOMA. It's the exhibition's main attraction for a very good reason: there's nothing quite like walking into a cavernous hall filled with more than 3000 flower-like sculptures, lightly bouncing along the spring-loaded floors and finding out that nothing's really as it seems. Each individual stem is a feat of astonishing artistry that'll make you think about the real meaning of beauty, not to mention the kind of creations that sci-fi filmmakers like Ridley Scott (Alien) and David Cronenberg (The Fly) would be proud of. When you're not staring into their hypnotic expanse, the four larger-scale sculptures — two of mothers with children, two of curious creatures — scattered around the gallery are just entrancing, not to mention perfectly on-theme. [caption id="attachment_667360" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Patricia Piccinini, Australia VIC. b.1965. Pneutopia 2018. Ripstop nylon, shed, air. Courtesy the artist, Tolarno Galleries, Melbourne; Roslyn Oxley9 Gallery, Sydney; and Hosfelt Gallery, San Francisco.[/caption] ENTER A GARDEN SHED — AND LOOK UP Maybe you saw The Skywhale float through the sky back earlier this decade. Maybe you just wished you did. Either way, if you ever wondered what it looked like inside, then inflatable installation Pneutopia almost has the answer. It's not Skywhale 2.0, but this custom-built blow-up creation comes close — just confined within GOMA's huge two-storey hallway rather than roving free on the wind. Roam around either the ground or second level, and you can feast your eyes on the outside of this billowing orange and pink structure. Enter the ordinary-looking garden shed underneath, however, and you'll peer through a window into the heart of the balloon. [caption id="attachment_664391" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Installation view 'Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection' at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art, 2018, featuring The Young Family 2002. Photograph: Natasha Harth, QAGOMA.[/caption] GET UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL WITH CURIOUS CREATURES In one corner, a girl sits with an owl flapping over her shoulder. At several other points around the exhibition's first few rooms, kids reach out to strange critters, or cradle them in their arms, or find them laying on their backs. On a leather platform, a pig-human chimera feedings her suckling offspring. In a life-sized bed, a toddler stands shoulder-to-shoulder with a creature that could've stepped out of her dreams (or nightmares). There's more where they came from, representing some of Piccinini's best-known sculptures, and they really are the best introduction to the artist's work that you can get. Each attention-grabbing piece makes a statement, whether about natural evolution, genetic experimentation, the open mind that comes with child-like wonder, or the fine line between horror and empathy. As the exhibition's explanatory text describes, it's a collection that's "startling but rarely fearsome". [caption id="attachment_664396" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Installation view 'Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection' at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art, 2018. Photograph: Natasha Harth, QAGOMA.[/caption] MOSEY THROUGH A STRANGE PATCH OF GREENERY In the last corner of the exhibition, GOMA becomes a forest — but you don't usually see creatures called 'tyre lions' and 'butthole penguins' in a standard patch of greenery. Yes, that's their actual name, and they're bizarre but delightful, like figures from an offbeat animation you now definitely wish existed. Piccinini arranges these pieces as if she's arranging a display in a natural history museum, which only adds to their uncanny allure. It's the final piece in a gallery-wide puzzle that presents an assortment of seemingly familiar figures, animals, scenes and objects, but shows that they really couldn't be less ordinary. [caption id="attachment_667355" align="aligncenter" width="1920"] Installation view 'Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection' at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art, 2018. Photograph: Natasha Harth, QAGOMA.[/caption] KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE SCREENS As well as Piccinini's eye-catching sculptures, installations and other pieces, GOMA's walls are lined with multiple screens playing her video works. Each runs on a loop, ranging from 90 seconds to a couple of minutes in duration — and if you're keen to dive even deeper in the artist's mind, they're all well worth your time. Gaze at Ghost, aka a hairy chicken-like creation hanging from the ceiling, for example, then watch In Bocca Al Lupo, a mesmerising short film filled with similar critters. If you only make time for one, however, then head to an adorably odd effort called The Seedling's Dance. It runs for less than three minutes, and it's playing on a cinema-sized screen that you you really won't be able to miss. COMING FROM OUT OF TOWN OR INTERSTATE? Can't get enough art? Not quite ready to re-enter reality after wandering through Piccinini's intriguing creations? Heading in from out-of-town and looking for a suitably creative place to stay? Brisbane's Art Series Hotel The Johnson fills its walls, halls, rooms and suites with abstract works from its namesake artist, Michael Johnson, offering the closest thing you'll find to sleeping in a gallery. And, for the duration of Curious Affection, the boutique hotel has a stay-and-see deal that includes one night's accommodation and two tickets to the GOMA exhibition. When you're not marvelling at Piccinini's work, you can look through the in-house art library, watch the dedicated in-room art channel, or get a dose of outdoor splendour while you're taking a splash with a view in the 50-metre pool or lazing around on the luxe deck. Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection exhibits at Brisbane's Gallery of Modern Art until August 5, and includes a film screening series and Friday night art parties throughout June and July. For more information, head to the gallery website. Patricia Piccinini: Curious Affection images: Natasha Harth, QAGOMA.
