artfreeWe Buy Your Kids Trials
More inclined to pet a black cat that crosses their path than break out in heebie-jeebies, artist duo We Buy Your Kids have long been fascinated with the darker side... Read More »
artfreeperformingplay2042: Art On The Street
As the community of Kings Cross tries in vain to hang onto its bohemian legacy with memorial plaques on the foothpaths (often more a walk of shame than a walk... Read More »
freeplayDanks Street Festival
You'd be hard pressed to find someone in Sydney that doesn't love a block party, so imagine the glee that this conjures every year — a catered block party. A... Read More »
musicJoanna Newsom
Hailing from somewhere between California and a mythical, fallen city, Joanna Newsom extends far beyond the usual ethereality of harpists, basing her songs in a strong sense of narrative and... Read More »
musicPavement (USA)
WOWEE ZOWEE. When news hit mid-October that Pavement were reforming for an international tour, there was a kind of hush all over the Twitter. That is, at least in the... Read More »
playSydney Food & Wine Fair
I first visited the AIDS Trust Sydney Food & Wine Fair in 1993, and not even the embarrassment of running into my English teacher and her girlfriend (at that age,... Read More »
musicPurple Sneakers NYE House Party
New Years Eve. It's still two months away but the pressure has started to build. Falls Fest has sold out, the Opera House is selling tickets to their $895 party,... Read More »
artfreeplaySculpture by the Sea
One would be hard-pressed to find an outing more quintessentially 'Sydney' than the Bondi-to-Bronte Coast Walk, its length punctuated by winding markers that give the impression that it may well... Read More »
artfreeMartin Sharp Sydney artist
Plundering the depths of Martin Sharp's personal collection, rumoured to be labyrinthian in its documentation, the Museum of Sydney has unveiled an exhibition comprised of some of Sharp's most iconic... Read More »
musicCrayon Fields album launch
No matter the weather, Melbourne's Crayon Fields are an instant clearing of the clouds. Good vibrations taking a sunbath, and if you peel away the initial innocence, probably a skinny... Read More »
freeplayGlebe Street Fair
For the past 26 years, the suburb of Glebe has been hitching up its harbour-lined skirts for a party every November, and so have all the locals. The reason behind... Read More »
performingBurning Daylight
Long the stuff of leaden machismo and a symbol of tough love, the sacred image of the cowboy has an almost equally long history of being skewered in art. From... Read More »
filmAntichrist
As soon as the title card appeared on-screen — a hand-painted "Antichrist" in manic scrawl, with the final 't' incorporating a female symbol — my usually objective back was up. The... Read More »
performingConcord
A trio of performances, Concord is dramatic, charming and sharp, occasionally all at once. Annually, the Australian Ballet presents a triple-bill to display both important repertory or reworked pieces and... Read More »
artRupert Bunny: artist in Paris
Though he both arrived and exited his life in Victoria, it was Paris in which this much beloved Australian artist flourished. Between 1885 and 1933, Bunny lived in France, for... Read More »
getawaymusicplayHigh & Dry Festival
Sydney may be a delightful city in which one spends their time, but, let's face it, isn't it nice to get away too? Especially when you don't have to travel... Read More »
musicSongs album launch
"Songs is the Greatest Album I Have Heard This Year...and quite possibly this decade. Not that music is a competition, you understand. Ten stars. A hundred stars. A shimmering, cascading... Read More »
musicKes Band
When you possess a singing voice as endearing (and idiosynchratic) as the ringleader of Kes Band, Karl Scullins, it seems almost criminal to release an instrumental record. And yet, the... Read More »
artfreeThrough the Eyes of a Muse: The Photography of Pattie Boyd
Reading about Patty Boyd's life in a one paragraph summary causes two basic emotions: polite pangs of envy and sheer out-and-out, green-eyed jealousy. Having made her mark in London modeling... Read More »
performingAn Evening with David Sedaris
I once stood in line for a really long time to get a book signed by David Sedaris. During the wait, he proposed that smokers go to the start of... Read More »
filmWhere The Wild Things Are
With the patience of a nine year old (that is to say, none at all), it feels that the world has been holding its breath for Spike Jonze's screen adaptation... Read More »
musicThee Oh Sees
