To celebrate another year of young artists and their involvement with GRIND, and to welcome the new year, GRIND will be hosting the second annual Youth Art Exhibition opening December 15th at Darwin City Council’s Community Art Space.

If you are aged between 12 and 20 years, we welcome you to submit your artwork for exhibition. We have the resources to exhibit all sorts of art – paintings, drawings, sculpture, scribbles, photos, short films and ANYTHING YOU LIKE! You can even choose to put your art up for sale if you want!

All you need to do to enter is fill out the registration form, which is here on GRINDonline, in the link below. We will then get in contact with you and organise to get your art to the Art Space. Space is limited, so apply now to get space for your art!

Fill out the registration form

Youth Art Exhibition
On display at Council’s Civic Centre, Harry Chan Avenue in the Community Art Space
8am – 5pm weekdays
Thursday 15th of December 2011 – Wednesday 1st February 2012

The first GRIND Youth Art Exhibition, held earlier this year in January.

A few terms and conditions:

- The size limit for art is 594mm x 841 mm, or the size of an A1 poster.

- Although every care will be taken in handling and displaying artwork, Darwin City Council will not accept liability for any works damaged. It is the responsibility of the artist to ensure that their artwork is structurally stable and ready for display.

- Your artwork can depict whatever you like, within reason – it must be fit for public display, so nothing offensive or derogatory.

Owen Wilson, delivers a surprisingly good performance in this film, although as I’ve already expressed, he pretty much just plays Owen Wilson throughout the whole movie, that sort of earnest interest in the things people have to say, and an intense positivity radiating out of every sentence he gives, even within mostly depressing scenes. But whatever, when it works it works and here it very well seems to work. The supporting cast is where the movie really shines, Rachel McAdams plays Wilsons fiancé, and she for the most part plays the role fairly well. Her parents provide comic relief throughout the film and also in a way are sort of antagonists as well, but only in a minor way. There really are no antagonists in the film; it’s mostly just about Owen Wilson on a journey of self-discovery whilst wondering the streets of Paris at night.

The movie is filmed as if it were an ad to move to Paris, although the interesting thing about it is, although it captures the obvious beauty of the city of love, it also captures the modern day dirtiness that you never really tend to see with these postcard films, which is something that I admire. Woody Allen has always been a director who knew how the capture the essence of a city, and although he falls short of that here, I feel like it’s one of the best foreign interpretations of the city I’ve seen in my life. The music is also very nice, and very fitting for the plot; although there’s definitely a lot of that hijinks music playing throughout, it’s mostly kept to the background. If you don’t know what music I’m, talking about, watch any romantic comedy movie from the past ten years, skip to any scene where some sort of hijinks is ensuing and return…

You’re back? Good. Just in time for a summary. The film is not ground-breaking, in fact it is far from it, and it’s not even trying to be. The movie states its self at the resolution that the lesson learned is only a minor one, but a lesson none the less. The movie is one that is rife with fairly obvious symbolism, but I feel like that’s fine for a movie as original as this, it’s a message to all of the people who have been criticising Woody Allen for his recent work, the days of ‘Annie Hall’ are long and dead, it’s time to stop living in the past and find something you enjoy about the present, because before too long it’ll be gone.

Rating: Go Watch It

Midnight In Paris is rated PG for mild sexual references

How’s the tour going?

It’s going very well, beyond all expectations. So far. I always expect them to be fairly average but this one’s turn out really good. There’s been a lot of people coming tot the shows and the band has been sober enough to play the songs with a certain amount of professionalism which I enjoy. We’ve made skateboards.

When were you last in Darwin, and why’s been so long since you were here?

Well, it’s a long way away, but that’s no excuse, and we’re very negligent that we haven’t been up there recently. I’m looking forward to getting up there actually, it’s been ages, I can’t even remember, was it Bass In The Grass the last time we were here? [Yes] Yeah, so it should be a triumphant return.

Tell us about the new album and what was it like working with Bill Stevenson?

It was a lot of fun. He was a bit of a slave driver which was quite good for us and we didn’t slack off at all. He was quite brutal especially with my vocals. As soon as I’d sing something he’d be straight into the microphone “That’s s**t, do it again, it was s**t, do it again, do it again.” It was good to be kind of pushed a bit and sing and play to the best of our abilities. Yeah, it’s good. It’s a real production line over there. They really know their s**t. It’s good to work with people who are really so enthusiastic about that sort of music. [Laughs]. It’s kind of what they’re into so it’s great.

So you guys are big Descendants fans?

Yeah, massive. Like a dream come true working with that guy. Yeah, it was really something else. The Descendants were actually rehearsing in one of the rooms, and because we were sleeping in the studio we were woken up at about 9am by the Descendants rehearsing in a room next door to us, which is very exciting.

