Tuesday, April 26, 2005
ANZAC Day Long Weekend Super King-Rad-Awesome Post!
Going into the weekend, even with the knowledge that it was going to be 3 days long, I was feeling pretty morose. The source of all things saturnine and sullen was the knowledge that my SAAB was going to (and still does) require a bit of work - meaning that not only can I not drive it, I am going to have to part with some money. Bummer. Nothing like a snapped timing chain tensioner to kill your buzz.
As a result of the aforementioned troubles I resolved that I would have a quiet (read: inexpensive) weekend.
By about 4pm Friday afternoon I thought "Fuck that shit. No mechanical melodramas are going to prevent me from enjoying myself - party on!"
Friday:
After some rushed preparation (ie. me rushing Katrina to get ready after springing the change of plans on her) we made it up to Brisbane and were happily esconced at O'Malley on the Queen Street Mall with a few of the LanSmash crew and some jugs of beer. There is nothing like a large quantity of the amber nectar to make you feel better about everything - it also turns out that one of my friends may know a guy who can do the work on my car quite cheaply. Win.
It's been a while since I have indulged in a good drinking session at a typical pub. Throwing back some beer, half-watching the All Blacks get soundly thrashed by the Wallabies and talking crap while losing control over the volume of my voice (it's an alcohol thing). By the time we wandered out (sometime after midnight) I was pretty convinced that I had made the correct decision by throwing caution somewhat to the wind.
Saturday:
Somehow we managed to be awake at a reasonable hour on Saturday morning, and as you are almost obliged to do whilst being hung over in Brisbane, we went into The Valley for a nice greasy breakfast. Not only does the Royal George (RG) serve beer from about 9am, they also make some especially tasty burgers. There is nothing like a greasy burger for breakfast. It's unbeatable.
Sated, we wandered through the Valley markets before heading into the city. Once we had established that there wasn't a great deal that we wanted to see at the movies, we wandered through a few shops (well, I wandered, Kat actually looked at stuff) before heading back 'home' (aka. Kat's mother's apartment).
After a nap we were ready to hit town again, so after grabbing a bite to eat, armed with concert tickets, we headed to The Zoo. I must say, that as far as venues go in Brisbane, I much prefer the Tivoli to the Zoo. The layout overall is far more conducive to watching some live music. The one advantage the Zoo has is that it is set up very well for you to have a few drinks during the gig.
The gig itself wasn't too bad. Nicole Thibault opened, with her one-woman keyboard/synth/electronica/vocalism. As far as opening acts go, I've seen much worse. (Jerk, who supported Marilyn Manson when he was in Brisbane, for example).
The middle act where a fairly eclectic 5 or 6 piece dubbed The Golden Circles. While they provided some good background music, as far as getting the crowd ready for the headline act, they could've done a bit better. A lot of their songs seemed pretty similar, which shouldn't be happening when you have such a range of instruments to choose from. I guess that's why they were only the supporting act.
The main event came on eventually (after some technical issues) and just in time too - after the wait and the lacklustre second act I was feeling pretty zonked out. I have been following Architecture in Helsinki for a little while now, having bought their first album and enjoying their second (which Kat picked up a couple of weeks ago) and when the opportunity to see how they stacked up as a live act came along, I was pretty content to part with the $18.
Not bad at all sums it up pretty well. Architecture have a pretty unique sound, in part because they are an 8-piece with a fairly wide array of instruments and also because their vocalists have very distinctive voices. As a band they were relatively energetic and this helped to pull the crowd up a bit, although due to the nature of their music they only really rocked out on one or two tracks.
Definitely a worthwhile concert. If you are looking for something a little different, full of elfin vocals and some potent brass, they are definitely worth a look.
Sunday:
To make up for getting up early on Saturday, we got up a bit after 11 to meet Steve and Dawn for lunch. After a good feed at Eagle Street Pier, we headed into the city to have a bit of a wander around, Dawn and Kat did some shopping, Steve and I wandered around talking crap and offering commentary. There really are some hideous clothes out there.
Dinner was a much-anticipated event. Apart from the fact that we were catching up with Amanda, I was looking forward to getting my laughing gear around a Pig'N'Whistle Beef & Guinness pie. These things are all that is, ever was, and ever will be Pie. Crisp, flaky pastry, huge chunks of tender cow and thick gravy. Mmmm, pie.
After a bit of a feed, a chat and being assured that I had the right demeanour and paisley shirt to fake being an upholstered piece of furniture, Kat and I took our leave and headed back into the The Valley to be snobby cocktail bar patrons. The Bowery has a lot going for it - charming semi-derelict-while-unflappably-fashionable interior, extensive cocktail list, equally extensive range of beers and prices just unreasonable enough that the general bogan bar-going riff-raff tend to stay out.
Not much of that mattered though, we were there for the jazz. I am not sure how organised the gig was, as at times it appeared to be a 'bring your piece of brass and join in' kind of jam session. Nevertheless, the (when we left) 8 guys jamming away on an assortment of horns, guitar, bass and drums made an impressive team. Live improv jazz can be very difficult to do at all, let alone do well. If nothing else, the night highlighted how many talented, yet totally unheard of musicians there are out there, while incredibly untalented folks continue to do well on the charts. Such a waste.
Monday:
Finally, the business-end of the weekend was rolling round, and we had only one thing left to do - grab a little Aussie flag and watch the ANZAC March. Katrina's grandfather, who fought (and spent a long spell as a POW) in WW2 was among the thousands in the march, and among the select group of people drinking beer back at the apartment later that day. For me, it was the first large ANZAC ceremony I had been party to, and I was stunned by the number of people who turned out to line the streets. I was also a little confused, bemused and amused by the small group of young Japanese girls taking photos of the old troop carriers as they drove past.
