BennyMagazine_Issue11_195x265_ISSUU

Benny
FREE
ISSUE 11 / AUTUMN 2023
FOR LOCALS & VISITORS ALIKE
K'gari Island
Exploring the largest sand
island in the world.
Flour & Co.
Good coffee and good food that
we all need in our day.
Subculture Agency
Making changes to the music
scene on the Central Coast.
BENNYSUPPLYCO.COM.AU

Artist of Creativity
vuitton.com.au
@vuitton_creativity
3 Ocean Street, Budgewoi NSW
#LOVETERRIGAL
SCAN HERE
FOR EVENT
INFORMATION
TERRIGAL
ESPLANADE
25 MARCH 2023
11AM – 3PM
© 2023 Studio Benny
CONTRIBUTORS
The information contained in Benny Magazine is
given in good faith and believed to be accurate
at time of printing.
The contents of this publication are subject
to copyright and cannot be reproduced in any
shape or form without written consent from
Studio Benny or Benny Supply & Co.
Natalie Wabbis
Editor in Chief, Creative Director & Founder
Jess Moroney
Benny Eats Out
Claire van Poppel
Weekend Warrior
hello@studiobenny.com.au
www.bennysupplyco.com.au
Cape Byron Distillery
Sustainable Future Series
Benny Supply & Co
Central Coast, NSW
Australia
Music News
Jonny Blackwell (Subculture Agency)
S&P Wabbis
Proofreaders
Publication designed by Natalie Wabbis.
Cover image by @eldingo.co (IG)

EDITORIAL
IN THIS ISSUE
Welcome Back Baby.
Biffybrentano
Another issue of Benny has landed in your hot little hands
- lucky you! As most of us, being ocean lovers, are shedding
the last of the salt from our summer skin, we're back for our
eleventh issue and are here to help you transition into the
greatly adored spring. Often donned the second best season
of the year, spring on the coast is a bustling time - events, live
music, food and some of the years best weather.
This issue is still, as always, offering up local music, events,
food, coffee, adventure and creatives making a vibrant splash
in your favourite local areas.
We have a few new advertisers on board with us this issue
that we would like to say thank you to, we appreciate the
support. To you, and our ongoing supporters, we hope you
know that without you, we wouldn't be. So, get amongst our
spring issue (and its supporters), and if you'd like - we'd love
for you to tag us on socials, it's how we grow.
benny
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06
10
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You would have seen Brents work
around the coast... get acquainted.
Sand Island
Travellers take us with them on K'gari
Island, the world's largest sand island.
Sustainable Distillery
Cape Byron Distillery taking the lead
in sustainable practices.
Local Music Events
Incredible events held on the coast,
with so, so much more to come.
CONTACT US
hello@studiobenny.com.au
ADVERTISE WITH US
hello@studiobenny.com.au
Cover image by @eldingo.co + @lombok.logs (IG)
www.bennysupplyco.com.au
Please recycle.
FOLLOW US
@bennysupplyco + @bennymagazine_
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LO CAL TO THE COAST •
Flour & Co.
•
LOCAL TO THE COAST
TOOWOON BAY, NSW
IMAGES SUPPLIED BY @GRACEPICOT
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BENNY EATS OUT
PICTURE THIS… A SLOW SUNDAY MORNING, THE
SUN IS SHINING, THE WARM COASTAL BREEZE
BRUSHES AGAINST YOUR FACE AND THE DELICIOUS
SMELL OF COFFEE AND BAKED GOODS DANCES
THROUGH THE AIR....
Sounds like heaven right? Well, it’s close.
Flour & Co. is Toowoon Bay’s little slice of heaven. This
bustling family run café is a fan favourite of locals and beyond
(as one of the “beyond”, take my word for it). The vibe is
super friendly and the staff are so happy and welcoming
which sets a great scene for the whole experience.
The coffee is delicious - smooth and creamy always - and
worth the trip. Take it down to the beach to keep that happy,
stress-free morning rolling or (better yet) grab it on the way
to work to make your day better.
You’re also spoiled for choice with the food. They’ve
got house baked pies and sausage rolls that are flaky and
flavourful. The spinach roll is divine, and they have some of
the coast's best burrito options handy to be devoured as
well. There are toasties and pastries and sweets and bread -
you really can have whatever you’re in the mood for.