Grab a cake, whack ten candles on it, and rush on over to the Gallery of Modern Art. Okay, okay, you don't have to actually bring some baked goods with you to mark GOMA's birthday; however you do have to be in the mood for a party. Across December 3 and 4, the city's major hub for modern art is showcasing everything that makes it great, and offering a reminder of just why it has become a Brisbane icon. Want to watch a panel chat about that very topic? Well, that's the first event on the itinerary. At GOMA Turns 10's opening shenanigans, you can also watch Nick Cave's (no, not that one) brightly coloured sculptural horse costumes come to life, take a walking tour of the building's architecture, attend artist workshops and play with LEGO. Want more? How about a new performance film by Aussie filmmaker Amiel Courtin-Wilson; a screening of his earlier effort, Ruin, with a live score; or a food-focused doco followed by a special dining experience? It's going to be a busy, bustling, creative, celebratory weekend.
It's been four years since Gambaros, the group that's long been synonymous with Caxton Street in Petrie Terrace, brought Black Hide to the Treasury Brisbane in the CBD. Over those four years, that Queen Street spot has served up steaks and lots of them, just as the OG venue has. Don't eat meat? Then it probably hasn't been the place for you — but the newly launched vegan menu might change that. A first for Black Hide at the Treasury, the new meat-free range spans three dishes: smoked beetroot with white bean hummus, paprika, edamame, black garlic and gremolata for an entree; blackened capellini with mushroom, lemon and basil as a main; and coconut parfait with pineapple salsa and Vietnamese mint granita for dessert. It isn't the biggest menu, but it's also a dedicated vegan lineup in a restaurant that's extremely well-known for its marbled wagyu and angus cuts, and for not shying away from animal products. The vegan offering is the work of new Head Chef Simon Palmer, who comes to Black Hide at the Treasury from Urbane, Gerard's Bistro and e'cco bistro, as well as Beach Byron Bay. "Taking the venue to the next level means implementing ways to accommodate all palates and dining preferences by way of vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free and nut-free offerings which have been elegantly considered across all our Black Hide Steakhouses menus," said Palmer. "The focus on produce-driven dishes significantly refines the menu. Our focus has shifted to procuring additional local partnerships with the intention to serve more locally grown and sourced ingredients. In Queensland, we are so fortunate to have incredible suppliers on our doorstep," Palmer continues. Accordingly, the chef's new culinary lineup goes heavy on Queensland produce, and also sees the meat-heavy selections get a makeover. So, if you do tuck into animal products, you'll now also be able to choose from wagyu tartare with pomme pave, crème fraîche and cured egg yolk, as well as grilled scallops sourced from Hervey Bay. And, for dessert, The Black Hide Sundae – which features cherry puree, cherry granita, chocolate sauce and vanilla bean ice cream — also joins the menu. As has been the case since 2018, patrons can still expect river views, a bar overlooking Reddacliff Place, plus a six-room setup that makes the most of the heritage building's features — including a ten-person private dining space filled with timber, brass and marble. Also forming part of the decor at the 154-seat eatery: a library-style knife collection featuring 126 pieces of silverware. Find Black Hide by Gambaro in the Treasury Brisbane, top of the Queen Street Mall, Level 1, Treasury Casino Building — open for lunch from 11.30am Tuesday–Friday and dinner from 5.30pm Tuesday–Saturday. For more information, visit the Treasury website.
'The mormons are coming', posters popping up all around Brisbane started promising last year. Come March, they'll officially be here. If you didn't make it to Melbourne or Sydney to catch The Book of Mormon, don't worry — Trey Parker and Matt Stone's hit musical is bringing its hilariously irreverent self to QPAC's Lyric Theatre. After playing most of the last two years down south, the multi-award-winning production will settle in for a Brisbane season from March 16 until May 31. Given that both Melbourne and Sydney experienced sell-outs, it's certain to prove a hot ticket. Written by South Park and Team America's notoriously puerile creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, together with Robert Lopez of genius grown-up muppet show Avenue Q, The Book of Mormon is probably one of the most lauded comedies ever to have centred on the Church of Latter Day Saints, African missions, AIDS, bum jokes and super ironic racism. If it wasn't so smart and so funny, few would forgive it. But since it is, The Book of Morman has picked up nine Tonys, four Olivier Awards and a Grammy since it debuted in 2011, and has been called "one of the most joyously acidic bundles Broadway has unwrapped in years". If you've been envious of the throngs seeing the musical in New York, Chicago, London or elsewhere in Australia, then you'll be plenty excited that you'll now get the chance to go learn all the idiosyncratic details of Mormonism, meet war criminal General Butt-Fucking Naked and know the true meaning of the hakuna matata-like saying 'Hasa Diga Eebowai'. UPDATE, MARCH 13: The Book of Mormon has announced a $30 ticket lottery throughout its Brisbane season, with a select number of cut-price seats available by ballot for each performance from Saturday, March 16, subject to availability. To nab a ticket, you'll need to enter in person two-and-a-half hours before your chosen show, using the form available that's only available at the box office. Names will be drawn at random two hours prior to curtain, only one entry is allowed per person, and you can only score two tickets. For further details, visit the musical's website. Image: Ryan Bondy, Zahra Newman, Nyk Bielak and company in The Book of Mormon, AUS 1411. (c) Jeff Busby.
