One of Sydney Festival 2017's most Instagrammed events was The Beach, an enormous ball pit inside a human-made cave, as created by Brooklyn-based design studio Snarkitecture. Tonnes of you spent at least some part of January diving, cannonballing and floating about in a sea of plastic bliss. Understandably. If you've been fretting about how this summer could possibly measure up, here's your answer. Another ball pit, this time called The Ballpit!, is on its way. And, like The Beach, it'll be a behemoth, made up of one million balls. However, rather than filling up just a single space, they'll be arranged across several, creating a kind of playground — but for adults. On top of that, the balls are of the glow-in-the-dark variety, illuminated by LED lights that will pulsate to a soundtrack provided by some of Sydney's best DJs. There'll also be an onsite cocktail bar, to let you rest and refuel in between dips and dives. Just when and where The Ballpit! will pop up is yet to be revealed, but expect it in early 2018. Entry will be via ticket, available online. Sessions are likely to sell out pretty quickly, so get in early by registering on The Ballpit!'s website. Image: The Beach, Sydney Festival 2017 by Shannon Connellan.
Southbank is set to gain an exciting new boozy addition when Patient Wolf Distilling Co opens (what is slated to be) the state's largest independent gin distillery come September. Co-founders Matt Argus and Dave Irwin have snagged a red brick industrial warehouse along Market Street, which will soon become the brand's new working distillery and public bar. The gin den will offer tastings aplenty, plus distillery tours, masterclasses and bottles for takeaway — including limited-edition and distillery-only releases. At the 30-seat bar, you can also expect seasonal cocktails, including G&Ts, negronis and martinis, as well as more experimental concoctions. Each will use Patient Wolf's boutique gins, which, at the moment, comes in three varieties. There's a dry gin, a thyme number with lemon zest and pine notes and the Blackthorn — a dark gin made from sloe berries handpicked in Tasmania. [caption id="attachment_728570" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Long Boy Media[/caption] The production facility will feature a 220-litre copper still by Müller ("the Bentley of stills") and, come next year, a 1000-litre still from Germany. When it arrives, Patient Wolf's new Southbank spot will become one of Australia's largest urban gin distilleries. Together, the two stills will allow the Patient Wolf team to continue to blend traditional distilling methods with modern technology and new-age botanicals. And, come September, you'll be able to taste every drop of it. Until then, the brand will continue to distill out of its Brunswick digs, so keep an eye out for its bottles at restaurants and bars around town. The Patient Wolf Distillery will open in early September at 34–36 Market Street, Southbank. Opening hours will be Thursday through Friday from 4–8pm and Saturday through Sunday from 10am–5pm.
With 64 days until the lights are on, Vivid has announced its 2013 lineup. And as the festival turns five it's vastly extending its brightly coloured reach to cover more physical ground and generate more creative ideas. In 2013 Fort Dennison, Walsh Bay and the Inner West will also get a heavy splattering of neon light and artistic innovation as the festival adds more precincts to the Vivid family. Sydney's own Spinifex Group will be the artists behind the Lighting of the Sails, the jewel in Vivid's dazzling crown, with the rest of the foreshore welcoming a global assemblage of lighting designers to the walkable stretch spanning Campbells Cove to Walsh Bay. Interactivity is key this year, with Customs House featuring a dance floor so visitors can make the building move. The festival's LIVE section will celebrate the Opera House's increasingly enthusiastic approach to popular music, populating the Kraftwerk-headlined lineup with homegrown and international acts. Empire of the Sun are premiering their second album Ice on the Dune, which was announced in true theatrical style with a bizarre video last week. Other acts include legendary soul crooner Bobby Womack, Underworld's Karl Hyde, the Sunnyboys, Bon Iver frontman Justin Vernon, folk-rock tribute Sounds of the South and the 45-piece Heritage Orchestra — performing the Bladerunner score. More will be announced in the upcoming weeks. And hosting a mammoth 136 events this year is the Jess Scully-curated Vivid Ideas. Level six of the MCA will be taken over by 100 of them, with further talks and workshops spread through the Overseas Passenger Terminal, Seymour Centre, Sydney Museum and more. Semi-Permanent, Sydney Writers’ Festival and the Australian International Design Festival are getting involved in 2013, along with a slew of events supporting this year's film and photography motif. Reportage and Sydney Film Festival are two exciting additions, and a talk by Chris Ying of Momofuku-McSweeney's foodie mag Lucky Peach should give discerning ramen enthusiasts plenty to get psyched about. Check out the Vivid website for the full lineup.
It's that time again. Get your diaries out, and your credit cards at the ready — those excellent comedians need your money once more. The first acts for the 2014 Melbourne International Comedy Festival have just gone on sale and a few more will be up for grabs this Friday, December 13. So far, it's much of what you might expect. As ever, local crowd pleasers Dave Hughes and Wil Anderson are top of the bill. And, oh good, Wil Anderson has found another pun to make out of his name! Chronologically, from 1998 onwards that makes his full list of shows: I am the Wilrus, Wilennium, Terra Wilius, Who Wants to be a Willionaire, Wil of Fortune, Wil by Mouth, Jagged Little Wil, Kill Wil, Wil Communication, Wil of God, BeWILdered, Wilosophy, Wilful Misconduct, Man vs Wil, Wilarious, Goodwil, and drumroll please, Wiluminati! Not his best, if you ask us. International favourites Stephen K. Amos and Jason Byrne will be back too. It wouldn't really be an Oxfam Gala without Jason Byrne making some hapless audience member climb in a box, right? And the Brits will be further represented by surrealist oddball Paul Foot, rapper and recent Ricky Gervais' collaborator Doc Brown, and sketch comedy pros Max & Ivan. There are the big shows on offer too. To get a taste of everything, head along to the 2014 Comedy Allstars Supershow on opening night, or maybe nab some tickets to the RAW Comedy or Class Clowns National Grand Finals which go on sale December 13. Unfortunately the 2014 Oxfam Gala is already sold out — in record time, no less. It's as if people don't know you can just watch it on TV. Regardless, this little taste of the full bill has been a bit underwhelming. Made slightly worse by the fact there are only two women listed so far — local Melbournite Justine Sless and British comedian Sara Pascoe. Hopefully the full program will bring with it a little balance, but unfortunately we have 'til February to wait and see. The 2014 Melbourne International Comedy Festival will run from March 26 'til April 20, 2014. For a full list of already announced acts see their website here.
Russell Crowe’s directorial debut, The Water Diviner, is a fine example of what might be termed 'a trailer movie’. Not because it’s stereotypically cheap, unsophisticated and championed by a guy named ‘Russell', but because it gives the impression of having been written, produced and directed entirely around a vision for how it might be sold to audiences. The Water Diviner's trailer, for example, features a perfect meld of spectacular visuals and intimate disclosures: a sandstorm of biblical scale followed by: “You can find water but you can’t even find your own children!”; a body-littered battlefield illumined by blinding explosions, with: “Gallipoli? There’s nothing there but ghosts”. You see the trailer and you think: “Man, I’ve got to see that film”, then you see that film and you think: “Man, that trailer was really good”. How this plays out in practice is that The Water Diviner feels very deliberate; a converted warehouse apartment of a film in that it's unembellished and beautiful, yet with all its parts exposed. You see how it was assembled, how everything fits together — a tradeoff of striking visuals at the expense of mystery. The plot, based on an astonishing true story, concerns an Australian farmer and father named Joshua Connor (Russell Crowe) whose three sons were all killed on the same day at Gallipoli. At the close of the war, Connor travelled to Turkey to locate their bodies, though with tens of thousands of remains, both Australian and Turkish, scattered across the wasteland, most considered it an insurmountable task. The film’s title, however, refers to Connor’s almost mystical ability to seek out subterranean water reserves in the otherwise barren Australian outback, and he uses that same gift to locate his dead sons on the battlefield. The latter application is admittedly less plausible and would feel horribly hinky were it not for Crowe’s understated sincerity and his character’s frank admission that he fails at the former "all the time". The Water Diviner's narrative flicks back and forth between Connor’s endeavours and his sons' final hours on the battlefield, and it's those brief scenes between the brothers where the film is at its heart-wrenching best. Most impressive is its entirely inglorious depiction of the Anzac experience, acknowledging the heroism but focusing exclusively on the horror. The guttural, almost animalistic wailing of one wounded brother is one of the most unsettling scenes ever depicted in a war movie and is to be commended both on its direction and performance. Less impressive is the clumsy and unnecessary romantic subplot between Crowe and his Turkish hotelier, Ayshe (Olga Kurylenko). It’s disappointing that so far Hollywood has proven itself incapable of capturing the subtlety of Kurylenko’s earlier work in films like L’Annulaire (The Ring Finger), favouring an emphasis on her beauty rather than her genuine talent. Still, with 2015 marking the centenary of Gallipoli, this is a well-timed and well-intentioned movie that marks a decent directorial debut for the Academy Award-winning Crowe.
If Colin From Accounts won you over as quickly as a cute dog in the street when it first arrived in 2022 — when it became one of that year's best new TV shows in the process — then you've probably been hanging out for the Aussie rom-com sitcom's second season. The show was unsurprisingly renewed in 2023, and now has an official return date: Thursday, May 30. When it debuted, Colin From Accounts had everyone bingeing their way through this tale of an awkward but memorable meet-cute, which began when a medical student and a microbrewery owner crossed paths in Sydney, ended up with an injured dog between them, then went from strangers to pet co-owners almost instantly. This time, however, the series will be dropping its episodes weekly on Binge instead of in one batch. If you're new to the show, which won Best Narrative Comedy Series at the 2024 AACTAs and a trio of Logies — Most Outstanding Comedy Program, Most Outstanding Actor and Most Outstanding Actress — in 2023, it's the latest collaboration between real-life couple and No Activity stars Harriet Dyer (The Invisible Man) and Patrick Brammall (Evil). Story-wise, the first season of Colin From Accounts charted what happened after Brammall's Gordon was distracted by Dyer's Ashley one otherwise ordinary morning, then accidentally hit a stray dog with his car. The pair took the pooch to receive veterinary treatment, then committed to look after him — and, yes, named him Colin From Accounts — causing their already-messy lives to intertwine. In season two, Ashley and Gordon are living together, which brings its own chaos — including the quest to get Colin From Accounts back from his new owners. A heap of fresh faces are joining the series for its second date, such as Celeste Barber (Wellmania), Virginia Gay (Mother and Son), Justin Rosniak (Wolf Like Me), Lynne Porteous (Frayed) and John Howard (Bump). Season two of Colin From Accounts doesn't yet have a sneak peek, but you can check out the trailer for season one below: Colin From Accounts season two will stream via Binge from Thursday, May 30, 2024. Read our review of season one. Images: Lisa Tomasetti.
Anyone who’s spent a frosty morning commuting on the Underground would know that London’s not exactly the world’s friendliest city. Well, not before a beer or five, anyway. In fact, a quarter of city siders report feeling lonely often, if not all the time. But a group of talkative types has decided that it needn’t be this way. They’ve come up with a project called Talk to Me London. The aim is to encourage a friendlier culture by helping strangers to talk to one another. The first assignment is a Kickstarter campaign, raising money for London’s first ever ‘Talk to Me’ day. The initial goal of £6,000 ($10,700) has been reached. So, one day this summer, thousands of Londoners will receive ‘Talk to Me’ badges to wear, indicating that they’re ‘up for a chat’. There’ll also be events held in public spaces, like dinner parties in parks and book discussions on tube carriages, lectures on wellbeing and community, conversation-prompting public art, flash mobs to break awkward silences, ‘talk bars’ on train platforms and busking acts that depend on interaction. Mayor Boris Johnson is a keen supporter. “I love the idea behind Talk to Me London,” he said. “What an innovative and fun way to encourage Londoners to talk to each other. Conversations are a great way to share experiences and stories, increase wellbeing, and bring a greater sense of community in the capital.” Via Springwise.