So what was it like being a part of the Descendants first ever Australian tour?

Yeah, that was cool too. I never thought I’d see that band play live so it was really great to be involved and I guess that was the tour when we kind of approached Bill and said can we come over your house and record a record and he said pay money and we said ok.

So what do you think of the support acts you’ve got down for the Darwin gigs?

I’m excited, I hear we got three support acts so it’ll be like a mini local Darwin Festival. Yeah, I reckon they sound pretty good for me.

So how did you go about selecting the bands?

Uhh, we put the band names up on the wall and we threw turds at it and whichever that band name had the most turd on it at the end of it got support. So Gordy (the drummer) actually threw his own turd at the wall this time and it spread out over three bands so we had to pick all of them.

The Darwin gig is a licensed all ages gig, do you do a lot of licensed gigs or do you prefer 18+ gigs?

Yeah, it’s all ages licensed and everyone gets a look in, so that is, you know, my favourite type of gig. So if you’re a hundred years old you can come along and enjoy it or if you’re three and a fan of the band you can come along.

Anything else?

You should definitely come along to the show at the ski club. It’ll be the night of your life, I can guarantee 100% that it’ll be the night of your life or you get triple your money back, but that may or may not actually happen. It’s going to be good.

FRENZAL RHOMB at the Darwin Ski Club

Supported by Unbroken Expanse, Aborted Jesus Milkshake, and Burrfoot

CHECK OUT THE EVENT ON FACEBOOK (click here!)

The Heat

This seems to be at the top of the hate list and I agree that sometimes during the wet season it tends to get a little too heated for my liking. There are some people that even migrate to other places in Australia for the six month period to get away from the wretched Darwin sun. Yet I also think that being in such a sunny place is far more enjoyable than being somewhere deathly cold. The sun gives you energy! It makes you want to get active, go for a swim, get a tan, and during the wet season a day with no rain is such a rare occurrence that people want to make the most of it.

In other locations people will be staying inside, huddling over whatever heating source they might have, in this way really cold weather is counter-productive and often depressing. Have you ever woken up in such a cold room that you can’t even fathom getting out from under the covers? Well that’s what it’s like in most places down-south, all the time. So be grateful for the sun, because without it we would all be dead.

Lack of Popular Franchises

So we don’t have a Tightrope, or a Calvin Klein or any high-end fashion outlets here. If you can’t find any fancy clothes in Darwin, shop online! Chances are you’ll get the same clothing for a much cheaper price and you won’t even have to leave your house to look for it. In all honestly Darwin has a fair range of clothing stores anyway. I challenge you to browse every single shop in Casuarina and tell me there isn’t one thing you would wear.

Another big complaint I’ve heard in this department is not having a Krispy Kreme in Darwin. I for one love those donuts, it would be grand if there was a shop here, but having one would take all the charm out of it. It’s so exciting when someone comes back to Darwin with two, three, four, fifteen boxes of Krispy Kremes, but if we had them up here it’d just become a regular donut place, plus we would all get fat because they’re too delicious to pass up.

Swimming

You can’t go to any beaches here because you might get stung by a jellyfish. You can’t even swim in any lakes or rivers because years of reading the NT News has made it apparent that crocodiles are everywhere and they will eat you given the chance. But Darwin has some great locations that ensure your safety if you want to go for a nice dip. For example, the artificial beach down at the Waterfront, you can swim in real sea water but not die! And adjacent to this is The Wave Pool, an awesome place to find a donut floaty and chill with your friends, with the added feature of artificial waves just in case you hardcore surfers want to ‘hang-ten’. Most of the time it’s okay to go swimming at beaches during the dry season anyway, so if you want the full beach experience you can have a whole six months of it!

Superstars?

The lack of popular artists, comedians and all-around famous people is something I can actually empathize with. Darwin still has a small population so it’s a bit harder to book superstars that usually sell out gigantic stadiums, however annual events such as Bass in the Grass, The Darwin Festival and The Big Gig bring some fairly impressive performers to town. There are also smaller music gigs that host a tonne of home-grown Aussie musicians. Although it is quite sad you will be saving money by not seeing all the people you love and if you are a true lover of music you will become more connected to the local musicians of Darwin. Which brings me to my next point:

No Variety in Music?

There are plenty of different genres of music bouncing around in Darwin! Although most of the gigs don’t get advertised as much as they should most of the time there are great performances happening at places like The Happy Yess, Brownsmart and The Darwin Entertainment Centre. Even a lot of the bands performing in the bars around Darwin do pretty well.

The music scene is a lot smaller in Darwin compared to most places, but it’s so dynamic. Most of the musos are friends with each other and because of this people are more willing to collaborate and create new and awesome styles of music. In Darwin you can get to know the musicians, the fans and you can sing along to a vast amount of bands because you’ve seen them so many times and you love them! It’s much better for people who like a diverse range of genres as opposed to people wanting to be a part of a specific ‘scene’ but in this way it opens up your mind to styles that you might be hesitant about. You can learn to understand everyone’s taste in music.

