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

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robert smith - voice + guitar

simon gallup - bass

jason cooper - drums

seventeen seconds

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robert smith - voice + guitar

simon gallup - bass

jason cooper - drums

roger o'donnell - keyboards

faith

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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.

Gary Numan Is Visiting OZ.

Ladies and gentlemen, it is with great pleasure today that I announce the dates for Gary Numan's 2011 Australian tour. Yes, the man who helped pioneer electronic music into what it is today is bringing his The Pleasure Principle Tour down under – and you know what that means. You got it – Numan will be performing his 1979 masterpiece The Pleasure Principle in its entirety, plus a special encore with selections from his entire career, from albums such as Replicas and Telekon through to Pure, Jagged, and the soon-to-be-released Splinter. So! Excited yet? As if that weren't enough, Sydney "Aus-electro" masters Severed Heads have been tapped to be the supporting act! How fucking awesome is that?


Here, for your reference, are the dates of his Australia/New Zealand tour. Please note that Severed Heads will not be performing at the Perth and Auckland shows.

12 MAY 2011 – BRISBANE – THE TIVOLI

13 MAY 2011 – SYDNEY – ENMORE THEATRE

14 MAY 2011 – MELBOURNE – FORUM THEATRE

16 MAY 2011 – ADELAIDE – HQ

17 MAY 2011 – PERTH – ASTOR THEATRE

21 MAY 2011 – AUCKLAND – AUCKLAND TOWN HALL

And, if you click here and subscribe to Red Ant Touring, who's promoting the tour, you can get yourself two free Gary Numan downloads, and three free Severed Heads downloads! So, you know, go and do it, already.

See you there, kids. Stay well, and talk to you later! From 1979's Replicas, with Tubeway Army, here is Gary Numan at the Old Grey Whistle Test in London performing "Are Friends Electric?". You can be sure this is going to be huge live. Cheers!

News From Röyksopp.

Norwegian duo and perennial Second Drawer Up favourites Röyksopp have, a few months after the stealthy release of their fourth studio album Senior, finally announced their dates for the United States and Canada on their 2011 tour. And here they are:

Friday 18th March : Toronto, The Guvernment

Saturday 19th March : Montréal, Club Soda

Monday 21st March : New York City, Webster Hall

Wednesday 23rd March : Washington, DC, 9:30 Club

Thursday 24th March : Atlanta, Masquerade

Friday 25th March : Miami, Ultra Music Festival

So there you have it! True, it doesn't seem to be much of a stay in North America (and they're not visiting San Francisco??? Crazy!), but you know how these things work -- at some point they'll add dates, and (almost) everybody will be happy. I recommend visiting their site often and checking out the news ... things do change. Before I sign off on this lovely Friday morning, I'd like to ask you guys: Have you heard Senior yet? I'm listening to it right now, and it's a lovely, lovely piece of electronic work. When Torbjörn Brundtland and Svein Berge announced the followup to 2009's exuberant Junior, they stated that whilst Junior had an "emphasis on vocals, accessible melodies, and harmonies," Senior, they promised, would be the "introverted, dwelling, and sometimes graceful counterpart." 

And how! Flowing nearly seamlessly over nine tracks and 48 minutes, this entirely instrumental work shines with a languid and chill-out beauty. Hypnotic, meandering, and in no hurry, Senior would make a fantastic soundtrack to an imaginary sci-fi spaghetti Western film with lots of dramatic silences and speculative ennui. Think of the best work of Angelo Badalamenti and Ennio Morricone (especially on the aptly titled "Forsaken Cowboy") run through a trance-y filter of smooth and haltingly gorgeous synths, and you might be close. This record is one for a nice night in -- light some candles, pour some champagne, snuggle up with that special someone on a sofa and gaze deep in their eyes ... yeah, you get the picture. I'd like to play for you now a special track off of Senior. Here is "The Drug."

röyksopp

"the drug"

senior

Live On DVD! Depeche Mode.

