Tagged By video

Eliza Hull – ‘Five’

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The colourful new video for Eliza Hull’s ‘Five’ is not my cup of tea. The dodgey grade and colour filters were probably used because throwing around coloured powder doesn’t have that much punch in the Australia bush. Ugly ‘bush doof’ aside, I really like this track. ‘Five’ is obviously influenced by Lamb and the early 90’s bristol trip hop but Eliza’s strong voice makes it sound fresh and after a couple of plays I was hooked. Closer to home you could check out OSH10 if this is your bag. Hopefully ‘five’ gets a good remix and maybe her next video will be shot at night and then all will be right in the world.

Listen to her tracks on bandcamp here http://soundcloud.com/showoffservices/sets/five-eliza-hull

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Allbrook/Avery – ‘Wait till morning’ Video

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Nick Allbrook came to my attention as the front showman of perth band ‘Pond’ at a gig at the Workers Club a while back. He was quite watchable and had the kind of allure that you can’t fake and most cool kids wish they had. I didn’t know if he could actually sing but I didn’t really give a shit – he was entertaining. Since then I have noticed a lot of chatter about the guy and of course plenty of distaste. I’m sure this project will attract similar love and hatred but what I really like about this video is that these guys are making something, albeit quick and nasty. My guess is cheap super 8 shot on the fly but instead of just getting stoned and talking crap they are making tunes and banging out videos. More is more folks and Nick Allbrook and Cameron Avery have created a collection of tracks for a release titled ‘Big ‘Art’. Check em out on News Years Eve here A Spinning Top New Year and pinch the other addictive single ‘Empty’ below.

Allbrook/Avery – ‘Below’ (MP3)

Listen to

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Dead Letter Chorus – 'All Mine'

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Earlier in the year, in the depths of winter, Dead Letter Chorus dropped one mighty-fine, super-summery clip on our doorsteps, accompanied by one darling of a film clip. Now, as we’re launching back into the warmer months, we’ve got a wistful-wintery tale, accompanied by a suitably darker clip. The track is All Mine and it’s the perfect follow up to Yellow House, as well as a rolling, harmonious, heart-wrenching ballad that deserves more adjectives than I could ever think of.

Both tracks are off Yearlings, Dead Letter Chorus’ recently released third album. Usually I avoid reviewing albums but this one deserves an extended mention. The album has a lot of guts, rolling deep in quality tracks and feels truly complete – every song owns its place.

It’s easy to harp on about the death of Australian folk music (and who can blame those who do?) but listening to the musical and lyrical scope of Yearlings, I’m less inclined to beat my head against the nearest hard, wall-like object. You can pick it up now, so you should. Personal favorite is I Belong With You, but honestly – it’s all fantastic

As an added bonus, they’re on tour right now – FBi Social this Saturday in Sydney and next Thursday at The Old Museum alongside favorites of mine Founds. More details, tickets and information for all y’all that like that kinda stuff is available here..

Check out Dead Letter Chorus on FB/Twitter

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Oh Ye Denver Birds – 'I Believe In Love, Kid'

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So many happy tones wiggling their way brain-wise from this tune ‘I Believe In Love, Kid‘. Oh Ye Denver Birds made the song, Allyson Alapont made a clip and it was pleasant and exciting for everyone involved (I assume). Electronically affected indie is all over the place and largely gross, foul and uninspiring – not so of Oh Ye Denver Birds. To quote, this shit is bananas – and bananas are good. Plus the clip is a smiley, pleasant walk through indie-fun-times.

Oh Ye Denver Birds are radcore, and have a funtastic (albiet small) back-catalogue. They’re supporting Megastick Fanfare all over the country right now until the end of October, so you’ll get your chance to feast on these fowl. Thank me later.

