Planning a Sydney picnic? East 33 are now offering their spring season oysters fresh from the farm to your door

Right now, with relaxed restrictions regarding small outdoor gatherings, Sydneysiders have one thing on their mind. Picnics. And some of the city’s best restaurants are moving quickly to adapt, introducing picnic hampers, having bake sales, and putting together produce to make picnic planning that much easier. Although not much can rival getting produce direct from…

Read More

This $150 limited edition food box proves Porcine is one of the best new restaurants in Sydney

With Shane Delia’s recently launched Providoor Sydney has been going off lately, locked-down Sydneysiders have been getting used to getting food boxes delivered from some of the city’s best restaurants. Pre-proportioned ingredients are all ready to cook up into a hearty, restaurant-quality meal. It was only a matter of time before other restaurants hopped onto…

Read More
Concrete Surfers

Track by Track: Brisbane’s Concrete Surfers take a deep dive into their Calamities EP

Brisbane rockers Concrete Surfers today dropped their latest EP, Calamities, a well-crafted four-track collection of high-octane surf-rock. With grungy vocals, a driving beat and songs addressing issues that relate to the youth of Australia, it’s another winner from the boys from Brisbane. They live-tracked the EP, capturing the energy of their renowned live shows. It’s…

Read More
NBA 2K22

NBA 2K22 Review: Consistency, and the art of being a team player

NBA 2K22 couldn’t have arrived at a better time. It’s been a rough couple of seasons for the NBA. A global pandemic, postponed games, bubble playoffs, shortened seasons and play-in tournaments have charted a new future for the sport. The lone beacon of consistency: that the NBA 2K franchise will smash out its annual instalment,…

Read More
H3000

Interview: H3000’s Luke Steele on their debut album, collaborating with Jarrad Rogers and what a H3000 live show might look like

H3000 is a collaboration between Luke Steele of Empire of the Sun, The Sleepy Jackson and DREAMS fame, and Jarrad Rogers who has written songs for and produced for the likes of Charli XCX, Rita Ora, Lana Del Ray and so many more. Today they release their debut self-titled album, a cosmic collection of songs…

Read More

Moneyboys is a respectful depiction of homosexuality in mainland China: Taiwan Film Festival in Australia Review

Films dealing with queer thematics are few and far between in mainland China.  Due to the government’s strict regime on censorship, stories detailing the LGBTQ communities are a rarity, which is why a feature like Moneyboys is all the more curious.  Though set in China, it was filmed in the neighbouring Taiwan, co-financed with European…

Read More

Billie Eilish talks the music of James Bond in latest No Time To Die: The Official Podcast Series episode; “I wanted to give the song something I’ve never done before”

Launched on September 9th on all major podcast platforms, No Time To Die: The Official James Bond Podcast features unrivalled behind the scenes access to one of the world’s most successful franchises. Hosted by British film critic James King, the six-part series features interviews with director Cary Joji Fukunaga, producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara…

Read More
James Vincent McMorrow

Album of the Week: James Vincent McMorrow – Grapefruit Season (2021 LP)

I still remember the first time I saw James Vincent McMorrow live. It was the inaugural leg of Falls Festival Byron Bay and it was disgustingly hot. Just days away from releasing his second album, Post Tropical, McMorrow played a mid-afternoon slot and proceeded to crush his set, all the while struggling with the Australian…

Read More

Rustler Review: a not-so-perfect medieval homage to classic Grand Theft Auto

Rustler has been on Steam’s Early Access since February of this year, but has only recently fully-launched. You’re thrown back into the good ol’ medieval days as Guy, who just wants to join the Grand Tournament. Well, his buddy, Buddy, has forced him to want to. Now, Guy’s also forced to commit all sorts of…

Read More

OzAsia Festival announces new writing and ideas program, In Other Words

More than 40 Asian and Australian writers will come together for In Other Words, a new writing and ideas program from the OzAsia Festival team. Curated by Laura Kroetsch, Benjamin Law, and Roanna Gonsalves, the program will run from November 5th to 7th, with guests able to attend either in person at the Dunstan Playhouse…

