Bon Iver are reportedly set to debut their new album, possibly in its entirety, live at Eaux Claires Festival in Wisconsin this Friday. The festival is curated by Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon and Aaron Dessner of The National, and is held in Vernon’s hometown of Eau Claire.
Earlier this year, Vernon announced via Twitter that he would be debuting new music at the festival, which is also set to feature performances from James Blake, Vince Staples, Dessner’s all-star Grateful Dead tribute and many more. Now, according to Pitchfork, it looks like Vernon will be debuting a lot of new music during his set (which will also assumedly feature a rare performance of he and Blake’s collaboration Fall Creek Boys Choir).
Bon Iver have followed in the footsteps of many of their contemporaries by way of releasing cryptic visual information via social media and a mural found in Brooklyn, a la James Blake. The words “22 days” have appeared via video and hashtag, and while no official details about the album have been released, it’s possible that the album will drop in 22 days, or, 22 Days might be the title.
Image: Stereogum
Last month on July 22, social media indicated that something was stirring:
22 July 10.22 am Eau Claire
— Bon Iver (@boniver) July 22, 2016
22 days after July 22 is this weekend. Bon Iver’s set is scheduled for 9:20 pm on Friday, and no other bands are performing at that time across the festival’s five music stages.
Artwork has also now appeared on the band’s Facebook and Instagram pages:
Bon Iver’s last album was their 2011 self-titled release. Since then, Vernon has collaborated with Kanye West, James Blake and others. Vernon and West’s most recent collaborators Francis and the Lights will also be performing at Eaux Claires, so there’s a high chance Vernon will be popping up during a number of sets this weekend.
Howl & Echoes will be on site at Eaux Claires this weekend, so keep an eye out – we’ll be reporting new music live as it happens.
Image: Youtube
Anyone who has become jaded by the commerciality of live music, especially festivals, could find some relief this October. Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon, along with various other industry figures including Aaron and Bryce Dessner of The National, have announced a new two day music “happening” in Berlin. The event is entirely not-for-profit and currently without an official name. It will take place October 1 and 2 at FunkHaus studios.
In the announcement, organisers cited “egolessness” as a “guiding system” for the event. Rather than coalescing around a single venture, the idea is “based on friendships and relations of people that have evolved over years and the desire to put something together”. Although no formal lineup is to be announced, so far eighty artists have been confirmed.
That list includes members of Bon Iver, Alt-J, Poliça, The Staves plus My Brightest Diamond‘s Shara Nova, Lisa Hannigan, Damien Rice, Alexander Ridha (aka Boys Noize), Yoann Lemoine (aka Woodkid), Vincent Moon, Fog‘s Andrew Broder, Hauschka and many more. The statement from organisers continued to say that “It’s about new material, collaborations, unique arrangements, and dissolving borders”.
Image via Pitchfork
There will also be no set performances, with artists gathering together a week before to rehearse and experiment. Audiences will then be guided through the various studio spaces to witness the various performances.
Every artist involved will be making their contribution without expectation of any fees, and patrons are assured that the cost of a ticket covers production costs only. Even more importantly, the event is also entirely free of commercial sponsors, meaning audiences won’t be bombarded by advertising or promoted merch. Although the event is presented by Michelberger Hotel.
This is not the first time that Vernon and Dessner have turned their hands to live music. Next week sees the Eaux Claires Music & Arts Festival take place in Wisconsin, brought together by the two musicians.
You can check out full details for their Berlin event here, including the full list of confirmed artists so far and information about tickets.
Image: The Independent
Kanye West and Bon Iver are a match made in heaven. The pair have collaborated numerous times in the past, with Justin Vernon and co appearing on Kanye’s albums My beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and Yeezus. Perhaps a little less known, however, is Kanye’s affiliation with Francis and the Lights.
Back while he was still on his journey to becoming insanely Famous, Kanye used to blog about all kinds of rappers, as well as indie artists like Passion Pit, Feist and M.I.A, and in 2009 he wrote about a Francis and the Lights cover of Kanye’s tune Can’t Tell Me Nothin’ (all uncovered via the Wayback Machine.) West also later posted about Francis and the Lights’ video The Top.
