Year: 2024

Walt Disney Animation Studios’ epic animated musical Moana 2 reunites Moana (voice of Auli‘i Cravalho) and Maui (voice of Dwayne Johnson) three years later for an expansive new voyage alongside a crew of unlikely seafarers. After receiving an unexpected call from her wayfinding ancestors, Moana must journey to the far seas of Oceania and into dangerous, long-lost waters for an adventure unlike anything…

On the back of their latest album, Supercharged, THE OFFSPRING are heading down under to showcase the songs to a live audience. Joining the punk rock icons will be another incredible band, Simple Plan, who between them have a massive catalogue of hits. The Offspring: SUPERCHARGED Worldwide in ’25 Aussie tour kicks off on Sunday 4th…

The fact that Moana 2 was originally envisioned as a long-form television series for Disney+ (Moana: The Series, for those playing at home) perhaps explains why this sequel – which was only announced as a reworked theatrical effort at the beginning of the year – never quite reaches the emotional heights of its predecessor, and…

Legendary Canadian duo, Death from Above 1979 will be touring Australia in April, 2025 to celebrate 20 years of their debut album, You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine. Released in 2004, the album has gone on to become a cult classic and still shines after 20 years. Classic tracks include “Romantic Rights”, “Blood on Our…

Music is much more than just art. It’s a neuroscientific tool that you can use to pocket memories, elevate moments and add magic to the mundane. Some elicit stronger bouts of nostalgia than others simply because of how they’re produced and written. But the process of music digging into our souls and helping us find…

In the last few years Hugh Grant has truly taken pleasure in playing against the grain of expectation he laid upon himself after a career of inhabiting predominantly likeable characters.  Arguably starting with his wonderfully committed camp turn as the villainous Phoenix Buchanan in Paddington 2 in 2017, Grant has been on an incline of…

English rock band The Cult played to an enthusiastic crowd at the iconic Sydney Opera House on their 8424 40th Anniversary tour. Original members Ian Astbury (lead singer) and Billy Duffy (lead guitarist) were in stellar form, delighting their fans with a brilliant display of rock and roll. Tickets are still available for their remaining…

Australia is known the world over for its vibrant festival culture – how lucky are we? From our electrifying bush doofs to more laid-back affairs, our country is home to over 500 music festivals. Our festival scene is also so unique that it attracts music lovers from all corners of the globe, making Aussie music…

Heartbreakingly sad, beautifully written and filled with edge-of-your-seat tension, A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang is a stunning exploration of war, feminine power, and the ability to endure. Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the famous Four Beauties of Ancient China, the story opens with Xishi washing silk in a river on…

The Dead Don’t Hurt is a story of star-crossed lovers on the western U.S. frontier in the 1860s. Vivienne Le Coudy (Vicky Krieps) is a fiercely independent woman who embarks on a relationships with Danish immigrant Holger Olsen (Viggo Mortensen). After meeting with Olsen in San Francisco, she agrees to travel with him to his…

Thanks to Universal Pictures Australia, we have 5 double digital in-season passes (Admit 2) to see Pharrell Williams‘ LEGO-inspired biopic Piece By Piece, screening in Australian theatres from December 5th, 2024. Featuring a star-studded cast of music super stars like Gwen Stefani, Kendrick Lamar, and Justin Timberlake, PIECE BY PIECE is an inspiring autobiographical story…

Beloved nu-metal Melbournians, Ocean Grove, dropped their fourth studio album, ODDWORLD, this past Friday, and it’s been well-received by fans and critics alike. After the departure of vocalist Luke Holmes in 2019 and his subsequent return for this record, the band has embraced a decidedly eclectic sound. This album, true to its name, feels like…

The Kid LAROI was initially scheduled to tour back in February, but now that the tour has been rescheduled to November, it’s all worth the wait. There was a definite buzz of anticipation as the audience filled the Adelaide Entertainment Centre. Rap artist Quavo was unable to perform, so Kid LAROI’s DJ, TJ Mizell took…

In the closing months of 2024, the following has happened: Ridley Scott revealed that AI can now achieve what used to take 10 people 10 weeks, in just one week, and he plans to integrate it into his process. Robert Zemeckis credited generative AI for making his latest film, Here, possible within a $50 million…

Emily Tsokos Purtill‘s debut novel took her ten years to write. Ten years in which she was also building a promising legal career and a family. It’s no surprise then, that family is at the heart of Matia – the story of four generations of women from a Greek Australian family. The matia of the title…

