Icehouse - Anthems of Adolescence

I was a teenager in the 1980s and, in many ways, my taste in music is still influenced by the iconic bands/artists of the era - U2, The Cure, The Police, Dire Straits, Joy Division, Talking Heads, Madness, Rick Astley (see what I did there).  In Australia we had Men at Work, Midnight Oil, Australian Crawl, Cold Chisel, Hoodoo Gurus, Crowded House, Hunters and Collectors, The Church but, in my opinion, the greatest of all was Icehouse.  Iva Davies' mullet was as superb as his songwriting and I couldn't get enough of their "Man of Colours" album.

In the 80s I also made 6 solid, and as it turns out, lifelong friends.  The seven of us believed that we were hot stuff and terminally misunderstood in our East Coast rural community.  High School was something that we had to endure until our "real" lives took off and we were recognised by the world as the marvellous and humourous individuals that we really were.  It actually turns out that we were self-important, naive twerps but who isn't at that age?

Recently, five of us got together to attend a very nostalgic Icehouse concert at Hobart's Wrest Point Casino.  We had a very demure and sophisticated drink in our rooms, well, that's what we all told our kids and partners anyway.  It is the great thing about being a middle-aged women, no-one ever suspects you of misbehaving - it is very liberating.

The warm-up act was the Ange Boxall Trio.  I am usually a big fan of Ange but she seemed a little out of place in my nostalgic journey back in time and her version of Jolene just made me want to hear The Wilson Pickers' version.

Then the main act was on.  Iva was fabulous and I suspect that each of us secretly wanted to take him back to our room for a drink.  I didn't know that I knew so many Icehouse songs.  Every song seemed to be one that I knew the best and my very favourite.  Then they played 'Nothing Too Serious' and I was on my feet and 16 again.  It brought the house down.  The anthems of my adolescence rolled on and on and it seemed that there would be no end to the transportation back in time.

But end it did and none of us wanted to break to the reverie so we headed to the Onyx Bar.  The Catch Club were playing other great 80's classics like Australian Crawl's "Boys Light Up".  I never knew that that is what James Reyne was actually saying.  The band was average at best but it really hit the mark for us.  Watching my friends singing and dancing in the bar not giving two hoots about what others might think and, by doing so, inspiring others to let their hair down and enjoy the evening, I was struck but how lucky I was to have such wonderfully strong women as lifelong friends.  As Iva and his boys would say - "She takes possession, she has control.  Next to you I can touch the fire".

Knocklofty - Spirit of West Hobart

On my adventures so far I have discovered that the more that you put yourself out there the more invitations to attend exciting events will come your way.  My friend casually asked me, "Do you drink gin?"   Hahahahaha.  I was subsequently invited to attend the launch of her new venture - a distillery.  Yeah baby!!

The setting for this fabulous event was beautiful.  It was held in amazing gardens hidden away in suburban Hobart.  It was the stuff of the English novels I read as a child.  I felt like I'd entered an Enid Blyton book and I fully expected to see fairies at the bottom of the garden enjoying 'lashings of ginger beer'.  The music, however, was reminiscent of that in a hip London bar on the Thames.  It all conspired to make me feel that maybe I was now one of the elite social set who get invited to fancy launch parties.

Knocklofty's products are made in their small distillery in West Hobart using their own base spirit.  They individually distill each botanical and hand bottle and label each product.  They currently produce three products - Penn Gin, O Orange Liqueur, and Kahvi Coffee Liqueur.

Penn Gin has a very smooth mouth feel then you are hit with the taste of Tasmanian Pepper Berry, ground Wattle seeds, Angelica root and Thai basil.  It has a distinctly Asian influence which made me feel that I was at a fancy Thai resort putting away endless gin inspired cocktails by the pool.  Thailand has that special smell that has been bottled and infused in this gin.  It is one of the best gins I have ever tasted and is the perfect drink to accompany your stir fry.  All gin lovers should give this one a go - you won't regret it.

O Orange liqueur is very sweet and was good with ice and water but would be better in a cocktail or a great addition to Sangria.  I can't wait to do some experimenting.  Kahvi also very sweet but was great with cream and ice.  It is sweeter and had a stronger coffee taste than a certain popular coffee liqueur.  I am looking forward to trying these two in a B-52 shot.

Now that I am a sophisticate that gets invited to fancy openings maybe I have proven my worth as a 'Supporter of Local Producers'. I can't wait to see what Knocklofty come up with next so I can take another step forward in achieving my New Year Resolutions.



