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Everything that's happening in Adelaide this fortnight.
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Dance and electronica news.
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Updates from the wide world of metal.
·7 Things To Do
7 Things To Do In Adelaide This Fortnight
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Puff 'n' Stuff If your read Stephen Davenport's interview with local lads The Battery Kids last edition, you might be interested in seeing them launch their Ghost Town single, but if that's the case, you'd best be making another mark in your diary as it's at The Producer's Bar on Sat 3 May, not Fri 2 as the article said.
Melbourne psychedelic fuzz rock outfit My Left Boot are all set to pay us a visit, having teed up a date at The Crown and Anchor on Fri 9 May, when they'll be supported by Raw Ether and The Scarfs.
 When Puff thinks of Holly Throsby, words like gentle and winsome come to mind, but rarely, if ever, loud. So it was with some surprise that Puff greeted the title of her latest album, 'A Loud Call', but Puff's often been reminded of the wisdom in not judging a book by its cover, or it's title, and so don't let that deter you from seeing her grace the Jade Monkey on Sun 15 June.
Puff loves a good dose of musical education, and that's certainly what Nexus Cabaret's 'Music From The Silk Road' offers. A concert of timeless music from Afghan, Persian and Indian cultures, it boasts folk songs, qawallis, ghazals (love poems) and devotional music by Persian poet Rumi, and that's just for starters.
Now that it's had its official opening after months of catering to the cognoscenti, The Ed Castle certainly isn't slacking off, with plenty of gigs coming up to cement their place in the fabric of the Adelaide live music scene. Among them are the Sea Bellys, who play on Sat 24 May and Red Jezebel, who are venturing forth from their homes in Perth for a show on Sun 8 June.
Clare Bowditch is in an experimenting mood, so she's decided to go on tour with all the guitars, loop pedals and strange instruments she can pack into a van. She even dared Puff to join her onstage on Fri 20 Jive Bar when she's supported by Hot Little Hands (featuring Tim Harvey of the Feeding Set), but Puff called her bluff and double dared her to invite a perfect stranger to join her on tour. So, she's running a competition offering someone a chance to do exactly that. All the details can be found at www.clarebowditch.com/competition.
To some people, digital downloads herald the death of the music industry, to others a free way to sample music, but for Rocket Science it's simply another format in which to release their latest single. Psychic Man will be available on 7", CD EP and digitally, but the best way to experience the has always been live, and fortunately they'll be playing at Jive on Fri 9 May supported by I Heart Hiroshima.
The ideas of AC/DC and high art will forever be inextricably linked in Puff's mind thanks to an unforgettable evening some time ago, the details of which this news column vowed never to make public, but should you, the discerning public, want to know how well they go together, you now have the chance to find out. Situated at The Fremantle Arts Centre, The Bon Scott Project runs from 17 May to 29 June, and collects works by nineteen Australian and International artists inspired by the intense spirit of the late Scott, as well as the first ever curated exhibition of the singer's letters.
 Sure, they had the number five song in last year's Hottest 100 and they had a big stage spot at the big Day Out, but what have Faker done lately, you ask? Well, Puff suspects they're trying to get their hands on a copy of the new Joy Division documentary (playing at the Mercury on May 23 and 24), but they're also touring the land and they've handpicked a couple of up and coming acts to join them at the Gov on Sat 24 May. The lucky few are Sydney electronica outfit Grafton Primary and Brisbane's Violent Soho, who as well as rocking out whenever given the chance, also like to pose for the odd photo
Make sure to keep Thurs 22 May free if you want to have any hope of scoring tickets to Splendour In The Grass (Sat 2 and Sun 3 Aug) when they go on sale, and with the first round of artists just released, Puff's pretty sure you'll be interested. Sure, there a host of Aussie bands playing this year, like The Living End, Presets, The Panics and Operator Please, but it's the international acts that should get you excited. Like everyone's favourtie flower-pot wearing nerds Devo, current indie darlings Vampire Weekend and ethereal hyperlinguists Sigur Ros, along with plenty of others including Band Of Horses, Lightspeed Champion, Tricky and Cold War Kids.
After a national tour at the end of last year, documented in the tour diary featured in this very publication, Adelaide's finest melodic rockers Mere Theory have a taste for this touring lark. So, while they'll be playing a big show this week at Enigma with Swords, Grenadiers and Secrets In Scale on Sat 3 May, they've got bigger plans in the offing. The Vectors tour will match them up with Fifty Sixx, The Paper And The Plane and Closure In Moscow (and watch out for the last one - they've been getting a lot of play in the dB office lately). And as if that huge, almost immovable pile of rock isn't enough, every person attending the show at Fowler's Live on Sat 7 June will get a complimentary sampler with two tracks from each band.
You want big shows with world class supports Adelaide? Well there are a couple coming your way to be ignored at your peril. First up, Kisschasy will be making a racket at The Thebby on Sat 31 May, and because they want to put on a show to remember, they'll be partying with the definitive modern rock chicks The Donnas and adding a dash more Australian rock in the form of The Getaway Plan.