Now, nearly a full decade later, FATL recently featured on Summer Friends, from Chance the Rapper‘s new album Colouring Book. Well, it turns out that the song sampled was called Friends, featuring both Kanye West and Bon Iver, in a wonderful little roundabout marriage of some of Kanye’s indie connections. Interestingly, the track’s rather long credits also include a co-write from Rostam Batmanglij (who recently exited Vampire Weekend) and production from Cashmere Cat, among others.
The video has also been released. Directed by Jake Schreier, it’s an interestingly stripped-back clip, beginning with Kanye standing on a plain white set, basically just listening to the music and mouthing along. The camera pans out and we see Francis doing a kind of awkward dance, before sitting on a little step ladder, also singing along. He runs off, dancing wildly, and walks back onto the set. Soon, we see Vernon standing nearby, and the pair engage in some pretty amazing synchronised dancing. If only Kanye was there too! Instead, for whatever reason, we see him off in a corner in the distance near a large light.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wScYn10D2vo
Bon Iver and Francis and the Lights are both set to perform at Eaux Claires Festival in Wisconsin, an event curated by Vernon and The National‘s Aaron Dessner. Who knows, maybe Kanye will show up for a cameo appearance.
Image: Youtube
While Glastonbury’s opening night boasted tonnes of amazing acts like Muse, Foals, Disclosure and Sigur Rós, Saturday night came through with some amazing performances to top them all. Adele rocked the main Pyramid Stage, and English electronic music producer James Blake held a much more intimate performance, showcasing old favourites alongside the new songs from his latest project The Colour In Anything.
To add flavour to his already-powerful set, Blake enlisted the help of a couple friends, starting with Long Beach rapper Vince Staples. Known for his aggressive delivery paired with masterful story telling, Vince jumped on one of the album’s highlights, the wavy instrumental track Timeless. Adding his conscious rhymes into the mix, this gave a completely new perspective to the once voiceless track. While the two have never formally collaborated before, this is a taste of what is to come, with Vince recently revealing to FADER that James Blake has production credits on his upcoming EP Prima Donna.
As if it couldn’t get any better, Blake gave life to one of the recent album’s features, bringing Bon Iver‘s Justin Vernon also joined his onstage to perform their breathtaking track I Need A Forest Fire. Displaying his brilliantly clean and shivering falsetto voice over Blake’s booming production, this was undoubtedly one of the highlights of Glastonbury’s surprise collaborations.
If you happen to live in the UK or have a VPN, you can watch Blake’s full set here, and for the rest of us, you can check out some of the many highlights below, and get yourselves ready for Blake’s Splendour in the Grass performance, alongside his headline tour next month:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgl8u6EmDw4
James Blake brings out Bon Iver at Glastonbury, 2016#bbcglasto https://t.co/ypgGHiWJ4z
— BBC Glastonbury (@bbcglasto) June 25, 2016
James Blake Tour Dates (also appearing at Splendour in the Grass)
Tue 26 Jul – Hordern Pavilion, Sydney
Wed 27 Jul – Margaret Court Arena, Melbourne
Thu 28 Jul – Thebarton Theatre, Adelaide
Sat 30 Jul – HBF Stadium, Perth
Image: Larry Marano
Last week, Justin Vernon’s Bon Iver performed a series of stunning performances at the Sydney Opera House for Vivid Live. It’s been some time, however, since he premiered any new music, having officially noted that Bon Iver was taking a break back in 2012.
This August, Vernon is set to curate his second annual Eaux Claires Festival alongside Aaron Dessner of The National. The festival takes place in his hometown of Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and will feature sets from Bon Iver, James Blake, Erykah Badu, Deafheaven and many more.
Back in February, Vernon confirmed that he was working on new material. In an interview with Billboard he noted, “You know, we’re not just gonna play the same set we did last year. I’ve been working on music, you know, man. It takes a long time, and I’m not sure exactly what it is or what it means to me, and until that happens I won’t really know exactly what sharing it will look like or feel like or when. There’s sort of this internal pressure, not from anybody but myself, to come out with new music for the festival. But I’m not gonna make myself do anything. I really have to take it step by step and have patience and know that the music—if it comes out, it’s gotta be really true, it’s gotta really live with the other records and extend from them and be reborn and all that.”
