Liam Neeson coming down under this Summer to promote Cold Pursuit

He’s an acting icon, with an impressive list of dramatic roles including Schindler’s List, Rob Roy and Kinsey. But more recently he’s made a name for himself as a gritty action star courtesy of the Taken trilogy, The Grey and The Commuter. Now Irish actor Liam Neeson will be coming down under in the middle…

Read more

This Canberra institution has become the city’s first “Ospitalità Italiana” certified restaurant

Looking for the best Italian food you can possible find in our nation’s capital? It’s going to be hard to look past Agostinis, which has now become the city’s very first to receive the exclusive “Ospitalità Italiana” certification from the Italian Chamber of Commerce in affiliation with the Italian government in Rome. Basically, what this…

Read more

Crystalbrook Collection to open Newcastle’s first ever five-star luxury hotel

After a highly successful entry into Cairns with recently opened luxury resort Riley, Crystalbrook Collection Hotels & Resorts have today announced that they have acquired Newcastle’s iconic ‘Roundhouse’ Council Administrative Centre with plans to convert the building into a luxury five-star hotel. Set to open in late 2020, the planned hotel, dubbed Kingsley, will stick…

Read more

Our top picks for the perfect gift this Christmas

It’s hard to believe 2018, an exhausting year for many around the world, is already coming to a close. Just one look at any news media would tell you people around the globe put up with a lot this year, and that’s all the more reason to make this Christmas one that’s stress free and…

Read more

Building the perfect campsite ahead of the Summer music festival season

Summer is here and that means two things. One, the weather is now at its absolute best for you to head out and explore the outdoors and secondly, it’s the season of camping festivals. We’ve road tested and put together a list of the best OZtrail products out there that will have you camping, glamping…

Read more

What it’s like interviewing on the ARIA Red Carpet for the first time

The 2018 ARIAs have well and truly gone, but that night was one to remember! November 28th, 2018 marks the date I was lucky enough to report at my first red carpet event and now it’s time to do a tell-all on the experience: Interviewing some of Australia’s biggest names in music can seem like…

Read more

Album of the Week: Karrie Hayward – Ephemeral (2018 EP)

Karrie Hayward is a Brisbane based songstress with a pop infused, indie edge sound. Spending the last few months travelling solo in a van performing shows down the Eastern coast of Australia from Townsville to Melbourne she recently released her debut EP Ephemeral. An album about the experiences of a past relationship and the raw…

Read more

Track of the Day: Odette feat. Gretta Ray “A Place That I Don’t Know” (2018)

Singer-songwriter Odette has teamed up with fellow Aussie songstress Gretta Ray for a stunning new duet single “A Place That I Don’t Know”. At just Twenty One years of age, Odette is on path to quickly becoming a household name with her engrossing soulful vocals and evocative lyricism. This year has seen her debut album To…

Read more

Bondi favourite Shuk is expanding to Chatswood and Elizabeth Bay

Renowned for their signature spin on Israeli and Middle Eastern cuisine, Bondi stalwart Shuk is finally ready to expand on out to the North Shore with two new venues, one in foodie hub Chatswood and one in the breezy Elizabeth Bay. The expansion comes after celebrating their fifth year in the Bondi community, and it’s…

Read more

Competition: Win one of three double passes to the Gfinity Elite Series Finals in Sydney!

The AU Review has partnered with our friends at Alienware Australia to give away three double passes to the Gfinity Elite Series Finals this weekend! All the finals action will go down at the Gfinity esports arena at Sydney’s Hoyts Entertainment Quarter on Saturday, December 15 and Sunday, December 16. Be there live as Sydney…

Read more

A discussion of blame, intent and Fallout 76

It’s safe to say that Fallout 76 has been one of the year’s most controversial releases, plagued with issues ranging from internal bugs, to botched preorder incentives and now a serious privacy and security breach. One of the most recent of the controversies, before the, y’know, significant data breach, was the PR minefield regarding a canvas…

Read more

Games Review: Super Smash Bros Ultimate (Switch, 2018) is the Greatest Hits collection you’ve always wanted

It’s been 20 years since Masahiro Sakurai became the architect of one of the riskiest experiments in Nintendo’s history. Super Smash Bros‘ dramatic origin story is well known — Sakurai had an idea for a four-player fighting game featuring Nintendo characters. Sakurai was acutely aware that getting Nintendo to approve a game about their beloved…

Read more

Bethesda celebrates Doom‘s 25th birthday with a commemorative trailer

id Software’s Doom, the progenitor of the first person shooter genre as we know it, turns 25 today. A game that was so uniquely itself that the term First Person Shooter was invented so we could stop called them “Doom clones,” Doom is an indelible component in the gaming landscape. To commemorate the 25 year…

Read more

Using eSports science to improve the competitive gaming: An interview with Matthew Pluss

Australia has been absolutely spoiled with the eSports scene as of late. With people like Scott Kennedy (Custa) representing us on the world stage at the Overwatch League, for the LA Valiant, with the recently sponsored JB Hi-Fi Melbourne eSports open happening, and the even more recent Quake eSports event at PAX Melbourne, not to…

Read more

Track of the Day: Pearl the Girl “Mr Informative” (2018)

Pearl The Girl has followed up her debut single “I Hate You” with her delightedly gutsy new track: “Mr Informative”. Pearl The Girl is a twenty-two year old songwriter, musician and actress from Sydney; you might remember her as Kim in Puberty Blues or more recently as MJ in The Crossing. “Mr Informative” and her…

Read more

Film Review: The Madness of King George III proves that a mad world can be fit for a king