Anyone with even a passing interest in gaming will be familiar with the concept of the ‘boss arena’. Be it Mario or Mass Effect, there’s an intuitive moment experienced by every player when their character suddenly strolls into a vast open space surrounded by high, insurmountable walls and they're gripped by an immediate, unnerving sense that things are about to get a whole lot worse. Whether or not this idea directly informed the production team of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part II, the same unsettling sensation rears its head throughout the franchise’s final installment and will leave audiences scrambling for their invisible 'save buttons' time and time again. An abandoned city square, a deserted mall and a sewer system all play host to these phenomenally tense and terrifying sequences (so much so in that last sequence that parents were taking their children out of the screening). Indeed, this is a fittingly bleak and violent conclusion to a franchise where anything less would have represented a disappointing commercial concession. To end on a positive note would have offered an incompatibly upbeat finale to this tale of dystopian bloodsport in which children are forced to kill for entertainment and political intimidation. Even the satirical pomp of characters like Elizabeth Banks’s Effie and Stanley Tucci’s Caesar has been stripped bare, so much so that you could almost be forgiven for thinking Mockingjay II was filmed in greyscale. Gone, too (thankfully) is the teenage angst that mired much of the previous film in near unceasing dullness. In fact, everything here is kept mercifully simple: Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) intends to kill President Snow (Donald Sutherland), but to do so she and her team must first navigate the perils of the Capital minefield. That’s it. That’s all that’s going on here. And the film is much stronger for it. The problem, of course, with such a dark and joyless approach is that portrayals of gritty, hardened soldiers can easily be mistaken for bored or lacklustre performances, and Mockingjay II is no exception. Sutherland, in fact, appears to be the only one enjoying himself, both as a character and a performer. His wry smile and pointed barbs earn almost every one of the sparse laughs throughout, leaving everyone else to move from scene to scene as if in a communal drunken daze. On the rare occasions where emotion does surface, it’s invariably from one of the supporting roles. To its credit, Mockingjay II doesn’t hold back in its depiction of war crimes, and its final stages boast a moment that is genuinely shocking, both narratively and visually. None of the films that have followed the original have been able to match it – either in terms of story or performance – but the finale is not far behind. A fittingly bleak and violent conclusion to a compelling if overlong young adult franchise. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-7K_OjsDCQ
In support of their new release, Chasing Ghosts, The Amity Affliction will burn a path across Australia with what is shaping up to be a blistering parade of infernal jams. After the success of their previous release, Youngbloods, some incredible shows at the Big Day Out festival earlier this year and a massive headline tour a few months after, the band are taking 2012 by storm. Performing with The Amity Affliction on all their dates will be a collection of international acts that revel in a similar style of chaotic music. California’s The Ghost Inside, Brighton’s Architects and local rockers Buried In Verona will all be on hand to rev the audience up.
Pixels is a movie that demonstrates how two rights can make a significant wrong. The first ‘right' is a brilliant Futurama vignette named ‘Raiders of the Lost Arcade’ that featured in the 2002 episode ‘Anthology of Interest II’. In it, the protagonist, Fry, queries what life would be like as a video game, whereupon characters based on ‘80s arcade staples like Space Invaders and Donkey Kong invade earth, and Fry proves to be the only one capable of stopping them thanks to his misspent youth as a gamer. The second ‘right' is a 2010 short film by Patrick Jean named ‘Pixles', in which pixelated arcade characters invade earth and reduce everything to, well, pixels. Together, these two sources constitute almost the entirety of the plot, title and visuals of Adam Sandler’s latest outing, where, unfortunately, the whole is very much poorer than its parts. Much of this is because of the missteps made in the means by which those parts were combined. Pixels, to put it simply, is an excellent idea turned into a children’s film where almost every joke is aimed at people over 30. In other words, it seems to have no idea who it’s actually catering to. Consider the final scene: just moments after the adorable merchandise children’s toy character ‘Q-Bert’ says something cute to make kids laugh, there’s an extended threesome joke involving Serena Williams and Martha Stewart. And it’s not the first in the film. Not by a long shot. The action scenes are solid and fast-paced, yet the first one doesn’t arrive for almost an hour, with the preceding 50-odd minutes spent on a semi-romantic subplot that lacks both romance and plot. It all feels very much a victim of studio influence — a failed attempt to hedge box office bets by playing to both children and adults without giving either enough of what they want. On paper, the cast of Pixels is pretty decent. Peter Dinklage, Josh Gad and Kevin James play the adult versions of Sander’s childhood arcade gaming buddies, now a convict, conspiracy theorist and President of the United States respectively (no, seriously, James is President). Michelle Monaghan plays the ‘love interest’/senior DARPA scientist (in that order), representing the only real female role of any substance, albeit with most of her character development involving wildly different hairstyles in every scene without any mention made of it. Ashley Benson also makes an appearance as ‘the hot girl’ who literally doesn’t say a single word in the entire film. She just switches back and forth between pouting, kissing and ‘being hot’. Ultimately, director Chris Columbus has actually crafted a half-watchable film here, which — given the script — is something of an achievement. The Harry Potter director brings an energy and light-heartedness to the action sequences, complete with a handful of those trademark uplifting, fist-pumping moments of exuberance that defined his exhilarating Quidditch matches. There are also a couple of solid laugh-out-loud jokes and nifty ‘80s nostalgia references that frustrate more than entertain because of their infrequency. Had Pixels been predominantly an action movie, the plot vacuum might have mattered less, but with so little action to enjoy, at least until the final 15 minutes or so, we’re left with a film that feels like a giant missed opportunity, and that will likely fade fast from the memories of all who see it.
Chopsticks may rank among the most popular eating utensils on the planet; however the act of turning their disposable casings into art isn't quite as common. Well, not into something meaningful, and as a gesture of thanks. One Japanese waiter started noticing interestingly shaped pieces of paper left behind after meals, decided they were being left as a token of appreciation and started collecting them. That was in 2012 — and now he has more than 15,000 examples. Meet Japanese Tip, the art project that has flowered from Yuki Tatsumi's time working in restaurants. Flowers feature among his collection, but they're just some of the shapes that feature. From bow ties and birds to seahorses and people, the range is as varied as the colours printed on the paper sleeves, which have been found from a similarly diverse array of bars, izakayas, restaurants, cafes, sushi eateries, diners and ramen joints from around the country. Indeed, in the year leading up to March 2017, Yuki visited 47 prefectures around Japan to collect origami wrappers and enlist eateries happy for him to collect the objects that would otherwise be thrown away. An exhibition of 8000 of his pieces was staged in Tokyo this month, with another to follow in 2018. To view a selection from Japanese Tip's collection, head to the project website. Via Lonely Planet. Image: Japanese Tip.
Reckon you could write the Great Australian Novel, if only you could find the time? Sick of staring at that half-finished film script? Been scribbling down lots of lines, but yet to finish a poem? Well, how does five days alone in a tiny house in the wilderness, completely off the grid, sound? Meet Cabin Days, a new writer's residency that sounds like every time-poor scribe's dream. It's being run by Unyoked, the Aussie startup that rents out those adorable little cabins in the middle of nowhere, in collaboration with online platform The Writers Bloc to give writers a chance to, well, write — without any interruptions (except maybe the view). The successful residents will receive five nights of free (!) accommodation, as well as personalised writing supplies, a bar (gin will be supplied by Archie Rose and beer by Capital Brewing Co.) and, if requested, support to publish their work. Two residencies will be given away per year — one in Sydney and another in Melbourne. Unyoked's cabins are located in secret spots, surrounded by bush, less than two hours from the city. At the moment there are four scattered around NSW and two in Victoria. Run independently by twin brothers Cam and Chris Grant — and designed with the help of Sydney studio Fresh Prince — they're built to make you feel as though you're part of the natural environment, but with the security of four, solid walls to keep out the bears, plus a few mod cons. Think expansive windows, timber walls, a comfy bed, kitchen appliances, firewood and good coffee. What's more, the cabins are entirely off the grid, which means solar power, composting toilets and a heavenly absence of wifi. Keen? Start your application over here. Or, if you can spare $199 a night, you can book your own retreat here.
Wu-Tang Clan are hip hop royalty. Their debut album Enter the Wu-Tang defined the sound of an entire generation and still holds high rotation at dirty house parties and the playlists of every independent vinyl store with a tough music snob behind the counter. Any self-respecting music fan knows the quality and skill of this iconic group, and now, RZA, GZA and Ghostface Killah are collaborating with Cher — the diamante clad diva who believes in life after love and has spent the past few years rambling nonsensically on Twitter. Luckily for Wu-Tang fans (and their much-cherished street cred), the collaboration with Cher only extends as far as contributing vocals on two tracks of the group's upcoming album. But this is no ordinary LP. Once Upon a Time in Shaolin is a 31-track double LP that Wu Tang has been developing in secret over the past six years. Just one copy of the album will be produced, and it will only be available to the public via private listening sessions at museums, galleries and festivals. After this tour, for which dates have not yet been released, the singular copy will go up for sale. It will be encased in a "hand-carved nickel-silver box designed by the British Moroccan artist Yahya," and is expected to reach an auction price "in the millions". Suffice to say, this is an important album. One which RZA has produced in an effort to break down the boundaries between music and art; redefining the nature of our contemporary listening practices. And what's Cher's contribution? "Wu-Tang, baby. They rock the world." In an exclusive preview this week, a journalist from Forbes picked up on this small cameo from the iconic singer. Cher belts out these few words in signature diva style at the end of a song featuring Ghostface Killah. Though the collaboration has been confirmed, apparently Cher didn't have much involvement with the famed hip hop group. "She recorded her parts separately, so I don't believe there was direct interaction," said her representatives. Though unsurprising, it's a little disappointing. Imagine a post-recording afterparty with RZA and GZA blasting 'Protect Ya Neck' while Cher tries to harmonise and pin velvet tassels on everyone. The world isn't ready for it. Via Rolling Stone.
Waiting in slow-moving lines has to be one of the least-loved parts of overseas travelling, but it could soon prove a whole lot less hassle, with Sydney Airport set to start trialling biometric testing from May this year. As The Sydney Morning Herald reports, the trial will be available to those flying internationally with Qantas who've registered their involvement with the Australian Border Force. It'll reduce the usual airport adventure to a breezy six-step process — from checking in, to border processing, to boarding — requiring just one flash of your passport along the way. Instead of the usual fussing around, face and fingerprint scans will be used as verification, as Sydney Airport looks at ways to ease congestion and make travelling easier. Facial-recognition technology is already in place at Australian airports, which has, at Sydney Airport, knocked the average time spent by people passing through customs from around four minutes to a speedy 23 seconds. Exactly what information and data the Border Force will need from individuals is not yet known, but it's likely to be extensive. Sydney Airport told The Sydney Morning Herald it would make sure "relevant privacy issues are managed" and that if the trial's successful, there are plans to roll it out across other international airlines. Via The Sydney Morning Herald.
Since airing a year ago, The Handmaid's Tale has become the most watched series in the history of SBS On Demand, with over 26-million chapter views. It has also nabbed eight Emmy and two Golden Globe awards, including one for Best Television Series and Best Actress in a Television Series Drama. Now, the wildly popular and horribly disturbing series is back for season two. The 13-episode season will premiere on Thursday, April 26 at 8.30pm with a special double episode airing on both SBS and SBS On Demand. Thankfully, this is only hours after season two hits Hulu in the US. For those who somehow managed to avoid binge watching season one, here's a bit of background — but beware, there are spoilers ahead. Created by Bruce Miller (Eureka, The 100), the series is based on the award-winning novel by Margaret Atwood. It follows a dystopian near-future New England where a totalitarian Christian theonomy has overthrown the US government, now called the Gilead. The series centres around the life of Offred (Elisabeth Moss), who, along with the country's few remaining fertile women, is forced into sexual servitude as a 'handmaid' to the ruling elite. The end of season two sees Offred falling pregnant and being dragged off to the back of a van — quite the nail-biting cliffhanger. This season will focus on Offred's pregnancy and her ongoing fight against the Gilead. The provoking and disturbingly relevant series explores themes of women's rights and governmental control, which are all too timely and downright believable for comfort right now. If you haven't managed to watch season one yet, it's currently available to binge on SBS On Demand. Get watching.
