Super pleased to be doing my first feature at this newish gig in the CBD, Voices in the Attic.
Also featuring is Laurie May from Alice Springs, the SONNY VERONICA DUO and DJ LAPKATwho will be on the 1's and 2's to close up the night.

FREE ENTRY
8 open mic slots
5 minutes each
Open Mic registration starts at 6:30pm

LAURIE MAY is a desert rat from Alice Springs. Her work draws on experiences in poverty as well as themes of loss, change and homelessness. Politically charged and passionate Laurie takes listeners on a journey into understanding through poetry.


Tuesday June 10th. 

FERDYDUKE.
Levels 1 & 2. 239 Lonsdale Street, Melbourne. 

Liner Notes 11 coming up soon at the Melbourne Writers Festival

This year, Liner Notes, a literary cabaret in tribute to a classic album, takes a lysergic road trip with Jim Morrison to scatter the ashes of the ’60s in the Mojave Desert, as we celebrate the swaggering shamanic blues of The Doors’ L.A.Woman. Featuring special guests Missy Higgins, Andy Griffiths, Ophira Eisenberg (US), Dave Graney, Doug Johnstone (UK), Jane Caro, Luka Lesson and Josh Earl, with Emilie Zoey Baker, Sean M Whelan and Alicia Sometimes, and led by MC Michael Nolan and a kick-arse live band. So, join us for the Lizard King's swansong before he ran a warm bath in Paris for the American Dream. The Regal Ballroom, Northcote, Friday 23 August. Tickets:http://tickets.mwf.com.au/session2_mwf.asp?s=300

Side one

1. ‘Changeling’ JOSH EARL

2. ‘Love Her Madly’ ANDY GRIFFITHS

3. ‘Been Down So Long’ JANE CARO

4. ‘Cars Hiss By My Window’ EMILIE ZOEY BAKER

5. ‘L.A. Woman’ DOUG JOHNSTONE (Edinburgh)

Interval

Side two

6. ‘L’America’ OPHIRA EISENBERG (Host of the Moth StorySLAMs, USA)

7. ‘Hyacinth House’ ALICIA SOMETIMES & SEAN M WHELAN WITH THE HYACINTHIANS.

8. ‘Crawling King Snake’ GEORGE MEGALOGENIS

9. ‘The WASP (Texas Radio and the Big Beat)’ LUKA LESSON

10. ‘Riders on the Storm’ MISSY HIGGINS


If that line-up doesn’t get your mojo risin’, nothing will.



Friday 23 August 2013 at 9.00 pm
tickets here: http://tickets.mwf.com.au/session2_mwf.asp?sn=Liner+Notes

ContraVerse - new regular poetry gig in Fitzroy.

Performing tonight at a brand new monthly spoken word event called ContraVerse. Also featuring is the Paul Kidney Experience.
There's an open mic with a People's Choice Award. Ten spots only so be there at 7pm sharp if you want to participate.
63 Johnston Street, Fitzroy.
See ya there.
x

My good friend Omar Musa has produced one of the best poetry books of 2013 and tomorrow I have the great joy of DJing at his Melbourne launch for the book held as part of the March edition of Slamalamadingdong. This will be a fantastic evening. I highly recommend your attendance. You can get tickets right here. x.

Bar Stanza Episode 2

Performing at a sweet new gig tonight run by Anthony O'Sullivan in Richmond at The Owl and the Pussycat. This is only the second time it's been run. Four writers, no open mic. Very happy to be sharing a stage with three of my favourites, Michelle Dabrowski, Steve Smart and Ben Pobjie.
Here's Anthony's blurb for the show...

After a ripping first show that saw knock-out performances and many a happy punter, we are tickled to be giving more of the best in our 2nd show! Anth is knicking off to Europe after this wee shindig and Bar Stanza will be on hiatus, but the venue was pretty pleased with how we filled the space, so once MC Idiot gets back, fingers crossed we'll have ourselves a whole run of shows in late 2013! That is, so long as you cats and kittens drag yo' bums on down for this tight gig and blow the place apart again! Be there! Support! Encourage! Drink!

So who's gonna be dazzling your earbits this month?

Sean M Whelan - Sean M Whelan writes poetry, fiction and works for performance. He also collaborates extensively with musicians. His band The Interim Lovers released an album called Softly & Suddenly in October 2010, based on Lewis Carroll’s poem ‘The Hunting of the Snark’. He also currently works with electronic musician Isnod. Sean is a co-founder and producer of the successful literary cabaret Liner Notes, presented to sell out crowds to the Melbourne Writers Festival every year since 2009. His latest book of poetry is titled Tattooing the Surface of the Moon, through Small Change Press. He is currently working on his first full length play and a collection of recordings made with Isnod.

