Album Review: Erasure.

ERASURE

TOMORROW'S WORLD

©2011 MUTE ARTISTS LTD.

Has it really been 26 years since "Oh L'Amour?" Vince Clarke and Andy Bell, better known to their legions of fans as Erasure, can honestly be hailed as one of the most successful synth-pop bands of all time. From their 1985 debut Wonderland to 1988's The Innocents; and from 1992's remarkable celebration of ABBA songs, Abba-esque to the delicate beauty of 2005's Nightbird – Erasure has soldiered on through highlights and low, selling along the way in excess of 25 million records.

Tomorrow's World, their 14th studio album, harkens back to the heady days of the early '90s with style and panache, and in the process happens to be their most exciting release of the last decade. Bell's voice is in as fine a form as ever, his trademark falsetto soaring to astonishing heights as Clarke backs up the proceedings with a plethora of headily pulsing beats, surging synths and flowery rhythms.

Exploring the age-old themes of regret, recollection, reflection and epiphany, Tomorrow's World is, all told, a hopeful record; focusing not so much on what has passed, per se, but rather its heart belongs in the future – thus the title, I reckon.

Things kick off with the joyful strains of "Be With You," its bouncy club anthem feel transporting the listener back to 1992 and the diva-led tracks that seemed to be the staple of the burgeoning house scene back then. Mssrs. Bell and Clarke revisit their Chorus-era days with the wonderful and bounce-eliciting "I Lose Myself" and "Fill Us With Fire," whilst the stirringly soulful "When I Start To (Break It All Down)" brings to mind their work on 1987's brilliant The Circus.

When all is said and done, Tomorrow's World fits nicely with the rest of Erasure's oeuvre. Radio-friendly, with no songs any longer than four minutes, this is a snappy and succinctly straightforward album. Erasure has always been a soul band with electronic sensibilities, and Tomorrow's World reflects that ethos perfectly. Wearing their hearts happily on their sleeves, Erasure has demonstrated that they still have stories to tell; and oh boy, do they still tell them beautifully.

I have no idea why, but currently Blogger is not allowing me to embed videos. Otherwise I would have embedded this terrific video montage of Erasure's recent tour, accompanied by the fantastic track "When I Start To (Break It All Down)." Check it out, it's very awesome.

Album Review: YACHT.

YACHT

SHANGRI-LA

©2011 DFA Records

So sorry I haven't written in here in such a long time! Frankly, I've been pretty busy trying to inject myself into Melbourne society (i.e., trying to find a job) – but luckily I've been able to get a gig writing articles for the local weekly music magazine, Beat! How cool is that? There's a lot on my plate at the moment, but I'm quite hungry. Today I thought I'd share with my faithful readers a review I wrote for Beat on a fucking extraordinary record – Portland, Oregon-based duo YACHT and their fifth album, Shangri-La. Cheers, and I swear I'll pop in more often – I've been a bad, bad blogger as of late! But you guys are so damn awesome; I know you understand.

Ahem.

Where does utopia end, and dystopia begin? What darkness lurks in the shadows and ignored corners of a Brave New World? All heady questions to be sure, but Portland, Oregon duo YACHT are on the case with their fifth full-length album entitled, fittingly, Shangri-La. Yet another victory for New York dance label DFA, this glistening and darkly slick electro-punk outing screams out loud its concept of perceived perfection in society with a ferocity that at times borders on stunning.

Sporting a voice that wouldn't be out of place blaring from CBGB's in the late seventies, vocalist Claire Evans alternates between dreamy renderings of paradise and venomous diatribes railing against forced relationships, religious charlatans, and a society always stumbling in an endless quest for perfection. Multi-instrumentalist Jona Bechtolt and the mob that makes up YACHT's touring band ably provide a constantly mutating soundscape that challenges perceptions of what, exactly, electronic music can achieve. 

Second track "Dystopia (The Earth Is On Fire)" has Evans channeling The Bloodhound Gang when she intones,

"The Earth, the Earth, the Earth is on fire! / We don't have no daughter / Let the motherfucker burn."

Percussion-heavy "I Walk Alone" is reminiscent of seventies Detroit rock, and "Paradise Engineering" features lyrics that could have been penned by David Byrne delivered over beats and rhythms that bring to mind the best of LCD Soundsystem.

But the best of the bunch would have to be the sprawling and multi-layered "Tripped And Fell In Love". Dense, mean, and driven by some seriously sinister synths, it's a fantastically constructed and danceable game-changer in the world of disco-punk.

Highly, highly recommended.

Best Track: "Tripped And Fell In Love"

If You Like This, You'll Like: Sound of Silver by LCD SOUNDSYSTEM, It's Blitz! by YEAH YEAH YEAHS, The City Never Sleeps by THE CRYSTAL ARK

In A Word: Arcadian

So, yeah, that was my review. While you're here, why don't you watch the following film? Here's the music video for the first two tracks, "Utopia" and "Dystopia." Pretty cool shit, if you ask me.

Well, fuck. Embedding seems to be down. Oh well – here's the link to the video on the YouTubes. Enjoy.

