The 2013 NOW now Festival of Exploratory Music

Overview

For every boarded-up venue there’s a group of musically shrewd Sydneysiders doing great things to nurture our city’s really-very-thriving live music scene. One of the most game-changing is The NOW now, a community-run organisation responsible for two regular gigs a month throughout the year and one massive festival in January.

Now in its 12^th year, the festival is a five-day unpicking of that intriguing musical category marked ‘other’. A huge array of Australian acts and overseas imports will be flying the flag for sound sculpture, improv, composed music, new collaborations, trash rock, shitcore and other exploratory genres. Sydney producer Jon Hunter commands time the way other artists wield guitars, Peter Blamey’s ‘open electronics’ explore the neglected material potential of e-waste, and Berlin-based NOW co-founder Clare Cooper demos her rhythmic chops on something called a guzheng.

Also unconventional are the ticket prices, which range from $15 for one night to $65 for a five-day pass.