The Best Things to Do During Melbourne Music Week 2015

What MMW would be complete without a gig in a top-secret warehouse somewhere? The Lost Children’s Project will be setting up their stage, along with a pop-up dining space and a stocked bar filled with Thunder Road Brewing Company and Starward Whisky. The Lost Children’s Project supports African children and communities in need, and all profits from the evening will go towards building and running a children’s refuge and education centre in Kenya. So the more you spend on making it a great night, the more money you will be contributing to a good cause. The lineup is absolutely gangbusters too, with Worlds End Press headlining the shindig, as well as performances from Tiny Little Houses, The Hounds Homebound, Neighbourhood Youth, Little Shock and Foreign National.

It’s time to break out the party hats because someone’s about to celebrate a pretty big milestone. Since their inception in 2005, the electronic math rockers have gone through a name change, released four excellent albums, signed to indie British label Warp Records, and have played gigs everywhere from Glastonbury to Sydney Opera House. For all the die-hards out there, they’re also doing a 10th anniversary reissue of their first album Make Me Love You. Joining PVT for the momentous celebrations will be local heroes Kirkis and Pearls.

A church in the CBD will be transformed into an interactive installation, featuring a large organic sculpture that is paired with an original, ethereal soundscape. Plus, come the night of Tuesday, November 17, the installation will convert into a performance space, where Melbourne’s most talked about emerging female artists will take the stage. The lineup for the evening includes Ella Thompson, Woodes, Tash Parker, Sui Zhen and Eliza Hull. Art, music, fashion and floral design come together for a gorgeous evening of performance.

If you’re thinking about heading along to an industry event or panel discussion at MMW this year, this would be our pick. Face the Music industry conference is now in its eighth year, and conveniently coincides with the festival. The session we’re most interested in is Music Journalism: The Critical Mass.

Music journalism comes in many different shapes and forms these days, from independent music blogs to long form magazine essays, and too many interviews to count. While it’s fantastic, we have so many enthusiastic voices wanting to share their passion and knowledge of the next big thing in music. So how can you make sure your voice is heard over the others? That’s where the experts come in. This panel will include Fred Pessaro (VICE Music), Mathew Coyte (Rolling Stone Australia), Brodie Lancaster (Rookie, Pitchfork) and Marcus Teague (The Age, Rolling Stone, The Guardian), and will be moderated by author and journalist Jenny Valentish.

Fourteen of Melbourne’s best live music venues throw open their doors for a night of free gigs and wild parties. No matter where you are in the city, there’ll be a venue near you that will be getting in on the action, including establishments such as Loop Bar, Boney, Shebeen, Cherry Bar and Ding Dong Lounge. While we’re extremely confident you could stumble into any of these venues and be exceptionally happy, we’re going to recommend the St Jerome’s Laneway Festival curated lineup of forward-thinking artists Fractures, Totally Mild, and Crepes at Thousand Pound Bend. If you are feeling a little more rambunctious, we’d definitely point you in the direction of The Public Bar for Mesa Cosa, The Mighty Boys, and Lazertits.

This town sure loves its films, and we love them even more when they’re free. For MMW, Rooftop Cinema will be playing two of this year’s most popular musical films: the devastatingly insightful Amy, based on the tumultuous life of Amy Winehouse, and Straight Outta Compton, a biographical drama based on the life and times of NWA. If you’re keen to check out something a little more local, head to Play It Safe: a film about a generation caught between endless opportunity and the pressures of conformity.

Fact: you don’t have to wait until the sun goes down to have a damn good time at Melbourne Music Week. From 12-5pm on the first Saturday of the festival, enjoy roller skating and a live set from The Public Opinion Six, who will be joined by the Foreign Brothers Core-Tet for an awesome live jam session. In the MMW flagship outdoor area, Melbourne DJ and radio host MzRizk will be throwing a block party NYC would be proud of. The whole event will consist of a lot of dancing, eating, chilling and embracing hip hop culture to the fullest, with an all-female line-up of DJs including JNETT, Mamacita Bonnita and Miss Goldie. So get your skates on.

If you’ve got a hankering for some gumbo and brass band funk — because, really, who doesn’t? — head down to Dodds Street for a good old New Orleans Street Party. Food and music collide in spectacular fashion, as you peruse the laneways and embrace the vibrant nightlife in all its glory. Musical guests include Adam Rudegeair’s Bayou, Tapestry, Horns of Leroy, The Hoodrangers, The Lagerphones, and the VCA Jazz and Improv Ensemble.

The I OH YOU parties are notorious for being absolutely killer – in a good way. Remember the time they hosted their MMW event in an old train station? For this year’s festival, ARIA award-winning, indie thrash rockers DZ Deathrays are headlining the party, with performances by New War and Darts to get you going. There’ll also be DJ sets by Goldfields, DJ Tranter and the I OH YOU DJs to make sure you get your groove thang well and truly on. As well as being consistently awesome, the I OH YOU parties tend to sell out pretty quickly during MMW, so it’s amazing there are still some tickets left. Get onto this quick sticks.

Ain’t no party like a MMW Opening Night Party, and anyone who went along to last year’s Total Giovanni and Architecture in Helsinki affair last year can back us up on this one. In exciting musical news, Gypsy & The Cat have abandoned their hiatus for this auspicious occasion, and will be joined by sparkling alt-pop band Dorsal Fins and the joyous R’n’B and pop stylings of The Harpoons. It’s also the first night the flagship venue will be open —and while the idea of partying in an old hospital basement may seem a little creepy at first, we can’t deny we’re aching to check it out.