Year: 2021

Urban Expat Living in Australia & New Zealand: 6 Things You Must Know

Australia is a true nation of immigrants. According to data collected by the Australian Parliament, an estimated 28.2 percent of the country’s population was overseas-born in 2015. That is very nearly one in three Australians. With approximately 27.4 percent of its population born overseas in 2018, according to Stats NZ, New Zealand is nearly as…

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Interview: Sung Kang on his return to the Fast & Furious franchise; “It’s very humbling”

Despite supposedly meeting his maker at the end of The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, Sung Kang‘s fan favourite character Han Lue is back in action for Fast & Furious 9.  Reuniting with director Justin Lin and Fast family patriarch Vin Diesel, Kang’s return to the franchise has been shrouded in mystery. As the…

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Gang of Youths

Track of the Week: Gang of Youths “the angel of 8th ave.” (2021)

At long last Gang Of Youths are making their highly and hotly anticipated return with their new single “the angel of 8th ave.” Released today, the single is the first taste of new music from the band since their successful 2017 album Go Farther In Lightness.  The band have undergone a few changes in those…

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Breath of the Wild 2

First look at The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 gameplay is here

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2. The trailer Nintendo’s E3 Direct audience held their breath for, hoping to see. After its Zelda Direct earlier in the year left the community cold, Nintendo’s E3 drop couldn’t disappoint. And it didn’t. Franchise lead Eiji Aonuma appeared to introduce a number of Zelda products —…

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Advance Wars Switch

Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp revives beloved series on Switch

Perhaps the second biggest surprise of Nintendo’s E3 Direct presentation was Advance Wars is coming to the Switch. Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp is not a new title, but instead a ground-up remake of the classic Game Boy Advance strategy titles. It will be the first new title in the series since 2008’s Advance Wars: Dark…

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Metroid Dread

Metroid Dread returns series to its 2D sci-fi horror roots

One of the biggest surprise announcements during this morning’s E3 Nintendo Direct was Metroid Dread. It’s a brand new, 2D Metroid game starring series heroine Samus Aran that leans into the series’ original horror roots. Dread by name and dread by nature, the game sees Samus working her way through a facility patrolled by hunter-killer robots….

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Mario Party Superstars

Mario Party Superstars collects the series’ best boards and games

Mario Party Superstars is a collection of the franchise’s greatest hits. Nintendo says the game stacked full of fan-favourite boards and minigames. What does that truly mean? We’ll tell you. It means this game has undergone rigorous community testing to ensure every minigame is a friendship ender, guaranteed. The Mario Party series is a competitive…

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Kazuya Smash Bros

E3 2021: Tekken‘s Kazuya coming to Super Smash Bros Ultimate

The first announcement off the rank at this morning’s Nintendo E3 Direct was that Tekken mainstay Kazuya is coming to Super Smash Bros Ultimate. Tekken developer Bandai Namco was one of the primary devs on Smash Ultimate, and hasn’t had many of its own characters in the game so far. Kazuya joins Pacman as the…

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West Hotel Review: A strong atmosphere makes up for a lack of space (Sydney)

As part of Hilton’s boutique-minded Curio Collection, West Hotel comes to Sydney off the back of a strong and prodigious history of hotelling. Although unlike the Hilton chain, Curio clearly skews more designer, and focuses on more than just a few details to echo that ethos. Does Sydney’s property really fit into the brand’s identity?…

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Win a family pass to new animated adventure film Cranston Academy: Monster Zone

Thanks to Rialto Distribution we have five family passes (Admit 4) to give away to the upcoming release of the animated adventure Cranston Academy: Monster Zone, featuring the voices of Jamie Bell and our own Ruby Rose, in Australian cinemas from June 24th, 2021, just in time for school holidays. Bullied for his intelligence and struggling…

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Blackbirds FC

Exclusive Video Premiere: Blackbirds FC “Island of the Dogs” (2021)

Melbourne band Blackbirds FC recently released their latest single, “Island of the Dogs”, and we are thrilled to be premiering today the video for this beautiful lush track. “Island of the Dogs” features is a tantalising mix of gorgeous harmonies, sweet guitars, strings and a nostalgic feel for Australian music of the ’80s and ’90s….

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Theatre Review: Come From Away is a heart-warming run through humanity in crisis

A musical about 9/11 might feel a bit risky, so it’s fortunate that Come From Away has a particularly refreshing angle on the subject. With airspaces locked immediately after the tragedy, 38 planes were forced to land on the island of Newfoundland, Canada. Over 7,000 stranded passengers were sent to nearby towns including Gander, where…

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Interview: renforshort talks Off Saint Dominique, being a bad student, and Linkin Park

Toronto’s renforshort cracked the big time with her independent release “mind games” in 2019, off her debut EP Teenage Angst. The collection’s release through the early pandemic captured listeners again with singles “i drive me mad” and “fuck, i luv my friends“, solidifying the young singer-songwriter as one of the most exciting to watch. It’s been a…

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Photo Gallery: Celebrities and VIPs walk the red carpet at opening night of Come from Away

Check out our gallery from opening night of Come from Away at Sydney’s Capitol Theatre. The hit musical is based on real life events, when 38 planes carrying nearly 7,000 people from over 100 countries were redirected to Newfoundland, in the wake of 9/11. Set in Gander, a remote Canadian town that saw it’s population…

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Tribeca Film Festival Review: No Future‘s simplistic script is overcome thanks to committed, nuanced performances

With a title like No Future and a narrative detailing the recovery of addicts and the potential grief and fear of relapsing that comes with that territory, Andrew Irvine and Mark Smoot‘s drama isn’t exactly reaching for subtlety. It’s a simplistic script that takes few risks in straying from the expected, but superb, committed performances…