Many a place promises a classic-meets-contemporary experience, but when Nickel Kitchen & Bar throws open its doors on April 29, it looks set to actually deliver on that description. Predominantly offering up meals that will take many diners back to their childhoods, the brand new Fortitude Valley restaurant also plans to shake things up with boozy brunches, late-night meals and something they call a 'DIY degustation'. A menu filled with homestyle dishes takes care of the first part of the equation for the new Ann Street addition — think Barossa Valley chicken Kiev with garlic butter, heirloom vegetables and herb crumb (seriously, when was the last time you ate chicken Kiev?), and honey-roasted chicken paired with bacon and chive waffles. As for the latter, the details are still being finalised, but we're interested to see how a 'DIY degustation' differs from 'ordering off the menu'. Nickel is the latest venture from Nantucket Kitchen & Bar and NKB Express owners TJ and Kim Peabody, and endeavours to embody a blend of old and new across the board. Drinks-wise, that means a 250-drop wine library behind the bar boasting all the best tipples from today and times gone by, plus a hefty spirits list and a bespoke cocktail selection. Style-wise, that means anyone from the after work crowd to those keen on a boozy brunch are welcome in Nickel's art deco surroundings. Indeed, when it comes to décor, the cosy spot decks its halls with old-school fixtures, including leather booths, pressed metal and dark timber galore, and a chandelier made entirely of wine glasses. So, we're calling it: nostalgic places always try to hark back to yesteryear while giving things a forward-thinking twist, but Nickel might be the place to nail that combination. Nickel Kitchen & Bar will open on Friday, April 29 on the ground floor of 757 Ann Street, Fortitude Valley. Keep an eye on their website and Facebook page for more details.
Recognised as one of the most exciting film industries in Asia, the Korean cinema scene has been knocking it out of the park for years now — without it, we wouldn't have Bong Joon-ho's Okja and Snowpiercer, or Park Chan-wook's Stoker and The Handmaiden, for example. And the fact that neither directors have made the bill at the 2017 Korean Film Festival in Australia shows just how much talent the country has to choose from. Basically, there's plenty of other filmmaking greats where they came from. This year's KOFFIA, the festival's eighth, features straight-from-Cannes flicks, cinematic masters delivering their newest hits and many a movie in between. Boasting 24 films on its national lineup and bringing seven to Brisbane, the festival will kick off on September 8 with The World of Us, a thoughtful drama about bullying and friendship, before coming to a close on September 10 with crime-thriller The Queen of Crime. Other highlights include animated zombie onslaught Seoul Station, the companion piece to last year's kinetic live-action effort Train to Busan, plus historical crime drama The Age of Shadows. Also on the program is a dose of suspense with murder-mystery The Tooth and the Nail, and some fast-paced action in The Merciless.
"How was trivia tonight? Oh, pretty good. We answered a lot of questions and the team won a lot of prizes." Come March 30, you could be saying these exact words — and channelling your inner Tommy Wiseau after emerging victorious at a night dedicated to his greatest creation. Giving The Room fans the event we didn't know we needed, Southside Tea Room are clearly thinking "anything for my Brisbanites". Anything for their favourite customers, too. At The Room trivia, Man vs Bear will be doing the asking, and everyone else will be throwing the trivia equivalent of spoons — when they're not saying "oh hi, doggy" and asking how your sex life is, naturally. Leaving your stupid comments in your pocket is highly recommended, and if your name is Mark or Lisa, you basically have to go. Expect not only questions about the best worst movie ever made, but some about The Disaster Artist as well. And if you don't win, it'll tear you apart. UPDATE, MARCH 12: Due to March 30 falling on Good Friday, this event will now take place on March 16.
Having said au revoir to the French Film Festival, it's now time to slip over the border into Spain. Returning to Palace Cinemas around the country, this year's Spanish Film Festival will once again showcase some of the biggest and most critically acclaimed Spanish and Latin American films from the past 12 months. How's that for a cinematic siesta? The festival — which will feature at the CBD's Palace Barracks and Palace Centro in Fortitude Valley — begins with the highest grossing film at last year's Spanish box office: rom-com sequel Spanish Affair 2. Other comic standouts include espionage spoof Spy Time, madcap ensemble My Big Night, and dark domestic comedy Happy 140. Of course, not everything on the program is quite so light and breezy. Critically acclaimed drama Much Ado About Nothing confronts legal and political corruption in modern day Chile, while Ma Ma stars Penelope Cruz in one of her most nuanced roles to date, as a put-upon single mother diagnosed with breast cancer. Below, we've put together a list of the five films on the lineup that have caught our eye. For the full program, go here. https://youtu.be/K_NMyRjL8dM THE THIN YELLOW LINE This comedy-drama hybrid, directed by first time writer-director Celso Garcia, is a road movie, but not in the way you'd expect. The Thin Yellow Line follows a misfit group of five cash-strapped men tasked with painting the dashed yellow line along more than 200 kilometres of Mexican highway. You only need to take a brief look at the trailer to appreciate the film's gorgeous cinematography and bittersweet tone. If that's not enough to convince you, consider the fact that it's executive produced by Pan's Labyrinth, Pacific Rim and Crimson Peak director Guillermo del Toro. https://vimeo.com/131531005 THE CLAN Based on a chilling true story, this Argentinean thriller tells the story of the Puccios, a seemingly normal family living in Buenos Aires in the 1980s who made their living kidnapping people and holding them to ransom. The film broke box office records in Argentina, screened in competition at the prestigious Venice International Film Festival, and has scored plenty of positive critical buzz, with Variety comparing it to the movies of John Carpenter, Brian De Palma and Martin Scorsese. Consider our expectations set very, very high. https://vimeo.com/153227513 MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING Another true story from Latin America, Much Ado About Nothing is a far cry from the light-hearted Shakespearean comedy with which it shares a title. Instead, Alejandro Fernandez Almendras' film takes place in present day Chile, and follows a young man who finds himself framed for a fatal hit-and-run committed by the son of a powerful politician. A grim indictment of corruption in the upper echelon of Chilean society, the film received strong reviews and a Grand Jury Prize nomination at Sundance earlier this year. https://youtu.be/I8TiFAdvqLM EMBRACE OF THE SERPENT This year's closing night film floored audiences at Cannes and scored a 2016 Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. Inspired by the journals of two separate Western explorers who travelled to the Amazon decades apart, Embrace of the Serpent is described in the festival program as "a breathtaking cinematic odyssey". With startling, unsettling imagery shot in hypnotic black and white, and dialogue spoken in over ten different languages, the film promises to be like nothing else you'll see at the festival — or indeed, the movies — this year. https://youtu.be/XIwPPoWPlmo NOTHING IN RETURN In Daniel Guzmán's Nothing in Return, 16-year-old Dario finds himself on the search for a surrogate family in the wake of his parents' divorce. Enter his best friend Luismi, a car mechanic named Caralimpia and a sweet little old lady named Antonia. At first glance the film looks like a fairly standard coming-of-age tale, but the fact that it scored a pair of gongs — for Best New Actor and Best New Director at Spain's most recent Goya Awards — has us curious to check it out. And as an added bonus, Guzmán is a guest of the festival this year, and will be on hand at screenings in Sydney and Melbourne for a post-film Q&A. The Spanish Film Festival will run from April 19 until May 8. For more information, visit the festival website.
