FROM THE HEART OF THE FOREST TO THE EDGE OF THE ROADIt's the end and beginning of an exciting era for the cultural curiosity journal, Ampersand Magazine, - their fourth edition is out now, bringing them round about to officially become a quarterly mag. Now I hope that we may look forward to their colourful pages arriving with each new season...This journal, a handy pocket-sized package bursting at its colourful seams with glossy photos, poetry, critiques, cartoons, fiction and more, sidesteps the mainstream in favour of the uncut, unfashionable and unpredictable. Here's a sneaky preview...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-A5muYIFu5E&feature=player_detailpageThis edition delves into remoteness; exploring the desolation and emptiness, but also the opportunities and escapism that lie beyond the suburbs.A huge huge success for the brainchild of editor, Alice Gage, this issue brings together a massive creative line up of contributors including (to name drop a few) Tracy Moffatt, Bob Brown, Stella Mozgawa (Warpaint's drummer), playwright Tommy Murphy, Fabian Muir, poet John Forbes, Craig Reynolds and My Darling Patricia. Within the pages are a whole bunch of pieces old and new, a mesh of words and images, hilarious, disturbing and hiding a great big melting pot of things that you'd never even thought about.Launched in the ballroom of the National Library of NSW on Tuesday night, the room was brimming with many an individual of Sydney's creative underworld and bursting with good food, wine, images and stories.An impressive culmination of the first full quarterly and an exciting taste of, hopefully, more to come... when's that summer edition due folks?Ampersand Magazine (Spring 2011), $10 from these stockists.http://www.ampersandmagazine.com.au/Liz de Fegely: liz_defegely@hotmail.com

Ride bikes! Watch films! But not at the same time, that would be difficult and dangerous. Get amongst the hipster faction of Sydney for the Bicycle Film Festival. This year it runs alongside 'Sydney Rides Festival' and has some grouse events for all you two-wheelers, as well as some for those who would rather walk 500 miles than risk getting helmet hair. Beware the subliminal messages though, they may have you at the nearest 2nd hand bike store before you can say “on yer bike!” Some cool events are: WHAT: Street Fair kicking off ‘Sydney Rides’ week WHEN: 8th Oct WHERE: Taylor Square WHAT: Creatures of the Night rideWHEN: 8pm 12th Oct WHERE: Flinders Hotel, Surry Hills WHAT: Film screenings WHEN: 14th and 15th Oct WHERE: Opera House, After party on the 14th at The Standard, Darlinghurst For more information check out: facebook.com/sydneybff or bicyclefilmfestival.com Bicycle Film Festival October 8 - 16 Locations are variedGeorgia Boothgeorgia_booth@gmail.com

Picnic's famous warehouse parties take to the long weekend with a dress-up bash featuring Modular's Canyons.They'll be digging deep into the record bags for an extended set that will finish sometime between doors at 10:00pm and infinity.Dress like a freak - leaves it pretty open to interpretation! And as always, the night will be BYO. Rekorderlig ahoy!Stream some brand new Canyons right here.Picnic One Night Stand feat CanyonsSaturday 1st OctoberInner city warehouse (location secret!)$20 Presale via Resident Advisor 

If you weren't sure about heading to Sound Summit over the October long weekend, here's another good reason. Regular Sydney, DIY visual & music event WORMWOOD is holding a showcase at Sound Summit this year.Wormwood is in it's second year and has hosted over 50 DIY musicians & artists from around Australia at Warehouses across SydneyYou can catch the Wormwood showcase at Sound Summit on Saturday October 1st from 8pmSOUNDMondo Phase Band (SA)Domeyko/Gonzalez Scattered OrderNarrow Lands Gentle Hurst VISUALSProjector Obscura (VIC) + Optic SoupAs an added bonus, the boys from Yes Please Records will be showcasing sets from Guerre, Albatross and Tank in the room next door.$10 for both showsWormwood ShowcaseSaturday October 1st from 8pmThe Cambridge Hotel789 Hunter St, Newcastle West

Written by super star Sydney playwright Julian Larnach, 'All But Won' follows the original story of a soldier returning home for the funeral of 'the girl he left behind.' Featuring a beautiful cast of exceptional actors, including Andy Fraser and Jane Watt. Directed by Jenna Martin in collaboration with the writer.ALL BUT WONWhere: The Greek Theater, MarrickvilleWhen: 20th- 25th September

Stereosonic has rapidly grown from a little day of doof into a full-scale dance juggernaut, consuming (almost) as much space at Olympic Park as the grand-pappy of Australian festivals, The Big Day Out.We've got a double pass to giveaway to one adventurous DS reader. Could that be you?To go in the running, just drop in the comment section of this post a YouTube video of the best dancing eva! The most inspired, hilarious and LOL-rousing link shall be attending Stereosonic 2011 on Saturday Nov 26th to catch Armin Van Buuren, LMFAO, Carl Cox, Afrojack, Avicii, Kaskade and many many more!Get enthused with Kaskade's recent outing on the BBC's Essential Mix show: Kaskade - BBC Radio 1 Essential MixGo on get shufflin' in the comments.xDS