Hey kids! Look what's out now at your favourite music/movie purveyor! It's the new Depeche Mode live DVD - "Tour of the Universe : Barcelona 20/21.11.09." I can't wait to get it - my girlfriend and I went and saw the show at the O2 Arena in London this last 15th of December, and it was bloody fantastic. Everything worked - the lights were engaging and colourful, the stage setup was fascinating, the video projections were nothing short of awe-inspiring, and David and Martin's voices were at their peak. I can totally say, without fear of self-contradiction, that this concert film is going to fucking rock. Get it, get it, get it.


Here is Depeche Mode performing "Personal Jesus" from that very same concert. Jesus (haha), can I say it rocks? Yes it does. It rocks. Hard. And then some.

Just Feel Like Some Kylie.

While I won't go so far as to call Kylie Minogue a guilty pleasure or anything that resembles in part a back-handed complement (really, what is a "guilty pleasure" anyway? If it makes you feel good, then just go out and fucking enjoy it without feeling guilty, already), I've got to admit that as far as music that's just flat-out fun goes, you really can't go wrong with Kylie. The pint-sized pop star is the perfect package for tunes that you really can't listen to without sporting a grin on your face. Her songs are catchy, perky, classy, cheerful, and are chockfull of an absolutely hummable energy -- it will get your ass out on the dance floor in a quick, and get you moving!


Last year, I had the opportunity to catch this glimmering princess on her first ever tour of the United States at the stately Fox Theatre in Oakland with my friends Lynn, Kimon, Andrei, and Summer. Imagine my surprise at the very beginning of the show when Kylie, descending on the stage perched on a gigantic mirrored skull, was accompanied by the ethereal countdown of my favourite Kylie track of all time, "Light Years" -- "Ten, nine, eight, seven ..." -- and the crowd went absolutely fucking apeshit. And for good reason. There's everything to love about this Australian chanteuse, and I will never forget the vibe in that theatre last year whilst Kylie and her dancers cavorted on stage in a flurry of fuzzy lasers, amazing technological effects, and a stage design that the handlers of wannabes such as Lady Gaga and Madonna can only dream of. And she's beautiful, on top of all that.


She's Kylie. And she's awesome.


Here she is in 2002 during her Fever2002 Tour in Melbourne, Australia. Nice splice of "Light Years" and "I Feel Love," that's for sure. Enjoy!

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

Gary Numan - Rescheduled.

It was a sad day for Gary Numan fans in North America last April when he had to postpone the United States leg of his The Pleasure Principle tour as a result of the spewing ash propelled by Iceland's temperamental Eyjafyallajökull volcano, wasn't it? Yes, it was indeed!

Luckily, he's officially come through with his rescheduling promise and, on top of that, he's expanded the original scope and will now be hitting fourteen cities, instead of the original two (plus Coachella) he had originally planned on. Rock on, Mr Numan, rock on.

Is your city on the list? Look below at the new and expanded dates of the 2010 The Pleasure Principle Tour of North America.

Oct 17. Orlando. The Club at Firestone 578 N. Orange Ave. Orlando. FL 32801 Tickets $20 Advance. $25 on the door.Oct 18. Atlanta. The Masquerade 695 North Ave. NE Atlanta. GA 30308 Tickets $25 Advance. $28 on the door. Oct 20. Washington DC. Black Cat 1811 14th St. NW Washington. DC 20009 Tickets $25 Oct 21. Philadelphia. The Trocadero 1003 Arch St. Philadelphia. PA 19107 Tickets $24 Advance. $26 on the door. **With support: Emillie Autumn** Oct 22. Boston. Paradise Rock Club 967 Commonwealth Ave. Boston. MA 02215 Tickets $25 Oct 23. New York City. Nokia Theatre 1515 Broadway @ W44th St. New York. NY 10036 Tickets $27.50 Advance. $29 on the door. **With support: Emillie Autumn** Oct 24. Toronto. Opera House 735 Queen St. East Toronto. ON. M4M 1H1 Tickets $27.50 Advance. $30 on the door. Oct 25. Detroit. Majestic Theatre 4120 Woodward Ave. Detroit. MI 48201-2027 Tickets $25 Advance. $28 on the door. Oct 26. Chicago. Metro 3730 North Clark. Chicago. IL 60613 Tickets $25 Oct 28. Denver. Gothic Theatre 3263 S Broadway Englewood. Denver CO 80113 - 2425 Tickets $23.50 Advance. $28.50 on the door. Oct 31. Seattle. Neumo's 925 East Pike St. Seattle. WA 98122 Tickets $23 Advance. $25 on the door. Nov 1. Portland. Roseland Theater 8 Northwest 6th Ave. Portland. OR 97209 - 3607 Tickets $25 Advance. $30 on the door. Nov 2. San Francisco. The Fillmore 1805 Geary Blvd. San Francisco. CA 94115 Tickets $27.50 Nov 3. Los Angeles. El Rey Theatre 5515 Wilshire Blvd. Los Angeles. CA 90036 Tickets $33 Nov 4. Los Angeles. El Rey Theatre 5515 Wilshire Blvd. Los Angeles. CA 90036 Tickets $33

