Us Kids Know…

Finally, the Sideshow dates for The Arcade Fire!

These haven’t yet been offically confirmed but will most probably be soon.

In Sydney The Aracde Fire will be @ The Enmore Theatre on the 22nd and 23rd of January.

And in Melbourne @ The Forum on the 29th and 30th of January.

Not sure of pricing or when and where tickets go on sale. Will update when they are avalible.

So almost glad I missed out on Bjork tickets, and slightly grateful that I bought my National ticket for the 21st. Which means I suppose that I have more dates to choose from, and that I just might be waling away with TWO Arcade Fire tickets, pending finances.

How on earth am I going to buy them in Hong Kong three hours behind AEST! Email me please if you could help me out!

Sketchy reports have Spoon supporting AF.

Fingers Crossed!!!

EDIT:

Its offical kids!

22nd of Jan  @ Enmore Theatre, Sydney & 29th of Jan @  The Forum, Melbourne 

On Sale Dec 12th or next Wednesday @ 9 am from Ticketek!

And this is from the AF forum -

Support for first show in each city is Spoon, support for 2nd show TBC

Onsale December 12th

However this is still confirmed, when things are made official I will update!

Spoon Sideshow Announcement !!!

The Spoon Sydney sideshow is drum-roll please…

Thursday 24th January
Annandale Hotel, Sydney, NSW
Online from www.annandalehotel.com, Also via phone charge: (02) 9550 1078
Ticket price: $ 40.00 + booking fee

However, the above listing has been taken off the Annandale Hotel website, was it announced a tad too early?

The other Spoon sideshows are so far as follows-

Saturday 26 January
The Living End, Grinspoon, Blue King Brown, Spoon (USA), Mia Dyson, Urthboy, Katalyst, Katchafire (New Zealand), Custom Kings, The Red Eyes, The Scientists of Modern Music, Unleash The Nugget
8pm, Royal Hobart Regatta Pavilion & Grounds, Queens Domain, TAS, $89 (+ bf)

Wednesday 30th January
The Corner Hotel ,Melbourne, VIC
On Sales Thursday 6 December – Tix $40

UPDATE: The show at the Annandale is now confirmed, tickets on sale Dec 20th.

Big Day Out Sideshows

Some of the Big Day Ooot sideshows are as follows and I think in some places we could have some clashing with Sydney Festival , well for me anyway.

LCD SOUNDSYSTEM
Sydneyl Saturday 26 January l ENMORE THEATRE

Supported by Dappled Cities Fly

Tickets: Enmore Theatre Box Office 02 9550 3666 / Ticketek 132 849 & www.ticketek.com.au

(nice to see Dappled supporting)

UNKLE
Sydney l Wednesday 23 January l The Metro

Tickets: Ticketek 132 849 / www.ticketek.com.au & The Metro Box Office 02 9550 3666 or www.inthemix.com.au

And

DIZZEE RASCAL
Byron Bay l Wednesday 23 January l Great Northern
Tickets: Great Northern Box Office 02 6685 6454 / www.byronbayentertainment.com & Oztix 1300 762 545 & Oztix outlets

Sydney Thursday 24 January l The Metro
Tickets: The Metro Box Office 02 9550 3666 or Ticketek 132 849 / www.ticketek.com.au & www.inthemix.com.au

The Spoon and Arcade Fire Sydney sideshows are yet to be announced but as the Arcade Fire Rumor Mill grows word is that potential dates could be…

January 23 & 24 for Sydney @ the Enmore or Big Top

January 29 &30 for Melbourne

Two Shows!!! Lets hope so…

Other include Spoon for Melbourne and Tasmania, and Battles and Bjork who were already announced as part of Sydney Festival.

Dates for sideshows in other state and/or for Billy Brag, Enter Shikari, Kate Nash, The Nightwatchman, Shy Child, Anti Flag, Carl Cox, Spoon, can be found here .

Something That Made My Weekend…

That wasn’t just the election result.

On my Sunday morning walk, while I was waiting for the lights to change, this bloke and his son who looked about 10/11, pulled up beside me on their bikes mid conversation. To my delight, the father was reciting the parrot sketch to his son. The son didn’t seem too impressed, but I sure chuckled in all the right places.

