Rod Whitfield

Who are members of The Pretty Littles and what are their roles?

Dave Griffiths

Hi guys, can you tell us a little about yourself and also who the members of The Hello Morning are, and their roles?

Melbourne 6 piece

Steven Clifford – Sings/Guitar

David Manton – Sings/Guitar

Matthew John Smith – Sings/Guitar

David Oxley – Bass

Joseph Cope – Hammond Organ

Matthew Vance – Drums

How long have you been playing together? Can you tell us how you originally formed? Where did the name The Hello Morning come from?

Matthew and I started playing together about 5 years ago now. We wanted to start something new. A band that only had people in it that cared about what we were trying to create. That’s where The Hello Morning title came from… a kind of new start. Really slowly we picked up another member here and there until we became a 6 piece. We’ve been playing with the current lineup for nearly 3 years I would say.

How would you describe your sound?

I guess it’s rock n roll music with soul and country influences.

Who are your influences?

We love The Band, Neil Young, Springsteen…. We also really get into My Morning Jacket and The Flaming Lips.

You are about to start a tour very soon how are nerves?

No nerves, as long as I’m not driving the van we should be fine… driving’s not my strong suit… We all get along really well… it’s a really eclectic mix of people in this band but somehow it just seems to work…

If you could share a stage with any band in the world who would you choose?

If by share the stage you mean be on stage at the same time… It would have to be The Flaming Lips… they have confetti cannons… they seem to have the most fun while they’re playing out of anyone I’ve ever seen…

What are The Hello Morning’s career highlight so far?

We spent 18 months working on an album. During that time we got to record all sorts of amazing things… at one stage we recorded a gospel choir from Atlanta singing on a couple of the songs… hearing that back was pretty overwhelming.

If a crowd comes to see The Hello Morning perform live what will they go away remembering?

Hopefully the songs….?! We have a lot of people onstage… there are lots of parts in the set that evolve between shows, so it’s always interesting to see what happens from show to show…

You’ve just released a new single. What can people expect to hear when they have a listen?

Lots of guitars… lots of Hammond Organ… lots of percussion…

What was the recording process like?

Joe and I recorded the bulk of the album in rural victoria for 2 months with a mountain of borrowed gear. We kind of became vampires, recording all night, sleeping most of the day. It was totally free… being away from the city was a huge help for us. We came back with most of the album finished and spent the next few months bouncing around Melbourne recording extra bits and pieces… strings, horns, pedal steel etc. The whole album just kept evolving and growing…

Where do you hope The Hello Morning ends up in 2012? What are you short term goals? What are your long term goals?

We’re releasing the album in February so we’ll do another tour then. Then for the rest for the year we’ll play as much as we can and try and begin pre production on another album towards the end of the year.

Do you have a website people can check out?

http://www.youtube.com/thehellomorningtv

Dave Griffiths

This band is quite a heady and intoxicating mix. Take an ultra-hot blonde lead singer with a wicked voice, surround her with big ugly blokes who just happen to be some of the best heavy music instrumentalists in the country, throw in a bunch of supercharged, old school influenced hard rock to metal tunes (which will undoubtedly appeal to both hard rock and metal fans) and you have the beast that is Heaven the Axe. And they seem poised to take the country and even the world by storm in the coming years.

For a debut album, this band sure sound confident and assured. This no doubt comes from the pedigree of the members. The band features former members of legendary Aussie heavy music acts The Amenta, Damaged, The Berzerker and more, so these boys can seriously play. And soaring out the front of it all is the vocals of aforementioned hot blonde Phoebe Pinnock, whose voice resembles an even sassier Alanis Morisette after her vocal chords have been injected with rocket fuel.

Collectively they’ve come up with a bunch of short, sharp, in your face heavy rock tunes that would get any venue pumping. The songs are catchy as all hell and tough as nails all at once, and delivered with an exuberance that is truly infectious. That is, until you get to Unconditional Love, a tasteful acoustic/power ballad in the old lighter-waving 80s glam rock tradition, which rounds things off very nicely indeed.

