Page-turners for 2014...

So, I actually haven't read a whole lot this year, but what I did read packed a punch.  The most influential book I read was Tara Moss' debut non-fiction book 'The Fictional Woman'. (It's challenged me to read more books with strong female lead characters, and looking to read more books written by women. Who tells the story matters. The book has also made me think critically about the books I'm reading my son.

Mark Isaacs book about what is/has been happening on Nauru made for depressing (but essential) reading.  

Two very different books were Victoria Williamson on the Psychology of Music, and Addie Zierman's 'When We Were on Fire' (just a brilliant memoir about growing up in the church). 

Bully for them - ed Fiona Scott-Norman, was a fascinating collection of stories from famous Australian's about ther experience of being bullied at school. 

I have read a few books highlighting the 'Gillard years' - Bewitched & bedevilled: women write the Gillard years - ed Samantha Trenoweth, and The Stalking of Julia Gillard - Kerry Anne Walsh. I highly recommend reading both, whatever you thought of Prime Minister Gillard at the time.

All of the Pieces (EP) - Reigan

It is no secret that my favourite performer during the X-Factor this year was Reigan Derry. During the show, I felt that she would be someone we would hear more of, no matter where she finished in the show.

Today she released her EP 'All of the pieces', featuring one of her own songs, and some of her favourites from among the songs she performed on the show. The four covers on the EP are, 'Dog Days are Over'. 'Only Girl (in the World), 'Stay with Me', and (my favourite) Hallelujah. These are full versions as distinct from the performances during the show, and arranged slightly differently to the show.

I really love how All of the Pieces highlights her voice, and it does fit beautifully with the other songs on the EP. I think her version of Hallelujah is close to my favourite. She has such a beautiful and authentic voice, which comes across throughout the EP, and I'm looking forward to hearing more, from her.

She performed Hallelujah & All of the Pieces on 'The Morning Show' and Sunrise this morning, and its worth checking out both.

Favourite music for the year

Taking some time to think about the music which I've been listening to this year.  The albums which have been played a lot were - U2's Songs of Innocence, Dan & Lauren Smith, Marketa Irglova, The Likes of Us, Alison Brook, Coldplay and Gemma Hayes.

A couple of other albums I bought this year, excluded from my favourite list were the recording of INXS' Wembley show (from 1991) and Coldplay's live recording of their new album 'Ghost Stories'.

I've also heard some really great EPs - the ones that stood out Lizzie Marvelly, Andrew Osenga, Kyler England, Cassie, Glen Hansard and I'm looking forward to hearing Reigan Derry's EP. 

So, here's my top five..

(1) Gemma Hayes - Bones & Longing

Beautifully haunting and melancholy. Songs that linger in your mind. Hayes' music demands a greater audience. Go and get a copy (and then explore her other CDs.) 

(2) U2 - Songs of Innocence

I've written about this one elsewhere, but I'm getting more from it each time I listen. Given the recently announced tour is called iNNOCENCE & eXPERIENCE I'm guessing there's a Songs of Experience coming out soon (or at least before the tour starts next May (in Vancouver).

(3) Dan & Lauren Smith - All my hope

One of my favourite Christian CDs of the year. 

(4) Marketa Irglova - Muna

Just a gorgeous voice.  My favourite song 'Without a Map', features her singing the Lord's Prayer. Lovely.

(5) Coldplay - Ghost Stories

One of the bands I haven't seen in concert yet that I would like to. If you don't like Coldplay I'm not sure the album will change that.  'True Love' is one of the best songs Martin has written. The live album & film is great too, hoping for a tour in 2015, but we'll see.

Lizzie Marvelly & Kyler England's EPs are also favourites for the year. Though I don't usually count EPs in my top 5, but both have been on fairly heavy rotation. And looking forward to hearing more from them both. 

Songs of Innocence - U2

Was so stoked when I heard you could download the new U2 album for free from the i-tunes store. Given the response I had to their 2009 album, 'No Line on the Horizon', I was a little bit nervous before I listened to the new album for the first time. 

A few observations, 

• it is Adam and Larry's album, they really drive the songs. 

• The album is a tour of the Dublin they grew up in, and perhaps the most personal album they have recorded to date.  Songs on Bono's mother, their musical influences, and growing up in Ireland. 

• The lyrics are certainly among the strongest Bono has written. 

• It will be interesting to see the form the tour takes, its seem certain that it will more intimate than the last few.  Would love to hear these songs, played with in orchestra. 

Will be interesting to see how Songs of Experience compliments the album, when (yes I am an optimist) it is released).  On that point, U2 have recorded a musical version of the introduction to Blake's 'Songs of Experience collection', and you can find it on the deluxe edition of the remaster of 'The Joshua Tree'. (Would love to see it being played as the intro or outro on the tour, but I suspect that's unlikely). 

My favourite songs:

Every Breaking Wave, Song for Someone, The Troubles (ft's Swedish singer Lykke Li), Raised by Wolves. 

X-Factor 2014 - review...

I have  been meaning to post this for a while, but now we've got to the Grand Final, I realised I should post about the show. 

This isn't really news to anyone, but its not a music show. First and foremost it is a popularity content, with the added bonus of singing.  

The three acts competing in the final are Marlisa, Dean Ray & Brothers 3. In my opinion (and the i-tunes sales) Dean Ray should win next week.  But given it is decided by a public vote, I won't be surprised if Brothers 3 win. Would be intrigued to see how the rankings would have changed if i-tunes sales were included. 

Reigan Derry, was my favourite in the show, and while I am sad to see her out. I will be buying her album when it comes out (hopefully soon). Have a listen to her original 'Ink on Skin' here.  

My favourite performances from the show were: Reigan's performances of 'Hallelujah'; 'Creep' and 'Burn for You' and Dean Ray's performances of 'Hurt', 'Reckless' and 'Mr Brightside. 

Here's the video of Hallelujah. 

Will still watch the final to see how it all ends. :) 

Book review - The Fictional Woman - Tara Moss

Last year the Lieutenant General David Morrison give a speech about the investigation into the Australian Army - one line especially resonated with me - 'the standard you walk past is the standard you set'. It has certainly given me pause to think about the world in which we live, and especially how our society portrays woman. Coupled with this, is that I am now raising a son, and it matters what I say and how I behave. The greatest influences will be what I do and what I leave unsaid (implicit approval).

I think I first heard Tara Moss on ABC's Q&A program during 2012, and my recollection is that she was one of the more articulate panelists - bringing a great perspective to the issues. The work she did to bring to light what was happening on Manus Island earlier this year was impressive.

With both those points in mind, when I heard she was writing her first non-fiction book, I was intrigued and looking forward to reading the book. Even more when I hear her on QandA & at Stanton Library recently.

Her book, The Fictional Woman begins with a series of powerful statistics, about the number of women in parliament, in cabinet, number of female story-tellers, in our papers and in popular culture (books, films, art). I don't recall the book talking about music, but I suspect similar stats would be found (any top 100 list, music hall of fame of inductees).

These statistics matter, because they are the voices we hear, and the voices that shape how we understand the world. It is sad to read the stats around the number of female characters in film, novels, and TV who are in positions of influence and power.

That 80 % of working characters in G rated films are males matters, that not one had a female working in medical science, law or politics matters.  One show, I was put onto recently, which challenges this, is the Danish TV show Borgen, I suspect West Wing (and Newsroom) would too.

In summary, I can't recommend this book highly enough, for everybody to read. In some ways, there's nothing new in this book, but sadly, it does reflect the world we are living in, and understanding this point is the first step to change.

Page-tuners.

Taking a break from sport & music to write a little about the books on my reading lists.

Just finished: 
Victoria Williamson - You are the music
Great book about how music reveals our humanity. Dr Vicky Williamson's book highlights the power of music through the lifecourse - beginning in-utero.  Apparently listening to Mozart doesn't make you smarter (sorry). The book talks about music and health, music and memory, our old friend the 'ear-worm' aka the 'song stuck in your head', and much more.  Really enjoyable read - her website is great too.