Read More

Film Review: Pig is one of the best films of 2021 thanks to its gripping emotional honesty and a fantastic Nicolas Cage

Pig tells the story of Rob (a wonderfully subtle Nicolas Cage), a former renowned chef turned truffle hunter who resides in a cabin deep in the forest who makes a living by hunting for truffles with the help of his valuable foraging pig. He sells the truffles to young supplier and friend Amir (a stellar…

Read More
Saloum

Saloum blends action, comedy, horror and drama into a satisfying thrill-ride: TIFF 2021 Review

Saloum tells the story of three mercenaries Chaka (Yann Gael), Rafa (Roger Sallah) and Minuit (Mentor Ba) who are tasked to extract a Mexican drug dealer Felix (Renaud Farah) and his cargo of gold and drugs away from the chaos of the government overthrow of Guinea-Bissau and transfer to Dakar, Senegal. But when their means…

Read More

The Rescue is an emotionally rousing & suspenseful documentary about the Tham Luang cave rescue: TIFF 2021 Review

“There is a difference between knowing the path and walking the path.” This is a quote from the 1999 sci-fi hit The Matrix by the Wachowskis. Why is this being quoted, you ask? This quote was stuck in this critic’s mind as he was watching the latest project from documentary filmmakers by Jimmy Chin and…

Read More
Lakesedge

Book Review: Lyndall Clipstone sets the bar high in moody YA fantasy Lakesedge

Leta has heard the rumours about Rowan Sylvanan, the monster who drowned his entire family as a boy. But the dangerous young lord of Lakesedge might be the only one who can help her brother Arien, afflicted by a dark and violent magic that threatens to overtake him. But upon entering the grounds of Lakesedge,…

Read More

Film Review: Disclosure is a tense and all-too-raw drama that delights in its ambiguity

Opening with particularly confronting sexual imagery – something that appears unwarranted for gratuity sake before its bookend re-appearance – Disclosure is an unbearably tense and all-too raw drama that leans into the notion that adults can still very much act like children when provoked. And provoked the quartet at the centre of Michael Bentham‘s film…

Read More
Tony Birch

“Whatever you’re writing about, the story has to work. It has to be a good story.”: Author Tony Birch talks about his latest collection Dark As Last Night

Professor Tony Birch is the bestselling and award-winning Australian author of The White Girl, Ghost River, Blood, Shadowboxing, Father’s Day, The Promise and Common People. In 2017 he was awarded the Patrick White Literary Award. An activist, historian and essayist, Birch’s latest short story collection Dark As Last Night was released by the University of Queensland Press in August 2021. We caught up…

Read More

Film Review: Die In A Gunfight is tragically dead on arrival

Just because a story has been done before, doesn’t mean it can’t be told in a manner that offers something new.  In the case of Die In A Gunfight, a supposedly romantic thriller influenced by Shakespeare’s classic tale Romeo & Juliet, its intent on bringing flare to proceedings is so chaotic and desperate that it…

Read More

Zalava is an engaging mix of genre thrills, social commentary and potent drama: TIFF 2021 Review

Set in 1978, the film tells the story of a mountain village of Zalava in Kurdistan that is supposedly plagued by an ancient curse. The villagers are so drawn into the story of the curse that they have been driven into the ways that veer into levels of superstition, involving the use of metals as…

Read More

Track of the Week: FANGZ “I Don’t Like Me” (2021)

Keen for some solid skate-punk to get you through Wednesday? We got you! “I Don’t Like Me” is the latest from Sydney’s FANGZ, and we can’t get enough of it! It’s loud, catchy, and exactly what we needed to hear today. Frontman Joshua Cottreau said: “‘I Don’t Like Me’ is about the version of ourselves…

Read More

Vengeance is Mine, All Others Pay Cash is a bewildering but worthwhile genre-mashup: TIFF 2021 Review

Set in ‘80s West Java, Indonesia, Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash tells the story of Ajo Kawir (Marthino Lio), a tenacious street brawler who is famous for his fearless attitude. Through his many manly acts of destruction and machismo lies a condition that fuels it all – his sexual impotence. Even with numerous…

