// ARTICLES

Having worked tirelessly within Melbourne's live music scene for many years, the day has arrived for Josh Forner to release his debut album "Leading to Nowhere".  In the lead up to his launch on Sund

2013 has already been a big year for funk/soul singer-songwriter/producer and multi-instrumentalist Dru Chen.  In February 2013, Dru released ‘You Bring Out The Best In Me’ as the first single f

Do you think you sound like geese dying when you sing? Maybe you tried to play a guitar like a violin at a party and have never lived it down? Maybe you were kicked out of the High School Choir? Or ma

The team at Melting Pot are very excited to announce that our weekly open mic night is returning: on Monday the 27th of May at The Clyde Hotel in Carlton.   The night will run in a similar fashio

As the Melting Pot website (in it's current form) goes into it's second year, we thought it would be good to conduct a bit of research.  With every artist that signs up to our website invited to shar

I do feel for comics – often the target of unintelligent outbursts from someone in the crowd who thinks they’re funnier than the guy or gal up the front actually being funny for a living, which is

Brothers Oliver and Louis Leimbach front the quirky and groovilicious Lime Cordiale. Think cleverly crafted and cheeky lyrics, killer trumbone and energetic, eventful live music that gets your heart p

A long drive was in store to Cheltenham just following peak hour for this reviewer, to and unknown venue in, what to me, is a bit of an unknown area; particularly for live music. I'm greeted with a

Continuing on a familiar theme - Social Media - this week I implore you to consider another article published in Melbourne's 'The Age', this time specifically towards Facebook and the recently pushed

We've heard it all before, but like it or not, if you are performing original music, and recording it, and getting your product out there to the public, then you are running a business. Whether or

A lavish and careful female singer greets me at the John Curtin Hotel on February 28th. I'm thrown blissfully into singer/songwriter paradise with Slow Galo. She provides slow, drawn out finger-pluck

It’s all quiet on the Western Front as singer/songwriter Neda, stands before me with an accompanying lead guitar, and judging by the first note struck by vocalist Neda, and the bulky, hollow-body ad

Here at Melting Pot HQ we're eagerly awaiting the next Songwriters In The Round Friday March 8th. Hudson (Travis Aulsebrook), a familiar face to the rounds fills us in on his recent EP release and wha

Alister & Leon Green's strains were what I heard as I ascended the stairs up to the band room at Gertrude's Brown Couch last Thursday. They provided a nice, stable 'Aussie Acoustic Duo' sound –

From the very start of this long awaited EP from alt-folk outfit, Catch Release, the unique, deep vocal stylings of Tom Lee-Richards take hold. It doesn't take long to decide, or indeed notice, that t

Not knowing quite what to expect whilst strolling down Northcote's Mitchell Street hill, a swift anticipation comes over me as I begin to count each house number all the way to the inviting, open side

PAPER HOUSE//SECOND HAND HEART//CANARY  The Toff In Town Wednesday, October 10th, 2012 Quietly taking in the intimate surrounds at The Toff, I eagerly await the emergence of Canary; intrigued

The team at Melting Pot are very excited to announce that our weekly open mic night is returning – on Monday the 12th of November at Melbourne inner city bar Horse Bazaar. The night will run in a

Melting Pot’s Open Mic Mondays are returning in November – but this time at a new location - Horse Bazaar.  We are conducting a competition which invites you to design a poster for the return of

With tomorrow seeing the launch of his debut EP Forest for the Trees, John Lingard and his band The Foreign Hearts are taking to the stage for the first time since leaving the studio with a sound t

Poised to take the city’s stages by storm, five-piece indie outfit Run Rabbit Run are attracting attention for all the right reasons with their genre-spanning sound and an impressive collection of s

by Simone Stevenson Crowd-funding?  Please, restrain your enthusiasm and form an orderly queue. As banal as the subject matter might appear on first encounter, crowd-funding actually appears to de

The warm yellow glow lighting up the small stage in the cosy, carpeted band room of the Grace Darling Hotel was a stark contrast to the chilly rain outside on Wednesday night. Blue fairy lights hung f

The lights dim. The crowd silences.  A chord is played. Adrenaline builds. He pulls off his hood and walks onto the stage spitting his first words into the mic. 'Yo when it started it was nothing

