Although Secrets and Lies integrated electro elements to complete the sound, the Remixed version increases the beats and throws them ham-fistedly on top. It may seem obvious to say this about a ‘remix’ album, but Secrets and Lies Remixed is pretty much a dancier re-imagining of what was an expressive and eccentric record. It really depends on what you’re after; you might enjoy fast-paced dancey pop music. But if you prefer the remixed album to Bertie’s original, I don’t think you’re getting what her music’s all about.

Don’t get me wrong, Secrets and Lies Remixed has its high points. I did like its version of ‘Thump’, which was smooth, original and something you’d enjoy chilling to. There were tracks with a house music sound, like ‘Town of Sorrow’, which were passable. Unfortunately, the high points were few and far between on the thirteen tracks.

The tragedy of the Remix album is too many of Bertie’s outstanding songs like ‘Black Cats’ and ‘Byrds of Prey’ were ravaged, turned into versions that sounded like songs off Dance Dance Revolution (for those familiar with the Asian dance-platform game). It’s definitely fun and cute, but so is Justin Bieber. Okay, it doesn’t sink that low, but still – in my humble opinion, Secrets and Lies is better left untouched.

I spoke to headliner Bertie Blackman, who is currently based in Chicago working on her new album. “I’m kind of tentatively based over here until the end of July or August,” she says. “I really like it over here so I’m just travelling back and forth to Australia for gigs, once a month or so, but it’s a really good, inspiring space to be in. It’s just out of my comfort zone but I can write well.”

After a wave of success following her album Secrets and Lies, Blackman has found it was easier to do some real writing overseas. “When I’m in Australia my management just always make sure I have a full schedule, so there’s just never time and whenever I’ve had time, which hasn’t been very often, I just freak out a little bit. So that’s why I’m here. Sometimes I just can’t get inspired because I can’t stop thinking about other work stuff.”

Writing is something that comes naturally to Bertie, and she tells me she’s been writing music since she was very young. “I’ve been writing ever since I could,” she says. “It’s something I’ve always done naturally, ever since I was little – I used to always write things in my head or at a piano. I’d just make things up. I’ve always been that way inclined.”

It’s unsurprising really, considering that her father, Charles Blackman is one of the better-known expressionist painters in Australia. Creativity in the blood. “I had a picture of my father’s on my wall when I was young, a picture he had painted, out of his Alice in Wonderland series,” says Bertie about her creative childhood. “It was a picture of Alice and all these things like a hand print that was black on black, and rabbit ears, with a garden inside the ears. It’s kind of scary – other people look at it and say ‘THAT is what you slept next to?!’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah?’ and they say, ‘Well that explains a lot.’”

It probably does. Bertie’s music is like a dark Alice in Wonderland, and probably could have scored Tim Burton’s Alice if the film weren’t so abysmal. “The new record is even going a bit darker,” she says, keen to talk about it – probably because she’s spending all her time working on it. “This is the second interview I’ve had today and I’m finally starting to talk about what I’m doing. Even my management don’t know – I’m not letting anyone hear anything,” she giggles. “It is darker and I’m really excited.”

The landscape of Chicago is helping to inspire her as well, and she’s finding mythical, supernatural moments hidden in the city landscape. “I had a couple of big breakthroughs yesterday,” she says, “And I kind of feel like I’ve started upon something interesting so I’m working away seriously in my studio in Chicago, looking outside – there’s apartment blocks everywhere, but there’s this big square of concrete with a park on the edge and there’s this big old dead tree growing out of the middle of the concrete, in the middle of this empty car park. It’s weird.” Then she corrects herself: “No, it’s awesome, it’s not weird. I imagine what’s inside it, like a little creature war happening underneath the tree, it could be Adam’s tree…”

When she’s not writing, Bertie jets back to the motherland and plays festivals. It’s almost always festivals – and when she plays, she puts on an epic, intense, powerful show. With billowing black clothes (often by her favourite designers, “Kirrily Johnston, Friedrich Gray, really rad expensive things,”), reverb and a strong sense of the epic, Bertie’s shows take the raw, honest recordings from her album and explode them into massive on-stage performances. “I love playing festivals,” she says. “I’ve played a lot of festivals recently. Like, every festival. I am looking forward to playing some of my own shows soon though but I want this record to be special so I’m sort of throwing all my energy into that and getting it finished. Finishing a project is always a weird time because, well, I haven’t had any kids but I think it would probably feel like that, giving birth.”

Hopefully Bertie’s been inspired by some shows in America, where she’s really been quite spoilt. “I went to Coachella over the weekend in the Californian desert,” she gloats happily. “I saw heaps of really amazing things – I saw Thom Yorke play for the first time, who played with Flea [Atoms for Peace] and I really enjoyed seeing Fever Ray and Dead Weather. Florence and the Machine were there – she’s cool and people like her and La Roux have been around for ages and I was really interested in seeing bands I haven’t seen before. And I made out with Har Mar Superstar, which was pretty rad.”

I don’t know how an Australian living in America will translate into a Big British sound, and I don’t really care to ask either. Bertie’s far too focused on her writing and her new album to think about it. She tells me also that she won’t be playing any of her new writing yet. “I’m going to save it up for a special occasion,” she says, as if it’s a rainy day jar. “I think I want to kind of put it on for everyone when it’s ready to go, make it special. It’s good to keep people waiting for at least a month. Soon, soon.”

I’m interested as to whether that’s frustrating, being so distracted and focused on new material but having to play other things. But Bertie reassures me that her shows are all consuming as well, which is obvious from her passionate, intense performances. “Once I start playing music I get kind of lost,” she says.

