110 – Luke Cornish (E.L.K Stencil Artist, Archibald Finalist)

Luke Cornish is a stencil artist. Ignorant old me thought that stencil art was simple in skill and style, however after digging deeper into Luke’s world and seeing some of his amazing works of art I’ve realised that I was completely off the mark.

So how good is Luke? Well he’s the first ever stencil artist to be a finalist for the Archibald Prize, which is Australia’s most prestigious portrait art award. He’s received multiple awards and finalist spots including (but not limited to) the Stencil Art Prize, Metro Art Award, Churchill Fellowship, Sulman Prize, Moran Portrait Prize, and many more.

In recent years, Luke has used his art and influence by fuelling a building interest in helping disadvantaged communities internationally. Most prominent is his work in Syria including a partnership with Father Dave.

I caught up with Luke at a local cafe in Marrickville only metres away from his studio where we spoke about his earlier years of becoming an artist, receiving recognition, having mainstream attention and his time spent in Syria over multiple trips.

If you’re keen on checking out Luke’s work, check out his Elk Stencils website. It’s impressive stuff!

Show notes

Elk Stencils – Main Website | Facebook | YouTube |
Buy Luke’s Prints HERE.
Follow Luke on Twitter
A great interview up on Luke’s website about Syria with VNA

Article – 2017 Federation of Ethnic Community Councils of Australia biannual conference held in Darwin (NT News)
Article – For Syria’s Children, art exhibition and masterpiece idea (The Age)
Article – Stencils in Syria: Australian artist brings joy to children in warzone (ABC)
Article – Inside the world of artist Luke Cornish (Daily Telegraph)
Article – Road to Damascus: Australian artist Luke Cornish unveils Syria-inspired exhibition (SBS News)
Article – Stencil artist tries hand at Archibald Prize (SBS News)
Article – Australian artist Luke Cornish using street art to help Syrians affected by war (Sydney Morning Herald)

 

 

Episode 110 of The Andy Social Podcast features Archibald Finalist and Stencil Artist, Luke Cornish aka ELK. Listen on Apple, Android, RSS and https://t.co/T0I2KLxt71 #podernfamily pic.twitter.com/CUEMRw1ilm

— Andy Dowling (@AndyDowling) December 18, 2017

Photo by Nicole Reed Photography

 

 

 

 

Luke with his Archibald Finalist piece of Father Bob Maguire

Luke’s Rhinoceros on a skateboard in Melbourne. Linking in with Yarra Trams slogan “A tram weighs more than 30 rhinos”.

109 – Willie Gee (Guitar Tech – Megadeth, Anthrax,…

Willie Gee might be metal’s most famous guitar tech. Starting off in the late 90s working with King Diamond, Willie has gone on to tech some of metal’s greatest guitar players in Megadeth, Anthrax, Slayer, Nevermore and many others.

While Willie is a go to in the metal world, his services are not limited to them having also worked with the likes of the Black Eyed Peas and Fergie to highlight a couple.

I’ve known Willie since 2005 when Dungeon were supporting Megadeth throughout Europe. Since then we’ve kept in touch and crossed paths a couple of times either in Australia or somewhere overseas.

Willie and I chat about growing up in Gary (yeah, there’s a place called Gary!), Indiana, playing in local bands and battling it out during the glam era where looks were sometimes more important than playing.  We then fast forward to later getting the opportunity to tech for Glenn Drover in King Diamond which opened up a long career working with some of the world’s best musicians.

This is a really fun chat with a lot of cool stories along the way. If you ever see Willie on stage at a show, make sure you yell out and say hello but whatever you do, DO NOT ask him for a guitar pick! 😉

 

Episode 109 of The Andy Social Podcast is with Guitar Tech extraordinaire, Willie Gee (@Megadeth @Anthrax @Slayer King Diamond, Nevermore and more!). Listen on Apple, Android and https://t.co/T0I2KLxt71 #podernfamily #metal pic.twitter.com/BYOBF8veLz

— Andy Dowling (@AndyDowling) December 14, 2017

 

Megadeth Colombia Fan Club and Lato Art – juanlatoATlive.com in Bogotá, Colombia.