A band plays by the side of an American highway in a music video. The musicians look kind of catatonically into what they're doing on a grassy patch, oblivious to... Read More »
performingJohn Waters: This Filthy World
I'm pretty sure we could just run the title to this event and a link to tickets and it would sell out in a heartbeat, but the very occasion of... Read More »
musicYo La Tengo
How is it that a band can form in 1984 and still sound as fresh and invigorating two and a half decades later? What's more, Yo La Tengo just keep... Read More »
artfreemusicperformingCirca 1979: Signal to Noise
Much has been celebrated about the post punk and new wave scenes of New York, LA and London, but what of Australia? The exhibition Circa 1979: Signal to Noise, presented... Read More »
musicJohn Cale
John Cale co-founded The Velvet Underground with Lou Reed.Well, that should be reason enough to want to see him, but if not...He's worked with such luminaries as Brian Eno, Terry... Read More »
filmNowhere Boy
The words, "The Beatles" are never uttered in Sam Taylor-Wood's debut feature film Nowhere Boy, and, for the most part, neither are the screaming girls that the phrasing conjures. That's... Read More »
filmBright Star
There's a moment in Jane Campion's (The Piano, In the Cut) latest film Bright Star, wherein Fanny Brawne (Abbie Cornish) lays on the bed, light streaming through the window, a... Read More »
musicplaySlopfrenzy
January 1st is a bit of a doozy when it comes to a party (it's always either a really bad idea or a really bad idea), but by January 2nd,... Read More »
artplayThe 80s are back
Bleached perms. Feathered earrings and feathered hair. Acid-wash. Ra-ra skirts. Rayban Wayfarers. Swatch watch envy. Eyeliner for all. Crop tops over leotards. Bangles, tons of bangles. They may be 80s... Read More »
musicFrida Hyvonen
News that Frida Hyvonen is touring Australia in March shouldn't have arrived via email. A bone-white silk banner bearing the details flown through my window, held aloft by the heavy... Read More »
musicRufus Wainwright
Master of the implied jazz hands, Rufus Wainright returns to Sydney in October to play an intimate man-and-piano show at the the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall. Son of the... Read More »
musicBrightblack Morning Light
Hanging for some peyote-infused psychfolk, tinged with communal love vibes and the sounds of the desert winds as interpreted by swirling organ tones? Turns out you don't have to go... Read More »
performingThe Sleeping Beauty
At the end of each year, the Australian Ballet rests its commitment to the groundbreaking and the contemporary, and visits the comforts of festive fantasy. Even for a devotee of... Read More »
filmBroken Embraces
With its nods to noir filmmaking and the comical and popular Spanish culebrones style, Broken Embraces unravels through the eyes of the charming and troubled main character Harry Caine née... Read More »
musicCANCELLED - Mistletone Xmas Party
It's the season of the Christmas Party, and though many nights are currently filled with them, and livers are busily trying to repair themselves all over the city, it's safe... Read More »
artfreeplayMythic Creatures: Dragons, Unicorns & Mermaids
I was about just verging into adolescence when my parents took me to Loch Ness. It was painful attempting to keep up that despondent, outsider teen thing when all I... Read More »
musicDevendra Banhart
Rejoice with beaded tambourine, clap with cooing castanets, follow the pie-in-the-skied piper to the Metro Theatre this January, for he, leader of the weirdie beardies doth return. It's been a... Read More »
musicKaki King
If you're not already an excited fan, what you may know about Kaki King is that Rolling Stone named her a "Guitar God" in 2006, and that most live reviews... Read More »
musicYeah Yeah Yeahs
It's been eight years since Yeah Yeah Yeahs released the still totally exciting self-titled EP (seriously, dust off Art Star!). A whole lot of time and tours have passed since... Read More »
filmDario Argento Film Festival
"The only thing more terrifying than the last 12 minutes of this film are the first 92", so states the tagline of the Dario Argento film Suspiria, and, unlike the... Read More »
artLiving Treasures: Jeff Mincham
The fifth recipient of Object Galleries Living Treasures title, Australian ceramicist Jeff Mincham is a craftsperson of the highest order. Since he first exhibited his work in 1976 at Adelaide's... Read More »
filmFantastic Mr. Fox
A sly father figure with a good-humoured but nevertheless illegal penchant for the ways of the underground; a maternal force who reluctantly accepts her partner's shortcomings in light of his... Read More »