Make sure you listen out for the ghost track that follows on a few minutes after the end of the album proper. It’s a more offbeat acoustic piece that probably doesn’t suit the vibe of the rest of the record, but shows a slightly different side to them.

The production job by the great Ren Parisi of Melbourne Records does absolute justice to the material, hitting that often hard to find balance between the raw power that this style of music needs  and the polish required for the record to stand up on a world scale.

Heaven the Axe have made a very audacious beginning on their debut record, and one gets the feeling they will only get even better from here.

Rod Whitfield

Whilst I could barely contain my excitement upon returning from the ticket booth, everyone I boasted to about the latest tickets to be added to the line-up adorning my fridge door refused to believe that the tickets were legitimate.  My boss, in particular, mentioned numerous times how absurd he thought it that Good Charlotte were to be performing a Weezer tribute show.  Amongst his list of concerns was his belief – which I did not disagree with – that there are likely to be very few Weezer fans who are also Good Charlotte fans.  But, I countered, as a fan of both, this was one of those rare dreamGigs.

Good Charlotte play Weezer’s ‘Blue Album,’
The JD Set at The Forum, Melbourne, November 10, 2011

Amy Meredith opened the evening, and although I didn’t see a lot of their set due to the unforgivably long queues for entrance, what I did get to hear sounded good.  The band seem to have come a long way since their self-titled EP (better known as the Dingley Rock City CD) and have found a more consistent sound.  They’ve gained a British indie-rock vibe at some point during their journey, and stylish new hair for Christian, but none of that is any cause for complaint.

In between bands, a DJ played a set that featured every song I always wished I could hear in a night club but never did, including songs by Fountains Of Wayne, Avril, and Rancid.  Meanwhile, a girl wearing spoons as jewellery confessed to me that she was looking forward to hearing Only In Dreams while an older woman who I had asked to hold my drink professed her love for me, Amy Meredith, Good Charlotte, whoever Weezer are, and AC/DC.  Needless to say, the corporate sponsorship meant that Jack Daniels cocktails were reasonably priced.

When Good Charlotte emerged on stage it was without fanfare, and the uproarious applause died down quickly as they broke immediately into My Name Is Jonas.  It was immediately apparent that it was quite a flat rendition, and highlighted the fact that many of the audience didn’t realise that this would be a tribute show and were unfamiliar with the material.  Indeed, Joel Madden himself would later observe that ‘There are… what?  Five people here who know The Blue Album?’  I joined that particular subset of five at the front and centre of the stage, where other audience members expressed their dissatisfaction at the fact that anyone should be singing or dancing.  A girl with whom my body had come into contact called me a jerk, and I asked if she knew how to do a concert.  Perhaps not the most articulate response, but I was satisfied when she stomped her foot on the floor and shrieked ‘What does that even mean!?’

Luckily the band seemed to get more into spirit of the event by the end of the song, and by the slow-build that is The World Has Turned, they were sounding pretty good and I – along with the few other Weezer fans in the room – were enjoying ourselves.  Most of the songs didn’t deviate too far from their source material, but Benji and Joel did do some interesting adlibs over the conversations of Undone… which the bulk of the audience seemed to enjoy.  It kind of highlighted how an album tribute gig like this can be problematic.  Weezer’s debut is without a doubt a fantastic album, but, like any album, it has its own lulls and peaks.  It was great to hear the songs, but the ‘tribute’ portion of the night might have been better received had it been presented as ‘Good Charlotte playing the hits of Weezer.’  Because the audience was so quiet during the Weezer component of the night, Joel was able to respond to my admittedly ludicrous requests for songs from other Weezer albums, like I Want You To and Island In The Sun, before silencing me with a fantastic rendition of Say It Ain’t So.

And with the closing of the Weezer tribute, Good Charlotte took a brief break and returned for what the majority of the crowd really wanted – a solid set of the band’s own singles.  Opening strongly with The Anthem, I was surprised to hear so many of the recent poppier songs from Cardiology included on a night like this.  Nevertheless, it was a varied set that seemed to please, and – whilst there were favourite singles omitted – crowd favourites like Riot Girl and Motivation Proclamation were played to perfection amongst the radio hits.