Don't Play No Game That I Can't Win.

Oh, man – feast your eyes and ears on this thing of beauty, my friends. Spike Jonze, director of such classics as Being John Malkovich, Adapation, and Where The Wild Things Are, has teamed up with the Beastie Boys and given the world an epic, 11-minute short film for their first single off their latest LP Hot Sauce Committee Part II.


I just can't do this masterpiece of supermarionation (think Thunderbirds, the British 1960's puppet show about the organisation International Rescue and their various adventures) justice. Suffice it to say: There's GI Joe figures, an abominable snowman, action, brilliant set pieces, and ... zombies. Seriously, I am at a loss for words. This has to be seen to be believed.

Album Review: Austra.

AUSTRA

FEEL IT BREAK

©2011 DOMINO RECORDING CO. LTD.

"Dark synth." "Gloom synth." "Goth pop." These phrases, and many more, have been utilized by people to describe the pristine electronic goodness gracing the debut LP from Austra, a wonderful trio hailing from Toronto, Canada. Now, it's not like I completely disagree with these labels that have been given, but I can report that while there are indeed dark sparkles in their songs, I do not find Feel It Break to be an inherently gloomy work.


Rather, there's more of a mystical earthy feel to the album. It's certainly a sensuous experience, what with vocalist Katie Stelmanis's operatic and soaring voice – there are moments in these 47 minutes that have the power to take one's breath away, it's such a powerful and awesome instrument. Drummer Maya Postepski wields her sticks with fervour and panache, and Dorian Wolf rounds out the trio with his trusty bass.


My God though – this is a fucking brilliant record, from beginning to end. Opening track "Darken Her Horse" starts off like a funereal dirge as dreamt by The Knife, but as it slowly opens its dark petals, this slow-burning flower builds and grows, transforming into a solemn masterwork of sparkling, dreamy gloom pop (I didn't say it was completely free of gloominess). Like early Kate Bush? You'll fucking love this. "Lose It" is a fantastically punchy number, bringing to mind a-ha's early work; as with their keyboardist Magne Furuholmen's handiwork, the synths here are complex, sparklingly clear, and driven to a nearly confectionery sweetness. And then there's the sensual moodiness of the first single off the album, "Beat And The Pulse." Aural sex, pure and simple – it's simply amazing; a riveting track made even more compulsive with its accompanying video featuring mutated dancers. (Mildly NSFW, so you know.) 


All said and done, I find Feel It Break to be a nearly flawless record. There are no bum notes to be found, and repeated listens will reward the intrepid connoisseur of quality electronic music. I trust you all are well; and apologies for having laid so low for such a long time – my visa in Australia has been granted, and now is the time to find a job!


Here's the video for "Lose It." Hopefully you love it as much as I do!

Video Disturbeo: Revolting Cocks.

Ah, who says you can never go back? In October of 2010, I highlighted a few acts who recorded under the Wax Trax! label out of Chicago, Illinois. Somehow, I'd managed to look over Revolting Cocks while including their musical home-base of good ol' Ministry. I swear, it will never happen again.


Originally conceived as a side project for Front 242's Richard 23, Luc van Acker, and Ministry's Al Jourgensen (modern folklore states that the name "Revolting Cocks" was chosen after a particularly brutal bar brawl on the evening of celebrating the beginning of their collaboration – as they departed the fracas, the owner of said pub reportedly screamed after them, "I'm calling the cops, you revolting cocks!"), Revolting Cocks (also commonly known as RevCo by their fans) recorded one album for Wax Trax!, Big Sexy Land, in 1986. Richard 23 left soon after, citing "creative differences," and ever since then RevCo has always had in it a rotating cast of characters. 


In 1993, they signed to Sire Records (home to such luminary acts as Depeche Mode, Erasure, Talking Heads, and Ice motherfucking T) and released probably their best album, the seminal (ha ha) Linger Fickin' Good. van Acker and Jourgensen, aligned with Chris Connelly, William Rieflin (from KMFDM and Pigface, among other similar acts), and Jourgensen's partner in Ministry-related crime, Paul Barker.


One of the tracks off of Linger Fickin' Good is a raunchy and giddily off-the-charts bit of certifiable madness – RevCo's absolutely inspiring "cover" of Rod Stewart's 1978 classic "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?" My gosh, it's pretty damn awesome what RevCo did with it – it's grungy, it's squelchy, and it's quite frankly hilarious. When Connelly sings/mutters the line "He says I'm sorry but I'm out of KY Jelly," he himself can't stifle a laugh. Needless to say, the video for "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?" is NSFW. Featuring cartoonish satanic imagery, strippers with peeling skin, and copious amounts of flesh, you still can't look at this video and not think to yourself, My God, those guys are having a shitload of fun.


Enjoy!

Electro Classic Jukebox: Berlin.

