The Scene - Local Entertainment News

Silence of the dreams

Girls with Flowers, one of the works on show in Poetic Dreams.

A new exhibition of colourful oil and acrylic works by local artists Kim Lainee, entitled Poetic Dreams, is now on show at Armistead's Gallery in Lismore.

Kim, originally from Sydney but now a north coast resident, is an artist inspired by Gaugin and the impressionist artists.

"As a small child I used to lie on my belly on the lounge room carpet under the light and gaze into Gaugin's paintings amongst others for hours and days at a time," she said.

"Painting for me is in every way being true to your inner child. It is the time when time itself no longer exists...when I get swept away becoming the paint on the end of the brush as it connects with the canvas. It is the time when I listen to the silence and the silence guides me."

Kim's exotic exhibition is on show until May 12. Armistead's Gallery is on Wyrallah Rd (in the Wootherspoon's building). It is open 9am - 5pm Monday to Friday and 10am to 1pm on Saturday.

Goorie art promotes good health

One of the Goorie art competition winners, Elizabeth (Mayi) Close from Muli Muli community at Woodenbong, with Dr Anthony Solomon from Dharah Gibinj Aboriginal Medical Service in Casino.

The winning entries in an Aboriginal art competition run by the Casino-based Dharah Gibinj Aboriginal Medical Service will be used to create a range of health promotion material aimed at people living in local Goorie communities.

The Goorie Art Competition was judged last week at the Richmond Valley Visitor Centre's Platypus Gallery. Amidst an impressive array of entries from local Bundjalung communities were winning works by Bianca Collins, Jubullum Village, Tabulam, Barry Harvey, Bonalbo, Elizabeth (Mayi) Close and Diane Boota, both from Muli Muli, Woodenbong and Adrian Torrens, Casino.

The winners received a $100 prize and will see their works used as part of good health material, such as posters and brochures, directed at specific aspects of Aboriginal life.

Superjesus risen again

The holy trinity - Stuart Rudd, Sarah McLeod and Paul Berryman.

"In our opinion this is our first record," says Sarah McLeod, guitarist and singer for Australian rock band Superjesus. "This is our number one. It's the first time we've got on tape the essence of the three of us. It's what we've always wanted to do and we've finally captured it."

That's a big rap for an album called Rock Music that is actually the third for Adelaide's foremost rock export. But it marks a new start for a band that refuses to stand still between albums.

Rock Music finds Superjesus honed to its essential ingredients - Sarah McLeod, Stuart Rudd and Paul Berryman. They are the sole survivors of the original Superjesus group that earned ARIA awards for Best New Band and Best Debut Single in 1997, kick starting one of Australia's great rock success stories.

1998's Sumo and 2000's Jet Age both went platinum, but they still believe less is more.

After personnel changes the band went through a time of retrospection and inspiration resulting in Sarah's new enthusiasm for songwriting and the band's decision to go with the three-piece approach.

"It's the first time I've written on my own and it felt really good," Sara said. "It's the obvious way to get directly to what I love about a song... and the whole band, the three of us, are right into it. For the first time, this is just us. It feels fantastic."

Taking advantage of this new approach and vitality, UK producer Marc Waterman (Ride, Ash, Elastica, Swervedriver) produced Rock Music at Mangrove Studios in late 2002. He turned the usual approach to recording upside down and encouraged the band to simulate the live situation and create a vibrant, rocking album.

The new Superjesus line-up are now embarking on their first tour for 2004, which brings them to the Lismore Workers Club on May 13. Tickets are likely to sell fast. Book now on 6621 7401.

Gay and the Kelly Gang

Cool Hand Kelly... catch him next Wednesday with Natalie Gay.

Local jazz legend Jim Kelly and his Quartet will be presenting a night of beautiful jazz standards next Wednesday, May 5, at Mary Gilhooleys, with Natalie Gay gracing the microphone.

Natalie, whose voice delights in a range of styles, has been establishing herself as a singer locally. She sings from the heart and with Jim and his cool cohorts supplying the groove, this will be a night of jazz not to be missed. The night starts at 8.30pm and tickets are $5.

