Naarm / Melbourne Australia Hey, I’m Tori Zietsch, aka Maple Glider! I’m about to release my second album “I Get Into Trouble”, which I recorded and wrote most of in Naarm / Melbourne. I moved here in 2015, and have never felt more at home. Here are some parts of it I love.
COMMUNITY RADIO
Naarm is home to a lot of incredible community-run radio stations that have such a huge cultural impact, like PBS FM and 3RRR FM. Both strive to represent diverse and under-represented music. I laughed recently listening to a show on PBS where one of the presenters basically said “We want to play all kinds of music, and sometimes that might mean you don’t like it.” I’m very grateful for the contribution they bring to our community.
LOCAL FARMERS
Farmraiser are a bunch of cool cats running a not-for-profit regenerative urban farm in Bellfield. They grow delicious produce and collaborate with other local farmers to create an awesome weekly pay-as-you-feel veg box. You can also volunteer with them, which I highly recommend doing. It’s a beautiful way to spend a day.
PLACES TO EAT
Little Tienda Thornbury is a little cafe with a Mexican/Southern Californian-inspired menu. The food is absolutely delicious — I know it very well because I used to work there! Chilli oil on everything, margaritas forever. The cafe attracts a lot of great artistic people; I felt like I was always serving friends, local creatives and sweethearts that had come to Maple Glider shows. Wild Yak Tibetan Restaurant in Northcote is another of my favourite dinner spots. The food is delicious, the staff are lovely, and it’s cosy as hell. On my second date with my partner, he spilled red wine all over my pants trying to adjust a wobbly table. Can confirm the sink is a good place to wash and the hand-dryer air flow is strong.
GREEN SPACES
I am definitely someone who needs to take time out in green spaces regularly. One of my favourite places is by the Yarra River. It’s the place I listened to the mixes of my new album for the first time and is where I’ve had many nice moments alone and with friends, playing cards, reading and napping.
MUSIC VENUES
The Gasometer is the first place the Maple Glider band played. It’s also where I met Jules, the person who does live sound for most of our shows. The roof is retractable, so in summer they leave it open and you can look up at the night sky from inside. The Curtin is one of the first places I saw live music in Naarm. I think the first gig was Marlon Williams, and maybe the most recent was RVG. It’s the first venue I played wearing my favourite sparkly purple boots. Last but not least, Northside Records is a really great record store with awesome in-store gigs. Bumpy’s ‘Return Home’ single launch here was epic.
Maple Glider’s album “I Get Intro Trouble” is out now.