Today, Vernon has now confirmed the news via Twitter that the set will indeed contain long-awaited new music. It will largely be their first new music since their self-titled album released back in 2011.
https://twitter.com/blobtower/status/740973036451463169
For those interested in what his live performance is looking like these days, check out this incredible footage filmed at his Sydney shows last week. The filmed tracks are Michicant from Bon Iver, Creature Fear from For Emma, Forever Ago, and Heavenly Father, a 2014 standalone single recorded for Zach Braff’s film Wish I Was Here. The acapella Heavenly Father is particularly stunning – enjoy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=PLV-8xdZpfbFIA4vWfR1osOLZdBrZud7fI&v=BMue0xUbV5g
We’re excited to announce that Howl & Echoes will be on ground and reporting live from Eaux Claires this August – so keep your eyes peeled for fresh footage!
Read our Flashback Friday feature on Bon Iver’s For Emma, Forever Ago
Image: Youtube
While Bon Iver is currently entertaining Sydneysiders at this year’s Vivid Festival, he is also lining up to take part in a new concert for our French friends in the city of love.
The National‘s Bryce Dessner has created a brand new concert called Invisible Bridge. On September 24th and 25th, Paris’s Philharmonie will be flooded with the sounds of this incredible indie supergroup, with Justin Vernon‘s flawlessly stunning voice as well as beautiful guitar compositions by Dessner and his brother Aaron, the contemporary stylings of eight blackbird and the sweet piano melodies of Katia and Marielle Labèque.
So excited for September 24-25 with the amazing @KMLabeque @Ensemble_inter @eighthblackbird @aaron_dessner and @boniver @philharmonie
— Bryce Dessner (@bryce_dessner) May 30, 2016
The Philharmonie’s website has this to say, describing what is to be in store for those interested:
“Passing nimbly between rock and contemporary music, Bryce Dessner cultivates the art of collaboration with shared compositions and performances. For this concert, he brings together guests from a variety of backgrounds: his brother and close collaborator Aaron Dessner (The National), singer Justin Vernon (Bon Iver), and the Labèque sisters.”
The National will also perform at a charity event to raise money for Syrian refugees this Friday. According to Now Toronto, frontman Matt Berninger explained, “There are a lot of people in need of a lot of help. It’s that simple. The community of Hamilton is doing more to help them than most nations, including my own.”
This is certainly not the first collaboration between members of The National and Bon Iver. As well as having performed and collaborated together many, many times, Justin Vernon and Aaron Dessner have also curated a festival together, Eaux Claires, which take place in Vernon’s home town of Eau Claire, Wisconsin. In its second year running, this year’s edition features the likes of James Blake, Erykah Badu, Jenny Lewis, Deafheaven, Shabbazz Palaces, S. Carey (Bon Iver drummer’s side project), Mavis Staples and more.
Image: Noisey
We’re only two weeks away from one of Sydney’s best cultural events, Vivid Sydney. A combination of incredible light shows, music, theatre, ideas and more, it’s an amazing Sydney experience, certainly its most exciting during the winter months, and we can’t wait until it all kicks off between May 27 – June 18. The music curation only gets better every year, and 2016 is no exception. To help you wade through your options, here’s our personal picks for the most unmissable music at Vivid Sydney 2016 (in alphabetical order).
Bon Iver Presents: Cercle
I doubt we need to work too hard explaining why Bon Iver is a must-see event. A musician’s musician through and through, Justin Vernon and co have long been considered an incredibly important part of the contemporary music world. In Vernon’s first visit to Vivid since 2012, Bon Iver will be premiering a new retrospective live show, Cercle, at the Sydney Opera House across three nights this May.