Neurotoxin gig at The Rink 1990 – Merrillville Indiana

Photo by Matt Stinnet

108 – David Harrison (Heavy Metal Merchant, Allegiance)

When it comes to metal, Dave Harrison is your man. He played bass for Australia 90s Aria chart metal legends, Allegiance who played The Big Day Out and tour with bands such as Kreator, Slayer, Fear Factory, Biohazard, Machine Head and more. He later kicked off the Perth band Black Steel playing with the likes of Deep Purple and Judas Priest.

In the past several years he turned his attention toward the retail world, launching his own e-commerce store, Heavy Metal Merchant. His online store has brought in 3 million dollars in sales since he first launched from the comforts of home and where he still conducts business to this day.

I’ve always been fascinated with the rise of e-commerce and seeing someone find financial success from metal (see folks, metal CAN pay the bills!), I spent quite a bit of time picking Dave’s brain about his business and how he’s turned it into one of the most popular heavy metal music and merchandise stores on the internet.

In addition to his business we jump back and forth to compare his journey as a self employed metal merchant to his early days in the Perth metal scene, forming Allegiance. Both have been built from the ground up and were transformed into power houses in their own right.

This is a great story and some real fuel for anyone wanting to light a fire in the world of music and even retail.

If you’re keen on picking up any metal related merch or music, be sure to check out Heavy Metal Merchant and use the special discount code ‘AndySocial’ (case sensitive) to receive 10% off ENTIRE orders under midnight 31 December 2017 Australian Western Standard Time (Perth time) (excludes AfterPay orders). Get amongst it!

Show notes

Follow David on Facebook |
Check out Heavy Metal Merchant via Main Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube | Pinterest |
Article: Heavy Metal Merchants: The music merchandise store launched from a lounge room in Balga (West Australian)
Learn about Allegiance via Metal Down Under website and documentary HERE.

 

Episode 108 of The Andy Social Podcast is up and features David Harrison of Allegiance, Black Steel and Metal E-Commerce store Heavy Metal Merchant! Listen on Apple, Android and https://t.co/T0I2KLxt71 #podernfamily pic.twitter.com/Pba8vRylIp

— Andy Dowling (@AndyDowling) December 7, 2017

Dave Harrison of online business Heavy Metal Merchant, which has sold more than $3 million worth of black t-shirts and other merchandise to headbangers around the world. Harrison is a former member of hugely popular Perth metal outfit Allegiance. Read article HERE.
Picture : Ian Munro The West Australian 17/11/17

Taken from Metal Down Under Documentary HERE.

 

107 – Mat Maurer (Mortal Sin)

Mortal Sin are legends in the Australian metal scene. They are the only Australian band to have played with each of the Big 4 (Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax) as well as Testament, Exodus, Kreator, Sepultura to name a few (shall we call it the Big 8?). Through classic albums such as Mayhemic Destruction and Face of Despair they grew to become one of my most respected bands in the early years of Aussie metal and the whole genre of thrash metal.

It’s been 30 odd years since the inception of the band and I recently caught up with frontman Mat Maurer to recount the bands early beginnings, how he met drummer Wayne Campbell on a train from blasting Judas Priest through his ghetto-blaster, begging local promoters and bookers to let a thrash metal band jump on shows (note: there were no other thrash metal bands around at the time – they had to do a lot of convincing!), posting their album off to the UK and being discovered by a major label by accident in a London music store….

… sorry, I had to take a breath there. It gets better!

We then cover the band getting signed to a major label, the opportunities they received and didn’t receive, the infamous first ever Metallica Australian tour and their achievements into the early 2000’s before they disbanded.