 

Ned Collette @ the Hopetoun Hotel

Mr Collette.

Mr N. Collette.

Mr Ned Collette.

Mr Ned Collette with his band.

Mr Ned Collette with his band, three guitars, a delay pedal, and some bloody good songs.

Ned Collette is one of most talented musician/singer/songwriters in Australia. Well, he is in my fair and unbiased opinion anyway. The man and his band shouldn’t be filling the Hoey, he should be selling out the Metro, or a similar sized venue. But maybe playing at the Hopetoun Hotel, only adds to his charm, because Ned Collette, whatever his level of popularity is, still comes across as a real unknown genuine find to first time listeners.

I didn’t get a set list, but since everything was off Future Suture, I can safely say that he did play the following in a particular order that isn’t listed here:

Ned’s Dream

Sell Your Life

Turning Turning

The Country With a Smile

Race

First Love

Winter Holiday

Forty Children

Show Your Hand

And that he didn’t play Lost and Found! Sorry, I’m slightly bitter about that. Seeing as it is my favourite song off Future Suture and it’s got awesome sounding backwards guitar at the end, which I’m informed he does LIVE.

But gig grudge aside, a round of applause must go to his band. Joe Talia on drums, and Ben Bourke on bass, who are a pair of talented musicians in their own right, and only add to the magic. And I will say that while Ned and his band may sound slightly sedated and poppy when coming through speakers, this in fact bares no actual resemblance to them live, with Ned and his cohorts doing their own fair share of whistling and rocking out in true Guitar Hero fashion.

Supporting Ned + Band was Jamie Hutchings, which when compared to the fact other cities are getting Pikelet was to be honest, a bit of a let down. I mean Jamie performed an ok set, but I’m more a fan of his band Bluebottle Kiss rather his solo stuff. The Hoey was hot inside as ever, but then it wouldn’t be the Hoey if it wasn’t, and the crowd were really good, a real nice mix of people who were there it seems to enjoy the music, giving the place a relaxed vibe.

Ned Collette is wonderfully layered on record there’s not denying that, but make no mistake hearing him live, isn’t just listening to the same songs only louder. With his band fully behind him working the magic, three guitars, prowess with the delay pedal, and his heartbreaking voice…Ned’s songs come alive, becoming all the more real, and interesting in the process.

The rest of Ned Collette’s dates are as follows:

16th Nov 2007 Roxanne Parlour, Melbourne

23rd Nov 2007 Karova Lounge, Ballarat

24h Nov 2007 Queenscliff Music Festival, Queenscliff ,Vic

27th Nov 2007 The Front Cafe, Canberra

28th Nov 2007 The Cambridge, Newcastle

30th Nov 2007 Bon Amici Cafe, Toowoomba

1st Dec 2007 Hanger, Brisbane

6th Dec 2007 Rocket Bar, Adelaide

7th Dec 2007 The Norfolk, Fremantle

8th Dec 2007 78 Records- Instore All Ages, Perth

8th Dec 2007 The Rosemount, Perth

14th Dec 2007 Meredith Music Festival, Meredith

18th Jan 2008 Corner Hotel, Melbourne

19th Jan 2008 Corner Hotel Melbourne

DJ Ayers @ Oxford Art Factory

DJ Ayers + Ro Sham Bo vs. Hoops vs. Peace Out

Thumbs Up to: DJ AYERS who is like a machine. Or like a man with the power to control a million awesome mix tapes and albums at once, and still come across as the most unassuming legend that he surely is. A shout out of thanks and many sore feet the next day must go to local DJ ensembles Hoops and Ro Sham Bo who always get the people moving and for their entertaining tag team battles with Peace Out.

 

Thumbs Down to: The Oxford Art Factory’s stupid door stamps, the Vice magazine-oh-so-trendy-General Pants and co. crowd, and it’s bump and grind associates, half of whom looked and dressed like they’d come from some sub-par Darling Harbour nightclub, which in all honesty they most probably had.

 

This should be longer but I’ve got a cold at the moment and I’m afraid that’s all there is, there isn’t anymore.

