Bright Brewery is a mountain town brewery, so, naturally, it only uses fresh mountain water in its brews. Being able to say your brews are 'mountain crafted' is pretty badass, not to mention extremely picturesque. The brewery door is open daily and features a 24-tap bar, which is especially impressive — even for a brewery. The Fainters Dubbel or Razor Witbier are our recommendations. Take them out onto the brewery's sprawling terrace, where you can settle in for the afternoon with a pizza or snack from the bar's extensive pub menu. The brewery's proximity to Mount Buffalo and Alpine National Park also means you can make this one a double road trip and sneak in a hike between pints.
Imagine if your quick trip to the convenience store was even faster and more convenient? Well, this could soon be a reality, as 7-Eleven Australia launches its new cashless, cardless concept store, where transactions are all processed via smartphone. The app-based technology was first trialled alongside the regular point-of-sale system at the group's Exhibition Street store in the CBD, but this new Richmond store will be the first in Australia to rely on it entirely. Operating similarly to Amazon's groundbreaking, fully automated grocery store, which opened in Seattle last year, 7-Eleven's new process ditches physical checkout counters in favour of a smartphone app. Customers scan barcodes of their selected items as they move through the store, then pay via the 7-Eleven Mobile Checkout App, which is linked to their credit card. 7-Eleven launches Australia's first cashless and cardless convenience store in Melbourne's inner suburb of Richmond where customers use their smartphones to complete their transactions. https://t.co/AH8jNCtwjU pic.twitter.com/szMtsszQG9 — 7-Eleven Australia (@7ElevenAus) May 29, 2019 According to 7-Eleven, the payment process has been honed to be as quick and user-friendly as possible. And with zero queues, it means means less time waiting to sink your teeth into that late-night sausage roll. Like Queen Lizzie, we're guessing people will cheat the self-service system — putting pricey Ben & Jerry's tubs through as $1 Slushies — but 7-Eleven says there'll be plenty of staff on hand to greet, assist and keep an eye on the customers. While no more check-out free stores have been in Melbourne or interstate just yet, the company says it is exploring more "ultimate convenience" options, such as delivery and micro store formats. We'll let you know if it decided to launch any more. You can find 7-Eleven's new app-driven concept store at 2/658 Church Street, Richmond. You'll need to download the 7-Eleven store app from the Apple Store or Google Play before you shop.
Fancy an art experience that extends beyond looking at works on a wall? Then prepare to be impressed by Melbourne's new 3000-square-metre, 11-metre-high immersive digital art gallery. THE LUME Melbourne has opened the doors to its new permanent home at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC), where some of the world's most celebrated artworks will be projected in large-scale format. Until October 9, THE LUME Melbourne's inaugural experience will be celebrating the work and life of Vincent van Gogh, allowing you to literally walk through his renowned masterpieces. The swirling hues of The Starry Night will be illuminated around you, and a mirrored infinity room filled with bold yellow blooms will have you immersed in Sunflowers. You can expect a reimagined Café Terrace at Night and a life-size recreation of Van Gogh's The Bedroom, too. A carefully curated fusion of colour, sound, taste and aroma will see you experience the works of the famed Dutch artist like never before. The exhibition is closing soon, so nab your tickets, stat! Van Gogh at THE LUME Melbourne is on until Sunday, October 9. Head to the website to secure your tickets.
When October rolls around each year, there's really only one appropriate thing to watch. That'd be horror movies, horror movies and more horror movies — all leading up to Halloween, obviously. Australia's A Night of Horror International Film Festival clearly loves the genre no matter the time of year; however, in 2021, it's showcasing its lineup of fear-inducing flicks in the two weeks right before the spookiest day of them all. So, from Monday, October 18–Sunday, October 31, you can get your scares at its virtual fest. And yes, by jumping online, that means the event is accessible nationally as well. This is A Night of Horror's 13th fest, fittingly, and it comes with an unsettling program of shorts and features. From the full-length titles on the bill, highlights include the UK's Lair, about an occult expert and skeptic with a pal who thinks he's possessed; New Zealand's The Turn of the Screw, the latest big-screen adaptation of Henry James' novel; and the Aussie-made My Cherry Pie, which nods back to 80s slasher fare — plus dreamlike Austrian effort Memory, and the supernatural and sinister Sunod from The Philippines.
The Dromana 3 Drive-In is worthy of a trip down the Peninsula at any time of year, but it's busting out the big (and truly spooky) guns this year for Halloween. The cinema and the gang at HauntZone have built two mazes: 'Infected' and 'Darkness Manor'. It's probably safe to assume this won't be a casual amble through a hedge maze. From Wednesday, October 30, you can catch Halloween-appropriate flicks each night including a special 40th anniversary screening of The Amityville Horror, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, Zombieland Double Tap and Ready Or Not. Come down with a carload, head into the two mazes before your flick and prepare to scream your guts out — bring a mate you feel comfortable holding on to for dear life because there's a whole list of disclaimers that come with maze entry. The haunted attractions will set you back $18, in addition to film tickets, and are only around until November 4.
Films about the holocaust will never be considered easy viewing. Revisiting one of the darkest chapters of human history is a confronting experience, as is facing the specific details of the atrocious deeds committed. Some movies try to temper their bleakness by honing in on unlikely heroism, like Schindler's List, or the comedy of tragedy, like Life is Beautiful, or offering a child’s view of events, like The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas. Hungarian filmmaker László Nemes does none of this. Son of Saul doesn’t just contemplate challenging material — it is designed to immerse viewers in the horrific ordeal that was life in a concentration camp. While charting the daily misery of Jewish prisoners might sound familiar, it's the inner workings of the Sonderkommando that are thrust into the spotlight here. Those unacquainted with the term may be startled to discover its meaning, referring to a unit of detainees that assisted the Nazis with the very worst aspects of their final solution. Sonderkommando workers escorted their fellow inmates into the gas chamber, then cleaned up the aftermath. Their compliance was coerced, unsurprisingly; by hastening the deaths of others, they avoided their own for a few months. In a film fictional in its specifics but inspired by actual testimonies in the book The Scrolls of Auschwitz, Saul Ausländer (Géza Röhrig) is one of many men caught in this unfortunate situation — but when he tries to help a boy that crosses his path, he stands out from the rest of the group. Over the course of a turbulent 24 hours in 1944, he attempts to find a rabbi to give the child a proper burial. As he's searching, endeavouring to evade the camp's guards in the process, other members of the Sonderkommando plot their own larger acts of rebellion. Though there's no doubting the powerful nature of this story, Nemes' stylistic choices prove just as potent as the predicament he explores. It is impossible not to notice the feature's boxed-in aesthetics and constrained atmosphere, nor its concerted efforts to ensure the audience feels as trapped and claustrophobic as the on-screen characters. The filmmaker shoots in the Academy aspect ratio of 1.375:1, and keeps the camera as close as possible to his protagonist. The parallels he's trying to cultivate might be obvious, but that doesn't lessen their intensity. For viewers and Saul alike, there is simply no escape. Nemes isn't the feature's only standout, however — and while the writer-director is forceful in his approach, his leading man offers an understated counterpart. In his first film role, and in a performance conveyed through mannerisms more than dialogue, Röhrig makes Saul's struggle seethe beyond its historical context. Striving to aid another, even in difficult circumstances; putting someone else's needs before our own; choosing empathy, not just endurance. Ultimately, aren't these the things that make us human?
