Review: Groovin’ the Moo transforms Canberra into a festival-goers’ dream

We love long weekends – particularly when they give us an opportunity to dance, eat well and sing along to Lime Cordiale’s ‘Inappropriate Behaviour’. Groovin’ the Moo (GTM) did just that in Canberra! This year, Groovin’ the Moo was held at the EPIC Showgrounds, a place we usually find graced by farmer’s markets, exhibitions and…

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Hollie Col

Interview: Hollie Col on Julia Stevens, creating the videos and her favourite podcast

Hollie Col has been teasing out singles and videos from her fabulous EP, Julia Stevens, for a number of months now, and the wait is finally over, for the release of the EP, and the conclusion to the passion-filled story about the fictional character. The EP was produced and co-written by Hollie and Dylan Nash…

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Just A Gent

Just A Gent reveals the influences behind Planet Oasis

Producer and musician Just A Gent has just released his latest album, Planet Oasis. It’s hard to believe that it’s four years since his landmark record, Stories To Tell was released. That album has racked up over 20 million streams, and on Spotify, his overall streaming numbers have hit 200 million. Yes, impressive indeed, and…

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Maia Oakley

Exclusive Single Premiere: Maia Toakley “Paralysed” (2022)

Lovers of folk-rock will absolutely crush on “Paralysed” from Sydney singer-songwriter Maia Toakley. This is a song that oozes honesty, the raw and heartfelt lyrics striking a chord. We are thrilled today to be premiering it ahead of its release tomorrow. Maia explores the paralysing nature of self-doubt. Her vocals draw you into her world,…

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Book Review: A rough coming of age is made bearable with tall tales in Diane Connell’s The Improbable Life of Ricky Bird

Diane Connell’s The Improbable Life of Ricky Bird is about twelve-year-old Ricky Bird, whose life is slowly but surely falling apart during the summer that she becomes a teenager. Her parents have separated and her mother is moving Ricky and her six-year-old brother Ollie from Brixton to Camden to be closer to their mum’s boyfriend,…

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Netflix announce release date for Chris Hemsworth’s Spiderhead

Netflix have released the first official still and release date for their forthcoming Chris Hemsworth thriller Spiderhead. Based on “Escape from Spiderhead” by George Saunders, a short story from The New Yorker, the Joseph Kosinski (Top Gun: Maverick) directed film follows a brilliant visionary (Hemsworth’s Steve Abnesti) who runs a state-of-the-art penitentiary who experiments on…

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Photo Gallery: Uncaged Festival – Hordern Pavilion and Surrounds (23.04.22)

Uncaged Australia’s newest rock and roll festival was unleashed onto an enthusiastic crowd at Sydney’s Hordern Pavilion and surrounds. Headlined by the mighty Wolfmother, even with Andrew Stockdale in a knee brace, they totally rocked out. Great performances from You Am I, NZ’s Shihad, Magic Dirt, Tim Rogers on vocals with Hard Ons, Twelve Foot…

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Win a double in-season pass to see Wheel of Fortune & Fantasy, from the director of Drive My Car

Thanks to Potential Films, we have 3 double in-season passes (Admit 2) to give away for the upcoming release of Wheel of Fortune & Fantasy, the new film from Ryusuke Hamaguchi, director of the Oscar-winning Drive My Car, set for release in Australian cinemas from April 28th, 2022. Composed of three short stories, WHEEL OF FORTUNE AND FANTASY is a Japanese…

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Lightyear‘s origins are out-of-this-world in brand new trailer

To get to infinity and beyond, we need to explore the before.  The upcoming animated sci-fi adventure Lightyear, from Disney and Pixar, is the definitive origin story of Buzz Lightyear, the hero who inspired Toy Story‘s fearless space warrior. Lightyear follows the legendary Space Ranger (voiced by Chris Evans) after he’s marooned on a hostile…

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Review: Jack White proves Fear of the Dawn is some of his finest work to date in blockbuster Brooklyn set