musicA Hole in the Sky
You know those beach movies from the fifties? The ones starring moondoggies and beachbunnies, with synopses like "four boys, intent on making records in a big surf competition, meet four... Read More »
artfreeBear Witness
Bear Witness is the artistic output of Ehren Thomas, a multimedia artist, DJ and filmmaker from Ottawa Canada. He remixes appropriated images and sound to create video assemblages that speak... Read More »
filmScorcese Classics
Right up there with "yeah, baby!" from Austin Powers, or Jerry (I haven't even seen the damn movie but I know this line) Maguire's "show me the money", Taxi Driver's... Read More »
musicAntony & the Johnsons
On their own website, Antony of Antony and the Johnsons writes why he dedicated their most recent album The Crying Light to the dancer Kazuo Ohno. "In performance I watched... Read More »
musicThe Pains of Being Pure at Heart
I don't know how many times I have listened to The Pains of Being Pure at Heart's self titled record (upwards of 100, it feels), and read about them in... Read More »
filmThe Agony & Ecstasy of Phil Spector
Phil Spector is a creative genius. And, yes, a convicted killer. The documentary The Agony & Ecstasy of Phil Spector was filmed after his 2007 murder trial which resulted in... Read More »
musicWooden Shjips
HEAVY JAMS, MAN, HEAVY JAMS! That's what Wooden Shjips create from their psychedelic pocket of San Francisco, and lucky are we that they are bringing said jams to Sydney for... Read More »
musicMy Disco
Known for their "angular", "clean", "repetitive", "art rock", "experimental noise rock" sound, when I caught My Disco live a few months ago at the Melbourne International Arts Festival (they headlined... Read More »
musicDeerhoof
Deerhoof is a troupe of glorious daytrippers, big smiles and off-the-wall styles. At this point, they are the longest-standing musicians signed to iconic record label Kill Rock Stars, and their... Read More »
artfreeDaniel Johnston: Dead Lovers Twisted Heart
Whether you came to Daniel Johnston via a precious dubbed cassette passed on as a young teen, or seeing Kurt Cobain consistently wear a "Hi, How Are You?" T or... Read More »
musicPlayground Weekender
CLICK HERE FOR SET TIMESYou know that feeling after you see one of your favourite bands. You clap for an encore and the band obliges but then after that it's... Read More »
filmMardi Gras Film Festival
Perhaps you're not the parade type. Maybe you're not into public displays of affection and/or glitter coated abdominals. Perhaps you're more like me and happier to sit, eyes agog in... Read More »
freeplayMardi Gras Parade 2010
That evangelical buffoon Fred Nile needs to realise something important: nobody cares if his prayers for rain on Mardi Gras Parade night are answered. Whilst the queer community may still... Read More »
musicDinosaur Jr.
This is a band that fans would feel need no introduction. If you are a fan --> ticket details over to the right there, but you've probably snapped one up... Read More »
artUp the Cross: Rennie Ellis & Wesley Stacey
There was a note stuck to the back of a Darlinghurst bus stop seat. "ROSE," it read, "Gone up the Cross. Ring me! Trevor." The year wasn't 1970, it was... Read More »
filmfreeHymn to Beauty Film Series
As kimono clad onlookers a few floors above traipse around the Hymn to Beauty: The Art of Utamaro exhibition ogling delicate ukiyo-e woodblock prints, rest your weary geta clogs in... Read More »
musicThe Bats
Did you see The Bats on their sold out Australian tour last year? If you did, please don't get in touch to tell me how incredible they were. I know,... Read More »
filmThe Red Shoes
Seeing the restored print of the 1948 Powell & Pressburger classic The Red Shoes is like seeing it for the first time. And, if it really is your first time... Read More »
artfilmBeautiful Losers Shorts
Combining the intimacy of a slide show and the insight of a director's commentary, Beautiful Losers Shorts is a truly special one-off presentation this Saturday afternoon at the Chauvel Cinema.... Read More »
artSimulacrum
On a personal note, I wrote my thesis on the value of objects, a rigorous discussion about the traces of a human hand, of essence, of aura. Should a reproduction... Read More »
filmKick-Ass
Superheroes are generally a special breed; they're physical or genetic mutants seeking revenge or protecting the world (often both). What if, however, a superhero was just the guy who has... Read More »
filmCoco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky
