Highline

Sydney’s Highline share their 6 favourite B-Sides

What to put on the B-side for your about to be released single? Perhaps a conundrum almost as challenging as what to call the band. There have been some memorable B-sides over the past few decades. “Green Onions” from Booker T and the MG’s was the B-Side to their track “Behave Yourself”. “God Only Knows”…

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Aussie restaurants are set to bring the PlayStation experience to the plate

Gaming fans and foodies alike can rejoice as PlayStation launches PlayStation to Plate, giving Aussies across Sydney and Melbourne a taste of the many exclusives the platform has to offer. From 3 December, three restaurants will bring to life meals inspired by classic franchises including The Last of Us, Ratchet and Clank and Uncharted. Dish 1:…

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Interview: Dear Evan Hansen director Stephen Chbosky on adapting the stage musical and the isolating feeling of making a film during the pandemic

A coming-of-age stage musical that won immediate critical acclaim from its opening in 2015, Dear Evan Hansen‘s inevitable stage-to-screen adaptation was always going to be a mammoth task to whichever filmmaker dared to take it on.  For Stephen Chbosky, it was a challenge he tackled with open arms. As the film arrives in Australian cinemas…

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Lyre’s Spirit Co hooks up with QT Sydney for alcoholic-free Bar None in Sydney

A few years ago most discerning drinkers would have scoffed at the idea of a bar exclusively slinging non-alcoholic spirits, but times have almost certainly changed. In 2021, Lyre’s Spirit Co – a company that produces award-winning non-alcoholic spirits – is sitting pretty with an impressive $500 million valuation, and the appetite for sippin’ on…

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These are the 3 best Sydney restaurants with live music

Restaurants are back. As Sydney keeps on opening up, more and more people are flocking back to their old and new favourite spots to make up for lost time when it comes to eating well, drinking even better, and catching up with friends. Throw some live music in the mix from talented local bands, from…

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Film Review: Benedetta is a blasphemous, confronting farce from director Paul Verhoeven

If there’s one thing director Paul Verhoeven loves to do, it’s poke the bear.  As he has so gleefully outraged audiences and critics across his career, his latest exploitive project – the “based on a true story” nunsploitation drama(?) Benedetta – could easily be dismissed as blasphemous, but there’s also an alarming sincerity to his…

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December 2021 Australian cinema releases: Five films you need to see

For so many of us the theatrical experience remained out of reach for a large portion of 2021.  With cinemas back open and thriving in the wake of a double dosed population, these coming weeks look to end the year that was with a considerable bang. From the much-hyped multiverse tease of (potentially) multiple Spider-men…

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Photo Gallery: Shining Bird+ Johnny Hunter + Bored Shorts – Factory Theatre, Sydney (01.12.21)

  It was a stellar night of music at the Factory Theatre last night. At the top of the bill was Shining Bird, on the back of their fabulous album Deadlands, which was released earlier in the year. With beautiful instrumentation and high energy, their set left us wanting more. Co-headling was the irrepressible Johnny…

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Film Review: The Card Counter deals a hand that benefits the house more than the player

Kenny Rogers so famously told us “You gotta know when to fold ’em”, and in The Card Counter writer/director Paul Schrader seems unsure as to which hand he wants to confidently play.  It’s not that this film is poorly made, nor is his commitment to the representation of desolation anything other than pure, but it’s…

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Film Review: 13 Minutes channels your favourite childhood disaster flicks

Remember those natural disaster films from the ’90s? You know, Deep Impact? Volcano? Dante’s Peak? Twister? Well, if the recent Amazon hit Greenland has whet your appetite for disaster, then 13 Minutes will also satisfy your urge. Writer/Director Lindsay Gossling has assembled an all-star cast – including Anne Heche (to bring us back to Volcano for a…

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Quolls

Book Review: Harry Saddler’s Questions Raised by Quolls is a thought-provoking and caring read

Questions Raised by Quolls, written by Harry Saddler, is aimed at educating us all about the plight of the quolls and the environmental situation in Australia. It is a book which raises important questions, and asks us all to reflect on the situation in this country. For example, did you know that Australia has the…

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The Teskey Brothers

Album of the Week: The Teskey Brothers – Live at Hamer Hall (2021 LP)

In the two years since releasing their magical debut album, Run Home Slow, The Teskey Brothers have been incredibly busy and become overwhelmingly accomplished. Playing numerous completely sold out tours (despite the live music landscape being in complete disarray), winning awards and accolades left, right and centre, the Melbourne band has still managed to find…

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Tom Harrington

Exclusive Single Premiere: Late November “Birdbrain” (2021)

North Queensland’s Late November are a five-piece indie-rock outfit creating uplifting songs celebrating the transition into adulthood. They met in high school, and create songs that fuse their energetic math-rock riffs with soulful indie melodies. We are thrilled today to have the premiere of their latest tune, “Birdbrain”. Their material has often touched on themes…

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Film Review: Dune merges its blockbuster aesthetic with a desolate mentality.

Despite reading Frank Herbert‘s 1965 novel many moons ago and viewing David Lynch’s bizarre 1984 adaptation during my youth, Dune was still a title that felt foreign to me when entering the theatre to bare witness to Denis Villeneuve‘s much-discussed imagining.  Sure, I can clearly see the inspiration this operatic story had on the science-fiction…

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Masked Wolf & The Kid LAROI join BTS & Olivia Rodrigo atop Apple Music & Shazam’s 2021 Global Charts

Today Apple Music unveiled their global charts for 2021 for both their streaming services as well as Shazam, and the news is pretty remarkable for Australian artists. Topping the Shazam charts, as the #1 most Shazamed Song globally in 2021, is Australian hip hop artist Masked Wolf, for his track “Astronaut in the Ocean”. Within…

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Death’s Door Review: A Door Worth Knockin’ On

Gaming has always been the past time for a bit of escapism. Now more than ever, the sheer variety of games has allowed us to be whisked away to worlds we would never have even imagined. For one, you can now self-insert as a cute little crow working for the Reaping Commission Headquarters as a…

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Splendour 2022 Line-up Drops: YUNGBLUD, Glass Animals, Kacey Musgraves and more join a stacked July festival!

