John is all about celebrating the best of music, arts, and culture in Australia. He's a prolific reviewer and interviewer who's always on the pulse of what's new and exciting. His reviews are in-depth and thoughtful, giving readers a sense of what to expect from live performances, albums, and festivals. John's vibe on The AU Review is one of infectious enthusiasm, passion, and dedication to showcasing the vibrant cultural landscape of Australia.
The inaugural SXSW Sydney has just revealed an unmissable line-up of headline speakers. Initially an annual event in Austin Texas famous for launching the careers of the likes of Billie Eilish and Uber, this year the “festival of festivals” has been expanded to Sydney, and will comprise of 1000+ events, speakers and music acts. Coachella…
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Adelaide Film Festival (AFF) has announced the return of the AFF EXPAND Lab in Adelaide from 21 – 27 October 2023 and is now inviting Expressions of Interest from Australian creative practitioners to participate in the lab. AFF EXPAND Lab is a development initiative bringing together 30 Australian visual artists, filmmakers, video artists, writers, and…
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Having shared the stage with the likes of The Kooks, Yungblud, Matt Corby, Ball Park Music and more, MANE (Paige Court) is known for her impressive live performances. She recently returned from two tours across the US, including her second SXSW in Austin, TX, as well as appearances at New Colossus Festival. It comes as no surprise…
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Barangaroo House is set to turn up the volume when Rekōdo Restaurant and Vinyl Bar welcomes a new DJ Set Series, taking over the decks every Wednesday throughout August. Some of the best names in the music space including Planet Trip, Elefant Traks, Utopian State, Future Classic and I OH YOU will each have their turn to showcase their vinyl skills. The…
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After increasing event capacity to its highest level ever to meet demand, Spilt Milk has just announced that the Ballarat leg of its tour has already sold out – with other dates looking to be not far behind. Returning to the sunny shores of Australia for another epic tour, this year’s sizzling hot line up…
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After announcing a co-headline tour with Interpol, Bloc Party have now announced a series of headline dates of their own. With shows in Perth, Adelaide, and Hobart added to the calendar, this year marks the band’s first return to Australia since 2018. Keen fans would have noticed two singles already released this year, “Keep it…
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The latest celeb-obsessed ice bath trend is coming to Sydney’s iconic Bondi Beach promenade but not how you’d expect… T2 is promoting its latest range of iced teas with a popup ice bath challenge on July 28th. These iced baths are styled to look like the RTD iced tea cans. What a way to start…
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Friday 14th July will see internationally acclaimed Visual Artist and Multi-Sensory creator Benjamin Knock opening his Terra-Therma exhibition at No Vacancy Gallery in Melbourne. The artist travelled through Iceland with a videographer and sound recordist to capture incredible footage of the landscape. This new work acts as both a research project and a multisensory exhibition…
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Spilt Milk, Australia’s most in-demand and fastest-selling music, food and art festival has announced its high-anticipated lineup, returning to Canberra, Ballarat, Gold Coast with another stomping ground in Perth for this summer 2023. As the only touring festival in Australia to sell out in 2022 and with a monumental lineup for 2023, tickets will be more in-demand than ever. Get ready for a festival…
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QLD Music Trails introduces their debut Brisbane event, Sweet Relief!, a unique one-day party and springtime getaway. Expected to be a not-to-missed spectacle, the festival also announces an Australian exclusive headlining DJ sets from legendary electronic music titans hailing from the UK, Groove Armada and cult Australian dance act, The Avalanches. Alongside musical acts, there will of…
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Tick, Tick… Boom! is the semi-autobiographical story of playwright Jonathon Larson, who was most notable for creating the musical RENT. This story focuses on his time as a struggling writer, living in New York, writing his first musical, Superbia. The story opens with the sound of ticking, the sound that becomes louder and louder in…
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Spin Off announced additional artists to the lineup along with a second stage and released extra tickets, after selling out last week. After reconfiguring the site, Spin Off has been able to release more tickets that are on sale now here! The additional seven acts are Peach PRC, The VANNS, TEEN JESUS AND THE JEAN TEASERS, MARLON X RULLA, The Empty…
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The Big Red Bash and the Mundi Mundi Bash are two quintessentially Australian events held in the Australian outback. We had a chat with the founder of the events, Greg Donovan, about how the events have evolved and what makes them a success. Let’s start at the beginning, with the Big Red Run. How did…
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It’s been 30 years since Frente released the platinum winning album Marvin the Album. Currently they are touring the album at selected venues around Australia. We caught them at the Gov in Adelaide, supported by Kate Pomery. This folk singer from Kuarna land, whose latest single “Cardiologist” connected well with the audience. She has an…
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Celebrating South Sydney Rabbitohs‘ supporters and five years of friendship, Young Henrys have produced a limited edition Glory Haze XPA. Young Henrys is a group of passionate brewers, beer lovers, distillers, musicians and artists, united for the love of good beer. Established in 2012 in the back streets of Newtown and in the hearts of…
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The Cabaret Fringe Festival is an open-access arts festival held annually in Adelaide, South Australia. We caught up with vivacious Festival Producer Lauren Thiel at The Piccadilly, showcasing some of the acts on offer this year. Dolly Diamond is the emcee of the nightly CabLIVE at The Piccadilly. These recreate the memorable past nights at…
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The full scale of the food offering for the 2023 Adelaide Beer and BBQ Festival has just been released. If you like stats, you’ll enjoy that there are 25 different vendors, of which 13 are Beer and BBQ debutants. There are also 11 different food cultures represented. Low and slow highlights include, Black Iron Smokers…
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Andrew Hansen is a well-known comedian starring in Australian satirical shows such as The Chaser, CNNNN and The Hampster Wheel. Recently he’s been on the road with his one-man comedy show entitled Andrew Hansen – is Cheap. We caught up with him to chat about the show and some of the inspiration behind his comedy….
