Blog — Page 128 of 278

Water of Life – Rest and Be Thankful

So far we have our focus mainly set on covering distilleries, which makes sense as they make the spirit. However, given that distillers swap, sell and exchange their emissions both old and new, there are a myriad of whisky companies that specialise in releasing whiskies the characteristics of which can be quite different from what one is used from their mothership, no matter if we are talking single malts, blends, grain or literally everything in between.

In other words, independent bottlers keep the whisky game interesting and a relatively new one has sparked by curiosity, as word around the campfire had that it was founded by a former Bruichladdich sales manager. Given the ties with the great Hebridean progressive distillery, it was not further wondrous to find bottlings of two of my all-time favourite whiskies, i.e. Bruichladdich’s Octomore and Port Charlotte, in the line-up of Rest and Be Thankful – the name being an ode to a landmark that graces the peak the road out of Glen Crow.

The first Rest and Be Thankful whisky I was introduced to was a Ledaig, which left originally left the still at Tobermory in 2007 after having been matured for eleven years in a single sherry cask. Bottled at 58.5%, the Ledaig packs a punch, yet not overwhelmingly so, as the relatively high alcohol content is embedded in a complex melange of fruity, spicy and smoky notes.

Nuances of fruity and nuts along with smoky bacon tickle the nostrils and hint at the delicious peaty smokiness that caresses the palate. Berry and plum flavours are omnipresent and culminate in an elongated finish that leaves one thirsting for another dram.

Now, given previous instalments of our Water of Life series, it should not come as a surprise that I have yet to come across an Octomore expression that does not make me wax lyrical.

Needless to say that I was excited to try the Rest and Be Thankful variation, which upon being distilled in 2009, spent six years maturing in a barrel that previously contained Tempranillo wine.

I would not go as far as claiming that this is an exotic Octomore as the trademark idiosyncratic iodine peatyness and earthy aromas are there, yet there is a creaminess on the roof of the mouth and sweetness specifically in the finish that is reminiscent of a great mezcal. Clocking in at 65.7%, this rust coloured beauty of a drop is dangerously more-ish and each sip resulted in lip smacking while inhaling the wonderful aromas.

Fancy drams from the Highlands? R&BT’s Fettercairn aged for ten years in a single bourbon cask and is a nice variant based on to the nutty flavours and balancing sweetness the distillery has become known for.

Fruity aromas on the nose – think bananas and mangoes – transcend to spicy vanilla and malt flavours that seamlessly transition into a peanut and almond infused finish, which finds its crescendo in peppery highlights.

If you are more into the Speyside and a fan of Benrinnes’ expression that are part of the Flora and Fauna series, R&BT’s eleven-year-old will delight you: Once uncorked, the wafts of cinnamon and caramel remind one immediately of their core expression, yet this one has a more defined earthiness and orangey aromas that give it a bit of a twist. On the palate it unfolds its savoury, big-bodied character that is spicy yet more on the fruity end of the spectrum with a medium-length finish that lingers with nuances of apples and berries.

Summa summarum, if you are remotely into appreciating fantastic whiskies and dead set on your favourite expressions, you do want to check out Rest and Be Thankful’s bottlings as not only the network the founders are able to source from is unparalleled, but the careful curation of the casks they gain access o tensures consistency in terms of quality across their by now more than fifty bottlings from over twenty distilleries.

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Photo from company website

Tim and Eric

Enmore Theatre

Sydney, Australia

January 15, 2020

For the uninitiated, Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim, “Tim & Eric” is a comedy duo that has garnered a cult following through the shows they have created on the Adult Swim network. Having honed their craft since the mid-nineties, they have evolved from cartoons and short films via a website that displayed their talents to eventually scoring a TV show with the help of Bob Odenkirk.

The red threat of their oeuvre is the idiosyncratic grotesqueness of their approach to comedy, the common denominators of which are an exaggerated lack of fashion sense, off timing for comedic effect and an overall tackiness that is amplified through the highlighting of stereotypes the characters they portray embody to substitute real characteristics.

Given the aforementioned, one was wondering what a live incarnation could look like and if it would actually work when the “Tim and Eric 2020 Mandatory Attendance Tour” was announced. A sentiment similar when Monty Python announced that they were going to take their show on the road.

It was refreshing to see that both Tim and Eric bring a vaudevillian style to the stage that made the rendition of their skits very enjoyable, specifically if, like in my case, you are not familiar with the TV versions.

Apart from spoof and goofs from their shows, both Tim and Eric carried the evening and made it immensely enjoyable when they went off script and relied on their improvisation skills, interacting with the audience and adding an additional dimension to their characters and performance.

Part expertly execute ode to nonsense, part fan-appreciation event, the evening was a beautifully bizarre, the duo showed in the third dimension that there is much more to them than their recorded incarnations would have you think.

Life – The Show

Spiegeltent

Sydney, Australia

January 9, 2020

Given that the creative entity that is Strut & Fret is known for assembling superbly talented performers for their productions and that it has seen very successful stagings of their LIMBO and Cantina shows at previous incarnations of Sydney Festival, the expectations were high when it was announced that their journey and celebration of and through life would be part of the 2020 program.