Nick Cater - The Lucky Culture
A fascinating point of view about Australian History & culture.I did find it worthwhile reading though I didn't agree with everything (his view on the ABC; and the environmental movement being two examples).

Reading:
Tara Moss - The Fictional Woman (most of the way through this now, and will write more of my thoughts in a separate post once I've finished).
Phil Rees - Dining with Terrorists

To Read
Kerry-Anne Walsh - The Stalking of Julia Gillard - another take on the PM'ship of Gilliard.
Mark Isaacs - The Undesirables (Inside Nauru) 
Les Murray - The World Game
Jang Jin-Sung - Dear Leader
Fiona Scott-Norman (ed) - Bully for them. (some famous Australians talk about their experiences in school).
Rob Oakeshott - The Independent Member for Lyne

Talking sport...

Super XV

• Congrats to the Waratahs reaching their first(?) Super Rugby Final - to be played in Sydney next Saturday night. Sadly - they're playing at Homebush. Would be better off to play at SFS, yep smaller crowd but definitely a better atmosphere. Their opponents are the Crusaders who eliminated the Sharks with a 38-6 win.  The Waratahs deserve to start favourites, and have handled that tag reasonably well. 

AFL

• So, the order of the top four is definitely not certain; given Sydney play Port Adelaide (Essendon is another danger game for them); Hawthorn to play Geelong & Fremantle; Geelong tackle Fremantle & Hawthorn, Port Adelaide play Sydney & Fremantle. Fremantle have the toughest run playing Hawthorn, Geelong and Port Adelaide. The game (& margin) between Fremantle & Port Adelaide is most likely going to determine who finishes fourth. 
• My top eight prediction is (in order) Sydney, Geelong, Hawthorn, Port Adelaide, Fremantle, Essendon, Adelaide, North Melbourne.
• It's just as tough at the bottom with five teams, North Melbourne, Essendon, Adelaide, Collingwood, & Gold Coast battling for the three spots in the eight. I think you can now draw a line through the Gold Coast after their last two losses. 
• After the game between Sydney & Hawthorn, they are now the favourites to win the flag - I lean slightly to Hawthorn, but I'm hoping the Swans learn the lessons from last nights game and reverse the result. If Hawthorn win the flag, it will be one of their best given the events of the season. 

NRL

• Great win by Newcastle against the Roosters - one of their best in recent years. 
• Warriors are out of the eight on percentage - was always going to be hard without Johnson. 
• Sea Eagles are clear favourites for the title now. Top of the table, second best differential (+130). 

The Voice - Finale...

So, the winner of 'The Voice, 2014' was Anja Nissen.  Always felt it would be one of the singers from Team Will or Team Ricky. My pick was Jackson though. That said, the there were some great singers on the show this year - I can't wait to hear more from each of them.  Did they ditch the performance of the winners single?

My favourite moments from the show, were, Clown sung by Thando & Candice, I Know Him So Well sung by Megan & Brittanie; Strong sung by Robbie & Jackson.  Anja's version of His Eye Is On The Sparrow, John Lingaird's I Will Follow You into Dark, Jackson's When the War is Over, Gabriel & Cecilia's I Dreamed a Dream & Smells Like Teen Spirit.

Now changing the channel and jumping to the X-Factor :) 

Talking sport...

AFL (First half of round 18)

• Fascinating round - North's inconsistency hurts them, Geelong and Power survive big scares.  But the upset of the season was the Saints thumping Fremantle. Hard to know what to make of that game. 
• Looking forward to the Swan's game against Hawthorn next Saturday.  Sydney would be favourites for the Minor Premiership if they win this game. I think the two danger games they have left are against Essendon & Port Adelaide. Though perhaps the lesson from this weekend is that every game is a danger game. 
• AFL is an international game - with the International Cup Tournament being played during August. Should be fascinating to keep an eye on. The Men's Final is being played at the MCG prior to the Geelong-Hawthorn game; and the Women's Final is at Punt Road (both on Aug 23).

NRL

• Warriors lost a close & exciting game to Brisbane this weekend - still in the eight & a win from the top four. 
• The Titan's didn't read the script for the weekend. 
• Barring major surprises - only three teams are out of the running for the finals - Newcastle, Cronulla & Canberra. Though a number of teams need to keep winning big to make up their points differential. 
• Looking at the ladder - I think suspect Manly, the Roosters & the Rabbitohs are the front-runners for the competition. With eight rounds to go a lot can happen. 

Super XV

• Gallant performances from the Highlanders & Chiefs this weekend, but ultimately both are eliminated. The finals next weekend are Waratahs v Brumbies & Crusaders v Sharks.

Talking sport

A little late, but I've got there...

AFL

• Not a fan of the split round.  
• Given their big win over the Magpies, Essendon are keeping the pressure up on the Gold Coast.  The Round 22 match between Essendon and Gold Coast will likely determine which of them makes the eight. The pressure is on the Suns to learn how to win without Ablett. Would be a shame if the Suns play their first final without Ablett.
• Collingwood is also in danger of slipping out of the eight if they can't find their form. Maxwell's retirement may just push them on.
• If the Swans beat the Hawks at the MCG (next weekend) it will be a club record 13th win in a row. 
• Fremantle will be happy with the focus & talk centered on the Swans.  At the beginning of the year they were my pick and with their draw, I'm predicting them to finish 1st or 2nd.   

NRL

• Really impressive win by the Warriors - given the tightness of the competition at the moment I am hoping they can put pressure on the teams above them and secure a top 4 finish.
• Penrith are equal first with Manly, and may be top come the end of the season. With the ladder as it stands, the loser in week 1 of the finals, won't really want to play any of the winners from the other games (a lot of the favourites are down the bottom of the eight). 

SuperXV

• The NSW Waratahs topped the table and play the lower ranked winner from this weekend's matches between the Brumbies (4th) & Chiefs (5th) and the Sharks (3rd) & Highlanders (6th). While the Crusaders play the higher ranked winner. Suspect the Waratahs will play the Brumbies next weekend, while the Sharks will travel to Christchurch - but anything can happen :)

Ten from Jars of Clay

It is now over 20 years since Jars of Clay's first self-titled album.  Jars of Clay are one of my favourite bands.. Dan Haseltine has a unique voice, and a gift for songwriting. They are also a band that has been growing and evolving.  Though lots of people loved their first album, they haven't tried to replicate it, they've moved & grown.  Thought I'd write about my favourite 10 Jars of Clay songs. If you haven't heard them, have a listen.

(1) World's Apart (Jars of Clay)
Not only my favourite Jars of Clay song, but close to my favourite song. The words & music work perfectly together. The phrase "All said and done I stand alone,  Amongst remains of a life I should not own, It takes all I am to believe, In the mercy that covers me", resonates to the core of my soul. The way the song builds both lyrically and musically is amazing.

(2) Shelter (Shelter)
This song says everything you need to know about what it means to be in a community -"And the tears aren't ours alone / Let them fall into the hands that hold us".  We live in the Shelter of each other. The Christian is not called to running solo but called into community.

(3) Faith Enough (Who We Are Instead)
Perhaps inspired by the Ernest Hemingway story Farewell to Arms. The quote goes “The world breaks everyone and afterward many are strong at the broken places. But those that will not break it kills. It kills the very good and the very gentle and the very brave impartially. If you are none of these you can be sure it will kill you too but there will be no special hurry.” A reminder, that while our world (and our lives) are broken, we often become stronger through these experiences.

(3) Light Gives Heat (Good Monsters)
Love the children's voices at the beginning, and its another song with a powerful message highlighting that love is linked with action, like light & heat. One of my favourite lines - 'Heroes from the west
We don't know you, we know best'. Reminiscent of the line from Miss Saigon - 'I'm an Westerner, [sic], how could I fail to do good'.  The West often looks at the world and jumps in to solve problems it doesn't understand.

(4) Headphones (The Long Fall Back to Earth)
Perhaps one of the sadder songs Jars of Clay has written, touching on our disconnection with the world (and each other). Features another of my favourite singers - Katie Herzig. Love the line - 'We watch television...but the sound is something else, Just a song played against the drama, so the hurt is never felt'.  We'll just leave the world and disappear into our 'sugar-coated' music.