A special reminder for jazz buffs - US Jazz guitarist Sheryl Bailey will be featuring at the jazz night on Wednesday, May 12. More information coming soon...

Do it your way

Music lawyer, Sally McPherson, is presenting a seminar for independent artists.

The North Coast Entertainment Industry Association (NCEIA) will host a seminar entitled Releasing Your Record Independently next Tuesday, May 4, at the Byron Bay Community Centre from 11am.

The focus of the seminar is a 'how to' session explaining the tools available to artists who want to release a record without signing to a record label and without their money and marketing support. The seminar will cover marketing, touring, manufacturing, radio pluggers, retail, budgeting, timing, reading the marketplace - in fact anything and everything that will maximise your chances of success.

The seminar will be presented by music lawyer Sally McPherson and Sebation Chase, who founded RooArt Records, Phantom and has more than 30 years experience in the music industry with some of Australia's best.

He established MGM Records, unsurpassed in the Australian music industry, distributing records by independent artists such as the John Butler Trio, The Beautiful Girls, Cheyne, The Waifs and others.

All these artists have achieved success without signing to a major label. MGM distributes their music while the bands keep control of their copyright, creativity and marketing.

Sally McPherson is a music lawyer and 20-year veteran of the music industry.

She has an intricate knowledge of how the business works and more importantly how the deals are done.

This is an insightful and important seminar for aspiring music professional types in the area. For more information visit the website at www.nceia.org.au.

Just the Tonik

El Gonzo Green - you supply the tonik; they'll supply the trance.

The Tonik Trance parties that were famous at the Winsome Hotel in Lismore have found a new venue - The Campus Central UniBar in Lismore.

The parties used to be a popular Lismore dance event but sadly the Winsome Hotel closed earlier this year (sniff). Thankfully parties never die they just change venues.

From now on the Tonik Trance parties will be bringing the house down at Southern Cross University, with the first one planned for next Thursday, May 6.

To celebrate the Tonik Team are putting on a unique trance line up that includes DJs Launchpad and Psyatica, plus a live trance performance from El Gonzo Green.

Launchpad is one of Australia's most respected trance artists. He played at the massive three-day Tribeadelic festival last year and is about to head overseas on a festival tour. He plays a funky uplifting style of psytrance that isn't too hard and always groovy.

Psyatica is a local DJ who plays smooth but powerful progressive trance that is full of sound and space. El Gonzo Green is a five-piece band that has diversified into the trance genre, moving from a hip-hop based sound into an electronic based trance mode. A must-see for anyone who enjoys live dance music, the night will also feature visuals from the Scurrypoint Multimedia crew, who create amazing visual projections.

Tonik Trance starts at 7.30pm. Tickets are free for students and only $5 for guests.

The party is for over 18s only and students must show student ID.

For more information phone 6627 6888 or 0438 164 020.

Comedians light up Nimbin

Two men and a Coopers... funnier than you might think.

The Nimbin MardiGrass is an amazingly chaotic and colourful festival but what would you expect from Nimbin village? The MardiGrass is a festival of many traditions and one of those is the parade of top working comedians who come to Nimbin to perform during the three-day event.

The man who orchestrates their cultural acclimatisation is the area's best known comedian, S Sorrensen. He has been bringing comedy to the MardiGrass for years and the results are hilarious and unpredictable to say the least. This year Alan Glover and a bunch of comic friends will accompany S to the Oasis Café on Saturday and Sunday nights (May 1-2) for a smorgasbord of comedic and performance delights. They will be helped by local luminaries including Christine Strelan, Brendan Lovechild, Renee Searles and Doug & Biskit.

Alan Glover is a particular favourite of this area and while he lives in the Hunter Valley a bit of his heart is nestled firmly in the Northern Rivers. A veteran of stage and television, Alan is as green as he is tall (and that's a lot), making him a real MardiGrass drawcard.

Alan and S will also be commentating the outrageous Hemp Olympix as they did last year - one of the true highlights of Nimbin's MardiGrass.

"I love sports commentary," said S, "and it's amazing how many backpackers from all over the world feel that a 40kg bag of chook manure can't be that heavy to race with..."