Gelato Messina have finally made their way to Brisbane, and are attempting to solidify their place in the hearts of the city's ice cream-loving residents. To sweeten their Brisbane arrival, they've created a new limited-edition dessert to celebrate — and they're delivering it for free on June 5. Do you like Piña Bananas? You do now. Behold this suitably tropical-themed creation — a chocolate and passionfruit Italian meringue, filled with banana and miso gelato, with passionfruit mousse and sitting on a bed of chocolate sponge. Oh, and it looks like a pineapple, of course. You don't have to get caught in the rain to grab one, but you do have to rustle up some Messina goodness through Deliveroo. The first 50 customers to place an order on Monday will get this sweet treat as a complimentary gift. And, making great news even better, all Messina orders between June 5 and 11 come with free delivery.
Ever had a hankering for a burger, but couldn't decide which joint to visit? Thanks to Brisbane's hefty array of burg-slinging places, we've been there, and often. Trust The Triffid to come up with a solution, courtesy of a day-long dedicated celebration. From 11am on Saturday, August 25, the Newstead music venue is once again joining forces with Stone & Wood, shutting down Stratton Street and serving up the Brisbane festival we had to have. Plenty of food festivals have come and gone, but Brisbane Burger Fest was always going to be back for another helping — behaviour that you'll likely copy on the day. For those wondering about the festival's burger credentials, Miss Kay's, 5 Boroughs, Lucky Egg, Burger Project, Greaser, MooFree Burgers and The Triffid's own burgers will all be on offer, with each eatery whipping up their usual favourites and coming up with a special Burger Fest creation as well. There'll also be an official burger-eating competition as part of the festivities (of course there will be). If you don't think you can handle taking part, that's okay — everyone at Burger Fest will be seeing how many burgs they can eat in their own way, after all. Making a burger street party even better, The Triffid's beer garden will be showcasing live music all day, and Stone & Wood will be taking care of the brews. Tickets cost $5 plus booking fee — and they're expected to get snapped up quickly. Image: Lucky Egg.
Stay classy, Brisbanites. At the city's newest mini film festival, you won't have a choice. Across four Friday nights in August, Event Cinemas Myer Centre is paying tribute to the funny flicks of Will Ferrell — and, obviously, it all starts with Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy. That's the first movie on the bill at Ferrell Fest, and like the scotchy scotchy scotch favoured by San Diego's top newsman, there's more where that came form. After kicking things off with the comedy classic on August 10, you'll want to race into Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby on August 17, then get your skates on for Blades of Glory on August 24. Lastly, on August 31, Step Brothers rounds out the season to celebrate ten years of manchild siblings. Each session kicks off at 7pm, and tickets cost $8 for members and $10 otherwise. The only other thing this festival needs? More cowbell.
You don't need to be Liza Minnelli to think that life is a cabaret, particularly if you're in Brisbane this June. Yes, it's Queensland Cabaret Festival time again, which means that spending your nights watching talented singers tell stories through song is well and truly on the menu. For its third year running, the Brisbane Powerhouse-based festival is back with another jam-packed program of music-fuelled fun, spanning new takes on old classics, repeat tributes to lost icons, and everything from ukuleles to comedic musical therapy in between. In fact, if one of the fest's 13 shows doesn't inspire a prolonged bout of humming, clapping and toe tapping, then you're not looking hard enough. We've picked our five favourites to get you started.
