The return of The Presets.

Posted by Adem on Aug 6, 2012 in Australian Pop, Modular Love | 0 comments

The Presets are gearing up for the release of their third studio album Pacifica – their first since 2008′s phenomenally huge Apocalypso – with the release of a new single entitled “Ghosts.” So far we’ve had two very different slices of electronic music from the Sydney duo.  The first track, the bonkers “Youth In Trouble”, is a hyperactive 1990′s rave-up that wouldn’t sound out of place amongst a playlist of Underworld’s greatest hits or Rollo & Sister Bliss remixes. It’s been a long time since dance music on a Global Scale has been executed as well “Youth In Trouble.”  If you’ve yet to hear the track be patient, the production makes you work hard for your climactic rewards but once you’re there you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about.

From the massive, stadium-ready rave-build-up’s to the complete acid house production throwdown, this six and a half minute club romper is exactly the kind of rave I want to hear in 2012 and is exactly the kind of rave radio had no idea it would be forced to once again slot into their watered-down commercial radio formats. “Youth In Trouble” peaks (ho ho!) and reaches ultimate-rave climax in its final 90 seconds and has left me panting for more since its arrival in June. The anticipation has just gotten itself thicker, too.

The stark in contrast “Ghosts” is the complete opposite of a rave-up and sees Julian’s vocals teeter into Chris Martin territory - not a bad thing, particularly when you take into effect how solid Martin’s vocals actually sound backdropped against sledge-hammering basslines. But with “Ghosts” the band have really stepped out of the soundscapes they’re familiar with, providing a mid-tempo gallop complete with tinges of Blackbox and the KLF. This may not be the radio-ready anthem the commercial FM networks were hoping for from the boys but there’s definitely a lot more commercially viable about “Ghosts” than there is in “Youth In Trouble.”

 PACIFICA is released through Modular Records on September the 7th, 2012.

My interview with Muscles.

Posted by Adem on Oct 13, 2010 in Modular Love, Muscles | 2 comments

It’s been over two years since Muscles released his debut album “Guns, Babes, Lemonade.” It’s also been two years – almost to the day – since Muscles and his record-label, Modular, had appeared to be publicly tiffing with one another.  As someone that had interviewed Muscles twice before and actually spoken face to face with him on a couple of occasions – and him  being  an absolute gentlemen every time – all of this had happened  and I remember hoping he’d come through on the other end with an amazing follow up, that everything would sort itself out with the label and we could all go back to wanting to have his babies. And brilliantly, that’s exactly what’s happened.

“Is that Adem with an E?” I hear Muscles’ voice beam down the phone to me. “Long time no see man! Glad to be chatting to you!” And I too, Muscles, am glad to be chatting to you again.

Like a proper pop-music triumph, the Muscles comeback is in full swing. The first single to be lifted off his new EP is the powerfully fun “Girl Crazy Go”, a more solid and progressive approach to the technological bleeps and knob-fiddling we got on his debut record. The irony, however, is that the new material shows obvious growth for Muscles as an artist, yet bears the title of “Younger and Immature.”

“Well I kind of felt, it has been two years since I’ve been touring and releasing singles,” he says, “and over the last two years I’ve written a lot of songs, I felt there was a little bit of unfinished business. The first track on the EP is called “Forever”, and the lyrics are “I hope you know that I’m not gonna be around forever.” You know, what if I stop making music, that kind of thing. I actually made the track “Forever” before anything on GunsBabesLemonade, but I couldn’t come up with a second chorus so I had to leave it out. But then I was going through all of these half-finished songs, went back to it and wrote that second chorus. And now it’s going to the first song people hear when they get the EP.”

Explaining the EP’s opener as sounding like “Mario Galaxy”, Muscles collated all of his songs together and found a holy grail of five that worked as a package. “I had all these songs, and these five songs just made a really good mini album. I just feel like I needed a bridge between the old… [pauses, before adding with a laugh] Well, I can’t say old, Adem, because [Guns, Babes, Lemonade] is a timeless album! But I needed that bridge between the first album and the forthcoming one.”

The new EP has been dubbed as being a ‘middle finger to the nay-sayers, and a love-letter to the fans.’ This is the first time Muscles has heard about this though. “It says that in the press pack? Oh really? Does it say that? (Laughter ensues) Sorry I didn’t even know. There’s so many different press pieces out there; I need to find out who wrote that. Actually, I wrote that. Yup, I’ll claim that!”

The EP’s been ready for six months. Muscles has been playing it in his car, just waiting to get it out there. “I just can’t wait for this new EP and the song to come out, and for people to listen to it,” he enthuses. “I really wanted to go down a different direction, there’s a lot of guys doing disco-ey stuff and I thought, you know what, I’m gonna do a Techno-ey song with a lot of powerful and strong drums.”

Anyone thinking the EP is just carbon copies of lead single “Girl Crazy Go” though will be pleasantly surprised. “This EP, every track is very different. They don’t all sound like “Girl Crazy Go” and I think people might expect that. With the first album, every track kind of had its own different production style, its different beats, and just over the last couple of years I’ve been honing in on my skills as a producer, and on the piano… I actually learnt drums for five years, so working on a lot of percussion stuff as well for the new songs. I’m just really excited!”

When you pre-order the EP from JB HiFi, you’re pretty much guaranteeing yourself a totally unique greeting, personally signed by Muscles. “I’m actually signing each copy individually, yeah,” he says. “They’re all gonna be unique too. I gotta come up with… a couple of hundred different greetings though (laughs). Maybe I can go to Google Translate for a few of them!”

I start questioning Muscles about the forthcoming album, and when it will actually be that we’ll get to hear it.  But we might get to hear something else even before that. “There’s another EP which may come out, but if it doesn’t come out it’ll be apart of the album. I think I said in the past I wanted to call my next album “Manhood”, that wasn’t confirmed or anything, it was just me rambling or Twittering (laughs), but with the title, I just feel like I’m growing… younger? The more that I don’t think, the more the song will come out y’know. The other EP is called “Older & Wiser”, and then “Manhood” was supposed to come out, but we’ll see how it all pans out. I think, with this album, I’ve approached it like a band would; you go and write 15 or 20 songs, then go to the studio and record them over three months or something. So I wrote all the songs, wrote all the productions and then went, okay; off to the studio. Whereas with the first album it was very much just me experimenting and finding my own sound. [The album will get a release] probably next year, maybe July or August? Nothing set in stone yet, but that’s the time I’d like it to come out.”

And then there is that timeless classic, the debut – what does Muscles think of it now, two years on? On a monthly basis, at least once, he’ll listen back to the record, “just to remind myself of what I’ve done I guess, and I think you can still listen to it and now and still enjoy it. When it came out I wasn’t really copying any other bands, I came out as my own, and with the singing voice that I have, it’s very different to what’s on the radio at the moment. I listen to the radio a lot actually and then just write songs that I wish there were more of on there.”

A big pop fan, Muscles has everyone from Ke$ha to Robyn, M.I.A to Underworld, all filling up his iPod. But what about GaGa? “Oh yeah, I was listening to her two years ago (laughs). Will be exciting to see what she does next though, definitely.”

So it’s the obvious tag the media will use when talking about the new material – but does Muscles actually think of this is a comeback too? “I think I’ve said a few times actually!” he says with a laugh. “The first EP is kind of; BANG, Muscles is back, and the new live show is completely different to the old ones. Might be playing a bit of guitar on stage and a few other gadgets… going all out!”

Toward the end of our interview, Muscles starts to tell me about his goals for the future, or rather a taster of them. “I’ve spent the last two years kind of thinking, okay – what am I going to do from now? And then in the last year I’ve been thinking – okay, what are you going to do over the next 10 years? Coming up with ideas for my second, third and fourth album. As a storyteller, how I want to unfold the songs. That’s what I want to do.”

PRE-ORDER YOUR SIGNED COPY OF “YOUNGER & IMMATURE” FROM JB-HIFI NOW.

An edited version of this interview was originally printed as the cover story for Tsunami and Forte Magazines.

Housekeeping.

Posted by Adem on Mar 12, 2010 in Cassette Kids, Cheryl Cole, Girls Aloud, Hitz FM, Lady Gaga, Modular Love, Rogue Traders, Sugababes | 3 comments

There are so many musical thoughts that end up on Twitter that, if I weren’t so lazy, could probably be extended into slightly longer paragraphs on the blog. I caught myself spending too much time on Twitter again this week when I could have been blogging. NO MORE!