I once heard Billy Connolly, a hero of mine, say how before he goes out on stage he has very little idea what he is going to talk about. He gets scared every time, scared that when he is actually on t

Mantown, Luke Escombe’s second album, isn’t afraid to tackle the big issues like love, death and terrorism. Clearly enjoying themselves, Luke Escombe and the Corporation have produced a polished a

Jack Gramski is a talented singer-songwriter with a musical armoury of guitar, harmonica and vocals, writing out of the Bob Dylan sonic gym.   His new album, From Crickets to Claps, is a locall

On the phone with Olivia Hally and Pepita Emmerichs, the eponymous core of Oh Pep!, I disgraced myself, three minutes in, by asking the ultimate hack question, “How would you describe the music on t

As the debut EP from Paper House slides from its mailer into the CD player I try to pick up its scent from the cover art: dreaminess, playfulness, a touch of austerity...   Fix Your Heart boun

I met up with the lovely Marites, Matt and Alan of Return to Youth to talk about their new single 'Sail Away'.   How are you feeling about the launch for your new single ‘Sail Away’? Matt

'If I see somebody pledge $75.00 I jump up and click my heels, but so much more exciting to me is to see seventy-five people pledging $1.00 each. They're people with not much to give and the fact that

Inspired by South Pacific Reggae and '50s/'60s rhythm and blues, The Simon Wright Band has taken their new EP Live at 52 in a different direction. Due out in late September, the 5 track EP was recorde

Evelyn Hotel - Tuesday 17/7/12 There's an air of anticipation at the Evelyn Hotel tonight for those like me who can remember the two-year Monday night residency previously held by Simon Wright with

Recently, a rather lengthy discussion article that had gone viral was brought to my attention. This article was focused on the current youth's outlook towards the music industry and went into very goo

Recently gaining another year on the clock, folk/rock solo performer Josh Forner embarks on his very first residency this July at the Edinburgh Castle Hotel in Brunswick. After performing around Me

Melting Pot continues to expand its reach with an interview on ABC local radio with Lindy Burns and Waleed Aly on Thursday the 21st of June.

Melting Pot continued to break new ground with a sell out show at the Northcote Social Club for the release of Creatures of Karma's album and Cathouse Canary's EP.  Also part of the lineup were Ceres

How to Blow People’s Minds at Your Gigs You can turn the innate human desire for love, appreciation and acceptance around and use it to blow minds at your gigs. How? By realising that when you play

Melting Pot is very excited to announce that Melbourne's favourite weekly acoustic event "Songwriters in the Round" will be returning - this time to be held on Sunday afternoons at the Wesley Anne in

  It's set to be a long winter in chilly old Melbourne town, but what better place to take it easy in the winter than Melting Pot? Just the name alone makes you feel warmth already. Livestock i

A name change, a new drummer and a debut EP. It's been a big year for Cathouse Canary who will let their "five-track baby fly free" on the 15th of June. Guitarist and vocalist Kieran Stevenson expl

Three separate women. Three separate bands. Each soaking in the individuality of effortless style.   Cilla Jane's voice floats with the same sweetness her vintage dresses exude. Guitar in h

  ‘YouTube sensation’ and ‘pop star’ aren’t labels Melbourne based singer-songwriter Ben Abraham is terribly comfortable with. He has undeniably established himself as the first howeve

Do you lament the end of video? Do you have a soft spot for little-known films? Are you fond of the ‘80s? Then CineCult303 a monthly screening of “obscure and obsessive cinema” is for you. Ci

It’s Thursday, the 10th of May, and rock ’n’ roll is underway at the John Curtin Hotel. This is only the second Melting Pot gig at the Curtin, but from the way things are going, it looks as thou

by Mikki Michelle As I’m listening to Songs From An Empty Room, I’m automatically transported to a strange yet brilliant place, sometime between the '60s and the '90s. A place where rock and ro

It's not every day that a jeweler asks you into his studio and then calls your family heirloom ring "disguisting". Granted the words, "I like your ring" did come before that, but in the age of air kis

Oversize fans, high heels and women taking off their clothes. No wonder Burlesque has never gone away. Performer Dita von Teese recently visited, she boasts a 56 centimetre waist. But a group of plus-

We sat down over a cup of tea with singer songwriter Helen Croome (aka Gossling) to get an insight into the ins and outs of the live music scene, her rise from Triple J darling to sell out headline ac