Take yourself to Flour & Co. soon. It’s a wonderful place and
you won’t be disappointed. You can treat yourself Mon-Sat
6am to 3pm ish, and Sundays and public holidays 7am to
3pm ish. Plenty of time for a visit.
Flour & Co. $
88 Toowoon Bay Rd, Toowoon Bay NSW 2261
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Biffybrentano
CENTRAL COAST, NSW
Who are you and what do you do? My name is Brent and I'm an
illustrator, muralist and designer.
How long have you been a creative for? Roughly 15 years I think.
Did you study to become a creative? I went to Tafe for a year,
but I’m mainly self taught with help from my peers.
What is your favourite thing about what you do? There can be
a lot freedom with your time, and seeing your own work out in
public.
How has your work changed over time? I’d like to think it has
become better, ha.
How did you get started on this journey? I was living in London
and one of my roommates was a designer for a music label. It
seemed a lot more fun than what I was doing, so when I returned
to Australia I gave it a shot.
When did it dawn on you that “wow, this is my job now”? When
I got my first job in a studio and I wasn’t being a bartender on the
weekends. That felt pretty great.
Do you do custom pieces? Yeah, of course!
What would be inside your dream studio? A lot of natural light and
a comfy couch to snooze on.
How long did it take you to turn your art into a business? For
a long time it was a side gig, but once I decided to make it the
majority of my work it happened pretty quickly.
Do you have any wild stories from your creative past? I worked
for many years for Mambo, it was such a wild workplace and I
got to travel a lot. One of the perks was getting to go to Reg
Mombassa’s house in Glebe and sniff through his sketchbooks for
new designs.
Have you thought about teaching your craft? Not really, but I’m
due to run some workshops at St. Peters High School in Feb. So
perhaps, depending on how they go.
What’s on the horizon for you? Plenty on at the moment with
a couple of murals, branding for businesses, apparel designs,
illustrations, skateboards and some top secret jobs. Busy... but
the books are always open.
Where do you hope your creative future takes you? Bigger
artworks, bigger brands, more surfing!
Can you share any advice for aspiring creatives? Show your
work, even if you don’t think it’s great. You need to show people
and keep creating even if you don’t love what you’ve done. Keep
going, keep showing.
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CREATIVE SPOTLIGHT
You can support Brent and his work here: www.biffybrentano.com IG // @biffybrentano
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WEEKEND WARRIOR
The Largest Sand Island In The World
AKA K'GARI ISLAND (FRASER ISLAND)
WEEKEND WARRIOR
K'gari Island is located on the East Coast, approximately five hours north of the Sunshine
Coast, and is in our opinion, one of the best islands for a 4WD camp trip. Hoooooly moly, this
place was absolute heaven.
When thinking about K'gari Island, the first thing that comes to mind are the epic beach drives.
You can basically drive the whole length of the island on the beach, and I don’t know about
you, but this gives you a special sort of feeling… especially when it’s at sunset.
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However, K'gari has so much more to offer than just long
beach drives. The inland routes of this place are epic. There’s
a section of the inland scenic track called Pile Valley, a lush,
majestic rainforest that grows 80m tall trees out of the
sand. This was mind bending. Such a magical place to spend
a day wandering, it actually reminded us of the redwoods
in Cape Otway.
Now the lakes. We visited Lake Mackenzie and Lake Wabby.
Lake Mackenzie is by far the most beautiful, bluest, fresh
water lake we’ve ever swum in. It has crystal white sand
which fools you into thinking you’re just spending the day at
the beach. There are a few metres of shallow water at the
shore, until it drops about 7-8 metres causing the drastic
change in colour. Lake Wabby not far from Mackenzie, is a
very green lake, the deepest on K'gari, hidden deep within the
sand blows which advance about 1m per year, and in time will
eventually mean Wabby will disappear.
Now the creeks. The most popular of the bunch Eli Creek
- now we did enjoy Eli, however it’s super accessible and
a family favourite. So it gets packed out really quickly. >>
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North of Ngkala Rocks. Maybe the last 20% of the north
west side of the island is inaccessible to tour groups
due to the 4WD track of large coffee rocks. Crossing
this is very tide dependent and shouldn’t be attempted
at a rising tide (unless you want the ocean to swallow
your car). But by far this was the most fun to do in the
cars. There were some challenging sections, some big
drops, boosters and boggy sand. I hate to admit we
did get briefly bogged, but self-rescued, so it doesn’t
count.