When: May 27 – 30, 8pm – 10pm
Where: Sydney Opera House
How much: From $89
Tickets and more info here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWcyIpul8OE
Bjork Digital
An utterly inimitable pioneer and musical innovator, Bjork is premiering a new virtual reality experience at Vivid this year, made up of seven 360 degree videos created around her stunning, heartbreaking 2015 album Vulnicura. Bjork herself will be DJing at the event’s two opening nights, while the exhibition, including a chance to experience the virtual reality productions, will be free throughout the entire festival.
When: June 3 & 4, 6pm – late (opening parties) June 4 – 18, 10am – 6pm (exhibition)
Where: Carriageworks, Eveleigh
How much: Opening nights – $110, exhibition – free
Tickets and more info here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWHpoJT3qK4
Come Together Festival
It’s no secret that we’re currently living in the Golden Age of Australian hip-hop, and this year, Come Together Festival returns to Luna Park as part of the Vivid celebrations. The night is set to showcase the best in local hip-hop, including Drapht, Illy, Spit Syndicate, newcomer Manu Crook$ and a tonne more. And if you get in early, the Luna Park rides are free from 1 pm!
When: June 11, 5pm – 11pm
Where: Big Top, Luna Park
How much: From $55
Tickets and more info here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_xZt5rt4u0
Curve Ball
Curve Ball is a really exciting new event that focuses on innovative, boundary-pushing electronic producers from Australia and beyond. Headlined by the mysterious and incredibly talented LA producer Zhu, you can also look forward to sets from Yuma X, Basenji, Cosmo’s Midnight, Elk Road, Nicole Millar and more.
When: June 11, 3pm – 10pm
Where: Carriageworks, Eveleigh
How much: From $79
Tickets and more info here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_ARibfCMhw
Deafheaven
San Francisco five-piece Deafheaven are set to storm the Opera House with their explosive, intricate and all-round stunning sounds this June. While a mixture described as “black metal, post-rock and shoegaze” may not sound appealing to everyone, trust me on this one: their incredibly unique, showstopping live performance, at which they’ll be showing off their recent album New Bermuda, is worth checking out even if metal isn’t your usual thing.
When: June 2, 7:30pm – 9pm
Where: Joan Sutherland Theatre, Opera House
How much: From $39
Tickets and more info here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLoGU6l88QA
Goodgod Super Club
Goodgod Small Club may have sadly shut its doors last year, but the Super Club lives on once more in a very special Vivid Sydney showcase. Across four magical nights, the Opera House will revive the revered parties in a mega way. Featuring Joey Labeija, Junglepussy, Mike Who, Simon Caldwell and many more, any Sydneysider who spent their weekends sweating it up in that boxy backroom should make these shows a Vivid must-see.
When: May 27, 28, June 3, 4, 9pm – late
Where: Sydney Opera House
How much: From $39
Tickets and more info here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FyU0OwRrOM
Halfway Crooks vs Dutty Dancing
I’m a long time fan of hip-hop club night Halfway Crooks, which recently celebrated its seventh birthday. It’s joining forces with Caribbean night Dutty Dancing to come together for a special joint edition of the long-standing parties. Taking place at its long term home of Plan B, formerly Goodgod, get down to enjoy the best of both worlds: hiphop and dancehall, finally together at last.
When: June 4
Where: Plan B, Chinatown
How much: $16.90
Tickets and more info here
Halfway Crooks. Image: The Thousands
Heaps Gay: The Festival of Queer Delights
Heaps Gay is once again set to take over Marrickville across the Queen’s Birthday long weekend, with wicked performances in store from Collarbones, The Blow Waves, Rainbow Chan with Moon Holiday and Corin, Yo! Mafia and the Heaps Gay Twerk Team and plenty more, including legendary organisation Heaps Decent, who work with young people from underprivileged and disadvantaged communities.
When: June 12, 4pm – midnight
Where: The Factory, Marrickville
How much: From $45
Tickets and more info here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i16nkBERgkA
Hiatus Kaiyote with Sampa the Great
Grammy-nominated Hiatus Kaiyote are easily one of the most unique, exciting Australian acts around right now, and Sydney rapper Sampa the Great is by far my personal favourite Australian hip-hop artist today. For them to come together on the Opera House stage is an absolute dream come true for any fan of fluid, stunning jazz, soul and hip-hop. Absolutely not to be missed.
