Went to see Franz Ferdinand last Tuesday and they were great fun as per usual. I’d seen them once before 3 years ago at the Enmore, and like that time the majority of the crowd were up and dancing for the entire set until the Enmore because a giant sauna!
Someone’s already uploaded youtube clips and my favourite moments were… Michael, my fav song off their first album.
And the band (+1) playing the drums during the ending to Outsiders. Fantastic!
My favourite music DVD has to be the 7 Worlds Collide gig – a series of concerts organised by Neil Finn with friends that included Eddie Vedder from Pearl Jam, Johnny Marr from The Smiths, and Phil and Ed from Radiohead. The gig was wonderful and full of life, considering the band only had 5 days to practise from scratch! But one of my favourite songs on it was The Smiths’ There is a light. It actually compelled me to go out and buy a Smiths compilation.
Seven years later, Neil’s organised another supergroup, but this time they’re recording an album of new songs as well as playing 3 shows! The Radiohead boys are back as well as Johnny Marr. And again I was impressed with a Smiths cover of Please Please Please, ably sung and played by Johnny and backed by a great band.
I’ve been on a bit of Doctor Who viewing frenzy for the past few weeks, so this really, really cracked me up.
I was in Canberra again over the weekend and visited the War Memorial for the first time since I was 12.
It’s a sobering experience to wander through the miles and miles of exhibits that meticulously catalogued every conflict Australia’s been involved in since the Boer War. However, the most interesting fact was a little display detailing the WWII massacre at Bangka Island, the place where my grandparents came from, and from which they had fled from probably just weeks before this took place.
The two long corridors that made up the Roll of Honour was a reminder of how many people were lost.
Some people in my group were surprised to see so many Japanese tourists at the Memorial, but I wasn’t surprised at all. After all, I have been to the Japanese musuems when I visited the Tokyo and Hiroshima. Hiroshima in particular was heartbreaking. It brought home to me that neither side got through unscathed.
War is crap whichever way you look at it.
Blogging about Karekare has made me think of Crowded House and their wonderful album Together Alone which they recorded in a makeshift studio at the back of the beach. It is my favourite CH album because it is so atmospheric.
I went in search of live performances of songs from the album, and while doing so I discovered this gem:
It must be the one of the most poignant versions of Throw Your Arms Around Me I’ve heard, and certainly the most unique.
The kids also did this fantastic version of another CH favourite, Private Universe.
Black sand
Black as mud
Sea spray wisps
From pummelling sea
Footprints recede
Into majestic cliffs
Weathered driftwood
Like dinosaur bones
Bleached against black
Sensual sea
Smell, feel, taste
Invigorating
My soul to soar
Drawfed as am I
By such magnificence
In a secluded corner of Northland, far, far away from the tourist hordes of Bay of Islands, lies the jewel-like harbour of Hokianga. There are no buses – a battered old car is all you need – and no harbour bridges – you can only cross by car ferry.
It is tropical. The bush is actually sub-tropical rainforest, and they can grow macadamias and avocados and papayas and all other manner of tropical fruits there. It is coastal, with a massive dune system that stretches out into the ether.
It is also a very old place. Western civilisation may only be 150 years young there, but the forests themselves are thousands of years old. The trees there can be incredibly old, and when you look at the massive Tane Mahuta, you’re seeing history.
Hokianga has definitely left a mark on my memory.
If New Zealand is on the edge of the world, then Cape Reinga must be where you fall off!
A day touring around the tip of Northland is eye-opening in a lot of ways. From the holiday village of Ahipara to the listlessness of Kaitaia, from the wildness of Ninety Mile Beach to the sheltered harbours of the east coast, from sandboarding down dunes to sedately fishing in calm waters. There’s certainly a lot on offer, and I got a good sample of it.
Just returned from New Zealand. Yes, your honour, I might have a slight addiction to this country. Then again who could blame me. There are so many stunning places. Witness my latest journey to Northland. Might have only been gone a fortnight and driven less than the distance from Sydney to Brisbane, but I saw 10x as many things.
Northland actually reminds me a lot of the NSW North Coast, only much, much more laidback, and with the exception of Paihia, much less touristy. The area around Doubtless Bay is an example. Absolutely lovely place, and thankfully a place where tourist buses have yet to roam.
Static and Silence 