"Statues" starts like the soft tapping of rocks at your window. Within seconds and without warning, Auction is up the fire escape and through your window to take you by pleasant surprise. In other words, the climb starts like a soothing Young The Giant-sized croon that suddenly segues into blistering Foals-esque oblivion, a heady mix of cartwheeling synth accents that float like a butterfly and Stings like The Police. As you feel the energy of five rowdy young London boys fully contained in the ticking timebomb of a chorus that blows its fuse at the perfect moment, time suddenly starts to stand still in a moment of pristine pop clarity. You really need to experience firsthand their meticulous electro-tinged Brit rock to believe it, so get involved because it's time to get sold on Auction.
2010 un año más y un año que nos dio mucho, musicalmente empezó con una corriente de Chillwave y terminó con Witch House, muchas bandas sacaron sus segundas producciones y como todo sabemos es muy dificil encontrar una segunda parte buena. Se nos va el 2010 pero siempre estará en nuestras mentes, ya que es el año en el que nace µ sique. Los dejo con la lista de los 20 mejores discos según µ sique:
20. MGMT - Congratulations - Una nueva propuesta en esta segunda producción muy bien lograda.
3. Beach House - Teen Dream - La conexión que hay entre Victoria Legrand y Alex Scally es la culpable de la excelencia de Teen Dream. Todo lo necesario, donde debe de ir.
2. Foals - Total Life Forever - Un gran segundo album con ese poder característico del Antidotes pero llevado a un paso más maduro, manejando las dinámicas musicales a la perfección.
1. Caribou - Swim - El mejor del 2010, de esos que escuchas una y otra vez y nunca te cansas. El nombre es tambien perfecto, todas las rolas cumplen su cometido y es que te hacen nadar.
Today I bring to you aGDD™ exclusiveinterview and mixtape withPrince Club, formerly MadKids, a Montreal-based production/DJ tandem poised for world domination in 2011. Their recently released ‘La Charma’ EP off Discobelle Records has received massive support from the some dudes named Riva Starr, Brodinski, Style of Eye, Mowgli, Camel, and Congorock, to name a few. Not a bad posse to have your back when entering the ring. Catch my conversation with Max and Zach of Prince Club below, and make sure to snag that mixtape for spot-on mixing and some pulsating house and techno grooves.
GDD: Hey fellas! How goes it? Max: I’m good, just made some fat bass today. Zach: All good. GDD: You guys been in the studio all day today? M: Well, I’ve been making music all day … Zach probably DJed all day. Zach? Z: I’ve been digging and fucking around on my keyboard. GDD: So go ahead and tell me a little bit about the dynamics you guys have when it does come to creating the music. I know a lot of producer/DJ duos do have someone who tends to lean more to the production side of things and someone who takes care of business a little bit more behind the decks, both obviously integral parts of the group. Z: Exactly Max definitely takes care of the production part and I DJ when it comes to playing out in the club. M: Yeah well basically we both have the philosophy of knowing our strengths and weaknesses. So we came to realize we could accomplish twice as much work if we concentrated on the stuff we were good at … me producing, Zach DJing. GDD: Brilliant! Well you're certainly bringing out the best in each other so far. How long have you two known each other? And was it always about music? M: Yeah we met through music. Zach started a band and he needed a drummer so this girl we knew put us in contact and we had like 2 bands together and then moved on to electronic music. GDD: And that's when MadKids was born? Or were there some other stops along the way? M: Well, we both kind of went our separate ways. Z: A year passed by between the band and the electronic producing. M: And then we realized we should work together since we both moved on towards electronic music after our band. GDD: You guys have covered a pretty decent range of the EDM spectrum in a short time. There used to be some wobbles in the MadKids sound … What big EDM producers/DJs would you say have had the most influence on your direction as artists? Z: That’s such a hard question … M: Hmm, well let’s see. It was a journey. For my part it started with Rusko, Benga, Skream and all those dudes cause dubstep is so close to hardcore music, it’s very easy to produce when you come from that background. Then Zach introduced me to like, AC Slater, Jack Beats, A1 Bassline, Hijack, the whole fidget deal and then one summer we realized we wanted to make house music. Z: My taste always turns around what I consider fresh (to my ears) so yeah it always changes, adapts, evolves. M: But there is something about house music that we both love.