After a long 2021, we waited with bated breath as Splendour In The Grass expanded its line-up for 2022, with a massive announcement loaded with Australian sounds and big-hitting internationals. Previously confirmed headliners of Gorillaz, The Strokes and Tyler, the Creator will be joined by newly announced acts, Glass Animals, YUNGBLUD, Liam Gallagher, Yeah Yeah…

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Track of the Week: Budjerah “Wash My Sorrows Away” (2021)

Budjerah is back on our radar with both a Splendour in the Grass booking and a new single – the dreamy, soulful “Wash My Sorrows Away“. Not that he was ever really off it, with the track coming after he picked up both the Michael Gudinski Breakthrough Artist of the Year at the ARIA Awards…

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Tom Harrington

Exclusive Single Premiere: Tom Harrington “Be There Soon” (2021)

Victorian singer/songwriter and indie-folk balladeer Tom Harrington creates music that comforts and caresses. Following on from his debut single “Before You Go” he has been hard at work on his debut EP, and we are thrilled today to be premiering the title track, “Be There Soon”, ahead of its release on Friday, 3rd December 2021….

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Film Review: Encanto is a visually colourful and energetically paced animated musical about accepting yourself, flaws and all.

An ordinary teenager trying to fit into an extraordinary world is not exactly the road less travelled in film, and certainly not in the realms of the animated genre, but it’s where Disney have opted to explore (again) in Encanto. Now, as much as the general plot line of Jared Bush‘s and Byron Howard‘s outing…

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Interview: Kurt Goedhart from The Butterfly Effect on “So Tired”, riffs and lockdown

As one of the country’s most iconic rock bands, The Butterfly Effect have seen and done it all in their time on the forefront of local heavy music. The Brisbane quartet’s latest single ‘So Tired’ and accompanying video is an exciting taste of their forthcoming album – the first in over a decade. We caught…

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Theatre Review: Moulin Rouge! is a wonderfully lavish musical experience like no other

Put on your finest dress, button up your best tux and step into an extravagant world of glitz, glamour and romance at the Moulin Rouge! Based on Baz Luhrmann’s iconic 2001 film, it tells the story of an aspiring composer, Christian (Des Flanagan), who falls in love with Satine (Alinta Chidzey), a prominent cabaret actress and…

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Club Med to open its very first Canadian resort in Québec next week

Before the year is done and dusted, iconic luxury lifestyle brand Club Med will open its very first Canadian property, no doubt adding the country’s already solid portfolio of grand, enchanting ski resorts. Named Québec Charlevoix, positioned in the north of Québec, the new Club Med resort will soak up the area’s regional wonders and…

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Forget the chicken parm: Surry Hills icon The Clock Hotel now has a great French bistro menu

Surry Hills iconic The Clock Hotel has been through more than a few changes in its lifetime, and I’m hoping the latest is nice and permanent for the long-standing venue. That would be moving away from the typical pub grub associated with such a popular hotel into undeniably French territory, dissing the parma for some…

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Fireball Whisky and Vic’s Meats team up to offer Aussies a unique glazed Christmas ham

Fireball Whisky won’t end 2021 without making an impact. The raucous label is known for its spicy collaborations, and the latest just might take the cake. The label has teamed up with Vic’s Meats in Sydney to launch a Fireball-laced limited edition Christmas ham for anyone who wants something a bit different cooking in the…

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Woolloomooloo’s Wharf set for a big change as Il Pontile brings regional Italian flare

Woolloomooloo’s iconic Finger Wharf would be a dream location for any restaurateur, so I couldn’t even begin to imagine how overjoyed Mario Percuoco is right now as he collaborates with the latest opening by Audacia Enterprises. As the son of Buon Ricordo’s Armando Percuoco, there’s an obvious pedigree and love for hospitality that sits behind…

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Interview: Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn writer/director Radu Jude on filming through the pandemic and embracing bad behaviour in his storytelling

There are few films that take your breath away in such a graphic fashion as Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn.  The Romanian black comedy (you can read our review here) is now screening in select Australian cinemas, and to coincide with its release our own Peter Gray got to chat with the film’s writer…

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Nate Vibrations

Melbourne’s Naté Vibrations shares his musical tastes and influences

Earlier this month Melbourne-based producer and hip hop artist Naté Vibrations dropped the summer-tinged track, “Hop Out”, and irrespective of what the weather is currently doing, this is a track to get you zinging about. From the fun jaunty opening on the keys to the driving beats and vocals, “Hop Out” is a total trip….

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Battlefield 2042 Review: A Trip Into the Eye of the Storm

For a franchise centred around the conflict of war, covering several eras and stories, it’s clear that Battlefield 2042 had one target left in mind; itself. What follows is an incredibly frustrating blend of smooth action and refined gunplay, paired with numerous bugs and glitches, and the overall lack of depth within its mainline modes….

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Game Review: An Ode to Pokémon Brilliant Diamond

It’s been 15 years since the release of Pokémon Diamond and Pearl—arguably the most important entry in the Pokémon gaming franchise, as it revitalised its popularity through changes to the battle system, along with Wi-Fi connectivity and the ability to connect players to the wider Pokémon community. It was the spark for the Gen IV…

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