When blissed out, soon-to-be-married American couple Nica (Hani Furstenberg) and Alex (Gael Garcia Bernal), set off on a hiking adventure in Georgia's remote Caucasus Mountains, they have little idea that their seemingly idealistic world is about to be profoundly challenged. To all appearances, the two share an unshakeable connection — spiritually at ease yet sexually charged. Nica is spirited and independent, and Alex adores her. They toy with language games, compete playfully over who is fastest or strongest, and are in free pursuit of their mutual wanderlust. Local guide Dato (Georgian actor and real-life expert mountaineer Bidzina Gujabidze) leads them through one breathtaking scene after another. Then, halfway through the film, a single event (not to be delineated here, for fear of giving too much away), corrupts the couple's bond, raising questions of trust, betrayal, and guilt. The Loneliest Planet, loosely based on Tom Bissell's short story Expensive Trips Nowhere, continues the minimalist style established in Russian-born, American-raised director Julia Loktev's second feature, Day Night Day Night(2006). Dialogue is sparse and we learn next to nothing of the specific details that conventionally define character — history, family, education, career, values and so forth. Nearly everything that we do know, we discover through action and we interpret through the camera's positioning. Loktev is a big fan of the long shot. Numerous scenes portray Nica, Alex and Dato "together alone", united by their common journey yet divided, both spatially and emotionally. The deeper the trio move into Georgia's rugged, unpredictable wilderness, the more vulnerable and exposed they appear. Cinematographer Inti Briones successfully captures the striking undulations of the landscape, contrasting shadowy valleys with verdant grassy hills and creating ominous campfire scenes through single source lighting. Loktev's intention is to carry us into the film's mental and physical world, one in which time seems to stretch on forever and all conviction has been thrown into doubt. We identify Nica and Alex as representative of a 'type' — the earnest backpacker, keen to escape insular Western existence but overwhelmed when 'the wild' presents them with more than they'd bargained for. Nica demonstrates the behaviour of a self-sufficient, modern woman, yet Alex's failure to meet her expectations causes bitter disappointment. The film explores some of the grey areas arising from the breakdown of traditional dichotomies: West versus Other, male versus female, impulse versus duty. However, while Loktev's aims are admirable, her approach is risky. The limited development of the characters threatens to undermine our emotional engagement and the snail-paced tempo can seem laboured at times. Just as lovers ensconced in a romantic affair might potentially struggle with the vagaries of reality, a filmmaker engrossed in a concept may run the risk of occasionally losing sight of the viewer's experience at the point of reception. https://youtube.com/watch?v=SIIMFHcC1Fc
Which do you love more: picking up a haul of new plants at bargain prices or enjoying that much cherished weekend sleep-in? If your answer is both, you'll be pleased to know you can have your cake and eat it too when Ellis Street Studio plays host to a couple of after-dark plant sales later this month. Greenery-loving pop-up Wandering Jungle invites punters to drop by after work, pick up some lush new foliage for their collections and then party on into the night. Kicking off at 6pm on both November 28 and 29, the event will showcase a variety of indoor plant species for you to browse and buy, from devil's ivy to ponytail palms to the good ol' fiddle leaf fig. To round out the late-night shopping experience, the bar will also be serving a selection of tasty libations, while local DJ favourites work their magic on the decks.
Last month we found out that Melbourne Music Week was planning to take over Queen Victoria Market, now we know their full plan: they want the whole city. Released this morning, the full MMW program will see 250 artists take part in 110 events over 10 days of festivities in 40 locations. While your usual bars and bandrooms are all accounted for, this year you'll also be seeing music in laneways and trams, at Rooftop Cinema, the NGV, MPavilion, and power stations. It'll even be in elevators. No kidding — elevators. This enormous reach comes in an effort to showcase not only Melbourne's music, but the city itself. "Melbourne is one of the world's greatest music cities," said Councillor Beverley Pinder Mortimer from the City of Melbourne. "[In this festival] the city becomes the stage." Kind of like in that film with Kiera Knightly and Mark Ruffalo... but better. This morning's announcement saw local favourites Midnight Juggernauts, Remi and The Harpoons added to a lineup that already included Architecture in Helsinki, Cut Copy, Tangerine Dream, The Church and World's End Press. Further international artists like longstanding Detroit techno collective Underground Resistance, German dance duo Pachanga Boys and Oneohtrix Point Never were also added to the bill. The latter are definitely shows you should jump on quick. Underground Resistance are presenting a night of techno jazz with label founder Mike Banks, and Oneohtrix Point Never is lighting up Queen Vic with the help of local legend Robin Fox. If you don't have the time to comb through the program for gems like that, we suggest heading along to the Live Music Safari on Thursday, November 20. Back for another year, this marathon event will offer you a whole night of amazing free gigs in 14 venues across the city. Or, if you're hesitant about heading out on a school night, there's always the Self-Made series. With impromptu performances popping up on trams and elevators, you might just encounter something great on your way to work. Whether you're having a quiet drink or simply walking around the city at night, music is bound to find you in one way or another. And, with over half the events in this year's program free of charge, there's no reason to not get involved. Even 90 per cent of the ticketed events are under $50. If you'd like to get your hands on some, ticket sales have just opened. Melbourne Music Week runs from November 14-23. Check out the festival website to see the full program.
Melbourne is a bit partial to a good citywide festival, as you might have noticed from the likes of White Night, RISING and Melbourne Fringe. The latest festival to join the party is Now or Never, a huge 17-day event that's set to make its debut this winter, serving up a bumper celebration of creativity, innovation and big ideas. Originally announced in November last year, Now or Never has just revealed the first of its hefty lineups, descending on Melbourne's historic Royal Exhibition Building. Underneath its spectacular cathedral ceilings, the World Heritage listed site will play host to some of the festival's biggest events. Excitingly, Now or Never's festival lineup will mark the first large-scale live music performances in the iconic building in over 20 years. [caption id="attachment_902936" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Ayebatonye[/caption] "For the first time in more than two decades, Now or Never will bring large-scale live music back to the spectacular Royal Exhibition Building — with an unmissable line-up that celebrates our incredible homegrown talent, alongside ground-breaking work from international artists," Lord Mayor Sally Capp says. Topping the bill: a cutting-edge club night co-hosted by Untitled Group, the same crew behind Beyond the Valley, Pitch Music & Arts and Ability Fest. This high-energy twilight party will be headlined by German house and techno producer Âme, along with renowned DJ, producer and creative director of Irregular Fit, Ayebatonye. Joining them: Stockholm's tech and house producer Axel Boman, Melbourne native CC:DISCO!!, and Brisbane mainstay and Yuggera woman, dameeeela. [caption id="attachment_902935" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: dameeeela[/caption] There is also an Australian-exclusive performance by legendary singer, songwriter and producer Kelela, who will be supported by R&B musician serpentwithfeet. Plus, a night of live electronic music in pitch-black darkness with English duo Autechre, joined by electronic music duo Actress and bass-heavy innovators Giant Swan. Finally, Orchestra Victoria is partnering up with avant-garde composer Steve Reich to deliver an intricate performance. In more huge news, the southern hemisphere's biggest and longest-running festival of ideas, Semi Permanent, is dropping into Melbourne for a one-day iteration dubbed Never Permanent. Expect a collection of industry-leading thinkers and doers, across creativity, tech and design. [caption id="attachment_902934" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Image: Kelela[/caption] "Never Permanent brings together the best creatives and innovators from around the globe," Semi Permanent Founder Murray Bell says. "This lineup for Never Permanent is shaping up to be one of our best yet, and we're thrilled for this to be a part of Now or Never." This is Now or Never's first lineup announcement, which run from Thursday, August 17–Saturday, September 2. Further details are expected to drop in late June, with Now or Never teasing a hefty program of free and ticketed events spanning a diverse array of experiences, art, talks, installations, music, culinary delights and more. Expect a calendar of happenings running both by day and into the night, including everything from virtual reality experiences, live tunes and digital exhibitions through to multi-sensory feasts, thought-provoking talks and captivating visual art. Now or Never will run from Thursday, August 17–Saturday, September 2 at venues across the city. Tickets for the first lineup announcement are on sale now. We'll share more details as they come. Top image: Supplied.
Celebrate the start of the four-day weekend by travelling back to the '90s. On Good Friday Eve, Ding Dong Lounge will ride a wave of nostalgia until the wee hours of dawn, with live DJs, dancing and lots of terrible, terrible music you’ve retroactively convinced yourself is great. Expect Aqua, Nirvana and maybe a little Vanilla Ice. Entry is $5 at the door. Fresh Prince-style Dungarees are optional, but highly recommend (although maybe that's just us).
