"It just shows you what the Australian public is like. They're very forgiving, and very, very understanding, very embracing of people who've had hardships. We're still that country of battlers, even though we're very wealthy compared to the rest of the world in a lot of ways. She's a battler and you're proud if you're Australian to see something like that. It's pretty emotional stuff, I think."
This is Peter McNamara’s brave description of the Australian public regarding Jelena Dokic. In some ways it’s quite an accurate assessment. We are forgiving. If a sportsman makes a mistake, professionally or personally, he or she can expect forgiveness. It just takes a while. First comes speculation. Gossip, hearsay and cruel media lies. The giddy excitement of seeing a hero fall suddenly from grace.
Then comes judgment. Media commentators and the ‘public’ fight valiantly to preserve Australian morality. Sportspeople are role models after all, and so their every action is public property. Remember that for a time Dokic was Australian tennis’ anti-hero. A greedy villain who used millions of our tax dollars for junior development (she was a battler too) only to take her talents and betray us. Oh, and then comes forgiveness.
Most of all, the ‘public’ just has a short memory. Those rejoicing in this great Aussie success story were probably the same rabid fans that stood in cruel judgment of Jelena a few years ago. Perhaps we, the public, shouldn't be so self satisfied with our forgiving and open minded attitude. Perhaps we should just be happy that those stars that we have forgiven forgive us.
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Saturday, January 24, 2009
While I am bagging Richmond...
Can you imagine the tiges going into the mid season break at 9 and 2? Punt Road is pumping and way beyond talking finals the tiger faithful are seriously considering premierships. Tickets to the massive top of the ladder clash against Hawthorn are already sold out, Chris Newman is unbackable Brownlow favourite and Terry is the new Mao Zedong (except his 5 year plan worked...). Oh and Cuz has been getting a kick too.
They finished 9 and 2 last season so if Richmond can carry that momentum into 2009 why not dream of premierships? Do teams really carry momentum from one season to the next? In 2007 Port Adelaide also won 9 out of 11 regular season games. They then made the GF (and got murdered)and had a young team and considerable momentum. In 2008 they were 3-5 by round 8 and 4-7 buy Round 11. Their season was a disaster. In 2006 Fremantle also finished 9 and 2 in the normal season and won their first ever final and made the prelim. Surely grounds for a fiery start to 2007. They were 2-4 by round 6. On the other hand, in 2006 Brisbane lost their last 6 games. In 2007 they won 4 of their first 6. The point??? Carrying momentum from one game to the next is difficult enough. Carrying it for 6 gameless months....Impossible. But love the optimism.
They finished 9 and 2 last season so if Richmond can carry that momentum into 2009 why not dream of premierships? Do teams really carry momentum from one season to the next? In 2007 Port Adelaide also won 9 out of 11 regular season games. They then made the GF (and got murdered)and had a young team and considerable momentum. In 2008 they were 3-5 by round 8 and 4-7 buy Round 11. Their season was a disaster. In 2006 Fremantle also finished 9 and 2 in the normal season and won their first ever final and made the prelim. Surely grounds for a fiery start to 2007. They were 2-4 by round 6. On the other hand, in 2006 Brisbane lost their last 6 games. In 2007 they won 4 of their first 6. The point??? Carrying momentum from one game to the next is difficult enough. Carrying it for 6 gameless months....Impossible. But love the optimism.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Is Mark Coughlan the resident Einstein down at Tigerland?
Stand by for the human interest stories that accompany the return of Mark Coughlan to the AFL. You know the ones about the 'different' afl footballers who read, write poetry, listen to alternative music (jet...) and fight for human rights.
"Premierships are worth their weight in gold" says Coughlan.
Hmmmm.... Firstly, a premiership is not tangible item, so it cannot be weighed, as far as I know (though a premiership cup is...). And even if he meant the cup, it would have to be a very heavy cup. Otherwise I think a premiership would
raise much more money for the club than the weight of the premiership
cup in gold. After 17 years out of the game (that shower slip was costly), I thought Coggs would have studied up on some semi-logical answers to media questions.