Steve Smart - Some days Steve Smart wishes he had someone to write his bio's for him. Famous people think they have it hard with the lack of privacy and the stalking, the fragile self-image too easily destroyed by tabloid mockery, but they have people to write their damn press text. So they can all shut up. Steve Smart has been doing this for a long time. The bio writing. Between writing his own bio's he also writes poems. Which often also involves writing about himself. Sometimes he makes people up to write about and this amuses him no end. When he describes himself as a cult figure, it's a nice way of saying poor and not very famous. He performed at the Sydney Opera House but that was a long time ago. He currently has 16 projects on the go. Approximately. He's really not this grumpy in person.

Michelle Dabrowski - Michelle Alina Dabrowski is a Canadian multi-disciplinary artist, poet, event curator, arts educator and community/arts development practitioner based in Melbourne Australia. From Montreal’s Blue Metropolis Festival to Melbourne’s Forum Theatre, Michelle has performed, taught and produced internationally for the past ten years. As a passionate and trail blazing entrepreneur Michelle is well known for actively engaging groups of artists to create charismatic and transformational social movements through her work in communities. She gave birth to and co-ordinated the Montreal Throw Poetry Collective (2006) and is the current Founder and Artistic Director to Slamalamadingdong; a cross disciplinary community platform and poetry slam series. Helping students find and refine their voice through the medium of creative performance Michelle has facilitated over five hundred and seventy two workshops in schools and has coached artists from all mediums supporting and leading them to a place of risk taking and performance break throughs. Her work has been featured on the Indiefeed Performance Poetry Channel and on Triple RRR’s Aural Text Radio Program. Published in 2012, Michelle’s latest collection of poetry is Curb Side Angel Spit. A live album featuring performances from her latest nationwide tour alongside Poet Joel McKerrow, can be found at www.bandcamp.com/SoleofAustralia.

Ben Pobjie - Ben Pobjie is a writer, comedian, and poet. He is best known for his weekly satirical articles on Australian current-affairs site New Matilda.
Pobjie began writing his weekly articles in early 2008. His subject matter is drawn from topical issues, and he has written humorously on issues ranging from maternity leave and the federal Budget to Catholicism, child pornography and incest. His articles are often followed by angry reader comments from those who have not realised the work is satirical. Right-wing columnists such as Miranda Devine and Andrew Bolt are often the target of his humour.
His work has also appeared in Melbourne's daily broadsheet newspaper The Age.
Pobjie is also a performance poet and comedian, performing around Melbourne. In 2008 launched a campaign to be named Australia's first poet laureate. He used to be heard regularly on Helen Razer's radio show on the ABC.


Man, these guys right good bio! Don't they just sound like awesome people? You'd totally want to meet each of them and enjoy their words all in your head....
And you can! At Bar Stanza!
Tuesday, March 5th, 7:30 for an 8:00 start, a piddling $5 entry or $1.25 per poet! You can't get a litre of petrol for $1.25! (What has that got to do with anything? Idiot).
Bar is open, room is ready, Anth is keen to dance again, the performers want your attention.
Come!
Be a cool person!
It's what you were made for!

The Owl and the Pussycat

34 Swan Street., Richmond, Victoria 3121

White Night Melbourne

This Saturday I'm pretty amped to be taking part in the White Night festival in Melbourne. This basically involves the City of Melbourne being open all night long from 7pm - 7am with all manner of artistic activities all over the shop celebrating music, film, food, writing, art and light. And mostly free as far as I can tell. I'm part of the EWF Writing Camp at the Wheeler Centre. I'll be appearing alongside some of my very favourite writers in Melbourne. We'll be performing as well as hanging around to offer advice to anybody who wants it and have a bit of a chat. I'll be performing at 9pm. Check out the full program below.

8pm —

Eric Yoshiaki Dando was born in Tokyo in 1970. He has had stories, cartoons and poems published here and there. He is best known for his cult classic counter-culture novel Snail. He is currently writing his third novel called Beautiful Useful Things.

9pm —

Sean M Whelan writes poetry, fiction and works for performance. He also collaborates extensively with musicians. His band The Interim Lovers released an album called Softly & Suddenly and his latest book of poetry is titled Tattooing the Surface of the Moon, through Small Change Press. He is currently working on his first full length play and a collection of recordings made with electronic musician Isnod.