Got a thing for a good cuppa tea? The folks at South Yarra's contemporary tea bar Yugen sure do; which is why they're celebrating International Tea Day (May 21) with not just one event, but a whole swag of them. If tea is your cup of…well, tea…you won't want to miss this program of workshops and tasting events paying tribute to the world's most widely consumed bev. On Wednesday, May 18, Yugen's expert sommeliers will share their passion via a 90-minute Tea 101 session ($75), complete with tastings, sweet treat pairings from the pastry chefs and take-home goodies. On Thursday, May 19, you can celebrate two great loves at the Tea and Cheese Pairing, hosted in collaboration with Maker & Monger ($85). If rice-based booze is your thing, head along to the May 20 Tea and Sake Pairing, where you'll dive into the origins and intricacies of both drinks under the guidance of sake specialist Simone Maynard ($85). And on Saturday, May 21, Yugen is teaming up with Kyneton's Animus Distillery for a full-blown tea-matched feast ($150), which'll see you sit down to a six-course spread, with each dish paired carefully with either a fine tea or a signature cocktail made on Animus' Tea Gin. [caption id="attachment_853773" align="alignnone" width="1920"] By Sean McDonald[/caption] Images: Sean McDonald and H. Trumble
Blue miles for the ocean, green miles through the palm trees, and yellow miles over sandy stretches. No, that’s not the tagline of my indie-beach-poetry fusion Tumblr blog; it's the title of Bus Projects' upcoming July exhibition, which brings together seven artists in conversation about the role that colour plays in their work and practice. From the sensual to the sensible, each artist has evaluated unique reasons behind the interaction with and use of colour through ongoing discussions, games and information sharing. The result is a mixed palette of styles and explorations in this group show, featuring work from experienced Australian artists including Jeremy Eaton, Minna Gilligan, Georgina Glanville, Jethro Harcourt, Annabelle Kingston, Cheralyn Lim and Max Lawrence White. The exhibition runs July 3–20, with the opening event at the Collingwood gallery on Wednesday, July 3, from 6–8pm. It might be a good idea to brush up on the Pantone Colour of the Year for appropriate banter purposes (it’s Emerald, FYI).
One of the Mornington Peninsula's hottest arrivals of 2017, Pt. Leo Estate has clocked up a whole year of life — and to celebrate, it's throwing open the gates for a weekend of art, entertainment and summertime revelry. Over December 1 and 2, the property's famed sculpture park will open to the public for free, allowing visitors young and old to wander the collection of over 50 large-scale works. To coincide with the birthday fun, the park will also unveil the newest additions to its ever-growing collection, including Mirri — the latest piece from contemporary indigenous artist Reko Rennie. Littlies will be kept entertained with a range of kid-friendly activities, while grown-up appetites are well catered for with a special barbecue menu from culinary director Phil Wood and his team. Plates like pork sausage sliders with braised cabbage and roast leg of lamb with Greek salad feature in a classic Aussie grill offering, with mains priced at around $25. You'll also find classic sausage rolls and house-made lamingtons with cream — perfect for capping off a spin around the sculpture park.
Every year when Easter rolls around, there's always a mad scramble to figure out which bars, restaurants and sites will remain open over the holiday. You don't want to stay cooped up at home all long weekend. So, we've teamed up with our mates at QT Melbourne to make things a little bit easier by creating a staycation guide to spending Easter weekend in Melbourne. Set on the historic site that used to house Russell Street's Greater Union Cinema, QT hotel is an excellent setting for a CBD getaway. The hotel boasts an impressive view from its rooftop bar plus the hotel's signature restaurant is certainly worthy of a meal or two. The one-hatted Pascale Bar and Grill somehow manages to seamlessly unite Parisian-chic with industrial cool, while also featuring a menu that uses produce fresh from the secret rooftop garden. While you're not digging into the various cuts of beef, spiced eggplant with green tomato chutney or the lemon verbena iced parfait with gin marshmallow and cucumber, head out for a weekend full of buzzing markets, cracking comedy shows and all sorts of activities that'll have you more than a little bit excited for the next time you can spend a weekend exploring the CBD. [caption id="attachment_672350" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Eugene Hyland.[/caption] BE A GOOD SPORT AT HOLEY MOLEY If a neon-lit indoor mini-golf course complete with cocktails and a 90s soundtrack sounds like your idea of a good time, then plan a visit to Holey Moley. Found on Little Bourke Street and filled with an array of weird and wonderful decor, the venue's walls are just the beginning. Pick up a game of mini golf, and you'll find yourself tap, tap, taping your ball through The Simpson's living room and across an enlarged spinning turntable playing nostalgic hits like Nirvana's 'Smells Like Teen Spirit'. Oh, and you can sip punny cocktails all the while. After you've made it through the 18 holes, keep the night going and head to the downstairs karaoke rooms to belt out some more nostalgic tunes. SIP COCKTAILS AT FANCY FREE Opened in February and only around for six months, Fancy Free on Collins Street has already become a local favourite. Slinging signature drinks like an iced coffee spider and a salty-sweet pink grapefruit and Campari number, the cocktail list is divided into three categories: 'No meaning alcohol-free, 'Low' equating to a slight buzz and 'Full' steering you towards a large night. Plus, the neighbourhood joint has a rotating roster of food on offer, with the kitchen currently graced by the team behind Mary's — one of Sydney's best burger places. So, take a seat at the narrow bar, order some food and drink, and watch the world turn for a while. GO ON AN EASTER EGG HUNT THROUGH QT MELBOURNE It's simply not possible to celebrate Easter without eating your weight in chocolate, and it's even better if you get said chocolate from an Easter egg hunt. So, as a guest of QT Melbourne, you'll awake Sunday morning to realise the Easter bunny has paid a visit and has hidden choc eggs all over the hotel's 11 levels. And these aren't your standard Easter eggs — these oblongs are from premium chocolate purveyors, Koko Black. Plus, there'll even be special prizes on offer for anyone who finds the special QT marked eggs. But if egg hunting isn't exactly your thing (bah humbug) or you just can't seem to find any, you can beeline it to The Cake Shop on the hotel's ground floor where Koko Black has taken over. And you don't need to be a hotel guest to treat yourself to fresh-baked sweets like a chocolate and hazelnut gateau, flourless orange cake, chocolate fudge brownies made with 73% dark chocolate and caramel choc chip cookies. Hot tip: if you're after a real chocolate hit, order one of Koko Black's signature hot chocolates, available in hazelnut, chilli and classic belgian chocolate. GET CRAFTY AT THE ARTS CENTRE MELBOURNE SUNDAY MARKET Every Sunday, the sidewalk and lawn area stretching between the Arts Centre Melbourne and Hamer Hall transforms into a bustling market that showcases the wares of local artisans and craftspeople. Pop by early for some freshly cooked poffertjes (a type of Dutch mini pancake — you can thank us later) and take a gander at all the treasures the stalls have to offer. With handmade lime- and mint-scented soaps to colourful resin jewellery and moody photography prints, you'll be spoiled for choice when selecting something to take home from one of the talented makers. [caption id="attachment_661799" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Jim Lee.[/caption] CRACK A SMILE AT THE MELBOURNE INTERNATIONAL COMEDY FESTIVAL For over 30 years, the Melbourne International Comedy Festival has made sure that April is always the funniest month of the year — and the 2019 edition is no different. Having delivered a varied lineup of local and international acts that put the whole city in stitches, the festival's closing weekend — which just so happens to fall on Easter — is your final chance to catch some of these hilarious acts. From Alice Tovey's insightful and whip-smart Garbage Monster to the deadpan and unpredictable stylings of Aaron Chen's Piss Off (Just Kidding), there's something for every sense of humour. Treat yourself this Easter and book a staycation at QT Melbourne. Top image: QT Melbourne Rooftop.