Oh, I had such an immense crush on Terri Nunn back in the day. Their first (and most controversial – many radio stations refused to play it on the grounds of its "graphic" lyrics) single, "Sex (I'm A)" practically made my 12-year old head explode. Even now, nearly thirty years later, listening to Nunn's purring and sexually charged voice can make my blood pressure shoot through the roof. But arguably their greatest moment came with the release of "The Metro," which stands out in my opinion as one of the greater achievements of synths-as-purveyors-of-mood in the early '80s, period. I mean, just listen to it! It was a truly defining moment for the New Wave synth-pop movement back in the day – a gleefully wondrous and thrilling mix of punk and pop that utilized the multi-layered synths in such a way that the listener was immediately transported to another time and place. The longing and loathing of the lyrics were perfectly captured by the brilliant Nunn, whilst the constantly driving and thoroughly exciting music nimbly captured the feel of trundling motion underneath the City of Lights. Nice touch at the end, utilizing the French police sirens, as well! In 2004, Nunn (alongside an entirely new Berlin lineup) decided to rerecord "The Metro," as well as a few other of their greatest hits – sorry, hon, but it's nowhere as cool, original and refreshing as the originals. Accepting no substitutes!


From Berlin's 1982 sophomore record, Pleasure Victim, here's Nunn and company with their awesome track "The Metro." Enjoy!

Throbbing Gristle, Re-Issued.

(from XLR8R:)


"After the untimely death of founding member Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson late last year, the future of pioneering industrial outfit Throbbing Gristle was thrown into question. Thanks to a new post on the band's website, that question has been partially answered. Most importantly, the remaining members have elected to no longer perform live as Throbbing Gristle, following the sentiments of a statement made by Christopherson prior to his passing, who remarked that it would not be "possible for any changed band or variation of personnel to perform live as Throbbing Gristle without all the original four of us on stage." While TG diehards might be disappointed by that news, the group has not gone completely dormant. As detailed on their website, the band's contract with Mute Records expired last year, and the group has now chosen to reactivate its dormant Industrial Records imprint, which will be the sole representative for selling Throbbing Gristle's music. Furthermore, on September 26 the label will be releasing a series of remastered, deluxe vinyl reissues of TG albums The Second Annual Report, D.O.A. The Third & Final Report, Heathen Earth, 20 Jazz Funk Greats, and Throbbing Gristle's Greatest Hits. The remastered albums will also be available digitally and on CD."


So now you know. Keep an eye out – I'm looking forward to the vinyl. Here is a video of TG performing "Persuasion" at San Francisco's Kezar Pavilion (you can watch the whole damn thing on the YouTube if you wish) in 1981, right before they broke up.

Icelandic Soundscapes: Sigur Rós.

Sigur Rós

It was about five o'clock in the afternoon that December day in 2007, and the Sun had almost completely gone down. A huge and mysterious Moon was swollen in the sky, and all the Christmas lights and candles were lit, turning the main shopping and nightclub streets of Reykjavík – Bankstraeti and Laugavegur – into brightly lit holiday backdrops. Salvation Army volunteers were set up on every block giving out free hot chocolate for the donation of a few Kronar plunked into their little red pots. The broken glass from the previous evening's rúntur had, for the most part, been swept up and away. Little flecks of ice and snow fell from the edges of the rooftops, and the cobble stones of the footpaths tended to be a little loose in spots, resulting in the occasional stubbed toe or trip-up. Children ran about and played and laughed and shouted with little parental supervision. Shops, bars, and cafes all had little candles by their front entrances, the flames flickering in the sub-Arctic breeze. A giant glacier across Reykjavík Bay dominated the landscape as the Moon rose behind it, the clouds that partially obscured it were painted radiant shades of red, yellow and purple by the rapidly sinking Sun. A twin-engine propeller plane roared overhead on its way to the local domestic airport. People glanced furtively upward as it passed, only a few hundred feet above Austervöller Square. An elderly gentleman with crazy hair drives past slowly in the Christmas traffic, his window ajar, Zydeco music blaring from his car stereo. He grinned at me, and pumped his fist in the air. A little kid wearing a bright red jumper with white stripes down the arms and his mum smile as I danced a little jig for the old guy. I could hear his music from a block away as he took a right turn and disappeared from view. I stopped in a charming little cafe called Kaffitár; festooned with strings of hanging purple lights and sporting a dazzling selection of juices and pastries, it seemed like a great place to chill out for a few moments and collect myself. I ordered a single coffee with milk and one of the tastiest orange juices I've ever had, and retreated to the window seat and settled down into Reykjavík's English language music and culture magazine, The Grapevine, and then happened to glance at the thin gentleman sitting one seat away from me. I performed a double-take when I realised that the gentleman in question was the lead singer and guitarist of Sigur Rós, Jónsi Birgisson. I kept stealing sidelong glances, not quite sure if it was just a guy who looked a lot like him (that hairstyle and the build and the facial features – "elvin" comes to mind – seemed to be the norm). But yes, sure enough, he was blind in one eye. I didn't say anything. I was just thinking about how I'd often laugh with my friends and every now and then, with the dream of one day showing the band my Aegytus Byrjin tattoo on my back. Needless to say, I did not show Jónsi my tattoo. I finished my OJ and my second cup of coffee, folded up my newspaper, and stole away into the darkening afternoon. The shorter the days, the longer the shadows. But before I left, I captured his attention, and softly said, "Takk ..." He looked at me and smiled with a mellow shyness and went back to his reading.

sigur rós

"svefn-g-englar"

Aegytus Byrjin

I L U.

