Forepaw

Rosalind Hall and Marco Cher-Gibard
Pig and Machine
Glee Cartel
Either/Or
Solid State and Sympathia

7pm sharp, Friday May 9, Entry by donation

A night of diverse and intense audio/visual stimulation, featuring acts from as far afield as Japan, New Zealand and East Brunswick! Noise is a point of departure and a point of return.

Solid State and Sympathia are spatial and dissonant, an interrogation of resonance in its many permutations. It is a dialogue between digital and analogue, involving ferrous metals and field recordings, among other things.

Either/Or is a keen eyed and eared scavenger in a world of discardation. This performance will include mutated magnetics, found and recorded loops, and dumpstered mp3 players, deftly DIY'ed together.

Glee Cartel is half human, half insect king of the earth, weaving dense textiles of sound from disarming, disparate threads. Looping, ebbing flowing, frothing, carpet to line your inner ear.

Rosalind Hall and Marco Cher-Gibard furnish the listener and viewer with an engaging, articulate, and technically impressive audio/visual experience. Live-fed cross examinations of the saxophone are cut up, processed, manipulated and re-projected in real time. This is a communication through air, tone, wire, lenses and light, and establishes a compelling dynamic between the real, the captured, the hyper-real. Simply must be seen!

Pig and Machine have freshly relocated to Melbourne from a vivid Osaka noise scene, and their performances are searing hot costumed energetic. Hovering between noise punkk, breakcore and day glo gospel, they are very, very difficult to stand still to!!!!

There will also be vegan treats! Come along and be merry!

Labels: gigs

Lost Animal
Barrage
Das Butcher

Friday April 18, 8.30pm, $cheap

This Friday night features three of Melbourne's finest solo acts. Wait, come back! There's not a single acoustic guitar strummer amongst 'em:

I think we might have said before that Lost Animal is one of our most favourite new local things. The top two influences listed on his myspace are Suicide and Serge Gainsbourg, and that kinda nails it, but, you know, not really. Sparse, raw songs with crooning vox and minimal backing. "Say No to Thugs" is a stand-out earworm.

Barrage: The Big Issue sez: "The austere moodiness of early 80s new romanticism and the bounce-riddled aesthetics of early 90s melodic electronics ... [with] a strangely disturbing edge." Mess + Noise sez: "A chronicle of order and disorder for a golden dawn" which is, uh, meaningless, but has a nice ring to it. We say that Barrage is just about the cutest little boy you'll ever meet, and his brand of fucked pop is sweet AND sour, and largely pork-free.

Das Butcher reckons: "Mother used to always speak backwards to me, then one day I found a casio rapman in hard rubbish, I got dressed all in blood, made some noise, & this is what happened." He's not joking about the blood neither.

Labels: gigs

Khuruksetra (Indonesia)
Spit
Krystoffkrvstoffiston

Saturday April 19, 8.30pm, $cheap

Khuruksetra is an Indonesian experimental noise group influenced by Javanese performing arts and the Bharatayudha War. A collaboration between the members of Kalimayat, Whisperdesire, Hypervillain & a Poet. Now based in Sydney. Featuring Danif Pradana, Mikael Mirdad, Enrico Utomo and Andra Fembriarto. This is a rare opportunity to see em do their thing in Melbourne.

Spit is the performing title of Ryan Cockburn, a New Zealander who is a sometime/past member of EYE along with Peter Stapleton (Victor Dimisch Band, Pin Group, Scorched Earth Policy, Dadamah, Terminals, Handful of Dust, Rain, Sleep, Flies Inside the Sun... ), Nathan Thompson (Sandoz Lab Technicians, Sleep) and Peter Porteous (Empirical), among other things. He's in Melbourne now and we're not sure what to expect: Cheap toy guitars, mixers, microphones, turntables with busted records and computers are all part of his kit, and his recorded output seems pretty varied... His rekkid label (UFM) says "If the Dead C had kept making records in the vein of 'Operation Of The Sonne', but ditched the drums and the electric guitars, they might have ended up here. If the Clean got incredibly lazy and started forgetting to finish songs or turn the radio off or sing properly..." Best to just come along for a look yourself.

Krystoffkrvstoffiston: "From dehidrated northcote dusty lungs full of grief and god's wrath splutter forth omnipitant pain and anguish. coroading twin neck guitar and organ acompany these death throughs only barely riseing from collapsing in heat stroke, this is mottled Southern Hemisphree Black & White Metal!!!! other project ST John's Ambience, MOFFARFARRAH, Collapsed Toilet Vietnam, White Horse, MofHoRah, Malakat, Slotholith, 1/16th headed, Dumb Crystals, Paeces, MFFRvsBNS, EOH,Kimberly, Bohemian Knights, Alley oops (ex-Slam Dunk!) and Half man Half Moffafarrah." So, yeah, these two guys who're involved in a swag of skewed local musical projects do this great bleak/black ("bleack"?) metal / doom / drone + scree thing. And they're doing it with the best bandname in town.