The guys who brought all three Human Centipede flicks to Aussie cinemas are back with a new late night lineup of weird and wonderful films. Returning to The Lido in Hawthorn, the now-monthly Friday Fright Nights program features an expectedly surreal selection of eye-popping genre cinema, and will serve as a teaser for the full-blown mayhem that hits once Monster Fest rolls into town in November. The first film on the bill is the evocatively titled Cat Sick Blues, a strange supernatural slasher film from Australian director Dave Jackson. Next up comes I Am Not A Serial Killer, a well received American thriller featuring Christopher Lloyd and Where The Wild Things Are star Max Records. And if you think those sound weird, just wait until you hear about Aaaaaaaah!, a British horror-comedy in which the entire cast speaks in animalistic grunts. Rounding out the program is a post-Monster Fest screening of The Eyes of My Mother, a critically acclaimed gothic horror film that took this year's Sundance Film Festival by storm.
This is poetry like you've never heard it before – and yes, we mean that literally. Presented by Arts Access, Victoria's leading arts and disability organisation, and the Australian Theatre of the Deaf, this free two-hour slam session will see some of the country's best deaf poets delivering their latest works via sign language. A truly unique way to experience poetry, the performance will be followed by a public work shop, where you can pick up a few new verses of your own. This event is one of our top ten picks of the Melbourne Fringe Festival. Check out the other nine here.
Are you planning a fancy weekend away in 2016? Forget glamping (seriously forget it, let’s pretend it never happened), we suspect 2016 is going to the year of the gallery getaway. This is a wonderfully alliterative way of saying that 2016 is shaping up to be an amazing year for Australian galleries and you owe it to yourself to spend a few glamorous and very grown-up weekends out of town taking in the exhibitions. To help you get started, the Art Gallery of New South Wales and the Museum of Contemporary Art have a slam dunk of a prize pack to giveaway to a lucky couple (platonic or otherwise) which is designed to bequeath unto you a weekend spent enjoying the cornucopia of art and culture available in Sydney right now. The full prize will include return flights for two (economy from Brisbane, Canberra, Hobart or Melbourne), a night’s accommodation in the Sofitel Sydney Wentworth and two art passes which grant you entry into The Greats: Masterpieces from the National Galleries of Scotland exhibition at the Art Gallery of New South Wales and Grayson Perry: My Pretty Little Art Career at the Museum of Contemporary Art. If you need to bone up on the ins n outs of the current exhibitions, let us help you out: a review of Grayson Perry can be found here and a review of The Greats here. As if that wasn’t enough, they’ll also throw in a feasting voucher (glory of the gods!) for dinner at Matt Moran's Chiswick at the Gallery and drink vouchers for MCA's pretty, pretty Gin Garden. So if you win you can bank on two days of art, boozing, and artful boozing which pretty much sounds like the perfect weekend. Now go forth and enter the contest! Thanks to the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia and the Sydney International Art Series, we have one trip for two to Sydney from Melbourne or Brisbane up for grabs. The prize includes two return economy flights to Sydney, one night accommodation at Sofitel Sydney Wentworth, two Art Passes (provides entry into The Greats at AGNSW and Grayson Perry at MCA), one dining voucher for CHISWICK at the Gallery, drink vouchers for the Gin Garden at MCA. To be in the running, subscribe to the Concrete Playground newsletter by January 18 and then email win.sydney@concreteplayground.com.au with your name and address. The winner will be notified by January 19. See competition Terms and Conditions.
Alabama Shakes have been hailed as one of the most exciting bands in the world right now. They've earned glowing reviews from The Telegraph, Pitchfork and the New York Times, and not just because they're impossible to hate (fact). Tingle-worthily humble origins are one reason you can't help but fall in love with these guys, another is postwoman-turned-frontwoman Brittany Howard. Howard has ceased delivering mail and is now charged with the responsibility of delivering rapturously powerful vocals, which she does with a soul-heavy wail that has been compared to Howlin' Wolf and Janis Joplin. Backed by stomping swamp rock and woefully twanging guitar strings courtesy of her classmates-turned-band members, it'll move you in more ways than one. With their acclaimed debut Boys & Girls still running on high rotation, Alabama Shakes are heading to Australia for the first time in January for Big Day Out. They'll play one sideshow at the Forum Theatre. https://youtube.com/watch?v=Le-3MIBxQTw
You don't need to go far to find creativity in Melbourne. Each suburb is brimming with street art, independent boutiques and quirky food vendors. But the smaller guys — those with side hustles, passion projects and small businesses in their garage — are a little harder to find. That's where The Melbourne Collective comes in. The design market brings all of these local creatives together to showcase products — and this year, it's partnering with the Queen Vic Market for a special Christmas edition. The market's festive outing will take place across three weekends: November 17–18, December 1–2 and December 8–9. Running from 8am–3pm on Saturdays and 9am–4pm on Sundays, the market will offer everything from home decor and ceramics to stationery and fashion. There'll also be food and prosecco on tap for your inevitable realisation that you've been shopping for a whole day without sustenance. Entry is free so you can save your dollars for gifts for all your mates.
Two sit-down courses for $40 in the inner north sounds almost to good to be true, and — to be honest — it almost is. Lucky for us, the only catch here is that you'll be helping out some young hospitality trainees whilst enjoying some delectable food at the same time. Doesn't seem like much of a compromise. Scarf Dinners are back for 2016, and for their first season of the year, they'll be taking over Collingwood's Rupert on Rupert every Tuesday evening until May 24. While the venue would usually be closed on Tuesdays, Scarf trainees (marginalised youth who otherwise may not be able to get the hospitality experience they need) are given the opportunity to open the restaurant to the public for an otherwise normal night of dining. Rupert head chef Megan Morgan will be designing and cooking a special seasonal menu, which will include dishes like heirloom tomato with goats' curd, spicy jerk chicken and a chocolate kingston tart, served with gelato from Pidapipo. All food will be served by Scarf front-of-house trainees and their mentors. Previous dinners have been held at Top Paddock, Green Park and Three Bags Full. The autumn Scarf Dinners will be held on Tuesday nights from April 5 until May 24. You can make a booking on their website from 6pm onwards.
When 11.59pm hit on Thursday, June 10, Melbourne's latest lockdown came to an end. You can now leave the house for whatever reason you like, gather outdoors for ten-person outdoor activities and travel up to 25 kilometres away from your house. So, if you're now scrambling to plot out exactly where you can catch up with your mates, that's understandable. And, as it turns out, it can prove a little time-consuming to compare your travel bubble to those of all your friends', then input addresses to cross-reference possible parks. Thankfully, we've now got a nifty way to speed up that whole planning process, thanks to the COVID Overlap Finder website. It's simple but effective, promising pain-free picnic scheduling — or working out where you and your mates can meet up for whatever other reason you like. Simply plug in your home address and that of your mate, and it'll show each of your 25-kilometre radiuses highlighted on the map. And the all-important crossover zone shows all the places that you can meet up for government-approved social-distanced interaction. Do remember, though, that you cannot currently enter regional Victoria under the new restrictions — even if it is in your bubble. Fingers crossed we won't have to rely on it for too long — the Victorian Government has already flagged that more changes are likely to come into effect next week. To work out where you and your mate can exercise together, head to the COVID 25-kilometre overlap finder website. For more information about the current rules, head to the Victorian Department of Health website.
After doing a roaring trade during last year’s festivities, Madame Brussels is once again opening up their laneway to host a European Night Market. And in even better news, this is not a once off event, but instead will take place every Friday from July 24 to August 14. For those of you lucky enough to have been in Europe during winter, these markets are designed to be similar to what you would find in Austria, Germany and Switzerland around Christmas time. Some of the tasty delights you can begin to look forward to include German pretzels from Bretzel Biz, Polish dumplings from Eastern Bloc, French creme brulee from The Brûlée Cart and crepes from Les Crepes de Marion, as well as Praline almonds and macadamias from Chooh La La. Of course, all of these foodie offerings go splendidly with a piping hot cup of mulled wine and little live entertainment. Arrive hungry and thirsty to make like you’re having a white Christmas.