School Of Seven Bells

From time to time (but not as often as I'd like), a song swoops out of the ether, seemingly coming out of nowhere, and smacks me upside the head with its sheer brilliance and power. The dreamy and sensual track "I L U," off of School Of Seven Bells' second album, 2010's Disconnect From Desire, is one of these songs. My goodness, it's such a lovely song.

Brooklyn, NY's School Of Seven Bells (also known as SVIIB) used to be a trio. Comprised of guitarist Benjamin Curtis, who'd left his brother Brandon's band Secret Machines, and identical twins Alejandra and Claudia Deheza from On!Air!Library!, SVIIB have created a sound that literally drips with passion and ethereal mysteriousness. 

Sporting spidery guitar work reminiscent of Cocteau Twins and Wayne Hussey-era Sisters Of Mercy, angelic and breathy vocals, shimmering electronic whooshes, and poetic lyrics, "I L U" is nothing short of a revelation. The accompanying video does the song proud – it's a genuinely breath-taking piece of art that stands on its own in regards to visualizing the pains and the passion of falling deeply, madly, and crazily in lust. It just has to be seen to be believed. 

One can visit SVIIB's MySpace page to be treated to more of their music – both off of Disconnect From Desire and their 2008 debut Alpinisms, if one is interested. For now, watch this video. It's incredible. And it's mildly NSFW, just so you know.

School of Seven Bells - I L U - Official Video from Vagrant Records on Vimeo.

Happy Birthday, Lizzie!

Even though the Queen's Birthday being celebrated today is largely symbolic (her actual birthday was the 21st of April - making her a whopping 85 years old), we still have a soft spot for the monarchy here at SDU. So cheers, Lizzie! Happy Birthday, and hopefully you get some more corgis for your collection.


From their 1977 album Never Mind The Bullocks: Here's The Sex Pistols, here is the brilliant and quite scathing "God Save The Queen."

Video Disturbeo: Soft Cell.

Oh. My. I really don't think I've ever actually seen the original video for Soft Cell's "Sex Dwarf." I mean, I probably would have remembered seeing it; it's a fairly memorable affair. Directed by Tim Pope, the prolific British director who's responsible for some of the greatest Cure videos ever made, this little film of absolute madness is one of the strangest things we here at SDU HQ have laid our eyes on in recent times.


A naked lady is strapped to a hospital gurney. Dave Ball is smirking in the corner of the white room, playing the blades of a chainsaw like a cello, surrounded by hanging hunks of raw meat. Marc Almond, whilst caressing the struggling naked lady, crows the demented lyrics as the room fills with half-dressed and BDSM-attired people who then proceed to commence an orgy. AND – just when things can't get any whackier, a leather-bound midget (the "sex dwarf" in question, I'd reckon) enters the fray and begins throwing raw meat everywhere.


This is just wrong. But when we here at Second Drawer Up say "wrong," we mean it in a good way. And – hoo, boy – is it NSFW.


From their 1981 debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, here is "Sex Dwarf" by Soft Cell, in its original, uncensored form – the way it was meant to be seen. Fucking brilliant.

Soft Cell - Sex Dwarf (Original Video) from Sergio Diaz on Vimeo.

Electro Classic Jukebox: Wolfsheim.

Hailing from The Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, Germany, Wolfsheim were a rather brilliant synth-pop number who released a smattering of memorable "darkwave" tunes until their dissolution in 2005 due to disagreements as to what direction Wolfsheim's music was going to ultimately head toward. Comprised of neighborhood pals Marcus Reinhardt and Peter Heppner (who joined the band after Marcus' brother Oliver departed), they released seven albums throughout their career that, though bordering on the melancholic, still soared with a certain elegiac charm. No single of theirs is probably better known than the ground-breaking "The Sparrows And The Nightingales," off their 1992 debut album No Happy View, so of course I thought I'd share it today. Mein Gut, these are some mighty powerful synths at play here, and the lyrics are both epic and thought-provoking, providing one with an orchestral, majestic tone. 


Have you had your helping of Wolfsheim today? I have. So here's some for you and yours!

Gig Review: Gary Numan.

GARY NUMAN

14 MAY 2011

FORUM THEATRE

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

If anybody out there had any doubt whatsoever that without Gary Numan the electronic music landscape would be unrecognizable today – then all that nameless person would have to do to be irrevokably convinced would be to have headed towards and gained entry to Gary Numan his own bad-ass self performing his seminal 1979 album The Pleasure Principle in its entirety; authentically re-constructed, to boot. This is the show I saw on the 14th of May – a soggy autumn Saturday evening, and the excitement level of my fellow attendees was cranked to eleven and beyond.

