Maria Liu is a Gold Coast based designer who began mid-2015 crafting handmade lingerie under the label Miss Liu. In the following years she released a number of collections as well as making appearances in local magazines and shows, as well as diversifying her collections to include swimwear and streetwear-style cut-and-sew pieces.
‘imbi the girl’ is smashing through conventional ideas of vulnerability through their songwriting, and has big things coming in 2020 - so we sat down to pick their brain on the biggest challenges of creating empathetically, especially within an industry that loves to share just one narrative.
With 2020 shaping up to be the year that Easty challenges her own medium, we sat down and chatted with the Sydney-based artist about her biggest inspirations, her pet-peeves about being a creative, and what it means to be an artist.
Byron Bay’s adopted son - Garrett Kato is what one would call a, holistic creative. He tours the world, produces music for other like minded artists, writes and performs with an authenticity that is undeniable and consumingly lovely.
Deena Lynch is the multi talented creative force that has taken 2019 by force. The Brisbane local who was born in Japan has spent the last few years spreading her eggs throughout a number of baskets, all of which are hatching in succession and leading to some seriously captivating chickens.
Founder of the design label, ‘The Brutalist’, Dar Smith is an enigmatic force carving a space for progressive jewellery design in Australia. Dar is about to wrap up his month long stint at The Brutalist pop-up in Newtown, so we sat down and chatted life in Berlin, inspiration for his collections, and how he has reconciled his design work with his music production.
Sculptor of Sound - Ninoosh aka Anya Trybala, launched her debut album Floodgates on October 25 with a single launching each day in the week leading up to the release.
In 2015, Jon Bryant joined a cult. His short-lived time in and subsequent separation from NVXIM. When looked into there are coutless articles on NVXIM being a pyramid scheme, a cult and a sex cult.
Sly Morikawa is an artist known for her dreamy, fantastical aesthetic and has managed to generate an impressive commercial client list through this signature style. Sly’s work transports us to the delightfully perverse world she has created within her artistic endeavours, and we sat down over a coffee to chat about the inspiration behind how she creates.
Brumby, a prominent music photographer and videographer, is more than just the box he works within.With 2020 shaping up to be a huge year of non-music related work, we can’t wait to see how he balances his passion for music, and his desire to create outside of the industry he is most well-known in.
SYML AKA Brian Fennell, is a Seattle-raised musician that is known for his emotive vocals and smooth, heart-tugging melodies. He was previously part of the indie band Barcelona, before venturing on a solo project which he named SYML, meaning “simple” in Welsh
Oh hair. How you cause me so many woes. No two days are the same. I wake up and you look so fine! Ignorantly in my confused morning state - which is a somewhat similar feeling being quite drunk - I have a shower and let the steam get it all frizzy.
Adelaide-born pop artist, Alex Hosking, has been writing songs since she was 10 years-old. Her music would mostly be written for other artists, but recently, she released her own single, Monsters, which is the start of a new chapter for her.
Viewing Steele’s work on your laptop transports you into a world that you’ve only ever dreamed about. It has the ability to make you feel as though you are melting through the screen and into her creative mind. Although we can’t actually show you what Steele’s brain looks like, we can let you in on how she views some really big concepts that are a constant in her practice.
Harrison Storm is a Victorian-born modern folk singer and songwriter. His music is emotionally evocative, but it is the vulnerability that makes his art so comforting and relatable. It leaves you feeling exposed, yet content, like stepping out of the freezing ocean with the sun warming your back.
Notoriously established in the fashion world, Tim Swallow is also an avid escapist in his personal, creative works, and strives to deliver something that will push our perceptions of why nudity should always be acceptable.
I have worked in and around music for the last couple of years now. It’s a pretty beautiful world filed with the quest to express oneself fully, self reflect on our emotions and thoughts and share a piece of oneself with the world through melodies, timbers and tempos.
Up and coming Newtown singer/songwriter Thandi Phoenix has built up a following for her powerful, classic vocals and ability to glide effortlessly between electronic genres.
At 21, we think future-Soul and RnB singer, Kaiit, is doing pretty damn well. Since her first single “Natural Woman” went viral, the Melbourne-born Indigenous artist has been co-signed by two Neo-Soul legends, Jill Scott and Erykah Badu, as their musical love child from down under.
Showcasing the talent and creativity of Western Sydney’s many communities has been the raison de entre of multidisciplinary arts company Urban Theatre Projects. Now leading this organisation is curator and artist Jessica Olivieri, who was previously curator, contemporary performance at Campbelltown Arts Centre.
Independent theatre director Claudia Barrie has been pushing the Sydney theatre scene, taking on plays outside of the canon to probe and ask questions of audiences all too used to convention. This month, Claudia takes on a new work by Stef Smith, Girl in the Machine.
With 98,000 followers on Instagram, an internationally adored footwear label, and a freshly established podcast under their belt, sister duo Jess and Stef Dadon are showing no signs of slowing down. The sisters - better known, perhaps, as “How Two Live” - sat down with BYO in anticipation of their latest collection drop for TWOOBS, to chat all things fashion, Instagram, podcasts and more.
Known for co-launching Melbourne’s Sugar Mountain festival, which since 2011 has continued to set the benchmark for multi-arts festivals, Pepper Keen has pushed interdisciplinarity to the centre. Facilitating the VIA ALICE program in 2017, this year Pepper returns to the VIA Planet Earth series with Red Bull for VIA SÃO PAULO.
One of Australia’s most celebrated burlesque performers, Imogen Kelly has toured her shows throughout Australia and overseas, winning a bevy of awards along the way. Her theatrical, narrative style of burlesque has been part of the revival of the form, and one that Imogen is bringing to the Factory theatre in June for her show Herstory – Leading Ladies.
