Blog — Page 252 of 285

Katatonia @ Shepherd's Bush Empire

w/ VOLA, Agent Fresco

Emotion is the name of the game tonight, with Sweden’s Katatonia bringing their resonant doom to the London masses not once, but twice in one evening – they’ll start with a complete run through of 2006s The Great Cold Distance, and finish with a set spanning their entire career. The choices for songs are myriad, so the excitement for what may happen is felt keenly throughout the beautiful venue.

First (we miss the opening band, VOLA, due to real life commitments), Agent Fresco showcase that they too, run on emotion. The Icelandic quartet are visibly moved by the audience’s reaction throughout the set and frontman Arno?r Dan Arnarson bounds across his stage with a defiant energy. Speaking from the heart each time he addresses the crowd, Arnarson puts his absolute all into a performance that garners the band many a new fan tonight. Agent Fresco’s sound is difficult to pin down but at its core it’s progressive rock with heightened outbursts of hope. Keyboards are used to dissonant effect and vocals are gorgeous – with a couple of tracks going completely off kilter and into more blackened territory. It certainly keeps their time on stage interesting and this group are definitely ones to watch.

Katatonia choosing to mark an anniversary in London is not something new – they also did the same in 2011 to celebrate ten years of Last Fair Deal Gone Down (London is a lucky city) and tonight they promise to play songs from across their entire career, also. Coming on to the reddened stage, the Swede’s begin on “Leaders” and rapturous applause. Vocalist Jonas Renkse is still a shy performer, despite fronting this band for over twenty years, and chooses to hide behind his hair for the majority of the evening. Still, his passion shows through a voice that melts in the air and carries over the formidable crowd that packs this venue.

The Great Cold Distance may be ten years old, but the songs tonight sound fresh and important and while a few tracks are often aired as part of a “normal” Katatonia set, it’s a joy to hear many others and for a lot of people here tonight, it’s the first time they’ve been heard live at all. “My Twin” is luxurious and heavy while “July” falls through a delicate aura. The first hour flies by and soon we are waiting for the band to come back to play what they promise will be an exciting second set. There’s a buzz in the air and conversations turn to what we may hear as the evening progresses.

“Last Song Before the Fade” from this years The Fall of Hearts kickstarts the second hour and “Teargas” from Last Fair Deal Gone Down prompts wild applause. Katatonia hold true to their promise and we are blessed with at least one song per record they’ve released. We’re taken back to Viva Emptiness with a delirious rendition of “Evidence,” while Brave Murder Day is remembered with “Day,” a song that has only just reached double digits in terms of how many times it’s been heard live. The band were excellent in the first half of their performance, but the second hour sees them reach an entirely new level of heavy. The songs sound huge, the drums are on fire and the guitars spill out riffs without a second thought. It's truly astounding to see a band, having been together for so long (there's been a few moves but the core remains), having fun and being so passionate about their presentation. 

Each track is met with delighted approval and "Leathen" from 2012s stunning Dead End Kings swirls ever upwards before we move further back in time, Katatonia finally reach their debut and with Renkse still using his dark hair as a cloak, he mumbles something about growling and a song they haven’t played live in twenty years. “Gateways of Bereavement” from Dance of December Souls (1993) is immense and Renkse uses a part of his voice that we don’t hear enough of in nowadays Katatonia – although with music so emotionally charged and weighty, it’s not always required. It’s truly a special moment and one that will not be forgotten by those lucky enough to be here. “Ghost of the Sun” closes out the show and as the crowds forlornly leave, finally giving up hope that Katatonia may come back for more, the cold October air receives their breathless praise.

Rites of Passage Tattoo Festival

Olympic Park

Sydney, AUS

October 14-16, 2016

While it is questionable if getting a tattoo these days is based on such a spiritual superstructure as a “rite of passage, i.e. cutting yourself away from society, as was once was considered taboo and scrutinized has become recognized and mainstream, especially with the realm of tattooing having become the most active arena in the world for the commissioning or original artworks, Australia’s biggest tattoo festival celebrates exactly that: The Rites of Passage Tattoo Festival, which has been running in Melbourne for the last 5 years, aims to bring back what the meaning of tattooing and other forms of body modification, e.g. piercing and branding, means for the individual.

The festival prides itself on the celebration of creativity and connecting different individuals through body art to be a diverse and an all-inclusive event, built on a core value of ‘family’.

Over the course of 3 days, Rites of Passage featured more than 250 tattoo artists from around the globe including Nikko Hurtado of Anchor Collective fame, who specialized in human portrature, Aniela Frudum from Sweden, and a range of Australian artists (Khan, Mystik Tattoos, Jake Danielson, Khail Aitken, Andrew Smith among others) showcasing their work and the professionalism of the industry.