Opening band Severed Heads, one of the founders of the Australian electronic music scene, came out of self-imposed retirement for the express purpose of supporting this tour. Basically two blokes (one of whom was main man Tom Ellard) on keyboards and a loop machine with a projection screen behind them (on which grotesque computer-generated images seemingly created in the early days of digital graphics played), Severed Heads' sound was all spidery and jittery synths married with a disco drumbeat and bizarre sound effects and vocal distortions. The techno-flavoured music filled the ornately decorated expanse of the Forum Theatre, which was only half-filled with punters, who seemed only slowly to be getting into it. Sadly, it wasn't until their last song that Ellard said, "Well, here it is. The song you've been waiting for us to play," before launching into their best-known track, 1984's "Dead Eyes Opened." Suddenly, everybody on the dance floor began dancing, and the energy level spiked.

At 10.15, Gary Numan came out to play. The Forum was filled to capacity, and as soon as the opening notes of "Airlane" hit the crowd went fucking bonkers. True to promise, not only did he play the entire Pleasure Principle album in its entirety, it was played authentically, meaning there were no "improvements" (as if that's possible) or updated means of playing the music, or "re-mixes" or "re-imaginings." There was Gary and four other blokes on the stage. Four synthesizers. A set of drums. And the euphoria that can only be described by hearing Mr Numan and company play live one of the most important albums in existence period.


I'm telling you: the music was positively alive there in the expanses of the old Forum Theatre. The synths were crisp and exact, the drumming was dynamic and lively, and Numan's voice pierced the darkness with an immediacy and verve; it still resounded and sounded as fresh as it did when the needle first met the grooves of the vinyl way back when I got the album in 1985 as a fourteen-year-old scrawny brat.

The crowd lapped it up, looking as happy and contented as I've ever seen an audience be. There was the general feeling that this was more an event than merely a show; the euphoria was quite infectious and addictive and palpable! Punters held their bottles aloft as they sang along to such infectious classics such as "Conversation" ("WE ARE NOT GODS / AND WE ARE NOT MEN …") and "M.e.," which, being my favourite track off the album, was just freaking brilliant. What's that? Did the crowd go crazy when "Cars" played? You bet your sweet ass they did! And thus did Set #1 come to a close.


Set #2 was selections from the old (namely, 1978's Replicas) and the new (Jagged and Pure mostly). Kicking things off with the chilly and oddly spooky "Down In The Park," the second set of the evening allowed Gary Numan and his merry band of men to express the rockier and more industrial side of Numan's oeuvre. Chunky-ass guitars, heavy beats, and throbbing bass exemplified a rather meta-moment in Numan's show – Numan taking and perfecting a genre of music that owed its very existence to Numan's music in the first place. As my wife C. said to me during "Haunted": "Nine Inch Nails was inspired by him, no?" And we all know the answer to that. 2300 die-hard Numan fans with love and respect in their eyes and movements collectively lost their shit when Numan, bearing a mischievous grin, broke into "Are 'Friends' Electric?"


Damn right, Gary. The world of electronic pop music wouldn't be recognizable today without your prescience and forward-minded assault on the senses we know now as The Pleasure Principle. An absolutely enchanting evening.

setlist

-----

airlane

metal

m.e.

tracks

observer

conversation

engineers

complex

films

cars

-----

down in the park

the fall

when the sky bleeds

pure

haunted

everything comes down to this

are 'friends' electric?

-----

halo

a prayer for the unborn

i die: you die

New Music: Ladytron.

Well, here it is – Ladytron's newest single, "White Elephant." (Sorry, but only on UK iTunes for the moment.) Their fifth studio album, Gravity The Seducer, will be released later this year on the 13th of September! How about that?


I gotta admit: I really enjoy the beguiling nature of this track. There's something wistfully majestic about it, and Marnie's vocals are as brittle and ethereal as ever. What do you reckon? Here it is.

The Cure At Sydney Opera House.

Just a friendly reminder to my readers in beautiful Sydney, NSW – The Cure will be performing live their first three albums (Three Imaginary Boys, Seventeen Seconds, and Faith) on the evenings of 31 May and 1 June, 2011 at the legendary Sydney Opera House. The shows will be 180 minutes long (with two intervals), and will feature a revolving lineup of musicians present and past who have indelibly moulded the spirit of The Cure. 

three imaginary boys

-----

robert smith - voice + guitar

simon gallup - bass

jason cooper - drums

seventeen seconds

-----

robert smith - voice + guitar

simon gallup - bass

jason cooper - drums

roger o'donnell - keyboards

faith

-----

robert smith - voice + guitar

simon gallup - bass

jason cooper - drums

roger o'donnell - keyboards + percussion

laurence tolhurst - keyboards + percussion

This is going to be a show to remember – so if you're in Sydney (or plan on being in), you really can't do worse than go. We here at SDU HQ insist! Here's Robert Smith & company performing "The Drowning Man" off of 1981's Faith in 2005. Absolutely brilliant.

The Dead Will Dance Again.

On the 12th of May this year, one Mr Brendan Perry wrote on his forum wall:

"Hi all,

I have been talking with Lisa Gerrard this past week with regard to recording a new DCD album this coming winter. We hope to complete the album by the summer of 2012 and then embark on an extensive two month world tour in late 2012. I will be posting updates from time to time with regard to our progress ... and remember ... you heard it here first and yes it is official!

