folk

A Punter’s Perspective #36 — The Paperback Sessions

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Paperback Sessions at Smiths Alternative Bookshop, Canberra City
Paperback Sessions at Smiths Alternative Bookshop, Canberra City

A Punter’s Perspective

Random observations on the wide, weird world of folk from the side of the stage

#36 The Paperback Sessions
First published in Trad and Now magazine, August 2012

Regular readers of this column, apart from probably needing a little light therapy, can probably discern a few recurring themes.

Not the least of these is the little bubbles of childish joy the author gets when a new venue or opportunity for live, original music makes its way onto the scene.

I’ve spent most of my adult life railing against two eminently and easily explodable myths: 1. Canberra’s boring, and 2. There’s nothing to do in Canberra.

Both are, of course, big steaming piles of dynamic lifter.

Friday nights particularly are troublesome with the multiplicities of options if you haven’t been able to replicate yourself into about six or seven independent entities.

Without having to refer to a gig guide, I can tell you that you need to divide yourself between the Phoenix bar, Bucky’s Lone Wolf gigs at the Harmonie German Club, the always wonderful Front Café, the newly-launched Canberra Musicians Club gigs at the Polish White Eagle Club, folk gigs at the Merry Muse, the Transit Bar conveniently located under the youth hostel, the odd very fine line-ups at Alliance Francaise and the occasional gig at old stagers, Tilley Devine’s.

Not bad for a metropolis of only about 360 000. And that’s just the gigs riffed off the top of the head. I’m sure there are many others. (See www.culturazi.com for any missing bits and pieces.)

Still, it’s a thing of joy and beauty to welcome a new player onto the scene. Because if you want to get away from three-chord covers bashers, replete with drum machines, in the clubs, Canberra really does offer a feast of the good stuff. And we’re big and ugly enough to offer a smorgasbord and share the audiences and audients about.

Which is not to say the occasional gig doesn’t kick off with the sound rattling around in poorly-attended venues. That will happen. Some days are diamonds, some days are when you struggle to clear the venue costs and pay the sound guy.

So. One such venue made its way into Canberra’s mix recently with just the right amount of fanfare, immediate support and a growing profile.

Continue reading →

Jenny M Thomas and the System + The Lucky Wonders, Canberra, Friday 17 August

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Jenny M Thomas and the System
Jenny M Thomas and the System

Jenny M Thomas and the System

with The Lucky Wonders

Merry Muse, Turner Bowling Club, Canberra

Friday 17 August 2012, 7.30 for 8pm

Facebook event: http://www.facebook.com/events/474267682592212/

I’m going to have my patented two grabs at this interview.

Firstly, here’s an edited version of a radio interview I did not so long ago with Jenny M Thomas as the album ‘Bush Gothic’ was launching. I’ve just surgically removed a couple of references to the then gig at another venue:

*** THE AUDIO OF THIS INTERVIEW HAS BEEN DELETED FROM SOUNDCLOUD DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS ***

*** THE AUDIO OF THIS INTERVIEW HAS BEEN DELETED FROM SOUNDCLOUD DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS ***

So, on Friday 17 August, Jenny M Thomas and the System will be performing at the Merry Muse and you can find out all those gig details there now.

Tonight, after Jenny spends approximately an hour in hair, wardrobe and make-up, I’ll be talking with Jenny on the phone from Melbourne to get the latest on what’s going on with her and the System. Gotta keep it fresh, y’all.

And THEN the text of said interview will appear here or on a very fine folk blog — details will be posted here either way.

OK. I think we’re done for now. If you haven’t clicked on the link on the sound file yet, have a watch of this great video from ABC Radio.

STOP PRESS

In sharing the event information with the support act, I stumbled across this video on their Facebook page and, not for the first time this 24 hours, fell in instant metaphoric musical love. Click play and soak into this one like you would a warm tub. Wonderful:

A Punter’s Perspective #34 — This time, it’s personal

Overheard Productions Trad and Now ,
This time, it's personal
This time, it’s personal

A Punter’s Perspective

Random observations on the wide, weird world of folk from the side of the stage

#34 This time, it’s personal
First published in Trad and Now magazine, April 2012

Fun fact: this is ‘A Punter’s Perspective’ edition #34.

And I draw attention to the edition number here for only the second time, and for the first time since I wrote my first column in December 2006.

Is edition number 34 significant?

Absolutely not. And absolutely yes. And for sure and for certain. And not in the slightest.

It all depends on your perspective.

34 is the number of the house in north Canberra where I lived from ages 4 to 18.

So it has no actual relevance or significance here, except in the same way it’s strangely satisfying when you order your breakfast at the local caf, and you’re handed a table number that happens to be your lucky number.

(36, for the record. Scrambled eggs with smoked salmon and a long black. And water. ‘Et est-ce que vous avez des aspirins? I have a hangover you could photograph.’ Name that film.)