(5) Boys (Lesson One) (The Long Fall Back to Earth)
Since I have become a father, this song has taken on so much more to me.  The song is advice from a father to his son. Lesson One - being do not hide, face the consequences. The section which hits me is  'And there will be liars, And thieves who take from you, Not to undermine the consequence, But you are not what you do, And when you need it most, I have a hundred reasons why I love you'.

(6) Oh My God (Good Monsters)
Oh My God is one of Haseltine's best lyrics. This song is about how we call out to God, and how God is not afraid of questions, in fact He wants us to call on Him. This is what Job does and what the Psalmist does - crying out to God from where they are.

(7) Needful Hands (Furthermore)
One of my favourites from their album Furthermore, featuring songs recorded live or acoustically in the studio. It is another song which recognises our position before God.

(8) The Edge of Water (The Eleventh Hour)
Love the lyrics to this - its a song about longing. Longing for restoration, longing for everything to make sense, longing to understand God. The song highlights the authenticity of Haseltine's lyrics. He asks his questions and reflects his prayers and doubts.

(9) Frail (Much Afraid)
Authentic is the word to use about Jars of Clay.  Frail is another beautifully authentic song. I love the acoustic version found on Furthermore too. The acoustic recording underlines the lyric.

(10) Love in the Hard Times (Inland)
Love in Hard Times expresses beautifully the tension within relationships. Powerful and human lyric. The album is one of Jar's best lyrically.

The Voice Lives #3

So the five in the final are,  Jackson, Frank, ZK, Johnny and Anja (who was the Home-Coach save).

Mind you listening to all of the performances last night - wow, there wasn't much between any of them. It's been said many times, each of these artists are taking the next step of their journey, there's only going to be winner this year, but each of the artists, have gained exposure during the show.

Last night, I loved the performances from Jackson, Kat & Holly. My favourite duet was Holly with Frank and Jackson with Sabrina.

Finding it hard to pick a winner - but I'm leaning to Jackson. (Take a bow Kylie, who was the only one to turn around for him).  All of these artists left would be great winners. Beyond that, I'm looking forward to seeing their shows & listening to their albums.

And that was that...

Yesterday morning Germany was crowned as the World Champions defeating Argentina in the final.  Now the dust has settled, the best team for the tournament won. While Messi didn't set the final alight, he certainly carried Argentina to the final. Probably a fair choice for the Golden Ball winner. Though the stage at the final is probably not the place to award the Golden Ball & Golden Glove.

Still find the size of Germany's win over Brazil hard to believe. Was also disappointed with Holland. Felt that if they played like they did in the third place play-off they would have won their Semis. Can't believe that Holland with Van Persie, Robben & Schneider could not manage a goal in two hours of football against Costa Rica & Argentina, even allowing for some goalkeeping heroics.

For me, Rodriguez's goal v Uruguay is the Goal of the Tournament, inching out Cahill.

Bring on the Women's World Cup in 2015.

Hooked on some new sounds.

Two new EPs  which I've been hooked on - Andrew Osenga's Soul EP & Lizzie Marvelly's Collisions.

I just received Andrew Osenga's new EP - Soul and I'm hooked. Just beautiful songs, Andrew is a super talented musician, love both is guitar playing & his lyrical expression.  Looking forward to his remaining three EPs (Flesh, Bone & the an EP of covers).

I'd already heard two songs, from Lizzie Marvelly's Collisions - My Own Hero & Generation Young which are songs about empowerment - both videos powerfully bring the message home.  I think my favourite song is 'Glory Days'.  What I love is the authenticity in both her voice and her songwriting. I'm looking forward for the video (for Collisions), and hopefully down the track a visit to Australia.

The Voice 2014 - Lives Wk 2&3

Two weeks to go... 

The final eight are: Sabrina, Jackson (Team Ricky);  Anja / ZK (Team Will), Holly / Frank (Team Joel), and Kat / Johnny (Team Kylie).

Really sad to Gabriel and Cecilia & Robbie Balmer go.  Gabriel & Cecilia 's arrangements of I Dreamed a Dream & Smells Like Teen Spirit were stunning.

But, as I've said, at the moment it's all about taste. I'm predicting the final four to be Sabrina, Frank, Kat & Anja.  I suspect the winner is going to be either Jackson or Sabrina (the surprise could be Kat). We'll see though.

I haven't got into the Kids version yet.  Not sure why, but something about it doesn't sit right with me.

Talking sport ...

NRL

• Who would have thought that Cronulla would come from over 20 points down two weeks in a row.  (This week was 0-24, against the Roosters) 
• Paul McGregor is doing well at the Dragon, and would be good to see him remain as St. George's Head Coach.
• Origin Three - can NSW complete their first clean sweep in 14 years?  To be fair, all I am hoping is that it is a much better game. 

AFL

• Sydney are top of the Ladder (one game clear of Port Adelaide, Hawthorn, Fremantle & Geelong), after both Port Adelaide and Hawthorn lost to Essendon and North Melbourne respectively
• The performance of the round was the Sun's win against Collingwood especially considering Ablett was injured and no fresh interchange players. This sort of win, is not only season-defining, but club defining.
• Ablett is out for the season, and may just miss out on the Brownlow.  If he does manage to win it, he will be the first to win (and have missed four or more games). 

Super XV

• The Waratahs are the team to beat, after demolishing the Highlanders in Sydney over the weekend. They've certainly improved a lot from their game against the Hurricanes. 

Wimbledon

• Novak Djokovic won his second title, meaning that 36 of the last 38 Men's Grand Slam Finals have been won by Murray, Nadal, Federer or Djokovic. 

The World Game #3

Here's a recap of the second round

The first quarter final will be between Brazil & Colombia, after Brazil beat Chile 3-2 on penalties (1-1 at full time). Colombia beat Uruguay 2-0. With James Rodriguez (one of the stars of the to(urnament & current leading goal scorer, with 5 goals) scoring both goals. His first quite possibly a new challenger for the best goal of the tournament. Brazil still is looking for its best form,  yet they are doing just enough to win games.

France & Germany play in the 2nd Quarter Final. Both were pushed all the way by Nigeria & Algeria respectively.  The Nigerian Goalkeper made a string of brilliant saves. Germany needed extra-time to score against Algeria, the game finishing 2-1.

The third Quarter final is between Netherlands & Costa Rica.  Costa Rica beating Greece (5-3 on penalties, 1-1 at full time).  Greece had the chances to win, and with a five on two in the last period of extra-time should have settled the game then.  Navas was brilliant with a string of saves keeping the scores level during the match & a stunning save in the penalty shot-out. Mexico pushed the Dutch all the way, with a late penalty settling the match.

The final Quarter-final is between Argentina & Belgium. Both were winners in extra-time. Argentina ending up 1-0 winners over Switzerland, and the Belgium 2-1 winners over the USA. From what I read looks like Howard had an amazing game.

The winners of Quarter Final 1 & 2 play off as do the winners of Quarterfinal 3 & 4. So, I'm tipping Brazil v France & Netherlands v Argentina to be the semis.  However I would not be surprised if Colombia or Belgium got through over their more fancied opponents.

The other notable point from the Round of 16 matches, was the quality of goal-keeping. Enyeama (Nigeria) may have made an error leading to the first goal, but prior (and following) the error he had made some phenomenal saves. Navas (Costa-Rica) made a stunning (and decisive) save in the Penalty Shootout; and is currently the best performing keeper in the tournament. Ochoa (Mexico) was a wall in the game against Brazil. It sounds like Howard kept the USA alive in their match too.

Talking sport...

Super XV

• The Highlanders, Crusaders, Hurricanes are all in the top 6. Hurricanes had a great win over the Crusaders in Wellington. The Waratahs' win against the Brumbies moved them to the top of the Australian conference. Maybe this is their year. All of the South African teams had bye this weekend with South Africa playing Scotland. The Springboks won the test 55-6.  