Brendan."

All I can say is: WOW. This is great news. The last time Dead Can Dance had performed onstage was in 2005; me and a few of my mates were lucky enough to have seen them at the wondrous Paramount Theatre in Oakland, California. I mean, these are the folks who unleashed Spleen & Ideal on the world, had enchanted an untold number of people with the stoic mysteriousness of The Serpent's Egg and its enigmatic "In The Kingdom of the Blind, the One-Eyed Are Kings," had brought back from the grave the musical stylings and instrumentation of civilizations that had been long vanished from the popular culture (thus, of course, their name), and had mystified with their vocal prowess – Perry's deep and assured resonating timbre, alongside the lovely Gerrard's spookily breathy falsetto – and the deep imaginings of fables, incantations, rituals, and heretofore forgotten myths that the music aided in awakening. And let's not forget their mastery of the almighty hammered dulcimer. No, let's not forget that. 


So let us rejoice that after nearly seven years (thirteen years, if you count the last song they actually recorded, "The Lotus Eaters," which appeared on their best-of compilation, Wake, in 2003), DCD is once again going (fingers crossed) to grace us with the mysticism and wonder of their musical trappings. Excited!


Here, from 1993's most excellent Into The Labyrinth, is the remarkable and hypnotic "The Ubiquitous Mr Lovegrove." Goddamn, what a great song this is.





And here's "Rakim," from Toward The Within, their 1994 live-recording of their 1993 sold-out world tour. Listen to that hammered dulcimer playing!

Gig Review: Cut Copy.

CUT COPY

5 MAY 2011

PALACE THEATRE

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

Cut Copy brought their shimmering white-light disco stylings back home to Melbourne on a beautiful and crisp Thursday evening at the stately Palace Theatre in the CBD, and my wife and I were there to breathe in the intoxicating fumes of one of the more reliably consistent live acts I've had the pleasure of seeing multiple times. But this was the first time I've seen them as a quartet as opposed to a trio, and funnily enough my wife C. and I were standing next to a nice looking couple near the mixing booth at the beginning of the show (we'd missed, sadly, the opening band, The Holidays) when the gentleman leaned over and told us that he was the bassist's brother-in-law. He pointed at his partner. "That's his sister," he muttered, sounding as if he'd had a few beers. Her brother, of course, would have been Ben Browning, who was brought into Cut Copy's fold for the recording and touring of their third full-length album Zonoscope. Browning's sister looked rather embarrassed, and then they moved on to another location; I'd reckon she probably said something like this to him later: I'd really appreciate it if you didn't say that to strangers again. Who knows; C and I found it funny and rather charming. I'd probably tell people if I was related to a member of Cut Copy.

But I digress. At 10 sharp, the lights went down and the lilting notes of the instrumental "Visions," from In Ghost Colours, began streaming from the speakers. Segueing perfectly into "Nobody Lost, Nobody Found," the 90-minute set sparked into life, bathing the sold-out environs of the Palace in a delectable feast of sparkling guitar-based synth-pop that not only reminded one of the halcyon days of the best of the '80s, but also revealed a bopping '60s mentality that wouldn't have been out of place on a Beach Boys record. Of particular notice were the tracks off the new album, which – man, oh man – they positively shone, they were so damn tight and achingly beautiful. "Need You Now," the slow-burning and powerful first single off Zonoscope, practically soared through the ceiling with Dan Whitford's angelic vocals and Erasure-reminiscent synth loops. "Take Me Over" never ceased to delight, what with its impossible-to-shake-from-one's-head catchiness – as I said before, a great driving song. A shimmering surf-rock feeling washes over the sunny "Where I'm Going," and the chants and droid-dance quirkiness of "Pharaohs & Pyramids" gave the audience a taste of the influence Kraftwerk has had on their musical palates. But, I was most curious about, what was "Sun God," that 15-minute behemoth of majestic synths, boisterous percussion, squalling guitars, and dreamy rhythms, going to sound like in a live setting? Fucking awesome, is the answer. I'm telling you: It was simply crazy. Say what you will about the Cut Copy live experience – "Sun God" was different. They just went batshit. Crazy feedback, an extra drummer, a video screen in the centre of the stage displaying objects blowing up in slow motion in a desert somewhere, aggressive lighting, and, simply put, four dudes on stage grinning like idiots and having the time of their lives made this a bloody standout. 


Oh, Cut Copy: your live shows are turning into events. And that's a great thing. After two encores, they finished with the gorgeous "Feel The Love." I think the crowd filing out of the Palace Theatre felt that way about Cut Copy's music. It was amazing, and I for one cannot wait to see what they do next.


Here's 28 seconds of "Sun God" I filmed on my iPhone:

setlist

visions

nobody lost, nobody found

where i'm going

so haunted

corner of the sky

lights and music

take me over

saturdays

pharaohs & pyramids

hearts on fire

sun god

-----

need you now

out there on the ice

-----

feel the love

Oh, and here's Cut Copy performing "Saturdays" live for NYC's Fearless Music.