783 million people in the world still lack access to clean water. Nearly 2.5 billion live without adequate sanitation. And it’s only going to get worse with continued climate change. So an Italian designer by the name of Arturo Vittori has come up with part of a solution: the WarkaWater tower. By harvesting water from the air, the 9 metre-high construction can collect more than 94 litres per day. Like many ingenious devices, it works incredibly simply. Stalks of bamboo or juncus are bound together to create a semi-rigid shell. Inside, a nylon and polypropylene mesh traps moisture. These form dewdrops and travel downwards, settling in a basin at the tower’s base. The design is inspired by the Warka tree, an Ethiopian native that bears figs and serves as a site for local meetings. Vittori invented the WarkaWater tower after a visit to north-eastern Ethiopia. “There, people live in a beautiful natural environment but often without running water, electricity, a toilet or a shower,” he tells Wired. Women and children walk for hours to collect water from ponds contaminated with human waste and full of worms. Not only does this mean serious exposure to disease and hard labour, it also means that children are kept from school. “WarkaWater is designed to provide clean water as well as ensure long-term environmental, financial and social sustainability,” Vittori explains. “Once locals have the necessary know-how, they will be able to teach other villages and communities to build the WarkaWater towers.” Four people can build one in a few days at a cost of US$550. All necessary materials are available locally. Vittori is intending on having two towers built in Ethiopia by 2015. In the meantime, he’s seeking out financial support for their expansion. Another water-harvesting invention was launched in Lima last year. Via Inhabitat.
Show me a plant that you can use to make medicine, soap, a mean green curry, alcohol (and a requisite hangover cure), and bikinis from, and i'll show you a coconut. Now, the water from the 'tree of a thousand uses', long the drink of choice for sunburned tourists the world over, is making a name for itself in more temperate climes as it becomes increasingly popular as a health drink. Coconut water is said to be more isotonic, thus hydrating, than water, as it contains naturally occurring electrolytes similar to high energy sports drinks. There's also no fat or cholesterol in it, and there's more potassium in it than a banana. Not a bad CV. A new local brand, C Coconut Water, launched just in time for summer, and is Australia's first pure organic coconut water, bringing the natural liquid from the centre of young coconuts. The folks at C are giving one lucky Concrete Playgrounder the chance to win an entire summer's worth of coconut water. For a chance to win yourself five cases of 12 cartons, just make sure you're a Concrete Playground subscriber then email us with your name and postal address at hello@concreteplayground.com.au
Come January, Christmas will be over and the presents mostly forgotten, but Howler has a little something to help cure your post-holiday blues. On Friday, January 10, the Brunswick bar is throwing a party with free tacos and cheap drinks. Its newly returned Taco & Tequila bar will be shaking frozen margaritas for $5 a pop from 5–6pm and, during that hour, every drink purchased will come with two free tacos. Yes, free tacos. If you're super broke, you can even go halves in a marg with a friend and still get a whole taco — for just $2.50 Tacos come in three varieties — smoked brisket, black bean and achiote chicken — and after 6pm you'll still be able to snag them for a reasonable $6.50 a pop. The price of frozen margaritas hikes up to $12 then, too. To round out the party vibe, there'll also be tunes from King Sally and misters to keep everyone cool. Howler's free taco party runs from 5–6pm.
It's been 14 years since Danny Rogers and Jerome Borazio decided to fill a Melbourne alleyway with tunes in 2005. Thankfully, Laneway Festival has just confirmed it will be heading back to its collection of unconventional venues for another year, revealing its jam-packed 2019 lineup. Returning to Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, Fremantle, Auckland and Singapore next January and February, Laneway will raise a plastic cup to the middle of summer with one heck of a lineup. This year's eclectic program is headlined by two huge Aussie names: indie rock group Gang of Youths and acclaimed singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett — while New Zealand audiences will also be treated to UK indie rock band Florence + The Machine and teen sensation Billie Eilish. A few big artists are heading Down Under for the first time, too, including English R&B superstar Jorja Smith, neo-soul singer Rex Orange County and American rapper Denzel Curry. You'll also be able to get down to Camp Cope, Middle Kids and Mitski and sway along to Mansionair, What So Not and Skeggs. If you want to catch Jorja Smith and NYC rapper A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, you'll have to head along to Laneway — they'll both be playing exclusively at the festival, with no sideshows. This year, the Melbourne leg of the festival will be heading to its new location for the first time: Footscray Park. Its a bigger space, but, supposedly, won't have an increased capacity — so, hopefully that'll mean less lines and more room for dancing. But, enough chit-chat — here's the full 2019 lineup. LANEWAY 2019 LINEUP Gang of Youths Courtney Barnett Florence + The Machine** A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie (exclusive) Baker Boy Bene** Billie Eilish** Camp Cope Charlie Collins* Clairo Cosmo's Midnight Crooked Colours* Denzel Curry* DJDS G Flip High Beams** Imugi** Jon Hopkins Jorja Smith (exclusive) KIAN Lontalius** Mansionair Masego Methyl Ethel Middle Kids Miss June** Mitski* Parquet Courts Ravyn Lenae Rex Orange County Ruby Fields Skeggs Smino The Dead C** What So Not Yellow Days *East Coast only ** New Zealand only LANEWAY FESTIVAL 2019 DATES Auckland — Monday, January 28 Brisbane — Saturday, February 2 Sydney — Sunday, February 3 Adelaide — Friday, February 8 Melbourne — Saturday, February 9 Fremantle — Sunday, February 10 Singapore — Dates TBC Visa pre-sale tickets go on sale at 9am this Thursday, September 20 — you can register here — and the rest of the tickets going on sale at 9am on Tuesday, September 25 from Laneway Festival. Laneway Image: Anthony Smith; Courtney Barnett: Pooneh Ghan.
After a run of successful kitsch Disco Yoga events — Michael Jackson and Woodstock themed — pink-haired Disco Yoga Queen Nickie Harding is holding a Halloween-themed yoga night sporting her unique blend of novelty, Vinyasa flow and dance. It’s like a party, but rather than boozing you get amazing core strength. If you like your yoga classes silent, conservative and you like to hide in the corner, probably give this one a miss. If your idea of a good time is dressing up and finding your inner peace to the soothing sounds of ‘ The Monster Mash’, ‘Time Warp,’ and ‘Thriller' then this one's for you. In a recent Queen Victoria Market Week Disco Yoga event, Nickie encouraged strangers to hug, hold hands and support each other through poses. Massive balls bounced around the marketplace and a live DJ played Top 40 and classic dance tracks. Expect more of that in this two-hour event surrounded by zombies, witches and vampires on Saturday, October 31.
Head On Photo Festival is back for its 11th year — but, this time, it's digital. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the (normally) citywide photography festival will be a predominately online event for 2020. The internationally acclaimed festival is running from May 1–17 as planned but with the entire program launching as a digital platform on the Heads On website, including all photography and other interactive events. Overall, there are 110 exhibitions, plus over 80 artists talks, panel discussions and webinars which you can check out for free. As usual, the exhibition features contemporary photography, portraiture and photojournalism. This year, artists from more than 12 countries are exhibiting, including France, Guatemala, Japan, Greece, Germany, South Korea, The Netherlands, the USA, the UK, China, Canada and (of course) Australia. On Friday, May 1, The Head On Photo Awards were announced, with Australian photographer Marcia Macmillan's 'Whimsical Warrior' taking home the landscape award and 'The Gift' by Fiona Wolf-Symeonides awarded the 2020 Portrait Prize. Australian photographers Jon Frank and Nick Moir and international artists Jouk Oosterhof and Paul Carruthers also took home prizes. [caption id="attachment_769244" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Marcia Macmillan, 'Whimsical warrior'[/caption] Other highlights include Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Renée C Byer, who travelled across four continents and captured the faces of people living on $1USD per day; mythological imaginings by Guatemalan economist and artist Astrid Blazsek-Ayala; a documentation of Melbourne's violent race rallies between 2014–2018 by photojournalist Jake Nowakowski; images of the Athens's drag queen scene by Greek photographer Nikolaos Menoudarakos; and snaps of Bondi's underwater marine life by Australian photographer Matt Smith. Work by heaps of other award-winning artists will be on display, too, including British photographer Professor Richard Sawdon Smith, German documentarian Robert Harding Pittman and two-time Walkley Award-winner Dave Tacon. As far as catching the festival in person, Head On also plans to launch a scaled-back version across venues in November, so keep an eye on this space. Images: Dave Tacon, 'Cirque le Soir'; Nick Moir, 'Run'; Nikolaos Menoudarakos; Matt Smith, 'The Martian'; ; Janie Barrett; Renée C Byer; and Fiona Wolf-Symeonides, 'The Gift'. All images courtesy of Head On Photo Festival. Updated May 4, 2020.
Surf, sun, sand and ice skating? It's not as far-fetched as it might seem. While most holidaymakers headed for hot climes plan to cool off with a dip in the ocean — and not with a roll around the ice — one Maldives resort is offering a little from column A and a little from column B. Now open at the Jumeirah Vittaveli, it's the Maldives' first ice rink, which is hardly surprising given the South Asian country's year-round 25 to 31-degree weather. When it is warm and sunny every single day, the only glistening white surface you'd expect to see by the sea is made of sand; however even folks in the tropics need a dose of winter fun. Due to launch just before Christmas — aka, in the coming days — the rink is comprised of special artificial ice plates that stay cool regardless of the temperature. Made by a company by the name of Glice, the synthetic surface also functions without water and doesn't use any energy. While Sydney has its own beachside ice-skating rink in Bondi Beach each winter, no one would ever have contemplated going for a dip, strolling across the shore and hitting the ice in the middle of a blazing Australian summer. Of course, that's not the only bright idea the Maldives boasts when it comes to novelty beachside activities; think floating golf courses and a waterslide straight into the ocean.
Every time that the opening riff from 'Seven Nation Army' echoes from speakers — or around football stadiums, where it's frequently chanted by crowds at soccer tournaments — the world partly has Australia to thank. In 2002, The White Stripes were touring the country when Jack White penned the iconic beginning to the anthemic track. Its birthplace: The Corner Hotel in Richmond, giving Melbourne another reason to brag about its status as a haven for live music. Once you know this fact, hitting the Swan Street pub means having 'Seven Nation Army' stuck in your head. See White bust out the tune at the venue that helped spawn it at Always Live 2024, however, and you'll never forget this pop-culture tidbit. On a lineup that's brimming with highlights, this is up there with the must-attend standouts. White is not only doing an intimate gig at The Corner Hotel, but will also be playing Ballarat's Civic Hall, with both shows part of the festival's new effort to celebrate the state's live music venues. Victoria's Always Live debuted in 2022 with an aim that's still relevant now: supporting gigs in what continues to be a tough time for the industry. With government backing, the program has courted huge names over its past two years, including launching with Foo Fighters; welcoming Dua Lipa, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Yothu Yindi and Sampa the Great for its first event; and returning for a second year with Christina Aguilera, Eric Prydz, Jai Paul and Jessie Ware. For its third stint across Friday, November 22–Sunday, December 8, it's keeping the high-profile acts coming, with Aussie-exclusive shows by The Offspring and St Vincent also on the bill. Ready to come out and play, punk icons The Offspring will hit The Forum Theatre for one night only. St Vincent is doing three gigs, also heading to Ballarat — at Her Majesty's Theatre — alongside playing The Palais Theatre in St Kilda and The Aviary at Crown. Equally massive, and literally: Anyma, making his Australian debut fresh from a six-show residency at Sphere in Las Vegas, complete with the largest screen in the southern hemisphere being built just for the Flemington Racecourse show. In total, 289 artists will take to the stage at 65-plus events around the state. Baker Boy leading the First Nations-focused BLAKTIVISM; a 30th-anniversary Tina Arena gig celebrating her Don't Ask album with help from Richard Marx, Daryl Braithwaite and Kate Ceberano; Missy Higgins also in anniversary mode for 20 years since The Sound of White first hit at Sidney Myer Music Bowl: they're on the lineup as well. The new Live at the Gardens series at Melbourne's Royal Botanic Gardens will see Chet Faker and Tash Sultana join Always Live, too, while the Jamaican Music and Food Festival is back, as is Luliepalooza at Lulie Street Tavern and End of the Line Belgrave. From there, the hefty roster features everyone from Sarah Blasko, Andy Shauf, Bôa and INKABEE x FLEWNT through to Rico Nasty, Bimini and Jaguar — plus Keiynan Lonsdale, Birds of Tokyo, Didirri, Anees and Emma Donovan. "This year's Always Live program not only reinforces our status as the music capital of Australia but brings an extraordinary array of unique and exclusive experiences to audiences across the state," said the event's Chair Matt Gudinski, announcing the bill. "I am incredibly proud to be part of delivering this year's program, and continuing to build the legacy of Always Live. It's a privilege to contribute to Victoria's rich music history and to support our live music sector." [caption id="attachment_969967" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Michael Drummond[/caption] Always Live 2024 runs from Friday, November 22–Sunday, December 8. For more information, and to get tickets, head to the festival website. Top image: David James Swanson.