Good Charlotte playing Weezer was an interesting experiment, but it looks like my boss was right.  Judging by the packed theatre’s silence during Weezer, it didn’t exactly pay off.  But the full Good Charlotte set seemed to please everyone, whether they’d been bopping at the front to the Weezer covers or not, and it was a rare treat to see a band who frequent stadiums playing in one of Melbourne’s finest music venues.

Daniel Gardner

On paper Albert Nobbs doesn’t look like it’ll be much of a film, but after just one watch you’ll be raving about this film to anyone that is willing to listen because it features Glenn Close (Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil, TV’S Damages) in one of the finest roles of her life.

Close plays a character known as Albert Nobbs. To the guests and workers at Mrs. Baker’s (Pauline Collins – TV’S Mount Pleasant & The Adventures Of Merlin) hotel Nobbs is a kind and gentle man, what they don’t suspect is that ‘he’ is actually a woman donning the disguise of a man in a bid to find work in 19^th Century Ireland. Nobbs lives in fear that someone will discover her secret, however when she meets Hubert (Janet McTeer – Island, Cat Run)(someone in the same predicament) she learns that she could actually make a life for herself. Nobbs decides to achieve her dream of running her own store and sets about making her collegue, Helen (Mia Wasikowska – Restless, Jane Eyre) her wife to make the dream complete, however Joe (Aaron Johnson – Chatroom, Kick-Ass) stands in her way.

Albert Nobbs really is a delightful surprise. The screenplay has you really feeling for Albert Nobbs while director, Rodrigo Garcia (Revolucion, Mother And Child) brings a real feel of class to the film. At times it does feel like the film will take the comedy route (the poster certainly suggests that) but actually this is a heart-felt drama that has some moments of genuine sadness… be prepared to cry more than once. Garcia recognizes that he touching on a sensitive story and treats with the respect that it deserves… thankfully they didn’t go down the comedy route because part of what makes this film so special is the connection you get with Nobbs.

As I mentioned previously Glenn Close puts in one of the performances of her life and it wouldn’t be unexpected if she doesn’t gain an Oscar nomination for her performance. She is well supported by Janet McTeer and once again Aussie, Mia Wasikowska puts in a captivating performance. On the back of her performance in Restless this may show the world that a truly remarkable talent has been unearthed.

If you’re looking for a heartfelt drama than you certainly can’t go past Albert Nobbs. This film has the potential to really captivate you, while Close’s performance is one of the best of the year. Drama at its finest.

Year: 2011

Director: Rodrigo Garcia

Stars: Glenn Close, Mia Wasikowska, Aaron Johnson, Janet McTeer, Pauline Collins, Brendan Gleeson

Classification: TBC

Runtime: 113 mins

Rating:

Dave Griffiths

It is obvious that screenwriter/director Sean Durkin (Mary Last Seen, Doris) was absent from film school on the day his screenwriting teacher covered how to write a good ending to a film because his feature debut, Martha Marcy May Madeline has one of the laziest endings to a film I have ever seen… a shame considering at times it was actually a good watch.

The films follows Martha (Elizabeth Olsen – Peace, Love & Misunderstanding, Silent House) a young girl who has just spent two years in a cult run by Patrick (John Hawkes – Contagion, The Pardon). Here she is known as Marcy May (Madeline when she opens the phone) and is regularly sexually abused. When she finally plucks up the courage to leave she runs back to her sister, Lucy (Sarah Paulson – New Year’s Eve, TV’S American Horror Story) and brother-in-law, Ted (Hugh Dancy – Hysteria, Our Idiot Brother), but as she doesn’t tell them what she has just been through they are at a loss to her strange behavior.

