Album Review: Foster The People – Supermodel (2014 LP)

To be honest, I did judge a book by its cover when it came to listening to Foster the People’s sophomore album. While I loved their catchy hooks and sing-a-long creations in Torches, what led me to pay particular attention to this release was the psychedelic touch on the album art, injected with colour, and…

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The five best moments from Addiction Week on SBS 2’s The Feed.

With addiction week now at an end, The Iris looks back on five stories that really caught our attention during the week. As is typical with The Feed itself, some stories are serious, others are more fun – but everything is informative in its own way: 5. Porn Free: What life is really like when…

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TV Review: The Walking Dead – Season 4 Episode 15 “Us” (USA, 2014)

‘Us’ had one job and it was to put at least some of the splintered survivors onto the same trajectory. As such, we were given a mildly touching reunion with Glenn and Maggie, preceded by a showing of just how desperate Glenn can get; desperate enough to wander into a dark cave with an unknown…

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The Iris at SXSW: Patrick’s Day director & cast open up about the film’s premiere; challenges of bringing it to the screen.

One of the strongly praised films of the 2014 SXSW Film program has been the Terry McMahon-directed Patrick’s Day. Centering around the turbulent relationship between 26 year old schizophrenic Patrick (Moe Dunford), his overprotective mother Maura (Kerry Fox) and the object of Patrick’s love, Karen (Catherine Walker), the film deals with lust, love, manipulation and…

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Film Review: Noah (M15+) (USA, 2014)

There’s been a lot of debate about this film, from many angles and many outlets and many voices. On the one hand it depicts an enormous natural disaster with large scale action sequences the likes of which we see in Hollywood blockbusters as a dime a dozen. On the other, it focuses on a very…

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the AU interview at SXSW 2014: Travis Barker (California)

the AU review’s Sosefina sits down with Travis Barker from Blink-182 at SXSW 2014. Watch below! Part One: Part Two:

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the AU interview at SXSW 2014: Black Lips (Atlanta, GA) on their first album in three years "Underneath the Rainbow" and more.

the AU review sits down with Atlanta, GA punk rockers Black Lips at SXSW 2014 to talk about the festival, their new record Underneath the Rainbow, which is out now and much more… Part One: Part Two: Camera: Johnny Au Sound/Interview: Sosefina Fuamoli Edit: Larry Heath Filmed in Austin, Texas during SXSW – March 2014.

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Exclusive Video Premiere: Sarah McLeod and Jeff Martin "Man The Life Boats" (2014)

Having toured the country together, it’s only natural that Jeff Martin and Sarah McLeod‘s would collaborate on record. Their epic debut single “Man The Life Boats” has been a highlight of their national tour and now we have the official video premiere on the AU review! Fans of the pair have been overwhelmed with the…

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The Iris at SXSW: Jen McGowan on bringing ‘Kelly and Cal’ to SXSW, being an independent filmmaker and more.

Take a former punk rocker out of her comfort zone and place her in the suburbs with her husband and new baby and you’re bound to have some pretty entertaining scenarios eventuate as a result. This is the basis of Jen McGowan’s SXSW-showcased film Kelly & Cal – a story about the relationship between Juliette…

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Expand your universe with the second trailer for the Wachowskis’ Jupiter Ascending

Andy and Lana Wachowski gave us one of the greatest sci-fi films of all time when they unleashed The Matrix upon us back in 1999. The film is still regarded as a classic amongst most circles, but the 2003 sequels failed to repeat the critical success of the original. Their filmography since has only included Speed Racer (2008) and…

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7 TV Characters whose addictions are… addictive to watch. Part Two.

With SBS 2’s The Feed spending their week looking at addiction, we at The Iris and the AU review will be spending a bit of time doing the same. We’re kicking things off here on The Iris by looking at 7 characters whose various addictions make them must-watch television in their own right. You might…

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Kings of Leon, Outkast and Eminem joined by ten Australian bands for Lollapallooza 2014!

Who wants to go to Chicago? Well, with today’s massive Lollapalooza announcement, we certainly do. Headlining the three day event – now in its 10th year and already sold out by the time we write this article – are Eminem, Outkast and Kings of Leon alongside names like Arctic Monkeys, Skrillex, Calvin Harris and Foster…

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the AU interview at SXSW 2014: Radkey (Missouri)

Radkey is a punk band from St. Joseph, Missouri made up of three teenage brothers: Dee, Isaiah, and Solomon. After playing the SPIN party at SXSW, the buzz band sat down with the AU review to talk about the festival, their music and much more. Get to know the band that everyone was talking about…

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Watch Tim Chaisson (Canada) perform "Here Tonight" at SXSW!

the AU review captures Canadian artist Tim Chaisson performing his track “Here Tonight” – fiddle and all – at the Canadian House during SXSW 2014. And after you enjoy this track, why not check out this one he performed on our couch at AU HQ last June!