Full disclosure: I am not a religious person, but Thursday night at Brisbane’s Riverstage I may have experienced something akin to a conversion. Through a few small miracles and a touch of divine intervention, James Blunt’s first Australian stop on the Who We Used To Be tour was easily one of the best shows of the…

University is fun, but also pretty demanding. This will very likely be a period you look back to with affection, but while you are there, it can be impossible to juggle all the academic responsibilities. Most students also want to add social life and having fun into these years, not to mention that some work…

It’s hard to believe that Hoodoo Gurus released their debut album Stoneage Romeos forty years ago. Winning awards in the day, it’s as fresh and exciting now as it was back then. The sold out crowd crammed the three levels of the Hindley Street Music Hall to witness rock history. Opening act, Dallas Crane are…

It’s been far too long between outings for Nintendo’s acclaimed Mario & Luigi RPG outing. This has supposedly been rectified by masterful remakes of two of the series’ most acclaimed titles, as well as a brand new adventure in Mario & Luigi: Brothership. The interesting release strategy is a smart move from Nintendo, nodding to…

Director John Swab, a gritty aesthetic and the gruff likeability of Frank Grillo have proven a welcome parcel over the last few years, and following on from both Body Brokers and Ida Red is Little Dixie, a formulaic but no-less investing thriller that exists in a rough, dirty reality. Though there’s plenty of genre tropes…

The Saints ’73-’78 played a killer set of original punk songs from their massively influential first three albums (I’m) Stranded (1977), Eternally Yours (1978) and Prehistoric Sounds (1979). The Saints consist of original members Ed Kuepper on guitar, Ivor Hay on drums with Mudhoney’s Mark Arm on vocals, The Birthday Party / Bad Seeds guitarist…

If you’ve never played Stardew Valley before, we recommend immediately rectifying the situation and getting your farming hat on. For those who have, you’ll be familiar with the whimsical and relaxing soundtrack accompanying gameplay. Stardew Valley: Symphony of Seasons is heading to Australia in 2025, and will feature a whopping 35-piece orchestra, performing the most…

South Asian indie-pop musician TUSHAR has just released his sophomore EP, Feels Like a Start. The title song is a feel-good uplifting pop song that just makes you feel happy. The song is infectious, with an upbeat vibe. The pace slows down a little for a previous single “Peaches and Wine”, but the deep brooding…

Next year the Mundi Mundi Bash will be your best outback music festival option, as the Birdsville Bash will be taking a break for a 2025. Running over three days from the 21st to the 23rd of August, the festival on the outskirts of Broken Hill has several options for 1, 2 or 3 days,…

If you’d arrived at Sydney Olympic Park’s showground early enough (and 6pm is very early) , you’d have seen Eddie Vedder introducing the Cosmic Psychos to the crowd as one of his favourite bands. The seminal Melbourne punk band really don’t need much introduction, just a small bit of stage and a mic. What they…

Who’s badder than The Bad Guys? The Bad Girls. In the new chapter from DreamWorks Animation’s acclaimed 2022 action-comedy hit about a crackerjack criminal crew of animal outlaws, The Bad Guys are struggling to find trust and acceptance in their newly minted lives as Good Guys, when they are pulled out of retirement and forced…

LEGO Horizon Adventures promised a captivating reimagining of the PlayStation modern classic, Horizon Zero Dawn. Infused with the beloved, lighthearted charm of the classic LEGO games, complete with their trademark sense of humour, collecting LEGO studs, bricks and unlocking characters. As a lifelong fan of Traveller’s Tales’ LEGO games, I eagerly anticipated reliving Aloy’s somewhat…

It’s just shy of five weeks until Christmas (sorry!) and we’re not into holiday mode at AU Towers quite yet. This week we’ve added another ten tracks to our Discovery playlist on Spotify and Apple Music. Included amongst them are two tracks we exclusively premiered earlier in the week. Portland-based country-soul group The Delines take…

When first introduced to the story of CNN war cameraperson, Margaret Moth, Lucy Lawless immediately jumped at the chance. In local lore, Moth was a rockstar and an enigma. Having long eschewed directing, finally here was a story that Lawless could not resist. “It felt like destiny that I should be asked to tell the…

Given her career achievements, and that name alone, it’s quite a surprise that Margaret Moth isn’t more of a well known figure.  Working as a full-time camera operator in 1970s New Zealand at a time when no other women held such a position in her homeland, nor Australia, Moth – born Margaret Wilson (she was…