Oh... Actually he has.
"I know it's only January, but we were the second or third best-performed side in the second half of last year and if we can take that into the first half of this year, we'll have every chance of playing finals"
It's January...nothing means anything.....
Richmond were indeed the second best performed side during the second half of last season, behind only Geelong. But after numerous 9th place finishes Coggs must know that finishing well one season means absolutely ....... come round 1 the year after.
"I haven't played finals in 8 years."
May as well go down to Ballarat and mine for it...
"Premierships are worth their weight in gold" says Coughlan.
Hmmmm.... Firstly, a premiership is not tangible item, so it cannot be weighed, as far as I know (though a premiership cup is...). And even if he meant the cup, it would have to be a very heavy cup. Otherwise I think a premiership would
raise much more money for the club than the weight of the premiership
cup in gold. After 17 years out of the game (that shower slip was costly), I thought Coggs would have studied up on some semi-logical answers to media questions.
Oh... Actually he has.
"I know it's only January, but we were the second or third best-performed side in the second half of last year and if we can take that into the first half of this year, we'll have every chance of playing finals"
It's January...nothing means anything.....
Richmond were indeed the second best performed side during the second half of last season, behind only Geelong. But after numerous 9th place finishes Coggs must know that finishing well one season means absolutely ....... come round 1 the year after.
"I haven't played finals in 8 years."
May as well go down to Ballarat and mine for it...
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Saosin - Self Titled
This review of Saosin's debut album was also printed in Rival Street Press May 2007 edition.
Album Review
Saosin – Saosin
By Tom Mattessi
Californian band Saosin have been around for a few years now, but have only just released their debut self titled album. Their two preceding EP’s helped the band build a rabid American fanbase, and most savvy Australian fans know how good the band are. The long awaited debut full length is confirmation of the talent of a band that promised so much on last years Taste of Chaos tour.
Saosin are a band that mix the epic choruses of 90’s skate punk with the more technical musicianship of modern hardcore acts, minus the screaming that characterises a lot of popular contemporary bands. And like many of their 90’s predecessors they have produced a start-to-finish album without a weak link. The songs are driven by extreme drum parts: massive 4-beat roles and ultra-technical, driving rhythms. Guitarists Justin and Joe trade super fast riffs throughout each song. But what sets the band apart from many talented modern acts is the amazingly high pitched voice of vocalist Cove Reber.
When Saosin lost charismatic original vocalist Anthony Green a few years ago, many fans lamented the premature demise of a band with limitless potential. Somehow, they found a new vocalist with an identically high voice. But the new singer is not just a voice. As the album proves, his song writing ability is undeniable. ‘Voices’ is the perfect choice for a first single, and its chorus line ‘we sing in different voices’ is perhaps an unconscious nod to the fans who doubted the replacement singers ability. ‘You’re not Alone’ will doubtless be the singalong anthem on the upcoming tour, and ‘I never wanted to’ is a great revamp of an old song. The album is awesome all the way, and the band, refreshingly, avoid screaming for a focus on pure melody and anthemic choruses. It comes with a bonus DVD. Saosin tour Australia in May. The shows should not be missed.
Album Review
Saosin – Saosin
By Tom Mattessi
Californian band Saosin have been around for a few years now, but have only just released their debut self titled album. Their two preceding EP’s helped the band build a rabid American fanbase, and most savvy Australian fans know how good the band are. The long awaited debut full length is confirmation of the talent of a band that promised so much on last years Taste of Chaos tour.
Saosin are a band that mix the epic choruses of 90’s skate punk with the more technical musicianship of modern hardcore acts, minus the screaming that characterises a lot of popular contemporary bands. And like many of their 90’s predecessors they have produced a start-to-finish album without a weak link. The songs are driven by extreme drum parts: massive 4-beat roles and ultra-technical, driving rhythms. Guitarists Justin and Joe trade super fast riffs throughout each song. But what sets the band apart from many talented modern acts is the amazingly high pitched voice of vocalist Cove Reber.