Dance parties are back on the menu for 2021, with Untitled Group pulling together the tastemakers and boundary-pushers of the Australian dance music scene for the return of their famed day parties. Headlined by Coachella and Splendour in the Grass alumni Willaris.K, the Day Party will see the cream of our local DJ crop converge on the Coburg Velodrome come Saturday, March 20. Former Triple J House Party presenter KLP, Late Nite Tuff Guy, Torren Foot and Made In Paris are among the other acts billed to perform in the Velodrome. Untitled Music has been putting together virtual day parties in lockdown, with Hayden James, Dom Dolla, and Willaris.K all performing live-streamed sets over the last six months. Now, following the rolling back of Melbourne's restrictions, the event organisers have announced they'll be bringing back the audience and taking the day party to the people. The announcement gives Victorians hope that live music could be back to some level of normality next year. Tickets start at $69. Pre-sale starts at 5pm on Thursday, October 30, with registration closing at 3pm. General sale kicks off at 12pm on Friday, October 31.
Can a dream ever exist for more than a fleeting moment? That isn't just a question for oneirology, the field of psychology focused on studying the involuntary visions of our slumbers, but also applies whenever tales of motorcycle clubs rev across the screen. Stories of hitting the open road on two wheels, finding camaraderie and community in a group of likeminded outsiders, and perhaps discovering a purpose along the way are stories of chasing dreams — of freedom, of belonging, of mattering, of meaning in a world seemingly so devoid of it if you don't fit in the traditional sense. So it was in TV series Sons of Anarchy and in Australian film 1%, two titles set within the roar and rush of biker gangs in recent years. So it was in The Wild One, 1953's Marlon Brando-starring classic that immortalised the query "what are you rebelling against?" and the reply "whaddaya got?". Now, so it equally proves in The Bikeriders, about a 60s and 70s leather- and denim-wearing, motorbike-riding crew formed after infatuation got motors runnin' when founder Johnny (Tom Hardy, Venom: Let There Be Carnage) saw The Wild One on TV. A family man, Johnny has a dream for the Vandals MC out of America's midwest — and so does Benny (Austin Butler, Dune: Part Two), the closest thing that the club has to a spirit animal. The latter is introduced alone at a bar wearing his colours, refusing to take them off even when violence springs at the hands of unwelcoming patrons. He won't be tamed, the sixth feature from writer/director Jeff Nichols after Shotgun Stories, Take Shelter, Mud, Midnight Special and Loving establishes early. He won't be anyone but his smouldering, swaggering, rebel-without-a-cause self, either. Courtesy of the Vandals, he not only has the space to stand firm, but the assurance. He's a lone wolf-type, but knows that he has the devoted backing of the pack anyway. Johnny has fashioned the gang as a tribe and a place to call home for those who can't locate it elsewhere, and is open about how his fellow bikers need Benny — and how he does as well — to look up to. The Bikeriders is the story of Johnny and Benny, and also of the Illinois-accented Kathy (Jodie Comer, Killing Eve), whose outsider-upon-outsider perspective comprises the movie's narration (and gives it a Martin Scorsese-esque, Goodfellas-style angle). She's wary when on her debut encounter with the Vandals, also at a bar. Still, the way that Nichols and his regular cinematographer Adam Stone (Waco: American Apocalypse) shoot it, Kathy has no choice but to fall for the brooding Benny from the instant that she locks eyes on him at the pool table that night. Moments after she leaves the watering hole, she's clutching him close as they thunder off on his bike. Five weeks later, they're married. As she talks through the tumultuous and absorbing details to Danny (Mike Faist, Challengers) — Lyon, that is, the IRL photojournalist with the 1968 book that shares The Bikeriders' name, inspired the film and provides its basis sometimes on an image-by-image level — what springs from there is a love triangle of sorts, as Johnny and Kathy both see different routes for Benny, and for their respective dreams and futures. Making a much-appreciated return to filmmaking eight years after Loving — in-between, an Alien Nation remake didn't come to fruition, and he dropped out of helming A Quiet Place: Day One — Nichols fictionalises fact with The Bikeriders. Lyon snapped and spent time with Chicago's Outlaws Motorcycle Club. Its name doesn't remain in the feature, but the monikers of plenty of folks in its orbit, including Kathy, Benny and Johnny, plus other Vandals members Cal (Boyd Holbrook, Justified: City Primeval), Cockroach (Emory Cohen, Blue Bayou) and Zipco (Michael Shannon, The Flash), all do. The vibe as The Bikeriders hums is of a picture and the team bringing it to life each stepping into history, into photos that immortalised it and into a mood just as firmly, then spinning the results into a movie. That's a pivotal and purposeful sensation when the line between dreams and reality is being examined. While actuality rarely feels illusory when you're in it, the ultimate that anyone is ever pursuing — rebellion, authenticity and acceptance here, for example — so often proves ephemeral. Little in the way of surprises might fuel The Bikeriders' narrative, especially if you've watched past biker fare — Lyon's book predates Easy Rider by a year — but twists and turns are never the point. Instead, the anticipated cycles keep turning as Nichols prods whether the dream that he's capturing, as his photographer inspiration did before him, was ever destined for more than transience. Johnny's version of the club — and the solace that someone such as the scruffy Zipco, who gives voice to securing a niche he isn't otherwise afforded in a speech about being turned down for Vietnam enlistment, is seeking — withers as the Vandals grows. Rides and hangouts erupt in scuffles and fights over power. Attitudes among newcomers make the OG crew seem positively gentle. Benny struggles, too, caught between two sets of the last thing that he wants from anyone: expectations. As it gets the wind ruffling Butler's hair and the bouffant of Comer's locks defying gravity, Nichols has crafted a film that plays so eagerly like a throwback with such a lived-in atmosphere, but also with probing intentions pumping through every second. It presents. It unpacks. It motors along with the throbbing and the cruisiness alike of an engine letting rip on long Sunday-afternoon drive, digging into this slice of countercultural Americana and the hopes it stands for in the process. As its director did with Shotgun Stories almost two decades ago now, The Bikeriders also has tortured masculinity in its sights, another realm where visions of perfection are fated to crash. And as Nichols constantly returns to in his filmography, how desperately someone — everyone — attempts to hold onto what they love and dream about also slicks this intimate flick like oil. The longer that The Bikeriders goes on, the heartier that the initial Vandals tussle with their expanding roster, as more and more faces and agendas join its ranks. The feature itself has no such regrets, including when Norman Reedus (The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon), Karl Glusman (Civil War), Toby Wallace (The Royal Hotel) and Damon Herriman (The Artful Dodger) help flesh out the cast. Mirroring the club with Benny, the movie benefits from having Butler at its heart, though. In a strong on-screen year to rival 2022's Elvis whirlwind, which nabbed him a BAFTA and a Golden Globe, plus an Oscar nomination, he follows Dune: Part Two and Masters of the Air with a magnetic, layered, revealing and committed performance while so frequently uttering little aloud. The also-exceptional Comer and ever-commanding Hardy aren't stuck in their co-star's shadow, as their characters happily are with Benny, but this film about the allure of the ideal knows how to make that exact notion its vista. Unlike everything that the Vandals aspires to encapsulate, however, Butler never falters.
