By this stage of the week you’re either wondering what you missed at Splendour, or trying to figure out what happened to you at Splendour. That is of course unless you’re one of the 421 punters the police arrested for possession at Splendour. Whoops. (You can read up on all Everguide’s SITG goodness
here,
here and
here.) In any case, a sense of normality is spreading over the city’s populace as everybody pries open their bank accounts and assesses the catastrophic damage to life plans. You shouldn’t worry, though: there’s still a heap of cheap options around and about Brisbane city this weekend, and by cheap we mean free.
We’re going to start off on a slightly odd note by including something for this very evening. New Farm (and now West End and St Lucia) institution Burger Urge is dipping its toe into entertainment with the
Urgeapolooza Music Tour. The free event will feature a different live act from six of Brisbane and Melbourne's most loved and best known indie bands each Thursday for six weeks across all three Burger Urge stores in New Farm, West End and UQ. Get to New Farm tonight for James O’Brien of the Boat People; otherwise, check out the upcoming editions to see what works over the next month or so.
A Thursday jaunt should mean you’re looking to put your feet up on Friday and good thing too, because you’ll need your strength come Saturday. First up is the
What Do You Collect? Vintage Fair in the Queensland Museum’s Whale Mall. Kicking off at 10am, those hunting for treasures can peruse around 60 vintage vendor stalls and suitcase rummages as well as getting involved in a bunch of different activities, including ‘50s and ‘60s hair and makeup workshops provided by the Bombshell Burlesque And Beauty Academy. To top it all off, there are treats provided by the Country Women’s Association, live vinyl-slinging DJs and a performance by bluegrass band The Company. Perfect.
At 4pm you want to be heading over to the
Brisbane Powerhouse for Pasar Rakyat, a traditional Indonesian market with an enlivened and interactive atmosphere. There will be a food bazaar, traditional music and, for the first time ever, traditional Indonesian toys. To complete the day, the festival is holding batik and Saman dance workshops. This should be an excellent time.
Be sure though to save some energy for the evening, because Rosie Peaches, the Rebel Cosmonauts and Hideaway Bar in Fortitude Valley are getting set to present
Bonjour, Baby! - the latest in a series of clothes-stripping, bar-dancing spectaculars. A cabaret show inspired by ‘60s French music and featuring go-go dancers, burlesque beauties, vinyl DJs and a live band playing 60s garage, mod, beat and group sounds, Bonjour Baby! is pretty much guaranteed to be an outrageous time. Just get there early – Hideaway is sure to fill up. We hope it’s like this:
Finally, Sunday is the first of the month and that means a return of
South Bank’s Young Designers’ Market. Featuring everything from clothing and accessories to homewares, furniture and art, this is one of the best markets of its kind in Brisbane and just about always proves a great place to pick up a unique item from one of the many impressive local up-and-coming designers who’ll be on display.
And that’s your weekend done and dusted. It’s certainly a change in pace from slogging it out in the mud at Byron. The city seems to be going through a lull at the moment as everyone collects themselves for the Ekka and Brisbane Festival, but there’s always something going on around the traps. We’ll see you next week for the best of the best.
WORDS: Matt Shea