Postscript:  If you take a look at Knocklofty's website you'll notice that the cover photo looks familiar.  It appears that I am now a photographer, of sorts.  It seems that I am more than just a Patron of the Arts but an actual Artist.  Yay me!

Knocklofty Website

Time Enough for Countin' when the Dealin's Done

If you find yourself on a Friday night at a country pub dancing in the middle of the main bar singing Kenny Rogers' "The Gambler" at the top of your voice along with the locals whilst your mum and dad watch on, can you be considered a 'Patron of the Arts'?  It did give me pause to wonder whether things had gone seriously off the rails.

I spent my teenage years growing up on the east coast of Tasmania around the town of Triabunna and my parents still live in the district.  Triabunna is a logging town, or it was until the local chip mill closed; now it is primarily a fishing town and gateway to the beautiful Maria Island National Park.

Triabunna is your typical country town.  It has two pubs, the top pub and the bottom pub, and each has it's loyal patrons.  The Spring Bay Hotel (the bottom pub) has new carpet and freshly painted walls but still maintains its country pub character and feel.  An eight ball table in the main bar, the photo wall of locals engaged in many great nights in the bar and the placards advertising the social club all add to the ambiance and make you wonder what stories could be told if only the walls could talk.  There is not a poker machine, tab or keno in sight and, for the locals, "The Springy" is integrated in their lives and the patrons are all part of a strange family.  They accept each other despite foibles and character flaws.  My dad is a loyal patron of and drops in at 11am each Friday and is home by lunch and can't be easily recognised by the patrons without his hat. So when I saw the bottom pub advertising "True Grit Out of Tamworth" I thought that it would be a perfect opportunity to catch up with my parents and continue my Arts Patronage.

Before the show we went for a good old fashioned counter meal which came with a salad complete with a slice of orange.  The service at the Spring Bay Hotel is great and the staff are all really friendly.  I did have an issue trying to get served by one of the more senior bar staff who served all the locals ahead of me - this was quite amusing, I had to look in the mirror to check that I didn't have my invisibility cloak on.  Even funnier was once he worked out that I was a local, of sorts, and the daughter of a regular patron, then I had no problem at all.  Ah, the quirks of country life.

The entertainment started with a trio of guys (Scrubby, Possum and Jim - I'm not kidding) who won't see seventy again strutting their stuff on violin, banjo and guitar.  They played a lot of old favourites, the set was laden with Johnny Cash and Slim Dusty classics.

Next up was a fellow in a Drizabone jacket, Akubra hat and Blundstone boots - Bushy Thompson (again not joking).  Bushy was a poet and was the highlight of the evening.  His version of "Clancy of the Overflow" was fantastic.  This was followed by a number of humorous Australian poems and stories.  Mmmmm, poetry, maybe I am a Patron of the Arts after all.

By this time I, and a number of the patrons, had a few beers under the belt, the music recommenced and dancing ensued.  The sophisticated Triabunna two-step was in evidence, along with superb dancing by a couple who had been to more than one Bush dance in their day.

That was when things started to go pear-shaped!  I was sitting in the back corner with my tiny 10 oz beer (no hipster pints at the Springy) having a quiet catch up with a few of the locals that I knew from high school when it came to my attention that Jim, the leader of the troupe, was summoning the girl with the orange shirt to come forward to participate in the frivolities of the next song.  I looked around to see who he might be talking about and with great horror I realised that I was the only person in the bar wearing orange.  EEEEEKKKKKK!!!  It was like being in high school all over again and being unexpectedly called upon by the principal to come to the front of the assembly to give a speech.  Do I just run away and hope that it no one notices.  Do I shyly go forward and try and keep a low profile.  I opted to go forward.  I made my way to the middle of the bar and stood alone and waited.  Then Jim started singing "Wait until my lips cool down" directed right at me.  I made a split decision to just go with it (the beers may have had some influence) and I pranced around the bar like a loon.  After all, I had nothing to lose (other then my dignity).  This wholehearted participation was met with cheers and clapping from the bar and more than a little laughter.  It turned out to be a lot of fun but how the duck did that even happen - you can't write this stuff.

The mood of the bar was on the up and the cover of Steve Earle's "Copperhead Road" set the bar alight with much whooping and dancing.  This led on to "The Gambler" which is where I found myself on that amazing Friday night wondering how I got there.  But maybe there is some wisdom in Kenny's words - if you live life to the full and take chances then you'll find an ace that you can keep.  After all, there'll be time enough for countin' when the dealin's done.