There are things I really want to talk about, like the new Sophie Ellis-Bextor Song of the Year “Bittersweet”, or the amazing new album from Delphic (among other things I’ve got almost ready to go), but in the meantime, there’s all of this that’s going through my head.

The new Groove Armada album “Black Light” is quite rapidly going from being a three-and-a-half-star album to a near five-star one. It seems to be the most consistent album from them to date; “Look Me In The Eye Sister” is like 60′s psychedelia meets trance, “I Won’t Kneel” featuring SaintSaviour is one of their best singles so far, and Will Young (who’s still looking mighty fine and was tops in Skins, wasn’t he?) collaboration “History” and the Fenech Sole “Paper Romance” are actually perfect, aren’t they? Top stuff, I should do a proper review of it soon actually.

The debut Cassette Kids album is also incredible and, I think, will surprise a few of their doubters. Quality from start to finish, review and A NEW interview with the guys coming soon. Also, the new Rogue Traders single “Would You Raise Your Hands?” goes to radio tomorrow morning from 7AM – you’ll finally all get to hear what I’ve been banging on about for so long. It’s tops, can’t wait for everyone else to be in love with it too.

Telephone tomorrow. OMG…

The new MGMT single song abortion is so all over the place that I barely got through the whole thing. 4 minutes and 16 seconds should not feel like a really disjointed 40 minute megamix gone horribly wrong. It’s like they had 10 really good (unfinished) ideas for some great songs, and just put it all together in one. Disappointing. Make your own judgements on it though, it’s available – legally – for free over here.

The same goes for the brand new Princess Superstar single, “Ground Control.” I have a really big gripe with people whispering; it’s not a pretty sound but can be carried off quite well in very small doses in some pop songs. Every verse in this however is whispered. It grates so much that you’re just waiting eagerly for the chorus, but then – of course – it really doesn’t feel like it was worth the wait al all. And the wait has been five years for new material from this lady. It’s really upsetting because I have loved EVERYTHING she’s done in the past and not just the highly underrated “My Machine” LP from 2005. She’s an incredible entertainer live and has the smarts to pen a perfect song. Unfortunately, this is far from perfect, but I’m hoping there’s a lot more to her upcoming album “The Next Evolution” than this insinuates. Also being offered as a free download on her MySpace, if you’re interested. Immediately after you hear it for yourself, listen to this, or this, and tell me that I’m not disappointed for a reason. She doesn’t need to make an electro-fused record for me to be happy, it just needs to be good.

The new Sugababes album, “Shit 7″… I don’t think I need to say any more actually.

Blog-commenter J responded to my Ke$ha/3OH!NO remark on last weeks eTunes post by offering a link to a Ke$ha-only, 3OH-FREE version of “Blah Blah Blah.” Thank GOD. Find it here… Thanks J!

There’s a lot going on at the moment in regards to the closure of BBC’s 6 Music radio station, and whilst I’m not going to even attempt to talk about (Popjustice have done a pretty good job of that, here, here and here), it reminded me a little of the near-10-year battle Hitz FM suffered through when it was running for a full time license in Melbourne between the years of 1992 and 2001. You can read more about the station (which was never granted that full time broadcasting license) here, it pretty much cemented my passion for dance music and radio during my ‘formative years’ and the uproar being caused RE: the 6 Music closure has just brought all of those incredible, but now somewhat upsetting, memories back.

Cheryl Tweedy chose her words incorrectly during an International TV appearance and scared the shit out of hundreds of millions of their fans. It’s all been cleared up now (Cheryl’s NOT leaving Girls Aloud, nor has she left), but I really feel like we’ve gotten to a point where I almost couldn’t care less about any more Cheryl material OR Nadine’s new album because it’s all just getting in the way of having my 2010 Album of the Year picked out for me in the form of a Girls Aloud release. Bitches I am OVER this shit.

It’s been 10 years since The Avalanches released their debut album “Since I Left You”. Preposterous. Get on with it boys, who do you think you are, Kate Bush? If only it had been a 10 year wait in between Wolfmother albums… Aah yes, what a simpler world it would be.

A good old fashioned megamix.

Posted by Adem on Jun 17, 2009 in Free Shit, Modular Love, MP3 | 0 comments

Oh look; it’s a Bang Gang Deejays Megamix of sorts. Tracklisting.

Download.

“Fucking Amazing.”

Some Photography.

Posted by Adem on Jun 6, 2009 in Australian Pop, Modular Love, Van She | 4 comments

Here are some nice new pictures of Van She.

Whoever photoshopped the last one forgot to put the eyes back in. WHAT WERE THEY THINKING.

Van She have got an exciting new thing coming out next week you may have heard about, and chances are I’ll have something to say about that soon.

Meanwhile, here is a picture of Nicole Scherzinger as The Worlds Greatest Monster™, Diana Ross.

As you were.

Interview: Michael Van She.

Posted by Adem on Feb 23, 2009 in Australian Pop, Ladyhawke, Modular Love, Pop News, Van She | 7 comments

On Saturday night I spoke with Van She and Van She Tech‘s Michael Di Francesco on the old telephone line, and below are the transcribed results from that discussion. There’s a lot of juicy stuff revealed during our chat, including a scoop (!!!) on the UK release of the album; there’s something different being added, a tentative release time-frame for album number 2 (which they’re currently working on), but also, a lot of uncovered stuff regarding the bands remix project, Van She Tech. Are the remixes labeled Van She Remix and not Van She Tech Remix labelled incorrectly? Is it true Van She Tech were going to change their name to Arithmatix!? Are there actually 2 girls involved in the Van She Tech project or not? Were the boys even supposed to be publicly credited for their work on Rhys‘ debut single “Hot Summer”? Are they possibly heading out on tour with a certain cat-and-dog-loving (hem hem) Ladyhawke?

All is revealed below.

If you end up reporting any of this on your website/blog/whatever, please credit back to this interview. Cheers, and hope you enjoy.

Hello…
Adem!

Hey man, how are you today?
Today I’m good. I’ve spent all day in the QANTAS lounge in Adelaide [airport] this morning, then to Sydney for a couple of hours, and now we’re in Canberra.

Oh my.
Yeah, we played a Nova showcase last night in Adelaide and tonight we’re DJing in Canberra.

Always busy, you boys. So, I’m going to ask the question I’ve had people demand I ask you right off the top of the interview; are you guys working on new material for album number 2 yet or not?
Yes. We’ve started, it’s funny coz we’ve got a timeline happening, and a lot of this year is devoted to writing, the later half of the year recording, and hopefully release early next year.

Ah hurrah! So the good folk reading at home aren’t going to have to wait as long this time around?
Nope, no, nowhere near as long. And at the moment we’re doing a, kind of special party mix version of the [first] album. Which has the techno. We’re remixing a lot of the tracks.

Hey that’s cool.
Yeah. So you’re the first person who knows that, no one knows that yet. I’m not even sure I’m meant to tell you, but I’ve told you so (laughs), it’s a scoop! It’s for the overseas release, in conjunction with the album there’ll also be the remix album. But we’re not remixing all of the tracks.

Oh so just a few of them?
Yeah about five or six, something like that.

In regards to that first album, was it a little bit frustrating, having to push the album release date back so many times?
Um, yeah, yes and no, but once it’s out you just kind of forget about all of that. At the time it’s frustrating but these things happen for a reason, and it has to fit in with schedules.

You’ve had really positive feedback from UK radio for “Cat & The Eye” – the albums finally getting a release this year over there, yes?
That’s correct. And we’re maybe going over there later in the year to do a tour with Ladyhawke.

Oh brilliant.
Yep, all in between recording and writing. Which we’re all very excited about. And last night we did this gig and we were all, oh, we need to start playing new material. I mean, we’ve been playing the same songs for so long, what a lot of people don’t realise is that, even before a lot of those songs came out and were released on the album, we were playing them. Because we only really had four songs that people knew. So we started playing the newer tracks to keep with a 45 minutes set (laughs). And we’re kind of known for finishing a set in less than that time (laughs again), we have a habit of finishing quicker than we’re supposed to for that exact reason.

This is all incredibly exciting.
Yeah absolutely, and yeah, wait, what was the question again?

(Rapturous Laughter prevents me from repeating the question)
(Rapturous Laughter) Ahh yes, the UK release. Yeah, we’re very happy about that (laughs again.)