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Ten songs that tackle the subject of addiction.

As SBS 2’s The Feed turn their attention to addiction for a week of special features on the subject, so do we. You may have seen our special on TV characters with addictions of their own over on The Iris, and today on the AU we bring you a playlist of ten tracks we love…

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Former Taxiride vocalist Jason Singh announces regional shows.

Former Taxiride vocalist Jason Singh is finding success with his new single “Speakers”, which is receiving radio play around the country. It’s only natural, therefore, that he’s hitting the road! Having already played Geelong, Melbourne and Albury, new dates have been announced seeing the singer take in three more regional centres. Dates below! Remaining Tour…

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The Iris at SXSW: Passion Pit’s Ian Hultquist talks about scoring Animals.

In this exclusive interview, The Iris meets Ian Hultquist from the band Passion Pit to talk about scoring the film Animals, which premiered at SXSW 2014. Part One: Part Two: From IMDB: Animals tells the story of Jude and Bobbie: a young couple that exist somewhere between homelessness and the fantasy of their imaginations. Though…

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Tom Cruise is stuck in a loop in the new trailer for Edge of Tomorrow

Tom Cruise is back with another sci-fi outing in 2014, and it looks like it could be one of his best yet. Edge of Tomorrow, which also stars Emily Blunt (Looper), is an adaptation of the Japanese novel All You Need is Kill. The new trailer for the film has just been released and it cleverly sets up the…

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Film Review: I, Frankenstein (M15+) (USA, 2014)

The reviews have been so particularly harsh for I, Frankenstein that you would expect to actually enjoy the film; having your standards dropped so low that surely semi-competent performances by Aaron Eckhart; and Bill Nighy could be enough to derive at least some satisfaction. Right? Wrong. The film is as unimpressive as you’ve probably already…

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American Horror Story Season 4 Concept and Title Revealed

According to The Hollywood Reporter, an American Horror Story writer has confirmed the premise of the fourth season of the show, which is set to premiere in October. Writer Douglas Petrie has confirmed the rumour that season four will take place in a carnival setting, with reports confirming today that the series will be called Freak Show….

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the AU interview: Martin Carthy (UK) on playing The National Folk Festival

Martin Carthy is rightly considered by many to be one of the most influential figures within the British music landscape, and continues to be a leading figure in the English folk tradition; having recently been awarded the Lifetime Achievement at the 2014 BBC Folk Awards. Carthy has released over 40 albums throughout the course of…

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the AU interview at SXSW 2014: A Great Big World (New York)

Johnny spoke to Ian Axel & Chad Vaccarino from A Great Big World on the red carpet at Perez’s Hilton’s One Night In Austin showcase during SXSW 2014. The guys spoke about their new album, working with Christina Aguilera and their trip to Australia – which is happening right now!

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Spotlight on Newcastle, NSW (Part One): SURFest, Jimmy Figg's Bare-knuckle Barber and Craft Beer Week Launch.

At the end of last year, Californian Andrew Smith was awarded the title of Destination NSW’s “Chief Funster”, a duty that sees him travel around the State for six months, creating digital content that shows off New South Wales in all its splendour. I had the opportunity to join Andrew for two days of his…

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Exclusive: Director Christian Larson and Manager Amy Thomson talk “Leave The World Behind” at SXSW

the AU review meets director Christian Larson and executive producer (and manager of Swedish House Mafia) Amy Thomson, to talk about the film Leave The World Behind: A Film Starring Swedish House Mafia, just as the film was premiering at SXSW 2014. The film is released no iTunes on April 15th. Get more details HERE…

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Box Office Report: Comedy cops and a volcano can’t topple The Monuments Men

Looks like it was a slow weekend at the Aussie box office, with only one film making more than a million dollars. Let’s just blame the start of the AFL season, shall we? George Clooney’s The Monuments Men took the top spot again with $1.71 million, while car-racing pic Need For Speed rose from third spot to second with…

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Full list of SXSW Film Awards winners for 2014!

The winners of Film Awards for the recently-completed SXSW festival have been announced, and it is a long and varied list, which you can see below. The festival is an awesome way to give recognition to these mostly unknown films, and 2014 presented an amazing selection of films. The Grand Jury award went to comedy For…

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