AFL

• One of the top 10 moments of AFL this weekend
• The Swans won the Sydney Derby, despite switching off after half time. Great having Tippett and McGlynn back. 
• Last year North Melbourne lost a lot of close matches, this year, their hallmark is inconsistency. This year the Kangaroos have beaten Fremantle, Sydney and Port Adelaide away; yet lost to Brisbane over the weekend.
• For most of the first half, it looked like Hawthorn would be in a struggle, but in the 5 minutes just before halftime the Hawks kicked 5 unanswered goals to take a 30pt lead into the main break to effectively kill the contest. The injury to Rioli will be a worry.
• The AFL would be disappointed with the crowd (40-odd thousand), the lowest for 93 years of Carlton-Collingwood matches, not surprisingly the AFL releases a statement today saying 'we are ending this experiment'.

NRL

• Cronulla after 3 scoreless matches; scored 24 points in last 26 minutes of their game against Brisbane. When Cronulla scored the first try, Brisbane lead 22-0.  Can't say I blame the Sharks for parting ways with Carney.
• Warriors had a entertaining win over Penrith, and if St George were to win tonight, the Warriors would remain in the eight. 
• The Knights win two in a row, with a 16-10 win over Parramatta (whose slide down the table continues).

Wimbledon

• Wimbledon is all about Nick Kyrgios this week. He saved 9 match points in his match against Richard Gasquet and won the match in five sets; he then won his third round match on Sat night. This comes on top of an excellent Aus Open. His next opponent is Rafa. Will hopefully be a long match.
• Women's Tournament as always seems to be fairly open, with both Li Na and Serena Williams eliminated.

The Voice 2014 - Lives (Wk 1)

The first week of the Live Shows started on Monday night, and I enjoyed Coldplay opening the show with 'A Sky Full of Stars' . I've only had one listen to the album in full (while it was streaming on i-tunes), and I love what I've heard.  Chris Martin is a unique artist and performer.  Will hope to see them when they tour Australia, hopefully in the near future.

On to the show.  During the live shows, the coaches save one singer, the public vote determines the singer eliminated.

Team Will: Gabriela & Cecilia saved. They really have something special, and are now my favourite on TeamWill. ZK's performance of 'With or Without You' was the most disappointing , probably because I love the song, and thought that they could have done more with the song.

Team Kylie: Johnny saved. Can't split Kat, John Lingard and Robbie Balmer. Sad to see any of these go.

Team Joel: Frank Loukadis saved. Taila & Holly were both great, and I want to hear more from them too.

Team Ricky: Jackson saved (he's my favourite on Team Ricky, though Sabrina is a close-second).

I am finding Joel and Kylie's team the hardest to pick. Probably because the majority of my favourite singers are now on their teams.  In term of the coaches Kylie is my favourite, primarily because she has been the best at picking songs to make her team shine. In both the battle round (Brittanie & Megan, Jackson & Robbie, Candice & Thando - still for me the performance of the show, and Hayley & Kat) and the first round of the Live shows.

Watching the way the audience votes will be interesting. Can someone do a "warmest final four" based on social media mentions & i-tunes downloads.

World Cup #2

Second round is filled with intriguing match ups...

Brazil v Chile
Colombia v Uruguay

France v Nigeria
Germany v Algeria

--

Netherlands v Mexico
Greece v Costa Rica

Argentina v Switzerland
USA v Belgium

As for favourites, the easy answer is Brazil, but they haven't completely convinced me yet.  It could well be the year for a European team to finally win a World Cup title outside of Europe.

Will be watching Colombia & Mexico with interest.  Mexico has been impressive given the team was within 90 seconds of not reaching the play-off against NZ. Colombia, one of the real dark-horses, & provided one of the moments of the tournament, when the 43 year old Goalkeeper Faryd Mondragon came on as a substitute (the oldest player in the World Cup's History).

So excited for Algeria too.  I suspect given the events of 1982 Germany will be nervous. Not only did Algeria beat (West) Germany, but Austria and Germany played out a result which meant both qualified, at the expense of Algeria. As a result, from 1986 the last group matches are played simultaneously.

The tournament, to date has the greatest number of goals scored in the first stage, 136 in 48 matches (average of 2.8 per match).

For me the disappointment of the tournaments are the Asian sides (0 wins, 3 draws, 9 losses; 9 goals in 12 games, 25 agst). Japan had enough chances to win their games but lacked a killer instinct in front of goal. Australia similarly were not able to land the chances they had. The Socceroos have been improving but they still have a little way to go you'd mark them as favourites for the Asian Cup.

Review: A Country too far - Writings on asylum seekers (ed Rosie Scott & Tom Keneally)

This anthology of writing is an act of imagining the lives of others, and as such is an act of compassion as holy as any. It is an act designed to make sure we do not stop ourselves from imagining , properly and in every human detail, the plight of asylum-seekers in this country.  And it is an act designed to make sure that we do not stop there: that we do something. We need to honour our obligations to them, and to ourselves. (Anne Funder)

I've just finished reading 'A Country too far' a collection of of short stories, memoirs, poetry and essays ... including contributions from some of  Australia's best known writers; Les Murray, Christos Tsiolkas, Anne Funder and Elliot Perlman (to name a few), which challenge some of the assumptions held about the world of asylum seekers.

The book adds a different perspective and language to the debate around asylum seekers. A number of the inclusions highlight their own family stories, for example Les Murray's contribution highlights his Wife's journey from Hungry to Australia.  The threads which tie the collection together are love and compassion.

The collection certainly highlights for me the contribution fiction can bring to our social and political debates. It is a collection that is worth reading (rereading and passing on), whatever your views on this issue. I know I'll be reading through it again.

Sporting notes

The week in sport less the World Cup.

Cricket

• New Zealand's Blackcaps were outclassed in the Second Test against the West Indies. Impressed by the fight the last few pairs showed to make the West Indies bat a second time. 

NRL

• Origin - NSW wins the series for the first time in 8 years. I get the feeling Cherry-Evans shouldn't have played. From the reports it sounded like a dull but tense game. Next year's series will be really interesting. Am looking forward to the end of the Origin break and the normal schedule of games. 
• Happy to see the Warriors win and potentially breath life into their playoff hopes. 
• The Sharks are the first team, in 106 years to go three games without scoring a point.... (and have been kept scoreless four times this season).
• Looking at the ladder, there's only three games between 3rd and 13th at the moment. Hard to pick a front-runner, but the top four is shaping to be Manly, Roosters, Bulldogs or Souths.

AFL

• Not a great game on Friday but importantly the Swans found a way to win. I think they've lost their last three games against Richmond at the MCG, so good to have that hoodoo broken.
• Great win by the Suns against Geelong, definitely the biggest win in the club's history, and a statement to both the Bombers & Adelaide - 'catch us if you can'.
• Port's performance on Saturday is why, for me, they are still competition favourites. 
• The Giants beat Carlton and record back-to-back wins for the first time in their history. 
• Not a fan of the Score Review, and the weekend highlighted to me why if it stays the process needs to improve. Arguably the right calls were made in both cases, it is the process for me which needs to change.
• Top eight seems settled, with only positional changes likely.  The Gold Coast are the most vulnerable, but they have, in theory at least, an easier run home than their challenges. 

Union

• Much better first half from the All Blacks (in front 29-6), and running out winners 36-13.  The team have now won 17 consecutive test matches.
• The Wallabies had a much better game too; playing some more attacking rugby.
• Wales gave South Africa a fright with a narrow 30-31 loss.
• England had good news this week with the Under20s winning the World Cup 21-20 over South Africa. The Junior All Blacks finished third.

More ... 

• Catherine Cox retires on a winning note with the Vixens winning the Grand Final. 
• Wimbledon starts tonight ...   

The World Game - Part One

At the time of writing this post. The second round of group matches has finished, and we can say that Spain, Australia and England are going home. Spain, joining Italy (2010) and France (2002) as the most recent World Champions going home after the group stage.

Running through the groups:

Group A: The hosts are through & Cameroon out, and the loser of the match between Mexico & Croatia joins them. Brazil still most likely to top the group. Edit - Brazil are eliminated, if they lose and Croatia & Mexico draw.