Martha Marcy May Madeline had the power to be one of the best films of 2011 but it is sadly let down by Durkin. The film never reaches its full potential even though the set-up is there. As an audience you feel deeply for Martha and the topic of seeing how a cult can affect one is something that should make people emotional, but sadly Durkin loses control of his film. At times the dialogue between Lucy and Martha just feels awkward and it seems Durkin manages to sap every inch of drama from scenes that should have been memorable. However, what he does with the ending is truly unforgivable, I won’t give too much away but I can guarantee you that you will walk out of the cinema feeling disappointed and cheated.

The big saving grace of this film is the performance by Elizabeth Olsen. She is virtually a newcomer yet puts in a performance that any Oscar winner would be more than happy with, it’s just sad that she is let down by the script that she has to work with. Equally good is John Hawkes who puts in a remarkable performance as the ‘evil’ yet sometimes-charming, Patrick. If it weren’t for the acting performances of Olsen and Hawkes than this film would have been in real trouble.

Martha Marcy May Madeline is very much a film that ‘could have been’. What should have been one of the films of the years is let down by lazy writing. Worth a look but be prepared for an ending that will leave you disappointed.

Year: 2011

Director: Sean Durkin

Stars: Elizabeth Olsen, Hugh Dancy, John Hawkes, Sarah Paulson

Classification: MA15+

Runtime:102 mins

Rating:

Dave Griffiths

“I enjoyed the book more than the film.” is an often heard statement. Maybe this is because books generally go into more depth in plotting and characterisation than the celluloid version of the same story is able to. They also take you inside the psyche of the characters a little more, and allow the reader to visualise the action and locations of the story in their mind’s eye, as opposed to merely having it all presented for you, leaving nothing to the imagination. There are exceptions of course, and it’s often a fine line between the two. (For example, the film rendering of Lord of the Rings was executed with such love and such precision, it’s more or less as remarkable an experience as reading the book, in this humble writer’s opinion.)

The film adaptation of Lionel Shriver’s haunting and thought provoking 2003 work We Need to Talk About Kevin suffers just a little from said lack of depth in comparison with the book. But purely from a practical point of view, in that the film maker must deliver the material in just under two hours as opposed to the author who has almost 500 pages, which may take a number of weeks or even months to read.

The book was quite possibly rather difficult to adapt to a screenplay, since it is far from a traditional narrative. It is written as a series of letters from the main character Eva to her husband Franklin, and leaps around in time quite a bit. Whilst the lack of depth is somewhat of an issue, everything taken into account the film makers have done just about as good a job with it as possibly could have been done. And it should only suffer slightly if you’ve read the book. People who haven’t should find it a dramatic, dark and quite harrowing experience (in the tradition of other great, harrowing movies). But be warned, concentrate closely or it could get a little confusing, with the time splicing effect that is used liberally throughout the movie.

The plot concerns a family in crisis, with the drama centring around the son Kevin,  who over the course of the film develops from a precocious and rebellious kid to a mid teens monster capable of horrific acts of violence (of which only the aftermaths are seen), and the often vain attempts of his ill-equipped mother Eva to deal with his behaviour. The major theme/question of the movie ‘is such evil a product of nature or nurture’ is explored but not answered (and how could it be?).

The performances are strong, however with the vast bulk of the weight falling onto the slim shoulders of Tilda Swinton, who is very convincing as the confused mother who ultimately hasn’t a clue how to handle her son’s behaviour, and is persecuted for his actions. She, along with the script, relegate John C Reilly’s Franklin to a strictly background role, while the three actors who play Kevin at various stages of his early life all do an excellent job of portraying the difficult and volatile Kevin.  Ezra Miller’s 15 year old Kevin is all barely concealed menace.

The direction by Lynne Ramsay is very effective, with the film’s somewhat languid pace building a subtle tension over its course, and a strong feeling that something rather sinister is going to happen. When it does it is dealt with rather tastefully, possibly even perfunctorily.

We Need to Talk About Kevin is not a taut, edge of the seat thriller, but rather a slow-burn one that sneaks up on you. If you favour frivolous entertainment in your movie going, look elsewhere. If you want something dark , dramatic and a bit unexpected, this film is powerful stuff.