It's no coincidence that the words amorous and amoral sit so closely together in the dictionary, and Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky explores this sentiment through the passion of an... Read More »
musicplayTiki Taboo
Do you like pina coladas? Getting caught in the rain? Do you like making love at midnight, in the dunes on the cape? If just one of those things is... Read More »
performingThe Silver Rose
Following last year's fantastic season, The Silver Rose is a fittingly powerful way for the Australian Ballet to usher in 2010's quartet of performances. Originally commissioned in 2005 by the... Read More »
filmAudi Festival of German Films
Now in it's ninth year, the Audi Festival of German Films returns to Sydney with 30 features to thoroughly sate your Deutsch-longing while you wait for Oktoberfest to roll around... Read More »
musicPikelet
It may be easy to throw around words like "magical" and "wondrous", but I'd be remiss not to employ them when trying to describe Pikelet's sound. It's not polite psych,... Read More »
filmThe White Ribbon
As with most of Michael Haneke’s films, a chill hangs in the air of The White Ribbon, the constant threat of upheaval eventually lulling you into a tired state of... Read More »
musicTortoise
No matter how much the term ‘post rock’ may still continue to irk, Tortoise are the influential people to blame for forcing some underpaid music journo to unleash it onto... Read More »
musicThe Chills
For a band so — well loved doesn't quite cut it — adored, it seems shocking that the Chills have only released a handful of records, but the standard of... Read More »
musicBoris
Were it not for the fact that I was completely hypnotised by Jim Jarmusch's Limits of Control in the cinema last year, I would have raced out at some point... Read More »
musicBardo Pond
Bardo Pond make huge washes of explorative sound, using noise elements of distortion and drone to carve out space and time. Does that description make me sound like an acid... Read More »
musicUte Lemper
Remember the heavily pregnant, naked woman in Prêt-à-Porter? No? You should rewatch it; it's better than you remembered. Said heavily pregnant, naked woman is also a chanteuse with a longer... Read More »
artSin City: crime & corruption in 20th-century Sydney
The good, the bad and the alluringly ugly are all currently on show at the Justice & Police Museum, rather good timing for an exhibition about Sydney's underworld, given the... Read More »
musicJónsi
It's only been a few months since it was announced that Icelandic band Sigur Rós had thrown in the ol' towel, also known as "indefinite hiatus", so the tears might... Read More »
performingCoppélia
It's so rare to sit at an event of any kind, and silently wish for it to never end. Such was the case with the Australian Ballet's latest production, Coppélia.... Read More »
musicCrayon Fields
No matter the weather, Melbourne's Crayon Fields are an instant clearing of the clouds. Good vibrations taking a sunbath, and if you peel away the initial innocence, probably a skinny... Read More »
artperformingBodytorque.á la mode
Sometimes it's the costumes as much as the dancers and choreography that linger on in memory long after the red curtain drops. Those night sky print dresses in Coppélia! That... Read More »
performingStephen Fry
Who hasn't thought about spending an evening with Stephen Fry? Certainly he seems more intelligent than you, dear reader, and me, too. Probably far more charming at least. What would... Read More »
musicRichard In Your Mind
In a similar way to when Money Mark sang "I've got my hand in your head" in the Grand Royal-pop-collage-drenched-'90s, the name Richard In Your Mind is comforting not creepy.... Read More »
filmThe Runaways
A drop of blood hits the hot California pavement and everything changes. Cherie Currie (Dakota Fanning), a Bowie-obsessed teen girl has hit puberty, and, as the song about her goes,... Read More »
musicSally Seltmann
Shaking off the New Buffalo moniker after two beautiful records and years of delighting live audiences, Sally Seltmann has emerged with the first record using her own name. There's no... Read More »
musicFabulous Diamonds
In a sea of three-piece bands taking dingy stages right now, I'm glad that Fabulous Diamonds remain a suitably polished duo. Sure, their songs are a trial to back-announce on... Read More »
Playground Blog
Bondi Short Film Festival: Call for Entries
Film buffs and budding Tarantinos, ho! The 10th annual Bondi Short Film Festival is calling for entries as it musters up one helluva celebration to mark a decade of eclectic... Read More »
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