So over the last 12 months the band were virtually living out of suitcases, moreso than usual. Show after show, flight after flight… is it easy to lose the motivation or the will to perform at any point?
Ahhh, yeah, definitely it is (laughs). It’s more the situations and, the things that are happening around you that can affect and influence your motivation. Along with tiredness. I mean, there’s nothing worse than getting up in an aeroplane, and not having breathed a breath of fresh air for however many hours, then having to go straight to a soundcheck and then go straight to dinner. I mean, it’s fun, and we’re doing what we love, but at the end of the day it’s still work, and we are serious about it. You have a duty to perform and to do your best, so even if you have had a shit day you have to pull it out.

Do you think, in our current music climate, that the touring is just as important as the CD releases?
I dare to say No. With the climate as it is you can be in multiple places at once with the Internet, but at the same time… I don’t know, there are many sides to that argument, but I really think we all don’t want to do a show unless it’s worth it.

I wanted to clear something up about the remixes you guys do… Now, if any remixes are titled as ‘Van She Remix’ rather than ‘Van She Tech Remix’, is it safe to say they’ve just been incorrectly labeled?
Yeah yeah. But, we’ve been kind of been pushing the more ‘Van She’, either or, it’s kind of up to whoever’s commissioning the works discretion. It happens all the time, we get a remix request for a Van She Remix or a Van She Tech Remix, it really makes no difference to the process. If anything it’s better, because it’s more focused on the band.

So that’s still just yourself and Nick doing the remixes?
Yep, yep.

Do you pay much attention about what’s written about you guys on the internet?
There have been a couple of times when I’ve been bored, and I’ve gone on to read stuff, but I just find myself getting… angry (laughs). I dunno, occasionally I’ll get on, and everyone has an opinion and everyone is tough. I don’t really take it too much to heart, but it is what it is.

There’s a group of people online who seem to think the Van She Tech remixes are better than the Van She originals… has that ever worried you at all?
Um… I haven’t read any of that stuff. Does that upset me?

Yeah.
Um… no, it just kind of reaffirms how we perceive what we are doing, and how we kind of… I think that the way the album is, it’s a knee-jerk reaction to the remixes. We kind of felt we were doing all this techno, and we felt that the band needs to be… bandy. Or Indie. It’s like… chasing the Indie dream. We’re all comfortable with electronic music and techno, and I think that the next album will incorporate more of that in what we do. Nah, it doesn’t really [upset me]. I still think the songs are good whether they have a disco beat behind it or not (laughs). I mean, if we didn’t think any of the songs weren’t good, we wouldn’t have put them on the record. Obviously some people like the techno more than they like the band, and others like the band more, or other people have no idea about the band or the techno. I think it probably can get quite confusing for people (laughs), but we enjoy doing both. But that’s another reason why we’re doing the remix package for overseas, so that people don’t get confused.

What has stood out for you as the best remix you guys have done?
It’s funny, one of my favourite ones is the Dragonette dub, I’m not even sure if it’s out, or sure if it was included on the release of that track…

It’s on the promo CD for the single…
Oh okay. Well, we sent off the original remix, and then got a message back asking if we could do a dub, without the vocals. So, anyway, in a couple of hours we just did a completely different track with a little bit of vocal in it and it ended up being so much cooler, we kinda wished we had’ve made that the remix. That’s probably my favourite one, and the other favourite is probably the Klaxons. Whenever I hear that I get goosebumps.

Well, it’s probably your benchmark classic.
Well, when we did that we didn’t like it, we weren’t sure about it and didn’t think it was very good. We were really doubting it, but it just got to the point where we had to finish it and put it in. It kind of worked out well. And I also like the I Am Finn one. What’s your favourite Adem?

Um, the I Am Finn one, Martina Topley-Bird and the Klaxons one.
Ah nice.

Are there any that you think, shit, that could have been a lot better than it was?
Remixes? Hell yeah! All of them (laughs)! I think we’re pretty, you know, we’re always trying to get better and want to get better, you never stop learning. So, I think, there are always things… nothing’s ever finished, and if it weren’t for the deadline things probably wouldn’t get finished. And a lot of things aren’t ever finished for that exact reason. When you create something you have to get to a point where you say ‘that’s finished, that’s enough.’ You don’t just keep working on it forever and ever and ever. Or, you’ll just stop on it all together because you just lose respect for it. You become scared of completion. But, one that particularly could have been better? There is one, that wasn’t that great. The Pendulum one. I actually don’t think I even have a copy of it on my computer… but yeah, it’s pretty deep, kind of cool, but then at the end it just goes… (laughs). We could’ve done that a bit better.

And still on Van She Tech, quite some time ago I remember reading there were two females involved in the project; gospel or gossip?
Total gossip, yep. When we were doing the Nevereverland shows in Australia, the guys from, ah shit, complete mental blank! I can’t even remember the name of the band (guffaws)! They’re from Germany…

Whitest Boy Alive?
It was! Yes, thank you! Well, they were under the impression that Van She Tech were Van She’s technicians, like, our equipment people, that did remixes for the band (laughs).

Oh! (Laughter)
Yeah, I don’t know how they got that idea (laughs). But there have been times when we’ve been DJing and people will come up to us saying ‘I thought there was supposed to be two girls’. It’s just a joke, (laughs) just to throw people off. And it works!

Like the incredibly false story about how you guys met during an audition for a rock group citing Sepultura and Phil Collins as influences?
(Laughs) Yeah, yeah same kind of thing!

Something that popped up last year was your DJing alter-ego Arithmatix! Several comments written on different music blogs had reported that Van She Tech were going to switch over to the Arithmatix! name; Gospel or Gossip?
Ah, yes yes yes, it’s funny, that name was actually conceived by my girlfriend, and we were going to change the name from Van She Tech to Arithmatix! The Utah Saints remix was actually going to be Van She Tech featuring Arithmatix! to introduce it. But at the last minute we decided that maybe we shouldn’t. And so, I just took the name because, well, my girlfriend (laughs), and I needed a name to DJ and do other projects under so, just another alias. But yeah, we were going to switch it over.

Do you think there’ll be any releases or remixes under the Arithmatix! banner somewhere down the line?
Oh yeah definitely, yep. Finding time is the hard thing.

Well you’ve got lots on!
(Laughs) Indeed.

Speaking of remixes, what happened to the Kelly re-release?
Um, that’s a really good question. I don’t know (laughs). I don’t really think it did what they were hoping it would do. When I say they, I mean the record company and our management at the time.

Yourself and Nicky have just done some work with So You Think You Can Dance’s Rhys on his cover of the Monrose track “Hot Summer.” How was that?
Um, interesting. Interesting. It’s one of those classic scenarios where someone asks you for something, you agree to something… (long pause). No one was supposed to know it was us, it was supposed to be under a different name and we were production work for hire. Of course, they put Van She Tech next to it…

In big bold letters, splattered all over the press release!
Yep! To try and drum up some interest and, unfortunately, it didn’t work.

(Laughter)
(Laughs) But I don’t know what’s happening with that. We’re supposed to be doing another one, we’ve given them the instrumental track but haven’t heard anything. That’s just the extra curricular work. He’s a lovely guy though, and he’s a fantastic dancer and a great singer so, but we haven’t heard from them in a couple of weeks. Thank you for reminding me, I need to call them…

(Laughter) No worries!
(Laughs) But it was cool to do some pop and to do some American sounding stuff. We really enjoyed the process and really enjoyed working with Rhys, definitely.

What do you think of the original Monrose track?
Yeah, I like it. It’s not something that I’d buy, but it is a good track.

Are you guys interested in producing for other artists in the future?
Oh yeah, if it’s the right artist and the conditions are good and if there’s time. I mean it’s fun, it’s good to work with other people.

So what’s left to do in 2009?
Well we’ve gotta do these party mixes, which have to be handed in in less than 2 weeks time, which we’re freaking over because, with me living in Melbourne and Nick living in Sydney, it makes getting together a whole lot difficult. Then we’re just going to get stuck into writing and recording demos. The odd show here and there, we’ve got Bacardi Train coming and Roxanne’s in Melbourne. We’re going to Japan in a couple of weeks, just for three or four days. But yeah, it’s going to be fantastic to be home for the majority of the year.

Good, I’m very happy you’ll be home more too.
Yeah, coz last year, like you said, living out of suitcases… (laughs).

Thanks heaps mate for chatting with me today, much appreciated.
Ah no worries Adem. Thanks dude.

Catch you later…
Ciao, bye!

Van She Tech DJ at Geelong’s Club 4Play on Thursday, March 5, with doors opening at 9:30pm. Van She the band take to the stage at Melbourne’s Roxanne Parlour, Friday March 20, with doors opening at 8:00pm. For further details on Van She’s touring schedule across Australia and Japan over the next month, head over to their MySpazz.