Kicking off at high noon, triple j's rebranded digital offshoot Double J will start broadcasting today. Heralded by central presenter Myf Warhurst, the rebooted ABC Dig will hit play today on the first track to air — excepting a certain NWA track that's been playing nonstop since Monday. Double J has been on repeat for the last few days, playing the same 'Express Yourself' track in various versions. The stunt, which hit play on Monday, is a throwback to triple j presenters who went on strike in 1989. After a complaint in federal parliament forced LA rap legends NWA's 'F--- Tha Police' off the triple j playlist, disgruntled presenters hit repeat on the 1988 track 'Express Yourself' for 24 hours straight on air. The new station will give 'Express Yourself' a rest at midday when Double J officially begins programming. So what tunes can we expect to wrap our ears around? Myf Warhurst told triple j's Matt and Alex this morning that the first song on Double J has been chosen very carefully. "There'll be a few tears, I think we've nailed it," she said. Triple j station director Meagan Loader told FasterLouder, “Our research showed that people wanted a station that played great new music as well as all the classic triple j tunes they’ve grown up with. We’re not just playing old music, it’s something like 70 percent new music.” "We have wanted to build a station like this for a number of years and now, with your help, we are really proud to deliver Double J," says Triple J manager Chris Scaddan. "While it won’t be a throwback to the music of the original Double J, it will be a station that takes the best elements of triple j’s past - a name, a presenter and the incredible archives, thrown headlong into the future with the best new sounds around." Double J will be available via the ABC Radio App, online at www.doublej.net.au, or on digital radio/TV from midday.
It's not hard to understand why The Wheeler Centre named their upcoming feminist lecture series Hey Girl. It's a phrase that's layered with fluid meaning, from street harassment and solidarity to glowing approval and murky gender identity. These topics and more are under the microscope at Hey Girl, a lecture series running from October 10-14 at the CBD literary hub. The collection of talks explores the common threads of womanhood, like sexuality, race, sisterhood, empathy and fighting the feminist fight. Plus, the series will also make space for stories less commonly heard from the LGBTIQ community. See below for a full lineup of talks and kickass panellists. HEY GIRL 2016 PROGRAM Monday, October 10 Growing Up With Maxine Beneba Clarke — featuring Maxine Beneba Clarke and Santilla Chingaipe. Tuesday, October 11 Raising Girls — featuring Madeleine Morris, Nelly Thomas, Anna Barnes and Mimmie Ngum Chi Watts. Wednesday, October 12 As You Are: A Trans Teen Story — featuring Georgie Stone and Rebekah Robertson. Thursday, October 13 Girls Writing About Girls — featuring Jennifer Down, Marlee Jane Ward, Abigail Ulman and Jax-Jacki Brown. Friday, October 14 YAS KWEEN: Girls on Screen — featuring Judith Lucy, Brodie Lancaster, Mel Campbell, Jessica Knight and Billie Tumarkin. Friday, October 14 Fighting Like a Girl in the 21st Century — featuring Anne Summers and Clementine Ford.
Australians all let us rejoice, for we have a long weekend in the middle of summer, and we plan on making the most of it. Melbourne is putting on a throng of events that celebrate our multicultural city and, of course, Triple J’s Hottest 100. Whether you’re looking to experience the musical delights of live performance, satisfy your tastebuds with international cuisine or just want to go for a dip in the ocean, this list will have you sorted for Australia Day. Have a crack at learning the words to the new Australian anthem, place a bet for Taylor Swift to take out the Js, and find yourself a nice spot in the sun. AUSTRALIA DAY '15 WEEKEND FUNDRAISER Split over two days and two venues, Australia Day: A Benefit for the Wider Community is raising awareness and funds for an exceptionally important cause. On Saturday the 25th head to Footscray’s Reverence Hotel for the likes of Frenzal Rhomb, Saskwatch and Hawaiian Islands. Day two will see Melbourne legends The Smith Street Band, The Bennies and Joelistics perform, providing an interesting mix of musical genres and outspoken voices. Proceeds from the event will be going to the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, The Refugee Council of Australia and Oxfam. Get on this. EAT EVERYTHING AT THE INTERNATIONAL STREET FOOD FESTIVAL Head to the Melbourne Showgrounds to eat your weight in street food from every corner of the globe. A good place to start would be the AMFVG Food Truck Park to get a little sample from here, there and everywhere. If you make it out of there with some room left in your tum, there will also be stalls from the likes of Mr Burger, Wonderbao, Those Girls Iced Tea, The Snag Society, Treat Yo Self Quesadilla Cart, Gumbo Kitchen and 400 Gradi just to name a few. As well as food stalls galore there will also be live music throughout the weekend. GO FOR A DIP AT THE SWIMLAND GREAT AUSTRALIA DAY SWIM Racers at the ready! If an open water swim sounds like your perfect way to celebrate the island that we call home, then grab a wetsuit and get down to Brighton. The 1.4km open water swim is a clockwise course around the Middle Brighton Pier and breakwater from the pier to the finish gate on the beach. For those who like a bit more of a challenge, there is also a 5km swim option, and for those who want to get back to the Hottest 100 as quickly as possible, there’s an intermediate 650m swim. WATCH MURIEL'S WEDDING FOR MIDSUMMA It’s going to be one Abba-solutely fabulous weekend at The 86 on Smith Street this Australia day weekend, with a Dancing Queen party and Babba live show to boot. To round out the partying and performances, from 3pm on Monday come down for a free BBQ and join in for sing-along screenings of the Australian cult classic Muriel’s Wedding. The screenings are also free, so if you’re after a cheap and very cheerful Australia Day, look no further. AUSTRALIA DAY WEEKENDER AT THE ROYAL CROQUET CLUB It’s going to be four solid days of celebration at the Royal Croquet Club with a Food Truck-a-Palooza, musical guests and all around good times. For Australia Day only, Beatbox Kitchen, Taco Truck, Hammer & Tong, Nuoc Mama, Shari D’s and a few other special guests will be joining the already stellar lineup of Meatmother, Misschu, Mr Claws and Messina to provide you with all the fine foodie offerings. Musical guests over the four days include The Kite String Tangle, Miami Horror DJs, Japanese Wallpaper and Hayden James, which are some pretty blissful sounds to fall into a food coma to. CELEBRATE NEW CITIZENS AND BILLY CART RACING IN KENSINGTON Kensington Australia Day Festival and Citizenship Ceremony is a big day of family-friendly fun. The day starts at 11.30am, commencing with a Citizenship Ceremony, to be followed by a billy cart race, because 'Straya. There will plenty of food stalls with international cuisine, a handmade and handcrafted market and live entertainment. Also very importantly, there is a lamington-eating competition, so come hungry. HOTTEST 100 PARTY AT THE ESPY It makes sense to celebrate Australia Day at one of Melbourne’s oldest institutions, but for some people January 26 only means one thing: Triple J’s Hottest 100 Day. Doors open from 11am, so you can secure yourself a prime position for the countdown kick-off at midday. As well as the Hottest 100 booming through their impressive sound system throughout the day, there will be live performances by Last Dinosaurs, Japanese Wallpaper, The Harpoons, Them Bruins and many others. Like all the good things in life, it’s a free event. HAVE A ROUND OF BAREFOOT BOWLS AT BOWLED OVER Hosted by Tonedeaf and Channel [V], Bowled Over is part bowls competition, part live music gig, part Hottest 100 party. Now in its fifth year running, there will be performances by Remi, Bad//Dreems and Twinsy to help remind you of the excellent music this country produces. If you’re not quite competitive enough to throw your hat in the ring for the Levi's Cup Bowling Competition, there will be a new private oasis section where you can chill out in deck chairs and beanbags. Food and drink will be supplied from the likes of Sailor Jerry, The Sweetwater Inn and CUB. HAVE A GERMAN-STYLE AUSTRALIA DAY AT AUSFEST Brunswick St Cider House is where it’s at for the cider lovers of Melbourne, and in particular, their garden bar out the back is perfect for some summer sipping. This Australia Day, the garden will host AusFest 2015 Craft Cider and Beer Festival, where $28 will get you your own personal stein for the day, which you can fill up with one of the 27 beverages on tap on arrival. You can refill your stein for $10 during the day, and will also receive a slow-cooked pork roll for lunch and apple crumble for dessert. There’s also the possibility of turning your cider into a slushy, and to that we say cheers, mate. THROW YOUR OWN BBQ Maybe you don’t want to go anywhere this Australia Day, and that is more than fine, so why not have a BBQ at yours? If you want to have the best BBQ going around, you’re going to need some great bangers, and we don’t mean the of the EDM variety. We’re confident you’ll find some excellent snags at the inaugural Sausage Fest at the Prahran Market. The Prahran Market butchers and poulterers will have their sausages put to the test (the taste test that is), and the winner will be chosen via public opinion blind testing. Competition opens at 11.30am on Friday, January 23, so get down, try some sausages and pick up what you need to make your Australia Day BBQ a memorable one.
Going into 2024, no one knew that Baby Reindeer was about to become one of the most talked-about new shows of 2024. When Richard Gadd's next series arrives, however, it won't be taking audiences by surprise. In news worth sending to your mates from your iPhone, the Scottish writer, actor and comedian has locked in another drama series, this time with HBO and the BBC behind it. Lions doesn't yet have a release date, but it'll span six episodes and also dive into a complicated relationship. Gadd will be telling the tale of two men in Scotland who reunite at one of the pair's wedding. Niall is getting married. Ruben shows up unexpectedly. Cue violence, and also dive into a connection with ups and downs, plus highs and lows, from the 80s until today. The duo have been called 'brothers' by the official synopsis, but with those quote marks in place — so expect why that's the case to factor into the series as well. Meeting as teens, dropping out of each other's life as adults, how the world is changing around them: they're all set to be covered as well. So is a specific question: what does it mean to be a man? While Gadd is creating Lions, as well as writing and executive producing it, he hasn't been announced as one of its stars. Who'll play Niall and Ruben hasn't yet been revealed, and neither has when viewers can expect to see the show — or, Down Under, where, although plenty of HBO content usually heads to Binge and Neon. But, the series' directors have been unveiled: Alexandra Brodski (Somewhere Boy) and Eshref Reybrouck (Ferry: The Series). "Ordering a HBO boxset of The Sopranos, The Wire or Oz and watching it from start to finish were some of the happiest moments of my childhood. Since then, it has always been a dream of mine to work with HBO and be part of their iconic roster of shows," said Gadd about Lions. "I am so grateful to Francesca Orsi [HBO's Head of HBO Drama Series and Films], Kara Buckley [Senior Vice President HBO Drama Programming] and Clint LaVigne [Vice President, Drama Programming at HBO] for taking this chance on the show and on Ruben and Niall too, who — despite growing up in a dead-end Scottish town — would be absolutely pinching themselves at this! I cannot wait to get started." There's obviously no trailer for Lions yet, but check out the trailer for Baby Reindeer below: Lions doesn't yet have a release date on HBO — or Down Under, where plenty of HBO content usually heads to Binge and Neon — but we'll update you when more details are announced. Read our review of Baby Reindeer. Baby Reindeer images: Ed Miller / Netflix.
