Unlike my first night at Canadian Music Week, tonight was all going to focus on one venue: El Mocambo, for what became one of the best showcases of music I saw the entire trip. But more on that later. First it’s important to mention that today I saw the first and only talk I was…
The third official day of SXSW music was jam packed full of parties. In between interviews and meetings I tried to pop into as many as I could. I checked out the Sounds from Spain party though couldn’t tell you what I saw, meanwhile at the Taiwan Party I enjoyed a “Woo Hoo” sort of…
Day three of Canadian Music Week got off to a reasonably slow start as we enjoyed one of the few sleep-ins of our trip, ahead of our usual slog of interviews and meetings. As we ran from one place to the next, however, I did manage to catch a couple of bands… albeit briefly. First…
One of the mainstays of the SXSW festival is the Fader Fort. Held just outside the centre of all the action, the Fort has been home to hundreds of performances over the years, in front of just about anyone who has a computer and can RSVP. With the walk to the event always seeming a…
In 2011, the Music portion of SXSW was extended a day to cross over with the final day the interactive event. This now gives Film, Music and Interactive badge holders the opportunity to check out the wares of one and other, as the Interactive badges show their signs of fatigue, giving Music badges a glimpse…
Wednesday night saw The Bakery play host to one of the world’s latest soul sensations, Charles Bradley. Backed by His Extraordinaires, Bradley put on an impressive show, and one, which will surely stick in the memory for quite some time. DJ Charlie Bucket warmed up the crowd, with a few choice selections, including the odd…
Annie Clark AKA St. Vincent brought her sweet voice and ripping guitar riffs to the Melbourne Hi-Fi Bar in impressive fashion. Fire! Santa Rosa, Fire! were a very nice surprise for the support act. The Adelaide natives put on an apt performance of some of their latest material that the crowd lapped up and then…
I, like many of you, have had my doubts about attending Future Music Festival. A festival noted for having crowds of shirtless meatheads, ripe with Southern Cross tattoos, of girls with shorts so short and shirts so non-existent that you think they’d have had to have sent their dads comatose just so they could leave…
As I sit in Los Angeles, on my way to SXSW, the Future Music Festival is making its way around Australia. Thankfully, just before I departed (in dates that continue), those in Sydney and Melbourne were provided with a plethora of sideshows to choose from. On Thursday night in Sydney, in advance of their appearance…
Being the progeny of influential songwriter and poet Leonard Cohen would no doubt have one draw back; how do you live up to expectations? Judging by the size of the turn out for Canadian musician Adam Cohen’s one-night-only Adelaide Fringe performance on Thursday, and the enthusiasm of the crowd, Cohen clearly has a following of…
Some bands should need no introduction, but unfortunately Atlanta, Georgia’s Manchester Orchestra still do. The band whose three studio albums and six EPs have made them a household name amongst critics around the world, still have yet to crack it into most households elsewhere. And with tonight (re)confirming my suspicions that they’re also a phenomenal…
There’s something quite understated about Will Oldman, aka Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy‘s, eccentric talent, and a packed out Sydney Opera House got the opportunity to experience this first hand on Monday night with a spellbinding show with his backing band The Cairo Gang. Complete with beautiful three part harmonies, the vocals of Angel Olsen, guitars and…
The second last night of music at the East Brunswick club was an occasion to remember and celebrate. A snippet of a little reminder on the men’s bathroom door was very to the point: “I hope the new owners go financially bankrupt. While it was probable that piece of graffiti was going to be wiped…
Walking into a sparse East Brunswick room to be greeted by a trio playing fairly uncomplicated songs wasn’t too bad in a way. Velcro provided a simple set of songs which set a semi-suburban scene. Maybe the sun should have been streaming in, as we enjoyed these three minute pop songs. They were kind of…
The juggernaut that is Soundwave is here yet again, returning to Sydney’s Showgrounds for the second year running. With a year to get themselves ready (you may recall the festival’s move from Blacktown to Olympic Park was a rather last minute affair in 2011), the festival provided punters with an inspired new layout, jam packed…