If she’s ever lost, it’s only because her music takes everyone to another world. It’s very much like Alice in Wonderland; like her father’s painting. Chicago is Bertie’s wonderland at the moment, and when she climbs through some rabbit hole and emerges back here at The Metro, she’ll be putting on a performance as magical as the Cheshire Cat in the dark night.

Bertie allows us a peek inside the open door to her imaginary world with a selection of large scale pen and ink illustrations of her “Nanimals”; Some may say that they belong somewhere between Alice’s Wonderland and Where Maurice Sendak’s Wild Things Are, and no one would expect anything less from the daughter of Australian art world royalty, Charles Blackman & Genevieve de Couvreur.

“I like the graphic quality of using pen and ink,” says Blackman, “I also like making “things”, building and shaping things, but drawing in black and white allows me to better interpret my characters as I see them, and for others to see.”

The host of Bertie Blackman’s exhibition, Mossgreen Gallery, is one of Australia’s most

progressive galleries, representing a number of groundbreaking new and established Australian and International artists.

Bertie Blackman’s artwork will go on show for one night only, where art lovers and fans of her music alike have the opportunity to buy her original drawings. Bertie is conscious of the support that she has received from friends and family to help her shape her music career and now she has the opportunity to do the same; All profits from the sale of these original drawings will be donated to Australian music charity Support Act.

“Support Act, the Australian music industry’s benevolent fund, is proud to be involved with Bertie Blackman’s Art Exhibition and Auction and we encourage Forum 5 in its development of emerging Australian talent such as Bertie Blackman. We wish her the best of luck with her ARIA nomination and great success in her career.”

The evening will include a acoustic performance by Bertie as she performs tracks from her ARIA nominated album, ‘Secrets And Lies’, available in stores now.

Current chart topper & pop chanteuse Kate Miller Heidke, Victorian rocking blues trio -The Vasco Era, Sydney indie pop darlings Red Riders, Dub & Reggae masters King Tide and local Cronulla band on the rise -Amy Meredith will be joining the already stellar line-up.

The final line-up for A Day At The Park:

Hoodoo Gurus
You Am I
The Beautiful Girls
Ash Grunwald
Kate Miller-Heidke
Richard Clapton
Bertie Blackman
The Vasco Era
Red Riders
King Tide
Amy Meredith
Dead Letter Chorus
+ local bands

These guys wrap up the line up for the big guns, but we still have a few local up and coming bands to add after the heats of the Battle of the Bands at the end of October.

Ticket Details are $69.00 +bf. Available through Ticketek – http://www.ticketek.com.au 132849

http://www.adayatthepark.com

The Festival, entering it’s 13th year will be held on the last weekend in November (27-29) in Queenscliff and boasts a nice variety of Aussie music aswell international artists.

The Original Wailers (JAM)
Tim Finn
Little Birdy
Marcia Hines
Chris Jagger’s Atcha (UK)
Dan Sultan
Nano Stern (CHILE)
Ed Kuepper
Bertie Blackman
Charles Jenkins & The Zhivagos
Even
Rolling Stones tribute concert
Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Chamber Players
Ella Thompson
Stephen McEwan & The Yes Men

Tickets: http://www.qmf.net.au/tickets.html

Valley Fiesta 2009 will take place on October 24-25 at Valley Mall on Brunswick Street and Chinatown Mall. The Theme for this years festival is based on the Mexican Day of The Dead Festival

C.W Stoneking
Kev Carmody
Bertie Blackman
The Mess Hall
Jack Ladder
Sampology
Aleks And The Ramps
Cuthbert And The Nightwalkers
Diafrix
Little Scout
The Frowning Clouds
The Mikki Ross Show
Andrew Morris
Butcher Birds
Hungry Kids Of Hungary
Soma Rasa
Sixfthick
Optimen
Texas Tea
The Wilson Pickers
Vegas Kings
We All Want To

For more information head to http://www.valleyfiesta.com

There will be plenty of space to kick back and relax on a picnic rug, roam around getting full at one of the many fine food stalls, two big stages for you to get up close to, and plenty of space to shake your booty. What better way to spend a Spring day than to be surrounded by all of that.

And because the good folk behind A Day At The Park want to share their fun with everyone, tickets have been kept to a conservative and affordable price (kids under five get in for free).

Featuring The Hoodoo Gurus, You Am I, Beautiful Girls, Ash Grunwald, Bertie Blackman, Richard Clapton, Dead Letter Chorus, and 9 more bands to be announced.

The second lot of bands and full, finer event details will be announced mid August so keep your eyes peeled on Music Feeds for updates soon.

Saturday November 14th 2009
Toyota Stadium, Captain Cook Dr Cronulla NSW 11.30am – 8pm
Tickets on sale Wednesday September 2nd

www.adayatthepark.com.au

Illawarra youth and young at heart can be part of history by being at the first outdoor music event held at WIN Stadium by picking up their tickets tomorrow from all Ticketek outlets.

PLAY DAY presented by IMB, comes to life at WIN Stadium, Wollongong on Saturday 21 November 2009.

EVERMORE will head a line-up of major rock, pop, indie, dance and hip-hop acts. Joining the bill is BERTIE BLACKMAN, hip-hop sensation PHRASE, duo DASH & WILL, international DJ’s THE ASTON SHUFFLE, HOOK ‘N’ SLING and TIMMY TRUMPET. To top it off, some of the Illawarra’s greatest bands will round out the line-up.

IMB PLAY DAY is an all-ages event allowing everyone to come and enjoy over eight hours of live music on the lush grass of WIN Stadium.

Tickets, available from Ticketek, cost just $76 inclusive of GST and booking fee (transaction fees from $4.95 per transaction apply).