The preceding paragraphs may have struck a cord (or a chord) with you. Or, like so many versions of ‘A Punter’s Perspective’ in the last five and a half years, they’ve left you staring incredulously into the middle distance as you stir your soy chai latté with an index finger, mumbling, ‘What a load of self-indulgent toss’. Continue reading →

A Punter’s Perspective #33 — 2012 Northern Beaches Music Festival

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Northern Beaches Music Festival at Berry Reserve, Narabeen
Northern Beaches Music Festival at Berry Reserve, Narabeen

A Punter’s Perspective

Random observations on the wide, weird world of folk from the side of the stage

#33 Northern Beaches Music Festival
First published in Trad and Now magazine, March 2012

It’s always a good sign when you get a good vibe from a festival merely by walking through the front gate.

And so it was on the opening night of the second Northern Beaches Music Festival in Narabeen on the northern beaches of Sydney in February.

My first impression was ‘compact’ — in a good way. Venues are situated so closely within the confines of the Berry Reserve at Narrabeen, all five performance spaces were easily within no more than 60 seconds apart.

Walk in the front past the free stage and you were immediately at the main marquee. A quick stroll further on and you were in the downstairs Berry venue, up one flight of stairs and it was the large Lakside venue, and the ‘Tramshed’ (home of The Shack folk club) was a pitching wedge away.

For all of that, sound spill did not seem to be a factor.

Still very much in its infancy, NBMF is the brain child of Paul Robertson, and his background in theatre, TV production and outside broadcasts is evident in some of the organisational nous that’s behind the festival. Continue reading →

The Pat Drummond interviews, May 2012

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Pat Drummond tribute concert, Merry Muse, Canberra
Pat Drummond tribute concert, Merry Muse, Canberra

Pat Drummond interviews

The day after the tribute night before

Pat Drummond has built up a formidable musical legacy. And he’s not done yet.

So while he could attend his own tribute concert, sit in the front row, and inevitably jump up and provide a fair slice of the entertainment himself, he did just that.

The brain-child of long-time friend Craig Dawson, the night was held at The Merry Muse, Turner Bowling Club on Friday 18 May 2012.

For more details on the actual night, see the ‘A Punter’s Perspective’ column in the May edition of ‘Trad and Now‘ magazine. $4.90 in newsagents and considerably less online.

And for the audio of the actual interviews, click below. My apologies for the quality of the audio; my MP3 recorder is taking a holiday somewhere without me and has resisted all entreaties to Saint Anthony to show itself. So the audio tracks are on a very average voice recorder on my soon-to-be ex-phone.

*** THE AUDIO OF THIS INTERVIEW HAS BEEN DELETED FROM SOUNDCLOUD DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS ***

and

*** THE AUDIO OF THIS INTERVIEW HAS BEEN DELETED FROM SOUNDCLOUD DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS ***

Thanks, Pat, for the last 35 years. Looking forward to the next 35.

Pat Drummond starts the evening as a mere spectator
Pat Drummond starts the evening as a mere spectator
Pat Drummond, Geoff Drummond and Fred Pilcher -- video to follow!
Pat Drummond, Fred Pilcher and Geoff Drummond — video to follow!

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Paul Greene guerrilla interview: on tour around Australia

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Paul Greene
Paul Greene

Paul Greene on tour around Australia

In Canberra on Thursday 10 May

The Front Café and Gallery

Paul Greene is making his way around Australia, and on the digital version of two cans with a bloody long string between them, Bill Quinn caught up with Paul on the road as he motored from Port Lincoln, South Australia towards Melbourne for a TV appearance.

*** THE AUDIO OF THIS INTERVIEW HAS BEEN DELETED FROM SOUNDCLOUD DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS ***

*** THE AUDIO OF THIS INTERVIEW HAS BEEN DELETED FROM SOUNDCLOUD DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS ***

 

A Punter’s Perspective #32 — The Artists’ Shed, Queanbeyan

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The Beez at The Artists' Shed, February 2012
The Beez at The Artists’ Shed, February 2012

A Punter’s Perspective

Random observations on the wide, weird world of folk from the side of the stage

#32 Take one large shed, add art and music. Mix and serve.
First published in Trad and Now magazine, February 2012

At a time when venues are closing and festivals are either taking years off or simply disappearing off the calendar, it’s heartening to hear when a café/restaurant throws open its doors to live, original music or another venue opens.

A relative newcomer to the Canberra/Queanbeyan melange of venues is The Artists’ Shed, a large ramshackle and rustic barn of a place plonked in the middle of an industrial estate on the eastern side of Queanbeyan (or Quangers as it’s affectionately known in some circles).

It’s not exactly where you’d expect to find a home for music and the arts. Even the directions to get there raise an eyebrow or two: ‘Head up Yass Road, turn at Magnet Mart, go left, go right and look for the big shed with the Bogong moth on the side’.

Right.

Kicking off in April 2011, the Shed Sessions brought a trickle of local talent in which soon became a torrent and they’re pretty solidly booked into 2012. With the burgeoning numbers has come a rise in press coverage, and the profile of the artists performing, but always with a place for home-grown Queanbeyan and district talent. Continue reading →

Greg Quinn: Time to Me or ‘He’ Is Calling You But You’re Probably Not Listening

Overheard Productions Miscellaneous , ,
Ainslea's Secret found in Beyond Q bookstore, 2011
Ainslea’s Secret found in Beyond Q bookstore, 2011

Time to Me by Greg Quinn

He* is calling you, but you’re probably not listening…

* Yes, that’s a reference to the Christian version of a deity – one of countless tens of thousands, but this is not a story about religion per se. Promise.

