Steady Eye with Tahlia Palmer
Unless you are of the gothic or rockabilly persuasion, it is a common known fact that summer is fun. Lots of fun. And it’s definitely more sexy-fun than any other season. So I thought I’d conduct a little research and try to nut this thing out. Does heat make us horny?
The sun provides us with Vitamin D. We can’t get it from any other source, so we lap it up like dogs whenever we can. This little guy makes for the happy in our heads, hearts, and apparently, our loins. A lack of Vitamin D means depression and a depleted sex drive. This may not be specific to every human being on the planet- babies are still born in areas close to the north pole- but as a general rule, it makes sense. No one locked in a cupboard (or shut away during a Melbourne winter) for three months is going to be humping anyone’s leg the moment they open the door to let them out.
But with the onset of summer, the stockings come off legs, the toes are let out of boots, shoulders and cleavage is bared and everything again seems alright with the world. With so much flesh on display, and so much sweat and beach water giving everything a sexy sheen, it only stands to reason that it’s more tempting to be tempted at this stage of the year.
Everyone knows that the average temperature is getting warmer as the years go on. But I bet you didn’t know that with the increase of temperature, there has also been an increase in marriages Australia, as well as a decrease in divorces. It is possible that newly weds are making wiser choices when it comes to the whole life-partner thing, but I don’t have that much faith in humans who find it necessary to get married to begin with, so I’m going to stick to my theory. It’s all the weather’s fault.
Australian women are having more babies lately too. 2008 saw the peak of Australian births in a 10 year period. According to the Bureau of Meteorology, 2008 was a “warmer than average year”. Of those babies born, there was a slight majority born in September and October. Which means those babies were conceived in December/January. Ayyyy? Ayyy? It’s all falling into place.
On a slightly more serious note, a backlash to all this summer-time frivolity, studies have shown that babies conceived in the spring and summer are more likely than others to be born with a range of birth defects. A possible reason for this is all the pesticides and everything in surface water, which happens to peak during this time of the year.
An interesting note on all of this is that unplanned pregnancies during summer are more likely to be had by more disadvantaged members of society. That’s what the statistics say. And in my mind it goes like this: poorer, less educated mothers and fathers living in houses close to industrial areas are drunkenly conceiving babies at their mate’s new years eve party, then don’t bother to give up drinking and smoking, don’t eat properly and low and behold you’ve got another tiny child with an annoying nasal voice who’ll grow up respecting reality TV stars more than their teachers and start smoking at 12 years old, eventually knocking up the girl down the road when they’re both 17…
Back to the fun part though: I think I’ve proved my point. Heat does seem to get our juice flowing. Not necessarily heat itself, but definitely all the things that come with an Australian summer: bikini bodies and lots of booze. I cannot wait to be back in Perth this summer, lapping up the consistent heat, hanging out in paddling pools, partying with my buddies, opening the Christmas card that no doubt has a $30 Myer voucher from my grandmother… It’s going to be one good ol’ fashioned sexy summer.
 
Live Reviews with Lyndon Blue
BEARS IN THE NIGHT, SONNY ROOFS, MODULARMAN & CRAIG McE @ MOJO'S, TUESDAY NOVEMBER 3
Curling around the chin of the Gulf of Mexico is the Tabasco state River, tapering across the region’s tropical coast plains into warm, woozy swamps and lagoons. Fun fact – it was this very river whose name Elmund McIlhinney purloined in 1868 to bestow upon his tasty, tangy hot pepper sauce we know and love. Right now, a gentlemen of a suspiciously similar handle – one Craig McElhinney – sits bathed in a red glow not unlike that of the aforesaid condiment, and emenating from his guitar a seething cataract of red noise evoking distant rapids in a silent forest. It’s in this tranquil, meditative, escapist realm that McElhinney forges his craft; breezy ambient washes, creeping riffs and subtle tapping, languid loops and drum-machine deluge. One might call it ‘drone’, but don’t go confusing McElhinney with the recent profusion of half-arsed
stoner-glop hacks; this man hones his drones, painstakingly prying every melodious nuance from the cosmic sauce-bottle of sound. McElhinney is the El Greco of dulcet guitar experimentalism; and it was nothing less than sacrilege to witness some stupendously sauced turkey mount the stage with beer and camcorder demanding that he ‘do something.’ What this ballsniffing buffoon failed to see was that while the set was devoid of much visual simuli, McElhinney was ‘doing something’ spicy, sublime and sensational.
