Month: September 2019

Film Review: Rambo: Last Blood is an unbalanced 80s drama-action film

Beginning in 1982 with First Blood, then 1985’s Rambo: First Blood Part II, 1988’s Rambo III, then 2008’s Rambo, 11 years later the Rambo saga is releasing a fifth and final film to close out the iconic action hero’s story. Originally adapted from John Morrell’s novel First Blood, it centres around the character of John…

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Track of the Day: ELKO FIELDS “I’m Only Human” (2019)

We’re a little late to the party when it comes to ELKO FIELDS, but with sophmore EP 4:44 dropping today, we couldn’t resist sharing the August release from the Brisbane rock outfit. Led by Kella Vee on vocals and guitar, ELKO FIELDS also enlists The Medics‘ Jhindu-Pedro Lawrie (drums/vocals) for live performances. The ELKO brand is fierce female fronted…

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Exclusive Single Premiere: All The Colours “Why So Sorry?” (2019)

Melbourne outfit All the Colours have followed up the tough, full-bodied “Tear It Down”. from earlier this year, with another thundering testament to their collective talent in “Why So Sorry?” The track, premiering today on the AU, is taken from their forthcoming album Vol.3 and carves a distinctive soundscape while channelling classics form the likes…

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NBA 2K20 Review: Still in strong form

The NBA 2K series has become for many, including myself, the definitive basketball gaming experience. While each iteration tries to evolve in interesting ways, NBA 2K20 remains an evolutionary experience rather than a revolutionary one. In many ways, NBA 2K20 is superior to any of its predecessors, presenting stellar basketball gameplay paired with authentic presentation…

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Borderlands 3 Review: That sure is a lot of guns

My relationship with Borderlands might be different from that of other people, I don’t know. What I do know is that, contrary to a lot of other games I tend to like, I don’t come to Borderlands for the story or the characters or the world. I show up because Gearbox Software makes an idiot…

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Sydney’s epic Burgapalooza is back, and we’ve got the menu

Sydney’s burger lords are once again about to join forces in Parramatta’s Prince Alfred Square Park for Burgapalooza. And if previous years are anything to go by, burger fiends can expect some of the best damn creations from both legendary burger chefs and some widely acclaimed newcomers. Festival all-stars Down n’ Out, BL Burgers, Burger…

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Track of the Day: Angel Olsen “Lark” (2019)

We have the second single from Angel Olsen‘s upcoming album All Mirrors which is due out early October. Accompanying it is one of the most striking videos of the year. The song “Lark” is a deeply honest examination of a failed relationship. It starts gently, and sets up the song with the opening couple of…

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Theatre Review: The Beautiful Game makes its goal-scoring Melbourne debut.

The Beautiful Game is a lesser known award-winning collaboration between the legendary Andrew Lloyd Webber and Ben Elton. On premise, it’s difficult to be excited by a musical based on football (soccer) if you have no interest in the sport, but by the end, you’ll discover that that’s not really what the story is about…

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Catch Monica Lewinsky in conversation with Leigh Sales, as part of UNSW and Carriageworks’ UNTHINKABLE

Running from 7th – 9th of November, ideas festival UNTHINKABLE is a joint venture from Sydney’s Carriageworks and The UNSW Centre for Ideas. Featuring speakers from around the world, the three day event will explore the questions we haven’t asked, the futures we can avoid, and the inevitability of unexpected realities. UNTHINKABLE Curator and Director of…

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Interview: Dear Seattle (AUS) on Beer InCider Festival, graphic design and creating their sophomore album.

Sydney’s Dear Seattle are beaming on Australia’s alt-rock radar. However, the band recently broadened their talents as ‘cicerones’, as they gear up to launch their limited brew, Beer Seattle, at Beer InCider Festival later this month. Having had a pretty exciting year of releases and festivals, the buzz doesn’t seem to be winding down any…

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Theatre Review: Chicago is a Sexy Romp of Athletic Performance

One of the longest-running musicals in history, Chicago returns to our shores again, seemingly only a heartbeat since it’s the last production, which was in fact in 2009. As the show-to-end-all-shows, it seems interesting to have it return, in this mounting of the most recent Broadway production. However in our current era of reality and…

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Track of the Day: Tuka “Selling Me Out” (2019)

After a 4-year solo hiatus, we have been blessed with 2 singles from Thundamentals DJ, Tuka. Following on from the no-holes-barred “F*ck You Pay Me” comes the melody-driven “Selling Me Out”. It’s a breakup song, it’s a little bit angry and it has a cracking video with some very nicely choreographed dancing. “Selling Me Out”…

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Lumix LX100 MII Review: The customisable compact

A Great All-Rounder of enthusiast compact photography, the Lumix LX100 II was released in October 2018, which means it’s now been on the market for nearly a year. It’s an effective compact option for anyone who enjoys having full control over their exposure or shooting in RAW, but doesn’t want to mess around with interchangeable…

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Track of the Day: David Keenan “Tin Pan Alley” (2019)

Today Irish singer-songwriter David Keenan has dropped, “Tin Pan Alley, the first official taste of his forthcoming debut: A Beginners Guide To Bravery, which is set for release early in the new year. Keenan is something of a prolific songwriter, so it’s somewhat baffling that A Beginners Guide will be his debut album. He has…

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Interview: Thundamentals (AUS) on a unique listening experience and Beer InCider Festival.

