Underpaid migrant workers warned against speaking out
Staff at the Luxury Escarpment Group of Blue Mountain Hotels have been warned against speaking to the media after the Herald Sun exposed migrant workers are being exploited.
The Fair Work Ombudsman raided the hotel group’s operations last month and found they were taking wages from migrant workers through overpriced accommodation and unpaid overtime.
Victorian State Government concedes, ‘we’re letting people down’
The Victorian state government is promising a new deal for mental health, admitting that the current system is ‘letting people down’.
It’s Royal Commission into mental health conceded that people are ‘bounced around’ the present system.
It has heard shocking stories of mistreatment and mismanagement, with one expert witness describing the state’s system as ‘collapsed’ and ‘in need of a complete overhaul’.
Pussy Riot to perform in Alabama to protest abortion bans
The Russian collective Pussy Riot will perform a sold-out concert on Thursday in Alabama to raise money for women’s rights groups.
This concert comes in light of the state’s recent passing of a near-total ban on abortion, making it a felony even in cases of rape or incest.
Pussy Riot co-founder Nadya Tolokonnikova says she finds the ban ridiculous and wants to come to Alabama to support women who are in a critical and vulnerable position in the state right now.
African leaders launch landmark 55-nation trade zone
African leaders have launched a landmark 55-nation trade zone, the agreement was signed on Sunday by Nigerian president Muhammadu Buhari and Benin’s President Patrice Talon.
AU commission chairman Moussa Faki dubbed the African continental free trade area deal a “historic” moment.
The trade zone will create a 3.4 trillion economic bloc and will unite 1.3 billion people, helping a new era of development across the continent.
Rainbow Chan - Pillar
Multi-dimensional vocalist, songwriter, producer and mixed-medium artist, Rainbow Chan has released her highly awaited second album, Pillar. As a follow-up to her 2016 debut Spacings, Rainbow continues on her path of evolving artistry as one of Australia’s most innovative and daring minds in experimental pop music.
Pillar’s 10-tracks culminate Rainbow’s years of expertise across composition, songwriting & production, finding the sweet spot where her many influences intersect, all while celebrating her heritage and culture as they intertwine. From the delicate brushworks of a faint beat to the pounding accents of a club-made kick drum, Pillar is a work of balanced strengths, propelling listeners on a journey towards self-reckoning as Rainbow Chan’s striking vocal melodies glide, stop and stir above on themes of life’s fragile temporality.
Opening the album, is the slow and tender melodies of “Oblivion”, before 2018’s club sharp community-radio loved cut “CSR”. The album’s third single “Pillar” follows, utilising pitch shifted vocals as beats of their own, alongside brassy synths and angelic falsettos. The fast arpeggiated layers of “For A Long Time” soon appear, intersecting trademark Rainbow Chan melodies of never-ending interest.
Previous single, “Love Isn’t Easy” ft. MOLDY blends Rainbow’s club and pop influences into one, over a blanket of mesmerising synths and sprinkled beats. Rainbow’s vocal range shines, shifting between a hauntingly gentle falsetto and powerful pop performance, before making way for the slow and softer leading direction of “Melt”. “A Horizon” is up next as a vocal-pitched chamber of warm reverberations and echoing space. The stop-and-start build of “Lull” ft. Chuiping & Choilin gathers momentum, before the darker glistening synths of “Gaosuwo” make headroom. “Roof” marks a magical and closing moment on the album, as Rainbow’s vocals echo towards completion.
“Pillar is a record about movement. With movement, comes change. With change, comes a multiplicity of truths. These ten songs were written amongst a constellation of languages, times, locations and lives, further exploring my East-Asian heritage with songs flowing effortlessly between English, Mandarin, Cantonese and Weitou (Cantonese dialect), as a way to de-centre the Eurocentricity of language in pop music” - Rainbow Chan
Pooling sounds from her side project DIN (with Alex Ward), soundscape dance venture Chunyin and her 2016 debut Spacings, Pillar is both intriguingly fresh and tenderly familiar, proving the everlasting affect her music leaves on fans, both longtime and emerging.
Always pushing the boundaries, Rainbow Chan has built a reputation as one of Australia’s most unique artists with a defined sonic identity, drawing on vibrant aesthetics, a deep understanding of pop conventions and continuous celebration of her Chinese heritage.
11AM ZEDLINES
[Image credit: Flickr]
World's largest military ships arrived in Brisbane
The USS Ronald Reagan, one of the world's largest and most powerful military ships, has arrived in Brisbane with tourism bosses expecting thousands of American sailors on board to spend big.
The 333-metre long ship, which is more than 20-storeys' high, docked in Brisbane on Saturday morning ahead of a joint military exercise between the US Navy and the Australian military.
In Queensland about 25,000 military personnel will train near Shoalwater Bay between July 11 and July 24.
Support program for Indigenous families
A south-east Queensland maternity support program for Indigenous families has almost halved the odds of pre-term births, a result hailed by researchers as "quite extraordinary."
The Birthing in Our Community program aims to close the gap in maternal and infant health outcomes, and Brisbane mother of three Rebekah Hauiti says using the program ensured the health of her children.
Brain tumor treatment
Adelaide doctors have received access to a non-invasive and cutting-edge form of radiation therapy which treats brain tumours.
Cancer treatment specialist Andrew Potter, says the new system uses an imaging system which destroys cancer cells with minimal damage to healthy cells.
Dr Potter said the type of brain tumour treated by the new system is estimated to occur in up to 40 per cent of cancer patients.
Australia's national park underfunded
Former rangers, traditional owners and conservationists warn Australia's national parks are reaching an environmental tipping point, with funding cuts at both a state and federal level leaving them in poor condition.
$121 million was cut from NSW national parks in the 2016-17 budget, slashing about 100 ranger jobs and in the latest NSW budget, $80 million has been cut from the department overseeing parks.