Group B: Netherlands & Chile are through - with the loser of that match expected to face Brazil in the second round.

Group C: Given Greece & Japan's draw, Colombia are through to the last 16, and with a win over Greece in their last match, the Ivory Coast will join them.

Group D: Costa Rica has qualified for the last 16. The winner of Italy-Uruguay joins them, a draw puts Italy through. For the first time since 1958 England go home at the end of the group stage.

Group E:  France has virtually qualified. Even if they were beaten by Ecuador, France's goal difference would put them through.

Group F:  Argentina have qualified. Nigeria needs one point to qualify. Iran will qualify if it beats Bosnia and Argentina beats Nigeria.

Group G: All four teams in with a shot of qualifying. Germany & USA will qualify if they draw their final game, Portugal & Ghana both need big wins to make it through

Group H: Belgium qualified for the last 16 with a 1-0 win against Russia. With their 4-2 win over Korea, Algeria look most likely to join them.

Here's the New York Times running through how the teams still in the running can make it through.

At this stage - the Australia-Netherlands match is the game of the tournament.  I lean towards Jones' (USA) goal against Portugal as the goal of the tournament too so far (see here for some other contenders, courtesy of The Age). Costa Rica and Chile are the surprise packets of the tournament. I suspect, very few would have picked either of them to get out of their groups.

After 32 games, there have only been 6 draws. The Brazil-Mexico game was a reminder that Football is a sports where two teams can be scoreless and you've seen a great spectacle. After 32 games, the average goals per game is 2.9. Apparently the highest since 1958.

On Australia, the most impressive thing about the Socceroos is that while they should be proud of their performances, the comments coming from the camp are tinged with disappointment.  They didn't go to Brazil to make up the numbers or compete; they came to compete playing a certain style of Football and to achieve results.  They had chances to get something out of the game with the Netherlands, and were disappointed they didn't.  Looking forward to seeing how they go in next years' Asian Cup.

What I've been listening to?

Here's a look at the new music I've been listening to recently.

I mentioned Broods in my post about New Zealand music.  The duo have a haunting sound. Have a listen to few of their songs here. Love this quote from Daytrotter - 'These songs let us into into a place where we're being worked on, or worked over.'

Just downloaded the The Likes of Us new album - Time Traveler. There was something really fresh about their first album. The Noisetrade description says that The Likes of Us "began as a long distance collaboration between Oklahoma native Benj Heard and Colorado songbird Katrina Stone. As the story goes, the pair stumbled upon an affinity for writing 1940's inspired duets through the process of sending tracks back and forth over the course of a year."

Time Traveler is a beautifully arranged album, and takes the listener on a journey through different musical forms & styles, with the distinctive character being the harmonies of Katrina & Ben's voices.

Katrina & Benj describe the process of making the album as “a beautiful struggle. We make music to take people on the crazy adventures we dream up when we’re sitting in front of a piano, drinking whisky and talking about life. Parts of it are muddy and dirty, parts of it are sunny and bright, the rest of it is whatever you want it to be.” Its the authenticity which grabbed me, and I know that in listening to this more, I'll get drawn to different songs each time I listen. Fallout is one of the songs which really hit me on the first listen. Read more about the album here.

(Would also recommend listening to Katrina's album 'The Happy Ones'. Abandon Ship totally grabbed me the first time through).

Lizzie Marvelly's new EP is out July 4 - if you pre-order now you can download another track 'Collisions'. The EP features already released songs My Own Hero, and Lizzie's rallying cry for her generation - Generation Young.

Here's the video for My Own Hero - which adds to the impact of the song:

The Voice - Last Showdown's and Sing off...

The Showdowns and Sing-offs were always going to disappoint as some of the popular contestants went home. But the thing is the show allows people to hear some great singers, and now, having heard these singers, our part is to keep following and support them. Looking to see when they are playing, share their music on our social media feeds.  The show was another step in their journey & now we are along for the ride.

In the final showdowns the singers who went straight through were ZK, Johnny, Taila & Sabrina, and heading to the sing-offs were Matt, Megan, Holly & Elly. ZK did a beaut version of 'Say Something', Johnny nailed 'All of Me'.

The sing-off groupings were - Megan, Lionel, Robbie (Kylie); Thando, Fely, Elly (Ricky); Soli, Laura-Leigh, Holly (Joel) and Jacob, Juilian, Matt (Will I Am).  None of the coaches decisions surprised me - the four winners were Robbie; Elly, Holly & Matt. I was sad to see Megan, Fely & Thando go, but I have no doubt we will hear more from those three.

My favourite blind auditions were - Emily Rex, Brittanie Shipway, Megan Longhurst, Harry Healy & Jayde Grey. Beth Anderson also was one that lingers too.

The battles which really stood out (and I go back to listen too) are  'The Clown'; 'The Climb', 'I Know Him So Well', 'Strong' & 'Young & Beautiful'.

The Showdown performances I keep listening to are  - 'Burn for You'; 'I Will Follow You into the Dark', 'His Eye is On the Sparrow' & 'Tennis Court'.

Moving forward, the popular view seems to be that #teamwill and #teamricky are the strongest. I think Robbie, John and Isaac are the most likely to challenge Ricky & Will teams. But as in all of these shows it comes down to the song choice and how the public votes.

I wonder if anyone has done a warmest hundred type analysis for social media mention, to predict a favourite.

Sport notes....

Cricket

• Great win by the Blackcaps in the West Indies during the week. Only the second New Zealand Test victory in the West Indies. Neesham has scored centuries in his first two tests (the first Kiwi to do so) and Mark Craig's 8-188 (match figures) was great on debut. 

Hockey

• Both the Kookaburras and Hockeyroos made the Final of the World Cup against The Netherlands. The Hockeyroos lost 0-2 (repeating their pool result), the Kookaburras are World Champions after a 6-1 win (maybe the Socceroos should watch it, to get some ideas...)

AFL

• The Giants win on the road for the first time, kick their highest score and have their biggest winning margin against the Brisbane Lions. Great effort. 
• Really great game between Sydney & Port Adelaide. Sydney certainly missed Tippett and McGlynn. I have the feeling these two teams will meet again in September. maybe a prelim final, maybe the Grand Final. Franklin is getting better for the Swans. The other talking point, the 41,317 crowd is the biggest at the SCG since 1997.
• Surprised by the West Coast's win against the Gold Coast. It's the sort of game the Suns needed to win to make the Finals, though with ASADA (and Watson's injury) haunting the Bombers, they might just stay in the eight. Adelaide are the other team who could sneak into the eight.
• On ASADA & the Bombers --  It seems that Essendon are paying for their crimes twice. I would like to see drugs out of sport - but it is hard to describe the ASADA investigation as anything other than a disorganised chaotic mess. 
• The Demons-Bombers game would have been quite a thrilling game to watch - especially if you don't follow either team. Roos would have been a great asset for the Dees given the tendencies the Swans had for close finishes.
• But the Bulldog's win over the Magpies was the upset of the round... 

NRL

• State of Origin ... its hard to get the thought of a Queensland win out of my head - everything is pointing against them, but these are the games they find a way to win. 
• I'm glad to hear there is a growing number of people saying the Origin should be played over three weeks. Waiting for the TV executives to get on board. 
• Penrith remain at the top of the table with their win against the Dragons, though Manly have one game in hand. 

Rugby

• Anther patchy performance from the All Blacks - but better than last week. Second half showed glimpses of the rugby they are capable of, and will hoping for more like it during the Championship. Barrett was much better than last week.  
• If there was a prize for winning ugly, it would have gone to the Wallabies last night, with their 6-0 win against France. It was the Wallabies first try-less test under McKenzie. The most disappointing aspect the performance was the number of times the Wallabies kicked the ball away, and the decisions they made to shoot for goal rather than go for a try. If the French had the discipline shown by the English last night - they would have stolen the game 7-6. Folau hardly saw the ball.
• Given their performance against Wales last night - the Springboks should probably be favourite for the Championships at the moment.
• The final of the Junior Rugby World Cup, will be between England & South Africa, after they beat Ireland & New Zealand in the respective semi-finals.