Over the past year, The Griswolds have scored every Australian band's dream trifecta: a gig at Parklife, a successful European tour and a global record deal. "It feels like a dream come true," they said in an April interview with FBi, "but to be honest, it's been a really trippy twelve months, and we still can't believe what is happening." As you're reading this, the Sydney-based group's cheeky lyrics, fine-tuned harmonies and idiosyncratic percussion are hitting airwaves in the Northern Hemisphere, via the US release of their debut EP. The boys themselves, however, have been on home soil of late, recording a new track with 2012 Unearthed Artist of the Year nominee Chance Waters. Having done their time in the studio, they're now about to hit the road together on a lightning-fast, four-date east coast tour, More than Just Friends. https://youtube.com/watch?v=58iSZlM_8hY
This weekend as part of their ongoing showcase of the sick, the sinister and the surreal, Cinema Nova invites audiences to a twisted game of big-screen one-upmanship, one that poses the simple, arresting question: how far would you go for the right amount of cash? A smart, disturbing, thriller-cum-morality play with excellent performances and liberal lashings of dark humour, EL Katz’s Cheap Thrills is a rare genre film that delivers on all the shock and horror of its premise, while also providing far more brains than its title might initially suggest. Pat Healy plays Craig, a mild-mannered husband and father in dire straits after being “downsized” out of a job. Drowning his sorrows in a bar, Craig happens across Vince (Ethan Embry), a long-lost buddy from high school. They get to talking, but are soon interrupted by Colin (Anchorman’s David Koechner), a coked-up, middle-aged party-animal with a bored young wife (Sara Paxton) and more money than he knows what to do with. Before long, Colin starts offering his new friends cash in exchange for dares. At first its little things: $100 to provoke a woman at the bar into slapping them, for example. But as the night goes on and the amount of money increases, so too do Colin’s challenges grow more and more extreme. Katz relies heavily on his actors, none of whom let him down. Koechner, in particular, seems to relish the chance to work with darker material than his normal comedic roles, shifting from overbearingly friendly one moment to cold and calculating the next. As his wife, Sara Paxton likewise subverts our expectations, her stunning looks and air of amused indifference soon giving way to something far, far more intense. Embry and Healy, meanwhile, capture the confusion and turmoil of two very different men, both driven by desperation to lengths they never thought possible. Indeed, Katz’s script contains a delightful sense of escalation, as he slowly pushes his two unsuspecting protagonists into increasingly twisted territory. At the same time, even the film’s most outlandish and repellent moment possess an uncomfortable plausibility. As Craig and Vince demean themselves for the amusement of their wealthy benefactors, one can’t help but sense the spectre of the global financial recession. Ultimately, for all its moments of depravity and violence, the most shocking thing about Cheap Thrills may be the realisation as to where we would draw the line for ourselves. Cheap Thrills screens as part of Cinema Nova’s late night Cultastrophe stream and will be introduced by Katz and Healy via video. Other highlights on the current program include New York underground curio The Telephone Book and an Easter inspired, family friendly screening of the 60s stop motion classic Mad Monster Party.
Remember back in the '90s when people went crazy for Tamagotchis? They'd take them around in their backpack, forget about them for a couple of hours only to be greeted with a screen full of faeces and a terribly unhappy looking electronic friend. The Domsai is like a Tamagotchi for your desk, minus the annoying electronic beeps and constant need for attention. Designed and created by Matteo Cibic, each Domsai has its own personality. Handmade, blown and individually created to suit your aesthetic needs, they come in both white and gold, and are available for adoption now. Although they will set you back €100, the cactuses within require practically no upkeep and are so Art Deco right now.
In an age of MacBook Air and SmartCars, the most recent exhibition at Fehily Contemporary comes with a fitting brief. All artworks on display have be made within a space constraint. 30cm by 40cm to be precise. Up against the spectacularly huge work on display at NGV's Melbourne Now, this is quite novel — a welcome readjustment of our perspective that allows us to take in the smaller details or hidden gems. That being said, there are lots of familiar artists' work on display, many of which actually have pieces you may have seen in Melbourne Now. Ash Keating has been getting a lot of press recently for his amazing large-scale work with the use of paint-injected fire extinguishers, but with his name on the lineup for this exhibition it will be interesting to see what he comes up with under the brief. Other work you may recognise includes the photography of Georgia Metaxas who is well known for her Mourners' series, and Abdul Abdullah who had work in Next Wave's fundraising exhibition last week. The responses to the brief include photography, sculpture, drawing and tapestry, and all are conveniently priced under $2,000 for those that want to take the pieces home. For a full list of participating artists and further examples of work on display, check out the website.
If you're a fan of Chinese-Australian artist Zhong Chen, here's some good news. As of November 2017, you'll be able to sleep with his works. The Art Series Hotel Group has just announced their latest venture and it's a five-storey, 100-room number dedicated to him. Named The Chen, the hotel is in Box Hill, 14 kilometres east of Melbourne, within Whitehorse Towers, which, at 36 storeys, is the tallest development outside of the Victorian capital's CBD. Architects Peddle Thorp have taken care of the design, inspired by Chen's King Fu series and, as you'd expect, fun, bold, bright colours rule. There's a bunch of digital archival fine art editions of Chen's works, as well as a stack of originals, including Rooster, fitting because Chen was born in the Year of the Rooster (1969) and the hotel will open in the Year of the Rooster (that's this year). There'll be four in-hotel spots for eating and drinking, including a yum cha restaurant, as well as a gym, events space and rooftop pool. You can also count on the Art Series' usual arty facilities and activities, including tours, libraries, television channels and documentaries, as well as Art Series-branded smart cars and Lekker bicycles available for guests. "I have lived and worked in Box Hill for nearly a decade," said Chen. "I am passionate about my community and its emergence as a cultural powerhouse outside of Melbourne. To have a hotel of such significance, opening in the year of my birth sign, is a true honour. I look forward to meeting guests and seeing how they interact with the hotel and my artworks. It is sure to be a surreal experience." The Chen is due to open in November 2017.
From its little pocket in The Rocks in Sydney, Maybe Sammy has been making some big noise. The innovative cocktail bar is not just a regular on the World's 50 Best Bars list, but is currently Australia's highest ranked, last year coming in at number 22. And now, this legendary drinking spot is shaking and stirring its way down to Melbourne, for a one-off takeover of W Melbourne's cocktail bar, Curious. From 5pm on Tuesday, July 12, you'll catch three of Maybe Sammy's finest mixologists descending on the glam hotel bar, whipping up five of their signature sips as they show off their theatrical flair. [caption id="attachment_860285" align="alignnone" width="1920"] The Maybe Sammy team[/caption] To match, expect carefully paired tunes courtesy of W Melbourne's Music Curator Rachel Phillips, aka DJ Minx. Plus, Curious' usual high-quality snack offering will also be up for grabs — think, tuna tataki, tempura bugs, scallop tostadas with truffle ponzu and ssamjang lamb tacos. Entry to the takeover is free, though you'll need to book a table online to secure your spot. [caption id="attachment_799205" align="alignnone" width="1920"] Curious[/caption]
Haven't had time to check out Copper Pot Seddon yet? How about Luxsmith? Well, this Tuesday, July 12, you'll have the opportunity to tick the two much talked-about Seddon venues off your list as they collaborate for a one-off feast. Because it's far too hard to get to every new opening in this town, the two westside restaurants are teaming up for a four-course progressive dinner. The first two courses will be served at one of the two eateries, before you get moved on to the second venue for the third and fourth. How they'll seamlessly merge Copper Pot's European menu with the Asian fare at Luxsmith is a mystery to us — but we trust that they'll pull if off. A place at the table will cost you $95 per person, which quite reasonably includes four courses with matched wines. Whether you live in the area or on the other side of town, it's a great way to get a gobful of Seddon's burgeoning dining scene. Plus, we gave Copper Pot a five star review.