SXSW (occasionally still known as South by South West) is an annual celebration of independent music, film and technology, held in Austin, Texas. Unlikely, challenging projects are born there and all the brightest of the creative world (plus Selena Gomez) attend. Midway through the festival, we take stock of what we've missed. A NASA Space Social Happens Basically nerd porn come to life, NASA's Space Social brought real-life astronauts Ron Garan, Nicholas Skytland, John Yembrick and others face to face with fans of Princess Leia and Neil Armstrong for socialising and space-related chats. We can only imagine that the hors d'oeuvres were served floating through the air by waitresses wrapped in aluminum foil. Interactive Vending Machine Stage Lets You Tweet at It Annoying party iPod DJs are set to rejoice this week at the Doritos vending machine stage, where onlookers are invited to tweet in their (hip hop- and rap-specific) song requests using the hashtag #BoldStage. Taking the choose-your-own adventure shtick one step further, the six-storey machine's LCD screen interface flashes simulated confetti, smoke machines and lasers in accordance with more Twitter directions. Control freaks need to let their hair down too, right? Grumpy Cat Upstages Everyone Kendrick Lamar, Justin Timberlake, Dave Grohl and James Franco were also in town for the festival, but really who are they to compete with Grumpy Cat? After queuing in earnest, fans got what they wanted — the inimitable feline looking characteristically unimpressed before curling into a ball and retreating. This kitty is more diva than Kimmy K and Lindsay Lohan combined. Meow! Hater App Launches to Bring Balance to the Social Media Force Despite its obvious benefits (stalking and empowering minority groups) social media unfailingly makes you hate society and your loved ones. Somewhere between #instabrag and your part-time model friend's profile picture number 300, it became difficulty to feel genuinely happy for the success of others. The world might need the new Hater app, a tool that allows users to dislike status updates, rant enthusiastically and band together over shared misery and disdain. If you don't have anything bad to say, don't say anything at all. https://youtube.com/watch?v=v01h6BsUgTY Shaq Attack is Well Tall Shaquille O'Neal looked down on everyone while still being really humble as he walked the trade show. A towering god amongst men. Google Village Is Like Willy Wonka's Factory for Tech Intent on achieving world domination, Google has morphed out of the computer screen and into the real world with the grown-up's answer to Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. Apparently the future will be a utopia filled with food trucks, free forums that teach people how to read HTML, Google pinball machines aplenty and even an Adidas talking shoe that can be programmed to give the wearer constant positive chatter. Sounds annoying. Images via SXSW and Grumpy Cats. Google Village image by Leimdorfer.
Growing up in the southeastern suburb of Caulfield, which is rife with mid-century modernist homes, artist Karen Salter recalls an admiration for these places that display a "strong sense of design and theatricality". The architectural style rose to prominence during the 1960s with the arrival of architects emigrating from across Europe who largely worked for clients within the large Jewish community. These stunning homes became symbols of the community's success, with the former refugees overcoming the adversity facing their community back in Europe and in parts of Australia. Hosted at The Gallery at City Library in Melbourne CBD, Who Remembers This House? presents a series of Salter's oil paintings celebrating the work of these architects and highlighting the optimism of past eras. Inspired by postcards of the '60s with their perspective and colour, Salter's paintings are emblematic of a significant period of architectural history, and their importance in her own memory. Who Remembers This House? runs from Tuesday, September 5 until Saturday, September 30.
Australia's first urban surf park is one step closer to reality, with the team behind URBNSURF this morning confirming they've scored $28.3 million in funding for their much-anticipated Melbourne facility. Billed as the world's first full-size Wavegarden Cove surfing lagoon, URBNSURF Melbourne is set to transform a 2.1-hectare space near Melbourne Airport into a surfer's wet dream, churning out as many as 1000 two-metre waves each hour. The lagoon itself will boast six different state-of-the-art surf zones, catering to newbies, professionals and everyone in between, with enough room for around 84 surfers every hour. What's more, it'll be open year-round, which means you won't be forced to battle the freezing waters of Port Phillip Bay to get your surf fix come winter. Backing up the beach-style breaks, there'll be a concept retail space, a fully-equipped surf hire shop, a beach club and a plethora of food and drink options for those post-surf appetites. URBNSURF Melbourne will also play host to a surfing academy, fitness classes and high performance coaching and training options. Construction on the lagoon is set to kick off next month, with the hope Melburnians will be riding waves there by April 2019. URBNSURF's Sydney surf park, which was given the go ahead last year, is slated to be up and running by late 2019. URBNSURF Melbourne is slated to open in April 2019 at 394 Melrose Drive, Tullamarine. We'll keep you updated on its progress and you can visit urbnsurf.co for more info.
When is an outdoor cinema not an outdoor cinema? When it's tucked away in an openair atrium on the banks of the Yarra River. The only place in Melbourne where you can watch a movie under the stars rain, hail or shine, Southgate Cinema is back for another year, with a brand new program that combines major releases with non-fiction gems. And the best bit? It's 100 percent free. Screenings take place on Tuesday evenings in a makeshift movie theatre complete with deckchairs and headphones. The season begins with the recent Bill Murray comedy St. Vincent, followed by fashion photography doco Bill Cunningham New York. Other films announced so far include Selma, Big Eyes and The Theory of Everything, along with documentaries about Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei and legendary American design duo Charles and Ray Eames. Sessions tend to fill up fast, so we recommend booking ahead.
Richmond's Baby Pizza is waving farewell to summer from the Amalfi Coast, hosting a themed Al Fresco Loco party that will take place on Saturday, March 24. Join them for a boozy afternoon of pizzas, spritzes and tunes from 1.30pm. The long lunch will take place in the venue's al fresco dining space, which will be traditionally decorated with red and white checkered tablecloths and feature Baby's outdoor Aperol cart. The shared tables will in turn display the menu's share dishes, including metre-long pizzas and large antipasti plates. The all-inclusive menu is curated by executive chef Harry Lilai and split between antipasto, pasta and pizzas. Think heirloom tomato bruschetta and calamari fritti, prosciutto pizza, Abruzzese-style barbecued lamb skewers and stinging nettle pesto pasta with fried prawns and finger lime. Drinks include a classic spritz from the cart, Campari with house-made tonic, rosé by the glass and house brews by Shiki Brewing. And you'll get to taste the lot, with the $69 tickets including all food and booze for three hours. DJ 123 will take care of the tunes while you enjoy an arvo of eating, drinking and relaxing in the last bit of summer sun.
The lease is up, the music has stopped, and demolition seems all but inevitable — the fight to save the Palace Theatre is coming to a close. Much to the distress of Melbourne music lovers, this weekend marks the last for the city's iconic Bourke Street venue. Plans are underway to turn the site into a multi-million dollar hotel and apartment complex, and punters young and old are feeling a little raw. First operating in 1860, the Palace has an incredibly rich history. Over the years it's changed from the Metro Theatre to the St James to the Apollo, and it's housed world-class acts such as Sonic Youth, Arctic Monkeys and Florence and the Machine. With its three-tiered amphitheatre, ornate decor, and classic charm, the Palace has a special place in every local's heart. It held the stage where you finally got to see Nick Cave, it's the place you snuck into with that shitty fake ID, it's where you took that all-important first date. On a larger scale, the Palace played an important role in Melbourne's live music stakes. With a venue capacity of 1855, it was one of the few mid-size venues available for international tours. Without it, big acts are forced to choose between smaller gigs at venues like the Hi-Fi that don't cover the touring costs, or huge alternatives like Festival Hall that lose that sense of intimacy. The Palace struck the perfect balance for bands and patrons alike, and without it, many musicians may be discouraged from booking such tours in the future. The loss of this cultural institution is understandably enormous, and Melbournians have been pretty vocal about their feelings. Since the first announcement last year, the movement to Save the Palace Theatre has picked up the support of over 35,000 people. There have been petitions, letters to the council, protests, and vigils that continue to this day. Though the consultation period has officially closed, Melbourne City Council has reportedly received 791 objection letters about the site's redevelopment and efforts continue to get the venue on the Victorian Heritage Register. Melbourne music lovers prove time and time again that they never say die. Regardless, as of May 31, the owners have officially ceased control of the venue and the fate looks all but sealed. As the protests gradually descend into wakes, we asked some Melbourne musos to pen their thoughts on the much-loved venue. The wrecking ball may rise and the building may fall, but at least the music and the stories will always live on. Emily Lubitz - Tinpan Orange I have fond memories of lining up outside the Palace, waiting eagerly to see a show, coupled with memories of struggling to find the backstage entrance down a dark lane after eating too much at Pellegrini's before playing on the great Palace stage myself. I've sweated in the pit, and I've watched from on high, as the stage sparkled. I've had the honour of playing to a room of beautiful faces sparkling back at me from the three tiers, like a waterfall of Melbourne coolness. I have partaken in a dash of debauchery in some of those backstage rooms and one of my favourite photo shoots was taken backstage at the Palace, in the 20 minutes we had before we were due on stage. This urinal picture is from that. It's truly sad to lose this theatre, this precious gem in Melbourne’s cultural crown. For more than 100 years artists have been treading those boards and singing their tunes to happy punters and heaving crowds. RIP Palace Theatre. I hope the people who buy those apartments that they are turning you into can still hear the ghosts of the legendary artists, wild nights, ecstatic crowds and moments of pure joy echoing through their walls. Photo credit: Andy Hatton. Matt Darveniza - 8 Bit Love When asked about my experiences at the Palace, I thought 'Yeah I love that place! I've seen heaps of shows there. This will be easy". Then I thought about it and realised I'd actually only ever seen two shows there: riding a MySpace-fuelled wave of post/pop-punk in the forms of Jimmy Eat World and Death Cab For Cutie. While neither of these bands could be considered direct influences to the music we write in 8 Bit Love, I think they both really influenced the way I thought about how live shows should be delivered, with audiences completely hooked on every aspect of the performance. It made me aspire to one day have the same impression on our own audiences. The fact that a mere two shows have left me with such a fondness for the venue also speaks volumes. Each night was really special at the time, in a way shows at other similar-sized venues I've frequented have never quite matched, and the place feels far more familiar than it should. It was a great setting, the sound was always huge but also clear, and it had a certain unquantifiable charm. I'm super sad that I'll never have the chance to play there myself, and devastated that the Palace won't have the opportunity to share more amazing experiences and music with myself and the rest of Melbourne. All for more shitty CBD apartments no one wants to live in anyway. I suppose at least we've still got the memories, which is something. Thanks, you marvellous venue. Mitch Ansell - Northeast Party House In 2008, fake ID in hand and a body full of testosterone, I made my way with two of my buddies to see Queens Of The Stone Age at the Palace Theatre. I’m pretty sure we went straight from school to the venue which lead to us loitering around the city, flicking through the latest releases at JB Hi-Fi and most notably, our appearance at a near by $2 peep show. The latter was perhaps fitting for what our night's viewing would entail. I’m pretty sure it was their Era Vulgaris tour — an interesting album that I had debated with friends and my music teacher as we spoke of this new ‘industrial’ progression in sound. The album translated amazingly well live, everything hit so damn hard. Their encore was perhaps the perfect finish to the night playing ‘You Think I Ain’t Worth A Dollar, But I Feel Like A Millionaire’ and ‘A Song For The Dead’ back-to-back, which saw the venue turn into a pool of compressed flannelette shirts. The sweaty, robust and commanding performance from Josh Homme provided me with weeks of emulation to the point where I purchased the same Maton guitar that he used. That night was up there with the best. Alex Lahey - Animaux The first and only time Animaux ever played at the Palace was by accident. We were lucky enough to be supporting The Cat Empire last year and due to a double booking, the final show of the Melbourne leg of the tour took place at the Palace. I remember when I first told my mum that we were playing at there and she got very confused about where the venue was. But when I started referring to it as The Metro, it all came flooding back to her. There are few live music venues in Melbourne that have managed to transcend generations and now that the Palace is gone, they truly are an endangered species. When we first got to the venue, I took a few minutes to do some exploring and climb the stairs to the highest point of the theatre. You couldn't name another place quite like it — there's nowhere else you could find regally embossed balconies with a sticky floor below! Of course, the show was killer too. The crowd were red hot and there to party, and I knew it wasn't just about the lineup. The vibe of the venue was undeniable. It was about having a good time with great music. Melbourne has lost a true live music icon with the closure of the Palace Theatre and it's a damn shame. Photo credit: Chantelle Elise. Declan Melia - British India It took me a few moments to remind myself just how many great shows I've seen at the Palace and looking at the names of the groups it reads more like a teenage rock fan's wishlist than notches on a venue's bedpost. Pavement, Arctic Monkeys, Brand New (my all time favourite band perhaps?). I was even able to pull some strings and get me and my brothers on the door to watch The Presidents Of The United States Of America perform their debut album. A feat that sounds awesome or embarrassing depending on your allegiance to faux-alternative '90s novelty music. Perhaps the first gig I saw there was Sonic Youth performing the Daydream Nation album in full. That album had been my soundtrack to the previous summer. The band were gods to me, far more than they are now and in the sea of nonchalance that made up the crowd I was able to get right up the front — there they were dude, right there, playing those songs just like on the record. I probably didn't even have a mobile phone in those days so social media will never know just how close I was, in spite (or because?) of this it's still absolutely embedded in my mind. It was the first warm night of the new summer and everyone crowded around outside after the show, bumping into old friends and discussing the show with either wide-eyed astonishment or over-earnest cynicism, 100 different groups of three or five or six all discussing the same thing at the same time. Each group alike. Each group completely different. Even then I was too cynical to believe in anything that a journalist might describe as 'the Melbourne scene' but here were all these people crowded on the footpath after the show and every sentence focused on Sonic Youth performing Daydream Nation at the Palace. You couldn't help but feel you weren't the only one after all. Lead photo credit: Scott Boelson.
