Month: January 2017

Untied: Barangaroo’s first rooftop bar comes from the same team behind The Norfolk (Sydney)

Modern Australian influences drip all over Barangaroo’s new rooftop bar, which is now open and comes to us from Dixon Hospitality, the fine folk behind institutions like The Norfolk and Forresters. Dubbed Untied, the breezy indoor-outdoor addition to the flash precinct is a light-hearted look at Australiana through the lens of Queensland’s tropical rainforests, meaning…

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Time Out Sydney Bar Awards 2017 winners announced

As we dive into the nitty gritty of summer, the end of January brings a time to reflect on what has been a packed 12 months for Sydney’s excellent bar scene. Influential publication Time Out did just that for their annual Sydney Bar Awards, rewarding top performers across several categories such as “Best Restaurant Bar”,…

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Sydney Festival Review: The Comet is Coming deliver the dance party that Sydney didn’t know it needed

Made up of Danalogue the Conqueror on synth/keys, Betamax Killer on drums and King Shabaka as their resident sexy sax man sologram, East London trio The Comet is Coming know how to deliver dance worthy, saxophone heavy jams. And at yesterday’s Sydney Festival appearance, set inside the beautiful Spiegeltent, the group made sure we knew…

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Sydney Festival Review: Dori Freeman – St. Stephen’s Uniting Church (28.01.17)

Performing at St. Stephen’s Uniting Church on Saturday night, Dori Freeman‘s set offered the perfect mix of her own country tunes along with a wonderful selection of country, Americana and gospel classics. Accompanied by her new husband Nick Fall on percussion and vocals, Dori Freeman’s show well and truly supported the buzz hailing her as…

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Exclusive Album Premiere: Naomi Keyte – Melaleuca (2017)

Adelaide’s Naomi Keyte has long been a part of the tapestry that is the South Australian songwriter scene and this year, she’s striking out on her own with the release of her debut album, Melaleuca. The first release from Keyte since her 2013 EP Edge of Morning, Melaleuca sees the artist further flourish and perform with a refreshed sense of confidence and…

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Goldfrapp to release first new album in four years, Silver Eye

One of electronic music’s most exciting duo’s, consisting of Alison Goldfrapp and Will Gregory, are returning to us with a killer new single and the announcement of their eighth studio album, Silver Eye. From it, Goldfrapp have released the first cut from the highly anticipated record, “Anymore”. If you were a fan of Goldfrapp’s glamorous Black…

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Fractures drops third single from new record ahead of Still Here‘s February launch

Melbourne based singer/songwriter Mark Zito, also known by his stage name Fractures, has revealed a new single set to feature on the muso’s second album Still Here, due February 10. Titled “Lowcast”, it’s the third cut from Still Here and swells with Zito’s layered harmonies and unrestrained guitars. It’s perfect for a Sunday morning and beckons you…

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Public tastings announced for Sydney International Wine Competition

The 37th Sydney International Wine Competition (SIWC) will feature two public tastings on Saturday 11 February at the Novotel Sydney Central, and will feature over 280 wines awarded TOP 1OO, Blue Gold, and Gold medals, including trophy winners. Included in this group are two ‘surprise’ medal winners – the debut Shiraz and Rosé wines blended…

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Seminyak gets a new Miami inspired dining experience with Bikini (Bali)

Seminyak, Bali has a new hotspot in it’s endless line of options. The recently opened Bikini, a luxe, architecturally designed space, blends the urban style of a New York warehouse with a decadent Miami beach party feel. With up to 120 seats in both its bar and restaurant areas, it looks to be a very…

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Review: S’Age Bistronomy fuses French cuisine with Asian influences – Crows Nest (Sydney)

The lower north shore’s S’Age Bistronomy is unexpectedly great, calling on a fusion of flavours where east and west meet. Head chef Tomoyuki Usui has worked abroad before making Sydney his home, so it’s no surprise that his cooking brings French cuisine with Asian and especially Japanese influences. The beautiful presentation indicates French fine dining,…

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Basement Jaxx announce exclusive headline show for Sydney’s Café del Mar

Having been back in Australia for a little over a week now for the Electric Gardens Music Festival, iconic house duo Basement Jaxx have been reconnecting with fans around the country with their unmistakeable DJ style and flair. Their festival and club tour has today added a special and exclusive show for Sydney, with Basement Jaxx…

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Review: Car Seat Headrest deliver an emotional rollercoaster of a set in Melbourne, with Terrible Truths in tow

How do you even begin to describe Car Seat Headrest’s music – ‘lo-fi’ is a commonly used word, but what even is that? The opposite of hifi? As in, Max Watts-formerly known as-Hifi? How would that even be a genre? I digress. Really, lo-fi is a phenomenon, something in the post-emo movement, with less angst…

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James Power and Jesse Barbera launch new full service booking agency, Social State Entertainment

Australian music industry veterans James Power and Jesse Barbera, have announced the launch of Social State Entertainment, a new full service national venue booking agency that will provide a time efficient and high quality booking service, tailored to each individual performance venue’s unique identity and brand. According to James Power, whose music industry experience includes everything from…

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Film Review: XXX: The Return of Xander Cage (USA, 2017) comes up short in nearly every aspect

“Kick some ass, get the girl, and try to look dope while doing it” That inane piece of dialogue is essentially what xXx: The Return of Xander Cage bases its existence on. Never a film that was going to be considered good, but at the very least could have been fun, this useless threequel comes…

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The Bold and the Beautiful anniversary episodes to be filmed in Australia

The Forresters Down Under! That’s what’s happening in February this year when the cast and crew of the popular daytime soapie, The Bold and the Beautiful, makes its way to Australia to film special anniversary episodes. As the world’s most watched daily drama, it’s only fitting that Australia feature in special episodes, with the series…