When: May 31
Where: Sydney Opera House
How much: From $49
Tickets and more info here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwQrBW_JtgA
Max Richter: Sleep featuring Grace Davidson
Certainly the most unique musical performance of Vivid, this is a one-of-a-kind experience if ever there was one. Max Richter is set to perform his 31 track, eight-hour album Sleep alongside a six piece ensemble at the Opera House, in what might be the most experimental sleepover of all time. A combination of neuroscientific research and classical composition, this is an intimate performance with space for less than 200 people – and yes, individual beds are included.
When: June 3, from 11pm
Where: Sydney Opera House
How much: From $99
Tickets and more info here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwpWZVG5SsQ
MusicNSW: Women in Electronic Music
This is a really special showcase of the best in upcoming and established female artists within electronic music. Woohoo! The all-Aussie lineup features some of our favourite names, including Rainbow Chan, GL, BUOY, Habits and more. Sure, production and DJing may have once been considered a man’s game, but that’s a laughable concept these days – and these incredible women are about to show you exactly why that is.
When: June 18, 6pm – 11pm
Where: Rooftop, MCA
How much: FREE
Tickets and more info here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucbK0iyA3Vs
One Day Sundays
Since its inception a couple years ago, monthly hip-hop outing One Day Sundays has quickly become one of the most beloved events in any Sydney hip-hop head’s calendar. It’ll be holding a special event during Vivid at The Factory in Marrickville, with music from resident One Day DJs Nick Lupi and Adit, plus guests including Aslan, Levins, Klasik and Liz Bird.
When: June 5, 1pm – 10pm
Where: The Factory, Marrickville
How much: From $15
Tickets and more info here
One Day Sundays. Image: AU Review
Poliça
Poliça are an incredible band with stunning, renowned live performances, reportedly described by Justin Vernon as “the best band I’ve ever heard.” Off the back of their recently released album United Crushers, the band – which includes two drummers, by the way – are bringing their ethereal, richly atmospheric blend of electronic, indie rock, pop and more music to the Opera House this year. Read our interview here.
When: June 3, 7:30pm – 9pm
Where: Sydney Opera House
How much: From $39
Tickets and more info here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICruF30bCEI
Purple Sneakers 10th birthday
I can personally guarantee that any Sydneysider over the age of about 24 spent many a late, debauchery-laden, unforgettable night at Purple Sneakers, most likely when it was held at the now defunct-Abercrombie hotel. For one night only, head on to the Gladstone to celebrate its tenth birthday in style, with music from World Champion, Indian Summer, Moonbase Commander, Purple Sneakers DJs and plenty more. Oh, and it’s free entry!
When: June 18, 7pm – 3am (no lockouts!)
Where: The Lord Gladstone, Chippendale
How much: FREE
More info here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qt10R2XpjIg
Visions
Visions is set to return for Vivid, set to take over both Fredas and the Lord Gladstone in Chippendale. The event – which is free entry, is set to showcase some of the best and brightest in Sydney’s greatest live artists, including Kirin J Callinan, Montaigne, Gideon Bensen (ex-Preatures) and stalwarts Deep Sea Arcade, who have curated the entire event.
When: June 4, 12 pm- late
Where: Fredas and The Lord Gladstone, Chippendale
How much: FREE
More info here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6c5daSKVRw
Check out the entire Vivid Music program, as well as Vivid Lights and Vivid Ideas.
Image: Destination NSW
It’s that time of year again. Sydney is braced for a bevy of bright lights and brilliant live music, as the annual Vivid Sydney Festival draws ever closer. As snap happy photographers ready their cameras, music enthusiasts our now licking their lips at the talent attracted down under, with the lineup for the festival released today. Here are just a handful of the shows that are certified “must-sees”:
Bon Iver
Justin Vernon has reemerged from his musical slumber and is set to bring Bon Iver back to Australian shores as part of the CERCLE series of performances. With only three prior Sydney shows to his name, this is a must for any music fan that can appreciate lyricism and talent in it’s rawest form. Attendees at the Sydney Opera House will be the very first in the world to see his new show premiered, and considering it was only recently that we learnt Bon Iver wasn’t actually done and dusted, news of his return is among the greatest musical announcement we’ll see this year!