Album Review: Seekae.

SEEKAE

+DOME

©2011 Rice Is Nice/Popfrenzy

Sydneysiders Alex Cameron, George Nicholas, and John Hassel – better known as electronic "ghetto ambient" trio Seekae – have released their sophomore LP +Dome and connoisseurs of intelligent and thoughtful music everywhere can rejoice. "Ghetto ambient." This description of their sound, half-jokingly coined by the band to describe their ebullient and emotive crossbreeding of ambient electronica and glitchy experimental pop. Being a record that generously rewards repeat listens, +Dome expands greatly from where its predecessor, 2008's The Sound of Trees Falling On People (GREAT album title, BTW) left off. It builds on the kick-ass 8-bit fuzzy electronica and ambience with a stellar washing over of layered beats, string arrangements, sampled noises, and the heavy bass one might expect to hear at a late-night London drum 'n' bass club. And there's glockenspiels! Bloody glockenspiels! I don't know about you, but I'm crazy mad for glockenspiels.

The magic begins with opener "Go," with its slow-building guitars over a snare drum and a throbbing bass, releasing finally with the aural imagery of a stream of icy cold water trickling over a field of pebbles as we launch into "Blood Bank," which I think of as a beautiful melding of Kid A-era Radiohead and Crystal Castles. "Two" invokes images children playing, it's so delicate with its intricacies and fragmented percussion. The lovely "Gnor," with its sparse strings, swells with emotion – I'm reminded of a sunset, the colours of the sky changing minutely as the sun bids adieu. There are so many surprises and wonderful moments on +Dome; I won't try to tell you about them. Rather, this is a record that demands to be listened to multiple times. There's always something new lurking in the background or just around the corner that hasn't been noticed before. Fucking amazing. One of the best records of the year, so far.

Here, for your listening enjoyment, is "Mingus."

Video Disturbeo: Nine Inch Nails.

Hard to believe that it's been seventeen years since the release of Nine Inch Nails' second long player album, 1994's The Downward Spiral, isn't it? Yet sitting back, popping it on, and breathing in its intoxicating fumes of dissonance, mayhem, hard-edged social (and religious) commentary, intricate craftsmanship, and – yes – utter beauty ... it's still very much a relevant record, and it's still the powerhouse motherfucking masterpiece it was when Mr Trent Reznor first dropped it on the 8th of March, 1994 (see, I knew it was a Pieces). From the opening razor-like squalls of "Mr Self Destruct" through to the seething anti-Christianity crusade of "Heresy;" from the thoughtful and morose ("Hurt") to the gleefully profane and anarchic ("Big Man With A Gun"); and to the deliriously lush one-two punch of the trance-like "Eraser" and "Reptile" – The Downward Spiral is very much an album of brilliant ideas that consistently hit their mark. There's not a flat moment on this fucker; it's just that awesome. But no song on this album hit the clubs and radio the way that "Closer" did. Decidedly radio-unfriendly (well, in the "we're so afraid of the F-bomb" USA at least), what with its chorus of "I want to fuck you like an animal," "Closer" still went on to reach #41 in the Billboard, #25 in the UK, and a huge #3 in Australia. 


So is it correct to assume that, with such a bruiser of a song, Reznor would want to go all out and release a video that's just as shocking? Of course it is. Directed by Mark Romanek (who went on to direct the under-appreciated Robin Williams thriller One Hour Photo, and is in theatres now with Never Let Me Go), this artfully creepy and horrific little film manages to push many squeamish buttons with its abbatoire imagery and pseudo-religious iconography. Full-frontal BDSM nudity? Check. Pulsing chunks of meat nailed to furniture? Check. Reznor licking a nipple-shaped microphone? Check. Holy crap, there's even a crucified monkey! Here it is, in all its squirm-inducing glory (F-bombs intact as well). Need I say it's NSFW?



Nine Inch Nails: Closer (Uncensored) (1994) from Nine Inch Nails on Vimeo.

Icelandic Soundscapes: Ghostigital.

GHOSTIGITAL

When I'd gone on holiday in Reykjavík, Iceland during Christmas of 2007, one of the aspects of Icelandic culture I was really looking forward to learning more about was the face of popular music up there in that beautiful northern island. After fantastically helpful trips to record stores such as the legendary 12 Tónar on Skolavor∂ustíg (the incredible employees actually sat me down on a comfy leather sofa and brought me a latté with a stack of CDs and a CD Walkman), I was hooked on what I heard. I ended up buying a nice stack of music that day (and a couple of other days after that), and frankly the music has always proved to be immensely interesting, challenging, fun, and inspirational in the time that has passed since that magical Arctic Christmas – meeting my wife while I was there was also pretty freaking great as well, come to think of it.

12 Tónar

I bring this up because I've had cause to go through my entire music library as I was packing my shit up in San Francisco for my move Down Under, and I had a chance to sift through my Iceland treasures (who have always lived in a separate shelf from my more standard selections), and I thought it would be fun over the next few days to highlight some of the more esoteric and atmospheric (and downright strange) music the kindly folk at 12 Tónar had shared with me on that cold and exciting afternoon over three years ago. I will never forget that shop; I think I still need to send them a nice letter one of these days, truth be told.