Celebrating all things LGBTQIA+ in Australia is easy this summer. In fact, it's historic. For the first time ever both Down Under and the southern hemisphere, WorldPride is heading our way, joining Sydney's already jam-packed lineup of queer events. That's the cultural landscape the returning Mardi Gras Film Festival slides into in 2023 — and it's marking the occasion with a massive lineup of movies to celebrate its own 30th-anniversary milestone. Fans of queer cinema, rejoice: this annual Sydney film fest is screening 166 films at eight venues around the city, running from Wednesday, February 15–Thursday, March 2 at locations such as Event Cinemas on George Street and in Hurstville, Dendy Cinema Newtown, the Hayden Orpheum, Ritz Cinemas, Casula Powerhouse, the Westpac Open Air Cinema and the Alumni Green at the University of Technology. Not in the Harbour City but still want to watch along? As it has done in past years, MGFF is also streaming part of its program online around the country — because catering to movie lovers Australia-wide is fast, and welcomely, becoming a pandemic-era film fest staple. For in-person attendees, the festival kicks off with coming-of-age film Of an Age, which heads to Sydney after also opening 2022 Melbourne International Film Festival, and marks the latest from Australian You Won't Be Alone director Goran Stolevski. Joining it as a MGFF bookend is closing night's The Venus Effect, with the Danish movie about two young women in love enjoying its Aussie premiere. And, just as huge is All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, 2022's Venice Film Festival Golden Lion-winning documentary about queer artist Nan Goldin, her life and career, and her battle against the billionaire Sackler family. With the full fest program including 100-plus sessions in cinema, outdoors and on-demand — as well as panel discussions, workshops, networking events and parties — other highlights include two world-premiere screenings, glimpses back to the past and free sessions. Documentary Trans Glamore and camp comedy The Winner Takes It All will make their bows at MGFF; Vegas in Space and an episode of Aussie soap Number 96 will hit the big screen; retro sessions of Pride and Raya and the Last Dragon also get a spin; and new queer comedy specials by Joel Creasy and Rhys Nicholson will nab a run, without attendees needing to pay a cent. Or, there's a special Westpac Openair session of the Cate Blanchett-starring Tár, which looks set to score the homegrown talent another Oscar; doco The Giants, about Dr Bob Brown becoming Australia's first openly gay member of parliament; Cannes Un Certain Regard Jury Prize-winner Joyland, a Pakistani effort about a romance between a trans woman and a married man; and moving Moroccan drama The Blue Caftan. Plus, other standouts include The Longest Weekend, about three siblings in Sydney's Inner West; inner-city cowboy love story Lonesome; Uýra: The Rising Forest, focusing on trans-indigenous artist Uýra; In From the Side, about an affair between two members of a fictional South London gay rugby club; and My Emptiness and I, honing in on a young trans call-centre worker. Plus, for cinephiles watching on from home, there are 21 features on offer, including Black as U R, a doco about the lack of attention paid to the black queer community; Icelandic spoof Cop Secret; Blitzed!, about the eponymous London nightclub, with Boy George, Princess Julia and Spandau Ballet sharing their memories; Youtopia, which explores the inadvertent formation of a hipster cult; and In Her Words, an ode to 20th-century lesbian fiction. Mardi Gras Film Festival 2023 runs from Wednesday, February 15–Thursday, March 2 at eight venues around Sydney — and online nationally. For more information, visit the festival's website.
Snapchat is hardly the most discerning of mediums. If you had to break down the subject of all content sent on the service, the vast majority of snaps would surely consist of people's faces perched atop cartoon animal bodies, drunken selfies with indecipherable words slapped across the screen, and an obscene number of dick pics, sexts and various videos somehow including the presence of a penis. You can't expect that much more from a service founded by the king of all dudebros. Anyway. Snapchat is about to get all grown up. According to the Wall Street Journal, the much-loved startup is introducing some news and advertising to your drunken, sext-loving feed. Set to launch this November, these new inclusions are being planned under the moniker of Snapchat Discovery; a service to complement the already released Snapchat Stories. And it's already generating a lot of interest. Lots of brands eager to get into the snap-loving teen market have already started accounts and are now looking for ways to maximise their presence with users. Branded messages with 'Snapchat celebrities' are already a standard practice and straight-up advertising seems like the next logical step. There are reportedly a dozen companies already in line for the service including MailOnline, the online component of The Daily Mail. Allowing users to read news content and watch small portions of TV and movies, Snapchat's self-destruction of messages outwardly seems like a tidy way to deal with copyrighted content. Other than that, it's unsure as yet how any of it will really work. This is the startup's first move to monetise content and everyone understandably has a whole lot of questions. For instance, how many ads for Guardians of the Galaxy am I going to have to wade through before I can see my friend's daily work selfie? At what point can I get my dinner snaps sponsored by Dominoes or Pizza Hut and live off the wonderful oily spoils? Is Snapchat the future of journalism as we know it? The answers: at least one, soon hopefully, and for the sake of all humanity let's hope not. Via Mashable and Wall Street Journal. Images: jeffgoldblum236.tumblr.com and superwholock4lyfe.tumblr.com via Buzzfeed.
Finally having international travel back on the radar is one thing, but actually deciding where in the world to jet off to on these first long-awaited post-pandemic adventures? Well, that's been the tough bit. You want somewhere that scratches all those travel itches at once — from kicking back poolside with cocktails and devouring all the foods to exploring natural landscapes and wandering unknown cities. Luckily, we've found the perfect itinerary for all that and more: a road trip through the heart of Southern California, soaking up the best of Los Angeles, Greater Palm Springs and San Diego along the way. The ideal place to dip your toe back into travelling, this destination promises to tick off all those long-held holiday cravings in one neatly wrapped vacay. What's more, with carriers like United Airlines having dramatically increased their regular routes between Australia's east coast and the States, it's now easier than ever to get your travel-starved self over to the USA. Put in your leave request and start dreaming because this one's the full package. LOS ANGELES As a city, LA has big all-rounder energy, with just as much to tempt culture vultures as it does gourmands — and everyone in between, too. So you might as well do it all, right? To kick off your stay with fresh eyes and an illuminating history lesson, take a guided spin through the city with Architecture Tours LA. You'll hit a bunch of iconic architectural spots as you zip around Hollywood, taking a fascinating deep-dive into both its aesthetic and its history. Trust us when we say it'll colour everything else you see on your travels. If your attention's further piqued by the city's movie-making past, there are countless ways to get your kicks, but a trip through the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures is a must. Here, you're in for an immersive exploration of LA film culture, guided by a collection of outstanding installations and exhibitions. A culture fix of a different kind lies high up at the famed Getty Center, where you could easily lose a whole weekend meandering through art-filled galleries, roaming the grounds and soaking up unmatched vistas across LA and beyond. Acquaint yourself with more primo views kicking back atop one of LA's countless rooftop bars. A newer addition to the scene is Grandmaster Recorders, brainchild of Icebergs alums Monty and Jaci Kulodrovic. They've transformed a historic recording studio into a wining, dining and partying playground; complete with a contemporary Italo-Aussie restaurant that's making waves, and a rooftop bar pairing standout cocktails with views of the Hollywood sign. Fancy a closer look? You can work off your gastronomic indulgences with a hike up to the famed letters with tour crew Bikes & Hikes LA. It runs both a 90-minute and three-hour experience, promising breathtaking views, top-notch photo opps and the chance to scope out some iconic filming locations. As for resting your head after your jam-packed LA days, you'll find a winner in the Thompson Hollywood. A downright dreamy aesthetic flush with foliage and gold-hued accents graces the lounge and lobby downstairs, while onsite cocktail haunt Bar Lis is a Hollywood party destination in its own right. [caption id="attachment_901177" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Visit Greater Palm Springs[/caption] GREATER PALM SPRINGS Once you've had your fill of bright lights and urban energy, it's time to hit the road and venture a couple hours east to soak up the majestic, windmill-dotted landscape of Greater Palm Springs. To kick things off with a healthy dose of relaxation and a nature fix, get yourself to Desert Hot Springs, where the idyllic Two Bunch Palms resort will help de-stress body and mind — against a serene, leafy backdrop, no less. The property's scattered with mineral pools fed by waters from a 600-year-old natural spring, while the onsite spa serves a menu of healing treatments ranging from chakra-balancing massages to detoxifying adaptogen wraps. Book a night or two in one of the modern cabins to really lean into the experience. More breathtaking nature awaits you on the cruise up San Jacinto Peak, aboard the world's largest rotating aerial tramway. Offering eye-popping panoramas as you climb, the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway is your go-to for lofty thrills and a truly unique perspective. [caption id="attachment_901178" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Kimpton, Visit Greater Palm Springs[/caption] The buzz and colour of downtown Palm Springs proves equally infectious as you explore the sophisticated homewares stores and lively streetside dining spaces. For vibrant Southern Cali fare and guaranteed pup cuddles, make a date with Boozehounds — a sprawling indoor-outdoor venue that's filled with foliage, does a mean margarita and is about as dog-friendly as they come. Time your visit right and you can feast all your senses simultaneously at one of PS Underground's riotous themed dining experiences, which dish up live tunes, considered eats and a whole lotta fun. You might find yourself singing along through an Elvis-inspired dinner party, or perhaps feeling the love at a time-tripping Woodstock-themed gala. For a luxe sleepover — or simply just a few poolside cocktails matched with views from the highest point in town — head to the Kimpton Rowan Hotel. It's a plush, modern stay right in the heart of the action, boasting a collection of top-notch wining and dining offerings, including a stellar rooftop pool deck and bar. [caption id="attachment_901187" align="alignnone" width="1920"] San Diego Tourism Authority[/caption] SAN DIEGO Another two-hour road-trip south delivers you right into the beer-loving urban heart and soul of San Diego. The buzzing bayside city is a multifaceted one that's generous in a vast array of offerings — from the culinary to the cultural and plenty in between. Catch the city's coastal charms on full display with a session on the water with the San Diego Sailing Tours crew. With the wind whipping your hair, sun on your face and a bay full of gliding boats as your backdrop, you'll score an unmatched perspective of your holiday base. Then, you'll want to set aside at least a day to immerse yourself in the abundant offerings of famed cultural precinct Balboa Park. From the Institute of Contemporary Art and the Museum of Us, to the San Diego Natural History Museum and Fleet Science Center, the 1200-acre site is a treasure trove of cultural goodness. [caption id="attachment_901184" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Joanne DiBona for San Diego Tourism Authority[/caption] If you don't mind a queue, one spot to put on your breakfast radar is Morning Glory — a bold, high-energy eatery in the Little Italy district that takes no bookings but totally excels at creatively-charged brunch fare. Pancakes are a specialty here, including a supremely fluffy souffle version, while savoury fiends can look forward to the likes of a lobster omelette and the calzone-like khachapuri. Another culinary highlight sits 12 storeys up at Mr A's Restaurant — a fine-dining institution set atop the Manchester Building, where modern European flavours are heroed against sweeping views of the glittering city skyline. It's quite the show-stopper. [caption id="attachment_901188" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Kimberly Motos for San Diego Tourism Authority[/caption] If you're a sucker for absolute ocean frontage, well-crafted drinks and food with some serious flair, make the trip up to La Jolla to be swept up in the elegant charms of The Marine Room. Perched right on the water, this iconic venue's restaurant is a must for special occasions — though watching the waves crash in from a front-row seat in the Lounge, enjoying small plates and memorable cocktails, makes for a pretty magical evening, too. And of course, if you've got a penchant for craft beer, consider this city your paradise, with a beer bar or brewery located on just about every corner of Downtown. From international names like Stone and Ballast, to smaller homegrown champions such as Pizza Port and Societe, there's enough here to keep even the fussiest beer fiend supremely satisfied. To base yourself in the heart of the action, try the chic home-away-from-home that is The Pendry San Diego — a Downtown gem with an aesthetic that deftly fuses modern luxury and old-world elegance. It also boasts a whole sparkling collection of hospitality venues located right onsite. Top image: Visit Greater Palm Springs Concrete Playground traveled as a guest of United Airlines, LA Tourism and Convention Board, Visit Greater Palm Springs and San Diego Tourism Authority.
