UnAustralian folk singer to perform at Green Left dinner

By James Vassilopoulos

David Beniuk will perform songs from his latest CD, UnAustralian Folk Songs, at the Canberra Green Left Weekly May Day dinner on May 1 at the Pensioners Club in Acton.

Beniuk describes his music as "dysfunctional/ flannelette/ virtual reality/ shopping mall/ Generation X/ folk" music. He says: "UnAustralian is a strange term which is increasingly being used to put down anyone who questions the status quo. It is very reminiscent of McCarthy's use of UnAmerican to purge so-called communists in the US in the 1950s."

Beniuk's songs do question the status quo. "26th January" asks why a day which is about genocide should be celebrated. In "The lesser of two evils" he puts the spotlight on the ALP's commitment to economic rationalism and a social system based on inequality.

With more than 800 gigs under his belt since the release of his first CD, Port, Beniuk is a seasoned performer. He has played at the National and Woodford folk festivals and headlined at the Three Weeds Hotel with his band the UnAustralians. His music has also been broadcast on ABC TV and Radio National.

From GLW issue 358