The Garbage and the Flowers
The Garbage and the Flowers (formerly of Wellington and now based in Sydney; Myspace) are touring NZ.
They’re playing tomorrow night (Friday Nov 2nd) at Happy with Birchville Cat Motel and Panel of Judges.
Maximum Joy Number Two
Disk-jockeys Longboss and Name return to Mighty Mighty for another night of dizzy disco heat this Friday with MAXIMUM JOY #2.
MAXIMUM JOY!! is night to celebrate leftfield disco, Balearic soft rock, postpunk and electrofunk: music to boost your mind, ass and soul to cosmic new heights.
Through the year, Name and Longboss toil tirelessly to source the hottest, most bent-up byproducts of the disco era and today. Using extra sensory intelligence, they bring MAXIMUM JOY!! to Wellington.
MAXIMUM JOY NUMBER TWO: Friday 2 November at Mighty Mighty, 9pm till late. Dress to impress, not suppress…
Cinephilia: Opening This Week
This week the Paramount has a special attraction for fans of oddball genius David Lynch: Inland Empire has been acclaimed by (several) critics worldwide as a return to the edgy and outrageous Lynch of his early career (think Eraserhead rather than, say, The Straight Story). Inland Empire screens exclusively at the Paramount for one week only. Set aside plenty of time.
Also returning from successful screenings at this year’s Festival is Venus, starring Peter O’Toole as an ageing actor getting a new lease on life when he meets a brash and beautiful teenage girl. Dominion-Post critic Graeme Tuckett has called it his film of the year although that may have changed since Eastern Promises. Venus is written by the never less than interesting Hanif Kureishi (My Beautiful Laundrette and Intimacy) and plays at the Embassy, Paramount, Rialto and Sky City Queensgate.
The rest of this week’s releases after the jump…
Flight of the Conchords: Bret dances when he’s angry
Swiss on Wry — Saturday at Mighty Mighty
As the newest member of the glitterati set colloquially known as Los Wellingtonistas, I would like to draw readers’ collective attentions to one of this weekend’s musical highlights:
Lonesome Cowboy Wanderer Delaney Davidson, formerly of Switzerland (via Christchurch), returns to New Zealand to share his primitive rock ‘n roll folk with Wellington.
This Saturday night the Mighty Mighty hosts Delaney, his lapsteel, and his friends the Wrongdoings of Wellington County, and Wairarapa Wolfman Boss Christ.
Delaney was the NZ member of Pan-European cabaret noisenik folksters the Dead Brothers, once described as “more or less what’s left of a symphony orchestra after their car crashed”. The Wrongdoings are a twisted country foursome; and Boss Christ is a spectacular half-man, half-wolf, all-blues, primitive dynamo.
Saturday 26th October, 9pm at the Mighty Mighty
$10 entry
See you there!
If Only: Striving for perfection in the real world
In the corner office of our wonderful Ivory Tower (literally now, thanks Noizy for shelling out for that rebuild) we look down upon the seething populace of Wellington that we love so dear and think to ourselves: if only…if only they were as perfect as we are. At which point it’s time for our 11am massage and manicure.
This time gave us the chance to construct a short list of establishments around Wellington that could be better if only they changed some things.
The Port Café
What they have going for them: Fantastic daytime sun, great city views, really good fish & chips, and a BYO license.
What they need to change: The décor! Plain white walls and concrete floors alone do not add up to stylish minimalism: that requires elegant proportions and exquisite detailing, whereas this place just looks cheap and unfinished. The chairs were salvaged from the bargain bin at Warehouse Stationery, and the only attempts at actual design (model ships and some blue downlights) make it look tawdry and twee. Either get in a proper interior designer or drop the prices and be a plain old chippie.
more after the jump..
Cinephilia: Opening This Week
Viggo Mortensen reunites with director David Cronenberg (A History of Violence) for the acclaimed new drama Eastern Promises, set deep in the underbelly of present day London among the vicious Russian mafia. Naomi Watts plays a midwife investigating the death of a young prostitute whose diary leads to kingpin Armin Mueller-Stahl. Viggo plays his mysterious driver. Readings and Queensgate.
Fracture is a twisty courtroom thriller starring Ryan Gosling (just pulled/pushed out of The Lovely Bones) and Anthony Hopkins. Hopkins plays Ted Crawford, accused of murdering his wife; Gosling is the ambitious Deputy DA who sees this case as his ticket out to the big money corporate world but the case proves more complicated than it first appears. Readings, Empire and Queensgate.
[The rest of this week’s new releases after the jump.]
Tell us what you really think
Two challenges for today.
1. We’ve started work on planning the Second Annual Wellingtonista Awards for Excellence in the field of Achievement, and so we’d like your feedback on how the awards for you last year, what you liked, what you didn’t like, and what we should change.
2. We’re lazy, so come up with a plan to answer this for a friend who’s planning a trip to Wellington:
i want to go somewhere and drink cocktails. and i want tasty cafes for lunches and at least one reasonably nice restaurant, and maybe a nice but cheap one too.
Halloween Howl II
It may come as somewhat of a surprise to you to discover that Wellington has a pro-wrestling circuit. However, now you know, you really must come along to Halloween Howl II on Saturday October 27. It starts at 7.30pm so you’ll be out in time to attend other Halloween shindigs, and damn, it’s men in tights. Writhing around on a mat together. How rad is that? We especially recommend that you cheer for Lazarus Volt, and that you come dressed up to go with the Halloween theme.
Mighty Good Times
This newbie member of the Wellingtonista was beaten to punch when it came to reporting on the glad-wrapping record attempt at the Mighty Mighty. However I thought I would add my two cents worth about the night and the overall friendliness of the Mighty Mighty for the female solo traveler.
First off, why was I heading into the night to be mummified in the first place? Well sometimes you have the kind of week where you wish that someone would render you mostly immobile by glad-wrapping your arms to the side of your body. While this does present technical difficulties when it comes to drinking beer, it does keep your hands off the keyboard for awhile! The experience reminded me somewhat of Tokyo morning rush hour trains, the term “sushi zume” packed like sushi seemed pretty apt as the final circular wrap was made around 41(?) people. The chances of being groped were about the same (you might be surprised how creative some people can be even with their hands firmly wrapped to themselves) but there were fewer suits and more hippies and smiles on this love train. Oh and free jagermeister.