World Cup

• I'll wait for the first matches in each group are finished before looking at the field.  Couple of general comments. 
• Can't remember a tournament where standard of refereeing hasn't been mentioned as a problem. It is the human part of sport. Sometimes wrong decisions will be made (just like they are made by the players). I have no problem living with this. 
• Impressed in the number of goals so far 28 in seven games. Hoping this trend continues. 

Reporting and calling sport...

Today's SMH featured an article by SBS Journalist Lucy Zelic talking about sexism in sports journalism. It is a great piece in which Lucy talks about her own career, and notes that:

'making the news recently ... are things we have cause to celebrate.  Helena Costa was announced as the first woman to coach a men’s professional football team in any major European league – ever.   In the wake of the news that tennis player Andy Murray is seeking a new coach, the Daily Mail in the UK reported that he is considering both male and female coaches.  He labeled the reaction to him considering a woman as ‘silly’. (Ed: Another reason to respect Andy Murray) and, just this week, Peta Searle was announced as a development coach for St Kilda, the first woman to take on such a position in AFL history. (Read the full piece here)

Interestingly in the comments to the piece are a number where people have expressed their dislike for hearing women's voices on sports coverage. 

So, I thought I'd write about some of the sports journalists I like reading (or listening).

I really liked Kylie Gillies when she was on Sportsworld with Bruce Macaveney, though if my memory is right, while she was the news-reader I thought her contribution to the show was more than that. 

In the papers - Georgina Robinson (Rugby Union), Samantha Lane (AFL, she's also on the Saturday Night Footy TV coverage), and Chloe Saltau (Cricket) are always worth a read.  I also enjoy reading Melanie Dinjaski's comments too (for RoarSports & Yahoo). 

ABC Radio has always had great female hosts - Karen Tighe, Debbie Spillane (her programs Cracking the Codes and Hens FC are staples for me), Shannon Byrne, Simone Thurtell & Tracey Holmes. 

SBS has Lucy Zelic (and previously Stephanie Brantz). Erin Molan is on the Channel 9 (The Footy Show), and she is now doing more than the team news.

I'd put each of them on par with their male colleagues - and enjoy the experience a diversity of voices bring to the sports coverage (and I'd like more like them on the coverage).

The Voice - Showdowns Week 1

Interlude  -  the highlight of re-watching some of the battles, has been the moments the camera hovers over the family and friends of the singer .. the looks of pride, joy and surprise during the performance are just magical.

Onto the show... the mentors have joined the competition.  Great to see them have the same Blind Audition experience as the coaches. The four mentors are - Apl.de.ap (from Black-Eyed Peas, for Team Will); Havana Brown (Team Ricky); Megan Washington (Team Joel) & Kirk Pengilly (from INXS, Team Kylie)

Showdowns One
Each teams singers were divided into three groups of three - during the first show Team Will (Juilian, Gabriel & Cecilia, Carly). Team Ricky (Matthew, C-Major, Thando), Team Kylie (Candice, John, Lionel), Team Joel (Frank, Soli, Blake)

The four singers going straight through - C-Major, Gabriel & Cecilia, John Lingard & Frank. I'd really love to hear C-Major  tackle something completely different.  John was the most impressive of those four singers, I really felt the story he was telling, and a brave song choice too. Gabriel & Cecilia have some magic about them, while, I certainly felt Frank was a front man of a big rock band.

The four who went to the sing-off were - Thando, Soli, Lionel & Juilian.  (Felt for Juilian, probably a touch stressed and then Will asking his wife to see on the red chair... might have added a touch to the stress level).

Showdowns Two
The groups for the second showdown episode were Louise, Jacob & Inja (Team Will); Brandon, Fely & Jackson (Team Ricky), Isaac, Laura-Leigh & Jess (Team Joel)

The four singers going straight through - Anja, Jackson, Issac & Kat. With Jacob, Fely, Laura-Leigh and Robbie going to the singoff. Was hard to split Kat & Robbie, I would have gone the other way.

The remaining triplets are Matt, Chita, ZK (Team Will); Rosie, Megan, Johnny (Team Kylie); Doug, Holly, Talia (Team Joel); and Josh, Sabrina, Elly (Team Ricky).

Very interesting sing-off's are building ...  think it would be more interesting if they sang something other than their audition songs.

Favourite performances...
John's take on I Will Follow You into the Dark; Anja's performance of His Eye on the Sparrow; Issac's take of Tennis Court and Robbie's Burn for You.

Weekend sport...

Netball: 

• The Waikato Magic, have escaped with a one goal win over the Sydney Swifts to make the Preliminary final of the Trans-Tasman Netball Competition and will play the Queensland Firebirds. The Melbourne Vixen qualified for the Grand Final by beating the Firebirds. (The Magic were the first NZ team to win the Championship in 2012).

NRL:

• Warriors traveled to Perth to play the Rabbits - they played well, but sadly 5 Rabbitohs tries in the last 20 minutes ended their challenge.
• The real winner out of this round is the NSW Blues - with it likely that Slater, Cronk, Inglis & Cherry-Evans will be out of the Maroons team named this week. Was interested to read that a couple of key players have said the competition should break for Origin. Can't see TV liking the idea, but you never know.
• Would say, at this early stage, the Roosters are favourite to win the competition.  Penrith are on top of the table (who would have thought that), but not sure they can win the competition.

AFL:

• Hard to believe, but Friday night's game, was only the second time this season both teams have scored over 100pts. On the free kick - 'Play well enough, and you can’t lose to a single call. Teams that deserve to win have taken chance out of the equation.' That said, might be fair to say Geelong stole the game
• Sydney had a good win over Gold Coast, and their slow start is probably behind them. Really looking forward to their game next weekend against Port Adelaide. It is their biggest test so far this season.
• What to say about Richmond - a 60 point turn-around - and they lose to the Kangaroos by 28 pts. Awesome 8 goal third quarter from the Kangaroos.
• A more competitive match between Melbourne & Collingwood this year (though sadly the Pies still won).

Hockey:

• The Kookaburras and Hockeyroos are both travelling well.  The Men are sitting at 4-0 and the Hockeyroos only loss was against the hosts - The Netherlands. 
• NZ is definitely out of contention in both the Men's & Women's tournaments. 

The French Open:

• The Women's Final featured the first Romanian in 30 years - Simona Halep. Halep has never beaten Sharapova - but last night's final was the closest match between them in four meetings.
• The top two seeds - Nadal & Djokovic have made the Men's Final. It is the 42nd time they have played. Nadal won in four sets & his ninth French Open title.
• Sadly the Bryan Brothers lost in the quarter finals of the Men's Doubles. 

Rugby:

• The Super XV is taking its international break. Australia beat France (50-23).  Wallabies were impressive. Sad the new captain Moore was injured in the first five minutes, and will miss the rest of the season. 
• The All Blacks were rusty against England - with a 78 minute try to Conrad Smith settling the result.  England were impressive (and on another night with cleaner hands & a bit of luck - they may well have won). Fair to say expecting some improvement in the All Blacks execution next weekend. Cruden's decision to take the quick tap was risky, but it was an attacking decision, which is what I like to see on the field.
• Great to see the BlackFerns play before the test too. The BlackFerns won 90-12 against Manu Samoa. Will be interesting seeing the game against Canada (who bet the Australian Wallaroos, 22-0).
• The Springboks beat a World XV (47-13) in Cape Town, for more results see here.
• The Junior World Cup is currently on in NZ - with each team playing their second match yesterday - the Junior All Blacks lost 24-33 to South Africa, Australia 24-38 lost to England. Given the rules of the tournament the three group winners (& the 2nd placed team with the most points) qualify for the finals. Will be interesting to see which team makes up the four with England, South Africa definitely winning their groups, France is most likely to win their group (but Ireland or Wales could pip them). The last place could be Australia, New Zealand or Ireland, depending on how the results go. Final round of matches is on Tuesday.