10pm —

Briohny Doyle is an award winning Australian writer, fan-grrrl and scholar of the apocalypse. Her writing appears in the pages of Ampersand Magazine, Going Down Swinging, Overland, Cordite, Voiceworks, The Lifted Brow and as meaningful pixels all over the internet.

11pm —

Jessica Alice presents and produces ‘Spoken Word’ and ‘Women on the Line’ on 3CR 855AM community radio, and edits poetry for Voiceworks.She made her debut at the Abbotsford Convent in 2008 and won The Spinning Room’s performers place in 2010.

MIDNIGHT DOUBLE FEATURE 1 —

Laura Jean McKay is an award-winning writer best known for smearing cat food all over herself on stage. Despite this, she is published in Best Australian Stories, The Big Issue, Women of Letters and The Lifted Brow, among others. Her short story collection Holiday in Cambodia will be published by Black Inc in July 2013.

MIDNIGHT DOUBLE FEATURE 2 —

Lawrence Leung is a TV writer, comedian and director. He created two ABC1 telly shows, ‘Lawrence Leung’s Unbelievable’ and the AFI-nominated ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’. He also wrote pranks for ‘The Chaser’s War On Everything’ and toured his award-winning stand up shows nationally and overseas. He once solved a Rubik’s Cube whilst skydiving.

1am —

Tom Doig is a writer, performer, editor, moron—has been published in The Big Issue, The Lifted Brow, Sleepers Almanac and Voiceworks. His plays include Survival of the Prettiest, Hitlerhoff and Selling Ice to the Remains of the Eskimos. Mörön to Mörön: two men, two bikes, one Mongolian misadventure is his first book.

2 am —

YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU!

3am —

Luke Ryan is a freelance writer, comedian and man about town. I write short-form non-fiction with a comic edge and am currently working on my debut book, I Guess You’re Only as Sick as You Feel, a comedy memoir about having had cancer a couple of times due for release through Scribe Publications in late 2013. Work has appeared in The Vine, Smith Journal, Crikey, The Lifted Brow, Kill Your Darlings, Time Out and many others.

4 am —

YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU!

5am —

Nick Modrzewski is a writer and painter.  His work has been published in The Lifted Brow, Helmet Magazine, Six Years Later, Rabbit Poetry Journal and Voiceworks. He has written for and performed at the Melbourne International Comedy Festival as well as ‘Short and Sweet,’ and the Edinburgh and Melbourne Fringe Festivals.

6 am —

YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU! YOU!

7 am —

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

There will be coffeeeeeee! Bring a pillow or a rug if you like. Bring your writing equipment – lap top or pen and paper – and, best of all, bring your inspiring ideas that you’ve been waiting to test out way way late! Hope to see you on the night!

Big Feats - Little Feat 2013 Cabaret Fundraiser

From one Independent Theatre fundraiser into another. On Monday night, Feb 18th, I'll be one of many performers appearing at a special Cabaret fundraiser to try and raise some money for Little Feat Theatre. They have a great little performance space on St Georges Road. I've already seen some wonderful productions there and very happy to do my bit to ensure they put on many more.
Here's what they have to say about it:

Hi there, everyone and happy new year!
We are holding an exciting fundraising event for Little Feat Theatre on MONDAY February 18^th, and we’d LOVE to have your support!
It’s now been 2 years since Feat In Space (the company) began and a year of running our own venue, the Little Feat Theatre. During the past year we’ve had an exciting (and exhausting) range of events, including our first Friday play readings held every month, our own productions and some great visiting productions too.
We’ve got some wonderful plans for 2013, kicking off with a fantastic fundraising soiree party!
WHY A FUNDRAISER?
Running a theatre venue, you’ll appreciate its pretty hard to balance the books as its really a labour of love. This year we want to spread the word wider about Little Feat and hire a publicist – but first we need the money to pay them!
The soiree night will be on Monday, February 18^th at local Thornbury tapas restaurant, Perri on St Georges Road. There will be delicious tapas finger food and a variety of live entertainment for pleasure, as well as a silent auction of local businesses services and products. Put it in your diary, we’ll let you know more details soon. Tickets $50 (drinks not included but there is a full bar operating on the night).
We hope to make $2000 in total and have set up this Pozible account with an aim to make $1000 (the rest at the fundraiser event) for those who are keen to support us but can’t make it on the day. This way no donation is too small to make an enormous difference to us.

