What’s this!? Larry, reviewing a gig in Melbourne!? Well yes indeed boys and girls, I recently took a trip down south, and got to go to my first ever gig in your fine city! Although, I HAD been down to Big Day Out and V Festival this year and last year, respectively – so I…
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Unfortunately I was unable to attend the entire day of the latest “pub” festival to hit the Sydney scene, and as such arrived just as 4th band for the day, Alter Ego Mania, were finishing their set. I didn’t see enough of these guys to comment on them properly, but liked what I saw…
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Fresh from a completely different live music event in the Valley, I walk a number of flights of stairs to the Top Floor – an art/music space and perhaps the only venue of its kind in Brisbane CBD. Warming up tonight’s festivities – Felinedown’s first anniversary/EP digital re-release party – are dance-punks Moon Jog, whose…
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I find this quite strange to admit, but this performance was the first time I’d ever set foot inside the UNSW Roundhouse. Just thought I’d put that out there. But it’s a venue I quite like – it’s just a bit of a pain to get to! The set up, and the premise, of the…
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It was only a few short weeks ago that I was first introduced to Lisa Mitchell, via the adorable video of ‘Coin Laundry’. I have to say I was quite stunned when I went on to discover she had managed a near sell-out tour of the country at the same time. Well boys and girls,…
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The music played through 299’s PA is positively deafening on all of the venue’s three levels, while the live sound is only marginally subtler – an obstacle not even helped by my trusty earplugs – however the punishing decibels do little to detract me and fellow music lovers from appreciating tonight’s local talent trifecta. Having…
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As the crowd slowly trickled into new “it” night, JUST? at Club 77, The Vignettes launched into their set. While I’ve reviewed this band before (see it here), tonight I felt I was given a much more accurate taste as to what they were all about. Joel, for one, felt much more relaxed to say…
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Jamie T is one of those performers with whom you know you probably SHOULDN’T like – but there’s something about him that keeps drawing you back in – and his live show, the first of an impressive two sold out nights at the Metro, proved much the same. Opening for Jamie T was Ernest Ellis,…
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DOUBLE TAKE – Alexandra Duguid and Gareth Page each give their takes on this highly anticipated concert. Review by Alexandra Duguid: I entered the venue to be welcomed by Mariachi El Bronx, the novelty alter-ego of the Bronx and an unusual concept executed flawlessly by the LA based-punk band, who were…well not a punk band…
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When I heard that Robert Schneider was making his first ever trip down under, I found myself asking… like, Rob “The Hot Chick” Schneider? But on second glance I realised that it was, in fact, the famed lead of one of my favourite bands, Apples in Stereo! This was one rare acoustic performance I knew…
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Hopetoun Hotel once again showcases some of the city’s best talent. Danimals, The Laurels and Songs are three of the hottest bands in Sydney right now, and they blew the roof off the venue, in front of an – as expected – sold out crowd. The following The Laurels have, in particular, is quite astounding…
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If you know where to look on a given night, the city of Sydney offers some great “secret” shows in warehouse spaces around town, often free, and often (eventually) shut down by the cops due to noise complaints. And it’s on this Saturday evening where I found myself in a Surry Hills Warehouse, watching a…
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Tonight, the Hopetoun Hotel outsourced its Headline act to Japan, and with some local support by their side, provided an evening of some interesting musical treats. I unfortunately missed opening act Virgo Rising, but I hear great things about the Sydney band, and will definitely endevour to catch them at a later date. Skullsquadron, up…
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While I can’t say I’m as big a fan as some of the others in the room, Ben Folds has been at the top of my “to see” list for quite some time, and not only did he not disappoint, but provided me with one of the most memorable evenings I’ve ever had the pleasure…
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SPECIAL REVIEW FEATURE(S): TWITTER FEED For Australian fans of Wolf Parade and their many side projects (Frog Eyes, Handsome Furs, Sunset Rubdown etc.), it’s been a hard run over the years, with not a single visit to our shores. Until now. Behold! The first Australian tour of Handsome Furs, Dan Boeckner’s side project with wife…
