Happy Australia Day!

Well, today is Australia Day – and my first one, at that! I've got to give props to my adopted country; everybody has been incredibly warm and inviting for the first four months of my stay. True, the paperwork hasn't gone through all the channels yet, but patience, I'm told, is a virtue. But still – I'm really enjoying it here, and I have been made to feel at home.


That being said, I'd like to showcase some music from the 1986 Richard Lowenstein film Dogs In Space. Set in Richmond, Victoria (an outer suburb of Melbourne), this examination of the 1978 Melbourne punk scene – starring Michael Hutchence of INXS in his first leading role – doesn't, unfortunately, hold much water in the story-telling department. Chockfull of wooden performances, stilted dialogue, and a whole lot of nothing happening throughout its 103 minutes. BUT – and this is a huge 'but' – the music! My gosh, the music gracing the soundtrack, put together by Lowenstein and Ollie Olsen (who was part of the scene back in those days; a member of the post-punk band Whirlywind), is pretty much playing nonstop; so it more than makes up for Hutchence's "acting" (which pretty much amounts to rolling around on the floor in a heroin stupor 75% of the time, all the while "speaking" in hardly anything but barks and grunts). Hutchence: brilliant singer, crap actor. But I digress.

Featuring pulse-quickening tracks by late-'70s acts such as Iggy Pop, Thrush and the Cunts, Primitive Calculators, Ollie Olsen, Gang of Four, Brian Eno, and Boys Next Door (Nick Cave's band before it transmogrified into The Birthday Party), the soundtrack to Dogs In Space is fucking fantastic. And if one is interested in knowing more about the scene personified in the film, one can check out an ABC 1 documentary entitled We're Living On Dog Food, which takes its name from the Iggy Pop track that opens Dogs In Space. So without any further ado, here are some of my favourite tracks from this well-meaning film. 

First up is "Win/Lose" from Ollie Olsen. I love the bit in the film where he sings it in the main house's living room, backed up only by a tape machine!

Here is "Pumping Ugly Muscle" by Fitzroy-based Primitive Calculators. Some brilliant anger going on in this track, with a lot of cathartic screaming and wailing!

What can one say about a band called Thrush and the Cunts? Great hooks, interesting name. Here is their seminal track from the so-called "little band scene", "Diseases." 

Here's "Shivers" by Boys Next Door, which would then become The Birthday Party. Goddamn, look how young Nick Cave is! And dammit, he makes this song fucking ache.

During the closing moments of the film, where Michael Hutchence's character's girlfriend has been buried (she died of a heroin overdose), we're treated to "Rooms For The Memory," a track written and performed by Ollie Olsen, and sung by Hutchence. This collaboration would result in a short-lived side-project called Max Q – which almost broke up INXS, seeing as Hutchence did the recording behind his band's back.

And last but not least, here's "Endless Sea" by Iggy Pop. Now, I know he's not Australian. However, that being said, this song – which plays in the background while Saskia Post's character has her fatal overdose – so completely works in the movie, I just had to include it. And there you go, as I leave you with Iggy. Have a fantastic Australia Day, people.

Man of Colours.

Well, it's a lovely Wednesday morning, and what should pop up on my playlist but "Man of Colours" by Icehouse? Taken from the 1987 album of the same name, I really have to admit that this track is a quintessential example of what can make Icehouse such a special band. "Man of Colours" tells the story of an old man in an upstairs room painting vignettes from his life and examining them with a mixture of pain and pride. The album itself, Icehouse's fifth release, also contains gems such as "Kingdom," a magical examination of a woman coming to peace with herself, "Sunrise," a scorching anti-war statement of epic proportion, and then, livening things up a bit, the biggest hit of Icehouse's existence, "Crazy," which is, quite frankly, a fun love song.


I'd mentioned before that Iva Davies was an accomplished oboe player - and on "Man of Colours," there he is, playing it to his heart's content. It's a mournful sound, laid over an achingly beautiful synth and a deceptively simple drum beat. It soars - it reminds me, in a way, of the sensation of flying through clouds. Towards the end, when Davies practically cries the lyric "And I can see, see through these tears, tears of a man, a man of colours," it nearly breaks my heart. And what's really nifty about the video for the song is that Iva Davies' father himself is the star, the old man upstairs. It's simply gorgeous.


With no further ado, here's "Man of Colours."

icehouse

"man of colours"

man of colours

And, while there's no video for it, per se, here's the anti-war track "Sunrise." Listen for Davie's anguished scream towards the end as the crashing cymbals signify the end of all that's good in the world. "You'll never see the faces of the fishermen, but you may see their shadows burned against the wall." Damn, Iva - intense.

icehouse

"sunrise"

man of colours

This Is International Gay Ally Week.

Did you know that gay, lesbian, and transgendered teenagers are up to four times likelier to commit suicide than their straight peers? This fact, alongside the recent suicides of bullied and harassed teens Justin Aaberg, Tyler Clementi, Seth Walsh, Asher Brown, Billy Lucas, Harrison Brown, Raymond Chase, Felix Sacco, and Caleb Nolt, goes to show how hopeless it must seem for a gay kid in school (which is a pretty dreadful time of anybody's life, regardless). Luckily, there is now the glimmer of hope -- thanks to Dan Savage, America's favorite (most certainly mine) sex columnist, and the youth members of the Gay Lesbian & Straight Education Network (GLESN) National JumpStart Student Leadership Team (whew!). Dan Savage, because of his founding of the "It Gets Better" Project - in which prominent gays and lesbians record videos in which they explain to impressionable gay teens that life does, in fact, "get better." Dan and his husband Terry, Hilary Clinton, President Obama, Jake Shears of Scissor Sisters, and the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence (amongst many, many others) have all recorded videos for the Project; they're all must-sees if you're young, scared, and feel that your life isn't worth anything. Please, it does get better. As "Vinegar Joe" Stilwell once said, "Don't Let The Bastards Grind You Down."