Read More

Interview: Evie Irie on “Bleed”, convincing her parents to move countries and Amy Shark

Evie Irie is one of the most powerful talents on the rise in Australia. When she was 15, she managed to convince her family to relocate to the US for her music career – a move that has seen her share stages with Bastille, Sigrid and Amy Shark, while hounding open mic nights and discovering…

Read More

Booker Prize announces 2021 shortlist

  This year’s Booker Prize shortlist was released over night, with the prize’s website stating that “as always, the lucky winners will be the readers“. The final six novels, whittled down from a longlist of thirteen, includes previous shortlistees Richard Powers and Damon Galgut, as well as debut novelist Patricia Lockwood and fan favourite Maggie…

Read More
With Blue

Exclusive EP Premiere: With Blue – Pleasure Lies (2021 EP)

Brisbane indie-rockers With Blue have been making their mark on the live music scene since forming in 2018. With their catchy melodies and sweet harmonies, the quartet have been rewarded with a solid following in the Brisbane music scene. We are stoked today to be premiering their debut EP, Pleasure Lies, ahead of its release…

Read More

Live Review: Pretty Uglys – Jack Rabbit Slim’s, Perth (11.09.21)

Perth surfie punk-rock trio Pretty Uglys have been generating lots of hype lately, fueled by popular new single “Your Shade” prompting a strong turnout to their Saturday night show in their hometown. Pretty Uglys’ tunes are gritty punk but it’s grunge-y yet summery, loose with a surfer twang, heavy on driving bass, unrelenting drums and…

Read More

Encounter is an intentionally ambiguous sci-fi drama that furthers Riz Ahmed’s star quality: TIFF 2021 Review

There’s a consistent thrill to Encounter, Michael Pearce‘s ambitious science fiction-leaning effort that delights in its ambiguous nature.  At least, for the most part.  Seen through the eyes of an unreliable narrator (an as expected stellar Riz Ahmed), Pearce’s film is better when it’s holding on to its secrets.  There’s something deeper and darker at…

Read More
Lucy Burke

Exclusive Single Premiere: Lucy Burke “Deaf Ears” (2021)

With the #FreeBritney movement receiving considerable press in recent times, Sydney-based singer/songwriter Lucy Burke‘s latest track, “Dear Ears” is ever so relevant. It casts the listener into the world of legendary female artists, such as Britney Spears, Amy Winehouse and Marilyn Monroe, reflecting on how helpless and they must have felt with all that fame…

Read More

The Starling squanders any of its emotional potential with lazy manipulation: TIFF 2021 Review

There’s a hopeful message about tackling grief in a healthy manner and how there’s the possibility of light at the end of darkness present in the core of The Starling.  With so many promising ingredients too, Theodore Melfi‘s feel-good dramedy is likely to lure audiences in with a false sense of security, promising potential but…

Read More
Deathloop

Deathloop Review: Deja vu, I’ve just been in this place before

Deathloop is a brand new IP from Arkane Studios, the team behind Dishonored and Prey. Arkane makes “immersive sims,” a school of game design that considers player agency to be of paramount importance. Whatever idea the player might have, in whatever way they choose to tackle an objective, the game should accommodate for it. This…

Read More
Montgomery

Melbourne’s Montgomery gives us her sentimental playlist

Earlier this month Melbourne singer/songwriter Montgomery released the dreamy “Close To Being Apart”. It’s a beautifully lush track, with shimmering vocals. It oozes emotion, whilst giving off a dance vibe. The track examines moving on, with new experiences and relationships, whilst having to let go of other parts of our lives. “Close To Being Apart”…

Read More

The Guilty is an intense showcase for the ever commanding Jake Gyllenhaal: TIFF 2021 Review

The 2018 Danish thriller The Guilty was riveting, ruthless material.  This American remake, coming courtesy of director Antoine Fuqua (Training Day, The Equalizer), is much of the same, which means those who have seen the original will find the plotting all too familiar, yet those uninitiated are likely to be wholly swept up in its…

Read More