The Presets – If I Know You.

Posted by Adem on Feb 17, 2009 in AdeMTV, Modular Love, The Presets | 6 comments

I am genuinely surprised, but joyfully so, that The Presets are releasing the epic “If I Know You” as their next single. Bold choice, and one I’m so pleased about because, over time, it’s become my favourite track of theirs.

As someone who spent a couple of months wanting to do nothing but run over the 2008/2009 turnover, I really get this video. My favourite Presets moment to date.

If I Know You is released through Modular in March.

2008′s Top 10 Video Clips.

Posted by Adem on Dec 18, 2008 in AdeMTV, Best of '08, Girls Aloud, Justice, Lily Allen, Miami Horror, Modular Love, Muscles, Róisín, Van She | 9 comments

And so it begins; the obligatory list season. As usual, I’ll kick it all of with my 10 favourite video clips of the year. Whether or not these songs are released in 2008 or 2009 doesn’t matter; the clip surfaced in 2008 (excluding #7, which surfaced after I’d compiled my list last year), and that’s all that matters to me.

01.  GIRLS ALOUD – The Loving Kind

Finally! They’ve given us something worth watching. After years of still-quite-good but cheap-looking video clips, Girls Aloud have blown me completely out of the water with this, the latest for their upcoming single “The Loving Kind.” This is proper, pop star territory, and the clip alone is solid enough to launch them properly in other countries, don’t you think?

02. LILY ALLEN – The Fear

Everything feels right in the world now that Lily’s making music again, doesn’t it? And this clip is a million levels of adorable. Naturally, it all comes complete with that infamous Allen bite you either love or hate. No matter what she does, or who she slags off, I just cannot hate her. There’s something very special about Lily…

03.  JUSTICE – Stress

This caused a bit of a ruckus when released earlier this year, so much so I had emails from people condemning me and the website for hailing it as a piece of brilliance. Whatever. The clip is still gold, and you can read whatever it was I crapped on about in regards to it by clicking here.

04.  MIAMI HORROR – Don’t Be On With Her

Miami Horror wanted to make an authentic 80′s looking video clip for his televisual debut, and I think it’s safe to say he’s hit a bloody home run with this. An absolute corker and a rock-solid throwback to an era when video clips were important, and not relegated to a tiny screen on YouTube.

05.  VAN SHE – Changes

There’s something quite charming about this clip, which is essentially a bunch of photographs put together as a film from one of the boys many tours of Japan this year. It’s just really, really cute, and looks rather mindblowing on a HI-DEF big screen TV.

06.  THE LAST SHADOW PUPPETS – The Age Of The Understatement

Epic.

07.  ASHLEE SIMPSON – Outta My Head (Ay Ya Ya)

Simpson does Salvador Dali, whilst still retaining all of her pop credentials. Jessica Who?

08.  ROISIN MURPHY – You Know Me Better

Subtle brilliance. And how’s about those divine costumes?

09.  ROISIN MURPHY – Movie Star

Anyone that pays homage to John Waters and Divine deserves a pat on the back in my books. But when that someone is Roisin Murphy, well, a pat turns into a gigantic hug. Something I got from the woman herself earlier this year.

10.  MUSCLES – The Lake

Even if he doesn’t appear in the clip (boo!), this is still a stunningly pieced bit of music video. That sequence at the end with the disgruntled old man clasping onto the woman’s foot reminds me, strangely, of Kristin Davis’ death scene on Melrose Place. Bravo!

Impaled.

Posted by Adem on Dec 7, 2008 in CD Reviews, Modular Love, Tame Impala | 3 comments

TAME IMPALA
ANTARES MIRA SUN
(MODULAR) A

The debut EP from Perth newcomers Tame Impala (who, if you take a look at some of their publicity shots, you’ll see aren’t exactly the ugliest of men in rock now are they?) is one of those rare delights when it comes to songs that are founded on a musical throwback to another era. These kind of throwbacks in popular music have, in the past, brought on a swagger of hit and miss, and — quite unfortunately — it’s usually a miss. Antares Mira Sun and Tame Impala are defiant in their actions against being a miss though; this hits all the right spots. A truly majestic collection of songs that buzz into your psyche, have their way with your charkas and leave after a very satisfying 20 minutes of sonic brilliance.

“Desire Be Desire Go” wraps itself in a swirl of intricate sounds and incomprehensible lyrics, whilst “Skeleton Tiger” – purposely – is the musical equivalent of a delicate garment being sent through the washing machine on the heavy duty cycle. It’s got this charmingly aged sensibility about it, this worn, lo-fi approach to its presentation that makes you believe the song is much (much) older than it actually is. The Cream-esque “Half Full Glass Of Wine” erupts with a deceiving and rip-snortingly-fast introduction, before settling itself back into the general stoner-rock feel of the EP. The rollicking riffs on offer are exhilarating, the verses; schizophrenic and exciting. There’s one hell of an all-out drum-fest in the last 40 seconds as well which is a pretty inspiring listen.

It’s the final two tracks though which really make Antares Mira Sun the audible delight that it is. “Forty One Mosquitoes Flying In Formation” and “Slide Through My Fingers” offer up sensational lyricism with some clever production tricks and killer riffs, particularly the latter which ventures off into similar psychedelic states found throughout Jefferson Airplane’s epic “White Rabbit.” All in all, this is seriously immense stuff; a cosmic journey into the past, with generous dashings of the present to preserve the bands originality.

Listen to more Tame Impala here. My interview with Kevin from the three-piece is coming this week. According to ModBlogular, there is a Tame Impala EPK “coming soon”, so I’ll keep you posted when that flies through the ol’ inbox as well.

Happy Birthday! Here’s A Kitten.

Posted by Adem on Nov 16, 2008 in AdeMTV, Australian Pop, Modular Love, Van She, Website | 16 comments

Happy Blogging Birthday to me!

*UPDATE: YOU CAN LEAVE COMMENTS NOW. THANKS POSTER GIRL!*

Today marks 1 year since I opened Adem With An E. It also marks my 6th year of blogging in general, with the other 5 of those 6 years dedicated to my old site I’m Always Right (which you’ll now find the majority of its posts have since been migrated over here.) Ayye! As a sort of birthday present to myself, with thanks to my amazing best friend Stefan Nott (aka: Graphic Design God), I now have a new looking website to unleash upon you all. I really hope you like it; I absolutely love it and am so stoked with what Stef has poured blood, sweat and tears over. Particularly so when you take into consideration the amount of times I emailed him about changing a single picture, or adding another one… I can safely assume no one is more relieved it is all finally over than he is.

That said, I hope you enjoy the new look. There may be a few glitches if you’re using IE6 but, quite frankly, if you haven’t upgraded to IE7 or IE8 yet, that’s really not my problem (IE6 users will notice  the content in the sidebar is all the way at the bottom of the page…) Of course, there may actually be some glitches in general whatever you’re using; please bare with me whilst I sort it all out…

I’ll be popping up a bevvy of interviews this week and a few other special surprises, so keep coming back as the week progresses for prolonged birthday fun.

Unfortunately, I don’t have any actual birthday treats (other than the hot new site) to share with you all, so instead, here is a very recent (not even a fortnight old) video of Van She and New Young Pony Club being interviewed whilst in Germany. Please note; any of you upset by Matt Van Schie‘s switch to brown hair will be pleased to see it’s now back to blonde.

Vanrage.

Posted by Adem on Nov 15, 2008 in Australian Pop, Modular Love, Television, Van She | 1 comment

Van She are guest programing rage tonight (Saturday evening) just a little after Midnight on ABC1. The playlist of video clips (all selected by the boys) has a number of corkers and a few delightful surprises. Perhaps none more delightful than the inclusion of what is Tina Turner‘s 2nd greatest song ever, “We Don’t Need Another Hero (Thunderdome)”. I have no idea which of them chose it, but whoever it was is now my favourite member of the band.

Other clips they’ve chosen includes stuff by Soulwax, Kraftwerk, Phoenix, Cassius, Aphex Twin, The Cars, E.L.O., The Pointer Sisters, Prince, Visage, INXS, AC/DC, Def Leppard, Bjork, Michael Jackson, Sinead O’Connor and “many more.” You can view the full playlist here. From 3:30am onward, rage will then play all of Van She’s video clips, and some jtv live performances.

Guess that’s my Saturday night sorted then.

Delirious.

