Wikipedia has taught us great things. Sometimes irrelevant, bias and in desperate need of citation – but always appropriately hyperlinked, it is possibly THE BEST information source of all internet-accessible time. But just when you thought those time-abundant folk at the Wiki headquarters couldn't do any better, they decide to expand their encyclopedic juggernaut a little further with a brand new innovative baby (well, I only just discovered it) – the online manual wikiHow. Currently boasting over 46 000 articles, it’s bound to be your first port of call for crucial questions like how to make the perfect mix tape, fix a running toilet or craft an Ancient Egyptian canopic jar (I really like history, ok).  How much more can you ask for? My top picks for this week are how to talk to your children about a financial crisis and the inevitably popular guide to looking like Sarah Palin. It's creepily accurate.

My first exposure to Melbourne-based sextet, Plastic Palace Alice, was as a support act for Stars. You'd think that would mean I would be spending most of their performance blocking my ears and salivating in anticipation for the golden Canadian sound to come. But with a semmingly infinate array of instruments to pick from and a buzzing stage presence, PPA were clearly something rather special, in fact I felt like their decadent, biting melodies were a little cramped within the confines of Spectrum's tiny stage. Drawing influence from David Bowie, Nick Cave and Brian Wilson (probably the three most different artists EVER), the only word to describe their highly versatile sound is 'lush' - they are bright and enourmous, squirmish and dark, they completely evade definition.

Check out the official vid for Empire Falls, a single from their debut album, The Great Depression, above. It's good, good stuff.

 

Dear Giuseppe Zanotti,

How does it feel knowing you're the most coveted shoe-crafter around? You probably get loads of drivelly fan mail from desperate, impetuous women who have nothing better to do than sit on eBay all day scrolling through your wares and drooling onto their sticky, crumb-filled keyboards. But seriously...I think we are kindred foot ware spirits. It's not like I've googled photos of you or anything (though I must say, you're looking pretty good for your age). I appreciate you for your sharp innovation and sleek, mod-inspired designs. Fancy that you were born in San Mauro Pascoli - ok so, I've never actually been there or heard of it but I'm totally going now. All I need is some great free shoes so I feel the part...  I'm usually a size 9 but if you've got any spare 7's hanging around, I'd happily cut off my toes.

Yours in obsessive admiration,

Laura
xx

P.S If only I had more than $27.40 in my savings account I would be sporting your delicious floral print cut-out wedges this very minute.

I'm probably the last person that anyone (minus pathological liars and Alzheimer sufferers) would call a 'movie buff'. Up until last week I thought The Castle was some sort of lame documentary about palace life up at Windsor, I was convinced The Breakfast Club was a Jenny-Craig-style guide to positive eating habits, and my only knowledge vaguely related to Hitchhock's ornithic cult classic, The Birds, was that it scared the hell out of my mum - which probably explains the reason I was forced to wear icecream buckets on my head as a kid ("safety first, they swoop without warning Laura!"). But if the latest in Hollywood goss is true (and seriously, what source sounds more trustworthy than The Hollywood Reporter?) then my shocking knowledge of pop-culture greats might be about to change - all I have to do is head to my local Greater Union. Yes, rumour has it that George Clooney and Naomi Watts will be gracing the big screen in 09 to star in a remake of that apocalyptic horror flick (according to mum), The Birds. The plot will be based on du Maurier's original short story with screenplay by Juliet Snowden and Stiles White.

Just putting it out there for anyone who's interested - I'll be at the movies with notebook in hand, jotting down quotes and film techniques to tell everyone I meet in the next six months - and my mum will be next to me wearing a helmet and bulletproof jacket. Anyone is welcome to join us.

Tame Impala, Modular’s wildest little vagrants, are set to run amock across Australia throughout Mo-vember to celebrate the release of their home-recorded EP.  As if their trippy acid rock wasn't enough to satisfy our eardrums, the generous lads have promised that every person who pre-orders a ticket to the shows will get a free EP at the concert door. How much convincing do you need? Head to their myspace for tour details.

Tell me you haven’t started to meticulously plan how you’ll spend every gloriously sun-drenched minute of summer? So it’s just me? Well, I’m assuming most YEN-ites days will ideally comprise of sun baking, lazy afternoons and occasional brain freezing sesh’s on Pina Coladas/related beverages.

Selling dime bags of dope from an Italian ice-cream cart in exchange for life lessons with a psychiatrist probably won’t make your list. But it does make for a pretty compelling film. Directed by Jonathan Levine and featuring a stellar cast (Olivia Thirlby, Ben Kingsley and Mary Kate Olsen), The Wackness is a biting cinematic offering that eschews the cliched coming-of-age structure of similar films. Set in the hazy Manhattan summer of 1994, it narrates the story of drug-dealing teen Luke Shapiro and his quest to find himself and lose his virginity. Quietly humourous and strangely moving, the dark indie-flick is interpolated with mix tape hits from the Notorious B.I.G, Nas and Raewkon. No wonder it snagged the Audience Award at this years Sundance Film Festival. Check the trailer above – it’s pretty dope. It also makes my clever little summer plans seem kinda lame.

The Wackness will be released in Australian cinemas on November 13.

Maybe it's just me (actually, I'm almost positive I'm alone on this one) but photographer David Bailey sure knew how to make a young Mick Jagger look like THE most alluring man alive. Truth.