With apologies to Noel Coward.

It must be the season for art-macabre with Robert’s recent note on the exhibition in Japan, and now this - Neo Goth: Back in Black, an exhibition at the University of Queensland’s St Lucia Art Gallery.

While many think of dear old Queensland as the state of sunburn, surf and politicians with ‘interesting’ political views, I have always felt assured in that sunshine state in years past, by the sight of the young & beautiful darklings who assemble late afternoons in Queen Street Mall in Brisvegas.  I suppose it’s all Emo now….why, when I was a monochromatic lad, frock coats were all the rage, Big Electric Cat were the local heroes and…yawn….young whipper snappers……zzzzzzz.

Kirra Jamison May all your wishes come true 2007

Anyhoo.

Curator Alison Kubler (as in the Absinthe!) has assembled 170 works from 60 artists over two levels of the museum, covering the mediums of music, fashion, film and literature.

From the exhibition flyer:

“From its subcultural origins in eighteenth century literature, through to the movement’s dedicated tribes of black-clad youths in the 1980s, Goth culture is no longer underground or fringe, but mainstream. Is this ‘new’ interpretation of the Gothic aesthetic just that – an aesthetic – or is the neo-Goth impulse a considered response to a darker, more pessimistic world? The major exhibition neo goth dips beneath the surface and takes a peek at the noir underbelly of Australian culture as it is manifested across art, fashion, film and literature.”

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Review of “New Music To Fall Asleep To…(Lullabies by Justin Ashworth)”

When new members join the merry band of Absinthe.com.au subscribers, occasionally one observes that the email with which they have subscribed deserves further investigation. It is with no small amount of pleasure that I have discovered that we have a broad church of libertarians under our humble canopy, from visual artists, poets, magicians, distillers, dancers, authors, actors, courtesans, journalists, the odd dominatrix or two, and importantly, musicians.

One such Australian musician, and dedicated absintheur, that I would like to bring to your attention is Melbourne based Justin Ashworth.  I have for many years been a devotee of the dark ambient and experimental soundscape genre, and certainly Australia has had no shortage of exponents of this particular craft over the decades.  The opportunity then to explore new work by a local artist over a glass of absinthe or two is a welcome one indeed.

Being armed with droning loops, acoustic neo-folk attitudes and unpredictable acts of psychadelia, he is actually a hard artist to buttonhole through comparison. A good thing I say. You can hear a track or two from the following reviewed album on Justin’s MySpace page - maybe pour yourself a glass before you click through.

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Absinthe by Michael “Pooch” Pucciarelli (acrylic on masonite, 2005).

See more of Pooch’s incredible Lowbrow-meets-20th-Century Surrealist gorgeousness at Pooch Island

Skull by Spencer Higgins, 2007

For those of our readers who find themselves in Yokohama in the near future… this may rock your coffin.

“The phenomenon described as goth / gothic exists in various cultural fields including music, fashion, movies and literatures. It originally referred to a style of art in Europe in the Middle Ages, however, today it functions as a term indicative of a certain lifestyle. Body modifications, such as tattooing or piercing, and a focus upon death and illness are not merely a matter of taste, but instead are an expression of the self trying to stand up against a conservative world…”

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Lost Metropolis Footage Recovered

(Story at News.com.au)

Film historians had doubted they would ever find the missing portions of Metropolis — until three reels of the science fiction film made in Germany a long time ago, were discovered in a country far, far away.
Two film fans in Argentina uncovered the fragile footage in a small museum earlier this year – over eight decades after Fritz Lang’s dystopian classic first began to shed scenes.

With its cold, monumental vision of mechanised society, Metropolis forged a template for generations of science fiction cinema, and its enduring influence has been cited on films from Blade Runner to Fahrenheit 451 and Star Wars.

“We were overjoyed when we heard about the find,” said Helmut Possmann, head of the foundation which owns the rights to the film, the Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-Stiftung.

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 Daniel Hatadi - Still life with Pernod Fils 1910 and Sydney Morning Herald 2008 

After a time of quietude and reverential repose, we are back… and do we have news for you.

Reviews a-plenty are in the works, so make sure you check back for our thoughts on Duplais Verte and St George, amongst quite a few others. The St George review is well worth looking out for, as it is the first Australian tasting of this marque which caused a stir in its native US, as much for its significance (the first absinthe distilled in the US post-ban) as for its formulation (which includes Tarragon and Stinging Nettles, amongst other things). We will also be conducting  some reviews of Ordinaire brands like La Fee Parisienne, Doubs, and Pernod.