You know a song that perfectly encapsulates the feeling these young gays and lesbians must be going through? "Hideaway" by Erasure. From their 1987 album The Circus, this touching and honest song tells the tale of a young boy who's come out to his family and everything goes pear-shaped. Andy Bell's voice as he exhorts the young lad to not "be afraid; learn to be brave" still has the power to send shivers up one's spine.

erasure

"hideaway"

the circus

So, how about being an ally? If you know a young gay or lesbian who's having a rough time of it, how about listening to them and giving them an idea of "it gets better"? If you see bullying going on, how about stepping in and stopping it? If you are a young gay or lesbian, how about going to a trusted adult and letting them know how you feel? Every life is important; we can't go on losing young lives because of the shit-storm of school bullying. We can do better in protecting them. Give them an atmosphere of love, respect, and alliance; it's the least we can do. Cheers, love you all.

Wax Trax!: Front 242.

Taking their name from a United Nations resolution asking (not very successfully, I must say) Israel to withdraw from the Palestine territories, Aschott, Belgium-based industrial juggernaut Front 242 pushed the boundaries of the electronic scene of the early 80's with a phenomenal output of such luminous LPs such as Geography (1982), No Comment (1984), Official Version (1987), and what was to be their biggest seller of all, Front By Front (1988). They were also amongst the first bands to have been signed to Wax Trax! Records, an independent label based out of Chicago, IL. 

Wax Trax!, which began its life as a small record shop in Denver, Colorado before moving to its location at 2449 N. Lincoln Avenue, Chicago, IL 60614, began to make the transition from shop to label with the release of Ministry's Cold Play 12" (WAX 003) and the licensing of Front 242's Endless Riddance EP (WAX 004) - becoming, in short order, the United States' leading source of intriguing and innovative industrial and electronic music. Bands such as My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult, Revolting Cocks, 1000 Homo DJ's, PIG, KMFDM, Front Line Assembly, and Laibach joined the party, and a good time was had by all.

Sadly, Wax Trax! had to file for bankruptcy protection in 1992, and was subsequently purchased by New York-based label TVT Records. The two founders of Wax Trax!, Jim Nash and Dannie Flesher, are both deceased now, as well - Nash from AIDS-related causes in 1995, and Flesher from pneumonia in January of this year, 2010.

So for the next few days, I will be devoting this blog to musicians, acts, singles, and concert performances from that venerable purveyor of delectable music, the one and only Wax Trax! Records! Enjoy.

I will begin with Front 242. I raise a glass of the finest Belgian beer in your general directions, Jean-Luc De Meyer, Daniel Bressanutti, Patrick Codenys, and Richard 23. Thank you for your contributions to the world of electronic music!

front 242

"masterhit parts 1 + 2"

official version

Happy Hump Day!

picture: bonobos.com

Well hello there, people. It's Wednesday, which means that it's officially Hump Day. Yep, we're officially past the half-way mark to the next weekend - so bully for us! We here at the Second Drawer Up corral would like to take a moment to celebrate this ridiculously named moment in time and honor it the only way we really know how - with electronic music, of course! And look - we brought some sexy! Get it? Hump; sex? Haha, we're clever little bonobos, and on this day of the Norse god Odin (also known as Woden or Woten), we're going to share with you a couple of songs you may or may not be aware of that have to do with ... you guessed it, sex.

Roll that beautiful sex footage!

First up in our day's roster is an interesting little piece called "People Are Still Having Sex," by LaTour. Recorded in 1991 by William "Bud" LaTour, a successful voice-over actor, electronica artist and parody musician from Lowell, Massachusetts, this clever and rather catchy number was essentially a call for sanity during a period of time where AIDS was being used as a political tool by conservative fuckwits who wanted to press an agenda of abstinence (sound familiar?). The message then was the same as it is now: Abstinence education doesn't work, people. But the song? Pretty damn clever. Favorite spoken-word lyric: "When you see them holding hands, they're making future plans to engage in the activity - do you understand?" And here it is:

Second on our scintillating list is "Mystery Babylon" from My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult. Taken from the Chicago, Illinois industrial collective's 1991 album Sexplosion!, this is a sprawling and deviously subversive piece, with its lilting jazzy piano, horns, and a distinctive Zydeco-influenced vest frottoir running throughout whilst a singsong-y chorus with breathy female voices goes on about sexual providence and passion. The song is interwoven with a running spoken conversation between a horny john and a couple of hookers. Best exchange: "What goes for ten dollars?" "Well, whaddaya want for ten dollars?" "I want something different, I want something special." "Ah no, honey, not for ten bucks."

Last and thirdly on our triptych of hanky panky is a song that just about every human being on the planet has probably heard at least once - but man, what a great freaking song it is. I'm speaking, of course, of "Strangelove" by the one and only Depeche Mode. Martin Gore's synth anthem to BDSM after spending a huge amount of time in Berlin's leather clubs and bars is just as cheeky, playful, and brilliant now as it was back in 1987 when it was released as the first single of their monumental album Music For The Masses. Sadly, WMG are being fucking pricks and have disabled embedding on all their videos (the kick-ass Anton Corbijn version is what I would have liked to have shown you, but oh well), so here's Dave, Martin, Andrew, and Alan "performing" "Strangelove" on a German television show in 1987. Enjoy!

So there you have it, pleasant and loyal readers. Happy Hump Day - and may all your ups and downs take place in your bed of choice. Ciao!