Posted by Adem on Oct 26, 2008 in AdeMTV, Ladyhawke, Modular Love | 4 comments

The clip for the next Ladyhawke single “My Delirium.”

Amazing.

In case you missed it, here’s my review of Ladyhawke’s stunning debut album from last month.

“Phwoar.”

Posted by Adem on Oct 25, 2008 in Australian Pop, Cut Copy, Ladyhawke, Modular Love, Muscles, Phwoar, Robyn, The Presets, Van She | 0 comments

Fucking hell. Have you seen the first round (!!) line up for the Australian leg of Modular‘s Nevereverland party?

Klaxons
Hercules & Love Affair
Van She
Ladyhawke
The Presets
Cut Copy
Whitest Boy Alive
The Bumblebeez
Muscles
Tame Impala
The Bang Gang Deejays
AJAX
The Lost Valentinos
Mission Control
Temper Trap
Canyons
Pepperoni
Andee Van Damage 

And again; Fucking hell. Is that probably the best line-up for a festival all year? How am I going to cope with so many of my favourite artists playing on the one bill? Seeing as she’s signed to Modular in Australia, will Robyn be a last minute addition? Could someone please make the latter happen?

Whilst I’m on the topic of all things Modular, some interesting news on Muscles has cropped up this weekend. He’s ditching his MySpazz account and urging fans to sign up to his official newsletter should they want updates on what’s going on with his new single and album project. Go to his bit on teh interwebs and sign up to “Muscles Mail” to stay in the loop.

When are Girls Aloud going to be signed to Modular?

DOWNLOAD: Free Presets Jam.

Posted by Adem on Oct 25, 2008 in Australian Pop, Modular Love, MP3, The Presets | 1 comment

I know. Just the other day I was banging on about how I don’t really post MP3′s that often on the site, and then I go and post two of them days apart of each other. This time, however, the MP3 I’m posting is very much legal and won’t get any of us into trouble should you download it.

You might remember me talking about the new Bang Gang Deejays ‘D Is For Disco, E Is For Dancing’ compilation CD last week. On the disc, there is an exclusive, previously unreleased remix of The Presets‘ “Kicking & Screaming.” It’s a bit of a stomper.

Thanks to the lovely people over at Modular HQ, I’m able to offer you that very remix as an MP3, in full, 320kbps super-sound FAW MAI READERZ.

The Presets – Kicking & Screaming (Bang Gang’s E Is For Edit).mp3 | MEDIAFIRE

“zomg.”

Victory.

Posted by Adem on Oct 20, 2008 in Australian Pop, Axle, Modular Love, The Presets, Van She | 7 comments

Congratulations to Kim Moyes and Julian Hamilton off-of The Presets for picking up the best awards on offer at tonight’s ARIAs (the Aussie equivalent of The Brits or The Grammy’s.) Best Group, Best Dance Release, and the big one; Album Of The Year. The cheers and shrieks of joy at the ARIAs party I attended this evening when that announcement was made were deafening. We were all so, so proud.

I interviewed Julian some time ago. If you didn’t read it when I originally posted it, maybe now that he’s an ARIA award winning artist, you might want to…

Congrats also to Modular, the boys’ record label, also for the wins and for bringing such pop art as The Presets into our lives all those years ago.

As for the rest of the awards, it was all very bland. Aside from show-stopping performances from The Presets (now THAT’S an on stage costume!) and P!NK (kudos to Sam Sparro as well for a pitch-perfect “Black & Gold” – though I’m not entirely sure his outfit would pass the Roisin Murphy fashion checklist and — as the lovely Phil at Worra said some time ago – it was very ‘My First Stage Costume’ in appearance), the rest of the ceremony was pretty much about Gabriella Cilmi, who won all six of the awards she was nominated for.

I’m slightly baffled, I won’t lie.

You all know how I feel about “Sweet About Me” and there were better nominees in each of the categories she was up in. She did thank Brian Higgins and Miranda Cooper though, which was nice. I would like to know if she was insanely drunk (a no-no seeing as she’s only 17) or just a bit of a mess when it comes to public speaking? Each speech she gave was squirm-in-your-seat worthy. So much so, each time she would win a gong, the smokers at the party I was at would clutch onto their cigarette packets and head outside for a quick fag.

I was quite pleased to see Axle Whitehead return to the ARIAs, and also to hear around 3 seconds of Van She‘s “Kelly” during the introduction of one of the presenters. That was nice!

Full list of winners here.

Bang Gang! They Shot Me Down.

Posted by Adem on Oct 16, 2008 in CD Reviews, Cut Copy, Girls Aloud, Modular Love, The Presets | 0 comments

THE BANG GANG DEEJAYS
D Is For Disco, E Is For Dancing
(MODULAR) A+

That is the cover art for the new Bang Gang Deejays compilation/disco/mixtape CD, titled D Is For Disco, E Is For Dancing (ho ho ho!) Someone drew that you know. Someone drew it with one of those pencil things (ask your parents) and spent a considerable amount of time on it. It shows because the imagery is very, very good. It really does make it all the more upsetting that someone probably spent the same amount of time in front of Photoshop coming up with this particular visionary masterpiece which was unveiled this week. And by ‘visionary masterpiece’, I obviously mean ‘absolute crock of shit’.

But back to the Bang Gang double-disc set.

Never has there been a more appropriate time to cry “Poppers O’Clock” at a CD then now, and with this very disc. D Is For Disco, (ademwithan)E Is For Dancing is a compilation which not only throws itself into your ears as a solid party record, it’s also a fine example of what a lot of “the youth” around Australia are taking a lot of drugs to dancing their little hearts out to in those discotheque’s week in, week out. There’s even some pop music on there (hello M.I.A, The Presets, Cut Copy, The Tough Alliance, Late Of The Pier, et cetera,) but it’s probably best not to tell the kiddies about that.

The CD also plays as the launching pad of the new Bag Raiders remix of Cut Copy’s next single from In Ghost Colours, “Far Away”, which is all sorts of delicious. Plus, it has the Crookers Remix of that “Day ‘N’ Nite” song I once saw someone cut their foot open on a wine glass to.

The Bang Gang Deejays comprise of six of Australia’s best, er, Deejays, and this is their second CD release after last years equally as impressive Light Sound Dance (LSD, FYI, would you look at that), whose only downside as a compilation was its inclusion of a Wolfmother “track”. THANK GOD THERE’S NONE OF THAT POPPYCOCK ON HERE THEN.

I’m having a chat down the blower with one of the Bangers, Jaime Doom in the next few days, so expect that up on the site next week some time. Visual aid of Doom here; hanging out with Kylie‘s back-up dancers in someone’s garden, no doubt.

All in all, this is a pretty strong snapshot of what I’ve been listening to over the last 8 months or so when I feel like sniffing some poppers dancing around the lounge, or when I’m getting ready (read: looking for a Van She t-shirt, then slapping it on) to dance in nightclubs with people half my age. You’ll obviously like it too if you’re much of the same.

No remix of Girls Aloud‘s “The Promise” on here though. Bit of a pity, I’m not going to lie.

You can view the full, wondrous 2 disc tracklisting here.

Banggangofficial | Upcoming Tour Info

Parklife Music Festival ’08.

Posted by Adem on Sep 29, 2008 in Australian Pop, Gig Reviews, Goldfrapp, Miami Horror, Modular Love, Van She | 0 comments

After the logistical nightmare that was last years Parklife festival, the only way for the event organisers to go this year was up. The thought of it somehow being worse than 2007’s event was unthinkable, because that’s how bad it truly was. Awful sound, awful set-up, awful crowd (and on that note, way too many people in attendance) and more line-up clashes than you could poke a stick at. Thankfully, almost everything was rectified for 2008. 25% less tickets were sold, and this year there were even select tickets available for sale on the door. The crowd were incredibly friendly, ready for anything and passionate about the music. And the true sight for sore eyes was the lack of retina-burning fluro clothing on display. Last year, it was like walking into a giant pencil case filled with highlighters, but this year; normal colours, normal clothing, barely any dickheads and a whole lot of fun. Which is exactly what you want from a festival.

The day kicked off with a set on the wheels of steel from Van She Tech, opening with Justice’s latest epic monster “Planisphere,” before gliding through their own remixes of Ladyhawke’s “Back Of The Van” and Utah Saints’ “Something Good” to rapturous applause. Neon Neon lit up the stage with their car-infused electro-rock, whilst the Damn Arms DJs, Bag Raiders and Yuksek respectively bung out killer party sets for the masses dancing around their allocated stages. The day truly belonged to Goldfrapp though, whose startling and stunning performance in front of a packed out Water Stage was truly breathtaking. “Number One”, “Ooh La La”, “Train” and the showstopping performance of “Strict Machine” were magnifique, but it really was all about the ethereal performance of “Caravan Girl”; quite the powerful and emotional live music moment. Goldfrapp were, hands down, the greatest act of the day.