It's been just over a year since Amazon finally launched in Australia, promising an array of goods delivered quickly and affordably, as shipped from Melbourne and Sydney, and about five months since the company blocked Aussies from purchasing off its cheaper, larger international sites. Thankfully, it has just backflipped on the later. To rewind a bit, on July 1, Amazon announced that purchases from its international platforms would no longer be shipped to Australian addresses because of a change to Australian GST laws, which applied the standard goods and services tax of 10 percent to all online overseas purchases. Previously, GST had only applied to transactions over $1000. Aussies could instead shop on the Amazon Australia store, which had only around one percent of the range available in the US, or use a shipping forwarding service But this morning, Thursday, November 22 — less than five weeks out from Christmas (if you're counting) — Amazon backflipped on its decision, announcing it had reopened its US and other international sites to Aussies. In a statement published on news.com.au, Amazon said it had listened to "customer feedback" and made the necessary changes to its website to allow the company to comply with the new GST laws. The great news is the international sites are accessible right now, just in time for the Black Friday Sales. The not-so-good news is that at the moment only items that Amazon stocks and sells are available to us, while the company works out how to apply GST to third-party items. If you haven't yet started your Christmas shopping, here's a great excuse to start. via news.com.au
Tasmania's delightfully sinister Dark Mofo is back for a sixth year, and the lineup is bigger and bolder than ever. Taking place in the run up to winter solstice, the festival is all about embracing the shadows and flaunting the freaky. Hosted by the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA), it explores ancient rituals and mythology through music, performance and art installations — all while showcasing artists, performers and ideas that are otherwise overlooked in mainstream culture. While the main event is scheduled to run between June 13 and 24, this year's festival will also feature a 'prelude weekend' from June 7 to 10. A sneak peek before the full fest, it'll include exhibition openings at Mona and the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, and an orchestral quartet at the Port Arthur Historic Site. A symposium titled Dark and Dangerous Thoughts will also run across June 8 to 10, using film, literature and talks to explore moral and ethical issues within contemporary society. Capping it all off — and setting the tone for the entire festival — is Société Anonyme, a masked costume ball where opulence and mystery are to be expected in equal measure. When the festival proper rolls around on June 13, patrons should expect Dark Mofo's "usual mix of extreme, experimental and eclectic programming", according to creative director Leigh Carmichael. Crowd favourites such as the nude solstice swim and the Dark Park playground are all due to return, with the latter hosting ogoh-ogoh purging and burning, plus Ryoji Ikeda's light installation spectra. Germany's experimental industrial band Einstürzende Neubauten are also back, performing their piece (and studio album) Lament, which focuses on the outbreak of WWI. Elsewhere, the schedule is full of phenomenal female names. Laurie Anderson will bring her series of essays titled All the Things I Lost in the Flood to life on stage through music, video and spoken word. She has also partnered with new media artist Hsin-Chien Huang to create virtual-reality experience Chalkroom, as well as creating a 'sound bath' using her late husband Lou Reed's instruments alongside guitar tech Stewart Hurwood. Inuk throat-singer Tanya Tagaq will perform her fierce album Retribution, backed by a choir, while Grammy Award-winning crooner St. Vincent is slated to perform on June 15. Other highlights include a further exploration into the occult, with the Salamanca Arts Centre hosting a grotesque photography exhibition from William Mortensen and holding a ritualistic tattooing session for members of the public. And, for those keen to catch Soda Jerk's latest, their new film work Terror Nullius will screen as part of the fest. Plus, in a huge tribute to David Lynch and Twin Peaks, Dark Mofo will create their version of the Bang Bang Bar. It'll host intimate gigs like you'd see at the series' roadhouse — including sets by Rebecca Del Rio, who featured in the show as well as Lynch's Mulholland Drive. Dark Mofo takes place in Hobart between June 13 and 24. Tickets on sale from 11am on April 10 (with a subscriber pre-sale from 6pm on April 9). For more information, visit the festival website. By Melanie Colwell and Sarah Ward.
Earlier this year, acclaimed Palestinian filmmaker Hany Abu-Assad released Omar, a blistering dramatic thriller about a reluctant Palestinian informant, and his dangerous relationship with his handler in the Israeli secret service. Arriving just a few months later, Yuval Adler's debut feature Bethlehem tells a similar story, but does so from the perspective of the Israelis. The film is filled with mostly non-professional actors, all of whom do marvellous work. Tsahi Halevi, an actual former member of an elite Israeli military unit, plays Razi, an agent with the Shin Bet counter-terrorist unit. Tasked with the capture or assassination of an elusive Palestinian militant, Razi relies heavily on the information of a single source: his target's teenage brother, hot-headed 17-year-old Sanfur (Shadi Mar'i). The crux of the drama comes from the relationship between Razi and his informant. It's a complicated dynamic, one that frequently feels less like the one between a spymaster and his agent, and more like the one between a surrogate father and son. Razi show Sanfur the patience and understanding that the boy's own family never has and obviously feels a genuine sense of responsibility for him. That he's still willing to exploit and endanger the teen in spite of his paternal feelings demonstrates the ends-justify-the-means mentality that is so heavily ingrained in the conflict. Indeed, the moral murkiness of the real-world situation feels at times uncomfortably well suited to the espionage genre. Internal power disputes within both Shin Bet and the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, for whom Sanfur's brother fights, means that violence frequently occurs without any warning. On the technical front, unpolished digital camerawork heightens the feeling of uncertainty and danger, felt most viscerally during a foot-chase sequence midway through the film. Of course, the sense of fear and desperation speaks to the nature of the Israel-Palestine conflict. Adler, to his credit, remains pretty even-handed, showing both camps make moral compromises for the causes that they believe in. In doing so, the director discredits the simplistic, goodies-versus-baddies perspective that partisans on both sides would have the world believe. At the same time, there's a bleak sense of inevitability to the paths his characters take that suggest little sense of hope for a peaceful resolution. https://youtube.com/watch?v=WSwPlEhA308
If there's one thing we know about the future, it's this: battery life shouldn't be an problem. No, we don't have a crystal ball, time-travelling telephone booth or DeLorean. We're just making a guess thanks to the large number of smart minds currently dedicating themselves to the issue. Just last month, the concept of wireless charging rooms arrived to keep our devices juiced (in theory, that is). Now, adjust your visions of years to come to encompass the latest idea. It's the subject of a US patent application by Sony, and it focuses on the notion of wirelessly sucking up power while you're out and about. All you'll need is a phone, a friend and their call-making, text-sending, Facebook-updating device. If you've ever hopped onto your pal's mobile data connection, you know how the concept will hopefully work. Just swap wifi for power, and you're off and running. And, it's not just limited to smartphones — other electronic devices as computers, TVs, fridges, washing machines and microwaves will ideally able to jump in on the action and jump-start each other's batteries. The devices will have to be placed within a short range from each other for phone-to-phone charging to function, with the technology relying upon Near Field Communication, aka the same method behind other wireless syncing. And, as always, don't go throwing out your cables just yet. It might soon be a reality, but it isn't at the moment. Via Gizmodo / What a Future!!