When Saosin lost charismatic original vocalist Anthony Green a few years ago, many fans lamented the premature demise of a band with limitless potential. Somehow, they found a new vocalist with an identically high voice. But the new singer is not just a voice. As the album proves, his song writing ability is undeniable. ‘Voices’ is the perfect choice for a first single, and its chorus line ‘we sing in different voices’ is perhaps an unconscious nod to the fans who doubted the replacement singers ability. ‘You’re not Alone’ will doubtless be the singalong anthem on the upcoming tour, and ‘I never wanted to’ is a great revamp of an old song. The album is awesome all the way, and the band, refreshingly, avoid screaming for a focus on pure melody and anthemic choruses. It comes with a bonus DVD. Saosin tour Australia in May. The shows should not be missed.
Is 'emo' killing genres?
This article was published in Rival Street press, a brand new street magazine covering music in parts of country Victoria. Massive reader base I know.
Is ‘emo’ killing genres? What about Alexisonfires new album ‘Crisis’?
By Tom Mattessi
How bands suffer at the mercy of a bitter music writer and a judgmental, lazy fan. Granted, genre descriptions are a necessary evil that plagues modern music. But the phenomenon that is the ‘emo’ genre is an indictment on both modern music journalism and modern music taste. The word ‘emo’ is, these days, basically a synonym for shit, and no self-respecting band would ever categorise their sound as such (emo or shit). The biggest irony is that emotion, the word emo is derived from, is the driving force behind all good music, but bands labelled ‘emo’ are the lowest musicians on earth. Yes, lower than cover bands.
So how does a band survive being labelled ‘screamo’? The self-indulgent whinings of emo mixed with misplaced screams of adolescent aggression is surely a recipe for musical hell. Canada’s Alexisonfire are a band trying to overcome the dreaded genre curse at the moment. And with their third album, Crisis, they will surely convince any open-minded fan that a band labelled ‘screamo', or ‘emo', by hack music writers, can still be good. Despite their ill-chosen name (pronounced Alexis-on-fire), the 5-piece from the small town of St Catharines have achieved remarkable success in a scene that is dominated by ultra judgmental fans and critics.
Great bands confound genre. There are fundamentals to good songs that render musical style irrelevant. Kasey Chambers’ presence on my Ipod is powerful evidence. Brilliant melodies dominate Crisis. Singer/Guitarist Dallas Green is an immense talent. His humble, uplifting choruses mix perfectly with the rough, offbeat aggression of the band and the screaming vocalist George.
Great music is emotional, and emotive. The band has finally reached maturity with its third effort, setting aside wacky teenage lyrics for a brutally honest critique of the town they grew up in. The appraisal is harsh, and one feels that a band that has travelled the whole world yearns desperately to come home to a better place. As Dallas sings on first single “This could be anywhere in the world”: ‘This city is haunted by ghosts from broken homes’. Or to never have to come back at all. “Light a torch, and burn away, every tie that binds me to this place.” And as the lyrics confront the bands small town origins so the listener reflects on the place they grew in, and how it defines them. The band has chosen the topic closest to their hearts and delivered an emotional album that will certainly confirm them as the standout of the much maligned ‘screamo’ genre.
For music lovers averse to really heavy music, perhaps Alexisonfire are the perfect band for beginning the transition. There is just enough soft melody to satisfy pop fans and more than enough aggression to appease a metal fan. And for fans of detailed, mature song-writing and intelligent lyrics, this album is the perfect antidote to the clichéd, pretentious bands that dominate the hardcore scene. Sometimes, when filing through the depths of ‘emo’, one uncovers unique, passionate music in the place where they least expect to find it
Is ‘emo’ killing genres? What about Alexisonfires new album ‘Crisis’?
