Bobbysix.com's End of Year Review 2011 - Heidi Pett

We're just a couple of days away from the big announcement of Bobbysix.com's overall winner of best album, film, gig and song of 2011. Before that, Deputy Editor Heidi Pett talks us through her favourite things from this year:

You’ll note that these lists have not been numbered. That’s because I’ve been known to take days sweating over my Triple J Hottest 100 votes (should I vote for my personal favourite on the album, or the most popular single, propelling a worthy artist to a higher rank? Is that selling out? What about that little-known band who I love but that will never make it in, is that wasting my vote? And if I do that, will Art vs fucking Science achieve a better result than they would have if I’d voted for, say, The Grates instead?) etc, etc, until oblivion. And that’s an anonymous vote which doesn’t even have to be ordered. So in the interests of my continuing to exist as a functioning member of society, here are my top picks of 2011, in no particular order.

10 Albums/EPs
Bon Iver - BON IVER (pictured, above)
Crystal Theatre - BELLES WILL RING
Forever So - HUSKY
Carry On - PATRICK JAMES
The Josephine March - THE JOSEPHINE MARCH
Absence - SNOWMAN
Milk Annual - CAITLIN PARK
I Want That You Are Always Happy - THE MIDDLE EAST
Helplessness Blues - FLEET FOXES
Secret Rituals - THE GRATES

10 Songs 
History’s Door - HUSKY
Last Night I Heard Everything In Slow Motion - OLIVER TANK
Rose Coloured Glasses - THE JOSEPHINE MARCH
Falling Away - BIG SCARY
Wishingbone -WINTER PEOPLE
Warriors With Wild Hearts - CAITLIN PARK
Paper Thin - FLUME
Please You - PATRICK JAMES
Hector Myola - TIN SPARROW
Holocene - BON IVER

10 Music Videos 
Bizness - TUNE-YARDS
Aroused - TOM VEK
Awkward - SAN CISCO
Little Frog - SUI ZHEN
Somebody That I Used To Know (feat. Kimbra) - GOTYE
Cameo Lover - KIMBRA

Featherstone - PAPER KITES

Fat Monk - RAT vs POSSUM

Holocene - BON IVER

Defeatist - CAMERAS

5 Gigs 

FLORENCE + THE MACHINE - Seymour Centre, Sydney

THE GRATES - The Metro, Sydney

SEEKER LOVER KEEPER - St Stephen’s Church, Sydney

PATRICK JAMES - Hibernian House, Sydney

HOWLING BELLS - The Standard, Sydney

5 Books

Eating Animals - JONATHAN SAFRAN FOER

All That I Am - ANNA FUNDER

Tall Man - CHLOE HOOPER

You’ll Be Sorry When I’m Dead - MARIEKE HARDY

Penguin Plays Rough - VARIOUS

5 Festivals

Woodford Folk Festival

TiNA/Emerging Young Writers Festival

Jaipur Literature Festival

The Human Rights Arts and Film Festival

Changing Lanes Festival

10 Blogs/Websites

I spend a fairly embarrassing amount of time jaunting around the internet, getting inspired by people who are making and doing things. Often I’ll read the entire archives of a blog and then forget to bookmark it for later reference, so here are a few that I actually remember:

suizhen.tumblr.com/

palahniukandchocolate.tumblr.com

thespitpress.com

reasonsyouwillhateme.com

heathenscripture.wordpress.com

thehairpin.com

mimihlvst.blogspot.com

thingsmypretentiousfriendssay.tumblr.com

http://ausreleases.tumblr.com/

raddestrightnow.blogspot.com

2011 in words 

I started volunteering with FBi Radio in June and have finally found that community of beautiful, creative, interesting and interested people that I’ve been looking for in Sydney. Because, you know, I was starting to think this town was full of wankers and everybody was too cool for everything. These people give up their time and their skills out of love and passion and a desire to create, and it’s the best bullshit filter I’ve ever come across. What feels like forever ago, I spent two months sharing a backpack with my best friend as we travelled around India. Trains that were 19 hours late, colour and dust and beauty and heartbreak, escaping Darjeeling in the back of an army jeep, making dinosaur noises at leering men on train platforms, packing more books than clothes, dark green eyes and a hand on the small of my back. And the fact that when we got home we were too embarrassed to reach for the handles on the train, as we reeked of filthy Delhi bathrooms and four days of unwashed transit.