We got to sit down with the emerging Sydney-based singer/songwriter, Ella Haber. The 21-year-old classically-trained multi-instrumentalist weaves her bold, mature and relatable lyricism with jazz and soul melodies. Her passionate performances on stage demonstrate her abilities in the setting when she unmistakably feels the most comfortable.
Rockpool Group’s Chinese haven, Spice Temple, has been a Sydney-Melbourne institution for over a decade. Led by renowned Australian chef Neil Perry, the Culinary Director of the Rockpool Group, the restaurant is known for its punchy Sichuan flavours, attention to detail and rich attention to the culture behind the recipe.
CEO of London’s The Design Laboratory, Yann Mathias has been involved in crafting the visual language of some of the most recognisable brands and companies.
Sunbeam Sound Machine sound exactly like what their name suggests. And frontman Nick Sowersby, the brain behind that sound, has crafted a multi-instrumental dream-pop sensation in Melbourne that is definitely going places.
A young playwright from Western Sydney, James Elazzi is committed to telling stories in Sydney’s theatres that have otherwise been left backstage. Next month, James’s latest work, Lady Tabouli will premiere as part of Griffin Theatre’s Batch Festival. We spoke to James on what it took to get this script to stage and how he hopes it will start a conversation.
Director Claudia Bailey and lead actor Molly Moloney sat down with Backyard Opera to discuss their short film, Appetite, which premiered last week at AFTRS. The film follows Bridget on the morning after a one-night-stand and explores the often-unspoken (but entirely recognisable) sentiment of shame after sex.
One of Australia’s most celebrated photographers, William Yang’s work has provided a visual archive of the development of Sydney’s queer underground, from the birth of the gay liberation movement, to the glamour of the eighties and the trauma of AIDS during the nineties.
Few bands are able to make just about anyone get off their seat and dance as quick as Jungle. The English modern soul musical collective, based in London, are guaranteed party favourites and make us feel a bit groovier, no matter where we are listening to them.
Having been at the helm of café-cum craft roaster Pablo & Rusty for the past fifteen years, CEO Saxon Wright has had a front row seat to the rapid transformation of coffee in Sydney and around the world. This has meant that Saxon has had to take on many hats, from roasting, to green bean sourcing to technological innovation.
Dynamic brother duo Lime Cordiale current ‘Money’ tour is blessing Australia and N.Z. with an iconic blend of chilled jazzy pop, and will drop in to Sydney for Bad Friday on April 19. We chatted to Oliver Leimbach, one half of the outfit, about all things touring, toxic masculinity and the pressures of Sydney life.
Charting new territories in indie rock songwriting and pop-inspired synth instrumentation, Detroit duo Flint Eastwood have come to our shores for a few choice festival appearances and their own headlines shows in Sydney and Melbourne. We spoke with one half of the duo, Jax Anderson about making music on your own terms, the value of collaboration and finding a place for one’s queerness.
Stepping out of the rainforests of Borneo with a new EP and another one on the way, Slumberjack are returning to our shoes for a national tour, kicking off on Friday March 8 and rolling into the Enmore on Saturday, March 16. We caught up with one half of the duo, Fletcher Ehler to talk recording, touring and what’s next for the powerhouse pair.
If you could name one Australian act that has shaped 21st century music globally, it would be hard not to pick Melbourne outfit The Avalanches. Their two albums, Since I left You (2000) and Wildflower (2016) have been critical and commercial successes, and the sixteen years between releases are the stuff of legend.
Long distance duo, Marcus Whale and Travis Cook have come together once more to release a fourth full length album. Today they release their second single, All I Want, off the forthcoming album and announce a Sydney show on March 23 at the Red Rattler. We chatted about collaborative tech, pop and becoming an android.
British drag sensation Velma Celli has hit the Australian shores to wow audiences with her charismatic energy and powerful persona in A Brief History of Drag. We talked to Velma about drag inspirations and why it is so important for the show to reflect on ground-breaking songs and eras throughout drag history.
Queanbeyan born but Sydney based poet Omar Musa brought the production Since Ali Died first onto the stage at Griffin Theatre in 2018. For a second staging, Omar returns the show to Griffin and takes it to Parramatta’s Riverside Theatres as part of Sydney Festival. We talked about traversing across genres, the drive of an artist and the fundamental purpose of art.
What So Not is one of Australia’s leading electronic artists. Playing festivals like Coachella, Ultra, and Lollapalooza all over the world and releasing his debut album Not All The Beautiful Things featuring the likes of Daniel Johns, Toto and Skrillex, it’s safe to say that What So Not has been one busy bee; and he doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon.
As two brothers who decided that the corporate, 9-to-5 life was not all there is, Cam and Chris Grant took the tiny house philosophy to the Australian wilderness in 2017. Now, a year and a bit on from their launch, Unyoked have six locations, three in Sydney and three in Melbourne, all two hours away from their respective cities. Here we chat with them about unplugging, getting off the grid and the value of recharging in nature.
Bringing their signature combination of queer, femme aesthetics, outlandish performance and a good time for all involved to Knox Street Bar in Chippendale each month is The Oyster Club. Comprised of Marlena Dalí and Porcelain Alice, the two are performers themselves, but have created a niche and safe space for acts that cross boundaries and refuse to be limited to a single label.
E^ST, aka Mel Bester, is one busy bee. In the last few months alone, she has released a seven track EP entitled Life Ain’t Always Roses, and did a tour of major Australian cities. Add this to a massive year filled with wins for the 20 year old, such as placing #63 in the Hottest 100 …
The inaugural recipient of the Screen Australia Onbass scholarship, cinematographer and photographer Meg White will take up her postgraduate studies in film at the American Film Institute later this year. Already, Meg has worked with some of Australia’s most celebrated screen talent such as Rachel Perkins and Russell Crowe.