After a few beers, we packed ourselves up and headed back down the coast in preparation of another week of work. All in all, a great long weekend.
I could use another one.
As a result of the aforementioned troubles I resolved that I would have a quiet (read: inexpensive) weekend.
By about 4pm Friday afternoon I thought "Fuck that shit. No mechanical melodramas are going to prevent me from enjoying myself - party on!"
Friday:
After some rushed preparation (ie. me rushing Katrina to get ready after springing the change of plans on her) we made it up to Brisbane and were happily esconced at O'Malley on the Queen Street Mall with a few of the LanSmash crew and some jugs of beer. There is nothing like a large quantity of the amber nectar to make you feel better about everything - it also turns out that one of my friends may know a guy who can do the work on my car quite cheaply. Win.
It's been a while since I have indulged in a good drinking session at a typical pub. Throwing back some beer, half-watching the All Blacks get soundly thrashed by the Wallabies and talking crap while losing control over the volume of my voice (it's an alcohol thing). By the time we wandered out (sometime after midnight) I was pretty convinced that I had made the correct decision by throwing caution somewhat to the wind.
Saturday:
Somehow we managed to be awake at a reasonable hour on Saturday morning, and as you are almost obliged to do whilst being hung over in Brisbane, we went into The Valley for a nice greasy breakfast. Not only does the Royal George (RG) serve beer from about 9am, they also make some especially tasty burgers. There is nothing like a greasy burger for breakfast. It's unbeatable.
Sated, we wandered through the Valley markets before heading into the city. Once we had established that there wasn't a great deal that we wanted to see at the movies, we wandered through a few shops (well, I wandered, Kat actually looked at stuff) before heading back 'home' (aka. Kat's mother's apartment).
After a nap we were ready to hit town again, so after grabbing a bite to eat, armed with concert tickets, we headed to The Zoo. I must say, that as far as venues go in Brisbane, I much prefer the Tivoli to the Zoo. The layout overall is far more conducive to watching some live music. The one advantage the Zoo has is that it is set up very well for you to have a few drinks during the gig.
The gig itself wasn't too bad. Nicole Thibault opened, with her one-woman keyboard/synth/electronica/vocalism. As far as opening acts go, I've seen much worse. (Jerk, who supported Marilyn Manson when he was in Brisbane, for example).
The middle act where a fairly eclectic 5 or 6 piece dubbed The Golden Circles. While they provided some good background music, as far as getting the crowd ready for the headline act, they could've done a bit better. A lot of their songs seemed pretty similar, which shouldn't be happening when you have such a range of instruments to choose from. I guess that's why they were only the supporting act.
The main event came on eventually (after some technical issues) and just in time too - after the wait and the lacklustre second act I was feeling pretty zonked out. I have been following Architecture in Helsinki for a little while now, having bought their first album and enjoying their second (which Kat picked up a couple of weeks ago) and when the opportunity to see how they stacked up as a live act came along, I was pretty content to part with the $18.
Not bad at all sums it up pretty well. Architecture have a pretty unique sound, in part because they are an 8-piece with a fairly wide array of instruments and also because their vocalists have very distinctive voices. As a band they were relatively energetic and this helped to pull the crowd up a bit, although due to the nature of their music they only really rocked out on one or two tracks.
Definitely a worthwhile concert. If you are looking for something a little different, full of elfin vocals and some potent brass, they are definitely worth a look.
Sunday:
To make up for getting up early on Saturday, we got up a bit after 11 to meet Steve and Dawn for lunch. After a good feed at Eagle Street Pier, we headed into the city to have a bit of a wander around, Dawn and Kat did some shopping, Steve and I wandered around talking crap and offering commentary. There really are some hideous clothes out there.
Dinner was a much-anticipated event. Apart from the fact that we were catching up with Amanda, I was looking forward to getting my laughing gear around a Pig'N'Whistle Beef & Guinness pie. These things are all that is, ever was, and ever will be Pie. Crisp, flaky pastry, huge chunks of tender cow and thick gravy. Mmmm, pie.
After a bit of a feed, a chat and being assured that I had the right demeanour and paisley shirt to fake being an upholstered piece of furniture, Kat and I took our leave and headed back into the The Valley to be snobby cocktail bar patrons. The Bowery has a lot going for it - charming semi-derelict-while-unflappably-fashionable interior, extensive cocktail list, equally extensive range of beers and prices just unreasonable enough that the general bogan bar-going riff-raff tend to stay out.
Not much of that mattered though, we were there for the jazz. I am not sure how organised the gig was, as at times it appeared to be a 'bring your piece of brass and join in' kind of jam session. Nevertheless, the (when we left) 8 guys jamming away on an assortment of horns, guitar, bass and drums made an impressive team. Live improv jazz can be very difficult to do at all, let alone do well. If nothing else, the night highlighted how many talented, yet totally unheard of musicians there are out there, while incredibly untalented folks continue to do well on the charts. Such a waste.
Monday:
Finally, the business-end of the weekend was rolling round, and we had only one thing left to do - grab a little Aussie flag and watch the ANZAC March. Katrina's grandfather, who fought (and spent a long spell as a POW) in WW2 was among the thousands in the march, and among the select group of people drinking beer back at the apartment later that day. For me, it was the first large ANZAC ceremony I had been party to, and I was stunned by the number of people who turned out to line the streets. I was also a little confused, bemused and amused by the small group of young Japanese girls taking photos of the old troop carriers as they drove past.
After a few beers, we packed ourselves up and headed back down the coast in preparation of another week of work. All in all, a great long weekend.
I could use another one.
# posted by Nils @ 9:00 AM 