Zone 9 - Sandy Cape. The tippy tip top of K'gari Island,
this camp zone only allows 30 people each night, and
is extremely hard to get in to. We booked last minute
on a cancellation, and were so lucky we got this spot.
We watched the sun set over the forests from the top
of the dunes, whilst a full moon rose over the ocean. It
was pure bliss.
East side is the popular tourist side, there’s a raw
ocean, tour buses, no swimming, sharky waters, and
loads of people. The true beauty lies on the west
side. Tour buses can’t get over there, so there are
significantly less people. The coast is mostly protected,
and the whole time we were there the ocean was
clean and beautifully blue. Swimming is completely
safe, and marine life is incredible. Spear-fishing is also
allowed and there are fresh water creeks to wash off
in. There are big rainbow cliffs, palm trees and the
beach drives are more picturesque than ever. You will
also find Wathumba Creek aka K'gari’s version of the
Whitsundays, and we can confirm it’s pretty epic.
Here we discovered one of our favourite campgrounds
in all of Australia. We spent the nights playing Monopoly
Deal with our mates, cooking up fresh fish for tacos,
beach driving, and dancing and singing on the beach.
A seriously underestimated place in our opinion. The
variety and scenery of K'gari Island is second to none.
We will be returning.
IG // @saltylap
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IMAGES SUPPLIED BY @SALTYLAP
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SUSTAINABLE FUTURE SERIES
Cape Byron Distillery
BYRON BAY, NSW
CAPE BYRON DISTILLERY, HOME OF BROOKIE’S BYRON GIN, WAS FOUNDED IN 2016 ON
THE NOW REGENERATED 95 ACRE FAMILY PROPERTY.
In 1988 Pam and Martin Brook purchased the
property, which at the time was a desolate and weed
infested run-down dairy farm. The Brook family
set about planting 4,500 macadamia trees and
40,000 native rainforest plants on the property.
Today the land is a thriving regenerated ecosystem
with countless self-seeded rainforest trees that
serve as essential habitat for the vulnerable native
wildlife such as the Koala.
It is this unique rainforest that the distillery sources
the ingredients and inspiration to craft Brookie’s
Byron Gin. This rainforest is also the environment in
which Cape Byron Single Malt Whisky rests in oak
casks to slowly mature and breathes in the air to
age their single malt Australian whisky.
Cape Byron Distillery views its business as a force
for good, going beyond industry norms, creating
and implementing better solutions and hopefully
working to teach and inspire others to do so to
make the distilling industry a leader in sustainable
practice.
The team has implemented several goals to
ensure they continue to improve procedures
upholding the highest sustainability standards.
These goals include improving the rainforest
regeneration on site and protecting the biodiversity,
as well as eliminating negative impacts from
production. Cape Byron Distillery is choosing longterm
investments over quick wins, and measures
their success based on the positive impact they
create and hopes to lead the way in the industries
effort in sustainable practices.
Visit Cape Byron Distillery to learn more.
www.capebyrondistillery.com
IG // @capebyrondistillery
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Jaxon Cowan
NORAH HEAD, NSW
What’s your home break? I would call Soldiers Beach
my local break, but we also have a lot of reef breaks
I could also class as local breaks. We are really lucky on
the Central Coast to have a large variety of waves to surf
in all types of different conditions.
Do you remember your first wave? I sure do, because it
turned me off the ocean for a few years before I actually
started surfing. I was about four or so and we were living
on the Gold Coast at the time and Dad pushed me into
one on his board at Snapper Rocks. I was just laying
down on the whitewash but I couldn't steer it and went
straight into and washed over the rocks at Little Marli on
the inside of Snapper. After that I wanted nothing to do
with the ocean until I started surfing properly at about
the age of nine.
What's your go-to wax? Sex Wax is usually my go to wax,
but I do run Foo whenever I can get my hands on it. That stuff
sells like hotcakes .
Can you tell us about your greatest surfing-related
memory? It would have to be winning the under 12s regional
titles at my home beach. It was one of the first big contests
I'd done outside of our local boardriders club, and I won all
my heats that day. When the final came I was super nervous
and actually didn't get a wave at all until about 4 minutes to
go. I got my first wave then and that score still had me in 4th
position. Somehow I managed to get myself back out the
back quick enough and got another wave with literally 30
seconds left, and got the score I needed and went from 4th
to 1st. Crazy heat, not sure how I kept my nerves on that last
wave but it all worked out.