Melbourne is a poetry hot spot. Every week there are regular events throughout the city; Passionate Tongues, the Dan O’Connell, the St Kilda Army and Navy Club and the Plough Corner Poets. The newes

Last Tuesday saw the arrival of a new comedy night - Shits’N’Giggles. After a month of the comedy festival you’d think Melbourne would be all laughed out – but apparently the city can’t get

Melbourne outfit Bayou have just released their self-titled EP. Bayou has a quiet, eerie sound filled with sudden bursts of fuzz. All of a sudden I feel like I’m in a diner in Louisiana with Phil Sp

Xenograft (def.): Tissue or organs from one species transplanted into or grafted onto an organism of another species. In a crowded Brunswick Hotel, Xenograft hit the stage. At first I thought I was

Professional wrestling is alive and kicking in Melbourne. Thornbury Theatre was filled with people of all ages on Saturday night; kids, teenagers, oldies and middle aged. The crowd had one thing in

You, consciously or not, make music with some goals in mind.   These goals may be as simple as ‘have fun” or as complex as “become an internationally recognised saxophone great of the con

Confidently strolling onto the stage, Tom Gleeson welcomed the crowd -'G’day Monday bitches!'- and started the show with some political digs. Tom quickly moved onto the monarchy, becoming a fathe

Dancing. You either like it or you don’t. If you enjoy jumping around your living room and find yourself bopping to music played in supermarkets, then get to No lights, No lycra. The premise is s

It is increasingly common that we speak to artists who have been offered a "digital distribution" agreement by a small (or large) label or distributor. Usually, this type of thing comes into play afte

by Van Roberts Writer and musician Crystal Thomas is set to release her second album ‘A Chance in Hell.’ Born and bred in Sydney, Crystal ‘fell in love with the stories of Melbourne, this

By Van Roberts The dynamic Nikki Britton bounded out from behind the tiny stage to tell us that. the show was about how her life wasn’t going to plan.  Any content people in the audience were to

By Van Roberts With an introduction of ‘enjoy yourselves and get f***ked!’, punk had returned. Ross Daniels took the audience to Brisbane in 1977; he saw the Sex Pistols on Countdown and life w

By Van Roberts Die Roten Punkte (the Red Dots) burst onto the stage in a whirl of sparkles and lipstick. Brother and sister, Astrid and Otto Rot waved their ‘tentacles in the air’ to a eurobeat

By Van Roberts The lower town hall was filled with expats anticipating the Best of Comedy Malaysia, featuring new talent Kuah Jenhan, TV star Douglas Lim and comedy idol Harith Iskander. Kuah J

By Van Roberts I was between a rock and a hard place, or rather between my friend and the stand-up comedian who was asking me what my name was. I froze and smiled. The MC quickly moved onto the ete

Recording your music well is one of the most important things you can do as an artist.  In this first blog I’ll talk about how to get ready to record and some of the things to focus on before going

After more than 3 years and more than 130 memorable shows in the round, we can confirm that Seraphim (formerly Vibe on Smith), the restaurant / venue which hosts our Songwriters in the Round (SITR) ni

Melting Pot is proud to present our new website, Melting Pot Online! We’ve tried to make this a place for artists and music enthusiasts alike – a hub of information, advice and media for Melbourne

Melting Pot are finalising details for a regular band night unlike any in Melbourne at the moment -  or ever seen before. Continuing the trend set with Songwriters in the Round and Open Mic Mondays,

Former ABC radio broadcaster Derek Guille is one of the most respected figures in Australian radio.  Derek joined the ABC in Horsham in 1987 having already worked in Australia for Channel Nine, 3HA,

I am often asked by young bands whether they should enter into an agreement among themselves. Whilst my legal training says “Yes”, I am also conscious that this may open a “can of worms”. R

Isn’t that what you want? To become a legend of the stage and screen? How about that - so do I! Here’s how I reckon you and me can make that happen, packaged neatly in 7 convenient, easy steps.

Darren Sanicki is principal of Sanicki Lawyers, a music & entertainment law firm based in South Yarra, Melbourne. His firm’s client base includes bands, recording artists, managers, composers, p

2011 was a big year for hudson: Aside from being a regular face at Melting Pot's Open Mic Mondays and Songwriters in the Round, he released his debut EP "Open Up Slowly" in May before embarking on a f