Check out Oh Ye Denver Birds on FB/Twitter/Bandcamp

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Charlie Mayfair – 'Tell Her' (video)

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Charlie Mayfair are the indie-kids you bitch about in your corner of the local hipster tavern, cradling your broken egos over cider and tacos. They’re a reminder that you’ll never be quite as cool or as successful – or as beautiful and surprisingly charming. Unfortunately, they’re also genuinely gorgeous & fantastic musicians who are producing great tracks without fail.

This is the video clip for Tell Her, a song I covered earlier in the year. Director Jefferton James and cinematographer Byron Quandary have delivered a visual feast that compliments the emotional turmoil expressed in the song itself. While it dives into one or two cinematic cliches (e.g. the Sixth Sense dead but don’t know it standard) it’s precisely executed and lovely despite its (tiny) flaws.

I particularly love the moment in the picture below. Words cannot express the hipster poignancy that laces this moment. Plus that not-quite-shaggy-definitely-well-maintained facial hair is delightful to see in real life.

Check Tell Her out, and Charlie Mayfair as they tour near you in the nearest of futures.

P.S. I’m a fanboy, so what? You probably like The Living End and still live with your parents.

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Jordie Lane – Not From Round Here

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Jordie Lane is not Angus Stone. He’s got far too much lyrical depth and seems to be able to write songs that are, well, enjoyable. Live, he’s got a certain roguish charm – as well as a pseudo-self-defeating attitude, and a reluctant acceptance of the inevitable comparisons to the brother Stone. He’s one of Australia’s best, and I love his music – especially the track War Rages On from his first album.

Not From Round Here, the first single from his new album Blood Thinner, is visually delightful, crisp & clear and full of shots of open roads and rolling plains. If it was a tad more pastel, it would be a hipsters dream – but as it stands, it’s a great piece of filmmaking, conjuring all kinds of emotions & images. The song itself shows Lane at his best, a consumate songwriter telling modern stories in a classic way.

He’s launching his album soon, so you should check it, him & his sneaky banjo out.

Jordie Lane on FB

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‘200 Million & Counting’ – photo-media exhibition by Lizzie Hollins

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The Colour Factory is a print lab in Fitzroy Melbourne, that has recently opened an exhibition space on site featuring monthly shows with a preference for photographic work.

Lizzie Hollins’ work was produced in Europe, possibly whilst holidaying or backpacking. Hollins is interested in the tourist impact on culture and economy. I think the nature of humans traveling around the globe and gathering around certain destinations is quite an inspiration. It is interesting to step outside your environment whilst traveling and by shooting from an ariel vantage point, Hollins has achieved this whilst documenting something beautiful in the process.

The series of large scale images hang spaciously in contrast to a single monochrome projected video. The video studies the movement of pedestrian travellers or natives in an unknown city. Exposed for the shadows, the video image is predominatiely washed out white with silhouetted shapes of legs and then a moment of detail rises up from the sun bleached pavement.

The printed images immediately remind me of Andreas Gursky ariel work, who has studied plenty of mass gatherings but these pictures are quite different in that there are minimal people in the pictures. The gatherings are either humans in transit, walking around a location or stationary shapes, sitting gently in a park reading books and lounging. It’s interesting to note how humans seem to cluster whilst walking somewhere and then sit evenly spaced in a wide open park.

Up close, the printed images slightly disappoint, as the detail does not hold up for close scrutiny. This is due to the quality of capture but at normal viewing distance, they are fascinating. The patterns and texture lead your imagination on tangents, not unlike pondering abstract shapes in the clouds. I’m not sure that I would find all that Hollins hoped to express without an artist statement, I am sure this is an exhibition worth checking out. Coffee stains in the grass, tourist bodies forming a question mark shape and then noticing the shadow of a bridge that Hollins may well have been standing on to take the picture.

The Colour Factory Gallery – 409 Gore Street, Fitzroy. Opening hours are Monday – Friday, 8.30am – 5.30pm, Saturday 1.00 – 4.00pm.
The Exhibition runs from March 30-April 30, 2010 and you can contact the gallery on 03 9419 8756 to check easter opening hours.

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