It is never not a pleasure to step into the internationally touring Magic Mirrors Spiegeltent and the surrounding village that comes alive in Sydney’s Hyde Park as part of the annual festivities and its ambience is always a contributing factor. Certainly a suitable setting for the new decade that will hopefully be no less roaring than the original 20s when jazz-age flappers reigned supreme.

Life – The Show is essentially a close to ninety minutes fast paced two-act tour de force through the stages of life, e.g. birth, adolescence, adulthood, work life, et cetera, and the more abstract and often confusing concepts and conventions behind them.

Not wasting too much time on narration, the show is firmly focussed on a vaudevillian melange of burlesque, cabaret, theatrics, live music and song that is expertly executed by an ensemble that has honed its craft internationally, such as the formidable Goos Meeuwsen, who provides comic relief as the main protagonist, flanked by his counterpart Helena Bittencourt, both of which have become known for their work with Cirque du Soleil.

A highlight of the show is a mesmerising, and subtly erotic aerial routine where performed in a suspended plastic tube / “condom” the fluidity of which needs to be experienced to be believed.

Backed by a tight live band that is comprised of local jazz luminaries as well as constituents of bands like the Violent Femmes, the musical interludes not only provide seamless transitions between the individual acts but become a vital ingredient of the evening.

A varied show that brings a welcome fresh breeze with innovative and sharply choreographed routines, circus artistry, cabaret and acrobatics and which certainly constitutes a highlight of the 2020 Sydney Festival.

Mclusky

Oxford Art Factory

Sydney, Australia

January 12, 2020

Mclusky…rings a bell, huh? I remembered that they were one of the better bands in the 1990s that emerged out of the delicious swamp that was influenced by the better emissions out of Amphetamine Reptile records.

Grimy guitars and a fuzzed-out bass met a fierce and obnoxious attitude that culminated with an aggressive sing-screaming that resided in the darker realms of independent rock. Summa summarum: A welcome and merciless distraction from what followed in the wake of Nirvana’s success.

Needless to say that I was a wee bit worried about seeing them incarnate again in 2020 and prepared myself for disappointment, which was not warranted as with their original frontman Andrew ‘Falco’ Falkous, drummer Jack Egglestone and Damian Sayell the band was in formidable form and managed to blow away any doubts once they entered the stage in front of a packed audience inside the confines of one of the better venues in Sydney, i.e. the Oxford Art Factory.

Tonight the wheel was not necessarily reinvented yet what was proffered was a guitar-heavy, tight, catchy yet raw assault with Falco’s charismatic trademark gruff vocal delivery being the cherry on top.

Having been exposed to Mclusky for the first time, my better half described it as a dissonant psychotic and meaner version of the The Hives, which describes the performance quite accurately.

‘No New Wave No Fun’ carries on a similar trend, a filtered guitar motif preceding a short, catchy tune, although the sound here is even rawer, its driving resonance taking inspiration from The Hives, but adding its own heavy psyche and mean soul to it.

In essence, Mclusky in 2020 is still an exquisite melange of guitar-driven hard-edged punk and the finer moments of noise rock, infused with their idiosyncratic misanthropy.

Gotta Get Theroux This

Louis Theroux

Macmillan

Louis Theroux and his documentaries are known the world over due to two things: Theroux’s idiosyncratic, self-deprecating approach to journalism and unique way of eliciting information and the themes that are more often than not situated on the outer rim of mainstream culture.

Gotta Get Theroux This is a memoir that sheds light on the angle the man himself channels his alchemy from and it does not disappoint as it draws the curtain and allows the reader insights on what is actually happening behind the scene before and during his documentaries are shot. The latter is intriguing when he muses on his dealing with Jimmy Saville and reflects on how and why things went the way they did, i.e. him failing to nail him for being the paedophile his actions revealed him to be and striking up a friendship instead.

What I find particularly interesting is that Theroux examines and questions his feelings, thoughts and values as he guides us through his life and the encounters that paved his long-standing career that led him from a green, naïve and unqualified newbie to one of the popular and unique journalists mainstream culture has to offer.

The book being a memoir, one learn about Theroux’s upbringing in an unconventional and bohemian environment, which he not only details but assesses to have had a tangible influence on his development, work and traits, i.e. becoming a shy and bookish socially awkward who excelled at Oxford and developed an interested in the exploration of human nature and how morality corresponds with the signs of times.

The book should be interesting for both the uninitiated as well as those fairly familiar with his oeuvre as it reveals how his melange of piss-taking, faux naivety, giving people the benefit of doubt, compassion and interest in outlandish and weird phenomena has been shaped into an art form.

The book culminates in prompting some interesting questions that leave one questioning mainstream media’s interpretation of what is “weird” and the conclusion that there are no silver bullet answers and that all we can endeavour to do is pushing forward, making small contributions in a bid to make things better.