By Tom Mattessi
How bands suffer at the mercy of a bitter music writer and a judgmental, lazy fan. Granted, genre descriptions are a necessary evil that plagues modern music. But the phenomenon that is the ‘emo’ genre is an indictment on both modern music journalism and modern music taste. The word ‘emo’ is, these days, basically a synonym for shit, and no self-respecting band would ever categorise their sound as such (emo or shit). The biggest irony is that emotion, the word emo is derived from, is the driving force behind all good music, but bands labelled ‘emo’ are the lowest musicians on earth. Yes, lower than cover bands.
So how does a band survive being labelled ‘screamo’? The self-indulgent whinings of emo mixed with misplaced screams of adolescent aggression is surely a recipe for musical hell. Canada’s Alexisonfire are a band trying to overcome the dreaded genre curse at the moment. And with their third album, Crisis, they will surely convince any open-minded fan that a band labelled ‘screamo', or ‘emo', by hack music writers, can still be good. Despite their ill-chosen name (pronounced Alexis-on-fire), the 5-piece from the small town of St Catharines have achieved remarkable success in a scene that is dominated by ultra judgmental fans and critics.
Great bands confound genre. There are fundamentals to good songs that render musical style irrelevant. Kasey Chambers’ presence on my Ipod is powerful evidence. Brilliant melodies dominate Crisis. Singer/Guitarist Dallas Green is an immense talent. His humble, uplifting choruses mix perfectly with the rough, offbeat aggression of the band and the screaming vocalist George.
Great music is emotional, and emotive. The band has finally reached maturity with its third effort, setting aside wacky teenage lyrics for a brutally honest critique of the town they grew up in. The appraisal is harsh, and one feels that a band that has travelled the whole world yearns desperately to come home to a better place. As Dallas sings on first single “This could be anywhere in the world”: ‘This city is haunted by ghosts from broken homes’. Or to never have to come back at all. “Light a torch, and burn away, every tie that binds me to this place.” And as the lyrics confront the bands small town origins so the listener reflects on the place they grew in, and how it defines them. The band has chosen the topic closest to their hearts and delivered an emotional album that will certainly confirm them as the standout of the much maligned ‘screamo’ genre.
For music lovers averse to really heavy music, perhaps Alexisonfire are the perfect band for beginning the transition. There is just enough soft melody to satisfy pop fans and more than enough aggression to appease a metal fan. And for fans of detailed, mature song-writing and intelligent lyrics, this album is the perfect antidote to the clichéd, pretentious bands that dominate the hardcore scene. Sometimes, when filing through the depths of ‘emo’, one uncovers unique, passionate music in the place where they least expect to find it
Road trip Rage
See my report from Melbourne's loss to Sydney at the SCG. It was posted on the mighty demonblog.
Sunday, March 11, 2007
A 30 week season - Was he Baum yesterday?
He is The Age’s best football journalist and also a great cricket analyst. But the normally astute Greg Baum has suggested an extension of the AFL premiership season and his arguments are seriously flawed. Baum’s complaint that the pre-season competition is a charade is completely justified. It seems that West Coast and Sydney, the leagues two best teams, view the competition as a burden imposed on them by the AFL. They play one game, lose, fulfil their obligation and get back to the long term planning of the season. When the best clubs are happy to lose it is hard to maintain that the competition has credibility. But one suspects the AFL would never consider completely abolishing the competition.
Baum’s real problem is that the pre season cup detracts from the real premiership season. The AFL draw is not completely fair, and as long as 16 teams are each playing 22 games it never will be. I assume that in calling for an extension to the season Baum wants 30 rounds – each team playing the others twice. This would be the only way to extend the season and make the draw totally fair. The first argument for this is fairness. The other is that extending the season would allow the AFL to fill this 2-month gap where International cricket has finished and AFL has not started. Australians do have an enormous appetite for sport, but perhaps only the most hardcore supporters could maintain enthusiasm for 34 weeks of football. If their team was winning.