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It’s always interesting to see how a crowd will react to a band they probably haven’t heard of, especially when that crowd is full of people in the fashion and art industries. In other words – people who don’t really consider themselves “into live music”. Last night’s launch of the new fashion-focused “Tangent Magazine” was…
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The last time I attended an iTunes LIVE gig at the Apple Store, it was last year’s now legendary performance by The Presets. Many of those who had been lucky enough to make it inside had been waiting all day. Last night’s Paul Dempsey performance, however, was far more low key – patrons able…
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The fantastic concept that is The JD Set has returned to our shores for a second round, showcasing an audience’s pick of relatively unknown bands (Brittle and Starting Sunday) alongside one of Australia’s most popular acts (Faker)… All for free! The way they ran the ticketing system was fairly simple: register for tickets online, bring…
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SPECIAL REVIEW FEATURE(S): TWITTER FEED As the crowd began to filter into the Enmore, lone support act CATCALL, formerly of Kiosk, took to the stage, performing “Be My Earthquake” to open her half-hour-or-so set. Reasonably catchy, the song was enhanced by a rarely seen 3-piece backup band. While other songs were brought down by the…
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While touted as the “debut [V] Live event”, today’s event was always going to be a hard reminder of the days when Channel [V] ACTUALLY brought regular live music to the streets of Sydney. Free events, usually at Fox Studios, showcased some of the world’s hottest properties (Foo Fighters, Incubus, The Dandy Warhols and Queens…
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SPECIAL REVIEW FEATURE(S): TWITTER FEED While their appearance at Splendour in the Grass, was touted as an “exclusive Australian appearance”, Bloc Party have managed to fit in a few “secret” shows along the route. On Friday night, they appeared at the Great Northern Hotel in Byron Bay for the pre-Splendour party – in which they,…
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Why wait for the full review? In an AU review FIRST, from Friday night to Sunday night, Larry & Chris uploaded live tweets – both text and pics – from Australia’s signature winter festival. Check out the archived embedded feed here: #Splendour lives on! Full coverage from tomorrow! Then Bloc Party @ MCA. They played…
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As I entered Manning Bar, it was immediately clear that tonight would be a unique evening. Donning newspaper hats, a good 500 people had taken over the dance floor, sitting down, cross-legged, slowly sipping away on their beer. Yes, tonight these 20-somethings would all be singing along to tunes from their youth. And with the…
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On the cusp of yet another last-minute cancellation from Ajax (okay, perhaps that’s a bit harsh… I only know of one other time he’s done that in Sydney this year), some may have been a bit disappointed to hear his replacement, Act Your Age, hitting the main stage decks on arrival instead. But after some…
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In a line up rivalling Sydney’s recent Come Together festival (and then some), a huge list of talents took over the Metro Theatre this weekend, providing Sydney with 7 hours of quality music. A mini-festival by any standard… and all for $40! Can we “Save FBi” every month? THE JEZABELS were just getting things warmed…
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Personally my favourite of all the “Save FBi” gigs this month, The Ivy League brought quite a few amazing acts out of the closet, freshly dusted, to perform for us tonight. Arriving just in time to catch the end of crowd-pleasers Cabins, I once again found myself thoroughly enjoying their set, and was heartily disappointed…
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While I can’t say I was ever a huge fan of the Wu Tang Clan growing up (sacrilegious I know!), I certainly have always been able to appreciate the impact they made on the world of hip hop, something which continues today – both as a collective (sans the late ODB) and in their assorted…
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It’s quite a rare occasion in which one can be self aware they are witnessing a once-in-a-lifetime event. Simon & Garfunkel playing the stages of Sydney almost 40 years after they first split up is one such moment. For myself, it’s the first opportunity I’ve ever had to see the legendary duo, and it will…
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While it might seem like we at theAUreview are covering a fair share of Mum events of late, such simply reflects the talent being showcased here on a weekly basis. As much as we reviewers love live music, it’s a fair effort to convince us to attend a gig on a Friday night, especially if…
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As Sydney’s groundbreaking Vivid festival draws to a close, tonight marked the end of the Creative Sydney portion of the event, during which some of Sydney’s finest artists came together to showcase the musical talent of the city. The event, appropriately named “Songs of Sydney”. How this worked (in fast-moving fashion), was that a house…
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