Jane Gazzo in-conversation with James Valentine

The ‘80s.The era of Hawke, a booming economy, big hair, genderbenders and the new-wave synth-pop explosion. Every Sunday night, Australians would be glued to Countdown to watch the latest and local bands strut their stuff. Bands who became household names and soundtracked our lives in one of the most colourful and creative decades in Australian music.

I Hear Motion is a celebration of the Aussie bands we loved: Models, Machinations, Wa Wa Nee, Real Life, Kids in the Kitchen, Do-Re-Mi, Koo De Tah, Eurogliders, Boom Crash Opera and more – and what happened to them following the end of the decade. With interviews, never-before seen photos and archives of the time, plus never-before told stories about the songs, bands, excesses and break-ups, I Hear Motion is a must-have for every Australian music fan.

Our event space is wheelchair accessible via a stair lift. Please contact events@betterread.com.au with any additional access requirements and/or questions.

Jane Gazzo is a music journalist, broadcaster, author and self-confessed music hoarder. She began her radio career on 3RRR-FM in the early ‘90s. Since then, she has presented nationally on Triple J and MMM as well as XFM London, CapitalFM London and BBC Radio 6 in the UK and has hosted music television shows such as The Sound and Recovery on ABCTV. She once worked for Courtney Love as her PA, where she lasted two weeks, and has never worked as a PA since. Jane is co-founder of the Sound As Ever Facebook group—a place which celebrates and documents Australian music from the ‘90s. Her first book was John Farnham: The Untold Story, followed by Sound As Ever: A Celebration of the Greatest Decade in Australian Music (1990–1999) and this is her third.

James Valentine currently presents Breakfast on ABC Radio Sydney. Before that, he did Afternoons. He's been on live radio since the mid '90s. He's made lots of TV, for Good Morning Australia, Showtime, Midday, It Takes Two, Exhumed, ABC Children's and possibly the shortest stint ever on Playschool. He's written some books and published articles in all the the major newspapers and magazines. When he left school, he went to work as a saxophone player. He spent the '80s in bands such as Models and Absent Friends, and recorded, toured and performed with Jo Camilleri, Wendy Matthews, Kate Ceberano, Pseudo Echo, Steve Cummings and many others.