And what about the players having to begin the season in February, the hottest month of the year? Baum’s argument is that clubs would learn to rest and rotate players. I believe most players would resist being rested. Most footballers loathe being injured, let alone being fit but still on the sidelines. And what of those players who are not footy obsessed? A 30-week season would put a massive strain on a player both physically and mentally, particularly if they or their team is not playing well.
The worst thing about the preseason cup is that teams field teams missing the best players. The standard is poor and the spectacle diminished. If clubs needed to rest and rotate champions then surely the game would suffer. And if the season was so long, no club could expect to maintain momentum all the way, so they would realistically prepare for down periods, and not be worried about losing certain matches.
Baum also argues that squad lists and the salary cap could be increased. More players on a list would mean more ordinary footballers getting a game. And yes, the AFL is massively wealthy, but most Melbourne clubs cannot happily afford a big increase in the salary cap. A much bigger salary cap would only widen the gap between Melbourne and interstate teams
Finally, Baum states that most complaints about modern football are concerned with it being too fast. In contrast, the AFL seems bent on speeding up the game at any cost. Whether you like the increased speed or not, the reality is that in modern football the fastest teams win. Kevin Sheedy has admitted to making a decision two years ago to build a faster team. Mark Williams says his 2007 Port team is the quickest he has coached. Rodney Eade is the game’s foremost believer in speed over anything.
Slowing the game down, for whatever reason, is not going to happen, particularly when top coaches feel that faster players win premierships. And even if the AFL did choose to slow the speed, a 30-game marathon season would not be the way to do it. The game’s quality and the game’s players would surely suffer. And so would the fans. And we suffer enough in February and March as it is.
Baum’s real problem is that the pre season cup detracts from the real premiership season. The AFL draw is not completely fair, and as long as 16 teams are each playing 22 games it never will be. I assume that in calling for an extension to the season Baum wants 30 rounds – each team playing the others twice. This would be the only way to extend the season and make the draw totally fair. The first argument for this is fairness. The other is that extending the season would allow the AFL to fill this 2-month gap where International cricket has finished and AFL has not started. Australians do have an enormous appetite for sport, but perhaps only the most hardcore supporters could maintain enthusiasm for 34 weeks of football. If their team was winning.
And what about the players having to begin the season in February, the hottest month of the year? Baum’s argument is that clubs would learn to rest and rotate players. I believe most players would resist being rested. Most footballers loathe being injured, let alone being fit but still on the sidelines. And what of those players who are not footy obsessed? A 30-week season would put a massive strain on a player both physically and mentally, particularly if they or their team is not playing well.
The worst thing about the preseason cup is that teams field teams missing the best players. The standard is poor and the spectacle diminished. If clubs needed to rest and rotate champions then surely the game would suffer. And if the season was so long, no club could expect to maintain momentum all the way, so they would realistically prepare for down periods, and not be worried about losing certain matches.
Baum also argues that squad lists and the salary cap could be increased. More players on a list would mean more ordinary footballers getting a game. And yes, the AFL is massively wealthy, but most Melbourne clubs cannot happily afford a big increase in the salary cap. A much bigger salary cap would only widen the gap between Melbourne and interstate teams
Finally, Baum states that most complaints about modern football are concerned with it being too fast. In contrast, the AFL seems bent on speeding up the game at any cost. Whether you like the increased speed or not, the reality is that in modern football the fastest teams win. Kevin Sheedy has admitted to making a decision two years ago to build a faster team. Mark Williams says his 2007 Port team is the quickest he has coached. Rodney Eade is the game’s foremost believer in speed over anything.
Slowing the game down, for whatever reason, is not going to happen, particularly when top coaches feel that faster players win premierships. And even if the AFL did choose to slow the speed, a 30-game marathon season would not be the way to do it. The game’s quality and the game’s players would surely suffer. And so would the fans. And we suffer enough in February and March as it is.
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