Year: 2017

Doctor Who‘s Arthur Darvill to appear at Perth Oz Comic-Con

One of the most loved companions from the world of Doctor Who will be making an appearance Down Under. Best known for his role as the lovable Rory Williams, whom he played alongside Karen Gillian and Matt Smith from 2010-2012, Arthur Darvill will be making an appearance at Perth Oz-Comic Con. As well as his run…

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Film Review: Before I Fall (USA, 2017) fails to capture the depth of Lauren Oliver’s novel

Ry Russo-Young’s adaption of Lauren Oliver’s successful 2010 youth-adult novel Before I Fall tells the story of Samantha “Sammy” Kingston (Zoey Deutch), a young woman who has it all; the best group of friends, the perfect guy and what seems to be a very bright future. However, everything changes after the fateful night of February…

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TV Review: The Walking Dead Season 7 Episode 11 “Hostiles and Calamities” is a must-watch isolated episode

Tell me. Did you ever think that Eugene could carry an entire episode? Because he just did. Josh McDermitt absolutely knocked it out of the park in what can only be described as The Walking Dead’s funniest episode to date. That is, until it wasn’t. Hostiles and Calamities takes us back a few weeks (or however long…

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Video Games Review: Horizon: Zero Dawn distills the best parts of its many influences to create something truly amazing

During my first six hours with Horizon: Zero Dawn a phrase appeared in my head and got lodged there, as phrases like to do when you write for a living. The phrase in question was “This is once-in-a-hardware-generation stuff.” It stuck with me as my playthrough progressed, and it wasn’t until I’d been away from the game…

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Video Games Review: Gravity Rush 2 (PS4, 2017) can’t quite grasp the concept of cohesion in gameplay or storytelling

I never played 2012’s Gravity Rush. At the time it was almost a PS Vita must have. Not only because it was one of the few stand out games on the handheld but because its main feature required you to move the console around, basically showing off the fancy features of the then, fairly new…

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Video Games Preview: Conan Exiles shows promise, but has a long walk across the desert ahead of it

If you have played any open world survival genre in the last 2 years, you’ve got a good idea how your time with Conan Exiles, even in this early state, will play out. Conan Exiles doesn’t really try anything new at this stage and for most that will be okay. It is essentially another entry in the…

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Film Review: David Stratton: A Cinematic Life (Australia, 2017) is a love letter to the doyen of Australian cinema & our illustrious film industry

David Stratton is the doyen of Australian cinema. He is a respected film critic who has watched in excess of 25,000 films, peed on Fellini and entertained Australians for decades through his movie reviews with sparring partner Margaret Pomeranz. David Stratton: A Cinematic Life is a documentary about his life and brilliant career and is…

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Flight Review: Virgin Australia’s Sydney to Los Angeles Premium Economy service may just be the best in market (VA1)

Though Qantas have just introduced a new Premium Economy seat and service to much excitement, Virgin Australia have been offering one of the best Premium Economy tickets in the market since last year. Taking up an intimate cabin of only 3 rows and 24 seats, the cabin heralds back to the “Business Class” of the…

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Suey Sins, a 1920s themed Shanghai bar opens in Surry Hills (Sydney)

Nestled on Campbell Street in Surry Hills, a pinch of 1920s Shanghai has opened in Sydney this week with Suey Shins. Urban-chic wall art and neon lights will illuminate Asian fusion cocktails and small eats. The new spot was created by 25 year-old new comer Eli West who has taken inspiration for travelling, and a…

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March Into Merivale: a night of food, cocktails and wine returns to ivy this March (Sydney)

March Into Merivale is a culinary spectacular that promises a unique and extensive spectrum of food and drinks when it returns on Wednesday, March 22nd with it’s traditionally huge launch party. The first night of March into Merivale 2017 will conquer the whole ivy complex and surrounding laneways with guests experiences a bustling Asian street…

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The Craft & Co begins running workshops for food, gin and beer lovers (Melbourne)

The Craft & Co has become the host for a series of masterclasses and workshops for artisan produce. So whether you’re a lover of beer, coffee, cheese, or simply interested in learning new culinary skills, you have up until the end of April to participate. Widely considered as a ‘temple of artisan craft’ The Craft…

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Parramatta Live and Local showcases an awakening in the Western Sydney music scene

With close to 100 acts submitting their interests in performing for the event, last Saturday saw a select group of 40 artists chosen to play 18 venues across Parramatta that ranged from bridal shops to cafes to restaurants and hotels as Parramatta City Council adopted an initiative not too unlike King St. Crawl in Newtown…

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Alice Ivy, Julia Jacklin and more among Australian artists announced for Canadian Music Week 2017 in Toronto

We’re a little over a month away from one of the year’s biggest music festivals and conferences, Canadian Music Week, which will be taking over the city of Toronto in Canada for six days of live music, comedy, panels and more. A slew of artists have been announced in recent weeks, and among those revealed…

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Exclusive Single Premiere: WHITE VANS “Dog” (2017)

It was a steamy summer evening when I first stumbled upon WHITE VANS, breaking guitars and tearing up the stage at The Old Bar, where their nearly maniacal music was a show-stealer. They oscillated between lo-fi, garage-rock moments, and face-melting walls of guitar-driven feedback; an unforgettable kind of sound, flagging themselves in the Melbourne music…

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Music Video of the Day: Pissed Jeans “The Bar is Low” (2017)