As far as the local music scene goes, Darwin’s got it down pat.

Darwin is indeed lacking in some things, but having a negative attitude about the place won’t make it any better, so you can either learn to love it or go somewhere else! Chances are you’ll miss it when you’re gone so make the most of the friendly atmosphere whilst you’re still around.

HEYWIRE is an annual competition for young people from regional Australia. It’s also a place to share your stories and opinions about the news that affects you.

Tell us your story!
The Heywire competition calls for stories about you and the community where you live. Entries close on Monday, September 19, 2011 at 5pm.

Each year, the best stories that have been uploaded to the Heywrie website are chosen to be broadcast across the ABC on Triple J, Radio National and Local Radio.

Anyone can upload stories to the website, but you have to be aged between 16 and 22, and live outside Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney, Adelaide or Perth, to be eligible to win the annual Heywire Competition.

The Heywire Youth Issues Forum

Every year 40 winners get an all-expenses-paid trip to the Heywire Youth Issues Forum, held in February at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra. Participants, debate and workshop issues with industry and ABC mentors, brunch with politicians, tour the War Memorial, learn leadership skills and attend a reception in their honour at Parliament House.

It’s all about you

You can enter Heywire as many times as you like, and in any format: visual, audio, or text. Entries can be any length, but we recommend around 400 words or 3 minutes for audio and video entries. Use your medium of choice to tell your story and show the world what matters in your life.

If you need some inspiration, check out some of the successful stories from last year and read the tips about entering.

The wonderfully eccentric Barry Morgan, as seen at the Melbourne Comedy Festival, and the hit Australian TV show Spicks and Specks (ABC), was a highlight at the Darwin Festival this year. The “world’s greatest organ salesman”, easily recognised by his groovy safari suit, took stage at the Lighthouse on Tuesday 23 August 2011. He was is very excited to be playing in the Northern Territory for the first time. I managed to catch up with him over the phone, between his busy schedule of being a touring musician and managing his organ superstore in Adelaide, and this is what he had to say.

I understand that you’ve been doing some recording with ‘Perambulator records’ and are planning on releasing an album. How is that going?

It’s going really groovy. It’s in the mixing stage at the moment. We’re ‘twiddling with all the nobs and all this stuff. It’s very exciting.

I’m using the ‘lovely Hammond Arora Classic 1981’ organ, the ultimate spinet organ.

What do you love most about the Hammond organ? Why is the Hammond organ your instrument?

I think it’s got such warm tones, and a big bottom end, and crisp. And the drum machine is very groovy. The ‘auto vary 64’ is the drum machine. It’s lovely. The bossa nova’s groovy and the blues rock and the disco, and you know, I think it’s very fortunate timing, for Barry to try and get out of the world of organ’s. Um, yes, I’ve had to put a closed sign on the door of the shop, while I’m touring around. Since I’ve been on the television, there’s been a lot of requests for me to travel with my organ.

I imagine it would be very difficult trying to run your organ superstore and travel around Australia.

Yes well it definitely is. I’m looking for an organ assistant. Have you ever played a Hammond Organ youself?

No, but I’d love to one day!

It’s got such a warm tone. With the lovely Lesley rotating speaker, this sound has been used from church halls to rock stadiums to blues clubs to funky after hours jazz venues. It’s very easy to play too. Especially with my one finger method, which I’ll be demonstrating when I come to Darwin.

You’re most well known for your performance on the T.V. show ‘Spicks and specks’ but what personally is your most memorable moment?

Every time I head out, strap the organ to the roof of the Toyota crown saloon, there’s a memorable moment. Recently, in country victoria, I had people bringing along photographs of their organs which was pretty incredible. There was one gentleman who said he was going to go home and dust off the organ and that he hadn’t used it for years. We also had a great time at the City to Surf in Sydney. I’ve attempted to teach Amanda Vanstone the one finger method but she was a tough woman to crack with the one finger method. But it’s all a lot of fun. My favourite moment in any ‘demonstration’ (the media like to say show but I always think of it as a good old organ demo) is when everyone has a bit of a sing-along.

You’re a very energetic performer onstage, is there anything you do before a ‘Demonstration’ to put you in the right mood or ‘zone’.

No not really, maybe a little glass of Campari, maybe a little catering platter. Tinned pineapple is my favourite. Cheese and bikies etc. but there’s no big meditation or mantra to get me in the mood.

Well I guess that makes you quite versatile – you could perform anywhere!

Yes, well this year I’m even going to do an organ demo at the main stage at Falls Festival!

How did your career as a professional organist start off?