GDD: Yeah I'm thinking 2011 is gonna be especially big for the dirtybird/Deadfish sounds. Almost kind of a backlash to the popularity of the whole maximal, electro-house sound.
M: I hope so because I think we're in that boat.
GDD: Your 'La Charma' EP has been very well received at least from everything that I've seen. The track 'Sax Bomb' especially.
M: Yeah we're pretty happy about the whole turnout.
GDD: Where did you guys catch your break as "Prince Club?" Was it through connections made as MadKids, or did you kind of start from scratch since you were going in a new direction? Z: Hmm actually, we kind of felt it was time for us to change our name. It was like the last thing that we were not 100% sure about. M: The name MadKids didn’t do justice to the massive house or techno we played out. And Riva Starr said it sucked. Z: We played with him last September … M: And I went and talked to him and he was like, “you guys are good DJs, good producers, but your name sucks. You should change your name before it’s too late.” Straight up. GDD: Kind of a backhanded compliment, I guess. M: Well no, it’s cool. In his case it’s okay because he was speaking from an industry point of view. Z: And I personally didn’t like the name as well. M: He’s a businessman. GDD: Yeah and obviously that guy knows a little bit about the industry … M: Exactly, and he was cool enough to be straight with us and be like, “Yo, I thought you guys played fidget or something,” but we play a massive techno set, so it was the final chapter of MadKids. So when you have him telling you that you shut up and listen. He’s like the Mr. Miyagi of house music. GDD: So you just say, “Yes, Sensei” and bow your head. You say your DJ sets are massive techno and house, is that what we’re getting with this GDD™ exclusive mixtape? Z: What I try to do with a mixtape is do exactly what we would in a decently long DJ set, the key is switching around, start off with some light yet solid housey tunes, then switching between house and tech-house for a bit and then a pretty heavy techno part. That’s what we love to do when we have the occasion. GDD: And Max do you stand up there and twiddle knobs with Zach or let him do his thing? M: No. [Laughs] Z: A bit don’t lie, Max. M: I let him work. When we DJ we’re joined at the brain. I just try to never be in his way. GDD: You got any tour plans in the near future? M: We’re working on getting out to Cali soon. Which would be dope, because it’s fucking cold here which is not cool. Z: There’s a snowstorm right now. M: I had to shovel. Z: I’m not coming out till it melts away. [Laughs] GDD: At least it forces you to stay locked up in the studio! M: Yeah, I never go out anyways. GDD: I was going to ask, what’s the scene/crowd like for house and techno in Montreal? There seems to be a steady stream of quality talent coming from up north. Z: Yeah there’s definitely a lot of diversity in our city, which is really good at the moment. There is definitely a good vibe for young artists in the city. Dudes like Lunice, Jacques Greene, LOL Boys, and a few others that are coming out real soon. We are very proud of what’s going on in the city. As for the crowd you really have to adapt. GDD: Is that artist’s scene a pretty tight knit collective of guys that run in to each other around the city a lot? M: Yeah. Z: Pretty much. Everybody have their own direction. I use to be in a band with Jacques Greene actually when I was 14. GDD: Damn, that kid is going places too. M: And Markus from LOL Boys always hooks me up with tracks all the time. He’s like a library of tunes. We all know each other. GDD: Well we’re all real glad you’ve headed in the direction you are. M: Yeah it’s a beautiful place to grow as an artist. Z: Really exciting times for MTL. GDD: Really exciting times for all of us then. What was your inspiration for the forthcoming ‘303s & 808s’ track, which I’m awkwardly excited about. M: [Laughs] I sample a lot of vinyl and I often get old school house vinyls and when you listen to something so much it just goes in you. GDD: So is that where you channel a lot of inspiration from in the studio … trying to capture some of that old, pure house sound and put a new twist on it? M: I’m not really conscious about what inspires me. Before, I would sit in front of my computer telling myself this what I have to do and listen to a track and try to make the same vibe, but now I just make what the fuck I want. Someday I’ll make like three different rap beats and some days I sample the shit out of anything and find weird sounds. GDD: Okay fellas, we can wrap up but I got to ask you two more important questions. First, what’s your drink of choice, first rounds on GDD when you get to LA … Z: JD. M: Weed. GDD: NICE! Z: That’s because he drinks like a girl. And I smoke weed like a fairy. GDD: [Laughs] Have you ever had [CENSORED]? M: WHAAAAATT?! Dude. I want. GDD: Beautiful. I’ll make sure to have some JD and some [CENSORED] on hand when you guys head out west. M: Excellent. [Laughs] GDD: Okay and last but certainly not least … do you guys dance dirty? Z: I try to. GDD: It’s the effort that counts! M: I do. I dance like this. [video is hysterical, highly recommended] GDD: Thank you so much for the time guys. Take care. M: Pleasure.