The Hemp Olympix is a fun, light-hearted event that runs over the weekend with heats and finals and, of course, the dulcet tones of S and Alan adding that serious dimension to the proceedings. The comedy nights are at the Oasis Café from 9pm and both are free.

Spicing it up

The uke is back! Catch the Old Spice Boys next Thursday at The Rails.

Long live the humble ukulele! This unassuming instrument is now widely acclaimed as the coolest musical instrument of the early 21st century. Combine the ukulele with a tea chest bass and a stand-up snare drum and you have... the Old Spice Boys!

After their strummingly successful Western Australian tour Byron's swinging favourites, the Old Spice Boys, are back to launch their brand new CD Live at The Rails, which was recorded live at (guess...) The Rails in Byron Bay.

Pay homage to the mighty ukulele with the Old Spice Boys next Thursday, May 6, at The Rails from 6.30pm.

The (work) force is with you

Work - what a bloody mess. Patients at the first Workforce Party earlier this year.

One Bar and Niteclub will host its sixth Workforce Party this Friday, April 30.

Held on the last Friday of every month, the Workforce Party concept was adopted by One Bar and Niteclub director Brad Stamp, who ran similar events in his previous job in Coffs Harbour.

"I was the General Manager for Hot FM in Coffs Harbour where we ran a different theme each night that catered for the worker," Brad said. "It's a good way for people from different professions to meet informally over a beer on a Friday evening. Our first Workforce Party at One Bar and Niteclub was a doctors and nurses theme and was successful enough for us to stage a second Workforce Party. We're now up to our sixth, so the concept has kicked on. It's a lot of fun."

This Friday will be a Mexican party theme, so expect to see plenty of ponchos, dodgy moustaches and castanets among the senors and senoritas. Sponsored by Triple Z and Corona, there are loads of giveaways with the major prize being return flights and accommodation for two at Melbourne's Crown Casino. The fun kicks off at 10pm.

Nimbin feels the beat

Proem3 are just one of the many artists playing at MardiGrass this weekend.

Nimbin will dance to beat of various drums this weekend as over 30 bands and acts hit the two main stages at Peace Park and Nimbin Town Hall for the 12th annual MardiGrass. There will be free entry into Friday night's opening at Peace Park with the Bundjalung Welcome Ceremony, followed by a weekend of music from all over Australia.

This includes performances by the Bundjalung Dancers, Big Notes, Monkey and the Fish, Dinosaur Spaceship, Proem3, Mousemoon, Red Eyed Frogs, Hot Rubber Glove and Stipsky.

Friday night at the Town Hall sees the Big Buds MC battle with DJs Kin 203, De Anarchist, Morphonic, Destiny and FAB, while on Saturday it's the traditional Harvest Ball. The music continues on Sunday evening with Evolve, Peppa Rose, Mousemoon and much more. For a full program and further information visit the Nimbin MardiGrass website at www.nimbinmardigrass.com.

Georgina's big break

After a demanding audition process local singer Georgina Pollard (pictured) has been chosen as a member of Telstra's new corporate rock band The Strolling Phones.

The Goonellabah resident will join a 10-piece ensemble to compete in the Alzheimer's Australia Telstra Corporate Battle of the Bands contest in Sydney this weekend. The Strolling Phones will compete against eight other corporate bands, with the winning group scoring entry into the Fortune Battle of the Corporate Bands in the US later this year.

The competition will be judged by Marky Ramone from legendary rock band The Ramones.

All proceeds from the event will go to Alzheimer's Australia to fund ongoing support services for people living with dementia, their carers and family.

World music locally

It's on again - those inimitable purveyors of world funk, Stipsky, are set to do their thing again this Friday, April 30, at the Gollan Hotel in Lismore.

Sourcing tunes from around the world (Northern Africa, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and many more) this local nine-piece band take traditional songs and heat them up with touches of jazz, rock and funk.

The Stipsky sound is big with trumpet, tenor sax, clarinet, melodica, piccolo flute, guitar, bass and drums plus whatever other instrument takes their fancy. The muusic begins at 9pm.

Jane's new aurora

Pick a flavour... folk, funk, jazz, blues, world... that's Aurora Jane. Aurora Jane's distinctive sound and definitive lyrics breathe new life into Australian independent music.