Thundamentals are true to their name; they’re fundamentally mental in the best of ways. Not only do they hustle out a relentless stream of tunes that absolutely slap, they’re always rearranging songs for a live set, collaborating with equally as talented artists or working on their own side projects. They simply never stop and quite frankly,…

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Riding the Confederation Line: Where to visit on Ottawa, Ontario’s new Light Rail

This weekend, after six years of construction, Canada’s capital Ottawa welcomes a new light rail line to its city – the Confederation Line. With 13 stations (a combination of under and above ground), the 12.5 km rail network will connect the city to its O-Train LRT like never before. And it’s just the start of…

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Sonic Youth’s Kim Gordon to deliver keynote and everything you need to know about the first SXSW 2020 announcements

Former Sonic Youth bassist-singer Kim Gordon, pop musician-producer-songwriter Benny Blanco, and actor-comedian Cheech Marin have been announced, among others, in an initial line-up regarding keynote and featured speakers for the 34th annual South By Southwest Conference and Festival (March 13-22 2020). “We’re kicking off the 2020 season with a captivating group of speakers. From Keynotes…

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Ghost Recon Breakpoint‘s closed beta offers great tactical combat, grim new tone

The Ghost Recon franchise returns yet again, giving gamers a tactical option in a world full of run-and-gun looter shooters. I must say that I rather enjoyed Ghost Recon Wildlands, boasting a large, if a little bland open world, and a truckload of content to complete. Gameplay was tight, responsive and ‘tactical’ in its nature….

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Track of the Day: A.GIRL “Play” (2019)

A.GIRL, otherwise known as 19-year-old Hinenui-Terangi Tairua, recently dropped second single “Play“, and we’re loving it! Raised in Western Sydney, A.GIRL still maintains a strong connection to her family’s Maori homeland of Te Hapua in the north island of New Zealand. Naming everyone from Freddie Mercury to The Weeknd as influences, her sound blends a…

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Film Review: Downton Abbey is a touch of class

Downton Abbey was a television show filled with glamour, wealth and manners. For six seasons, viewers were treated to a bird’s eye view of the community connected to that famous British estate. While the film adaptation could have become just an extended episode of the series, this film instead manages to hold its own as…

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Spyro Reignited Trilogy Review: Nostalgia on the go

Like most gamers of the 90’s, Spyro thje Dragon was one of the first ever games I’ve ever played and when the Spyro Reignited Trilogy was announced I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it. Until it was only released for the PS4 and Xbox One (versions we’ve previously reviewed). Having only Nintendo Switch…

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Catherine: Full Body Review: Punishment has never felt so good

I’m not sure why I did this to myself. Glutton for punishment maybe? Whatever the reason, there are times I regret picking up Catherine: Full Body, which has caused painful flashbacks to almost 10 years ago when I almost reverted back to 9 year old me – the kid who was totally fine with smashing…

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Track of the Day: TELL “De-Evolution” (2019)

Melbourne artists Mantra and Grey Ghost have come together to resurrect hip hop duo TELL, and if their first offering in almost a decade is anything to by, this is going to make some serious waves. “De-Evolution” is their new single, raining hell upon an urgent, apocalyptic beat as the two furiously lash modern society…

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The Wizard’s Cauldron challenges you to test your magical mettle brewing potions

There’s a brand new pop-up in Surry Hills, Sydney that is giving you an opportunity to test your magical mettle and see if you really are a witch or wizard at heart, without having to sit under an oversized floppy pointy hat. 

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Creative dreaming with a creator’s dream, the Huawei MateBook 13

When it comes to digital media, photography and videography, nothing spoils the flow of creativity more than the inability to review, edit and publish your work quickly after capturing and creating it when your still fresh with passion and ideas. A creator needs a reliable tool that’s portable and can be used on-the-road that’ll assist…

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First Impressions: Netflix’s Unbelievable is a consistently engaging drama that stays true to the sensitivity of the case at its core

Despite prominent billing, Toni Collette and Merritt Wever are both absent for the first hour-long episode of Unbelievable, Netflix’s latest limited series that centres itself around a serial rapist and the duo of hardened detectives that investigate.  Instead, Kaitlyn Dever, as arguably the series’ most sympathetic character, earns our attention as Marie, a troubled teen…

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Track of the Day: Lewis Coleman “Animal” (2019)

Freshly signed to Ivy League Records, Melbourne multi-instrumentalist Lewis Coleman has made a stunning debut with “Animal”. A shrieking, infectious and immersive offering from one of Australia’s most exciting new talents, the single sprouts from an acoustic guitar, spiralling into psychedelic territory as Coleman’s fascinating voice guides the transformation. Written, performed, recorded and produced in…

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Aussies Abroad: Courtney Barnett announces first ever solo tour of the US with Melbourne’s Hachiku

Melbourne’s Courtney Barnett is hitting the road again in the USA in January 2020, in what will be her first ever solo tour of the country. She’ll be taking in intimate and iconic venues around the countries, accompanied at almost every show with Melbourne-via-Germany artist Hachiku. Hachiku (Anika Ostendorf to her friends) releases music through…

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This speyside distillery is coming to Sydney to give 51 year old whisky away for free

Speyside distillery Craigllachie, known as “The Bad Boy of Speyside” for their famously rebellious nature, is about to make whisky history by doing something no distillery has done before. In short, they’re about to give away a recently uncovered, long forgotten 51 year old whisky (that’d be worth a fortune) for free. Specifically, the traditional…

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Track of the Day: GL “Night Habit” (2019)

Melbourne based funk lords GL have turned in a squeaky after-hours jam with “Night Habit”. Their new single, a throwback to 70s disco-soul, follows singer Ella Thompson’s hazy performance with warbling synths and heavy percussion. It’s the perfect package of vintage pop, and a welcome return from a duo who have been sorely missed since…

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