Philly group Pissed Jeans have been careening through their 13 year long career with ferocity and gnarly goodness, the essence of which has been captured brilliantly on new material for album #5, Why Love Now. The lead single taken from the album, “The Bar Is Low”, now has a funny music video released to accompany, seeing the…

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Talking Busby Marou’s Postcards From the Shell House and more with Jeremy Marou

Busby Marou‘s latest album, Postcard From the Shell House, debuted at #1 on the ARIA chart – a fantastic feat for the duo who, as Jeremy Marou admitted to us recently, poured absolutely everything into the making of the record. Speaking with Marou just prior to the album’s release the emphasis on the importance of the record for…

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Exclusive Single Premiere: PINES “Tell Me (ft. Water Park)” (2017)

Adam Dormand and James Keneally have been making some sweet and lush electronic sounds out of Adelaide as PINES for a minute now – 2016 was a fruitful year for the duo, supporting the likes of Kiasmos and Jai Wolf, not to mention doling out some great remixes for the likes of Urthboy and KLP along with their original…

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Album Review: Hurray for the Riff Raff – The Navigator (2017 LP)

2016 was a hard year, globally, politically, environmentally. People made half-hearted jokes last November that at least we’d be getting a lot of good punk music pretty soon – small compensation, honestly. But the genre that flourishes the most under backwards political regimes doesn’t actually seem to be punk – often, what we remember the…

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Meet The Industry #003: Emily Retsas (Adelaide)

South Australian musician and teacher Emily Retsas has been a part of the live music fabric of Adelaide for the last few years, throwing her bass talent behind a wide array of bands. A keen eye may recognise her from her work with Koral and the Goodbye Horses or Blush Response, while interstate heads may have seen her on…

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Five reasons why British crime drama The Missing is the hot new mini-series to watch

The British are known for their heavy suspense filled drama series and Foxtel’s BBC First Australia are delivering us quite a few. One of these, Series 2 of The Missing, returns with a brand new case and an almost entirely new cast. For more about this series you can read our interview with lead actor David Morrissey. We were…

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Win a copy of character driven Australian drama Pawno on DVD

Pawno is a character driven ensemble film set in the diverse and multicultural suburb of Footscray. It revolves around one day in the lives of twelve characters. The film is set in an ageing Pawnbrokers shop and at the core of the story beats a romance, yet love is rarely simple. Within a day, lives…

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Tilda Swinton stars in the mysterious teaser for upcoming Netflix film Okja

Although short, the debut teaser trailer for new Netflix Original Film Okja will have you hooked. Directed by South Korean visionary Bong Joon Ho (Snowpiercer) comes a mysterious adventure following a young girl named Mija, where the stakes are high to prevent a powerful, multi-national company from kidnapping her best friend – a massive animal named ‘Okja’. Watch…

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Will Smith and Joel Edgerton to hit Netflix with David Ayer’s Bright

The director of Suicide Squad and End of Watch, David Ayer has joined the ever-expanding catalogue of Netflix Originals with his new film Bright, written by Max Landis (Chronicle) and starring Will Smith, Joel Edgerton, Lucy Fry and Noomi Rapace, set to premiere on the streaming service later this year. Set in an alternate present-day where humans, orcs, elves…

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David Morrissey talks The Missing Series 2; guarantees you’ll be shocked and surprised by the British crime thriller

The British are known for their high concept dramas and over the years we’ve had some great series such as Life On Mars, Whitechapel, Broadchurch and The Missing on our screens. The latter, The Missing, will be returning to BBC First Australia on Foxtel commencing Sunday 5 March for its second series. We sat down…

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The final trailer for Kong: Skull Island arrives a week out from its release

Hitting cinemas next Thursday, the anticipated Kong: Skull Island has dropped one final trailer ahead of its worldwide release, which features the iconic monster punching some helicopters. It’s no Die Hard 4, but it’s still pretty cool. You can watch it here: This return to the world of Kong is setting the character up for…

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Nintendo Switch: What we’d like to see

Like its predecessors, the Nintendo Switch is a console with an awful lot of potential. Its portable screen and multi-format controllers mean that the door to any number of innovative new game and app design ideas has been flung wide open. Here now, in no particular order, are a ways the Nintendo Switch could innovate…

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Whilst US tourism declines, Mexican tourism grows by some 9 percent

While it was reported this week that the election of Donald Trump has already seen the United States tourism industry lose some $185m in revenue, on the other side of the proverbial wall, things have never looked better. Yes, America’s Southern border buddy Mexico is reporting that in the calendar year of 2016, the country…

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7 Arts Events Not To Miss Around Australia – March 2017

It’s hard to believe it’s already March, but as we continue to steamroll our way through the year, the arts offerings around the country are only getting better. Here’s just seven of the events we think you can’t miss – from an entire month dedicated to art in Sydney, to theatre, exhibition openings and comedy…

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Adelaide Fringe Festival Review: Zeppelin Was a Cover Band – Koffee Ink at LIVE on 5, Adelaide Oval

Anyone who has done a minute’s research into popular music history understands that if you attempt to trace pretty much any style of contemporary music back to its roots, you end up at 1920’s Blues. It’s generally considered that that’s because as these originators of guitar driven music pushed lyrical and melodic boundaries, they influenced…

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Curator Sofie Kim talks about featuring the artwork of kids in foals at the Adelaide Fringe Festival

Set to hit the Adelaide Fringe Festival later this week is foals [art exhibition], which features work exclusively created by kids between the ages of 3 to 16 from around the world. Ahead of the event, we caught up with the exhibition’s curator Sofie Kim to learn more about it.  Can you tell us a…

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