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As Comedian Sammy J hits the road with his new show Good Hustle, John Goodridge catches up with him to find out about he some 20 characters that will feature in the show, reflect on how he keeps his seemingly hectic schedule together – and they talk about the passing of Barry Humphries. Hey Sammy,…
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MATADOR is a Spanish dance extravaganza tale of forbidden love, desires and pain. First presented in 2022, MATADOR is back in Adelaide’s first theatre, the Queen’s Theatre. With 14 performers on a stage that extends out into the cafe-style VIP seating area, it is a credit to the production team that they managed to present…
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After a successful weekend of music in 2022, Harvest Rock festival is set to return in Oct 2023. The event is scheduled to take place once again in Rymill / King Rodney Parks in the Adelaide Parklands on the weekend of 28th and 29th October. Once again, the elements that made Harvest Rock so good…
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Adelaide’s Beer and BBQ Festival, at the Adelaide Showgrounds from the 14th to the 16th July, have just announced the first beverage line-up. Some of the musical acts are already announced: The Living End, Dune Rats, Dexter from the Avalanches and rock royalty Magic Dirt. Not to mention a “Doof Dome” from Noodle Doof Brewery…
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Spin Off Festival have just announced the acts for the 2023 event at Adelaide Showgrounds on Friday 21st July and it’s a killer lineup plucked straight from Splendour in the Grass. Get ready to spend a day with … HILLTOP HOODS · PNAU · TOVE LO · BENEE · IANN DIOR · HOCKEY DAD ·…
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On Friday, the Adelaide Showgrounds in Kuarna Country hosted the first leg of the Groovin the Moo tour. What a way to start it was. With three stages, the day was full of non-stop music and activity. Fatboy Slim closed off the main stage with his unique blend of mashups. Taking the collage theme one…
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Tomich Winery in the Adelaide Hills hosted what was the first of hopefully many more Vintage Vine festivals. Over the first weekend of April, the likes of Gang of Youths, Tash Sultana and King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard rocked the crowd. The first day, Saturday, was slightly cloudy and cool. However, it was still…
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This year’s Beer & BBQ Festival in the Adelaide Showgrounds is shaping up to be bigger, badder, fatter and louder than ever. Running all weekend from Friday 14th July, it’s destined to be the biggest one to date. Hot off the back of the 2022 event, which saw 21,000 bbq, beer and music fans enjoying…
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Come From Away is a hit musical based on the true story events of the September 11 WTC tragedy. It tells the incredible story of how 38 planes were diverted from North American airspace to a remote town in Newfoundland, Canada. The locals opened their hearts and homes to almost 7000 scared and confused passengers….
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The Adelaide Planetarium is a thirty seat dome in the Mawson Lakes campus of the Adelaide University. Normally used for demonstrating the movements of our celestial system, tonight the idea is to be fully immersed in a sound and light experience. The team behind the show, Sacred Resonance have been presenting sound and light experiences…
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The holiday Monday closed day four of WOMADelaide to a smaller crowd, which made traversing the site much easier than the previous three sold-out days. Not to say that there was any less energy or talent on display. Mdou Moctar took to the Foundation stage early in the afternoon. Hailing from a desert village in…
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Michael Shafar is a testicular cancer survivor, hence the chemo joke. It was what his oncologist told him after he had seen the show; “You were well worth the chemo, Michael.” Which is a pretty good recommendation. On a Tuesday night after a long weekend, the house is full. Even if the stage is an…
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