Often compared to Goldfrapp are Canadian poppers Dragonette, who delivered a surprisingly flat performance; a number of the band were quite ill and lead singer Martina looked like she was rather exhausted. Unfortunately, more points were taken away from them for leaving off “True Believer” – their best song – from the live set.

Local hero Miami Horror MORE than made up for any Dragonette-inspired disappointment with a set of bonza brilliance and, as you could imagine, Van She’s full-blown live band set which followed was a nice way to kick off the dark night sky. Opening with “Cat & The Eye”, it was nice to finally see the boys playing an evening festival set, as opposed to a day time one which, in all the years and all the festivals I’ve seen them play, is the only kind of festival set they had played until Parklife. Closing with their Play Paul collaboration “So High.” Fake Blood was just as incredible, and Does It Offend You, Yeah?’s closing set placed quite the delicious cherry on top of an already stellar proverbial cake.

Obviously not everything can go perfect though. No passouts? Come on, you have got to be kidding me. Then, as much as they sorted out the crowd and sound situation this year, the immense clashes between acts on the line up were STILL in full force. Soulwax and Diplo both on at the same time as Dragonette, Peaches and Plump DJs on at the same time as Van She, Dizzee Rascal and 2ManyDJs on when Fake Blood and Does It Offend You, Yeah? played to their crowds… it was a day of seriously hard decision making. Often, it paid off (Van She over Peaches was a solid choice), but other times, it just delivered immense regret (Dragonette over Soulwax? What an idiot I was.) But other than that, Parklife re-cemented itself in the party calendar as being one of THE most important music festivals of the warmer months.

4Play with Van She.

Posted by Adem on Aug 31, 2008 in Gig Reviews, Modular Love, Van She | 0 comments

VAN SHE LIVE @ CLUB4PLAY
Sunday August 31st.

I was a little surprised to hear Van She would be playing a gig at Club4Play. I had absolutely no idea where they were going to house the band but, surprisingly, the logistical nightmare I had conjured up in my head was nipped in the bud as soon as I’d walked into the venue and discovered a somewhat secret stage area next to the DJ console. “All is well in the world,” I thought, and began to sit comfortably with the idea that the venue choice was indeed a very good one. Those thoughts went out the window quite quickly.

I’ve seen the boys play more shows than I care to count this year and in some pretty iconic venues not only in Melbourne but as far away as Byron Bay, all in which they’ve really been in their element. It did strike me that, maybe, in the intimate 4play surroundings, the boys wouldn’t be as free to rollick around on stage like the true rock-god’s that they are because, well, there wasn’t really any room. However, on a positive note, it gave the crowd a more intimate connection with the band, something that is all-too-rare an event these days, and a nice change for those of us who are maybe used to seeing the boys play bigger venues in Melbourne.

The boys, donning some seriously spunky Van She baseball jackets (GIVE ME ONE ET CETERA,) were greeted by a mass of cheers and screams from what was most definitely a full house. Not bad for a school night. Opening with the Thom Yorke meets Sigur Ros inspired “Memory Man,” the band really took off with live favourite “The Sea,” which is probably the best song to really catch vocalist Nicky Routledge’s incredible stage presence for, before launching into their ace 2007 single “Cat & The Eye.” Next single “Changes” was followed by “Talking” and possible future release “Virgin Suicide” (that chorus = phwoar!), before erupting into long-time favourite “Sex City,” from their 2005 self-titled EP. Tracks like “Strangers” (which saw keyboardist Michael Di Francesco dish up a tasty treat of blips-and-blops,) “Mission” and crowd pleaser “Kelly” capped off the night nicely, whilst the electronic, sinister and incredibly sexy “It Could Be The Same,” sung by the bands bassist Matt Van Schie, added a nice and twisted little spike to their stellar live show. Things came to a close with the synth-tastic “So High,” which was definitely the highlight, if not for the actual wonder of seeing the song performed live, but for the fact that the bands drummer, Tomek Archer, stepped away from the back of the stage and came to the front to play a few keys.

It was unfortunate to hear a number of people leaving the venue after the set proclaiming they’d not enjoyed it. Does it have something to with the crowd in general, or was it the venue? Who knows. It’s probably not hard to suspect that at least half of the people there possibly had no real background connection with the bands music, but at least they gave them a shot. Thankfully, there’s that other half that rocked out with their cocks out and gave the band everything they had as audience members. For the first few rows, the punters were in rock and roll heaven, and that’s just about the best place to be at a gig like this.

As for the venue itself; I really hope the boys don’t have any plans to play back there. It may be suitable for other bands, but for one like Van She; one that relies on sonic sound or the technicolour of visual aid, the venue itself let the boys down in terms of production quality.

PNAU & Van She Live.

Posted by Adem on Apr 19, 2008 in Australian Pop, Gig Reviews, Modular Love, PNAU, Van She | 0 comments

VAN SHE & PNAU LIVE
Friday April 18 @ Billboard, Melbourne

As a strong supporter of (well produced) Australian dance music and, in particular, a keen follower of PNAU, there was definitely an excitement of sensations roaring through my body as the 1000+ capacity Billboard; The Venue filled in anticipation for the bands ‘We Are Back’ tour. Interestingly, most of the kids who’d purchased tickets in order to make this event a sell-out gig were all about 8 or 9 years of age when the group released their ground-breaking debut album, “Sambanova” in 1999. For those of us old enough to remember the furore surrounding sample-clearance issues and the like with that album, such a fact is probably a little depressing. To say it was a young crowd would be an understatement, but with this particular blend of music leaning towards becoming the ‘new’ voice of the next generation, it’s not surprising at all, is it? That’s not to say an old-timer (!) like myself couldn’t enjoy the evenings proceedings with the best of them. With asthma pump and pain-killers for my back on the ready, I was all set to rumble.

Supporting PNAU on the tour was French DJ Breakbot, who played some Janet Jackson over the top of some electro beats just as my group of friends had made an inappropriate comment about Ms. Jackson being of a rather moist persuasion when recording; it was all rather humorous. Following the DJ madness was a live set from supports Van She, who I’ll proudly claim are this music journo’s favourite Australian band of all time. New songs such as “Strangers,” “Talkin” and “Changes” gave the crowd a delicious taste of what’s to come from the boys’ long-awaited debut album in June, “V.” Not surprisingly, there seemed to be a core-crew of kids there just for Van She. Always nice to see the supports being looked after crowd-wise.

PNAU’s set was a high-octane, techno-driven love-fest that even ventured into biblical stages at points (which may have more to do with the fact that vocalist Nick Littlemore did actually look like Jesus Christ when he removed his t-shirt and would stretch his arms out.) It should also be noted that Littlemore broke his foot several nights earlier and still, quite amazingly, managed to hobble about on stage and put on a pop concert. Splendid! The hilarity of the giant dancing Strawberry (if you haven’t seen it, YouTube the performance of “Baby” on Sunrise) only added to the charm of the live show, which has a lot going on in terms of visuals; giant balloons that didn’t pop! Lasers and Lights! A giant bird! Highlights of the evening were “Embrace” and “Come Together” which both completely tore the house down, whilst closing track (and the only dud on their current album) “No More Violence” was a little less tedious live than it is to endure on record. All in all though, an electrifying night had by everyone in attendance; me and my asthma pump included.

Muscles ‘The Lake Tour’

Posted by Adem on Mar 17, 2008 in Gig Reviews, Modular Love, Muscles | 0 comments

MUSCLES ‘THE LAKE TOUR’
ACOUSTIC SET – LIVE @ THE TOFF IN MELBOURNE (15th March)
ELECTRO SET – LIVE @ BARWON HEADS HOTEL (16th March)

An electro-kid playing an acoustic set of his album tracks doesn’t sound too convincing on paper, does it? At least not to those with little faith in the talents of Shepparton boy Muscles. But for the fans who were able to see past “Ice Cream” being a dance-infused club banger, Muscles’ one-off Acoustic live set at Melbourne’s classy The Toff was a luscious slice of heaven. As he walked onto the stage, Muscles began to play on the grand piano whilst singing his heart out. Interestingly, songs like “Lauren From Glebe,” “Ice Cream,” and “Marshmallow” were given a more heartbreaking feel with their lack of bass and electronic energy. Muscles’ voice was the clearest it has ever sounded live too; with only a piano to back him up, there was nothing to hide behind and, if anything, it only demonstrated just how strong the boys voice actually is. For those who think he’s just a screechy mess vocally, you would have been pleasantly surprised at the acoustic set to see just how wonderful his pipes really are. The highlight of the acoustic set at The Toff was a stunning rendition of “One Inch Badge Pin,” which needs to be made available for some kind of consumption by the general public.