Mutation Theatre Fundraiser featuring The Interim Lovers

Tonight Sean M Whelan & The Interim Lovers will play our first live performance since early 2012. We're appearing at a fundraiser for my favourite Melbourne independent theatre company, Mutation Theatre. They're trying to raise some funds to aid staging their next production Love Me Tender, which the above picture of cast member Sarah Ogden is from. Sarah also happened to appear in my short play B.I.K.E which was put on for the 48 Hour Play Generator at the Emerging Writer's Festival a couple of years ago.
Also appearing at the fundraiser tonight will be Spender, Ainslie Wills, and Epps and Kwasi.
The Interim Lovers will be appearing in trio mode tonight. We'll perform a few older tracks from Sean M Whelan & The Mime Set days and a few newer ones with musical arrangements loosely arranged just a couple of days ago!Doors open tonigth at 7.30pm at the Travellers Bookstore at 294 Smith St Collingwood. $10 entry. And you can bring your own booze!
 

Tonight! Myself and Isnod. Dig it.

Liner Notes presents David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust at the Melbourne Writers Festival

This Saturday night! Liner Notes returns!!!

If you want a ticket better be fast as we're heading for a sell out. 
http://tickets.mwf.com.au/session2_mwf.asp?s=300
 
Here's how we're breaking it down.

Side one

1. ‘Five Years’ YANA ALANA

2. ‘Soul Love’ OMAR MUSA

3. ‘Moonage Daydream’ SEAN M WHELAN

4. ‘Starman’ TIM FLANNERY

5. ‘It Ain't Easy’ FIRST DOG ON THE MOON

Interval

Side two

6. ‘Lady Stardust’ BENJAMIN LAW

7. ‘Star’ ALICIA SOMETIMES

8. ‘Hang On to Yourself'’ BEN POBJIE

9. ‘Ziggy Stardust’ DEBORAH CONWAY

10. ‘Suffragette City’ JOUMANA HADDAD

11. ‘Rock 'n' Roll Suicide’ EMILIE ZOEY BAKER 

Honey O performed live at Slamalamdingdong

A new video from a live performance of mine has just been uploaded to the Slamalamadingdong Youtube channel. This is my favourite regular Slam Event held in Melbourne founded by Michelle Dabrowski. On this particular night I was asked to perform live with a band, but only after meeting them for the first time backstage and then having one minute to discuss the mood and the theme of the poem. The poem I chose, Honey O, is an older one I haven't performed in years. It was first written when I was collaborating with rock band The Mime Set in 2005. You can watch and listen to the Slamalamadingdong version right here.

New Sean M Whelan & Isnod studio track.

Very pleased to announce that a new studio recording by Sean M Whelan & Isnod has been accepted by the good people at Overland Literary Journal. While you're there also check out Omar Musa, Eleanor Jackson, Benjamin Solah and more. All available for your listening pleasure right now. Check it out at Audio Overland.

Supporting The Bedroom Philosopher

Tomorrow night at the Wesley Anne in Northcote, Isnod and I will perform our first gig together in ages. We're supporting the amazing Bedroom Philosopher. We're on at 8:30. Should be a wonderful evening.

Bayside Literary Festival

Am very pleased to be sharing a stage tonight with two of my favourite poets in all the land, Emilie Zoey Baker and Alicia Sometimes. We're featuring together at a special event called The Intoxication. There will also be an open mic for anybody else who'd like to bring something to read.
Love to see you there.

Saturday 23 June (7pm to 9pm)
The Hobson Stores: 19-21 Melrose Street, Sandringham
Food and drinks available for purchase
$7

Performing some poems at the Melbourne Jazz Festival tonight.

I've performing some poems at the Melbourne Jazz Festival tonight. Not that anybody will read this because I hardly ever update the fucking thing. But, well, just so know. In case you were wondering where I am tonight.
 There.

Now somebody will read it.

From Poet to DJ in one night.

Tonight I'm performing at the Melbourne Poet's Union event 'Poetry's A Funny Thing.' There's a $100 prize on the open mic, so if you think you've got a chuckle worthy poem then bring it along and try your luck. Judging the event will be Alicia Sometimes, any poem mentioning the West Wing or Science will definitely score you extra points.
7pm.
Wheeler Centre
176 Little Lonsdale Street
Melbourne.

Immediately following this event I shall be running off to Willow Bar, 222 High Street, Northcote. I'll be putting on my DJ hat (figuratively, I don't have an actual DJ hat) for the first time there in ages. There are new owners now and I'm hoping to impress them and convince them to make this a regular gig, so please do drop by if you happen to be in the area. Free entry and I'm playing from 10pm.

cheers.

x.