When it comes to being male, middle-class, and white, there are few names bigger than pop icon Ben Folds. Since going on hiatus from his not-so-aptly named trio, Ben Folds Five, the eponymous figure is venturing beyond his traditional classic-pop fusion. He still sings and plays piano, but he's upgrading slightly from his three-man ensemble (bass, drums), to a legitimate New York-style instrumental group in the form yMusic (string trio, flute, clarinet, trumpet). This new ensemble has naturally influenced Fold's sound, one only needs to listen to his solo project released last year So There, heavily featuring the chamber ensemble to hear this. Folds himself testifies to his fraternal connection with the ensemble, and it will be on display all through Australia in the month to come. Starting at QPAC in Brisbane on August 18, Folds and his new band will be playing the Opera House on August 20 and 21, the Perth Concert Hall on August 23, the Adelaide Entertainment Centre on August 25, the Palais Theatre in Melbourne on August 26 and 27, and finally the Canberra Theatre on August 28. If you want to see truly canonical pop, bridging the last few decades, you might want to catch these shows.
The Ancient Romans knew how to party. Every winter, they threw a festival dedicated to nighttime feasting, drinking and merriment. You know, the good stuff. Bacchus Brewing Co also knows how to party, and they're resurrecting this age-old ritual. It shouldn't come as a surprise — they are a beer-making company named after the Greco-Roman god of the grape harvest, winemaking and wine. And they're taking that history and running with it. That means an event dedicated to the best beverages one could get, although they're focusing on yeasty rather than vine-ripened goodness. To celebrate their fourth birthday, they've invited their brewer friends, both local and interstate, to come along and brew special one-off beers. There'll be 26 in total, plus food trucks and house pizzas to do the important job of lining the stomach. Yes, that means two whole days of all the ale you could ever imagine. Yes, you won't want to miss out.
Swapping the Californian coast for the sweltering Aussie summer, The Growlers are heading our way for a string of nationwide shows. Showcasing tracks fresh from their latest record Chinese Fountain, the Cali-based fivesome will be making their way from Melbourne to Maroochydore for fans this January. Blending garage rock rhythms with spaced-out gravely vocals, The Growlers are no strangers to our shores. Selling out four headline shows in March last year, the band will be putting on 14 ripper gigs in cities and regional spots across the east coast. With five studio albums and countless had-to-be-there shows dotted throughout their career, 2015 is set to be another standout year for The Growlers. Renowned for putting on a smashing live set, the band's beachside upbringing guarantees these to be some psychedelic, high-energy performances. A tad theatrical and a whole lot of fun, gear up for a night of 'beach goth' vibes to get your summer going. Supported by Babe Rainbow + Donny Love.
If you're already squealing, this is the gig you've been waiting for. Bright Eyes frontman and bonafide dreamboat of your formative years Conor Oberst is returning to Australia to play some very special shows for your fast-beating heart. Since the early '90s, Oberst has spun tales of heartbreak, love, joy, life and serious depression, gradually moving from Bright Eyes to the Mystic Valley Band and Monsters of Folk in recent years. Now he's heading back to Sydney, armed with tracks from his most recent album, 2014's Upside Down Mountain as well as those tunes that made you weep, fall in love and appreciate the little things. Fingers crossed for 'Lua', 'First Day of My Life'; you know the drill. This isn't your regular giggin' in pavilions tour though. As well as hitting up Brisbane's Triffid, Melbourne's Corner Hotel and Sydney's Metro's Theatre, Oberst is set to play a series of unconventional gigs among the giraffes, hitting Sydney's Taronga Zoo and Melbourne Zoo Twilights. Bet even the bilbies have a bit of a tear-up. Supported by The Felice Brothers.
He can growl like Tom Waits and wail on melancholic high notes like Jeff Buckley, yet come out of the mix with a sound that's all his very own. If you haven't yet made acquaintance with extraordinary singer-songwriter Steve Smyth, it's high time you tipped your hat. Smyth's been making himself known both within Australia and overseas via the old-school method of extensive touring. In fact, after releasing his debut full-length album, EXITS, mid-last year, he embarked on a seriously epic journey, playing in more than eighty towns across Australia. Steering away from whizz-bang effects and slick marketing, he's kept his focus well and truly on writing and delivering authentic music. So his live performances, accompanied by his band, The Outlaws, are genuinely cracking. You'll find yourself rocking and a-rolling one minute and crying on your best mate's shoulder the next. In March, Steve popped over to Austin to play SXSW, before returning home to play Byron Bay's Bluesfest at Easter. Catch him in Brisbane on May 8, before he packs his bag for a long stretch on the road in Europe.
Get the bacon and whisky ready, and start making your own canoe — Nick Offerman is coming to Brisbane. After last venturing to our shores in 2016, the Parks and Recreation star is headed back for with his all new All Rise show. Yes, Ron effing Swanson will be in the country again on Friday, June 21. All Rise sees Offerman do what he does best, other than star in beloved sitcoms and whip up items in his woodshop. Here, here'll be comedically contemplating life in a show that's described as "an evening of deliberative talking and light dance". If you've just started thinking about drunk Ron Swanson letting loose, that's understandable; however expect plenty of witty, reflective chatter as well. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrLZgP-OR6s It's been a big few years for the actor and comedian, with Offerman popping up in everything from Fargo, Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Curb Your Enthusiasm to The Founder, Hearts Beat Loud and the forthcoming The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part since Parks and Rec ended.
