Founding Editor and Publisher of the AU review. Currently based in Toronto, Canada. You can follow him on Twitter @larry_heath or on Instagram @larryheath.
Next-door to Sounds of Spain, a 42 below sponsored New Zealand party was pumping along, and the one woman machine that is Bachelorette was enjoying the stage. Recently supporting Animal Collective on their Australian tour, I have had the opportunity to witness Annabel Alpers in action, and was wholly impressed in the encounter. As such,…
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To have the opportunity to see a great like Ray Davies is not something that comes around too often – let alone in a room with a capacity of around 1,000 people, and supported by the great band The 88. So it was to this showcase I headed to half-way through The Soft Pack’s set…
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Friday brought with it one of the craziest days in my role as a journalist. I took care of many of the interviews you’ll soon be reading and watching on the AU review. Thankfully, it also happened to be stunningly beautiful weather. I began the day sitting down with An Horse by the beautiful Austin river, as…
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Nestled away in the hippest place in LA – Silverlake – is a little concert hall called The Echo, where on March 14th, 3 days before the start of SXSW, much of the Aussie contingency came together for the LA Aussie BBQ – 9 Hours. 1 Stage. 13 Bands. 10 Minute Changeovers. Now in its…
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In advance of the release of their third LP, The Winter of Mixed Drinks (available in stores now), and their return to the SXSW Festival in Austin, TX, I had the opportunity to sit down with brothers Grant and Scott Hutchinson of Scotland’s Frightened Rabbit. Taking a seat with them in the Beach Hotel at…
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Future Music Festival. A day synonymous with fluro-wearing hipsters dancing off their drug intakes on a racecourse. But it turns out it’s a pretty fun day, too! Well, that’s once you actually get into the venue. By the time I arrived at Central, lined up for the bus to get to the venue, gotten to…
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With another new Mountain Goats LP under his belt (that makes, what, 17!?) – John Darnielle is bringing the Mountain Goats back down under for a highly anticapated April tour. We spoke to John in advance of this tour about the new album “The Life of the World to Come”, his love of Vegemite and…
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Very few bands enjoy the luxury of success from first international single – so much success, in fact, that they would find that first single, the still stellar “Take Me Out”, hit the top of the charts and even the number one spot on the Hottest 100. Some 6 years and 3 albums later, Franz…
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Following on from many years of supporting local music from afar – showcasing Aussie bands to US audiences in conjunction with SXSW – the Aussie BBQ has made its local debut, first in Melbourne last week, and now, finally, in Sydney. It was an immediate pity that the show couldn’t have been on a non-work/school…
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It’s a rare occasion to be greeted to legends of hip hop in one of the smaller clubs in town. Sure, it might happen overseas, but not so much in Australia. Thankfully, thanks to the launch of Bitch Beer at the Trademark Hotel, the rarity occurred, with Naughty By Nature hitting the stage to a…
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As I entered ANZ Stadium on this hot summer afternoon with Wolfmother appearing in the breeze, I couldn’t help but feel giddy about the show I was about to witness. When it comes to the legends of Rock n’ Roll, there is none that Australians holds dearer to their hearts. All the while, they’re pretty much…
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If there were ever an odd choice for the opening act at a Janes Addiction concert, I think Rolo Tomassi would have to take the crown. It was the sort of “screamo” that I really can’t stand. But the irony is that the music behind the screams was actually quite good. They were a talented…
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Your EP Panic Notes has been rated highly by music critics across the country – are you pleased with how it has been received?
