Gamification in the tech industry is nothing new. Apps like Habitica have taken even the most mundane tasks like ticking items off a checklist and turned them into a role playing game in which you, personally, are the star. You might think that’s pretty full on, but hold on a sec because it gets way…
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Currently touring Australia for the first time with Ziggy Alberts, UK rising star Nathan Ball has just dropped a brand new single “Call It Love”, and its one that fans of singer/songwriters like Ziggy, Passenger or Kim Churchill need to get their ears around. Hell, if you like music at all then this is probably…
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With a career that already spans half a decade, the evolution of American indie duo, Girlpool, is second to none. For five years, Harmony Trividad and Cleo Tucker have composed music that captures your attention and implores you to listen by tugging at your heartstrings rather than invading your personal space and screaming in your face….
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With Ocean Alley taking out the Hottest 100 over the long weekend, we’re excited to (finally) bring you the AU review’s own favourite tracks of 2018, with an eclectic mix of songs from Australia and around the world that we loved over the calendar year. 40. Tropical Fuck Storm – You Let My Tyres Down…
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Florence + The Machine played to nearly thirty thousand people at Sydney’s The Domain this past weekend, and if you’re going to take anything away from this review let it be this: Florence Welch is so much better than all of us, in every facet possible. There’s no two ways about it. It’s as simple…
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Maggie Rogers isn’t an artist in a hurry. She doesn’t have to be. When you’re making music as pure as what occurs on Heard It in a Past Life, you can take as long as you need; the music listening public will wait for you. In saying that, it feels like Heard It in a…
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“North” is the new single from Brisbane Indie-pop artist Tara Simmons, who sadly passed away earlier this month following a battle with cancer. We at the AU have known and been covering Tara for the better part of the last decade, and couldn’t be more devastated by her passing. Tara has left us some music to enjoy…
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After 25 five years in the music industry you are either on the way of becoming a legend – if not already one – or awkwardly trying to keep up with what popular music has become in 2019. Somehow, The Dandy Warhols manage to do both at the same time. At their turn of the…
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Sitting atop Farrer Park MRT station and on the edge of Singapore’s Little India is Park Hotel’s latest addition to their hotel family. Only a few train stops away from the Singapore’s MRT hub, Dhoby Ghaut, Park Hotel Farrer Park is a good choice if you want to have a little peace and quiet but…
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Do good intentions make a good film? That is the question that has popped up in my head through the many recent films over the past year. Whether the film is about the commentary on major issues like racism, sexism and discrimination, the film itself still has to be well-executed in all areas in order…
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Pikuniku is an absurd, charming little game from the folks at Devolver Digital, and one that is absolutely fascinating. Styled after the whimsical platformer titles of the PS2 era like Loco Roco and Katamari Damacy, Pikuniku follows the struggles of a little red blob as he awakens in a strange land filled with shiny, happy…
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I’ve had questions about Anthem ever since it was announced. It’s been about a year and a half since Anthem was first announced and my questions are finally getting some answers. While EA’s desire for an ongoing MMO shooter in the Destiny mould was understandable, it was the tapping of legendary RPG studio Bioware to create…
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Relationships are messy and fragile, and harsh words have consequences. Rainswept dives into this fragility wholeheartedly, and presents a grounded, if occasionally heavy-handed, tale about life, loss and the complications of love. Rainswept follows Detective Michael Stone as he investigates the seeming murder-suicide of a couple Chris and Diane. Their struggles mirror his own as…
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Client Liason provided an excellent night of dancing and entertainment at the Melbourne Zoo, supported by Kira Peru. Photos by Rebecca Houlden.