Kris Wadsworth - It's Time Steve Bug - My Sweet Vital Angel Satyr - Backup Daniel Steinberg - Move your Body Flavio Diaz - Blue Prince Club - Movin 'On Prince Club - Sax Bomb Reboot - Ronson Norman Zube – Ruido Prince Club - Body Holly Alex Niggemann & Superlounge - Play House Sasha Carassi - Chemistry Fergie - Shifty Ketto - Bad Resonance Paul Ritch - Jackson Flavour Timid Boy - Entreat Thomas Muller - Sunday Monday John Tejada - Sweat On The Walls
Winters are harsh in Montreal, so it makes sense that the city would churn out great talent. Producers can just lock themselves in the studio and work on music while the snow piles up around them in the outside world. One of the great talents of the city is the producer/dj duo Prince Club. The two were originally called Madkids but have recently changed their name. As Madkids they gained the recognition of big name djs such as Camel, Brodinski, Sinden, and Teki Latex. The quality of the tunes haven’t changed with name, well maybe a bit more mature and house-centric.
Just check out the romantically dancey “Love Jackson”. The romance is also present in their remix of Foals. If these two tracks leave you thirsty for more then be on the lookout for an upcoming release on Discobelle Records.
Los Foals fueron a grabar una sesión a Daytrotter, en ella tocaron tres rolas de su último disco Total Life Forever. Les dejo una probada, maumeno esto es lo que vamos a escuchar mañana en el Corona Capital, por cierto tengo un boleto más para regalar, lo voy a dar mas al rato, estén al pendiente del Twitter de µ sique.
The St Jeromes Laneway Festival lineup has finally (and offically) been announced.
Those who have me on Facebook would have seen a sneak peak last night but its entirety can be found below;
!!! (Chk Chk Chk)
THE ANTLERS
ARIEL PINK’S HAUNTED GRAFFITI
BEACH HOUSE
BEAR IN HEAVEN
BLONDE REDHEAD
CLOUD CONTROL
CUT COPY
DEERHUNTER
FOALS
GOTYE
THE HOLIDAYS
HOLY FUCK
JENNY & JOHNNY
LES SAVY FAV
LOCAL NATIVES
MENOMENA
PVT
RAT vs POSSUM (excluding Perth)
STORNOWAY
TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB
VIOLENT SOHO
WARPAINT
WORLD’S END PRESS
YEASAYER
Plenty of recent return visitors but also plenty of fresh faces will enjoy an Australian summer for St Jeromes Laneway Festival in 2011.
Dates
Monday 31st of January 2011 Auckland
Friday 4th of February 2011 Brisbane
Saturday 5th of February 2011 Melbourne
Sunday 6thof February 2011 Sydney
Friday 11thof February 2011 Adelaide
Saturday 12th of February 2011 Perth
Tickets for the St Jerome Laneway Festival 2011 will go on sale Wednesday the 20th of October on the Laneway Festival site or book via phone > 1300 369 882
Below is the latest edition of our weekly feature, Stuck On Repeat. The premise is simple, we’ve asked all our contributors to submit one track and a brief write-up. The track can be new or it can be old, just whatever we could not stop listening to this week. These are the songs we’ve had Stuck On Repeat.
