Hotel Review: Courtyard by Marriott’s newest location in Downtown El Paso thrives with comfort (Texas)

Set in the heart of Downtown El Paso, and having just opened up mid last year, is the new hotel and convention centre from Courtyard by Marriott. Sitting in a hub of museums and just around the corner from the El Paso train station, the 9 floor hotel boasts a stunning outdoor pool that overlooks…

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Kim Dickens and the crew behind The Highwaymen talk about the 15 years it took to bring this story to our screens

We hit the red carpet earlier this month to meet the cast and crew behind the brand new Netflix original film The Highwaymen. Some 15 years in the making, the film’s writer John Fusco, actress Kim Dickens (Fear The Walking Dead), Producer Casey Silver and Director John Lee Hancock, reflect on the journey to bring the film to our…

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SXSW Interview: Jarryd James talks about “Slow Motion”; “I spend a lot of time by myself in weird places”

Earlier this month, Larry Heath had the chance to sit down with Aussie singer/songwriter Jarryd James ahead of his performance at Australia House as part of The Aussie BBQ during SXSW. During our chat, Jarryd talked about the craziness of the event, playing the Neon Gold Showcase, about how wonderful Lizzy Plapinger from MS MR is….

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Track of the Day: Tess Guthrie “WUTO” (2019)

An alumnus of the Push Songs program, Melbourne based Tess Guthrie’s first single “WUTO” (Were You the One?) is a killer blend of honest lyrics, raw emotion, and stunning vocals. Citing Jeff Buckley, Eva Cassidy, and recent SXSW Grulke Prize winner Angie MacMahon as influences, Tess built her sound in beachside venues along the Surf Coast,…

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SXSW Interview: Fatai (Australia) talks taking the “Road Less Travelled” in the Chicago Blues scene

I first sat down with Australian artist Fatai at SXSW 2018, where we spoke about her making her SXSW debut and getting comfortable in Chicago – the US city she calls home. Fast forward a year and the artist has returned to SXSW, with a brand new single “Road Less Traveled” in tow, and a…

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SXSW Interview: Sam Fender (UK) on starting conversations with his music and Splendour in the Grass rumours

One of our favourite artists at the AU over the last year or so has been rising UK star Sam Fender (he even came in at number two on our best track of 2018 list). And though he has yet to come to Australia, earlier this month he made his debut at Australia House at…

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Book Review: Zoë Foster Blake’s Love! gives us a fresh and modern perspective on matters of the heart

Relationship advisor Zoë Foster Blake takes us on an enthusiastic journey through matters of the heart and offers a fresh perspective in her new reference guide: Love! The book offers hints, solutions and ideas on how to deal with many of the issues us women experience when dating, whilst also giving some insight into why we…

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Flight Review: WestJet Encore – Vancouver to Kelowna (WS3320)

There are a string of new budget carriers popping up in Canada, but the two major players in the market remain Westjet and Air Canada; with each airline placing the “Encore” and “Express” brands alongside some of their shorter routes. Towards the end of last year, I tried out the service from WestJet Encore, on…

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Film Review: Fighting With My Family (UK, 2019) is a satisfying crowd-pleaser that will wrestle your funnybone as well as your heart

Based on a true story (well-documented in the Channel 4 documentary The Wrestlers: Fighting with My Family), born into a tight-knit wrestling family, Paige (Florence Pugh) and her brother Zak (Jack Lowden) are ecstatic when they get the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to try out for the WWE. But when only Paige earns a spot in the…

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PAX Aus 2019 tickets go on sale tomorrow

We’ve known for a while that PAX Australia, the nation’s biggest gaming convention, will return to the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre for its seventh consecutive year. However, in a break from previous years, the show will shift slightly from its traditional late-October slot to the middle of the month. The show’s new dates are…

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Album of the Week: Brendan Maclean’s debut album And the Boyfriends (2019) has depth and soul

Brendan Maclean has had a varied career in film and music, from starring alongside Marcia Hines in the cabaret show Velvet in the 2015 Adelaide Fringe, to well known Triple J radio presenter for many years and to having his sexually explicit 2015 video to “House of Air” being banned by Youtube. So after several…

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Photo Gallery: The Magic Numbers + BATTS – Corner Hotel, Melbourne (22.03.19)

UK indie outfit The Magic Numbers returned to Melbourne this week playing songs off their new album Outsiders, for the first time since 2010. Supported by BATTS and Nat Vazer, this was an all round excellent night of indie rock. The band have one remaining tour date in Australia this week: Tuesday March 27th at Capitol in…

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Theatre Review: Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour’s West Side Story proves that thunder & rainbows only happen when it’s raining

It was Wet Side Story at Handa Opera on Sydney Harbour on Friday night. Leonard Bernstein’s Broadway classic was an emotionally-charged and important affair. It may have been over 60 years since this musical first premiered in the States, but its themes and feel remain as fresh and resonant as ever. This production is the…

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Festival Review: Wine Machine proves a long and deflating day in the Hunter Valley

After a drizzly week in Sydney, the skies miraculously cleared for a radiant Wine Machine day at the Roche Estate in the Hunter Valley. Little did upbeat punters know, Mother Nature was planning to absolutely blindside them with a literal show-stopping electrical storm in the evening to come. Hold on to your ponchos because this…

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Photo Gallery: Charlie Collins + Andy Golledge + Tilda – Lansdowne Hotel, Sydney (22.03.19)

Supported by Tilda and Andy Golledge, Charlie Colins performed at The Lansdowne Hotel in Sydney on Friday night. Belinda Dipalo was there to bring you these photos