What board are you currently riding? I'm really lucky
to be working with James Cheal and Mike Spencer from
Chilli Surfboards. The guys at Chilli have made me some
incredible boards since I jumped on with them, but the
three I'm going between right now are the best I've ever
had. I'm riding the Chilli shortie model designed by James
but scaled down to my size. Cheers Chilli and Spenny!
If you could surf with anyone in the world, who would it
be? Ethan Ewing for sure. Just so I could say I surfed with
him haha. Also just to watch him surf in person and see how
much he destroys waves would be amazing. Hopefully he'd
give me some good pointers on how to surf like that too.
Where is your favourite place to surf in Australia?
There's so many to choose from but I'd have to say just a
little reef break/slab we have here at home in Norah Head.
I won't mention the name even though everyone already
knows about it, but my Dad and I surf it every time the
swell is good for it and it has everything from dredging
ledges to barrels and really fun big carve sections. Dad
has helped me work my way up the pecking order there,
so now I'm starting to get the good ones. That's probably
my favourite because I surf it with Dad.
Tell us about the wave of your life? We were surfing
Budge one arvo with Dad and some friends, and their
Dad and I were down the beach a little and this perfect
right came straight to me. I kind of had to paddle out to it
and swung on it a bit late, but I got to my feet, airdropped
straight into the barrel, got one big pump up into it, then
just held on. I rode the foam ball for a bit and then got
spat out of it and did a big swan dive off the back and
looked at Dad with his arms up claiming it for me. He was
looking straight into it, so I'm stoked he saw it too. Still
the best barrel I've ever had.
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RAPID FIRE - THIS OR THAT?
Who is your greatest inspiration? My Dad for
sure. He's done everything for me; driving me
up and down the coast for comps, up early with
me every day to either surf with me or just sit
there and film. He's always trying to help me
get better and enjoy my life. Not only that,
he's my best mate, and he rips. Dad challenged
himself last year to put back on the competition
jersey and competed in the master state titles
where he let me coach him for the weekend. He
smashed it all weekend while he was sick with
the flu and ended up 3rd overall, and qualified
for the Australian titles where he let me coach
him again. I learnt so much watching my dad
compete and to watch him surf the way he did
in the state titles while he was sick was pretty
damn inspiring to me.
Do you have any advice for beginners?
Just stick with it. It can get tough and scary
sometimes, but if you love the ocean, there's
no better way to enjoy it than surfing perfect
waves with friends. So get out there and enjoy
the healthy lifestyle.
What does your future of surfing look like? I'm
not a fortune teller so I can't say what my future
holds exactly, but if I could pick, it would involve
a few big contest wins and then hopefully
that would lead into competing on the WSL
junior series and the world qualifying series to
hopefully one day qualify for the big leagues on
the championship tour with the best of the best.
IMAGES SUPPLIED BY @GREYC_VISUALS
IG // @jaxoncowan_
If you know someone who would be a great
candidate for our next Q&A, please get in touch with us.
Natural or goofy? Natural.
Sunrise or sunset? Sunset.
Summer or winter? Winter for waves.
Wetty or no wetty? Wetty.
Longboard or shortboard? Shortboard.
3-4ft or 8-10ft? 3-4ft.
Beachie or point break? Point break.
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MELODIOUS HAZE
The Lazy Eyes
ALBUM REVIEW
SongBook
2022
The boys from Sydney are in town! Metaphorically of course,
but quite possibly a literal realisation will be on the horizon
when they next tour our beautiful vistas. Alas, we are here
for the music review and let’s unpack this deeply tripped out
psychedelic fuzz gem.
Let’s start by saying this is a pretty crazy sound for a debut
album; it is guitar laden, whirrs cyclically like a mechanical
rotation and smothers with synth overlays. It’s without doubt
one of the better psychedelic records we’ve wrapped our
ears in for some time now and goes hand in hand with some
of our Aussie favs in Tame Impala and King Gizzard & The
Lizard Wizard.
One of the great proponents of the album is that there is
consistency throughout; no real low points, just a continuum
of interconnected reflections. If anything, the album has
a couple of its more noteworthy tracks towards the tail end.
Imaginary Girl and Cheesy Love Song are case in point with
the former offering a rhythmic selection of keys and even
some background acoustic guitar. Yeah this stuff is layered
and duly stacked; the more you listen, the more you hear!
Cheesy Love Song is good, and probably the track of the
album, and a great closer too. A paced slow build, that is
enveloped by a series of strings before a crescendo of sorts.