The Brian Jonestown Massacre once said, ‘Thank God for mental illness.’ English playwright, Alan Bennett shares this sentiment. His dark comedy, The Madness of King George III has been revived at Nottingham Playhouse and will be broadcast around the world for NT Live. In short, it offers an enjoyable history lesson and proves that no…

Read more

Why Paul Kelly’s Making Gravy Festival will be more than just Flour, Salt, a Little Red Wine and a Dollop Of Tomato Sauce

When Paul Kelly announced the inaugural Making Gravy show in 2017, little did the public know of the success the show would bring. Not only did it help everyone celebrate one of Australia’s greatest storytellers during the most festive time of the year, but it also helped accentuate the absolute strength that is the current…

Read more

Live Review: Bhad Bhabie + DJ Busy – Enmore Theatre, Sydney (09.12.18)

Bhad Bhabie, otherwise known as Danielle Bregoli, otherwise known as “cashmeousiiiiide howboudat” girl, did not disappoint her tasteless brand as she played the Enmore Theatre stage. Opening act, DJ Busy, warmed up the crowd with well-known club tunes ranging from XXXTentacion to Cardi B. The tween audience was absolutely vibing it. In my opinion, the…

Read more

Live Review: Wu-Tang Clan prove unstoppable at celebratory Sydney Opera House show

Anyone who has seen the almighty Wu-Tang Clan live before would be forgiven for being a bit cynical about their sold out four-show run at the Sydney Opera House. As far back as I can remember, all nine living members of the Wu have never been on an Australian stage together. The closest we got…

Read more

Music and Politics lead the way in the 76th Golden Globes Nominations

The Golden Globe Awards is an event that occurs once every year to acknowledge and bestow recognition to people working in the film and television world, both domestic and foreign. The event began in 1944, started by the Hollywood Foreign Press Organisation. The first ever Golden Globes ceremony commenced on January 20, 1944, where trophies were…

Read more

Track of the Day: Turquoise Prince “Eric Banas” (2018)

After a standout guest spot on Spit Syndicate’s Orbit earlier this year, as well as string of excellent singles like “Concussed” and “Lighter”, Canberra based artist emcee/singer Turquoise Prince is closing out a big 2018 with a devastating right hook on “Eric Banas”. The recently released single and video is best considered a statement of…

Read more

All Australian airlines to commence strict weighing of carry-on baggage

Starting tomorrow, all Australian airlines will begin cracking down on oversized carry-ons as they introduce mandatory weighing for all cabin baggage. While this has been standard for some airlines for quite some time now, it was announced today that Virgin Australia will be jumping on board with the policy, following a recent announcement along similar…

Read more

Sydney’s legendary World Bar has been saved; to reopen as “Cali Club” this week

Following the very infuriating and deeply upsetting announcement that Kings Cross icon World Bar was going under, a very welcome announcement has popped up indicating that the renowned nightlife venue will be reopening this week as Cali Club. Turns out the institution has been saved by hospitality duo Dane Gorrel and Matt Weir, who most…

Read more

Photo Gallery and Live Review: Holy Holy + CLEWS + San Mei – 170 Russell, Melbourne (07.12.18)

Finishing off their tour with sold out performance, Holy Holy rocked 170 Russell in celebration of the band’s newest single “Faces”. After spending time in every over state, the closing performance came in Melbourne to a massive crowd all there is celebrate the tour with the band. Bringing along a surprise guest as well as…

Read more

Brisbane is getting a new luxury Art Series Hotel under Story Bridge

Australia’s beloved Art Series Hotel group have announced that their next hotel will be a new $100m Brisbane flagship named The Fantauzzo. Set to open in March 2019, The Fantauzzo will be the first Art Series property following their acquisitioned by AccorHotels earlier this year, sticking true to the brand’s language by designing the 166-room…

Read more

Photo Gallery: Stella Donnelly + Alice Skye + Jacob Diamond – Oxford Art Factory, Sydney (08.12.18)

Stella Donnelly’s tour continued onto Sydney, and on Saturday night she hit the stage with friends and delivered a cracking set at the Oxford Art Factory. It was great seeing her with a full band for many of the songs. She was well supported by Alice Skye and Jacob Diamond. Photos by Bruce Baker.  

Read more

Basement Jaxx are coming to Australia with a full orchestra

Legendary duo Basement Jaxx have just announced three special Australian shows for April 2019, re-imagining their long line of hits with a full orchestra and backing singers. The tour, which will take them to iconic venues like the Sydney Opera House and Margaret Court Arena, is a completely updated and refreshed version of a project…

Read more

Live Review: Stella Donnelly Finally Makes Some Friends and Brings Some Christmas Cheer to Sydney’s Oxford Art Factory (08.12.18)

This time of year is a time for everyone to wind down, get together with friends and family, and try be as merry as possible. For many people this comes in the form of parties, family get-togethers or work Christmas parties. For Stella Donnelly, it came in the form of a national tour. Hitting the…

Read more

Live Review: Good Things proved a great day out for punk and metal in its Sydney debut

The trek to Parramatta Park seems to have become a regular occurrence for Sydney festival goers, with almost every large-scale day-long music event being held there nowadays. With Good Things the newest addition to this list and with more coming (looking at you Download and Ultra), the parklands might do a job of keeping the…

Read more

Games Review: Just Cause 4 (PS4, 2018) looks like a relic of the PlayStation 2 era and I wish I knew why

Only two years ago, I reviewed Just Cause 3 for what was then the AU’s film and TV masthead, The Iris. In writing that review, I learned an important lesson about the link between taking your time and offering responsible critique. What a great opportunity to reaffirm that lesson, I thought when our review copy…

Read more