UPDATE, FEBRUARY 15: Moonlight Cinema has now dropped its March program, which'll take the openair cinema through until the end of its 2019–20 season on Sunday, March 29. Highlights include the creepy new version of The Invisible Man, and a couple of chances to see Margot Robbie unleash mayhem in Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) and Daniel Craig turn detective in Knives Out. You can also enjoy a blast from the past with Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. UPDATE, JANUARY 18: Moonlight Cinema has revealed its February lineup, with a fresh batch of films coming to the outdoor venue. Recent gems such as Little Women and 1917 will screen alongside old-school hits such as Mean Girls, Ghost and a sing-along session of Grease (yes, it's playing on a summer night). You can also head along to a pooch-focused night of movies thanks to a collaboration with Top Dog Film Festival, who'll be presenting a best-of screening. Like all sessions at Moonlight, you can bring your pupper along, too. When Moonlight Cinema returns for its 2019–20 season, hitting Brisbane's Roma Street Parklands from Saturday, December 14–Sunday, March 29, the annual feast of outdoor movies will give film fans exactly what we all want. Sure, we're all keen to roll out our picnic blankets, sit under the stars and stare up at the big screen — but, given that this openair cinema launches at the end of each and every year, we also want Christmas movies. In the week leading up to the big festive day, Moonlight will screen Last Christmas, Die Hard, Home Alone, Love Actually and Elf. Yep, all the basics are covered. They're not the only highlights on the bill, but they sure do twinkle brightly among a heap of other movie standouts. If you're wondering what else will tempt your inner cinephile, it's a lengthy list. With recently or newly released movies a big part of Moonlight's lineup, expect to watch Rocketman, Hustlers, Joker, Ford v Ferrari, Knives Out, Cats, Star Wars: Episode IX — The Rise of Skywalker and Charlie's Angels. Moonlight also showcases advanced screenings of upcoming films, so add the Nicole Kidman, Charlize Theron and Margot Robbie-starring Bombshell and Tom Hanks in A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood to your must-see pile. Going retro, the outdoor cinema will revisit last year's A Star Is Born and 90s perennial favourite 10 Things I Hate About You. Dirty Dancing is also on the bill, like every year — it wouldn't be a Moonlight without it. As always, Moonlight will also boast its usual food truck and licensed bar offering, and its reserved bean beds. You can also bring your dog — but you can't BYO.
Called it. When more and more breweries started popping up in Milton, we were pretty sure that a brewery crawl was going to be in order. And while Brewsvegas not only made the idea a reality earlier, but has kept bringing it back, hopping around brew-slinging joints isn't just a once-a-year affair. There's no prizes for guessing what happens on The Milton Good Beer Trail, but there is plenty of beer. Yes indeed. Take a self-paced 1.4-kilometre stroll between The Scratch, Aether, Newstead Brewing, Brewski and Mongrel, snaffle a different schooner at each venue, and just generally be merry. Who's thirsty? Even better — your $30 ticket also gets you a stubby cooler to commemorate your trek. And, you can make the stroll whenever you feel like between Friday, September 13 and Sunday, September 15 from 12–11pm.
Cruising to the coast for the long weekend? That sounds pretty great. Jetting to Singapore for an impromptu overseas jaunt? That sounds even better. How better to celebrate the Queen's Birthday public than travelling abroad, doing something different and treating yourself like a queen — or king, or some other type of royalty? Just think: Singapore is only an 8-and-a-half-hour flight away, which is something you could do in your sleep — literally. In partnership with Mastercard, we've put together a quick things of things to do to convince you to make the most of the weekend with a trip. It'll be worth it. THERE'S SO MUCH SMOKED MEAT TO TRY Meat, glorious meat: if it's your kind of food, then this smoked meat experience at Meat Smith is your kind of meal. American-style meat smoking a fairly new thing in Singapore, and this is your chance to get some one-on-one time with the chef to hear the tricks of the trade. You'd best be a fan of pork, as devouring a suckling pig — or opting for a platter of delicious pork options — is on the agenda. You'll eat, you'll learn, and you'll drink craft beer and barrel-aged cocktails. Arrive hungry. THERE'S A LATE-NIGHT JAPANESE THEMED CLUB Yes, you're in Singapore — but that doesn't mean that you can't enjoy a taste of a completely different country while you're there. Club kyō is the city's Japanese-themed late-night hangout in the middle of the CBD. Expect minimalistic yet naturalistic decor heavy on stone, wood and sleek surfaces, as well as sake, Japanese whiskey, and gourmet sashimi and sushi. And, because it's a nightclub, expect to dance the evening away to everything from funk to reggae to nu-disco. THE ARCHITECTURE IS INCREDIBLE Wandering, moseying, roaming: there's no better way to get to know a new city, even if you're only there for a few days. During September and early October, Singapore calls attention to its varied architecture at architectre festival Archifest, which includes walks, talks, activities and more. It's the Architours that you'll want to flock to, featuring a carefully curated mix of designer houses, public institutions, expansive landscape projects and religious buildings. You can also head to Raffles Park for a heap of other fun bits and pieces, including a pop-up inner-city farm and a class on taking kickass architectural photos for Instagram. MANY MANY PARKS Singapore has a heck of a lot of parks. The 156-year-old, 182-acre Singapore Botanic Gardens stay open until midnight and are home to the largest orchid collection in the world. There's even one particularly delicate species named after Margaret Thatcher. At HortPark, in the southwest, you'll wander through 21 themed gardens, including one filled with butterflies. For a longer walk, take on the ten-kilometre Southern Ridges hike – an adventure through coastal panoramas, lush rainforest canopy, a 36-metre high undulating bridge called Henderson Waves and Singapore's second highest peak, Mount Faber. THE FOOD IS WORTH THE TRIP ALONE To get the low-down on where the locals queue for food, jump on the Makan Bus Culinary Tour. You'll sample numerous tasty and eye-opening morsels from a diverse array of tucked-away eateries on this bus tour that's run by locals. Try everything from fried chicken and frogs' legs to soup at the rather charmingly and perhaps too-honestly named Pig Organ, for starters. Somewhat surprisingly, vegetarians can be catered for at every stop. Visit priceless.com to see a Singapore long weekend itinerary from @clairecollected and @mrgumbatron, and more priceless experiences exclusive to Mastercard cardholders.