World Cup: 

• Four days to go, not a World Cup story but the Junior All Whites - make history - first NZ Men's side to secure a point against Brazil... 
• Thank you Les 

Memories of the World Cup

My first memories of the FIFA World Cup are from the 1986 tournament - seeing Maradona's sublime goal (and the 'hand of god' goal) against England. Strangely enough, I have recollections of watching the end of the Denmark-Germany group stage game, but none of the Final.

I saw more of the 1990 World Cup - Germany winning the final courtesy of a dubious penalty - reversing the 1986 result.  Cameroon coming to the Football world's attention during this tournament, beating Argentina 1-0 in their first match, and being eliminated in the second round (after a 2-3 loss to England in extra time).

Favourite Memor(ies):
So many to chose from, but New Zealand's performance against Italy in South Africa (1-1); Australia's 3-1 win over Japan in Germany 2006 are two that stand out.  The performance of Sth Korea during the 2002 World Cup was impressive; losing their Semi-Final 0-1 to Germany and eventually finishing fourth.

Favourite Goal:
So many to chose from - do a Google search for the best goals from the World Cup and stacks of videos will come up. Two of my favourites are - Maradona (v England 1986) & Berkamp (v Argentina 1998).

Predictions for 2014:
Hard to predict how Australia will go. They are clearly building for the Asian Cup 2015 (and qualification for the 2018 World Cup). My hope, is we see an Australian out there taking to the competition (even if they go down in flames in the process).

Australia isn't tipped to get out of the group; a win may be a challenge, but at the same time, once the team crosses the white line anything can happen.  (Read this article..) I'll be disappointed if Van Persie is ruled out with injury, as you want to see the best players on the field.

Would love to see a dark horse go through to the final (Ivory Coast, Japan), or The Netherlands. Belgium has been mentioned as another darkhorse; but I suspect it will be a former winner lifting in the trophy in July.

Bewitched & Bedevilled: Women Write the Gillard Years - Review

While I was visiting the library recently, I saw this book on the "new books" stand. I was instantly attracted to it, given that I have a great deal of difficultly understand the public reaction to her time as Prime Minister. The book features a collection of essay from women about Gillard. The book certainly does reinforce Gillard's comment that her gender 'doesn't explain everything, it doesn't explain nothing - it explains some things. And it is for the nation to think in a sophisticated way about those shades of grey.'

Emily Maguire's essay, explores #everydaysexism.  I was challenged by this essay, perhaps more so than I would have been in the past. As a father, I am responsible for how my son views and treats people and responsible for teaching him how he should treat women - so "the standard I  am prepared to walk past matters". And this is why I have been sharing a number of pieces around #yesallwomen, partly as a reminder to myself.

Tanya Plibersek's essay is a great exploration from a member of the ALP about the Rudd-Gillard-Rudd years.  It is such a shame that Gillard was not able to lead a united party - she faced a divided party and divided house and inspite of both she was able to pass some ambitious & needed reform.

The book contains transcripts of the former PM's 'Misogyny' speech & the lecture given by Dr Anne Summers - Her Rights at Work (detailing some of the former PM's treatment - which I see as a must read).

Worth noting that - The Hon Clive Palmer MP's comments about Peta Credlin were out of line - and were also condemned by the ALP, and Palmer has apologised for them.

Whether or not you are, or were, a fan of former Prime Minister, the collection is worth reading. It provides a great exploration of attitudes to women in power. I am looking forward to reading Gillard's autobiography which is due out later this year (also on my reading list is Rob Oakeshot's book)

NZ Music Month

A little bit late to the party, but May was New Zealand music month. I thought that I'd take some time and write a little bit about my favourite NZ musicians. (Some of these, now live - and are claimed as Australians by Australia ;)) The first few probably don't need much of an introduction, as you've either heard them (or heard about them from me).

Brooke Ligertwood (Fraser) 
The first Brooke Fraser song I heard was 'Lifeline'. Brooke has such a distinctive voice, and there is a beautiful depth to her songs. I am also really like the songs she has written (or performed) with Hillsong.

I'll always have a soft spot for Brooke seeing she grew up in the same part of NZ as me & went to the same primary school as me (albeit a few years after me), and F& I had her song 'Arithmetic' played during the signing of the register at our wedding.

Hayley Westenra
Came to fame as a 'classical-crossover' singer & was part of the Irish group Celtic Women for a time, before continuing her solo career. Hayley worked with Ennio Morricone for her album Paradiso, one song is put to the music of 'Gabriel's Oboe'.  My favourite is the version of 'Pokerekere Ana' - a traditional Maori song - she sang with Russell Watson (video below), also below is the version of Viva Per Lei she sang with Andrea Bocelli - beautifully matched voices (and some great Ice-skating).

Neil & Tim Finn (covering ...  Split Enz & Crowded House)
No introduction needed. The Finn's are arguably one of the best songwriting pairs since Lennon-McCartney - and have a similar way of creating magical phrases 'things aren't cooking in my kitchen'. I remember singing 'Better Be Home Soon' during primary school in NZ.

Bonus - I love the version Neil Finn (& Friends) did of The Smiths's song 'There's a light that never goes out'.

Lizzie Marvelly
Lizzie (Elizabeth) Marvelly started off performing classical & kiwi standards. Her second album 'Home' is one of my all-time favourite albums, because it brings my time growing up in NZ back to my mind.  This year Lizzie made a change and is singing/writing more pop songs. I respect her for being true to herself and where she is at as an artist; and am looking forward to her EP (Collisions) which will come out next month. One of the songs that captivated me, from Home, is her cover of Dave Dobbyn's Welcome Home. (Here's the original).

Broods
Don't know how I found out about Broods. Broods are a brother sister duo, and their first album came out this year. Have a hauntingly beautiful sound.

Evermore
Another band of brothers which has come out of NZ, though I they are now based in Australia.  Dreams is my favourite album and one you need to listen to from start to finish.

Bic Runga
Haunting voice - my favourite song is 'Sway'.

Dave Dobbyn
If you're trying to think of iconic NZ artists - it is hard to go past Dave Dobbyn - the two the come to my mind are 'Welcome Home' & 'Slice of Heaven'. Below is the film clip of 'Slice of Heaven' (ft. the cast of Footrot Flats).

Lydia Cole
Think I've posting on Lydia before, but a great sounding singer-songwriter. Her song 'Drawbridge' captures my mood from time to time. 'I wish there was a drawbridge and the Tasman was a moat; And I wish I could be with you less aeroplane or boat'

+ + +

The Voice - Battle Rounds #4 (Final)

Was disappointed in last night's episode - two performances were 'edited' from the show - only a glimpse of the battles between Emily Rex & Chita (Team Will) & Laura-Leigh Smith & Elise Baker (Team Joel) were shown. Wondering what the rationale for that was.

Onto the music...
Brittanie & Megan gave me chills with their performance of I Know Him So Well. 'Wasn't it madness' only one went through ;-)  Both of them belong on Broadway, and can't wait to see them there. :)

So winners in the other battles  - Jacob (Kylie saved Jhonna) Matt (& Joel used his last save for Soli);  Isaac, Rosie, Blake, Matthew.

The Showdowns (new for this season) begin on Sunday night - when three singers from each team compete with the coaches sending one to the Live shows, one going home and the remaining singer going through to a 'sing-off'.

A few random observations -
Kylie's match ups were my favourites - Candice (& Thando), Megan (& Brittanie), Robbie (& Jackson); Rosie (with Reece & Tico); and Kat (& Hayley).
Ricky has most of his singers through (only Mia, Pete, Scotty eliminated; Carly, Gabriel & Cecilia, Jess and Lionel were saved).
Will and Kylie had two singers saved each - Jhonna, Soli (Will) and Thando & Jackson saved (Kylie).
None of Joel's singers were saved.
There's something kind of funny in Joel begging Will to turn for Soli - and then Will begging Joel to save Soli.

Ricky (and Will) probably have the strongest teams - though given the last week I am sure there are a few more twists & turns, before there is a clear favourite.

