Harmony: A Nighttime series of Music & Art with Mess Esque (Mick Turner & Helen Franzmann)

Yours & Owls in partnership with Wollongong Art Gallery and Feel Presents are proud to announce a series of exclusive, intimate performances from some of Australia’s most distinguished musical talent, all to take place in the cultural cradle of the Illawarra’s artistic landscape.

Harmony: A Nighttime series of Music & Art will invite patrons to partake in a dynamic fusion of live performances and feature exhibitions. At two launch events in the coming months, the Gallery will transform into a prestige live music venue to host performances from Mick Turner with Mess Esque (May 14) and Jim White with Xylouris White (June 21).

Cultural icons in their own right, Turner and White (original members of The Dirty Three) are making their debut Coal Coast appearances for these very special events. We are incredibly humbled to bring these exceptional artists to Wollongong, and to platform their performance projects in such a unique venue as the Wollongong Art Gallery is a high honour.

A small audience can enjoy an up-close experience with Australian music royalty, then peruse curated collections from a diverse range of artistic disciplines. May will see new installations from Xanthe Barker, with Reassess Progress: Here + Now III, and Friederike Krishnabhakdi-Vasilakis and Leon Vasilakis, with Deep Sounding (both showing May 7 – August 14). June will welcome a new collection selected by Carrie Lumby, There’s A Crack In Everything (showing June 4 – August 28).

This is a coveted opportunity to experience a synthesis of music and art. Bringing together premier performance talent and evocative artistic works is a cultural intersection we are excited to explore. Together with the Wollongong Art Gallery, we welcome you to Harmony.

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Mess Esque – May 14

Mess Esque is the musical vision of Dirty Three guitarist Mick Turner & McKisko composer Helen Franzmann. Since forming via a lockdown-confined correspondence in 2020, they have recorded & released two records: Dream #12 (Bedroom Suck) & Mess Esque (Drag City/ Milk!).

Together they create a curious synthesis of dream pop, psych soul & ethereal indie rock. Effortlessly balancing bold emotional immediacy with a quietly assured sense of composure, Mess Esque draw the listener into their compelling world of sideways shadows & nocturnal projections. Songs unfold in their own time, drifting outwards before circling back to find themselves where they left off, each time the same but somehow different.

Their self titled album ‘Mess Esque ‘ on Drag City/Milk Records has been described as ‘a dreamy, visceral masterpiece’.

Xylouris White – June 21

Xylouris White is the two-headed monster comprised of Dirty Three / Springtime drummer Jim White and Cretan folk / lute legend George Xylouris, returning to Australia this June

This will not only be their first Australian show in two years but the first time the pair have been in the same room in that time, their last confirmed sighting being Castlemaine, Victoria the day before the world turned upside down. In their time apart though, they have not been idle. Jim learned to record at home (in Australia) while George taught lute on zoom from Crete.
As well as a deep archive of finished and unfinished music, Jim would record at home and in New York City and send files to George who would add layers of lutes and lyra ideas for Jim to overdub. Silent third-member and producer Guy Picciotto would combine, excavate and create.

They have a new album ready; their fifth, but now it is time to perform live.