Rites of Passage also featured live entertainment, Moto X Freestyle action featuring Australia’s most prominent motocross team Freestyle Kings, Battle of the Bands, local food trucks, competitions for upcoming talent, industry tattoo skill seminars for budding and professional artists and art exhibitions curated by Rhys Gordon, who is heralded for his knowledge of Japanese tattoo culture and its mythology that is reflected in his work and who hosted a seminar on Australian tattoo history.

Rites of Passage Fest is the embodiment of the fact that attitudes towards and tattooing in itself have evolved significantly over the years, with artists from a variety of backgrounds, most prominently from the realm of fine art, enriching and pushing the envelope of what was thought to be possible with their ideas and consequently expanding the range of people who are now looking to get ink done or who are just intrigued to find out more about the process and the artists.

The team behind Rites of Passage has succeeded in designing an eclectic experience with an inclusive atmosphere, making it enjoyable event for all ages and something to save the date for in 2017.

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Photos by KAVV

Kooza, Cirque du Soleil

Entertainment Quarter

Sydney, AUS

October 6, 2016

Kooza first premiered in 2007 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada where circus conglomerate Cirque du Soleil, the largest theatrical producer on this earthround, was founded in 1983 as part of the 450th anniversary celebrations of Jacques Cariter’s voyage to Canada.

Defining “nouveau cirque” by combining circus styles from around the globe, animal free thrills, continuous live music, death defying stunts and its theatrical, character driven approach, Cirque du Soleil expanded rapidly through the 1990s and 2000s, going from one show to 19 shows in over 271 cities on about every continent except Antarctica.

Accessible, earnest, yet undeniably artful – these were Cirque’s trademark qualities.

It became a brand.

A brand with a myriad of incarnations. 

As brands become bigger, financially successful and multi-faceted, extending its offerings whilst retaining vitality and relevance without compromising its artistic integrity can be a challenge.

Your humble narrator has had the pleasure of seeing Cirque du Soleil productions in different locations. Especially recent ones were hit and miss, especially when the shows derived from the realm of traditional circus traditions: it got bigger, flashier and at times over-poised and acrobatically underwhelming.

“When in doubt, go back to the basics” might be a worn out, clichéd phrase, but it certainly holds true for Cirque du Soleil’s Kooza, which sees a return to the trademark blue-and-yellow Big Top.

Kooza reflects Cirque du Soleil's return to more traditional circus arts with clowning and acrobatics: Inspired by the Sanskrit word “koza” – which means box, chest or treasure, the name KOOZA was chosen because one of the underlying concepts of the production is the idea of a “circus in a box” – only fitting that Kooza kicks off with the Trickster being unleashed like a jack-in-the-box to kick off the proceedings.

The return to the Grand Chapiteau creates an intimacy that is vital to foundation of the Cirque du Soleil experience: Kooza's stage is designed to evoke a public square that changes into a circus ring.

The sight lines offer views of up to 280 degrees which serves as the platform for an international cast of 50 acrobats, musicians, singers and actors presenting heart-stopping feats and clowneries to a seamless live soundtrack fusion of jazz, 1970s funk and Bollywood beats emanating from a dominating traveling tower dubbed the "bataclan."

The structure of the Grand Chapiteau is always in full view and all aspects of the performance are transparent - the fact that there is no effort made to disguise or conceal the performances helps to focus the attention on the artists and thus creates an environment where the danger of the acts is palpable.

The comic-book aesthetic of the more than 175 custom-made, intricate costumes complements the scenographic set design with its focus on archetypes and universal characters, drawing on a wide variety of sources of inspiration: Paintings of Gustav Klimt, Indian and Eastern European touches, Mad Max and timetravel movies laced with winks towards the Wizard of Oz and Alice in Wonderland.

Kooza delivers on every level with its ten acrobatic acts, which are supplemented by minor burlesque acts that develop the storyline:

Be it the house troupe creating human towers Nutcracker-style inspired by the Inuit game of “Blanket Toss,” jaw dropping feats of contortion creating a tableaux of sculptural beauty, an aerial hoop act, a pas de deux waltzing on a unicycle, fencing and other stunts on the high wire that most of us would have trouble with performing on the ground, the artist powered wheel of death or the teeterboard catapulting artists into lofty heights where they perform quintuple twisted summersaults with stilts strapped to their legs– with each act Kooza combines thrilling acrobatic performance with infectious fun and genuinely warm and funny undertones.

Kooza is engaging, charming and gradually upping the ante throughout the show.