The Voice Battle Rounds #3

Just finished watching the performances from last night.The real standout performance was from Lionel Cole & Sabrina Batshon  (who sang Beauty & the Beast).  Was awesome watching the chemistry between Lionel & Sabrina - he seemed to be so supportive of her. Just loved the ending of the song. I was stoked to see all three coaches save Lionel (he chose to go with Kylie). Looking forward to hearing more from Sabrina, (on the show & beyond), she has a beautiful, rich voice with so much control and Lionel just had so much range in his voice.

The other performances which I enjoyed were Kat (and Hayley's) performance of 'Roar' and Harry and Frank's take on the Red Hot Chilli Peppers 'Under the Bridge'.  Am sad to see Harry eliminated.

Also going through from last night's show: C-Major, John, ZK were the remaining winners (with Tom and Tasha eliminated). Will I Am saved Carly.

Of the singers left to perform in the battle-rounds, I'm most looking forward to hearing - Emily (and Jhonna from Team Will); Brittanie, Rosie, Megan (from Team Kylie), Elise, Blake (Team Joel), and the remaining battle from Team Ricky is Peter & Matthew.

On the saves, Ricky & Will have used both - Ricky saved Thando & Jackson. Will saved Gabrielle & Cecilia and Carly. Kylie & Joel have one left - Kylie saved Lionel, and Joel saved Jess.

The episode made me miss Keith Urban :)

Footy recap

NRL

• I'll begin with the State of Origin - The Blues were impressive - and Queensland kept coming. NSW now have two chances to win the series. Will be interesting to see the changes to both teams, given the injuries. 
• Hard to read much into this round - given the players rested. The most impressive performance over the weekend was Brisbane's big win over Manly.

AFL

•  This piece looks at the average margins since the addition of GWS & the Suns. Interesting to see the must common margin being 5 points. 
• Was not surprised Sydney won on Thursday... but stunned by the margin (Geelong's biggest loss for 24 years). Looking forward to seeing Port Adelaide-Sydney game in a few weeks.
• Not a fan of Thursday (or Monday) Football...  like the games spread over the weekend, though given the ratings (and crowd figure, it might stick around)
• Impressed with Melbourne & GWS they pushed Port Adelaide and Hawthorn all the way.
• Wasn't expecting to see Brisbane beat Carlton. Carlton & Richmond are probably the two biggest disappointments of the season. 
• Making history as a woman in football, Peta Searle has been recruited by St Kilda as a development coach. (Read Samantha Lane's article in The Age)

Super XV

• The loss to the Blues today, has almost knocked the Hurricanes out of the play-offs, especially considering they play the Crusaders & Chiefs in the next two weeks.

French Open

• Haven't been following enough for a read on who will play in the finals yet. One the Women's side - Serena Williams along with the winners of the Australia Open singles titles - Li Na & Stan Wawrinka are eliminated.
• Cue articles about Federer being finished - his earliest departure from the French Open since 1994.  
• Stosur did well, lost in the fourth round (to Sharapova, in three sets)

World Cup 

• Almost here - two weeks to go before Brazil play Croatia in the first game. The big news is the murmurings about the 2022 Tournament being removed from Qatar. Can't see it happening... but would Australia bid again if it did. 

UPDATE - I omitted the results from the Men's & Women's World Cup in Hockey which started Friday. The Kookaburra's had a 4-0 win against Malaysia & the Hockeyroos won 3-2 against Korea. NZ's Men's team beat Korea 2-1 and the Women's team - Belgium 4-3.

The Voice - Battle Rounds #2

We saw seven battles last night, and two (sad it wasn't three though) singers saved. The battles were between Anja & Sarah, Jayde & Louise (Team Will), Dallas & Doug, Annabelle Eve & Taila Gouge (Team Joel), Josh McDonald & Scott Gelzinnis;  Brandon Duff & Gabriel/Cecilia (Team Ricky); Candice Skjonnemand & Thando Sikwila (Team Kylie).

A few of my highlights from last night.  I loved Doug took Dallas under his wing, and would love to hear them sing together again. Gabriel and Cecilia are the first duo to go through (after being saved by Will I Am). They have a really great connection, and I'm going to be intrigued what songs Will I Am gives them.

But the two best battles of the night were Annabelle Eve & Taila Gouge & Candice Skjonnemand & Thando Sikwila. During both of these performances I got chills.  Candice & Thando's performance was probably the best from the three seasons (to date), I got chills & tears - and no surprise that Thando was saved by Ricky (who has now used both saves).

The battle between Jayde & Lousie was over-hyped during the show. I was also surprised that Louise was the winner of the battle. Louise has a powerful voice, and will be interested in seeing how she goes, but I felt Jayde was more even. Impressed with the grace she showed on the stage as the decision was made. I am looking forward to hearing more from Jayde.

The Voice: Battle Rounds #1

The Battle Rounds are now my favourite part of The Voice - two (sometimes very different) singers going head to head singing the same song. Universal will make money selling the combined performance tracks. Especially seeing as a lot of them sound like duets. It is sad that Universal are only selling the performances from the Live Rounds on.

Last night set the bar pretty high for the rest of the week.  We saw six performances from Fely & Mia; Elly & Jess (Team Ricky);  Johnny & Maybelle; Jackson & Robbie (Team Kylie); Courtney & Holly (Team Joel) and Krishool & Julian (Team Will).

Not surprised by any of the coaches decisions - the winners were Fely, Elly, (Jess was saved Joel), Johnny, Robbie (Jackson was saved by Ricky) Holly and Julian. Was glad to see Joel take Holly through, impressed with her performance holding her own ground against Courtney.

 I liked Mia's performance last night more than her blind audition. Elly & Jess kind of met my expectations - great performance too.

The highlights for me from the night were Fely & Mia singing Young & Beautiful; Robbie & Jackson singing Strong. I'm looking forward to Elly and Jess singing songs a little more out of their comfort zone.

Weekend sport...

The Matilda's

• The Australian's Women Football team played Japan in the Asian Cup Final, and lost 0-1. Great effort from the team through the tournament. Really excited for the World Cup next year.  Surprised this isn't the leading sports story today.

NRL

• This quote from the Guardian sums it up: 'And ... five games in a player-depleted and split National Rugby League Round 11, and one thinks, yet again, surely there is another way. ' I like the idea of suspending the comp for the origin series, playing over three weekends (or two Wednesday's & a Sunday afternoon).  But I don't think TV will like that idea much. 
• So the Warriors beat the Titans on the Gold Coast (though it sounded like they were playing in Auckland). Hoping that during the rep season the Warriors can build some momentum.
• On the State of Origin - Queensland have to be the favourites.  But you never know, don't forget the Queensland team of 1995, who won the series 3-0 after being completely written off.

AFL

• Not a fan of the split round here either. The Swan's had a bye this week. Which I guess is good. They have another big test Thursday night hosting Geelong and the SCG.
• After wins over Fremantle, Geelong and now Hawthorn, Port Adelaide are the clear favourites for the competition now.  Impressed by the the Suns, now sitting in third place, reckon they will drop a little and remain in the eight at the end of the season. June-July will be a big test for them as they will play Sydney, Hawthorn, Geelong & Collingwood. An Ablett suspension will hurt them.
• After a pretty ordinary week, Jack Riewoldt  kicks 11.0 to 3QT to lead the Tigers to a big win over the Giants. Was expecting a Richmond win, but thought the Giants would give a better account of themselves.

Super Rugby

• Don't look now, but the Waratahs are on the top of Australian Conference. Great performance by the Hurricanes to beat the defending Champions (The Chiefs) 45-8. Seems Barrett must be favourite to be the starting no 10. for the All Blacks if Carter is unfit.

French Open

• French Open started overnight.  Hoping to see Tomic & Hewitt play each other..  At the moment, at least in the Men's Tournament I'd be surprised if Nadal or Djokovic wasn't the Champion.  I'm most intrigued about how Wawrinka backs up after winning the Australian Open.  The Women's side is a little more interesting as it is hard to pick a winner. I'm always interested in how the Bryan brothers go in the Men's Doubles

World Cup 

• The Socceroos play Sth Africa tonight as their farewell match before heading to Brazil.  Given that it sounds like they're playing an essential 'B' team, you wonder what the value is.