A recently remarried Jack White took to the stage last night in Brooklyn’s Barclay Stadium, as part of his North American tour for the brilliant new album Fear of the Dawn – one of the iconic Detroit musician’s finest to date, and the first of two albums he’s set to release this year. The 2…

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Harry Styles

It’s official: Harry Styles IS coming to Australia

It hasn’t even been a week since Harry Styles performed ‘As It Was’ for the first time and unveiled two brand new songs. Yet, fans from Australia and New Zealand are getting more sensational news, further satiating their voracious desire for all things Harry Styles. Harry Styles will be coming to Australia and New Zealand…

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The Winter Dress

Book Review: Lauren Chater’s The Winter Dress brings the Dutch Golden Age to life

Shipwrecks, court fashions and the Dutch art trade of the 17th Century take centre stage in Lauren Chater’s third historical novel, The Winter Dress. Chater was inspired by a shipwreck discovered in 2014 off the island of Texel, containing a dress perfectly preserved underwater for four hundred years. The dress was later found to have belonged…

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New Music Discoveries 22nd April: BATTS, Baby Velvet, Dan Mangan and more

After taking a short break for Easter and Bluesfest, we’re back and adding ten new tracks to our Discovery playlist on Spotify and Apple Music.  Our Track of the Week this time around goes to Melbourne singer-songwriter BATTS, who is kicking off her 2022 with a new label and a brand new single, “Blue” which…

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Interview: Jack from Psychedelic Porn Crumpets talks writing, tours and puns

Perth psych-rock band Psychedelic Porn Crumpets are one of the whackiest acts in the country, but also one of the most inventive. Their fifth studio album Night Gnomes – to be released 22 April – sheds light on the darker moments in the past two years of lockdowns and border restrictions. The fun and friendly…

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Wolfgang’s Magical Musical Circus

Theatre Review: Family-friendly Wolfgang’s Magical Musical Circus delivers a joyful burst of energy

Presented by Circa, Wolfgang’s Magical Musical Circus has a short stint at the Theatre Royal, adding a cheeky element of fun to the school holidays. The show is a more ‘child-friendly’ version of its adult counterpart, Circa’s Peepshow, which runs parallel in the evenings. The classical composer’s music comes to life on stage as the…

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Film Review: The Northman is an ugly, brutal, Shakespearean drama indulging in its unconventionality

“I will avenge you, Father; I will save you, Mother; I will kill you, Fjölnir.” These muttered, repeated words by Viking prince Amleth (played by Oscar Novak as a young boy, and a hulking, angry Alexander Skarsgård as an adult) are essentially summarising Robert Eggers‘ narrative intentions in The Northman, an ugly, brutal, at-times Shakespearean drama….

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Dinner with the Schnabels

Book Review: Toni Jordan’s Dinner With The Schanbels is a charming novel about life post-lockdown

If you thought it was too soon for a pandemic novel, you might just be put off by the premise of Toni Jordan’s newest book, Dinner with the Schnabels…don’t be! Known for her versatility across both the contemporary and historical genres, the Melbourne-based novelist has just published her first novel with Hachette. Schnabels follows down-on-his-luck former-architect Simon…

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Festival Photo Gallery: Byron Bay Bluesfest (Day Five) – Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm (18.04.22)

Day five of Bluesfest comes around all too soon. The end is in sight, but there’s still the chance to see bands that you missed the first time round, and there are always a few that haven’t played yet. One of those was perennial favourite Kate Ceberano. Her voice is better than ever, she had…

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UNCAGED Festival kicks off in Sydney this weekend

Rock and Roll festivals are back baby after a long COVID break! A brand new festival “Uncaged” has been unleashed on the East Coast of Australia playing iconic live music venues including Hordern Pavilion Sydney, Eaton Hill Hotel Brisbane and Festival Hall Melbourne. Sydney is the first city to be reached, this coming Saturday (23rd…

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SteelSeries Apex 3 TKL Keyboard Review: A solid, compact all-rounder

The SteelSeries Apex 3 TKL (TenKeyLess) keyboard is an entry-level gaming keyboard that sits beside its larger sibling, the Apex 3. The Apex 3 TKL does away with the numeric keypad and wrist rest, all while providing a smaller, more compact alternative that holds some nifty features and smooth functionality for genera all-around use, even…

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Fontaines D.C.

