Sydney’s favourite electro-hip-hop-sex-god Spod has returned from a lengthy hiatus with a brand-new 7inch ‘concept EP’ entitled Aminals (sic.). Conrad Richters caught up with Spod, aka Brent, over a few beers to talk animals, vinyl and just being awesome.


You’ve just released ‘Aminals’, a 7inch single with three animal-themed songs. Two of which are about cats. How did it come together?

It all started when I wrote ‘Cats’. I was playing with a Super Nintendo thing, making a little melody out of it. It has little animal heads, like little cat and dog heads on

SafARI Feat. Liam Benson (left) and Timothy Kendall Edser (right)

Liam Benson's documented performances cross reference sub-cultural and popular imagery to look at how discrimination functions. Timothy Kendall Edser's performance installations are part of an ongoing piece called Tension, which explores the interaction between the body and the environment with a focus on the ideals of masculine identity. Both Liam and Tim's work is also being shown at SafARI, which runs from the 13th - 29th of June.

If art festivals were limited to simply re-establishing the masterminds of the mainstream, culture would never get anywhere. Fringe Festivals are usually traced back to 1947, when the Edinburgh International Festival was launched to break the bitterness of post-war Europe by showcasing the good parts we could all hold hands about – high art and culture. Alot of people liked the idea, including eight independent theatre companies who rocked up without invites; only to be refused rooms in the heart of town. Rather than go home, they decided to Take Their Business Elsewhere Thankyou Very Much, and set up a few gigs on the outskirts of Edinburgh. And in an ironic Sucked In To You, the little Fringe Fest brother has since overtaken it as the largest arts celebration in the world.

Sydney’s SafARI intends to offer an experience in a similar vein; according to organiser Lisa Corsi, its aim is to ensure guests of the Biennale are treated to the best of both worlds - the Establishment of global contemporary art and the grassroots initiatives from which it often spawns. Artist Run Initiatives (ARIs) are grassroots spaces rented by artists to run independent shows that exist outside the commercial gallery culture, and SafARI curator Lisa Corsi explained to us why they're so integral to Sydney's art scene: “They're a crucial water hole for any city’s cultural development … often they’re the places that many return to at later stages of their careers to continue research and experiments without commercial imperative.” This year, the three ARIs getting involved in the SafARI fringe project are the raw China Heights Gallery, the stalwart MOP Projects and newbie Gaffa Gallery, w hich accommodates for design as well as other artistic expressions.

So if the Biennale of Sydney catalogues where global contemporary art is right now, SafARI shows where it begins, “providing a sneak peek into the work of those at the forefront of tomorrow.” How did Corsi pick which artists to throw to the lions of the Bienalle’s crowds? “By keeping a very open mind, while always remaining conscious of the context in which art and these artists exist. It’s also a matter of trying not to be influenced by current trends… There are a number of treasures that have emerged that have a rather different approach, because they’re still so new to the game. It’s a refreshing exercise.”

Lisa Corsi - COFA grad,10 years experience in art administration, Swiss ARI curator and most recently Curatorial and Collections Manager at Sherman Galleries - has earned the right to tell us what she thinks the Sydney art community needs more of: “Discussion and sincere action to help educate about the necessity of culture.” And less? “Less fluff.”

SafARI Fringe Festival is being held (FREE!) from the 13 June – 29 June at Gaffa Gallery, China Heights and MOP.