So, there you have it! If you get a chance to attend, then I would highly recommend doing so. He doesn't tour all that often, and he puts on one hell of a show. He's Gary freaking Numan, for crying out loud!

And it's The Pleasure Principle in its entirety. You gotta admit, even if you're not especially a fan of synth-pop, this is a damn fine album. Anyway, for your amusement this first of July, here's a taste. This is Gary performing "M.e" from the aforementioned album at the Wembley Arena in 1981. I think, after thirty years, it's going to sound even better! (Not to mention it's my favorite track from TPP.)

I Nearly Married A Human: Gary Numan Live!

One unfortunate result of Icelandic volcano Eyjafyallajökull blowing its top and stranding thousands upon thousands of travelers was that Gary Numan -- he of "Cars" and "Are Friends Electric?" fame and noted idol of The Mighty Boosh's Vince Noir -- found himself stranded in the UK on the eve of his United States "mini-tour" touching down at the Coachella Festival and two shows in Los Angeles and San Francisco, performing his masterpiece The Pleasure Principle in its entirety, natch. In a heart-felt apology on his webpage, Numan mentions re-scheduling the Los Angeles and San Francisco shows in September this year, which is good news so hold on to those tickets if you got 'em, 'cos they'll be honoured at the rescheduled events. Also, he states, "we hope to make that September tour a much bigger affair than the three shows we had in place this time."

So that's good news. Can't wait to see you, Gary. On a related note, did you know that Gary Numan is a registered pilot? Now you do!

In 2008, Gary Numan launched a tour (though not of the United States) featuring the performance of Replicas in its entirety. I had a chance to see it at the IndigO2 Arena when I was in London, but sadly the Silver Jubilee Line was down, and there was no conceivable way to make it that far from West Hampstead. Luckily, cameras were present on the tour (professional ones!) and filmed the whole damn thing.

From Gary Numan's 2008 Replicas Tour, here is the man himself performing one of the strongest tracks off of the album, "I Nearly Married A Human." Enjoy, my friends!

Jet-Lagged And Ready For Bed.

Hey there, boys and girls! I've just returned home from across the pond, and as a result I've got some hunger and sleepy-time issues. As a result, I will get back to you all sometime tomorrow with more electronic music goodies and all that nonesuch that is becoming a mainstay here at my humble site. I'll even throw in some little slices of life that I came across during my time in London Town that may (or may not) be pertinent! We'll see.

But don't worry - I'm not going to leave you all completely empty-handed. While I head off into the overcast and drizzly streets of San Francisco in search of sustenance (I'm currently leaning toward mac and cheese ... mmm, yum), I'm going to give you a Ladytron redux, because that's the kind of guy I am. I was just remembering having seen them perform for Velocifero at the Fillmore, and what an amazing experience it was! So I'd like to let you chew on their live performance of "Ghosts" at the FORWARD Festival in 2008. Everybody enjoy the rest of your Sunday, and peace out.