Trying to one up that show, if it's possible, are Bullet For My Valentine, Avenged Sevenfold and Atreyu. With some of the biggest names from both sides of the Atlantic converging on Adelaide, anything could happen when they invade Thebarton Theatre on Thurs 8 May.
 Carl Riseley's rather a dashing young chap - these jazz singers always seem to be - but despite the lovely pic below, he's not just a pretty face and he'll be out to prove it when he brings his big band to the Gov on Wed 28 May.
Puff hasn't thought of Foster & Allen in some time - probably not since they had regular advertising slots during the midday movie - but they're still singing the same old songs, and even a few new ones. Ireland's most famous easy listening folk duo will be playing at Her Majesty's Theatre on Sat 7 June.
Like Deborah Conway's 'Broad', 'Voice' is a series of concerts featuring celebrating women in music, and will feature Renee Geyer, Lisa Miller and Rebecca Barnard performing songs from a range of songwriters at The Gov on Fri 9 and Sat 10 May.
 Several years ago, Strung Out embarked on an epic odyssey (is there any other kind?) across our great sunburnt land, playing over 50 shows with Frenzal Rhomb, and they've been itching to get back for a full tour so they can play the Rooty Hill RSL and Booligal Tavern. While Puff can't confirm that either of those venues made it onto the final itinerary, there are certainly a few out of the way stops on their upcoming 'Strangers In The Outback' tour with No Use For A Name, but they'll also find time to slip into Live On Light Square on Wed 2 July.
When the Australian Immigration Department went fiddling about with the entertainment visa requirements for our country they thought they were doing the Australian public a service, but any fan of Mayhem may have a different take on things. That's because the changes mean that the band can no longer get their visas approved in time, and have had to postpone their shows until later in the year.
Local singer-songwriter Esther Lamb is launching her debut album 'Listen For Home' at the Jade Monkey on Thurs 15 May and it will be out in stores early June through MGM/Green. Funded by Arts SA, she will be performing for the first time with the musicians featured on the album, while fellow singer-songwriter Delia will be her support on the night.
Congratulations to Adelaide's own Double Dragon, who will be supporting the masters of melodic groove, Sweden's Soilwork, on their upcoming Australian tour including the Sat 17 May show at Live On Light Square.
 Supporting A Wilhelm Scream on their upcoming Australian tour will be Sydney punk-rock trio Lungs and together they play at Fowler's Live on Mon 9 June... Quiet Child launch their first single on Fri 23 May at The Jade Monkey.
Thank heavens for The Holidays, the Sydney pop merchants who with their single Holiday have finally managed to jump above Madonna on Puff's most played iTunes list - for a while it looked like she'd never have any serious competition. With shimmering melodies and addictive choruses, there's plenty to like about the band, and they'll be launching their self-titled EP at Jive on Sun 11 May.
Dreadnaught have announced that Matt Racovalis will be joining the current line-up on drums as they begin to work on LP number four. Matt has been a mainstay of the Australian metal scene for many years now, touring and recording with Alarum from 1992 to 2006 and he's also had brief stints with The Berzerker.
 It's been a while since Puff has heard from Pete Murray - he's been off the road for two yeas, in fact - but he's refreshed and ready to get back to touring, and with a new album to spruik, it's a fair bet that he'll have a swag of new songs to play as well when he appears at The Thebby on Sat 9 August.
Things have been a bit confusing in The Angels camp for the last few years, what with Doc Neeson's Angels competing with The Angels Band for fans' attention, but the two parties have finally managed to see eye to eye, and will be reuniting. Rather than Doc Neeson's Original Super Angels Band, though, they've decided to revert to their original name and call themselves simply The Angels, which is the name they'll be performing under at the Gov on Fri 18 and Sat 19 July.
Brisbane alt-rock quartet Dead Letter Circus (not to be confused with Dead Letter Chorus) have yielded to "a tidal wave of electrifying responses" to preview their first album and are embarking on a headlining tour with support from Many Machines On Nine. They stop in at Jive on Thurs 5 June.
US Metalcore idols The Devil Wears Prada are getting ready to rip, shred and scream their way through Sun 1 June when they play at Fowler's Live with able support from The Seduction.
Puff's still trying to figure out exactly what The Cou Method is - given that the band used to be known as One Inch Punch, there's certainly a possibility that it's an obscure form of martial arts, but whether this is the case or not, after ten years apart, three former members of the aforementioned One Inch Punch (and later Mid Youth Crisis) have decided that the Australian music industry needs a shake up and they're exactly the type of musicians to get the job done. Fast, muscular and above all sincere, their punk rock will be on show in support of Against Me! and Crime In Stereo at Fowler's Live on Thurs 1 May.
The man calling himself Whitley has been pretty busy of late, with a US tour that he assures Puff took in "most of the 51 states", and if they were half as impressed with his sublime debut album 'The Submarine' as one would expect, chances are he'll be back there before long. So it would make sense to enjoy the chance to see him while you can, especially with a full band backing up his show and support from Howie Day and Seagull. The whole roadshow hits Jive on Fri 23 May.
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