Whatever matter you’ve enjoyed to this point, you have
probably really hit peak flight at this point!
@thelazyeyesband
Overall, a great album and worthy of praise for these young
lads….enjoy! 7.5/10
HEALTHY SMOOTHIES
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*MENTION BENNY MAGAZINE & RECEIVE A FREE MEGA UPGRADE!
@yumfastnutrition
2/91 Scenic Dr Budgewoi (Down the laneway next to Coles)
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Good Days. Always.
Central Coast, NSW
bennysupplyco.com.au
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MUSIC NEWS
Subculture X Stupid Baby
On February 3rd, SUBCULTURE AGENCY & AVERAGE SHOTS teamed up to bring Long
Jetty an event called LUCKY SHOT where 22 film photographers (locally and nationally)
were selected to have their works shown at Lucky Surf Supply in Long Jetty.
Electronic Artist and Producer Kilter played a DJ set while people rolled through to vote
for their favourite photo of the night with Central Coast local and filmmaker Ian Tyley
(www.iantyley.com) taking home the first prize. Victoria Campelo picked up second prize and
Hannah Griffiths landed third prize. All whom are incredible upcoming film photographers
that you should check out!
Once 8pm pulled around and sun started to make tracks setting for the evening, Long Jetty
based band STUPID BABY hit the stage for a 45 minute set that echoed from Lucky Surf to
Blue Bay, picking up a few extra punters out of the surf.
JONNY BLACKWELL OF SUBCULTURE AGENCY CHATS WITH STUPID BABY
JB: Hey, how are ya? Who do we have
today? SB: Hey mate, you’ve got Eli (bass),
Jake (vocals/drums) and Will (guitar)
and I’ve gotta say we are happier than a
butcher's dog, life's good.
JB: How'd you enjoy the gig on Friday
behind Lucky Surf Shop for Lucky Shot
for SUBCULTURE & Average Shots? SB:
Couldn’t have enjoyed ourselves more. It
really felt like the community was coming
back together, the team put on a top shelf
event. It was really nice to see the young
kids and families coming out and enjoying
the event.
JB: Are you excited for more local events
and gigs to start happening around the
coast? SB: It feels like everyone has been
waiting for the coast to recover and get
back on its feet with local gigs and events.
The punters are here and keen, we just
need the right people to hold the torch and
make it happen.
JB: I saw you are performing at the Long
Jetty Festival in March, what can you
tell us about that? SB: The festival is an
opportunity for the coast to celebrate the
best of what we have to offer. Every year
it gets better and better. Please keep an
eye out for a couple of surprises from your
favourite babies this year.
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JB: What are some places that you
recommend readers check out around Long
Jetty/your area? What's the go? SB: Perfect
day in the 2261 - start your day right at
our favourite Bateau Beach Cafe, followed
by a walk through Wyrrabalong National
Park to go and burn one down at Crackneck
or Forries Tower, afterwards swim the
afternoon away at Blue Bay and sink a
couple at The Jetto with kick ons at The
Savoy if you don't have work in the morning.
JB: Can you tell us your plans to release
more music? SB: We are always in the studio
at our second home Lake House Audio, so
we have a couple of songs in the bank ready
to put out this year so keep an eye on our
Spotify and socials!
JB: What does the future hold for Stupid
Baby? SB: The only plan SB has ever had
is to have as much fun as we can and play
music to as many people as we can.
JB: What are your top records on rotation
at the moment? SB: Dinosaur JR - Beyond.
The Melvins - A Senile Animal.
The Smile - A Light For Attracting Attention.
JB: Any final words? SB: Thanks to everyone
who have taken the time to listen to or
shown interest in what we are doing, it
means the world to us and special thanks to
the crew at Subculture and Average Shots!
SUBCULTURE consists of Jonny Blackwell and Ashley Cooper, WE are SUBCULTURE?
YOU are SUBCULTURE? We have officially launched and are operating on the Central
Coast to provide tools, and experience to Creatives, Artists and Musicians within
the Australian Music Community. We are planning a number of upcoming events,
and activations for the coming months, with announcements every month. We
currently work with Dream Frankie Dream, Big Skeez, Kilter, Rage, Glu, Billie Eternal,
LoveLoveLove + many more, and will be continuing to bring local, and national
performances to the Central Coast Region. Stay tuned.
subcultureagency.co
IG // @subculture.agency + @stupidbaby666
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