Both the heartbroken and the heartbreakers should take a lesson from Sharon Van Etten, heading to Australia for her 2015 Are We There tour. Renowned for embracing life's emotionally crippling moments, Van Etten has been putting her heart on a platter since her first offering 'Because I Was In Love' in 2009 — released after TV On the Radio's Kyp Malone gave her a nudge in the right direction. The Brooklyn-based, New Jersey and Tennessee-raised singer/songwriter hasn't stopped since, with four gripping albums under her belt including 2012's Tramp. Headlining Secret Garden (February 27-28) with Parquet Courts and Golden Plains (March 7-9), Van Etten is also playing sideshows for those who missed out on tickets — or don't really want to shell out for the airfare.. Supported by Tiny Ruins (NZ) + Heather Woods Broderick (USA).
If you've been struggling to live in the teenies because you're musically and spiritually stuck in the noughties, we have some news that's going to bring you bolting straight into the present. Ministry of Sound are embarking on a super-niche tour. From mid-November, they'll be paying visits to Australia's capital cities to perform, get this, their greatest clubbing moments from The Annual 2001-2004. And that'll be all, folks. Leading the lineup will be OGs John Course and Mark Dynamix, who, between them, have placed millions of CDs in club-loving hands and ears over the past couple of decades. They're the mighty duo behind Ministry of Sound's annual compilations, on which you probably first heard Roger Sanchez, Basement Jaxx, Tim Deluxe, Cassius and Groove Armada. To each gig, Course and Dynamix will be inviting a bunch of cracking support artists. Sydneysiders will be treated to an extra-special tribute to early noughties break beat at a Clubber's Guide to Breaks Room. You can count on appearances by the UK's Plump DJs, as well as by homegrown breaks guru Kid Kenobi. MINISTRY OF SOUND 2001-2004 REUNION TOUR November 18 — The Prince, Melbourne December 16 — The Metro, Sydney December 20 — HQ, Adelaide January 13 — Discovery, Darwin January 15 — Matisse Beach Club, Perth January 21 — The Met, Brisbane Tickets are over here. In the meantime, to get yourself in the mood, have a listen to this dedicated Reunion Tour play list on Spotify.
Peter Bibby’s debut album, released in November last year, is called Butcher/Hairstylist/Beautician. It’s unclear what this eclectic mix of job titles signifies. Perhaps Bibby is a self-styled jack of all trades, just as at home wielding a carving knife as an eyelash curler? Who knows? It’s a nice image. What we do know is that Perth-born, Melbourne-based Bibby, having recently returned from the USA (seems like Americans have a thing for earnest, self-deprecating Aussie guitarists at the moment — see Courtney Barnett), is about to kick off his first national tour. You can expect a damn fine show from the 'Hates My Boozin' spinner of VB-soaked yarns — not for nothing has he played Sydney Festival, Laneway and SXSW already. A ticket to this show will get you change from a twenty, so what are you doing? Get on it. Supported by The Good Sports + Donny Love.
Venues with standard kitchens: that's so last year. Bars with street food options: that's more like it. Southside Tea Room, Death Valley and Red Robin Supper Truck did it, and now the Brightside and Lucky Egg are too. Yes, it's officially Brisbane's latest trend. From June 25, the Brightside will say goodbye to the toasted sandwich menu punters have come to know and love, and will say hello to fried chicken goodness served from a shipping container. Burgers and wings are the main attraction, of course — all buttermilk coated, free range and locally sourced. That means slabs of chicken topped with American cheddar, garlic pickles and spinach, or with Hellmann’s slaw and honey mustard sauce — whichever takes your fancy. Wings come with a choice of blue cheese, honey mustard, chipotle mayo, Asian style kimchi mayo and ketchup. If they taste as good as they sound, all other fast food poultry places will soon be nothing but a memory. If finger lickin' good food wasn't enough of an attraction, Lucky Egg is also offering two-for-one burgers and wings on their opening day. Whether you devour both yourself, or share with a friend, that's a deal not to miss. Doors open at 5pm, and we suggest arriving early — the early bird gets the cheap chicken, after all. Find Lucky Egg at the Brightside, 27 Warner Street, Fortitude Valley from June 25, or visit their Facebook page for more information.