FIRST UP: Ghostigital. Their 2006 album In Cod We Trust leapt out at me for two reasons. One – I'd always wondered what Björk's right-hand man in Sugarcubes, Einar Örn Benediktsson, was up to. Second – The music was such an odd and ferociously in-your-face maelstrom of electronica, metal, hip-hop, jazz, cabaret, spoken word poetry, and ... well, frankly quite unclassifiable is how I'd describe it. Teaming up with one DJ/producer extraordinaire Curver, who performed with one of my favourite Icelandic confectionaries, Sometime, Örn has created a bewitchingly original and challenging piece of work with In Cod We Trust. Featuring guest appearances from such guests as Mark E. Smith, Mugison (who will be covered later), New York rapper Sensational, Steve Beresford, and Dalek, this album goes fucking everywhere, man. I can't begin to recommend it enough. From the everything-including-the-kitchen-sink jumbled chaos of "Sense of Reason," through to the alarmingly bizarre aggression of "Crackers," and to the distorted hip-hop paean to the Northern Lights entitled, strangely enough, "Northern Lights," this album, like I said, is quite a challenging listen. But it's rewarding! And there's a shitload of fun to be had once you get used to Örn's vocals, which I will lovingly compare to a psychotic Muppet. I always had him pegged as the more entertaining voice in Sugarcubes. Now: some music!

"Northern Lights"

"Crackers"

Röyksopp Remixes Depeche Mode.

On the 7th of June (the 6th in the UK), Depeche Mode will be releasing a remix album, Remixes 2: 81-11, chockfull of, you guessed it, remixes by such modern synth masters as M83, Röyksopp, UNKLE, members of Miike Snow, AND (get this) former DM stalwarts Vince Clarke and Alan Wilder. Should be a fun time! I'm down. Pitchfork has just released Röyksopp's contribution, a pretty awesome version of "Puppets," off of Depeche Mode's 1981 debut album Speak & Spell. Here's the link to listen to it. Funny, isn't it, how "Puppets," arguably the darkest song on that album of tinkling and rather light-weight pop ditties is here transformed into a nice and pretty piece of confectionary. I don't mean that in a bad way – it's really quite charming. Longtime (ha!) readers of this site will know that these two artists are among SDU's absolute favourites, as well.


Here's Dave and his Basildon boys performing "Puppets" for a German TV show way, way back in the day for comparison. Cheers, friends!

Album Review: Cut Copy. "Zonoscope"

CUT COPY

ZONOSCOPE

©2011 Modular Recordings

One knows, as soon as Cut Copy's third full-length album Zonoscope begins with opening track "Need You Now" and its delightfully delicate marriage of crystalline synths and dreamy guitars, that this Melbourne band's trajectory is true. 


On the 27th January this year, when Cut Copy first released "Need You Now," I'd written:

"Dan Whitford's vocals are as emotive as ever, and the rhythms put forward by Tim Hoey and Mitchell Scott, while tinged with a delicacy and deliberation that bring to mind the best of '80s New Wave, still contain a contemporary edge guaranteed to get asses out there on that fucking dance floor." 

Well! Now that the album's been out for a couple of months, and Cut Copy is poised to return home for their homecoming Australian tour in a week's time, I feel the need to squawk a bit from my little box and declare just how fucking awesome Zonoscope is. A great rollicking song that's perfect for driving can be found in the wonderful "Take Me Over." "Alisa" brings together '60s harmonies with a surf-rock sensibility. The rather surreal "Blink and You'll Miss A Revolution," one of the album's denser tracks, brings to mind some of the house epics that were popular on dance floors back in the early '90s and positively soars at moments. And then there's the experimental "Pharoahs & Pyramids," that's abuzz with cool sound effects, vocal distortions, and a nice bass-y synth line that bumbles merrily along its way. 


BUT – nothing on this great blue Earth could have prepared me for the joyous awesome power of the closing track, "Sun God." Holy crap, it's ... shit, it's just fucking amazing. Fifteen minutes and five seconds of just pure, incredible, and game-changing pop, "Sun God" WILL stop you in your tracks and cause you to say to yourself, "Wait – what? What the hell was that?" And then you'll play it a second time and let its lush brilliance wash over you again. A hypnotic piece of ever-shifting musical ideas, "Sun God" as a whole is made up of several distinct genres, constantly evolving and becoming something else as it charges along on a crazy, wonderful ride. Hyperbole on the part of this blogger? I doubt it. When I listen to it, I can't help but wonder if the boys have been listening to a lot of Kraut Rock; there's a distinct Tangerine Dream feel to the whole affair, with some Can-style percussions thrown in here and there and was that a ghost of Kraftwerk I heard in there at 9:19? Check out the cowbells that kick in at the three-minute mark! Oh, I just love this track; it's worth the price of admission alone. Here – listen to it yourself and see.


 Cut Copy - Sun God by modularpeople 


And here's the video for the first single, "Need You Now."





Cheers, friends, and have a great day!