Sly Hats with Guy Blackman + Rand & Holland = your ears will thank you

On a Friday not so very long ago, I toddled off to the Hoey in Surry Hill to watch Sly Hats who was playing with Guy Blackman, headlining the shindig were Rand & Holland. There were a couple of other bands on the line up, I however missed them, which was a shame. But that’s what happens when you’re as dozy as me and get lost in Surry Hills even when you know where you’re going.

Moving right along, to Sly Hats and Guy Blackman. Sly Hats, or Geoff O’Connor is the lead singer, guitarist and songwriter from the Crayon Fields, and he recently released his first solo album, Liquorice Nights, a lush melodic pop sounding thing worthy of many listens. Guy Blackman’s album of ‘Adult-Orientated DIY’ should be released soon, but he has an EP out and a couple of singles including Dark and Quiet with every ones Swedish indie darling Jens Lekman. That’s not me being sarcastic by the way, I really do like Jens Lekman. Guy was also one of the founders of and now runs the independent label Chapter Music. It was the first time I had seen either of them, so I was expecting something like but not quite the albums that I’ve been enjoying. Happily I can and will admit that I was proved so very wrong. Their songs still were melodic, they were still gentle, and the performers balanced each other out just so. I could have listened to them all night. Its such a cliché to use but I really truly could have. In fact with some help of my ready to throw out ipod shuffle, I did.

Rand & Holland, are hard working Sydney band who are rather interesting to listen to, and see live. Their music for me sounds like a giant musical paella. With experimental and acoustic guitars, Australian rock, and pinch of country mixed in with a dash of gypsy. Live or record Rand & Holland always has something to offer the listener, if the listener is willing. Plus the drumming and use of the tambourine, is loud, hypnotic and fun. Their album Caravans was only recently released and it’s a layered sound scape. I feel like I should say more about Rand & Holland, but I believe that they one of those bands that you really need to see or hear for yourself.

Crowd was smallish, well it felt small to me, given it was the Hoey and I could actually breathe and wasn’t being squished and it wasn’t hot inside. All a big bonus in my book, I will add for such a small crowd they were awfully noisy, and you know its bad when the lead singer from Rand & Holland has to tell everyone to shut up.

Thumbs Up: The bands of the evening that I managed to see, they made the getting lost worthwhile because I got there in the end.

Thumbs Down: The-Always-Feel-The-Need-To-Keep-Talking-Sydney crowds, big surprise that one.

[ Please excuse my spelling and grammatical errors, my head is stuck inside a story]

I’m not dead, the blog’s not dead.

I’m just really lazy.  No apologises. I’ve been enjoying every lazy minute of it

Everyone else’s updates are constant and putting me to shame. So come back soon, I should be back to updating in a week or so.

You need something to do. stop reading and go buy the new Radiohead album.

H for Hibernating

 

I’m real sorry I haven’t posted for awhile, a combination of uni, being broke, and as a consequence ive been hibernating, all of which has meant that this once up and running blog has sort of died in the water. Anyway I’m here for now. The good thing is that I’ve just cleared a massive debt, its going to be spring soon, and some good bands are on the way.

Blonde Redhead @ The Metro

I’m a couple of weeks behind with this, but no matter, its not like being late is anything new to me.

Blonde Redhead are achingly good. I mean I thought they were pretty darn good on record, but now I bloody well know it. This show, however seemed to really divide the room, with one half saying they were tired, and because of this they were lackluster, going through the motions, and that they really disappointed. The other half, with myself included thought they were fantastic, heck I even resorted to squealing a couple of times.

It was one those rare nights out were nothing seemed to annoy me and I’m a fussy bitch, I’ll be the first to admit to that. Heck, not the crowd pushing and calling out, not the stoned idiots, nor the fact it was all agers, nothing. The music for me was that good. They played for one magic hour and then they came back for a 5 song encore. Impressed you bet I was.

Ok, so they didn’t talk, they did look tired and I can understand why some people were disappointed, they had high hopes, but for me going in with no real expectation of Blonde Redhead, they seriously delivered above and beyond.

The Red Sun Band were supporting, and you know I wanted to like them, I tried really hard to like them, a couple of their songs caught my attention, but on a whole they put me to sleep, quite literally, between them and the over use of the smoke machine, I was fighting back yawns and dozing with the best of them. Still all in all, a good night out!