in AW(M)E...

I'm in my bed with PFD (post festival depression) even a fancy dinner at Coda tonight wasn't able to revive my dampened demeanor.  Its a serious combination of crashes, excitement, adrenalin, champagne, late nights, early mornings, sugar and fantastically mesmerising loud music. The past four days have been an overload on the senses, its difficult to take stock of everything I've seen, heard and felt. I wandered around freely with my Media pass (Hi, my names Media, whats your name?) booze brimming networking events where the fizzy white and rock oysters appeared about my person, rubbing shoulders with Programme Directors from Glastonbury, Roskilde, Fuji Rocks (to name but a few). Lounging on plush seats in the Arts Centre as the intoxicating sounds of 70s golden age Ethiopia wash over me, Mulatu Astatke working his magic. Skanking away to Mad Professor as Irration Steppas get involved in the DJ booth. Being utterly blown away by the majestic voices of The Congos as they perform Heart of the Congos their seminal album produced by Lee Scratch Perry, this is their first time in Australia and I'm back stage saying hello in a cloud of Jah inspired smoke.  In short my life is wonderful but nothing I can do right now is going to top the last 96 hours of my life. AWME thank you very much indeed, it was a pleasure working with you, working for you, running around, tweeting, blogging, facebooking, editing, uploading and of course schmoozing. I am going to watch a film now, perhaps Wah Do Dem?



Photograph © Tajette O'Halloran - Mornington Island Dancers

Photograph © Tajette O'Halloran - Noriko Tandano

Photograph © Marie Muggivan - Graveyard Train

Photograph © James Henry - Mad Professor

Photograph © James Henry - Public Opinion Afro Orchestra

Photograph © James Henry - Lotek

Photograph © James Henry 

Photograph © Marie Muggivan

Dreams of Africa on a musical note...

My finances hardly ever work out how I envisage them, when I landed on wet Melbourne soil, way back in floodie January. I planned to sail into a bar job that would grant me access to lots of people, thus forming a creative network through which my energies could flow. In hindsight I advise anyone to avoid arriving in January, unless of course the plan is to bum around. It's the middle of the summer, height of the school holidays and bars are still fully staffed post Christmas. Add to that the working holiday visa disability, and a trail of hot, young travellers armed with cv's walking the same paths, the odds were inevitably out of favour. And so came February, I had successfully secured a home (out of the grasp of another it was later revealed) yet no work and a massively depleted bank account. By the time I started working six weeks from when I first arrived, in a job I didn't plan on doing, I was massively in debt. A debt which hopefully won't impede my ability to travel beyond Australia to South Africa and Nigeria during my time here. However such decadent adventures seem slightly unobtainable right now...

Poetically for extra pocket money I'm writing press releases and bio's for Tribe records, one of the more discerning afro house labels. When I watch the music videos for the releases particularly the one below, it makes me more resolute in my plans to visit, for the community is changing folks... makes me wonder what the ‘new’ Africa is really like... (watch this space!)