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How a mutual love of Led Zeppelin brought this musician and filmmaker together for Mr. Jimmy

While at SXSW, I sat down with Director Peter Michael Dowd to talk about his new documentary Mr. Jimmy, about Japanese musician Akio Sakurai (aka Mr. Jimmy) who has modeled himself after the legendary Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin. We were joined at the interview by the subject himself, as we found out how the pair…

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Hotel Review: Shangri-La’s twin towers stand stately over Bangkok’s Chao Praya

I can’t take my eyes off the bedhead in my Deluxe River View Room. First my phone scans it – vertically and horizontally (because social media demands both orientations now) – and then my eyes. I’m mesmerised. The scene of gold, Elephants and gods painted across dark wooden panels, is the most striking feature of…

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Flight Review: How does Malindo Air compare on the Kuala Lumpur to Singapore route? (OD805)

Prior to this, I have never heard of anyone flying Malindo Air and I’ve only ever seen anything about the airline on billboard adverts scattered around Kuala Lumpur. I fly the KL to Singapore route a lot with other airlines, so how does Malindo compare to the likes of Jetstar, Singapore Airlines or Air Asia?…

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Album Review: Flume – Hi This Is Flume (Mixtape) (2019)

With only 24 hours notice, veteran Flume dropped a 17 track mixtape with full accompanying visuals on Australian label, Future Classic.  Hi This Is Flume (Mixtape) will be one of the most important releases of the year and reminds us that Flume is an artist but also a visionary. Breaking his two year silence, Flume and…

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Photo Gallery: West Side Story Opening Night, Sydney (22.03.19)

Celebrities and guests walked the red carpet for the opening night of Handa Opera’s West Side Story currently playing at Mrs Macquaries Point in Sydney Harbour, until 21st April 2019. For tickets and more details, head HERE.

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Film Review: Hotel Mumbai (Australia, 2019) is an intense but humane, white-knuckle thriller

Adapting tragic events of the world to the cinema screen can be a very risky proposition. There are many ways to get it wrong and very few ways to get it right. The wrong ways can lead the film to be considered exploitative, cheap, insulting, xenophobic and even laughable. It would also depend on the…

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Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice Review: Difficult in a different way

The more of them I play, the more I’ve come to understand that From Software’s catalogue of games are not for me. My Souls-loving friends assure me there will be a moment of clarity, a a beautiful instant suspended in time where the final piece of the Souls puzzle snaps into place. In that moment, they say…

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SXSW Interview: The Daily Show correspondent Ronny Chieng on how Australia shaped his comedy for America

Set to return to Australia for dates in July, comedian Ronny Chieng has been making a name for himself in the USA as a correspondent on the Comedy Central series The Daily Show with Trevor Noah. While at SXSW last week I had the opportunity to sit down with him to talk about that role,…

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Alliance Française French Film Festival Review: The Extraordinary Journey of the Fakir is indeed an extraordinary journey

If Love, Actually had a child with Around the World in Eighty Days, The Extraordinary Journey of the Fakir would be that child. It throws its trickster and street magician protagonist Aja (Dhanush) into a chain of unexpected adventures. He meets a diverse group of people from a celebrity to mobster-like big guys to a swindling cab…

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SXSW Interview: Charlotte OC (UK) tells us why she “isn’t faking it anymore”

The incredible Charlotte OC has been dripping back into our consciousness over the last few months, with her recent signing to Neon Gold Records and tracks like “Satellite” and “Boyfriend” showcasing a powerful new direction for the UK artist. While at SXSW we sat down to talk about the new music, and where she is going…

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Track of the Day: Didirri + Ro, “Tea Stains” (2019)

We are thrilled to have as the Track of the Day, ‘Tea Stains’ a duet with Didirri and Ro.  We are even more stoked to be releasing this stunning video for the track. This is a gorgeous understated track of unsaid truths and repressed feelings. Didirri, originally from Warrnambool in Victora, and Ro hailing from Margaret…

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Track of the Day: In Her Own Words, “Steady Glow” (2019)

Los Angeles pop punks In Her Own Words are back with “Steady Glow”. Signed to InVogue Records, the band has been working with Grammy winner and longtime Motörhead producer Cameron Webb, crafting a more mature sound ahead of their sophomore album release next month. The album, also titled Steady Glow, will be available everywhere from…

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The Division 2 Review: Better Looter, Better Shooter

In the crowded age of looter shooters, it is understandable that The Division 2 could scare off gamers with the worry of repetitive gameplay, an unfinished story, and an underwhelming lack of initial content. It is on that note I begin this review, as The Division 2 has managed to surpass its predecessor and stands…

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SXSW Interview: Director Abe Forsythe and Lupita Nyong’o talk about filming Little Monsters in Sydney

While at SXSW, I had the chance to catch up with Aussie director Abe Forsythe (Down Under) and Oscar winning actress Lupita Nyong’o talk talk about their new film Little Monsters – due out later this year. You filmed this in and around Sydney – what was that experience like and Abe, how important was…

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Exclusive EP Premiere: Concrete Surfers – My Life on Repeat (2019 EP)

Ahead of its official release tomorrow, we’re stoked to be bringing you the exclusive premiere of Concrete Surfers’ latest EP, My Life On Repeat. Made up of brothers Jovi (vocals, guitar) and Jamie Brook (drums) and high school mates Sean Foster (lead guitar) and Trent Courtenay (Bass), the Brisbane scuzz band have shared stages with…

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