While its doors remain shut through another extended lockdown, celebrated South Melbourne restaurant Lume is helping to add some fine dining flair to your at-home routine. Famed for its innovative, seasonal fare, it's just launched a new ready-to-eat take-home menu on offer every Thursday through Sunday, for as long as the current lockdown continues. Give yourself a break from the stuck-at-home rut by whipping out the good tablecloth and diving into clever dishes like house-baked sourdough with black artichoke butter, the wild venison short loin teamed with homegrown kimchi and thrice-cooked veggie chips, and a salted kelp caramel cheesecake. Each multi-course shared feast for two comes in at $240, including a 200-millilitre pour of sommelier-selected wine from Lume's cellar. There's also a full plant-based set menu on offer, starring the likes of a whole-poached globe artichoke with desert lime mayo, and a roasted millet risotto finished with pumpkin and wild garlic. The same menus will run for the next few weeks, though with some small tweaks depending on what seasonal ingredients the kitchen gets their hands on. Lume Take-Home is available for both click-and-collect and delivery each week — order here. [caption id="attachment_824056" align="alignnone" width="1920"] By Duncographic[/caption]
It sure is tough to farewell another stretch of daylight savings — even if it does mean getting a bonus hour of sleep when those clocks turn back on Sunday morning. Thankfully, one St Kilda spot will help soothe any Monday morning fragility by handing out free coffee for an excellent cause. The Prince Hotel is teaming up up with Niccolo Coffee to run the caffeinated pop-up, serving up complimentary coffees from its Acland Street entrance from 7–11am next Monday, April 8. The coffee cart will be sticking around the rest of the working week, too, offering two-buck coffees up until Friday, April 12. All of the profits from these will be heading to Sacred Heart Mission's St Kilda Dining Hall, which dishes up over 400 hot and nutritious meals daily to those experiencing disadvantage and homelessness — people for whom the end of daylight savings means even tougher times ahead.
It's a dilemma as old as walls themselves. Do you use the space to hang something stunning? Or put in shelves to hold your books and gewgaws? Finally there is a solution that allows for both form and function. Riveli art shelves are a brilliant idea, formed of modular shelf units that can fold up against the wall, revealing the artwork on the underside. Even better, you can customise it with your own works and change them with your moods as you can slide your own images in and out, or attach them with magnets. And if you're the sort of person who always favours function over form, you can insert other materials, like mirrors or white boards to create a supremely functional set of shelves... or just use them to play an elaborate game of noughts and crosses. [via Core77]
Yabun Festival is an annual event held on January 26 at Victoria Park in Camperdown, on Gadigal Land. It's the largest one-day celebration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture in Australia. This year's festival will be a closed event due to COVID-19 gathering restrictions. Despite this, it'll be more accessible than ever, as it will be live streamed online, allowing people from across Australia and the world to tune in. This year, Yabun (which means "music to a beat" in Gadigal language) is taking place across three venues. The Yabun Stage, located at the Seymour Centre, will host performances from 12–5pm, featuring the likes of Vic Simms, Barkaa, Emma Donovan and Kobie Dee. As well as being live streamed, the event will have a small crowd in attendance — tickets can be won in the lead up to the event via Koori Radio. At its usual home of Victoria Park, Corroboree will feature a Welcome and Smoking Ceremony, as well as dance performances from groups Gawura, Koomurri, Buuja Buuja, Gomeroi Dancers and Ngaran Ngaran. It'll be live streamed from 11am–4pm. The Speak Out stage will be live streamed from the New Law Building at the University of Sydney from 12.30–4.30pm. Speak Out will host three panel discussions on themes of love, justice and success, with panelists including Pastor Ray Minniecon and Lynda June Coe. Another core part of the annual festival is the market stall, which have been taken online, too. Here, you can shop for art, jewellery, food and drink from storeowners that would usually set up within the festival. You can also shop for merchandise from the past three years of Yabun and support the festival and Koori Radio by donating to help ensure both continue to operate for years to come. To access the live-stream, head to yabun.org.au. Top image: Yabun Festival 2017
(more…)
Celebrate the long weekend and the last days of Melbourne Fringe in style. And by style, we mean wrapped in double denim getting down to the fly tunes of Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, Backstreet Boys and B*Witched. That's right party people, the glorious '90s are back with a vengeance at the Fringe Club in North Melbourne. Hosted by dance master Anna Go-Go and musician Talei Wolfgramm, 1992-1-Oh! is shaping up to the biggest blowout this side of Y2K. Doors open at 10pm and won't close until the early hours of the morning, giving you plenty of time to dust off your heaps rad '90s dance moves. There'll be Britpop, boy bands, grunge, nu metal and plenty of early R&B, along with a conveyor belt of one-hit-wonders that history has tried to forget. Cowabunga dudes.
Summer's definitely just around the corner — Melbourne’s Rooftop Cinema is back for 2015-16. And the first session to have sold out is A Girl Walks Homes Alone At Night — the world’s only ‘Iranian vampire western’ (so far), showing on Tuesday, December 8. Missed out on the chance to mix your bloodsucking with your Persian? Despair not. There’s no shortage of thrills to come. Opening proceedings on December 5 is Ridley Scott’s The Martian, starring Matt Damon as an astronaut stranded on Mars. The following evening, George Miller’s Mad Max: Fury Road will flood the screen with its post-apocalyptic desert car chase. Other adventurous flicks on the menu include Jurassic Park on December 19, followed by Jurassic World on the 20th, Everest on January 7, Aliens on January 16 and Interstellar on January 31. Meanwhile, several classics will get a good look-in. Warm up for Christmas with a December 23 showing of Home Alone and recover on the 27th in the company of Casablanca. Then there’s The Talented Mr. Ripley on January 10 and, for a fitting marking of Australia Day, Muriel’s Wedding on the 26th. Levi’s is also sponsoring a quartet of documentaries. See the film that made singer-songwriter Rodriguez world-famous on January 19 with Searching for Sugarman, learn about the frustrations with racial quality and police violence that inspired N.W.A.’s debut studio album on January 20 with Straight Outta Compton, find out what The National gets up to backstage on January 21 with Mistaken For Strangers and follow Amy Winehouse’s tragic life on the 22nd with Amy. Rooftop Cinema happens in the Melbourne CBD, on top of Curtin House, Swanston Street (between Little Bourke and Lonsdale Streets). The bar opens daily between 11am and 1am, with films starting at 9.30pm in December and January. The Feburary to April program will be announced in late January. Rooftop Cinema kicks off December 8. Check out the whole first half of the program at the Rooftop Cinema website.
The duo behind Thornbury's Casa Nata, Ruben Bertolo and Nelson Coutinho, have gone south and opened a pop-up shop filled with creamy pastéis de nata. Located along Toorak Road, the shop is open from Thursday-Sunday from 9am — until sold out. So, we suggest you head in as early as you can. If you haven't yet been acquainted with Casa Nata's tarts, you'll want to, quick smart. Each tart takes three days to produce and the recipe is kept firmly under wraps. Both children of Portuguese parents that migrated to Australia in the 80s, the pair is more than familiar with the custard-filled pastry, but felt it wasn't being properly represented here on Aussie shores. So, they decided to do something about it, got cracking on perfecting a recipe and opened the doors to Casa Nata in April this year. The menu is a testament to the idea of quality over quantity, featuring nothing more than Atomica Coffee alongside just one version of the signature dessert. Casa Nata Toorak Village Pop-Up is open from 9am–sold out Thursday–Sunday.
If you’ve ever wanted to dip a toe into the world of classical music or maybe you’re already a convert, you’ll be pleased to hear that the world-renowned classical music festival BBC Proms is heading to Melbourne in 2016 for a limited debut season between April 13-16. BBC Proms has never ventured outside of the UK before, so it’s kind of a big deal they're hitting our side of the pond. They’ll be setting up shop in Hamer Hall for a series of performances across a broad range of styles and genres, including a show by Aussie beatboxer Tom Thum (who’ll perform a hybrid beatbox/orchestral piece) and a show based around excepts of David Attenborough’s landmark BBC series Life Story with accompanying footage. The Proms is steeped in egalitarian ethos — they began as a series of cheap standing concerts held in London and designed to bring classical music to the masses. Tickets to their season at Hamer Hall will start from $79.