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Interview: Ransom composer Guillaume Roussel talks music, Hans Zimmer and negotiating a career between the USA and Europe

Starring Luke Roberts (Game of Thrones, Holby City), Sarah Greene (Burnt) and Brandon Jay McLaren (Girlfriend’s Guide to Divorce), Ransom takes much of its storylines from the real life on-the-job experience of actual crisis negotiators Laurent Combalbert and Marwan Mery, who are some of the top negotiators in the world. On TV, Roberts plays Eric…

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Report out of Canadian province Manitoba proves music is a worthy investment for any government

Last Month, Canadian province Manitoba’s not-for-profit industry association Manitoba Music, who develop and promote the growth and sustainability of the Manitoba music industry, released a report analysing the music industry’s economy impact in the province. In it, among many other key figures, is one that sticks out: The music industry in Manitoba generated $4.12 for…

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Hotel Review: Loews Regency New York may just be one of the finest hotels in the world

Since its opening in 1963, the Loews Regency New York has been one of the most sought after hotels on Park Avenue. A recent US$100 million renovation has ensured it has maintained that status – not just becoming one of the finest luxury hotels in the city, but easily sitting amongst the best hotels of…

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Sydney Festival Review: Still Life is a musing on finding beauty in the mundane (Performances until 29 January)

Take a Cirque du Soleil show. Strip out all the colour, the costumes, the set. Turn off the music. What you’d be left with is something that looks a lot like Dimitris Papaioannou’s Still Life. Featuring feats of acrobatic strength and clowning, Still Life is a beautiful piece of moving art, created from the most…

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How events like Sydney’s Old Mate’s Block Party prove the live scene is far from dead

The state of live music has been one of contention recently, especially within Australian culture, where various scenes have been going through stages of flux. Some good, some bad. Sydney in particular has been going through it, and going through it quite obviously. In the eyes of the rest of the country, the city has…

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Music Video of the Day: Jessie Reyez “Shutter Island” (2017)

Canada is way more than the 6God, that’s for damn sure. One of our new favourite artists out of Toronto is Jessie Reyez and ahead of the weekend, we’re easing in with her new single “Shutter Island”. The music video for the track sees Reyez submerged in a water tank, constrained in a straight-jacket, trying to…

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August Alsina continues to tease new album DRUGS with two new music videos

R&B sensation August Alsina has released two brand new songs ahead of his upcoming album DRUGS. Alsina dropped the first song earlier this month, also entitled “Drugs”, supported by an inviting visual exuding sexy, tropical vibes. He then followed with the soulful single “Wait”, switching to an indoor location this time but retaining the same creative and elegant themes….

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Single of the Day: Ásgeir “Unbound” (2017)

Ásgeir is back! With a second album in the pipeline (titled Afterglow), we’ve been gifted with the first taste in his new single, “Unbound”. Threading some great electronic sounds with slick melody and production, “Unbound” comes charging through to fill the space Ásgeir’s acclaimed debut album In The Silence left in its wake. We are here for it, you…

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Tim Meaco of The Lockhearts on commitments, discovering new bands in your own backyard & more

With the Old Mate’s Block Party hitting The Factory tomorrow, we linked up with the guys who spurred the idea of grouping together a bunch of Sydney bands (and some from interstate, too) into a reality. For those who were of the opinion that there wasn’t anything interesting happening in their local music scene (or that…

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The Stiffys on the state of our live music scene ahead of the 2017 Old Mate’s Block Party

The Old Mate’s Block Party kicks off tomorrow for another year, bringing a sick line up of Sydney and Melbourne bands to The Factory in Marrickville. The aim? To party, potentially come across your new favourite band and celebrate a live music scene that is most definitely still thriving and pumping out great talent. Ahead of the mini-festival,…

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The Comet is Coming’s Danalogue the Conqueror talks the pending apocalypse and Australian tour

Ahead of their brief Australian tour – which kicks off in Melbourne tonight, I caught up with Danalogue the Conqueror (aka Dan Leavers), who plays synthesiser in The Comet is Coming, to talk about their visit, the apocalypse – the dark one who will not be named – and much more: Your debut Channel The…

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Photo Gallery: St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival – Brisbane Showgrounds (26.01.17)

The 2017 St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival kicked off for another year yesterday, celebrating the public holiday out on the east coast at the Brisbane Showgrounds. With acts including A.B. ORIGINAL, Gang of Youths, Whitney and Tame Impala all taking to stages throughout the day and evening, punters showed up in strong numbers to get around it. Photos by Andrew Wade. [print_gllr…

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2017 Leaps and Bounds Music Festival dates and new creative team

This year, the fifth annual Leaps and Bounds Music Festival will be held from 13-23 July. Commissioned by the Yarra City Council, the winter music festival aims to support local live music venues, musicians, and small businesses throughout the relatively quiet winter period. The 2017 Leaps and Bounds Music Festival will feature around 900 different musical acts from a wide range of genres, performing…

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Keep Sydney Open announces new rally date for February

Last Friday, the Police Commissioner of NSW filed a last-minute lawsuit against Keep Sydney Open, resulting in the Supreme Court issuing a prohibition order against the organisation’s application for a night rally, scheduled for Saturday, January 21st. However, organisers refuse to give up, with Keep Sydney Open announcing their third rally against Sydney’s controversial lockout laws on 18 February 2017….

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Review: Glass Animals help kick off Laneway sideshows with spectacular sold out Enmore Theatre set in Sydney

Laneway Festival season is upon us and though we in Sydney have more than a week to wait before it hits our city, Wednesday marked the official start of sideshows, as bands piled in from Singapore’s Laneway over the weekend. Among them were Glass Animals, who are making their second visit to our shores in…

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