Introduced at this year's Woodford Folk Festival as 'the secret love child of Ani Di Franco and Jimi Hendrix', Aurora Jane features the songwriting of prolific original artist Jane Hole.

In her nine-year career, Jane has played hundreds of shows, touring Australia, New Zealand and East Timor. In her newest incarnation, Aurora Jane will take the international stage this July to play the Kashmir Peace Festival in India.

Affectionately described as the '10- piece trio', the band features a variety of world-class musicians including Corey Keem, Andrew Fry, Fi Claus, Robin Nelson, Robin Martin and Ken Windress. Oh, and Jane Hole, of course.

You can catch Jane and the band at the Nimbin MardiGrass this Saturday, May 1, at a new Mardi Grass venue, Nimbin Rocks YHA (near the Bush Factory). The show starts at 9pm.

Keep an eye on The Scene for more details of upcoming Aurora Jane shows in the local area.

Dance for good

As part of Nimbin's MardiGrass the Dance For Drug Law Reform will again be held under the stars to raise money for the Nimbin Hospital and the Nimbin Fire Brigade.

Young local organisers are working to encourage community-minded events where partygoers will be exposed to a taste of the north coast's creative culture as well as contributing much needed funds for essential infrastructures and services to the community.

This is the fourth annual Dance For Drug Law Reform and previous years have seen $3000 raised for the hospital and fire brigade.

There will be nine DJs on the night including Pop, Nick Taylor and Brad Vortex.

The Dance For Drug Law Reform will be held this Saturday, May 1, on Croftons Rd (just outside Nimbin on the Bush Factory side) from 9pm. Tickets are $20/15.

Bentley art on again

The annual Bentley Art Prize competition will be conducted at the Bentley Hall in August, and entries are now being taken. Original artworks will be accepted in eleven sections with cash prizes for winners. The Open Art Prize section carries a $1000 prize.

Entry forms are available at The Echo office or phone 6663 5253.

Bedlam in Nimbin

Bedlam bring their heady concoction of funky grooves and melodic mayhem to the Nimbin MardiGrass Festival.

Bedlam will be on hand to wrap up the festival at the Nimbin Hotel on Sunday, May 2.

They will be showing off some new songs and generally crank up the energy with their original approach and numbers from their new CD Cosmic Breakdown.

Create Bedlam at Nimbin Hotel from 2pm.

Marijuana Music Awards

Nimbin's annual MardiGrass is full of originality and this year visitors can hear the global voice of marijuana music at the first ever Marijuana Music Awards.

"As far as we know, this is the first of its kind," said Tam from Nimbin's Rainbow Cafe. Heats for Best Live Performance will be held at the world famous cafe in the heart of the village at 11am, 2pm and 5pm this Saturday, May 1.

"Already many bookings have been taken," said Tam, one of the organisers and creators of the event. "However we expect most people to come and enter on the day. It's $10 per song and you can enter many times if you want. All entry fees go back to the winners, as well as many other prizes."

Winners of each heat on Saturday will be decided by a panel of judges who also take into account audience appreciation. The three winners will perform after the rally on Sunday with the crowd deciding the gold medallist.

The winner of the Recorded Marijuana Music Award will be announced at the rally.

Entrants for best recorded track included musicians from the UK, USA, Canada and Australia. In total there were 37 entries.

"One of the joys of this annual festival is you never quite know what you're going to get in the mix until the time comes, but this new event has sparked a lot of interest and I'm sure it will be in the program every year now," said MardiGrass coordinator, Michael Balderstone, from the Nimbin HEMP Embassy.

The internationally popular 12th Nimbin MardiGrass and Cannabis Law Reform Weekend kicks off this Friday evening (April 30) at sunset and has a packed program throughout the weekend. Up to 10,000 people are expected to attend and visitors are asked to be mindful of their impact on the tiny village, home of the endangered species, hippie.

For the latest program visit the website at www.nimbinmardigrass.com.

For info on the awards phone Tam at the Rainbow Cafe on 6689 1997.

Sushi and Soundwaves

While the north coast faces the closure of its Casino-Murwillumbah rail line, there is one train you can rely on to be there all the time - the local sushi train!