A true return to form focusing on human performance in its rawest, most frail yet glamorous and awe-inspiring state.

If Cirque du Soleil’s mission was to invoke the imagination, provoke the senses and evoke the emotions of the spectators, Kooza as a colourful mélange and tribute to the core values of the golden days of the circus - accomplishes it.

Kooza does not only have the “wow factor” but firmly establishes Cirque du Soleil as the “wow factory”: This is Cirque at its best - an immersive, thrilling and entertaining night out.

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Photos courtesy of Cirque du Soleil

KOOZA by Cirque du Soleil will conclude its Sydney season on November 13. Following Sydney, the tour moves to Brisbane, Melbourne and Perth.

Totally Unicorn

Newtown Social Club

Sydney, AUS

September 29, 2016

Do not let the name deter you: You want to see Totally Unicorn in all of their unbridled beauty before they blow up and no longer grace the confines of small clubs with their sweaty, nude, booze-soaked presence.

It has been a while since I’ve been to a fun hardcore punk show that left everyone with a smile on their faces, singing along to Toto’s “Africa.”

Totally Unicorn’s recently released full-length album Dream Life draws influences from the likes of Converge, Dillinger Escape Plan, Botch, Cave In and the likes.

What reads on paper like a diligent mathcore band, is an entirely different beast in a live scenario -- a beast with a spiraling, large, pointed horn projecting from its forehead at that.

Some say there is a difference between grotesque and antic.

It might be a fine line but Totally Unicorn not only walks but inhabits it when it comes to their live performance: Take the best parts of early Fucked Up’s crowd engagement, i.e. front man buried in the pit -- clothes optional -- add ample measures of alcohol and medication generated oomph and hilarity, garnish with balloons, sprinkle with the trademark Australian pisstaking and stir with the barrel of a confetti canon.

Voilà! A fascinating, seriously fun and uncontrived live show that is greater than the sum of its parts.

Totally Unicorn is an example par excellence for the fact that being technically gifted and musically spot on, the ability to effortlessly bring the party and defying stereotypes do not have to be mutually exclusive.

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Photos by T

Sounds of the Suburbs Festival

Wilbar Lane

Cronulla, Sydney

September 25, 2016

Cronulla, the “place of the pink seashells," is a beachside suburb, about 30 kilometers south of the Sydney central business district in the Sutherland Shire, an area serving as the backdrop for the classic 1981 coming of age movie Puberty Blues, for which a big part of today’s laid-back, beachy crowd would have been the perfect cast – given that Sounds of the Suburbs festival is aimed at Sydney’s beautiful young things, people aged 18 to 24.

Squeezed into the Wilbar laneway behind the Space 44 gallery, which quintessentially turned a house into a live music and arts venue, and the Mexican restaurant/bar El Sol, the fourth installment of the boutique-y yet burgeoning Sounds of the Suburbs festival was held.

Sounds of the Suburbs is a laneway festival packed with Sydney’s newest and brightest of the indie variety, the odd touring band, Mexican food and culture located deep in the southern suburbs of Sydney. Summa summarum: All the key ingredients for a great DIY festival.

The 2016 all-day indie bill incarnated on multiple stages, one of which open for anyone bringing a device and plug whatever they wanted in, were supplemented by an art room displaying works from local creatively inclined folks, as well as Mexican food from El Sol and Italian wood-fired pizza.

Unfortunately only Budweiser was served on the beer front and while one was salivating at the prime selection of tequilas at display in the back of El Sol’s bar, only sangria and rum was served. Sacre bleu!

With DZ Deathrays (fresh off from an immensely successful Australian tour with Violent Soho), surf-inspired Guantanamo Baywatch, Peter Bibby, Alex Lahey, Verge Collection, Big White, Wild Honey, James Crooks, Tees, Pist Idiots, Baxter, Wash, Amyl And The Sniffers, Heads Of Charm, Red Wine Roses, The Cloacas, The Moving Stills, MVRKS, Mini Skirt, Uplifting Bell Ends and Stay At Home Mum this year’s incarnation of the festival lineup was not only eclectic, but even if you’re unaware of the protagonists, the names alone made you want to check them out.

For the most part, the bands gracing the main stage played fast paced, condensed sets, the lion’s share with an electric combination of lo-fi riffs coupled with energetic, offbeat stage presence, which did not fail to elicit boisterous and at time reckless responses from the willing, sold-out crowd.

Inside Space 44, in a more intimate environment bands like Wild Honey channeled their alchemy

Sounds of the Suburbs is a unique festival that has not merely found but created its very own and unique niche.
Having progressively gotten bigger and better with each year, one would not be surprised if it would evolve to a mainstream fest.

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Photos by KAVV