PICNIC PRESENTS MIKE SIMONETTI @ GOOD GODItalians Do It Better Maestro takes to the decks for two hours of glorious New York flavoured house and disco. Tonight at GoodGod Small ClubWHERE: GoodGod, Liverpool St, Sydney CBDWHEN: Tonight 16th SeptHOW MUCH: $20 from Resident AdvisorCHANGING LANES FESTIVALAnnual music event takes over lower Devonshire St. Every band from Sydney worth their salt shaker will be there plus DJs and local arts. All for less than a pineappleWHERE: Devonshire St, Surry HillsWHEN: Sat 17th Sept from middayHOW MUCH: $33 from Moshtix ROSHAMBO RETIREMENT PARTYLevins, Moriarty, Jimmy Sing and Spruce Lee call it quits after five years of rap-rocking, baile-funkin and beverage-spilling parties across Sydney and Australia. Come along to GoodGod for one more sweaty night pon di floor with these masta selektas.WHERE: GoodGodSmall Club, Liverpool St Sydney CBDWHEN: Sat 17th Sept from 7:00pmHOW MUCH: FREERESIDENT ADVISOR X Ten years of Sydney-born dance portal Resident Advisor touches down at the Civic Hotel tomorrow night. Having hosted tenth B'day parties around the globe, now it's Sydney's shot. Catch is, the headliner is totally secret and you won't know til they hit the decks. Could be fkkn anyone! Previous X's have been Marcel Dettmann, Michael Mayer and DJ Harvey... who will Sydney be treated to?WHERE: Resident Advisor X w/ 'X', Joakim, Rob Wuhrbagh, Simon CaldwellWHEN: Sat 17th Sept from 7:00pmHOW MUCH: $30 presale from Resident Advisor 

Bronek Kozka’s photographs (try and say his name out loud in a Russian accent) capture moments in time in which nothing particularly significant is happening but have a particularly poignant ambience. They are like memories that are not perfectly etched into one’s mind, but come to represent a relationship, a particular aspect of one’s past, or an attitude towards a place like home. In the series ‘Kew House,’ a couple lives in a home in which sadness clearly pervades. They sit at a dinner table, her hand over his, she looks at him as he looks down at his plate. In the next photo their two kids sit at the table, completely disengaged. Clearly this won’t be a moment that they’ll remember (they jump up to play Nintendo in another photo) but for their parents, it’s monumental. These photos are simultaneously a glimpse of a narrative, and memories that could belong to any Australian; there are photos of couples making out in dingy parking lots, a girl running away from home, a family dinner at a local Chinese restaurant. None of these subjects are anonymous however, looking at one of Kozka’s photos feels like you’re looking through a window or reading a book; you’re immediately immersed in a world both similar and different to your own. The photos are highly stylised and make an exaggerated use of light and shade which gives the photos a timeless, painterly quality and adds to the narrative feel. There are a few photos from a number of different series so it is a fantastic (free) way to see a whole range of Kozka’s work.Memory, Myth and the 1/4 Acre Block - an exhibition by Bronek Kozka2 September - 8 OctoberACP257 Oxford Street , Paddingtonhttp://www.acp.org.au/Georgia Boothgeorgiajbooth@gmail.com

(click to enlarge)Hoooooly Moses you cannot miss this one. Benah is famous for its boxy leather bags, feather-light silk scarves, cashmere's and sandals. They are having a studio sale this weekend of past seasons AND CURRENT STOCK (!!) This is very good news, very good news indeed. Since they don't have a store, this will be your one chance to see everything in the one place at the one time. DON'T MISS THIS.Benah Studio SaleLevel 5, 822 George St (entry off Little Regent Street)Chippendale (near Railway Square)Friday September 16 12-8pmSaturday September 17 10am-5pmSunday September 18 10am-2pmSophie McComaswww.twitter.com/sophmccomas

ARTCORE Art Fair teams up with the Sydney Fringe, Marrickville Council and Dendy Cinema for a one off night market of local artists showing and selling their work. Scratch up your silvers, cause everything is for sale - you can pick up a bunch of Sydney art for a veritable steal, with original works starting at just $1. Artcore is both aesthetic and affordable!Inner West Artists like Vectorpunk, Glenn Smith, Flutter Lyon, Birdhat and 35 others will be selling their works, while DJs and performers will lend some community market vibes.The Dendy Cinema in Newtown have kindly donated their carpark on Lennox Street for the evening.Check out more Sydney Fringe events right here - http://thesydneyfringe.com.auArtcore Guerilla Art FairThursday Sept 15th 5pm - 11pm.Dendy Carpark, Lennox St, Newtown

A unique celebration of all things synthesized, Sound Summit returns to Newcastle over the October long weekend.International acts Mono (Japan), Moon Duo (US) and Wet Hair (US) join a diverse local line-up of showcase artists including Guerre, Collarbones, Bare Grillz, Fabulous Diamonds, No Art, Kirin J Callinan and many more.Forums, discussions, debates and general geekiness are the order of business. Alongside DIY music exploration, Sound Summit is hosting a mini forum on Australia's creative spaces and the effects they have on independent arts. Sydney's Red Rattler, the 107 Collective and Space Collective head up the Space Summit forum.Sound Summit 2011September 29th - October 3rd www.soundsummit.com.au

There are only a few tickets left to this sure-to-be-incredible eight-course dinner on Tuesday September 20th and Wednesday September 21st at A Tavola in Darlinghurst which has recently been awarded a chef's hat in the 2011 Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide. With a menu that has been designed as a tribute to spring ingredients, each course matched with organic wines from Mudgee's Thistle Hill is a testament to the Slow Food movement which embraces "paddock to plate" cooking. Being sustainable, respectful and locally-minded about the produce used. We've had a sneak-peak at the menu, and with dishes like new-season green garlic buttered Yamba prawns with native lemon myrtle dukka, finger lime and shaved fennel or duck, mandarin and aniseed myrtle tortellini ‘in brodo’ and chocolate fondente with salty macadamia and caramel ice cream and Italian meringue, it's sure to be a showcase of chef Eugenio Maiale's beautiful food. Tickets are $150 per person, inclusive of eight courses with matching wines. To book contact A Tavola restaurant on reservations@atavola.com.au or phone (02) 9331 7871. A Tavola Slow Food Dinner348 Victoria St, Darlinghurst New South Wales 2010.www.atavola.com.auwww.slowfoodsydney.com.au