This is a great chat with one of Australia’s legendary musicians and someone that many Aussies musos and metal fans idolised in the years after Mortal Sin broke into the spotlight. The guys paved the way for many other great metal bands to follow in their footsteps. If you’re a muso and a fan of Mortal Sin, you should get a lot out of this one!

Lots of links below to check out some historical footage of Mortal Sin and be sure to track Mat down and demand some more Mortal Sin merch and goodies. No doubt he has some stuff laying about that us fans would love to have!

Show notes

Follow Mortal Sin on Facebook
Listen to Mortal Sin on Spotify and check out my Aussie Metal Spotify Playlist.
Article – The Inside Story of Metallica’s First Australian Tour

 

Episode 107 of The Andy Social Podcast is up and features Mat Maurer of Mortal Sin! Listen on Apple, Android, YouTube and https://t.co/T0I2KLxt71 #PodernFamily #mortalsin #thrashmetal pic.twitter.com/zHlKLN3gLU

— Andy Dowling (@AndyDowling) November 30, 2017

 

Mortal Sin 1989 (l-r) Wayne Campbell, Mick Burke, Andy Eftichiou, Paul Carwana and Mat Maurer

Mat Maurer, Denis “Piggy” D’Amour (Voivod guitarist) and James Hetfield; San Francisco 1990

106 – Joel Orford (Lagerstein)

Dedication is packing up your band of seven guys, all leading their separate lives and relocating from Brisbane to Hungary for 7 months. Most bands can’t even co-ordinate a 1 week tour!

Joel Orford and Brisbane band Lagerstein have done just this by covering 13 countries, playing 71 shows, driving to every show and covering 43,565 kilometres of travel (Did you know that the earth’s circumference is only 40,075km!) and over 2,000 beers consumed.

Now they’re back in Australia and ready to kick off their ‘On Ice’ tour in December 2017.

I caught up with keytar and violinist Joel ‘Junkst’ Orford via Skype as he sat in Switzerland biding his time to see Manowar before jetting back to Australia for the Lagerstein ‘On Ice’ Australian Tour. We spoke about the how the band co-ordinated their relocation, how they stayed focused, couch surfing through all 6 of their European tours and how they managed each other personally on a day to day basis.

If you’re on the east coast of Australia and you’re reading this prior to their tour kicking off, be sure to check Lagerstein out on the following dates. If the tour is now over, then head over to Lagerstein’s Tour page to see when they will be playing next!

Lagerstein ‘On Ice’ Australian Tour

DECEMBER 2017

2nd – Brisbane (Aus) – Woolly Mammoth Facebook Event | BUY TICKETS
6th – Canberra (Aus) – The Basement Facebook Event | BUY TICKETS
8th – Sydney (Aus) – Factory Floor Facebook Event | BUY TICKETS
9th – Melbourne (Aus) – Yah Yah’s Facebook Event | BUY TICKETS
10th – Melbourne (Aus) – Cherry Bar – Acoustic Show Facebook Event | BUY TICKETS

Show notes

Follow Joel on Facebook |
Check out Lagerstein via Main Website | Bandcamp | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube | Spotify | Tumblr | Pinterest |

Live at Blackand Berlin Rock and Metal Bar – Photo by Asgaardian Events

Live in Melbourne – Photo by Sim at Silent Hymn Photography

105 – Jake Weber (Harlott, Bettie’s Northcote)

Husband, Father, Thrash Metal Guitarist and Small Business Owner, Jake Weber.

He’s a busy fella! Juggling family life, playing on stage with Melbourne band Harlott (who are on Metal Blade Records) and now running his own cafe with his wife called Bettie’s, which is named after their daughter and located in the inner Melbourne suburb of Northcote.

Jake recently took the plunge and quit his stable 9-5 job to launch their business. The verdict? So far, so good! At the time of recording this episode, Jake and his wife Lizey were still a few weeks from their opening date and Jake was a day or two away from putting in his resignation. It was all happening and no doubt a pivotal moment in their lives.