Labels: gigs

An evening of sweet treats for ears, eyes, and open mouths.

Featuring:

Thugquota
Van Diemen's Band
Deb Ball
Bethany J Fellows

Friday April 11, 7.30pm, $5

Thugquota, tough enough to rush at you with a swag full of his own twisted notions of pop songs and not fall over. Sweeter than a beach ball at least, heavier than a lamington.

Van Diemen's Band, we know nothing.

Deb Ball has its first outing. Dan Bell, giver of inepitude and bad vibes to Ladder and Happy Party is leaving behind a mountain of half working electronics and travelling light with drum machine, keyboard, tape loops, pedals and home made trinkets. Searching for scratch and sniff kraut wallpaper.

Bethany J Fellows is a Melbourne based artist currently doing mostly performance stuff. Her subjects are wide and varied as she explores the iconic, celebrity and self, seeking to subvert the current social/cultural/political climate. Known for her humorous and offbeat projects, she is obsessive and quite acerbic in the kitchen. Some of you might remember her "Pray for Britney" shrine from our first market, and a few of you might have been lucky enough to catch her dressed as a taco on Swanston St. Bethany will be performing Energy Transmutation #1 Sugar.

Labels: gigs, performance

Yeah, we've had a quiet month, but we're gearing up for a pretty full April.
Anyway, before that happens, we present to you:

Blind Billie Speed (tas)

7pm Sunday 23 March
FREE

Blind Billie Speed do highly hypnotic droney-bluesy-instrumental-psych-jam-improv stuff. Catchcries so far include, "1 bass, 2 guitars, 3 beats and the fucking truth!" and "No pedals, no distortion, no songs". Featuring Reggie Norris and Ben Crothers on guitar, Dan Cross on bass and beats provided by a Farfisa Bravo organ.

I can't think of a better way to spend my Sunday evening than this, to be honest.

If you need convincing visit Consumer Productions for mp3s and context.
The Consumer Productions site has a pretty amazing archive of mp3s by Hobart acts from over the last ten years or so. Dig deep, dig wide.

Coming up in April: Albert's Basement All Ages Vinyl Launch with 12 fucking bands; Fatti Frances, Beaches and Default Jamerson; Lost Animal, Barrage, Das Butcher; Khuruksetra (Noise + ritual from Indonesia via Sydney), SPIT + more more more...

Labels: gigs

Sabbatical presents the launch of Pre-Flight Jitters by Evelyn Morris, otherwise known as Pikelet. This EP features material recorded at Head Gap studio in Preston with Marcus Cook in May 2007. Pre-Flight Jitters pursues some unexpected textural qualities and compositional approaches, while maintaining the rich layering typical of Evelyn's recent work. On this occasion Pikelet is joined by Paeces and Bum Creek.

Pikelet
Paeces
Bum Creek

Saturday Feb 23. 8pm start, $6 Entry. Copies of the EP will be available.

Labels: gigs

Wow. We're very excited to let you all know 'bout this one. Visitors from the Musicyourmindwillloveyou nexus up in QLD far-northern NSW have arrived in Melbourne and will be playing this Friday night, the 22nd of February, at Forepaw. These guys do a pretty convincing line in psychedelic space-goop on record, and we can't wait to experience it live. The full line-up is:

6majik9 (NSW)
Blank Realm (NSW)
No Guru (NSW)
(Not much internet-luv out there for No Guru but did find this snippet on the OtherFilm site:
"exotic and ragged free-raga afternoon permutations for krar, mbira, pandabox and homemade bass...")
Lakes
Collapsed Toilet Vietnam

Show starts at 8pm. $7

Labels: gigs

Labels: gigs

Ultraviolet MC
Cicada Umbrella
Pig & Machine (from Osaka)
Oojah and the Trash (from Auckland)
Dane Certificate
Spatula City (an amalgamation of Talkshow Boy, Molliger and Anonymeye)

Presented by Gooey on the Inside

8pm Friday November 16. $6

Labels: gigs

Laughing Skulls Book Launch 6pm Thursday November 1

Over 50 artists have each contributed 100 handmade pages to this limited edition publication. I've had a sneak peek and the thing is mind-bogglingly beautiful. Come and draw, drink, meet a bunch of participating artists and check out this extraordinary edition of objects.

Please note that this launch incorporates this month's Trails.

Day of the Dead Party 3pm Friday November 2

The Laughing Skull action continues on Friday w/ candy skulls, mask making fer kids, wall of drawing and plenty to look at with live music ( L.C.D.c.i. & F.O.V ) from 7pm. Celebrations from 3pm until late.