Chair design might seem simplistic to the amateur eye but, in reality, there are hundreds of years of evolution and thought behind this everyday object. Paying homage to the humble piece of furniture, Germany's Vitra Design Museum has spent the past 20 years building up a collection of precise miniature replicas and has transformed it into a world-renowned touring exhibition. And for the very first time, it's touching down in Australia. Presented by Living Edge, Vitra 100 Miniatures features tiny versions of chairs created by legendary designers including Frank Lloyd Wright, Le Corbusier and Otto Wagner. These miniature versions are all presented precisely in 1:6 scale of chair designs from distinct periods in history — from art nouveau to Bauhaus, postmodernism and the trends of the present day. They also stay true to the originals in every conceivable way, including construction, materials and colour. Showcasing 100 classic examples, the exhibition illustrates the importance of the chair and how it has become a marker of progress within the wider field of industrial design. To complement the Vitra 100 Miniatures exhibition, there's also an impressive range of photographs, sketches and assorted documents that explore the importance of the medium. The exhibition is presented at the Living Edge Melbourne Showroom from Friday, December 21 to Thursday, January 31. It's open Monday to Friday between 9am–5pm, Saturday between 10am–4pm and Sunday from 11am–4pm. For more information, visit Living Edge's website.
After first setting up shop in Brisbane last year, and then announcing plans to open more Australian stores last month, Taco Bell has revealed the location of its second Australian outpost: Robina on the Gold Coast. The US Tex-Mex chain is headed to a spot adjacent to Robina Town Centre later in 2018, with construction currently underway on its new digs. While the exact opening date hasn't yet been revealed, fans of burritos, quesadillas, nachos and, of course, tacos, can expect to start munching away before summer hits. Taco Bell's Queensland expansion will come as no surprise to anyone who's seen the lines at the company's existing Annerley store, and it doesn't look as though the company is done with the region yet — with job listings presently open for not only Robina, but for Brisbane and the surrounding suburbs. In good news for those eager for a Mexican-inspired bite in Sydney and Melbourne, more Australian shops are planned by the end of the year. It'll be a case of out with the old and in with the new, actually, with previous reports indicating that Taco Bell will take over old Sizzler spots. Find Taco Bell at a to-be-confirmed Robina location near Robina Town Centre later this year. We'll keep you updated on the opening.
The beloved Cameo Cinema will once again showcase some of the summer's most talked-about films on its magnificent outdoor movie screen under the stars. From December 1, 2017 until April 2018, audiences will get the chance to nestle down in deckchairs and beanbags, with craft beer, homemade choc-tops and freshly popped popcorn in hand. If that's not worth the drive out to Belgrave, then we just don't know what is. The Cameo Outdoor Cinema summer program has us pretty excited — with February to April titles set to be revealed at a later date. The season might get into the swing of things a couple of weeks before Star Wars: Episode VIII — The Last Jedi releases, but it'll celebrate the occasion with a midnight, moonlight screening — and 11 days of sessions afterwards. Remember: if you don't come dressed as a jedi or wookiee, you're doing it wrong. Other titles include predicted Oscar contenders Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri and The Shape of Water, Guy Pearce and Kylie Minogue in Swinging Safari, ace Aussie western Sweet Country, Meryl Street and Tom Hanks teaming up in Steven Spielberg's The Post, and what's certain to prove an impromptu sing-along session or three of Pitch Perfect 3. Animal lovers will also be pleased with a pair of Bring Your Pet showings, of Paddington 2 and Coco. And for those after a little retro fun, Garden State, Labyrinth, Muriel's Wedding, The Lion King, The Goonies and A Night at the Roxbury are also on the bill. It doesn't hurt that the Cameo concessions are a cut above what you'll find at your local shopping centre multiplex. They've got craft beer and boutique wines, edamame, and lollies from The Sassafras Sweet Co., to name but a few. Alternatively, you can bring a picnic of your own — this is one cinema where you won't have ushers pestering you about bringing in outside food.
You've gotta love a garage sale brimming with great goodies for unbelievable prices. And the creators of Rag Trade feel the same way. Matilda and Lil, friends who both previously had stalls at the Camberwell market and collectively ran the Carlton Eclectic Vintage & Design Market for one year, decided to start Rag Trade to essentially re-create the Camberwell market in the city of Melbourne. Held on the first Saturday of every month from noon-5pm at the Clyde Hotel, Rag Trade brings together drinking, music and a little bit of treasure hunting, and who doesn’t want to spend a Saturday doing all three of those things? Stalls feature a wide variety of vintage clothing from the '50s-'80s as well as the wares of local emerging Melbourne designers. With the new beer garden and lounge that was finished in early 2013, the Clyde has become the perfect spot for a market. Rag Trade is on at the Clyde Hotel on the first Saturday of every month. You can also check it out on the third Saturday of every month at 1000 £ Bend.
Two of our favourite things — good food and fantastic film — are coming together at Caulfield Racecourse this March. After a sold-out debut season last year, Gourmet Cinema will return for two weeks starting on Thursday, March 2 to pair menus from some of Melbourne's top restaurants with a critically-acclaimed film. So bring your picnic blankets, but leave the baskets at home. Each film on the program has been matched to a corresponding restaurant. Lost in Translation should go quite nicely with poke and pork belly bao from Tokyo Tina, while Slumdog Millionaire seems better paired with one of Horn Please's much-loved samosas. Alternatively, you can 'find yourself' in a salumi pizza from Baby during Eat Pray Love, watch Frida with a fish tacos from Fonda, or revisit Amélie with a croque monsieur and a plum tart from L'Hotel Gitan. Other vendors on the list include Kong, Saigon Sally, Meatmaiden and The Atlantic. While each restaurant will present a specific screening, you don't have to worry about picking your favourite, as each night a rotating roster of five restaurants will be slinging film-friendly foods. You won't have to line up for it either — you can just have it delivered to your picnic blanket via Deliveroo. Gourmet Cinema will run for 11 consecutive days, and will this year include two matinee screenings. For all the others, gates open at 6pm with the film set to commence around 8pm. Tickets are $22 (plus booking fee) for adults, or you can shell out $35 for a reserved deck chair.
Your Sunday lunch plans are sorted thanks to the slow cookin' team at Fancy Hank's. Starting this weekend, the Bourke Street barbecue joint is teaming up with acclaimed local chefs for a series of collaborative lunches on select Sundays throughout 2017. To kick things off, they're teaming with Embla's sous chef Charley Snadden-Wilson. Diners will be treated to Snadden-Wilson's take on modern Australian cuisine, cooked using Hank's two-tonne smoker Buffing Billie. That means glazed whole smoked goat along with sides such as smoked ceviche, salt-baked vegetables, scotch eggs and roasted apricots. The lunch is $60 for three courses plus snacks. "These collaboration lunches are such a great way to celebrate other venues and some amazing chefs at the top of their game," said Fancy Hank's executive chef Mike Patrick.
The morning work run could soon be a whole lot speedier for commuters across the city, as the Victorian Government starts work on both its hefty redevelopment of Flinders Street Station and multi-million dollar upgrades to the City Loop. To help stamp out congestion issues in the Elizabeth Street subway tunnel, the iconic station will score a new fully accessible entrance, running directly from Southbank's Riverside Walk onto Platform Ten. It's slated to open by April this year, with Acting Premier James Merlino saying that "Flinders Street is the heart of our train system and the heart of our city – we're restoring it and making it more accessible, safe and user friendly for passengers." Another project the government is forking out the big bucks for is a series of upgrades for the City Loop. It's investing $134 million on the 32-year-old rail circuit, which includes $70 million in much needed improvements to the City Loop's fire safety systems. The planned upgrades will also incorporate a new alarm system with extra CCTV cameras, which will give operators immediate notifications if anyone ventures onto the tracks. With over 111,000 people riding the City Loop each day, this upgrade alone is expected to reduce delays and help boost the network's reliability. This is in addition to the build of the new Metro Tunnel, which will see nine-kilometre twin tunnels and five underground train stations added to Melbourne's inner city. These new stations will create a new path into the city that doesn't rely on (but connects to) the City Loop. The idea is that it will ease congestion in the City Loop and allow more trains to be getting in and out of the city. Construction on all this is expected to be completed is 2026.