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Vivid Sydney

Vivid Sydney 2021 Highlights: Our top picks of the program

Promising epic art installations, fascinating panels, and incredible performances, we’re so excited to see Vivid Sydney reappearing on our calendars later this year. The lights may have gone out in 2020, but the self-styled “playground of the unexpected” will return this August, for three weeks of celebrating light, music, ideas, and the city of Sydney…

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Airgarden uses NASA-designed technology to give sustainable produce an easy win

Does your home benefit from the use of astronaut technology? No. Let’s change that shall we. Airgarden, Australia’s very first vertical soilless gardening system, is making use of the technology for the benefit of anyone obsessed with sustainable design – or for those who just want access to more home-grown produce, faster. The game-changing gardening…

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Tribeca Film Festival Review: Catch The Fair One is a vigilante tale of stark realism

Invoking notes of revenge thrillers like Death Wish and Taken, but adhering to a female edge that lends the film a more calculating temperament, Catch The Fair One is a gritty thriller that survives more on its emotional mindset rather than gratuitous violence. Headlined and anchored by real-life boxer Kali Reis (who also serves as…

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Tribeca Film Festival Review: God’s Waiting Room is alluring as it is ugly

There’s some magnetic performances and a dirty immersion to God’s Waiting Room that, at times, are strong enough for the film to overcome its narrative cliches and ultimate contrivance that put much of its good work at risk. As easy as it is to roll your eyes at the outline of the film being that…

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The Outer Worlds 2

The Outer Worlds 2 drops most self-aware trailer, coming 2022

Obsidian Entertainment has confirmed development is underway on The Outer Worlds 2. It is the sequel to the studio’s Game of the Year winning Fallout-style RPG. The trailer walks the viewer through a litany of tropes associated with trailers seen at E3, usually for games not that far into development. It’s a great time. You…

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Forza Horizon 5

E3 2021: Forza Horizon 5 heads to Mexico, next-gen racing is here

Forza Horizon 5, the Xbox Series X|S’s graphical showpiece, has arrived. This fifth instalment in the popular open-world racing title takes Horizon Festival to Mexico. This will be the first time the Horizon series has returned to the Americas since the original game. According to developer Playground Games, “(f)un, freedom, and beauty” are the watchwords…

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Redfall

New Arkane game Redfall an Xbox exclusive

The next game from Arkane Studios is Redfall. It’s a 4-player co-operative multiplayer game in the vein of Left 4 Dead, except instead of zombies you’ll be battling vampires. Because this is an Arkane game, it’s fair to assume that level construction and player agency will be core facets of Redfall‘s design. Arkane is known…

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JBL Club Pro+ Review: An impressive entry into a crowded market

I’d say JBL have been on a roll lately, but it’s been like that for years. Consistently, the brand has gone from being renowned for their loud, slightly obnoxious, party-minded bass to a maturing producer of headphones that see balance as a virtue. On previous JBL models that I’ve tested, bass has always been wound…

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Guardians of the Galaxy

E3 2021: Guardians of the Galaxy game coming from Eidos Montreal

Eidos Montreal is making a single-player action game around Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy. The game puts players in control of Peter Quill, Star Lord, as he and the still newly-formed Guardians eke out a living in some of the galaxy’s sketchiest locales. The Guardians roster consists of the same line up from James Gunn’s…

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hilton sydney

Hilton Sydney Review: History gets a slick refresh

Hilton Sydney is one of the city’s most reliable CBD hotels. It’s been that way for a long time, but not necessarily because of the guest rooms. The location, directly opposite the Queen Victoria Building, is of course one of the primary reasons for the hotel’s enduring success, despite stiff competition from fresher-faced and more…

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Jabra Evolve2 30 Review: the perfect value proposition for the office

I’ve warmed up to Jabra fast over the past year thanks to their reputation for producing excellent sports-friendly headphones. But the enterprise side of the brand should not be ignored. The brand has long been known for creating some of the best office-focused headsets out there as part of their Evolve2 series, but the best…

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Sea of Thieves Jack Sparrow

Sea of Thieves Season 3 brings new Tall Tales starring Jack Sparrow

Sea of Theives adding Jack Sparrow might be the one of the most desired, but unexpected, moves Rare’s pirate game has ever made. Developer Rare has partnered with Disney to create a crossover event fans have hoped for since launch. Season 3 will introduce A Pirate’s Life. a series of five story-driven Tall Tales that…

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Stalker 2

New STALKER 2 trailer finally gives a look at gameplay

STALKER 2 is a game fans have spent decades waiting for. At times, the wait for gameplay footage has felt much longer. No more. The gameplay trailer debuted during the Xbox Bethesda E3 showcase early this morning. There’s a lot to break down here, from radioactive biomes to the little fiefdoms carved out among the…

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Tribeca Film Festival Review: Agnes is far too uneven to earn complete forgiveness

Starting on a blackly comic note and ending on a vastly different one of dramatic grit, Mickey Reece‘s Agnes is a truly confounding piece.  Inserting a narrative and tonal shift half-way through its proceedings, Reece has created a unique film without question, but it’s one that is likely to irk viewers who could respond so…

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Tribeca Now Showcase Review: In The Cards (Episode 1) makes a fine first impression in spite of its morally questionable characters

There’s something delightful in a comedy series basing itself around a person who’s, for lack of a better word, awful.  Maybe awful is too strong a word.  Let’s go with morally questionable.  Either way, In The Cards, from writer/director Colin Kane Healey, centres itself around a morally questionable type who most would agree deserves that…

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