There are music festivals (think Laneway). There are conferences with a showcase festival that runs alongside it (think BIGSOUND). And then there are events that are in a class of their own. There’s SXSW in Austin, Texas – an event that is at such a large magnitude, there’s no way to describe it but to…
8pm on a Tuesday night and 170 Russell St was completely sold out. There were no gaps leading up to the stage – no room to move, barely any to breathe. It’s never comfortable to feel like a human sardine, but Mahalia made it well worth it. A self-proclaimed “sexy R&B princess” hailing from Leicester,…
Sydney’s St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival had surprises in store even before the day had begun. With The 1975 being a late cancellation to the previous night’s festival in Brisbane, Sydneysiders were stricken with worry that their the headliner wouldn’t be fit to perform. But as the city got festival-ready in the morning, the UK act…
Although she may have cut her planned quad-run at the Sydney Opera House in half, citing health issues, Houston artist Solange was very much in fine-form as she danced across the Concert Hall last night. The first of two shows (the final one being tonight), Solange and her impeccable band managed to perfectly capture the…
After a five year break between releases, during which he released a polarising feature film, Flying Lotus (real name Stephen Ellison) finally reacquainted himself to fans with the album Flamagra. Ever one to place visuals central to the musical experience, he has returned to Aussie shores with a new 3D live show. UK/Aussie Warp Records…
In 2017, Brisbane-based R&B singer-songwriter Wafia was starting to build her career, singing alongside acts like Vancouver Sleep Clinic and supporting acts like Daughter. Now, in 2020, she’s running her own show and practically selling out 170 Russel St on a Friday night. Modest yet engaging, Wafia truly captivated the audience with both her music…
Frank Carter and the Rattlesnakes kicked off the Aussie leg of their tour last night, bringing the noise to Brisbane’s Triffid. Led by ferociously energetic frontman Carter, the British punks are known for their live show, a manic yet heartfelt affair, and one not to be missed. Newcastle’s Eat Your Heart Out opened proceedings, with…
If you’ve seen Regurgitator perform live you know that their shows are high energy ones. They’re also partial to a great costume and some interesting visuals. Their children’s show, Pogogo has all these same ingredients. The big change however, was that the content of the songs was less G-spot and more G-rated. The trio performed…
An emotional Sir Elton John addressed a packed out Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney last night, expressing his admiration for the firefighters battling Australia’s current bushfire crisis and pledging $1 million dollars to the relief fund. It was but one of many moments of sincere and heartfelt speeches from the legendary artist during his first…
Much like 2018’s widely acclaimed Singularity, a Jon Hopkins live show is defined by the tense relationship between order and chaos. Not chaos in the random sense, but a tightly controlled and wildly frenetic disruption to fundamental sonic throughlines, steered by the gifted musician to transcend the typical IDM experience. If anyone had their doubts…
Beyond the Valley’s final day saw the ups and downs of the 2010s come to an end, and the festival organisers made sure it happened in style, bringing some of the best producers and musicians out for a well-versed closing day. While it could be argued that Tyler, the Creator was a bigger hit than…
The third day of Beyond the Valley seemed to go off without a hitch, regardless of the misinformation and rumours floating around the internet. It meant that there was an interesting atmosphere floating amongst the revellers, caught between a strange sense of angst and excitement for the main stage acts slated for the evening, namely…
Known for its beautiful sweeping valley, green hills and exotic stage designs, Beyond The Valley’s sixth iteration started off the second day of the festival with a whimper and then a bang as the rising heat and music fused for a memorable day. The constant heat and wait for festival entry seemed to frustrate guests,…
It’s a pretty amazing thing to see an artist who’s been around for 35 years continually reinvent themselves while managing to engage both the newest and oldest of fans. Returning for the third year of his Making Gravy tour, Paul Kelly brought along a heap of musical friends to well and truly welcome in the…
Sincere motivational rhymes about veganism and leading a healthy lifestyle may have been the last thing you would have expected from a dead prez concert. That is, if you thought the anthemic chant of their signature hit, “Hip Hop”, was nothing more than an infectious hook. The now veteran duo of stic.man and M1 don’t…