Abe Vigoda‘s new album, Crush, is a drastic deviation from the tropical DIY punk sounds of the band’s previous releases. Punk sensibilities remain, but find new influence in the glamor punk of the New Romantics, over guitar rock mingled with synthpop. I think a lot of longtime Abe Vigoda fans are really pissed at this album, but never having been a fan of their previous releases, it makes it easy to relish Crush in a singular context. “November” is a contender for my track of the year, more guitar-driven than many of Crush‘s selections, flooded with lyrical delivery of lovesick teenage heartache. Drag me across the sky.
Sometimes the simplest of premises can produce the happiest noises. Repeat a slice of The Beatles‘ “Hello Goodbye” over and over again, throw in some oscillating effects and top it off with an inspirational sample of some girl telling you to hold on, everything will be ok. And just like that, it’s gone and you want to hear it again and again. Two more things of note: Wise Blood‘s EP is free at Bandcamp, and their accompanying video is pretty tripped-out as well.
This Foals‘ remix hasn’t left my mind or my ears. Its a song that turns down the volume on everything else in life and forces you to reflect, or at least pay attention. Its that thin balance in music that so many fail at: the stillness that only comes in the aftermath of a tragedy. The revolving drums keep the pace moving without waiting for the rest of the band, and the icy vocals respond with distance. Its almost as if the singer is too self-indulged in his own pain to notice the quickly churning world that is happening around him. A perfect song to listen to in the middle of a busy street, especially when no one is stopping for anyone, especially you.
I don’t think I “get” Gucci Mane. His gravelly, somewhat… err, autistic-sounding drawl is definitely a fantastic template for remixes (by Diplo, Atrak, the like), I enjoy the hi-hat rolls that tend to ebb and flow in his beats, and I am a huge admirer of his chain collection (the Odie chain is on point ). However, the general inanity of his raps, while all in good fun, combined with his monotone snail-paced flow just doesn’t really do it for me. It just sounds dumb. Maybe I’m missing something. Anyway, I had to listen to “Haterade,” off his new album The Appeal: Georgia’s Most Wanted because Nicki is in it, and to my pleasant surprise, when Gucci raps fast, he sounds great! Add in Pharrell, who can really do no wrong, a solid (not amazing, but solid) Nicki verse, and the fact that this is a song about Haterade. This song rules. S’GUCCI!
Oh wowee zowee who what and howee! On a recent trip through BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge with Jo Whiley, and as all guests who trek through her timeslot do, Foals performed a few songs from their recent album, Total Life Forever. On top of that, their cover song selection was one I had not anticipated in the slightest, yet it works quite nicely, as the boys give their best go at Swedish House Mafia's One (Your Name). Just...oh yeah!
The original track has been burning up dance floors both stateside and internationally, and one might insist that had this Oxford band created this song as performed live in the lounge, it would still be quite the chart topper it is as of now.
The boys say: "It's got a really good energy to it...so we felt like we wanted to go back to our roots. It also has a topical reference to where we recorded the album at..."
Obviously, the release was crafted in Sweden. Obviously, I am 100% in love with this cover.
"Statues" starts like the soft tapping of rocks at your window. Within seconds and without warning, Auction is up the fire escape and through your window to take you by pleasant surprise. In other words, the climb starts like a soothing Young The Giant-sized croon that suddenly segues into blistering Foals-esque oblivion, a heady mix of cartwheeling synth accents that float like a butterfly and Stings like The Police. As you feel the energy of five rowdy young London boys fully contained in the ticking timebomb of a chorus that blows its fuse at the perfect moment, time suddenly starts to stand still in a moment of pristine pop clarity. You really need to experience firsthand their meticulous electro-tinged Brit rock to believe it, so get involved because it's time to get sold on Auction.