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On the back end of their Hottest 100 celebrations, we chat with Dan W (Drums/Vox) of Sydney’s Art vs Science, who are getting ready to board the Bacardi Express – and then go on to tour forever. Larry: It’s been but a few days since you guys received the number two spot in Triple J’s…
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If you happen to be in the States around March, you’ll notice quite an influx of Aussie bands making movements around the country. This is due to the conjoined efforts of Stage Mothers and SXSW – the latter, a showcase of bands for the world to see (in Austin), and Stage Mothers, the creators of…
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Your EP Panic Notes has been rated highly by music critics across the country – are you pleased with how it has been received? It’s felt great to finally have something that represents us. It seemed like we were a band for a fair while before actually recording our first EP and we seriously went…
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Folk rock (with an extra injection of country flair) is certainly hot property in Australia. Mumford & Sons took out the Hottest 100, The Proclaimers just dominated Australia, touring alongside the B52s, Dropkick Murphys gain more fans by the day (“I’m Shipping Up to Boston” became an AFL song last year, strangely enough) and locally…
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Boutique festivals are few and far between in Australia – let alone ones that involve camping! It comes with great relief, therefore, that Playground Weekender is here to create an original atmosphere and an unbeatable experience for punters. Are you ready to experience this? Are you ready to party? While I personally have never made it up…
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S.L.A.M. (Save Live Australia’s Music) is a collective of Victoria’s broader musical community who have joined forces to make their voice heard as local music becomes increasingly under threat due to these ill conceived Liquor Licensing Laws. S.L.A.M. are calling on musicians and music lovers from all genres, creeds and generations to unite together to…
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So out of the Cameras trio (made up of Fraser, Eleanor and Ben) I understand that two of you share both songwriting and vocal duties. Which two would that be, and could you give us a bit of insight as to how this process goes down? This is true – Eleanor and myself (Fraser) both…
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Not since Franz Ferdinand, have a band made such an impact with their first ever single, that they’ve stormed right to the top of the Hottest 100 – and now only Susan Boyle can keep them from the top of the ARIA charts! Yes indeed, the London based lads that are Mumford & Sons have…
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Performing up to 150 shows annually, The Beach Boys remain one of the hardest working groups in show business – but tonight was the first time they’d ever played the Sydney Opera House – as they joked – “it may have taken us 50 years to play this beautiful venue – but it hasn’t even…
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On the eve of Australia Day, and his performance at the Oversea’s Passenger Terminal in Sydney, I had a chance to chat to Ash Grunwald, who’s just about to release a new live album, and continue a relentless touring schedule – this time with the Funkoars by his side. So you’ve got a new Live…
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It’s been a few years since I last attended the Sydney Laneway festival. As impressive as the lineups always are, I’d been content with their sideshows, knowing the negative attributes of the original venue. Having to line up for the Basement, noise restrictions making hearing bands on the main stage difficult (already made much the…
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As I sit down to write this review, I’m reading a newspaper article on Rogue’s Gallery, comprised almost entirely of reactions to the show from Twitter. Many of which seemed to be negative, and thus they argue: Sydney was outraged by the show! Since when did out-of-context comments on Twitter become a voice of authority?…
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When it comes to “supergroups”, let’s face it: the majority have been disappointing at best. But then again, none of them had the calibre of talent that Them Crooked Vultures has at its disposal. On drums, the legendary Dave Grohl (tonight playing in the same venue he played with Nirvana back in 1992). On guitar…
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I’ve done 5 days of Bluesfest, the two and a bit days of Splendour – I even did 2 V Festivals one year. I’ve done 8 consecutive nights of live music. But going to 2 Big Day Outs in a row, in Sydney, on the two hottest days of the year – I don’t think…
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If there’s one success story worth looking into, it’s that of A Fire Inside (AFI), a Californian alternative rock band who exploded into worldwide prominence in 2003. Little do many know, however, that this happened 12 years after they’d formed. But they’ve been unstoppable since. I recently had the opportunity to speak with drummer Adam Carson, ahead…
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First up were Sydney’s own Bridezilla – or as Colin “Grizzly” Meloy, Decemberists unshaven frontman, called them – our local heroes! And indeed they are, continuing to impress crowds wherever they pop up… which seems to be just about everywhere at the moment, keeping the girls (and boy) very busy no doubt. We’ve spent plenty…
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