The television was what really kicked it off. But I was doing a little organ demo at the queenscliff music festival some time back. And there’s where one of the lady producers from the spicks and specks fell in love with Barry and his organ and his hair… and we’ve never looked back.

You’ve got a special talent for being able to perform a cover of a song and make it truly unique and groovy. What is your process for taking a song, and truly making it ‘your own’?

I’ve got to listen to the song, yes, and I really try and get into the groove, find out where this one is grooving, and then I spend some time with the ‘Auto vary 64’ seeing if I can find something that’s either going to be similar to it in groove or that juxtaposes it; you know, something that sits against it but still in the groovy pocket, and ah, I really enjoy that process. I recently had a little go at some American pop songs, I can’t name any at the moment, but let me tell you, you know, from a rock one I took it to a Western swing, and there was a disco one that I took to a Liverpool groove, you know it’s um, a quite enjoyable process, it takes a good half a bottle of Campari and the lights down low, but it definitely comes from the rhythm.

CALLING YOUNG NORTHERN TERRITORY ARTISTS FOR 2012 JUMP NATIONAL MENTORING PROGRAM

Corrugated Iron Youth Arts invites young and emerging artists from across the NT to make their artistic match, and apply for the 2012 JUMP national mentoring program.

As the Australia Council’s national mentoring program for young and emerging artists, JUMP identifies and promotes excellence in artistic practice for artists aged 18 – 30 who are in the first five years of their professional practice.

Already Australia’s largest artist mentoring program, in 2012 JUMP offers its highest number of mentorship places yet, with up to 80 positions available nationally.

You can accelerate your career through a one-on-one mentoring relationship with a leading arts professional of your choice, and join a diverse national network of program participants and alumni making their mark on the industry.

Applications for Jump Mentorships are now open and close on 28 October 2011.

Visit the website: www.jumpmentoring.com.au/

If you are Darwin based, and want to find out more:
Attend an info session on Tue 6th Sep at 5:30pm at Corrugated Iron, Nightcliff Community Centre

A quick email RSVP to info@corrugatediron.org.au, to let Corrugated Iron know you are attending would be helpful for preparations and catering.

Cantina is a production by Strut & Fret Production House, based in Brisbane and Melbourne. They’re pulling off a whopping 8 SHOWS at the Lighthouse for the Darwin Festival! Book Tickets at www.darwinfestival.org.au!

Review by Felix

Last Night (Friday Night), I walked into Cantina not having any clue what it was about. So I can say, truthfully, that it was not what I expected. It was entertaining and art at the same time throughout the show. Never a dull moment.

As I said previously, I had no idea about anything, so, to say the least, I was shocked when a guy dropped his dacks in front of us. Apparently there was a warning, but I was never warned…

Everything that the cast presented, they did so with clever twists, and I can only recall once when they had to repeat a trick. Sadly I am not allowed to give away too much… what? I am!… oh… well I’m still not going to say anything because you guys should go and watch it for yourself. So take the word of some random article writer that you don’t actually know and GO!

In the end, Cantina was brilliant, pure genius, and I’m being 100% serious with this description – no exaggeration! SO GO SEE IT! YOU WILL NOT BE DISSAPOINTED!

Review by Lang

What do you picture when you think of a cantina? I picture the cantina that Luke Skywalker walks into in Star Wars: A New Hope. Apparently what Strut & Fret Production House thinks of cantinas is that they are full of wild characters, daring acts, good music and a little bit of risqué adventure.

The show starts off with a tightrope suspended over audience’s heads. The shows performers combining dancing, acrobatics and acting, start out by walking the tightrope. A romantic tune plays in the background, a female ‘performer’ waits on a small ladder in the middle of the tightrope, her apparent lover walking the tightrope to greet her. Anyone sitting below the tightrope watches the young man walking the tightrope with unease, as he looks suitably unsteady and precarious, though they have nothing to worry about as he contorts himself, attempting the serenade the young lady.

What follows is a roaring, at times confronting, at times sad, happy and even a little bit dark, performance and interpretation of the lives and times of people at a Cantina. We watched its ability to clash lives, bring together and tear apart people and also make its performers act a little bit crazy.

The performances themselves are breathtaking, with feats of anatomical contortion, acts of great strength, some of skill and plenty of emotion. There is piano dancing, excellent live music, dances that are as much theatre as dance and so much more. Cantina will amaze, shock and if you’re paying any attention, involve you.

So if you’re looking for something a bit out there, a bit more confronting and physical than other shows at the festival, Cantina is a good choice. If you’re looking for something a bit calmer, relaxed or more chilled then maybe you should look elsewhere. All in all though, I have no qualms in recommending anyone to see this beautiful daring show.

Please note that Cantina is not for young children. While it is neither overt nor explicit, the show contains nudity and a little bit of violence.