Jake and I caught up in a cool little bar in Northcote, not far from where Bettie’s has now opened and we ran through what the last several months had been for Jake and his family. While we talk a little bit of metal, most of this is about covering Jake and Lizey’s path of building their business from the ground up. A pretty inspiring story!

If you’re in small business yourself or you’ve always wanted to take that step to do something yourself, you should get a lot out of this episode. Heaps of great stories and an awesome insight behind one of the harder working people I know.

If you’re ever in Melbourne or you’re a local, make sure you drop into Bettie’s (48a Arthurton Rd, Northcote, Victoria, Australia 3070) and let them know I sent you! If you love your metal, definitely give Harlott and shot also listen to my prior episode with other old mate from Harlott, Andrew Hudson HERE.

Show notes

Reach out to Jake via Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Linkedin |
Check out Harlot via Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube |
Visit Bettie’s Cafe (48a Arthurton Rd, Northcote, Victoria, Australia 3070) via Facebook | Instagram |

 

Photo by Randal Daw – Legions of Steel May 2017

 

 

 

 

104 – Professor Tamara Davis (Cosmologist, Astrophysicist)

Professor Tamara Davis is a Cosmologist and Astrophysicist. What’s the difference? Well you can either google it, or you can listen to Tamara explain it herself.

Tamara one of a growing number of Australian women working in physics and the science field. Tamara’s main jam is trying to understand what dark energy and dark matter is through the WiggleZ Dark Energy survey which has mapped over 220,000 galaxies to date. Wrap your head around that!

Once again, this is another example of being completely out of my depth and asking a lot of ignorant questions. The bright side is that I managed to get some fantastic insights from Tamara and gain a *slight* understanding of her research and work to date.

Professor Davis has been honoured with many achievements to date include the 2011 Australian Institute of Physics Women in Physics Lectureship, the 2011 Queensland Tall Poppy Award, the 2009 Australian L’Oreal Women in Science Fellowship and the Astronomical Society of Australia’s Early Career Research Award. Tamara is no joke!

Don’t be fearful of an overwhelming conversation surrounding physics and the cosmos. Let your pal Andy lead the way and show you that it never hurts to ask questions!

I really hope you enjoy this fantastic episode and please reach out to Tamara via her website or Twitter!

Show notes

Follow Prof Tamara Davis via Main Website | Twitter |
University of QLD Profile Page
UQ Astrophysics Study Group – YouTube
WiggleZ Dark Energy Survey

 

103 – Tim Yatras (Germ, Equinoxe Studios, ex-LORD/Dungeon)

When you have Tim Yatras edit your podcast every week, you know you’re in safe hands. Tim has been editing The Andy Social Podcast for the past 25+ episodes and has been an integral part of making the show what it is today.

Who is Tim Yatras though? What makes him so special? Well, he’s a bit of a champ and I first met him when he was the drummer in LORD/Dungeon with yours truly. These days, Tim still does some session work for us here and there but most of his time is taken up with his own production studio called Equinoxe Studios, as well as being the man of mystery behind Germ and a number of other projects and bands from over the years.

He’s built himself a significant following in Europe through his music and is seen in some parts of the world as a bit of a cult legend. Those are my words, not his!

TY and I recently hung out at his home studio in Brisbane, sunk some NAIL Red Ales and shot the shit for an hour or so. This was a really light hearted and fun chat with a true old mate. Tim had some really interesting stories behind some of the recordings he’s done, touring Europe, people’s perception of him and lots more. There might even be a couple of occasions where we rag on Matthew Bell (Episode 99) a little bit.

If you’re looking for studio work, have a podcast, got a band that needs recording or just anything audio – Hit Tim up! Be sure to check out Germ and his other projects as well.