Independent art and design festival Finders Keepers is back for another season. The twice-yearly fair is a calendar staple for those on the hunt for unique, quality wares. Plus, there's an added bonus: the market supports local and emerging artists. This year, the Melbourne event will run from Friday, July 13 to Sunday, July 15, and oh boy, is the lineup looking good. The trading hours this year have been extended to give you maximum shopping time, with things kicking off at midday on Friday, so you'll be able to set aside a good chunk of time to forage for artsy finds for yourself or a loved one. With 265 vendors planning to set up shop in The Royal Exhibition Building, we wouldn't blame you for getting overwhelmed by all the choices. Rather than letting you walk around aimlessly, we have narrowed down the list to give you our top five favourite stalls. Make a beeline to these vendors to discover a bevy of bold, quirky and, in one case, tasty finds. And then you're free to explore the rest — truthfully, they're all stellar. [caption id="attachment_675445" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Samee Lapham.[/caption] TOP-NOTCH CERAMICS: ARCADIA SCOTT Reusable travel cups are all the rage nowadays. They're much better for the environment, a lot of cafes offer a discount on your morning cuppa if you use one, and they just look so much better than a plain disposable cup — it's a win, win, win. If you're yet to jump on the bandwagon, or you just want to upgrade to something more aesthetically pleasing, stop by Arcadia Scott's stall. The self-taught potter creates a range of ceramic pieces in her Brunswick studio including bowls, vases and adorable glazed travel cups. Each item is handmade, giving your purchase a unique edge — which is exactly why you came to an independent art fair, right? [caption id="attachment_665520" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Samee Lapham.[/caption] QUIRKY CANDLES: YOU, ME & BONES Sure, candles in glass or ceramic jars are nice. But if your aesthetic is a little more left-of-centre, this stall is sure to catch your eye. You, Me & Bones is all about hand-poured wax products that will either make you giggle or squirm, depending on what side of squeamish you're on. Launched with a range of doll heads, the quirky candle line has now branched out to include brains, boobs and even sushi candles. They certainly make for unique gifts, and you'll be supporting a Melbourne-born operation, too. [caption id="attachment_675446" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Supplied.[/caption] WEARABLE TEXTILES: WOLF & MISHKA When Melbourne-based designer Natalia Pye first launched Wolf & Mishka, a collection of clothing, homewares and ceramics, she drew inspiration from a family heirloom: a Russian nursery rhyme book. It's a sweet anecdote that has translated into a commendable brand ethos — an emphasis on quality over quantity in an effort to reduce overproduction and create unique pieces that are treasured for years. Stop by this stall to discover printed dresses, soft knitwear and stoneware clay jewellery and decor. [caption id="attachment_675447" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Supplied.[/caption] FUEL: PACHAMANCA Given the monumental size of the markets, you best believe you're going to need fuel in the tank to make it through everything. Our recommendation is to get a caffeine-hit from Seven Seeds when you first arrive, and then, when the real hunger pangs start, head to Pachamanca. Named after the traditional Andean cooking method, this food stall serves up authentic Peruvian snack-style food. There are ceviche tacos with sweet potato and seasoned tiger's milk, crispy chicken wings and Coco Pop chicken — bite-sized chicken pieces cooked in Peruvian cocoa. The perfect mid-shop pit-stop. [caption id="attachment_674762" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Supplied.[/caption] FOR YOUR BEST PAL: NICE DIGS If you're of the belief that your dog is as just as much of a family member as you are, make sure that this one is on your hit list. Nice Digs specialises in handcrafted lifestyle products for your canine companion. There's slick leather collars and patterned bandanas if you want to make your furry pal the most stylish pup in the park. And, if his or her domain is less 'doghouse' and more 'puppy palace', there are even bougie velvet dog beds. Every piece is designed and locally made in Nice Digs' Melbourne studio. Plus, everything is super durable, in case your pooch is still in those naughty puppy years. For more information about the Melbourne Autumn/Winter Finders Keepers market and for the full list of vendors, head to the website. Top image: Mark Lobo.
Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie are getting the band back together — Flight of the Conchords have announced plans for their first tour in two years. Sure, the plans are only American for now, but we'll take it. Confirming plans in a recent interview with Billboard, Clement said the pair "are planning on touring later on in the year in the States. It isn't very solid yet, but we've been talking about it." It'll be the first time the Hiphopopotamus and Rhymenocerous have toured as FOTC since 2013. The best bit (and the bit we can get excited about over here) is that they'll apparently be unveiling new Conchords tunes on stage. "I really don't like the studio part of music," he says. "I more enjoy playing live and letting others take care of the recording." Clement has been hangin' out at Sundance, promoting his brand new film People, Places, Things, after a year of promoting co-written, co-directed vampire mockumentary What We Do in the Shadows. McKenzie's been knee-deep in film for the past year as well, returning to his Oscar-winning role as music supervisor for 2014's Muppet follow-up Muppets Most Wanted — which Clement popped up in. Fingers crossed for a venture back home to New Zealand and across to Australia so all the ladies can check out their sugalumps For now, one of the finest Conchords moments: 'Jenny'. Via Billboard.
After playing two balloted shows that sold out faster than you could say "Best New Music", The xx have made good on their promise that they would come back in 2013 to sate the appetites of everyone who missed out. Now that they've released their second album, Coexist, the buzz around the trio is only louder. But Jamie Smith, Romy Madley Croft, and Oliver Sim are capable of being heard above the din by turning up the volume on one of the most valuable (and most underrated) instruments of all — silence. Their strength is seen through the gaps between bone-chilling reverbs and papery vocals, and they're sexy because they don't specifically mention sex. That's not to say The xx don't get noise. They get much of their inspiration from London's dark techno dance scene, and Jamie and Romy both have thriving satellite careers as DJs. The trio's bankability is bigger than ever, so be sure your credit card is handy and your clicking finger poised when tickets go on sale at noon on January 15. More information on the Handsome Tours website. UPDATE: Thursday, April 4, at Festival Hall in Melbourne, and Sunday, April 7, at the Hordern Pavilion in Sydney have sold out. New shows have been added at Festival Hall on Friday 5th and the Hordern on Saturday 6th. There are still tickets available to the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre on Tuesday, April 9. https://youtube.com/watch?v=_nW5AF0m9Zw
Every time one of your friends has posted something incredibly sad on Facebook and you've 'liked' it? Things are about to get a little more appropriate (and inevitably negative) on the social media IV drip. Facebook is officially working on a form of 'dislike' button. Facebook co-founder and known hoodie wearer Mark Zuckerberg announced the 'dislike' button venture during a casual Q&A session on Tuesday, explaining that the team has been working on this for some time. "People have asked about the 'dislike' button for many years, and probably hundreds of people have asked about this, and today is a special day because today is the day that I actually get to say we are working on it, and are very close to shipping a test of it," he said. But before you immediately imagine Facebook as a carbon copy of Reddit's upvote/downvote system, Zuckerberg maintains there's more to the developments. "That doesn't seem like the kind of community that we want to create. You don't want to go through the process of sharing some moment that was important to you in your day and have someone 'downvote' it." It's more about "expressing empathy". There's going to be more than liking and disliking on Facebook, as Zuckerberg mentioned there'll be multiple emotional reactions you'll be able to apply to posts. Facebook will begin tests soon, before rolling out the buttons worldwide. Via CNBC.
If you've got a long-held dream of seeing the South Pole and have a bit of spare cash to burn, then you'd best get in quick to score a seat on the upcoming Antarctica flights out of Australia. Sightseeing group Antarctica Flights is taking bookings for a series of rare, sky-high charter tours, departing Sydney (November 18), Perth (January 26), Melbourne (December 31 and February 10), Brisbane (November 10, 2019) and Adelaide (November 24, 2019), to cruise above the dazzling Antarctica Treaty area for around four hours. This year, for the first time ever, it's also flying out of Hobart (which means less travelling and more sightseeing) on November 25. Each flight path is carefully chosen to maximise viewing from both sides of the plane and to ensure the best views should the weather turn nasty, while some passengers will rotate seats to allow everyone an equal shot at the spectacular scenery below. Travelling on a QANTAS 747, the whole trip clocks in at around 12.5 hours — depending on your departure city — during which you'll hear from expert Antarctic explorers, talking about the polar environment and its fascinating history. All that, while enjoying some better-than-average QANTAS plane food, full bar service and, in the lead-up to the views, a spot of in-flight entertainment — classic flick Happy Feet, or some Antarctic docos, of course. As expected, this kind of plane trip doesn't come cheap — you're looking at forking out $1199 to be seated in the very middle of the plane, a whole four seats away from any window. Other options, including the Economy Class Standard ($1999), the Economy Class Superior ($2999) and the Premium Economy Class ($3299) involve seat rotations throughout the flight, so passengers can spend time both close to the window and further away. Of course, you and your favourite travel buddy could drop $7999 each on Ice Class tickets to have a window seat and the one next to it all to yourselves for the entire flight. Also worth noting is the super indulgent New Year's Eve flight out of Melbourne, which could have you ringing in 2019 with onboard Champagne, a live jazz band and a bird's eye view of Antarctica.
Futurama is coming out of stasis, and a pandemic, vaccines, bitcoin, streaming and cancel culture all await. How will the Planet Express crew deal with all of the above, plus a massive disruption in the flow of time, when the Matt Groening-created show about life in the 31st century returns in July? As seen in the comeback season's initial teaser and now its just-dropped full trailer, they'll cope the same way they always have in this beloved animated sitcom: by knowing that anything and everything can and will happen. If a pizza delivery guy was to accidentally wander into a cryogenic chamber back in July 2013, get stuck frozen inside for ten years, then wake up in July 2023, plenty that he knows about the world will have changed — but Futurama would remain a constant. Back then, the series was still on-screen. Now, it's finally being defrosted after a decade off the air. Good news, everyone! — it's back, baby, after US streaming platform Hulu first announced plans to go back to the future in 2022. Futurama was renewed for a 20-episode run, with the first ten new instalments arriving from Monday, July 24 Down Under via Disney+. Say hello again to the 20th-century's Philip J Fry (voiced by Billy West), distant uncle to Planet Express cargo company Professor Hubert J Farnsworth (also voiced by West), plus the rest of the outfit's crew. Yes, that means more antics with one-eyed ship captain Turanga Leela (Katey Sagal); fellow employees Hermes Conrad (Phil LaMarr), Amy Wong (Lauren Tom) and Zoidberg (also West); and everyone from self-obsessed starship captain Zapp Brannigan (West again) and his amphibious 4th Lieutenant Kif Kroker (Maurice LaMarche) through to scheming corporation owner Mom (Tress MacNeille). And, yes, it Bender Bending Rodríguez will be causing chaos, with John DiMaggio also back with the cast. When the revival was first announced, that wasn't the case — but it wouldn't be Futurama without its constantly sauced robot exclaiming "bite my shiny metal ass!". You can put a beloved show into suspended animation, but someone is going to thaw it out one day — and more than once. Initially airing from 1999–2003, the futuristic series then returned from 2008–2013, before now being given another run. Hulu is calling this comeback season 11, even though Futurama spans a past seven seasons and four direct-to-DVD movies so far. As for what this return is about, other than satirising life in the year 3000 and beyond — and parts of life today — the streaming service is promising more about Fry and Leela's love story, what's in Nibbler's litter box, evil Robot Santa's secret history, and Kif and Amy's tadpoles. Check out the full new Futurama trailer below: Futurama season 11 will stream via Disney+ Down Under from Monday, July 24.
There are a million mobile apps out there to help you take better care of your body. But what about one that helps you take better care of your planet? That's the idea behind TODAY, an app that'll let users "track and share the positive impact they have on the world". The homegrown app, which is currently being funded via a crowdfunding campaign, will provide users with information about their environmental footprint, and offer tips on how they can reduce it. It'll tell you how much clean air you create every time you walk to work. It'll tell you how much natural land you conserve every time you eat sustainable food. It'll even tell you how much pollution you save by cutting back on disposable coffee cups. "TODAY exists to inspire you and every single one of us to make the small changes, both individually and collectively, to create a better future for all," reads a description on the app's Start Some Good page. The plan is for the TODAY team to work with ethical businesses, "and engage with awesome environmental initiatives". For more information about TODAY, check out their website. If you like what you see, you can donate to their crowdfunding campaign here.
Even though malaria mortality rates have dropped 25% since 2000, the disease continues to kill one child per minute in Africa. In 2010, the World Health Organisation estimated there were 219 million malaria cases worldwide, 660,000 of which resulted in death. About half the global population inhabits malaria-prone areas. According to WHO, 'personal protection against mosquito bites represents the first line of defence for malaria prevention'. At present, the two most common methods of 'vector control' are insecticide-treated mosquito nets and indoor spraying with residual insecticides. The latter is fully effective when 80% of houses in a particular area are sprayed at three to six month intervals. That's the equivalent to a frightening volume of toxins. Until now, though, nothing else has seemed to work. However, a team of 'passionate professionals devoted to combatting mosquito-borne diseases worldwide' has come up with a new solution: the Kite Patch. It provides 48 hours of protection by secreting non-toxic compounds that prevent mosquitoes from detecting carbon monoxide, the main method they use to discover and target their human prey. It's taken three years of work at Olfactor Laboratories, Inc., and three years of research at the University of California Riverside to come up with the Kite. Having received initial assistance from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the US National Institutes of Health, the team is currently running an Indiegogo campaign. Within five days, it became the crowd funding site's most popular project, reaching an initial goal of $US75,000, which will fund the provision of 20,000 Kite Patches to Pilgrim Africa, Uganda. Now, a stretch goal of $385,000 is just $60,000 short of fulfillment. [via Gizmag]