A colleague and I were mucking around and bantering on Facebook today, and the subject of our old alma mater came up. We share a similar sense of humour, and the mention of ‘bona fides’ led to ‘Fortes in Fide’ (from our old school motto: Strong in Faith).

In the course of our online conversation, my colleague mentioned the school anthem, which I confused with the popular hit of a hymn, ‘Eagle’s Wings’.

And it prompted a bitter-sweet memory.

I spent the first 18+ years of my life in the Canberra suburb of Downer. My mum referred to where we lived as ‘Upper Downer’, which was beautifully ironic, as I’m fairly sure that our property was at the exact lowest point in the rather large suburb. Mum always said she was going to start up a movement called, “Downer Is A Beautiful Suburb”.

Our family started its time in Canberra at #20 Wheelbarrow Street, Downer. Elder sister M. was born in 1965 in Camperdown Hospital just as mum and dad were relocating from Harris Park, Sydney to Canberra, allegedly for one year for dad to move from the NSW TAFE system to the then new Commonwealth Teaching Service.

In 1970, when I was three years old and just about to start pre-school, we moved a whole seven doors down the road to #34 Wheelbarrow Street. We may have all carried some of our goods and chattels, and I have a dodgy memory of dad loading up his old box trailer with stuff and getting some neighbourhood friends to help push it the 130 metres (I’m reliably informed by Google Maps).

The next year, in November 1971, my little brother Greg burst forth into the world to complete the fivesome of we Quinn siblings. Yes. Five Quinns. NO, STOP. We have heard all the jokes about five quins, I mean, Quinns.

Greg was a Daramalan College, Dickson Class of 1989 graduate. He then returned to the school to be a teacher’s aide in computing. Greg was also heavily involved with the legendary annual Daramalan school musical/play productions. Any time I hear the strains of any part of the seminal recording of Evita with Julie Covington urging Peronistas to not cry for her, Argentina, I’m back in Downer, with Greg doing lighting, mentoring performers, and even sewing some costumes.

Greg died of brain cancer at 4am, Saturday 22 August 1998 in Clare Holland House hospice which was situated in the grounds of the then Royal Canberra Hospital. It’s now been supplanted by the admin building for the National Museum of Australia, after a Commonwealth/ACT land swap moved the hospice east along the shores of Lake Burley Griffin to 5 Menindee Drive Barton.  Continue reading →

The Beez are buzzing their last in Australia for 2012

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The Beez are buzzing their last in Australia for 2012

Last chance to see this weekend at Mount Beauty Music Festival, Victoria

Regular visitors to Australia, The Beez, will be having one last hurrah at the Mount Beauty Music Festival this weekend in Victoria then wending their way back for a fly out to home later this week.

So take one last chance in Victoria or join them in cyberspace and buy up all their albums:

* ‘Look What They’ve Done To My Song’ is a fresh take on other people’s stuff, and

* ‘Freishcwhimmer’ is all there own — that spelling may be dodgy — can’t find a reference right now and my battery’s about to go kaput!

www.thebeez.de

Listen to the music of The Beez

My article in 2009 on The Beez tour:

https://overheardproductions.com/2012/03/15/a-punters-perspective-16-the-beez-portrait-of-a-band-at-the-end-of-a-very-long-road/

Georg taping for Commusication im Berlin, Kangaroo Valley Folk Festival
Georg taping for Commusication im Berlin, Kangaroo Valley Folk Festival

 

Guerilla interview: Pete Akhurst (Canberra)

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Pete Akhurst

Guerilla interview:

Pete Akhurst (Canberra)

Waiting in a cold studio in Canberra, unable to make contact with my planned interviewee, feeling pretty low and de-energised, but still noodling on Facebook (mostly trying to find contact details for aforementioned interviewee), a concept was born: guerilla interviews.

In front of me were 450+ Facebook ‘friends’. Most of these are musicians or in some way related to the industry.

Surely someone out there must have something to plug and be yearning for some exposure.

I put the call out to two, and one put their hand up.

Pete Akhurst of Canberra.

He’s on at The Front on Thursday 18 April 2012 with Marshall Okell.

Click here and enjoy. Note: all the usual cutting, pasting and snipping and trimming and balancing and equalising are not to be had. This is interviewing in the raw:

 *** THE AUDIO OF THIS INTERVIEW HAS BEEN DELETED FROM SOUNDCLOUD DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS ***

http://soundcloud.com/overheard-productions/pete-akhurst

 *** THE AUDIO OF THIS INTERVIEW HAS BEEN DELETED FROM SOUNDCLOUD DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS ***

Let me know what you think.

More importantly, get in to Pete’s music and let him know what you think.

See you at The Front tomorrow night.

Bill Quinn
Overheard Productions