Where: Concert Hall (Opera House)
Date: 27-30 May
Tickets Here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWcyIpul8OE
Bjork
The eccentric songstress is headed back down under to showcase her newly developed Bjork Digital experience, an exhibition set to showcase: “five unique spaces that will premiere a new virtual reality project from the musician, alongside other collaborations with some of the finest filmmakers and programmers in the world.”
Bjork has recently dabbled with VR technologies, and her work looks set to culminate in Sydney as she tantalises our senses from all angles, an experience that is set to add yet another layer to the mystique of her performance, which will no doubt see the Australian live debut of music from her powerful, emotionally intense 2015 album Vulnicura.
Where: Carriageworks
Date: June 3
Tickets: Here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWHpoJT3qK4
Polica
When Justin Vernon labels you “the best band I’ve ever heard” you can be certain that you are in for an aural treat when Polica take to the stage to unleash their unique fusion of electronic sounds and indie pop. Returning to Australia after a three year hiatus, we can only imagine that Polica is ready to take Sydney by storm all over again, performing from their gorgeous new album United Crushers, which came out earlier this month and has garnered stellar reviews.
Where: Joan Sutherland Theatre (Opera House)
Date: June 3
Tickets: Here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rl03afAqeFQ
New Order
The presence of the synth-pop legends at Vivid is sure to set tongues-wagging, with the group set to celebrate 35 years with a “live retrospective” performance that will undoubtedly satisfy even the most hardcore fans. Rejoined by synth wizard Gillian Gilbert, New Order will introduce a brand new generation to the wonders of their discography.
Where: Concert Hall (Opera House)
Date: 1 June, 5 June
Tickets: Here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftJZomwDhxQ
Oneohtrix Point Never
Described by organisers a “rock-inspired rampage set to stun audiences with cutting synthesizers and decimating bass,” we can breathe easy knowing that we probably won’t be able to hear properly for the rest of the night after catching Oneohtrix Point Never’s Vivid Live performance. Fans can of course expect to hear much of OPN’s stellar 2015 release, Garden of Delete (his seventh album to date), a Nine Inch Nails-inspired industrial, experimental, eclectic electronic album that featured on many end of year best-of lists.
Where: Joan Sutherland Theatre (Opera House)
Date: May 29
Tickets: Here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=td-e4i2BL_Q
Anohni
Performing an Australian exclusive premiere as part of Vivid, the astounding talents of Anohni, leader of Antony and the Johnsons, in the form of what is sure to be a stunning live staging of her fifth studio album Hopelessness. Anohni was the first performer announced for this year’s festival, and will no doubt provide a unique and soulful experience, as the self described ‘electronic record with sharp teeth’ takes its rightful place on centre stage.
Where: Joan Sutherland Theatre (Opera House)
Dates: 27 May, 28 May, 30 May, 31 May
Tickets: Here
These are of course just some of the headliners we can expect to see as part of the festivities, with a range of other masterful talents on display:
Deafheaven
And now for something a little different: off the back of their incredible 2015 release New Bermuda, and completely unlike anything else on this bill, heavy-hitting Deafheaven are set to bring their thunderous walls of pristinely complex noise to the Opera House’s Joan Sutherland Theatre. While still a relatively new act in the scene, they have more than made their mark with their three studio records, and have quickly become one of the most important heavy bands in the world. This will be a simply breathtaking show – and for those who aren’t in Sydney, you can catch them on tour across the country.
Where: Joan Sutherland Theatre (Opera House)
Date: 2 Jun
Tickets: Here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4tyCchDlhM
Hiatus Kaiyote with Sampa The Great
One of the absolute highlights of Australian music circulating today, two-time grammy nominees Hiatus Kaiyote will be bringing their immense talent and impeccably well composed jazz-infused tunes to the Opera House’s main stage. In tow will be Sampa The Great, who, in a nutshell, is Australia’s Lauryn Hill (except hopefully she’ll be a little more frequent with her music output and less so with her tax fraud.) Sampa has toured with Hiatus Kaiyote before, and even remixed a full series of their tracks last year. Arguably two of the best Australian acts around today, this is not to be missed.