A group of locals are holding a special gig, Sushi & Soundwaves, which offers all you can eat and all the cool music you can absorb for only $15.

DJs Balance (from C-moog in Byron Bay) and Bad Itch will provide smooth lounge UK hip hop to warm up the night, followed by funky dance breaks.

Get on board the Sushi Train this Friday, April 30, in Eggins Lane, off Carrington Lane, Lismore. Sushi & Soundwaves kicks off at 6pm.

Writers' hothouse

The Northern Rivers Writers Centre is calling for applications for the fourth annual Residential Writers Mentorship.

The five-day residency is available for four emerging writers from the Northern Rivers who are working in the area of fiction (including young adult, popular or genre) or narrative non-fiction.

Applications close on Monday, May 17.

"Successful applicants will stay in residence from June 6-11," director, Jill Eddington, said. "We are looking for writers with exceptional ability and commitment to take advantage of intensive guidance from acclaimed writer Marele Day."

Resident mentor Marele Day is the author of the Claudia Valentine mysteries, including The Last Tango of Dolores Delgado (1992), winner of the American Shamus Crime Fiction Award, and best selling novel Lambs of God (1997). Her most recent work Mrs Cook, The Real Imagined Life of a Captain's Wife, has been published by Allen and Unwin.

This program has been funded by the NSW Ministry for the Arts Literature and History Fund.

The residency costs $110.

For complete guidelines and application forms phone the Northern Rivers Writers Centre on 6685 5115.

NORPA presents

A Company B Belvoir production
The Underpants
Adapted by Steve Martin from the original play by Carl Sternheim
Directed by Neil Armfield
Design by Stephen Curtis
Lighting design by Damien Cooper
Music by Alan John
Sound design by Paul Charlier
Assistant director Julian Louis
Lismore City Hall, May 18 & 19 at 8pm
Tickets: $33, $27.50, $13 + booking fee. Phone 6621 5600 or visit www.norpa.org.au

"A zany sex comedy crowded with clever word play. There's a crack team of comic actors at play here... This show zings."

The Sun-Herald

NORPA last presented a Company B production in Lismore in 1997 - four sell out performances of the hilarious 'Picasso at the Lapin Agile'. Picasso was the first full-length play written by Steve Martin in 1994 and hearing of Neil Armfield's reputation, Martin decided that the piece would be best developed by Company B in Australia. The production ran for 26 weeks in Sydney and Melbourne and went on to international acclaim. 'The Underpants' marks Company B's fourth association with Martin.

The Underpants is a bizarre hotchpotch of characters brought to life by a superb cast in a play where intelligence and stupidity go hand in hand. Carl Sternheim's classic play first premiered in 1910 in Germany causing censorship controversy at that time. The Underpants has finally found its ideal champion in actor/writer Steve Martin, whose free and contemporary adaptation combines sparkling wordplay with laugh-out-loud one-liners. Says Martin, "I decided to uncork the genie that Sternheim had placed in the bottle - the genie that makes the play relevant to our age. Sternheim's play is ribald, satirical, self referential, and quirky. I hope I have retained those elements and assured my place in heaven - I mean, served the playwright's intentions."

The Underpants is comedy at its best. The characters expose all that is good and flawed about humanity with outstanding performances and perfect comedy timing from the Company B team. It is fast, physical, visually exciting and wonderfully wordy. Don't miss one of the funniest shows on the theatre scene.

NORPA Dance Actions presents
Big Feet Little Feet
Byron Bay Community Centre
June 4 & 5 at 8pm.

Big Feet Little Feet is on again for the third time this June. This annual short works dance show gives local dance artists a place to present their new work. It is also an opportunity for young dance students to see the work of more mature dancers in the area, including contemporary and physical theatre work. Phone NORPA Dance Action on 6622 3279 for more info.

Dance Week

For Dance Week, in the lead up to the show, NORPA Dance Action along with local dance practitioners are presenting a day of dance celebration on Saturday, May 15 at the Byron Bay Community Centre Studio, including street performances, young dancers and free Short Sharp Share Workshops. More info soon on www.norpa.org.au or phone Danielle on 6620 3046.