Fun fact! Marvel Comics first introduced their not-so-nefarious supervillain ‘Modular Man’ in ‘Rampaging Hulk #2,’ April 1977. His powers included strength, endurance, microwave manipulation and the ability to dissemble and rearrange his own robo-skeleton body. Excluding microwaves, the same could be said of the band that bears the moniker; their riffs are powerful, their stamina commendable, and they deftly rearrange their heavily effected bass-drums-guitar skeleton into an array of peculiar time signatures and unconventional structures. Alas, the intersection between ability and inspiration can be elusive – and despite flashes of greatness, Modularman wind up too often in that barren terrain of contrived, ostentatious crassturbation, reminiscent of Muse disappearing up Pivot’s math-rock arsehole. There are certainly far worse arseholes to disappear
up, though.
The Grizzly Bear can run as fast as the average horse – there’s a fun fact for you! Someone should sneak a few into next year’s Melbourne Cup (the annual animal-slavery gala that likely accounts for the sozzled stage-crasher earlier in the evening). Tonight, Bears in the Night give their debut performance, and it’s laced with much of the sophistication that the ‘Cup isn’t – slick melodic arrangements recalling Explosions in the Sky and Floyd-esque jammery, typified in the epic track ‘The Moth.’ Like any fresh-faced cubs, these bears have a few teething problems to overcome, but with time and spit-shine these paws could extract some rather sweet honey.
Sonny Roofs’ three hairy members introduce themselves as Marsupial Cave, Lunar Peepshow and Rumble Warrior, so you know you’re in for something fucking great. The warlock triumvirate then take you by the ankles and dunk you straight into a frothing cauldron full of throbbing groove-drone, penetrating stoner beats festooned with sherbert-fizz bass, smeared with seductive space-wah guitar. The group’s hallucinatory convulsions are more focused and neatly orchestrated than in the past, adding welcome definition to the experience. I could tell you about Sonny’s Roofing Co. in Gilbert, Arizona, but the fact of this set’s existence alone is fun enough. And sailing down from the shimmering hotsauce echoloop sludge soup cloud plateau in which the evening was quartered, it’s fun to know that in this expensive world you can still have your mind bent, legally,
for no more than the loose goldies in your jean pocket.
Clark of Warp records plays Perth - TONIGHT!!
{Move} and Cool Perth Nights proudly present Warp Records most notorious sonic explorer - Clark - live and direct from the UK.
Followers of this crucial UK artist, and those of you with a healthy dose of curiosity when it comes to new directions in dance music ought feel very lucky to be able to experience Clark for his very first Australian live set performance. Having released 6 EPs and 5 LPs to critical acclaim through the Warp records imprint, Chris Clark - on the tail end of a tour through Europe’s capital cities and on his way to the Spectacular Warp20 showcase in Tokyo - is set to be in very fine form.
Friday, November 6, at The Republic on the corner of Wellington Street and Shafto Lane in the city; this venue has limited capacity for such an outstanding artist and that’s the way it should be!
Support comes from Dave Miller of Pivot (Warp records), and pysch-beat-freak Naik (PaperChain); having recently released his debut LP ‘In The Shadow of Thunder Mountain’ this performance should not be missed. Plus, DJ Ben Taaffe making strategic {move}s and Petro Vouris bringing some Love to close the night off!
Tickets on sale through heatseeker.com.au, available at Planet, 78s and Mills from Tuesday October 20. Very limited tickets will be available on the door on the night of the show from 9pm. Be very ready to get your Clark on..
buy tickets here!
check his tunes here!
The Justin Walshe Folk Machine Single Launch-Tonight!!
After a couple of cracking shows in WA's south west over the weekend, The Machine are hitting their straps and exploding all over The Norfolk Basement This Friday for the release of our new single Pockets Full of Gold - Drum Media Single of The Week.
THE JUSTIN WALSHE FOLK MACHINE
POCKETS FULL OF GOLD SINGLE LAUNCH
Tonight at the Norfolk Basement, doors open at 8
The first 50 through the door score a free copy of the new single (which also stars Miss Whisky as a very jealous B-side), plus you get a chance to dance to some damn fine music warming up the evening's early hours with...
Xave Brown & his Magic Band, Hang on St Christopher and Mitch Becker
This is Justin and Co's last full band show in Freo this year with one more extravaganza planed for The Perth Blues Club on Tues Dec 1 when we get back from their East Coast Tour...
www.myspace.com/justinwalshe
Major Minor Festival
Yes!! Saturday November 28 at Mojos Bar the art rock - indie rock - local band - music festival... Major Minor Festival... will be laid upon you all!
Playing ths day and night event are;
Pond, Carbuncle, Injured Ninja, the Silents, Chatesy La Rouge, Turn, Jimmy Stewart (Melbs), Pex
+ more to be announced!
DJs laying down tunes in the beer garden are;
Traianos, Andrew Sinclair, Tanya De Souza-Meally
+ more to be announce
Paul Kaminski will be doing visual projections during the show too!
Show runs from 2pm-1am and will have door entry fee of a very low $12!
>>There will be no presales<<
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