Show notes

Check out Equinoxe Studios – | Facebook |
Tim Yatras on Soundcloud
Check out Germ – | Facebook |
Check out Autumn’s Dawn – | Big Cartel | Facebook |
Check out Austere – | Facebook |

Photo by Ruth Gräbeldinger

Photo by Ruth Gräbeldinger

Photo by Ruth Gräbeldinger

102 – Sindy Sinn (Illustrator, Nightcrawler Co, Snake Eyes…

Sindy Sinn’s clients have included The Misfits, Parkway Drive, CJ Ramone, Young Henrys, Universal Music, Sydney Fringe Festival, Tropfest, and almost every worthwhile pub/bar in the Inner West of Sydney (see Mary’s, Courthouse, Vic on the Park, etc). Of course, this is just scraping the surface but it’s clear that Sindy’s services are in high demand.

Starting off creating artwork for the bands he played in, Sindy has built himself businesses as not only a freelance illustrator but also creating Snake Eyes Studios (which is nestled in the Young Henrys Brewery compound), co-founded Death Patches and has recently co-launched a kids clothing line called Nightcrawler Co. Yes, he’s a busy guy.

Thanks to the hospitality of Sindy and the Young Henrys crew, we sank a few ales and hung out in Snake Eyes Studios to talk about how on earth he’s managed to get all of these amazing opportunities and to have his work associated with some of the world’s best.

In my opinion, Sindy is living the dream. Not only has he created businesses that stem from his love of illustration, but he’s been able to do it in a way that is immersed in his lifestyle of music, beer and great times.

Got a kid? Know someone who is about to have a little one? Get on over to Nightcrawler Co and show everyone else up with your uber awesome rock/metal baby gift!

Show notes

Follow Sindy via Main Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Tumblr | LinkedIn | Spotify | YouTube |
Follow Snake Eyes Studio via Main Website | Facebook |
Follow Nightcrawler Co via Main Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter |
Follow Death Patches via Main Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram |

 

Photo by Billy Zammit

101 – Brad Wesson (Soundworks Touring, Bump In Burger)

Brad Wesson of Soundworks Touring has been bringing some of world’s best metal bands to Australia for the past decade. Since 2005 when Brad and co-founder Glenn Dyson decided to purchase a local rehearsal studio, the team has expanded from bringing out a small selection of their favourite bands to inviting some of the world’s best acts to not only Australia but also New Zealand and parts of South East Asia.

In addition to Soundworks, Brad has worked with band management for a plethora of Australian metal acts and in recent years has heavily become involved with the Hammersonic Festival in Indonesia which see’s over 20,000 people each year flock to Jakarta for South East Asia’s largest metal fest.

In recent months Brad has expanded his repertoire in the business world by diving into the hospitality industry. In November 2017 Bump In Burger will open it’s doors in Perth, catering for food and music lovers with a blend between quality burgers and rock/metal themed references.

In this episode not only did Brad and I talk about the earlier beginnings of Soundworks and the changes that have occurred over the past 10+ years, but also how many of the skills he’s developed in the music world have translated over into the turbulent and intimidating hospitality industry. Especially when it comes to creating a bricks and mortar burger joint!

This is a great episode not only for music fans who are interested in the perspective of a metal tour promoter but also those who are curious and/or in small business. Lot’s of great insights into the mechanics behind getting established, approaches taken that remain the same no matter what industry you step into and much more.

Follow the links below to see the current Soundworks Tours as well as details on how to visit Bump In Burger when you’re in Perth!

Show notes

Soundworks Touring – Main Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter |
Bump In Burger – | Facebook |
Hammersonic Festival – Main Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter |

 

Episode 101 of The Andy Social Podcast is with Brad Wesson of @SoundworksTours & Bump In Burger! Listen on Apple, Android, YouTube and https://t.co/T0I2KLxt71 #podernfamily pic.twitter.com/tZ2amRGjgd

— Andy Dowling (@AndyDowling) October 19, 2017

 

 

Screen grab from Metal Down Under Documentary – Watch HERE