Bizoo is dedicated to freedom of speech, supporting local bands and not censoring its writers. It also prods bands towards providing all-ages gigs, an issue which seems to be garnering more awareness, particularly as a number of American bands I’ve spoken to find the split between underage and overage shows completely weird.
This last issue, titled The Best, The Worst And The Trash That Never Made It, provides a real keyhole-peep into Toowoomba life. There’re stories about the floods from the most real perspective I’ve ever read: not flashy sentimental first-hand-saving-a-child stuff, but how it truly feels to be a local on the other side of the disaster. There’re also essays on social stuff, political stuff, and of course plenty of great band interviews from over the last 10 years.
There were a number of bands that accompanied the launch, most notably the astonishing Hunting Pictures. It was their first ever show, and they were bloody spectacular (not just because two out of three on stage were chicks). Drummer girl was a killer, galloping that snare like a lunatic while the boy/girl fronters swayed from fore foot to back in a rhythmic trance, unleashing some very brutal sounds from their guitars with fluid movements.
The best part of this event was that attendees contributed to a ‘zine which was to be produced on the night; there were little bits of paper around with prompts printed on them, like ‘Write an obituary for the death of print’ and ‘Draw a bazooka.’
Bizoo has the non-pretentious vibe which I used to enjoy from my old uni paper, Lot’s Wife. Pardon the pun but it’s the same salt of the earth take on what the world and its bits look like when you’re young, want to get engaged with issues that matter, and want to party your face off too.