Labels: events, gigs, trails

First: YES, Trails is on this evening. Note that we'll be starting at 7pm rather than 6pm. This'll probably be the case for future Trailses too, because I'm working on Tuesdays now and I just can't get home fast enough.

Tonight will be a special "Lunar Eclipse Edition" of Trails, so expectations are high...

Eclipse begins: 6:51 pm
Totality begins: 7:52 pm
Mid-Eclipse: 8:37 pm
Totality ends: 9:22 pm
Eclipse ends: 10:23 pm

THEN, this SATURDAY NITE, we have this thing:

Naked on the Vague ('Sad Sun' EP Launch)
Always
Fabulous Diamonds
Absoluten Calfeutrail
Young Romantix

7.07pm, $7

Presented by Sabbatical

Good Lord. That's a fucking solid line-up right there.
Naked on the Vague are probably our favourite live-band-thing right now.
And the poster's beautiful too.
If you miss this you are a DAMN FOOL.

x Forepaw

PS Apologies if you been trying to get in touch with us and got no luck/response of late. The Forepaw Communications Unit has been having some issues but our technicians assure us that they are indeed following up all of your requests for love and attention. We'll get back to you. In the meantime, keep a stiff upper lip.

Labels: gigs

Zond

Deaf Deaf

Kill Boogie

Downtown

Free Choice

8pm. $6. All Ages.

See you there.

Labels: gigs

Lucky you! We've got the first 24 hours of your weekend all figured out:

Friday July 27

So, this Friday from 6pm til 8 you'll be going to the opening of Nathan Gray's new show 'The Fold' at Joint Hassles, which is just across the road n round the corner from us on Mitchell St (behind the TAB). If you're aware of Nathan's work then no doubt it's already pencilled in your diary/written on the back of your hand. If the name doesn't ring a bell, go have a look at undo design and/or joint hassles. Convinced yet? We thought so.

Anyway, following the opening, at 8pm we have these folks playing at our place:

Moffarfarrah (CD launch)
Justin K Fuller
Maximum Awesome
Paeces two Paece

It's four bucks to get in and All Ages/BYO. Be prepared for an evening of glorious confusion and blissful drone, among other things. It'll be great.

Saturday July 28

Saturday, at around breakfast time (1pm), you're gonna come back to Forepaw for a great show, featuring this buncha local heart-throbs:

E-Wah Lady
or, perhaps, A. Wallace, "depending on who turns up" (maybe both if we're lucky)
Fulton Girls Club
Patinka Cha Cha
Great Earthquake
junior.b

It's only 2 bucks for the privilege and AA etc. Make note of that start-time kids: ONE O'CLOCK IN THE AFTERNOON. When the music's over we might put some films on or something, but we'll see how it goes. After that, you're left to your own devices.

Labels: gigs

Hoo! Check it out:

Friday July 20

Charlemagne (USA)
Kirsty Stegwazi (The Bites/Hand Hell)
The Shivers (USA)

$8, 8pm, All Ages

This looks a bit special, huh? As usual, you can find these folks on MySpace if you're unfamiliar. Kirsty's gonna pretty up the room for us too.

Saturday July 21

A massive, massive day. Don't bother calling us on Sunday, we'll be sleeping, m'kay?

A Quiet Explosion

A benefit for 3CR 855AM, presented by the DIY Arts Show and DIY House Gigs.

12-4pm: Mercado Artist Market: You know it. You love it.

5pm: Live Music featuring Marcelle & The Blowwaves, Sundown and/or Last Stand, Go Genre Everything, Casionova, and, probably, more.

7pm: Art Auction featuring works by Tom Civil, Van Rudd + Rose Turtle

+ A screening of Iain McIntyre's film "Warning"

$5 entry after the market, All Ages.

Labels: gigs

Look at all of these bastards. Where on earth do they come from?

SATURDAY

Batrider,
Dance Contest,
Touch Typist,
Oscar's Psuche,
Mt Augustus (QLD),
Fickle Beasts (QLD),
Our Hands In Grey,
Let's Not (But Say We Did).

5pm start. $3 entry. All Ages.

See what I mean? What a marathon event!

SUNDAY

Québec (EP launch)
Fear Like Us
Downtown
Fireships

7pm start. $5 entry. All Ages.

Labels: gigs

Hi All,

This is what we've got:

FRIDAY

Charles Du Cane (Tas)
JNR Anti Sex League (Melbourne)
Viva Computer and their Social Union (Tas)

8ish. Cheap. All Ages.

Charles does "odd electronic folk" and comes highly recommended from a bloke that we trust. Viva Computer do some keyboard-/vocal-heavy indie pop stuff (we like the real sweet tune called "Army in a Sugarcube" you can download off their MySpazz) and JASL? I know nothing. Take a risk why don't you?

and then SATURDAY

Summer Winds Presents

ON/OXX (LP Launch)
Bakelite (Canada)
Vincent Over the Sink (Sydney)
Maximum Awesome
Downtown
Brain Dead

7.30pm. Cheap.