Oh, and if you haven’t read the book, do yourself a favour. It’s even better.

Rod Whitfield

The diversity and quality inherent in the Melbourne music scene never ceases to amaze. This M-Town based three-piece could loosely be described as alternative rock, although of a very quirky kind. They are certainly putting their own unique bent on the style, and doing it remarkably well.

There’s a kind of off-kilter funk vibe to their sound, possibly bringing to mind a more idiosyncratic version of the Chilli Peppers, that comes across in all four tracks on offer here. But probably best exemplified in ‘Rag n Bone Man’, which also winds the funk clock back to the 70s and possibly even further, before rocking out towards the end. In fact this raw rock sensibility is also present in all four tracks, alongside the funkiness, and complementing it beautifully. Single ‘Hamburgers’ exposes this juxtaposition to best effect.

To sum up, if you dig alternative funk-rock, this is your bag.  And these boys go absolutely off in a live setting as well. Hopefully a release of more than a few tracks is not far away from these guys.

Rod Whitfield

There has been some really negative press out there about Immortals but after having watched it all I can say is I’m not sure what the people are on who are writing it. Yes, Immortals is violent but doesn’t it deserve to have things such as acting and storyline taken into consideration when it is being judged as a film? Immortals certainly isn’t one of the greatest films of the year, but it is an action film that will keep you occupied for the two hours that it runs.

Thesus (Henry Cavill – Whatever Works, TV’S The Tudors) is a man that is shunned by his village, in fact he is commonly referred to as ‘the son of the whore’ and when King Hyperion’s (Mickey Rourke – Black Gold, Passion Play) begin to advance on their small village they are told they are not welcome to travel with the other villagers. Instead Thesus fights back using the skills taught to him by an old man (John Hurt – Tinker Taylor Solider Spy, Harry Potter & The Deathly Hallows Part 2) who just happens to be Zeus (Luke Evans – The Three Musketeers, Blitz) in earthly form. In a bid to protect his country from King Hyperion Thesus joins a small band of ‘misfits’ which also features ‘the thief’, Stavros (Stephen Dorff – Brake, Bucky Larson: Born To Be A Star) and the Virgin Oracle, Phaedra (Freida Pinto – Black Gold, Trishna). They then try to find a magical bow before it falls into Hyperion’s hands.

Immortals is almost like the storytelling of old (think Ben Hur etc), it doesn’t muck around, it gets in gets the story told, throws in a few battle scenes and just goes on its way… and you know what it works. While there isn’t much character background given I’ll dare anyone to say that they didn’t find themselves liking Thesus, Phaedra and Stavros and wanting to see them succeed. Likewise you dislike King Hyperion and want to see him fail.

Director, Tarsem Singh (The Fall, The Cell) also does an amazing job in the director’s suite. Remember how visionary he was when he created the look that went with The Cell, well he brings all that along with him with Immortals. This is one film where the 3D actually enhances it’s epic looks and Singh makes sure the film’s battle scenes are a hell of a lot better than what we see in Clash Of The Titans, and he needs to be congratulated for not going down the stop-animation road. At the end of the day and to be blunt Immortals does actually look pretty good on the big screen.

Known mainly for his television work, Henry Cavill really steps up with Immortals and he is well supported by Freida Pinto who really announces herself on the world stage with a role that not only uses her sexuality but demands some dramatic acting from her as well… she’s okay and will only get better in time. Although, the standout here is Mickey Rourke who seems to relish in the role of the bad guy. He delivers each line with menace and such is his character that you really don’t know what he will do next.

If you love action then you’re going to love Immortals. Some moments are a little cringe worthy but for the most part this is a good action film that at times will have you on the edge of your seat.

Year: 2011

Director: Tarsem Singh

Stars: Henry Cavill, Mickey Rourke, Stephen Dorff, Freida Pinto, Luke Evans, John Hurt

Classification: MA15+

Runtime: 111 mins

Rating:

Dave Griffiths