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Following last week’s massive announcement of a national arena tour for the new-look Fleetwood Mac, the band have unsurprisingly began to fill in the glaring gaps in their Australian schedule by adding a few new shows. Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne now have one new show each, added in response to what has no doubt been…
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A luxury resort in Bali offering the kind of lavish stay island fantasies are made of, built with all the ostentation and pampering you could possibly want, is nothing new nor surprising. In fact, it’s expected on the Indonesian island nowadays, where a consistent influx of tourists watch as hotel and resort brands, both internationally…
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Whether you like it or not, it doesn’t look like the NSW state government are removing the shackles they first placed on Sydney’s once vibrant hospitality (and hence, tourism) industry in 2014. And while people continue to campaign against the paralysing ‘lockout laws’, it’s looking like adaptation is the best way to go, at least…
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I’d been playing Far Cry New Dawn for about an hour when a dusty neuron in the back of my brain began to fire, two thoughts connecting in real time. New Dawn is a spin-off title in the Far Cry series, but is a direct sequel to 2018’s Far Cry 5. The cynical view of…
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In an awards season dominated by powerful female performances, the chance to see two fierce Queens go head-to-head sounds like a tantalising opportunity. In director Josie Rourke‘s debut film Mary Queen of Scots, the epic showdown promised within the film’s somewhat misleading advertising never quite materialises. In its place is a revisionist feminist tale fraught…
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An Open Book, published late last year, is the eleventh collection of poetry from David Malouf, and his third in the last ten years. Prior to this collection I only really knew of Malouf in his capacity as a writer of prose and short stories. As it turns out he is equally adept in many…
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Over the last few years, Melbournians have increasingly utilised the Lower Yarra River as a major social and gastronomic hub. And if the popularity of venues like the Arbory Afloat and Supafish are anything to go by, the idea of floating on the iconic river is forever appealing to the masses. If only you could…
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Counting and Cracking was Belvoir and Sydney Festival’s lead production for 2019, launching with much fervour and excited rumour. A stadium worthy theatre piece purpose-built into Sydney Town Hall. A global casting call for 17 performers playing over 50 characters. Five languages on stage. A Sri Lankan meal awaiting each audience member as they arrive….
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Gentrification hasn’t yet swept through Sham Shui Po, one of Hong Kong’s least affluent working class neighbourhoods in Kowloon. As one of the more underprivileged areas in the city, it’s certainly a few steps removed from the comparative polish of Central or Tsim Sha Tsui, but that doesn’t mean that tourists won’t find anything to…
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Fifty years in the music business and Phil Collins is adamant that he’s not dead yet. His current Australian tour – named after his memoir that is also marking over 20 years between drinks – may be designed for people to lower their expectations. The English multi-instrumentalist seems older than his 67 years but while…
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Very few Nintendo DS games ever fulfilled the potential of the console’s unique dual screens, but one title came incredibly close. That title, Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story, has finally gotten the recognition it deserves with a brilliant new remaster for the Nintendo 3DS. Originally released in 2009, Bowser’s Inside Story is an RPG…
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Given that this is Clint Eastwood‘s first starring role in six years (his last being 2012’s under-the-radar sports drama The Trouble With the Curve), one would be forgiven for expecting something far more grand and notable than what is ultimately on offer; its push into prime Oscar season releases not helping matters either. Whilst this…
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Iceland’s Hjaltalín have kicked off their 2019 with a new single and music video, teasing the possibility of a new album on the horizon. Comprised of musicians from a number of different bands, Hjaltalín have been somewhat quiet on the release front, with the last album, a soundtrack, released back in 2014 and the single…
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The following admission may be considered scandalous by Resident Evil devotees: My first experience with the series was when Resident Evil 2 was first ported to the Nintendo 64. It was no small feat getting the game to run on the N64, given the storage limitations presented by its cartridges. FMV cutscenes and large amounts…
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James Blake has long stood as a unique and talented artist within his own niche of alternative electronic music, with a formidable knack for contemporary hip hop inspired soundscapes as well as the ability to craft twinkling ballads of melancholy. The two sides to his talent occasionally have crossed paths previously (his remix of ‘Timeless’…
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It is widely known that travelling across Europe by train is a quintessential experience for the nomadic Aussie. The trains, connected all over the continent, are a fast, convenient, accessible and, most importantly, flexible way to get hop from one city to another, with around 40,000 Australian travellers alone making use of Eurail’s rail pass…
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