Sean M Whelan & The Interim Lovers first gig for 2012

The Cambodian Space Project.

Tonight I'll be performing with the Interim Lovers for the first time this year at a fabulous benefit to assist Women with Disability in Cambodia. Headlining the gig will be the amazing Cambodian Space Project, who I first had the pleasure of meeting at the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival in Bali last year.
This will also be my first time performing at the iconic Tote Hotel in Collingwood.
Doors open 7:30.
We're on 9pm sharp.

The Tote.
71 Johnston Street
Collingwood.

CHERCHEZ LA FEMME CELEBRATES INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY - TONIGHT!

I'm performing at this gig tonight to celebrate International Women's Day.
Here's the blurb on the gig by Super Babe Femmo Organiser, the amazing Karen Pickering.

Cherchez la Femme returns for 2012 with a one-off extravag-anza to celebrate International Women's Day in true femmo style. We'll save the serious panel business for next time because I've lined up my all-time dream-team of singers, dancers, actors, musicians, poets, comics, thinkers and performers to hit the Grace Darling bandroom, show us their love of the ladies and tell us why being a feminist matters to them. I can scarcely contain myself as I announce the line-up here:

KATE BOSTON SMITH (Cabaret Star, Kitty Bang, Show Off)
EMILIE ZOEY BAKER (Slam Champion, Endless Lover, Crack-Up)
ANDREW MARLTON (First Dog on the Moon, Poet, Oracle)
HELEN RAZER (Writer, Raconteur, Sexy Mama)
CLEM BASTOW (Femmo, Neo-Stoner, Cosplaya)
SEAN M WHELAN (The Boss - of Poetry, Dream Guy)
ALICIA SOMETIMES (Broadcaster, Poet, Hottie)
CHRISTINA ARNOLD (Lead Signer of The Perfections, Bangin' Broad)
BEN POBJIE (Poet, Writer, Comic, Spy)
EMILY JARRETT (Singer with Go-Go Sapien, Robobabe)
BEN McKENZIE (Professional Nerd-Wonder, Comic, Fox)
JANE DUST (Singer, Love Child of Burt Bacharach & Emmy-Lou Harris)
CLEMENTINE FORD (Boner-Killer, Abortion-Enthusiast, Got Swag)
JESSICA ALICE (Poet, Broadcaster, Honey)
SHAKIRA HUSSEIN (Academic, Thinker, Fighter)
SERI VIDA (Singer, Musician, Rad Lady)
and DJ sets from LISA GREENAWAY (of DJ Lapkat fame, Beatmaster)

I will host the hell outta this thing. I will also be working hard to facilitate a Band-Aid-style closing number that will send a secret encoded message to Germaine Greer, so concentrated will be its femmo power.

Appropriately named after a feminist hero, The Grace Darling will be our charming venue for the evening at 114 Smith St, Collingwood. We'll kick off at 7pm and let the lady love continue throughout the night with breaks for cuddling and kissing. The kitchen will be open for you to purchase delicious foods and the drinks will flow for anyone who wants 'em.

Tickets are $15 on the door with proceeds going to womens' refuges here in Melbourne.

It will be a magical night of laughter, a few tears and some serious gynocentric power. I hope to see you at CLF for IWD at the GD. T Y.

Warmest
Karen x

New poem recorded for Nothing Rhymes With Triple R podcast

Okay, let's see if I can be a bit better with this whole blogger thing in 2012.
To begin with I just recorded a brand new poem for a podcast called Nothing Rhymes With Triple R, presented in conjunction with Australian Poetry and Triple R FM. It's put together by the lovely Eliza Hull and Jess Rizzi.
Also on this podcast you can hear an interview with poet Ainslie Meredith and Lisa Dempster, director of the Emerging Writers Festival.
Listen to the podcast right here.


Hope you enjoy.

smw.

Notes on Sound - An Overload Poetry Festival event.

Tonight I'm excited about performing at Notes on Sounds. I'll be doing a 20 min set accompanied by piano accordion and BANJO! We had a quick rehearsal last night and things went swimmingly well. Also on the bill are two of my favourite Melbourne poets, Andy Jackson and Jessica Alice, they will also be accompanied by musicians. Entry is by a measly gold coin donation. Hope to see you there.
It's at the Edinburgh Castle Hotel, 681 Sydney Road, Brunswick. 7:30 pm.
More details here.