Where: Concert Hall (Opera House)
Date: 31 May
Tickets: Here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p3tErZ5LUJY
This is only the beginning of the Vivid announcements, with a myriad venues including Oxford Art Factory, Newtown Social Club, Freda’s, The Lord Gladstone, The Basemen, The Argyle and plenty more set to hold events throughout the festival. Needless to say, we probably recommend taking a couple days to relax and get some sleep before it all kicks off, because there’s something happening every single night.
While the light show and musical performances attract much of the attention and allure of the festival, let’s not forget some of the brilliant minds that are heading our way to deliver “Game Changer” talks. Director extraordinaire Spike Jonze, the genius behind Being John Malkovich, Her, and Adapation will be joined by none other than Beau Willimon (of House of Cards fame) and Jenji Kohan (Orange is the New Black) to inspire and motivate attendees as they bestow their creative wisdom upon us, sharing their insightful gems and anecdotes as they recount their storied careers.
Indigenous Australia is also set to be highly recognised by organisers, with the Sydney Opera House set to be lit up with the works of six prominent Indigenous artists, in a work entitled Songlines.
With 2015 numbers soaring to heights of almost 2 million attendees, we can be sure that this stellar lineup will see 2016 break new ground and further establish Vivid as one of the world’s most stellar culminations of culture and art.
Head to Vivid’s official website for more
Image: Vivid
Kanye West has a lot of recent audio to leak online this week. First, he showed us a nasty side to him in a backstage rant at SNL which included calling Taylor Swift a “fake ass”; now, a whole zip folder of unreleased material has leaked online – although much of it has already been taken down.
It seems the leaked recordings were from sessions of The Life of Pablo, and are predominantly alternate or original versions of tracks which made it onto the album, including Waves, Highlights, FML, Fade and Wolves.
On top of the music we’ve already heard however, have come a number of surprises – and tracks that sound like they really should’ve stayed on the album. Unheard collaborations and tracks among the leaked files including collaboration with Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon on Fall Out of Heaven and a track featuring Swizz Beats. Listen to the Bon Iver collab here:
One track that is especially significant is yet another alternate version of Yeezy’s previously released single All Day – featuring Kendrick Lamar and Paul McCartney, but we were asked to take it down – soz.
Good luck finding playable tracks of many of these alternate versions. All you can really do is look at the hyperlinked tracks on the Reddit page linked above. Don’t Google the tracks either; most if not all of the links have been erased.
Presumably, Kanye’s people must have quickly learned to dissolve the problem before they have another SNL leak on their hands.
Image: Huffington Post
Justin Vernon’s Bon Iver has announced his first tour dates in three years. Interestingly, the Wisconsin native and his band are venturing across the world, performing in South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Japan, the Philippines and Hong Kong. The tour commences in late February, with seven confirmed dates including one festival, Wanderland Music & Arts Festival in The Philippines.
This is all really exciting news. If nothing else, it’s a promising start to 2016. Yet another breadcrumb in the sparse trail that leads us to the light, it is the latest hint that new music might be on the way. Bon Iver last performed at Vernon’s own curated festival Eaux Claires. There, he premiered two new tracks – the first new music we’d heard since the stunning 2014 single Heavenly Father.
We’re headed to Asia to play some shows early next year! We’re going because we’ve never been. Join us! pic.twitter.com/fDfzmdb1rS
— Bon Iver (@boniver) November 18, 2015
A lot of bands that tour throughout Asia tie in both continents for a full Australasian circuit. Considering how far removed we all are from Europe and the USA, it just makes sense. So here’s hoping that Bon Iver do the same, and treat us to a long, long awaited tour. (Who knows – maybe they’ll pop in a few weeks early as a surprise Laneway headliner, eh, eh?)