Heidi Pett - Deputy Editor
As well as being a fine writer, Heidi is an award-winning radio producer and presenter. She takes photographs through a plastic lens, drinks wine, listens to folk songs with gratuitous swears and can more often than not be found with her head buried in a book.

Tim Hart, Patrick James and Faith Lee at Hibernian House, Sydney

Hibernian House in Sydney used to be the Bobbysix.com headquarters. So we love heading back to the big old green building whenever possible. Last weekend, we spent two nights there. And what contrasting occasions they were. After a Saturday evening of Halloween carnage with parties running across multiple levels and with seemingly everyone we've ever met in attendance wearing full-on fancy dress, we really needed something chilled to sooth our Sunday. So, a night of acoustic loveliness was the ideal hangover cure.

In an intimate atmosphere created by candles and fairy lights, Boy and Bear's Tim Hart (above) got the ball rolling. His captivating set showcased a really strong, nuanced and rich voice which had impressive range while remaining natural-sounding. His short turn was very impressive.

Patrick James (below), was the reason we were in attendance (indeed, we told you to head along to see him play). His performance was delightful and unfussy. Amid sweet melodies, gentle guitar work and emotive lyrics, he often sang away from the microphone and allowed his voice to blow softly through an enraptured audience like a breeze through long grass. Oldie (and a favourite in the Bobbysix.com office) Bugs was a particular highlight. By the time his banjo player joined him to close the set, the crowd was singing and clapping along. Lovely stuff.

Faith Lee was the night's headliner. With a full backing band which included Tim Hart as well as her own sister, she played country-tinged folk. Having grown up in an eclectic family of six who travelled around Australia playing music in pubs and clubs, she clearly has a grounding in good, honest alt-folk, as she proved with well-crafted single Life Long Friend. 

As nights go, this was as charming as you could hope for. With unpretentious artists, an appreciative audience and an atmosphere like a warm blanket, the gig was a haven for like-minded fans of folk music. As we made our way out of Hibernian House, stepping through the broken bottles and other remnants of the previous night's craziness, we did so with a happy heart. Hangover? What hangover?  

Words and pictures by Bobby Townsend

Patrick James - The Carry On Tour

Here at Bobbysix.com, we like good music and we like nice people. It's pretty simple really. So, with that in mind, we're more than happy to introduce you to Sydney singer/songwriter Patrick James, who ticks both of those boxes.

Fresh from supporting Old Man River and having also played alongside Dead Letter Chorus, The Panda Band, Georgia Fair and Tin Sparrow, the delightfully humble James has just embarked on a tour to celebrate the launch of his single, Carry On (you can hear it at the foot of this post). His acoustic, foot-tapping melodies nod to the likes of Bright Eyes, Nick Drake and Ryan Adams, so you'd do well to check him out if he is heading anywhere remotely near you later this month.

The dates are below. We're very excited that he is playing at Hibernian House as, not only is it our favourite building in Sydney, but was also the home of Bobbysix.com for a couple of years. We'll definitely be heading along to our old stomping ground to see this lovely musician do his thing. If you have a heart and ears, then you should probably be there too.

THE CARRY ON TOUR
THUR OCT 20 | THE BUCKET ROOM @ GRUMPY'S GREENS, MELBOURNE [125 Smith St, Fitzroy] Doors 9PM | Free Entry
WED OCT 26 | BAR ON THE HILL @ NEWCASTLE UNI [University Dr, Callaghan] Doors Lunchtime | Free Entry
THUR OCT 27 | YOURS & OWLS, WOLLONGONG [95a Crown St, Wollongong] Doors 7PM | Tickets $5 - Available at the door
FRI OCT 28 | RUBY'S PERFORMANCE SPACE, BONDI [Lvl 1, Chapel By The Sea, 95 Roscoe St, Bondi Beach] Doors 630PM | Tickets $10 - Available at the door
SUN OCT 30 | HIBERNIAN HOUSE, SYDNEY [205/342 Elizabeth St, Surry Hills] Doors 730PM | Tickets $10/$12 Available online at tinyurl.com/patrickjamestix or at the door if still available Supported by Faith Lee + Tim Hart (Boy & Bear) BYO

Carry On by Patrick_James_Music

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