The following night, Muscles brought his electronic gear down to Geelong’s Barwon Heads Hotel. Alarmingly, myself and the group of friends I went with were very much the oldest punters in the venue (and nothing reaffirmed this fact more than a complaint about a sore hip,) but, nonetheless, the three of us still managed to rock out up the front to Muscles’ incredibly energetic live show. Jumping around, pumping his fists in the air, the boy only seems to get better with each live show I see him do.

Just over an hour passed; an abundance of trashed children who were probably unable to even make out who was on stage as they tried to push me out of my spot, one brawl between two slags and the serious thought of a hip replacement later, I walked away from the gig bruised and battered, but with a smile on my face. Ice Cream always seems to save the day.

The Hot BBQ, NYD ’08.

Posted by Adem on Jan 2, 2008 in Australian Pop, Cut Copy, Divinyls, Gig Reviews, Modular Love, Van She | 0 comments

THE HOT BBQ, JANUARY 1ST 2008 @ BIRRARUNG MARR

A New Years Day party in Melbourne that wasn’t overcrowded, full of dickheads, polluted with hilariously streaky orange fake-tan or abominable queues for the toilet/bar/various stages? If those are the type of issues that have stopped you from venturing out to any given festival come New Years Day, then maybe you should give The Hot BBQ a go next year. The Future Entertainment and Triple J venture was – on paper – one of the best New Year Celebration parties Melbourne has seen since the glory days of the near-vintage Welcome. In theory, it was a whole lot more. The most entertaining of stages was the Prime Aussie Beef arena; if you’re going to place Van She and Divinyls (my two favourite Aussie acts of all time) on the same stage as Bumblebeez, Cut Copy and Lost Valentinos, then it is to be expected that I would proceed to lose my shit throughout the day.

Lost Valentinos executed a killer set in the sun, with vocalist Nik Yiannikas rollicking around the stage, jumping into the crowd and sitting on the floor of the dance floor. Following the rockers were DJ Feadz and vocalist Uffie. Feadz played for a good 25 minutes solo before Uffie, emerging in an oversized t-shirt, sneakers, a bottle of champagne and nothing else, took her brand of cheeky, cuss-riddled electro tracks and played them to an adoring crowd. Here’s my thing with Uffie; I really do like a few of her songs but am left feeling quite cold after seeing her live. It’s almost as if she’s a very, very pale poor mans, ghetto’d up version of Swedish genius Robyn. Don’t tell me you haven’t thought it too…

Bumblebeez kicked some serious arse (as per usual) with an energetic set full of ridiculously brilliant stage thrashings courtesy of the amazing Chris Colonna, and the obligatory (and consistent) drink-spilling from the loud and stylish Pia Colonna (they’re brother and sister, you know.) Beez highlight must go to their use of Britney Spears’ “Gimme More” instrumental to rap over during their set. Amazing! Sydney indie-pop-rockers Van She delivered the kind of gold they’ve been renowned for live-wise. Kicking things off with the classic “Sex City,” new songs such as “Strangers” (incredibly massive, their best song to date,) “Talkin” and “Changes” are a fine testament as to the sort of greatness we can expect from their debut album come April. Nick and Matt (pictured) were as vocally in-tune as ever, Michael and his synths were on fire, and Tomek continues to prove why he’s one of this countries greatest drummers with each live show.  Cut Copy knocked out a CORKER set, playing old and new tracks, including the likes of “Hearts On Fire”, “Far Away” and “Lights & Music”. Crowd = Went Nuts.

Closing things off were Divinyls. After catching the guys at their Geelong show at the Wooly back in December, I was ready – and up for – anything they threw my way. Chrissy Amphlett took to the stage and was greeted by screams and cheers. After the first track, “Science Fiction,” Amphlett moved her way to the edge of the stage and began shouting “Mother mother mother mother… FUCKER!” It was an experience I’ll never forget. Nor will I ever forget finally hearing “Elsie” – my favourite Divinyls song – live, whose arresting nature was heightened by the electric festival atmosphere around me.

It all ended with “I Touch Myself” – unfortunately no “Boys In Town” due to time permits (booooo!!!) – but regardless, this was still a superb party. Not only was it the best New Years party in a long time, but it’s also one of the best parties in general that Melbourne has seen. Here’s to 2008… and to The Hot BBQ’s return in 2009.

HAI OMGZ!11! NEW VAN SHE!!1!

Posted by Adem on Nov 13, 2007 in AdeMTV, Australian Pop, Modular Love, Van She | 0 comments

Parklife Music Festival ’07.

Posted by Adem on Sep 26, 2007 in Gig Reviews, Modular Love, Muscles | 0 comments

PARKLIFE, MELBOURNE 22/09/2007
By Adem Ali.

Last years Parklife music festival was one of the most talked about events of the year, so it was no surprise that the second instalment in 2007 was going to be huge. And huge it was. Too huge, even. Where did all those people come from?

There was such an abundance of punters at this event it was hard to flicker your eyelids in some situations. The day started off miserably with the task of trying to find a decent position to watch Shepparton boy Muscles play a live set at the Fire Stage. Muscles was great, but the crowd was a nightmare. No matter where you stood, you were inches away from having your life taken from you, and the chances of being pulled under the crowd thanks to their insane shoving and carrying on grew bigger. Eventually, after potentially losing every single one of my toes and an absolute barrel of my dignity, I made my way towards the stage exit, with the thought I’d just listen to Muscles play from the sides. That took around 15 minutes to do. Muscles opened with “Sweaty,” and rocked out to “One Inch Badge” and “Spirits.” Phenomenal new single “Ice Cream” did its job in raising the atmosphere, but it just wasn’t enough for those of us forced to stand on the sidelines, looking at equipment hanging from the stage rather than the performer.

Aussie boys Riot In Belgium blitzed through their DJ set with great gusto, managing to rip out The Porn Kings’ “Up To No Good” at one point. The Earth Stage, a much more controlled environment to everywhere else at the event, was also host to Yelle, one of the most exciting pop stars to come out of France. An eclectic mash of electro, pop and rock and roll, Yelle’s fiery on stage antics gelled with the crowd, sending them into a right spin. Performing singles “Je Veux Te Voir” and “A Cause Des Garcons,” along with other amazing tracks from her debut album “Pop-Up,” Yelle and her energetic band absolutely tore the house down. Without a doubt, this was THE set of Parklife; full of energy, great atmosphere… Yelle is an absolute star and if you missed out on her set, you missed out on the best this party had to offer.

My problems were soon to come rushing back at me in full throttle once again though. I made the mistake of leaving the comfortable Earth Stage surroundings to head inside the enormous (and overly crowded) Water Stage for MSTRKRFT’s DJ set and Digitalism’s live one. There was only the one position to (sort of) comfortably stand, and that was on the absolute egde of the arena, standing next to a skank dancing on a rollie-bin. Fucking awesome. Not only were my retinas being burnt alive, the stench (which probably came from the skank rather than the bin) was absolutely vile, and I could barely hear ANY of the music. The myriad of discussions going on between people on the sides of the stage were louder than the actual music. This was a huge problem through out the party on ALL of the big stages; unless you were smack, bang in the centre of a speaker somewhere, there was bugger all chance of hearing anything that was going on. It was really disappointing deciding to leave before Digitalism had even started, even more sad coming to the realisation there was probably no chance in hell I’d get to hear any of Justice’s live set later on in the night because of the sound issues and crowd situation. I felt like Alison from that ridiculous TV Show Medium, hearing all these bloody voices carrying on whilst trying to focus on the one thing I’m actually there for. The pain of it all just wasn’t worth it.

The crowd issues continued for M.I.A’s set on the Air Stage. Once again, way too populated, though I’d managed to secure myself a spot close to the front so at the very least I could hear what she was banging on about. Great set, but once again pity about the people. Hundreds of bodies pushing and shoving their way through, people leaving virtually every five seconds, choosing me – ME! – every bloody time to push past on their way out. I’d understand if I was standing right next to the exit but I was IN THE MIDDLE UP NEAR THE FRONT for crying out loud. It just didn’t stop! People continued to stomp on my feet as they walked either out of the area, or tried pushing their way into it. Constantly through her hour set. Half the time it felt like we were being huddled into a concentration camp.