Now I can’t say I know a huge amount about Jazz. Most of what I know I picked up from writing about Jack Kerouac and his jazz influences at university. Other than that my knowledge of jazz extends to a few of the big names, the likes of Count Basie, Miles Davis, Charlie Parker and…
In the middle of the courtyard there is a wooden dining room table, with four chairs. The lights dim, and from the four corners of the courtyard four men dressed in black make their way to the table and each take a seat. The lights raise again. A somewhat incongruous and misleadingly simple start to…
Last weekend, the Laneway Festival tour completed its last Australian leg with a stop at Perth. With a stellar line-up and perfect weather, the festival cemented its position as one of the best festivals in the country right now. It was a laid back and chilled out affair, with top quality performances, and none of…
What is MIDEM, you may ask? Well, literally it stands for Marché International du Disque et de l’Edition Musicale… though in our own words, it’s the world’s largest music industry trade show. Taking place each year in Cannes (France), it’s an opportunity for all music key players, businesses, start-ups and new technologies to meet and…
The first night of live music took me to the French entertainment and music store FNAC on rue d’Antibes, where a special showcase for young Canadian artist Chris Assaad had been organised. Shoppers and MIDEM delegates had all gathered to listen to Assaad, who greeted everyone both in French and English, before he started off…
With an open-air concert out of question given the rather low temperatures and heavy rain that night, MIDEM had raised a big top for the event: Chapiteau Croisette, set in the beautiful location (on a sunny day that is) of Palm Beach and next to the casino. First to hit the stage were French indie…
Sometimes words can’t do justice to the beauty music can evoke. You have to experience it for yourself. At the very least, I don’t consider myself a good enough writer to do so. Tonight at the Sydney Opera House brings me one such moment, where UK songstress Laura Marling embraced a sold out crowd performing…
I arrived at the Metro Theatre for this phenomenal (and criminally undersold) triple bill to hear a couple of new tracks from Sydney’s Guineafowl, opening up the night in their usual classy fashion. The new track sounded promising, keeping us on our toes for their long awaited debut LP, hopefully being released later this year….
Last Friday night, The Bakery in Perth played host to American psych-rockers and Animal Collective label signees, Prince Rama as part of the second annual Fringe World Festival. Local duo Gulls kicked off proceedings with a subtle and mesmerising performance. Gulls are made up of Amber Fresh (Rabbit Island) on vocals/guitar and Matt Aitken (Gilbert…
Not a cloud could be found as we made our way to the St Jerome’s Laneway Festival in Sydney. Indeed, the sun had come out to play on a typically beautiful Sydney summer day (which we haven’t seen much of this year); a stark contrast to the weather of last year and a very welcome…
There was a thing at this gig that became curiously weird; Battles, a mainly instrumental band using new styles of music composition were playing in a venue with old concrete walls. Walking into particular areas of The Forum and then smelling an odour of dampness was peculiar for a place that looked hugely grandiose from…
As Big Day Out and its many official sideshows wrapped up in Sydney (there are still a few more special appearances to be made… such as Das Racist at the Rdio launch on Saturday), it’s now time to officially welcome the sideshows of the 2012 Laneway Festival, with Active Child ringing in the period with…
A lot can happen in nine years. For folk troubadour Carus Thompson, plenty has changed in the nine years since the recording of the first Acoustic at the Norfolk album. In that time he has gotten married, become a father, put out three acclaimed records, and played countless shows across two continents. Now, nine years…
As I entered the Spiegeltent, LA based outfit Vintage Trouble had already begun chanting “Welcome To Our Party” to the enthusiastic crowd. Indeed, they brought the party to Sydney at an early 7pm show – always an impressive feat – with the crowd on their feet and dancing from start to finish. The band –…
There are some genres that will never die. They are the genres that paved the way for “Rock and Roll” as we know it today: Blues, Swing, Rockabilly, Jazz, Country and so on… and the reason we know it will never die is because not only do bands like Kitty, Daisy and Lewis – siblings…