There couldn’t have been a more fitting venue than the back lawn at the Fremantle Arts Centre for the two bare-footed boys from Byron, Ziggy Alberts and Kim Churchill. It’s a venue that Alberts had always had on his bucket list to play, and he finally did it – to a capacity crowd – on…
The first date of Spilt Milk Canberra was a steamy hot day at Canberra’s Commonwealth Park and punters from across the state streamed in and sweated it out with a bevvy of prime acts. With this kind of line up, it was always going to be a massive day – even the opening acts were…
Lime Cordiale has caught the attention of international superstars like Post Malone and Dre London, and the hype that that’s garnered is definitely well deserved. These Northern Beaches boys put on one hell of a packed-out, sold out show at Sydney’s Roundhouse on Thursday evening as they continue their mammoth Robbery tour. Warming up the stage…
A U2 concert is not just another gig, it is an event that excites an entire city. There was an energy in the warm, summer air as thousands of Adelaide fans made their way across the footbridge over the River Torrens from the city to Adelaide Oval to see the Irish legends. Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds…
It might have been a Sunday night, but it was an exciting time for those in Melbourne, with Middle Kids continuing along the path of their ‘New Songs For Old Problem’ tour. The band’s Melbourne dates fell somewhat unfortunately on a Sunday night, but as lead singer Hannah said, “people who see shows on Sunday nights…
Tucked away in Surry Hills sits the candlelit Low 302, easily missed if not for the bustle of people out front on a Thursday night. The at-capacity venue hosted Lakyn, aka Lakyn Heperi who we came to fall in love with on our screens when he appeared on Season One of The Voice. Opening the intimate…
Over the weekend Melbourne’s Marvel Stadium hosted one of the largest single day RnB festivals this side of the hemisphere, rivalling that of FOMO. Boasting a line-up that included Black Eyed Peas, 50 Cent and Janet Jackson, the RNB Fridays live event was sure to be an exciting one. The eventing also introduced fans to some of the…
A huge crowd packed the Adelaide Showground for RNB Fridays Live, an event that has become an annual mini-festival, touring some of the biggest acts from the world of rap, RnB, pop, and hip-hop. The event was hosted by US rapper, Fatman Scoop and Aussie Ash London with the help of DJ Horizon and Yo!…
For a first time festival, Land Of Plenty, held in Shepparton, managed to get a lot of things right. Hopefully setting it off on a bright path for future years. The festival, which for its debut brought along a stellar line-up of local Australian artist, managed to keep the focus firmly on Shepparton’s local scene,…
There’s a strange level of community in country and blues music. It’s not the genre of music I’d listen to the most. But, every time I head along to a gig by a band playing this type of music, I’m bound to walk away after ninety minutes with a big dumb smile on my face…
Sydney’s Roundhouse was packed out on Friday night for Holy Holy, an indie rock outfit whose origins span Australia’s East coast. Having recently released their third studio album, My Own Pool Of Light, Holy Holy have garnered an intense fanbase eager to relive the best cross-section of their discography live. But first, it was Perth’s…
The last time I saw Seeker Lover Keeper it was in a dinky little restaurant venue just down the road from the Enmore Theatre. This was was during the initial run of the act back in 2011. It was a showcase of sorts, as the act made up of Holly Throsby, Sarah Blasko, and Sally Seltmann…
Forget harmony, Kamasi Washington and his exceptional band, The Next Step, are here to preach the virtue of divergence. The kind you’d hear sparingly in Sydney Well, not entirely; they are here to show how top-tier musicians can veer off onto their own paths, only to meet back at one singular spot, occasionally checking in…
It’s been 7 years since I last saw Seattle based singer/songwriter Noah Gundersen. Then, he had a lot less tattoos. Me, a lot less facial hair. In that time he’s gone on to release four more albums and work with Glorietta. His latest, Lover, hit our headphones at the end of August. It’s a stunning record that deserves to…
After a truly excellent first day of Yours & Owls Festival, spirits were definitely high as Day Two rolled in over Wollongong’s trampled Stuart Park. Although the morning looked like an ominous rainstorm, punters were luckily blessed with an evening of pristine perfect clouds and an equally dreamy line-up of acts. I caught Perth’s Spacey…