Aside from that nonsense, M.I.A. ripped out a killer live set, and threw a few political punches whilst up there too. Putting a halt to the music at about 10 minutes in, M.I.A. announced on the microphone she had to sign a special Visa Agreement to enter Australia that, basically, said she wasn’t involved in any sort of terrorist activity. Grabbing a lighter, the controversial singer set fire to the documents and began reading the government listed conditions from the pages as they burnt in her hands. As the show went on, flashes of “No Howard” and “Howard Out” beamed across the big screens on stage, demonstrating where the activist stood on our nations politics. M.I.A. then asked members of the audience to join her on-stage for “a party,” something she had done with less success at 2006’s Big Day Out when I saw her last. Members of the crowd got themselves up on stage and danced with the diva as she continued her show.

Whilst she remembered to make serious points and share in her global on-stage party, she forgot to perform her newest single, the brilliant bollywood disco number “Jimmy,” much to my absolute horror. Wasn’t exactly the way I’d expected my night to end; not hearing the one song I was sure I would hear from her.

All in all, the event was exhausting. Any time there was movement to another area, I felt my stomach tie itself in knots. I didn’t want to suffer through people pushing past me and being unable to enjoy what I was there for: the music.

There’s a lot of work to be done if they are to make next years event suitable for attendance. First of all, how about selling less tickets to suit the space you’ve been given or, better yet, make the areas bigger? Maybe even turn up the sound so people who aren’t inside the bloody speaker can actually hear it? Oh, and don’t make people buy coupons/tickets so they can buy drinks, then make them wait in line for ages to do so. The tickets were such an obvious way of ripping people off of 50 cents to a dollar here and there, it was all absolutely outrageous. Then to top it off, you were only allowed to purchase two drinks at any one time. Great. Spend most of the event in a line waiting to buy drinks for you and a few friends, then get told you can only take two back with you. What an unreal afternoon.

The hassles and issues that this party generated sucked the absolute life out of me. And then there was all the fucking fluro attire. Pity, because the line up was actually really very good.

Van She working with Cassius.

Posted by Adem on Feb 20, 2007 in Australian Pop, Modular Love, Van She | 0 comments

Outstanding Synth-rock Sydney boys Van She have announced that they’re collaborating with amazing French House act Cassius on some “sweet rockin’ music”, presumably in time for a new album.

Indeed, it really does feel like this album has been about 26 years in the making, but with the exciting news of French minds getting together with the ‘She, it’s quite obviously a strong indication that it should only feel like another 26 before we get it.

In all seriousness, this is going to be the Australian release of 2007. Permitting it’s actually released in 2007.

The boys will be posting a demo of a track on their MySpace over the next couple weeks. I’ll keep you posted. Meanwhile, take a look at the blog post in which this news has been extracted from (with photos), or just visit their MySpace and listen to the greatest piece of Australian Made music in the year 2005, “Kelly”.

Vangelico.

Posted by Adem on Mar 31, 2006 in Australian Pop, Gig Reviews, Modular Love, Van She | 1 comment

What did you lot get up to on Wednesday evening?

I had quite the exciting night. My good friends (!!!), Sydney pop act Van She, played a nice intimate gig in the back room of a pub in Geelong, and I went along to show my support. Of course it wasn’t long before I needed the boys support ME. Shockingly, I was not placed on the door list as promised by someone who should know better who now has quite an interesting message on their answering service courtesy of myself, which almost spelt the end to my evening with the boys before it even began. Of course, literally a tap on the shoulder to those crazy Sydney friends of mine (!!) and I was escorted in.

Lucky I did go to such lengths to attend the gig, otherwise lead vocalist Nick may not have realized he was singing the second verse when he should have been singing the first during “Kelly“. Some riotous sung-laughter caused an almost frenzy-like (not really, it was actually only one girl who looked at me with hatred in her eyes for making Nick laugh) confusion amongst the crowd, and of course I took all of this on board as if sharing private jokes with ridiculously awesome bands whilst they’re on stage was an everyday thing. Not surprisingly, I haven’t shut up about it since.

I took photos. Probably a bit too many to be honest. I lay the blame on about 3 glasses of Frangelico and being so close to the front. I got a bit ‘swept away’ in the moment, but luckily enough, nothing like the movie of the same title.

The boys did REALLY well, and the new material is ferociously superb. I’m told the debut album is due to ‘drop’ later on in the year. In the mean time, I sincerely urge you to go out and purchase their self titled E.P which is being sold for quite the bargain price of $9.95 over on the Sanity website.

It’s really quite good you know.

Regular readers will know that Van She are pretty much my favourite pop act going around at the moment. The boys are about to take over the world (the United Kingdom is on the cards we’re told) and, quite frankly, are going to become YOUR favourite pop act going around very soon too.

LOVE them.

Vantastic Pt. 2

Posted by Adem on Mar 6, 2006 in Australian Pop, Modular Love, Van She | 0 comments

So last week I promised you that I’d give you an exclusive sneak peak at the brand new Van She video clip “Kelly”.

Unfortunately for you, the ‘sneak peak’ is merely a few screen caps I managed to put together, but they are screen caps of the best moments you see, so it really isn’t so much of a waste of time, what with “Kelly” being one of the greatest songs so far of 2006, and the video clip containing a lot of graphic french kissing.

Anywho, after all that, there’s no need for the screen caps now, it seems someone has already uploaded the video onto You Tube. Enjoy.

Vantastic Pt. 1.

Posted by Adem on Mar 1, 2006 in Australian Pop, Modular Love, Van She | 0 comments

Firstly, I’d like to apologize for the serious lack of updates. My modem died on its arse the other week and I’ve been forced into using dial-up (!!!!) until a new modem is sent out to.

Now, on with the important stuff.

You may remember a month or two back when I wouldn’t shut up about Sydney band Van She. Well, their new single, “Kelly”, now has a video clip (I’ll be previewing that for you sometime tomorrow ‘One Eleven’) and it is, in short, amazing.

BUT – What I’m going to tell you about today is the astonishingly good Alan Braxe & Fred Falke Remix of “Kelly”.

IT IS REALLY QUITE ASTONISHINGLY GOOD.

And the good news for you is that the remix is now available for FREE DOWNLOAD (!!!!!!!!!) over on the bands MySpace website.

Hurrah!!

(PS: I met Girls Aloud on Monday. It was amazing.)

Vandalism.

Posted by Adem on Jan 23, 2006 in Australian Pop, Modular Love, Van She | 0 comments

That is a band called Van She.

They are not only my favourite new band, but they’re also yours.

“But wait!” we hear you all cry! “I have not heard of this Van She before, how are they my favourite new band?!”

Van She, a very amazing band that hail from Sydney Australia, played a gig supporting the lovely popstress Annie last week here in Melbourne. And as amazing as the set from Annie was, it has to be said that the boys from Van She were an absolute highlight, and had I not been graced with such Pop royalty as Annie, they would have stolen the night away from everyone else playing. As a matter of fact, I think that they actually DID steal the night away.

Take a splash of The Cars, throw in a tiny bit of The Cure, an iota of Daft Punk and mash it together with a bit of electro-rock ala Bloc Party and Datarock… and you STILL don’t have the full mix of how brilliant the boys are.

Songs “Kelly“, “Mission” and “Sex City” are rather glorious, but all the tracks on their self-titled debut EP are as equally enjoyable.

“Where can I hear any of Van She’s stuff? They sound quite good!” I hear you proclaim.

Well, first of all you can check out the bands MySpace site, and preview – in full – four of the tracks from their E.P. Then, once you’ve done that you can either log on to the iTunes Australia store and purchase the E.P. from there, or you could always just buy the actual hard copy from the Modular People website. It will literally be the best $10.00 you could spend in 2006, and seeing as we’re not even a full month into the year yet and I can say that, it obviously means they’re mindblowing, flawless and great, etc etc.

It should probably also be mentioned that they’re really quite nice to look at (visit their official website when you can and have a squiz at the pics), and their bass player – Matthew – is quite the fan of Annie.

Bless.

STOP PRESSES!!
Now that you are as madly in love with Van She as I am, why dont you VOTE for them in The Jack Awards? Simply click here, and vote for Van She – who are nominated for the best newcomer gong.