Melody Pops

The weather’s been woeful, but you can tell it’s almost spring in Melbourne by listening to the summer festival announcements push their way through rumour and speculation into the fresh morning air of anticipation, only to be rained on by a million spoiled yet unsatisfied middle-class internet users tumbling from the sky.

International boutique festival go-getters All Tomorrow’s Parties announced a long-awaited return to Melbourne on Monday. The festival made its Australian debut at Mt Buller in 2009, but lower than expected ticket sales and an inability to secure enough accommodation on the mountain top resort meant a repeat was untenable and left ATP’s future Australian plans in doubt until now.

This made quite a few people upset; those who attended speak in revered tones of the strange utopian balance that occurred that weekend, while the ones that didn’t want whatever the ones that did were on.

I’ll Be Your Mirror will take place as two single day festivals over the space of a weekend at the Westgate Entertainment Centre and Grand Star Reception complex in Altona mid-February next year, and the line-up is sex good.

Music geeks city-wide are rejoicing as Irish shoegaze legends My Bloody Valentine headline the ATP curated Saturday, while The Drones will headline and curate Sunday’s events. Standouts among the Mars-rover-landing impressive lineup include Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Swans, Beasts Of Bourbon, HTRK, The Dead C, Thee Oh Sees and Einstürzende Neubauten.

Click here for the full lineup so far and ticket info, provided there are any left for sale by the time you read this. Otherwise, try eBay.

Probably not intentionally attempting to be outdone, everybody’s favourite – Meredith Music Festival – made their first announcement Tuesday with Primal Scream and Spiritualized revealed as co ’90s Brit-psych captains onboard an Enterprise of Four Tet, Earthless, Hot Snakes, Sunnyboys, Twerps, Regurgitator and Angus Sampson of Maggi fame.

Returning as usual will be the sea of tranquilidrunk that is the Flamingo Bar, possible thunderstorms, drunkards entering the wrong tents, Silence Wedge, the Christmas-like ability to bring your own grog into the festival, plenty of dickheads despite the ‘No Dickheads’ policy, the surprisingly amenable eco-toilets, the Meredith Gift and the big round spinning thing that you sit in to observe proceedings from a higher vantage point.

Tickets available via ballot or at selected stores on Thursday August 30^th.

Gigs of the Week
On Thursday night there’s an Elvis tribute evening happening at Yah Yahs to celebrate the 35^th year anniversary of The King faking his own death and going into hiding, featuring too many musicians and vocalists to mention (Spencer P Jones will definitely be there). Tickets are $20 at the Yah Yahs website and you get a free peanut butter and jelly sandwich. But where’s the bacon??

Useless Children launch their face-meltingly good doom-splosion of an LP “Post Ending//Pre Completion” at The Gasometer Saturday night, which also has a fantastic kitchen if you don’t mind a bit of a wait. Supports are White Walls, Concrete Life and Headless Death.

Hard-Ons guitarist Peter “Blackie” Black is on the road to recovery after being brutally assaulted while driving his taxi earlier this year. First show back he’ll be launching his second solo album, No Dangerous Gods In Tunnel, at The Tote on Sunday. Supports are Laura Imbruglia, BJ Morriszonkle and Link Meanie. $10 at the door.