What a line-up! Best gig in town this Saturday, no contest. This'll be the first in a monthly series of shows at Forepaw presented by Summer Winds, your trusted local promoter of all things herky-jerky and atonal.

Both shows are of course All Ages.

Labels: gigs

Superceded
Installation and performance by Brendan J Black
Opening 6pm Saturday June 30
Performance 6pm Sunday July 1

"Continuing and elaborating on the themes of 2004's 'These machines are not for sale' exhibition, 'Superceded' is Brendan J Black's latest experiment in constructing an abstract sound lab involving tape loops, contact microphones, homemade 'instruments' and found objects. How these elements interact will be defined by time and space restrictions. Culminating in an improvised performance utilizing the aforementioned odds and ends on Sunday night, 'Superceded' will be open from 6pm on the evenings of Sat June 30th and Sun July 1st."

Forepaw is very pleased to be hosting this new piece of work by Brendan, who may be familiar to many of you as the guitarist in the excellent, injury-prone local rock/noise outfit The Stabs. Come down on Saturday evening to check out the show and have a drink, then come back on Sunday for the performance, which will feature Mr Black and a whole swag of talented collaborators.

Also, please note that 'Superceded' will be up for this weekend only. Don't miss out!

Labels: events, gigs, installation

This thursday:

Magnetics

Francis Plagne

Downtown

ii

8pm, $5, All Ages.

Labels: gigs

Fescennine drone, blues, improvisation and noise will be ushered in by boos and hisses when Drunk Hands, Hey Lady 2 Leopards, Brendan J. Black (Brendan Stabs solo) and All Made Of Rubies (Adelaide) play at Forepaw, Friday 15 June.

Doors 8:30pm.

Gold Coin Donation.

Labels: gigs

Wow, Saturday's gig was a total blast, and we'd like to send a big thanks out to everyone who played and everyone who came for making it such a great night. Photos up here soon. In the meantime, here's what's keeping us busy this week:

Saturday the 26th, we got a pretty special line-up:

Death Bag, from up Bendigo way, is a two-piece featuring ex-Bird Blob and 'Nem folk, and from what we've heard we reckon they'll be a pretty formidable live experience of elevating drone and scree. DENSE. This is their debut performance in the big smoke.

Kind Winds, if you don't know yet, is the ten-year-strong psych/drone/rock project of Tasmania's Colin Henry Jnr. Kind Winds has been through about a million different line-ups and incarnations, but Colin has always been the heart of the thing, and he's produced a massive back-catalog of short-run CDRs and mind-altering gigs over the years. The current line-up, possibly their best ever, also features the mighty Keith "Fucking Genius" Mason on guitar and Kris "Witch Hats" Buscombe on drums. If you never got to see Spacemen 3 -- and we're assuming you didn't -- Kind Winds is your best bet for that kind of fix in 2007.

Daisy Buchanan has been hawking her solo murk + blurt + vocals song-stuff around town for a while now, supporting the likes of Zond and Naked on the Vague. She played at one of the first ever gigs we put on here, and since then her show has developed into the most unique mashing of songwriting with synthnoise-moan-groan-and-fart you'll ever catch anywhere.

Doors open about 8. All Ages. Cheap.


Monday the 28th: Our Monthly Artist Talk, presented by Tape Projects.

EMILE ZILE

"Emile Zile is an Australian-Latvian artist working in single-channel video, live video, installation and performance. Using the mass-media as raw material, Zile's work attempts to locate the poetic in a barrage of popular culture. Embracing broadcast banalities and inhabiting the media, he has appeared on Australian national television to up-stage a gameshow host, installed photographic portraits of Jerry Springer Show audience members in a gallery and performed live video for a hybrid performance work in Guangzhou, China; appropriating 15th century Chinese erotic illustrations, 'Apocalypse Now' and contemporary American death metal. He lives and works in Melbourne, Australia."

Doors open 7pm. Drinks n snacks provided. Free.

Tuesday the 29th:

TRAILS

Our famous free drawing thing rolls around again. Bring pens, friends, loose limbs and your big, beautiful brain.

Doors open about 6.30. Until late. Paper and a limited number of pens provided. Free.

PS Some new stuff on this here site too.

Labels: events, gigs, tape projects, trails

We've had a couple of weekends off here at Forepaw, but this Saturday evening is the first in a long line of awesome gigs and events we've got going on over the next few months.

The line-up is The Focus / Cut Sick / Majorca / Consider This A Threat, doors open at 8pm, it's all ages and five bucks to get in. We're looking forward to this -- hope to see you there. Also: We just found out that the wonderful folks from Sticky will be running a zine stall at the show!

See you on Saturday.

Labels: events, gigs