Album of the Week: Fontaines D.C. – Skinty Fia (2022 LP)

The third album has always seemingly been the make or break album for a lot of bands. Often garnering some love on the first album after a string of successful EPs and singles, a band might follow up with the fabled sophomore slump or recycle reliable sounds from their first album and release as new…

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A Spectacular Journey: Bluesfest finally returns to Byron Bay

The excitement was palpable as we crunched our way through mud and pebbles towards the 33rd annual Byron Bay Bluesfest. After two years of cancellations, the 2022 festival was not just a celebration of music but a true celebration of life and the joy of human connection. I’d had my first Bluesfest experience back in…

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Airports

AIRPORTS impresses on “Second 2 Breathe”, the buzzing Aussie artist’s first new single for 2022

Australian singer, writer, producer and engineer Aaron Lee a.k.a Airports has this week released “Second 2 Breathe”.  “Second 2 Breathe” is Airports’ first solo release of 2022, and promises to be just the first release from a larger body of six tracks set for release this year. The single builds upon Airports’ trademark style, which…

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Interview: Alfie Templeman on ‘Colour Me Blue’, mental health and Mellow Moon

Alfie Templeman has only just turned 19, but already counts seven EPs, a mini-album and soon his debut album Mellow Moon under his belt. Alongside these feats, he was shortlisted in BBC’s Sound of 2022 list, is self-taught in approximately 11 instruments, has perfect pitch as well as a surplus of 700 songs sitting on his…

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Interview: Mimi Webb on ‘House On Fire’, fashion, firetrucks and her Australian tour

If you’re on TikTok, it’s highly likely you’ve come across Gen Z sensation Mimi Webb. She’s the 21-year-old British protégé who spent her teenage years honing her vocal talents at the esteemed The BRIT School (past pupils including Adele, Jessie J, and Amy Winehouse), before turning to the juggernaut app to share her music as…

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Film Review: The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is a love letter to the force that is Nicolas Cage

In the lead-up to the release of The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent, Nicolas Cage spoke of the countless VOD titles he had littered his filmography with over the last decade-or-so – film choices made primarily to pay off serious debt – with a positive tongue.  Whilst such trashy thrillers as Inconceivable, Trespass, and Left…

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Moonlight and the Pearler's Daughter

Book Review: High seas rescue in the far North of WA in Lizzie Pook’s Moonlight and the Pearler’s Daughter

Lizzie Pook’s debut novel, Moonlight and the Pearler’s Daughter, takes us to the fictional pearling town of Bannin Bay in the North of Western Australia. The year is 1896, and those who own fleets of pearling luggers – those such as Eliza Brightwell’s father – rule the town. But when Eliza goes to meet her father…

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First Impressions: A messy script doesn’t serve The First Lady, but Michelle Pfeiffer sure does!

As Gillian Anderson states – under a set of prominent teeth that appear almost caricaturish in their imagery as Eleanor Roosevelt – being a first lady isn’t a job, it’s a “circumstance”.  Such a circumstance, it would seem, that Showtime thought it only fair to showcase the women behind some of the most powerful Presidential…

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Eric Terino

Interview: Eric Terino talks about his new album Innovations of Grave Perversity

Eric Terino is a singer-songwriter based in the New England region of America. He has just released his third album, the beautifully haunting Innovations of Grave Perversity. The album, which errs towards the folkier end of the genre spectrum, features a whole host of sonically interesting instruments, and musicians from around the world.  To celebrate…

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Mama Roux

Guest Playlist: Mama Roux share the tracks that influenced their debut single “Big Fuss”

Mama Roux are a three-piece ‘garage’ rock band from the outskirts of Amsterdam. The trio, made up of Maarten (drums), Patrick (bass), and Lukas (guitar), have not long released their debut single “Big Fuss”.  The single, the first from their forthcoming eponymous EP, is a satisfyingly explosive blend of garage and blues rock. It’s raw,…

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