If either Carfax or I can stand it, we will also be forcing ourselves to do some tastings of some of the typical ‘absinth’ brands you’re likely to encounter, and what, if anything they are even remotely appropriate for (apart from getting a fire started when you’re wood is a bit damp. No shit, it actually works). So, in the name of scientific endeavour, connoisseurship and the edification of the great unwashed, we will voluntarily imbibe foul smelling liquids and comment upon them. With as little obscenity as possible.

Most importantly, we were recently lucky enough to sample a bottle of preban absinthe, Pernod Fils circa 1910, which was simply sublime. Expect an imminent review with many, many pictures, such as the one by the dedicated, debauched and most generous of Libertines Daniel Hatadi featured above.

On top of all this loveliness, we have interviews, history updates and a series of photographic works in the offing, so stay tuned.

The media have been reporting that composer of lavishly over-the-top musicals, Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber, intends to finance a series of significant charitable contributions to the theatrical establishment through an auction of Pablo Picasso’s ‘The Absinthe Drinker’ (also known as Portrait de Angel Fernandez de Soto).

The painting, from Picasso’s Blue Period, is expected to fetch somewhere in the order of 35 million Pounds Sterling at auction. The intended sale, however, may not be so straight forward.

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One thing we like at Absinthe.com.au is a bit of style.

As the modernist successor to the Art Nouveau period, in which the light of absinthe shone brightly, a new generation of functional artists and designers continued the idea of a movement that infused itself into every part of life during the inter-war year in the early 20th century - furniture, buildings, clothes, jewellery, cars were also art, a canvas to be painted upon.

Arising into the public consciousness from the Parisian Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes in 1925, it was born during an era of economic depression. It reflected a luxurious Utopian vision, but where an eye to the past was present, taking stylistic notes from the geometrical designs and motifs of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia amongst other ancient cultures - but infused into the new mediums of polished steel and plastic.

Asclepian art deco motifs above a pharmacy in Prague

While many may associate Prague and ‘absinth’ , it should also be recognised as a very important city for its preservation of many Art Deco motifs. Almost every modern Australian city also has fine examples of Art Deco architecture, many under threat of demolition and overt redevelopment. As the increasing level of property developer contributions to State Labor governments becomes more apparent, those who support heritage protection should become increasingly concerned that we are losing generations of history under our noses - rather than finding ways of integrating the two, using the same principles the Art Deco movements proponents themselves used.

But for those with a penchant for this period should be overjoyed that Melbourne will play host to the 9th World Congress on Art Deco , 16-20th April 2008.

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Today is the last day of the Fringe, so if you haven’t been out to see something yet, for god’s sake log on and check out what is left with the remainder of the day - there is entertainment aplenty going until the wee hours of the night.

To round off my 2008 Fringe Experience I went to the one of the showcase Fringe Club nights this week at the Higher Ground Theatre. Built amongst the remains of what was once the Night Train Theatre Restaurant (although I remember its hey day as a laser tag venue 20 odd years ago), the Higher Ground Theatre is an incubator for new and established artists to present their work in the realms of theatre, circus, dance, music, cabaret or experimental acts of exploration.

Needless to say, post-Fringe, this is a venue to keep an eye on - permanent creative artspaces are becoming something of a rare bird in many cities.

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Floating on a couple of glasses of absinthe each, we made our way back to the CircuiTree installation being put on as part of the Fringe. As it would turn out the hazy warmth of the green fairy would be conducive to appreciating what was ahead.Entering through the back of the church, the amosphere had dramatically transmuted from the pre-preparation stage we saw earlier in the evening. With the sun almost about to slip below the western horizon, the darkened twighlight allowed the glow of black lights and cacophony of thumping Trance music to emerge into its own.

What struck us immediately was the sense of familiarity about the place. At one stage my brother and I had been sharing a house in Adelaide (that probably deserved demolition) , that was often ‘creatively’ decorated with indian print sheets, incense and odd lighting - it was like we had stepped back 15 odd years into our old abode.

But the effort before us was an installation of a much grander design than anything we had attempted in our own home. The first room we entered was adorned with hanging lamps, strung up sheeting, artworks on the walls and cushions strewn about the middle like a giant chill out room.

Ajoining side rooms bathed in harsh red lights and gentle blue tones were filled with original artworks, wall hangings by artistic collective Izwoz and canvases that displayed words of spirituality and philosphy - the words themselves hanging in midair to be studied like one would study the brush strokes or techniques of an artist. Painting with letters.

Onward into the depths of the installation, the mood would start to become more intense, more biomechanical and primal.

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