Tag: nsw

Feature Car: Nick Blunck's 1961 Volkswagen Beetle

Nick Blunck is a dedicated VW fan. He owns at least two Beetles and can be regularly seen posting images of sexy Euro sports cars via his social media channels.
He lusted after a period-specific rally-style Beetle using parts and mods you might have seen in the 1950s, using parts from companies around at the time like Oettinger. This tasty example is the result of his toil and it is featured in issue 60 of VW Magazine Australia.

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Feature Car: Peta Psaras' Holden VE SS-V Wagon

Not so long ago, cars loaded with fancy interior trim and in-car entertainment hardware like this were almost always under-powered and slow. Peta Psaras wasn’t having any of that with her Holden VE SS-V wagon. Nope, hers makes 617hp at the wheels thanks to a stout combo from Sam’s Performance and that last piece of the puzzle is part of the reason why the car made it into the return issue of Street Machine Commodores!

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Feature Car: Luke Bailey's Wide Body Holden VE Commodore Ute

Now for something a little different! So good to see the late model stuff getting the full kustom treatment. In this case Luke Bailey’s Holden VE Commodore ute doesn’t just come with fancy interior trim and car audio gear, but it’s also slammed into the ground on airbags. On top of that, the guards and bodykit has been pumped to accommodate those massive 22×9.5in Simmons rims! Oh, yeah, then there’s the Vortech-blown Alloytec V6 up front. Sweet! The shoot was featured in the return issue of Street Machine Commodores, which is still on sale now.

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Feature Car: Ben Hiles' 622rwhp Holden VE Calais V

Most of my photo shoots take place away from home. Typically in areas like Sydney or further afield. So it was nice, not only to shoot a vehicle within an hour from my house, but also to get a close look at Ben Hiles’ sleeper VE Calais V. I shot it for the latest issue of Street Machine’s LSX Tuner magazine. With a rebuilt, forged 6L LS under the bonnet, fettled further thanks to a Magnusson MP2300 blower, this grandpa-coloured VE makes 622rwhp! I bet this thing surprises some folks at the traffic lights.

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Feature Car: Jason Sandner's Holden LX Torana

Jason Sandner’s incredibly-detailed Holden LX Torana appeared in the November 2018 issue of Street Machine. It is the second time I’ve been able to get up close and personal with the car and it never fails to blow my tiny mind. Jason has done an incredible job of building the car, which is highly detailed, both on top and bottom. powered by a 378ci alloy Donovan SBC, it’s also potent!

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Feature Cars: Ray and Tony Elia's Holden VK Commodores

About the only thing better than one tough, tubbed HDT-style VK Commodore is two and between brothers Ray and Tony Elia, that’s exactly what I got to photograph a few months ago for the return issue of Street Machine Commodores! Ray’s white machine is blown, while Tony’s Blue Meanie replica BT1 boasts a wicked Injection Perfection trumpet setup.

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Feature Car: United Speed Shop Chevrolet C10 Truck

United Speed Shop‘s latest creation is this very cool, airbagged and LS3-powered Chevy C10 truck. Boasting just the right amount of original patina and a stout 540hp, this is one sweet hauler. It is featured in issue 8 of Street Machine‘s LSX Tuner magazine.

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Live Review: Parkway Drive + Killswitch Engage @ NEX Newcastle - October 27, 2018

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First a word of advice: It can really pay to check the opening times for a gig on more than one website! Thanks to an erroneous door time listing on one ticket website, this humbled reviewer ended up missing the brutal Thy Art is Murder.

Thankfully I didn’t miss the mighty Killswitch Engage, who tonight were playing the role of main support. For some, that might seem like an odd place for a renowned international act. However, when you look out across the sold out room at NEX in Newcastle (the old Worker’s Club), it seems like a pretty shrewd move and one that will no doubt win the Massachusetts band plenty of new fans off the back of a typically super strong performance.

Formed in 1999, the band are veterans of the metalcore scene they helped create and it isn’t until you watch their full set that you remember just how many big songs they’ve had. Singer Jesse Leach is a better live singer today than he was in the band’s early days and handles the material of former singer Howard Jones with ease – which is no mean feat.

The entire group bounce around the large NEX stage with the hunger of a band still in their twenties and their tight set and road-worn professionalism will see them return Stateside with some extra record sales and downloads, for sure.

After a short break, Parkway Drive makes one hell of an entrance thanks to six concussion bombs and all the smoke machine action you would ask for. It’s just a taste of what’s to come for the capacity crowd here tonight, with the band bringing over $5000 worth of pyro, according to the pyrotechnician that ushered us off to stage left before those aforementioned explosions took place.

Indeed, Parkway could never be accused of not putting on one hell of a show. I’m pretty sure all the stage hire places in town would have been drained of their lighting rigs by looking at the stage setup here tonight. Thankfully, the musicianship lived up to the theatrics.

While I admit that I’m not the biggest fan of the band, I still found the whole experience too far removed from how I remember them when I last reviewed a Parkway gig in 2010. It felt like a different band to me. Despite Winston’s filthy screaming, newer material is more accessible (not a bad thing on its own), the band were all clad politely in matching black and it all seemed a little staid.

Now, I understand that a band needs to grow and evolve. These dudes aren’t the kids that took Australian (and indeed international) stages by storm over a decade ago. But that sense of danger and aggression wasn’t there. It sure as hell was in the crowd. In fact, the performance came to an abrupt halt after the fourth song in their set (‘Vice’) when an audience member was injured to the point of being stretchered out of the venue by paramedics.

After a 20 minute breather, the band launched into ‘Dedicated’ and the crowd went suitably apeshit. Realistically, if there are any grumblings in the Parkway fanbase over the group becoming the Aussie equivalent of Bring Me the Horizon or the ‘Nickelback of Deathcore’, you wouldn’t know it here tonight. It’s admittedly a tight performance, but one that felt a lot more one dimensional, with the exception of Winston himself, who clearly gave the show every ounce of strength he had.

Accuse me of resisting progress, call me stuck in the mud. I don’t mind. I just like my metal a little more dangerous. 10 points for being, by far, the biggest metal act in Australia right now, though. There isn’t another band on this continent hauling such a large production around – and you have to respect that!

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Cover Cars: Andy Roberts' Trio of Volkswagen Samba Buses

Andy Roberts’ Trio of Volkswagen Samba buses were featured on the front cover of issue 59 of VW Magazine Australia (VWMA). The trio consists a 1957 23-window, 1960 23-window and 1963 21-window model and surely makes it one of the more impressive private collections in the country. The fact that they’ve been immaculately restored and catalogued just adds to the appeal. The feature also marks my fifth front cover of VWMA 🙂

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