Imagine a place that caters to your every cheese need, whether stocking up on the best creamy goodness money can buy or enjoying a delectable dairy-oriented dinner takes your fancy. No, this isn't a fantasy fuelled by too many late-night brie eating sessions. Brisbanites, this cheese heaven is about to become a reality. Fromage [The Cow] is the store dreams are made of — it's the city's first-ever licensed fromagerie. Sure, that's just a fancy French term for cheese shop, but it sounds delicious, doesn't it? When the new addition to Milton's Park Road opens its doors in May, it really will grant all your cheese wishes at once. Not only will Fromage [The Cow] boast a full-service, cheese-centric restaurant — complete with a droolworthy walk-in cheese room as the centrepiece of the space — but it'll also include a bar matching all things sharp and gooey with tasty tipples of wine, beer and sake. Plus there'll be a takeaway coffee and (wait for it) cheese toastie window as well. Basically, whatever type of coagulated buffalo, cow, sheep or goat milk protein you like — and whichever way you like it, be it on crackers, paired with a glass of red, oozing out two warm pieces of bread, melted into fondue or smeared through macaroni — it'll be on offer here. Yep, we're calling it: this is about to be everyone's new favourite hangout. Cheese is good for you, isn't it? Find Fromage [The Cow] at 14 Park Road, Milton, from May. Keep an eye on their website and Facebook page for more information.
Sadly, we can't all be royalty from an unspecified country seeing the sights of Rome with Gregory Peck; however, as far as eating like you're in Roman Holiday (or on one) is concerned, Brisbanites can do the next best thing. For one day and night, Newstead's Locale is bringing more than their usual taste of Italy to the city outskirts courtesy of their Roman Holiday 'Maritozzi' Pop-up Bar. Whether you're an Audrey Hepburn fan, or fond of sweet brioche, November 10 is about to become your favourite day. Locale's theming will whisk you away to the European jaunt you've always wanted to take, or at least make you feel like you're in the movie. And their menu will introduce the traditional Roman cream bun that is maritozzi to your stomach. The latter will be available in seven flavours: strawberries and cream, Italian bacio, passionfruit chantilly cream, pistachio, ricotta and orange, Galliano, and Amarena and coconut. Pre-ordering is recommended; who doesn't want to try one of these sweet treats, after all?
Returning for its third year, and quickly becoming a canonical part of Brisbane's independent scene, The End of the Line Festival has just dropped its 2016 lineup — and given it was curated by West-End-record-store-owning-musical-and-cultural-powerhouse Shannon Logan of Jet Black Cat Music, no-one will be surprised to see an eclectic range of local and inter-state up-and-comers on the bill. This year, Melbourne acts, Fraser A Gorman, Totally Mild and Christopher Port join beloved locals like Banff, Major Leagues, Good Boy, Mid Ayr and Desmond Cheese to name a few. Despite the colossal pressure associated with curating a festival (and pretty much putting your music taste on stage for Brisbane to see) Logan has committed her locally renowned image as music lover to the festival this year, saying that within the combination of bands playing there "surely will be something for everyone". A big claim, but more than substantiated by the lineup, from the dole-wave sounds of Good Boy, the retro space-chords of the Vulture St Tape Gang, to the Kate-Bush-esque power pop of Feeding Fauna, it's going to be represented in Woolloongabba on November 5. And that means, importantly, it's as much an opportunity for well-deserved local bands to play, as it is audiences to hear a range of sounds they mightn't usually. Taking place in the beautiful inner-city Woolloongabba Village Precinct, The End of the Line is as much about the music as it is about community. In previous festival years, the shut-off street has been occupied by the precinct's local coffeemakers, restaurateurs and shop owners serving festival-themed menus and wares, and this year, their presence will be greater and presumably yummier than ever. On top of the food, drinks, great crowd, inner-city aesthetic, and of course music, there will the addition major artistic contributions from the Queensland College of Art's POP Gallery and the Aboriginal Centre of the Performing Arts through dance, visual and performance art. This year The End of the Line promises to catch the unique taste of Brisbane, an opportunity afforded to people of all ages, free of charge. Starting at 10am, and finishing at 11pm, the festival will be heard and smelt all over Woolloongabba. Alright, alright, here's what you came here for. THE END OF THE LINE FESTIVAL 2016 LINEUP: Fraser A Gorman Totally Mild Christopher Port Banff Major Leagues Good Boy Mid Ayr Desmond Cheese Pool Shop the Vulture St Tape Gang Superfeather Low Dive Francis Wolves In Caves Feeding Fauna The End of the Line Festival is happening November 5 in the Woolloongabba Village Precinct from 10am-11pm. Entry is free. For more info, head to the festival website.
Music festivals and writers festivals have existed for years, but they rarely mix. Sure, you'll hear poetic lyrics at the former, and maybe attend a tunes-inspired session at the latter. A true fusion of the two, though, is an elusive beast. Well, it was, until a few smart-thinking folks decided to organise a rock and roll writers festival. In an Australian first, the weekend-long event will explore the relationship between the literary and musical worlds. It's an idea that's so great, we can't believe that no one has done it locally before. Come April 2016, some of Australia’s finest authors, songwriters, lyricists and music commentators will converge upon Brisbane for two days of discussions, interviews, panels and more. An initial lineup boasting stacks of talented speakers has just been announced, featuring performer Jackie Marshall, previous jMag editor Jenny Valentish, journalist and Australian Music Prize judge Kate Hennessy, former Time Off editor and owner Sean Sennett, Courier Mail music writer Noel Mengel, and Pig City: From The Saints To Savage Garden author Andrew Stafford, among others. They'll all natter on about everything that's great about words, songs and the combination of the two, while trying to surprise, entertain, enlighten and challenge attendees in the process. And they'll do at the Brightside, because if you're going to throw a rock and roll writers festival, you have to do it at a rock and roll venue. The Rock and Roll Writers Festival runs from April 2 – 3, 2016, at the Brightside, 27 Warner Street, Fortitude Valley. For more information, visit their website.
